Fantasy We are the Cursed

[The Suspicious Eye]

.

Eve

Taking her bag from Tyr she held it close to her lips and began to mutter something intelligible into the bag. Rocking in the bag back and forth her mind left her body, leaving the shell to mov Her dead eyes rolled up towards Tyr as her brow slowly fell into a deep furrow. Letting out a silent rage that could chill to the bone if you let it. Speaking low and clearly she stated. "I know your truth." Rolling her head to the left she lifted the single strap of her bag over her head once again and patted it against her hip the cool calmness of contentment washing over her as her belongings were secured. Looking down at the pack she ran her left hand up and down the embroidered white strap while patting the flap with her right. Standing there for a moment longer in contentment her head snapped straight back to Tyr.

"I don't break."

She said sternly the cold anger unable to be found, but was certainly there. A dull passiveness returned to her body as her eyelids slowly fell, hiding the dark stones. Turning her head over to the pack she ran her left hand up and down the embroidered white strap while patting the flap with her right. Standing there for a moment longer in contentment her head turned slowly back to Tyr and then to the others. Her eyes resting upon each of them before tilting her head back and looking at the masked creature of a man. Her dead eyes stared back at the broken face unsure what to make of him. Under the mask, beneath the twisted and mutated flesh, was who he was and then something simpler, but deadly curling around his essence. Eve stared into the broken thing, and felt for it.

Reaching up and out she went to wrap her hand around the layers that hid his face. Unable to reach such heights she pushed up to her tiptoes as the others began to talk of truths and secrets. Swaying from side to side she tried to reach Moulder's wrappings. As Tyr mentioned how a wild werewolf is tough she spoke up. "Not particularly. Puppies tire out, if you give them time. Same with babies." Whimpering as she couldn't reach it him her arm grew tired and fell heavily down to her sides. Swinging slowly on her sides she looked over at Tyr. "I'm tougher."

She said before looking out to the further path and began to walk it.
Shog Moritz Ennuis Aloha Loha The Suspicious Eye @HumansArentReal Malice Queen The Gunrunner

 

[The Gunrunner]

Bayan

Bayan's shadowed visor locks onto Tyr, instinctively snapping his hand to the grip of his falcata. In that instant, his entire body demands steel meet blood. Monsters in the mind, not the body; offer them only oblivion; kill, kill, kill. His muscles tighten and his movement swiftly halts, his arm shaking in place as he fights to keep his blade undrawn. The maelstrom of thoughts slowly quiet, though he struggles to control himself. Beyond the darkness of his helmet's visor, Bayan's cold gaze pierces Tyr's own. "Hound of hounds," His voice eminates, quietly, his body refusing to relax. "When you change, It will be Moulder and I that take you away and keep you restrained. I will not, I cannot, allow you to disappear. You are unsafe, and if you kill - My being demands you die. Understood?"

His fingers remain clenched around the handle, blade ready to be drawn for combat. He fights the instinct, his mind straining to resist and his arm shaking more violently. The sword draws, slowly, inch by inch. "Agree... Please," the blade gleams in the sun, the edge sharp as a razor yet chipped by constant use. His footing begins moving despite his resistance, dragging in the dirt beyond his control, readying the body for combat. The curve slowly shows itself, a savage bend that distinguishes it from the 'swift' and 'noble' sword - This was a brutal chopper, meant for hacking much like a common axe. "Take the deal!"
Shog Moritz Ennuis Aloha Loha The Suspicious Eye idalie Malice Queen

 

[Shog]

Now Tyr was really beginning to panic. Bayan turned on a dime and he'd inadvertently made Eve angry. At least, he thought she was angry. Kind of hard to tell with her. But Bayan was his primary concern. He seemed to be fighting off the urge to chop Tyr into pieces, asking only for his cooperation, but he couldn't do that. He still didn't quite know what Bayan and Moulder were, but given their smell he wagered they were undead. That might help them against his beast form, but he doubted it. He knew he could tear through armor in far better condition than the sets they wore. Plus, how did they intend to restrain him? Rope wouldn't work (he's tried) and he doubted they had chains on them. Maybe they had some sort of magic that could restrain him, but that only added to the panic. And all of this ignored that he'd be voluntarily isolating himself with a man that was currently drawing a sword on him. No. He couldn't agree to this.

