The Crow

Somewhere in the Thanalan region In a rugged desolate terrain a lone black clad armored man travels it not looking the least bit affected by the heat. He travels a steady and quick pace with full confidence in his desired location, as he travels he removes a small sheet from his persons and reads it aloud to himself to affirm its contents once more "Alliance supply cache located at these coordinates, destroy this cache. How you do this is at your behest but should you be captured or fail do not expect any sentiments of loss from us, you will either die to their hands or ours." The man sighs annoyed a bit but looks none too worried about the specter of death seeming traveling with him. His pace while remaining steady slows and he crouches low to the ground, the supply cache is in sight and is lightly guarded. He readies his lance that quietly hums to life and once at a proper distance takes a rather peculiar stance with his lance, he points its towards one of the guards and an energy begins to run through the lance. After a steady aim is taken the lance fires a precise ball of aether striking the guard felling him instantly. The other guards are completely startled by the occurrence just now and without missing a beat the black armored man closes the distance and thrusts his lance into another guard, the remaining guard charges him however he moves the man he impaled towards the charging guard causing the guard to momentarily pause. That brief second was all the man needed he quickly pulled back his lance from the guard he impaled, took quick aim and thrust it towards the remaining guard striking true. With the guards dispatched the man moves however much supplies he can into one location and places multiple devices around the supplies. Once finished with this task he flips a switch and begins to walk away at a calm pace while all the devices begin to beep in unison, roughly after 30 seconds had passed a large explosion occurs and completely destroys the supplies as well as the camp leaving nothing but blackened earth and scorched corpses. As the man continues his walk he quietly says to himself "I wonder if they would have given me a bonus if I brought a prisoner" he shrugs after a moment of thought and begins a rather carefree whistle.

Boop still here. Taking on the nightmarish task of leveling up an alt for pure rp purpose since once expac hits my main will be pretty locked down on content.

Sha woop ba doop still active and stirring up some trouble here and there.

Monthly Update-Things still be happening and some have experienced these happenings :evil:. I have also added 6 officers in the officer tab and plan on 6 more at the very least X.X, furthermore the officer information will be updated and changed as time goes to make improvements or make it aware who in fact is now taking up their position. Other than that I believe that is it, should anyone want to join in do let me know :thumbsup:

Monthly Update- Slowly but surely gathering an assortment of people leaving no stone (or search info) unturned. Also for whatever reason my option to recieve pm's was off >.>; so with that derptastic moment out of the way make sure to let me know if you want in.

Battered and fatigued from their conflict in the shroud the shade and the guard he assembled move ever closer to the borders of the shroud. The guard consisted of three hyur highlander swordsman, one roegadyn hellsguard axeman and one dunsefolk lalafell archer. The composition was created in mind for providing openings for either the axeman of archer to deliver the final blow, these openings would be created by the swordsman and their quick flurry of attacks meant to disorient and pressure the enemy to do something they would otherwise not do. The formation was however quite simple, the three swordsman were the vanguard, the axeman stayed more near the middle with the shade while the archer kept a reasonable distance behind. While the archers position could be considered more vulnerable their skill with a blade is not lacking therefore should he get engaged for close quarters he would be able to fend them off until the others relieved him. As they traveled at a brisk pace the shades linkpearl began to ring and he signaled for his guards to halt but for a moment. "Report" a simple command in which soon after a female voice responded "The thralls have been completed and as per your orders most were released into the thanalan region while some scattered to the other regions. One has already been defeated though but has provided useful data." The shade quickly responds "How was it defeated?" a slight chuckle from the female before she responded "Nothing extravagant, was simply overpowered and then beaten to death, due to this we will have to reinforce their bodies and perhaps lessen the amount of seals so that they may be more effective in combat." The shade thinks for a moment before responding "Before that happens let the other thralls run their course and provide us with whatever data they can obtain, is that understood?" the shade said the last bit in a cold tone. There was another chuckle from the female "Of course milord, its a shame though those bodies would have been wonderful additions to my section." The shade replied simply "There will be plenty of bodies soon enough" before cutting the line. He signaled for his guards to move out again, with word that the weapons were now active he increased the pace despite the fatigue in order to observe the effectiveness of the weapons. This slight shift in focus however could prove detrimental considering they have not arrived at the border yet.

(Continuation from this) It was a gamble the shroud took when it sought out aid from residents of the city state, and despite the fact the many were unable to comprehend the message it sent out there were a few who were able to get the message, but the message itself only came to them while they slept and more so as a nightmare. *Taking a stroll through the forest and enjoying it harmonious nature, the wildlife is abundant, the water is glistening, the sun shining through the treetops in scattered areas all around, the forest is vibrant with life. Yet off the corner of your eye one part of the forest seems desolate and on closer observation is void of any light, upon this realization the wildlife vanishes and the light that was once in the forest begins to fade. As the light fades the trees begin to turn grey and become brittle at the touch, all the while the darkness once confined to that desolate area is now spreading out towards you. Natural instinct compels you to run but as you do it seems only the darkness grows faster consuming all at an unrelenting pace, as you run the once glistening waters have now turned crimson as if the shroud forest itself was bleeding. You run even faster now but the darkness still gains on you and is about to catch you when you see a clearing filled with light, with one last burst of energy you make it to the clearing and look back to see the darkness no longer pursuing. Relieved you know turn around to get far away yet a distorted figure in black stands before you and without time to react is grabbed by the neck and lifted off the ground. You put up a struggle but to no avail is it successful, then figure snaps his finger and the area bathed in light is suddenly losing its light as the darkness becomes more aggressive eventually encircling the you and the black figure. Then slowly from your feet the darkness begins to consume you, no amount of thrashing about keeps the darkness from its course and just before the darkness consumes your head...nothing, the nightmare ends there.* To those who managed to see this nightmare were not sure how to act, not many acted at all in fact thinking of it as just a nightmare yet even so as long as someone was able to see it the shroud gambled on them acting upon it.

