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TERAN ARKLAR
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Teran watched as Jonathan examined the bodies. He had some experience with anatomy, but not a large extent. Teran moved around and looked at the trees, seeing if anything was amiss. To the oak on his right moss grew facing toward him, meaning the way they came was north, and had some damage done to it. At the top of the tree there was a red flag of some sort hanging out. If you weren't looking for it then you wouldn't have noticed it. Then he realized that the flag was not a flag at all, but instead an arrow that had pierced the bark. After some calculation he took a couple steps back and found that the arrow was fired from where the horses were grouped. It was strange, the angle it was fired from was about ground level, and it was meant to be shot there, but why was it so high up? Were they fighting a giant, a large being that protected the forest from humans? That idea was preposterous, but what if it was flying...

Teran let the group come together and he heard what they had experienced. Whatever was in this forest was something unnatural. His mood didn't lighten when he saw one of the royal guardsman trot up on his horse. He loved Stonegate and it's architectural advances, but dogs were always dogs.

"Well it looks as though our baby sitter has arrived." ​
 
Serina stumbled back into the clearing, later than the rest. As soon as she caught sight of the group, she fell to the ground and put her head between her knees, the adrenaline driving her during her time in the forest gone. She took deep breaths and tried to get the sight of the mutilated head she had seen out of her mind. The corpses nearby didn't help. The images kept running through her mind. She couldn't forget how the rocks were stuffed in the eye sockets, and how blood oozed out from under them, leaving trails of bloody tears down the face of the severed head. She couldn't forget how the corpse's mouth had been filled with a mixture of blood and dirt, and how it gaped open in a silent scream. She coldn't forget how fresh blood still flowed from the numerous wounds the poor man had suffered before he died, coloring his hair such a deep red that it was almost black.

A choked sob made it's way through her lips. She shouldn't have come, she wasn't ready for this. She was just a child playing an adult.
 
I trot up to what I had been told was Teran.

"Ah, yes, true. I am your babysitter, to make sure you do not stray from the path our glorious king has set all of us on," I reply, a bit mockingly. But then the mockingness disappears, replaced by cold calculation and seriousness. "Progress, Teran?"
 
Jonathan stepped in front of Teran before he could speak. He knew the kind of person this warrior was, and he used to be like him. A war dog sent out on errands to fetch bones, or piss on the neighbors lawn. He glanced over him seeing many strong features and making note of his stature. "I am Jonathan O'Daniel, captain of the Biltmore guard and leader of this group. I assume you were sent here to watch over us while we took Dulemar. We will have it done soon and there is no worry for our king. He will have his land as well as his army back soon. Is that clear?" Jonathan stuffed his hands into his pockets and began hearing the strange things that the rest of his party had found.

What ever had been going on here was not natural and was indeed very dark. The being, man or beast, was obviously still around and they needed to move quickly or else they would not make it out of the forest. Jonathan snapped his fingers at Teran, and Teran began to get the horses ready. He looked at each member of the party seeing if everyone was there. Ezekul, Aben, Rydia, Atticus, Dog, Teran, Serina, and... Wait who was missing? His eyes bolted from tree to tree trying to remember who was missing. "Where is Tiamo?" ​
 
I raise an eyebrow slightly. "I do hope you find Tiamo, I overheard some people wishing she'd return safely-ish. For what reasons, I have no idea, of course, since I didn't care much to listen. Or who they were. Or anything in particular, really. So where do you plan on moving out to next, captain?" I question, fiddling with the blade that I had scavenged from a dead man. Before the captain could answer, however, I walked to another corpse, and began looting it.
 
Rydia's eyes instantly turned towards this 'Oddsman' fellow. ~Well.. He's certainly quite a character.. Asinine..~ Despite her already frigid glare, something about him gives a negative outlook to her, huffing out of her nose as she turns her head towards the way she came, "For her sake, let's hope she doesn't end up meeting whatever did all this. I'm getting more and more of a feeling that if we stay here, we're likely going to fight something if it or they haven't left.." Bow already in one hand, she'd firmly hold an arrow in the other, closing in to one another slowly as she seems to want to draw it, letting it sit at the ready.
 