As Bayan became more aggressive, Tyr became equally agitated. He refused to draw a weapon and escalate the situation, leaving his hands to repeatedly clench as if trying to crush the air. He wanted to say something to try and diffuse the situation, but was under the impression anything less than agreement would make no headway. "Look, I..." Tyr said, desperately fumbling his words. "I just can't." His heart pounded in his chest. If he didn't calm down now, he wouldn't need to draw a weapon to escalate things. "I-I cannot voluntarily isolate myself with someone who's drawing a blade on me." The pressure building in his head was becoming too much. He winced, squeezing his eyes shut for just a moment and bringing one hand to his temple. When he reopened his eyes, the night appeared significantly brighter, but devoid of most color. Shit! His eyes had taken on a distinctive yellow color and appeared to almost glow. He felt his joints begin to stretch and knew he was running out of time. He'd either have to calm down as soon as possible or consciously follow through with the transformation in hopes of retaining control. The latter option was less appealing, but if he could show he wasn't hostile then maybe the others would give him enough space to revert form. Maybe then they could have a civilized conversation about this.
The Gunrunner Moritz Ennuis Aloha Loha The Suspicious Eye idalie Malice Queen

 

[Ennuis]

The question posed by Lazarus, who had just now entered the discussion, was an important one. It also wasn't one Vincente had considered much in the same way he had. "Well, I was hoping for our visibility to be poor for the sake of my eyes, but perhaps your concern is valid." Vincente had a sly grin on his face, giving away the fact that he was joking. "Just keep in mind that the heat from the sun will just make them smell worse."

However, the amusement gained from Tyr's reaction easily overshadowed that of Vincente's joke and his smile grew more. "I see... You make good points. 'Sleep schedules' are very important after all." Placing a friendly hand on Tyr's shoulder, Vincente then whispered to him. "Just be careful, I don't know if she's the best of options for that. Even worse when we're in the wilderness, don't you think?" The small girl, Eve, appeared again and pulled at the extra bag on Tyr's shoulder. Raising his voice back to a normal, conversational volume, Vincente offered one more piece of advice to Tyr. "It's usually not a good idea to tell someone you didn't steal something before they accuse you of it."

It was then that the two smelliest members of the group joined the discussion, or at least stood in the general area of it. Vincente wasn't sure what one of them was saying, other than the botched attempt at saying his name which finally made the smile leave his face. In the brief moment that this distracted him, the situation quickly spiraled out of control. Tyr revealed that he was a werewolf, which was not taken well by Bayan, who now threatened him.

"You're really making this out to be more than it is, the man is no threat to us and if we find ourselves in an area where it could be a problem, we deal with him then. We all have eyes, we can see the moon in the sky, we will know when it becomes unavoidable." Vincente's voice gave his agitation at the situation away, Bayan was quickly becoming a threat to his goal and he wasn't having it. "To get worked up over it now will just waste time and destroy what little trust a band of strangers has, which is far too dangerous to be allowed to happen. We all want something out of this arrangement, so don't ruin it for others." He then turned to leave, but quickly stopped. "Oh, Meryth. I accept your apology."

