Round 1 Part B-2v1 (2)

[Solar Haven]

Warpath and Sighter Trailog vs BlackAndBlueEyes

Begins March the 15th at 12:01 am EST. The fight ends March the 29th at 12:01 am EST.

[BlackAndBlueEyes]

I couldn't tell you where I was holed up. It was somewhere in the frozen wastes of this godsforsaken podunk country in the middle of the uncharted seas.

But I could tell you that I immediately surrounded myself with stacks and stacks of wire cages, and had my Order-appointed assistants filled them with various rats, rabbits, and other small furry woodland creatures. Both the noise and smell (because everything poops) in the cramped, dimly lit makeshift lab was nearly unbearable. But as the opening days of our campaign progressed, at least the noise began dying down.

My terrible work had begun.

One of the couriers, a tall, pale, lanky creature obviously born specifically to play minor roles in life slipped in through the wooden door of the abandoned tavern I had set up shop in, bringing in a rush of chilly Eiskalt air with him. The brown rabbit I held down to the table with my metal hand frightfully looked at the man, then back at me, at the man once more, then at the syringe filled with dark liquid that I loosely held in my left hand. "Ms. Freebird," a hoarse voice whispered behind me. The rabbit squeaked, uncomfortable, fearful, and lamenting its lot in life.

I glanced in his direction. "Ah, good. You're here. Two seconds." I turned my attention back to the rabbit, bringing the tip of the needle closer to its neck. The animal tried to escape my grip, but failed. I pushed the needle in, and with a quick press, injected the liquid. The poor little thing howled in pain. "There there," I cooed softly, "You're going to be just fine. Maybe." The courier, masterfully trained by Lichensith Ulroké, watched my every movement as I returned the thing to the cage it shared with sever others of its kind. They two were recovering from their injections; their lethargic nature and labored breathing meant that the calming serum was doing its job while the parasites made themselves at home.

I snatched another syringe up from the corner of my work bench, this one filled with a fiery red liquid, and tossed it at the courier. "Before you go about your task, you might want to stick this in your arm. It's a vaccine, so you don't pick up what these little cuties are dishing out." I smiled warmly at the pile of rabbits in the cage, their eyes glazed over as the infection took hold.

The courier casually jabbed the needle in his arm and gave the plunger a quick push. "I was never informed exactly what my duties are, ma'am."

"Normally," I replied, "that's how I'd prefer to operate. Especially given the circumstances of our presence in this backwater hellhole. But, given who trained you, I don't suppose it'll hurt discussing it. I've been wanting to discuss this with someone anyway." My smile grew wider and wider. "You have no idea how much this experiment excites me, anyway!"

Tall 'N' Pale dug around in his mouth with his tongue, and produced a cyanide pill. "I am always prepared to take my mission to the grave, if need be."

I peeled my work gloves off my hands, casually tossing them onto the table next to me. "Good man. So what we're doing here--well, what I'm doing here, with you lot that Lichensith gave me, is we're spreading a little bit of the plague." I gestured towards the piles of sickly animals whose cages littered the dirty makeshift lab. "Every single one of these critters have been injected with a parasite that delivers something special I cooked up for the occasion. Some have been delivered to the farmlands in the valley and by Lake Peaceful already, and from what I've been hearing from your comrades, the infection is taking hold."

"I've heard similar reports, Ms. Freebird. But the infection is weak--there are very few accounts of people dying because of this."

I raised an eyebrow, surprised that the courier missed the idea. "No, see, when a person dies, all you have to do is bury the body and move on with your day. But when you make people sick, you have to spend people and resources making sure that they don't die. That's all I'm trying to accomplish here. That way, while our forces are focusing solely on the attack, the Eiskalt government and the Ixian Knights are busy trying to juggle a number of different problems. They stretch themselves thin, leave themselves open, and make mistakes. That's when we capitalize."

The man nodded, finally grasping the concept. I continued, "Of course, nothing is perfect; young children and old people who contract the disease will likely die; but they're not useful in Eiskalt's war effort anyway, so whatever." I shrugged.

"So what is it you need me to do?"

"I need you to take several cages of animals and deliver them around the farmlands in the valley and near Tyranta. Let a few loose in the fields; when the things go to nibble on crops or drink from water, the parasites will transfer through their saliva and begin infecting crops and water sources. Drop some in grain silos, meat stores, even drown a few in the lake for all I care; the disease will spread regardless. Easy enough, right?"

The courier nodded again.

"Good," I said with a grin.

[Warpath]

It had been raining in Radasanth, but here it was snowing lightly.

There was an abrupt change in temperature and air pressure from one side of the portal to the other, and it made Flint cough and spit. He glared at the Ixian wizard holding the gate open, who smiled an apology. He refused to feel guilty for his misplaced displeasure. Taking advantage of magic - even magic as useful as portals - left him in a foul mood.

The arcane gateways opened immediately into a staging area. Movement through the portals was constant and heavy, so the brute stepped aside before taking in his surroundings. Crates and lockboxes stacked upon pallets were being carried through the portals two at a time while a steady stream of soldiers and support personnel passed between them. It was understood that these shipments were mainly tools and supplies: the weapons, rations, and raw material for fortifications had come through first, some days ago. When the Ixians vowed to send aid, they didn't skimp.

