knightsoflegend | andres ♔ but life is for living

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andres ♔ but life is for living

WHO || Everyone
WHAT || With Andres Isle reclaimed, the Knights deal with the aftermath of their battle to save its people
WHERE || Andres Isle, and various
WHEN || September 20th, 2014 - October 20th, 2014 [backdated]
HOW || Actionspam

When the sun rises on Andres Isle the next morning, and the smoke and rubble clears, it is impossible to call the battle anything less than a victory, in terms of freeing the people from Sarandis' hateful regime.

But all victories come with their costs.

Sir Zatara's team easily accomplished their goal, shutting down the power station that allowed Sir Trinall's team to wrest control of Isle communications, although Emma Swan was grievously injured in the process and Faye Chamberlain found herself facing an unexpected temptation when she got her hands on Jordan Reeves' genie bottle. Sir Wellington and Carpenter led an assault on the prison base, that succeeded in freeing all of the captured Shadowkind and putting a halt to the hideous experimentation going on there - at the cost of Sir Maxwell Briggard's life. (And Nathan Young's... but he got better. Twice.) Even Myrilandel's familiar, Amaranth, was found, but when Lan turned violent on a bank of computers in a fit of hatred for the machines and all they represented, a targeting system was activated that released all the mind-controlled Shadowkind hybrids from the facility, on a dread path of destruction for the castle, ready to kill anything in their path.

Meanwhile, Sir O'Rourke's team had managed to locate the love potion that Dimitris Sarandis was using to control Kat Samcelot's behavior, and made it impossible for the next dose to be administered on time. Sir Hathaway's team likewise made it into the castle, after following a set of clues that indicated Sir Elena Gilbert and the doppelganger Kyp had killed a guard and stolen their identity, heading into the palace proper. Eavesdropping within its walls, they learned that the Prime Minister had been shot, and that the woman responsible was being held in a tower. This, however, proved to be a cruel trick of Dimitris' ally, the powerful psion known as the Mind Master. Forcing Elena to shapeshift into Dimitris, she mentally dominated Elena, and made her sit outside the empty tower cell, where Rose, Will, and Dean found her. Having been approached by Kyp, who had been separated from Elena and feared for her life, a grudging alliance was formed, and the doppelganger approached "Dimitris" alone. Despite her attempt to drop hints to her real identity, the situation escalated - until the Mind Master made Elena wrest Kyp's gun from him, and shoot him right between the eyes.

In the meantime, Sir Yassin's team had blown an entrance for Prince Marcus Andres to lead his group into the castle through the tunnels below it. Dimitris had, however, expected something like this, and filled the tunnels with all manner of monster and creation designed to stop them. With exceptional teamwork, they bypassed all threats and made it within, where they were shocked to discover the real Chad Becksworth was in fact a prisoner here, and that Draken Crombe, leader of the Church of the Lord's Humanity had been impersonating him with the aid of the Mind Master, for access to NOVA Records' resources, for years. They also discovered the bones of former Dragon's Claw Sir Ellison, Tia's father, and helped lay his spirit to final rest.

Knights around the Island struggled to halt the hybrid creatures from charging into the palace and ruining the internal team's chance to save Kat and Thomas and stop Dimitris. Wynn led his own team to hold the line between the forest and the castle, but the brutal creatures they faced were overwhelming, and even with back-up arriving, creatures broke through. Wynn sent Sir La Krail and Francesca, whose team had secured the guardhouse, to stop several driders who had passed, while he chased down a chemical golem that crashed right through the palace doors.

Dimitris had already sprung his trap, however, sealing Marcus and friends in a room below the palace pumped with poisonous gas, while he asked Kat Samcelot for her hand in marriage on a screen for them to watch. At that moment, however, the love potion wore off, and she stabbed him in the dick, and helped free the others below. Myri teleported several of the Knights up to the main floor to save Kat, who faced the guards alone and weaponless, but the arrival of the chemical golem provided enough of a distraction for Dimitris to make a break for the throne room.

