Gathering the Search Party

[Orin Evans]

After leaving the castle, Orin began cursing under his breath as he made his way towards the military building. Of all people to be kidnapped, it just HAD to be the future king's cousin? And of all the damn people that could go and find her, he was suddenly placed in charge. It wouldn't be a favor for Aric. Oh no. He was doing this for his sister and the fact that something might happen if it was discovered that she was kidnapped.

The military building was quiet, and rightfully so. After the war, things had dwindled down. Those who once resided within the building were either out helping with the rebuilding, in the infirmary healing from wounds or illnesses, or they were trying to get their lives back in order. Those who were still around were still training, or assisting in guarding the prisons.

He first, stopped in the main central room of the military building. No one was there. He couldn't wait around. So instead, he grabbed a piece of parchment and wrote:

To whomever reads this,
It has come to our attention that there is a situation at hand.
There are bandits roaming our island, stealing supplies that
have been sent over by Tresteria. They are also causing problems
and have kidnapped one of our citizens.
Anyone available needs to meet me here at this eve of Monday.
I will return once I have gathered some information.
-Orin Evans

Orin left the note tacked to the door before he made his way in the direction of the prisons. Walking quickly down the halls until he reached the door leading down various sets of stairs into the dark cellar where the prisons were.
The heavy door was opened and he glanced around, eyes squinting to glance into the distance. He was looking for the masculine, tall blonde woman that ran the infantry.
When a guard strolled by, he quickly stopped him. "Could you please point me in the direction Commander Northam is in?"

[Naeva Northam]

Her job was becoming more and more depressing--spending the day and some nights down in the dark basements of the military building. She felt like she was a trapped prisoner, herself. Of course, she and the rest of the guards from her infantry took turns, but a lot of the time, she had to assist whomever was on duty.

She couldn't wait until they'd figure out what to do with the damned prisoners. They were getting on her nerves. And every passing day she had to continue this guarding, the more she felt she would end up snapping and just give them all proper executions, herself.

In the moment that Orin had entered, she was speaking with one of her infantry guards about the schedule and rotation of it. Several of the men had fallen ill and were at the infirmary. So it meant more time for those who were still around.

She heard her name mentioned, and glanced away and towards the door, before speaking up. Her deep voice echoing against the walls. "I'm here." She placed a hand on the guard's shoulder, whom she had been speaking to before mumbling quietly. "Stay here. I'll be back."

Her tall frame walked down to where Orin was, and she stood, hands placing on her hips. "What can I do for you?"

[Orin Evans]

Just as the man was pointing out Naevah to him, the woman spoke for herself and found her way towards him. He found his eyes glancing around at the situation the woman probably had been dealing with for quite some time. And suddenly felt somewhat bad. It caused him to frown and he wondered if he should be offering help with it. Though he was spending a lot of his time with helping out in the rebuilding of Elysium.

He sighed quietly as Naevah asked him what she could do for him. Arms casually folded over his chest and he spoke calmly. "Listen. I don't know if you've heard about what's going on up there..." His eyes drifted up towards the ceiling, as if motioning the outside world. "You know... Out where the sun and daylight is..." He smirked faintly and shook his head. "But we've got a bad bandit situation going on... They're raiding the ships coming in with supplies. Stealing whatever they can... It's leaving things rather unsafe on the island. But the prince's cousin, from Tresteria, has been kidnapped... The queen has asked me to put together a search party to find her..."

He rubbed at the temple of his forehead and studied Naevah's expression for a moment. Maybe this would give her an excuse to get away from the underground for a while. "I was wondering if you could help me gather up some people to help me out. But we need to do something. Not just with the cousin...But with the bandit situation."



Naevah's eyes narrowed at Orin, at his little bit of sarcasm. Her hands remained on her hips and she rolled her eyes, with a shake of her head. "Very funny." She listened intentively to what he had to say. The bandit situation was news to her. How nice of her men to tell her. Her jaw clenched tightly and she let out a huff of air out her nose.

The soon-to-be King of Elysium's cousin had been kidnapped. Well that was just great. And she was suddenly coming to wonder how long it had been since this all started.
"Right... " She felt angry, and it was showing through in her eyes. There was so much pressure now, and no one was really to blame. The other commanders had disappeared and she felt like she had suddenly become the commander of the whole army. She couldn't do it. Not by herself. And now, with something she should have known about, by her own observations, she had no idea. She wished her father hadn't died. It was distracting her, as was this guarding the prisoner thing.
She nodded. "Alright. I will get together some of my men and see if I can get to the rangers for help. They're our best bet with scouting and tracking...We will set out at dark, in a few hours. Meet upstairs in the main hall." Without waiting for his response, she turned and walked away from him. She pulled one of her guards aside and spoke into his ear.
"I need you and William to cover the prisons tonight. There is a matter at hand I must tend to..." The guard nodded in understanding.
She grabbed several stacks of paperwork from the desk and left the prison, finding her way back up into the military building. It was time to go searching for some of her strongest guards.


