Post by Roxanne Lexington on Sept 29, 2015 4:57:50 GMT
It had been over a week since Roxanne had talked to Lockhart and been escorted to the Dancing Dog. It had gone by quickly and none too easily. She'd butted heads with just about everyone more than once; the change in uniform and goals did not come with a free change in outlook or personality like many seemed to expect. She was sore, she was frustrated with multiple people at varying times, but she was also more... lost... than anything else.
So there she was in her room at the Dancing Dog, having just showered then requipped to her usual clothes, though she did have a Templar badge pinned to the collar of her coat. She would call Lockhart "Captain" and she would be completely loyal as promised, but she was no dog of the Templars. she was her own person. The uniform was cute, and she honestly didn't mind it, but it wasn't the point, it was the principal of the whole thing.
The former Hellknight of the Red Blades had no idea that today she was being tested; she only knew it was yet another day in her new, always exciting life. She'd butted heads with Silver again the night before, this time over something completely stupid that neither of them were willing to back down from. She was probably angry and ready to slap Roxanne with something stupid and boring for her duties today.
Roxanne examined her Templar emblem on her jacket before turning away from the mirror. She liked her partner alright. She liked her new home at the bar. She just kept getting the dumbest punishments for her general attitude. It was degrading! "To hell with it," she told herself angrily. "I can do anything they can, I-" she stopped herself mid sentence, unwilling or unable (she wasn't sure) to say the next part aloud. She wasn't able to swallow her pride enough to be the soldier they expected of her. Maybe all of this was a bad idea. Maybe she should just make a run for it and start a new life somewhere... maybe...
No. She raised her gaze from the floor that she had locked onto as she thought. She'd given her word and she was true to that. She'd always been true to her word if nothing else. She would stick this thing out. She just couldn't imagine it ending well. She was a cop now... but she was no Templar. Not if it meant being what she kept getting told off for not being like the rest of them.
Post by Albel Lockhart on Sept 30, 2015 3:38:16 GMT
Albel's lieutenant had gone absolutely crazy, running around in circles asking every Templar she encountered where the Captain had gone. Of course, Albel was smarter than that to get caught. He'd arranged another member to tactfully tell the lieutenant about his departure after Albel was long gone. The mission was supposed to be a relatively straightforward one, to eliminate a band of thieves that had taken a liking to Crocus. In the past, Crocus had been a hotspot for dark guilds, especially with the infamous Shadow Heart. But now, dark guilds were effectively rooted out of central Fiore. Which was pretty much what Albel had been counting on, since he didn't want Roxanne tempted by any outside influences - at least not yet. She had joined out of convenience, and while he didn't believe she was planning to betray the Templars, neither did he want to give her an opportunity.
Albel reached the Dancing Dog, one of the hotspots for Templars to hang out in the spare time... or live there, as some did. He waited patiently for Roxanne, in the same spot that normally she and Silver would meet. Actually come to think of it... Had anyone told Roxy about the mission? Possibly not. They'd dug up more details on her real name, identifying her as Roxanne Lexington, the daughter of some nobleman. Probably a good thing she wasn't hauled off to the dungeon, it could have caused a scene. And now he finally understood what she meant by 'contacting her family', and it didn't mean the dark guilds.
"Roxy," he greeted her curtly when she arrived. Then paused, eyes sweeping her form, realizing what was off about the situation. She wasn't in her uniform. She was wearing a badge, but not her uniform. "Were you still getting ready? Come back and talk to me when you're prepared for work." Something between the benefit of the doubt, and also a test of her resolve if she'd really intended to be a rebel. He was giving her an out - a means of backtracking and putting on a proper uniform. Yes even the miniskirt counted as a proper uniform. He'd already come down on her pretty harshly the last time they spoke for her slip-up, and wondered how much she was determined still to bend the rules.
Post by Roxanne Lexington on Sept 30, 2015 3:53:55 GMT
Roxanne eventually went down to the main floor of the Dancing Dog - it was where she and Silver usually met up, though not for lack of trying on Roxy's part. The fact that Silver hadn't rebuffed her for her antics didn't help. She was in the middle of running her fingers through her hair, glancing around to see that no one had just been allowed to sleep at the table they drunkenly passed out at again. That had been a strange thing to walk into when one of Silver's hired hands had forgotten the quietly sleeping drunk was even there.
