Futuristic [Archived] VOIB_ARC1_PART2

[Arkangel]

Valorous Order: Volume 1 - Chapter 2

Story Chapter

Necessary Expedient

Kriegsheld Cadre

Gundahar

Dietrich Lexcher

Imperius City, Elesrith | 9:45 PM Standard Imperius Time

After the coordinated attack on the Grand Imperius Bridge that left the platform divided, senior Vanguard Morphus ordered a strike on the haven of the Golden Oath Organization using whatever forces she could muster, only to be validated of her suspicions. As suspected, the ambush was planned according to their haste escape, moving their resources and men to an untraceable location that left the Vanguard dumbfounded. For the first time in years, Sinaria had lost the lead. After believing that she was a step ahead of the enemy, she would only be left disappointed with the realization that this wasn’t going to be settled before the Northern Coalition Anniversary.

What came after was a thorough scan of the entire northern province. From observing recorded footage of the street cameras to auditing the companies near the area to gain any leads, the effort seemed rather fruitless, as the enemy had managed to disappear without a trace to be seen. Honestly, it was an act deserving of applause from the senior Vanguard. From installing a mole into the ranks of the Vanguards’ lower management to successfully escaping an ambush that should’ve been impossible, if Sinaria and Hildegard couldn’t get this over with before the anniversary, they were going to be in for a rude awakening.

However, as the situations became tougher, fortunately for them, they had a group of people to rely on during these trying times.

As the two teams rendezvoused in a secure private cafe in one of the many state-owned skyscrapers in the stunning city of Imperius, the Vanguards and the Arclights could be seen gathered in the main lobby, with several new faces in the corners waiting to introduce themselves to the club. After the realization that they required extra bodies with specialized expertise surrounding different fields, the Kriegsheld Cadre went out of their way to recruit new fighters to help with the Vanguard’s end of the deal for their cooperation with the problem in Aucteraden.

The cafe, which was more of a soft nightclub and bar for the high-class of the Elesrith hierarchy, was one of the more secure areas in the province, with strict supervision and hidden spy tools installed in nearly every corner of the establishment and the exterior outside, making it one of the more reliable places for privacy. With spies confirmed in the lower ranks, the original place for discussion, the Emperon Palace, was now considered a red zone for any private conversations until they could successfully weed out the moles that had thwarted their initial plans.

Unfortunately for those stressed with the current line of work, the only bartender of this establishment, who also happened to be a high-ranking Vanguard, was nowhere to be seen as he was on duty unrelated to the current operation. And because of his strict nature and the rules of his ownership, no one was allowed to touch anything behind the counter.

Not that anyone was left to supervise except for the excessively strict Hildegard herself, who was seen constantly scolding Cerberus for trying to sneak into the wine storage.

As for the tolerant Dietrich, he sat on one of the tall stools and focused with his arms folded, discussing the main issues with everyone now involved with the extermination of the Sindalone weapons storage and the rising threat of the Golden Path’s terroristic plans. “Before we discuss our next move, it would be appropriate to give the newcomers a chance to introduce themselves. I’m glad we have new Vanguards joining the ranks. As for us, we have a promising ISD agent who’ll be aiding us from the skies.”

Interactions: Cerberus, Hildegard, Panther (Syriel), Khocolatte (Euthalia), Emiya Shin (Cecilia), TerrorKitty (Vex), lunar_moth (Lusia), SleepySheepiez (Valkyria), Admiral19 (Retten)

Code by Serobliss

 

[Emiya Shin]

Imperial Security Directorate

Cecilia Ravenholm

Disillusioned Defender

Imperius City, Elesrith | 9:45 PM Standard Imperius Time

Shortly after the assault on the Grand Imperius Bridge, Cecilia followed and executed whatever orders that was given to her. That included raiding Golden Path hideouts and the rest of the Sindalone ports which became mysteriously empty, staking out possible last known locations for the slightest updates, combing numerous amounts of security footages, and the list of work went on.

Unfortunately, and of course, to the others' surprise, they vanished without a trace. Even Cecilia herself was dumbfounded with that outcome. How can the Golden Path, and by extension, the Sindalone Organization managed to escape so quickly? They are simply just too organized, at least for a terrorist organization. Can a mole in the lower ranks of the Vanguards' could gave that much of an advantage?

Then again, Cecilia also managed to learn about the assault on the Grand Imperius Bridge. It was a massive attack, helmed by a monstrous armored figure, accompanied by a lighter one. A surgical strike to buy their factions time for their manpower and resources to escape, and relocate. Even then, it still did not make any sense. Something was definitely missing, at least according to Cecilia's own analysis.

* * *​

Fortunately, the Demonoid managed to put those thoughts aside, as she traveled towards a particular cafe in Elesrith with a taxi. She was on a break, after handling numerous work finding the Golden Path's activities. Cecilia was dressed in a business casual attire, which consist of black long pants, a white blouse, and a beige colored casual jacket. It did not took for the automated taxi to arrive on her destination, and she soon stepped out from the vehicle after paying for the fare.

Cecilia definitely knew that she had arrived at the right cafe, as she noticed that there were numerous... bystanders of various races standing guard outside the establishment. They were wearing a mixture of smart black and white attires, adorned with red accents. To the commoners, it was probably just some rich people booking the cafe for some parties. For the Demonoid however, that was a group of plainclothed security detail in action. It would not be surprising, if those people are mostly consist of low rank Elesrith ISD agents.

The white-haired Demonoid calmly walked towards the cafe. It did not took long for the cafe's security detail to notice her, and soon raised a hand to get her attention. With a smile, she took out her ISD card from her pocket, and passed it to one of the security folks, who seemed to be a female Exhelian with a black long hair. While they were checking on Cecilia's ID, the Demonoid also handed over her own personal firearm, an Akashic Records replica of the USP .45 caliber handgun. Some of the security details were pretty surprised that Cecilia actually brought weapons, but they were soon hushed by perhaps a senior security agent. After some patting down, and security scanning on the Demonoid's body...

"Miss Cecilia Ravenholm, you're cleared to enter." The dark haired female Exhelian agent from before returned Cecilia's ID to its owner, before allowing the Demonoid's entrance into the cafe.

"Thank you." Cecilia nodded, and went into the cafe.

* * *​

By the time she was inside the cafe, Dietrich already stood up from his seat. He started addressing to the others about the arrival of a new Vanguard, as well as an ISD agent that will be joining their ranks in fighting against the Golden Path. The 'aiding us from the skies' part seemed pretty familiar for the Demonoid. It seemed that certain ISD agent finally got their chance, was it not?

But first, she had to address her boss regarding about her late arrival. Cecilia nodded at Dietrich with a customary smile, when their eyes met each other.

"I apologize for my late arrival, as I was caught up on traffic."

For some, especially those who had referred to their traveling assistants, it was a thinly veiled lie to move the current attention away from her. Once that was done, Cecilia then moved to the side, and started scanning around for the new members Dietrich previously mentioned. She was hoping of course, the newcomers would not be late for this meeting.

Arkangel Panther Khocolatte lunar_moth SleepySheepiez Admiral19

Code by Serobliss

 

[SleepySheepiez]

Imperial Security Directorate

Valkyria

Elizabet Van der Lucht

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH | 9:45 PM STANDARD IMPERIUS TIME

So soon!

The short statured, blonde girl had fiercely resisted the urge to fidget uncomfortably on the high-end leather of her bar stool as the crowd in the isolated café quickly grew from a few isolated newcomers to the main bulk of... whatever it was they were calling this initiative. Briefing had probably covered it, but for the life of her, the agent known as Valkyria had other, far more pressing thoughts clamoring for her attention. Even after sitting and waiting in this isolated establishment for some time, the arrival of so many new faces somehow still felt too soon. Dietrich Lexcher, or Gundahar, or whichever she would finally settle on calling the bandaged man, was the only familiar face in the room from her recruitment and it was right and proper nerve fraying to a rookie still in the process of adjusting to the overwhelming sights and sounds of Imperius city.
To say she was coursing through her day so far with a pulse pounding adrenaline buzzing beneath the skin would be putting it lightly.

Among this select few were the operatives who had been out on the bridge, and most all present had physically risked their lives in service to the greater safety of the common man. From the sound of things, the Marauder was nothing short of impressive if it had taken fire on so many fronts and still done as much damage as it had.
This was the real deal.
Life and death stuff.
Collibrandes and terrorists stuff.
Heroic stuff.

The girl swallows at a hard lump forming near the back of her throat.
Many of the faces before her had almost certainly watched the life leave someone else's eyes knowing they were the cause.
The idea isn't new to Elizabet, but that doesn't make it any less chilling. The girl slides down from her seat to take a standing position as the majority begins to gather, the number of people testing at the flighty energy coursing through her. Not being in her flightsuit, or the accompanying robust exoskeleton that would encase her body like a sleek metal glove... it made her feel vulnerable, especially knowing how adept most of her colleagues likely were without such high-tech advantages.
She'd frantically skimmed some files while she had been waiting.
It had been enough to leave the skyborne heiress starstruck.

