Herus
The day after meeting Marten and Liocyon for tea, the small group heading to Herus' estate left for Garlemald. Aryn, Yujin, and Toni were transported largely via airship from Kugane after checking in at the Garlean embassy. The two suns spent at the estate have largely been quiet; despite the raging War of Succession, Herus still has many of his allies - all loyal to Nerva - join them for parties and dinners and tea. Each night, Herus absconds to his personal quarters with Aryn, while Yujin and Toni's chambers are adjacent to the room. Toni is often expected to stand guard for at least part of the evening, while Yujin is occasionally asked to fetch more wine or whatever else the pair require. Tonight makes the first evening meal where Herus and Aryn are alone, the Praefectus finally wanting her all to himself entirely.
Meanwhile, high above the city limits, the sky pirate's redecorated ship floats in the night skies. Marten has successfully navigated them to the border of the capital, with Liocyon's assistance. After days of training under the expatriate's guidance, both sky pirate and Ishgardian are quite familiar with the protocols they will need in order to pose as one of the opposition forces. Flags barring the sigils of Gabranth's House are mixed with those of his allies, pinning the blame for the attack elsewhere.
On the ground, Ivaurault and his 'cohort' make their way through the city at a leisurely pace, so as to not draw too much attention, taking the long way to Herus' estate. Garbed in the armour of the Imperial Legion, they blend into the chaos that plagues the city as the War rages on. A few minor skirmishes occur, with none of the 'cohort' severely injured.
HERUS ESTATE: EXTERIOR
The grounds have a cohort and a half's worth of men patrolling them, with two guards posted at each entrance; there's a main entrance, and a second entrance in the gardens. The rest of the men patrol through the courtyard and the gardens themselves.
The march inside the grounds of the Estate was foreboding enough that most militiamen that saw the advancing squad of Legate's men simply dropped their weapons and fleed. Others knelt down in place, perhaps accepting their timely deaths. Deaths that did not arrive. The head of the retinue, the Ebon Gryphon, was leading the squad rather slowly; halberd churning a massive amount of Darkness that was trailing all betwixt his body and armaments. Without warning, tendrils rose up from the ground against the grounds squad, arcing up too quick for the human eye to register as the sound was like a thunder-clap; straight after the spikes of darkness disoriented anyone near the impact area. The Legatus spoke with a deepened voice, pointing an advancing order to his squad, "Surrender your arms and behold the mercy of your Legatus. Noah van Gabranth stakes claim to you now. Leave your pretender or submit to the will of the IVth Imperial Legion!"
The manipulation of darkness leaves them shaken, especially from a Legatus. The men who are running run faster, but those who have knelt symbolically raise their weapons before placing gunblades, lances, and swords before themselves. These men retract their hands to the tops of their thighs, awaiting approval from the representative of Gabranth. Meanwhile, the few men who did not drop their weapons as they ran are making for the nearest entrance to the estate itself, intent on shoring up the position with the other cohort and a half of men who are present. Communications via magitek start firing, recalling other cohorts from their places around the city - unless someone manages to jam the signal, reinforcements will be imminent.
"Your Praefectus has been deemed ill-fit for his command, conspiring with members of the Eorzean Alliance and attempting to secure trade from neighboring nations to better his station. This cannot go unpunished. Save yourselves from the association of this traitor and join me!" The Legatus' armor began to shift under the deluge of power that erupted from him; the cohort itself shouting Garlean chants as the skies above opened up with IVth Legion airships, the whirring of cannons priming and troops beginning to mount on the sides of cannons. Ivaurault's armor began shifting a darkened hue of crimson, then ebony as the two mixed into a blackened state before he continued on in a hurried pace. The entire city around them was erupting in turmoil and this attack only would draw fuel to a raging fire.
