Fantasy Hunter's Moon: The Sin & Sentence [IC] [CLOSED]

[Damian0358]

Takato looked over to Seriphine, nonplussed by her sudden comment. The elf had kept to herself this entire time, so much so that he wasn't even sure if she had ordered a drink from Wesix. He decided not to ponder on how long she had been here for that to be the case, and decided to follow up on her comment.

"Troubling, it is. Though there are friendlier groups," he motioned his head towards Jakob, Wesley, Senya and Venextos, "the composition of experiences, views, ideals and prejudices is volatile. Makes one wonder whether there will be inner escalation to the point of death."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Inari grabbed her tea and moved it to the table, putting it at her place away from the magic-wielders and nearer to the less stuffy members of the group. However, she did not sit down yet, as she wandered back to the bar to grab a piece of paper left behind and she startled scrawling on it. ["Its like I'm dealing with children, I swear. Cry, cry, cry, whine, whine, whine. No manners, no soul,]" she sighed to herself, writing a little note in Atracan. The script was unfamiliar to her so most of the words were just sounded out and composed in the manner that looked like a child had written it. "I return soon, I eat there," she said, pointing out her teacup at her chair before leaving.

She returned to her cabin and went into her pack, carefully unrolling the cloth keeping her rice intact and fresh. A smaller cloth already had two riceballs made and she pulled one out, tearing the cloth in half and wrapping it around the food item. Back outside, she glanced into the rooms until she noticed one had the door closed. Loque was probably sulking in there. If not, someone was getting some free food. Inari knocked on the door then set the riceball and note down before it before leaving to return to the dining area.

The note would read: Rice fils hart and sol and belli. You food deman, so heer food. Vegtabol in side. This is a sow sary sarri.

 

[Viper Actual]

Seriphine grunted. "It's just a matter of focus and discipline. For what it's worth we seem capable enough during combat against our foes. As little as it may be it's comforting to know that I've not been sentenced to fight alongside cowards."
Glancing over at Takato the elf raised an eyebrow. "How is your arm?"

 

[ANIMAL MOTHER]

'This has to be another stupid prank. I swear, I eat this thing and I will be shitting my innards out.' was a conclusion Loque was rapidly reaching after seeing the little gift Inari had left behind for her. She's got half a mind to force feed it to Hudson instead and watch him be taken over by the curse of the Sindoo Shits, but perhaps Inari really is trying to bury the hatchet here? The note reads as if it was written by a child, and to Loque, Inari may as well be just a child since she acts like one. Though, Inari is right about one thing. She's a 'food deman', and giving her food's a relatively easy way to get on her good side. Hell, the more she looks at it the more she's inclined to eat it, even more so since this is probably the nicest thing anyone's done for her lately and it's quite clear moments of kindness like this will be very rare among this group. Reluctantly she picks it up and examines it. Smells like rice, looks like rice, feels like rice, it's probably rice and would hopefully taste like it too. She shoves it into her mouth as she prepares herself for the presumed inevitable on the toilet. If this really is just a regular riceball, then maybe she ought to open up to Inari more and do her part to make amends. If it isn't, then she can just get the others to ostracize her and get her killed for poisoning her.

Either way works.

 

[Damian0358]

Takato motioned to his bandaged right arm, appearing just as it did before it was burnt off.

"Remade. Functions as it had previously. And the rest of my body is healed too, ready for what's to come... mostly, that is," he said, as he looked over to Wesix.

"How's the medicinal mixture going?" he asked him.

 

[Infab]

Once Wesix returned to the counter, he looked to Takato. "Finished, actually. I was simply preoccupied with the mask. Sorry for the wait." he responded, before taking a glass from nearby and setting it before Takato. "A Redonian herbal brew, as requested."

------
​

The forest was quiet. Cold and silent. Small flakes of snow drifted down from the black sky above, visible only because of the light of the nearby camp fires. Or what was left of them, smashed and scattered among the ruins of the tents and homes. Mixed into the powdery white snow, splotches of red. Two voices then spoke, breaking the serene silence.

"...W-What did you do to me?"

"You wanted power...so I gave it to you."

Amongst the numerous corpses of her reformed clan, whom had fought alongside her and reclaimed their territories, Riberta sat soaked in blood. She had killed them all herself, with tooth and claw, after shifting into something new. A hybrid, of werewolf and vampire. She didn't even remember how she was bit. Everything was a blur. She looked back down to her hands, coated in the blood of all those that she had fought alongside.

