The Cloaked Schemer (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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spira_rp2015-01-21 01:44 am
theschemer) wrote in spira_rp2015-01-21 01:44 am
Entry tags:
It all seems to fall at your defense.
Ienzo ached all over.
He wasn't sure he could remember the last time that he felt so exhausted. He had slept well enough in the hotel bed, but a single night's sleep was nowhere near enough to soothe away the strain of travel. He had, thus far, been unsuccessful in his request for a second one.
Just under a week ago, he had been informed that one of the Ryoka had defected from the main group and relocated to Daguerreo, an ancient, vast and half-submerged library out in the wilds of Nabradia. The Ryoka in question, a man described as being tall and very similar in appearance to an Al Bhed, could only be Vexen. Or Even. Whatever he was going by now -- Ienzo didn't know.
Under ordinary circumstances, Ienzo would have pointed out that Vexen was a scientist and that a trip to a repository of information like Daguerreo would not be out of character for him, certainly not enough to count such a trip as being a defection. However, these weren't ordinary circumstances, not now. He remembered Ulquiorra's recording of the battle following the Fall of Midgar. More precisely, he remembered Axel's participation in said battle, and the fact that he was fighting alongside Saix. That, Ienzo was sure, would definitely be enough of a push to get Vexen to cut ties with the group once and for all.
After the revelation came to light (something that L was responsible for), a quiet meeting was held with some of the other members of Khamja. From there, it was decided that he should be ... collected. It wasn't that Ienzo was concerned about him returning to the Order that had made him agree to do it, it was more that he wouldn't put Vexen's elimination past certain members now that he had shown a desire to leave them behind. Clan Khamja was not exactly safe, but it was certainly safer than going it alone in a still unfamiliar world, with enemies behind you, even in a remote location such as he had chosen.
A brief discussion later and a small party was decided upon. It was a carefully picked group of powerful fighters, friends and, it had to be said, enemies.
The group that left the Desert Palace consisted of Lumi and Marluxia, a pair of full Khamja members with enough firepower between them to subdue an unwilling addition to their ranks; himself, due in part to his long association with Vexen, his similar circumstances and the knowledge that Vexen would not trust Marluxia or his partner in the slightest without someone to vouch for them; Ulquiorra, now known to be an associate of his and someone Aizen could trust not to let him escape; and Neliel, because she was strong, non-antagonistic and it was safer for two of Aizen's minions to go on a trip such as this than one, especially given the company.
So far, the journey had been arduous, at least as far as Ienzo was concerned. For a start, it had all been taken across ground, or under it, instead of by airship. They had travelled more of the Zertinan Caverns than Ienzo had known existed and, in spite of the fact that some of it had been undertaken on chocobo-back, there was rather more walking on his own two feet than he would have liked. The second leg had been across the desert, all mounted. The longest part thus far had been through a great tunnel called the Fossil Roo.
That had been the worst.
The Caverns were bad enough, but the tunnel was long to the point of being seemingly endless and, as if that wasn't bad enough, it was also full of air so stale that it had been recommended that masks were worn for that part of the trip.
The aspect of it that had unnerved Ienzo the most was the fact that the Roo stretched from one continent to the other. Underwater. The idea that there was no hope of escape in the event of a cave-in was not his idea of a good time. The huge Gargants that scurried along the long-dead root systems that sprawled across the ceiling was not much fun either and they had, at least to begin with, spooked the chocobos quite as much as they had spooked him.
Well, they were giant spiders.
It had not taken him long to work out that, when the tunnel was built by whichever ancient culture had carved it out, the path between Dalmasca and Nabradia had probably not been submerged at all. Indeed, the sea above them was very likely to be considerably shallower than the rest of it. It had, to his reckoning, been some sort of land bridge recently enough that an intelligent culture had made and, for the duration of their stay, maintained the path. It was a minor miracle that it had survived for so long without its integrity being compromised.
Alternating between riding and walking, they had made the trip from one end to the other in a few long and, after a while, rather painful days. The only positive aspect of the Roo was that it was, for the most part, free of monsters brave enough to bother a party of their calibre.
They had come up some distance inland on Nabradian soil. The nearest city and, as luck would have it, their destination, was Luxerion. It took the group more than a day to reach it, but it was visible long before that thanks to the sky-piercing spire of the city's Cathedral. Luxerion may have even lived up to its name if it wasn't permanently overcast and swirling with Mist of the sort of density that could probably be described as 'low-to-moderate-risk-to-foreigners'.
They arrived late and in darkness. Luxerion did not have much of a tourism industry, not since Nabradia's fall, so the party had no trouble getting a hotel room for the night.
With dawn having broken, the city was beginning to come to life again. Shops opened their doors as the cathedral's bell tolled and, an hour later, Ienzo found himself sat inside an open-fronted café in the railway station, nursing a cup of rapidly cooling tea.
He wasn't sure he could remember the last time that he felt so exhausted. He had slept well enough in the hotel bed, but a single night's sleep was nowhere near enough to soothe away the strain of travel. He had, thus far, been unsuccessful in his request for a second one.
