Era: Dawn

Far off to the outer lands, across the badlands of the Nihle, a small group of wanderers were traveling through the wastelands of the land, the Nihle, for the people of the lands, was called the Earthern Wastelands, as the lands of the Nihle were exactly, if only partially, the same as the wastelands of America, China, Russia, and the such, and as expected from a similar version of the land, there were also similar factions and settlements and the such. However unlike the original wastelands of Earth, these wastelands have been around much longer, and the factions have begun to rebuild the land. There were many tales about the land in of itself, similar to the tales in Tristain and other lands.

However, the small group that currently wandered through the wasteland belonged to a faction that had been formed not that long ago, known as the Wasteland Society Of Tzar, or WST, taking the name Tzar from the original word that meant Emperor in russian, the people followed a man who used that name as his title of leader instead of the many other names that could have been chosen, and with this new title, while the faction is still new and fresh, their achievements and skills have not gone unnoticed. They had managed to use some technology of the ancients to summon forth one ally before the machine broke down, and that someone was none other than the Director of the original Institute, known as Alec Miles, and with the help of this long forgotten hero of both the new and old world, they managed to grow into a great faction, but alas, they still did not have the troups needed.

The group consisted of a total of four people, all of which were once members of the once existing Desert Rangers, but with the rangers having disappeared, they had gone back to traveling, since they weren't interested in joining the NCR, or NEA as they were known as in this world. These four figures were known as heroes to some degree as well, but with the lack of interest in the wars around them, they haven't done anything heroic in quite some time now.

The first member of the group, was the man wearing an armored vest over the green coat and white sweater, a pair of dirtied sleek pants, and finally a pair of military grade black boots. The man also carried a G41 with a Laser Sight, a Holo-Scope, an extended magazine capable of holding a total of 60 7.62 Rounds per magazine and a flashlight on the other end of the barrel. He also wore a beaten cowboy hat with the Desert Ranger Star on the front, and finally he had medium length, messy black hair alongside a thick black beard that rivaled the Greybeards back on Nirn. He was the current leader of the group, who goes by the name of 'Stix', as he only shares his real name with his fellow brothers and sisters in arms.

The second member of the group was a young woman, only a day past becoming 18, and carrying a Hunting Shotgun alongside a M1911, her features were of course of a certain type of beauty, one that could rival many in the wasteland, as she was originally from Boston before making it to the Desert Rangers back then, which in turn led to her being not only extremely slim, but also made her the most well endowed woman in history. But the details will be skimmed over for the current moment in time. She also had extremely long hair, the only one in the entire wasteland who's hair was the color of the cleanest of snow, while she wore a Vault 113 jumpsuit, and had to do some heavy work on the average combat armor just so it'd fit without squeezing everything to the point of deadly pain.

The third member was a tall suit of power armor, the armor being known as a suit of Z-01, a suit of power armor that was designed to be as protective as possible, which in turn ended up making the frame unable to move as quickly as any other frames, but fast enough to keep up with a slow jog. The plating was that thick and armored for the utmost protection to create a sense of walking fortress, while equipping a few weapons into the suit so the wearer didn't have to swap between minigun or gatling laser or even missle launcher, instead the suit of armor carried a TSC Combat Rifle that he got from back when there was a war between the Brotherhood of Man and the TSC. Of course, the war is long since over, but they allowed the man to keep the armor and weapons as a sign of respect since they'd rather not tell a suit of armor that could beat the hell out of a suit of Hammerhead Power Armor to give them the toys he grew attached to.

The last member of the group was a total enigma. Unlike what the NCR, who is now space faring, like to claim, the NCR Rangers do in fact get deserters, and this specific ranger is living proof of that. The ranger wore a set of Elite Riot Gear, but instead of the average armor pieces, the chest piece, the shoulders, and the lower legs were covered in X-01 armor, which has yet to be discovered as to how this person, who's gender is unknown, was able to move around with such armor as if they were Legate Lanius himself. That is just how it was, a unknown figure, wearing armor of the same weight as Lanius's Legate Armor, and they moved around in it with even more mobility than Lanius could ever hope to move in.