Elsewhere on the Isle, Sir Koraith's team had been gathering allies among the Shadow Village, to face an attack that they had been warned about, by soldiers seeking the location of Rocket, who had escaped the Shadow prison after attempting to assassinate the Prime Minister. Koraith led those who could not fight towards the boats, while the others remained to hold the line and take out not only the soldiers, but also the clockwork creations called nimblewrights, robots whose construction Failboat had learned was based on some kind of demonic creature held in Dimitris' basement. The battle was brutal, and Sir Riddick fell to the clockwork soldiers' assault. The fate of Sir Jaina Solo and a Shadowkind villager named Indra Crestrage remains unknown, as they were also grievously injured in the assault.

Sir Edain's team had secured various boats to transport villagers off the Isle, but also discovered a sinister shack where body parts were created up for export to Japan. In the battle that followed to hold the docks, Hook lost his entire arm, but managed to hold onto his life.

Back in the palace, several Knights joined Wynn in taking down the chemical golem, as Marcus and company moved to confront Dimitris and the Mind Master in the throne room. The Prime Minister was unrepentant for his crimes, and revealed that after capturing Kat, he had had the Dragon's Claw Thomas Bancroft killed, dumping his body off a balcony for them to see. Enraged, Kat ran to attack Dimitris, and was nearly killed by his bodyguard, Asha, but Fred Jr. intervened, sacrificing himself to save her. Des murdered Asha instantly, while the Mind Master teleported herself and Dimitris away, leaving the guards willing to surrender, and the Knights frustrated by the hollow victory.

A search of the Isle revealed no trace of where the two had gone, but it also meant that Andres was free of Sarandis' influence. Sir Banks' team had managed to gather all the wealthy human elite of the Island together inside a country club under the guise of a gas leak, and when Emma Frost appealed to the humanity of Sergeant Alastair Stone, a local police officer, he assisted them in routing out potential supporters of Dimitris, and separating them from the others, so that they might be shown the truth about what had been happening on the Island, right underneath their noses, in the form of a video of the prison laboratory provided by Logan and Nathan.

Most of the natives were shocked by what they saw, but had already been distrustful of Sarandis' true motives. Hearing that the true heir to the throne had returned has given the people of Andres a real sense of hope that things can change, but the road will not be an easy one.

Rather than pull out and head home the next day, Wynn has asked as many Knights as possible to remain and help with reconstruction. There are families to reunite, injured to tend to, homes to rebuild, a palace to remodel, and much more. This post is for things following directly in the aftermath of the Battle for Andres, especially for things happening on the Island itself. More posts will go up in the near future to backdate less immediate events. Characters are free to go back and forth to the castle as they please, but also have accommodations provided in the city or palace on Andres Isle.

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[This probably went on a very long list of things that Dean absolutely, did not want Rose to do but if he'd learned anything about her in the last few months it should be that Rose wasn't exactly good at doing what she was told and even worse at doing what was expected of her.

She'd seen the hope in Dean's eyes when she'd suggested that the whole alternate universe thing might actually be possible, she'd seen the horror and concern when Sam-Not!Sam had taken a face full of acid. She might not get how the whole, sibling and family thing worked for normal people but she knew a thing or two about caring for somebody so much that it was almost impossible to turn your back on them.

Thing is? Rose could give a damn about Sam. The only person she cared about in all this was Dean which in the Dhampir's mind, gave her every right to be doing this.]

You and me... We need to talk. [A+ Social Skills from Rose Hathaway.]

[Sam looks up from the table, frustration still settled in the creases of his forehead, and that fact that he recognizes her doesn't help matters.

It would have been impossible not to notice her back in the great hall.

He lets out a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers.]

Now isn't exactly the best time.

[With a Sense motive of 10 and a Wisdom Check of 9, If Rose gets that he's being perfectly serious right now?! She doesn't seem to care.]

