Fantasy Tales of Raeligard

[Thalia_Neko]

Currently: Following the others
Thinking: "Well, that didn't go over well..."

Location: campsite
Interacting: the others
Mentions:


With Sen's words, Hysydice deflated, feeling disheartened. So her words were taken in the wrong way. She probably sounded too arrogant. How else was she supposed to phrase it? She contemplated this while following softly behind Sen, who walked away, eyes on her back the whole time. Following the group, Hyss kept a close eye on the proceedings. She was inclined to let those who liked to be vocal to voice their findings, and follow along. As Thea had the ultimate say anyway, that seemed the prudent course of action.

The green in their maw. The low water level. It was all very odd, but Hyss felt herself feeling reservations about the whole thing. As mentioned, this mission wasn't "Act like detectives and solve some monster mystery." It was stop a rampaging beast. Why was Thea like this? You'd think a trained knight would be more disciplined. She seemed to go with her gut and choose based on emotion. Not exactly the picture of a knight Hyss had made in her head.

Still... "Until we make sure no more monsters threaten the area, then our mission can't be said to be done," Hyss announced. Which was her way of agreeing to continue.​

 

[King Crimson]

Current Location: Outside Hein Warehouse #5​

"O-Ow! Hey!" Cressey complained as she felt another sharp tap against her scalp from the tiny bird's mischievous beak.
In Lori's absence, Zest had seemed to have taken a liking to Cressey's own head as a replacement, despite the difference between the two; whereas Lori's long, unruly mane of long, white hair was matted and intertwined with tons of natural material, making it perfect for simulating a natural nest, Cressey's fair, blonde locks had been tended to with a fine-tooth comb every morning and every night for all of her sixteen years, leaving every strand neat, orderly, and impeccably soft, accompanied always with the faint scent of the fragrant, homemade saponins which she bathed herself with.
Normally, Cressey would be glad for the extra attention from such a small, adorable, little thing, if only it didn't keep--"Ow! Stop that!"--pecking her.
All the more reason to hurry to their carriage, and see what's become of the wayward bird, in any case.

However, as the group walked further down the dirt road, and the carriage came into view, a small, subtle shift in the atmosphere seemed to suddenly take hold.
Not a sound came from the horses, nor it's driver, nor from the forest to their side. Even Zest seemed to cease it's regular, cheery chirping, leaving them caught in a dread silence.
Despite the warm, balmy weather, Cressey could feel a cold chill run down her spine, and the hackles on the back of neck raise.
Something was wrong, her instincts were trying to tell her, but she couldn't tell what it was.
Not until that sickeningly sweet smell struck her nostrils, and that haunting, melodic lullaby filled her ears, followed by the rustling of leaves, as a pair of dark figures melded out from the woods, both hiding their faces behind threatening black masks, and each holding a wicked blade at their side.
She could feel the twins' magic's effect, like a ball and chain had been attached to each of her limbs, growing bigger, and heavier with every passing second, threatening to drag her under if she didn't focus her efforts on keeping her body upright, and her spear pointed defensively towards them.
The glimmering, wisps of unnatural light dancing at their hips caught her eye, alerted her to the magic's source:
Arcanizers.
First that cowardly fellow in the sewers, now these two?
"How do these common cutthroats seem to keep getting their hands on these things...?" she pondered mootly, her teeth grit in wrought frustration.
She would have to have some very stern words for that Caskaerith when they got back to the guild.

But before any of that, she needed to focus on the present, get past these two, get Lori, and finish the mission.
Her eyes scanned over the state of her allies; Lupa seemed to be suffering the most from whatever that stench was, her own acute senses now working against her as she struggled to remain on her feet.
However, in some stroke of intuition, she brought her foot down sharply on the wound at her ankle, momentarily using the pain to regain some of her composure.
But it seemed that the shock did nothing to fix her addled senses, judging from how the beastkin ordered them to retreat, while she stayed and fought the twin assailants herself.
"Save your desires for a righteous self-sacrifice for civilians, Kirstav!"Cressey barked in response, stepping forward to engage the pair alongside her comrades.
With a bit of extra effort, she managed to raise her spear, it's point held threateningly ahead as she widened her feet, and settled into her fighting stance.
"The goddess strike me down if I ever run away from a such a challenge! Thrice so if it means leaving a friend behind!" she boldly declared, the point of her spear shaky and unsteady in her hands.
Just a little bit fatigued..., she lied to herself, taking a deep breath, clenching and unclenching her jaw, adjusting and readjusting her grip on her lance.
The bitter, familiar scent of Holzect guts alerted her to the merchant to her side, who seemed to be following in Lupa's footsteps, breathing in the noxious fumes to reinvigorate himself.
Behind her, Endymion was down on his hands and knees, lost in some waking dream, before reality suddenly reasserted itself before his eyes.
For once, as he rose back to his feet, his cane clutched tightly in his hands, he looked almost like a fighter, but the fear and uncertainty in his eyes, and in his warbling voice betrayed him.
And as for Zest...the tiny bird's weight slumped unsteadily atop her head, before finally lurching forward, falling right into her awaiting hand, fast asleep.
"Of all the times to have a lie down..." Cressey cursed to herself, looking down at the fragile, blue cherub clutched in her arm.
Well, so much for calling on Arien.
They would have to see to this matter themselves.
"Endymion!" she called to the boy, before gently tossing the small, fragile form his way.
With a stern, solemn nod, she commands, "Get her and yourself to safety, I doubt Arin or Lori would forgive us if we allowed her to come to any harm." before forcing on a small, confident smile for the scholar, in an attempt to calm his frayed nerves in spite of the dire situation they were in.

Back to the elves, the taller male (at least she thinks it's a male) of the two seemed to have set his sights on both her and Talio, longsword held confidently in his grip, his voice oozing with an irritating arrogance that struck her ears like glass on granite.
Unfortunately, the poise and candor in his stance forewarned that he had the skills to back up his talk, and with both her and Talio's strength being slowly sapped away from them, he was becoming more of a threat by the second.
With Lupa stepping away to engage the female twin, Cressey and Talio were left alone to face him, standing shoulder to shoulder as he slowly advanced.
As he merchant whispered his plan to her, Cressey subtly nodded in agreement, shoring up the grip on her lance in preparation for the coming melee.
"Keep your wits about you," she whispered cautiously back in reply.
"They're wielding some form of magic against us, likely coming from arcanizers much like mine own..."
Another wave of exhaustion fell over them, Cressey's arms and legs felt heavier and heavier, it was beginning to grow difficult to stand.
They would need to end this quickly, or find some way to stop that damned spell.
Five strikes, thirty seconds. Cressey noted to herself, her eyes locking onto the Syrieth, as he walked within range.
Talio walked forward to meet him, his mechanical arm hidden from view and his blade held casually, nonthreateningly on his shoulder, much like the faint bloodlust that tainted his words, which he hid behind a veil of feigned civility.
The elf didn't buy the merchant's act. No, he was never going to in the first place; he was here for one thing, and one thing only, and no amount of words would deter him.
He moved swiftly, another wave of disorienting force following in his wake as he snaked away from the range of Talio's destructive metal arm, and with a clean, swift strike, sent Talio's sword flying out of his grip.
Cressey pushed herself forward to intercept the elf's sudden advance, readying to punish him for his careless aggression with a thrust of her lance, but her arms and legs didn't respond the way she wished them to. They were slow, leaden in their sockets, while the elf seemed to dance around her attack with ease before kicking the lethal edge of her lance away, the displaced momentum of her swing sending her body clumsily tumbling into the dirt as he danced away, putting himself between the pair.

Face down in the dirt, Cressey winced at the sensation of new bruises and shallow cuts made from shards of gravel scraping across her fair skin, the ground feeling as though it would swallow her up as she fought to push past the growing weight in her limbs, and clamber back onto her feet.
The audacity, the indignity of it all gave her the will to resist the overwhelming exhaustion, and crawl back onto her hands and knees.
Her teeth grinded spitefully together as she clutched her hand, a small surge of sparks crackling within her fist.
Pressing her hand to her chest, she let the surge of electricity flow into her body, into her quickened heart, into her failing mind, into her stiffened limbs.
Through the pain, she felt her strength returning to her, her arms and legs felt momentarily free of their weight, her lance felt lighter in her grip as she plunged it into the earth, and used it to steady herself as she rose back to her feet.
Turning back towards the Syrieth, her cerulean eyes glowered with a hatred so intense, it looked as though it, alone, could be capable of killing a man.
"Cocky bastard..." she hissed to herself as she noted how the elf positioned himself to be flanked from either side, sure that he could easily fend them both off at once with little issue.
She wanted to kill him, to rush forward and take his head from his shoulders for daring to belittle her like this.
But then it occurred to her.
She'd been in this exact position before, back in the sewers, and what had her eagerness, her overconfidence wrought then? Disappointment and a bitter, painful lesson, that's what.
Well, she wasn't going to fall for it again; she'd learned since last time.
And this time, she had a secret weapon, and now seemed as good a time as any to put it to use.
Electric energy still flowed within her, but she could still feel that the weight would soon come back, and pull her back down again.
She needed to make this count.

Drawing his second blade, and swinging his mechanical arm, Talio retaliated against the bandit with vicious, bone-chilling strikes, aimed to tear apart flesh, and shatter bone.
His last strike, he used the momentum of an upswing to raise his blade skyward, and then bring it back down with terrifying force, aiming to cleave the Syrieth seemingly in half.
It was then that Cressey made her move, using her renewed energy to launch herself forward into the fray, intercepting his one route of escape from the vicious assault.
"OVER HERE!!" she roared to draw the elf's attention towards her, digging her feet into the dirt for as much traction as she could manage, as she held her lance level with her glowering eyes, seemingly poised to run the elf through from behind, just as Talio hopped away to regroup.


