Part 87: Short of the truly unpredictable happening, this plan should succeed.

-A Lurking Shadow in the Wilderness-



Is something wrong, General Morgan?
Mm. I was taking a moment to look over the battle plan again. A plan that can seem perfect when first drafted can show faults over time.
Have you, um, found any problems, then?
None that stand out to me. Short of the truly unpredictable happening, this plan should succeed.
I'm afraid there'll be no need for you this time.
Well, I won't mind if that turns out to be true...
But. If we need to, we'll help as best we can. You did, um, let us aboard, after all, sir. You must suspect something could happen.
It's possible. But remember...You will only act if our plan ends...prematurely. I expect you to follow orders during the mission itself.
Don't worry, we understand. We'll just watch for now and see what you guys can do!
Hmph. Quite a head on your shoulders, Ms. Bright. We still have a little time before contact with the dragon. Use the time until then to ensure you're prepared.



Pretty much, yeah.
Er, wait a minute. Are you DRINKING before a mission?
Heh, this is a drink of celebration, my sweet. I celebrate the imminent meeting of the genius bard and legendary dragon.
Well, putting aside the 'genius bard' bit...a legendary dragon...
Do they still tell stories about dragons in the Empire?
Why, naturally! There are quite a number of legends and tall tales of sightings, especially in the southern regions near Bose. In fact, I believe the Imperial Academy was to launch an investigation...but then the Hundred Days War broke out.
Wow, sounds like you guys take the 'legends' kind of seriously. So even in the Empire, dragons are pretty much a mystery, huh?
Hm. You could say that, I suppose...But to the people of the Empire, this particular situation would have a more...straightforward solution.
Straightforward...huh?
Erebonia is a far more...ah, pragmatic realm than Liberl. If something like this were to happen in the Empire, His Majesty would order the destruction of the dragon immediately.
The Empire believes in boldly standing against all who would oppose it. Even if the opposition is a dragon, it would be torn down without mercy.
Th-That seems a little bloodthirsty...
Securing national peace through force of arms is...the Erebonian way. I confess, as a messenger of love and peace, I do find it a bit...sad.
It would be an interesting turn of events for the dragon to flee into Erebonia.
Were that to happen, though, it is all too clear that it would be taken as an excuse for rekindled war. Our good General Morgan is all too aware of that, I suspect.



Ship's Cook Casey: The name's Casey. I run this little corner of the Ladybird as ship's cook. I run the ship commissariat, too, but that's not quite ready yet. If you want some supplies, I'll have to ask you to come back a bit later.
Aww, you're not open? Oh well.
...Hang on, though. Why's he drinking, then?
Ship's Cook Casey: Oh, the guy in the white coat? I treated him. I was checking the stock of liquor and he struck up a conversation. He seemed to know what he was talkin' about, so I gave him a drink.
I, uh, I see...(Olivier calls himself a gourmand for a reason, I guess.)
Ship's Cook Casey: That golden-haired guy seems to be from Erebonia. Well...his taste in wine's good, at least!
Royal Guardsman: Not much of a choice but to eat here when we're on a long-haul voyage. The harder the job is, though, the nicer eating here is. And Casey's got one hell of a job, changing the menu up every day so we don't get tired of the same thing. Thankfully, Casey's a hell of a cook. Thank Aidios for small blessings!





What brings you here?
I could ask the same thing of you, Zane.
Ah, I know! Trying to catch a nap or something?
Haha! Probably wouldn't be a bad idea, but no. I thought I'd get a little practice in. I cannot seem to stay calm, sitting in a confined space like this ship.
You're in the middle of one of your walks, I'd guess.
Yeah, I can never manage to sit still myself...
But, practice, huh? Isn't this a little...cramped for practice?
Practice isn't all about movement, remember. There's plenty you can do even in a small space such as this.
Huh? Like what?
Breathing exercises and meditation, for one, but practicing your forms is an important part of training as well. Especially for bracers like us, who tend to get a little sloppy and let our styles fall apart from so much 'live' combat.
It's important, from time to time, to find a chance to return to the basics and correct yourself.
That's, um, a good point. I haven't actually done any disciplined practice for a while now. Hearing you put it that way makes me worry I'm, like, an awful mess in a fight now. Oh, man...
Haha, it's nothing to worry about. I was speaking generally. Still, if it resonated with you, then there's nothing lost by finding a chance to re-center yourself. My offer still stands to be a practice partner.
Haha! Well, thanks, Zane. I may just take you up on that.
I'll be looking forward to it. I'm going to continue my kata for a while. I want to be warmed up when that dragon appears.



