Preparations for a Reunion

By the time the others arrived and John was preparing to transport them back to the old world, John's emotions and anxiety had abated somewhat. It hadn't taken long for the others to arrive, but he'd at least gotten over the initial worry that always came when they traveled between worlds. Now all he had to deal with was the strange anxiety over what exactly was awaiting him back at Brighton Manor.

Sophia was the first to arrive, soaring in from high up in the sky, clearly having rushed to see John as soon as he'd ended his mental conversation with her. She hardly even slowed to land, her extended wings and sheer speed moving so much air that it would've thrown a lesser man off his feet entirely.

“Father, that was a rather abrupt message,” Sophia said as she landed, hand clasped over her heart. “What has caused the need for such a sudden departure?”

“I'll explain once everyone else arrives. No sense in repeating myself too much. Where are Lerianna and Vallya?”

“They should be here momentarily, Father. I told them to follow me through the sky. I apologize for not escorting them, I-”

“No need for apologies. I trust they'll find me in time.”

They did indeed, only twenty or thirty seconds after John fell silent. Vallya hovered over the nearby hill with her golden tails fluttering behind her, while Lerianna hopped quickly after her only a short while later. The two of them were equally tense, but Vallya managed to remain at least partially aloof, as usual.

“Hey, cutie,” Vallya said, with all of her usual pep. “I heard you had a new mission for me and Kiko!”

“Something like that,” John replied.

“Are we really going back to face the Order?” Lerianna asked, biting her lip. “Sophia wasn't very specific. Need to know if I should be ready for a fight or not.”

“It doesn't seem like it... I hope,” John added, not wanting to sound too sure of himself. He had no idea what to expect if Moira was really so **** as to reunite with a branch Tricia would rather become a prisoner than face herself. “But whatever happens, we have to be ready. If nothing else, we have to at least be prepared for a display of ****.”

If Moira was so worried about the ability to defend herself against some other organization, they might have to show how much they had improved, if it came down to it. John wasn't sure how much Moira or her Order had improved themselves, of course... but judging by Kim's insistence on training with him before he left, he doubted it could match the progress they had all made on their own. Grief and anxiety had slowed John, but he would still wager he had held his own in growth since his departure.

Especially based on the **** that they had crushed the surviving Albidians with.

“We will be ready for whatever awaits us, Father,” Sophia acknowledged, nodding her head and breaking John out of his dark thoughts.

“I plan to be prepared for everything,” John agreed.

It wasn't long after that when Shishun found her way to them, slithering across the plains from the southwest. John saw her long before she was close enough to talk to comfortably, but he did his best not to watch the very self-aware Naga as she found her way over to them. She was visibly sweating, likely more from whatever training John had interrupted than the actual journey itself, but enough to give her skin a soft sheen.

Shishun was still as composed as ever, though – and clearly trying her best to conceal her fatigue. She wore her attire with elegance; the snake-woman had a strapless white shirt that covered her bust and midsection, though most of it was concealed by a black corset, complete with frontal laces. She wore a black bolero across her shoulders and neck, complete with a more formal collar. A loose skirt covered the rest of her human body all the way down to the first few feet of her tail, but remained high enough to avoid dragging on the ground as she slid over the grass and dirt.

“My Lord, I apologize for the delay. I was farther to the west than I should have allowed myself to wander; I-”

“It's fine,” John said immediately, voice firm but reassuring. “I don't expect you to be on call at a moment's notice when I wasn't even aware it would be happening. Evellyn, it's been a while – where are we returning to again?”

“A secluded gazebo in Springfield's southern park.”

“Right... gonna be a bit of a walk to the Order's Manor, but it's a short enough trip that there's no point in looking for a car. We'll use Barriers to traverse the town so it goes faster. Once we get there, we'll figure out what the hell is going on.”

John used his World Shift ability, and the five of them were all shunted across space, back through to the old world. If anyone happened to be looking upon that particular gazebo, they might have been startled by their appearance, but only for a moment. John didn't waste any time in instantly forming a Barrier to hide them away once again.

Barrier Walker Activated!

Barrier Walker
Active Spell [Passive Activation]
Effect: This spell may only be activated while in a Barrier occupied only by members of the user's party. Once activated, attempting to move beyond the Barrier's borders will instantly create a new Barrier and transport all current members of the party to the edge of the new Barrier. Any non-Party members entering the Barrier will instantly end the effect and cause the current Barrier's boundaries to become stabilized. This includes Barrier creatures, hostile mages, neutral beings, and any friendly non-Party members that enter the Barrier. Each Barrier may occupy up to X cubic meters, where X is the user's Intelligence.
Mana Cost: 50 for initial Barrier creation. 10 for each additional Barrier created until the skill is deactivated by exiting a Barrier or having a non-Party member interrupt the ability.