Interacting:
Reinhardt (Bandit/Zest)
TreasureSniper (Talio)
Silver Wolf (Lupa)
lunar_moth (Endymion)

 

[lunar_moth]

Thwk. A lone dagger flies through the air, not a moment after Endymion’s head floats back down to his body. Adrenaline is all that saves him; he’s already a poor fighter, and senses dulled and drowsy as they are, the best he manages is to hurl himself to the side and paw clumsily at the knife in the air to try and deflect it from any of his important areas. Worst case scenario, he figures he should end up with a bit of a mangled hand, but regardless, he’ll take any outcome if it means not being killed immediately.

He’s thrown himself out of the path of the dagger so violently that he tumbles back to the ground, although less dramatically this time. Cressey’s voice catches the corner of his attention and he, still on autopilot, reaches to catch the sleeping bird as she’s tossed unceremoniously in his direction. He catches her with whichever arm is least wounded, and tucks her safely into a secure hold.

Endymion cradles the little bird in the crook of his elbow; still fast asleep, in the twitchy-shake way that birds do everything, and though his stomach sours at the idea of leaving everyone else behind he has to agree. Even if it’s just a bird… no, if him staying is only lessening their chances at escape, then he needs to suck it up and fetch the higher ups. Their safety is more important than showing off how brave he can be.

You are not special, he chides himself. You don’t get to keep putting other people in danger just because you want to feel important.

Okay. Here’s how it goes: you take a deep breath, get your wits about you. Blink through the sleepy-haze that’s still fighting to take you over.

Then, with your legs feeling still just a step above jelly, you turn tail and book it. Got it?

It’s a little bit of a jaunt to get out of the woods, but the further he gets from the sweet stench the more alert he feels, and that spurns him to keep going. Oh, he hopes he finds Arien soon. He hopes Lori is okay. An entire person gone missing, even as part of their initiation, is nothing to sneeze at. Besides, there’s clearly something much bigger going on beneath the surface of this operation if a lone investigator is worth going through the trouble of kidnapping.

 

[AnonyMouse]

Falion "Falco" Cauphix​

Location: Oytenrand Greatwood,​

Falco merely nodded when Sen checked if they wished to continue. He noted she didn't exactly answer his or Lucia's questions about the hooktail's green diet. It had definitely chewed on plants of some sort, but the experienced huntress showed no interest in addressing that. If anything, she seemed bothered by it or perhaps she was merely apprehensive about what lay ahead.

Falco began to wonder if the deep woods truly was more dangerous. That is what everyone had been telling them all day. The mayor, the scholars, the craftsmen, everyone said things would get more deadly the farther they traveled from Oyten. Even those schmucks at Jacobee said the same. But what did that mean? Those chonky treecats had come from the deep woods, but this team felled them without too much difficulty. Weren't those apex predators? Therefore, they had beaten the best the deep woods had to offer... right?

We got this, Falco thought. He could already feel a smug grin teasing the corners of his lips as Sen began to march toward the rocks.

"Alright, let's go. And don't say I didn't give ya a chance to bail," the Syrieth said as she began to scale the boulders. It wasn't particularly high or treacherous. The jagged surface provided ample foot holds, but Falco couldn't help but wonder why they didn't simply go around. A few minutes of walking to the north or south and they could ascend a mild incline, rather than a sheer waterfall... albeit a very diminished one.

"We'll follow the river," Sen declared once she reached the top. That seemed... reasonable. If something is affecting the flow of water, they should trace it to its source. She paused to equip her shield while the others were still climbing. "Fox, I want you in the branches, like before. We need eyes up there," Sen said. "If anybody wants a spear, let me know. I got spares. Range is your friend if somethin' gets the drop on us. Especially you, Punchy," she said, wagging a sharpened stick at Lucia as the Caskarieth climbed over the top.

I could've sworn Thea was supposed to be in charge... Falco thought. While he had no issues with taking orders from anyone here, Sen seemed especially aggressive now. When he reached the top, he found the scenery to be nearly identical to what they had endured since yesterday. Same forest. Same fucking trees. For some reason, he thought ascending the waterfall would be like crossing the threshold into another realm. But, alas, reality was never so exciting. So, why was their senior being such a pain in the ass?

Falco was among the last to scale the cliff and immediately accepted a spear upon reaching the top, despite having no idea how to wield such a thing. How hard could it be? He took a few practice stabs, but Sen wasted no time in getting the group on the move once more.

They began to walk along the banks of the depleted river with Sen leading. Her steps were steady and careful, shield held close, spear readied. Falco brought up the rear, careful to keep his distance from those before him. The group fanned out slightly, moving in a staggered formation. Minutes became hours. Or perhaps it was only one hour. Two? The thick canopy overhead swallowed up the sun. The farther they traveled, it became clear the forest was denser here, and darker. Although they followed the river, glancing to their left or right showed no trails, no obvious paths. The forest was all-encompassing. Getting separated here could mean being lost forever. There were places where the foliage became so tightly clustered, he felt as if they were moving through a verdant tunnel of leaves and vines, with no choice but to press forward.

But, more than anything, this place was quiet. The sounds of armor and weapons, the squelching of their collective boots in the soggy muck, and the soothing ambiance of trickling water from the river beside them were the only soundtrack. No cawing birds, chittering insects, or exotic calls from distant creatures. Even the wind fell silent, only blowing once in a while to tussle the leaves and remind them to breathe, air exists.

Along the way, they found more animal corpses in various stages of decay and disarray. The largest was an adult boar, nearly ripped in half and partially eaten, but most were smaller, such as rabbits and wild dogs. Sen theorized these were more victims of the hooktails on their journey east. The group stopped to inspect them and these were the only times anyone spoke. Unfortunately, these discoveries did little more than confirm they were headed in the right direction.... but toward what?

The frequency with which they came across these grisly scenes increased and the condition of the corpses grew worse. At first, most of the dead animals were clearly ravaged by a carnivore and left in tatters. But, as the adventurers traveled west, the cause of death became less clear. They found corpses which appeared to be mostly intact, but dessicated, despite lying on the muddy banks of the river. Some were half-embedded in the ground, as if something had pulled them down or crushed them into the soil, but there were no obvious tracks or signs that a large creature had bore down upon them. It was as if the earth itself was trying to reclaim the remains.

"I don't like this," Sen said as they began to travel once more, after inspecting one such corpse. She had been on edge all day, but only now spoke her mind. "The forest don't feel right..." As they walked, she explained that it wasn't unusual for some creatures to kill out of extreme fear or panic. The mauled wildlife they had seen was likely due to the hooktails running scared from this place. But this... this, she had no answer for.

"I almost don't wanna follow this damn river. Feels too much like we're walkin' a trail o' death, right into a-" Sen abruptly stopped and lifted her shield and clenched fist skyward, signaling the group to hold. She adjusted her grip on the spear in her other hand, readying herself to throw it. Her eyes were locked onto something lying on the ground, about thirty paces ahead. Another corpse?

From his position near the rear of the group, Falco only saw what appeared to be a dead... deer? He saw antlers, hooves, and mottled orange fur. It was lying on the ground with its legs splayed out, some of which were clearly broken. Its body was partially buried in the muck, just like so many others they had seen. It was just another corpse... but the Syrieth stared intensely, as if it might spring to life at any moment.

"Fox, ready your bow. Snake, City Boy, don't throw anything. Let it make the first move. Knight, with me," Sen said, her voice low and steady as she hunkered behind her shield and began to slowly approach the corpse. "I see you, ya son of a bitch..." she muttered under her breath with a sinister grin. The huntress had found her quarry.

Let what make the first move? It's dead. Has she finally lost her fucking mind? Falco thought, but raised his spear and held his breath as Sen and Thea slowly advanced. Don't tell me we came all this way for a fucking deer. I'd rather a third hooktail or-

"Esservine!" Sen exclaimed as the deer corpse launched at her, propelled by a writhing mass of... snakes? Roots? Vines? Brownish-green tendrils effortlessly catapulted the mammal before vanishing back into the muddy ground. It happened so fast, Falco wasn't sure he'd seen anything at all. They disappeared back into the ground and began to fork outward, lifting soil and mud everywhere they went. "Move! Inland," Sen shouted as she began to quickly retreat from the soft riverbank, where the organism could burrow freely.

The land itself appeared to ripple, starting closest to the water and moving outwards. Falco needn't be told twice. He ran inland as quickly as he could, but the roots began to overtake him. A root curled up from the ground, nearly tripping him, while another went for his ankle. He narrowly avoided these attacks, yet felt a sharp sting as a third vine lashed him across the back of his legs. They were relentless.

Beside him, Hyss went down. He didn't see how it happened, only caught a glimpse of her hitting the ground with a root coiled around her leg, while another went for her throat the moment her body hit the ground. Oh no, oh fuck, Falco thought, immediately discarding the spear Sen had given him and drawing one of his knives instead. Unfortunately, the moment he turned to help, his own feet were violently wrenched from beneath him and he went down hard. It was only by Aurelia's grace he did not land on his weapon. Falco frantically crawled backward, hacking and slashing at the encroaching vegetation.
Interaction(s): RedArmyShogun (Thea) / EmperorsChosen (Lucia) / Thalia_Neko (Hyss) / Topless (Sakura)

 

[Thalia_Neko]

Currently: Following the others
Thinking: "Get off me!"

Location: dry river
Interacting: the others
Mentions:


Hyss mostly followed in the shadows of everyone else. She wasn't sure what kept everyone else quiet, but Hyss was already known to be quiet, so that wasn't unusual. She kept pace, but began to wonder just how far were they going? The dry river was strange, but their mission had nothing to do with a river. It was to stop the monster -or monsters- at Oyten. Still, she trudged on.

Eventually, after passing corpse after corpse, they came upon... something. 'Esservine'? Sen screamed. They were told to run, so Hyss turned and booked it. She wasn't slow either, so it must've been fast to catch her.

