Gray Point (Calidrian Port City/Black Company Training and recruitment center)

"Not sure if they'll listen," Navin remarks. "The ones on the upper levels tend to be tribals, yeah? From what I remember they don't take kindly to strangers more often than not."

"We'll see, Iron side use to be one of them from what I hear, though that's only rumors," The Barkeep replied as he set another drink in front of the admiral. "The Company doesn't make it a habit of asken when and where a person's from as you know."

Navin lets out a hearty laugh. "Yeah, I've noticed! You folks have some interesting methods!" The admiral takes the drink and takes another sip. "Though now I'm curious if the new rumors are true..."

"Other rumors?" the barkeep asked, the man looking more than a little interested now.

"Yeah. That somethinbg dark is going on in Hakari, and that the Apocalypse Clock started ticking again in Aints. Its minute hand moved exactly once," Navin remarks.

While the Black Company does know that the Forest Elves keep some unusual allies within Hakari itself, there has been little to no information on who these people are. Luex can't... or won't, give any answers, and most of the Forest Elves are as oblivious to this fact as the Company is.

Meanwhile, the Apocalypse Clock... an ancient clock tower built in the city of Aints, in their main town square. The old myth is that it rang ten times, at ten in the morning, on the fateful day that the infamous Crimson Age happened. When the Crimson Age ceased, so too did the clock, as it permanently halted--at nine fourty-nine. If the hand has moved once, that means it needs only to tick ten more times to usher in a new age of madness.

The room went immediately silent as several glasses dropped to the floor and shattered, all eyes locked on the admiral.

"Y... you can't be serious right?" the barkeep asked, his voice only just noticeably shaking.

The admiral finishes his drink, setting it down before looking at the barkeeper, with a dead serious look. "I'm afraid not."

The patrons of the bar quietly went back to their drinks, all of them soon ordering harder stuff as the bartender excused himself for a moment, making his way to a small land line phone where he began to talk in hushed tones.

Navin sets down his now-empty glass, putting his tab on the table, before quietly headed for the door. He's said enough for tonight, and he knows that he'll need to be up early in the morning tomorrow.

On the other side of the phone, an old and weathered Neko grumbled as the news was related to him. The Black Company wasn't a superstitious lot by any means, but still... the news that the Apocalypse Clock had... ticked was an omen not to be ignored. Not anyone. His training regiments would have to be ready sooner than it seemed...