EPILOGUE As the shade begins to approach the outer edges of the shroud he removed the crystal he acquired from tree and began to examine it more carefully. It was clear object was dense in aetheric propertites and more so seemed to have been formed in such a way that its capacity for aether itself is quite large to the point one may think it was bottomless. While the points were important the shade was also determining whether or not its aspect could be altered. Corrupting such a crystal would be a waste yet leaving it in this pure form that has been coddled by light would serve him no purpose, careful planning would be needed if success was to be gained which is way his new destination was towards the thanalan region and more so ul'dah, somewhere in the city the materials process to change the aspect of the crystal would surely be there or at the very least a hint at which direction to proceed. As he was in deep thought he did not forget his surroundings and was on constant guard despite having 5 others with him. He was not foolish enough to think it was over, until their goal was accomplished nothing will be over and so as they moved ever closer to the border of the shroud their alertness remained unchanged. The shroud made one more attempt to reclaim its crystal unbeknownst to the shade. It was when his troops first made their advance to the tree, the shroud ever so subtly released aether from within the trees near the city state of gridania. This aether was a message calling out for aid, yet due to the past destruction the flow of aether was still not stable enough for a clear message. To many the aether came across as a headache, to others a rejuvenating feeling, and many were unable to notice at all. It was a gamble the shroud took and whether or not that messaged reached anyone, only time will tell.

PART 3 As the shade approached where he left his troops he noticed the sound of combat had all but disappeared and when he arrived he saw that that no further casualties were suffered by the treant attack. The shade quickly reported the success of their endeavor and gave the order now for a full on retreat from the shroud for the time being however something curious caught his attention as he looked around. "I do not see any wood wailers lying on the ground, did they never make their presence known?" the troops look around and then the agent responded "I have no doubt they are here, perhaps they wanted to see if any of us would fall to the treant attack, or they could perhaps they were gauging our combat strength. It is safe to say though they will strike when we are en route to retreat." The shade nods and then addresses the troops "We will be attacked during our retreat, when and where we have knowledge of however when the wailers make their presence know we will eliminate them then and there before we escape." The troops responded by arming themselves and began to move out towards their escape. The shades movements were clearly hindered as they moved through the forest, no doubt to the battle he had with the golem. However the pace was not drop and no one payed heed to any injury he may have suffered, this was not due to neglect or lack of sympathy but because this was how they operated. In order to achieve their goals one must push on unrelenting, even if a key component should fall they will continue to carry out their task until their goal is achieved or fight till the last man trying to achieve that goal. As they made their retreat despite their determination the fatigue and battle weariness was present, while there were no casualties there were certainly injuries that most definitely reduced overall combat effectiveness. As they trudged on they remained ever vigilant of their surroundings however that proved to be no help at all. 10 very sharp distinct sounds suddenly rang out from within the group soon after 10 bodies fell to the ground dead, the wood wailers were initiating their attack. Another volley of arrows was fired however due to the group scrambling and making sporadic movements at the sight of the arrows the next valley hit few and those it did hit were not fatal. While the arrows continued fly through the air, wailer wielding lances were charging those not felled by the arrows and quickly engaged them. Quite a few arrows were sent towards the shade however even with his movement dulled he was able to do enough to fend off the arrows the problem resided in that this situation was particularly bad. While they know at least in which directions the arrows will come from ascertaining the exact location of the archers was an issue that will be their downfall should they not locate them. As he thought about this a wailer charged him and that's when the shade thought of a very simply plan. Before the wailer could strike the shade disarmed him and gripped his throat and slowly began to crush it and as he did this he began heading in one of the direction of where the arrows were coming from, figuring out his plan the agent gave orders to the troops to make sure no arrows or lances struck his back. While a difficult order the troops movements shifted in a way in to hinder the arrows and to create a bottleneck of sorts to the wailers engaged in close quarters combat. The wailer the shade used as a shield had already died and was merely being kept up by the shades strength. Although subtlety the shade managed to hear panicked voices as he kept pressing forward until he happened upon the location of one of the archers, before the archer can take out his blade the shade tossed the dead body he held onto the archer and quickly ran his lance through both. After that the shade pushed his body and began to circle the area around where his troops were engaged in combat at a significant speed and for each archer he found his lance ran through their heart just as quickly and fiercely. With the arrows becoming significantly lessened the troops engaged with the wailers began to push them back and striking the down before they could regroup. The battle was brief, it did not last long however even if the wailers did fall they reduced their numbers considerably, after the initial arrow volley another 10 were killed before the battle was over reducing their troop number to a mere 10. After assessing the damage taken the shade orders his troops to keep moving, they were battered, injured, fatigued yet despite that they moved without complain or disdain. Now approaching the edge of the shroud with no further hindrances they begin to disperse to throw of any other potential pursuers, the shade takes 5 troops with him and speaks into his linkpearl "The operation in the shroud has ended tell our agents in the thanalan region to begin contacting the crime syndicates to prepare for our next operation. I will keep our prize from the shroud with me until we rendezvous." Once finished he moves forward without hesitation nor regret for the casualties suffered and moves onward towards thanalan where more death is surely to arise.