Feeling the vine wrap around her ankle, she fell forward with a pretty hard thud. A hiss escaping her. Another went for her neck and she grit her teeth beneath her mask. In response, her glaive was already in her hand, and she quickly swiped it at the one around her neck so she could breathe. Then she swiped at the vine coiling around her leg, but by that point, more were assaulting her, trying to completely ensnare her. She slashed through several at a time, but whatever this monster was, it was relentless in trying to capture her. It evidently didn't like releasing caught prey.​

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Thea Schuerer
Location: Oytenrand Greatwood​

As the party ventured deeper into the wetlands, the carnage only seemed to increase, in its amount, in its depravity, in its terror. Sen was angry, just like before and even Thea was on edge with all of this. "Touch nothing, keep moving, keep close together, minus you Sakura! Keep high up as you can but close enough to hear us!"

Thea had no reason to refuse the orders of Sen but would make a few orders of her own to show at least Thea had not totally surrendered her position. Still, this was not right a gross scene of carnage, removed of the Goddess's mercy. Taking up the offer to keep two of the spears, Thea kept them on her back but had long since taken her sword out to be ready, on guard, on edge.

"Aye, it is a trail of death, I'm no stranger to the woods, woods not like these, a predator sleeps here." It was then they came across the deer and all hell escaped upon the world, as Sen exclaimed what the creature was, words that meant little and less to Thea, but she understood running, her long legs breaking stride, she used her Zweihander to wretch apart a couple strands that header her way, as she watch Falco and Hyss go down. She could save them, but then what, get caught? Falco was already freeing himself and Hyss was now making a desperate attempt at it.

"Hyss! Falco, focus on what is about you, I shall assist soon!" Turning around and letting her sword lean against her briefly as she took out her rope, oil lantern and spare oil bottle, tying the three together very quickly."Sakura! Hit those tendrils near the center, keep them from my throw if you can! Do this and I'll return the favor!" Swinging the collection like a bolo, Thea then calls out to Lucia.

"Lucia! On me! Set this all on fire, do not worry about my hands! I mean to give that beast something else to think about, to buy them time. We both will go to aid them once done!"

"As soon as you set it aflame and Sakura shoots a few, I'll throw at once, feel free to give me the word!" Swinging it and keeping her back to Lucia, it seemed she knew what she was asking. "Then we all haul ass up the grounds!"

Interactions: EmperorsChosen Thalia_Neko AnonyMouse Topless

 

[Topless]

Location: Oyten

Sakura went along the group following the river banks. As they venture more, the level of carnage slowly increased. These innocent animals all torn apart in gruesome ways. Sakura heeded Sen's and later Thea's command. She kept herself high on the branches but close to her allies. Eventually, they've stopped but kept their distance from a deer corpse. But something about it doesn't seemed right for Sen. Sakura find nothing of it, but was told to ready her arrows. She was right.

The moment she had gotten close to the corpse is when the creature revealed itself; an Esservine. "Holy Mother of Aurelia, what is that thing?!" Sakura have never seen such a creature from her homeland. Sen called for a retreat, but then Falco and Hyss got caught up by it's vines. "Falco! Hyss!" Sakura yelled as she aimed her bow at the vines, but couldn't figure who to save. That's when Thea called out to her. She ordered that she fire her arrows at any incoming vines at the center.

Thea has a plan, a very risky one but worth the shot. "Understood!" Sakura acknowledged and shifted her focus at the epicenter and start firing her arrows at the vines.

AnonyMouse Reinhardt RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen @Huntertabbysandshark3 Thalia_Neko
​

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Location: Oyten
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Considering that Sen didn't reply much to her comments, Lucia released a bit of a sigh as they moved onward, beginning their ascent. The older Caskarieth remarked that she should have more range than what her fists allowed. Since the spears were sharpened sticks and Lucia held no experience with such a weapon. Would it really be preferable to her gauntlets?

Nonetheless, she took one. She supposed it wouldn't hurt to have it as an option.

As they went deeper, things became grimmer. Lucia was no huntswoman and knew naught what to make of the corpses aside from their atrocious appearance.

"What kind of creature kills in this mann-" She began to question before Sen called their attention forward.

She readied herself and watched, wondering if something was hiding near or behind the deer, only for a strange green torrent to toss the thing and seep underground. Lucia recoiled in shock. "What in the Goddess' name is an Esservine?!"

The elf didn't much expect an answer so much as the question was automatically uttered. She started making before more solid ground when she heard shouting and struggles behind her and turned to find Falco and Hysydice struggling with the creature. It almost looked like animated vines and didn't appear deterred by the cutting or slashing of the two. It was like quicksand in that rushing in was by all accounts a terrible idea, but it wasn't as if she could do much from afar. Then again, was she supposed to hit the weeds?

Looking to Thea as Lucia called for her, her gaze turned to the bolas she was swinging, the elf gave a nod and held her arcanizer palm with her other hand bracing the arm to aim. She muttered an incantation before the gem glowed and spewed fire at the oil containers as Thea slung them. The oil spilled and splattered the area, even turning some of the stream into a river of flame.

After that was done, Lucia rushed forward to grasp both by the arms and dragging them back toward more stable ground where the creature couldn't burrow while Thea held the front to cover them with her sword drawn.

"What even is that abomination?!"

@Team A

 

[Reinhardt]

??? & ???​

Location: Heine Warehouse 5​

With her strike parried, the female elf immediately returned her shortsword to guard as she hopped back. However, her movement was not fast enough to avoid Lupa's follow-up lunge, as the rapier's edge pierced the light leather padding on her left shoulder. Fortunately, the momentum of her movement and a swift reaction to swat away the beastfolk's blade were enough to prevent her flesh from being stung.

As Lupa prepared herself for what comes next, the female elf took a step backward and raised her blade in a pseudo-guarding stance, one which could easily transition into a strike. A moment of silence came between the two as the female elf glanced at the small hole in her cloth's shoulder from the corner of her eye, without removing her attention towards her sole opponent, since the boy that accompanied her had chosen to flee.

"Brother.", she uttered, her gaze clearly wary of the beastfolk's bladework.

The male elf's answered. "I know, sister, I kno-", only to be cut off as Talio Manatech arm struck at him. He swiftly raised his longsword and maneuvered to the side, but the strike was much faster and much stronger than he had anticipated - leaving a small part of his blade chipped and a cut on his right arm as Talio's strike nearly caught him. "Some fancy-...tricks-...you've-...", he remarked, as he maneuvered through fully aggressive follow-ups, narrowly avoiding the powerful blows and leaving him with rustled clothing as well as a few small, but shallow cuts here and there. "...got there."

As Cressey re-entered the fray and tried to pincer him, the elf used her as leverage to avoid Talio's oncoming onslaught. Loud noises rang from the battle, as Talio's powerful strikes struck either the air, steel, or the earth. Unfortunately for him, Cressey was poised to use the opportunity to run him through, which she nearly did, if it weren't for her loud roar to gain his attention. The agitated lass's lance nearly struck the elf's side, who then grabbed its end and pushed himself aside using the same momentum as Cressey's charge.

"Close.", the elf taunted both. "But not enough."

Still grabbing hold of the lance, he used it as a springboard to propel himself into the air, leaving both Cressey's and Talio's reach.

Another wave of drowsiness struck the recruits, and as time passes, it is evidently wearing them down.

The female elf gazed at Lupa for a moment, before charging straight toward her, the sword poised to strike at her core. When she was close enough, however, her swing adjusted in a diagonally upward arc, the blunt side of the blade going for an upward strike to knock the beastfolk unconscious. The female elf grunted softly.

The male elf did the same mid-air, as he closed in on Lupa's location. The blunt, unchipped side of his blade arced downwards diagonally to strike Lupa down and render her unconscious. A pincer attack out of the blue, which if not maneuvered out correctly, would end up terribly for its target.

As he gradually landed at Lupa's location and the female elf closed in, leaving very little room for the beastfolk to dodge, the male elf smirked.

"Gotcha."

Endymion flew from the scene, leaving behind his three comrades to do what they had entrusted to him.
Was it brave? No.
Was it wise? Perhaps. To ask for help in dire situations is appropriate, especially when they had the means to do so.
Was it the right choice? That is yet to be proved.

The bird continued to remain silent in his clutches, fast asleep. Though he wasn't the most athletic person in the group, his unrelenting steps and newfound resolve were more than enough to get him far - far enough to no longer smell the scent nor hear the melody. He was clear from whatever magic that was - whether he was now safe or not is yet to be known, however. Perhaps the blood that dripped from the wound on his hand would attract wild, carnivorous beasts. Perhaps other prying parties were using such to track him down. But none of that should be his concern for now.

He was entrusted by his comrades a job - to call for help, specifically, the senior Kriegslöwe that was supposed to watch over them. There were just a few, teensy, tiny problems.

Zest, the bird that was supposed to call for Arien, was still asleep - and nobody had a clue as to where Arien would be exactly.

Interaction/s: Cresslinde ( King Crimson ), Endymion ( lunar_moth ), Lupa ( Silver Wolf ), Talio ( TreasureSniper )

???​

Location: Heine Warehouse 6(?)​

A small breath, akin to a short chuckle, left the woman's mouth after she listened to Lori's rather compliant response. She had expected a little resistance at the very least from a Kriegslöwe, but the young beastfolk had just blurted out information as if they were already on good terms and even complimented her looks for some reason. Amused by the eccentricity of this Kriegslöwe, which was very clearly a brand new recruit, she turned to face her directly. Her gaze fell on Lori, from her intimidating red eyes to the other's innocently glimmering red eyes.

"Address me however you want. We won't meet again anyway.", the woman replied, her voice sounding a little more casual than when she conversed with the two elves. "You were hired by one the Heine brothers, I see. You weren't hired alone now, were you?"

Once Lori would answer the latter question, she would add another one to the pile.

"Can you tell me about the people who came with you?"

