---

"I think no matter what they'll be ready for us. I mean, he's pretty important and now they know Izayoi is here." It was the first words Arton really spoke since he awoke this morning. In fact, the normally upbeat swordsman had seemed sullen and distracted the entire day "My vote is to attack the detention center. They might expect us but Ciradyl's agents could be our wild card." He shrugged and took the first sip of the tea that had been sitting in front of him. Faint, dark cirlces were formed underneath eyes that seemed to be staring through the teacup.



He took a deep breath as it became clear this was happening and happening soon. Arton thought back on Izayoi's instruction. That nightmare was nothing but a distraction. This was real and he needed to focus otherwise people could get hurt. His conversation with Eve came to mind. That nightmare was fictional but it was reality for many of the people of Osprey.

---

The conventional tactics being suggested and debated by the others were unsurprising. Eve's suggestion, as well, was more in line with expectations than against them; she was a weapon made for war, and the rest were soldiers and warriors. Everybody would work with what they knew. Esben sat in silence for a few moments more as he contemplated the numbers Ciradyl had available in comparison to the force they would work against. One dozen allies on the inside, up to one hundred Valheimer soldiers available to focus on the execution. Assuming that number did not include Ciradyl's agents, that still meant that by combining their numbers they made up better than ten percent of the enemy force.

Not the worst odds if a mission like this went sour.

He drained his cup of tea, setting it back down in front of him. As Arton finished speaking, his hand came up, a small gesture to hopefully silence any others before they spoke up so that he could get his own words out without having to raise his voice. "So, we have allies on the inside to work with, further forces outside, our own number, the capacity to pass messages rapidly and safely, and more importantly—we have other high value targets. Good."

His hand fell slightly, pointing at various members of the party in turn. "Ranbu no Izayoi. Eve. Myself, and..." His eyes glanced over to Robin next to him; small and nimble as she was, she could prove useful, and skilled enough with a blade he wouldn't have to worry. But not someone he'd fought with much. Miina was another unknown. Éliane would be useful in a pitched battle, but would overlap too much with his own plan. Arton, maybe; Galahad, maybe, though he could imagine better use for him outside.

"Rudi." His pointing finger fell on the last his eyes passed over. Perceptive and thoughtful from what he'd gathered, and moreover, as a hunter Rudolf could be trusted to know both when to be sneaky and when to get loud. And, seemingly, he was not prone to overt displays of heroics. "Two high-value targets long before now, and two that were up close enough to Reisa in our last skirmish that the descriptions of all of us she's no-doubt been passing around will be more detailed in our particular cases. Worthy to make an added show of force come morning, removing multiple thorns in their sides."

Esben turned back to Ciradyl and Galahad, a small smile on his face. "Call Chisaki back in, and have her sell us out to the occupiers. Pass messages quickly to all of those you have on the inside, run any bribes you need to make sure as many of them as possible are in the party that will detain us, and have us transported to this Eastern Detention Center. They'll secure our weapons as well. Once we're ready to be placed into confinement, we'll turn on any hostiles who are closest and neutralize them, our weapons returned to us. Release Lord Hien, Eve can open a path for us by knocking down a wall or five, and the rest of you can be stationed along whichever escape route we determine best, ready to receive us as we make our exit, or to come in after us if things should go abnormally wrong."

He shrugged at that possibility. Worth remembering, not worth considering; at that point, any plan would be in tatters as it was.

"As it stands, my preference would be to simply grab him, force open a way out, and make our retreat. I'd suggest Éliane be given opportunity to engage in some surprise remodeling of the city if it proves needed to deny the enemy advance, so it would be wise to send out some messengers and surreptitiously evacuate whichever route we plan to take. For that goal of simplicity of escape, a simple infiltration—we're hardly all suited to a kidnapping, after all, and a pitched battle doesn't suit us no matter where or what time we choose it."

"Umm... m-my magic's not... big..." Miina mumbled, really not aware enough of the intricacies of this sort of planning to offer an opinion on what would be best. Attacking an execution specifically seemed really difficult, but it wasn't like she had much expertise in night-time planning anyway. At least she could climb onto rooftops with some skill if they went for the second option? Harder than trees, but she liked climbing.

Her magic definitely wasn't anything big big, though. Or flashy. Particularly not next to everything Eve was proposing, all she had was parlour tricks. But...

"I'm... o-okay with ice, though? N-No fire." At least she could use magic without much of a fear of, well... burning a city down. And ice could be slippery, if that was useful.

---

“I agree with attacking the detention center.”
With the information provided to her, Éliane was leaning towards an assault on the prison complex out of all the available options. Both battlefield experience and vibes had led her to think it was the most viable option, and that was even before her questions were answered and the others pitched in to strategize.

Esben gave a good summary as usual. If he weren’t a SEED agent, he would make a very good aide to a general on the field. As far as odds went, they really weren’t terrible, if they had the element of surprise. Although Reisa had encountered them previously, she had hardly seen all of the tricks and strategies team Kirin had to offer.