PART 2 As the sounds of battle echoed in the forest the shade had was moving quickly towards the tree when he suddenly halted. The elementals were gathering in force before him clearly in a state of displeasure and hostility. The shade examines the situation before him before raising up his hand towards them "I have no time to play with mindless dolls, but you might be able to make yourselves useful with the aether you carry". Soon after he finished his hand began to glow a dim orange tinge, upon closer examination one could see that the shade was fitted with a gauntlet with a corrupted crystal embedded into the gauntlet. The elementals began to gravitate towards the gauntlet but not of their own will, they were being dragged towards it and the closer they got the more aether was drained of them until there was nothing left. Quite a few elementals fell prey to this device while others backed off seeing the danger in getting close to such a thing. With the elementals no longer hindering him the shade proceeded to the tree with haste. Upon arriving at the tree, the terrain surrounding the tree was considerably different and could even say it to be displaced from the rest of the forest a grove of sorts. There was a considerable amount of grass in the area around the tree, there were also trees of smaller size within the vicinity whose leaves were dyed a brilliant blueish hue. Some rocks also were scattered around the area with and there were a few that were fairly large. As the shade began to approach the tree a very heavy atmosphere soon enveloped the grove which caused the shade to ready his lance.No sooner after that the rocks scattered around begin to move around the grove and began to gather together, at first it seemed it would take on the appearance of your average golem however something different was occurring. Once the rocks were gathered some of the blue leaves on the smaller trees fell off and began to circle the rock formation, a concentrated amount of aether was being channeled into the rock formation and soon after a blinding last was cast throughout the grove in which the shade needed to shield his eyes. Once the light dissipated the shade looked towards the where the rocks once were and what stood before him looked nothing like the golems that inhabit the world. "Is this what the golems were meant to be? perhaps the shifting of aether throughout time reduced them to the state we see them now" As he thought this the shade maintained a defensive stance and kept complete focus on the golem before him. Suddenly the golem lunged towards the shade with a surprising swiftness and swung its axe towards the shade. The shade quickly put the lance in the path of the axe and as it made its approach collide with the body of the lance, however the force of the axe was great enough that it lifted the shade off the ground and launched him quite a distance. As he hit the ground a tumbled violently hitting an assortment of things before coming to a stop. After on the ground for a moment the shade got back up and began to walk back towards the grove while thinking of a plan of attack and assessing the damage he took. While he was able to defend against the axe the sheer impact dislocated his right shoulder and the resulting tumble caused him to suffer a slight head injury and some bleeding. He also noticed that some of his ribs may have been broken but simply pressed on without showing any sign that such an injury took place.As he walked he managed to pop his shoulder back into place but could not do much about the head injury or the broken ribs, the grove came into view once more and there stood the golem. With his lance in hand the shade went on the offensive against the golem, and struck quickly and precisely at various spots and angles but all his strikes made little to harm on it. While striking the shade was also dodging the axe the golem was swinging, should he take another hit his injuries may become far more grave. The shades attacks held meaning though, he was trying to ascertain a point where the golems defense was weakest yet as the fight dragged on he could not find one, then upon dodging another swing of the axe he found what he was looking for. Upon a dangerously close examination the joint between the arm that wields the axe and the main body is more thinner than others, this may even explain the swiftness of the axe itself. Landing a strike on such a location is an issue though yet the shade fearlessly continues his offensive waiting for an opportune moment. As the fight carries on the shade although shrouded in his cloak smiles ominously and begins to talk to the golem "I don't know if you understand me but listen well guardian of light, the time where your strength mattered has long since passed, we now live in an age where the light can barely avert catastrophe costing many their lives in its struggles and ineptitude. The strength we seek in the for the coming trials are within the darkness this world scorns so much, and with that strength nothing will stand before us, so when I destroy you pass on this message to your master....Your blessing is worthless it protects nothing". Whether it be a reaction to his words or just coincidence the golem swung its axe with a force far more significant than the others it was this moment the shade was waiting, using the gauntlet with the corrupted crystal he unleashed the aether he gathered from the elementals deflecting the axe and causing the golem to lose its balance and reveal its thinned defense. Within that moment a dark aura envelopes the lance the shade holds and with a powerful thrust strikes the it at the joint and easily pierces through it. The dark aura now spreads throughout the golem like a poison slowing its movements and breaking it down, soon it falls to the ground completely enveloped in the dark aura and then a moment later completely disappears, consumed by it. The shade looks where the golem fell and speaks again this time a bit more solemnly "Should your essence be reborn perhaps it will be it will be in a time where your strength is needed" with that he slightly limps over towards the tree and stands before it. He takes his lance once more and again a dark aura surrounds it, he pierces the tree and then sticks his hand into the hole he made in the trunk and removes a crystal with an incredible life force to it. "So this is what a crystal looks like when the lifestream envelopes it" he quickly tucks the crystal away and heads back towards his troops. As he walks, the grove begins to wither and die now that the source of its life energy was removed, the surrounding forest also begins to show similar traits and countless leaves begin to fall like rain. The vibrant green hey held now an ash lifeless grey, the trees also began to lose its color. The shade talks into his linkpearl "I am returning, we have obtained what we wanted" as he finished he looked around at the dying forest and said to himself "Truly a worthless blessing."

