Fantasy Howl's Flying Castle (Finished! ---Whoo! (*＾▽＾)／)

[Katsuya]

Renee nodded before blinking at Lydia when she waved her hands frantically and chuckled softly. "I know. I know. Never said that you were suggesting that; Only that it's probably the only option when it comes to bait." She shrugged a bit. "Though that is a good idea, to have an explosive near the enemy's camp too...Hmm..."

Grinning at the witch, the winged teen cracked her neck and shoulders and walks towards the door, opening it for Lydia so she wouldn't run into it. "Alright, I'll go look for James and the others. We can meet up at the library so wait for us there, okay?"

Then she looked down at the sleepy ferret and gently placed him on the pillow next to Seth's head, tenderly caressed his fur and her little brother's hair for a second. A warm glint appeared in her eyes as she thought on how her little brother might react to finding Mica next to him and giggled. "Take care of Seth while I'm gone, okay, Mica?" The ferret licked her hand tiredly and she took it as an 'okay'.

"Ready?" Renee asked Lydia, now excited to find everyone in this tower.

Roleplay Skittle Zer0

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Duke Maguire's Keep-
​

Well, the princess was good bait... but so was the mirror that they had recently stolen. Both were invaluable however and Lydia for one was certain no one wanted to risk either, "both actually might be good... get them to look away from the sewer drainage gate outside of the city, but it might require James to stay behind... he could use Sasha to see when we are on the outskirts and give the signal to the people manning the trebuchet."

Lydia was gesticulating with her hands again, though this time with more purpose than when she had previously spoken with Echo and tried to convey her feelings in a way that didn't make her seem like a total dunderhead.

She smiled as Renee put Mica down next to Seth, it reminded her that she still had yet to get back at him for that last prank... but that would have to wait a little longer, now wasn't the time. Maybe Mica wouldn't be so crabby after a nap. He looked so cute when he wasn't being awful... maybe having a summons wouldn't hurt, she could see the benefits of it.

Lydia followed after Renee as she went to the door and nodded her head, "as ever!"

Katsuya Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- James Pendragon -
" Holt, Duke Maguire's Keep "​

Now it was James' turn to dread Serena's reaction. He didn't answer, instead he unconsciously slid his hot mug of coffee between them like a barrier, holding it with two hands. He looked deeply ashamed and remorseful remembering what he did during the tournament, and seemed guarded and uncertain if it was alright to tell Serena.

He was at his worst that day . . . He must have looked like some kind of scary monster in his rage. And what he did to his sister . . . Serena wouldn't probably like him as a friend anymore.

"I . . . " muttered James, looking stoic, but his voice was a little shaky, " I . . . cheated." he cleared his throat looking at the soldiers at the far side. "I hired him, to . . . hurt my sister. I told him how to do it." his black eyes finally looked up into Serena's blue ones like a guilty child dreading what his parents would say after they caught him doing something wrong. "But-but I didn't know he'd go that far, I didn't mean for it to go that far."

Oh, shoot, the memory of his battered sister pitifully lying in the coliseum's medical ward wincing in pain from all those horrible wounds was starting to make his eyes water. It was all his fault and to think she forgave him too. He felt annoyed with his eyes, men don't cry, and there were soldiers watching. They and Serena were going to think he was some embarrassing baby.

He bent down and pretended to tie the laces of his boots so that he could secretly wipe his few manly tears on his knee.

Katsuya

- Johnny Caprice -
" Holt, Duke Maguire's Keep "​

Renee and Lydia would find Johnny and Echo talking nearby in the hallway. When he spotted them, he gave silent facial gestures Echo wouldn't see as she was still nuzzled under his chin that seemed as though he was trying to silently tell them either: he needed them to pull Echo away because he really needed to use the bathroom, or something was on fire and they shouldn't be here for some reason.

Katsuya , Roleplay Skittle

OOC || Characters || Interest Check​

 

[Katsuya]

-Holt-​

When the pair left the room and found the couple, Renee blinked at Johnny's reaction and almost snorted before walking up to the fawn and poked her side. "Echo, really, cuddling in the hallway...that's just so cute! I knew you two would be a lovely couple!"