The plan he proposed right afterwards, though…

She stared right at him. “Esben, that is the most insane, unhinged, and ridiculous plan that I have heard from anybody from your organization to date.”

She paused.

“I like it. How soon can we start, and how much gunpowder do we have access to?”

Given that the prison plan seemed to be more popular and in lieu of any better tactics, it was decided to run with Esben's plan. Ciradyl worked her magic in passing along a message to her resistance forces in whatever method she had - Izayoi would still need to ask her about all of that should they ever have the chance. For now, she went along with the plan.

By evening, all was ready. They used a less secure location for the capture, the first team pretending to be sedated under the influence of drugged tea that Chisaki purported to have slipped them. Transport to the prison was quick, the Valheimr that "captured" them eagerly taking them in for processing, giddy at the thought of a reward for bringing in two of the most wanted subjects on their all-points bulletin.

Fortunately, it seemed that the soldiers on shift in processing tonight were indeed Ciradyl's people, as they flashed a quick hand sign to signify that they were allies as they seized the party's blades from the capture team. As Izayoi, Eve, Esben, and Rudolf were taken deeper into the facility, small blades were slipped into their hands to cut their bindings. They passed through the cells for the "normal" prisoners, all of whom stared bleakly at the new arrivals. A few seemed to recognize Izayoi, and almost managed to say something, but a glare from their minders caused them all to slink back, heads bowed and spirits broken.

However, a squadron awaited them at the precipice of the entrance to the solitary confinement zone. The sergeant approached, pistol drawn as he nodded to the soldiers escorting the Kirins.

"Captain Reisa heard about the capture. Direct orders: Project Grayscale and the barbarian general are to be locked up in the secure zone, but the other two are to be executed immediately. They're useless." He raised his pistol, aiming towards Rudolf first. "Last words, savage?"

Now was the time. Their escorts pressed their weapons back into the Kirins' hands, bursting into motion to begin the assault. Izayoi joined in not long after, cutting through her bonds before engaging in a battojutsu quick-draw, intent on disarming the pistol-wielding sergeant both figuratively and literally.

___

Out on the streets, the other half of the Kirins could see movement on the rooftops as an alarm blared out from within the prison, Valheimr gunners setting up and digging in to draw line of sight on the prison's exits. It seemed they were taking no chances with a possible breakout.

Of course, with all their focus on the prison and their high-profile prisoners, the riflemen weren't exactly keeping as much of a watchful eye as they should have been on their rear, secure in their assumption that the threat was within.

A cautious eye would also notice an airship lifting off from Kugane Castle, flying straight in the prison's direction. It seemed they were on a timetable at this point.

Cyradil's revelation regarding this dreaded 'Revenant' figure induced a deep frown from Eve's brows. Though the Faye Bard possessed no further information, the way she spoke of the entity combined with what Eve knew of the circumstances of her past led the black mage to a hypothesis, more of a wild guess but one that she wouldn't be surprised if it turned out to be true, A surviving sibling of mine? No... I'm certain that I am the only remaining subject, unless... A product of a similar project done in another facility? Perhaps one tailored to harnessing another Eidolon's powers; a savage butcher... Ifrit perhaps? Regardless, there was too little information to make it worth bringing it up now, especially not when they couldn't afford to be distracted by wild theories. She'd cross the bridge later when and if she encounters this Revenant.

For the moment, Eve focused on the briefing at hand. "That's fair." She nodded at Izayoi's sentiments to her suggestion, if the Ospreyan ex-general deemed that the potential collateral damage and ensuing incapacitation of a team member outweighed the benefits then so be it, "Understood, should things come down to a choice between life or death, then I shall do it." Last resort it is.

The shrewd SEED agent took center stage once more as he divided the roster into two squads, eliciting a few intrigued blinks from Eve as he assigned her to the infiltration team, the one requiring stealth, but after a short contemplation, she decided to trust Esben's deliberation, besides, he made sensible points, if they needed heavy firepower to break Hien out of his prison, then she could provide in spades. I assume I'll just masquerade as a nice captive until it's time to reveal our claws. Plus, the fact that Cyradil had men on the inside meant they wouldn't actually be alone even behind enemy lines, then together with the support from the rest of Team Kirin, they might just pull this off. All in all, it was a sound plan, as expected from a graduate of the world's finest espionage agency.

Finally, with the rest of the team agreeing that Plan A would be their best chance at success, the briefing was concluded, now they could prepare and execute the scheme when the time was right...

..........
.....
...

Come evening, Eve joined Esben, Rudolf, and Izayoi as Valheim's "captives", detained by disguised allies as they were brought into the very same building that held the son of Izayoi's late liege lord. When said masquerading allies gave her a small knife to cut her bindings loose, for a brief moment, Eve wondered about the pointlessness of it all; considering physical restraints meant little to suppress her lethality, the proper way to defang the Faux-Bahamut was to silence her ether as without her magic, Eve was no more dangerous than a young Sollan girl of similar size and build. However, she quickly realized that they couldn't take any risks of her casting a spell and triggering some sort of ether-detecting alarm.