I have really got to move around...
Must it really be so stuffy in here?

That was one of the downsides of delving so deeply into one's Exousiarch already, Elizabet thinks to herself.
Sure the phantasm affinity was a marvel in every way, but being able to listen in on most conversations and see practically every twitch of her surroundings was the perfect catalyst to brew up some paranoid anxiety, even in the relative quiet of the café. Hyper awareness was a blessing to a scout, but a veritable curse in a venue like this. Valkyria takes in a deep breath as Dietrich begins to speak, somehow trying to loosen up while simultaneously keeping herself stiff and upright in the primmest posture her years of lessons had been able to manage. Both hands fold neatly behind her back.

Of course...
if she were a little less high strung right now, maybe it wouldn't be so hard to not pay attention to literally everything...

It is alright.
Just relax a bit.
You will have some good time to get to know these people.
You are going to work together, and be the best team of operatives Empyria has ever seen!
You will be cruising right along in no time at a-

"...a chance to introduce themselves. I’m glad we have new Vanguards joining the ranks. As for us, we have a promising ISD agent who’ll be aiding us from the skies.”

Tuning back in to what Dietrich is actually saying is a brutal wake-up call. One that snaps Elizabet to full attention as though lightly tased. In the short silence following, the demonoid woman who seems somehow familiar, speaks up to make her apologies for being late. The lucky distraction buys Elizabet a few seconds to shove the panic out of her eyes and muster up the courage for what was to come next: first impressions for the experienced agents who would be her co-workers for who knew how long. The pressure of it all crushes down on her like a concrete slab, but there's no time for that right now.
The heiress quickly flicks her right arm up into a respectful salute to address the squad.

The blue-eyed girl who speaks up is rather snappily dressed, even if it's in nothing more than a standard black tie and slacks with a tightly buttoned white dress shirt. She'd probably look more professional with a coat. Outwardly, there's little sign of the slight mental hiccup.
Valkyria is the perfect picture of the eager young rookie, full to the brim with energy and eager to please.

"Hello all. Code name: Valkyria, at your humble service. I very much look forward to working with each and every one of you. Let us all do our best together!"

Her face is painted in a bright smile as she lets her hand slip down once more to clasp the other still held behind her.
It's much easier to keep them still this way.

Interactions: Arkangel , Panther , Khocolatte , lunar_moth , Emiya Shin , Admiral19 , TerrorKitty

Code by Serobliss

 

[lunar_moth]

Vanguards of Imperius

V. planifolia

Lusia Feodora Fair

Imperius City, Elesrith

In her high-rise apartment’s bathroom, there is a small breeze that blows through the crack in the window.

Lusia sits at her vanity mirror and silently, delicately, powders her face. Her skin’s been washed clean and pat-dried by now, so the powderpuff only clings a little bit to the beginnings of a scab on her forehead. Unless one looked closely it would be nigh impossible to see the remnants of that headwound, as concealed as it is under layers of skin-light makeup.

Her body is feeling a little bit battered after the latest events— who wouldn’t be, really? But after all, it’s her job. And it’s really nothing serious. Really, she’s had much worse before.

There’s a bruise blooming across the bottom of her ribcage from where she hit the riverbed too hard. Nobody can see it, of course, from underneath her dressing gown. Her outfit that she’s chosen for this evening hides it well, too. Bruises are part of the deal. Anything worth having is worth fighting for.

Lusia rises to her feet and she does not wince when her abdomen aches with the strain. She dresses alone under fluorescent lights and takes a deep breath to remember that there’s nobody around to see her now.

***​

Ms Fair steps up to the café’s doors like a morning mist sweeps through grass. She’s wearing simple white kitten heels, and they clink against the ground with each step.

She flashes her identification badge at the security manning the front. They wave her through without issue; she, like usual, is thankful to encounter none.

The café is subtly lit and oozing with prestige. It’s the kind of place kept aside for the wealthy to host performatively-important meetings and events; the kind of events, perhaps, like the newest members of a high-profile government task force receiving their first formal introduction to the rest of the team. Lusia can’t help but feel it might be a bit of a redundant way to spend the evening; after all, there’s no better way to get to know someone than on the battlefield, and frankly, she thinks they’re well past that stage.

Regardless.

She watches a woman with hair a familiar shade of white-blonde, slipping into the café bar to join with the rest of the cast. “I apologize for my late arrival,” Lusia can hear her begin to say, but the words seem to fall flat somehow. She resists the urge to twist her lips. It’s none of her business.

Lusia slips into a seat at the bar’s counter and nods along to Dietrich’s spoken introduction to them all. Him, she could recognize at least. It would be hard for anyone in this line of work not to spot at first glance someone so high-ranking and important.

One woman stands up when his speech concludes. She must be the mentioned ISD agent joining the ranks.

She has an almost storybook-princess look to her, with bright blue eyes and long blonde hair, but clearly she must have some grit to her too to have made it this far, even despite her twitchy demeanour.

“Let us all do our best together!”

Lusia takes that as her cue.

“Well said, Miss Valkyria.” She lifts one hand to her chest in a modest gesture. The gilded embroidery on her top glints in the lights under the movement. “My name is Lusia Fair, but my codename is V. Planifolia. Call me what you wish off the field. I only aim to perform at the best of my ability when working with you all. May we all reach new heights together.”

Arkangel Panther Khocolatte Emiya Shin SleepySheepiez Admiral19 TerrorKitty

Code by Serobliss

 

[TerrorKitty]

Vanguards of the Imperious

Vextress (Vex)

Alba Vex Von Wolfenstein

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH

Alba sat by herself in a small booth at the far end of the cafe. She was dressed in her usual civilian wear which wasn't all that different from what she wore in combat. Vex preferred tight clothing that kept her cool without restricting her mobility, and of course each article of clothing was extremely expensive. The thought of going on a shopping spree at one of Elesrith's largest shopping malls sometime soon crossed her mind briefly. "Are you sure you're going to have the time?" A voice buzzed in the cyborg's head causing her to pause between sips of coffee from the fancy cup she held in her hand. "Imperius Grand Exhibition Mall is huge, it took us eight hours, twenty minutes, and sixteen seconds to get everything you wanted last time." The voice explained. Alba sighed in response, "Normally I don't like taking a break from training, you know that Fatih, but after what happened on the bridge... I need this." She replied. "Anyway, we'll discuss this later." The pink haired girl said while putting her cup down onto the matching saucer to carry it with her as she got up from her seat to greet the new arrivals.

Most of the cyborg's AI systems were mostly for maintaining homeostasis and unhindered mobility as her body was at this point more than a normal Exhelian brain could manage, and without their support she'd crush herself just trying to walk, if she didn't have aneurism first as her mind would be bombarded with information and signals it wasn't capable of handling on it's own. Though one of them was much more developed and suited for a different purpose; dubbed Faith by Alba herself, the AI was essentially a backup consciousness incase she was ever rendered comatose. Though that was most likely just an excuse for further experimentation.

Walking over to where everyone else had gathered, the soft click of heeled boots accompanying each step due to the weight of the girl's partly mechanical body. "Hello everyone." The noble spoke with a small wave, before placing her drink on the nearby counter for the time being. She'd already greeted Gundahar when she arrived earlier, instead turning attention to the new arrivals. "Miss Lusia, I'm glad to see your alright." She said turning to Lusia specifically and giving the Woman a small bow, as while Vex was a Noble Woman of higher social ranking, Lusia was not only a senior Servitor, but someone that she respected more than most for numerous reasons. Though after their last battle there wasn't much time to check on her allies, as Vex was swiftly transported back home to Wolfenstein Manor for maintenance and medical attention that couldn't be done anywhere else. Diagnostics reports revealed just how much she'd pushed her full system. Her condition was rather worrying considering how short the skirmish was. The cyborg would be much too limited in drawn out combat as she was now. So the teams of technicians and medical experts worked round the clock for days replacing, refurbishing, and upgrading both her hardware and software while simultaneously tending to injuries, most of which were caused by physical stress. When she was woken up again it took half a day to get used to the new calibrations. Terrible migraines, dry heaving, lapses in balance, and feeling horribly sea sick until her neurons and incarce circuits fully reintegrated with her bionics.

During her recuperation, all relevant data she had from the incident was uploaded to multiple hard-drives and turned over to Imperius Central Intelligence as part of her mission report. A requirement of the agreement House Wolfenstein had with Collbrande, Evelyn von Bismarck in exchange for the family to be allowed to operate in bio-mechanics as they have. The report included her limited scan of the Mechanical Marauder, as well as the brief interface she had with the robot. An anomaly that no was really sure what to make of. There was a lot of data that was either corrupted due to discrepancies in software or that was heavily encrypted with little hope of cracking anytime soon. Most of what was actually recoverable were some hardware specs, with no leads on where it was being controlled from or by whom.

