The citizens opted to elect their next emperor from the politicians and for ten years a dwarven politician by the name of Stewart Ironbelly would sit as Emperor-Elect. His reign would end ten years later by the Criminal Syndicates of Deva who controlled much of the trade market. Ironbelly would be replaced by Drannor Radiance, the General of the Deva Armed Forces. He was suppose to be a pawn of the Crime Syndicates, but the moment he assumed power he made it clear, there was no other power or controller but him. He would reign with a fist of iron until his death some twenty year later, leaving the foul taste of a cruel dictatorship in their mouths. The people made sure this would not continue, and after some battles another election would be held. For the first time in Deva's history a female human would rule over the still majority populated dwarven country. Coretta Telor would restore the peace and rebuild the empire for a decade, then step down to allow another election.

No one can say for sure what the last election of 1263 might have done for the empire. Instead of a single individual the people voted in a Religious Organization. Rumors of election fraud circulated after the election and have quieted down after eleven years. Most would tell you they feel neutral about their Religious Rulers, who keep the peace in the lands and the quality of life up. In return they only ask the people to pay homage in their churches every first day of the week and donate to them, as there are little taxes on the people under their rule.

But with no election is sight, the people of Deva only know that the Black Church plans on staying around for awhile...

Where once Hector Deva sat on the iron throne of Deva now stood a monalith of a marble table, round in shape. There are no markings on the table, just a black challace which holds a blackish-red flame. Ten chairs for ten members, who at this very moment sat around this table. Its somewhat known that the members of the Black Church have no ranking system, yet they bare numbers somewhere on their hands or arms and the members who preside over the Deva Empire were numbered 1 thru 10.

"We have the book." Said the member who bares the Number 2 marking.

The other 9 nodded in agreement. "Then our plans are falling into order." Said the member who bares the Number 8 marking.

Number 4 spoke up. "But what of the Sword of Fire?"

"Vector has yet to obtain it." Number 2 replied.

"And what of the Delivery Boys who fouled our time table?" Number 3 asked.

Number 2 nodded. "Along with word of the book they said the Delivery Boys were taken prisoner by General Warhammer and will returned with soldiers and be delt with by Vector."

The Council nodded in agreement.

"Despite problems we are falling back into the time tables, the day of victory and glory is upon us." Number 8 said. "Should we wait for the Sword or should we begin the second phase?" He asked.

Silence fell over the room as Number 1 leaned towards the flame in the center of the table. The second hand on the clock ticked forwards for half a minute and Number 1 sat back into his chair. He nodded. "Even without the Sword of Fire it is time to move forward with the plans."

"Are we prepared for this?" Number 3 asked.

Number 7 leaned into the table. "Over the past 5 years we have prepared and have been ready for at least half a year. Pains taking as the task was, what he asked for was accomplished." Number 7 said.

"But why should we risk what has been built in his honor here for a foreign country on the other side of the continent?" Number 5 asked.

Silence again fell over the room. Such a question shouldn't have been asked, but this was not the first time Number 5 had done so.

"The ultimate plan cannot be done unless we have positions on either side of this continent, we need Vector and their services are owed to us." Number 2 spoke in a firm tone. "They have already done good with the disruption of the Tripowerian Industries."

Number 6 nodded in agreement. "With the might of the Figarian Army and the unwillingness of the Heifong Empire, allies are required."

The Council nodded.

"Will Figaro pose a problem with the next phase?" Number 3 asked.

Number 2 shook his head. "We do not forsee any problems from them."

Number 1 leaned back into the table towards the flame for a moment and sat back into his chair. He turned and looked at Number 7. "The second phase of his plan will start in 5 days."

---

Card and Ackmon rushed into the helm of the Genious James, throwing their weapons to the floor. Ackmon walked over to the helm itself and snatched a piece of paper stuck to the wheel, he started to read.

"So what now?" Card asked, looking around for something to do.

Ackmon pointed to the lever next to the helm. "Start cranking that back and forth."

Card nodded and began cranking the starting lever back and forth, meanwhile Ackmon read the letter.

- Trabane & Ackmon...
-
- I hope you get this before they find you, but after I talked with you at
- the Laundry Factory there was a problem here at the port....
-

The River Port of Ardanton was hustling with the usual business as the evening sun began to sink behind the mountains far off to the east. Its not unusual for the air to be filled with the sounds of airship engines, but there is one engine sound that is unique from all the others. The Vectorian Empire has once attempted to expand its borders westwards from its present day location into the Northern Territory. They reached as far as Ardanton before they met true resistance. Between the will of the people and the mountains which had cut them off from the main country side of Vector, there was no choice but to retreat. That was the only time Vector had attempted to rule over Ardanton, and ever since their one and only attempt the people of Ardanton had a deeply seeded hatred towards Vector officials.

