Mission 11 - Part 2

Mission 11 - Part 2
Previous 	Next	Next
Mission 11 - Part 1 Epilogue	
 Meanwhile... The Date
Mission 11 - Epilogue	
Jump to Objective
Pieces of the gate land with muffled thuds in the freshly-fallen snow -- and Naklin tribe members hurry through the impromptu entry, smashing everything in their path. One rebel draws a little too near Gawain (and is almost burned for his trouble).
: Go on, I DARE you -- give me a reason!
: No, captain, you mustn’t hurt them, the general said--
: That was during the mission; this is personal!
: We must go. Tribe people adept. Can move through storms. See in snow drifts. Come, follow.
The snowmon lopes away, surprisingly nimble for his size, and Gawain and Matteo struggle to keep up. Behind them, the rebels make quick work of destroying as much as they can, attacking the new buildings to try and knock them down, climbing onto the roofs to break them. Some of Xú Tāo’s men arrive, summoned by the noise and rushing into the storm to slow the tribe members down… and the fighting begins with a howl of wintry wind, the rebels on the offense while the soldiers defend the fort.
: (emerging from his tower, barking orders) Stay in formation! Do not counterattack! Keep them at bay, drive them off!
: I don’t think that tactic is going to work, general.
: Oh? And what would YOU do?
: (slamming a fist into his other claw) I can think of five things.
: Gawain might be a tad overzealous, but I believe he is correct this time, sir. The Naklin have the advantage in this weather; your troops cannot defend for very long in these conditions.
As if in agreement, the blizzard screams, intensifying with a massive burst of snow, ice, and wind. Xú Tāo shields his face from the storm with a steely wing, eyes narrowed to pinpricks, and for a moment, a look of concern flashes over his face. But when he lowers his wing, he looks as stern as always, and the Empoleon prepares to drive the rebels off himself--
: AHU!
Color cuts through the white. A mini Northern Lights dashes across the sky, halting fighters on both sides; even the storm abates, as if stunned by this new arrival. Standing underneath the Aurora Borealis, tattooed claws held up in peace, is a Sandslash, blue spikes ladened with snow. Dismissing the Aurora Veil with a wave of her claws, the Sandslash speaks, shouting over the storm.
: My brothers and sisters, enough of this senseless violence! There is no need for such wanton destruction!
: Taro has deceived you! These people have NOT angered the spirit for the storm comes not from the mountain but from within!
: Let them prove it to you, my people! If they find the source of the storm and halt it, then they will have shown their innocence!
: And if not… then it is war. Does this satisfy you?
Grumbles ripple through the Naklin natives… then, they retreat, heading back through the hole in the fence! As they disappear into the storm, the icy Sandslash approaches Xú Tāo, Gawain, Matteo, and Taliriktug, mouth creasing into a small smile.
: Phew, that was a close one, wasn’t it Xú Tāo?
: That it was. Thank you, Ugalik, for your quick thinking.
: Anyone want to tell us what the hell is going on?!
: Indeed. Who are you to have such sway over the Naklin people?
: Apologies. I am called Ugalik, daughter of Tuaq, leader of the Netsilik Tribe.
: And those… were my tribemates attacking your fort just now.
: (growling under his breath) And is there a reason why we shouldn’t just throw your spiky ass back into the snow with the rest of ‘em?
: I did just save you from them -- (leans forward, mock whispering) -- you’re welcome, by the way.
: Yes yes, you did a fantastic job with your little light show--
: (under his breath)--nothing I couldn’t do with a little fire, mind you--
: But I’m more interested in hearing you explain yourself now.
: Indeed, while I cannot begin to express my gratitude to you for your assistance, I too am quite intrigued as to what you meant earlier.
: I, too, expect an explanation, Ugalik. You made it clear that you had uncovered some new information since we last spoke.
: You BET I did, Xú Tāo! Chief among my discoveries is the fact that Taro has been misleading my tribemates this whole time!
