Quest The Return

[Kaska]

He didn't seem to have a response to the reveal. Whether or not he believed them, never mind trusted them remained a visible issue. He could not believe these words just because they came from his daughter. At the same time, if there was a chance at all that they could be false, and Kaska exonerated... well he would not let it pass. And then there was the matter of what they had suggested.

Treachery? Inside the ranks?

He shifted back, the angry tension dissipating to wariness as Kaska stepped around him to Lia's side.

She said nothing, but the angry way she raised her chin at him spoke volumes. He felt a twinge of regret for the blood smeared there.

"These are heavy accusations, not ones you should lightly toss out.

 

[Lia]

"I do not make them lightly." Her voice was stern now, fire in her tone. This was as serious as could possibly be.

"My service to the Rangers has been unmarred by mistake or infraction." The same could not be said for Kaska, and she had no idea about Addis, but she was an example of what a Ranger should be. "I do not say these things for my own benefit, but for the benefit of our Order."

Her lips thinned, then she glanced at Addis. "Who was murdered?"

She repeated the elf's question.

 

[Kaska]

The commander's lips thinned, considering the trio before him.

"Ranger Theo Hilp." The name would strike a cord in Addis-- the boy, barely a man, had caused him quite a fair share of grief on the training field. Addis's struggles to weather his attitude and get the lad through proper training were no secret to anyone in the compound. It might almost be a relief to learn he'd no longer have to deal with him.

Which was entirely the point.

"Who?" Kaska echoed, glancing for an explanation from the others.

It was Addis that the commander was watching, his gaze heavy and prodding. "They say you three returned from the tavern drunk. By noon the next morning, you were gone." His head turned to Lia, voice gruff but urging.

"If they have gotten you into anything, it does not have to go down like this. Mistakes happen. We make the wrong choices." His gaze went with burning intention to Kaska, which left her stiffening.

"But that doesn't mean we have to drag our friends down with us."

 

[Addis Vrummal]

Shoulders slumped at the name. It was well known that Addis had trouble dealing with the young man, making a point of trying to be painfully pleasant even when the lad had decided well against returning the kindness. A heavy sigh followed, his gaze falling to the floor as he rubbed his face.

Sure, Theo had been terrifically difficult at times. Almost seeming to make deliberate attempts to get under the his instructors skin. Earning him several stable and latrine assignments as reprimand, sometimes even in the same day if he was feeling particularly excitable. Human youth tended to bring a certain fire with them whenever they thought the world was an oyster for their plucking.

Sadness rode him and was visible on his face, for the wasted talent that he had yet to draw out of Theo. Or for some other reason perhaps. He looked at the older man before addressing Kaska, chewing his lip for a brief moment.

"A young man in training, wasted potential thanks to the major's game." Addis informed her quietly. The man's words held some truth, even if the drunk part was squarely on a singular someone's shoulders. He wasn't about to cut in on Lia addressing him though. Feeling a bit like a fish out of water, he kept any further comment's to himself.

 

[Lia]

"We made no mistakes." Lia said with a straight face, doing her best to process the information of a murder.

The accusation was a serious one, but any evidence to it had to be little more than circumstantial. She was sure that Addis had dome connection to this man, and his soft words confirmed as much, but none of them had gone near him since their return.

Lia had never even heard of him in fact.

"What is the evidence against us?" She asked. "Nothing."

She didn't wait for an answer. "We didn't kill anyone. We ran because we knew the Major's secrets, and we knew that if we did not run he would manufacture a reason to arrest us or have us killed."

Seems he did something similar enough.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska didn't speak, beyond the glare she leveled at him she didn't utter a word. She could have told him all of this and she would have. But he had hit her. Hit her.

He wasn't a man that was prone to hitting, but Kaska had always had a way about driving him desperately frustrated, and this, well...

Enough bridges had been burned between them for him to hear rumor and lash out on it without thought. It had been easy to tarnish Kaska with false accusations. Hell, she had done half the work for them.

But for the first time, the commander looked to his daughter and wondered if the accusations were actually true. Careless, sure. Defiant, Manipulative and irrational-- yes, she was all of those things.

But a murderer?


He pointed to the table in his office, the sliding doors wide open and the morning light warming the room. "Sit down," he ordered gruffly. "Tell me what happened. From the beginning."

 

[Lia]

Lia was furious of course. Her entire body was fuming and her fingers were scrunched into a tight fist around the hilt of her sword breaker. The half of her wanted to lurch forward and stab the man for striking her friend, but she knew that wasn't an option here.

Not if they wanted to leave outside of manacles.

Instead she took a breath, her fingers scrunching for just a brief moment until finally they released the hilt of her blade. For a moment she half turned, acting as though she were moving one of the kinks in her armor and adjusting her blade. She took the flicker of time to mouth four words to Addis. Stand by the door.

She wasn't taking any risks.

Hopefully Kaska would take the queue from the elf, but there was no way to signal her too.

A moment passed, and she turned back towards the Major and took a few steps towards the man as she began the entire story from the beginning.