Orin could sense that anger that resided within Naevah. It almost looked as if she were taking it personally. He frowned and listened to her orders, giving her only a nod in response. He was glad they were on the same page about setting out tonight. The longer they waited to try and find Cassandra, the worse of a chance of finding her would become.

He watched her walk away, and he turned himself, climbing the stairs and making his way to the cavalry quarters. They wouldn't be able to take too many people with them, but if they had enough people, they could split up and search several different directions. And he'd also let others know that some sort of group needed to be put together to stop these bandits and add them to the collection of men already in the prisons.

He honestly hadn't a clue of who he'd run into, but he wandered aimlessly down the halls, looking for open doors, listening for noise within any of the rooms, scouting the training grounds. Everywhere, just searching for any available person, really.

[Naeva Northam]

The rest of the day had gone by quickly. Naevah spoke to several of her men and some of the rangers and was able to gather up a group of eight. It would be enough to have two or three groups split up.

The prison had been taken care of. She had stationed several of her men to guard them while she would be away for however long this would take. With very little information, it could take a while.

The sun had gone down and it was time to meet up with Orin and whomever else had been gathered to go on the search.
Naevah moved down the halls of the military building. Wearing a pair of breaches instead of a skirt. With traveling through the woods and having to climb, it would not be wise for her to play the role of a lady. Her tall form wandered towards the main hall, and just before she got there, a voice called out to her.

"Commander Northam!" The man ran towards her and caught his breath. A man she had gathered from the rangers division. "My lady.. I have found a bit of information on the captured lady. Someone had spotted a group of men with a prisoner. They left the island and headed North..."

Naevah's expression changed slightly. A puzzled look playing over her features. "Hmm. Alright. Thank you." Well, then. It would look like they'd need to go by ship and search the surrounding islands. This could take longer than she was hoping. But if the bandits were around Elysium, still..They couldn't have gone too far off.

She motioned for the ranger to enter the room before she did. Her booted feet clicked loudly against the floor and she spoke up loudly to those whom were already in the room. "Listen up. We are going to split into groups. Several will be staying behind searching the Necron Forest and the cliffs. And two groups will be going out to sea and searching the islands nearby. The mountains...The ships at sea...Any place that they could be using as a hideaway. Is anyone here capable of navigating the seas?"

A man stood, raising his hand. "Aye, my lady. I could do it. Me father was a sailer..."

Naevah nodded. "Alright, captain... You'll be in charge of one ship. Any others?" Her eyes glanced around the group before her. Not everyone had showed up yet. But it was good she had one so far.

[Orin Evans]

Orin had spent the rest of the afternoon, finding others that would be willing to help out on the search. He had found Cassandra's husband and spoke to him about the kidnapping, finding out absolutely nothing besides how many men had taken her and in which direction they went in. There were many places they could be hiding the woman...and it would be even worse if they had left Elysium, which he did not hear or know about.

The sun had gone down and Orin found his way back into the military building, hoping that others were there.

He walked into the main hall just ask Naevah mentioned that the volunteer would be in charge of one ship. "Ship? We're leaving the island, then?" Brows furrowed with curiosity. What had possessed the woman into thinking that the bandits had taken Cassandra away?

It probably made the most sense, though. Why would the bandits hide on a land they did not know too well? He sighed quietly. "I can navigate a ship..." His arms folded over his chest. "But should we not see if we could find her here first, before we risk our lives over seas? Who's to say where she went? She could be anywhere by now, no? Have any of the other bandits been captured yet that we could question?" That was probably a stupid question, seeing as Naevah knew who came and left the prisons. She would have already questioned any bandits that had been brought in.

He moved further into the room where there appeared to be maps spread out over the table. He leaned forward and studied one of the maps. "If we sail out in two groups, we will need to figure out a length of time we will be away from the island...Otherwise, how will one group know if the other had found her, or returned, or was in trouble? And if neither group should return... We should leave a group to stay behind..."

He glanced up, looking over at Naevah, wondering if any of his plans were already running through her mind.