AIRSHIP DECK
The cannons begin their opening salvos, ripping holes into various parts of the estate's cerment walls, creating a number of points for the group to escape - though such appear to be access points for whatever reinforcements 'Gabranth's' cohort may have coming to the forces defending the place. The pirates, out of habit, whoop and howl at each successful shot. Once the escape points have been created, they turn their fire upon the generators that power the estate. Frantically, a pair of men work to circumvent the communications of Herus' forces, following instructions left to them by Liocyon. However, they notice that countermeasures are being made, aiming to cut off magitek and linkpearl frequencies. Expected, but it still causes the pair to panic, and one rushes off to inform Martennan of the loss of communication with the ground teams.
HERUS ESTATE: INTERIOR - DINING ROOM & HALLWAY
Once the cannons start breaking cerment, those within the estate itself become aware of the chaos that is ensuing outside. Armoured men run down the hallway where Toni and one of Herus' men stand guard, shouting about an attack to one another. The guard with the Miqo'te is ordered to stay, along with one of the men from the rushing group, so as to help Herus and his guests make it to the fortified wing of the estate where their chambers are. Looking up from their meal, Herus' expression hardens as the communications channels are jammed. He rises from his chair, moving to help Aryn from hers as he barks orders at 'Yukiko'. "Pull the book entitled 'A Treatise on the Mating Habits of Waterfowl' from the middle bookshelf, Yu!" he roars as he not only helps Aryn up, but picks her up as though she weighs nothing.
There was a momentary stagger as a small shock ran through the estate. The ever quiet demeanor shattered for a moment as he looked up, around the room as if there was a way to see where it had come from. And then the order being barked and he stood straight, bowing his head in submission. As he should to his superior, right? "Y-Yes my Lord." He muttered, quickly moving to the bookcase and searching for the appropriate book. Once found, he quickly pulled it and allowed the rest to happen, stepping back, glancing at Herus as he quickly hoisted Aryn up without... Any problem.
Upon pulling the book, a section of the dinning room wall slides away, revealing a hidden inner passageway. Herus is already charging towards the opening wall, shouting at Yu again. "Push the book back and follow me - be swift or the wall will close on you," he barks, his words dampened by the walls of the passageway.
And so he was quick to do so. The door began to shut and he slipped into the passage way - Being a slim boy was a rather helpful advantage in this particular situation. He watched as the door shut them into the passage way before turning to follow quickly after the pair.
Among the commotion Toni glances to the other guards. The blue haired Miqo'te sizing up the two men a moment. He frowns, "I'm checking on them, shouldn't we be moving though? This place isn't secured a bit." He doesn't wait for a protest as he turns, activating the door to have it open "Hey, let's get mo-...." He pauses "They're gone." he calls back to the other guards(edited)
One of the Garleans motions for Toni and the other guard to follow him, reaching for his gunblade as they start down the hallway. "Standard procedure during an attack. Just follow us," he notes vaguely as his companion starts to follow, also reaching for his sword.
It only takes a moment as the two pass him for him to manipulate his aether to help him blend into the shadows employing a rogue technique. The guards probably wouldn't even notice the absence of the stray as he fades down the hall, heading towards the entrance in hopes of thinning the security forces inside
The two men very much so don't notice the stray slipping away, as they proceed to the checkpoint that's been drilled into them time and again. The assumption is that since he's Aryn's guard, he'll just follow them and do as told. They've a bit of a maze of hallways to pass through before they'll finally notice that Toni's missing, leaving him free range of the estate for a good ten or so minutes.
HERUS ESTATE: EXTERIOR - INTERLUDE
Above the chaos, veiled in shadows, another man watches the chaos, waiting for his cue. Without a sound, the man opens the grate over one of the ventilation shafts, dropping down into the passageway. His feet brace against the walls, allowing for him to silently pull the ventilation grate back into place before he starts to silently spider-crawl his way down to the first junction.(edited)
HERUS ESTATE: EXTERIOR - COURTYARD
The men who offered up their arms to the Legatus fetch their weapons and join the cohort in their pressage towards the doorway. Shots begin to ring out from different positions along the manor itself, gunblades aiming from within something akin to Eorzea's archery slits, falling just short of the men as they make their way to their destination.
