Lunar Fury - Exalted 2e IC

[MasterDAF]

Korigard shook his head. "Not to me."

 

[Sherwood]

One Tusk looks at Scorpion and Toun with a startled expression. "What?! Let me see!" He tromps over to the crystal sphere and looks at it closely for a moment, running his hand over the surface. He then stands up and says, "This is bad. Very bad. If this that is truly Erembour in there and she manages to escape, she could kill the lot of us with a wave of her hand and think nothing of it. This sphere is a danger, not only to us, but to everyone in Creation. If she manages to escape, nothing short of Solar level Sorcery can banish her back to Malfias. Who knows what mischief she would cause before that could happen! She may even try to release more demons trapped in Malfias!" He looks at the wounded Dynast, and the two surviving men that were standing their ground before the Fae. "I have no love for the Scarlet Empire, but you have earned your right to live, facing off against such foes and not wavering. I will honor your courage by letting you go if you so wish. Or, you can continue to honor your duty and help me guard this until a decision is made as to what to do with it."

The Dragon-Blooded nods. "I will stay and do my part to keep this . . . thing . . . from falling into the wrong hands."

"Good enough. I will have to move this into my own chambers for now, then I must compose several messages to the loremasters of the Silver Pact. There is something that I remember that might just be of use to us, if I can convince them to release the key to us. Lets go."

 

[Psychie]

Scorpion blinks in shock. If this thing is a threat that even One Tusk fears . . . She shudders. "We will stand with you always." Looking at the others, she says, "Lets make sure that this ship is clear of enemies, and," she pauses to look at the three Realm warriors, "let us honor the fallen. Help me gather them up so we can make a proper pyre for their mortal remains so they don't rise up as hungry ghosts."

 

[MasterDAF]

Korigard nods in agreement at Scorpion's assertion to One Tusk. "Yes. We are one pack against the Others. And the pack shall not falter."

He has no compulsion to help assemble the fallen bodies for a pyre. He knows Scorpion is right to prevent the rise of hungry ghosts, but feels no respect for the majority of the fallen Realm soldiers and would rather leave the job of dragging Realm bodies to their remain brethren. "I'll search the ship for stragglers."

 

[Rykon]

Toun was thankful for his comrades' and mentor's knowledge of such matters, trusting their assessment of the danger of this Erembour, but being noticeably less worried about the prospect of Fae getting past the chosen of Luna. Solar-grade magics to ban this demon? That sounds terrible on both ends. Could we trust a Solar with that much power?... Hell, could we FIND a solar with that much power?

Toun's ears twitch Shit, what's going on in the village? The thought suddenly snaps him out of his inner deliberation and his head jerks upright to look for a safe and quick exit before scrambling at a breakneck pace to the exterior.

 

[Sherwood]

Toun's exit from the ship shows that the residents of the valley have armed themselves in order to be able to defend themselves from an attack. At the moment, there does not appear to be any hostiles out there. The people are safe.

Both Scorpion and Korigard search the ship and they don't find any other survivors, either in the Realm's forces or the gremlins. There are just a bunch of bodies inside the large vessel. With the help of the townspeople, the bodies are gathered up and a large bonfire is made to burn the remains. With that done, there shouldn't be any angry ghosts rising up to cause trouble in the valley.

One Tusk takes the crystal sphere from the cargo hold of the airship and takes it into his own home to keep it safe. He plans on studying it to see what secrets that the trapped prisoner may give out.

His studies also involve sending messages out to various other Lunars of the Silver Pact, asking for their assistance. One of these Elder members manages to travel his way to the valley to aid in the examination. This takes several days of very long hours, but soon enough the two call for all of you to join them to share what they have found.


One Tusk starts out, "My friends, we are on the brink of another invasion by the Fae. The numbers that they have gathered have been bolstered by the addition of many demons that they have managed to summon. They plan on unleashing horrors upon Creation, and it is up to the Lunar host to stop them. There has been many discussions amongst our ranks about why your Exalted Shards took so long to return to the normal pattern of death and rebirth. Now I think I know why. Somehow, you are meant to be the ones to stop the Fae from this new campaign of slaughter. But first, we have the problem of the demons."

The other Lunar there, a mouse totem No Moon named Farfad, now speaks. "From our questioning of Erembour, we have learned that she is not the only bound Third Circle Demon that the Fae have in their control. Nothing short of Solar level magic can top them; nothing except one thing. A powerful Artifact that was made in the early days of the First Age by a Solar savant as a gift to his Lunar mate. This item was known as the Robe of the Lunar Priestess, and it granted the power of being able to summon, bind, and dispel demons of all three circles. This Artifact is our first objective to reacquire. Then, we will be able to banish the demon army that the Fae have summoned, giving us the chance we need to stop the Fae in their tracks."

One Tusk points a meaty finger at the group. "Farfad and I will stay here to keep this demon on ice, leaving you as the only ones capable to go and recover the Robe. The last known location of the Robe is in the tomb of the Lunar Priestess, a woman known as Axiant. Her final resting place is out at the Western Isles, under the thumb of the Silver Prince. You'll have to travel there, find the tomb, and get the Robe out and return it here. This is going to be a long trip, one fraught with danger. But, you are the Chosen of Luna! I have confidence that you can do this."

 

[MasterDAF]

Korigard listens as they speak, and playfully nudges Scorpion with his elbow when Farfad mentions the additional Third Circle Demon the Fair Folk have bound. "At least it's not something really serious, right?" he wryly joked.

They'd never faced a task so daunting as this, and he had to wonder if they'd have what it takes to succeed. Hunting and interrogating Fae was one thing, but this? I can only hope the tools Luna equipped us with will see us through our task. He looked to the sky. Silver horned watcher, if you truly observe us from on high, then light our path with moonlight and deliver our enemies at claw-length.