Interaction/s: Lori ( ERode )

 

[ERode]

Location: Heine Warehouse 6
​

Now what was that supposed to mean? It would be pretty rude if that was how she segued into going "we won't meet again...because you die now!" wouldn't it?

Which probably meant that she shouldn't pick out a name that was too out there, huh? Lori furrowed her brow and rested her chin on her palm, looking, for the first time, to be in a state of absolute focus and contemplation. She had plenty of friends all around Raeligard, but they always had either their own nicknames or like, actually just used names with each other. Life on the road meant that she had no pets either, and while she got away with naming some particularly interesting rocks that she picked up (and then promptly slung away), to name someone else for the first time? That was a big deal! Why, Lori didn't expect that she'd do that until she got pregnant!

So, what did she have here? Red Eye Demon and Lieutenant. Obviously still a criminal, but not one of those creepy bandits that were smelly and hairy. Looked pretty tall, but Lori was still taller, but also she was very big in other ways. Super scary and fast! Had red eyes, as one would expect out of what those two Caskarieths called her, but her hair looked more interesting. Was it white on top because she dyed it red and then grew it out? What did that remind her of though? Hrm...

Giving up on a sitting position, Lori rolled onto her back and then pushed up with her arms, the chains that her shackles were locked to pulling taut as she performed a handstand. Blood rushed to her brain; maybe that'd made her think better.

Red, white. Fire. Rubies. Sunset. Cocks. Crabs. Ladybugs. Tomatoes. Peppers. Apples. Grapes. Strawberries. Radishes. Beans. Beets. Beef. Cooked rare, crusty brown on the outside but a tender, beautiful red on the inside....

Her stomach gurgled. Maybe this was a bad line of thought.

Lieutenant. Red. Lieutenant. Red. Lieutenant. Red. Lieutenantred.

"Got it!"

Her feet kicked against the wall and she rolled back up onto her feet, popping up to face the woman. "I'll call you Lieured!"

And the rest? That came easily.

"Anyways," Lori chattered on, "Yeah, came with some other people too, because, you know, lotsa inventory to be checked, and I'm not good with that sorta work anyhow. They definitely are though! Can read and do math and everything! But, lemme think..."

She swung her hips out and placed her hands against her head, mimicking ears. "There's Lupa! I think she likes to talk a lot, but she's also super smart and cute! Maybe very serious though? I think this might be her first job or something, because she's always doing lots of thinking about how to be 'professional' and all. Ah, and if it wasn't obvious, these are ears. Like, animal ears. Because she's a Beastkin like me! But more like...a dog or a cat? Anyways, do you think she has human ears too?"

She crouched down and waddled around, her hands now clutching her hair to create the impression of twintails. "Cressey's another cutie. She did a job before this with some others, but like, while she was resting, they went off on a different job without her, and that was rude! Oh, but she likes talking too, in sorta like...the way that rich people do? I'm not saying that she's mean or anything, but, you know. She's the leading type! I guess Lupa's also the leading type though...which sorta brings to mind..."

She popped back up onto her feet, and this time, her posture was wholly straight, her hands moving up to her neck to grab at an accessory that wasn't there, while her eyes looked as if they were contemplating the sins of the human race and the manipulations of the economy. "Talio's also a leader-type. I think he said he was a merchant or something? Probably why he was like, super worried about bugs and warehouses and Hedwig not being good at his job, and wanted like, to crawl down that hole and do some exploring to figure out where the bugs came from. Cressey'd be the only one that could fit in there though, and she certainly wouldn't want that, so we didn't do that. Oh, and he's very nice! Smiles very big and talks very big!"

Ah, but what was Lori supposed to do for her Endy impression? Hm...

She opted for suddenly squinting, her back curling as she swept her surroundings with the eyes of a true detective, before suddenly lurching back in an expression of pure shock and running away! For one step, of course, before the chains grew taut again.

"Anyways, that was Endy. I'm pretty sure he's more like me, except like, maybe just a little bit mean? The type of person to think badly of others, you know? Like there would be a cup of water, and it's only halfway full. But instead of thinking about it that way, he'd get all frowny about 'who could've drank half the water!' and then spend the rest of his day trying to figure out who did it. Oh, and by what I mean by 'like me', it's because he's more, you know, not the rich city type? Because his clothes and all. Not saying that it's a bad thing, because it's super nice to not be the only one, but I guess also he looks like he can't run for more than a day, so he's not really like me either."

What would you call that then? Someone who didn't dress good, didn't have money, and wasn't strong or fast.

Inspiration struck once more, her mind coming to those churches she's delivered to before.

"Oh, maybe he's a monk!"

 

[Silver Wolf]

Location: Outside Heine Warehouse 5
Interactions/Party: Reinhardt (Elf twins/mommy milkers oni goth babe), TreasureSniper (Talio), King Crimson (Cressey), lunar_moth (Endymion), ERode (Best birb)


​

After Lupa noticed the call for assistance she took time to wait for the elf's next attack and began shifting her position. Mentally, she began keeping an ear or nose out for as long as her attention would last. She noticed the male elf was tied up with Talio and returned her attention to the female. She felt a rush when her rapier had struck the female's armor. She didn't think she pierced it enough to make an injury, but she did smirk a little, which if the elf knew Lupa, it would be a sign her discipline on the battlefield was starting to slip. But, just because Lupa was getting sleepier as the adrenaline rush battled the spell, didn't mean she stopped thinking, regardless of whether that would be her downfall or not. The two circled each other, keeping the other at the forefront of their attention as the pangs of battle played out around them, each focusing their attention on the other. A little more adrenaline flooded her system along with a sweet feeling of nostalgia.

"What's wrong?" Lupa teased with her eyes wavering still, but her movements ever so fluid from the years of training and practice she had. She knew she was reaching her limit, but that wouldn't stop her from enjoying the high she had missed for years. The sweat pouring down, the heavy breathing, the feeling of teetering on the edge of death, oh how she missed this! "Come on, can't handle me without your beloved sibling even when you have the odds evened? And here I was finally starting to enjoy myself!"

After that, the wave of sleepiness hit again and Lupa focused on the pain in her side to keep herself awake, her tunic was already stained red, but it was clearly not gushing nearly as much as before. She noticed the elf was going in for the same strike at her core and this time prepared her foot to dodge. In a split second, she moved to the east by dragging with her right foot and noticed the feint a little too late, but in turn she noticed the male elf was closing in on her position. Just as the male elf spoke during his strike, she felt it, a primal surge as she quit thinking, knowing that if any of the strikes hit uncontested, she would be down for the count.

Two rings broke out in the forest and in a moment she did it, she fucking did it!

In that moment, it felt that slow motion had consumed her and she could see the minute things happening everywhere. She felt the surge, the sweet sweet surge of the gambit she just played succeeding, and doing so perfectly. Oh, thank Aurelia she lived to feel this alive, she could feel it! In those few frames she did it, she grinned like a madwoman and her muscles followed all commands.

The dagger caught the female elf's blade and she pushed, pushed like she never pushed before and staggered the elf back. She held her dagger tight, ignoring the pain from her joints over-extending themselves and focused on the second parry. As her rapier bent she slid past the strike and with the female staggered she backpedalled further to the east after giving a pathetic slash attempt using the sliding momentum aimed at the male, if she was lucky her rapier would snap into him, the shape readjustment of the blade adding the tensile strength of the steel to the strike. But, goal achieved, she backpedaled with the strike and retreated east until the two elves were between Lupa and her allies who they should hopefully have their backs turned to if their attention wasn't on her alone.

Her eyes wavered and started to dart as the sleep spell continued to try and work its way into her mind, but she was determined to hold firm. Now that her mental faculties were beginning to waver, poor choices could easily be made, but she felt something in the back of her mind pressing on. Something that urged her to bite into something and latch on like her life depended on it, and it was slowly starting to replace her training's second nature. A low growl rumbled from her throat as fangs and drool began to bare on and escape from her lips. Only the adrenaline was keeping her awake now, and with two moves made so far she had plenty to spare for a short time yet, but she could feel pieces of her mind falling off. Then, something clicked in her mind, like a dream. She got into an oddly unorthodox stance and brought her dagger up to bare alongside her rapier.

Two enemies, two weapons. Her stance lowered and she dug into the earth as though she could leap at any moment and observed the elves next attacks. She also eyed Talio and Cressey who should be hopefully charging to come bare their attacks onto the elves. The elves weren't the only ones capable of pincer attacks, now they too had to once again divide their attention between someone who just parried both of them in a desperate attempt and succeeded and the other two who had managed to press them if only mildly.

"You're surrounded and outnumbered. If you drop or sheathe your weapons and shut off the spell, we could simply turn you in and I'll see if we can earn you favorable treatment. But I doubt you're going to listen to us, you haven't already."

Lupa began preparing for the next wave of sleepiness and something in her stopped caring about the consequences. If they attacked now, she would have no problem using truly lethal moves to skewer them like pigs. Right now, her world shrunk to the enemies and allies in front of her.

 

[AnonyMouse]

Falion "Falco" Cauphix​

Location: Oytenrand Greatwoods​

Each time Falco sliced his leg free and managed to crawl another foot or so, another tendril latched on. Their grip was strong and their movements swift. He would liekly get away, given enough time, but knowing his friends had his beck came as a relief. Behind him, he heard Thea coordinating a strike. There was mention of fire. W-wait what? Hold on, don't...

He didn't see the thrown jar and lantern, but did see and hear the ominous 'whoosh' as oil-fueled flames spilled across the muddy ground and into the stream. The esservine's reaction was instantaneous. The vines flew into frenzy, slapping his shins and thighs for a few seconds before receding into the earth. He felt someone's hands upon him and very nearly lashed out with his knife before realizing who it was: Lucia, the fire maiden herself. The elf dragged them both away as a few lingering vines poked from the ground before sinking back into the softer soil near the water's edge.