With the courtyard breached, the Legatus of the strike team let loose a hand toward rampart guards; the Darkside blast starting off small before it careened into a torrential downpour of darkness-aspected aether. A second weapon was unsheath at his back, a gladius as the tall Garlean made his advance; ripping waves of the aether shooting from his halberd as the strike was a bid for his men to storm the gates. The machina was the extra defensive layer; sets of Magitek Predators ripping through the crumbled gates as they began firing off a series of chainguns that aimed themselves on the battlements.
Most of the men at the ramparts manage to avoid the darkness, shields raising to block the rainfall. Meanwhile, five men burst through the doorway, intent on blocking the incoming assault and stop them from entering the estate itself. Shots begin to be fired from the men, most of them aiming for the 'Legatus' himself.
The bulwark the Legatus provided for his men was more like a phalanx of aether than shielding with his own body. Some of the men were scrambling to get nearest to the wall as the tall Garlean began advancing in an aggressive manner. The shield surrounding him coalesced within his hand, a tack that was changed with the intention that the bullets were ricocheting off his armor and causing him to falter in his steps. In a agile motion, the Garlean took that re-directive shield and impacted the ground at the front, unleashing the torrent in his palm. Waves of the explosive darkness spanned outward until the entire field was radiating such excruciating pain and pins against any and all that moved within the perimeter of the field. It seems as if casualties would be necessary. The Garlean legatus charged forward with his cohort, meeting the battle headon as the war machina charged in forth to assist their liege-lord.
AIRSHIP DECK
The frantic man reaches Martennan, almost forgetting to make the salute that Liocyon had taught them all. Even as his hand is lowering, he blurts out, "Sir! They've cut off not just magitek frequencies, but also linkshell frequencies!"
Lifting a finger to his ear to confirm that his own pearl is disabled as well, Martennan scowls uncharacteristically. "Focus fire on the communications array, there," he barks to the gunners, before indicating two of the pirates positioned nearest to Ivau's contingent. "Except for you two, maintain covering fire for Legatus!"
The two gunners swing their cannons around and line up their shots. The pair seem familiar with shielded assets, as they fire simultaneously to the same spot on the tower, punching through the magitek shielding before the shots rip into the lower part of the tower, creating a chained series of explosions that move upward. With a sickening grinding of metal, the remains of the tower topple onto some of the garden's hedges below.
HERUS ESTATE: INTERIOR - HIDDEN PASSAGES
The massive Garlean rushes through a series of switching passages, occasionally glancing to make sure that 'Yukiko' is keeping up with him. Aryn clings tightly to his shoulders and neck, sometimes squeaking at how close the man comes to slamming them into a wall - though he never does. Before long, he reaches what appears to be a dead end, kicking a particular spot on the wall to open the hidden doorway.
Yujin is following behind as best as he can. He does his best, going down the winding tunnels, watching as Aryn is bustled about over Herus' shoulder. It was slightly disconcerting, but not once did he ever hurt her. And that was a relief. Soon the doorway opened and he followed the pair through into the new room.
It so happens that they have made it to Herus' bedroom. He hits a pressure plate on the wall as soon as Yu's made it into the room, the wall sliding back into place behind him. The massive Garlean sets his Miqo'tess on the bed, before turning to Yujin again. "Over in the jewellery box. Open the lowest drawer, and press the bottom three times," he instructs the 'handmaiden', "there are several vials. Get two of them. Should they manage to breach this room, each of you take them. If I fall, you shall be spared whatever sickening predilections these men have and if I survive, I shall give you both the antidote."
Yujin moved as was instructed until he came to the vials and then was explained their use. He paused for a moment and peered behind him. There was a momentary look of apprehension as he looked to Aryn. Though he did pick a pair up and bring them with him and offered one to the miqo'te. He clearly looked worried about the whole thing. Some comfort would be nice. Probably.