 

[Addis Vrummal]

Addis had not done more than silently stare at the floor before his eyes went up to look at the man as he motioned for them to enter his office. His eyes slid to Lia as she twisted, seeming uncomfortable in her armor as they all likely were by this point in their journey. It was doubtful that they would be out of it soon if Kaska's father wasn't feeling amiable.

He barely caught what she had mouthed to him, distracted by his own thoughts for a moment. Taking a brief second to stretch his arms as if her own stretching had reminded him that he too was uncomfortable. He stayed by the door, his body relaxed as he leaned and his features wiped clean of the the usual cheer he held.

It seemed that the news of Theo's murder weighed heavily on the elf.

 

[Kaska]

A small stare off resulted in Kaska flopping into the seat with a huff. She knew she should act better in a moment like this, it would work better in her favor. But her blood boiled and her cheek stung. So like a petulant child she put her feet up and glowered as Lia told their story ... leaving out the worst parts. Thank the gods.

Kaska sat up a little straighter at then, finding in herself to compose herself a little more soberly for Lia's sake.

The commander took in the tale silently, the tension in his body pulling his lips pursed and tight. By the end of it he looked as if he was sucking on a sour lemon, his expression troubled but otherwise unreadable.

"And you?" He finally called out, giving no indication to his thoughts on the tale as he forced Addis back into the room with a firm point at the remaining seat.

Once sitted, the commander finally asked, "How does an elf like you get caught up in my daughter's shenanigans." No one would be spared explaining themselves, the commanders ears keen for lies and blips in mannerism.

 

[Addis Vrummal]

Addis did not listen for the most part, his attention keenly pointed outside of the room until his presence was demanded. He refrained from sighing, reminding himself of how the man had handled his daughter. He sat politely, his eyes meeting the commanders before he spoke, and holding that stare while sharing his part.

He did his best to explain the odd tension that rose preceding the return of Lia and Kaska. The gathering of three majors and the whispers that had been abound in the compound following their attendance. The hostility directly from a major he had received for asking questions, and following a trail someone else had left behind.

"I inserted myself into their trouble by asking questions and getting noticed. Kaska had nothing to do with it other than failing to warn me off." Addis finished speaking. He wasn't entirely sure where his own story would get them, but it was certainly a different angle on the story.

 

[Kaska]

Heavy fingers drummed against the solid wood of the table- a slow waterfall that repeated itself without fail as the three was left to squirm in silence.

"And your entry into the city?" The commander finally asked, hard gaze breaking from them to flit critically to the window and the horses outside it.

"Was it observed?"

 

[Lia]

"Unlikely." Lia stated plainly.

No one had known of their coming to Alliria, and she hadn't spotted anyone following them through the city streets. It's likely that since then that changed given that they'd made their way through the Ranger compound itself.

Though that was unavoidable.

Ranger's were not all idiots, and most of them had a habit of observing uneasy goings on around them. There was no telling what they noticed, especially here in the compound where things were more often than not run through a certain system. If that system was disrupted?

It made waves.

 

[Addis Vrummal]

Addis did not say anything, more than willing to let Lia answer the question. He hadn't noticed anyone looking their way, but then again, it was hard telling just how many eyes were looking out for them.

 

[Kaska]

"Hmph."

The commander stood with a grunt, his fingers tightening the belt around his waste as he turned to address all three. "Stay here," he ordered firmly. As he walked out Kaska noticed a slight limp to his gate-- barely noticeable to most but her. She abruptly stood, pressing herself to the windowsill and watching him walk out to the horses with furrowed brows.

"He's taking down our bags," she finally murmured, voice hoarse. And as she watched, he tucked each three's personal gear behind a bush an took the reigns, clearing intending to walk the to a boarder.

 

[Lia]

A frown touched Lia's lips, her eyes wandering between the other two. "Get ready to run."

She didn't know what was going to happen. She had no idea what Kaska's father was thinking or how he'd taken all of their stories...but they needed to be prepared for the very worst. There was only so much that they could do themselves, but...well they'd figure out a way.

"We may have to fight." Her grip tightened on the sword-breaker. "Try not to kill anyone."

She swallowed. "They're still Rangers."

It was a dark thing to say, but it had to be said.

 

[Addis Vrummal]

Addis gave a sharp nod to Lia when addressed and kept attention to any stray sounds. It was strange to have to think about fighting fellow rangers, and the effort they would have to put into not killing others while trying to flee was a whole other problem.

"Legs and arms." Addis mumbled. Silently thanking the design of his two short blades, all he had to do was flip them around and strike with the blunt backside to not kill. He hoped anyone that pursued them had the same idea of not killing them or else it may have been a short getaway if they didn't have qualms about it.

"Your estate next?" Addis nodded to Lia as he stood and began to stretch and limber up. If they were going to be running in town, alleyways and streets could suddenly clutter up with people and carts. He wasn't about to be caught because of a cramp from being in the saddle so long.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska frowned at them both, wiping another trickle of blood away.

"He wouldn't have just left us here if he was going to apprehend us, that's sloppy. We could leave right now." She tucked the curtain back over the window, turning to face them with her arms crossed. "Besides, he has more of a reason than anyone else to believe us. This isn't the first coup he's seen."

