Fantasy Land: A Hero's Fateful Choice (BlueSix x Saber Arturia)

[BlueSix]

The Faybrew Houses on Septra were not terribly different from a modern Starbucks back home. They were basically libraries with in-house brewing services for coffee and tea, and without that annoying silence rule libraries have. This Faybrew House here in the city of Peltorr, however, was a little quieter and more run-down than people have come to expect from the brand. Its dragon-winged fairy logo hadn't been polished in weeks, volumes were missing from the shelves, and some books still had stains that any other Faybrew House would have had magically cleaned. Though the staff looked harried from the ceaseless work burdened on their shoulders, they still greeted their clients with a smile and a joyous "Yo, man!" no matter what they were feeling.

Lucy looked as if she'd seen a ghost.

It was easy to forget, but the fiery blonde was more the type to go to dances and parties with her friends rather than sit in a library and sip coffee all day. She'd practically dragged him all the way to Peltorr and got lost in the city's winding pathways, and only the timely intervention of a kind stranger kept them from wandering into a dark alley. Having never been to a Faybrew House before, the cheerful greeting of "Yo, girl!" caught her off-guard and sent her stammering for a reply.

"Y-Yoyo to you too," was what she eventually settled on.

She looped her arm in his when a pretty waitress stepped over and bowed. "You look like such a lovely couple. Table for two?" the girl proposed.
While the nature of their relationship was still very much in debate, Lucy seemed to like the idea a lot. She bounced on her toes and nodded with an unrestrained grin. "Yes, we are a lovely couple, aren't we? Table for two, in the middle of the room. Do you serve tea?"

That question seemed to fire up the young waitress, as if she'd been waiting all day for someone to ask. "Absolutely!" she chirped. "We serve green tea, black tea, white tea, Assam, and Sencha. What would you like?"

"I'll have Assam! Ooh, I haven't had that in so long," Lucy replied.

The waitress looked at the Hero.

 

[Revelations]

This wasn't home, even the comfort of a Faybrew house didn't quite 'feel' right to him, but he was able to recognize the charm it had and that while he wasn't in a familiar haunt, it was a place just similar enough that he was able to relax. It was a quiet and slightly homely looking building in the interior, which might have been a stark contrast to the princess and her accomplice that had just strolled in - his cloak did much to hide his gleaming white and blue trimmed armor... But with his blonde hair and dazzling aqua eyes, there was clearly something different about the young man. They were here on official business as well, so while they were getting a chance to relax and take things easy, the hero felt a little more at ease the moment that Lucy wrapped her arm around his, and gave a smile when they were called a couple. "Yo." He replied back in a friendly and amiable tone, the greeting much more natural for him as he offered the waitress a smile.

"I'll have white tea, please." He spoke as he moved for the table, sliding out a chair for the princess before sitting down himself. He knew well enough to be a gentleman, especially when it came to being with a princess. Still, as he sat, he was still making some sense of the princess. Sometimes she was cold when he felt she'd be hot - and then hot when he expected her to be cold. Perhaps that's just how princesses were? Lucy was the first he'd ever dealt with, of course. For now she was enjoying his presence, and from the way his shoulders seemed more relaxed and his smile evident, it was a more mutual feeling as well.

 

[BlueSix]

The waitress smiled and touched his arm. "Great choice! I'll have your drinks brewed in a snap." She bounded off behind the counter and started measuring out tea leaves while chatting with her coworkers in hushed tones about the hot guy in their establishment. Lucy paid them no mind and seated herself in the chair he'd pulled out for her. She leaned on one elbow and made a passing glance around the room.

"So, who are we looking for, Mr. Hero? Lots of interesting people around."

There were indeed. At the table next to them sat a young couple looking dirty and exhausted from a long day's work. A big, hulking guy with a long face and clean-shaven chin sat scowling by the window. In the corner was a woman in full armor plate sleeping in her chair. By the entrance was an elderly gentleman in sage's robes reading a book.

Lucy glanced at the Hero. "That big guy looks fierce. I want to avoid him and talk to him at the same time."