The staging area was situated at the top of a hill overlooking white-grey plains, with mountains to one side and a dense, snowy fog on the other. Caravans were already streaming out of camp in every direction, laden carts under heavy escort. The camp itself was basic and temporary, with four massive tents erected at the cardinal directions. It was an efficient, practiced exercise - no doubt learned during the civil war in Corone - and Flint took many mental notes.

"Mister Skovik," someone said while approaching him. "You're taller than I was told."

He turned to regard the speaker. It was a woman, shorter than he with dark hair pulled back in a severe bun. She was tired but focused, with the point of ear and subtle curve of eye that suggested elven heritage. A half-elf, then. She smiled just enough to have it called polite and extended her hand. He shook it. Her grip was strong and she maintained eye contact.

"I hear that often," he said.

"I believe it. The Information Team is one of the best in the world, so if my intel is out of date...well." She smiled again. "My name is Aislanna Grove. I'm a garrison adjutant for the Ixian forces here. I've been overseeing transfer and deployment from this staging ground, mainly into the countryside. I have to be honest Mister Skovik, I can't figure out why you're here. You haven't exactly been seen as friendly to our organization before now."

"Just Flint will suffice," the brute said. "I would hope Miss Orlouge did not take our previous encounter personally. It was, after all, a tournament."

"I don't presume to know how the acting head of the Knights feels about anything," Aislanna said with a shrug. "It was just...surprising. I understand you mainly operate in Salvar, and your modus operandi suggests you'd sooner side with our opponents here in Eiskalt."

"That is so," Flint said. "I am here representing Chronicle. My personal causes are meaningless."

"I wasn't aware Luned Bleddyn or Leopold Winchester had an interest here, either."

"Perhaps your Information Team is not as impressive as you have been lead to believe," Flint mused, all while staring unblinkingly. In fact, the girl was beginning to realize he had not blinked yet. She let her eyes drift for an instant - just an instant. "You need not fear from me, Miss Grove, or my friends. I believe we see ourselves as being above this conflict."

"That's a shame. These people need help."

"It is feasible that they do. We will have to hope they develop the sense to overthrow whoever wins here, as they should have overthrown their corrupt monarchs before any of us knew of this place," Flint said. "Sometimes we only learn from hardship."

"I'm surprised you've heard of Eiskalt at all," Aislanna said. "No offense."

"I had not before recently. There is little to interest me here, excepting perhaps their mandated military service. I am curious to see how that custom serves them. No, I am merely here to observe."

"That's a shame," the adjutant said. "If you've got a moment, there's something I'd like to show you. Before you get on with your observing, I mean."

Flint shrugged and held out one hand, indicating she should lead. She did, marching smartly toward the smallest but most heavily guarded tent. Flint followed, all the while taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of the camp. His gaze moved efficiently, working out the purpose of each person, the need for each work station, the ebb and flow of tools and supplies, the position of watchmen and scouts. He'd been fighting all his life, but he'd never been on a battlefield before.

The inside of the command tent was a wellspring of valuable lessons: maps covered in flags and pins and notes, cork board covered in posted missives detailing rumor and confirmed fact, prioritized by age. He could only guess at the things being shouted between all those assembled within, the purpose behind their ceaseless buzzing and hurrying - it was like a hive.

Aislanna stepped in behind a desk. There was a map of Eiskalt spread out over its surface, and she tapped one pale fingernail down on the middle of it. "There are a series of villages out here, relatively removed from any fighting we know of. Farming communities, mostly."

Flint glanced at the map, then up at the woman.

"Eiskalt draws a fair number of soldiers from the area but," she continued, "more importantly, this is where they draw a lot of their supplies from. Food, clean water, medical supplies. It's also where their families are - their grandparents, their children."

"War breeds plague," Flint said.

"Not like this. Not so early, and not so sudden, and it doesn't specifically pick targets of emotional significance. Plagues don't understand morale, people do."

"You believe it to be intentional," Flint said. "A manufactured disease." He began to digest the implications.

"I know it is, Mister Skovik. Flint. The Knights recruited me from the Imperial Army after the civil war in Corone. I've been doing this a long time. I know what war does, and I know a natural sickness when I see it. There's nothing natural about this. Somebody is poisoning these people."

The brute stared at her for a long moment, and then he let himself frown.

"Look," Aislanna said. "I can't spare much just to investigate this. I've picked out a volunteer to check it out for me. Maybe you just want to tag along with him. I'll hire you on as a bodyguard for him. You'll make some coin, and you'll be in a perfect position to...you know, observe."

Flint almost let himself chuckle. "Well played, Miss Grove," he said. "If your suspicions prove true I would find it...distasteful. I will accompany your man, but you will keep your money. Instead, your vaunted Information Team will perform a service for me."

"What do you need?"

"I wish to find an old friend before he finds me. Rumor places him here, in Eiskalt."

"Okay," Aislanna said cautiously. "What's his name?"

"Aurelianus Drak'shal."

[Silence Sei]

As much as I would have liked to see how this played out, I'm declaring BlackAndBlueEyes the winner for having the more compelling introduction.

Congratulations!