Fantasy Hunter's Moon [IC] [CLOSED]

[Dmaster]

"Despite the chip on his shoulder for Escarian nobility, I am inclined to agree with the man." Camille adds. "Though I'm sure the ever so intelligent fake priest and his companion have their reasons for not seeing the light. If you are so downtrodden and upset over your affliction and how others treat you, perhaps accept that you were cheated out of all of those privileges and lack of scrutiny by whatever monster made you that way. In the end we can debate morality until your precious gods crack the planet in two, but I much prefer to take a more active approach to solving issues." she says without turning her back this time.

"As I told the fake holy man, the only reason you undead are standing are because you are deemed useful for our cause. Forgetting that or becoming useless to us will most certainly be met with... predictable consequences." the huntress concludes with a smirk on her face. "If you wish to challenge any of us or continue to be an obstruction, I am sure several of us will be more than happy to distribute said consequences. Compris?"

 

[Viper Actual]

Galina smiled. "Aside from the ghoul that sounds like a simple but peaceful life. I wish I would have been given a choice- as a firstborn I was destined for the military and because of my family's name I was given the title of Duchess at birth and trained to be the heir of House Kholda.

My sister was luckier. She wasn't forced into a war or thrust into military studies. She's currently worling as a diplomatic envoy."

She paused for a moment, studying Wesley's face. If only he had been Artem. Maybe she wouldn't have felt so lonely being on the road with a group of strangers.

Galina reminded herself not to stare and blushed slightly. "Forgive my manners," she said turning away.

"You remind me of someone I used to know."

Galina shook her head. "No matter. Now, tell me how you went from killing a ghoul in self-defense to hunting them in the countryside."

 

[K0mori]

"Constable, I apologize," Mariette said, knowing that the good man had tried to stop the arguments in progress, but it was in vain while the party was filled with such insolent, petty spirits. The horseback riders were surprised when the carriage door swung open into the early dawn light, a black circle exploding forth from within. Mariette dropped to the ground, keeping pace with the horses and carriage on foot easily under the shade of her parasol, slamming the door closed behind her and dropping back to her mule. With one hand, she swiftly untied it from the carriage and then stopped, pulling the mule away and forcing those on horses behind the carriage to cut and swerve to avoid her. As she fell behind the party, she turned her back and simply began to walk toward Airedale, but she looked back once at Camille, giving a flippant smirk.

There you have it, you uppity little nothing. I'm leaving. Does that not make me "useless?" Come and get me, see what your comrades think of that.

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister eyed the lich wearily as it began to sing to itself. He wasn't sure if it meant anything or not, but he remained quiet while the skeletal creature voiced its somber tune. When he finished, Aleister figured the conversation had finally died down within the party, until he heard Camille's voice from outside again.

The vampire clasped his hand over his face in exasperation. He knew they attempted to belittle him by calling him a 'fake priest' and the like, and admittedly it did irk him somewhat, but he was good at hiding it.

"You truly are an immoral harlot. Hateful, full of pride, blood thirsty. Ironic, really, that you sound so much like the vampires you so dearly hate," Aleister said.

"You sling insults like a child to make yourself feel better when faced with facts you cannot stand to accept, hiding behind your ignorance like it is a shield. Do you feel threatened by me, Marquess? Does it so concern you that I am indeed a priest? Do you not think the Church would have silenced me if that wasn't so? Do you really think an inquisitor would allow a false priest to speak as I do? You delude yourself more than you claim vampires do. I wonder, were you born with a hollow heart, or did neglect allow you to become a cruel husk? Your pleasure in killing and quick tongue to threaten others is not a very flattering window into your soul, Marquess."

At that moment, Mariette launched herself from the carriage without warning, and Aleister watched in stunned silence. Risking the early light, he peeled part of the curtain back to see what she was doing. Is she leaving? What is she trying to do? He wondered to himself, peering out through a tiny sliver in the window to keep any stray rays of light from assaulting him.

 

[joshuadim]

"A word of advice, stop caring about what people think of you." Ethraeil spoke to Aleister as he himself stared at the window. "The quicker you learn this, the less people's words will affect and wound you. And less effort is put into shouting at people in a feeble attempt to change their minds. We both are marked and branded for what we are, albeit for different reasons, best to choose to make the most of it rather than wallow in the words of others."