With her bindings sabotaged, the quartet arrived at a checkpoint within the prison, stationed by a squadron of Valheimr scum. "..." It took all of Eve's willpower to restrain herself as the sergeant referred to her by that name, the dehumanizing moniker Valheim assigned to her, as if she was no different than the object he held in his hand, a weapon and nothing more. Fortunately, she didn't need to suffer long as the group answered the sergeant's words with actions.

As Eve's 'weapon' was synonymous with her own body, she used her allies' actions as the cue to reveal her proverbial claws. The moment Izayoi made her move, Eve extended her right arm forward, palm open, as a small amber-colored magic circle spawned there. "..." With a silent yet fierce unblinking stare, the draconic chimera began firing jets of concentrated flames upon the soldiers, unleashing tangerine-sized bolts of steel-melting, flesh-scorching plasma to cleanse the tyrants from the face of Artimis!

@The Otter@Psyker Landshark@Izurich

A game smirk played across the slight young man's face, shifting the blade into position betwixt his fingers behind the back. He summoned up phantoms from the past in his bearing as his gold eyes measured the assured grip of the Valheimr ahead, the distance between them, the barrel breathing down his nose. What would that man say, to kick this off...

"Only a warning— You don't have the caliber to make that happen."

Blades flashed, and as one, Kirin was free to turn the tables.

Scary! This was way too scary! Esben, how the hell did you con me into agreeing to this?! He was gonna shoot the both of us! And get some kinda kick out of it, too!

His shortsword, light and fast, found its way up to guard first as he pivoted off to the left in a burst of speed, interposing the blade between his body and the barrel of the sergeant's pistol— and as luck would have it, the sudden force would likely knock the Valheimr's extended arm into the bloody arc of Izayoi's iai strike before the smirk could even leave his face.

She'd handle him. He surged forward, both blades drawn now, weaving between the storm of flame Eve loosed as he bore down upon the soldiers intended to receive them, targetting first any of the men that seemed to have communications equipment on-hand— the further they could prolong the period before alarm was raised, the better. Less chance of the Valheimr moving Lord Hien ahead of schedule.

He crashed into their ranks, a one-man wedge to dominate their immediate attention.

Esben's plan was riskier than he'd like, but war had taught him that there was no such thing as a perfect plan, and a good enough plan was often good enough. Esben's plan was good enough to pull off, and should anything go wrong they had enough skill on each team that Galahad figured could react and adapt to the changing situation. With the plan more or less in place, the groups split.

Esben, Eve, Rudolf and Izayoi stayed behind with Ciradyl to be 'captured', while Galahad and the others left ahead of time to make their way towards the detention center. Progress was slow, but methodical as they quietly combed their to positions around the prison itself. A small house occupied by a few of Ciradyl's agents gave them a view of the prison itself as they hunkered down and waited for their captured friends to be transferred to the prison.

They didn't wait long, Galahad shifted from his vantage point as he saw the patrol return with their friends in tow. Not soon after, they could hear alarms blare out and the sounds of fighting within. Since they'd set up early, the Kirins remained undetected as Valheim riflemen set up on the rooftops and streets around them. The airship was a complication, but they had some time before it arrived.

"They certainly didn't wait to kick things off." Galahad commented as he pulled his helmet over his face and hefted his halberd, his armored visage regarding the others. "We need to deal with the gunners, and secure the exit route."

"Arton, take the others and secure the ground- focus on the side we discussed and secure an entrance. If things go bad we need to be able to get in there and help out." Galahad glanced at Eliane and the rifle on her shoulder. "We'll secure the rooftops and cover you from above. Everyone keeps an eye out for communications equipment and runners."

"We'll deal with the airship when it gets here, everyone, go, now!"

With that, the Kirins quickly flowed out of their hidey holes, ready to cause some havoc. Skidding to a stop on the street, Galahad paused for long enough for Eliane to grab a hold of him. Once she was secure, Galahad burst from the ground, gravel and tile scattering as the Dragoon and Gunbreaker soared into the air, landing on one of the rooftops where Valheim was getting dug in.

A quartet of gunners were scattered across this particular roof, startled by the sound of metal greaves crunching against the stone tiles of the rooftop. Before they could react, the Dragoon was upon them, his halberd swinging in a wide arc. The hefty blade crunched clean through the lighter gunner's armor and took one torso clean off its legs, a second gunner quickly diving out of the way in time to prevent himself from also being bisected. A panicked shot ricocheted off the chimney as Galahad sidestepped the frazzled soldier. Quickly closing the distance, Galahad planted his armored boot on the man's chest and heaved, sending the man screaming a few stories to the ground.

"Ready to move, or staying here?" Galahad grunted as he glanced over to examine Eliane's handiwork.

---

Arton had make adjustments to his armor and now was nearly as covered in armor plates as Galahad. He had been sitting patiently off to the side watching the crowd walk below when he heard the alarms. Arton jumped to his feet, his shield firmly attached to his forearm and sword already drawn. He nodded at Galahad and turned to Robin and Miina, fierce confidence in his eyes "Robin, fall in close behind me and keep us covered Miina. Let's secure that exit." His hand waved them forward and burst from the shadows they were hiding in and rushed towards a half-dozen guards that were positioned where their other half would be fleeing from.