: Yes, I thought I heard you say something of the sort. I suppose we will have to pay him a visit soon, won’t we?
: Please pardon my inquiry, but who is Taro? I do not recall that name being mentioned before now.
: Oh, well, maybe you’ll have the privilege of seeing him after you get back. Assuming we have captured him by then.
: Get back? Where are we…
: Oh boy, here we go.
: Weren’t you listening earlier? You all have to go up to the cave where the blizzard is emanating from and stop it.
: Okay, I’ll bite: why do we need to be the ones to do this?
: Because my tribemates think that everyone here has angered the spirit of the mountain!
: Explain that logic to me, will ya?
: The blizzards that have been plaguing our lands of late are not natural ones, they are far too powerful and chaotic to be, but also not random enough.
: Random, you say?
: Random! Wind blows strong in certain places, yes. But storms wild! Storms not to be predicted! But all storms. They arrive here.
: Taliriktug is correct. Even if the fort was settled in an area with the strongest of gales, we would not experience blizzards at the rate we do now. There is clearly some foul play involved.
: Exactly! And my tribe knew this, but, thanks to Taro, they believed these storms were being sent upon this fortress by the spirit of the mountain.
: After he convinced everyone of that, it didn’t take much more persuading to get them to agree to attack the fortress itself!
: Everyone except you, it would seem.
: You bet your furry butt I didn’t! I didn’t trust him from the start.
: Anyway, I’ve not taken part in any of the attacks my tribemates have made on the fortress, not until today. I usually spent the time trying to convince my father of other paths we could follow.
: Today, I had a rough time talking to him, and both of us left on bad terms.
: Oh? Nothing too serious, I hope.
: I wouldn’t want to lose you as a political ally when dealing with your father.
: Nothing…damaging, just--
: He better be ready to kiss my claws in forgiveness when I prove I’m right and unmask Taro’s plot!
: Speaking of, we’ve not quite gotten to that yet, have we?
: Ah, yes.
: Well, after the confrontation with my father, I left the tribe grounds to find a place where I could think. It happened by coincidence, but I ended up wandering towards the great mountain. Most of my tribe has been avoiding it since we “found out” about the spirit’s anger.
: Even before I had reached the foot of the mountain, I could see that the blizzard had started, and I knew that my tribemates would be attacking soon.
: But, since I was so close, I noticed that blizzard was not originating from the mountain itself!
: Hard for a mountain spirit to send a blizzard from anywhere but its mountain, I would assume.
: You’d be right! If it WAS the mountain spirit that was making the avalanches and blizzards because it was angry at the fort, then the source of the blizzard would have been from the peak of the mountain! But the blizzard was coming from the cave system that starts at the BOTTOM of the mountain.
: That would suggest a third party at work.
: And I suppose it’s this third party that you want us to find?
: No.
, , & : No?
: No, I don’t want you to find the third party.
: YOU want you to find the third party!
: Looooootta’ build-up for that one, lady.
: Ha, glad you liked it! But really, I just want to make sure we’re all on the same page here.
: The page of us wanting to fin--
: No, that was just a joke.
: I see.
: What I want you to do, and what you should want you to do, is to find a way to stop the blizzard.
: ….
: ...What?
: In what way does that mean we don’t end up finding the third party?
: How should I know?
: OKAY, Y--
: (flips his cape dramatically into Gawain’s face, shutting him up) Be serious, Ugalik. If there is someone else involved, then we should focus on stopping them!
: It’s more important to focus on stopping the blizzard! THAT’S what holding back my tribemates from attacking the fort!
: If you stop the blizzard, you’ll prove that the mountain spirit bears no ill will towards you or the fort.
: (shoves the cape aside, smoke rising from his nostrils) Listen he--
: (interrupting Gawain) I see, if we were to stop the blizzard, that would be taken as a sign to your tribemates.