Echo's face turned red as Renee teased her and slightly glared at her friend. "Oh shush!" She lets go of Johnny to fully look at the winged teen and noticed something very strange about her wings...

"Um...Renee? Was someone biting your wings today?"

"Yep...not the point. Can you go with Lydia? You too, Johnny whenever you can? We sort of want to talk with everyone."

***​

Serena did not expect that, knowing James and how calm he is, it's a wonder that he even would hurt his sister. Taking a deep breathe, the blonde observed on how the oldest Pendragon is behaving and reached a conclusion of her own.

The blonde stopped playing the violin, ignoring the soldiers who were looking at them and sat next to James. "...As long you didn't mean it...does Renee know? It seems to me that she still holds you in high regards." Serena took the cup of coffee away from James and asked a servant that passed by to bring some water or tea that can sooth the nerves. Seems like Serena just wanted to know the truth first before judging the oldest Pendragon.

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Duke Maguire's Keep-
​

Lydia paused when she spotted Johnny and Echo. 'Uuuuuugh.... boy, girl problems....' was the only thing she could manage to think when she saw how Johnny was gesturing. It gave her flashbacks to the weirdness between James and Serena when they were setting up the tent and Serena was playing sensual music on her violin. She just didn't know how to handle that stuff and it made her incredibly uncomfortable. She always thought Echo and Johnny were a sweet couple and it made her envious, but she was glad when Renee stepped in and stopped Johnny's weird miming.

She gave Johnny a weird look, one of her eyes squinting slightly and her mouth shifting to the side before she shook her head, laughing slightly as Renee teased them and she waited for them to follow or decline before she would head off towards the library.

Zer0 Katsuya

 

[Zer0]

- Johnny Caprice -
" Holt, Duke Maguire's Keep "​

"Yes, of course. And we need to talk about . . . summoning later, Renee." said Johnny still making those facial gestures behind Echo's back as though he needed to go to the bathroom or Echo needed to be gotten out of the way. "Oh, I see you've conjured up your ferret, good job!" He silently mouthed, 'Renee, Lydia, It's Echo's birthday in five days! Don't look at me --- don't be obvious!'

He coughed, "Lead the way, L-Lydia!"

Katsuya , Roleplay Skittle

- James Pendragon-
" Holt, Duke Maguire's Keep "​

"Yes, Renee knows." said James, still bent over and untying and tying his boot laces. "And, yes, she unbelievably still calls me her brother. She has such a very, very big heart. I don't deserve her forgiveness . . . "

That was why he was taking her to the Storm Wall, he had so much to make up to her. And, argh, come to think of it, he should have gone with her after she left the war room. She was very upset about what happened to Seifer and James didn't feel like he comforted her enough. The wings behind her head reappeared too, and he wondered if it was something to worry about.

"Did she go back to the room after she went out with the mirror?" he asked Serena.

Katsuya

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Duke Maguire's Keep-
​

Lydia's eyes grew larger and her pupil's dilated like a cat focusing in on its prey as she deciphered what Johnny was trying to say. But she quickly closed them before blinking a few times and nodding in response to Johnny's directive and turning towards the library. Once her back was to Echo, her mouth curved into a grin, what a great way to take their minds off of the somber happenings as of late. Of course how they would celebrate a birthday party under the circumstances was completely beyond her. Maybe she could figure out the right miscast for fireworks?

Zer0 Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Holt-​

"Um..yea, sure." Was Echo's confused reply.

Renee's wings perked up when Johnny mouthed about Echo's birthday and grinned before waving her friends as she left to look for James and Serena. "Thanks Johnny! Alright, I'll see you at the library." Then she jogged away, asking the guards if they have seen her brother and Serena.