As he walked away from the others, he noticed Eve had the same idea. The girl was quite easy to miss as she lacked any proper presence that most living things had. "I should really put a bell on you before someone trips over you. Oh, there's an idea, we could have important people trip over you. They'll never see you coming."

idalie Shog The Gunrunner Malice Queen The Suspicious Eye

 

[Moritz]

Moulder's gaze momentarily met Eve's; Two bulbous eyes protruding partially from the sides of a somewhat tubular mass of black-grey hide, mottled with an occasional splash of red in the form of irregular splotches; giving him a somewhat spotted appearance. Another set of black half-ovals sat a good inch or so beneath the Wretch's primary eyes, hinting at yet another pair of eyes that seemed to travel downwards. His colored hide is interrupted every so often by faint scarring, a minor hint to the creature's lengthy time spent on the run, hunted by people who quite rightly considered him an abhorrent thing that deserved nothing but an end. His arms snaked lazily at his sides as the Girl's own arms slid upwards, the creature recoiling in surprised confusion as her hands approached his face. He sat still, eyeballing the Girl warily till she gave up and turned away, heading away from the group, "What-what?" He chittered. He moved to trail after Eve, hoping to hunt for a reason for her behavior- and perhaps the odd... teeth-things floating around her head- only to find his questions and curiosity dissolving the moment Tyr's abrupt confession hit the air.

"What-what!?, You're a Man-Hound!?" He barks, alarm coursing through his body as he whipped around towards his Smelly companion, predicting Bayan's reaction with a rather painful amount of accuracy. He immediately sped to the fellow's side, both arms shooting out to twist and wrap themselves around Bayan's sword arm, giving it a harsh tug towards the ground. "No!", He hisses, "Bad Bayan! Vin'seat right! Your stupid-think going to wreck-ruin!" He warbles, "You forever ruin Bayan's stinky-people like the Man ruined Moulder!" He screeches, going straight for a below-the-belt hit in hopes to halt the Once-Man's momentary recklessness. His head twists back towards Tyr a moment later, black orbs fixing on the Man-hound's face, "And you! Stop your stink and the loud dog-ing, please-thank! Bayan does not belong only to Bayan! You upset them with yourself!" He tossed what he hoped was a pleading glance towards the other members of the rag-tag group that had hopefully refrained from booking it, "We all nice-together, yes-yes? Forget Bayan's... problems... yes?" He chitters, "Just need keep Man-hound and Stink-Knight calm, yes-yes." He suggests, nodding sagely before locking his gaze with Bayan's.

"Merf, Lazaries, or Whatever-You-Will can watch Torth! Moulder can help- Or not! Just- need to keep everyone happy-safe. Everyone, yes-yes."

 

[Aloha Loha]

There was a distinctive pause as Gilles marched onward. In fact, there was something different about the current situation than what was present before. Was it the circumstances that were laid bare to the rest of the party; that the mundane was cursed to roam as a wolf? Perhaps it was the steely edge that would be laid bare upon the wolf as soon as it struck. Or perhaps it was the voice of the child speaking clearly and not in riddles. Or could it be the two, the scoundrel and the jester, trying to maintain a peace and not allow this band of monsters among men to descend into a natural savagery but mere moments after they had formed to the whims of noble politicking and to achieve their own natural desires.

It was none of these things.

In fact it was an absence about the situation. Gilles, a curmudgeonly sack of flesh mostly consisting of pulsating pus and misshapen maladies, did in fact march forward through the woodlands. The concerns of those individuals, those that could be of society, were not of Gilles own so he pressed onward as his soles shuffled through the grassy field of the woodlands. Still within ear-shot of the group at large, it was plainly obvious that Gilles was not to play a part in these affairs.

After all, they did not heed simple instructions in not bothering him. The solution is obvious. thought Gilles to himself, knowing full well to insure they would follow a path of non-aggression, they must know what such a path entailed. And in his observations any suggestion he made would be ignored anyhow, so he figured he might as well allow the group to murder each other to their hearts whim or spare. It was not his concern what path they chose.

Concluding a few more paces, Gilles decided to take refuge ontop of a bare stump. Crouching down and bending his limbs slightly, the tumorous man slowly shambled around to adjust his seated position to have a view back towards the group and towards the destination. This was followed by Gilles idly scrawling with the bottom of his staff to the dirt below.

