Fantasy Hunter's Moon [IC] [CLOSED]

[EdwardDewey98]

"Oh! Of course, ma'am! I was just thinking about the element of surprise!" he said, shifting his attention back to the road. "Being a constable, I can go unnoticed! Just in case Cassandra's employer might have eyes on the town. But maybe I'm just being paranoid." He then smiles. "Besides, you might actually be doing me a favor. Wouldn't want you ladies complaining that I picked a dress too big or small!"

 

[Radley]

Erwin grinned with his eyes and gave Theodore a glance "The freaks, the hideously scarred and the abnormally short get to enter through the back door, isn't that right Mr.Boivin?" He said with a slight chuckle.

 

[Viper Actual]

Galina looked at Erwin and Theodore. "Those who do not fit the norm are often those left underestimated. The two of you could very well prove to be, ah, how is it you Atracans say it?"

Galina paused and looked towards Rosanna.
"Our ace in the hole?"

 

[Infab]

Rosanna cut Galina a grin. "Aces in this case." she said, giving her a thumbs-up. As the group continued on, emerging from the patch of forest, Valeria finally spoke up again. "Ethraeil...what do you know of Sazak? Judging from your reactions to her...or him...you knew one another a bit too well." she said, glancing back to the carriage. She honestly wondered what had happened between the two all those years ago.

 

[joshuadim]

"The words of mortal man cannot describe my hatred for that fiend." Ethraeil stated from the carriage. "Sazak is a coward who strikes at the easiest moment possible, like the opportunistic leech he is. Top this with being a master manipulator that can bring out the worst in you without much effort. Do not believe a single damn word that comes out of his mouth, because there is always a catch in which he benefits." From his words, many seemed to be almost personal in the way he spoke. The hatred laced in it for the demon was pure and unbridled.

 

[Breadman]

Theodore could only chuckle in return to Erwin's remark. As the party moved onward he listened to what Ethraeil had to say about their newly met friend''. It only served to make the Escarian more suspicious of the demon's true intentions. Something the lich would most likely aim to do no doubt.

"The chances of him lying about the whole thing seem likelier and likelier. We are lucky that the sac à foutre infernal only asked for Mr. Van der Pol's face. And even then I wonder what possible way it can use that information."

 

[Viper Actual]

Galina shrugged. "Doesn't that apply to most demons, though? I can't say I've ever heard of a trustworthy hellspawn," she said while looking in Ethraeil's direction.

 

[Infab]

"There were a few through history, if I remember correctly from the Church archives. Its how we know how to deal with angels should one decide to go rogue or react violently to something that upsets them." said Valeria. "Thankfully angels tend to mind their own business."

Rosanna was quiet through the discussion, remembering Sazak's comment about her. Someone already held claim over her soul? Was it the being that turned her into a dullahan? The Rider? Her gaze remained on the road as she mulled over the reasons as to why the Rider would even want her soul to begin with.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Jakob continued to watch the road as well as his surroundings. The idea of bandits crossed his mind for a moment, but he was now considering the idea of Cassandra's employer hiring brigands to act as sentries, watching their movements from the woods. He kept looking about, till he was sure the coast was clear, before looking to Rosanna. He wanted to talk about what her favorite meal from down south was, but he noticed that she was lost in thought. "You alright, sister? Somethin' on your mind?" he asked. It didn't take long for him to figure out what was wrong, as he remembered the chat with Sazak. "...are you worried about something?"

 

[Infab]

Rosanna snapped out of her trance, looking over towards Jakob. "Oh, I worry 'bout a lot of stuff." she replied, with a smile. "But most things ain't worth worryin' over. Somethin' that demon said just kinda...ya' know...rubbed me wrong." she replied, her voice softening near the end.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

"Well..." he said, looking back to the road, "I know what you mean...when that thing mentioned my boy, I wanted to kill it with my bare hands." He looked down for a moment, before smiling again. "Don't think too much about what that thing said. Your soul belongs to you and nobody else." He then looked to Rosanna again. "And you won't turn into a monster, okay sister? I'll try my damnest to prevent that."

 

[Infab]

Rosanna gave Jakob a smile. "...I think the demon might be right 'bout my soul...but that don't change a thing." she replied. "I'm still gonna do what I do...and thank you." She looked back towards the road.

The group continued on, eventually making it halfway to Tresomin before stopping for the night to camp. Instead of a village this time, the group would make camp in the center of open plains beneath the star filled sky. It was quite relaxing honestly, though the group still kept alert in the event bandits or anyone associated with Cassandra decided to make an appearance. It also gave some of the group the chance to exchange stories, organize their gear, practice for the party, or go hunting animals in the night.

Rosanna found herself playing the guitar that Jakob had bought her in Bromwich, sitting quietly near Rayham and strumming away on the instrument. Meanwhile, Valeria was going through the clothing she had brought. She wouldn't be going into Tresomin dressed as an inquisitor, obviously, so she'd be coming up with a simple civilian outfit.

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Once they had all settled into their campground, and the sun had finally disappeared beneath the horizon, Aleister left the confines of the carriage to stretch.