As Mariette exited the carriage, it sparked an interested gaze from Ethraeil. "For those that do not learn this, they grow obsessed and react to this vitriol too much, usually to their own detriment."

He turned back to Aleister once more to face him: "I suppose in the blindness of others, we find some common ground after all." he said in a more relaxed tone.

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister slowly turned to look at the lich, closing the curtain for the moment. He eyed it wearily. "I am a priest. I would be remiss in my duties if I did not take concern with the words of others. It is not so much that they personally ill me... its that it displays that the speaker is on the wrong path in life. The duties of the Church are many, and among them is a care to ensure people do not stray far from the path of righteousness. Or at the very least, ensure they do not unjustly harm others."

He did not think highly of the lich, nor cared to speak much with it after their first brief discussion. "You could use some proper introspection yourself, lich. You sound too much like a nihilist."

 

[Dmaster]

Camille chuckled as she shook her head back and forth, quite happy to see that she struck a nerve in Aleister as he mouthed off to her further. No, she was not born with a hollow heart, but she had seen far too many horrors to give all vampires a pass. If these two were envoys of good nature and kindness as they proclaimed to be, they would first need to clean the skeletons out of their proverbial closets. No one is innocent, and while she has done nothing to harm any human in particular she was more than happy to bring about suffering to the disgusting creatures of the night. Yet she fully recognized that the relationship was both symbiotic and parasitic, in a way. To some extent she needed these horrors to exist as much as they needed to feed, but Camille had her own reasons for such pursuits.

"The hate I feel for your kin is not unwarranted, and I will gladly work on being a better person once you all drop dead. For good, this time." she spat back, not commenting on his words much further just to let him simmer even more. Can't throw too many quandaries at these creatures, it often confuses them ever so much.

However her attention was turned to the carriage swinging open wide, the huntress tightening the reins of her horse further as she snapped her head to see what Mariette was doing. The turn she did with her mule and halting their convoy was enough to give her pause, and she held her horse steady as she walked the countess smirk back at her as she left. "Hmmnh, and it seems she tires of this conversation. Unfortunate." she starts, only to take a deep breath and raise her voice. "Mademoiselle! Care not to burn in the morning sun in pursuit of another meal! And I do hope you do not damage any of those precious dresses and gowns as you sleep in the gutters!" Camille said quite brazenly. Yet the grin on her face dropped suddenly as she was deathly serious for a moment, left hand holding the hilt of her blade as she held her gaze on the woman.

"And I will be sure to pay your La Cygne a visit as well. Perhaps one of those, how you say, victory laps after our business is concluded here, oui?"

It was obvious that this was meant to be a challenge for her to fight the vampire, but she was not so immature to bring the whole inquiry to a skidding halt over a duel. Well, a duel she would have to chase someone to start, truthfully. The Senior Inquisitor would also need to give her permission to strike, gods knew why she thought any of these undead might be useful aside from cannon fodder.

 

[K0mori]

Mariette held her gaze on Camille. "Don't think you'll be the first," she called back.

"...Or the last."

She turned and walked away.

 

[Dmaster]

"It won't work, you know!" she yells out. "I know this is your way of trying to get me to fight you, yet I am not some child driven by impulse, or a beast hiding in a human's skin. Should the Senior Inquisitor allow it I would cut you down gladly, but if you wish to leave before the fun even starts, who am I to stop you?" Camille kept shouting, voice raised in volume yet tone still collected as ever. Trying to cause an upstart as a vampire in a collection of vampire hunters did not seem to be the smartest plan, but she knew that the countess wanted her to be made a fool out of.

 

[joshuadim]

Ethraeil laughed bitterly in response. "From my experience, nihilism is the way to go in this world. You either choose from bad, or worse. Nothing is ever beneficial to one's self. War, famine, disease, death, suffering are all rampant in an endless, self-perpetuating cycle in this cruel, heartless, unforgiving world. I have seen it continue on and on throughout my existence, and I don't see any reason why it would ever change." Within these words, some were laced with an undirected anger towards something, though it was unclear towards what exactly. "I've had centuries of introspection into myself. I know I'm a cold, heartless, irredeemable bastard, having been consumed with an unattainable goal that led me to this path. And now? Well, perhaps I do not fight my bondage out of a pathetic attempt to find some form of redemption, or perhaps I have given up entirely and have resigned myself to this fate. I myself do not know the answer to this."