For those interested in joining you can either leave a message here or drop me a pm.

[align=center]The Dark Sigil[/align] [align=center][/align] [align=center]From darkness we came, To darkness we return[/align] [align=center]The Light has grown weak and yet many still foolishly cling to it. Well let them continue to cling to it all they want for a new stronger age is approaching us, one whose strength lay within the dark. For too long we have been labeled outcasts, exiles, heretics, well no more will we have to live with this. Our patience has paid off and the darkness that is within us all is beginning to stir, for those who feel this change, for those who embrace this change, for those who have hid themselves away, seek us out. We will lead this will world to a new age and strength capable of things the light would never be able to achieve, no longer we will suffer cycles of destruction and rebirth it will be in this age where we will be everlasting. [/align]

PART 1 The fog is growing ever denser within the shroud and the wildlife has seemed to all but disappear due to the dangerous presence that has appeared. This presence is the shade along with his troops that number 50. "Are we on track?" the shade says this to the agent who is a bit behind him "Yes milord, we have been in this region for countless days now no fog will disorient our approach" the shade simply nods and continues to walk forward towards their destination. As they get closer the shade suddenly makes an abrupt stop and begins to look around carefully and putting his complete focus on analyzing his surroundings. Everyone else quickly follows suit but does not dare make sound, and then ever so quietly off in the distance one could hear the snapping of a branch. Given they are in a forest such a sound is a regular occurrence however given the nature of the situation they are in this prompts an immediate defensive formation with weapons drawn. The defensive formation itself was nothing extravagant, a perimeter was established around the shade, everyone was far enough as to not hinder one another but close enough to be able to see one another, once this formation was formed the shade order everyone to continue moving forward. Despite the density of the fog it could not hide the tree the shade was seeking,a silhouette of the tree was becoming ever more apparent as they grew closer which resulted in the pace at which they all moved to increase. The shade raised his hand signaling for everyone to cease moving, he then looked to the agent once more "How close were you able to get before the elementals began showing?" after a quick observation of the surroundings the agent replied "I believe it will be another 10 yalms before the elementals come in force as they did before". After taking a moment to think the shade issues out his orders "We will move for another 8 yalms, after that I will carry out the task myself, as I do so you will make sure nothing gets by you until I return also-" before the shade could finish speaking a very loud snapping of a branch could be heard very close to them soon after the scream of one of the troops could be heard followed by a loud thump. A second later one of the troops yells out "Its Treants and dozens of them!!!". The shade quickly issues out an order "Do not fight them now we must get into position first" once he said that the troops began to run with all their might to cover 8 yalms but with the fog so dense they could not see where or when the treants were going to attack.As they ran two were impaled by the arm of a treant who had thrusted its arm forward, another was grabbed and then tossed with a tremendous force towards others and killed on impact while those hit suffered a number of broken bones and were quickly impaled by another treant. Screams could be heard all around and yet despite that the the shade as well as the surviving troops were moving forward unflinching and unwavering. As they approached 8 yalms a treant emerged in front of the shade from the ground but before the creature could even attack, the shade swiftly thrusted his lance forward striking the center of the creature with a great impact. This thrust effortlessly pierced the treant, without decreasing his speed the shade removes his lance from the creature swiftly and continues to move. As they reached they reached 8 yalms the shade stops for a moment to address his surviving troops, "Maintain defensive positions here until I return, you are free to engage anything that approaches. I have no doubt the elementals will soon be whispering into the Forest Queens ear so expect her faithful knights to arrive at some point as well". Once finished the shade quickly runs towards the tree. Following their leaders orders the troops establish defensive positions but this time are ready to counteract the approach of the treants, as luck would have it the fog has decreased a bit from its original dense state allowing for more visibility. With increased visibility the troops begin to engage the approaching creatures yet this time the effectiveness of these troops is clearly seen, as if acting as one unified body the troops slay the creatures one after another. Despite the losses they took the number of troops that remain is still potent enough to deliver death upon those who challenge them. The shade is heading towards the tree where it seems a culmination of roots converge on, behind him he could hear his troops clashing with the creatures and yet his eyes remain fixed on what lies ahead. The number of troops that the shade has remaining is numbered at 30, a total of 20 were lost since they set forth towards the tree.