Aryn pats the bed beside her as she takes the vial from Yujin, slipping an arm about the man's shoulders once he's settled. Meanwhile, Herus is putting on one of his pairs of power armour, before he fetches his Bozjan-style gunblade. As the two 'women' rest on the bed, he moves to position himself between them and the doorway, charged bullets at the ready in the gun.
The boy eased down onto the bed and shook his head with a small smile. He leaned into her for a moment and looked up, staring at the back of Herus. And then back to Aryn with a brow quirked. His pocket held his escape, at least. The one-use teleport shard to get him out and away from danger. Unused, as of yet...
HERUS ESTATE: INTERIOR - VENTILATION SHAFTS
Meanwhile, the shadowy figure makes his way through the labyrinthine maze that is the ventilation system, creeping closer and closer to his target's location. From time to time, he sees men running below him, making their way to reinforce their comrades now that the attackers position is clear. He ignores them, as they're not what he's been summoned for, sneaking towards the living quarters of the Praefectus.
HERUS ESTATE: EXTERIOR - COURTYARD
The machina manage to keep the ramparts pinned down with their scattering fire, leaving just the ground forces at the doorway for the phalanx to contend with. When the 'Legatus' charges forward, some of the more dedicated and reckless men charge as well, and soon the forces are colliding just outside the entrance to the manor house itself. A trio of Centuri face off against the 'Legatus' in hopes of taking him out while the rest of the men spread out to combat the incoming cohort; some of them falter when they cross swords with their former comrades that have switched sides.
Lio would step up beside the 'Legatus' drawing his own blade and rushing the one on the far right to try an minimize the amount of people fighting against the Legatus. Not being particularly skilled at combat he would at least try to be enough of a distraction
Two of the Centuri swing too broadly, leaving themselves open to the 'Legatus'' attack; the pair find themselves stabbed by spiked end of the man's halberd, while the third finds his attack blocked by the gladius. One of the stabbed men makes a noise of surprise as he just barely manages to side-step the attack from the 'Legatus'' companion.
The legatus bore down upon the charging resistance, the strike of his hand indicating his men to begin charging in down the door to the manor proper. The machina were already making their maneuvers and providing cover, airships from above providing the lynch pin of the plan. The tall Garlean struck hard into the first guard, sending him up into the sky with the strike from the halberd before he unlatched him free to the floor, sweeping back to strike the other as he made to sweep through the guards like a hot knife through butter. His next attack was well defended against, but not before his left hand dropped the gladius and the coalesce of darkness in his hand careened forth with extraordinary speed in an unaspected Unleash at the third guard as he found himself recovering from the impact of the block.
The unexpected style of attack forces the third Centri back and the man attempts to break for the entrance to the manor before he to ends up as bloodied as his comrades.
AIRSHIP DECK
So far, the ground assault seems to be going well, with much of the courtyard, gardens, and walls ripped apart by cannon fire. With the communications tower down, they don't have to worry too much about picking off incoming reinforcements, leaving the pirates needing some guidance on how to continue playing convincing Garlean airforcemen.
Martennan redirects the pirates' assault now that their communications are restored. "That building there," he indicates on their targeting display, "The garrison, hit that next, then we'll move to the armory." As the pirates set to work he raises a hand to his linkpearl once more, "Toni, it's Marten. Where are you now?" he pings the Miqo'te.
The salvo misses the garrison.
Already committed to their next target, the gunship swings past the garrison to fire on the armory. "Forget it," Marten calls out, "We'll swing back around, keep moving for now."
It's not a direct hit to the armoury, but a partial one, blasting a hole in the corner.
HERUS ESTATE: INTERIOR - FRONT HALLWAY
Toni rounds the corner to the hallway that leads to the front entrance, to find there's about four or five men still inside, using their gunblades to shoot at the incoming assault. Thankfully, the stray remembered to stealth, so they don't see him.