Dirt was a simple and forgiving canvas as it would easily forget any missteps taken and allow you to try again. And in this darkened environment it would be easier to entertain himself with a simple canvas instead of trying his luck with a piece of parchment which was less forgiving. And so there upon the stump Gilles began to draw patterns in the dirt. It started off with quick and simplistic lines, many of which shot off at jagged and harsh angles. But eventually these began to give way to softer off-shoots which were composing spirals.

Perhaps this mosaic in the dirt held some deeper meaning. Or perhaps this was simple a construction of various patterns that held no inherent value. Regardless of what it could be, what the pattern was is a different and simple answer all together. It was a composition by a tumorous ridden man.

 

[The Suspicious Eye]

.

Eve

Eve traversed the troublesome terrain taking tiny tramps as she trailed along. Following the direction of the stars north towards the river's edge. Having traveled all roads in her lifetime she walks instinctively, unsure of the landmarks but certain of the destination. As Vincente caught up to her, she didn't notice him until he spoke up. Slowing her already slow pace she turned her head upward to face the towering man. "A bell?" Eve said her voice distant as if it was not her own, but a echo resonating in a deep empty chamber. She reached out and placed a finger to her temple. Shaking with the force she was using Eve let out a small grumble of struggle. Letting out a quiet exhale she shook her head. "Tripping? That's not nice." Pulling her finger from her forehead she slowly swung it scoldingly at Vincente. "Tripping won't help anyone." Letting out a small tsk of disappointment from the man, like a parent to a child.

Hearing the commotion from down the way Eve stopped the steady pace of her legs and turned around to watch the scene unfold. Staring down at that them all she tilted her head from one side to the other before standing completely still. "They argue.." Her shoulders rose and fell, with no sense of air escaping her. "..they argue over monsters among men."

Raising a empty hand she extended her fingers out towards them and motioned it so each one was in her grasp. "Do they not see...There are no monsters here, for there are no men." Her weary arm falls back to her side as she spoke and stepped forward and stared into them her stone eyes glazing over as she grew distant yet again.

Looking up at Vincente her clouded eyes pierced through him as her still voice crept from her lips. "Even your misfortune has changed you." Turning towards him she lifted her other hand and reached for his own. If he let it happen she would gently squeeze his hand for a moment before letting go and walking off. Her eyes trailing upwards toward the moonlit sky as the scarce dark clouds of the evening pass by. Watching the stars she began to mindlessly sing a soft song.

"He cut your strings so that he could float
- lit by lights, lifted by alcohol
- over acres of loving coast,
far away from your lonely ghost.
Now he’s cool and all,
floating anchorless. Ports of call:
where it’s fabulous, after all
of this watching himself just crawl.

Think you see him?
He’s not there,
that’s just light
that’s not yet dead.
Wait two hours
and watch what’ll be there instead."​

Shog Moritz Ennuis Aloha Loha Malice Queen The Gunrunner idalie

 

[The Gunrunner]

Bayan

Bayan's gaze turns ice-cold, the shaking stops, and the sword clears in one clean motion: "Then I have no choice." The voice is as emotionless as always, but even so the words carry the aura of a threat. Just as the sword clears the sheath, Moulder grabs hold of Bayan's wrist and yanks it to the ground.
"Bad Bayan! Vin'seat right! Your stupid-think going to wreck-ruin!" He warbles, "You forever ruin Bayan's stinky-people like the Man ruined Moulder!"
The words seem to have a quick effect on the armoured man, as his body suddenly twitches twice before his actions seem to calm again. "You are right... You and Vincent are right."