: Exactly! That’s why it doesn’t matter if there’s a third party or not, they aren’t your focus, the source of the blizzard is. So long as you stop that, everything will be fine.
: I -CANNOT- wait to go.
: Love your enthusiasm, big guy!
: Oh, I’m sure you do.
: But this trip won’t be easy! The path to the cave is treacherous, and there are likely traps laid down by my tribemates.
: And why would there be traps, Ugalik?
: To keep you from getting to close to the mountain, obviously.
: I fail to see what’s so obvious about that, could I ask you to explain?
: Of course, furry-butt!
: ...Is that my name now?
: Why not?
: Well, there is “Matteo,” that could work.
: Hmm -- (places a claw on her chin while she thinks) -- Matteo-butt!
: Fair enough. Would you be kind enough to explain now, Spikey-butt?
: Haha, gladly~.
: The mountain, Snowbird’s Peak, is sacred to not only my tribe, but many of the tribes in Naklin. The spirit that rests there has long served as a guardian of our lands, and we would all fight to protect it.
: Many of my tribemates are already concerned with the amount of lumber taken from the woods for the fortress’ needs, and many more yet worry that it will turn its sights on the mountain for resources. Because of these fears, traps have been scattered everywhere they could think of -- pitfalls, rope traps, sabotaged bridges, and much more line all possible routes to the mountain.
: Those would be unfortunate for my soldiers to deal with…
The penguin looks to Gawain and Matteo with a gaze sharp enough to drill through ice… and Gawain sighs.
: Alright, point us in the right direction.
: What?
: Wow, you’re that eager to help out!
: Eager? No, but I saw this coming a mile away. (under his breath) plus, it’ll get me away from you lot for a while.
: I see.
: Well, you heard the good captain, Ugalik-butt. If you’d be kind enough as to point out our destination, we’ll clear a safe path for Xú Tāo and his soldiers.
: I’d be happy to~. We don’t have much in the way of maps, but, if you’ll step aside with me for a second, I can give you a general idea of where to go, Matteo.
: Thank you kindly, my lady.
( Meanwhile... Slippery Conditions )
Matteo follows Ugalik off to the side, leaving the Empoleon and Charizard alone. Xú Tāo places his claws on Gawain’s shoulder. The dragon looks at him with evident exasperation and impatience.
: I will keep this brief.
: Those are the kindest words I’ve heard all day.
: …
: There is no time to be wasted here, and no room for error. My soldiers and I will march to the mountain in four days time.
: Four days? So little time.
: Of course! As I said, there is no time to waste! If we are to stop these blizzards and calm the tribes, then this must be done as soon as possible!
: … Also, Snowbird’s Peak isn’t that far away. You can see it from here, even on foggy days.
Xú Tāo points a wing to the west, and Gawain turns his head to see. Sure enough, standing just a bit away from the massive mountain range lining the glacier, all of the mountain is visible, save for the peak which is hidden in thick cloud cover.
: I’m really not sure why she’s pulled him aside to give him directions, it’s hard to miss most mountains, let alone Snowbird’s Peak.
: But do not let the distance fool you! From what I’ve been told by Taliriktug, we could make to the mountain in a little more than a day’s time, but avoiding and disarming traps will likely take up more time. I would expect that, if you all budgeted your time properly, you would spend two and half to three days clearing a path to the mountain, and the final day making your way back to the fortress to report to me.
: There’s enough of us that we should be able to do that, especially if the mountain is so close…
: (raising his voice) MATTEO, GET BACK HERE! WE NEED TO LEAVE!
: (from a distance) GIVE ME JUST A SECOND!
: You plan on leaving now?
: In the morning. I just want Matteo back here so he can explain everything to our forces.
: Very well, I’ll leave you to it. (turns to walk away, but stops)
: I expect that you will continue to leave the tribemons unharmed.
: And I expect that you’ll find that we did so, and that your constant nagging was a waste of breath.
: ….