Just under a week ago, he had been informed that one of the Ryoka had defected from the main group and relocated to Daguerreo, an ancient, vast and half-submerged library out in the wilds of Nabradia. The Ryoka in question, a man described as being tall and very similar in appearance to an Al Bhed, could only be Vexen. Or Even. Whatever he was going by now -- Ienzo didn't know.
Under ordinary circumstances, Ienzo would have pointed out that Vexen was a scientist and that a trip to a repository of information like Daguerreo would not be out of character for him, certainly not enough to count such a trip as being a defection. However, these weren't ordinary circumstances, not now. He remembered Ulquiorra's recording of the battle following the Fall of Midgar. More precisely, he remembered Axel's participation in said battle, and the fact that he was fighting alongside Saix. That, Ienzo was sure, would definitely be enough of a push to get Vexen to cut ties with the group once and for all.
After the revelation came to light (something that L was responsible for), a quiet meeting was held with some of the other members of Khamja. From there, it was decided that he should be ... collected. It wasn't that Ienzo was concerned about him returning to the Order that had made him agree to do it, it was more that he wouldn't put Vexen's elimination past certain members now that he had shown a desire to leave them behind. Clan Khamja was not exactly safe, but it was certainly safer than going it alone in a still unfamiliar world, with enemies behind you, even in a remote location such as he had chosen.
A brief discussion later and a small party was decided upon. It was a carefully picked group of powerful fighters, friends and, it had to be said, enemies.
The group that left the Desert Palace consisted of Lumi and Marluxia, a pair of full Khamja members with enough firepower between them to subdue an unwilling addition to their ranks; himself, due in part to his long association with Vexen, his similar circumstances and the knowledge that Vexen would not trust Marluxia or his partner in the slightest without someone to vouch for them; Ulquiorra, now known to be an associate of his and someone Aizen could trust not to let him escape; and Neliel, because she was strong, non-antagonistic and it was safer for two of Aizen's minions to go on a trip such as this than one, especially given the company.
So far, the journey had been arduous, at least as far as Ienzo was concerned. For a start, it had all been taken across ground, or under it, instead of by airship. They had travelled more of the Zertinan Caverns than Ienzo had known existed and, in spite of the fact that some of it had been undertaken on chocobo-back, there was rather more walking on his own two feet than he would have liked. The second leg had been across the desert, all mounted. The longest part thus far had been through a great tunnel called the Fossil Roo.
That had been the worst.
The Caverns were bad enough, but the tunnel was long to the point of being seemingly endless and, as if that wasn't bad enough, it was also full of air so stale that it had been recommended that masks were worn for that part of the trip.
The aspect of it that had unnerved Ienzo the most was the fact that the Roo stretched from one continent to the other. Underwater. The idea that there was no hope of escape in the event of a cave-in was not his idea of a good time. The huge Gargants that scurried along the long-dead root systems that sprawled across the ceiling was not much fun either and they had, at least to begin with, spooked the chocobos quite as much as they had spooked him.
Well, they were giant spiders.
It had not taken him long to work out that, when the tunnel was built by whichever ancient culture had carved it out, the path between Dalmasca and Nabradia had probably not been submerged at all. Indeed, the sea above them was very likely to be considerably shallower than the rest of it. It had, to his reckoning, been some sort of land bridge recently enough that an intelligent culture had made and, for the duration of their stay, maintained the path. It was a minor miracle that it had survived for so long without its integrity being compromised.
Alternating between riding and walking, they had made the trip from one end to the other in a few long and, after a while, rather painful days. The only positive aspect of the Roo was that it was, for the most part, free of monsters brave enough to bother a party of their calibre.
They had come up some distance inland on Nabradian soil. The nearest city and, as luck would have it, their destination, was Luxerion. It took the group more than a day to reach it, but it was visible long before that thanks to the sky-piercing spire of the city's Cathedral. Luxerion may have even lived up to its name if it wasn't permanently overcast and swirling with Mist of the sort of density that could probably be described as 'low-to-moderate-risk-to-foreigners'.
They arrived late and in darkness. Luxerion did not have much of a tourism industry, not since Nabradia's fall, so the party had no trouble getting a hotel room for the night.
With dawn having broken, the city was beginning to come to life again. Shops opened their doors as the cathedral's bell tolled and, an hour later, Ienzo found himself sat inside an open-fronted café in the railway station, nursing a cup of rapidly cooling tea.
no subject
He'd have wondered at the pause as Vexen decided on the word 'companion', but didn't bother to bring it up. If nothing else, letting even Vexen, and potentially Zexion view his relationship with Lumi in a grey area was beneficial. It meant they didn't know exactly where things stood, which was good, because Marluxia viewed them as being in a state of gentle flux right now.
"The truth is, I haven't fully mastered the technique yet." He frowned, and managed not to cast a pointed glance at Zexion, who had successfully kept quiet on the matter until Ulquiorra's replay of his fight with Axel. "So you have that as another advantage over me right now. Despite how many times Saix has clashed with Grimmjow," Marluxia's eyes flicked to Vexen as he added, "that's the blue haired idiot on Khamja's side of the equation, he's neglected to mention that Saix has been pulling a weapon from the aether. It was only Ulquiorra's replay of events that brought the ability to light, and it wasn't exactly the focus of their interests at the time."