(In board post #379 it was alluded that something will happen in the shroud and that something is happening now enjoy. Also this story will be broken up into parts, how many? idk but it will be a fun ride) PROLOGUE [video=youtube] After his agents dispersed the Shade moved to the camp that was setup deep within the shroud where many others stayed. It was night and as such the forest took on a serene appearance, however tonight its appearance seemed more vicious unwelcoming perhaps due to the guests that were entering its domain with no semblance of respect. The shade recognized this changed atmosphere yet payed no heed to it and made sure everyone was doing their job. As he walked through the camp his presence incited fear and anxiety, some have seen what the shade is capable of, others have only heard rumors but they are all aware by instinct making an enemy of him is a dead mans job. One would think someone would rebel against him by now, he is greatly outnumbered and in numbers there is strength but despite this there is a fierce loyalty to him perhaps it is because of his goal, respect or simply because he gives others the opportunity to embrace their true nature with no consequence. For whatever reason no matter what their emotions say, one thing rings true for them; "We will find our place with him". After assigning some others to preform recon and tighten up the guard shifts the shade sits down near the fire in the center of the camp and waits. The sounds of the forest become more apparent as time goes by, one could hear the shuffling of predators on the hunt for their prey, the eery callings made by animals to communicate with one another. As the shade waits he makes note of all these various sounds as well as taking in the scenery, a slight fog has come through the forest and shows no sign of letting up. It has also become quite dark despite it being a cloudless night with the moon shining quite brilliantly, is it due to the treetops blocking the light or is it the forests attempt to decrease visibility. Either way the shade makes careful note of all these factors and no sooner does he do so one of his agents appears behind him to report. "Milord I believe we have finally found the tree you speak of. After careful examination of the area we found many of the roots within this particular part of the forest heading towards one singular point. When we arrived at that point a grand tree stood before us, but as we attempted to get closer the elemental presence started to pick up so we retreated before they could act on our presence." as the agent finishes he awaits a response. Upon hearing this the shade stands up and grabs his lance that is as black as the night itself and looks to the agent "Gather everyone in camp and tell them we are moving out" once he finishes the agent promptly gets up and begins to assemble everyone in camp. As the others get ready the shade stands at the edge of the camp looking out towards the forest and speaks as if talking to the forest itself "You will not stop us, do not think just a menacing atmosphere and your so called guardians will be enough to stop us." He grabs his lance and drives it into the ground, when he does so the forest goes silent as if all the animals and creature were aware a dangerous predator will now be prowling the forest. "We will take what we want from you and you will do nothing about it. The times are changing and the age in which the light could shield you is over." As he says this everyone in camp has gathered behind him ready to move, he simply speaks a few words "Move out this forest has no hold over us" once finished he removes his lance from the ground and begins head towards the direction of the tree, behind him are many who walk with him with a gleam of bloodlust in their eyes. The forest remains silent, the wildlife goes into hiding, however before the night is out the forest will bare its fangs to repel the dark invaders that walk within.

Somewhere located within the shroud a cloaked figure brings a linkpearl to his ear and speaks only one word "Report". After a moment of static noise a voice breaks through to respond. "As you ordered I made no attempt to hide my presence, I am quite sure at least a fair number noted it but it did not attract any potential comrades hiding within midst. Many of the individuals and organizations marked as war potentials were present, thanks to all the festivities of the ball I was able to make observations of them and the standings they have with one another quite easily.That will be sent in separate report . I did however approach one of them and as expected we will be bound to clash with them as with many others I would assume. Something curious to note is I did find one who shared our affinity yet insists to uphold the current ways, I gave him the letter so only time and the course of this world will tell whether he will join us. Unfortunately I was unable to locate any priest's or priestesses for future operations. Of all that I observed it is clear that if we not choose are targets carefully at first we will undoubtedly stir up a very large hornets nest". The voice ends off there awaiting a response "Resume your current operation then and continue sending reports to our network I will have other agents look into acquiring some holy patrons. From Darkness we came, To Darkness we return". Once finished the cloaked figure destroys the linkpearl and turns around to address the others behind him "The festivities are over we can continue our operation now. Done speaking multiple figures could be seen moving within the darkness with great haste. Soon enough a dark shadow will encase the shroud and will not disappear until it finds what it wants.

The Shade

Hello everyone what you see here is The Bounty Board. I have hopes that this will be a place where the criminal elements can gather and present themselves. Now I say present themselves but what I mean is create a wanted poster of yourself with some of the crimes you have committed without going into extreme detail. This gives people a somewhat at least moderate idea of what interaction with your character may be like and what there combat prowess would be like. Now I have created an initial ranking system for the levels of criminal activity which are completely open to change, so if you have ideas as to what should be added or changed please do let me know so this can become even more dynamic. Rankings: Flan= Public Nuisance, Crimes range from property damage to small time pickpocketing, Threat level is miniscule. Cactuar= Crimes range from assault,armed robbery,forgery,bribery. Threat level is minimum. Skeleton= May be part of a criminal syndicate and or lends aid to such criminal elements.Crimes usually associated with individuals of this level are Murder, Extortion and grand larceny.Criminal activity may also include Drug trafficking,Arms dealing, Illegal gambling. Threat Level Medium Tonberry= Criminal Activities encompass but are not limited to, Murder, Terrorizing the people, Stealing Crystals, Stealing City State supplies, Assaulting and or killing Authoritative forces.Potentially a contract killer. Threat level High- Take caution in apprehension if found Abaddon= Extremely dangerous and highly volatile, Individuals of this level have committed a number of crimes and only increase in activity.Possibility of leading a criminal organization enacting a number of operations across the region. Threat Level Extremely High- It is inadvisable to approach criminals of this level alone as they may have allies and or other options at their disposal that can result in death. It is recommended careful planning and a sufficient forces be brought together before confronting such a criminal. Malboro=Individuals who fall into this category are terrorists or extremists whose actions bring about numerous casualties and destruction. Usually they seek to gain positions of power or relentlessly target governments, military or economic powers to breakdown the order and enact anarchy. Threat Level Chaotic- Under no circumstances is any one individual or organization to take action against individuals of this status without the approval of city state government. Conducting an operation with proper approval will result in severe punishment. Lost Light= The danger these individuals pose is immeasurable. The destruction and chaos they can potentially create leaves only death as an option for them.As with the Malboro you must go through government channels before engaging. Now of course when giving yourself a rank lets make it clear, A high rank does not make your character all powerful. The ranks simply help further how people will interact with you during rp. An example would be if you are ranked a flan people would raise an eyebrow but will not try to slice your throat as opposed to someone ranked tonberry. So for those worried, please do not worry about a high ranking, they do not grant players a power boost it is up to the players themselves when they are further establishing the lore for their characters as to what they are capable of as long as they don't go god mode. I believe that is it if there are any changes I will update it to let you all know so I do hope this will be something that people can enjoy and help create some unique fun interactions.