The four members of the group continued on with their march, keeping an eye out for anything of some importance or perhaps of same unknown danger, as they made their way for the lands known as Valatinate by those of the Halkeginia inlands. Little did they know that the people of Halkeginia viewed their lands as the badlands, with the name they gave their continent Kurgans.

Louise just stood there, staring at the two twin ponies that were currently sitting on their knees in front of a currently ranting noble that had come into the academy an hour ago to deliver a message from the annoying fat lump known as Moss, or at least that's what everyone called the fat noble. This noble was of a more respectable family, his name being that of Morris Hiragi, the eldest of Louise's cousins, and the man had a rather annoyed look as he was giving them a lecture on how to properly do first contact with another 'country' as everyone had assumed they came from.

Eventually one of them whines. "But we aren't from another country!"

"Don't make excuses!" Morris barked.

The twin hangs her head as she mutters out in resignation. "M'kay..."

As the man gave them that lecture, Louise noticed her eldest sister, Charlotte, comes over from the main chambers, and gives a rather blank expression, before saying calmly to Louise. "It seems that the Royal Family has a message for us."

Louise gains a sweat drop at this. "Yeah? That explains cousin Morris's amazing timing... But it seems he's busy with another one of his rants..." She lets out a soft sigh.

Charlotte had a sweat drop as well. "That he is... Of all the Hiragi, why did the eldest have to be the one most fixated on things like contact with unknown countries or civilizations or the such?"

"I wouldn't know, personally..." Louise admits. "Should we save the two visitors?"

"Oh heavens no, the last thing I need is Morris giving Me one of those lectures." She turns and starts walking, a hand in the air. "Tell me when the man is done, I'll be in the dining hall for a moment. Oh, and I'll be sure to grab you and your familiar some breakfast on the way."

"Thank you, sister!" Louise shouted as politely as possible before returning her gaze to the scene. After some time, Louise looks at Ember. "When do you think he'll stop?"

"It's been nearly an hour of ranting, I'd be surprised if it doesn't end until the end of the day."

"Well, that would be a short lecture for him."

"Wait, he actually lectures for days?"

"Yeah, he lectured Charlotte for nearly a week before he let her go, and that was when we were younger. Now he's older, with better lungs, and an even bigger sense of agitation for things that don't go as they should."

Ember sighs. "So odds are he won't stop anytime soon."

"Pretty much."

"Well, your sister is bringing food, yes?"

"Yeah, and with this going on, I would be surprised if the other students chose this over going to class."

Saito places down a few gold coins in front of the gate guard outpost. "Entry for seven." He then suddenly felt a shiver down his spine. Glancing back at Iona, he says quietly. "He's at it again."

Iona groans. "Your elder brother is insane."

Saito nods, before the seven people head into the city of Hov, and the first thing they noticed upon entering was just how much of a slums it really was, as in a city like this, the slums are of greater size than the commoner and nobility sectors, given the slavery and gambling it runs off of. With a slight shake of the head, Saito speaks up as the seven walk. "Keep your guards up, even in a group like this, they don't play by Tristain rules, so try not to get separated, and don't let anyone pull a fast one on you."

Everyone minus Seraph says in unison. "Yes, Commander!"

Seraph kept her M1911 as the ready, not liking this place at all, as it reminded her of the criminal sectors of the galaxy, mainly where the territories of the Enemies of Galactic Peace resided. Giving a silent mumble, she keeps with the six that she could tell were as much on edge as she was, while realizing that the buildings almost rivaled that of newly founded colonies, which was of much surprise to her, but regardless...

After a while of walking, the group managed to come across the entrance to the arena, where Saito steps up to the man running the place, and speaks. "We're looking for a woman, 4'9", black hair, wears an odd uniform."

"You're looking for that girl that had gone and gotten herself thrown down into the cells of the arena then?" The man asks, before letting out a laugh. "The wench went and slew a few of our nobility who wanted some fun... Well... She didn't kill them actually, but she pissed them off enough to hire the guards. And if the guards were involved, we had to take her in our cell. She's going to be sent into the arena to prove herself as a capable slave." Seraph glares at the man. "You want her, we can give her to you, but you gotta make it worthwhile, current prices offered are for after the arena, being worth 24,000 new gold. How much can you pay, hmm? If it's beyond that, we'll deal."