The other voice spoke once more. "...Power comes at a cost, Riberta. Everyone knows that." Riberta's head drifted up, as she looked towards the blonde woman standing before her. Their black and gold eyes stared back at her, and a smile adorned their face. "A bit more than you expected, though, isn't it?" they said, the words seeping from their lips. Riberta could feel something building up inside her, as the words reached her ears. Anger. No...Rage. Her red eyes remained locked onto the woman, as her breathing started to become harder and more labored. She was shifting again. This time, though, proved to be far more painful than before. As she stood and started to change into her lycan form, the woman simply stepped backwards a few steps. "Go ahead, let it out." she said, her smile shifting into a grin. "I'm waiting."

Bones cracked and shifted, flesh tore but rapidly healed, black fur began to appear. And as the change finished, Riberta lunged at the woman. The demon that had made her this way. And Sazak simply stood there.

Grinning.

---
​

Riberta snapped awake, sitting up and looking about frantically. Searching for that bastard. Her fangs were bared, her claws out and ready to rend flesh from bone. But they weren't here. Instead, Loque was here, eating what appeared to be a rice ball. Riberta looked at her for a few moments, her fangs and claws receding as her rage died down. She then rubbed her face with both hands. As much as she didn't need sleep, she still occasionally napped from time to time. And often, she would get these dreams. She stood, moving past Loque to the door. But the door would open before she could reach for the handle. Vincent stood outside. "Hey, Riberta. Lunch is ready in the dining hall. Heading that way if you want to tag along."

Riberta looked at Vincent for a few moments, pondering if she wanted to go see what the others were up to, before shrugging. "Fine." she muttered, before stepping out into the hallway with him. Soon, both arrived in the dining hall were the others were. Both spotted the new demon among them, a blue skinned succubus dressed like a South Atracan cowgirl. It was an interesting sight, to say the least. Vincent soon moved to where Seriphine and Takato were sitting and talking, while Riberta simply moved to the long tables and sat down alone.

 

[ANIMAL MOTHER]

Sheepishly, Loque waves to Riberta almost expecting to be torn to pieces in her tantrum. "Use a gun, it'll be quicker."

"Hey, Riberta. Lunch is ready in the dining hall. Heading that way if you want to tag along."

"I'm staying. I'm not hungry."

Inari's gift made her feel better, but being sick from all the liquor and very nearly being sent into a rage by Kassidy made her lose her appetite. Really, all she can do right now is bathe to get the stink of puke, sweat, and booze off of her. So she heads into the baths to do just that.

 

[Damian0358]

Takato nodded, grabbing the glass and giving the glass a sniff, to tell the quality of the drink. Nodding with approval, he raised the glass.

"Umicki," he said, before drinking the entire glass in one shot, albeit in multiple gulps as to avoid being seen as bold, calmly placing the glass down.

"The recipe used..." Takato began, as the drink went down, "...is of a classical styling, from before the invasion. Reminds me of one of my master's mixtures," giving Wesix a nod and a smile.

Feeling the subtle effects of the drink kick in, he noted Vincent moving towards him and Seri. Seeing that, he got off his seat, and offered it to Vincent, before moving away himself and taking a seat nearby. After continuous healing, and knowing what may come soon, it was time to relax.

 

[Doomevil]

The Red Warden was entirely silent as everyone else chatted to each other. Senya leaned against the bar counter, staring down at it completely in thought. She had a bad habit of doing that ever since she worked as a Warden, meditating in the corner with the others, completely at peace. But all the while this time it seemed to bite her in the end as Loque returned to the bar area, staring at her. Senya turned to her, completely. Loque looked angry, if not enraged entirely.

"You know, you could've stopped me-"

But she didn't finish her sentence, finding out her mask was vandalized. Senya's eyes looked down, somewhat hurt even if she didn't want to admit it. She didn't really know what to say to her. By the time Senya could respond, Loque had already left to someplace else. She turned to her left hand which was shaking a little, her thumb twitching whenever she bent it forward. The Warden sighed, wishing she could talk more, but it was hard at times. Perhaps she needed to do better next time.

 

[Infab]

The lunch served later was rather extravagant, served by both Cat and Wesix. It apparently was the recipe that Cat had been given by Loque, cooked to perfection. Cat admitted that it took her a few tries to perfect it, but eventually mastered the recipe.

While the group dined, they got to know Kassidy. A former saloon girl, whom was lynched after stabbing a patron of the saloon to death. That was several decades prior, of course, and she had been down there as a succubus since then. They also learned that she bore quite a lot of knowledge about the happenings on the 'streets' in the Abyss, as she tended to travel often on her 'breaks' or during her 'work'.