With a smile the girl returned her attention to the rest of the group. "Alba Vex Von Wolfenstein, codename Vextress." She said placing a hand on her hip and relaxing a bit. "Most just call me Vex though." Alba added, "It's a pleasure to meet you Valkaria, Miss Cecilia." The pink haired wasn't too intimately familiar with ISD operatives but she'd crossed paths with some of them before. "To what "Miss Lusia, I will do whatever it takes to reach as high as possible. Still, I know very well that I can't do too much on my own, not yet at least." Alba had aspirations that went far beyond just being a Servitor but it was humbling all the same. "If anyone needs me for anything at all, just ask."

Interaction: lunar_moth (Luisa), Arkangel (Gundahar), SleepySheepiez (Valkaria), Emiya Shin (Cecilia),

Code by Serobliss

 

[Admiral19]

Vanguards of Imperius

Retten

Selana Voleir

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH | 9:45 PM STANDARD IMPERIUS TIME

As the newest addition to the ranks of the esteemed Vanguards, Selana felt it absolutely, positively necessary that she make a good impression and appear as reliable as possible. Part of that initiative was to be as timely as possible to this meeting, so she had arrived somewhat earlier than she had to be so that she was one of the first to be there.

That...may have not been the best idea in hindsight.

The moment she made it past security and entered the café, she started the timer on a waiting game. All that spare time she had until then meant that her mind started to lose itself in a whirlpool of nervousness, one that only grew once Dietrich started speaking and more people started to arrive. She became more and more self-conscious of incredibly small things; was she dressed alright? Was there something on her face? Did she forget one of her boots before leaving her place? Did she arrive too early, too late, not early enough, not late enough?

To be fair, the café had a good vibe to it. Everything was well-furnished and calm-feeling, ever so slightly reminding her of a few places she's been to in Aucteraden. That managed to steady her nerves a bit(familiarity could do wonderful things), but the odd worrisome thought still crossed her mind every so often. What's more, as it were, Luisa and Vex were the only people in this group that they knew, and even then, it's really only been in passing. Selana didn't know how well they knew her, so the pressure to come off as someone who seems like they should be a part of the Vanguards was even stronger.

Soon enough, after letting her senior Vanguards arrive and introduce themselves, Selana managed to gather her courage and stand, making her presence known to the others with a respectful bow.

"It's very nice to meet all of you. I’m Selana Voleir, but feel free to call me Sela or Retten. I’m new to the Vanguards of Imperious, but I hope I can help you all to the best of my ability."

Selana felt the tension in her shoulders ease up. So far so good. Keep that up, and you'll be just fine.

Code by Serobliss

 

[Arkangel]

Kriegsheld Cadre

Gundahar

Dietrich Lexcher

Akashic Records

Cerberus

Kara Lazuli

Vanguards of Imperius

Reginleif

Hildegard Albrecht

IMPERIUS City, Elesrith

The introduction of the additional operatives had left Dietrich marginally satisfied. As skilled as they were, measuring one's prowess and capabilities as an agent came with actions, not words. Although, he supposed that following orders was the most important part of it all. From the looks of it, at least that was going to be a guarantee going forward.

Even so, Dietrich was not comfortable with allowing novices, but if this was what the Vanguards could offer, they would have to make do. The important aspect came from how they were going to utilize their talents and abilities. Unlike Euthalia and Sinaria, who are both masters of their craft and warriors in their own right, the rest were fairly new, or at least compared to those two who have been doing this type of warfare for the past hundred years.

Regardless, they were going to need every ounce of strength that the Vanguards could offer if they were going to finish this operation before the approaching Northern Coalition Anniversary.

"For the duration of this operation, we will maintain a strict rule of code. Usage of your and others' legal names will be forbidden from here on out. For those who are not aware, I am 'Gundahar'. It is an epithet that I was given by my first superior. Considering it stuck all the way through until now, I suppose it wouldn't make sense to abandon it."

The next to let their presence known was their dear Cerberus, whose age and real name were still anonymous, but that was certainly for the best. From the corner of the lobby, she appeared with Hildegard's strict gaze resting upon her, "Huh? We're getting new fighters?" she scratched the back of her head in confusion, "Ah, from how that last fight went I suppose it makes sense. Especially after that massive conflict on that Imperius Grand Bridge. Why not recruit operators from Akashic Records?"

Hildegard scoffed, "The last thing we need is a research institution to get involved. You were hired privately, so you're different. Most of the operators from Akashic Records will report to their superiors the moment they are fed information about the foes we're facing. Oh, I'd fucking know. Those damn pests don't know how to remain neutral when it's in their best interest."

Hildegard's experience with Akashic Records was different than most, as Hildegard had a brief background with the secret organization. As a Vanguard who was once appointed to audit the Elesrith division of the Akashic Records after suspicion of corruption, Hildegard returned to the palace with a scornful gaze to everyone she interacted with the next several days. Upon examination, Akashic Records had numerous amounts of mistrustful researchers and media controllers, effectively becoming a de facto profitable company that was more interested in selling their research than to expand the knowledge of Man, as opposed to their prior goal of research for the sake of knowledge.

Not that it had anything to do with Cerberus, however, as she was not the type to complain after her paycheck is sent.

"The past aside," Hildegard sighed and digressed to the previous point of the topic, "I will now announce our change of plans. The four of you, Retten, Vextress, V. Planifolia, and Valkyria, should have gotten your report before arriving here. Whatever you were doing before, forget it. If you do not wish to witness the wrath of our Herrscher and remain as Vanguards for the honor of your name and family, follow orders and prepare to move quickly for the next five days. From the looks of it, dealing with the Sindalone Organization will be too difficult for us to handle with our limited time. We're also suspecting that we'll see them again once some of you get stationed to Aucteraden after the anniversary is over, as per the deal between our Herrscher and the Collbrande of Aucteraden. So, that leaves us with the Golden Paths. The motherfuckers are roaming around the streets of Imperius like an unkillable cockroach. I'm certain that most of you remember the countless incidents that were caused by their terror. Well, the one who dealt with them isn't here with us. Lord Aldous has other matters to attend to, so it's up to us. Let's not disappoint."

Interaction: Panther (Syriel), Khocolatte (Euthalia), Emiya Shin (Cecilia), lunar_moth (Lusia), TerrorKitty (Vextress), Admiral19 (Retten), SleepySheepiez (Valkyria)

Code by Serobliss

 

[Panther]

Kriegsheld Cadre

The Mage Knight

Syriel Janus

Imperius, Elesrith

Syriel, already healed from her earlier combat wounds to the point she is good as new, has been present in the café since before the start as she came together with Dietrich minutes prior. It wasn’t a good display for a key member of the task force to be “on time” or even tardy. Given the circumstances, all hands ought to be on deck as soon as they were able.

She observed as each new addition to the team come into the café, trying to make themselves at home to ease their individual tensions before their respective introductions. A glaring concern that comes to Syriel’s mind upon cross-checking her observations of them with their dossiers is that all of them are amateurs at best with little to no combat experience. To top it off, one is a complete and total newbie which doesn’t make her any more positive about where they stand. But she was in no position to complain. This was what the powers that be can spare for them without having to issue a directive to the provincial Imperial Army garrisons that she thinks are significantly more qualified than the band of misfits that now supplemented the team. However, that would’ve escalated the situation in a way that isn’t good.

To Syriel’s knowledge, unless the province in question is the likes of Anterås where part of the Imperial Army comprises the entirety of its law enforcement body in the form of a gendarmerie, they weren’t going to be getting more qualified assistance anytime soon, more trustworthy too since the Anteråsan rank and file had recently been liquidated prior to the new Collbrande of Anterås’s ascension as part of a long-term agenda. Unfortunately, they have to make the most of what they have. Whether these greenhorns can be trusted enough to fulfill their duties or not remains to be seen.

She takes a deep breath to calm her own nerves and trembling from the recent reality check before standing up from her chair, relatively close to Dietrich, and turns to look at the others, adding on to Hildegard’s statement, “Should we disappoint, we will be having more than hell to pay. We’re looking at an operation that can and will cost us our lives, especially if we fail. Think about this very carefully as we go. We’ll be conducting an operation against the Golden Path, the first phases of which should help you come to a decision.”

A sigh leaves her upon the thought, “We already had one Vanguard that bailed out so keep that in mind. Until then, we’ll be working together. My call sign is “Mage Knight” and I will be one of the key figures in this team as one of your commanders.”

Then she addresses the new additions, trying her best to move her skepticism aside, “To the newcomers… welcome aboard.”

Interactions: Arkangel (Cerberus, Dietrich, Hildegard, Sinaria) Khocolatte (Euthalia) lunar_moth (Lusia) TerrorKitty (Vex) Admiral19 (Retten) SleepySheepiez (Valkyria) Emiya Shin (Cecilia)

Code by Serobliss

 

[Emiya Shin]

Imperial Security Directorate

Cecilia Ravenholm

Disillusioned Defender

Imperius City, Elesrith | 9:45 PM Standard Imperius Time

Cecilia observed the introduction, sitting on one of the bar stools that was located close to the bar counter where Hildegard was. She looked pretty stern, especially with a sharp gaze that was constantly on Cerberus. It did made Cecilia wondered what was going on with these two earlier. Then again, it seemed they are like fire and ice, where they constantly clash with each other. As much the Demonoid wanted to keep on observing what the pair would do, one of the newcomers had already introduced herself.