Saito sighs softly. "I'm too tired for this shit..." He pulls out a bag, with the sigil of the void on it, and begins pouring out separate piles of 100 new gold, before eventually making it to 24,000. After that, he pulls out the last coin of gold from the bag and sets it down. "This is the only thing I can offer that bypasses new gold."

The man checks the coin out, before giving a disgusting grin. "24,000 New gold and one White=Gold eh? You must want her badly. Fine, she's yours. Wait here while we go get her." He goes back inside.

Iona whispers into Saito's ear. "That was your entire monthly pay, Saito, you sure you can do fine without it?"

He says with a tiny sliver of bitterness in his always emotionless tone. "With what I'm doing, the crown would be insane not to compensate for my sacrifice." He grunts a little. "Even the Princess herself is likely to pay well for my work, that's how well I trust them."

Iona slowly nods, while Seraph had an intrigued look on her face. The human she was helping seemed to be on good terms with the royalty of this land, which, in turn, gives her a second stepping stone alongside the first that should allow her to build a foundation for the alliance that she could make with these people. With a silent prayer, she couldn't help but hope that she manages to get the peace treaty before any ULR members managed to do so.

After about 45 minutes, the man comes out with the black haired woman, who appeared to be no older than 15 or 16, making the group, all but Saito, to blink in utter confusion. The slaver man then speaks. "Here she is, the girl you described. Now, best make like horses and run back to the capital before the other nobles realize someone outside of Hov outbid them."

Saito nods as the seven, now eight group party take their leave, and exit the city. As they began walking, the healer finally yells out in annoyance. "Gods damn it! Okay, I get you're super perceptive of being a detective alongside your abilities as a Blue Templar, but SERIOUSLY?! The girl is EXACTLY as you explained her to be! How in the ever loving hell did you manage to get so much detail on the girl?!"

Saito says calmly while the woman in question had a surprised look upon them knowing how she looked without even meeting her. "I told you, the sheddings of black hair, the footprints that would support someone at 4'9 with a thin weight, and one piece I've yet to explain, the tree nearby had a few blade nicks in it, and with my training in blades, it was easy to deduce it was a type of katana."

The girl was quite impressed how well he figured it out with so little information, while Iona says calmly. "It's just how my husband is, well trained and never lets a simple piece of detail slip past him." She adds as she closes her eyes. "After all, he was the only man in all of history to join the military at 18, which is the youngest compared to most everyone else... Except perhaps the elves."

Their elven companion says at this. "True, the elves back home tend to place even the youngest of their members into a dangerous position so to be at their best against those they are at war with." She scratches her cheek awkwardly. "Young sister Tiffania ran away not too long ago to try and live peacefully in the human territory as a sort of healer." She smiles softly. "She's good at what she does too."

"I bet." The healer said, staff behind his head again as he hung his hands on it. "I hear she's got quite the pair of me-GAH!!" He instantly got an elbow to the gut by the second in command before he could finish his comment.

Meanwhile, Charlotte was currently reading some books on alchemy in her office, before noticing the young girl known as Yumina the VII come into her office. "Yes, Yumina? Is there something I can help you with?"

Yumina stands before her. "I wished to know if I may begin practicing with the magics I was taught back home, instead of trying to learn the magics of this country?"

"Ah, still having trouble adjusting?" Charlotte asks, earning a nod. "Very well, I shall permit it." She gives a look. "By the way, how is the reincarnation of Mochizuki Touya doing."

Yumina blushes. "You heard then..."

"Nothing goes by in this school without me knowing, Yumina, just make sure he's safe and do try not to overwhelm him with things. I'm sure a hero of ancient legends would find it hard to adjust to a world that is completely different from back then... Maybe not technologically, but very much so when it comes to history and the such."

Yumina bows her head politely. "Of course, Grandmistress, I will do my best."

"Very good, now, go on, I'm sure class is almost starting."

"But what about the-"

"Don't get caught up in that lecture, trust me, it won't end well or even anytime soon."

Yumina nods and takes her leave, while the older woman known as Charlotte lifts a glass of alcohol to her lips as she mutters silently. "My cousin is going to give me a headache one of these days, and one that demands revenge at that..."

...To Be Continued...