The Battle for Caldera

[bravenewmods]

The time for action is at hand, and the players have been set in place. Those who choose to make an attempt at diplomacy head off at the appointed time to meet with Valeria, the clerk and representative of the general who leads the Gigas army. Those who wish to take more direct action against Gigas leave with General Ironbrand to put their plans into motion. In the meantime, the refugees continue to stream into Union, while supplies are gathered and flow the other way.

The outcome of this war may very well depend on the combined results of these four efforts…

((This log will be a catch-all for all four efforts of the attempt to save Caldera. There will be four different parts of this post: Diplomacy, Aggression, Refugees, and Supplies. The first two should be well established, but the Refugees portion will encompass bringing those in Caldera who require help to Union and giving them medical aid and care, while the Supplies portion will encompass people in Union setting up shelters and gathering resources to send back to Caldera, as well as other miscellaneous tasks that may be of help. Gathering resources may entail leaving Union to explore out in other areas. You all signed up for groups, so please try to maintain these groups when posting, particularly to the Diplomacy and Aggression sections. The other two may be more free-form.

Mods will be responding at least once every 24 hours to keep the logs moving.

EDIT 5/31: Please try to group up if possible! We'll generally try to wait for threads to have 2-3 people before we jump in. Threads with 3+ may attract the attention of something a little more... interesting.))

Comments

[rejected_trash]

[Giving a nod in affirmation, Sync waited until Feliks disappeared through the brush and trees before speaking.]

Did you even break a sweat?

[He did, though he doesn't plan on speaking about it; his wings ached from the sudden exercise and he had to try using them more anyway to make sure they could hold up on a longer fight. His Talonflame perched on his arm, lowering his head a few times to indicate he wanted down on the ground to use Roost. Setting him down, he finally turns to actually look and see if Jade heard him, or left, or somehow had been injured in the chaos.]

[antiseptic]

Of course. I'm completely exhausted.

[His levity fades, however, when he takes in the scene around them. With a quick command, he sends his Pokemon after Feliks, aside from Tyrantrum and the still-sleeping Jigglypuff, who are sent back to the Habitat.]

You must be as well, if you aren't going after Feliks.

[He doesn't want to follow him until they're finished here. Not that they'll have much time; the soldiers who had fled must be planning to go get reinforcements. He had thought about pursuing them, but the area is still unfamiliar to him, and it would be too easy for the soldiers to give him the slip.]

[Spear in hand, he approaches one of the fallen soldiers - the one that had first mentioned 'Formation E', if he's not mistaken - an intent expression on his face.]

[rejected_trash]

A bit.

[The moment feels oddly normal, which puts him on edge. His history with Jade had taught him that when things appeared the most normal, something was about to happen.

True to fashion, Sync watches the older man approach one of the soldiers with his spear.]

...What are you doing?

[As he asks, he sends his own Pokémon back to the habitat; he had suspicions it was best they weren't around for the explanation if he got one. Jade also wasn't the type to explain his thoughts or actions, he recalled.]

[antiseptic]

[For once, Jade explains, mostly because he doesn't quite trust his own judgement.]

Ensuring that he won't wake when I search him.

[He thinks it's necessary, thinks it's foolish that the Union has taken such a hard stance against killing when their enemies don't hesitate to use lethal force, but perhaps he's the one in the wrong here. What he does know is that they can't risk having the soldier make any noise at all, and killing is the easiest way to be certain of that.]

[rejected_trash]

...You shouldn't.

[But to Sync, it made so much sense to at the same time; they were going to kill them without a second thought if the tables were turned. This must have been how they managed to not have so much resistance. He looks down at the fallen soldier and contemplates for a few quick seconds that feel like an eternity.]

You shouldn't get caught, at least.

[He wasn't approving or disproving because now he didn't know what to think. This man might have family, but Sync knew he had family as well, and a bullet would have stopped him from seeing them ever again.]

...It'll need to look like a total accident or the body will have to be hid, Union won't forgive a killing.

[By this point, the teen isn't sure if he's helping his uncle or just trying to listen reasons why not to; it's all sounding the same.]

[antiseptic]

[Sync does not reject his plan, so Jade takes it to mean that his course of action, while not necessarily good, is at least acceptable.]

I'll have to risk it.

[He doesn't think word of this will reach the Union; the mist would have made it impossible to identify them, and besides, it's just as likely that the Calderans would have been responsible for the killing. Besides, spending too long on subterfuge would defeat their purpose entirely. They have to be away from this place as soon as he can.]

[With perfect calm, Jade lifts his spear, pointing the tip of it at the soldier's neck. He takes a second to gauge the position of the carotid artery before he stabs down in one precise, fluid strike.]