 

[Rykon]

Toun sat, head cocked puzzling over something for a few moments. "This by itself was supposed to be a near world-ending weapon and they hadn't used it yet... They have even more like Erembour... Where are they getting these things? Aren't Solars supposed to be the only ones capable of calling them or binding them? Most importantly, and I don't wish to insult the masters, do you really think it's safe to expose your minds to an imprisoned manifestation of the purest evil we know of? You don't think that might have a chance of corrupting you at all? Like... well..." He lifts his tattooed arm. "we were last time?" Toun stands up. "Though that doesn't really change our mission or resolve I s'pose... Just... be very careful. Don't make like the Sidereals and think yourself above corruption."

 

[Sherwood]

One Tusk looks over at Toun, and gives you a serious response. "You are right to be worried about the possible corruption that the honey-tongued demon could offer. But with the recovery of the Robe will solve this problem. With it, the demons can be banished, even without a Solar to make it so. It is a power of the Robe itself that allows the wearer to summon forth and dispel demons of the Third Circle. Now, normally the Fae do not possess the power to be able to summon and imprison demons. If Erembour is to be believed, she was called forth by a Artifact that the Fae were using from the First Age. According to her, the Artifact was damaged due to the improper use by the elves, and thanks to that, we are safe from having even more demons called forth from Malfias. So, with the Robe, we will be able to stop the Fae from their diabolical plans."

 

[Rykon]

I'm going to assume that thing is lying through its incorporeal teeth until proven otherwise. "...Did it also tell you of this robe?" Toun asks bluntly. "Pardon my cynicism, but there's only so much of your life you can spend hunting guild slavers before you expect the worst of any stranger with an ounce of social prowess."

 

[Sherwood]

"No. The Robe has been a part of Lunar lore since it was made. It just needs to be recovered from its resting place so it can be used by us to release these demons from their bindings at the hands of the Fae."

 

[MasterDAF]

"I suppose a little beach and sun time never hurt anybody." He flashes a grin at his fellow packmates and winks at One Tusk, then thinks better of it and becomes more serious. "How do you intend we work our ways over to the Western Isles without alerting the Silver Prince? Or is that up to us to decide?"

 

[Sherwood]

"You can choose to travel as you wish, but speed is of the essence. As long as you all have a flying form, you could take to the sky. Or, if you wish to travel in a more mundane method, arrange transport on a merchant ship. Either way you choose, before you leave I have to share the combination to the many traps at the Tomb of the Priestess that are designed to keep her mortal remains undisturbed. Otherwise, you may not make it in."

 

[MasterDAF]

"Between all of us," Korigard gestures to the packmates he'd trained beside and learned to trust, "there's not a tomb in Creation that can keep us out. I suppose going in with a little extra knowledge of what to expect can't hurt though."

 

[Psychie]

Scorpion gives her fellow Exalt a smile. "True, but why worry about breaking in when we can get a key to open the door?" She looks about at the others. "I can't see a reason why we can't just fly there. If we need to, we can take the time to do a quick Sacred Hunt to get a good soaring sea bird; they can stay up in the air for days. That will get us to the island where this Priestess is buried and back again in no time."

 

[MasterDAF]

Korigard nods, "I could go for that. My hawk shape makes a great hunter and scouter, but long range flight over choppy waters could get a bit risky."

 

[Rykon]

"I actually dont have an aquatic form, so I'd have to go by air or boat." Toun added. "I have no preference either way."

 

[MasterDAF]

"Hmm," Korigard looked to Toun. "I found a pod of seals last season just south of Schneeberg, by the shores of the Great Ice. The were led by a massive bull, must've been about 10 or 11 feet long, and at least 2,000 pounds. Took me a couple days to plan out my hunt and take the old bull down." He shrugged. "If you'd like, I can take you there sometime. By now I'm sure a new alpha has taken charge."

 

[Sherwood]

One Tusk lets out a low rumble in his chest. "Very well. However you decide, I want you ready to move out by morning. That gives you some time to put your heads together and make your plans."

 

[Rykon]

Toun pondered for a moment, What I really want is an orca or maybe a shark form... I don't have the options to make either hunt viable just yet... "Hm, let's go with Scorpion's plan. Given the urgency, it'd be best if we flew I think. We can hunt sea creatures once we've bought ourselves some time."

 

[MasterDAF]

Korigard shrugged, seeing no problem with the plan. "That sounds good to me. Scorpion, did you have any particular sea bird in mind?"

 

[Psychie]

She looks thoughtful. "At the moment, my only avian forms are a spotted owl and a hawk. Seagulls are known to be able to fly halfway across Creation with ease; why not go on a Sacred Hunt for that form? Also, if we can find one large enough, and you have a small form, you can hitch a ride on my back. I can hit speeds unheard of in a natural animal, thanks to my Charms."

 

[Rykon]

Toun nods, "Looks like we all have a hawk form, but if you think we should go for one with more distance I s'pose we can." At least we'd all be in on a hunt, rather than just one or two of us.

 

[Psychie]

Scorpion shrugs. "If we all have a hawk form, we can just use that for now, and once we get to the ocean where the gulls are, we can spend a few hours hunting some down. So, other than wanting to have a good meal to eat before we leave, I am all set to go."

 

[MasterDAF]

"Same here," Korigard replied to the other two Lunars. "Just gotta gather a couple things from my tent, and I'll be ready too. I travel light." He gestured to his shirtless athletic physique. "Very light."

He looked to One Tusk. "I don't suppose you've got all the trap secrets to the Lunar Priestess' tomb written on a piece of paper?"