What she hadn't been expecting was the voice coming from where Silver normally was - Lockhart. Roxanne froze, turning her head to look at him. "Oh, 'morning, Captain," she greeted, sounding both like she was surprised and yet somehow wasn't at the same time. Silver was nowhere to be found - likely sent off on her own job so the captain would have Roxanne all to himself. She glanced down at her form and back at him, looking a bit tired and a bit unamused by his words. "I am ready," she informed him curtly. "I'm awake and everything, Sir."
Post by Albel Lockhart on Oct 6, 2015 20:27:05 GMT
An uncomfortable few seconds of silence ticked by after Roxanne finished speaking, with Albel not breaking his gaze from her. So, she was ready, huh. He couldn't tell if she was playing dumb or actually believed what she was saying. Silver wouldn't have put up with Roxy's attitude very easily. Although, he suspected that the two had a very different relationship than himself and Roxy. They weren't exactly enemies, but neither were they getting along, nor understand each other's boundaries. It was made all the more difficult for Albel because he had far less patience for someone who was purposely trying his patience as opposed to accidentally doing so. He couldn't tell which category Roxy fit into.
“You're not in your uniform,” he pointed out. “...Either of them. The point of a uniform over a badge is so that the public can recognize you as a Templar, and approach you if they need help. So no, you're not ready. When you're properly set, we're traveling in Crocus for a mission. There's been reports of robberies and we've gotten a location for his hideout, so it should be a simple matter of catching him.” Even though he wasn't sure if Roxy knew they were going on a mission beforehand, he figured it wouldn't be too big of a shock. He'd already said earlier that he needed to get a handle on her abilities (and personality), before assigning her properly, and he hated getting information secondhand.
Post by Roxanne Lexington on Oct 6, 2015 20:37:58 GMT
Roxanne placed her hands on her hips while she was lectured by Albel. The unamused expression persisted the whole time, though she did tilt her head near the end of his explanation of what it was they were apparently doing. "So you want me to be in uniform so that we can potentially be stopped, distracting us from what could be a time-sensitive mission, or alternatively harming faith in the Templars if we tell someone in need we don't have time. Huh." She sighed, dropping her hands as the requip magic she wielded activated around her, changing her instantly into her Templar uniform.
"You're the captain." In the long run it didn't matter; she'd wear whatever was practical during a fight and it took next to no time to change. In this case, she was humoring him while also calling him out. "If you know the hideout's location it's equally likely someone is prepared for it. The more time we spend helping old ladies across the street or tending to children who's mommies can't be bothered to watch them, the less chance we have of catching them unprepared." Roxanne had been in charge of several operations during her ill-fated stint with the Red Blades, and she'd avoided most of her trouble by not sticking around to get caught by spies or unlucky attention from locals. Then again, she had been one of the better criminals just a few weeks ago.
Post by Albel Lockhart on Oct 13, 2015 15:36:49 GMT
Albel didn't so much as twitch while Roxy gave her back talk. Well, maybe back talk wasn't the right term. She was scrutinizing their actions, and especially all of his answers. While her reaction wasn't exactly what he wanted... he did prefer for her to be vocal about her misgivings than keeping them to herself. At least it gave him an opportunity to address the why behind what they did. “Templars need to be able to prioritize the tasks before them and decide what to address first. The law exists to serve the people, not the people to serve the law. This is one of the main reasons why the old Magic Council failed. They would ignore a burning city if their orders were to save a single person. While the Templars protect the city, they aren't meant to be a parent that sends their children boarding fees but never communicates them. We are the people of Fiore, part of the citizens, yet we were entrusted with their safety. Sometimes exceptions need to be made to the law in order to do the right thing.” Maybe a long lecture, especially from him, considering he had said little even despite Roxy's special situation.
“Although for you personally, I don't think you know when to make exceptions for such cases,” he added, more as a fact than a sleight against Roxy. He trusted his Templars, but only an idiot would trust a new recruit with breaking laws. Especially when the new recruit was a former dark guild member. She had complied on changing the uniform though, albeit much flashier with her re-equip, but he was still glad that she had listened to him. Using his weight or threatening her wasn't his favorite thing to do – and he only planned to do so when he meant it... when it was absolutely necessary. The Captain thing was one of the things he considered necessary.