Yeah? Too bad. [The brunette unceremoniously dropping into a nearby chair. The fact that she's even here, in a Library, speaks volumes for her.]

Explain this so-called, Parallel Universe crap to me. [Folding her arms across her chest and shooting him an expectant look.]

Of course you don't.

[He pushes back any kind of annoyance he feels, tries to focus on being the bigger person here. If she wants to talk, fine. Hopefully he can get some answers out of it, too.]

I wish it was that simple. But here's what I know. [A beat as he tries to gather his thoughts, to explain it in a way that might make sense.] We already know that when people come through the Veil, that they're passing through from one dimension to another, right? I don't think this is all that different from that. Where I come from isn't all that different from this place on the surface. It's like...somewhere a long time ago, some little thing changed, and so did all the lore and the way supernatural things seem to work.

It's close enough that while there are some big differences, clearly a lot of the people stay the same. Or at least pretty close.

[He reaches for his laptop, pulling it open, turning it to show it to her.]

I mean, look at this. This says I was born in 1985, but I wasn't. I was born in 1983. Same hometown, same day, different year. And this says he died in 2012. If that's true, he would have been 27 years old, right? Two years ago? But I only just turned 24 after I came through the Veil.

[This is probably...more information than she ever wanted all at once, oops.]

[With one hell of a concentration check (29), Rose actually listens to every word that comes out of Sam's mouth, trying to take it all in rather than tune out like she so often did when people vomited words at her. Listening and Understanding though were two, so very different things with a Wisdom check of 7, that blank expression isn't because she's fallen asleep with her eyes open, he just really... confused her.]

Any chance you could... try that again with a lot less... words?

[He blinks once or twice because....really?]

Um, maybe...?

[He lets out another heavy breath.]

The short version is some things I remember from home match up with how things work here, and some don't. Most of the monster lore is different. The person known as Sam Winchester on this side of the Veil? We don't even have the same birth year.

[He leans back in the chair.]

And I want to know what it all means just as much as you do.

[See now Sam, if you'd just said it like that to begin with, Rose would have gotten what in the damn hell you were on about, understanding finally dawning on her face though she still doesn't relax her position, arms folded, sizing him up silently as if looking for the lie in his words.

The thing she finds most unsettling though? She kind of believes him (SM 21).]

Don't suppose you know any way that you can prove any of that?

You don't think I would if I could?

[He runs a hand through his hair, frustrated.]

Dean and I lived on fake IDs and credit cards. Anything I had on me when I came through wouldn't have helped, and I don't exactly have a way to get a birth certificate through the Veil. But I mean, come on, look at me. Do I look like I should be 29? Because going by these years, that's how old I should be.

Half the people in the Knights are over a hundred years old and don't look much older than me.

[(Wis 19). She, kind of has a point there but she does file away the fake ID and credit cards thing cause she knows Dean does do that.]

[He looks up at the ceiling briefly, frustrated with everything ever.]

See, we usually have holy water and silver knives to prove this kind of thing.

[HE REALLY WISHES HIS OLD LORE/WEAKNESSES STILL WORKED AROUND HERE.]

[Nope. That... doesn't help. Rose is still just ya know. Going to stare.

She does have more she wants to know though so Sam can just settle in for twenty questions with Rose.]

Why'd you run into the Palace after that Golem?

Because Dean was in the Palace with a group of only two other people.

[He'd seen what one of the fire ones had done to a group far larger than that. He wasn't just going to let it get to his brother without back-up.]

I'd been trying to get there since the experiments got free in the first place.

[He'll answer her questions if he has to, if it'll help at all.]

[Between his choice of words and her Sense Motive of 7, Rose glowers back, apparently deciding in her mind that coming to the Palace because Dean was there was actually a bad thing.]

I had his back. [Perhaps just a little defensive. And by a little, maybe a bitter lot.]

I never said you didn't. But you should have seen what those golems were doing to people. It wasn't something any one or two people could have taken on alone.