But the fire had a secondary effect. Behind them, the unnaturally quiet forest came alive, rustling and groaning. The snapping of twigs and branches could be heard, not from one place, but everywhere, all at once. It was pissed.

Falco quickly found his footing and leapt up, pausing only to grip Hyss's wrist and yank her to her feet as well. "I'm good, I'm good. Thanks," he said to Lucia, quickly dusting himself off. It was mostly an instinctive action; but the mud definitely wasn't going away anytime soon. "You alright?" he said to Hyss.

He barely noticed the commotion in the trees, but it began to simmer down now. The ground beneath him was hard-packed and --at least by his estimation-- impenetrable. They should be safe here, right? As he stared at the fiery shoreline, a few errant roots continued to stir, like the earthworms found beneath an upturned stone. However, they began to recede. Within seconds, the ground looked as if nothing had happened. The quiet returned. If not for their bootprints and the churned-up mud where the roots had burst through, there would be no sign that anything had happened here.

Sen Hyazari​

As she ran inland, Sen drove the edge of her shield down, slicing through a mass of vines which threatened to cut off her path. She reached safe ground at about the same time as Thea and turned to see the chaos playing out behind them. Falco was on his back, using his knife to slash at the vines as they tried to latch onto his legs. Not far from him, Hyss was in a similar situation, using her glaive to free herself. One nearly found its way to her throat, but she managed to slice it off before it could find purchase.

Definitely esservine tendrils, Sen thought as her eyes drank in the scene. But this one was far bigger and more aggressive than any she had encountered before. The deer carcass was still lying where it had been thrown, unmolested by the carnivorous plant's roaming roots. It had found better prey. The Syrieth began to move perpendicular to the shore, positioning herself to intervene in the situation with Hyss and Falco, if necessary. But Thea was already calling out orders to her troops, so she was content with merely playing the role of observer for now.

Despite their differences, it seemed they could come together when it truly mattered. In the heat of the moment, the pagan fox even invoked Aurelia's name, haha. Nevertheless, their coordinated attack did wonders for Sen's opinion of them. The knight fashioned a firebomb, which the Caskarieth set alight while the fox used precise shots to pin down some of the encroaching growth.

Schuerer hurled the flaming mass toward the shore, landing somewhat between where the roots had first surfaced and where her two downed allies were. It was surprisingly effective. The oil spilled out, splashing toward the slow-moving stream and carrying the flames with it. Due to the sogginess of the ground, Sen doubted the esservine actually took much damage from this, but the the way it writhed violently the moment the fire spilled out suggested it felt the sting and swiftly retreated.

But, far more concering than that, was the foest itself, which also seemed to react to the knight's attack. No fucking way... Sen thought, her brows knitting into a hardened scowl as she returned the spear to her back, drew her hunting knife, and readied her stance. Just how far has the infestation spread....

But no attack came. Calmness returned. The same eerie calmness they had experienced all day long. And, once all of the rookies were 'safe' on hard-packed ground, the Caskarieth asked the question she knew was on all of their minds: 'what the fuck was that?' Wish I knew, Sen thought with a small sigh, but addressed them nonethless.

"It's an esservine. A carnivorous plant," she explained, gesturing for them to move in closer. "Strangleweed. Deathblossom. I've seen it called a few things." She began to pace, while resting her knuckles on her hips, with the knife still gripped in her right hand and her shield still affixed to her left. Sen wasn't know for fits of deep thought, but she was clearly still working this out in her mind and narrating her thought process as she did so.

"It ain't dead," she said with a nod to the shore where the ambush had begun. "Gotta destroy the root bulb to do that, the heart. These are just feelers. They grab prey and bring it to the core to be digested. It'll strangle ya, snap yer neck, if it can, or break yer legs," she added, with a warning glance at Hyss and Falco. Or drag ya into that fuckin' water and hold ya under 'til the bubbles stop, she thought, which gave her an idea.

"But they don't grow 'round here. This is bullshit!" she said angrily, as if someone had gotten the better of her and she resented that. "And big enough to run off hooktails? Bullshit. Look at this, those roots reached... twenty? Thirty feet?" she said, angrily sizing up the distance to shore with her hands, "And the heart's nowhere in sight. It's upstream. That much we know. Son of bitch is drinking the water dry, but we don't know how far."

"So, we keep heading up stream, find the heart, and-"

"Meat and water's all they need. A fuckin' esservine don't even need sunlight. They're barely plants. Parasites, more like. And once they're entrenched, like this one seems to be... FUCK, they can be a pain in the ass," Sen sighed. "It's strongest near the water. You ain't wrong, kid, but following the river's the hard way. But this shit has spread into the forest, too. We're probably at the edge of its territory now and it knows we're comin.' If we continue, know that every thing in this fucking forest could be tryin' to kill us. Every tree. Every vine. Every root. Every 'shroom."

Despite the direness of her tone, she actually grinned with sick delight. The same maniacal grin she had shown just before the carcass was flung at her. The thrill of a hunting dog that had found the scent and knew it was only a matter of time now...

She cackled with delight. "Hahahaha, I live for this shit! Chasin' a beast's one thing, but we're in it now, y'all. Whatchu wanna do, huh?"

Interaction(s): RedArmyShogun (Thea) / EmperorsChosen (Lucia) / Thalia_Neko (Hyss) / Topless (Sakura)

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Thea Schuerer
Location: Oytenrand Greatwood​

The plan went off without a hitch, though some flame did reach Thea's armored and gloved hands as she threw the splattering oil and now burning rope and containers, landing with a crash as broken glass and pottery smashed and shattered against the greatest thicket, her plan had succeeded. Though the scale of the threat became greater still. The forest shook in anger. She had no doubt somewhere in the distance an angry scream could have formed, provided the plant or whatever it was had such an ability, still she reached a sudden decision, calling out to Sakura.

"Sakura! Stay out of the trees for now till we figure what is what!" It was then that she took stock of here equipment, or the sacrifice of it.

Was that the right choice? Should I have saved it later? Can we do this? We have no choice but to do it, least we abandon the logging town...

With thoughts crossing her mind, she had made a choice and it had worked, Hyss who the tendrils nearly had by the neck was in grave danger, Falco was racing against the clock, and carrying the potentially volatile concoction may have harmed matters later. Still, she could not voice these doubts, however one other fact would come clear as she listened to Sen.

This was an Esservine and all that was said put her in an even worse mood, still it was a problem she felt she could deal with in part, but what of the rest? What did they think? Sure, asking them that had not worked before, but this time it had to be asked. They were risking life and limb for nothing but the hope the Mayor or Guild would compensate them, or to have pisssed oneself in dark pants as her father would say.

Good deeds are like pissing yourself in dark pants, it feels warm and tingly, but no one notices.

"Hmm." Thea says in response to what all was said, as her jaw tensed, she finally had in mind what to say. Making sure Hyss was fine, the knight slapped her on the back a bit gently before stopping as she joined the rest, hearing what Falco had to say as well.

"I have some questions, Two for Sen and one for you. All of you. For Sen, when you say a parasite, and not being from around here, do they have the ability to influence other lifeforms? I believe the green stuff we found in the mouth of the other hooktail was likely from this Esservine. But question is if it was escaping, being sent to spread it, or someway controlled?

The second question I have is if you think we will be of use to you in this? We are F rank, and I cannot do that trick just now again. I assume we are not seen as totally helpless, or you would not still be here."

She then turned to the rest, her gaze meeting them one by one. "Hyss, Sakura, Falco, Lucia. We stand at a crossroads. We can continue now and risk life and limb to end this before it becomes even worse. Death and danger is a constant for the Kreigslowen, but this is not what any of us signed up for today. We can return to the guild and to Mayor Johnson to report our findings to send for more C rank adventurers. This is beyond what you all agreed to only a couple mornings ago."

She then held up her sword, by the haft and into sky. "Or we continue and tear the beast asunder and protect Realm and People. I am in favor of the later. If we run, then that throws the work onto Sen alone least she comes with us. And to others that hopefully get here before the creature spreads more. If we stay, aye, I cannot promise your safety, only that my blade will cut through no matter how many of these Tendrils there may be.

We must go through the woods and be on the alert, that river is an execution ground as it currently stands. I will not order you to march. Each of you must decide here and now.

What say you?"

Lowering her sword, she smiled a bit and laughed as the fire started to die in places on the river behind them. "I'm afraid my words are still as long as ever. It is as I was to be a Knight and my view of the Guild Code that I wish to march."

Interactions: EmperorsChosen Thalia_Neko AnonyMouse Topless

 

[King Crimson]

Current Location: Outside Hein Warehouse #5​

Keep your eyes on the enemy's sword, and keep your feet planted firmly in place. Use the rest of your body, along with your lower center of gravity to redirect the sudden shift in weight, and send the momentum of their swing right back at them!
Most important of all; you need to be brave, and ready to face the full brunt of your enemy's head on! I'm sure you won't struggle there, bold little thing that you are!
Vivian's words, both doting and forceful in their instruction, rang in Cressey's ears as she held her stance, milliseconds seeming like minutes as her weary eyes scanned anxiously at the elf's every movement.
She could see him twisting around to face her, the look of momentary surprise writ in his eyes as her voice alarmed him of her presence, as he saw her lance raised up, ready to strike.
His face shifted, the corners of his mouth twisting subtly into a smug grin as he envisioned an escape from the aggressive onslaught.
It was then that the elf made his first mistake; he assumed her intentions, believing her lance poised to shoot forward, and pierce through his vulnerable kidney.
Instead, it remained raised where it was, waiting for him; a cleverly disguised parry, masquerading as a decisive blow from behind.
His second mistake; he reached out and took a hold of her weapon, using it as a surface to vault nimbly over her head, prying himself out from the deadly pincer of her and Talio's blades, and beckoning to his sister's call, spitting out a parting taunt towards the two as he seemed prepared to slip right through their grasp.
Cressey's eyes followed him, boring into his as he sailed over her head, giving him a full view to the victorious smirk she had kept hidden from him.
"Think you're the only one with control over the elements, do you?" she retorted, the small, blue-green gem on her wrist flashing brilliantly at the Syrieth in brief warning of his third, and possibly most egregious mistake; underestimating her, and the Kriegslowe guild.

