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Post by empireoffire on Sept 27, 2015 18:48:23 GMT -6
Alvis nodded. "There is a vacated room just past here."
Alvis turned around and walked back the way he came, gesturing for Nobunaga to follow.
-----
Alvis allowed Nobunaga to enter first and locked the door behind them. Although the room was furnished and the overall cleanliness suggested it was maintained, it was quite clear that no one had lived in this room for quite some time. The wooden cupboards and cabinets were all empty, the walls lacked decoration, the bed was missing pillows, the window was shuttered, and no potted plants were to be found despite every other room the Outlanders occupied possessing even the slightest pieces of greenery.
"Onto business," said Alvis. "By chance, I happened to be passing by as you were speaking with that man in the courtyard the previous night. I did not initially intend to listen in -- your business does not concern mine -- but I happened to overhear you referring to yourself as an 'immortal undead deity'." He slightly stressed the 'undead' part of that statement. "Is this true?"
Irving noticed the tail June had spontaneously grown since the battle against the bigmouthed general (that he had been trying not to stare at ever since seeing her today) seemingly fade out of existence as Catie hugged another unfortunate victim.
...These other worlds are weird.
"Hey there, Catie," he said to the wolf-lady.
Joshua, with his Pokemon in their Pokeballs, strolled into the dining hall, eyeing the options lined up on the tables.
Let's see, eggs, ham, sausage, cheese, bread, lettuce... Well, at least I won't have to worry about what to eat. But...
Joshua looked to see where the maids and butlers carrying plates came and went. He followed one taking empty dishes to a pair of double doors that lead to a well scented room. He poked his head inside.
"Hey!" he yelled. "There a chef here I can talk to?"
A short, brown haired man wearing a lab coat and the thickest glasses ever banged on the door to the Alchemal Study. His nametag read "Antony Nelson."
"Mister Celeste!" he yelled in a stereotypical nerdy voice as he continued banging on the door. "Mister Celeste, Mister Celeste!"
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Post by HHDeception on Sept 27, 2015 18:59:41 GMT -6
"Mister Celeste, Mister Celeste!"
Celeste and Moran turned towards the door.
"That explosion wasn't mine!" Celeste called without even looking up from his muffin. In front of him, panels of text floated about writing and re-writing themselves.
Moran looked back at the door.
"Open it?"
"You open it. I'm busy."
"But they're asking for you."
"Well I'm not available at the moment."
...
Moran's face and robes unraveled. Moments later, a person looking and sounding identical to Celeste answered the door.
"Hi. If you're wondering why there's two of me in here, I used my recessive genes to make an inferior clone of myself to do the grunt work. What's up?"
A muffin wrapper hit Moran in the back of the head.
"Also, would you like a muffin?"
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Post by empireoffire on Sept 28, 2015 2:29:05 GMT -6
"Muffins can wait, sir!" Nelson lied. "We were wondering if you can lend the military that anti-gravity thing you used to deactivate General Mason's anti-gravity thing, sir!"
He looked behind the clone Celeste and noticed the Outlander's work station. Particularly...
Nelson shoved the clone Celeste aside in a surprising display of strength as he ran up to a capsule of sorts holding a card that's being electrocuted. He spun around the object as he inspected it, adjusting his thick glasses. "Hey, that's one of them special summoning cards! What are you doing with it?"
A lone, brown haired soldier of large stature looked above at the large branches of the world tree stretching outward. The colors and make of the soldiers wear -- a refurbished breastplate taken from an Ephesian kill resized to fit him and painted crimson, handcrafted brown war boots, leather gauntlets, dark red combat pants, bronze shin guards, and a dark red facemask covering everything beneath the eyes -- made certain that anyone from this world couldn't mistake him as anything else but one of Alexus's Legionaires.
Despite the rifle slung across his back and the blade in his scabbard, however, the soldier's objective was not one of combat. As he fearlessly came out into the open and approached the base of the tree guarded by a dragon, he raised a flag over his head colored black; the universal symbol for requesting parley.
