Fundamentally, there had been very little that had changed throughout the time of Hargeon, since the conflict began, since the fateful day that a riot which broke out became the symbol for what was becoming a trade war, a clash of philosophies, waged between the politicians of Hargeon whom had long stood as nothing more than bureocrats will zero actual power to their names facing off against the trading companies that had for so long dominated the hearts and minds of the businesses within Hargeon and extending out even further beyond throughout Fiore. That riot, what it had been, had become so much more, and for some, people were beginning to catch on, realizing just how impactful it actually stood to be. But for many, there were no shortage of moments in which ignorance, a desire to put one’s head in the clouds simply enabled for them to continue about their day as though nothing at all were happening.

159/1500

What had at one point become a war of the minds, an attempt at converting the philosophies of the people, and by extension, the practices of the trading companies into something that were more fair and less predatory in nature – a shift in stances that more came following the events of this trade war beginning than anything else – it had instead found itself drawn out into a public display of chest beating, with both sides beating their chest, adamant that their philosophies were correct. For the trading companies, everything was business as usual, at least as far as they were concerned it should have been. The politicians, they argued, had overplayed their hand, trying to change something that nobody wanted, that nobody had asked for. Conversely, the politicians, some of who may have genuinely believed that they were in the right for what they were doing, found themselves now arguing that the companies were becoming too strong, that they were seeking to take over the city.

325/1500

Vyra found herself uniquely positioned in this whole ordeal, more than what most people would have either wished to be or would have otherwise found themselves in. She had no particular preference towards either group, viewing both sides of the conflict as ones looking out for themselves. The trading companies, everything she knew of them, before and after this conflict had begun, showed that their policies were far more focused on their own individual profits. However, the politicians were as much fake in their approach too. Vyra had been in Hargeon for a bit now, not just as a friend of Blue Pegasus, but having also been there as a poor girl living in the streets. Never once then did the politicians care about her, so there was no reason for her to believe that things suddenly have changed. Further, there was nothing to make her thing that it wasn’t just some attempt to save face, to give them some level of validity in what honestly was a city that did not care about them.

500/1500

Especially when she knew that in reality, it was Blue Pegasus that effectively ran Hargeon City. The guild was the key to everything. Much of the business that was driven to Hargeon, it was in part provided by the benefit of Alisa Vollan and the influences that she had. In terms of political theater, Blue Pegasus, while not having the actual say within the policies that were pushed, certainly had influence. If there was one thing that Alisa had much of, it was her sway over the people, not just the members of the guild, but also of the people. For many, they knew that it was Alisa who held the power in Hargeon, and that was something that the politicians had long resented. They viewed this conflict with the trading companies as their chance to remedy things and finally go ahead and shift public opinion more in their favor, but it was very clear that that was not how it seemed to be going.

665/1500

Part of the problem extended to the pure fact that there were so many people whom had gotten involved with the effort for both respective sides. Most notably that of the politicians, who had at first employed outside guards to try to go ahead and establish order at the docks, thinking that they would be able to do their job better than the security that had once been there. This met very little success, in part because of the guards being unaware and generally uninterested in being too obsessed with establishing trust and confidence in people. They were there to guard things, not make friends. That behavior fed into the second problem, that the people did not trust them, nor want them here. They treated the guards as outsiders, viewed them hostile, much like how the guards had responded towards them. It led to constant bickering back and forth between both respective sides, to the point where they had found themselves uninterested in helping further.

830/1500

Thus, as a result of a failure to try to reign in the docks via outside guards, instead they had attempted something interesting, something that was a bit more unconventional. By trying to smuggle in their own goods, they would have used the failures of the trading companies to recognize this as proof enough that they were putting people at risk by failing to adhere to the proper standards that were intended to be followed. On the surface, it was a brilliant plan, one that no doubt had a potential of working, certainly to shift public opinion, but also be used as a genuine case to argue against the freedom that the trading companies had presently carried with themselves. The only problem was them believing that the ships whom they were operating with to achieve this were aligned with their goals. It would end up being a serious mistake as a ship that made its way into Hargeon carrying cartons upon cartons of stolen tea, never did the politicians whom arranged for the theft and delivery suspect that the ship captain notified their contact at the trading company first.

1019/1500

The job given to Vyra was a bit of an unconventional one, at least as far as it was explained to her. When a group of sailors delivering cargo consisting of tea arrive, deny them access to the port. She wondered why it was something that they wanted her to handle, and though they would not say why, she suspected it was because of her loose affiliation to Blue Pegasus. Having someone of the guild turn away smuggled goods was as much something that would both save the trading company face, and also make the politicians plan fall through. It would end up being the biggest win possible for the trading companies, and it would be easy enough for Vyra to play the role of the Blue Pegasus member. Even though she may not have formally been in the guild, seldom few actually needed to know that; all that really mattered was that the impression was that she was Blue Pegasus.

1180/1500

The dialogue between her and the men who departed the ship was largely uninspiring. Trying to as much make it seem like she knew what she was talking about, she floated about various amounts of lingo that she had heard from her time at the docks, understanding some of it but not sure if it would entirely translate over to what these people knew. They did not seem like they were from Fiore, nor did they seem like anyone that Vyra had seen before, both of which worked more into her favor. As she further explained, it seemed that she was winning them over, though there was certainly some level of apprehensiveness on their part. They had made a long trip, likely having been put at risk carrying these stolen crates of tea. It was unlikely that they would just leave because Vyra put up a half convincing argument. It was going to take more than that.

1337/1500

Looking over one of the crates that had been unloaded, Vyra asked one of them to open. Though they obviously did not want to, but given the situation, they were hardly in a position to turn it down. As they opened it to reveal the large rocks that were within it, the couple of tea bags all shoved within, giving the impression that none of them were actually there, Vyra knew that the men were frozen. They didn’t know what was going to happen, and Vyra, trying to give the impression that she was a hard ass, figured the best option would be to make them think that they were not welcome. She kicked the crate, it barely moving at first, but once she put a bit more strength behind it, the crate went flying, falling right into the pier below. The men wanted to shout in protest, but it was apparent that they knew that she was not going to have any of it. Left with little option to do, they began to head back, at which point they would be intercepted by representatives of the trading company. Vyra’s actions had done more than enough to prove their point; at this point, letting the tea leave the harbor would be bad for business.

1551/1500