He then stayed silent for a moment before speaking up again. "Do you think the other will return?"

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister simply shook his head as he heard Camille's response. This woman was far too gone to be saved, which was a serious thought for any priest. Everyone was supposedly redeemable, and while he had come across a few who he deemed to be otherwise, it was still a shock to meet one so brazenly... malicious. He pondered if this Marquess was even human. Some demonic phantom possession seemed to be a better explanation rather than accepting that this woman was almost certainly evil.

The ribbon he was playing with ended up tightly tangled around his finger as his mind wandered to a dark place. This woman... she is too dangerous to let live. If it isn't vampires, it will be another group she will persecute so absolutely and self-righteously. She is a danger to everyone.

He quietly considered the prospects of dealing with her. An accident could be possible, but too risky. The best bet was hope that she eventually becomes wounded one way or another. He was, after all, the healer of the group. If that woman so much as fell unconscious... she wouldn't wake up again. He briefly entertained the thought of turning her, but that was too poetic and not effective enough. She was hypocritical enough that she would easily justify her existence as vampire and continue to wreck havoc wherever she walked. Gifting that woman immortality would be the absolute worst thing he could do.

Aleister hesitantly looked out from behind the curtains again, just in time to see Mariette departing the group as Camille continued her ceaseless heckling. The Marquess truly was a most despicable creature. How the inquisitor could stand to allow Camille mouth off like a petulant, spoiled brat was beyond him.

"The Senior Inquisitor is a far, far better woman than you, Camille," Aleister said, not bothering with her title. "She knows it would be unwise to allow a vampire to slaughter you under her sanction."

Then the lich spoke up again, and Aleister turned to look at it once more. "Nihilism is a step into the pit. You should... attempt to rectify that course. Living as a dour bastard is a choice, not a certain fact. You've spent too long without proper guidance or care, and that... isn't your fault, I suppose."

He carefully looked out the curtain again. "Perhaps. Mariette proved Camille to be more bark than bite, at least. She can't even back up her own words and duel the vampire. Camille would almost certainly be gravely wounded, as would Mariette. I'd wager Mariette would win, though. Camille speaks too haughtily to make me think she truly has the right skill to back herself up. But, I cannot say if Mariette will return. I dearly miss her already. Now I have to enjoy the company of cactuses alone."

Aleister opened the curtain a little more, risking the growing light as he called out to the other vampire. "Safe journey to you, mistress, I bid you adieu!"

 

[K0mori]

As Mariette walked along the road back toward the city, Camille's voice grew more quiet and difficult to discern. It didn't really matter whether the young hunter took the bait or not. While humiliating the little girl would have been fun, and Mariette was fully confident that she would have easily done so, her ultimate goal was to save the lives of the innocent, and it was clear that she would not have enough time or patience to break the humans free of their hate-fueled lust for violence. Once this inquisition was over, however, Camille had promised to come visit La Cygne, and that contented Mariette as she knew that the Raven of Giguere House would meet a grisly end the moment she stepped through the threshold of her estate- if she even reached the door.

And if Camille should forget her wanton threats upon her return, if she should forget that she threatened Mariette Derosiers, then the latter would send along reminders in the form of wine baskets every month by courier until the challenge was accepted. I told them I would try to talk to you. I didn't promise them a miracle... she thought to herself.

And then another thought crossed her mind: Perhaps I should pay a visit to the Giguere Estate along the way. The mademoiselle should learn the weight of her own tongue.

 

[Dmaster]

Camille simply shook her head, watching the vampire continue her walk away from the group. "Poor, deluded vampire." she scoffed, though she quickly had her eyes on the carriage to indicate that insult was meant for Aleister. "Is there not a single word that leaves your mouth that isn't as hollow as your arteries? Better woman than I, quite possibly, but she isn't so kind that she would let a supposed 'friendly' vampire off unsupervised." the Escarian huntress said as she let go of the hilt of her rapier. "Even if she does, we clearly have more important things to worry about. Innocents die as we dally further, and I would rather not have the good Countess' tantrum detract from our mission."