Almost everyone in Port Ardanton stopped in their tracks when they heard that unique engine sound. It was the roar of two Vectorian Airships. Their concerns grew when they saw exactly what Vectorian Airship it was. Blacken Destruction was a massive battle ship with one massive steam engine. Some would assume the 'Blacken' part of the ship's name came from the black smoke it billowed from its exhaust or the fact its hull was painted jet black. And not to be confused with any other jet black airship it had a giant double back K painted on the bottom. The ship was the pride and joy of the very few Vectorian Airships, and it was commanded by the General of the Magitek Army. Following the massive battle ship was another black Vectorian Cargo Ship. Both made their way into the port, darkening the sky with their black smoke. They positioned over the port and landed in the river, docking.

The streets of Ardanton quickly emptied as most citizens took shelter, keeping a very close eye on their visitors. Swanzo and his crew were down by the Genious James working on the repairs. He knew the Genious James had been damaged by Vector, he told his partner Mikey it was a gut feeling, or the cannon ball they found that had the double back K stamped into it. He quickly gathered his crew from the Genious James and ushered them into the Drunken Moose near by.

There was already a large crowd inside the pub and people were voicing themselves over this intrusion. "What are they doing here?" and "Why are we hiding?". Someone answered "Because its General Warhammer." knowing attacking him would be futile. "Lets see what they want." Someone else said. Then someone said "Oh shit, he's coming here!" and with that everyone scattered and actually tried to pretend nothing was wrong.

The door to the pub open and Warhammer filled it. The only sound from inside the pub was the movement of glasses and a few coughs. Warhammer scanned the room for a moment and walked in. His booted feet thudded against the wooden floor as he moved over to the bar. There was a few people sitting where he was walking who quickly moved out of his way.

Some would claim the entire pub then leaned in as Warhammer stood next to the bar, glaring at the bar keeper. Even though he was the enemy, he could be called a celebraty in the Great Realms, known Coast to Coast. He was going to order something and everyone wanted to know.

"A pint of Ulaver." He said. A single shot of the drow wine was known to cause a human to pass out flat. The bar keeper stood still for a moment, it was custom for the customer to slap the few gold coins for the drink down on the bar before he would hand the drink over. Warhammer glared back. Saying nothing the Bar keeper pulled out a pint glass and poured him the ulaver. Many were almost in shock as the monster of a human chugged the entire pint. Some ever pondered why wine, the drink was concidered something of a female's drink. Yet no one was about to question him over it. Warhammer slammed the pint cup down on the bar and wiped his mouth off. "Now...I'm looking for a young human travelling around with two kids, who has seen them?" Warhammer said, his voice low but firm.

The bar itself was silent, people knew who he was talking about. Trabane had been in the bar just the other day and had become well known when a fight broke out which caused him to tip over his pyramid of shot glasses. From that point on he went berserk and several of the larger men had to subdue him and throw him out. Despite that he was still welcomed at the Drunken Moose.

But Warhammer only got silence in return. People avoided looking directly at him, waitresses kept moving doing their job. Despite his unhuman strength and violent nature, he knew starting something major here would not help him any, nor did he have the man power to keep the city 'in line'. But on the other hand... "Fine then." He said. A waitress walked by him and his giant hand came out and snatched her. The tray she was carring fell to the floor, the cups smashed. Warhammer drew her in closely holding his hand around her neck.

With that move the entire bar moved itself. People became tense, men stood up and everyone's defenses went up. "I'll ask again... I am looking for a young human by the name of Trabane Townsend, he is wanted for crimes against the great Vectorian Empire. He is travelling with two kids and I know he is here, that's his airship out there." Warhammer motioned his head towards the port.

Swanzo looked out the window and indeed the Genious James was almost right in front of the pub still in the middle of repairs.

"I'm waiting..." Warhammer said and squeezed the girl's neck tighter. She gave out a whimper of pain.

With a sigh Swanzo knew he was going to have to talk. He was a leader figure at the port being the only airship repairman in town, which also meant he was in control of the port itself. He knew Warhammer wouldn't think twice about snapping the girl's neck and moving on to the next victim.

"He's north of the city." Swanzo called out. "Talk to that bastard Hammill at the Laundry Factor." He said. It was well known there was some sort of hidden hatred between Swanzo and Hammill.

Warhammer nodded and released the girl. She quickly ran behind the bar and into the back room crying. Without a word Warhammer marched across the pub and out the front doors. A few seconds later the entire pub started talking at once. Swanzo's repair crew gathered around his table.