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Post by Neo on Sept 28, 2015 15:54:39 GMT -6
Nobunaga's eyes abruptly darkened. "Perhaps. Or perhaps I merely said that to make him believe I could empathize. Why do you wish to know?"
-------
... Parley? If this is a trap, it's the most obvious one I've seen in a long time. How interesting... This is the perfect chance to learn more about those I'm dealing with. If they went through all this trouble, it would be terribly rude of me to refuse them.
A massive pillar of light lit up the sky, and the enormous black dragon vanished into the wind. The pillar arced and curved, and then shot down towards the base of the tree, impacting the ground in front of the soldier. The form of a giant humanoid, as black as night with eyes of glowing silver, manifested in the tremendous pillar of light. Lightning crackled around the indistinguishable form, and then the pillar of light evaporated without a trace, revealing an imposing man that appeared to be in his mid thirties who dwarfed the soldier standing before him.
"I'm listening," Ethan said, grinning slightly.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 28, 2015 17:28:20 GMT -6
Catie noticed the tails and ear disappear as she gently placed the young lady down. "Oh sorry Ms I thought you were part of the same tribe as me, but well I think I broke you," Catie sighed. "So Laguz that's what my people are called in your world," Catie said. "Hm that sounds familiar I think my dad mentioned that term when I was younger," Catie said. "Oh I never got a chance to introduce myself my name is Catie," Catie said as she bowed in front of the lady.
After Catie introduced herself to the not laguz lady she caught a whiff of Irvin. "Hey Irvin nice to see you again, soooooooo what are you and this young lady up too," Catie asked Irvin. "Anyways can I hug you this time? I am really happy to see someone from my world but well I know you don't like hugs," Catie asked adorably (including giving Irvie the anime eyes that are all big and shiny)
Mario, Starlow, and Bowser Jr (hey what about me..... sorry Kellam....I mean Kamek) entered the dining room and saw Baron reclining in a chair and the guy from yesterday with the weird minions. Mario and crew grabbed some food and began to eat when a familiar face lumbered into the room seemingly disappointed.
"Stupid coward probably, turned tail and ran," Bowser huffed as he just grabbed a whole plate of ham without thinking twice. Bowser sat down with Mario and began inhaling the ham one right after another. "Well at least older, white hair Peach knows how to get minions that can cook," Bowser huffed as he was scarffing down one ham right after another.
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Post by empireoffire on Sept 28, 2015 20:08:28 GMT -6
Alvis stared Nobunaga down, his serious expression unchanged. "Regardless of your intentions, I would heavily advise that you refrain from referring to yourself as such. I know not what your home world's view on death is, but in our own culture, death is a serious and sacred affair to us. I shall explain the abridged version for your benefit: upon death, what is born from the land of Oz, returns to the land of Oz. Once a body is buried, their spirits are free to slumber in peace, and their life energy is reabsorbed into the land to be remolded as the land sees fit -- turned into a liquid energy source that runs through the land, or used to fuel the birth and creation of another living thing. To cremate a body is considered the greatest offense one can give to the departed, but defiling a body is one of the greatest taboos that can be committed. Worst of all, however, is the act of reanimating the dead -- to forcefully reawaken the slumbering spirit through a perversion and corruption of the life energy the land gave them in life, and in most cases enslave them to perform one's bidding.
I understand that you and/or your home world likely do not hold the concept of death to such standard, and I will not be offended should you not fully understand this aspect of this world's culture. However, there are others who may be more... unreasonable. The citizenry -- and even our own monarch in the past -- has shown great contempt, scorn, and enmity toward necromancers and other such individuals who would perform undead magics, whether such actions could otherwise be considered justified or not. They may fail to realize that Outlanders operate on different laws, customs, and principles as they do.
...I am merely giving you a warning," Alvis began to conclude. "Exercise caution regarding how and to whom you disclose your undead nature, if at all. Even if you are merely undead and not a practicioner of it's magics, I believe it is best if you did not mention this to anyone if it can be avoided. It would be a great shame to lose an ally over religious ideals and poor communication. Do we have an understanding, Sir Nobunaga?"
The Legionaire spoke plainly and to the point at the Ephesian Outlander. "Your human form. Can you do battle in it?"