He looks back to Moulder, nodding to signify he is safe to release. Once Moulder does so, Bayan sheathes his sword again and looks back to Tyr - "I am sorry. Please, if you will forgive me, I will be safe to travel with so long as you are. The action was not entirely my own, but Moulder has... found a compromise." It was not lost on Bayan that Tyr's transformation was threatening to begin, but it was also not lost on him that it was his own fault. Right now it was important to deescalate, if possible.
Shog Moritz Ennuis Aloha Loha The Suspicious Eye idalie Malice Queen

 

[Shog]

Too late, Tyr thought. When Bayan fully drew his sword and seemed to stop resisting the urge to use it, Tyr knew he'd lost his own inner battle. Everything became muffled as his ear began to change, causing him to miss most of what was being said. He registered Moulder trying to mediate and Bayan seeming to have calmed down, but by that point he was visibly growing and with fur erupting all over his body. Before it got that far, however, Tyr began throwing his supplies to the ground. He knew from experience that the transformation would damage his bow and pack, so those were the first off. Next was his boots, followed by his shirt. His pants grew uncomfortably tight as he continued to fight his growth and barely got them half off by the time he couldn't resist the change any more.

Try's growth rapidly accelerated until he was over two feet taller than he was before, his limbs growing in proportion to this form. He would tower over everyone in the group had he not fallen on all fours. He may be used to the process of changing, but that didn't make it any less painful. It felt like his body was trying to pull itself apart. And then there was the feeling of growing fur. That wasn't painful, but feeling fur growing was incredibly unsettling. The worst parts was his legs and face, which both had to drastically change his skeletal structure. The transformation took several minutes, in which Tyr remained completely unaware of his surroundings. Only once he had finished did he begin taking note of his surroundings again.

Tyr had been completely replaced by a large man-like wolf creature with dark greyish-brown fur, bright yellow eyes, and sharp claws, which had gouged out streaks in the dirt. He remained down on the ground, trying to sort out his mind. His consciousness always felt fuzzy at best when he transformed, but the fact that he was still down on the ground was a good sign. Tyr focused, and slowly lifted his head to face Moulder and Bayan. He had no idea how anyone would react, but he hoped that his lack of immediate aggression would show he wasn't hostile.

The Gunrunner Moritz Ennuis Aloha Loha The Suspicious Eye idalie Malice Queen

 

[Malice Queen]

Meryth Alesani

​

Shocked by the admitence of Tyr's curse, Meryth would watch the others nearby carefully. Bayan seemed to emite a murderous intent, which did not help the situation at all! Meryth's own instincts told her to reach for her blade...and yet she resisted as well, moving in front of Tyr in a defensive stance. "Stop this, think about what you're doing!", she would shout only to watch the following actions happen in quick succession.

The next thing she knew, she was turning around and Tyr had already transformed into a werewolf. Her hand is removed from her hilt slowly and carefully; Meryth assumed he was completely different now - he looked like a beast after all. "Alright...let's calm down...", she would speak lowly as she kept her eyes on Tyr's brilliant yellow eyes. She was staring him down, yet there was fear in her eyes. Once again, she was staring down a beast far greater than her and just like before, she was afraid! Regardless of how the woman felt, she knew that Tyr did not mean harm or at least his human form does not - that's not to say the beast thinks the same way.

Steadily breathing, Meryth looks towards the rest of the people gathered around the incident. "He's not being hostile, just...stay calm yeah?" she would hiss softly and turn towards Tyr. "Well, this is problematic...", she would mutter under her breath.

 

[Moritz]

(Sorry for the epicly late reply. Got a new job and Its been eating into my free time, should be able to post regularly now that I've adjusted to the hours.)