- Your airship is good to go except for repairs on the hull and a paint
- job. Since we had no choice to rat you out, we felt it would be nessessary
- to help you guys by taken care of the three lackies Warhammer brought with
- him. Good luck, and we'll finish up those repairs if you ever get back here.
-
- Signed, Swanzo Melakeneces

"Hmm.." was Ackmon's only reponse.

With a final grunt Card shifted the starting lever one last time and it stopped moving. "Okay...now what."

Ackmon moved reached out onto the helm panel and turned the key to the airship. The engines whirled in an attempt to start but did nothing. Typically they would start.

The door to the helm room opened up and Trabane walked in. "They're new engines and Swanzo probably didn't get time to bleed the fuel lines." He tossed a pair of pants at Ackmon.

Ackmon caught them. "What the hell are these?!" He said dropping them to the floor.

"Pants." Trabane said moving over to Card, grabbing the starting lever and began to pump it. "We need to get out of here..." He said.

Ackmon walked over to him and held the note up in front of Trabane's face.

He read it. "Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do, at least he gave us credit." Trabane reached out and turned the key. Again the engines whirled but did not start.

"Glad you're so forgiving about this, he said he took care of those soliders." Ackmon said, looking towards the front of the helm. "Doesn't look like he did."

Trabane shrugged pumping the lever. "Well it should be a pretty fair match, that Vectorian Cargo Hauler can't be any faster than this one." He turned the key, the engines whirled and this time began to sputter.

---

Wedge opened his eyes to see the night sky. Jesse and Biggs where standing over him staring down at him. "What the hell happened?" He asked.

"Don't know, you were laying here when we got back." Jesse said, he glanced down towards Wedge's legs.

Biggs scratched the back of his head. "Wedge...where are your pants?"

Wedge sat up and looked down. Indeed his pants were missing. He opened his mouth to say something but stopped when he heard the sound of airship engines trying to start. "THE PRISONER!" He screamed and jumped up.

"Yeah...where is he?" Biggs asked.

Jesse reached over and slapped the back of Biggs' head. "Obviously he got the upper hand and knocked Wedge out."

Wedge rubbed his head remembering the fight. "No, no it was.." He stopped. It was a pair of kids that took him down and he would never live up to it.

The engines of the Genious James whirled again and sputtered, backfired and began to run.

"What do you want to do?" Jesse asked?

"Quick, into the airship, we'll never catch them on foot." Wedge said and dashed for the Vectorian Cargo Hauler, pantless. Jesse and Biggs followed.

The mouring lines of the Genious James casted off and the airship lifted out of the water. Meanwhile the Vectorian Hauler began to start up. The people in the Drunken Moose Pub began to gather outside having watched the events unfold from within. Swanzo and crew took position in the front of the crowd. They all watched as the Vectorian Hauler casted off its mouring ropes and began to lift off out of the river. It got about ten feet into the air when something obviously went wrong. The rotor blades of the engines flew off only to be followed by the engines themselves. The large iron plates of the hull began to fall off, everything splashing down into the river below. With one final gasp of life the airship itself fell back into the river.

The crowd outside the Drunken Moose began to crack up in laughter. The hatch opened up on the Vectorian Hauler and Wedge came out. "Game over man, Game over, I give up, Warhammer's going to kill us anyways, I'm done with this crap." He said stumbling out and falling to the river wall still pantsless. Jesse and Biggs appeared in the hatchway.

"So what now?" Jesse asked.

Wedge threw his hands up into the air. "I don't care, I'm going to go get drunk, screw Vector, scew the army, screw everything." And with that he marched through the crowd and into the Drunken Moose.

---

Things were now calm on the Genious James which was now at least twenty miles from Ardanton over the northern forests. Trabane sat at the helm leaning back in the captain's chair, Card was following his example stretchd out on the couch. Ackmon as always stood near the helm windows looking out, deep in though. They had a quick laugh over the Vectorian Hauler falling apart, but it quickly became silence.

"Hmmm." Ackmon said, seeming to be his favorite phrase for the evening. "So what's the big plan now chief?" He asked Trabane. "You were jabbering on earlier about Vector."

Trabane sat forward in his chair. "Well now that we have a calm moment." He peered around the airship. "We should probably include our new friend here." He looked over at Card, who sat up at the mention of him.

"Include me in what?" He asked.

"The business." Trabane got up from the chair and walked to the middle of the helm room. "If I haven't mentioned it, I'm not running an orphanage here, but it seems like I'm becoming an orphan magnet." He glanced over at Ackmon. "Ackmon and I run a business, basically do almost anything for money."

"Trabane wished it was a male call service..." Ackmon muttered. "We transport cargo, deliver packages, repair machinery...paint fences, whatever comes our way."