"Good seein' you too," said Irving. "I saw Baron yesterday and he told me you guys were back, but I didn't get the time to see ya. Anyway, this buildin's a place where I can learn more about the ryfels and guns the military guys use. We're going to check it out."
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Post by Neo on Sept 28, 2015 20:31:29 GMT -6
"Death is an extremely sacred thing to my culture, and to me personally as well," Nobunaga answered, softening a bit. "It seems our cultures are a lot alike, General. I understand far better than you know. So do not worry. We have an understanding."
He contemplated ending it there and walking away, but a thought occurred to him. "You are one of the military leaders of Yuelia, are you not?" He asks suddenly. "What do you make of Ephesus' recent behavior? Have they ever mounted an invasion such as the one we stopped in the past?"
-----
Ethan raised a single eyebrow, then pointedly looked down at the two swords sheathed at his waist. Oh? So that's what this is about?
"I can, yes."
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Post by HHDeception on Sept 28, 2015 21:03:19 GMT -6
"Summoning cards? I thought they were character negative microfilm." Celeste said to Nelson, now slightly interested.
"You'll have to excuse me. I like to make words up and act smarter than everyone like a sycophant." Other Celeste said.
"Well, because I can and it's fun." Original Celeste said, "Gravity bomb prints are..."
A floating panel flashed up some plans. Celeste grabbed some blueprint paper, then held it up in front of a spotlight in the corner with the panel moving in-between. Celeste closed his eyes and the spotlight went off like a camera flash, leaving an imprint on the paper.
"Here you go." He said, handing it to the Nelson.
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Post by SummerCrow on Sept 29, 2015 10:09:40 GMT -6
"June, a knight of Valeria and Carcina," she introduces herself. "That tail... you're a wolf laguz, aren't you?"
Pierre looks in frustration at the interloper. Zees blasted Outlanders and their constant invasion of his beloved kitchen.
"Oui? Vat do you need? Speak quickly!"
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Post by empireoffire on Sept 29, 2015 20:59:48 GMT -6
Nelson parted his eyes away from the capsule. "Hmm? Oh, thank you." He accepted the gravity bomb blueprints. "But you didn't answer my question about this doohickey here."
"On rare occasions," said Alvis. "Most of our disputes were minor clashes between patrols and at our borders. They have not launched a large-scale invasion in six years, and they certainly have never attempted to do so in the same manner as they did yesterday. What I fail to understand, however, is what they hoped to gain in doing so. Although there was a very real possibility that the capital would have fallen -- or suffered significant casualties at best -- if the attack was not repelled, their general claimed it was a mere diversion. Yet, the territory they sought was one which, truth be told, we would not have been able to dispute regardless, given the circumstances. Furthermore, they were deep in enemy territory when they revealed themselves. They should have been well aware that they would be surrounded by enemy forces should they be repelled and forced to retreat. The casualties they will suffer as they mobilize back to their homeland will be great, with little cost to our own forces. Although The Witch has had her attention diverted from Yggdrasil, reports seem to imply this to be an unintended consequence, and it is merely a matter of time when The Witch amasses her army to retaliate against the dragon perched on the tree's branches. Finally, the fact they had revealed their ability to slip their army under our radar allows us to become aware of their new tactic, and prepare measures to counter or better combat them should they attempt the same strategy again."
Joshua cleared his throat. "Sorry, but I have five extra mouths to feed, with only one of them being omnivorous. I can't identify most of these fruits and veggies, and I need a rundown of which of these foods would be safe for them to eat. Nothing that they can easily choke on or fail to digest properly. Also, I need to know the taste of said foods; sweet, spicy, dry, bitter, or sour. I'm not going to force them to eat something they don't like."
"Then our General issues you a challenge," answered the Legionaire. "A 1-on-1 duel, until surrender or death. No outside intervention. No restrictions on weapon use. If you fall, our army claims this territory. Emerge the victor, our army withdraws, and you claim the right to the general's legendary Devil Arm blade: Rift to Tartarus. Do you accept these terms, Outlander?"