Moulder's entire being buzzed as Tyr began his shift, and the sensation only worsened once it had completed. His head snapped around as he inadvertently began scaling Bayan's armored figure like a misshapen stepladder, coming to perch behind the Corpseman's shoulderblades as an irritating, writhing, secondary backpack. His entire body began twisting and coiling through the air- an odd effort too maintain some sort of balance atop something already heavy enough to tilt backwards. An uncertain, strangled laugh escaped Moulder's facewrap, "Ha-ha! Look-see!", He chittered, "All are happy-good, yes-yes? No-Want-No-Need for the Dog-ing, Aye-aye, Torth?" Asked the worm, a nervous lilt entering Its messy excuse for a voice, "All is fine-good, and if not, Moulder will bite Bayan's stupid Fake-thought head, yes-yes?" He offered, clawing at the cloth covering his face as a fresh wave of anxiety poured over him.

He resisted the urge to bite his hat in half from the sheer sense of Fight-or-flight slowly encroaching on his being, arms wiggling towards Toothy and the Human fountain, "The others are go-going! So- Eh- We should stalk-follow, Yes-yes? No more of this!" He wiggled his arms towards Tyr before hooking his claws around Bayan's armored shoulders, anchoring himself to the Once-man's back, "No more dog-ing, No more Self-hatings, yes-yes? We shall work it outs on the walk-dirt! So, time to go-go! Before the Hunter-Stalkers find Moulder and fill him with many point stabs, yes-yes?"

Shog Malice Queen

 

[The Gunrunner]

Bayan

Bayan's fingers remain on his sword, the body slowly shifting again as the transformation completes - Just as Meryth tries to block the two from combat. At the same time, Moulder perches himself on Bayan and readies the mouth to bite down hard on his head.
"All is fine-good, and if not, Moulder will bite Bayan's stupid Fake-thought head, yes-yes?" Moulder anchors his claws around Bayan's shoulders. In that moment, Bayan was resisting a building urge to fight back, but had to trust his friend that it was a show. Hopefully that's all it was.
"The others are go-going! So- Eh- We should stalk-follow, Yes-yes? No more of this! No more dog-ing, No more Self-hatings, yes-yes? We shall work it outs on the walk-dirt! So, time to go-go! Before the Hunter-Stalkers find Moulder and fill him with many point stabs, yes-yes?"
Meryth's words seem to agree, at least as far as keeping calm. Bayan stares intently past her, but keeps still. "Yes-yes, Moulder and Shadow-stink are both right."
Shog Moritz Ennuis Aloha Loha The Suspicious Eye idalie Malice Queen

 

[Shog]

Tyr had a newfound respect for Meryth. She was clearly scared of him, but she still stood her ground and maintained eye contact. If he was more feral that tactic wouldn't have worked, but... what was he thinking about again? Before he could pull he thoughts together again, he was distracted my Moulder's strange, bumbling speech. Tyr would love to stop "dog-ing," but he didn't have much of a choice at the moment. He'd be stuck like this for at least another... while. Gods he hated being unable to focus. He would be better if the transformation was more voluntary, but he'd just have to deal with it for now.

Despite Bayan still being on edge, it didn't look like he was going to attack. Though that might mostly be due to Moulder and Meryth's current positions. Regardless, Moulder was right: they had to keep moving. He slowly stood to his full height of roughly eight and a half feet, stretching his major joins as he did so. He wanted to thank Moulder and Meryth for their help, but wasn't quite sure how. It's not like he could speak, after all. Instead, he lowered himself a bit and gave a deep nod to each of them. He tentatively turned to collect his belongings, holding the wad of cloths and pack with one hand and his weapons in the other. He finally noticed his pants in shreds, loosely hanging around one ankle. He wasn't quite quick enough to save them, but that's why he carried spare.

Momentarily forgetting about the others, he shook his leg in an attempt to rid it of the now-useless scrap of clothing, but it stubbornly stayed in place. Releasing an irritated growl, he dropped his pack and cloths and ripped it off, tossing it to the side. He heard something off to the side and jerked his head to see the others, reminding him of his situation. He quickly dropped the scowl from his face, recollected his belongings, and wondered off towards the rest of the group.

The Gunrunner Moritz Ennuis Aloha Loha The Suspicious Eye idalie Malice Queen