Post by Roxanne Lexington on Oct 13, 2015 18:24:32 GMT
Lockhart's speech was all well and good, but he did manage to rub Roxy the wrong way for the second time in as many minutes. She looked irritated, but wasn't to the point of yelling or anything. No, she was better controlled than that, though his assumptions did bother her quite a lot. "You obviously know little about the Roxanne that isn't on some paper for you to look at," she informed him through clinched fists and a tone that very much told him not to make assumptions. He was theoretically her Captain, but he hadn't earned that respect he automatically wanted just yet.
The fists relaxed after a moment, as did the tenseness, but the look on her face said enough. He could preach his orders but she would be the judge of her own situation. Roxanne stood there, watching him, searching his face. A tense moment passed, but she opened her mouth once again. "I believe we have a criminal breakup to get to? Or is it so unimportant that you want to stand here making assumptions, Captain? Because I could be out helping old ladies cross the street or solving a second murder case rather than arguing." Yep. He'd struck a nerve. She'd do her job, but her odd mood that morning wasn't helped by his self-righteous speeches.
Post by Albel Lockhart on Oct 15, 2015 21:49:38 GMT
Albel could tell that he'd upset Roxy, something he honestly wasn't trying to do. Or expected. He'd be the first to admit that he knew little about her. Actually, knowing so little about her was one of the reasons why he was here; he wanted to learn more. After her first sentence, she looked ready to punch him. Was she going to? Again, he wasn't sure what he'd done to evoke such strong emotion from her. Even if he was surprised, he didn't look like he was. He watched her mainly with a blank expression, although his eyes certainly weren't hard like when they'd clashed in the past. It was more along the lines of -what will you do next?-
Whatever she was thinking, Roxy seemed to reign it in, and he noted when her firsts unclenched. He didn't really feel like he'd done something wrong, so there was nothing to apologize for. And while Roxy was certainly smart with her words, that in itself wasn't a crime. He wasn't going to nit-pick her lack of respect. “Let's continue with the case, then,” he ignored her hostile questions, going with her initial plea to basically drop it. He didn't sound bothered by what had just happened at all, or even acknowledge that there had been a problem. He brushed past her, taking the lead. Maybe she just needed to cool off. He'd give her time to collect herself before making any judgements, but she wasn't going to be a very good Templar if this was how she reacted with her coworkers.
~~
The reported hideout was a small building that had been abandoned at the edge of Crocus. Supposedly it had once been a flower shop of some sorts, but had closed down two years ago when the war hit the economy. The insignia of a rose was still imprinted on the wood, though the name of the establishment had been taken down. “Our thief is originally from Hosenka, a young man named Li. His magic abilities manipulate water, although the exact details of his magic is unknown. Since this seems like a fairly straightforward mission, I was planning to storm the place and arrest anyone suspicious. Any questions?”
Post by Roxanne Lexington on Oct 16, 2015 1:39:00 GMT
Roxanne gave way when Albel brushed past her. She watched him seriously for a moment before she began to follow. His cool demeanor was almost infuriating. He'd sounded very much like he not only didn't trust her, but that she was considered to generally be a bad person. Normally she'd say 'fair enough' and not care, but coming from the person who had given her the chance, it just sounded like he'd had time to doubt himself despite the fact that she'd been doing a good job in her last week. She'd just have to show him he was wrong. For all she knew she was better at judgement calls than him. Then again with her strange mindset lately she wasn't sure if she was entirely right.
* * * * *
They reached the edge of Crocus without any trouble. Roxanne was almost surprised that the people left them alone; then again this was Captain Lockhart. Whether he liked it or not he was probably considered too important for petty problems by the citizens at large. This suited Roxanne just fine; she was on a mission at this point - less to stop some stupid criminals and more to prove to Albel that she was a competent Templar. She might even be proving something to herself. The Captain asked her if she had any questions, and she gave him a small grin. It was hard to pass up a chance to brag a bit. She had no questions on how to do a simple bust. She'd done it before on the other side of the law. A cocky smile formed on her lips. "Think you can keep up?"
Post by Albel Lockhart on Oct 27, 2015 4:00:14 GMT
Albel had originally been planning to hold back mainly, to watch Roxy's performance. But somehow her challenge had him rethinking that strategy... maybe he should try at least a bit. Well, he really did enjoy being on the field, and such cases like this where rare. It wouldn't be troublesome for him to keep up her same pace. "I could say the same to you," he nearly smiled. At least there was something Roxy found enjoyable about being with the Templars, even if it would only end up as being adrenaline. Hopefully more than that in the future. Motives were always extremely difficult things to gauge.