They can, they just also have to clarify when they are ic and or cannot be recognized during rp so no one gets a "hunch" and figures out who you are.

By Tonberry Staff Greetings citizens of Eorzea today we bring you a public service announcement. In recent months there have been scattered reports of figures clad in black appearing in various settlements. These figures spoke a great many of things that many would consider heretical and or would otherwise shun. Of course though we could not confirm such reports because of how isolated such occurrences were, however on 9/29 we were able to finally be able to confirm these reports. On 9/29 a robed figure clad in black wandered into the ever popular adventure's guild the Quicksand.Ul'Dah is no stranger to such appearances, they are host to the Thaumaturge guild where such an appearance is practically a uniform.What made this figure stand out however was he began speaking what many if not all said to be mindless ramblings. When we interviewed several eyewitnesses they said the figure spoke with distaste for the light and the twelve saying that those who still follow such beings will not survive the new age approaching. Of course by this time many of the patrons of the Quicksand were growing increasingly irritated with the figures rantings but before the situation spiraled out of control Ul'Dah law enforcement moved in to resolve the situation. After a few words were exchanged between the two parties the figure left the quicksand and soon after the city itself. In light of this information many officials across Eorzea would like to warn its citizens to be wary of such individuals and the subsequent cult they are apart of. Little information is still known about them however it is clear that they harbor a degree of ill will towards the Light and The Twelve. If you happen to come across such individuals please be sure to contact the respective authoritative force to resolve the situation.Officials will begin an investigation of the cult and in time hope to root them out so that they do not disrupt the lives of the people further.

Now with Limsa behind him and his work over there done for now, the cloaked figure is traveling on a ship. As the figure waits to arrive at his next destination he speaks into his pearl in near whispering but clear tone "I will be arriving within a days time be sure to have narrowed down the possible area's upon my arrival, the quicker we locate what we need the sooner we can leave before the situation gets troubling. Has anything outside of your current situation occurred that is of interest? " a voice responds through the pearl and after a moment the figure speaks again. "The person in Ul'dah you speak of is but one of many speakers I have sent out to stir the people and find others who share our ideals. Slowly but surely as our actions gain momentum the words of the speakers will fester in the minds of those who walk with the light." The slightest grin appears on the cloaked figures face before finishing "If there is nothing else be sure to provide results when I arrive." The voice on the linkpearl quickly responded before cutting out. The cloaked figure once done gets up and moves to the front of the ship and looks into the night sky "Now then will we find what we seek? or will it remain shrouded in mystery?" Unbeknownst to those who reside in the shroud a dark curtain has already descended upon them.

As the cloaked figure wandered off he recast his illusion spell so not to be hindered by any as he made his way to exit the city. Once pass the city gates he put a link pearl to his ear and spoke "What is our status in the shroud?" Another voice replies "We have managed to scratch off a few locations but it still leaves us searching a broad spectrum, I would not doubt if the elementals have a hand in hindering our search" "I see, I will arrive in the shroud in due time, If our progress has not changed we will have to take a more proactive approach. Do make sure to not stir up the elementals too much we cannot have Gridania catching wind of our activity" "Yes, we will maintain our operations discreetly until further directed" The cloaked man removes the linkpearl, as his figure got further from the city it became shrouded in the darkness of the night and where he goes you can be sure that the darkness will following close behind. ((That wraps up this little story, for those who have read I do hope you enjoyed. If any of the more villainous characters would like to take part in this then feel free to message me, or if you want to take part in the crime syndicate in Limsa you are more than free to send a message to Fang, other than that again I do hope you enjoyed and be on the lookout for more posts :evil: ))

Once he heard her response he began to walk toward her while speaking "Those conditions are agreeable, you are free to choose who you see fit that will allow you to operate at your fullest capacity. You can also consider the reward all but void, I have a way with handling information." He stopped in front of Fang and grasped his lance "However" his tone for the first time became flat and cold "There are great allies scattered all around us, its just a matter of digging them up just like I dug up you." He began to twist the lance slowly and continued speaking "Make no mistake you have seen what I do with those who don't preform to their fullest extent, losing you would make things difficult for a time but you are not irreplaceable and there is a lot of potential in this world not just you, remember that because if you betray me and the cause." He began to slowly pull the lance out, blood would squirt a bit from the wound "You can be sure that I will personally end you" He then quickly removed the lance roughly. The cloaked figure began to walk away and spoke once more as he got farther "That should not be a problem as long as you do your job then this will be wonderful venture for both of us. Make sure to clean that wound, in a few days you will receive your own pearl which will prove to be useful.Until we meet again miss Fang and next time no games." After he said this his silhouette left Fangs sight.

As he hears Fang's queries he thinks but only for a moment, time is of the essence. " I did say I wanted to meet with you, everything that occurred after was merely reactionary. Now if by incident you mean the removal of the nobles than yes that was my doing, they would have become a hindrance in time if they were not already not a hindrance to others. I think I may have knocked you around a bit hard, did you already forget? I said Limsa and the La Noscea region was but one stepping stone among many to reach my goal which reaches far beyond Eozrea itself but if you must know for Limsa specifically I will be seeking to control many of its inner workings. My goal for that matter then is a bit more of a complicated explanation but the best way I can describe it is a world where an individual can embrace who they really are and experience true freedom without being scorned by the masses with petty laws, morals and order my goal in simpler terms given what little time we have is the creation of a new world where people like yourself are heralded as a leader and not a criminal. Now then answer me time is short." As he finished one could see that the ship has sunk considerably despite its slow pace and that it would not be long before it sunk even more.