The edge of Cressey's lance surged alight with the same mystical glow that hung at his waist, a current of live, raw electricity jumping up his extended arm, biting through his nerves like a legion of angry serpents, leaving a creeping, dull numbness in it's wake.
Seizing the slim window of opportunity that presented itself, Cressey shifted the combined weight of her lance and the momentarily stunned elf downward, aiming to take advantage of the elf's carelessness, and momentary loss of control to spike him roughly into the dirt.
However, the Syrieth was nimbler than she had anticipated, and her own timing was hampered by the accumulating exhaustion in her limbs, giving the elf the briefest opportunity to land on his feet, and continue his charge towards the beastkin.

Another wave of exhaustion struck her, and she could see the world beginning to grow dark around the edges of her vision as she watched the twins move as one, their blades both turned on Lupa.
Gritting her teeth, Cressey gathered another surge of lightning into her hand, and fed it directly into her heart.
Once more, she felt a rush of pain and energy fill her being, but it was muted, muffled compared to the first.
They wouldn't last much longer.
Worse still, by her guesstimate, she was almost at the deadline she'd set for herself.
She had one, maybe two more strikes left in her.
She needed to make them count.

Fortunately, the beastkin, had a brief, inspiring moment of alacrity, which only shined brighter in the face of the obvious fatigue that had left her long past he brink of collapse, with her blades in hand, she fended off the female elf's attack, and with the male elf's still recovering from the shock to his body, his advance was delayed enough to give Lupa enough time to catch his swing, and slip away, leaving the pair suddenly in between a very threatening pincer.
"Talio!" she ordered to her comrade before rushing forward into the fray, propelled solely on fumes, adrenaline and the hope that the opportunity before her would be the last one they needed.
Drawing her lance back, she once more held her lance at eye level, almost a replay of her previous advance on the Syrieth.
Her eyes bored into him with electric, glowering killing intent, her feet digging into the dirt as she shifted her accumulated speed and momentum into the tips of the toes on her dominant foot, then into her ankle, up her leg and to her waist as she used her body as a fulcrum for her amassed power.
Then up to her torso, to her shoulder, and then to her elbow as her arm extended forward.
Her aim seemed certain; a clean shot aimed for the elf's heart, her grip on her lance's shaft loosened for a brief moment, letting her spear slide down to extend deceptively far from what one would think her reach capable of, flying straight forward like a deadly drill.
But, at the very last second, as she fully extended her arm, her lance's trajectory suddenly changed, swooping low, and to the side, far from where it's course seemed to be headed, instead going right for the elf's pelvis, where his arcanizer lay open and vulnerable within his pocket.
It was, admittedly, a stupid idea.
A stupid, dangerous idea.
A stupid, dangerous, borderline suicidal idea, one that no one in their right mind would ever even conceive of, if they knew the dangers present
But it was what the Syrieth would least expect, and if there was anyone who could do it, it was her.
She didn't hesitate for even a moment, fully confident that she could thread that needle, twisting her wrist in one final revolution, as her lance shot forward to it's full extension.

Interacting:
Reinhardt (Bandits)
TreasureSniper (Talio)
Silver Wolf (Lupa)

 

[Reinhardt]

??? & ???​

Location: Heine Warehouse 5​

By all means the beastfolk should have fallen prey to the elves' pincer strike, but nothing is ever truly guaranteed. A lucky chance, that was what it was. A miracle born from the goddess herself. The beastfolk was able to parry both strikes at the right time, which allowed her to not only get away from them but also to position herself in a presumably more advantageous position. The two elves that once tried to put Lupa between them, were subjected to the same situation - in their case, with the beastfolk on one side and two more opponents on the other.

"Tch." The female elf was pushed back.

"Kh-!"The male uttered, as he was forced to let his left arm take the brunt of his fall as he narrowly avoided Lupa's rapier snapping at his face - though he recovered his stature in no time with a casual display of acrobatics that allowed him to rise from the ground with ease. His attention fell to the beastfolk who fled to his west.

The male elf chuckled in response to Lupa's words. "Of all the offers you could make, you chose the shittiest one."

With his attention primarily on Lupa, Cressey was able to press onward. However, her shout was loud enough to alert the elves. As the young lass charged onward, her lance at the ready, the male elf turned to face her, his blade ready to obstruct whatever she was planning. Unfortunately for him, though he had reacted fast enough to put his blade as a barrier against Cressey's assault, the abrupt adjustment to the trajectory of her attack made his move just a tad too late.

The male elf's blade did what it can to stop the attack, grazing the side of the tip of Cressey's lance as it grew ever closer to the Arcanizer glowing in his pocket. A subtle ring, followed by a whispering spark-sounding crack emanated from the side of the male elf's waist. A small puff of smoke escaped from his pocket, but it was too hard to notice in the middle of it all. However, like the recruits, the elf didn't act alone - a flying shortsword struck the edge of Cressey's lance, and saved everyone from what potentially was a Veracite-induced explosion.

The shortsword bounced back, with the male elf catching it as he recreated distance by kicking the tip of Cressey's lance and using such momentum to move closer to his sister. Without looking back, he casually tossed the shortsword in the direction of his companion, who very easily took the weapon back into her possession.

"You crazy little brat.", the male elf exclaimed. The was a slight hint of surprise and anger in his voice, yet a semblance of amusement and intrigue was quite evident in his look. "You could have killed everyone here, you know!"

The sweet scent started to dissipate, but the melody remained. Unfortunately, the recruits have been worn down enough that the mere melody alone was sufficient to sustain the assault on their senses and keep them on that ticking clock, which has trickled down to its last few counts. Although Cressey's plan didn't quite happen as she wanted it to, the result had shown itself.

"Stop playing around, brother.", the female elf uttered behind him.

"Alright, alright.", the male responded, as he twirled the blade in his right hand. He placed his left hand over the sword's blunt surface, as a green glow flickered in his pocket. "Blessed by the winds of strife, this blade shall be.", he uttered, his left hand gesturing a swift wipe on the sword's surface as a dim, green glow flickered on the side of his pocket. Unseen forces coated the male elf's blade, swirling around it and forming a small, rotating barrier of wind on it.

"Lucky me. Some of it still works.", the male elf smirked, his poise far different than earlier. The playful confidence was replaced by a firm and purposeful form. Though his gaze landed on Cressey it was evident that he was paying attention to the other two as well. The female elf stood behind him, raising her blade and taking on a somewhat similar posture as her companion, whilst the blue glow on her hip remained strong.

Without hesitation, the male elf charged onward to Cressey, his sword arm at the ready. But something seems different this time - whether it was his gaze, the efficiency of his movements, or the silence he now carried, it was clear that the battle had taken on a different front than before.

The female elf remained firm, but just like her companion, something didn't seem quite right. Subtle noises came from her, but the constantly resonating melody masked it well enough to be undecipherable. In the corner of her pocket that carried a blue glow, a faint brown light swiftly flickered, fast enough to escape the common eye.

Interaction/s: Cresslinde ( King Crimson ), Lupa ( Silver Wolf ), Talio ( TreasureSniper )

 

[Thalia_Neko]

Currently: Talking it over
Thinking: "We should report this to the guild."

Location: dry river
Interacting: RedArmyShogun AnonyMouse
Mentions:


Hyss barely had time to react in a concerned manner when she heard 'fire' before there were already flames bearing down on her as the vine creature was caught aflame due to Thea's plan. Hyss struggled some, kicking at the nipping flames; trying to kick off the vines that were still wrapped around her that were now covered in fire.

A moment later she was freed and being pulled out of the pyre and chaos. The girl was forced to push Falco back a bit as his attempt to drag her was a bit too forceful and made her feet slide out from under her. She could only glance his way in slight frustration, as she finally manage to clamber up to her feet. He meant well, she knew. He probably pulled like that due to panic.

Before she answered him, she inspected her clothes. Her mask had been pulled slightly askew, which she quickly fumbled to fix first. Then inspecting everything else.. There were rips on her pants and shirt, and some cuts along her legs. She had been lucky to not get burned, but marks could be seen on her ankles. Marks left like if you tried to strangle someone and you could see the red rough irritation around one's throat. Then she pawed her chest, checking to see if the wound from yesterday was bothered. It was not. Healing magic was a wonder. "I'm fine." She grumbled in response. "Thanks," she uttered generally to everyone involved.

Now that she was in a neutral position once more, it was obvious Hyss' attitude about the place had changed. Just like Sen, she was now at the ready, eyes flicking around. Glaive remained in her hand. She would not be caught by surprise again. She heard Sen's words. So the entire forest was this 'Esservine' creature? That was a monstruous monster!

After Thea's words, Hyss spoke up. She was not like Sen, the wild woman who only sought thrills. "I do not think we should continue. We are all close-range fighters at heart, with blades, not fire and powerful magics. Except maybe Sakura, with her bow. We have no real means to defeat such a creature, and this isn't our mission. We should report it to the guild. Still, with that said, why not just use fire? Burn this whole -erm- 'forest' down. Even if it doesn't kill the Esservine, it would expose it. If we were to return, or whoever does in our stead, could even bring fire arrows to strike from afar with flame. But, like I said, I do not believe we should go further. As you stated, we are low-rank, and do not have much experience against such a monster."​

 

[Topless]

Location: Oyten

The plan worked. Even if it did not kill it, the Esservine quickly retreated which also freed Falco and Hyss. Sakura let out a sigh of relief and jumped off the branch when Thea ordered her so. She regrouped with the others as Sen explained what the Esservine is and where the root bulb is located by following the stream. However, from the explanation alone sounded something that only a higher ranked Kriegslowen is capable of. Thea was all in to go look for it while Hyss wished to simply report it and call it a day, even went on to suggesting to burn down the entire forest.