"We really should invest in a more comfortable carriage, I dare say. Something with a little more cushion," he said to no one in particular. After a few minutes of easing out the stress in his limbs, Aleister sauntered over near the campfire and sat on the ground cross-legged. He grabbed one of the tomes on his belt, removed it, and laid it out on his lap.

"If you want your weapon to be blessed and enchanted, I will be doing so now. I should be able to do this for bullets, too, but it will be slower going through each individual one."

The vampire then reached down beneath his robes to his right boot, and he pulled a discrete dagger of modest size out of the side of the shoe. There was a sheath embedded within, allowing for a concealed carry of the blade. Most general inspections would miss it.

Aleister flipped through a few pages in the tome to study it, but he was aware of the basis and some other information. It only took him a few minutes to get his knife blessed and enchanted, and he looked around for others who needed their weapons taken care of as well.

 

[Dmaster]

Camille sat by the fire on the camp site, having spent an hour or so stretching her limbs by touching up her aim with her throwing daggers on a nearby tree stump. There was not much for her to do in way of wardrobe, given that she only brought her hunter gear and a spare outfit with it. It was best to travel light, she figured, as she had plenty of funds to procure supplies as she needed when it proved necessary. Her head turned to Aleister once he spoke up, and she soon slowly stood to her feet and trotted on over.

Why did their holy specialist have to be a vampire? The only reason she slightly trusted him was due to the fact that all of their lives were threatened by the pureblood, and she put a hand on her hip and stared down at him before sighing. The first weapon to be unsheathed was her rapier, which she gently lowered on to the ground before reaching for the straps fastened about her thigh, two sets of five silver quills slotted into each of them. "If you would be so kind." she says flatly, still looming over him even as he would go about with the enchantment process. Those weapons would not be going out of her sight.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Jakob offered his revolver and billy club to Aleister. "Thank you for this, priest." he said, giving the young vampire a smile while doing so. He then started to prepare some beef stew over a fire in the center of camp. "Hope y'all are hungry because I'm makin' one of my favorite stews! Nothing like good old beef, eh?" he said, adding the ingredients to the pot. As the stew was being prepared, he sat down next to Rosanna, pulling out a harmonica from his left pocket. A beautiful little instrument, with the name 'Maya' marked on its outer cover. He looked to everyone around. "Hope you folks don't mind a song." he said, while putting the harmonica close to his face. A moment later, he was playing a song.

 

[joshuadim]

Ethraeil sat alone on a small boulder a few meters away from the camp to be on guard as well as to be alone in his thoughts. The event of unfortunately coming across Sazak caused Ethraeil to be quiet for most of the way to Tresomin. At the moment he was hoping that a quiet, uneventful night would be enough for him to get his thoughts together as well as to deal with the stress that occurred today. It was very unusual to have such a vivid memory come to life in his very eyes, and he had no idea what exactly was causing it to be so powerful. Perhaps the work of an overzealous mind or that of a self-induced hallucination, he did not know for certain. As he sat, he sat in a cross-legged position and maintained a posture for meditation as he did in the Bromwich inn in his room.

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister gently took the rapier with both hands and laid it across his lap over the open tome. He hesitated for a second with the silver quills, and he took them from her with extreme care, his fingers turning to pins and needles as he handled them. Those were placed on the ground beside him as he wiggled his fingers to return feeling to them. He then glanced up at Jakob who offered his gun and club, which Aleister set aside as well with a nod as the man carried on to make some stew.

"Of course, my dear Marquess," Aleister said with a little smile, looking up at Camille. "It would be my pleasure."

He placed his index and middle finger together on the hilt of the rapier and closed his eyes, silent words on his lips as he mouthed an incantation. In a single fluid like motion, he brought his left hand around and placed one finger on the flat side of the blade starting at the crossguard, and he slid the finger slowly alongside the blade all the way up to the tip. The silver within it did not bother him as the transference of energy, and the holy enchantment itself, overrode the uncomfortable sensation of touching the cursed metal. With the rapier now enchanted and blessed in the same process, he held it back up for Camille to take.

"A divine blessing now rests upon the blade... mistress. It is not permanent, for these are temporary, but if you do wish for fully consecrated weapon then I could do so as well, so long as I have the time and resources."

It took him a few minutes longer to bless the silver quills, having to touch each one in turn to bestow the protective and enhanced magic into them. He followed through with blessing Jakob's revolver and club, which he set aside neatly on the ground for the constable to take when ready.

Hearing the guitar and harmonica play together made for a rather rustic, but not unpleasant, atmosphere. Aleister was a bit more used to finely lacquered violins and grand pianos, though he appreciated music in all forms. He had a violin back home, but this wasn't the place for such instruments.

 

[K0mori]

Mariette stepped out of the carriage shortly after Aleister, loudly cracking her neck as she did so. The carriage was uncomfortable to sleep in, just as Aleister had described, to the point that Mariette wasn't quite worried about appearing perfectly ladylike and well-mannered all the time. On top of that, she knew that the temporary strength given to her by the Romanov blood had finally left her system, and she was back to her ordinary self. Aside from a dull, nagging want for the precious stuff, she accepted the regression without complaint. She still hadn't told them, and probably wouldn't unless she could get Aleister fully alone. She milled about for a while, handing him her pistol and dagger to ensure that the weapons were properly blessed to fight the enemy, and thinking about how to handle the coming task.