Er, you're...uhh...
Mechanic Payton: Oh, no! Did you forget me? It's Payton, the mechanic! I was with you during one of your plans against Colonel Richard.
S-Sorry! A lot's happened since then. I remember you now, though. You're the one who got us the Intelligence Division airship, right?
Mechanic Payton: Haha, yep! Glad I could be of help. And glad you didn't completely forget about me. Still, I'd heard there were bracers aboard...And the thought crossed my mind that it might be you guys, but I didn't think I'd be right on the money! Small world, huh?
We didn't think the Arseille'd be here, either. Seems like the Royal Army's pulling out everything for this mission.
Mechanic Payton: Yes, I've heard this is the largest Liberlian military mobilization since the Hundred Days War. And they tell me our target's a legendary ancient dragon...What better way to test the new engine, though, right?
You sure seem confident.
Mechanic Payton: Well, hey. In a way, all our tuning of that thing was in preparation for this day. The designers from the Central Factory are here today, too, to collect data. It's finally time for the lady-bird to make her entrance. I want her to fly like nothing's flown before!



Royal Guardsman: They were all busted during the fight, but we got them repaired quickly enough. We'd have trouble managing ground combat without these!



Royal Guardsman: I never thought General Morgan would allow bracers aboard! The Royal Army's really changing, I guess. I guess it's proof General Bright's reorganization is coming along.



Hugo: No matter how many experiments we do, though, in live combat things will be different. As one of the development staff, I'm half eager and half terrified to see how the engine performs. If it can get us through this mission, I'd say all the hard work will have been worth it! This'll be the first flight out of the nest for this little bird. I'll be seeing how she does and collecting the final data.



Louise: It isn't too often that you get to measure an engine's output in action! I am TOTALLY writing this down for all the engines we design in the future! Now we just wait for Mister Dragon to show up.



Royal Guardsman: Just above here is the bridge, and just below us is the conference room. The Arseille is a pretty large ship. People tend to get lost at first when they're assigned to her. The hatches to the left and right lead out onto the outer deck.



Hi there, Estelle. Taking a walk?
Yup. Enjoying the wind?
Yes. The weather's lovely, so I'm taking it easy. Knowing when to take a breather is part of our job, too, you know. Short breaks like these are good for keeping our minds sharp. Now's the perfect time.
Yeah, I know...Hey, Schera? Do you think the plan'll work?
To be honest, I don't know. Common sense says there's a very good chance it'll succeed. We have twelve patrol ships out on patrol as we speak, after all. Hard to imagine even something as powerful as a dragon getting away from all that.
Yeah...I guess you're right. General Morgan was pretty confident, too.
That's just how he looks on the surface. Remember? He was none too happy to have bracers on board. And yet he let us on anyway. That can only mean one thing.
...He's worried about how this'll turn out, too?
Exactly.
And that, Estelle, is why conserving our strength right now is a good idea.
Haha, makes sense. Guess I'll keep wandering around a bit.
Good, that's what I like to hear. It's not every day you get to ride the Arseille. Enjoy yourself!
True enough. See you, Schera.
See you soon, Estelle. The fact that we're on board proves General Morgan is uneasy. We need to be ready to act at a moment's notice. But until then, I'm going to take it easy.



Killin' time till the dragon shows up?
More or less. How about you? Putting stuff together for your latest scoop?
Eh, not really. I'm waitin' for the star of the show, same as you. Even if it doesn't show up, at least we got a few nice shots of the Arseille.
We're just lucky enough to even be here.
Haha, you must be having a field day. You get to cover the fight with the dragon AND the new, cutting-edge ship all in one go.
Hell, the dragon vs. airships thing alone would make it the story of the decade. Every single reporter at the office raised their hand when we were talkin' volunteers to cover this.
Mmm, that figures. Congrats on getting picked for the job. Did you guys draw straws or something?
Draw...? No, of course not.
I got picked 'cause I'm a damn good reporter. All that effort during the coup is startin' to pay off.
Well, hey, more power to you! So even the Royal Army respects you now, huh?
Hey, if you write good stuff, even the big guys'll come knockin' on your door. By the way, if anything interesting's come your way lately, I'm free to swap a few stories aaany time you want. We could always use a few good editorials to fill our pages.
Haha...Um, we'll see.
Speakin' of, Estelle. You close at all to Captain Schwarz?
I wouldn't exactly call us close...I guess we've known each other for a while now, though.
Don't suppose you could introduce me? We've been getting hounded by readers for a special edition featuring the 'female captain of the Royal Guard.'
J-Julia's kinda...popular, then?
Oh, totally. I'd say she's about as popular as Her Highness Klaudia. I've even heard some publishers are itching to put a whole photo album of her on the shelves.
PH-PHOTO ALBUM?!
It's just a rumor floatin' around. Even if they wanted to, there's no way they'd get permission...and I sure don't wanna be the guy who's caught taking candid photos of HER.
Er, yeah, yeah, that's true. (I'd kind of like to see this album, though.)