Days passed, as the train travelled across the Hollowlands towards the territory of Azgon. The group made their preparations, of course. Azgon's forces had guns. Demons with guns weren't a fun mix. And soon, the time came. Wesix poked his head into each of their cabins, letting them all know that the train was approaching their destination. "Five minutes!" he said, with a smile. The group gathered their things, eventually emerging into the hallway. Kassidy poked her head out from her door. "Good luck with whatever yer doin'. And watch yer asses." she said.

 

[ANIMAL MOTHER]

"Good luck with whatever yer doin'. And watch yer asses."

"Hey." says a stern Loque, quickly turning to face Kassidy. One of her hands reaches into her coat as she marches up to her, and just as quickly she pulls out a handgun on her. It almost seems like she's about to shoot her, almost, until she flips it and grabs it by it's barrel instead. Her other hand pulls out a pair of magazines too.

"Take it, succubus. You'll need it. Especially for what's coming next."

 

[Doomevil]

They finally got to relax after their mission in Sheol, allowing Senya to practice her swordsmanship and magic in preparation to Azgon's territory. She wore her standard gear and wore her head gear tightly. They were getting through dangerous challenges from here on out, and if they underestimated Azgon's forces, they were dead. She adjusted her gauntlets and weapons ready to move out.

 

[Dmaster]

Hudson spent the days sharpening his blade and checking his weapons, keeping his interaction with the others to a minimum. The word of their enemies now having firearms reached him, which did little to comfort his nerves. Though there was no use in openly complaining about it, even if he didn't lack the drive to do so at this stage.

The hunter stood off at the back of the group as the gathered to depart, making sure the chains around his body would not constrict his movement too much.

 

[Infab]

Kassidy gave Loque a brief look, before glancing down to the handgun. "Thanks, but I already got an iron." she replied, reaching behind her and drawing a pistol out of the back of her waistband. A small semi-automatic, it seemed. "Got it as payment from a wrath demon a year ago. Nice piece, really."

Meanwhile, Riberta stepped up next to Hudson. Her claymore rested on her shoulder, and she was surprisingly really clean, having bathed about an hour prior. "Hope you're ready there, mein freund. You ain't dying anytime soon, especially while I'm here." she said, glancing to him.

 

[Dmaster]

He simply shakes his head, continuing to look ahead as the dreary landscape passes them by through the windows. "I'll believe it when I see it. I got a thing or two to take care of before I go out, but if I end up dying before then I never had a chance in the first place." he says rather flatly, his hand resting on his sword's pommel.

 

[ANIMAL MOTHER]

"Got it as payment from a wrath demon a year ago. Nice piece, really."

Loque jolts her head out of mild embarrassment. "Huh... I see..." Slowly she puts her arm down, seeing as Kassidy won't need it. "Just thought I'd do something nice, seeing as our last talk went quite badly."

She makes a mental reminder that she should probably talk to both Senya and Inari about what happened days ago too.

 

[Infab]

Kassidy nodded with a smile. "No worries, sugar. Yer fine in my book. Just try keepin' yer head up. Things could be a helluva lot worse, like I said before." she replied, as she tucked her pistol back in her waistband.

Riberta smirked. "Like I told you. You're not dying here." she said. The train soon began to slow down, rolling to a stop on the tracks. "We're here. Welcome to Azgon's territory. Specifically the small city of Dogura." said Wesix, as he stepped over and opened the door to the outside.

Outside, smoke and ruins. Azgon was the icon of wrath, and the environment clearly showed that his demons liked to destroy things. The city itself was a smoldering ruin, with fires scattered about among shattered or collapsed buildings. The platform below was actually nonexistent, replaced by a large crater. There were large smears of blood and gore here and there, scattered about in various locations. Likely unfortunate souls or demons that wandered into the area.

 

[joshuadim]

"What a vista." Venextos remarked with disgust as he viewed the horrible sights before him. As expected from Wrath, it showed that this place was ravaged by endless amounts of it. The demons here would be the same, and quite formidable as well if word was to be believed.

 

[ANIMAL MOTHER]

"No worries, sugar. Yer fine in my book. Just try keepin' yer head up. Things could be a helluva lot worse, like I said before."

Loque shrugs. She’s right, but it’s only a matter of time until things do become worse. Irin is on her way to have Loque squirm in her hands again, and she’s bringing the burning rage of everyone’s pasts and failures with her. That’s probably what will do them in, since it seems almost everyone is carrying some sort of hefty emotional scars on them, some worse than others. Still, she nods in half agreement. She’s still breathing, at least. She can still enjoy the ‘now’.