Their backs were turned to them and the loud blaring of the alarm was enough to mask Arton's thundering charge. He lowered his shoulder and crashed into the back of the closest soldier. The crack of bone and clang of bent metal was barely audible over the commotion. Arton remembered his lessons with Izayoi and didn't hesitate with his follow up. His blade was covered in blood as it pierced the throat of the first soldier to turn his head towards him. There was a violence of action that wasn't present when they were fighting Reisa. He wouldn't let them have an moment to regroup or target Miina that brought up their rear.

= = = = =

A rush of air whizzed past Eliane and Galahad, faintly glowing with magic, and pierced the chest of a panicking gunner that had his rifle leveled at Galahad. Barely a second passed before they were joined by a blue-haired Faye with yellow eyes, a fox mask covering the majority of her face. She wore indistinct armor typical of Osprean archers during the war "My apologies for my late arrival, I hoped I would be able to make beforehand." the voice was distinctly Ciradyl's. A red wood longbow was clutched in her hand and a wakizashi attached to her hip "I will follow you lead, Galahad." She spoke briefly.

Renzo was fiercely opposed to her joining Team Kirin in this operation directly. His objections were not entirely unfounded but Ciradyl would not let the last friend she had in this world risk her life alone. She had spent enough time operating in the shadows and commanding from afar. She wasn't that skilled in close quarters but few could match her when it came to marksmanship and the materia she possessed only further enhanced it. Her gaze shifted towards the airship and glared at its approach "We will need to leave when it arrives, success or failure."

---

The squad they'd been confronted with within the prison was rapidly dealt with; Izayoi's quick strike left the sergeant standing, wide-eyed and ashen-faced as blood spurted from the stumps where his wrists and hands once resided. The pistol clattered to the floor, the sergeant stumbling backwards behind the closing lines of his compatriots—tripping over his feet and landing hard on his back as the fight began in earnest. Unhurried, Esben slipped the last of the bindings from around his wrists, fixing his sleeves as best as he could before picking up his sword and belting it back around his waist where it belonged.

He picked carefully between the remaining fights happening, the majority of the Valheimer soldiers already picked off between the three Kirins and Ciradyl's planted agents. He narrowly ducked under the swung bayonet of one soldier and twisted past the thrust of another, before hearing each engulfed by Eve's fire just behind him, breaking past the enemy line.

The sergeant, surprisingly still conscious, was shakily trying to come up to his feet a short distance away, braced against one wall where he'd managed to crawl while the others fought. Esben closed the distance quickly, pulling out the dagger he'd been given to cut his bonds, and placed it against the neck of the sergeant, pressing in just enough to be painful. The man stiffened immediately, though any cry he might have given was stifled by Esben's other hand holding his mouth shut.

"Should've shot first," he said, almost apologetically. "Lord Hien's cell is the deepest, ja? How many more of you are around it for us to worry about? Speak quickly, please. I may be able to keep you alive if you're helpful."

"For what?" the sergeant replied haughtily, maintaining a portion of his attitude despite the blood he'd lost and the knife to his neck. "I'm already dead if you succeed or fail, boor. Qui—"

Esben slid the knife smoothly through the man's neck, blocking off whatever the sergeant's last words would've been as the knife tore apart his larynx and blocked any further airflow. "For the record, I didn't say I would, just that I might," he replied conversationally, before roughly jerking the blade forwards, tearing out the front of the man's throat and sending a spray of blood against the wall. The sergeant slumped immediately; but before he could start digging through the man's pockets for any keys or anything else useful, one of the last few soldiers remaining in the squad broke from the line of battle, Esben's eye catching the flash of blonde hair as she ran for an alarm lever partway down the hall.

He straightened, arm cocking back automatically. His focus slightly ahead of the target, he stepped forward, hurling the dagger right in the woman's path. It flipped fully once, point sinking in between her shoulder blades as she crossed its path. "Too close," Esben scoffed to himself as, falling, she stretched out her arms, barely catching the alarm lever and pulling it down with her.

Not that anything could be done about it at that point. He bent back down, hands probing each of the sergeant's pockets before coming out with a ring of keys that, he hoped, would correspond to cells within the secure holding area. He turned back as the others finished putting down the last of the soldiers, waving them over. "You all, stay a little ways behind us and hold any off that try to follow behind," he commanded Ciradyl's people. "Izayoi, Rudolf, you take point. Eve and I will be right behind you. No telling how many they were keeping on top of Hien."

Okay, so they were... doing this then. Prison breaking. Nothing important, just the biggest facility she'd ever been witness to, and they had to break in and rescue someone and not get caught or die in the process. If she'd been given some role in the infiltration, Miina would have no doubt started panicking and given the game away immediately. Or maybe that would be seen as more authentic in a prisoner?