***

Serena hummed before poking James' head. "I see...well it's not like I can scold you about it since it already happened a week and so ago." The blonde shrugged as if she wasn't bothered by it and she wasn't. As long the sister knows and still forgave him, then yea she would still want to be friends with James. She had to agree with him on that though: Renee did have a big heart to forgive him despite what he has done to her.

"No, I didn't see her come back before I left..." That's...really worrisome considering she left looking depressed and quiet. Now that she thought about it, she hasn't seen Renee after watching her leave the room...Oh no-! Before Serena could panic however, the winged teen jogged in the kitchen, looking around as if she was searching for someone.

"Oh look...speak of the devil. Renee! Over here!"

Renee looked over to where Serena and James were grinning a bit as she walked up to them. "Hi guys. Um...Can you come with me to the library? Lydia and I want to talk with everyone about something..." Her wings fluttered nervously as she noticed James is...tying his shoes?

"James? Are you okay?" She asked, worried if her brother was stressed or something...

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle

 

[Zer0]

- James Pendragon -
" Holt, Duke Maguire's Keep "​

"Yes, I'm just tying my boots. You two just go ahead, I'll catch up." muffled James from under the table. He had been untying and re-tying his laces for the past three minutes.

Hoot, sounded Sasha looking up from her bowl at the ferret on Renee's head. Hoot, hoot. she clicked its beak at it interestedly as though she has never seen a ferret before, and eyed it a little hungrily. To her, it seemed like a very big fat tasty mouse.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

Renee raised an eyebrow at her brother, not believing him but didn't call him out either. "Um...Alright...come on Serena."

Mica, who decided to follow and climb on Renee's head, heard the owl's hooting and bared his sharp teeth before curling around her neck again, glaring at Sasha. He's not a rat and he would eat that bird if she tried anything funny.

The winged teen scratched Mica's head again to calm him down since she heard him quietly hiss. "It's okay, Mica. Sasha wouldn't hurt you." She comforted him only for him to snort unbelievably and continued to glare at the owl.

Then the girls walked up to the library together, talking and laughing about something random.

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle

 

[Zer0]

- James Pendragon -
" Duke Maguire's Keep, Mess Hall "​

"Full?" said James, looked up at the owl when he was sure Serena and Renee had gone.

Hoot, Sasha hopped, distended belly bouncing, on to his hand and walked along his arm until she reached his ear and nibbled it affectionately as if to thank him for the meal. James chortled, it tickled. He massaged her small feathery head with three fingers fondly before she poofed out in a small puff of cloud to sleep in her home realm.

Ever since he was small, James had been taught not to cry, for it was shameful for men to cry. And he was the eldest, he had to be strong and calm, not show weakness in front of his sister, or Serena. "All is well." he told himself bracingly, lightly thumping the table with his fists, before standing up to make his way to the library.

There were only two things that made him weep and that was when he lost, or was on the way to losing a huge part of his life that he loved as much or more than himself.

Before he broke down crying in front of Renee that day during the tournament, the last, last time he really cried like that was when his fourth ex broke up with him. That was early last year, before he turned seventeen.

That girl was the whole package: intelligent, with delicate fingers and really nice clavicles, gentle and loved children. They were addicted hopelessly to each other, beyond the physical aspect of it, beyond reason, and beyond logic. They had beautiful dreams they thought of together, and the dim-witted troll that James was took her for granted, missed too many monthly anniversaries, spent too much time on his thesis instead of her, and finally missed her birthday.

After she broke up with him, he was completely and utterly broken. When he realized there was nothing he could do to get her back, something inside him snapped and he broke down crying. He hurt really bad and was unable to process the strong emotions that coursed through him at once:

Scared at the prospect of never getting her kisses again, failing to matter to the one he loved the most, hating himself for giving someone so much power over him, feeling ashamed of crying like a prat in front of her and still being unable to control the darn tears, the helplessness to stop his heart literally breaking in front of him.
And finally realizing just how much she meant to him, but how little he now meant to her.

Johnny had comforted him, saying that tears signifies strength. It shows that one dared to venture. And even after failure, James came back strongly. And kept moving on . . .