Staying stealthed, Toni looks towards the guards at the entrance, hugging a shadow by the hallway wall. He stays at decent distance, waiting patiently for an opportunity to strike and/or make a diversion
Two of the gunners charge out as a man covered in fading tendrils of darkness makes his way into the area. He heaves himself over to the back wall of the foyer, sitting down hard as the three others step forward a bit and resume firing.
HERUS ESTATE: INTERIOR - HERUS' BEDROOM
Silently, the ventilation shaft's cover is removed and pulled into the passageway, set aside before the shadowed figure drops down into the room. Landing with just the faintest whisper, he slinks along the wall without making a sound. Meanwhile, there's a knock at the door as the pair of guards reports that they've arrived, taking up station to either side. They don't even bother mentioning that the stray had gotten lost, having already made jokes about it as they approached the doorway. Weapons drawn, they ready themselves for when the fighting makes it this far - if it does. Closing her eyes in meditation, Aryn clears her mind of any and all thought aside from comforting her 'handmaiden', gently rubbing Yu's upper arm and holding hands in their laps.
Herus turns to look at Aryn and Yujin, having sensed something was amiss with his Third Eye's talent. Brow knitting beneath his helm, he addresses the Miqo'tess with concern. "Meditation?" he questions through the vocoder of his helm "You have not meditated while on these grounds in decades..." Without opening her eyes, and while continuing to stroke Yu's arm and hold his hand, she murmurs, "Even in the last War, the fighting did not reach your doors while I was present."
Without warning, the shadowy figure suddenly surges forward, his hand closed in a fist that strikes near a seam in Herus' power armour. There's a faint click, and an osmium and duraluminium alloy blade slips out of his arm-sheath so quickly, the Garlean has little time to respond. Ducking low as Herus spins around, the blade retracts, leaving behind a particular poison that had been given to him by his contractor.
Herus lurches forward from the impact, vaguely aware of the poison, but less than concerned about it in the moment. The gunblade swings around, aiming for where the rogue had just been, finding air. At the last second, the Garlean kicks out with his foot, catching the assassin in the stomach and sending him backwards.
The assassin manages to land on his feet, in a low crouch that leaves him just above the floor. Redirecting the kinetic energy of his flight, he pounces forward, the wrist-blade revealing itself mid-charge. The blade is parried with the gunblade with enough force that it snaps from the internal mechanisms, leaving it half-hanging from the man's arm.
Herus brings the blade upward, using both hands for a power strike, making to try and cleave the assassin in two. The man slips between the Garleans wide-spaced stance, rising and throwing a dagger towards the two 'women' on the bed. Much like his first strike, this one connects with its target, burying itself in Aryn's side.
Yujin panicked the moment someone had lunged at Herus. This wasn't part of any plan they'd made. "Lady Aryn--" He spoke up. His voice wavered during the momentary lapse of concentration when the knives were then flung towards them. And one finding it's mark. "FUCK!" He yelled, reaching for the knife and pausing. Can't remove it. Bleeding. "Do something!" He yelled at Herus, quickly trying to stem the bleed with pressure on the wound. He isn't medically trained. He's just doing his best.
Aryn's eyes are rather wide as she starts to pale a little. She is a geomancer, but being caught off-guard and without any of her bells on her. She lowers her hands to help Yujin stem the bleeding, her breath becoming ever more erratic as the minutes tick by.
The rogue disengages and attempts to head back to the ventilation shaft, only to find the massive Garlean suddenly in his way. He takes a shot to his shoulder from the gunblade, causing his left side to jerk back from the impact. As Herus moves forward to press the attack, and the door opens as the two guards hear the gunshot, the rogue seems to vanish into thin air. The guards look about in confusion, as their liege turns to look up at the ventilation shaft - a passageway far to small for a suit of regular armour to fit into, let alone power armour. Ignoring the assassin himself as he barks for the guards to get a perimeter lockdown underway, he begins moving back towards the bed before falling to a knee, gasping for air. Recalling the poison, he panics, tearing off his his helm as he turns for the jewellery box and the range of antidotes there. All the while, his heart races harder and harder.
