036.1 "It looks like our next battles will be ones of diplomacy."

[Corwin]

[20:04] <Kotono> After returning and a night's rest, the rescue party gathers in the strategy room, minus Ithea. Afina, Jaela, Muirfinn, Hanna, Lief, Adrian. Gisfal is there as well, as Morniel stands before all. There's the normal post battle summary, gone over in some considerable detail. "Now that the military side of this is settled, we have about one thousand refugees to see to and integrate," Morniel
[20:04] <Kotono> continues on, "I've talked to a few less stricken by the physical and mental torment that they went through. They're simply happy to be free of that misery - but more than that, the question lingers. What do we do with them? If they fight for Aurora, how do we use them best?"
[20:05] <Jaela> "We have plenty of room for them," Jaela responds. "Let's give them time? We're not gonna start any forced conscription, and I'm sure most of them will join the cause once they recover."
[20:05] <Afina> "Give them a bit longer to recover, they're in no shape to fight anyway," Afina puts her view forward. "In a month's time, maybe, we can start putting any volunteers in training and appraising their abilities for integration into our armies."
[20:07] * Muirfinn nods. "Many will recover, but some may not. We do not want to force those who are too damaged into a fight. I'm sure that, as time goes on, many will volunteer to fight the injustices they underwent."
[20:07] * Jaela glances at Morniel thoughtfully, then. "You already had a chance to talk to a few, you said? Was there anything they wanted, despite how happy they were? Anything you think we could do for them to make things easier or better?"
[20:08] <Kotono> "Misalea and I did some talking, too," Adrian speaks up, reclining back in his seat. "Most of them have various degrees of martial and unarmed skill. We're running with the idea that the re-education was to make them join his monk order."
[20:09] <Kotono> Nodding to each as they speak, "Right now, the needs were elementary. Food, water, rest, healing, relief. Revenge as well, though none are in any state to act on it now."
[20:09] <Afina> "That makes sense," Afina looks at Adrian. "I'll bet the jailer we killed used to be a prisoner himself at one time."
[20:10] * Jaela grimaces, even as she nods. "Could be."
[20:10] <Kotono> "Well," Rubbing his chin with a thoughtful look a moment, "We've come into possession of the head of this order and his prospects. Why not turn these teachings against the devils?"
[20:11] <Jaela> "What do you mean?"
[20:12] <Kotono> "With enough magic and time, Vul'lath can wretch the secrets of the training form Yian, I expect," Gisfal continues, "Assuming nothing in it is inherently vile, we educate them in what Yian begun. Instead of a small army of loyal dragon-monks for Hell, we reap the benefit. It's a 2000 soldier reversal - minus one thousand to them and plus one thousand to us."
[20:13] * Jaela shrugs. "Martial might is martial might. S'long as it's not inherently vile in some way like you said, no reason not to use it. But they have to choose to continue training on their own."
[20:13] <Muirfinn> "...that's a great idea." Muirfinn says. "They'd never see it coming either."
[20:14] <Afina> "Really?" Afina looks nonplussed. "Those teachings haven't helped any practicioner we've fought. Perhaps we should focus training on more proven styles?"
[20:15] <Kotono> "How about giving it to the Master, then?" Adrian speaks up, "The information about the styles? See what he makes about it and see if he can identify any flaws in it?"
[20:15] <Muirfinn> "He would know how best to decide, in matters of martial arts." Muirfinn agrees.
[20:16] <Kotono> Hanna is quiet during all of this, idly watching the conversation back and forth. "I don't really like it," she finally speaks up, "I don't trust that deluded dragon not to have inserted a few surprises or vile aspects into the style."
[20:16] <Jaela> "If we trust other information we get from the interrogations, why not ask him directly about this and find out?"
[20:17] * Muirfinn nods.
[20:18] <Afina> "We have several successful and rare combat styles already practiced in Aurora, as well as more widely known yet equally solid styles," Afina continues to resist. "It would make integration smoother to bolster those rather than trying to teach a draconic style only one of us would have theoretical knowledge of and nothing more."