[Naeva Northam]

Orin's voice had startled her slightly, since she had her attention on the others in the room rather than on the door. She stood up straighter and glanced over to him. "Yes, two ships we will be taking. I just got word from Bryant," her head tilted towards the ranger that was seated at the table. "That a group of rangers spotted several men boarding a ship with a woman who appeared to be a captive. Why he did not do something about it, really makes me question..." She glanced to Bryant with a stern look over her features.

She said nothing, her eyes glancing around the room, as if counting the number of men willing to help with the search. Eleven. It would have to do. "Right... We will split into three groups." Her eyes glanced over towards Orin then, answering his question. "Two groups of four will go on the ships, one group of three will stay behind and search... If you so need more to help, you will have the ability to find others, I hope."

Hands rested on her hips. Orin was right. They would need to figure out some sort of plan to be sure one, or both groups wouldn't be left behind or lost. Her eyes looked over the map and she nodded. "No longer than five days. Tomorrow is Monday, be back here by Friday. I suggest you spend your time out there very wisely... If we both return empty handed, then we will try again. But let's hope one of us finds her." She sighed, her eyes never moving away from the map. She was trying to think out some sort of plan. Some sort of route for each group to take, and which lands to check.

She finally leaned forward, one hand was placed on George's shoulder, (the man who had claimed his father was a sailor and he knew about it). "Your group will travel this way..." She placed a finger on the map, dragging it across the paper in the direction he would take his ship. She pointed to several pieces of land, including Noistar and Ithias, two of their allies. "You will be in charge of checking over these lands." She looked up at Orin and then traced her finger in the opposite direction. "You will cover these lands... The island of the Necrons, first... then you'll circle around Elysium and Tresteria to the lands beyond us and them... I honestly do not think they will be too far, since they are still around here, stealing our supplies. But be careful, should you see one of their ships..."
She stood up straight again, both hands resting on her hips. "After five days. On Friday evening, all three groups report back here. And let's hope for the best..."[/i] [/color]

[Orin Evans]

He felt uneasy about leaving Elysium. Basically, they were looking for a needle in a haystack. The next five days were going to be horrid. Though he hoped the search would not take them that long. Maybe the bandits were hiding out on Necron island. An abandoned small island Thais and his people had come from when it had been attacked. The island was covered in woodlands and many places to hide. If he were trying to hide, that would probably be the first place he'd go. So he was hoping, to say the least.

He stood, listening intentively. Was he a good captain, sailor type? No, but he could keep the boat afloat and navigate the ocean well enough to say that he could handle the task. There was a lot of work to do, if they were going to leave tonight. They needed to prepare the ships, gather supplies, food, water, weapons... It was going to take another hour or so before they'd head out. He was sure of it.

When Naevah finished giving out the orders and organizing everything, he nodded. "I am going to start gathering supplies and head down to the port--start getting the ships ready. I'll meet everyone down there."

Before anyone could say anything else, Orin walked out and started rummaging through the supplies, packing some of his belongings and getting food and water. He filled a cart up with everything he thought they would need, and headed down towards the port to gather up food and water from the village stores.

Once he was ready, he started packing two small ships up with the supplies. The other seven volunteers were down by the port by the time he got there with everything and had been working on stocking the ships with the food, water and weaponry. They worked together in preparing the ships and at last they were ready for sail.

Orin stood by the dock of the ship he would be navigating. They had not discussed who was going with who, or at least they hadn't while he was still in the room, they might have already done so while he was gone, he didn't know, but he waited for his crew to board his ship.

[argoshadlir]

Leather boots marched within the military building. Spear held firmly, pressing down in sync with his steps, using it as support against his ailing knee. Signs of battles past visible, but few ever spoke to Argos about rest. He knew his body better than others. Knew how to push himself...or so he'd like to believe.

That naturally stern demeanor served as all the more inscentive not to question his stance on his physical wellfare. Battered, battle-ripened shield strapped to his back, an equally brutal looking sword swaying at his hip.

Sole working eye scanned about the area as he bowed his head slowly to some of the youth that acknowledged his presence. He would pass to discuss the situation with Orin but would find his note instead. When asked where he might be, he was given the response he was down by the shore. Awaiting to move out a search party for...a kidnapping? That was news...unwanted news.

Bearded lips twitched when Argos was instructed to find Naevah and discuss his findings and possible aid in this matter.

It did not take Argos long to move about the building, finding Naevah's quarters. She seemed occupied, so he would stand there silently for a moment. Awaiting his turn to speak. When the moment seemed proper, Argos would clear his throat to gain her attention.