This was not how this was meant to happen. Yujin watches as Herus starts to rummage through the box and there is a quiet moment where he realizes that the man had been poisoned. Though he could not react in such a way that would put him or her at risk. Though they left and he looked down at Aryn. "How can I help you? What do you need me to do?" Concentrate on her. Make sure she's stable.
HERUS ESTATE: FRONT DOORS
The three gunners advance again, trying to stop the swirling darkness that is the cohort of the IVth's 'Legatus'. The man in the back has mostly shed the darkness, but breathes heavily from the assault as he sits against the wall. And then a familiar guard sprints past Toni, running as fast as his legs can carry him, shouting, "**It's all a distraction! There's an assassin! SEAL THE PERIME--" And then the man notices the shape the forces are in. There's no way they can seal the perimeter with so few men left.
Blue ears flicker to the tidbit of information and noting that there's been an assassination, he makes for Aryn's chambers, hurrying down the hallway having become somewhat familiar with the house in the recent days "Talks going around there's been an assassination, I think the head of the house might be dead already. Going to check on Aryn now" He murmers to his linkpearl, moving quickly(edited)
The screams and frantic yelling cause a commotion at the front of the assault cohort. Already the guards were beginning to falter but the Legatus had heard something that caused his head to jostle upward. The halberd he was using was suddenly taken into both of his hands, splitting the weapon in two as the blades themselves became dual weapons. The Garlean ripped through the hall as the darkness poured off his armor; his movements tracking residual aether through the hall that was causing miniature explosions of the aspected aether. His weapons stabbed through guards en masse as if he were a man possessed; his image becoming distorted as the physical manifestations of dark aether began to coalesce together in some of a shadow. There were two of them now. The visage began mimicking the Legatus' actions as he careened down the hallway, appearing ahead of him; appearing behind him. Clearing a path beyond all recognition.
AIRSHIP DECK
The Crow's Nest notes there's some sort of commotion below, at the front door. As the man shouts down to Marten, reporting the surge in activity as the 'Legatus' seems to make an all-out attack, something that was not in the plan at all.
Hearing the bodyguard's words, Martennan changes tactics. "We've dealt with their artillery, bring us in low, and move to the residential area, there." he directs the helm, before returning to the linkshell. "Ivau, what's happening in the foyer? Toni, when you get to Aryn and Yujin tell them to stay away from the exterior wall. When I say, come to the next room over from hers, to the east." He grips tightly to a rail as his stomach lurches from the rapid descent.
Toni chimes back in, arriving at Aryn's room "You got it, will do" taking a quick glance down the hallway for guards before getting the door to open. He steps inside and frowns, his heart sinking "She's not here..." he says, trying to stay calm "Gonna try the next room."
There was silence on the frequency of the linkpearl for a good while. The sounds Martennan heard was a lot of screaming from an enclosed space. A sound of clashing steal before a gurgle and the harried but enclosed sound of the Ishgardian's voice protruded through, though it sounded exasperated, "An assassin has infiltrated ahead of us...storm the fortress. And join us, immediately! We are adapti-" His voice cut out abruptly as he joined back to back with his corporeal image of darkness, parrying the incoming assault and barricade of guards that were preventing him from entering Herus' quarters. The source of the distress.
Martennan suppresses a shiver at the horrific sounds beamed into his ear. "Already on our way." As the gunship reaches the designated section of the building he counts the windows along the wall to ensure he has the right location. "Target that window there," he instructs the lead gunner, leaning over the pirate's shoulder, "and fire the Dragonkiller. Helm, once he does, take us away from the building enough to tear a hole in the wall as we drag out the harpoon. You two, with me," he goes on, indicating two of the now largely redundant gunners, "be ready to head inside as soon as we're clear."