[20:19] <Jaela> "Like I said, the choice should be theirs," Jaela voices. "We just have to make sure it's safe, because I'm not gonna be telling those people they're forbidden from practicing what they know if they feel like it."
[20:19] <Kotono> Morniel listens and nods, "I think I ultimately agree with Afina," he finally says, "If they have the potential for one style of martial arts, they should be able to be converted to something the Master can teach, or someone else. Sylvie can fight unarmed, as can Stille. Any of them could teach them valid styles."
[20:20] <Kotono> "At the least, let's get the information out of Yian," Adrian says, hand idly going to his amulet. "No sense in not making a fully informed choice. Besides." Smiling just a little bit and rather darkly, "I enjoy watching a vaunted devil spill every precious secret in him. I'm sure it mortifies Yian."
[20:20] <Muirfinn> "I will defer to your better judgement in matters of war," Muirfinn says to Gisfal. "but I believe that if we can turn their weapon back against them without any ill effects tyou ourselves, we should not deny ourselves a skill merely because it was used by devils and traitors."
[20:21] <Afina> "By all means, he could use as much humbling as we can give before we kill him," Afina waves dismissively at that prospect.
[20:21] <Jaela> "Then we can move to other matters now?" Jaela asks, not having a particular interest in the style besides what she had voiced.
[20:22] <Kotono> "I'll get Vul'lath and see to it," Gisfal rises, going to the portal and out. Morniel nods, "Beyond that, there's the matter of Ebony. From what I understand, she'll return as a celestial of some sort?"
[20:23] <Jaela> "That was the impression we were given," Jaela affirms. "In essence, a promotion rather than a reincarnation."
[20:23] <Afina> "We may as well hold position here until she can rejoin us since we don't have any pressing destinations for the fortress."
[20:24] <Jaela> "We could even come closer to Sylica, to not just stay in one place."
[20:24] <Kotono> Smiling at that, going to sit now, "Good. Her sacrifice was a genuine one."
[20:26] <Jaela> "Yes, there was a lot of exciting martyrdom," Jaela deadpans. "I'm just glad she will be coming back, and that her patrons understood." Intending to bring up another matter, she addresses Morniel, "Have you heard the report about the resistance on Lifasa?"
[20:26] <Kotono> "Yes," Morniel goes right on, "You're referring to the contact Makaril made?"
[20:27] <Kotono> "It's too bad we couldn't link up more directly," Hanna murmurs, "If the circumstances were any different, I've have wanted to go help him."
[20:27] <Jaela> "From how I heard it, yes. We need to establish a link to Makaril. There's plenty where we could help, if we make two-prongued attacks or put the Aurora to good use, and he's our man on the ground, in a sense."
[20:27] * Jaela nods at her mother. "Exactly. I feel the same. But instead of dwelling on the past, let's focus on how much better any future assault could go if that is established."
[20:28] <Afina> "It would be simple enough to contact him by Sending and arrange a meeting so we could better align our plans," Afina agrees with the general thrust.
[20:28] <Kotono> "How about we set up a meeting?" Adrian says, "If he can get off Lifasa, we can even invite him here," Adrian says, just behind Afina.
[20:29] <Jaela> "I think it's best, yes. And I think you're the best person for the job of arranging it, Morniel. Can we count on you?"
[20:30] <Kotono> "I'll see to it," he says, "I would heartily recommend avoiding a second trip to Lifasa right now," he adds, "Doubtless this assault garnered the attention of Abigor, especially if it destroyed the Burning Aeropolis. A direct conflict with Abigor and his infernal charge is not a contest I want to gamble on. I'll see about setting something up in another plane."
[20:31] <Afina> "I agree, Aurora is too important to risk. We don't have the strength to maintain an extended presence on Lifasa, yet," Afina nods firmly.
[20:31] * Jaela nods. "Excellent. In the meanwhile, there are two more subjects I wanted to raise."
[20:32] <Kotono> "Too bad," Hanna murmurs, "Abigor could use an axe to the face."