"We mainly front as a delivery service. But we also bounty hunt." Trabane walked back over to the helm and fumbled underneath it. He pulled out a thick book and tossed it at Card. He opened it and began to flip through the pages. "Bounty Hunting is a iffy job, certain countries and regions outlaw the practise, while others embrace it."

"We're we come from its not overly accepted." Ackmon said.

Card nodded listening to them. He knew they came from Torregiano and it was one of the main reasons he's still with these two. To the orphans of Vector City, being able to live in the Tripowerian Captial of Torregiano was something of a dream, or even plainly heaven. He also found himself growing somewhat attached to these two characters, he never really had any friends in the Orphanage.

Trabane waved his hand. "So you are more than welcome to live here with us, but you've got to pull your weight, we're not charity."

Ackmon rolled his eyes. "I'd almost say he has more skill than you Trabane..." He said with a snicker.

"Hmph." Trabane said. The kid of course had alchemist skills, unusual for a child of his age. And then of course he was able to wield the Legionaire Buster Sword which physically should be impossible. Trabane never had any intension about letting this kid go, he knew there was some connection here and that this kid was not just another Vectorian Orphan. A sharp finger jabbed him in the ribs.

"Hey spacey, you there?" Ackmon said. He turned towards Card. "What brainless here is saying is, welcome aboard the Townsend & Hawkins Delivery Service."

Trabane nodded.

Card rubbed the back of his head. "Umm, well jeez, thanks, I guess." He said, unsure of what to say.

Snapping back into focus Trabane spoke up. "Okay, back to the events at hand, what the hell just happened."

Ackmon looked at him funny.

"Well I get the part about the Butcher and why Warhammer showed up, my question is why did he have you.." Trabane pointed at Card, "And that book."

Card shrugged. "He said something about it being his mother's book, and that she would be pleased that he had it? He rambled on about being tasked to kill girls for their souls or something. Then he started calling me his replacement."

Ackmon nodded having heard this already. "He was bugging out in the same about you Trabane."

Trabane looked down at his wrists. "It seems to be a popular trend, I had one of those black cloaked freaks asking me if I was ready for the reunion."

"Reunion?" Ackmon asked. "And what was the butcher jabbering about your aura?"

Trabane shrugged. "I don't know." That was the second time someone mentioned his aura and this 'mother' to him. "And it was one of these cloaked assholes who hired us to deliver that book to Deva."

Ackmon sat down. "Well there's a connection here." He pointed at Card. "We saw one of those cloaked guys preaching on the streets of Ardanton."

That was the one Trabane had also encountered. "And from the way the Butcher was raving on, he was a part of them."

"A cult." Ackmon said.

"What else did he say about the book?" Trabane asked Card.

Card thought about it for a moment, being knocked out had blurred his memory. "He said that the book was written by his mother in her blood. As I said, he thought by having it she would release him or something." He hadn't paid too much attention to the Butcher's rantings.

Ackmon spoke up. "Card looked at the book."

Card nodded. "I understood part of it.... it was alchemist spells in the second half. I think the first was written spells that I can't read." He did not mention that he casted one of the alchemist spells.

Trabane nodded. "And Vector seems to want it."

"Which brings me to another question Trabane." Ackmon stood back up. "You said we were going to follow Warhammer and this book?" He asked.

Trabane nodded again. "I told you, if we're going to make a name for ourselves so we get the really good jobs, following this book is something we should do. If Vector wants it, it has importance and Vector never does anything good for this world. So I say we make a name for ourselves by stealing the book back and handing it over to the right authority."

Ackmon snickered. "What, the Black Market?"

Trabane shook his head. "Well no, even though its not custom for us outlaws to associate with big government, we hand the book over to the Tripower."

Ackmon froze for a moment. You could say Trabane despite his outlaw status was a patriot of the Tripower, a very very silent patriot. But the more Ackmon thought about it, it made sense. They lived in Torregiano, if they helped the Tripower they would become known by the city, and the jobs would roll in. "By Cyric, you're right."

Trabane stumbled back a few. "I think that's the first time you agree'd with me on business."

Ackmon shrugged. "I typically don't agree with your half assed insane approach on things."

The tracking ferret which Card had brought along scurred across the helm room, disappearing into one of the many pipes on the airship.

"Wait, who brought the weasel?" Trabane asked.

Ackmon pointed at Card.

Trabane snickered. "Ok, besides being a part of this business, any pets you bring belongs to you, and you get to feed it...and clean its mess."

Card nodded, he never had a pet before.

"Ok, so now what Chief, head for Deva?" Ackmon asked.

Trabane gave a nod. "Take control Ackmon, I'm going to go meditate." He headed for the door.

Ackmon got into the captain's chair. "Hey brainless, stay alert this time."