It was indeed Valkyria. She actually made the cut! At first, Cecilia did not want to recommend Valkyria into this group, considering the severity of the threats that the task force had to deal with. However, she remembered the first time when she met Valkyria, back in an exchange program conducted between Aucteraden and Elesrith ISD branches. The starry-eyed girl really hearkened back when Cecilia was an aspiring ISD agent. It really brought back some fond memories. The time that she had to guide Valkyria on learning defensive skills, or the rookie surprising her with some facts about her suit. It was one of the brighter, more innocent times that Cecilia managed to experience before she got recruited by Dietrich.

The Demonoid figured that she should give Valkyria a chance to soar in the skies, alongside with her veteran counterparts. But at the same, there were guilt boiling inside her. Was that a right thing to do? Recommending Valkyria right into the claws of the Golden Path, even though she was pretty much a newbie? Will she be able to survive what it seemed to be a trial by fire of her career, and become a distinguished ISD agent?

Regardless of her thoughts, Cecilia subtly raised a thumbs up to Valkyria, and smiled at her.

"That young lady. She did well, despite the enormous societal pressure in this room." She said her thoughts out loud, at least loud enough for Hildegard, Cerberus, or anyone busybody enough to listen in.

* * *​

Once Valkyria was done, then comes the second newcomer introducing themselves. Now, this one. This Vanguard agent.

Lusia Fair. Code name, V. Planifolia. The scientific name for vanilla orchid. This is the real deal. Perhaps the most ideal image of a Vanguard of Imperius operative. The way she moved, and spoke is just simply sublime. Cecilia had a slight goosebumps, seeing how perfect Lusia conducted herself. Dietrich most likely got himself a jackpot over there. If anything, it really made Cecilia felt inferior.

Unfortunately, the refreshing look, and perhaps the smell of the vanilla orchid soon changed into a visually loud, pink haired woman. She soon introduced herself as Vex, of the House Wolfenstein, after exchanging some small talk with Lusia. It really seemed that they fought alongside before. As for the name House Wolfenstein? Now that is a well known name, especially in the field of humanoid cyberware augmentation, and even other branches of biomechanical subjects. Cecilia recalled perusing journals with names published under House Wolfenstein, especially when she was working under the forbidden project that caused Incident #33.

If anything, this is quite the turn of events. Dietrich once again hit another jackpot.

Though, wait a minute. Did Vex just said 'Miss Cecilia'? The Demonoid blinked her eyes a couple times, and stood up from her stool, just confirm if she is not hallucinating. Cecilia was tempted to ask Vex on how she knew about her name, but the other white haired newcomer had already taken the stage. She also introduced herself as Selana Voleir, or codename Retten. Unlike Lusia or Vex, this one is actually a Vanguard agent newbie. Retten also carry the same nervous aura as Valkyria, and fortunately she managed to handle it well. As for the knowledge of House Voleir, Cecilia did not have an inkling for it.

* * *​

2 veterans, and 2 newbies for this task force. Sounds like a balanced deal, for better or worse. The scene continued on, with Dietrich hammered that they should stick with their codenames from here on out. Cecilia remembered she has a dislike of her codename. It made her sounded like some kind of villain, rather than a hopeful ISD agent. Caesarea, the name rang out in her thoughts as Cerberus and Hildegard bantered how unreliable Akashic Record operatives were. She also hammered another point to the 4 new members, that failure is not an option. Syriel did the same too, while mentioning Magnus's departure from this operation in passing.

Part of Cecilia really hoped they should tone down the sombre tone. They are in a high class cafe, not in Emperion Place several days ago. It is not like piling stern emotions on them would make them one of the best agents or operatives like Dietrich, Euthalia, and Hildegard. Lusia the Vanilla Orchid, and Vex most likely got used to getting thrown into a chaotic fight. But Retten, and Valkyria? That remains to be seen.

"Yeah." The Demonoid finally spoke, after the bigshots were done with their words. She moved forward to the center of the cafe, so that the others could hear her clearly. "Welcome aboard to the team, Planifolia, Retten, Vex and Valkyria. I hope we can cooperate splendidly with each other, as the going gets tougher for us. As per revealed by Vex before, I'm Cecilia Ravenholm of the ISD, Aucteraden Branch. Codename is..."

She paused a bit, as she was trying get past her own dislike of the codename.

"... Caesarea." Cecilia visibly cringed after mentioning her codename. "I apologize for my rather unprofessional behavior just now, it's just that I really don't like my codename. Unfortunately, the higher ups suggested that codename to me, and I don't think I'm in position to decline that."

The Demonoid then shrugged her shoulders. "Anyway, should all 4 of you require to know my role, my job is to be the point-man. In other words, I'll be the one leading the charge to an enemy territory, most likely absorbing the initial attacks from of the enemies. In return, agents like Euthalia, and Gundahar will do their magic work in dispatching those enemies wasting their time attacking me."

Cecilia decided to add another line, in case the newbies were concerned about her safety. "I'll be mostly fine, as long the enemies don't carry explosives or anti-materiel weaponry. Since I have a ballistic shield, and Geomancy magic, I'll be protected against common small arms fire. If they do, well... My life will be at your hands."

She said the last sentence in a rather nonchalant manner.

Arkangel Panther Khocolatte lunar_moth SleepySheepiez Admiral19 TerrorKitty

Code by Serobliss

 

[SleepySheepiez]

Imperial Security Directorate

Valkyria

Elizabet Van der Lucht

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH | 9:45 PM STANDARD IMPERIUS TIME

So he's going to be Gundahar.
Understood.

It was nice to have that internal question answered for her, but the matter of what to call the man that had recruited her into this highly secretive task force was the lesser of her current worries. Nevertheless, having things like that cleared up made everything much simpler, and far less stressful in terms of getting to know her fellow teammates.
Speaking of which...

Said teammates seemed to have put forward a mostly positive reception!
This was to be expected of course, they were professionals after all, but it was still a load off her chest. The familiar looking demonoid giving her the thumbs up sends a jolting thrill running through her that boosts her shaky confidence into something strong, melting her initial worries away. The muttered commendation doesn't escape her ears either.
Elizabet Van der Lucht feels her smile bolstered, mirroring the one the demonoid girl had given her.
What a group it was, they had assembled!

There was the refined one in the pretty outfit and the makeup who chimed in directly after her, as smooth as harmony. She was so well put together! She was the picture of an operative who knew what she was doing, and she had also been the one to engage the Marauder head-on. Elizabet was deeply impressed.
It made her want to push herself to do even better.

Then there was the one with the pink hair who seemed extremely comfortable in her own cybernetic skin, even if her description of her own abilities was less so. Maybe she was just feeling down after the bridge? The heiress couldn't quite recall which part of that operation "Vex" had been a part of. Maybe she'd have to read that report over again...
Either way, she seemed to radiate a distinct devil-may-care attitude which certainly set her apart from the rest of this small squad. The contrast between this and her rather humbled introduction was intriguing.

Lastly for the newcomers, of course, there was her fellow rookie who only spoke shortly and politely. "Retten" was an enigma to Elizabet. Maybe she would have to look up her file to read through, homework for any downtime she could manage to scrape together. There wasn't much you could really tell about her based on the way she presented herself aside from that the girl was obviously almost as new to this game as she was. Of course, Elizabet had no delusions that she was any better off. Chances were, even Retten had more experience than she did as Valkyria.
Yet another reason to prove how useful she could be.
A motivator to test herself against.
We'll see who grows quicker.

Exousiarch enhanced awareness gives Elizabet a large wealth of audiovisual information to process and reprocess as each of the others speaks up in turn.
Yes. She could work with this. None of them seemed to hate her prematurely, and none of them seemed to have any qualms about the sector in which she was born.
That is, none of them except possibly "Mage Knight" who seemed a little disgruntled about having to work with not one, but two rookies. Her words of death and desertion were an effective hammer to smash Elizabet's gradually ballooning excitement, but at least it was more of a cautious annoyance than anything else. Elizabet curbs her growing joy as Dietrich finishes and the fiery looking lady speaks up on the topic of the Akashic records, her mind running a mile a minute.

Of course.
This is the big leagues.
One moment of inattention means I'm shot out of the sky.
A fraction of a second is all it would take for that robot they fought on the bridge to crush my wings and ground me for good.
If any of them do distrust me, or know of my family's shame, they aren't showing it outwardly.
But I'm not going to let doom and gloom keep me down! The moment I let that sort of thinking take over... that's when I will truly be useless! The Golden Path is an enemy to Empyria and must be rooted out before their corruption extends too far. Judging by what miss Reginleif is saying, it seems as though our plan is to focus on them to prevent splitting our focus between them and Sindalone.
Perfect.