The world was unfair to men sometimes. It's alright and socially acceptable for a girl to cry and seek support from friends and family, but a man is expected to suck it all up, not feel helpless and never ever cry, not even to one's friends. Johnny, thank the gods for that oddball of a best mate, didn't judge James and just sat with him without saying anything for the entire night he was a blubbering baby. Didn't even glance at the wall clock on his bedroom.

Maybe if people understood what some guys go through, and are given an empathic shoulder to lean on sometimes, they'd recover from hurtful things sooner.

As he walked up the flagged stone steps, James secretly wished Johnny the best with Echo. That guy was still new to love --- sort of --- he had been the crying shoulder and "advisor" of all things guy related to his nine older sisters whenever they had a boyfriend, so he had witnessed a lot of what goes on in the girl's side of a relationship. Perhaps that's where he got his patience and self-control from, because he knows too well what a girl with a broken heart looks like.

 

[Zer0]

Episode 6: Eye of the Monsoon


- Holt Outskirts -
" Mini-quest: Where's Our Stuff? "​

Like most things that dwell in deep dark places, orcs, goblins, ogres, and shades have no love for daylight, hence the reason why the black dragon sends a cover of dark storm clouds to ease their passage to conquer new lands.

Because of this, James suggested that they attempt to get their things during day time when most of them are sluggish or asleep. But late during the night, a fire had blazed in the forest where they last hid and was still burning when morning came.

The dark clouds still cast an ominous shadow over the land. The battle from last night had moved from the front gates to the western wall where the enemy had cracked it and were sending more siege engines to widen the gap for the army to storm through.

It was probably good that the forest was on fire, because it made for a very good cover after they were able to secretly leave the city through a distraction planned by Lydia involving a trebuchet. With Renee's Moldable Barriers, James' Flamme Garde spell, and Callie the ethereal manta ray's ability to create air bubbles around their heads that allowed them to breathe for ten hours, the party members who set out to retrieve their things were able to pass relatively unharmed through the forest fire.

It was a strange sensation, instead of being burned, the Flamme Garde spell made the fire feel ticklish instead. This shielding spell was widely used during the middle ages when witch burnings was popular. The caught witch would simply cast this spell, pretend to scream in pain, and just escape by turning into a small toad or mouse, giggling all the while.

"Someone took our things." said Johnny, through the crackling wall of flames around them. He closely examined the unearthed mound where he had buried their stuff. "There are tracks and they lead northwest away from Holt, shall we follow, everyone?"

Katsuya Roleplay Skittle

 

[Katsuya]

Renee frowns when Johnny announced that someone took their stuff, feeling a bit cheated that someone would even take their stuff after all they've been through...

Echo stared at the trees that were burning with a sad look in her eyes, wanting to go find some seeds and replant them. Her frown deepened when Johnny announced it and wondered how did this creature carry her hammer?

Serena stayed behind in Holt, believing that the group will have a better chance of sneaking around with one less person. Besides even if Princess is same what safe, she wanted to protect her in case the enemy breached through the wall. Though the violinist did hug James before they left and telling him to be careful.

"...yep..." Renee muttered, her wings fluttering a bit in annoyance. Echo nodded in agreement .

Roleplay Skittle Zer0

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Holt Outskirts-
​

To Johnny's revelation, Lydia was furious. All this trouble and their stuff was gone? Her book? No no no, that just wouldn't do. Her face twisted with such anger and disbelief, it was probably hard to believe that she could even make that face.

She turned her gaze to Johnny, the anger fading and the look of disbelief remaining as though she were completely shocked that he would even ask if they wanted to follow, "of course!!"

Zer0 Katsuya

 

[Zer0]

- Quarry -​

Johnny shrunk a little from Lydia's scary expression, and had already moved about ten feet away when she spoke to him. "O-okay." he said in a small voice.