That didn't mean she wasn't still nervous when the signal was given, the alarms were already going off and there was an airship coming and damn it that was loud and now they were fighting and—

Breathe. This was something that she at least had some practice and skills for, and as Arton had siad, she just needed to cover them. Arton was leading the way, and that meant that she could focus on casting. Nothing big—single target spells, just cycling elements for variety; she could definitely do more if she stuck to ice, but that would be much easier to adapt to, especially armoured—and focusing on anyone who might be in a position to get around the other two. And keep an ear open; she didn't want to be crept up on from behind as a rearguard...

---

The answer to Éliane’s question, as it turned out, was quite soon. It wasn’t long before the team had split in two according to Esben’s plan. With the usual sense of Skaellan infallibility, she had full confidence in the spy’s competence while inside the facility as a ‘prisoner.’ Éliane joined Galahad and the remainder of the party in spying on the detention facility.

It didn’t take much time at all for them to be in action.

“I didn’t like the suspense anyway,” she grinned in response to Galahad’s comment, already having counted the number of enemy riflemen on the rooftops and memorizing their general positions. Springing into action, she was boosted onto the rooftops by the dragoon. It seemed she would be having another rooftop battle after all. Whether or not it would turn into a running rooftop battle remained to be seen…

The moment the Skaelan officer was on the roof, she unholstered not her gunblade, but unshouldered the long rifle that had yet to be used up until now. It took her but the briefest moment to check the gun before she was in a crouching, aiming position. She was no sniper, but at this range, she was still enough of a marksman with an accurate full-powered gun.

The air cracked as she pressed the trigger, and an unaware soldier fell from the roof, blood blossoming from his chest. There was a smooth clack and then a cling as she quickly worked the bolt, and moved on to the next. Another snap—and a second rifleman fell backwards, just as he was starting to aim in their general direction. After her second shot, she quickly repositioned, and then she was shooting again. Briefly glancing a the airship moving in the distance, she gave it about five to ten minutes before they had to vacate the area entirely.

Even then, staying in place before then wasn’t a good idea. It was a good way to get killed “No, time to reposition,” she replied, nodding at the familiar sounding fox-masked woman that had shown up alongside her.

Between Rudolf and Eve, the remaining squadron of Valheimr were quickly mopped up, though not without the mishap of the alarm sounding. Inevitable, considering what they were up to. Izayoi ignored it, simply flicking blood off of her blade and sheathing it as she nodded to Esben.

"Understood. Forward, then. We've no time to waste."

All the while, Ciradyl's agents saluted Esben and stacked up to defend the entrance, though not without one slipping a map to Izayoi.

"For you and Lord Hien's escape, General. Your exfiltration route is marked. We will distract any reinforcements as long as we are able before we retreat. Godsspeed."

The Mystrel bit back her instinctual retort and simply nodded, checking the map briefly before handing it off to the others. They sprinted into the prison's secure zone with the aid of directions. Fortunately enough, it seemed any sentient security within the deepest bowels of the makeshift fortress was absent, with only the squadron at the entrance having been the apparent interior guard. A stroke of fortune. As a result, it wasn't long before they found the cell they'd been looking for. Its occupant was a young Osprean man with a beard and a high ponytail, tall and broad of shoulder. Though he was in a terrible state. Covered in bruises, one eye blackened, and his once proud garb stained in blood. Izayoi recognized him immediately, even through the sands of time and his wounds.

"It is him. Stand back." Her hand fell to her sheathed sword, and she sucked in a breath as she focused. Visualize the line. Draw. Cut. Izayoi's strike cleaved through the cell's lock, the door swinging open as Hien looked up blearily.

"Is that...it can't be." He chuckled hoarsely as he remained sitting against the far wall, unable to stand, much less move under his open power. "Tell me, am I dreaming?"

"Unfortunately not, young master." Izayoi quickly knelt and bowed her head in deference as protocol dictated before rising, wrapping one of his arms over her shoulder and helping him up, slipping her sheathed wakizashi into his other hand. "I see you've grown sloppy in the absence of my instruction."

"Ahahaha...ugh. Blast, it hurts to laugh." Hien wheezed as he was helped up, Izayoi leading him along every step of the way. "Never mind, of course it's you. I'm a man grown now, you know. No need for the 'young master' talk. Especially in front of your friends." He shot Rudolf, Esben, and Eve a brief, pained grin. "Speaking of friends, how are my men? How many survivors?"

"We can discuss this when you arrive at safe harbor." Izayoi shot his request down, looking to the other three Kirins with her. "You three must clear the path. I will keep him safe."

The route Ciradyl's people gave the infiltration team led them from the cells towards something marked on the map as a "shower block". Whatever that was. Upon arrival to the entrance of what looked to be some sort of bathing area, though without tubs, an explosion could be heard from the other end.

"Breach and clear! Forward! We'll pin the intruders from the other end-" The commander in front halted his charge as he emerged, a dozen men in tow, staring gobsmacked at the aforementioned intruders.

"CONTACT!"

Half the Valheimr drew swords and charged, with the other half clambering up to higher ground in the shower block and taking aim at the Kirins.

___

Out in the streets, more soldiers poured out of the prison, a quarter of them still with guns trained upon the makeshift fortress's entrances while the others rushed to engage the interlopers.

