Corvus sighed. He gazed at a far-off bird making its final circles before heading back to roost. It was a bird of prey, unfamiliar to him, gracefully swooping through its territory. It had been a long day, and even a quiet lounge overlooking the setting suns on Kiast did nothing for him. If his thoughts were right, this evening wouldn’t improve things. He tore his mind from the suns, and began to mull over his plans again.
He took a long sip of his whiskey, watching the various hues cast by both stars as they went below the sulphurous clouds of the planet, before pulling himself up. He glanced at his watch – precisely 20 minutes after sundown. He went to the sideboard, and poured out another glass of whiskey for his imminent guest. Allowing for the fact that she was never punctual, and Corvus wasn’t exactly her favourite person at the minute, his guest would delay the meeting as much as was polite. They knew it was annoying to Corvus, the ‘gentleman’, but he’d planned for such insolence.
He glanced at a small gem sitting on his sideboard – a Ziraelos, found only on Kiast’s surface. Extremely rare, beautiful, yet also incredibly durable. The rich colours of the progressing twilight outside reflected within the gem, making it seem like it was creating its own battle, midnight-blue swirling against the still-present yellows and oranges.
He picked up both glasses and climbed up onto the miniature sideboard. Whilst the chambers were fitted with furniture perfect for Corvus’ size, to most other people, they barely were waist-height. As such, he preferred to be at a more reasonable height when meeting with his contacts. Two pairs of footsteps approached. The guest had brought a plus-one. The Aleena took a sip, composing his cheery facade.
Three knocks came at the door.
A minute or two later than I thought, he thought, I’m losing it. The Ranger waved a hand and the door slid open. Behind it, an elegant, sophisticated-looking woman stood, awaiting an invitation inside.
“Oh, Sym, you’re not going to flounce in here uninvited like last time? Pity.” Corvus quipped.
The woman, Asymalia Winstrum, entered the room, walking confidently and her face a mask, “I see you’ve cooled off somewhat since last time, too – what, did they have a sale at the liquor shop?”
Corvus scratched his chin, “Well, yes, they did, but that’s not the point.”
Sym’s stern veneer faded into a grin, “Well, with the formalities out of the way, can I introduce my friend, Ravix Aniter, second-son of the esteemed Viscount Aniter.”
“Of the Vatali Empire?”
“Indeed.”
Like all Sephi he’d met, Ravix was tall, slender, and criminally handsome. Corvus bowed his head, “My lord, welcome. What beverage would you prefer? I have most kinds.”
Ravix spoke with a deep, smooth voice, “Do you have any cognac?”
“A man after my own heart. Coming right up.”
Sym rolled her eyes.
“How are the civilians from New Tython, Sym?” Corvus asked. Sym was one of the civilian survivors, and her sharp wit and no-nonsense attitude meant that she was gaining more and more influence, becoming one of the leading members of that demographic.
“Thanks to the hospitality of the Empire, we’re really starting to sort ourselves out.” All emotion again fled from her face as she spoke – as it always did when she spoke of her role. “We’ve not made a home, yet – just a house. But we’re getting there.”
Corvus turned to Ravix, “And how is the Empire taking the alliance with us? I’ve not seen any pitchforks, but surely there’s some discord?”
Ravix shuffled slightly in his seat – the only sign of discomfort he had showed all evening. “Well, it’s --”
“Why are we here, Corax?” Sym interrupted, finally tiring of the pointless small-talk.
The Aleena smirked, “Took you a few minutes longer than I thought before you got bored, Sym. It’s no secret that Odan-Urr needs revitalisation, of some sort. My orders are to train recruits of all walks of life, and rebuild what was lost.”
Sym chewed her lip, thinking. “And how, exactly, do we help?”
“I’m not sure Ravix can help directly, but you, Sym? Well, that’s the fun part...”
Good day, ladies and gentlemen of Odan-Urr and beyond! Welcome to the first report of Battle-team Zirael. This BT is not like other BTs. Its members are continually changing as they progress, it is entirely made from Journeymen, and works directly with the Rollmaster and Clan Summit. However, this difference is what gives it the innovative challenge that it poses. I hope to do a good job of it.
I’m Corvus Corax, formerly Seridan, and I’ve been a member of the DB pretty solidly for about 2 and a half years. I mainly focus on writing, and wiki-stuffs, but I do try my hand at other things, such as graphics, multimedia, and single-player gaming. Last year, I was both the Disciples of Baas’ BTL and Satele-Shan’s Aedile, for a few months each. This time, I hope to stay a bit longer in the position. Over the coming months, I hope to create: a lively and interesting fictional element to the team, to encourage fictional creativity; a OOC community spirit, with members in a Telegram group, or mailing list, for example and generally give Zirael’s members a reason to both stay and be active in the Brotherhood.
Zirael is, essentially, a training BT. I work with Xantros to welcome all new members, who are, for the time being, automatically transferred to Zirael upon passing the Test of Identity. I then work with them and, using activities for both the individual and group, introduce them to DB life.
The above fiction does little to actually form Zirael’s lore. All it does, plainly, is start the ball rolling. Fictionally, Zirael is a training BT. But, c’mon, that on its own is fairly dull, don’t you think? Corvus on his own would be a terrible teacher and tutor, and so he draws upon his connections, and his experience. His connections allow co-op operations between Odan-Urr’s sub-units and fictional entities such as SeNet, the new Military, and the Vatali Empire. His experience dictates that action and real-word experience is the best preparation. And so he will send Ziraelites on missions – albeit ones he is fairly sure they will succeed on.
When I get the Zirael wiki done, there’ll be 4 NPCs on it - each one is a connection the team has to various groups. Two of these are in the fiction above - Sym Winstrum is our contact with the New Tythonite Civilians, and Ravix Aniter is our contact with the Vatali Empire. The other two are Wax Readut, with SeNet, and Jekiss Palmeris with the Military. These contacts can be used within anyone’s fictions, and, fictionally, will be providing leads for missions, the missions themselves, and hopefully some playful banter whilst they’re doing it.
I once read somewhere that units of the SAS, upon receiving new recruits, would go into a sort of super-intensive training regime, not only to maintain the skills of the veterans, nor only to bring the newbies up to speed – it was also to bring the team closer together, to bond them. I don’t know how true this is, but it is a good concept. Though, Zirael won’t be focussing on martial or physical abilities, wholly. We won’t solely be intensively training for combat or for endurance – we will intensively train with various scenarios, and then, each member can apply their own skills where needed. The scholarly academic can use their knowledge to advise others, the Vanguard-Jedi will learn to defend and protect others, and the hacker can use their skills to reprogram droids, infiltrate security, etc. When on a group mission, they will branch out, cancelling out each others’ flaws, bulking up on each other’s advantages.
That said, we’re not the SAS – you come into Zirael when you first join, and you graduate from Zirael when you’re ready to go.
This has been quite a short report, but hopefully it’s started to build up a foundation for Zirael, explained some of its functions and described its lore. Next time, I’ll do some more of this, but I’ll also start featuring members, alongside recognising their awards etc. Adieu!
Faithfully,
Corvus Corax
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Excellent report. I think Zirael has a bright future ahead of it.
Nice report, Corvus. Looking forward to seeing where this BT goes, could be an interesting ride.
Awesome report and Good Luck! This sounds like it will be a great BT for our newest members.