"And have innocent animals or people wandering around get caught up to it? I'd say no." She kindly told the snake beastkin "As for me... I'd say we go after it. We cannot risk having to make a report and have the town wait for the higher ups to deal with it. Who knows that someone must be wandering around these woods in just this moment. We've came this close to finding out the mystery and we won't back out if we let it continue to live and resume it's rampage."

AnonyMouse Reinhardt RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen @Huntertabbysandshark3 Thalia_Neko
​

 

[lunar_moth]

“Oh, you silly bird, come on, come on—!”

Mostly he had been keeping his panic down thus far. Mostly. Of course, the thread he’s hanging on by wears out by the time he’s sweaty and a bit dishevelled from his mad dash through the woods with a sleeping bird, burrs clinging to his shirtcuffs from where he had cupped his hands over Zest’s sleeping body to shield her from getting pricked.

Endymion’s made it out of the blast zone for now, but now? Well, he can’t exactly fetch Arien if he doesn’t know where he bloody is. That was supposed to be Zest’s job. And Zest is out of commission.

His brain begins to spin like a wheel of fortune, and finally the clicker lands on the best solution he can think of. Endymion had been allowed to join one of the boys in his childhood village, once, to watch their farmdog have her first litter. He hadn’t gotten very close, still being nervous and sickly as he was and entirely unexperienced with animals, but he can still remember what it felt like to watch the boy scoop up the first born puppies, their fuzzy little bodies seeming too small to be functional, and begin to frantically rub up and down their chests to stimulate breathing. Get those little hearts beating. It gave him the chills to watch, but in the shivery-warm kind of way, where you realize something much bigger than you is taking place and all you can do is hope to keep watching. Endymion hasn’t seen that farmboy since before his mother passed, but even still, recalling those memories brings him a surge of that shiverwarmth back.

He’s leant against a tree now, trying to catch his breath. Endymion holds Zest’s fragile little body in between his palms and starts to stroke her, gently but with vigour, in an attempt to rouse her from whatever depths have taken her hold.

A bead of sweat runs down Endymion’s forehead. From the running or from the belated adrenaline rush, he doesn’t know. He just hopes that he accomplishes something soon, so that his abandoning of his teammates wasn’t all for nothing. Sorry, guys! The bird never woke up so I couldn’t actually get help, but hey, it looks like you managed to fight them off anyways with only a few stab wounds? Ha ha.

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Location: Oyten, Murder Forest
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

At the elder Caskarieth's explanation of what they were facing, Lucia appeared shocked, revolted, and insulted all in one expression. Likely, another special skill of the nobility.

"We're being attacked by a murderous weed?!" She summarized it followed with a huff.

If she thought on it, Lucia recalled reading some of such a thing, though she would hardly call herself an expert. Certainly, nothing that she had seen or heard about the flora indicated that it could expand to this extent. An entire forest trying to kill them. She would have absolutely recalled something as fantastical as that.

The elf folded her arms with displeasure as Sen went on, emphasizing that every piece of green could be used to strike at them as they travelled inward. At first, the solemn expression gave Lucia the idea that such a situation was doomed. However, then the barbarian grinned like a hyena, indicating that, no, the woman wasn't any less of an adrenaline junkie. Though that did instill a sense of confidence in Lucia. She probably liked pay more than a high, and that pay was gone if they went a route that got themselves all killed. In the C-Rank's opinion, this must be something they could feasibly do, or so Lucia coped.

She tapped a plated finger against the other bicep as the others spoke, until it was her turn.

"If we are to head further inward, then I request our dear chaperone to provide all information available as to combat this parasite," Lucia stated calmly. "You said we must strike the root bulb to kill it, yes? You also said they don't need sunlight. How difficult will the heart be to find? Is there a possibility it could be burrowed? What's the best strategy to combat it in route to the source short of setting the forest ablaze?"

Listing off a few questions, Lucia looked around expectantly at the others before speaking again. "I don't need adrenaline or want a pyrrhic victory, I want an irrefutable conquest. We need a general plan and information how to counter whatever this thing could throw at us. If we die needlessly, not only will we be dead, but the city and others will be harmed as well as there were none to warn them. So, how do we fight the weed?"

@Team A

 

[TreasureSniper]

Location: Heine Warehouse 6
Interaction: Male bandit Reinhardt Cressey King Crimson​

Luck is a fickle thing. How was it decided on this day that their team would meet such strong and well-armed bandits in their first mission no less? Mother always told him not to pick a fight he can't win, but this time, he didn't really have much choice in the matter. Feeling yet another wave of drowsiness hit him, forcing him to do something he never thought he would do. Opening the vial once more, Talio smudges a generous portion of holzekt guts below his nostrils, providing him with a strong somewhat lasting resistance against the burst of drowsiness. They were clearly outmatched by these bandits, but even so, they couldn't give up now. It was too late to pull out and the best they could hope for is for Endymion to wake up the bird and allow her to fetch Arien.

Hearing Cressey's call for assistance, Talio swiftly took back the sword that had been separated from him and followed the short girl's lead. Even with Holzekt guts being directly applied to his face, he could still feel the grip of drowsiness tugging on him. Whatever time he had left, he knew he had to make sure his action would make a lasting impact. Using the last of his energy, Talio charged forward toward the male elf, throwing one of his blades toward him to buy him some time to close the distance while also opening an opportunity for Cressey to make a counterattack of her own. There was no doubt in his mind that this bastard of a bandit could best both him and Cressey and direct fight, so the merchant to improvise with what he had left.

Once in range, the merchant would scrape his remaining blade across the ground, kicking up a dust cloud, hoping to temporarily blind the elf, wanting to give both him and Cressey a chance for another attack. Talio, holding his single remaining sword with both hands, swung wildly at the elf, his attacks were slow and telegraphed, easily predictable for any seasoned swordsman. He looked as if the fatigue had finally caught up to him. While this was partly, true his true intention was to bait out either a counterstrike or a riposte. At this point, he didn't care if he got hit or stab by his enemy's blade, because he had only one thing in mind. To cripple the enemy.

At the first chance he got, as soon as the enemy's sword got in the correct range, Talio would release his left arm's grip on his sword and extend his manatech arm to immediately grab hold of the enemy's sword arm's wrist and attempting to grasp it tightly with a crushing grip of a vice capable of breaking bone and maiming flesh. He knew that even if his manatech arm were to overheat, its grip would still remain closed tightly, essentially chaining himself to the opponent. "You picked the wrong group, bandit." Talio spoke with a calm tone, yet his eyes alone revealed his unyielding disdain for all bandit kind. Regardless, if that grappling attack were to succeed, he would follow it up with a punching motion to the face with his other arm, still holding the sword, releasing a puff of poison to his face, even with the mask on, the irritation that it would cause to the eyes is not to be underestimated. If nothing else, even if he dies today, he will at least leave this world knowing that he had greatly inconvenienced this low-life bandit. Talio would continue this punching motion, using his handle guard as a makeshift brass knuckle. until his body became too heavy to move, and he finally succumbs to the sleeping spell.

 

[Silver Wolf]

Location: Outside Heine Warehouse 5
Interactions/Party: Reinhardt (elfus/japanese gobulin), TreasureSniper (Talio), King Crimson (Cressey), ERode (Lori), lunar_moth (Endymion)


​

After her offer, Lupa gave a sneer to the male elf as her allies continued to attempt to support her, but thankfully she had some breathing room now. Her mind was still slipping, and now that her offer of peace was rejected she really had no choice. She prepared herself and took a deep breath, like she thought, this was easily going to turn into an all out fight, which they would likely lose. She just hoped Endymion got out safely, perhaps that's all she really needed now, but her other comrades were still fighting. Talio had gotten some actual strikes that left minor lacerations on the male's skin, but she knew that wouldn't be enough. A pit in her stomach grew and her fight or flight response was thickening on top of the drowsiness that was still eating away at her resolve.

By Aurelia it was so tempting to just surrender there and now, and she felt her stance wobble for just a second, snapping back awake and keeping an eye on the female elf. They would need a miracle at this rate, and she feared they hadn't burned their only one. It turns out, however, miracles could come in unlikely forms. Once Cressey had caught up and made her strike, Lupa prepared herself to strike the elf, only for her eyes to widen at the sight of what Cressey did. She went for the male's arcanizer. Moments ticked by in Lupa's head as attention shifted to the pocket of the male as the syrieth regrouped. It was then that she felt it, a fog began dissipating from her senses and she felt the assault on her mind ease up. Lupa grinned, still high on adrenaline, but now she had a fighting chance. Her ears were still assaulted, but with the scent gone, she felt her mind clear up much more than it would have otherwise. Her stance didn't change, but she felt her diaphram wiggle as she tried to hold back maniacal laughter.

The male re-engaged and the sister stood. Lupa took in a very large inhale and let out an equally long and large exhale before normalizing her stance. Unlike her last, this one was more focused, rapier out and dagger poised to interrupt more attacks to her core. Before she struck, she decided maybe the time was right to resume talking, as unlikely as it was. She really didn't want to keep fighting like this, but she almost didn't care what would happen anymore.

"Well good thing that didn't blow up. You see, unlike your brother I'm willing to negotiate, but if you really see eye to eye, I doubt you will. We really don't know who you are, but I guess it doesn't matter anymore. Looks like we're going until one of us loses or meets the goddess!"