He, James, Seth, Echo, Renee, and Lydia followed the tracks out of the burning forest and after two hours of stealthy hiking with Seth in the lead, they came upon an old muddy road that led to a gaping chasm in the ground that seemed to be a quarry.

It seemed to be abandoned, though there were lamps burning low on oil hanging from rusty iron chains from the cavern roof. It seemed like this quarry had been abandoned about three days ago. There were pickaxes scattered all over iron veins as though the miners just dropped them and then left. Underneath a table were some rotten food, and a mess of plates and tin mugs.

In the muddy areas of the quarry, there were hundreds upon hundreds of footprints all pointing up to the entrance, and over them were larger bare-footed ones, small ones, and ogre sized ones. It seemed that the goblins, orcs, ogres and trolls had come up from this chasm before they attacked Holt.

The foot prints that the group was following was lost in the hundreds of tracks. There were two places to move on from here: a crude rickety pulley elevator that seemed to be used to haul up carts of ore that they can lower slowly to get down to a bottom that they cannot see, or a lit passage to the side of a cavern that led to a narrow tunnel that wound on and on.

Katsuya Roleplay Skittle

 

[Katsuya]

-Quarry-​

"Great...more caves..." Renee groaned, hearing her light echo in the large cavern and Echo giggled.

"Now now, Ren. Caves aren't so bad to be in."

"Yes they are. I mean, come on: the two times we were in caves there were mons-!" The winged teen slipped on the muddy ground, landing on her behind as the wet splat echoed. She froze for a second, cringing from the cold wetness on her pants and stood up, glaring at nothing in disgruntlement.

"Monsters.....Yea, caves aren't so bad when it's not muddy and filled with evil creatures that want to steal or kill us." Renee grumbled, pouting as she continued to walk and stopped at the endless looking halls. She squinted her eyes at it, suspicious of even going in. It's the same with the very questionable elevator that Echo is looking into, not touching it in case the wires will break.

"Heheh-! R-Ren, you shouldn't hate the area. It's not like the caves want to be a monster's home. Besides, we invaded the ogres' home."

"To get our food and horses back." She countered. Then she looked over to Lydia, James, Seth, and Johnny with a small frown. "What do you think? Should we go through here or down the elevator? Should we even split up?"

Roleplay Skittle Zer0

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Quarry-
​

Lydia's expression turned from that of disappointment to amusement as Johnny shrunk away from her a little. She had forgotten about his phobia and his reaction entertained her. She would have to make that her battle face or something. Though the raven haired now not so novice witch doubted that she'd be able to intimidate anyone of a more common standing when it came to girls, with her small stature and giant green eyes.

With a self satisfied smile, Lydia followed along with the others, trying not to think of anything in particular that she'd want to write down simply because once it's thought of, the thought can be lost and she didn't want to lose any thoughts because they were precious currency to her. As they came upon the somewhat foreboding scene of the abandoned quarry, she shivered and released a soft rolling sound that vibrated past her lips before quickly disappearing. This was unnerving. If the creatures that were currently attacking Holt came from here, who knew what else they might find lurking about.

A perplexed and mildly disgusted look was given to Echo as she suggested that caves weren't that bad to be in and nodded along with what Renee was saying until she paused as Renee fell. Did she have cooties? She felt like some of her clumsiness might have rubbed off on the Pendragon sister because Lydia was usually the one falling on slick surfaces. Thinking so, she offered to help her up before her hands returned to their place pointlessly rubbing against her upper arms.

Laughing as Renee sarcastically continued what she had been saying, "even without monsters, they are still cold... and smelly.. and dark.. bleh!" Lydia stuck her tongue out and squinted her eyes shut before she stopped walking as they came to the fork with their two possible paths. Neither way looked particularly ideal but, "well... I think we should take the tunnel... at least we'd be on presumably solid ground.. versus this rickety lift... that could break... and fall..." Lydia grimaced as she trailed off. She did not want to set foot on the lift, plus she surmised that the other way was lit so she thought it might have been more recently traveled, she also thought that further down was more likely to have even more things that they probably didn't want anything to do with.