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Post by HHDeception on Sept 30, 2015 0:44:35 GMT -6
Not-Celeste quickly spoke first, "I'm trying to rip a wormhole in it."
"That is, I'm testing the dimensional load step response." Celeste corrected, frowning.
"And from the amzingly ideal damping behavior I can only assume it's a nearly infinite sink." Not-Celeste said. Celeste raised an eyebrow at him, but he continued, "It's as if there's a multi-dimensional entity inside the nanofilm-"
"Microfilm."
"Well it's an infinitesimally small projection into the second dimension so it might as well be femtofilm. In any case, I can only assume that the card can't be activated through manipulation in the fourth or even fifth dimension, and making a rig to test that theory would be enormously time consuming and isn't on my list of priorities."
At this point Jirachi was awake, and joined Celeste in a mildly bewildered stare at the other Celeste.
"Have I mentioned I have a knack for extrapolation?"
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Post by SummerCrow on Sept 30, 2015 9:50:59 GMT -6
"Very vell, zen, let me see zeese 'extra mouths,' Monsieur Outlander. Introduce zem to me, tell me vat it is zey desire in a dish, zat I may create!" Pierre yelled enthusiastically.
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Post by empireoffire on Sept 30, 2015 15:19:41 GMT -6
Joshua decided it best to step out of the kitchen in order to introduce his Pokemon, partly because space, partly because sanitation. He released them from their Pokeballs and introduced them in order.
"This is Grinn the Gengar, with a mouth big enough to swallow stuff whole. Then is Ditto the Ditto, who can rearrange his cellular structure. Zoroark, the only omnivore. Rotom, whose body is made of plasma." As he introduced him, he gently pet the top of his head with his fingers, careful not to electrocute himself. "And lastly Manaphy, who's 80% water. Don't let the sizes of these two fool you," he gestured to Rotom and Manaphy, "they can eat just as much as everyone else."
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Post by Deleted on Sept 30, 2015 15:53:05 GMT -6
"Hey Mario after the whole umm Tanooki incident you remember to put all your personal items away right?" Starlow asked Mario. "Oh yeah," Mario said as he went back to eating his breakfast. "I can only hope so because some of them even though they look normal they are anything but normal," Starlow said as she went back to eating. Meanwhile back in the room........ A strange flower like object was sitting on the night stand by Mario's bed. (Will try to describe but here's a link to the Fire Flower on what it looks like: Fire Flower from Mario
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Post by Deleted on Sept 30, 2015 16:15:57 GMT -6
(Okay can't post the rest w/o it turning into a hyperlink >_>.)
The strange flower like object had a pair of eyes, a green leaf and red outer petals with an inner orange petal. The flower was just hanging out and looked like it was bobbing and weaving back and forth.
"Um Ms. June these Laguz that you speak of do they use special stones to transform into animals also?" Catie asked while showing June her necklace which contained her Beaststone. "I think I am a wolf Lego but well my dad or husband never really mentioned it," Catie said. "Anyways what happened to your tail and ears Ms. June did I break you?" Catie asked innocently.
While waiting for a response Catie began talking to Irving with a G. "Hey Irving with a Gee so this firing range place will have weapons like yours cool," Catie said. "By the way will your friend the Incredible Hulk, the guy who's all cool looking and has those neat looking yellow eyes," Catie asked Irving w/ a Gee. "Who knows maybe I can try to fire one of those rifle things too," Catie said in awe.
"Umm no absolutely no, Baron would have my head if anything happened to you," Sam said hoping onto Catie's shoulder. "Hey Irving nice to meet you again," Sam said to Irving. "Hello Ms June my name is Samuel Freeman but everyone just calls me Sam," Sam said introducing himself to June.
"Oh Hi there Seraph where you from?" Catie asked
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Post by SummerCrow on Sept 30, 2015 20:44:55 GMT -6
"Oh... um... My friend Harrow could transform without a stone, but she couldn't hold her other form as long without it..." June looks away sadly. "Though I've... seen some laguz that... seemed to be stuck in their beast form... A-anyway, no, Ms. Catie, you didn't break me. Mario warned me those ears would disappear once I got hit hard enough. They were made by some kind of strange transformation magic hidden in a leaf."