[20:32] * Muirfinn nods at Hanna with a small smile.
[20:32] <Kotono> "Go on," Morniel says.
[20:33] <Kotono> That draws a grin out of Adrian as well, "Still...if what I've heard about those oversized pit fiends are true, slaying one was a real victory. We've captured Yian, attacked Lifasa and put one of those down. I feel like we've really and finally begun to do something instead of just marshaling strength."
[20:34] <Jaela> "The first is recruitment. From what I got from Priest, we can't keep on fighting and relying on resurrections. Soon enough, we'll start losing people. So I've been thinking about where we should look at next. The Cauldron and Sylica can't give us more troops, and I don't want to go to Lady Chan again before we've proven ourselves to her in one of the ways she brought up. What about the Court of the Stars, Mom? Can we expect on more from them? And what of Jarl? Wasn't he part of a defensive group in Elysium?"
[20:35] <Kotono> "Well, liberating those captives falls in line with the Court's goals," Hanna ponders it, "If I go there and spin a story about it and play it up, I could probably get some more reinforcements."
[20:35] <Afina> "Queen Ilsenine has already departed to the Fey Realms to acquire material support from there," Afina volunteers as it comes up. "We should also spend the time visiting Celestia as Morniel suggested a while ago to see if any there can be drawn to our cause."
[20:35] <Kotono> "I believe so," Adrian says, "The Soothing Wind, I think?"
[20:36] <Jaela> "Right. And, of course, there is Arvandor. It's past time I approached the Seldarine directly in a plea for help. I would like to propose that we focus our efforts on this before making another grand assault."
[20:37] <Muirfinn> "I could approach the Mother Ocean and her forces in Water for aid as well." Muirfinn ventures.
[20:37] <Kotono> "Agreed," Morniel says, "We also can't fully discount an attack here in Ysgard. While suicidal and likely to draw the wrath of the local powers, I wouldn't put it past a devil desperate enough to gamble or smart enough to have a cunning gambit. More army forces would help ensure our safety in any case."
[20:38] <Jaela> "I'll admit it's part of why I suggested bringing us closer to Sylica."
[20:38] <Kotono> Nodding to all of it, "All worth pursuing," Morniel says, "It looks like our next battles will be ones of diplomacy."
[20:39] <Jaela> "Then that just leaves one more thing. How about pursuing the seal on Medi's quarters in earnest?"
[20:40] <Muirfinn> "Another worthy focus. The portal magic is...fascinating, to say the least. Mind-boggling."
[20:41] <Afina> "Speaking of diplomacy, thanks to the efforts of Morniel, Drena, and Kascha, I now have a solid lead on the armour of Quilium. All Zaaman Rul wishes for in trade is a powerful magic item such as I could potentially craft, or some sort of quest to bolster his position in Fire. I intend to pursue this myself before anything else, so that the Blade of Endings can be acquired and better safeguard
[20:41] <Afina> any assistance we end up providing Benfal, or other direct interventions by the Duke of Destiny," Afina speaks up before the conversation can move too far ahead.
[20:42] <Kotono> "Which one will you take?" Hanna says, "Throw money at it, or go on a dangerous quest?"
[20:42] <Jaela> "Is it still relevant?" Jaela asks. "Not the blade, that's important, but the intervention? Wasn't it that one of us would be killed?"
[20:42] <Kotono> "I'm for both," Adrian shrugs, "I'm curious as to what's in there. Chan mentioned at least one powerful artifact, and I bet there's more. Imagine his spell collection alone."
[20:44] <Afina> "Yes. But what happens after we die?" Afina asks Jaela. "If the Duke can be killed there and then it prevents every future obstacle he could throw at us in the future. Considering he orchestrated Lifasa's fall, the element of justice absolutely cannot be ignored either - his complicity is every bit as severe as Abigor's."
[20:44] <Jaela> "There's mists and stuff. It's not that bad."
[20:45] * Afina looks at Jaela uncomprehendingly.