He approached the door first. Only a quick glance at Roxy to confirm he was ready. Then he brought his foot down on the door, the wood shuddering in response. "This is the Templars!" He called out as his foot hit the door two more times, it busting open without further resistance. "Give up peacefully, and you will not be harmed!" Of course, as soon as the door was down, there were two men inside instead of one. Despite the earlier shouting, the door had been busted down in a matter of seconds, and so both were scrambling for weapons. Albel recognized one of them as Li, so apparently the information was half accurate. Some kind of meeting with the other man?
Post by Roxanne Lexington on Oct 27, 2015 4:15:21 GMT
"You realize that they never actually do that, right?" Roxanne couldn't help but give the captain a bit of lip as she watched the two men go for their weapons for a moment. "Right, so about that giving up thing." In Roxanne's hand appeared a katana-like blade, one that appeared as if a blackened blade heated by hellfire on the cutting edge. In that same moment she requipped to her normal clothes, which, despite being less modest overall, were better suited to fighting than a skirt. She moved quickly - her speed enhanced by the magic in her summoned blade. The hilt of the weapon caught the 'Not Li' figure in the side of the head, sending him flying to the side, unconscious before he hit the floor.
"Last chance," she told the man who had actually reached his weapon. Her eyes flicked from him to the rug that was moved off of its proper place in the floor. Wooden doors were open, formerly a hidden compartment or passage that was less hidden since it was likely currently in use. Li took the opportunity to grab his spear, thrusting it at the former Hellknight, who swiftly recovered and broke the weapon in two with a single slash, before kicking him hard in the stomach. The man tumbled down into the passage. There were too many stairs to just be a smuggling compartment. That meant-
"What the-" The surprised sounds of more than a few others could be heard from the passage. A few weapons were drawn, but more noticeable was the telltale sound of wizards preparing to fight back with magic. That was when she noticed - the man she'd knocked out. He'd seemed familiar. Roxanne knelt down, keeping her weapon readied, though she suspected they were the ones that would have to make the next move. The redhead moved the man's shirt, revealing exactly what she now expected to find. Albel was going to love this. "Red Blades."
Post by Albel Lockhart on Oct 27, 2015 5:12:32 GMT
Yeah, people usually didn't give up. On one or two occasions, when he'd snuck out for lower-ranked missions than what he was supposed to take, his enemies had recognized him and surrendered. But that was pretty rare, and pretty much only related to his renown. Still, in case someone DID want to surrender... the option had to be known. Roxy took out the first so quickly, that Albel paused just long enough for her to reach Li. Any form of resistance these men attempted to put up was quickly overcome. Albel honestly was impressed with Roxy's speed, and the power to break through the weapon. While the opponents weren't particularly skilled, she had both out-thought and moved faster than them.
Any thoughts about her skills quickly stopped at the noise coming from downstairs. Just what had they busted into? Something serious was going on. Albel walked a few steps to see what Roxy was staring at. His eyes remained locked to the symbol, even as Roxy gave it voice. Red Blades. Her former allies. Probably the worst people to bring Roxy around, considering how new and makeshift her allegiance was - but it was too late for any of that now. It wasn't that he expected her betray him. It was more like he didn't want her to have the opportunity to do so. Speaking his mistrust on the matter wouldn't exactly help them.
At the increased sound footsteps, Albel turned back to the source's hallway - perhaps indirectly revealing his determination and faith by leaving his back to Roxy. "Obviously, this isn't part of the plan. But a good Templar can adjust. Our mission remains the same." He was worried, but not worried enough to act preemptively. For now, he'd trust Roxy until she broke that trust.
The first man toturn around the corner shrieked as a ghost-like blade slammed a hair's breadth away from his chest, pinning his shirt against the nearby wall. A host of ghost blades hovered behind Albel, fully prepared to combat all of his enemies, regardless of how many there were. A whole host burst through - where they all Red Blades? It seemed they'd stumbled on some kind of major operation.
Post by Roxanne Lexington on Oct 27, 2015 5:30:22 GMT
"... Maybe this crap is why they were so willing to hang me out to dry..." Roxy honestly doubted her own guess. She was convinced at this point that the guild believed she betrayed them even without the fact that she was a Templar now. Or, well... her eyes flicked to the Captain in front of her - half Templar, based on the amount of trust she was initially given.