Lupa charged, using a basic thrust to force the elf to act. Whether they dodged or parried didn't necessarily matter as she wound up her second arm and took a stab at a non-vital area with her dagger. She didn't expect the attack to connect, but with adrenaline now finally doing more to fight her predicament with the smell leaving, she pressed her advantage as hard as she could. During the time, Lupa expected to take some strike, but now she refused to relent her assault, pressing the advantage of the male sibling possibly being tied up with her allies and kept at her one two punch. Stab to bait out a move, use the dagger to either counter or attempt an attack. It was a risky and obvious play, but with some of her faculties back she felt a renewed sense of hope even as her muscles and wounds screamed in protest. She wasn't going to back down now, and she wanted to make that clear to her opponent. While her strikes were predictable, each time she would aim them at a different body part, regardless of the risk it posed to her and her opponent. Her eyes still shook, but not as seriously as before, and it was clear the scent was the strongest piece of the spell to this fighter. With the scent gone, only the sleepiness she had acquired stayed, but she was still on the clock regardless of the spell. The amount of adrenaline that was coursing through her veins would force her to collapse or slow down enough for the elf to end the fight sooner or later, and with her taking greater and greater risks it was dubious whether either or both of them would be able to finish the battle unscathed.

 

[AnonyMouse]

Sen Hyazari​

Location: Oytenrand Greatwoods​

The Syrieth's grin broadened as the knight raised her sword and declared her intent to carry on, deeper into the maw of the beast. Sen did not think her one for grandiosity, but the rallying cry was certainly welcomed. However, the hooded beastkin was next to speak, immediately throwing a wet blanket over the knight's enthusiasm. Sen's brows lowered and her jaw set tight, showing clear disappointment as the girl spoke, but held her tongue until Hyss spoke of burning the forest down.

"What!? Are you touched in the head, girl?" she exclaimed, once again going from anger to confusion. Hyss seemed to have that effect upon her. "I thought you wanted experience. Where's that 'teach me' shit, huh?"

Fortunately, the fox spoke next, bringing calmness to this discussion, before Sen could launch into a full-blown tirade. She also noted Falco stepped forward, putting himself between her and the snake-like beastkin, as if he had intentions of defending her. Perhaps it was nothing and he was merely shifting his footing, but Sen doubted that. What am I, a rabid animal? Jeez... Sen scoffed, slightly annoyed at the urchin. Not only did she have no intentions of laying hands on the girl but, even if she did, what the fuck could he do about it?

Her eyes cut to Sakura as the girl finished. "Well said," Sen replied, taking a deep breath. "I wouldn't ask ya to go if I didn't think y'all had it in ya. It don't take 'powerful magics and fire,'" she said, glaring at the snake, "Just quick wits and teamwork. There's enough of us here to watch each other's backs. But it's growin.' We ask for help and, by the time they get here, the help might need help. I say we shoot our shot. And even if we get in over our heads, we can pull back. If nothin' else, we do some damage, soften it up for the higher-ups to finish the job, if it comes to that."

"Hyss can go back to town, to be our lifeline," Falco said, glancing from Sen to the beastkin and back again, as if seeking their collective approval. "I still think we got this, but there's nothing wrong with having a backup plan. It's possible to be, umm, optimistic and cautious at the same time. If we're not back in... what... a day? Two days? Hyss and Risax can send for help."

Sen's brows lowered once more. Look at you, bein' all reasonable and shit. You trust this lemming to make it back to town? she thought. He said nothing about how this would diminish their team. Then again, the snake hadn't exactly been a huge help thus far and a smaller, more tight-knit squad would actually be a boon, in Sen's eyes. Easier to cover each other that way. Maybe the boy knew that and was dumping dead weight. Naaaah, this fucking virgin simp is too 'friendly' for that. He's just giving her what she wants, Sen thought, rolling her eyes at the mental image of this buffoon trying to appease every female he encountered.

Meanwhile, the Caskarieth spoke, taking a surprisingly pragmatic approach. She wanted information and a plan. Good. I like this one, Sen thought. With the exception of her nonsense about an 'irrefutable conquest,' hahaha, the girl definitely seemed to have her head screwed on tight, which is more than can be said of your average noble.

Then again, your average noble wouldn't even be here.

"If we're gonna do this, I ain't your 'chaperone' no more. I'm your teammate, which means I'll share what I know," Sen said with a smile. Not her usual murder-y grin, but an actual smile. "We ain't goin' a step further 'til everyone's educated. I wouldn't worry too much 'bout it buryin' itself. I'll tell ya why in a sec, but first thing's first." She looked to the snakelike beast girl. "What you gonna do, girl? You in or ya out? And don't worry. Ya ain't hurtin' my feelings none. Wouldn't be the first time you and spider boy decided to play hookie together."
Interaction(s): RedArmyShogun (Thea) / EmperorsChosen (Lucia) / Thalia_Neko (Hyss) / Topless (Sakura)

 

[Thalia_Neko]

Currently: Talking it over
Thinking: "We should report this to the guild."

Location: dry river
Interacting: AnonyMouse Topless
Mentions:


"Do you hear that? Exactly. There are no innocent creatures left. Or if they are, they'll soon be food for that monster. This forest is an extension of the Esservine. It would be unfortunate for someone to randomly stumble in and perish, that is true, Sakura. But it would be even worse, catastrophic even, if we all foolishly threw our lives away."

It was clear, by what Lucia said, that she was seeking glory, much like Sen. However, the way she put it had Hyss nodding. She at least had a clear idea of the threat, and what they needed.

Well, it seemed they were all pushing forward, causing Hyss to deflate from pessimism. Well, Sen was certainly right. She would end up learning how to combat an entire forest with nothing but the weapons on their backs. "I'm not going back," she countered Falco, side-eying him with a glare flashing from her silvery eyes. It irked her he decided something for her. Their job wasn't to solve this mystery. But equally, their job wasn't to run away. If her allies were pushing forward -even if foolishly so- then Hyss would provide the aid she could.

But boy this woman was optimistic. 'We'll just pull back,' she said. Hyss looked at her with a flat look of doubt. There was a difference between confidence and foolhardyness. While Sen may have experience doing this type of thing - the rest of them did not; or very little. It irked her. Again, another person was forcing her own ideals, thoughts, or self-inflated so-called skills over the entire group. A group she forced her way into. This monster spanned the forest and fought with vines as strong as ropes. As if you could easily run away when they were grabbing for you. Hyss knew that more than anyone, based on what just happened. If any of them died, Hyss would blame this overzealous egomaniac.

Oh, NOW she was their ally? Convenient. Hyss wasn't buying it. She stared up at the woman who seemed to truly enjoy being rude to her. "I just said I'm not going back. Leaving one's allies at the maw of danger is despicable and cowardly."​

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Thea Schuerer
Location: Oytenrand Greatwood​

Thea listened to what the others had to say, one by one they chimed in, with only Hyss not wishing to do the job. Each had their own reasons, Sakura to protect what innocent life remained, Lucia for glory, but she wanted a plan. Falco while he never chimed in was clearly going. A few things Hyss had said seemed to have Sen slightly angered. Nothing new really.

Still, Thea would comment on it as well. "The Forest is unlikely to burn, given the moisture and dampness, and we would have no way to control the firestorm even if we could set it. That scale of destruction would not be looked upon kindly." Falco then chimed it with the offer of having Hyss fallback to the City to join Rixas, to send help if they fell, and that now she was part of the team. Sen pointed out why this was pointless and that they could retreat. The knight knew it would not be so simple, though in principle she was right, Hyss in turn shot down offer and resolved to come with. It seemed all was settled.

"Well, that's, that then. Sen if you would, tell us of the beast and what we must do, I know not of such matters. Other than I assume we ultimately must skewer the bulb. This forest is vast, and we cannot tarry too long. And I am glad you'll be staying Hyss. We need as many sword arms as we can get."

With that said the Knight had one more thing to say. "Should you wish it Sen, you are the Veteran and I can relinquish my command to you for this encounter."

Interactions: EmperorsChosen Thalia_Neko AnonyMouse Topless

 

[AnonyMouse]

Sen Hyazari​

Location: Oytenrand Greatwoods​

Sen's anger rose as the beastkin spoke, but she bit her tongue until Thea was finished. "'That's that' my ass. We're not done," she said in a low growl as she pointed at the offending party member. "Do you trust her to watch your back, knight? Do any of you!? Because I sure as hell don't." She approached the girl and stared down at her. "Cowardly and despicable? You already did this shit yesterday, abandoning your friends when they were rushing toward danger! Now, when we ask you to do it again, you suddenly give a fuck about everyone's safety?" she said, cocking her head to the side.

"Hey, just take it easy..." Falco said, somewhere in her peripheral vision.

"No, I'm not gonna calm down! This bitch changes her mind ever fucking minute! What happens when she decides y'all ain't worth savin' again? I warned you about this shit yesterday, Schuerer. You shoulda nipped it then," Sen said, briefly glaring at Thea before returning her attention to Hyss. "Going back to town solves every problem you just complained about! I have a spell that can signal you if we get in over our heads and I stand by my belief that we can fall back if it gets too hot. Danger is part or the job, you fucking coward. You think sending some other Kriegslowen into this shit hole is any different from letting us do it?"

She choked on a laugh for a half-second before suddenly becoming deadly serious, as if the heat of anger abruptly left her body, replaced by cold, harsh reality. Sen's expression hardened as she knelt slightly, lowering herself on her haunches until she was eye level with the much shorter girl and placed a hand on her shoulder. "You wanted me to train you? Alright, first lesson: lemme teach ya about trust. 'Cuz, when you're workin' with a team, what people think you can do is almost as important as what ya can actually do. And right now, I think you're a liability. And I doubt I'm the only one." She prodded the girl with her fingertip for emphasis, "Your problem, girl, is you don't think any of these folks can handle this shit without you. And that is where you're wrong." she nodded briefly. "I've killed two of these goddamned things before, but you're the expert, right? You know better than I do, right? Heh. Why are you even here, girl?" Sen said at last, throwing up her hands in surrender as she suddenly stood up.

"Not just 'here' here, but why'd you even join Kriegslowe?"

Interaction(s): RedArmyShogun (Thea) / EmperorsChosen (Lucia) / Thalia_Neko (Hyss) / Topless (Sakura)