If we only have one enemy, then it will be all the more easier to focus everything we have on them!

Right?

Valkyria puffs out a breath. All the earlier energy that had been funneling itself into anxiety earlier has been redirected now that she's garnered a better idea of who she's working with. Instead of that slight aura of nervousness she'd been sharing with Agent Retten, Valkyria's sky blue eyes now burn bright with a crackling excitement.
It's a feeling that's only compounded when the friendly Demonoid introduces herself.
No wonder she looks so familiar, it is Cecilia! From the exchange program!
Oh, how wonderful this will be!

Memories flood back, taking up some extra space to contend with her hyperactive attention of the Cafe's surroundings. The solid stance, they way she had been taught to brace against the reinforced legs of her exoskeleton by one practiced in facing danger headfirst, the soothingly calm demeanor...
Yes it was good to see Cecilia Ravenholme again.
How exciting that they would be working together!
If her safety is in my hands, then I will need to be extra worthy as her backup.

With spirits soaring high, despite the apparent reservations held by her commanders, Valkyria holds herself perfectly and easily at attention, now far more comfortable and practically glowing with that unshakeable drive to get things started. After all, how bad could things possibly get?
She was certain that this team was going to do great things together!
The lurking threat of facing true conflict was still there of course, but Valkyria was finding she was hungry to test herself against whatever these Golden Path terrorists had to offer.
Following up her fellow I.S.D agent with a description of her own capabilities, Elizabet speaks up:

"My specialty, as agent Gundahar briefly mentioned, lies in scouting and general air support with my exoskeleton. So whatever or wherever you need me to do or be, I will be on it quick. If disappointment means death, then I am certain, between the lot of us, we will see to it that such a thing does not happen, no? If our first big assignment is the Golden Path... do we know as of yet what the details are?"

Now that introductions seemed to be out of the way, Valkyria was eager to get this show on the road. Maybe it was a naïve eagerness for fieldwork, maybe it was a drive to finally be rid of the eternally mounting dread of her first real assignment, or maybe it was being cooped up in this room with a whole load of hyped up energy to spend, but Valkyria was cutting boldly straight to the point.
The Van der Lucht heiress, postured professional as a statue, with hands still folded neatly behind her back, fights the nagging urge to shift on her feet.

The flygirl had fuel to burn and expectations to shatter.

Interactions: Arkangel , Panther , Khocolatte , lunar_moth , Emiya Shin , Admiral19 , TerrorKitty

Code by Serobliss

 

[lunar_moth]

Vanguards of Imperius

V. planifolia

Lusia Feodora Fair

Imperius Grand Bridge, Imperius, Elesrith

She’s not unused to the feeling of eyes assessing her every bearing, but Lusia fights back the urge to squirm anyways under the room’s gaze.

You belong here just as much as anyone else. Don’t forget that. You don’t have any room for self-doubt anymore. Right?

She’s sat back down on a barstool after giving her introduction. Her head inclines subtly to acknowledge each of Caesarea and Valkyria’s further explanations of their battlefield specialties— it’s no surprise really that the main objective of this first-meeting was to acquaint everyone before their first mission as a team. And from the sounds of it, it’s an important one, to say the least. Caesarea (whose stumble Lusia dutifully ignores, but can’t help but feel a warm plume of sympathy well up in her chest for nonetheless) ends her script on a somber tone. My life will be at your hands. If nothing else, this is a weight that Lusia is familiar with carrying.

(At least, thus far, all of her assigned teammates seem to have the fighting spark to them that one needs to be successful as a high-stakes servicewoman like themselves. Small mercies.)

Valkyria’s nerves seem to have left her as she continues on with her self-assessment: air support is fitting for one named after the winged warriors of Odin, though perhaps not so much the exoskeleton. It seems like Lusia might be a bit of the odd one out favouring classic combat and elemental spells over anything high-tech like is so common.

Lusia doesn’t rise from her seat again to offer her own assessment of her skills, but she does place a hand over her chest in a humble gesture.

“While I may not offer anything of particular impress, I pride myself on being versatile and, well, lethal. I favour a classical longsword mixed with aero magic; I can fill any niche I am asked to, although I shine brightest acting as a quick dispatch of critical targets. Like Valkyria said: between all of us, disappointment will be hard to acheive.”
Arkangel Khocolatte Panther Emiya Shin TerrorKitty Admiral19 SleepySheepiez

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[Arkangel]

Vanguards of Imperius

Reginleif

Hildegard Albrecht

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH

Mental exhaustion had gotten the better of her in the last few hours, as her grumpy side had forced itself awake. Hearing the newcomer's introduction was all too sweet and wholesome, but it wasn't like she knew half of them on a personal level, anyway. Excluding Valkyria who was recruited via the Kriegshelds—Retten, Lusia, and Vex were of familiarity.

Hildegard held no particularly interesting opinion of them. A shocker, considering most senior Vanguards care for their juniors like brothers in arms. But as expected, Hildegard couldn't give less of a damn. As long as they were capable of following orders and executing operations without much hindrance, they'll live to not witness her infamous wrath.

Unbeknownst to her, however... This was the sole reason why she had no reliable friends, outside of those from the past—such as Euthalia and Novaskaya, and to some extent, Dietrich. A lone wolf of the Vanguards who prefer to take in operations alone, it was obvious why she stopped interacting with people decades ago.

"Yeah, yeah. You'll all be stationed accordingly to your abilities as written on your individual documents. I'd love to do some joint exercise to measure our capabilities as a team, but time's running out and the anniversary looms over us like a fucking doomsday clock. The last thing I need this weekend is to be scolded by Lady Bismarck, so let's get this over with in a swift fashion, understood?"

Hildegard then raised her index and middle finger to the air, "Starting tomorrow morning, we split into two groups! The first team will focus on tracking down the Golden Paths through whatever evidence we've gathered, including the Sindalone ports that we planned on raiding two nights ago. Dietrich's specialty lies in investigation and tracking, so he'll be the leader of that team in particular. As for the second group, they'll be focused on minimizing damages that's to come in the near future to this city. If you're lucky, you'll rendezvous with the main group when your support is needed, but something tells me that won't be the case. The last time the Golden Paths fucked around and found out was when they began their strategic terrorism against the city of Imperius. It's fair to assume that they'll do the same to divert attention from their ports. The second group's operations will be led by Miss Janus."

Hildegard sighed, "As for what I'll be doing, Sinaria and I will return to Emperon Palace for clean-up. First thing's first: rat out the mole and rid the lower ranks of corruption to prevent any leaks of information. That itself will take some time to perform, so I assume that I won't be available for several days at the least. The captain has already reported to the Herrscher about our plans in advance. She won't be active until her involvement is necessary. I'm sure the lot of you are capable of holding your ground, anyway. Bring pride to your Vanguard name, and bring some good news to our Herrscher, will you? We wouldn't want to ruin the peace of the Northern Coalition Anniversary."

Without rest, Hildegard planned on leaving soon after but was reminded of the multiple questions that could potentially arise from her previous statements.

"Before you ask, it's not up to me to decide teams. I'll leave the rest to Dietrich and his judgment. He's far better at this than me, anyway." Hildegard shrugged and waved as she exited from the bar, not bothering with the potential inquiries.

Now it was left for Dietrich to lead the operation, as intended.

Interaction: Panther (Syriel), Khocolatte (Euthalia), Emiya Shin (Cecilia), lunar_moth (Lusia), TerrorKitty (Vextress), Admiral19 (Retten), SleepySheepiez (Valkyria)

Code by Serobliss

 

[Emiya Shin]

Imperial Security Directorate

Cecilia Ravenholm

Disillusioned Defender

Imperius City, Elesrith | 9:45 PM Standard Imperius Time

Shortly after Cecilia was done introducing herself to the 4 newcomers, Valkyria soon took the stage again, and reiterated her specialty with her own peppy flavor. The Demonoid was glad that her little encouragement antics from before actually helped Valkyria to feel more at ease. If anything, this is off to a good start... provided the bigshots are not keen on being pessimistic again. Lusia soon chimed in, although she did not move from her current seat, and merely gave a humble gesture to everyone. Her skill sets are pretty much basic, but less can be more, and her providing versatility in the heat of combat could be the thing that could help the task force to achieve victory. Not to mention, Lusia sounded like a good match to Euthalia as well.

As for Euthalia, who goes by the codename Kayou? Her reserved nature during social situation actually hides her actual skills in combat. It did made Cecilia wondered how can a demure lady like her can hold such power.

Regardless, the conversation soon shifted back to Hildegard, where she once again briefed the whole team that they will once again split into two groups, and perform their next assignment. She also announced that she will be working to root out the enemy's mole, as well as corruption on the lower ranks. Cecilia was thinking that the stern lady will call the shots again, but it seemed that she had already handed that role over to Dietrich.

