End of Agent: Endgame
The final few suns were upon the Astral Agency. In order for the assault on Camp Bluefog to last more than just long enough for reinforcements to teleport in with a single distress call over a pearl, the Agents needed to prepare the battlefield for their favor as minor as it would be. It would have to be a small team to escape suspicion. Viktor Harlenk, Balthius Stark, Caden Agron, and Erioch Koren answered Sarij’s call to Nanawa Mines. Thankfully, two of the group were mostly unknown to Iron Jaw and his forces.
Sarij explained that the group would need to get some link pearl disruptors hidden in the the four corners of Camp Bluefog to fully disrupt any calls for help. They would also need to position an aetheryte nullifier near the camp’s aetheryte, thankfully that one had a glamour over it to look like a rock until it was activated. To get into the camp without sticking out, Sarij had hired a merchant to allow the Agents to escort him through Bluefog and most of the way to the Ceruleum Processing Plant and to carry two crates: one with the disruptors and nullifier and the other with a portable aetheryte for establishing base camp.The briefing was short and to the point. Afterwards the Agents made their way to the rendezvous point with the wagon.
The journey to Camp Bluefog was uneventful, and even their arrival was by the book so to speak. The driver parked the wagon by the aetheryte did the usual meeting with soldiers and unloading of cargo. Once the cargo for Bluefog was unloaded the driver took off for the mess to get some food and drink. The entire affair was watched with only mild interest by Flame Marshal Iron Jaw and a masked soldier high above them on an outcropping.
The four Agents decided to minimize risk by having Erioch place his disruptor closest to Iron Jaw while the other locations were handled by the members of the company Iron Jaw. Balthius took the furthest, hiding his behind a boulder, Viktor bought some supplies at the market while stowing his, Caden pretended to relieve himself of several mugs of ale while stuffing the disruptor into the brush, but Erioch got the attention of the Flame Marshal by ‘mining’ near him. The Roegadyn scolded the man but did not show any further interest.
As the driver started to return to the wagon, Caden ran interference so that Viktor and Erioch could get the nullifier in place before they all left the camp. Just as they arrived they exited without affair, but the masked soldier no longer was standing next to Iron jaw.
The journey continued north toward the Ceruleum Processing Plant, but at the fork in the road that used to lead to the Amajina Mythril mine, the driver stopped his wagon. He instructed the Agents to get out of his wagon and take their crates with him. There was no reason he could explain why other than he was paid to take them here; he also had no desire to know why, he just wanted to do his job and move on.
After grabbing the crate, the Agents made their way toward the old mines to get ready to clear out creatures and cultists as Sarij had warned there may be, but once they got to the mining complex there were only a few lazy bombs floating about and single Immortal Flame soldier with blond hair. Viktor regrettably recognized him: Everret Black. The four of them faced the leader of the assassin group that had caused immense damage to the company estate and effectively killed the company as an official entity
This time the Assassin was considerably less interested in conversation, merely remarking that Iron Jaw had signed a new contract to kill the Agents at his leisure and would be paid for each head he turned in the Flame Marshal. Any further discussion was cut short by the lancer charging into the group and taking a swing at Viktor and a thrust at Balthius.
Erioch leaped into action, forgoing his revolver for the moment in favor of trying to tackle the man. Caden attempted to maim the assassin with a cleave of his great-sword, while Viktor shifted into readying himself to support the group. Balthius took advantage of the metal nature of the lance to try to send electricity up the lance to fry Everret.
However, the Spinner’s Shears assassin proved as agile as the other two the Agents had faced. He turned Erioch into a projectile against Batlhius and some sort of hidden armor deflected Caden’s strike. Even as the Agents attempted a second assault, Everret evaded expertly, save for an unexpected stone strike hurled by Viktor. Even that blow proved less of a true strike and more of an inconvenience as he tumbled back to give himself space.
It was then that the man donned his true attire: the bladed armor of a dragoon. His lance was replaced by a terrible spear wrapped in red aether and dripping some vile liquid from its tip. A few shots from Erioch’s revolved did little to bypass physical and aetheric armor wrapping his form, and other attacks were cast aside by the dragoon leaping through the air and disappearing into the blue haze ever present over Northern Thanalan.
Erioch had seen that combat maneuver before and bolted to find some sort of cover. Caden warned off the other two to find their own cover as he readied himself to endure the landing and try to lock down the dragoon so the others could have get some clean strikes in on Everret. To the Agent’s fortune, the murky sky also prevented precision on the part of the Dragoon.
To Caden’s unfortunate luck, when the Spinner’s Shears assassin landed where all of them once were, the blast of force and aether sent him and copious amounts of debris backward and against the cliff walls. His armor prevented too much harm, but left him unable to get up quickly. It was up to the other three to act to prevent the dragoon from leaping again.
Since the Agents had spread in all directions, they flanked the dragoon in a way that would force him to defend himself from all directions. Erioch’s makeshift grenade launcher, throwing explosives and then shooting them, disrupted the aetheric armor just in time for Balthius to charge with a powerful punch to Everret’s face. With his helmet shattered Everret attempted to leap away defensively, but Viktor’s earthen grasp caused him to lose one of his boots, and probably damaged his leg some as he wrenched free.
The four agents kept an eye on the skies waiting for him to return once more. This time he had retreated to a cliff side, hurling a threat to them before vanishing beyond range of the last shots and rocks tossed at him.
“Know this, as long as I am paid, you and yours will fear even the bluest of skies.”
Once the man was gone the agents discussed what to do now. If Everret Black returned to Iron Jaw, the Flame Marshal would know something was up, but Caden Agron remarked that at this point it was far too late to change course. Viktor reported in the success and danger of Everret’s escape, but began to set up the aetheryte for the assault team while Erioch and Batlhius started gathering supplies for the long few nights waiting for the team guarding the basecamp before the attack on Camp Bluefog
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