It was now the hour of twilight in Limsa and yet the night was far from over. After waiting for a time the cloaked figure see's the hyur in the distance, it does not seem he has not noticed the decoy yet and continues to approach closer. After slowly closing the distance a bit more the hyur stops, more than likely realizing that the figure he was approaching was a decoy; it mattered not the hyur moved close enough that allowed the figure to easily close the distance. The figure's caution payed off, the hyur was followed or to be more precise was not given much choice but allow himself to be followed. The figure calmly pulled out his retractable lance, analyzed the distance and struck, in the moment of a single breath close the distance between himself and the hyur and within the next breath thrusted his lance through the hyur. The lance stopped just short of Fang's face which now had spots of the hyur's blood on her face. As the figure removes the lance from the hyur whose body immediately falls over on the spot he says this "I did say you would be able to aid me in my next task and you carried it out wonderfully, may you be embraced by the dark" as he finishes this he now turns his attention to Fang. "I did tell you that before this night was out you would stand before me and here you are so I thank you for taking up my generous offer." Fang did not like this rather arrogant comment yet she made not unnecessary move even she knew when to keep her blade steady in front of an opponent who clearly had a higher set of skills than his lackeys. The figure continued speaking "Now I suppose you are wondering what all this fuss is about, the matter is quite simple. When I heard that someone destroyed a Grand Company vessel I began to wonder if this person had the potential to become something far more than just a criminal with extreme tendencies, I wondered if this person would be able to see the bigger picture, I wondered if you be capable of things you never believed possible. I wondered if I could use someone like you .Now even as I say that you probably do not understand fully but I know you understood this one fact; I want you to work for me and make no mistake you will not be like those hired hands you will be in a far more luxurious position than them. I have no idea of your aspirations but if you work for me I will give you permission to operate in Limsa and even all of La Noscea, of course your operations will be regulated by me so as you do not draw too much attention but other than that you can be in full control if you put your mind to it." "However" as he says this he simply faces his lance in Fang's direction "if you decide to refuse I will have to ask you to cease any major plans you have from now on and only stick to small time things. You see this city and region is just but one of many stepping stones that I need to accomplish my goal and I cannot have some wildcard wreaking uncontrolled havoc resulting in more fortified security measures. I warn you I have plans set in place, you joining me will allow you to take part in those plans and allow you to continue your ventures with reasonable sight; should you refuse and continue your operations I will remove you swiftly from the playing field. Take careful heed of my words I will personally come to end you if that in fact happens, so what say you?" As he finishes saying this for only the briefest of seconds does he face his lance away from Fang's direction and it was in this moment that she decided to strike. Fang did not like the idea of sharing what was rightfully hers to begin with, and if all that stood in her way was this person than she decided that getting rid of him would solve her a world of problems. [video=youtube] (Battle Music -Consider the first 50 seconds the cloaked figure talking and then everything after being the battle of course) Fang drew her sword and began her attack. She slashed upwards toward the cloaked figure in which he easily dodged however coupled with that strike was leg sweep, the figure had no choice but jump to avoid the sweep but this left him privy to a strike even if it was only for a moment. Using the momentum of the leg sweep Fang raised her other leg and let the momentum carry it to the mans abdomen, the force was great enough to send the him flying back a couple of feet into some shipping crates. Without missing a beat fang closed into where the man landed and once she got close enough leaped into the air in order to come crashing down on the man with her blade. The distance created from the kick however granted the man ample enough time to stand back up and prepare a defensive stance in time to deflect the sword with the body of his lance resulting in Fang recoiling from the deflection. Fang however already moved into her next strike the moment she landed; Fang had gained the initiative in the fight all the cloaked figure could do was manage defensive maneuvers while waiting for an opening yet even being on the defensive there was a calm and almost analytical air about him. A flurry of sword strikes with a multitude of variety was sent forth towards the man in which he began deflecting each strike with his lance, he was forced to continually move back because Fang was relentlessly pressing forward as she attacked. He soon ran out of room on the dock it was in this instant Fang's movements became noticeably swifter, and the strength of her attacks also increased. Seeing the situation getting more precarious the man decided to change the playing field; as he dodged one attack he jumped back once more but this timw he had a set route and before Fang knew it he was on the deck of one of the docked ships. She quickly followed but now began cloaked mans counter attack; the moment Fang jumped to get onto the deck the man skillfully launched a crate in the air with his lance and then sent it flying towards Fang.She sliced the crate in two with ease but it killed her forward momentum forcing her to grab onto the railing of the ship; the moment she climbed up the railing the man had already thrusted his lance in that direction. Fang immediately fell back down to avoid the strike but managed to grab onto one of the ropes leading to the masts of the ship, she quickly traversed upward and stood very high above the ship. The man followed in tow cutting a rope which propelled him to the same height as Fang; the two stared at each other momentarily before continuing the fight. With little room to maneuver both sides fought precariously above the ship which ultimately resulted in both of them exchanging an equal amount of offensive and defensive techniques. Fang was growing angrier now as the advantage she had gained in the beginning was dwindling fast, this anger lead to a rather strange phenomenon, her next strike was exceedingly strong and threw off the man ever so slightly, in this instant Fang smashed the footing the man was standing on sending him back to the deck. When the man landed he looked up at Fang and