Her amber colored eyes instinctively went to the dark-haired charismatic man, wondering which team she will get assigned to. Judging from the looks of things, Cecilia reckon that she will be tasked with Syriel in preventing damage, while Valkyria is most likely going with Dietrich's team, since she is capable of performing scouting roles. She gave a little pat at Valkyria's shoulders, while quietly waiting for Dietrich to announce his decision.

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Code by Serobliss

 

[SleepySheepiez]

Imperial Security Directorate

Valkyria

Elizabet Van der Lucht

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH | 9:45 PM STANDARD IMPERIUS TIME

Elizabet beams to herself internally.
It didn't take much self reflection on her part to understand the depth of respect she had accrued for her senior (former) I.S.D operative, even with how little time she had actually had to get to know her back then. There was just some aspect of solid reliability in the way she acted. Some aspect to her that made everything seem like it was going to work out smoothly. The girl finds herself hard pressed to describe exactly how it makes her feel.
Maybe it was... safe?

Like having a great, big, solid rock to gather your weight against before pushing, lifting off into an unknown stratosphere.

Externally, the girl can't help but let a smile slip along her lips as she practically glows with anticipation for what Gundahar might have in mind for their squad assignments. Her attention slips around, over, and across the room, idly reassessing once more the people she was now committing to memory, blue eyes shining almost unnaturally.

The idea of a mole digging its way through the system is still one that worries her, a slight smudge on her once again soaring mood, but Valkyria is confident enough that the operatives on the case will have it weeded out and dealt with properly in no time at all. There was no use in dwelling on something like that anyway, especially not since she would have her own hands full with whatever was soon to be laid out for them.

There was also the Hyzurian that Valkyria somehow hadn't noticed until she spoke up. She really did strike such a quiet and unobtrusive figure. So much so that she'd evaded her thoughts before.
No wonder she excels at concealing herself. It takes a lot of control to be able to keep so gracefully silent...
I wonder what sort of combat capability she could be alluding to?

Yes, agent Kayō had certainly made an interesting impression. It made Elizabet hungry to learn more.
Maybe we will be on the same team! Ohhh, but there are so many people here I want to know more about...
and this first mission... what kind of strategy do you even use to weed out and clean up an entire terrorist organization anyway?

The suspense was deliciously lethal.

Interactions:
Arkangel , Panther , Khocolatte , lunar_moth , Emiya Shin , Admiral19 , TerrorKitty

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[Admiral19]

Vanguards of Imperius

Retten

Selana Voleir

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH

She wouldn't be surprised if no one knew very much about House Voleir, especially in its current...state. But house and nobility didn't matter to her right now, nor did she think it should matter to anyone else. What did matter, on the other hand, was what she was meant to do during this operation. "I'll be able to handle any long-range altercations, but I can be put into more direct combat to support my comrades should the need arise."

The mission was given and the caveats were explained, and for the sake of completing the mission—as well as keeping her position, honor, and life—she had to remember everything she was told, en masse and as swiftly as possible. That included the codenames of whoever she would be working with, though since according to Hildegard they weren’t going to be properly split until tomorrow, it would be best to hold onto everyone’s codenames now.

Each codename ran through her head, though there were a few noted ones she kept in mind just in case she was paired with them:

“V. planifolia”, who had arrived with fellow Vanguard “Vex”. Far more put together than Selana was(not to mention far better dressed), promising swift eradication of whatever ends up targeting them. Of the Vanguards here, Lusia was one of the more experienced, and Selana wanted to learn as much from her as she could.

“Valkyria”, newest of the ISD. She was probably thinking the same thing Selana was: one misstep, one slipped thought, and it was over. But there was a specific sort of camaraderie that could exist between two people who would be new to a battlefield. The desire to see someone become stronger alongside you, to see just how fast they can catch up and how far away they could get. They had separate affiliations, but Selana truly hoped to grow alongside Elizabet.

“Caesarea”—Selana noted her hesitation to say her codename. More than anything, she noted Cecilia’s last statement: “My life will be at your hands.” A statement said far too nonchalantly for her to ignore, Selana was going to take those words to heart for the remainder of this mission.

And lastly, “Kayou”, who was one of the last to arrive. Selana wasn’t certain about the extent of what Euthalia was capable of, and she certainly didn’t show it. But that was a bad excuse, because save for Alba and Lusia, she could say that of everyone here. If she were to believe Euthalia, then Selana would learn more about her capabilities on the mission proper, should they be working together.

Whether they would or not would be clear soon enough, now that Hildegard had left the building and Dietrich was at the helm.

Arkangel (Dietrich, Sinaria, Cerberus, Hildegard) █ lunar_moth (Lusia) █ Emiya Shin (Cecilia) █ Panther (Syriel) █ TerrorKitty (Vex) █ SleepySheepiez (Elizabet) █ Khocolatte (Euthalia)

Code by Serobliss

 

[Arkangel]

Kriegsheld Cadre

Gundahar

Dietrich Lexcher

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH

With the conclusion of the preparations and introductions and the stage set for Dietrich to take, the pure-blooded Exhelian took this moment to clear his throat after the departure of Hildegard, who stated her duties before their leave. Dietrich took one last glance at the squad before him, analyzing them for a short moment before making up his mind.

Knowing Euthalia, Syriel, and Cecilia’s capabilities from experience, Dietrich made his judgment in a rather quick fashion. As one of the pillars of this operation and the designated future co-leader of the group that will be formed when they return to Aucteraden after the Northern Coalition Anniversary, it was only appropriate that he had access to the profile documents of the people that could potentially join the squad. And as expected, he had flipped through the pages for hours before the gathering and created the ideal plan.

“Team 1 will focus on assault and the investigation of the Golden Path. As for the second group, we’ll be focusing on minimizing the damages that is to come. Your position in these teams will defer depending on your experience and abilities shown throughout your career. Let’s not break formation and go through with this without suffering losses. As for how this group will be split…”

Dietrich took a moment to pause to build suspense but in reality, he held doubts. After reconfirming with himself about the teams he spoke, “For the assault team, the squad will be led by the Mage Knight (Syriel) as she has the most experience when it comes to hostile territorial strikes. She fought alongside the Collbrande Kaiser during the War on Raignork, so I believe it’d only make sense if she took the mantle. Her unit will consist of V. planifolia, Caesarea, and Vextress.”

“The second team will be led by me, Gundahar. My group will be responsible for keeping the city secure while the assault team wreaks havoc in the shadows. The remainders, Cerberus, Kayou, Retten, and Valkyria will be on that duty. I will expand on what we’ll be doing tomorrow morning once we begin with the 5-day long operation. Until then, we’ll spend the night here and get some rest. The first team will depart earlier tomorrow morning before the clock strikes 6. You’ll see through your first orders once you depart.”

Interactions: Panther (Syriel), Khocolatte (Euthalia), Emiya Shin (Cecilia), lunar_moth (Lusia), TerrorKitty (Vextress), Admiral19 (Retten), SleepySheepiez (Valkyria)

Code by Serobliss

 

[Emiya Shin]

Imperial Security Directorate

Cecilia Ravenholm

Disillusioned Defender

Imperius City, Elesrith

It did not took long for Dietrich to reach a conclusion. Cecilia noticed how he scanned the active members of the task force. His body languages seemed to carry some form of doubt, however. He revealed that Cecilia, along with Lusia, and Vex will be in the first team. The first team will be led by Syriel. The second team on the other hand, consists of the two newbies, along with Cerberus and Euthalia. Dietrich will of course, be responsible in leading the second team. He also added that everyone will be resting here for tonight, before they move out tomorrow to execute their respective assignments.

Wait. Does this lavish cafe actually has rooms for people to rest? Regardless, Cecilia was curious on what everyone should be doing after this. Part of her also felt a bit disappointed that she could not see how much Valkyria has improved since the last exchange training program, but this will do for now. Perhaps Cecilia could see it after this assignment. There was one or two questions that appeared inside her thoughts, which she soon asked to Dietrich.

"Gundahar," Cecilia began. "I assume Mage Knight will brief Team 1 by tomorrow morning?" She then shot a gaze at Syriel, before returning to Dietrich. "Also, will there be any involvement from the local forces in this upcoming 5-day operation? Or it will be purely us from now onwards?"

She decided to hold on to the cafe question, for now.

Arkangel Panther Khocolatte lunar_moth SleepySheepiez Admiral19 TerrorKitty

Code by Serobliss

 

[lunar_moth]

Vanguards of Imperius

V. planifolia

Lusia Feodora Fair

Imperius City, Elesrith

Lusia bites her tongue and merely nods to Dietrich’s words. She thought that Hildegard had seemed to think Dietrich was most suited to leading the investigative Team 1, but the man’s own decision leaves him in charge of security. He pauses for effect; to catch everyone’s attention back, of course, but is there something more he hesitated to say?