John dashed away through the streets, no longer having to worry about being seen. Although John was in the middle of his latest Reincarnation, he was still the fastest member of his own team by a good margin, so the others trailed behind him. Every time he reached the end of one of his Barriers, they were forcibly moved to his new location though, so they were never too far behind – close enough that if any hostiles were to enter the Barrier, they would be able to reunite quickly enough to face the threat.

Fortunately, they went unmolested. John wasn't particularly surprised; especially since the destruction of the Albidian Society, the streets of Springfield were a relatively calm place. The worst thing that he might expect would be if a wayward Legion member noticed the creation of Barriers and decided to investigate, but so far that had yet to happen.

Indeed, John and his creations proceeded with relative ease through the empty Barriers that laid the way for their trip to the Brighton Manor. The only obstacle was John's apprehension, something he had learned to deal with... although not usually to this degree.

John let the last Barrier fade away a block from Moira's mansion. He would have liked to come even closer before stopping their approach, but he wasn't entirely sure how well Moira would react to having a Barrier placed right at their front gate. He wasn't even sure if their home had some kind of protection from having a Barrier formed around it... surely it did, but John had never encountered it himself.

So after allowing the others to finally catch up at the end of the last Barrier, John at last broke free of the Abyssal containers and stepped onto real pavement again. The gates to the Manor were closed, something John wasn't used to seeing on its own – but there appeared to be no one on the other side of the gates to allow him entrance.

“Odd... why close the gates if she isn't even going to post guards?” John wondered to himself, glancing over the entrance. He thought about forming a Barrier over the gates, but got too nervous about the security measures that might be in place or not. He could have also just jumped over it, but there were guards posted at the front doors of the mansion, and they'd surely raise the alarm if they saw someone leaping the gate. What annoyed him was that as they saw him standing there, they made no sign of approaching the gate or unlocking it for him.

John was instead **** to take the most mundane approach – he went over to the speaker and buzzed himself in. The guards at the front door hesitated a moment before one of them headed over to the speaker near the front door.

“Who is requesting entrance to Brighton Manor?” John heard one of the guards say.

“John Newman.”

“...Who?”

“I'm a personal friend of Moira Brighton. I just... haven't been around for a while,” John explained.

“I'm sorry, sir, but it was specifically ordered that no visitors should be allowed on the property today. I'm afraid Lady Brighton is predisposed for the entire afternoon. Her schedule between school and the studies her father places on her leave her with little free time. You should come back tomorrow.”

“Do you- do you think I'm a mundane?” John asked, incredulous. “How long have you been with the Order?”

“The Order? Sir, I'm afraid-”

“Holy shit how long have I been gone?” John asked, more to himself than the man on the other side of the speaker. “Either you're a new Knight they've recruited in the last year or they've gotten so **** that they hire mundanes to guard the property. I'm praying it's the former.”

“Sir, I'm not at liberty to discuss the matters occurring within these walls, but I can assure you-”

“Get the fuck out of the way, recruit.”

John didn't immediately recognize the voice that came through the intercom, especially with that tone... but he definitely recognized the woman who stepped out of Brighton Manor and gave the two guards standing around a verbal and very much physical lashing. The long brown hair, the beautiful face, the well-fitted armor, the tattoos on her neck and forehead that were noticeable even at this distance... it could be no one else.

“John, you tardy son of a bitch, get in here,” Knight Etriyya's voice boomed over the speaker, a moment before the gates began to open. “It might not be too late for you to do something to save us.”

“...Save us?” John mumbled, mostly to himself. The intercom had already gone silent, though, and he was left with the awkward prospect of walking toward the Manor with his four companions in tow, now completely caught off-guard and unsure what to expect. The gate opened wide for them to stroll through the silent courtyard; the two guards stood dutifully at attention, avoiding even glancing at John, though he did catch one of them eyeing his followers quite closely. Not that he could blame him – if these were new recruits as Etriyya had cursed them for, this was the least human thing they'd probably ever seen outside of a Barrier.

Etriyya met him at the doorway, her eyes harsh but with a softness to them... not a softness of warmth or friendship, though. If anything, it reeked of desperation. She seemed as if she were a woman glancing upon the last thing she wanted to see, and yet the only thing that could help.

“John, you're the only one who might be able to talk some sense into Moira,” Etriyya said quietly, looking around as if she suspected they were being eavesdropped on. John followed her in through the manor door she'd left open when she came out, as the older Knight led him rapidly through the long halls of Brighton Manor.

“Etriyya, what's going on?” John asked with concern. “Tricia left a message, but she only mentioned something about Moira joining up with the British Order, returning the Rose, and danger from a faction in the North. What exactly is going on, and why is it freaking everyone out? I thought joining up with the British Order would be a good thing – doesn't that mean they're making amends?”