"The mage! Kill that witch!" A particularly bright sergeant screamed, bullets whizzing from lower ground to try to hit Miina as she continued to throw spells.

"Orders from Captain Reisa!" A soldier in common enlisted armor shouted, the large contraption upon his back evidently some sort of communications equipment. "She's arriving with reinforcements upon that airship soon! Einhanders deployed! We at least need to keep them tied up until the airship is in drop range! And keep guns on the entrances still! The rebel leader can't be allowed to escape!"

The initial soldiers on the rooftops were quickly being cleared out, but the influx of reinforcements arriving from the prison were proving to be a problem, footmen bracing with shields to cover riflemen who took potshots at those up top. All the while, screeches were heard from the air as several winged shapes came flying from the approaching airship at high speed. As they drew closer, the shape of great horned birds, guns somehow fused to their bodies, could be made out.

The Einhanders began to fire as they dove in, their gunshots creating a pincer attack on the extraction team as the Valheimr in the streets continued to shoot as well, creating a killbox that would prove to have lethal consequences should it not be disrupted quickly.

Between Izayoi's masterful kenjutsu, Rudolf's twin swordsmanship, Esben's “persuasive” dagger, and her own elemental fury, the four squadmates and their sleeper agent allies managed to dispatch their would-be captors. However, the situation was no longer smooth sailing as one slimy rat managed to slip away just enough to trigger the alarm. "..." Well, no matter, they were going to be discovered eventually, they were already fortunate to come as far as they did.

As Esben rummaged the dead sergeant's pockets, Eve fired one last scorching firebolt to carve a sizable hole in another soldier's torso before rejoining the party. She simply nodded as the SEED agent assigned their formations, an arrangement that she couldn't disagree with, melee wasn't her strong suit after all. With nothing left of value here and pressed for time, the squad ventured deeper into the refurbished prison.

Assisted by the map given to Izayoi, the group eventually located the very person their whole operation centered around, the individual whose survival would determine the success of their mission and quite possibly, Osprey's future. Then, instead of fiddling around with the key ring Esben obtained, the samurai opted to simply use brute force, hey, if it worked, it worked, probably saved them some time too.

After a heartfelt reunion, Izayoi's not-so-young master regarded the former general’s comrades, "..." in which Eve once again opted to simply nod, Izayoi was right, they could exchange pleasantries later. Upon the instruction to clear the path forward, the black mage immediately moved, keeping herself behind Rudolf as the weaponmaster took point. Alas, any hope for a clean exit was dashed the moment they arrived at a... bathing area of some sort, except they weren't alone.

More Valheimr scum made themselves known, under orders from their paymasters to keep the future true emperor of Osprey from deposing the puppet they had placed. The Faux Eidolon's red eyes immediately began assessing the situation, half of the hostiles were charging, while the other half... hmm, those gunners could prove trouble, and among the four - now-five - of them, only she was the primary ranged combatant, exacerbated by the fact that Hien was in no condition to fight and Izayoi was escorting him.

What she must do was clear, those riflemen must be made a non-issue ASAP. Trusting that Rudolf and Esben could hold off the swordsmen without her for now, Eve extended her right arm toward her side, her palm splayed... before three of her fingers curled inward, leaving her middle and index straight. "..." She quietly exhaled as sparks of electricity spawned on and around her, then they coalesced to the tips of said two fingers as Eve swung her arm forward, pointing straight at the frontmost gunner.

"Tremble under the fury of Ramuh!" The black mage enunciated as the dense concentration of magical lightning at her fingertips grew chaotic, heralding what was to come, "Chain Lightning!" A streak of magical thunder blitzed forth from Eve's right hand, closing the gap faster than the blink of an eye as it struck the first gunner's chest, spreading lethal electricity straight through his heart, and it didn't stop there as the bloodthirsty lightning immediately sought its next victim, jumping to the closest nearby soldier, then again, then again, until all six infantrymen were made... a non-issue.

Her heartbeat hammered.

She'd taken on plenty of bandits before. It wasn't like this was the first time she'd been shot at either. Hardly the first time she'd spilled blood.

A hero's blade could be stained with the life of the wicked, after all, and Valheim's forces came here for the sake of conquering and subjugating Osprey's people.

But this was still different, even from when she fought the Valheimr soldiers in the ruined town.

But---

This wasn't the first time she'd been shot at, after all.

She wasn't about to let them reach Miina.

Sparks flew. Bullets were sent careening off course or even cut by the razor edge of her blade.

"Oh no, you won't!" Robin cried, "As long as I'm here, none of you are going to have the chance!"

Some stray piece of shrapnel tore the fabric at her shoulder.

Her heart pounded even faster.

But this was the sort of thing a hero did. Standing up for her allies, defending them from even the most terrifying situations.

So, Robin wasn't going to falter and let any scrap of fear linger in her mind. She'd push it away and focus.

After all, deflecting bullets was something you needed to focus on.

There, that one was reloading---!

Robin crouched low and hurled herself forward, a bullet from the Einhanders above striking the spot she had occupied moments ago. She reached the nearest soldier in an instant and he fumbled, trying to switch from loading his rifle to drawing a knife.