With that, Xú Tāo leaves Gawain alone with Taliriktug. The two of them stand in silence, shuffling in the snow still falling sideways in the blizzard’s renewed wind, and a few moments later, Matteo and Ugalik join them.
: Thank you again, Ugalik, you are incredibly helpful.
: It’s my pleasure, Matteo.
: Taliriktug, where is Xú Tāo?
: Inside hub. Office, I think?
: Mm, good, we need to speak to him about Taro.
: I wish you luck clearing a path!
: Uh-huh.
: Thank you again!
She smiles before leaving. Taliriktug is at her heels, making loud stomping as he runs after her.
: Well, I certain hope she gave you more to work with than just the location of the mountain, because I can already tell you where it is.
: She was more interested in talking about herself more than anything, I had to work to get her to talk about the mission.
: Oh? And did you learn anything?
: Yes, but, again, it was mainly about her.
: Well well, colour me surprised! I didn’t know you had it in you.
: … I cannot even begin to describe how not like that this situation is.
: So I think I’ll move onto the useful things she told me.
: Firstly, we shouldn’t trust any bridges we see, they’ve all been tampered with.
: Good to know.
: Next, there are quite a few frozen lakes where the ice has been purposely weakened in places, so we should send only lighter ‘mons onto them to check their strength, or just circumvent those entirely.
: Sounds fair.
: Then there’s the the snow, I--
: The snow?
: Yes, the snow.
: The stuff that’s literally everywhere?
: Yes.
: It’s something we have to avoid? We have to avoid the snow, the snow that is everywhere, that’s what we have to avoid, the thing that’s everywhere?
: … yeah?
: I’ll tell everyone who can’t fly to go home.
: It’s not like that, Gawain! We don’t need to avoid ALL of the snow, just… lumps of it.
: Lumps of snow?
: Uh-huh.
: The stuff that is--
: Do not start that again.
: The lumps of snow we need to avoid will be obvious. They’ll be concealing traps, or they’ll be out of place. So long as everyone keeps their eyes open, we’ll be fine.
: I’ll take your word for it as I fly above you the entire way.
: Lastly, there are the caves themselves. From what Ugalik says, going in there will mean death for just about anyone. Even Naklin tribes avoid using that cave system, so we’ll need to stay completely clear of it.
: Don’t enter the caves, got it.
: And that’s it.
: Yeah?
: Yes.
: …
: You cheeky li--
: Do not start with me.
Traverse the Naklin glacier
Avoid or dismantle traps to clear a path to the base of Snowbird’s Peak where the blizzard seems to be originating. There is a short window of time to complete this trip, so go with haste -- but be cautious, the weather will not be kind to you. Snow will be falling at a quick clip as you travel, mixed with hail and sleet, and visibility will be poorer the closer you draw to the mountain. Focus on making that path to the base of the mountain safe for others to travel. The best way to do this is to eliminate the traps laid out by the rebel tribesmen (and don’t worry, even they won’t attack you in this weather!). Once you reach the foot of the mountain do not go near the main mouth of the caves!
There are four types of traps to be aware of:
 Bridges over open expanses of the glacier have been tampered with in some way.
 Ice patches have been intentionally weakened, only lighter ‘mons should attempt to cross.
 Lumps of snow, obviously out of the way, conceal traps.
 The cave system itself, under no circumstances should you enter them!
We must prove that this storm is not the fault of the fortress. Ugalik has informed Matteo that the real cause of the blizzard is not the spirit of the mountain… but it is a spirit of some kind, as evident by the ghostly voice in the harsh wind. You might hear its words yourself, but do not fall for them, and do not let the voice tempt you into the caves for it shall spell your doom. Matteo is unsure of what any of this might mean, but it is high time to find out what’s going on.
Previous 	Next	Next
Mission 11 - Part 1	
 Meanwhile... The Date
Mission 11 - Epilogue	
Return to Top
Category:Missions
Category:Arc 2
Category:Naklin
Category:Gāng Tiě