Katsuya Zer0

 

[Katsuya]

-Quarry-​

Echo couldn't help but be amused by Lydia's reaction, giggling as she looked past the lift and down the dark hole.

"Hm...true, but that's why it makes a perfect home for all the night critters like bats." The fawn stared for a few seconds before walking to where Renee and Lydia are, smiling happily. It could be that she's more connected to the earth or uses earth magic, but Echo really did like caves. They have many tunnels and have good hiding places. If they looked around, maybe they can find something other than their stuff too.

"Alright...let's go through the tunnel then." Renee agreed with Lydia, not really willing to go through a dark and possibly more damp place where she couldn't really fly. It's just too creepy and she rather eat bitter things than suffer in the dark again. Besides the last time she went in a dark place, it had a giant dragon egg underneath the tree...with evil shadow blights.

Roleplay Skittle Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Quarry -
" Mineshaft "​

The tunnel was not muddy, rather compact and dry. It was a mining shaft, where the ground was well worn and depressed from all the years miners trudged through carrying sacks of heavy ores. The lit lamps that were burning low on oil only illuminated the passage up to a hundred meters, beyond that all was darkness.

If memory served right, they had learned from school that goblins, ogres, and orcs can somewhat see in the dark, though some still used torches.

The hard dirt made following the trail almost impossible, but it seemed that they were on the right track because in the lamp lit part of the passage was Renee's empty bag being sniffed about by some rats, with some of her personal belongings everywhere, including her sketchpad which was smeared with mud, blood and had been stepped on so that some pages hung almost pulled out from the covers; her important items were gone, such as potions, food, all things metallic, and clothes.

Up ahead, if the party chooses to light their way, they will see that this mine shaft branched in so many different directions that it was easy to get lost. There were four passages to take, one led up where the air didn't smell so foul, another led down where it seemed like there was some slight noises but it was hard to tell from here, one veered to the left where it seemed like there was a mine cart and some tracks, another to the right where the sound of an underground river could be heard bubbling deeper down into the mines.

Katsuya Roleplay Skittle

***​

James had summoned a couple of floating will-o-wisps to light their rear. He decided to take the role of rear guard and kept glancing behind him with his wand out just to make sure there was nothing there. Butters was beside him, though the ram felt a bit cramped in the tunnel. Johnny was at the front with Meatballs who was sniffing out the trail.

Frey, the ethereal stag had the beautiful but dead-give-away ability to always be glowing silvery white, just like Callie, so James did not summon him. There was Sparks, but he hadn't summoned that lightning salamander for a long time.

'Why did she hug me?', he thought for the umpteenth time, thinking about Serena's sudden show of affection earlier this morning. He had frozen, surprised by her sudden hug and wondered why she always does intimate things like it was nothing? I mean, there were people watching.

Maybe this was what she meant when people thought she was insane or misunderstood her when she tried to do something nice? Like when she wiped the cream from his lips, and when she played that sensual song, saying things like, "I feel happy playing for you", so freely. It was embarrassing, but he remembered the reactions of people in the past which had hurt her so he just patted her awkwardly on the back and said in a subdued voice that they were going to get her violin back too.

What if people started thinking that they were going out or something, when they weren't? Sudden hugs from the opposite gender was something only siblings or couples do.

She was really hard to figure out sometimes. Like James didn't know if she did things as a friend or because she liked-liked him. His thoughts were filled with trying to understand her.

She did caress Seth intimately which made him think she liked-liked him too, then she came up and told him he was sleeping like a sister. So if she could caress Seth like that, who was just two years younger than her and a guy, then maybe he misunderstood that sensual song part. Maybe it was a compliment, like how girls find actors attractive, but they're not really going to seriously date them or anything. She was a very straight forward person when it came to expressing her feelings, so maybe he misunderstood her honest opinion of him when she didn't mean anything deeper.

I mean, Renee said that it takes effort to compose a song, but Serena makes songs for everybody else. Argh, so confusing!