HERUS ESTATE: CONVERGENCE
There's a loud crash from inside the bedroom as Herus falls sideways as he fumbles through antidote after antidote - none of which seem to be impacting the poison. Crashing to the ground, still clad in most of his power armour, blood starts to pour from his mouth as he gasps for air. Aryn doesn't seem to be faring much better, as she slumps against Yujin, her hands hardly pressing against his and the wound. Outside, the two guards who had tried to block the room from aggressors are staring wide-eyed at the mass of darkness barrelling towards them.
All pretense went out the window now. Yujin was not even trying to be Yukiko anymore. "Gods damned it, Aryn. Stay with me." He hissed, pressing his hands tighter still against the wound. His head turned to look over his shoulder at the door. The pair of guards that were retreating. "Fuck." He managed to get out, eyes trailing then to Herus for a split second, then back to the door. "No, no no..." He mumbled.
The blue Miqo'te quickly moves to the door to the west room of Aryn's chambers, avoiding most of the main hall's commotion. Quickly he gets the door open and hurries inside only to be struck by the sight before him. His eyes are all over the place, taking in everything. His notices the downed Garlean first but as soon as his glance passes to Aryn his heart sinks to a new level "NO!" He yells hurrying to her and Yujin's side. He raises his hands to help stop the bleeding "Gods dammit. What happened?!" he asks rather frustratedly to Yujin "Fuck."
A scream or two was all that was left as the mass of darkness stood in the threshold of Herus' chamber, standing resolute as a presence of aetherial darkness. The legatus treaded through his mirror image, tinged in blood as hands returned back together to create the halberd he had been using prior to the invasion. Upon his stride forward, the image followed in the path of the legatus. There was little word as he advanced on Herus with a maddening furor; a coccoon of darkness entrapping the legatus as multitudes of unleashed aether swarmed out from his hands; graven image beginning to copy the same motions.
Herus can't even scream in pain, already mid-heart attack as the 'legatus' rips his very essence from his being. There's not much left for the tall 'Garlean' to devour, as he almost instantly kills the Praefectus by accelerating the heart attack to an extreme as he rips away the aether.
The massive harpoon easily bursts through the reinforced window, its barbed head splintering a chair and table as it embeds itself in the floor. The gunship sinks as low to the ground as it can and the helmsman pulls away rapidly. The base of the wall pours outward into the garden in a torrent of debris while the gunship veers around unsteadily at the sudden loss of tension on the chain. As soon as the vessel begins to right itself Marten's boots are on the ground, charging through the cloud of dust with the duo of pirates at his heels.
"I- I do not know!" Yujin answered Toni the moment he arrived. "Someone came in through the vents. Went for Herus and poisoned him with a single strike. Then... Throwing daggers..." He motioned down towards Aryn then, "It happened rather quickly. Even Herus was caught off guard."
The legatus descended down like a hellion from the Void, having ripped aetheric energy from the Praefectus in such a display that it almost hung and animated off of the now falling corpse. The graven image of darkness was shifting in and out of focus, where the Garlean could only stand still as his aether began to fizzle off from his hands, darkness waves rippling up, out, and under him as the Abyssal force stay suspended in the air. "PULL THE DAGGER. NOW!" It was a labored plea from under his helmet, already sounding exasperated and at the height of his limitations for the elevated situation. The image began to swarm and expand.
Toni frowns. Breathing heavily with panic amongst seeing Aryn dying before him, pirates breaking through the walls, and a crazed dark elezen shouting commands. Shaking his head he let's out a breath, grasping the throwing dagger "Stay with me..." He murmurs to Aryn, quickly he pulls the blade. He tosses it to the side and covers the wound "WE HAVE TO GO, RIGHT NOW!" he yells "Ivau, call one of your medical units and get them to hurry their arse up and onto the airship!" he looks at Aryn, voice faltering "Everything is gonna be fine..."