[He glances away from her, back at the laptop, dark thoughts churning in his head as his eyes look over the words.]

I'm glad you were there when I couldn't be.

[She at least saw what one of them did to the Palace and while she's looking for any reason at all to poke holes in what he's saying, I don't even need to roll to know that Rose is well aware that had she, Dean and Will tried to take on that Golem solo, they probably wouldn't have walked away from it.

Simmering down again, Rose watches Sam carefully, eyes narrowing when he speaks, Rose still trying to figure him out and failing miserably (SM 13).]

Well that's the thing - [Rose leans forward, arms dropping from her chest, elbows resting on her knees, dark eyes burning into Sam and though you wouldn't go so far as to call it loathing, there's no room for warmth in her gaze or tone.] I'm going to keep being there for Dean whether he thinks he needs it or not. I'll back him up on whatever he decides but if I think for even a second that he's going to get hurt? [Willing him to read between the lines.] I kind of have issues with impulse control, especially when it comes to those who matter to me.

[Sam's expression shows nothing other than the fact that he's taking her very seriously. Having someone else watching their back in a consistent basis isn't something he's used to; nine times out of ten the brothers have had to watch each other's backs with no outside help, or drag the other out of harm's way, or take a beating to get the other to snap out of it.

Anyone who's willing to do that for his brother in his absence? He's behind that, one hundred percent.]

Look, I'm going to be straight with you, okay? I don't want to hurt Dean. I'd rather die than hurt Dean.

[He taps at his computer screen, looking pained.]

But I can't pretend this isn't here, or that what little Dean's said to me isn't true. I can read between the lines, and something bad happened. I did something bad. I don't know what it is, and unless someone helps me out here, I can't stop it from potentially happening again. [He pauses for a beat, looking pained.] And if Dean won't talk to me about it? Then I'll find someone who will.

[Rose stares Sam down, like doing so will show her something, anything to tell her he's lying, that this is all part of a game he's playing to use her to get to Dean but the longer she looks, the more unsure she is and her gaze falls away, pained expression mirroring his as lines etch across her forehead. (SM 20 total).

She remains silent as he continues, lifting her gaze again, staring at the computer screen without really seeing anything then after a long moment of silence that hangs in the air once he's finished, she nods.]

Good. [That he'd rather die because she intended to hold him to that if she had to.] But I'm not going to tell you what you want to know... That's up to Dean.

[She does however see the sense in his words, that if he is telling the truth, that if he is some kind of alternate Sam, he can't stop history from repeating itself if he doesn't know what the history is. Rose just wishes there weren't so many damn ifs in this scenario.]

Don't push. [While those words could sound like another warning, her tone has softened just a enough that it's possible she's actually trying to give him advice.] It's a lot, what you're asking him to believe and when and if he's ready? He'll come to you.

[Realizing that sounds like she's being almost, nice to him, Rose is quick to add;] This doesn't mean I'm on your side. I'm on his. [Ya know. Just in case she hadn't already made that painfully clear already.]

[Sam has never been the best at just sitting and waiting. Taking action, continuing to keep moving, it's what he's always done, because sitting and waiting is just doing nothing.

He can't just do nothing.

So Dean may not believe him yet, and it may take awhile, but if this is bad as it might be? He has to know now.

He doesn't say that, though. He has another option, one he's probably just going to have to take. It won't give him all the answers, but maybe it'll give him some place to start while Dean takes his time, if he ever comes around at all.]

It used to mean the same thing.

[The words are bitter, and he's done with this conversation, closing his laptop and moving to pick it up so he can get the hell out of here.]

[She's not going to stop him. Rose figures she's managed enough veiled – or not so veiled – threats in his direction for one afternoon and really, this is progress, she hasn't once reached for her stake.

Instead, she leans back in her seat, no witty retorts, just letting him leave.

Dean's probably going to be pissed enough at her as it is for poking the ~~moose~~ bear. Why make things worse?! (WS 24).]

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andres ♔ but life is for living

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