“No, it means they've got Moira figuratively over a barrel,” Etriyya growled, her voice growing loud and angry for a moment before she managed to tone it down again. “And if they have their way, they'll have her over one literally before long. Since Moira is the one who requested this rescue and transport operation, and since Lord Brighton is technically the one in exile, they're not going easy on her with the terms. They're going to make her suffer, and more importantly for them, they're going to get the Blessing of the Golden Rose back under their thumb if it's the last thing they do."

"I thought the British Order was way stronger, even without a Warden. Moira made it sound like they were nearly unstoppable when they had one, but that even now, they still control all their old territory completely uncontested. Why are these negotiations so awful if they already have enough power to do all taht?"

“People always want more power,” Etriyya sighed. “Besides that... Lord Brighton still never told you why they parted ways with the British Order, did he?”

“No, but he-”

“It doesn't matter. It's not my place to tell you what happened and not yours to share with me what he told you. Just... just know they parted on worse terms than you may believe, and the Blessing was involved. They don't just want it for power, they also want to keep something like that from happening again. And in my opinion? They want to punish Lord Brighton for what happened all those years ago. More than they already have.”

Etriyya stopped shortly after that, standing beside the door that led to the meeting room.

“Go inside. Don't knock, she won't answer if she knows you're here,” Etriyya said quietly. “You're the only one left with the balls – and maybe the power – to stop this from happening.”

“Power? Do you want me to fight the entire British Order?” John whispered, glancing at the door.

“No. But whether it's changing Moira's mind or protecting us from what comes, you need to be prepared. A lot has changed since you left, John... and yet, so much sadly remains the same. I need to go. I shouldn't be here when you open the door. I'll... make sure none of the guards or patrols come over here. A few of our Knights will recognize Sophia, maybe Vallya... I don't want the rest trying to start a fight.”

Etriyya left in a hurry, though John caught her glancing back in his direction once. John turned to the four women following him, all apparently as at a loss for words as he was. Sophia stood stoically, Vallya hovered anxiously, Lerianna frowned as usual, and Shishun seemed rather uncomfortable.

“This has all been rather different than I expected,” John admitted, sighing. “Whatever is going on here seems to have Etriyya really high-strung, though. I'm going to go in alone; if there's even the slightest problem with any of the Order out here, open the door and let me know – and I mean any trouble. I don't want to deal with new recruits drawing blades on my family.”

“Understood, Father. Are you sure one of us should not go in with you?” Sophia asked. John was already halfway to the door, and he flinched as she spoke those words.

“...I already don't want to separate myself from any of you, but I don't want to shock Moira with new faces as well as my return,” John admitted, sighing. “And if I have to split up from you, I'd rather you all be together and help each other if something happens.”

“Father-”

“Trust me,” John said, his voice deadly serious, “if anything happens, it won't be me you have to worry about.”

John steeled his nerves and strode forward, until his hand rested upon the handle of the door. Moira was going to be shocked, and John knew if he was going to break through that thick shell of hers, he'd have to catch her while she was off-guard.

John pulled the door open with determination, voice already rising up as he twisted the handle.

“Moira, I know this is sudden, but... I'm back, and I need to talk to you about-”

“Who dares to interrupt a meeting between two leaders of the Golden Rose?!” A voice erupted – angry, yes, and definitely abrasive – but decidedly not Moira's. John blinked a few times as he glanced at the long table filling the room ahead of him, ironically being caught off-guard by the sudden outburst.

Moira was there as he'd expected, and looking every bit as shocked to see him as he'd predicted. She had changed a bit in the last year, but most of it was to her armor, and he wasn't sure how much of it was cosmetic. There were gold trimmings around most of the seams, she was wearing a large, ornate golden belt around her midsection, and though she did not hold them, her shield and hammer sat by her, leaned up against both sides of her chair.

But the woman who had spoken was seated across from her, wearing similar looking armor but without the trim. However, aside from the chest piece and shoulder plates, the differences in their appearance were stark. The woman had lightly-tanned skin and a face that could be described at best as “intimidating”, with long black hair that fell down to her waist. She wore something like a skirt with a buckle in the front, leaving a large break between the ends for her legs to move easily and unimpeded. It was royal blue with golden borders, and it covered most of the long, black dress pants that she wore. What it didn't cover were the twin swords that she wore at her waist, one at each side, glistening with the well-polished and maintained look of ornamental weapons, though John suspected they were more than functional.

“Did you hear me, worm?!” the woman shouted, her eyebrows knitting in fury and indignation. “I asked you who you are, and what gives you the unbelievable gall to think that you can just demand our attention like this?! Answer me, or I'll have you in shackles myself!”

John stared in awe, unsure whether to answer the woman's question or prepare to defend himself.