Anger surged in her stomach as she thought of a combination of betrayal and lack of faith. Logically, she knew they shouldn't trust her - she'd pointed that out to Albel the first day she'd officially become a Templar. But somewhere deeper she hated that neither old nor new ally fully trusted her. She even wondered at times if Silver did.
It would be so easy to just knock Albel out right now. She could use her speed to clock him on the head before exacting her revenge on whatever stooge was down stairs. No one would be the wiser. Her old mentor, Jorge, who had helped her refine her fighting skills as well as her instincts, would have encouraged her to end him right here and now. She owed him nothing, even if he believed otherwise.
Roxanne sighed as she stood up, taking her place beside Albel as he pinned another familiar man to the wall. She used her unique mix of fire magic and requip magic to create a fireball, blasting the next to rush to the man's aid before ducking down and using the dull edge of the blade to send a third flying over her. He landed with a loud thud, groaning rather than getting back up. Just to be sure, a summoned dagger was quickly slammed into his jacket, pinning him to the floor. He quickly started yanking at it, but it was embedded too deeply. She had to get in far enough to see who was in charge of this little operation. "You're dumb enough to send these boys against the Hellknight?" she taunted, knowing that at the very least, it would cause most guild members to hesitate. At most, maybe it would get the attention of whomever was in charge.
Post by Albel Lockhart on Oct 30, 2015 5:01:40 GMT
It did mean something to Albel, perhaps more than Roxy knew, that she continued fighting. The fireball slammed into an opponent that had been closing in on Albel. Quickly he pressed forward with Roxy's cover, taking point and no longer considering holding back. Like he said, the mission had changed entirely. Even if he had a few doubts in the back of his head, letting them surface now would only hinder their performance. The plan was to take all the enemies out, and that was all that mattered. One ghost blade in hand, while the others behind him were kept ready, Albel pressed forward. He knocked out one enemy, but didn't have time to prepare for the next attack.
A blade struck him from behind, tearing through his shoulder blade. He gasped somewhere between the pain and shock, mind immediately flickering to Roxy. The blow had struck through, just a few inches from his heart. Had she...? He stumbled two steps forward before managing to catch himself against a nearby stair railing, trying to steady his breathing. Of course, to Roxy, the scene would have looked a bit different. The floating blades behind Albel, one of them seemed to betray its owner. It had moved of its own accord and struck him, no enemy in sight.
"What in the world is going on here," measured footsteps sounded well in advance before he appeared. A man of white-streaked red hair, and an entirely too baggy outfit, approached the two. It was one of the higher ranked Red Blades members, who at least knew Roxy by name, but little else. They called him Nephilim. "The Templar Captain appears on our doorstep, along with one of our own members who also seems to be wearing a Templar uniform. Roxy, you didn't actually join the Templars, did you? Whatever blackmail they're using against you, I can guarantee it's not as valuable as the Templar Captain's head."
Post by Roxanne Lexington on Oct 30, 2015 5:22:06 GMT
Roxanne probably would have gasped at the sight of Albel being run through - that is, if violence particularly affected her. About the only thing that still bothered her was the idea of killing anyone herself. It was one of those things she'd had to learn to rationalize differently in order to keep her sanity, and that programming had hardly had time to wear off. She very nearly asked the Captain how he was, but then a man appeared. Was he the one who had caused Albel's blade to attack him?
"Nephilim," she half-greeted, blade lowering. She glanced back over at Albel. He was out of fighting commission now. Hopefully they had a good healer back at the Templar HQ, or he'd be down and out for awhile with an injury like that. Either way, she was likely on her own unless he had some sort of death wish. Roxanne knew she was better than most of the Red Blades, but against these odds? They'd literally lost half of their considerable strength as a team just then.
Roxanne needed to think of something. Albel wasn't mortally wounded but he could still bleed out untreated. "What, you mean you weren't inviting the Templars to your doorstep with the novices sneaking around like that?" Roxanne grinned. The grin was a little bit sinister, truth be told. "It's like you were inviting me here. I saw it a mile away." Truthfully, she'd been just as surprised as the Captain, but Nephilim had no way of knowing that. "So what, all I do is hand him over and all is forgiven?"