Opening the chamber door and leaning his head into the hallway, Martennan cannot help but gag at the carnage left in the wake of Ivau's rampage. Readying his bow he steps out and moves to Aryn's door; it is open, the room empty, but shouts draw him to the next room down. The view from Herus's doorway takes a moment to process. "Herus dead. Oh, very dead, good," recites his inner voice, "Arscelais and Toni alive, better. Aryn and--" "Shit!" he interrupts his thoughts, "The airship's just outside, this way! Toni, can you carry her?"(edited)
As soon as the dagger is tossed aside, the suspended aether arcs towards the unconscious Miqo'tess at a barely controlled speed. The life force of the Praefectus is redirected into her by Ivaurault, covering her in a partial cocoon not unlike what was done to Herus - the difference being that the aether is being given rather than being taken away. Beneath Toni and Yujin's hands, flesh begins to knit back together as the aether is absorbed, just enough to stem the bleeding but not enough fully heal the wound. Her breath starts to stabilise, but her eyes remain closed and she makes no other sound as the last of the aether is absorbed.
"Toni and Ivau, take Aryn on the gunship. The rest of us will leave with Arscelais's men, there's not enough room in that thing for everyone," Martennan instructs.
Toni slips his arms beneath Aryn, picking her up. The wound healing itself giving him pause, but he isn't going to question what must be a good thing. Holding her close he stands up "Yujin, try to keep your hands on that wound" he murmurs, heading towards the hole in the wall "Let's go!" he yells back to Ivau "C'mon stay with me. We're getting out of here" he quietly says amongst the chaos to the Miqo'te in his arms
"Right." He nodded and eased up quickly. His hands near clutched at Aryn's side to keep the pressure on the wound. Though the wound was already gone. He followed along swiftly and made sure that Aryn was as comfortable as possible, given the circumstances.
The aether force burned off of the 'legatus' in ripples of ebony and amethyst that coalesced into a torrent of flame before it is snuffed out. Sounds of infiltration resounded through the manor as chants of, 'Glory to Gabranth', were heralded. Ivaurault balanced himself on his halberd; was that his blood or others? It could have honestly been both. "N-no. The plan. Yu takes her away. Now, before the fighting ramps up once again. I do not have the proper strength...go now!"
Toni frowns, glancing between down at Aryn and then looking to Yujin "You're call. Airship if we have to, crystal if you can." he says,"But if you're teleporting us, get to it" he frowns "and Ivau, don't die!" he calls back
"Right, right," he shakes his head to himself, "Yujin, Toni, go. Don't worry, we'll look after Arscelais. See you soon," He moves to the larger man's side. "Ivau, can you walk?"
"You do not have to tell me twice." He answered simply, pulling the crystal from his pocket and clutching it tight. And without much more of a whimper, the trio of Aryn, Yujin and Toni were teleported away.
"For now...I am growing fatigued." His voice sounded strained and he had still been entrapped within the armor. On first glance, he was scattered with blood from the resistant Praefectus guards but there were some visible indents in the armored suit. "Let them go, and we will depart the way we came in. We need be far from here when the -actual- Legatus arrives."
He sighs and adjusts his directions again, turning instead to the pirates over whom he at least has an inkling of authority. "Never mind. You two back to the gunship, meet at the planned rendezvous point. I'll escort Lord Arscelais back to the entrance."
The 'legatus' ignored most of the real Garleans scurrying and fleeing for their lives, using Martennan mostly as a brace as he began to guide his steps with his halberd. A few of the cohort had survived; four souls of the twelve he had set out with. They were already recuperating on the airship, a few bodies that were able to be salvaged covered with linen to present back home to grieving families. Ivaurault slumped along Martennan, for the deck of the ship could not come soon enough. By the time they had reached their exit, the Ishgardian fell to the deck, wrought with exhaustion.
Epilogue
The Xaela were quite surprised when the trio appeared at their aetheryte; they'd been given warning that a crystal might teleport people to them in distress, but there was no mention of need of medical attention. There's a flurry of activity as the Oronir and Buduga guide over to the triage tent, finishing up the work that Ivaurault started. However, even after all their healing, Aryn remains unconscious, seeming to hover right upon the edge of death...