"Commander...troubling times seem to have found our land once again. At least...such has found my ears. I had taken the men out for a morning training routine. Our path was set to cross the forest...it was just noon when the stench of death became apparent. We had found a raided carivan, and it's inhabitants slain...left for the wolves to clean. I had the men comb the forest's surrounding areas, near the scene we had discovered. Ordered them to report any peculiar findings on their return. They have not returned yet...but it is expected any moment. Murder...theft and kidnapping. Our people have seen enough blood to last more than a lifetime could heal. It has come to my attention you have ordered a divisional search party. In order to end this matter quickly...I will offer my service to aid in tracking this...nuissance. I've knowledge of the woodlands and I have men already familiar with what's been going on. Upon their return I will see what they had discovered, pass the information to you...and organize how the land will back tracked and divided. This is not a matter I look to deal with for a lengthy period of time...for our people's sake."[/i]

Argos remained standing firm. Subtle confidence exuded in his ability to deal with this matter hastefully. Relying on his experience, and his ability to train the younger men and women who have desired a moment like this to test themselves.

[Naeva Northam]

Naevah was suddenly having second thoughts about leaving Elysium on the search. What if something happened and she would be needed? She was the only commander around at the moment, and should anything happen, the queen, or whomever, would wonder where she had run off.

She was in her office, gathering up a few more supplies, weaponry and paperwork, when Argos arrived and caught her attention. Her eyes focused on him while he explained what he knew.

And then finally, as he finished, she'd give him a nod. "Yes. We have several search parties going on. The future king's cousin has been kidnapped. We're not really sure where they would have taken her. We've got two groups going off the island to search surrounding lands. One group is staying behind and searching the island. They've already headed out towards the forest to begin looking... You could catch up with them if you wish, or you could start your own search party. Though we need to rid of this bandit situation, too... So if you'd rather search for the bandits rather than the cousin, then that will help out."
She sighed and looked to Argos seriously.

"I had plans to get on one of the ships to go search... But now that I have thought about it, I'm not so sure that's a good idea... " Her comment was spoken more like a question to Argos, wondering what his opinion on it was, and if he felt they might need her around. Though, then again, those traveling out could very much run into a lot of trouble, and could need her too. She sighed and offered a faint smile, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Do ye think you can handle this one without me? I'll be gone no more than five days... And if I am, then we've run into trouble..." She looked at him again. "Any men you capture, bring them to the prisons. I have a group of men guarding, they will know what to do with them... If we do not return by Friday evening, then something has happened. The men who are staying behind know the routes we have taken...Send us help."
She looked at Argos, searching his face to see if he understood and was registering all of this. Then she stepped away and gathered up the supplies she had on her desk, waiting to hear if he had any questions or concerns at the moment.

[argoshadlir]

Argos stood firm as Naevah made her orders. His stance strong.

"I will do as you have asked. I shall make arrangements to perform a ground search on my own. It will be a proper testing ground for the youth our Queen has entrusted our future with.. I will see their success...and deliver those responsible to face justice. Should I cross paths with any who have left before me...I will unify our forces. We could only hope to cover more ground. These acts shall not go unpunished...you have my word."

Argos would bow his head slowly, a glare of determination in his eye before he turned away to meet with the men who were returning from the initial combing of the forest.

[Naeva Northam]

Naevah nodded, pleased with Argos' answer. The man was older than she was, and she assumed that he had a lot more experience than she had, perhaps. She wondered if he held resentment towards her, feeling foolish for being commanded by a woman and someone younger than himself. She sighed as he walked away and continued to gather up her things before she made her way out of the military building and prepared her horse for the distance to the other side of the island, at the port.

Night had fallen and it was dark. Thankfully, the sea was calm and all looked well enough for them to sail off. Silver raced through the land, carrying Naevah on his back until they reached port. She could see Orin in the distance waiting by the decks to board the ships, and she had assumed he finished preparing everything. The makeshift groups were waiting for her, and she quickly slid from her horse, gathered up her belongings and handed the reigns to one of her men. "Please take him back to the stables for me."

A deep breath was taken as she approached the group. "Alright. I suppose we are ready, then?" She gave a nod to both Orin and the man who had claimed his father was a sailor. "Friday evening, we return here. Remember that." Her glance turned to the sailor's son. "Good luck." Making it obvious, then, that she was going with Orin's group. And she gave orders for the remaining group members, which ship they would be boarding.
Finally, once everything was settled, she was the last to board the ship with Orin and the other two that were coming along. Oh, she really hoped Orin really did know how to navigate a ship...