The two days in his room were well needed. Dius was exhausted to his bone, with his unstable foothold. The ground he tried to make a foundation for a new life on, always shifting and changing. He slept as much as he could. The rest... He’d eventually retrieved the book, laying there, innocent of it’s crimes, in the corner of his room. Dius tried to read. Spirits, why was it so difficult? And the only one he could remotely turn to for help, he still couldn’t forgive.
Why had Mav pretended to be his friend? Pretended to trust him. If all he was going to do was to pull the rug from under him? What the fuck did he gain by that? Dius couldn’t understand it. And when the two days were up, he still couldn’t make heads or tails of it.
Command had sent them new orders. A follow up on the last mission. But the instructions were in text... Dius sighed and bit the bullet. Got dressed and headed for Mav’s room.
“New Order” monsters are parallels to the “Number” monsters. Their archetype is abbreviated as NO, followed by the number which represents their rank. This naming parallels the abbreviation for “Numbers” as NO, followed by the appropriate number they represent.
Here’s an example, where both cards appear to be named “Number 6″:
Got three cds ordered! One from Amazon, one from Synphonic Music and one from Record Heaven. The one from Synphonic has been shipped only two more to go!
Marachius looked up from the arm he had been bandaging. A young man had run across some wild animals out in the forest and ended up deeply scratched up as a result. Tucking in the edge of the bandage, the paladin laid the arm back down on the table and smiled at the young man, saying “I’ll be right back.”
Jumping up from his stool, the paladin jogged in between the cots and tables of the healing ward and made his way to the main doorway where two senior paladins were standing. Coming to a stop, Marachius immediately stood up straight and threw his arm up in a salute. After a moment, the other paladins made their own salute, allowing Marachius the lower his arm and stand at attention.
“How’s your patient, Ainsley?”
“He should be fine, sir. Some deep scratches from a wild beast. I cleaned the wound and bandaged him.”
“Sounds simple enough, son,” the other paladin responded.
“Yes, sir.”
“We’ve talked to the teachers in the ward here, Ainsley. They seem to think highly enough of your work here,” the first paladin said.
“Thank you, sir.”
“We’ve got orders for you, son,” the second paladin begin. “Go get your gear ready.”
“Sir? Where am I going?”
“To the front, Ainsley. They need more people there.”
“The front?” Mraachius repeated, his eyes widening.
“There are teams already there. They’re in need of field medics. Make sure your medic kit is stocked up and check your gear out. Make any repairs you need. You’ve got three hours to get ready. Be at the docks before that time is up.”
“Yes, sir,” Marachius said with a quick nod, still a little shocked about the sudden news.
“Get moving, Ainsley! You got things to do!”
“Yes, sir!” Marachius repeated, saluting again. The trainers returned the salute and stepped aside, allowing the young paladin to pass as he ran down the hallway. Within a minute, Marc was back at his room. The first thing he did was pull out his medical bag and rummaged through it, checking off his mental list of supplies that should be in it. Finding everything stocked as it should be, the paladin nodded to himself and set the bag on his bed before turning to his armor. Over the next several minutes Marachius carefully inspected his gear, looking for any rends or obvious weaknesses in the metal. Finally satisfied, he sat down and thought for a moment. After a few deep breaths Marachius moved over to his tiny desk and pulled out some paper and a pencil.
Chicago Business Barometer Unexpectedly Indicates Faster Growth In December
Chicago-area business activity unexpectedly expanded at a faster rate in the month of December, MNI Indicators revealed in a report on Thursday. MNI Indicators said its Chicago business barometer climbed to 67.6 in December from 63.9 in November, with a reading above 50 indicating growth. The increase surprised economists, who had expected the business barometer to drop to 62.0. The unexpected…