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Quarry-
​

Oh no. Bats! Lydia hadn't even considered that despite a previous run-in she had with some of the aerial cave dwellers and she visibly cringed, hugging her arms tightly as she squinted one eye shut and stared at Echo in a sort of silent horror.

She watched her step carefully as she moved along through the tunnels with the rest of the group, covering her mouth as they spotted Renee's bag. She could completely empathize and if they found Renee's book in such a state, she lost a little of the hope that her own book had fared any better. And her glasses! Lydia groaned softly before pressing her normally full lips together in a line as she thought about the possible loss of her most important belongings.

Lydia shivered again and swallowed loudly as they came to the split tunnels before listening carefully, she neared the tunnel where it seemed the most sound could be heard and without saying anything to the rest of the group, she placed her hands in front of her and focused her will, softly reciting an incantation, "Information I must descry. Speakers’ voices, Amplify!"

She listened carefully again before turning her wide green eyes on the rest of the group and pointing awkwardly down the way she had just cast her spell, "there are things... err.... someones? There're voices that way," her typically smooth and sometimes squeaky voice came out in a raspy squeak as she informed the others of what she heard.

Katsuya Zer0

 

[Katsuya]

-Quarry-​

Renee continued to walk, not really minding the creepy crawlers that were climbing on the cave walls. What she does mind is her bag and sketchbook on the ground with blood and mud and-!

"My bag! My sketchbook! Augh-! Wait until I get my hands on them!" The wings on her head puffed up in her agitation as she walked over to where her bag was, shooing the rats away so she could pick it up along with her ripped apart sketchbook. When she felt something moving in her bag, Renee shook her bag, and a rat fell down before scurrying away. Echo was nice enough to buy her this book and whoever stole their stuff had the nerve to destroy it! Even worse, they have her clothes, those perverts-!

Slinging the strap over her shoulder and head while tucking the rest of her book in it, Renee decided to summon Mica in case they needed to heal someone in a surprise attack or something. She stayed beside James as they walked further in the tunnel only to find other different tunnels...there were too many...

Renee sighed as her wings flapped once and she looked over to her brother, raising an eyebrow at his thinking expression. What's on his mind, she wonders...and then she remembered something and grinned before clearing her throat to catch his attention.

"What's the matter James?" She asked quietly so Lydia can hear what's in the many tunnels in front of them.

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle

 

[Zer0]

- Quarry -
" Down Tunnel, Goblin Camp "​

"Lights out everyone." whispered Seth. "I-I'll scout ahead. J-just stay here for a bit." he gulped, and made his way into the passage that sloped down into the dark

"I'll send Sasha to check the underground river. Creatures that need to drink would usually camp near a water source." said James. "Choutte Venire". The wispy ghost owl appeared out of a puff of cloud and disappeared into the dark tunnel to the right. He glanced at his sister. "I'm just thinking about . . . Serena --- but shh, don't tell anyone, Renee. She's just, different, I can't figure her out." he whispered.

Butters, who had been listening, looked the other way. Humans usually forgot that he understood the common speech.

***​

Down into the tunnels below Seth crept forward very carefully. He had wanted to stay in the castle as he still felt shaken from last night's events, but after seeing Serena hug his older brother for some reason, he decided to come to show that he was much better, cooler, and he wanted to be the one to present Serena her violin.

But the sight that met him below told him that that wasn't going to be easy. It was a goblin's camp. And no, not the crude barbaric type that he had seen in the dark army's camp, but a green-skin camp.

There were two types of goblins in the world --- at least two worth noting. The "Green Skins" and everyone else.

Green goblins were smart, devious, and had made their mark upon humanity as brilliant engineers who have a great love for explosions. Most weapons in the world today that have nothing to do with magic were developed by goblins or gnomes (who were their rivals in technology), and the ones in the cave were no different.