Axel had been, and the girl. They'd theorised the girl had been a Ryoka, too, but she definitely wasn't one of theirs, if she was, and Marluxia had heard no more on the matter.
no subject
They had suspected as much when one man, pink haired and bespectacled, if Larxene's description was to be believed, had appeared in battle on two different occasions. Once with Marluxia, his associate and a known member of Khamja and the other when she gained the upper hand by electrocuting a short, grey skinned Mis--
Ah.
He smirked.
Still, that just raised as many questions as it answered. Did the blue-haired man's involvement with Khamja mean that his encounters with Saix were pre-planned? Were they being watched that closely? Coincidences of that nature weren't impossible, to be sure, but was it likely? If he hadn't reported such an ability, he obviously didn't consider it very interesting or important, but that could just as easily mean that he wasn't particularly curious in that regard. He waved the thought away. Interesting as it was, it wasn't pertinent information for the moment. He would undoubtedly have plenty of opportunities to get to the bottom of that later.
That Marluxia had openly admitted a weakness to him was far more relevant.
"So," he said, looking at them both. "Is there anything else I should be informed of?"
no subject
Vexen seemed to have settled on the notion of joining them willingly; Marluxia didn't want to put him off, if he could help it.
"Nothing else of great importance for you to know right now," he decided, after a moment. "Most of the rest we can discuss on the way; it's not as sensitive. Just be sure to guard your words and actions in front of Ulquiorra and Nel. Lumi is less of a concern." Lumi wasn't going to go running to Captain Aizen with anything he heard or saw that might be tactically useful.
"Speaking of," he said, looking over at Zexion, since he was by the door, "they'll be getting antsy." Ulquiorra in particular had seemed unwilling to let Zexion out of his sight, and Marluxia was sure he was monitoring the reiatsu in this room very, very closely. "We should probably hurry up."
Before Ulquiorra bored of patiently monitoring reiatsu and broke the door down to drag Vexen back, whether he consented to go or not.
no subject
Marluxia had done a good job of convincing him, which was heartening. He had expected drafting Vexen to be rather more difficult than it was, but presenting the options to him from the outset had worked well. He had a strong feeling that he would have been able to snare him without Marluxia's help, but Marluxia doing the majority of the work meant that their alliance was assured from the beginning and that the old Number Eleven wasn't going to be an unpleasant surprise and source of antagonism further down the line.
"He's right," he said, dropping his hand from the keyhole, leaning off the door and spreading his weight evenly on both feet. "If we delay longer than we already have, they will grow suspicious that we're plotting something. The Arrancar are useful allies to have, but they do answer to someone else and will relay information back to their superior."
The last word almost sounded like it had a capital letter, somehow.
no subject
"Very well," he said, straightening up a bit.
He would undoubtedly learn who could and couldn't be trusted back at Clan Khamja's base,wherever that was, but he didn't expect there to be many in the former category. The prospect of joining a group made up of various mutually opposed groups wasn't an inviting one, but it was better than the immediate alternatives.
"I trust you will afford me time to pack," he said shortly.
no subject
"We'll be stopping in Luxerion if you need to refresh any supplies for the journey, and if there's anything you want retrieved," he smiled, thinly, wondering how much of Vexen's life he'd left behind, and how much he might want to recover, given the opportunity, "arrangements can be made."
no subject
"I will ... take that into consideration," he said, his eyes dropping for just a second too long. He gritted his teeth behind his lips, stood up sharply and waved a hand vaguely. "Now get out so I can pack without you two loitering."
no subject
He was surprised at the relative warmth of the corridor after enduring the effects of Vexen's reiatsu in that room and shivered. He looked at the Arrancar, Ulquiorra first, and nodded.
"He's in," he said.
no subject
He met Zexion's eyes when he opened the door and stepped through, and responded to his statement with nothing more than a nod, a blink, and a murmur of understanding.
Zexion's reiatsu had stayed steady, and Marluxia's had wavered, dipping lower than normal at points, as if he'd been trying to seem less threatening, or keep something concealed. In the end, Ulquiorra had little interest in how exactly they had convinced their target to join of his own free will, simply that they had.
no subject
Ulquiorra had been watching the room. Nel had watched their backs, because getting here first didn't mean that someone else couldn't be right behind them. She'd feel better when they got out of here, now, especially with Vexen having agreed to join. If word got back to The Order, they might mobilise, if they hadn't already.
"Nicely done," she said, with a gentle smile. "What's he doing now?"
no subject
It lasted only a second, however, because this was still Vexen.
He caught Lumi's eye after that statement, and the corner of his mouth twitched, subtly, in reminiscence of a smile, and it was matched by the very faintest of nods. It had gone exceptionally smoothly, and they had a new ally. One who was, perhaps, not trusted, but who nonetheless, had potential to be useful to them.
It had been quite successful, in all.