Hi, Dorothy! You seem to be doing okay. Is your camera still treating you good?
You bet! This girl's so cute, she looks great from ANY angle! ♥
And by 'this girl,' you mean...the Arseille?
Oh, Dorothy, you're as you as ever.
Hee hee! You too, Estelle. You're just as full of energy as always! ♥
Haha...Well, thanks.
Er, wait...Were you worried about me?
Yeah, of course!
I mean, I...well...I took the photo of Joshua, right? If that made you all sad, I'd have to be sad, too.
Oh, Dorothy...I'm sorry.
Noooo, it's okay! I'm a reporter, so it's my job to try and cheer people up! Um, sort of. If you're worried about anything else, talk to me any time! ♪
Ah-hahaha...I'll, um, keep that in mind!
I'm just gonna be taking pictures of this beauty until the dragon shows up!
And theeen I'm gonna pretend to get interior shots while getting pics of the lady captain instead!




Are you finding it a little hard to calm down?
Yeah, a bit. Really can't stay still for this one.
That reminds me...You, um, always walk around like this on the passenger ships, as well.
Ahaha...Yeah, now that you mention it, I do. I dunno, I feel all suffocated and trapped when I just have to sit around politely.
Haha...That's very like you, Estelle. But, ah, I wouldn't worry about that too much on the Arseille.
Huh? What do you mean?
Property of the Auslese family it may be, but this is still a fully-functional war cruiser...At full speed, its engine capabilities far exceed those of passenger vessels.
If we go at flank speed, I don't think you'd even be able to remain standing.
I-Is it seriously that fast with the new engine?!
Haha. You'll be surprised, I think. It's a bit like walking into a storm.
I, uh, I see!
So that kinda makes all this the 'calm before the storm,' then.
Yes, after a fashion...This may be a very brief period of peace before the 'action' begins.
If you want to look around the interior, this may be your only chance.
I better keep that in mind, then! Guess I better start wandering around faster, huh?
Yes, I'll see you later. As you said, Estelle, this is the calm before the storm.



Helmsman Lux: I'm Lux, the Arseille's helmsman. I'm in charge of piloting the ship. Sorry, but it looks like you guys aren't gonna get a chance to show off. A dragon? Heh...Nothing compared to the Arseille! You guys just sit back and enjoy the show. Also, don't mind Echo in the next chair over. She may not be too friendly, but she's a good gal at heart.
Comm. Officer Leon: Ah, hello! You're the observers, right? I'm Leon, the Arseille's Communications Officer. I run the switchboard and radio here. Probably won't be a very long experience, but it's nice to meet you. Let's both do our best.
Sensor Operator Echo: ...I heard...you're the bracer observers. All I have to say is...don't get in the way of the mission. We're finished talking...Why don't you return to your post?



How do you find the Arseille?
It's really, really cool! I guess I shouldn't be surprised the queen's ship is awesome, but still!
Thank you for your kindness, Ms. Bright. I am simply relieved the new engine made it in time.
Of course, I hardly expected to use it on a mission of quite this...nature.
I hear that...Who'd imagine a dragon would show up?
Yes, it is an utter mystery as a foe, even to us. We may have a plan of attack, but it would be foolish to rely completely on it in the face of the unknown. Be prepared for anything, in case something goes...amiss.
If anything happens, it'll all be up to us, huh...
Hopefully it will not come to that...But only Aidios knows what lies before us.
Oh, by the way, Julia. Did you know that Nial, uh, Mr. Nial Burns, wants to cover you for an article?
An article...? About me?
Yeah, he wants the citizens to know the real Royal Guard, he says. He's pretty serious about his job, so I think you can trust him, you know?
I am well aware of Mr. Burns' professional credentials. If not, I would not have allowed him to accompany us and cover this story.
Oh, yeah, good point.
To be honest, I absolutely support the idea behind such an article...However, I am afraid I must decline.
Huh? Even if you support it...?
We have refused similar requests from other companies as well, you see. We cannot give the Liberl News any special treatment.
Awwww...I guess not.
Forgive me, but please tell him as much. I still look forward to seeing the article, however.
Okay, then.



The Royal Guard doesn't interact with the people much, so everyone's got plenty of questions about 'em. It'd be nice to get the chance to report on who she really is.
Oh, um, about that, Nial...I'm afraid she just straight-up refused.
WHAT?! Refused? Already?
Ahaha, sorry, Nial. She said something about it being kind of inconvenient?
*sigh* Right, right...Damn, she's even more guarded than I thought.
I'm sorry. I wish we could've helped.
Ah, don't worry about it. Not your fault they keep to themselves the way they do. Still, there's gotta be some other way...
(Just like Nial to not take the hint if the prize is a hot scoop.)
She wouldn't even say yes to you, huh? Figured it'd be easy to get at her through a friend, too...

*VRAMP* *VRAMP* *VRAMP*

Here we go!