Regardless, Lusia trusts his decision-making. Dietrich is Dietrich, and anyone who knows his name has heard it for good reason: he knows what he’s doing. At the very least, she can’t help but inwardly glow at her assigned team. Vextress, she trusted already — well, as much as one can trust a new coworker-turned-acquaintance at this point, but her fighting spirit is undeniable. Caesarea, she knew less about, but the other woman offered no alarm bells thus far. She seemed pensive, perhaps, and stoic in a way that made it hard for one to feel they could speak casually with her.

You’re one to talk, she chides herself. They’re professionals. They’re not here to chit-chat. Not that Lusia is very confident in her small-talking skills anyways, but she hopes it doesn’t come to that. She’s a bit rusty; she was never very well liked at her niece’s parent-teacher conferences either.

Anyways. A bit of a tangent there, but Lusia shakes her head to herself and chalks her spaceyness up to the dull throb of her ribcage. It’s enough to be distracting, but nothing more; she’ll survive.

“Understood, Gundahar,” she says, recalling their instructions to use only codenames from here on out. This is where the real fun begins.

Gundahar’s gaze meets each of theirs, one by one, and the orchid gazes back.

Arkangel Panther Khocolatte Emiya Shin TerrorKitty SleepySheepiez Admiral19

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[Panther]

Kriegsheld Cadre

The Mage Knight

Syriel Janus

Imperius, Elesrith

Syriel listened to Dietrich giving the entire team the details of their operation. She was given a leadership role again involving carrying out investigations and most importantly, assaults, against the Golden Path. The fact of which made her nervous and concerned if the encounter at the Imperius Grand Bridge was going to be a basis for future encounters, especially with the team they have. What if something like that happened again? What if they weren’t lucky that time around and at least one of them dies? What if they brought more forces than they can handle to bear? All those questions, among many others, kept playing in her mind as she was deep in thought, blankly staring at the team.

The mention of her call sign brought her back to reality, blinking her eyes before looking at the people assigned to her and then at Cecilia who mentioned the call sign in a question that pertained to when she would be briefing her team since Dietrich would brief his team tomorrow morning. To that, she answers before Cecilia returns to Dietrich, “I’ll brief you three on the general details after raising your inquiries with Gundahar if you have any. Questions can be raised and specifics can be discussed tonight and tomorrow before we set off. But basically speaking, we’ll start off where we got stopped - the two Sindalone Organization ports that we were supposed to hit on the day of the ambush at the Grand Bridge.”

Syriel gestures at the bar with her finger pointing at it, “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll help myself to a cup of cold coffee.” She then walks off, leaving her team with Dietrich for the time being for anything else they want to raise with him before they come over to her to discuss the details of their end of the operation. She thought of bringing them to her room in the building which had already been prepared in advance like the others for the discussion, also thinking if she could just use the rooms of one of her teammates and bring everyone there instead. Small decisions that weren’t that significant but was something to think about nonetheless.

After deciding on that, she could move on to her teammates which were quite the food for thought. Lusia and Vextress had already proven themselves to her on the Grand Bridge, albeit that was only one actual combat encounter, the first in their records outside of the Tournament of Valor, and it had to be like that. Syriel was a combat veteran who lived through one of the most brutal conflicts in Empyrian history, the rest were trained in a manner different from hers, but not as experienced. A pro and a con. Their demeanor still seems mostly nominal with no signs of second thoughts or reconsiderations, as expected of Vanguards which in of itself was impressive and demanded respect. Normally, people that lived through something like the incident in the Grand Bridge would reevaluate their lives and reconsider, some of the survivors might’ve already even left the force. Just like some of the soldiers she came home from Raignork with.

Cecilia, if her records are to be believed, had gone through a different kind of war that the Kriegsheld Second Arclight admits is not familiar with as they fought on vastly different battlefields. And a good fighter on any battlefield deserves respect. Further reading of her records made Syriel see a part of herself in Cecilia - principled, disillusioned, and disgruntled, a factor in her respect for the demonoid.

Interactions: Arkangel (Cerberus, Dietrich) Khocolatte (Euthalia) lunar_moth (Lusia) TerrorKitty (Vex) Admiral19 (Retten) SleepySheepiez (Valkyria) Emiya Shin (Cecilia)

Code by Serobliss

 

[SleepySheepiez]

Imperial Security Directorate

Valkyria

Elizabet Van der Lucht

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH | 9:45 PM STANDARD IMPERIUS TIME

And so, the teams were set.

The pause for dramatic effect held a double meaning to anyone lucid enough to understand it. Elizabet supposed she should be somewhat thankful her superiors were being so up front and center with their doubts. The stakes and expectations could not have been set clearer.
Most of the actually experienced members have all been lumped into the assault team. They'll be facing the action head-on.
Cecilia will going on ahead without me...
Again...

It's a mixture of frustration and relief that fills her, but could she really blame them? She was lucky even to be here in the first place. Surely the doubts and the careful skirting of the hard reality of the situation... It was all going to blow over in time.
Soon she would be able to call herself proudly, loyally Empyrian.
Irrevocably evidenced in her actions.
Soon...

But in the interim, she's left with an injection of cold apprehension as ever-watchful blue eyes follow the Hyuzurian agent, Kayō, as she draws their new commander to the side with whispered tones. Elizabet wasn't the most experienced when it came to that girl's race, but the ears flattened down into her flowing pink hair could only spell uncertainty.
Not only that, but she would surely be the second in seniority only to Gundahar himself on their squad.

If she decides to doubt me...
I... No. I'll just have to be good enough.
That's all there is to it.

There's a bit of tightness to Elizabet's jaw that could be nervousness, or something else, as she lets her gaze drop to the floor. There could be no doubt about it. That discussion would most certainly be on the topic of rookies.
Wild thoughts rush through her hyperactive mind.
"Why her?", "Why them?",
"Are you sure about this Gundahar?"

Between this, Cecilia taking the initiative to clarify details in her characteristically pragmatic manner, and the Mage Knight excusing herself to grab a drink... Elizabet was certain this was a dismissal in everything but name. Their impromptu briefing was officially over,
for now at least.

The blonde lets her posture sag slightly with the lightest of sighs. She wanted to get a chance to reconnect with Cecilia, but that girl was business minded, and Elizabet would hate to interrupt her questions. Kayō was the next option, a mysterious, soft-spoken ace, who almost certainly carried a power Valkyria couldn't imagine matching.
But her senior agent was busy as well...

Talking to Gundahar in whispers...
That just leaves...

"Hey! Retten, was it?"

There's an innate challenge to Elizabet's beaming friendliness as the others disperse into their separate groups and she makes her way closer to her fellow rookie to strike up a conversation, a defiance born from the needles of doubt she was sure were slowly permeating the air around them. The blonde's bright eyes, dart from their constant appraisals of their surroundings and focus onto Selana's own, assessing in a new way but with no less fervor.

"It seems we shall both be the new blood of the Vanguards here! I am positive you know as well as I how the rest will all be counting on us to step up..."

Elizabet's expression softens into something more genuinely comforting as the tension of being looked down upon lessens under the sweet balm of conversation. She claps her hands together once before her, no longer the professional agent looking to present as stoic and serious, but a young woman eager to meet a potential new friend. Her smile is contagious.

"So I must ask. How does it feel for you? It is exhilarating, neh?"

Interactions: Arkangel - Panther - Khocolatte - lunar_moth - TerrorKitty - Admiral19 - Emiya Shin

Code by Serobliss

 

[TerrorKitty]

Vanguards of the Imperious

Vextress (Vex)

Alba Vex Von Wolfenstein

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH

Any plans for a shopping trip to the mall before the ceremony went out the window as Dietrich laid out their plans for the next five days. Although hearing that'd she'd be working with Lusia was quite the relief. Alba valued the older Woman's experience both in the field and with life. Having a capable partner on such dangerous missions was clearly integral to success, but it also didn't hurt to ease some anxiety, especially after what had occurred on the bridge. Syriel as well; The Mage Knight had demonstrated incredible ability as not only a combatant but as a leader during the chaotic situation, even with unfamiliar Vanguards coming in for backup on such short notice the Woman didn't even so much as stutter when directing the combat zone.

With that it mind there was really only Cecilia that Vex was in the dark about, at least in terms of combat experience. "I downloaded everyone's centralized profiles before arriving. At least, the editions that I had authorization for." Alba explained to Cecilia, finally answering the Demonoid's question after Elizabet broke or rather, demolished the serious air that had taken hold during their somewhat casual introductory debriefing. There really wasn't too much to gleam from the documents outside general information. Dietrich's files seemed just as normal as the rest to Alba, but Faith had noticed something was off about them. Meaning either her AI was faulty or there really was more hidden below the surface... Still, it wasn't any of Alba's business. House Wolfenstein was cutting it pretty close with how much hand-waving was allowed for their research to continue as it did. Jeopardizing her family's operations was out of the question.