He was no-where near swift enough, a streak of red bursting in the air as Robin slashed through his throat and withdrew just as swiftly as she had approached, before the remaining soldiers could focus on her.

She couldn't do anything about the Einhanders, but if she could keep Miina covered and help clear away as many soldiers on the ground, then---!

@Ithradine@Raineh Daze

@The Otter@Psyker Landshark@Izurich

The crackle of lightning overhead, the smell of charring flesh, the screams of men who were frying heart-first...

Rudolf suppressed an urge to gag, and focused on the ringing steel of the Valheimr's swords meeting his own as best he could, forced into the front again by the way things played out. Like it or otherwise, with Izayoi serving as Hien's direct escort, the task fell to him to be the hammer to Esben's scalpel— he was a bigger man, but not built and bred for war the same way—

You're barely keeping your lunch down. Don't get a big head about "built for war", boy. If you really were, would you have needed me? By the way, your left side's in trouble.

"!!"

A quick backstep brough him behind the tile of one of those upturned tub-stall-situations (looked like a spigot overhead, not important right now) and clear of the stab that was nearly slipped between his ribs. He clicked his tongue and furrowed his brow, mind racing as he parried the man to his front. He was losing initiative with this now, having to meet three, four swords at once head-on. Even accounting for their crude form, he needed to either break their numbers up, or figure out how to lock them all down at once. Something that'd give them the edge he was losing after that moment of surprise had passed...

Tight space he could dominate. The feeling of fending off multiple people at once. There was a way. Hammer and scalpel.

He swallowed the iron ball between his throat and his chest.

"I can push," he barked to the saboteur behind. "You execute!"

He caught a bind and used it to shove the swordsman back, opening a gap between them. He couldn't settle for half-measures anymore.

The paired blades returned to their scabbards on either hip, and his right hand drove high over the shoulder as he surged forward again, towards the hole the Valheimr had busted open.

Three glints of light shimmered into streaks of death ahead—

And each were met and sent back by a mighty arc of silver, a parrying hew that checked them all, forced the men to leap back. Something that big, surely, would have smashed straight through them if they didn't give it the berth it deserved.

Rudolf stepped forward again, breathing deep, posture tall, pressing into their space. Think of Otto. Think of Imre. Plaster their faces onto these goons, and let your body remember.

He could handle this. He could inch the party forward. He just needed to show threat— with Esben around to manage the flanks, utilize them even, these guys wouldn't be around to catch the lie.

Sparring either of his brothers was like fending off a dozen men at once. He wouldn't manage that with the unfamiliar range, stance, openings...

May thy blades chip...

Half that number wasn't so tall an ask. Focused on defense and distance like this, the mystery from lands unknown would be perfect. He didn't need to cut them all.

He lunged into their range with a swipe, wickedly fast for any weapon this size, forcing the Valheimr to react. The keener swordsmen of their number would doubtless notice the suddenly, improbably tight command over the steel, his slight frame seeming untroubled by the heft or length.

He just needed to keep them from cutting him, or thinking they could worry about cutting anyone else.

And shatter.

On the riposte, it danced into each opening the Valheimr would find in his guard.

Valheim's numbers continued to increase on the outside of the prison regardless of the ones he took down. It was only thank to being intermingled in the ranks of the soldiers that he was able to avoid the volley of gunfire. He had managed to avoid any serious injuries but there was definitely going to be some bruising underneath his armor plates. The enemy was starting to get frustrated with his resilience when the additional reinforcements arrived on the scene. With a swift change, Miina was now in a vulnerable position thanks to the aerial threat. The shouts of the sergeant made his decision easy.

He pushed the muscles in his legs to their limits as a couple of winged beards began to dive towards Miina. Arton slipped his shield on his back as he reached her, arms outstretched. The heavy swordsman collided with the small Mystrel and immediately cradled her in his arms as they hurdled through the air. The gunfire from the einhanders raked Arton's back, his shield soaking much of the incoming fire. He did his best to cushion Miina from the landing, but they both crashed into the side of a building with some force. A warm sensation was running from his shoulder but he couldn't think on it right now.

Arton lifted himself off Miina and latched his shield back onto his arm, shielding them from incoming fire "We need the biggest spell you have. Whatever you got, okay? We'll keep you covered." He gave Miina a brief glance, noticeable dents in the plates of his armor and a patch of leather that was now a darker color than the rest. Bullets pinged off his shield as they stood there. Maybe it would have been smarter just keep fighting and draw their attention through a furious assault, but he wasn't able to make that call.

Mentions: @Ithradine, @Click This, @Raineh Daze, @VitaVitaAR

Galahad tensed as he felt the rushing of wind around him, his weapon ready to face a new threat as he turned, but relaxed when he heard the voice of Ciradyl, their host-turned-freedom-fighter. He was a bit surprised that she had decided to join them on the streets- she seemed more of the operate out of the shadows sort of folk, but with the Kirins as short handed as they were, Galahad wasn't going to complain. The armored dragoon gave her a short nod, his voice somewhat muffled by the shut helmet. "Better late than never. Things aren't looking good down there, we need to-" Galahad's voice was cut off by a curse as a bullet whizzed by his helmet, the dragoon taking a step back as a second shot ricocheted off the edge of the roof next to them.