 

[joshuadim]

"...what is a cactus?" Ethraeil asked somewhat curiously. "I've heard of this, but never seen it."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

"A cactus?" Aleister asked back, now ignoring Camille for a more productive and entertaining conversation from the last place he expected. He was actually somewhat startled by the question as it came from no where.

"It is a prickly green plant. It has long needle-like thorns all over its skin. Some of these plants have flowers on them, others have juices within. Some have thorns like roses rather than needles. They aren't... entirely unpleasant, actually. I actually own a small one. You need only water it sparingly as it is a desert plant. I've really only seen them far south, though I think they can grow in any dry climate."

 

[joshuadim]

"Hrm, I've never been south. Neither when I was free nor under my current predicament." Ethraeil replied. "Hot and dry you say? I probably wouldn't like it."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

"I doubt you would. It is bright, hot, sunny, and sandy. Not the most appealing of climates, even for the living. But the cactus was quaint enough so I brought one with me when I returned north. My sisters watch over it while I am away," Aleister explained, now lounging a little more leisurely on the cushioned bench now that Mariette had left. It was unfortunate that the woman was gone, but he would make use of the empty space now.

"Regardless, a cactus is prickly and dangerous to touch and be around. Much like the Marquess. I've rarely met such miserable people in my time."

 

[KRIY]

"Ah yes. Well, after the whole ghoul fiasco. I felt that I had to do something. Not just for my own sake, but for everyone else as well. I mean, how would you feel if you'd visit a friend's house and find their body ripped apart and their guts sprawled across the floor? So with that in my mind. I dropped the painter's brush and started training myself to be a Vampire Hunter. had a friend come over and help me out with getting some of my equipment. name was Kilo Miles. he's an intern for some newspaper outlet. anyway. I'd admit that the Vampire hunting business is one dirty job. but hey at least it pays more." Wesley gave her a grin.

"However, if you'd want to talk more in a personal level, I'll listen"

 

[Infab]

Valeria's horse stopped, as she turned in her saddle to look back to the others. Mainly Camille in particular. "If you do not calm yourself, Camille, and work together with the others in this inquiry without hostility and judgement, I will remove you from it. This is not the behavior of a hunter. This is the behavior of a child. You are a grown woman. Act like it." she stated loudly, before looking to the others. "That goes for the rest of you. Cease this mindless bickering over the morality of mankind and vampires. It is driving a wedge between the members of this group, and potentially opening the door for all of us to be slaughtered should we engage a hostile force."

She looked to Rosanna, whom had remained quiet after her statements about Dullahans only hunting humans. "Rose, please go after the countess. She should not be wandering around in the sunlight like this, even with thick clothing." she ordered. Rosanna shifted in her saddle, muttering "Gods damn it." before turning her horse around and riding after Mariette. As Rosanna rode off, Valeria's gaze shifted back to Camille. "Your hostility to everyone will eventually come back to bite you. You are not the only one to have been wronged by the vampire, but you should not inject your personal feelings into your duties as a hunter. Hatred breeds hatred, and you're giving it away in buckets. Continue to do so, and one of these people might just kill you themselves if someone else doesn't."

------

Eventually, Rosanna reached where Mariette was. "Please come back to the carriage, ma'am. This sun's pretty bad on your type." she asked, stopping just in front of Mariette's mule. "That Camille is just a brat, and she'll get what's comin' to her in time. Just don't let what she says get to you."

 

[Dmaster]

Camille said nothing to Valeria's chiding, for a time. She half-turned her head to address the Senior Inquisitor as she thought on how things got to this point. To say she was the one being a child was quite inaccurate, but if she needed to pretend that things were her fault to get the journey back on track she certainly would. "Hmnh... If you insist, mademoiselle. Though you certainly must understand at least some of my perspective as well. I do not act rashly, and I am not some hotheaded child, else I would have pursued the countess as soon as she left the carriage." she said rather calmly, flicking the reins of her horse as she slowly beckoned it to move further ahead.