"Though I would be lying if I said I wasn't familiar with your publicated research from your time in the Akashic Records." Vextress continued while moving back towards the bar counter to finish her still very cold cryonic coffee. There was a hint of excitement in her voice as she mentioned Cecilia's former work. "A lot of those paper have gone a long way for Incarce Integrations inc." The official company which House Wolfenstein Operated it's own R&D departments, as well as sold approved technologies that they had developed along the way. "Honestly, without it I may not be standing here today." Vex said said facing away from the room, taking a hand to her upper arm and running her fingers down the length of it. One of the many refurbished parts of the girl that had been damaged during the terrorist attack. The upgrades made to the material alloys that comprised many of the cyborgs inorganic body had come from that very research; even the way her body fused incarce with technology was spurred on by such breakthroughs. Yet, in the end some of the natural skin was still slightly bruised underneath the fabric of her sleeves, and it hurt. Vextress looked back at Cecilia with a sly but unreadable expression. "I look forward to working with you Caesarea."

Interaction: lunar_moth (Luisa), Arkangel (Gundahar), SleepySheepiez (Valkaria), Emiya Shin (Cecilia),

Code by Serobliss

 

[Admiral19]

Vanguards of Imperius

Retten

Selana Voleir

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH

Alright, roles had been divvied out. Naturally enough, Alba and Luisa were designated to the frontline team, being two of the more experienced soldiers in this group. She and Valkyria were in a group together, what with them being the newest of their respective affiliations; as far as Selana knew, they would be in good hands with Dietrich leading them and Euthalia alongside them.

Speaking of both of them, actually, it seemed like they were preoccupied with their own private conversation. Not an issue at all, really, because that just left her with Valkyria to make conversation with. The fellow rookie would beat her to the punch, however, coming up to Selana with a big smile and an inquiry about her name. "Retten I am! And you must be Valkyria."

Elizabet would surely find comfort in the fact that Selana had been equally as nervous during the briefing; it's never easy being the newcomer in any scenario, much less a scenario that involved keeping an entire enemy organization at bay. Of course, action spoke far louder than words, so if she was going to say anything about her combat prowess, her cannons would be doing the talking, if indeed it came to that. But while she didn't think that anyone believed that they were completely unfit for the job, she figured that there were certainly some doubts.

Selana didn't think that anyone was explicitly talking about those doubts, but regardless, they were doubts that she felt were her duty to dispel.

"It is exhilarating, actually!" Conversation began to become a little bit easier, due in no small part to how Elizabet was easing the tension in her body just by being here. "We'll have to keep our wits about us so we don't fall behind...but you know, I have a feeling you and I will do just fine."


Arkangel █ lunar_moth █ Emiya Shin █ Panther █ TerrorKitty █ SleepySheepiez █ Khocolatte

Code by Serobliss

 

[Emiya Shin]

Imperial Security Directorate

Caesarea

Cecilia Ravenholm

Imperius City, Elesrith

Syriel soon replied to Cecilia's questions, stating that she will brief the first team, after everyone was actually done with Dietrich. Even so, the Mage Knight slightly revealed that the first team will be picking where they previously left off, and that is investigating the two remaining ports owned by the Sindalone Organization. That reveal alone is enough to answer most of her concerns regarding her own role. Cecilia was somewhat skeptical that they could find anything worthwhile in those ports, but who knows. Maybe Lady Luck would smile on them.

"Sure thing, Mage Knight." Cecilia acknowledged Syriel's need of getting a cup of coffee with a nod.

"As for speaking with Gundahar, I think he'll be fairly occupied." She added, as she observed Euthalia approaching Dietrich and talked to him in a privately manner. "I think I'll find something to occupy myself in the meantime. Enjoy your cup of coffee, Mage Knight."

If anything, the Demonoid hoped that the Kriegsheld member would feel better, after getting her fix of caffeine.

Just when she was about to relax herself when the others started mingling with each other, Vex decided to approach Cecilia, explaining herself on how did she managed to learn about her background. The pink-haired part-cybernetic lady even mentioned Cecilia's research journals that were published under the name of Akashic Records. Despite Vex praising her achievements in those... research papers, Cecilia found herself frowning at the mention of them. She actually felt disgusted, as those research efforts were not completed ethically. They were dark, unerasable spots in her background as a citizen of Empyria.

"I'm pretty glad to hear that my research journals regarding Incarce Circuits actually helped you, Vex." She replied with a forced smile. "I...-- no. Akashic Records went to extreme lengths to procure those... results."

Then, she promptly swapped to the other customary topic. "And likewise. I'm looking forward to see how you perform in battle. I guess it'll be something like... witnessing the actual fruit of Akashic Records' Incarce Circuit research? Haha~"

She did a dry laugh, before continuing on. "Though, I heard you held your own at the skirmish that partly destroyed the Grand Imperius Bridge. That is quite a feat, if I may say so, Vex."

Arkangel Panther Khocolatte lunar_moth SleepySheepiez Admiral19 TerrorKitty

Code by Serobliss

 

[SleepySheepiez]

Imperial Security Directorate

Valkyria

Elizabet Van der Lucht

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH

"Most certainly." The blonde responds. "Most all of my experience in the field was gathered on the police force, so I must admit I fully expect the shift to be rather jarring once we find ourselves fully in action..."

She trails off, as if at a loss of what topic to bring up next. Or maybe her mind is instead wandering to the report they'd both received in short order covering the conflict on the bridge. Whatever might be said about the Marauder and the considerable casualties it and it's lithe co-conspirator had wrought, they were leagues apart from the petty criminals Elizabet had honed the razor sharp focus of her Exousiarch on. Even through the layers of confidence the girl was painting over her doubts, there still remained the very real chance that whatever Kayō was whispering about was absolutely spot on. Selana might not be all that hung up on the preconceptions of others, but Elizabet is getting particularly antsy about them, coming to the churning realization of just how much that whispered conversation is bothering her.

With a shake of her head and a toss of her locks, the heiress returns her attention to Retten.
Something to take her mind of the looming anticipation of proving her worth.

"What do you believe are the odds of our group coming into contact with hostiles?" Her voice lowers to a whisper of her own, as she leans in. Blue eyes dart watchfully around the café, before locking onto Retten to try and gauge her thoughts. "I know you realize as much as I how we are essentially being babysat with these squad assignments. Do you think the enemy will catch on and try to strike where we're most vulnerable? Or maybe we'll be bored out of our minds while everyone else gets the glory. Oh! And If this is some elaborate ritual hazing? Maybe this is the real test that decides whether we shall be fit to keep our places here."

One wild proposition after the other, but Elizabet was admittedly becoming rather bored, and boredom left plenty of room for the butterflies to frolic and fancies to fly. Selana was thus far being calm and polite and shaping up to be the best subordinate of a rookie anyone could ask for. Less than fortunately for Elizabet, as it was more a market of confidants and friendships that she was probing for. Something that good military manners and long stuffy briefings were not all that practiced at helping with.

Maybe it is the nerves talking.
I... shall need some air after this,

Valkyria sighs, lowering her inquisitive stare to bashfully adjust her tie.
"Ah, I do apologize if I am being too forward. There really is nothing to do but wait is there..."

Interactions: Arkangel - Panther - Khocolatte - lunar_moth - TerrorKitty - Admiral19 - Emiya Shin

Code by Serobliss

 

[Admiral19]

Vanguards of Imperius

Retten

Selana Voleir

IMPERIUS CITY, ELESRITH

Selana had that feeling too, the feeling that she and Elizabet were being watched over rather than brought into combat. Their group would be watching over and securing the city proper while the first team handled the majority of Golden Path themselves, so that probably meant that enemy units would be mostly focused on them...couple in Gundahar and Euthalia, who Selana assumed had far more experience than them, and it probably meant that she and Elizabet would go the entire mission without doing any sort of work. That lack of immense danger should be a good thing, especially considering that it's her first proper mission as a Vanguard and her potentially second foray into combat overall.

But Selana, she wanted to make sure her fellow Vanguards knew that she could be trusted, and the best way she could think of doing that was to show that she could hold her own in a fight. Were there other ways? Sure, but for whatever reason, this one seemed the most effective.

She brought her own voice down to a whisper. "Well, I don't know about hazing. I think you might have a point, though; we might go without seeing a single enemy, much less raising our weapons against one! Not that we absolutely won't see anyone at all, but still...But then let's say that this is a test, then: do you think everyone's in on it? Or is it just Gundahar? Ohh, if it's just him, then we'd really better be on the ball!"

Elizabet wasn't being nearly as forward as she thought she was being—at least not to Selana—but even if she objectively was, Selana wouldn't mind it all that much. These flights of fancy were interesting to consider, if not momentary fleeting thoughts born out of a lack of something to do. Strategists, they consider every single contingency before they even pitch a plan to their squad; was this no different, and something on a more lighthearted scale? And beyond that, she had something to talk about and someone that wanted to talk about it, two things that she not only appreciated, but needed a little desperately for the sake of easing her worries, even if those worries weren't outwardly obvious.

And beyond even all of that, at the very least, it passed the time.

Arkangel █ lunar_moth █ Emiya Shin █ Panther █ TerrorKitty █ SleepySheepiez █ Khocolatte

Code by Serobliss