She was braced for their shock, the coup that happened when she was baby not public knowledge in the slightest. She knew of it though. She was raised under the fall out of it.

 

[Lia]

"We'll wait." Lia said quietly, glancing at Kaska with a frown.

Coup? What was she talking about?

There was nothing in the Ranger's Records about any coup, certainly not anything in the open. Still, whatever it was didn't matter right now. Not when things were still teetering on the edge. "What do you mean, Kaska?"

Lia didn't take her hand off of the sword-breaker, knowing that the weapon would be far more useful than the blessed blade she carried upon her back.

The Ranger Compound was made up of tight corridors and slim hallways. Trying to use a sword here would be difficult. Especially against trained Rangers.

 

[Addis Vrummal]

His stretches were cut short as Kaska spoke. It was true that the notion of him leaving them in the room alone was sloppy, but even then, well laid traps often did not alert those on the receiving end. The detail of not his first coup however made his brow furrow and his eyes fall on her. Lia beat him to the question, and he waited with confusion plainly painted on his face.

He'd been with the rangers for some time, and he could not recall anything about a coup happening in it's past.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska huffed, forcing herself to sit back at the table and try to find her words. She shouldn't be saying this to them, but by this point... what did they care about protocol anyway.


"Do you remember Major Smethingstons?" She asked Addis. Of course he did, quite a man of his time. Lia, however, not so much. Kaska looked to her friend and added in, "He defeated some great unnatural army up in the mountains, not unlike uwhat we did. He had magic in him, made him great for the job. But one day it wasn't enough, and... Well, he started resorted to.... questionable methods for more.

"When this got out, he tried to over turn the whole system. A coup, discovered by my father himself. Smethingstons didn't retire. He was banished. But not before taking out some good men and escaping with a few items that never should have seen the light of day," she admitted, not yet personally making any connection to that story and this.


"The other majors felt it would be bad for moral to let it out that one of their own had done such a thing so..." She rubbed at her face, glancing pointlessly to the closed window.

"Personally, I just think it wounded their pride and hurt their coffers. But my father, I dunno, I hear it changed him or something. He's always been paranoid now."

 

[Lia]

Lia frowned, unsure of what to think.

A coup?

It wasn't too far-fetched, not after all this had been revealed to them. Once she would have called Kaska a fool for believing such nonsense, but now...now it seemed more than plausible. Her lips thinned, fingers scrunching for a brief moment before she drummed them on her thighs.

"There's few mages in the Rangers." She commented quietly. There was no ban on them officially, but most of the time they tended not to stay for one reason or another.

"Only about a dozen right now." Her head shook. "Maybe that's why."

It seemed odd to her, but it was just a guess.

 

[Addis Vrummal]

"Smethingston? That is what happened to him? I-" Addis cut himself off as he thought on the past. That little but of information made a lot more sense now of what had happened. The man's sudden absence, the reluctance to say what reason he had left for by the majors.

"They did a damn good job of sweeping that into the cellar. I had never thought anything of it." The elf admitted when Kaska finished. He looked to Lia and added a bit to what she said.

"And maybe why they are so closely watched. I always thought it weird the rules they had to follow." Addis chimed in.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska grimaced, wrapping her arms around herself.

"We don't have the power or the influence to deal with this, but my father does so just-" The thunder of galloping horses broke across the quiet of the street.

"What in the- Arg!" Came the distinguishable rumble of Kaska's father's voice.

The sounds of a scuffle broke out in front of the house. Kaska startled, jumping right to the curtains and carefully peeling them back.

"You're under arrest!" Men were off their horses, blocking his path up the walkway to the house.

"For what!" He roared.

"Treason. Take him in."

Kaska peeled off the window, eyes wide as she door towards the door with an intention to get out there and help him.

 

[Lia]

"It sort of makes se-" Lia found herself cut off as a scramble of voices erupted, the color draining from her face almost instantly as she realized what was going on.

Her eyes locked on Kaska, seeing that the girl obviously made the same connection that she did. Lips thinned, and as soon as her friend set off Lia took a step forward and grabbed the back of her collar. Her fist tightened in an instant, stopping the woman before she could take another step.

"We're outnumbered." She told her. "In enemy territory right now."

A switch had been flipped.

The sounds that they had heard, the voices that had echoed, there was no questioning what had just happened. Kaska's father had been arrested, and he'd been their last lifeline in the Rangers.

If they took him...it meant they were coming through that door next. "We have to go."

 

[Addis Vrummal]

Horses outside drew the elf's attention, and the hasty moving of Kaska had him blocking the door. Lia reined the other woman in, and Addis felt relieved. He wasn't the strongest person in the world, and even with the earlier display of filial affection earlier, he very much doubted he could have stopped Kaska.

"Any backdoors in the overly prepared house?" Addis asked, hands on the blades of his back, well prepared as boots hit the what he guessed was the front door. He really didn't want to start a fight in a house, especially if they could sneak out. Lots of places for a blade to catch when swung when one did not train for indoor fighting. Their horses would have made the escape easier if they could get outside, but also drawn attention. Win and lose with the same gamble.