She also made sure to claim a spot on the exact opposite side of the campfire from where Camille sought to sleep. While others would merely see their petty rivalry, Mariette saw an opportunity. Later, when the two were seated across from each other, Camille found it difficult to tell whether Mariette was staring into the flames or was looking at her.

 

[Dmaster]

The Marquess took her bandoleers of quills and rapier back from Aleister as he offered them, sheathing the blade and setting to strapping the quills back around her legs. As she did so, the vampire's explanation hit her, and Camille's body seized up upon hearing him call her 'mistress'. It was hard to tell from the angle but... did she retch at the word? "Do not ever call me that again." she said as sharply as she could manage. Then rising to her full height, starting to walk back toward the flames. A permanently consecrated weapon was something that she imagined would be necessary to obtain in the future, though it would have to be from a different priest.

After the enchantment was done she sat back near the fire, her bedding rolled out close to her as she watched the flames quietly. Now and then she would give a glance at the vampire she was certain was staring at her, meeting that gaze with a clear intensity and anger in her own eyes. Beyond that, she was not going to engage with most of the people about the camp unless they came to her. After all she was supposed to not step on any toes in the coming investigations and missions, as per the Senior Inquisitor's orders.

 

[Breadman]

Theodore approached Aleister with what he wanted blessed. First he handed in the revolver. Then several sets of different type of bullets.
"Vampire, demon, werewolf, ghost." He said as he pointed to each of the corresponding ones. "Apply whatever blessings you think are appropriate." He was about to turn to enjoy the music when he remembered something "Oh and...these too." He said as he handed over the belt full of bombs. "I won't make you bless the vials. That's something else."

After handing in the belt, he turned to the fireplace. The music reminding him of a student he had years ago. A charming young man with middling grades, but attitude that pushed him through the semesters. Every day for four years he would stay on campus after hours playing a harmonica of his own. The last thing he expected was to feel nostalgic over the sounds of a harmonica, but life was simpler when all he had to think about was how to cram all that content into their heads.

 

[Infab]

Rosanna paused her guitar strumming to stand, grabbing her rifle from its holster on Rayham's saddle, as well as her revolver from the one on her belt. She set them before Aleister, before stepping back over to the horse and drawing a few more items off it. What appeared to be a pair of sharpened tomahawks, as well as a few throwing knives. "If you'd be so kind, preacher." she said, tipping her hat to him before sitting back down where her guitar was.

Valeria eventually brought her own weapons over for blessing as well. A revolver, her sawed off shotgun, her sawback sword, and a hatchet.

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister couldn't help but giggle at Camille's rebuke, and he bowed his head. "Then I beg your pardon, dear Marquess," he said with a grin as the woman stalked away from everyone else, as expected. He couldn't pass up on the teasing - the woman simply reacted to it far too well. What she really needed was a sense of humor.

Weapons started to pour in around him as more people offered up their full kits to be blessed - swords, bombs, guns, and other tools of killing. He let out a flustered little sigh at the growing work pile, and he rolled his shoulders as he focused on the task at hand. One by one, slowly to be sure he didn't make any mistakes, he blessed and enchanted each and every item given to him. All of them received mostly the same blessing, but he did provide small variations as needed to the devices. A lot of the enchantments from the tome required longer rituals for stronger powers, but everything done tonight should have been sufficient.

Eventually, as the last of the weapons from everyone else passed his hands, he stretched and laid out backwards on the ground. "The blessings and enchantments are fun and all, but maybe next time we can summon an angel or something. Wouldn't that be amusing?"

 

[KRIY]

Wesley looked over to his blessed crossbow and revolver. looking over for any changes to the weapon it self. he then turned his head towards Aleister

"Many thanks, Aleister. it seems that people really don't know what you're capable of."

 

[Infab]

"Let's save that for big game, shall we Aleister?" said Valeria, bearing a far more serious tone. She gathered her weapons as the others did, putting them away and returning to preparing her clothes for when the group ventured into Tresomin. She overheard the comment Wesley made, but refrained from saying anything. Aleister was a vampire, as well as a priest. He as capable of a lot of things. Rosanna also gathered her gear, giving Aleister a "Much obliged to ya'." before putting it all back onto Rayham and returning to her guitar playing.

 

[Emperor Sagan]

The vampire priest glanced over slightly at the young hunter. He hadn't spoken with the boy much in the past several days, but he seemed like a good enough kid. In way over his head, he felt, but the inquisitor seemed to think it was fine.

"Indeed, its a rather lamentable situation," Aleister said with exaggerated, mock sadness. "The hardest worker is often treated the worst. There is no respect left in this world for a delicate priest such as myself."

When Rosanna gave her thanks, Aleister pretended to tip an imaginary cowboy hat from his position where he was laying on the ground. "Anytime, madam."