 

[Revelations]

“Thank you.” The hero spoke quietly, but with an eager and honest tone of voice. Getting a moment to look over the ‘bar’ of sorts, he was able to see who was around, and he did notice a few of the baristas and workers looking to him and talking about him softly. Did they know he was with the princess? It was a little funny if they didn’t, but he figured Lucy’s face was probably common in the city.

“Hrm?” he snapped to when Lucy spoke to him, and as he looked to her with a smile he gave a short nod. “Troublemakers, aren’t we looking for those before leaving?” Of course he did want to take a look around the down and see what he could do to help, but for now, there didn’t really seem to be anyone who was a danger except for the more hulking looking man. “Could be him, but let’s not get too ahead of ourselves.” He sought to temper his actions until he had all the information available to him, even though he did think it might be a bit more fun to just rush into things at times.

 

[BlueSix]

Surprisingly, people did not take much notice of Lucy. Usually, monarchs and nobles made a point of getting their picture out so people would recognize them. It was thus unusual that people did not recognize the Crown Princess. Perhaps news didn't get around as much...in a large town...

Lucy may not have been the first to notice, but she was the first to point it out. "Isn't it a little weird that nobody recognizes me? I'm literally the actual Crown Princess, and nobody gives a dam. What is up with this place?"

She got her answer a moment later when three men walked into the establishment. Two of the men were burly types, outfitted in imposing steel plate armor and curved elven swords. Their ward, a beautiful man with flowing blonde hair and long white robes, glided to the counter, where the two serving girls shrank back in terror.

"Table for five, please."
One of the girls glanced over to a corner table.
"Thank you."

The three men moved to the table where the sleeping armored woman sat. The burly man with the long face joined them. The pretty man kicked back in his chair and lit up a cigar, despite the clearly marked No Smoking sign just outside. "It's been too long, Haldar," he greeted.
The armored woman jolted, then slowly rose upright. "Mm, not long enough. Couldn't you see I was sleeping?"
"Didn't you want to see my lovely face?"
"Your lovely face could have waited a few more minutes."
The man slammed his fist on the table, startling the three other me. After a moment, he calmed down and said, "Yes, I suppose it could have. How is our little project coming along? Is the door open?"
Haldar folded her hand in her lap. "We discovered that the spell on door had a multilayer seal with two hundred interlocking 'if-chains' and twelve command threads. It would require-"
"Is it open?" the pretty man repeated.
"It takes about five thousand man-hours to decode an ancient frame, and several hundred thousand to break it."
"So is it open?"

Haldar bowed her head.

"We tried, but-"

Wood splinters flew out. "Why isn't it done yet?" the pretty man demanded. One of his guards picked up Haldar by the neck, but in a flash, the man cried out and dropped to the floor- missing his hand.
Haldar sheathed her sword. "Because it takes twelve men over a year to do five thousand man-hours of work. Budget and scheduling problems are your department, not mine. If you want it done faster, Thalmir, hire more men. Rushing them will just multiply costly mistakes."
Thalmir, the pretty man, coughed into his hand before folding his arms. "I see. How many do you need?"
"I'd prefer ten times their number, but we can make do with double."
"I can procure that number in a reasonable time frame. Consider it done."
"Thank you, milord."
"No problem. And where the devil is my tea?" Thalmir looked around for the serving girls, who were shaking uncontrollably as they rushed to make fresh batches of coffee and tea. They both came out with trays to serve the five at the table.

Thalmir took one sip of his tea and threw the cup at the girls. "Disgusting. Utterly disgusting. What did you spike the tea with to make it so revolting?"
"Sugar- Sugar sir."
"That's an odd way to pronounce 'poison.' Confess."
"N-No! We-"
"So where is my money, then?"
"Please sir, we can't afford-"
His eyes narrowed.
"We can't pay it."

Everyone in the whole establishment fell silent.

At length, Thalmir laughed. "Oh, that's perfectly all right. I understand. Times are tough, and when net profits are merely pennies, it's awfully hard to keep a business afloat. So I'll be generous and let you sell the place, instead of demanding your lives."

The girls' eyes widened.

"Or," he added with a slight smirk, "I could take your bodies instead."

Nobody in the room lifted a finger to help them.