“I suppose so... I could be back in Thorgran’s greasy mouth, being eaten again.”

Then the door opened, showing the blasted cityscape outside. Azgon’s demons were indeed a violent and fearsome bunch, and the fact there’s still some traces of civilization here surprises Loque. They probably got distracted by another army and started fighting each other before they could finish the job.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Jakob spent his days either talking with Wesley, Hudson and sometimes Takato and Venny if they were available. He was actually hoping to reach here earlier, the sooner he can help out his old lich friend, the better. He looked at the war thorn landscape, it did remind him of the surroundings of Fort Uuib back in the days of the war. "Ethy must be giving Azgon one hell of a fight. That's for damn sure." He said before jumping down to the crater and climbing out of it. "Let's get a move on folks!"

 

[joshuadim]

Rather than having to step into the crater, Venextos flicked his hand towards himself quickly and floated himself to the crater's far edge to place himself near Jakob. "I wonder what our mission here will be, seeing as the city seems barren as is." the wizard remarked curiously.

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Inari enjoyed the luxuries of the train to their fullest, spending time with a few of the others when they were able, like Gwen. A solo journey would be grating at this rate, especially given the company. Their arrival to Azgon's land was uneventful, even as they crawled out into a ruined mess of a city. Not unlike the last one, but this one seemed more in line with an ongoing battle than centuries of decay. She wasn't terribly worried about demons with guns, as she had managed well enough against the matchlocks of the day, but some of the larger, faster, and more accurate rifles worried her. She hadn't had the skill of cutting roundshot from the air with her sword in a long time, for it required great awareness and finesse that had left her after her capture. Besides, those blackpowder guns seemed to shoot so slowly compared to the newer rifles. She enjoyed firing a few that ended up in Kowareta, and the coastal lords were eager to stock them up while the backwoods remained as it had for what seemed like forever. It was sad that was starting to finally change.

"Okay, who will kill again?" She asked nonchalantly, looking over the lip of the crater into the city. The air smelled and tasted pretty good.

 

[Damian0358]

In the days leading up to their arrival, Takato maintained his routine as best as he could, and trying his best to relax. Realizing that there was little chance that they'd actually meet the Icons themselves due to everything involving the Lich King, he found himself properly relaxing, and made sure to do some extra techniques to compensate for his drinking of an alcoholic mixture not out of necessity to heal, but to do as the Eight Enlightened did, in respect to his master. When he could, he spoke with the others, though by the end of the ride, he realized that he hadn't exactly spoken to Senya - sure, he responded to her question with a thumbs up, but a proper conversation, he hadn't had one with her since Gödrun joined their party. After a thought, he realized he still wasn't exactly sure what had happened back then, so hopefully he can get around to having a conversation with her soon.

Prepared and ready, slowly stepping off the train with the rest, he looked over at the view of Azgon's territory... or what was left of it, at least. Venextos' disgusted remark matched his own thoughts, as he remembered the damage the Northern Oni have caused sometimes - often enough, the Geki would be the one to finish them off before they could do massive damage, but those few times they were sneaky enough, they caused destruction akin to this. Of course, not to this specific scale, but he could see where the oni as a whole get it from. Heck, if he really tried, he could probably cause destruction like this, not that he would want to.

Akin to Venextos, Takato too floated over, using the technique he had used up to this point, though arriving on the other side, he chose to keep floating. Out of the train now, he could smell it in the air - he did not like it. Ignoring Inari, he responded to Venextos' remark.

"Surely, in these wanton destructive land, something beckons us," he responded, before turning towards the train.

"If any assistance is needed to get over, gladful I'll be to help!"

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Jakob looked over towards the others still on the train. "I assume 'our benefactors' will show up and tell us what to do." He looked back at the destroyed city and the landscape. "I don't mean to be a broken record but... I really don't like working with those demons, ascended or not... but I guess we don't have much choice in the matter anymore." He then looked over his shoulder, looking for Vincent. "Hey boss, you gonna summon that Taur lady?"

 

[Infab]

Vincent nodded towards Jakob, and soon did just that as the train departed behind the group. Midway through the summoning, a voice interrupted him. "No need. Tariun sent me." said a female voice they already knew. They all collectively glanced over to see Xager standing nearby, next to several crates and such just like before. Their weekly supply delivery it seemed. "Greetings to you all." she simply said, motioning to the crates as her piercing eyes looked to each of them.