"I practically specialize in their type, and they all exhibit the same traits that make their kin particularly deadly. One does not stay a vampiric noble by cackling madly in the night and playing a pipe organ, so to speak." The huntress sighed to herself and rolled her shoulders again, her horse moving away from the group at a brisk pace. "I can fend for myself, but I just ask you to be mindful of such contingencies."

 

[K0mori]

Having walked at a normal pace with her mule, Mariette hadn't gone a long a distance before Rosanna arrived on her horse and blocked the path ahead. She listened and then remained silent, staring through the rider with her soft red eyes at the imagined road ahead, stretching to the distance and over the sea back to Atraca. and from there, all the way into Escaria and into the vineyards where she grew up and continued to reside. What had felt like a long and arduous journey to come here to Grimtham now seemed such a small distance. Under her parasol and clad in her overcoat, the sun couldn't quite burn her, but she felt its warmth and a weakness within herself, a want for rest. The cruel thoughts she had occupied herself with, of taking her cold anger out against Camille's immediate family, had already gone away. Mariette just wanted to go home, and resume her habits and her business. She sighed.

"I respect and support what you and the Inquisitors are trying to do here in Grimtham," Mariette said, bleakly, "but if that woman is one of you, then I am not one of you. I cannot be expected to lend my services to this party when Giguere intends to continue her senseless slaughter in my home country upon her return. She even wishes to come to La Cygne, a visit which will result in her death, probably by my hands. These are more than words, Rosanna. Whether or not it 'gets to me' is irrelevant when she has already determined that one of us will be dead as a result of our meeting."

 

[Infab]

"...then let that happen when and if it happens." said Rosanna, crossing her arms as she leaned forward on her saddle. "Fate's fate. I know that all too well. But you shouldn't let the words of one sorry excuse for a hunter turn you away from the noble goal you have." She looked down at the ground for a moment. "...its likely I'll eventually turn into one of those...gods damned murderers that my kin are. And the thought of that dwells in the back of my mind every second. But I still strive to help make the world a better place before my time eventually comes. You have a chance to do that now. Prove to 'em that not all vampires are just insane and constantly thirstin' for blood with no regard for others. Prove Camille wrong, because I know you can. You already got my support, and the support of the constable. Your actions will win the rest over." She straightened back up in the saddle, and smiled. "Please come back." she finally said.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

As Camille spit her poison alongside Erwin, and with both Mariette and Aleister responding to it, Jakob realized that things were getting out of hand. "Could you just shu--" he said to Camille, before the door of the carriage swung open. Jakob stood from his seat to see who it was, and was surprised to see it was madame Mariette. Insisting that she's leaving much to the dismay of Jakob. "Madame, please get back inside the carriage! Its dangerous for your kind to be out in the sun!" he said, but the countess had made up her mind already. he saw her depart for Airedale afterwards. "Oh for the love of the Gods...." he said, before sitting back down. He gazed at Valeria, as she gave the Marquess the orders to shut her mouth, much to the relief of Jakob, then sent Rosanna after Mariette. "Be careful, sister!" he shouted after the young cowgirl, as she road off. "Want me to stop the carriage for a moment, ma'am?" he asked Valeria, as he returned his attention to her.

 

[K0mori]

Mariette felt torn, looked over her shoulder at the road she had been travelling on, the real road, as opposed to the imaginary unbroken path back to La Cygne. She couldn't see the carriage anymore, but knew it was somewhere ahead in the haze of the morning fog. Getting back there almost seemed harder than walking all the way to Airedale. "If she lays a finger on me or Monsieur Aleister, I will curse her with every spell in this tome," she said, giving the leather-bound book strapped to her body a tap with her fingertips. With that, she turned the mule around and began to lead it back toward the rest of the party. Rosanna was right- Mariette's business in Grimtham was about more than just Camille, and giving up the opportunity to save lives just to distance herself from that cancerous woman when, in the end, the two were destined to meet again regardless, was a pointless waste of potential.

They arrived back at the carriage a few minutes later.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Jakob saw the Countess and Rosanna approaching, and let out a sigh of relief while waving back to both. He looked back to Valeria afterwards. "We should make a stop in Colkirk, ma'am." he said, glancing up to the sky. "Its halfway between Airedale and Bromwich, between the Basway Lakes. We could rest there..." he said, with a smile, "...unless you want to camp under the beautiful night sky, ma'am."