To make matters worse, giant gunbirds began to make their way towards them, flying ahead of the relatively slower airship. While he doubted their weapons were much more powerful than that of a regular fusilier, the fact that they'd be attacking from above or from angles he and the rest of the Kirin's weren't necessarily prepared for made it a problem.

"Talk later, move first." Galahad concluded as the trio of them quickly scurried to the other edge of the roof. "Pardon me." Galahad quickly apologized ahead of time as he more or less grabbed the lithe fae woman by her feet, and tossed her towards the next roof over- not unlike shot putting. A moment later, he had once again grabbed Eliane, and the two bounded in a high arc across the air before he landed with a thud on the next rooftop- this one thankfully was close enough or linked with makeshift walkways to other rooftops for the others to keep moving along. "We need to get those damned birds off of their backs. Try not to hit me, thanks." Galahad remarked as he gestured towards the gunbirds diving towards their companions.

Flipping the halberd and pulling back, his dominant hand wrapped around the balance point of the weapon, Galahad grunted as he took a step forward and launched the weapon at the nearest gunbird, the blade crackling with electricity. Without skipping a beat, Galahad crossed the last couple steps towards the roof edge, braced and jumped yet again, the force of his legs cracking the stonework roof as he soared back into the air. He came crashing down onto the back of a second bird, sending them both to the ground as he pinned it underneath his weight.

Crackling like a bolt of lightning, his halberd flew back towards Galahad's outstretched gauntlet. The paired materia on gauntlet and halberd glowing as they sought to return to each other, connecting with a solid clunk. Spinning the weapon in his hand, he brought the spearhead up high, and drove it down onto the back of the einhander he'd been pinning.

"Arton! Miina!" Galahad's voice cut across the din of gunfire- lessened as there were fewer einhanders in the air. An armored gauntlet pointed at the Valheim sergeant doing much the same as he was to the forces outside. "Target the leadership! Magic first, then we charge! Robin! Take the fusiliers at the door- they're going to try and ambush Izayoi's team on their way out."

Why did the birds have guns. There were more important things to think about in a situation like this—such as how, exactly, you could avoid being turned into a pincushion—but the basic fact of the matter remained that they were under attack by something that Miina had never remotely thought she might have to deal with. What person would? Was this magic? Some bizarre experiment? Were there just naturally firearms over in Valheimr, so all they had to do was somehow stuff the murder birds into a cage and tame them?

Right, Miina, priorities.

At least she didn't have to worry about learning to dodge lots of bullets? Being tackled hurt, but if it was someone armoured doing the 'get shot at thing', that was at least better than her squishy flesh taking the brunt of it. Or her coat, fixing it with too many bullet holes would be a big pain.

Anyway, Arton wanted her to go for something bigger, and Galahad wanted her to target the leaders, so... she could do that. Ice, naturally, was her go to. Not so much an explosion like their actual black mage had focused on, but it was a bit harder to dodge if you were in a maelstrom—

Although, as always, Miina didn't think she made for the most impressive figure, pointing with her free hand. Blizzara was cool and all, especially when you just pointed at the fanciest-looking enemy and let him and anyone nearby suffer the consequences, but her inability to really say anything without ruining it undercut the moment a little.

---

As Esben ran along behind Izayoi and Rudolf, he leaned down, scooping up the fallen guard's carbine next to where she had fallen to his knife. He pushed the lever slightly, opening the bolt just enough to be sure the weapon was loaded, before continuing on his way. Scavenging the enemy's weaponry was a good way to conserve one's own, and oftentimes gave a small element of surprise to the fighting that could otherwise be lacking—both qualities that Esben appreciated.

And would come to appreciate more as they ran into a patrol blasting their way in as they were en route to the point where they intended to blast their own way out. As soon as the troops came rushing in, he dove behind one of the standing blocks for cover, water spraying out over his head as the fixture near its top was struck by stray gunfire—

—Before the smell of ozone filled the air, rapidly followed by that of heavily charred meat. The short burst of gunfire stopped, though the heavy footfalls of the other half of the cohort coming to meet them barely faltered as their comrades dropped from their perches. He glanced across the way to Rudolf, giving a small nod at the man's words, before the Edrenian came out from behind his cover and rushed forwards.

"One, two..." he murmured to himself, letting Rudolf cross blades with the invaders and drive them back for a moment to draw their attention. Three.

He came out from the far side of his cover, sprinting up past where Rudolf had engaged the leading portion of the cohort. Some noticed him and turned his way, skidding as they shifted direction to try and run his way as Rudolf occupied the others; once sure he wouldn't catch his own ally in the fire, Esben leveled the carbine at the soldiers, emptying the weapon's magazine in a rapid burst of fire. Those that weren't caught by the lead flying their way would be forced to take cover, returning the favor for Rudolf to advance again and dispatch whoever was left.