[20:45] <Jaela> "It's not like death is final, so why are we working so hard against it? Am I missing something there?"
[20:45] <Afina> "Did you ignore every word I said?" Afina asks in a numb voice.
[20:46] <Jaela> "I want to kill him too, but I don't see why we have to kill him now."
[20:46] <Muirfinn> "I believe I understand that your friends Elrisa and Willim know that to be different."
[20:47] <Kotono> "Ebony too," Hanna speaks up, "Her mortal life is over. The only reason she's coming back is because she's directly favored by a Goddess."
[20:47] * Muirfinn nods.
[20:48] <Afina> "Because he will continue to work against us. He is an active and persistent obstacle to our entire reason for being here..." Afina trails off, unable to comprehend how Jaela can't see this. "Was there some sort of problem when Priest brought you back?"
[20:49] <Jaela> "Dunno. Maybe? I just don't see it that way. We've got Ithea's frog that works against him, and while he's got to die for what he did to Lifasa, did any of his plans after the Fall actually work out? If he's gone, he'll be replaced by an unknown we can't counter that effectively. That's how I see things."
[20:50] <Kotono> "Jaela." Hanna suddenly rubs her face slowly, "Are you saying that we should ignore the Duke of Destiny because who replaces him may be worse or at least unknown?"
[20:50] * Jaela tilts her head. "Wasn't he the one who sent Yian out after Lief? Isn't that why we caught Yian and went to rescue people on Lifasa?"
[20:52] <Kotono> "You say it like the fall of Lifasa was some small thing. By Corellon's blade, Jaela," Adrian stares at her, "He has the fall of our world on him. I don't care if it brings a dozen devils like him out afterwards. We take him down as soon as possible."
[20:53] <Afina> "Because 27 told us to do that. Just like he told me to acquire the Blade of Endings..." Afina just looks frustrated now. "Jaela, we can't just be complacent because we won a battle or defied death. We have powerful enemies and have to take all steps possible to destroy them or else they'll destroy us, it won't just 'work out fine' because we have our own prophecies. We have to actively make
[20:53] <Afina> things happen!"
[20:55] <Kotono> Morniel listens, "What you say does have some merit form a dispassionate viewpoint," Morniel says, "But I don't trust him not to have ways of capturing a soul, nor do I think the chance to destroy a Duke of Hell should be passed up. Such things are treasures not to be passed on."
[20:55] <Jaela> "27 also told me to become a slaad. I dunno if I'd just go and do everything it says. And weren't we talking about avoiding direct conflict with Abigor just a short while ago? This Duke's got to be as powerful. I think it's important to have a weapon to deal with him, but I dunno about seeking him out to try and kill him right the fucking now!"
[20:56] * Muirfinn shakes his head. "His efforts to subvert and subsume Lifasa cannot be ignored. What can be done to one world can be done to a hundred. We have a responsibility to make certain it cannot happen to millions of more innocents."
[20:57] <Afina> "Don't put words in my mouth!" Afina protests, "I'm getting a weapon to prepare for the inevitability, not opening a portal to Nessus!"
[20:57] <Muirfinn> "We are planning, not talking of heading out the gates in the morning." Muirfinn adds flatly.
[20:57] * Jaela stands up and bows before the others. "I apologize. I spoke badly, and I caused a misunderstanding."
[20:58] <Kotono> "Very well," Morniel speaks up again, "Let's move on from it. Are there any other matters to discuss?"
[20:58] <Afina> "Apology accepted," Afina is only too happy to put it aside and move on.
[20:59] * Jaela nods slightly at Afina, before responding to Morniel, "None from my end. I'm going to try and bring back a fellow knight before I look into Medi's legacy. Should I be needed, I'm only a spell away."
[21:01] <Afina> "One more part," Afina speaks up now with a smile. "I'm almost certain I've figured out the last obstacles to creating my own golems. Although funds are an issue right now, I'll soon look to augmenting our forces through those. Since they're unintelligent, I'll be looking for officers to take responsibility for commanding them once I start introducing them to the armies."