There were ten of them. One was a goblin mage who was making potions using Renee's and James ingredients while reading the Ogre Tome, beside the mage were all of Lydia's and James' books stacked neatly on the ground. Two had rifles --- real rifles, five were armored and carrying shields and swords while they mined a tunnel, two were archers, and all of them carried bombs --- one mining warrior had an entire gun powder keg strapped to its back, and all around the chamber were crates, and crates full of sticks of dynamite.

They weren't on their guard. The two rifle-goblins were smoking around a campfire eating food from James and Renee's bags, while the two archers were wearing Renee's and Lydia's clothes while pretending to be scared humans running for their lives. Beside the campfire was Renee's other sketchpad and Lydia's journal that did not contain anything knowledge related that they were using as tinder to feed the fire.

None of them spoke the common tongue, but instead gobblegook. That language that those ogres used before that Johnny understood. There was no sign of Seth's, Seifer's, Johnny's, Echo's and Serena's things.

Seth immediately withdrew and told everyone this.

Katsuya , Roleplay Skittle

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Tunnel, Goblin Camp-
​

Her brow furrowed as Seth shakily volunteered to scout ahead, her lips pressing together as she nodded slightly and gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder before he went. Lydia cast James a brief glance before she looked back down the tunnel Seth had just passed through and cast her eavesdropping spell again, just to listen in case he got in trouble.

She continued to focus her spell until she heard Seth returning. That fury that she previously had when Johnny said someone had taken their stuff, returned with a vengeance and she began rolling up the billowy sleeves of her off-white blouse. It was a funny thing watching someone just over five foot constantly try to display physical prowess. Well, she didn't really try, just her mind was a lot tougher than her body and so she just kind of did these things.

"those gross things are... are....!!!" With how absolutely mortified she sounded, one would think they rifled through her underwear drawer, "I'm gonna' put such a hurt on them!"

Katsuya Zer0

 

[Katsuya]

-Mineshaft-​

"Be careful, Seth." Echo mumbled, clasping her hands together as if she was praying for his safety.

Renee raised an eyebrow at her brother, her grin widened. He's confused about Serena? Now why would he be confused about her? She is much more straight-forward than Echo and herself combined and doesn't really understand the social standard of space. Sure, she was quirky, but the Pendragon sister guessed it's because she plays violin so much and hanging around with a very quirky mentor...

Okay, maybe there's a reason why Serena would stump James.

"Um...Okay, then what about Serena that has you confused?" Renee leaned towards her older brother as she whispered, making sure that no one is listening in. Mica looked at James with an unimpressed and uninterested expression on his face, sniffing a bit.

When Seth returned and told them what he has found, Renee could feel Mica's fur puffing up like her wings. Really? They took their stuff, destroyed some of hers, and now they are using them too?! Taking a deep breathe, she counted to ten in her mind, not realizing that her wings are slowly turning back into strands of hair.

Oh yea, she's mad but she's not going to let anyone know that. Nope. "Alright, what do we do?"

Roleplay Skittle Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Quarry -
" Down Tunnel, Goblin Camp "​

When James saw Renee's grin, he quickly added: "It's not like that!" he whispered, embarrassed. "I'm just . . . intrigued by her, like how you'd be intrigued if you came across a plant you didn't understand." he explained with an innocently straight face.

Their conversation was interrupted when Seth came back.

"I think if we ambush them and focus fire on one group, we can weaken them before the real fight begins, but we have to be careful with the dynamites." said Seth. "I-I'm going to go for the rifle-goblins."

"That's the spirit, Lydia. And I'm getting my books back. Mage." said James, cutting the link between him and Sasha for now.

"Warriors." said Johnny, determinedly, moving slightly away from the angry looking Lydia.


Katsuya , Roleplay Skittle

Spoiler: Enemies

There are four enemy targets. The groups count as one entity and their danger level is arranged in ascending order:

1. Goblin Mage - 5 Hp
2. Rifle-goblin Pair - 2 Hp, attacks twice.
3. Warrior Goblins Squad - 2 Hp, attacks twice.
4. Archer Goblins Pair - 2 Hp

Feel free to attack and start the dice battle on your next posts.