said to himself "Aether?" but that was all he could say for he immediately assumed a defensive position upon seeing fangs next actions. As she stood above Fang crouched on the edge of where she stood and focused solely on the man down below, she gripped her sword tightly; as she was doing this whether aware or not aether was slowly going into her, then with all her strength that was now being increased due to the aether she propelled herself towards the man at a tremendous speed and swung her blade down towards him. While the man blocked the sword with the body of his lance the tremendous speed coupled with the force caused him to be smashed through the deck of the ship and some of the subsequent compartments. Fang looked down into the ship searching for her target; even though the man certainly had skill and talent beyond many taking on such an attack would even cause him to stagger for a moment, when Fang caught sight of where he landed within the ship she viciously moved to continue her attack, the aether still going in her strengthening her overall capabilities. The man was now completely on the defensive, fighting within the ship was a severe disadvantage for him, the small hallways and compartments limited his ability to attack with his lance, add on to the fact that his opponent was wielding a sword that was are not only unhindered by this change of setting but was also smashing through most of the ship with her strikes made the fight slightly dangerous. Splinters and large planks of wood were flying all around as the man evaded and deflected the strikes Fang tossed out. As Fang sent out another attack she stopped it just before it striking the man's lance, he knew immediately what would ensue so he braced his body and sure enough another blow stuck his abdomen upwards smashing him once again through the ship and back onto the deck. As he lay there on the deck the man hears the footsteps of Fang approaching, any normal person would be fearful at this point if not far before the fight reached this point and yet no sign of fear emanates from him. He then speaks "You certainly have the strength and skill, however it is not enough. You are are capable of far more do not think this is enough to end my life" the man gets up resulting in Fang's footsteps picking up speed "allow me to show you where you stand and where you could be." As he finishes speaking Fang once more swings her sword towards him but this time with pinpoint accuracy flicks his lance upwards hitting Fang's hand causing the sword to be dislodged from her hand and being sent upwards. She quickly strikes with her fist but the man catches her wrist before she completes her motion and then kicks her with hard enough to send her back a few feet. As she recovers from the strike the man catches the sword that was now descending from being knocked into the air and hurls it towards her head, she catches is it but the moment she does the man had closed the distance on her and swung his lance. She managed to block the lance but the force once again created a distance between one another, this time she recovered just as the man approached again and released a flurry of strikes, yet now every time the man defended he also simultaneously countered attacked with quick precise martial techniques. As Fang kept attacking the man swung in an upward motion with his lance, Fang blocked the blow but was sent airborne; quickly though she was brought back down to the ship deck viciously as the man grabbed her leg and swung her back down smashing her on the deck. He then ran up a bit of the mast of the ship and jumped plunging towards Fang with his lance. Fang barely avoided the attack as the ship began to creak and the sound of wood splintering could be heard throughout the ship. Fang was now drawing in more aether than before and was quite noticeable, her anger now at all time high she began to move around the ship at an amazing speed that proved even difficult for the man to keep track of. Once she attained the speed she wanted she would run towards the man and slash him with her blade at one angle and then approach from another, the man managed to avoid some other the more lethal strikes however Fang's blade was still hitting him nonetheless. It was at this point he said "I am afraid the time for playing is over" the moment he said this Fang approached for a kill shot but was halted immediately, the man had caught fang and grasped her face and then taking the momentum she was carrying spun around smashed her through the mast of the ship causing the sail to collapse, he then lifted her up briefly before smashing her onto the deck of the ship creating no shortage of splinters and broken planks as well as a small crater at the point of impact. Before Fang could realized what had happened the man plunged his lance into her shoulder and dug it deep so as to be embedded in the ship. The man moves away from Fang and the speaks calmly as he always has "We have damaged the ship beyond repair and it is now sinking, the time for you to make a choice has come. Initially if you refused without attacking me you would have lived granted you would also agree not to conduct any operations here, yet since you attacked me I am inclined to let you go down with this ship and give the yellow jackets a nice prize. However if you accept to work with me I will remove that lance and we can both begin our wonderful partnership. So what do you say Fang? will you join me and become something great or will you die here just as insignificant as those you have killed before? Answer me ." As the man said, the ship was sinking due to the tremendous damage it had sustained from the fight and no doubt there commotion would have certainly caught some attention by now, the game was over and now all that remained was a response.

"I see so you are the only one left?, I suppose then this was a somewhat useful venture you proved quite capable at staying alive when faced with situation beyond your control. Consider this your trial by fire in which you passed; it is bothersome to lose assets and to let a potential one escape our grasp but I suppose things cannot always go our way. No matter meet me in the shipyard, since you have proven yourself you should be able to aid me in this next task and do make sure you do not catch the attention of the yellow jackets." Male Hyur: "Ye- yes I will be there immediately" Once he got his subordinates response he looked around the ship yard and picked up one of the unconscious bodies and propped him up in a location where one cannot discern their appearance from a distance, he then proceeded to grab a large cloth that was covering one of the shipping crates and wrapped it around the body. Once satisfied he made sure his illusion spell was still active he stood a bit to the side of the body and then proceeded to wait, and as all the times before he was calm and without worry. "Caution never kills" he said this quietly wondering what may or may not unfold.