Alice goes to work cleaning the damaged room. To her surprise, it's not as bad as she thought. The explosion made a loud noise and utterly obliterated the pillow, but other than spreading feathers everywhere and leaving one bad burn mark, it doesn't seem to have done much. After sweeping out all the feathers, she decides to let the dust settle and the room air out before coming back to work on the burn mark.
Logically, she starts working on another room while she waits. She changes the bed, takes the red shirt and overalls out for laundering. She dusts the table and starts to work on the nightstand, but there's some odd flower in the way. "Careful with the Outlander's gear," she reminds herself. Slowly and gently, she picks up the flower, only to have it vanish in her hand.
Her eyes snap open as she realizes her black-and-white uniform is now red-and-white. She feel an unusual warmth racing through her body, but it's short-lived as the sound of rhythmic clacking down the hallway announces the return of Geraldine. In a panic, Alice hurls herself under Mario's bed.
"Oh, dear, where is that young lady...?" Geraldine asks from outside the room. "I was too harsh on her earlier, I hope I didn't scare her too badly... She's such a diligent worker when she doesn't have her head in the clouds, it would be a shame to lose her. Now, where could she be?" Geraldine spends a few moments checking the other nearby rooms as Alice cowers under the bed. Once she hears Geraldine's sharp clacking gait fading as she departs, Alice springs out from under the bed in search of help.
"Th-that Outlander with the amazing mustache... He... He's got to know what happened and how to fix it!" Alice runs down the hall, opposite of the direction Geraldine went, in search of Mario.
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Post by Neo on Sept 30, 2015 22:14:39 GMT -6
Nobunaga pondered Alvis's answer for a long moment. "Tell me General," he said finally. "Does your world have a game called 'Chess'?"
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As I thought... Their General must be very brave, extremely foolish, or extremely arrogant. Perhaps all three. The smartest decision would be to refuse... But this is a perfect opportunity to learn more about this world's strongest fighters. And I don't like the idea of facing down an entire army on my own, even in my true form... I'm still recovering from that device Emperor Grievous used, and from the interdimensional travel. I can't afford to waste any of my power.
Ethan inclined his head. "Very well. Tell your General I accept, but on one condition: we fight on a battlefield of my choosing."
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Post by SummerCrow on Sept 30, 2015 22:21:26 GMT -6
"Hm... Un ghost, un veasel, un... plasma-ball, un... jello... and un... feesh? Oh, ho, Pierre, he does not back down from zee shallenge! To me, my chefs, ve go to var!"
He raises his ladle and taps it against a soup bowl, then raises it into the air. He begins to swing it like a baton, and the kitchen bursts into song, makeshift music created by pounding on various tools, sharpening knives, pots bubbling. A chorus of chefs welcomes their guests. "Welcome to our kitchen, Outlander, we will be your hosts! We'll make a meal for all your friends, starting with your ghost!"
Pierre points out one chef. "Outmeal vith a dash of cinammon, makes it much more sweet! Blueberries in yogurt, a sweet roll as a treat!"
"Hon! Very good, very nice!" The chef goes to work throwing it together. "Next, zee veasel!"
"A bit of meat will make him smile, how about some ham? Add an apple, hard and juicy... er... for lunch, perhaps some lamb?"
Pierre eyes him in annoyance, but doesn't break the rhythm. "Zee Rotom!"
"Something cold, I think? I don't know much about science and states of matter! A strawberry-banana smoothie, and let him try a small cheese platter?"
"Worth a try, I zuppose," Pierre shrugs. "Zee Ditto?" He singles out a nervous-looking chef in the back.
"Uh... Um... Something different? Tangy? Like an orange? Uh... Uh... something-something... door hinge...?"
The kitchen grinds to a halt as an ominous silence falls, save for the clattering of a fallen platter. Pierre slams his ladle-baton down, advancing threateningly on the chef, his eyes aflame with rage. He grabs the chef by the collar, his voice a gruff, throaty whisper, his ridiculous accent discarded. "Listen here, you little twerp, don't you bring that amateur-hour balogna into my kitchen... You're fired!"
"No, sir, please! I'm just tired!"
"Hon! Better! Very vell, you get off with zee varning! I vill zee you early in zee morning! Now zen..."
The chef nods. "OK, I'm feeling a bit better, let me take another shot. Orange jam, some nuts, and mashed potatoes in a pot!"
"You vould feed zee living gelatin some jam?" Pierre shrugs. "Vell, perhaps it vill vork! Now zhen, let's finish zis vith zee feesh! A nice, crisp fresh salad, plenty of tomato! Lettuce and kale, cucumber, splashed with a hint of rosato!"
Pierre holds out a large tray, waiting for all the chefs pile their various creations onto it as the music crescendos. Within a matter of seconds, he twirls around, pirouetting his way back to Joshua. The music fades.
"Your order, Monsieur."
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Post by empireoffire on Oct 1, 2015 18:31:48 GMT -6
"A strategy game where each player takes turns moving one of twenty pieces on a ten-by-ten grid in order to checkmate the opposing king, correct?" replied Alvis, seeking confirmation that the Outlander was not speaking of a similarly named game that played differently.
"...What battlefield would that be?" asked the Legionaire.
The five Pokemon inspected their food -- Ditto, Grinn, and Manaphy eyeing theirs with suspicion -- before trying. Grinn in particular yoinked a spoon from somewhere to taste test, rather than eating a large swath of it at once like she normally does.
"... BLEGH!" cried Grinn in response to the oatmeal. "I can handle sweet, but hot darn is that too sweet!"
"... I must say, I can quite appreciate the texture to this," commented Ditto about his food. "Simple, yet pleasing."
"Been a while since I had some good meat!" exclaimed Zoroark before he took a large bite out of his ham. "Mmmm. Not let down at all!"
Rotom took a sip of the smoothie first, since he wanted to try out the unknown drink first rather than cheese he's already had (since he is unaware that there are different flavors of cheese). "...Wow! This stuff is amazing! I thought something called a strawberry would be nasty, but this tastes better than a lot of other berries!"
Manaphy took a bite of the tomato first, followed by a piece of lettuce. "... This red stuff is nice, but they something to the lettuce I don't like. I can't describe it very well."
"...Hey Manaphy," said Grinn. "Yer a fan of sweets, right? My grub's too sweet for me. Wanna trade?"
"Really? Okay!"
Grinn picked up her tray and hovered over to the small Seafaring Pokemon's side, switching trays with her. Grinn pilfered another spoon from a service cart that passed by to give to Manaphy. They took a bite.
"...Yeah, I can see why ya didn't like this," said Grinn. "Whatever they added here ain't the type of stuff young'uns typically like. I'm a fan, though."
"This... This is delicious!" exclaimed Manaphy happily. "I love it! It didn't look very good, but it's actually really yummy!"
Joshua looked back at his Pokemon. He smiled as he viewed their expressions.
...At the very least, these guys can get better food than they serve in Realgam while we're stuck here.
"I'll just have some eggs," he answered to the chef.
The hell's a Hulk?
"Wait, you want to wield ryfels too?" Irving asked Catie.
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Post by Neo on Oct 1, 2015 18:52:29 GMT -6
Nobunaga nodded. "Yes, that's it. The game of Chess is all about staying several steps ahead of your opponent; because of this it is quite possible to win the match before it begins, and it is equally possible to flip the match in your favor at seemingly the last possible second. General Mason did indeed mention his invasion was a diversion. But a diversion from what, exactly? This is only conjecture at this point, but it's my theory that Ephesus isn't after the tree at all, but something else entirely. The invasion was merely their opening play. Unfortunately, I don't have all the pieces to this puzzle, and my vision is clouded. This world... Trying to see the future here is like looking through a veil of fog."
-------
Ethan scanned the surrounding terrain, his vision allowing him to see for miles in every direction. Eventually, he settled on a spot to the west of the World Tree; a section of wide, open grassy plains at the base of the mountains.
"There," he pointed. "The plains at the foot of the western mountains. Tell your General I will be waiting."
And with that, he disappeared.
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