"Oh please, whatever killed all these people so easily and quickly will do just the same to us. Look at all the bodies; if they were taken down slower, by consecutive attacks, then the bodies would be more widespread, and not be so close together." I lightly kick a group, piled upon each other, all of them stained dark red. "The attacker killed everything in a matter of minutes, with barely any chance for the townspeople to run. Whatever we're facing, we need heavier weaponry, and more soldiers, even to just act as a distraction, bait, canon fodder, whatever." I wave my hand vaguely. "I bet if the attacker is in attack range, it already knows we're here, and it's been watching us for a good while now. If it isn't in range, then I think we should stay out of range."
 
The Oddsman was right, and they needed to leave. Jonathan hopped on his horse and motioned to the others to get on their horse. He quickly looked around just before leaving and then rode on. Tiamo one way or another would end up catching up, if not then he would know that something was following them. Jonathan led the group through the forest. On their way many signs of decay could be seen. Parts of horses laid about, half of a horse here, the head of a horse on a tree, and much more. There were also a couple of bodies, the bodies at glanced seemed like they were no one important, but they were too mangled. These scenes continued on util the group finally made it out of the forest.

The area began to become colder as they started to reach the pass, the wind was a reminder of the cold that was to come. It would take a couple of hours to make it through the pass without any interruption. It hadn't snowed for a couple of days in the mountains, so most of the ground had mostly compact snow. Jonathan set his horse at the front of the pass, then he looked back at the group.
"We will not go the same way we came once we get to Dulemar, are you sure you want to continue?"

Then Jonathan looked back at the pass.
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I smile, humorless and cold. "You will all, of course, keep going, as the Royal King has hired or ordered you to, just as I am. If we are being massacred, then of course I suggest running for our lives and forgetting all about this little quest, but all I see is that any of you might... resign before you finish your job, which will not sit well with me. But please, leave if you wish, and return to your families or goldfish."

For every man or woman who deserts, and I hunt down and capture -or kill- is just another bonus for me. Run, run, and let me collect, little warriors.
 
The ride through the forest certainly wasn't pleasant for anyone in the group, that much was sure. Still holding her bow in one hand, ready to move it in action and an arrow held with the horse' reigns, Rydia's eyes kept lookout for whatever could have caused such a grim scenario. Once they exited the forest, Rydia still hadn't put her weapon away. Looking over the group, her eyes stop towards Ezekul and she seems to muster something to talk, "You going to be alright there, 'Zeke? It's never something you'd want to get used to seeing.."

When they reached wintery pass, it took some time before Rydia would consider putting on her light coat that she brought, her attention going from Jonathan and then to Oddsman. Something about him really crossed her the wrong way, but she showed no visible sign of it. Looking off to the pass, she rummages through her pack for a short while, ~I swear.. The two thieves I can deal with just fine, but this man.. I'd love to have a dagger in his throat if this keeps up.. Damn bootlicker..~
 
Ezekul nods, saying "Y-yeah, I'm fine, just... He seemed so convinced, it didn't seem like he was just ranting or anything, he actually wanted to warn people about what he saw, real or not. I... I'm not sure we really know what we're getting into..." He looks around, before looking back, and saying "I have a sickening feeling we are woefully under-equipped for whatever we're charging into. He'd shift about, eventually realising the blood still on his shoulder, and getting that cleaned off, a little bit shakily, patting at his knife a few times, though knowing full well he can't use it to defend himself all that well.

Aben looks at Oddsman as he speaks, a harsh cold gaze that speaks years of experience beyond what this younger man could fathom. He says "Don't worry about me deserting, the crown deserted me first, but I'm made of sterner stuff than that. Go ahead and say what you wish, but go ahead, try my patience any further than you are with your frivolous attitude. I'm without that and booze at the moment, so I suggest you start shutting your trap more and leave talkin' to people who are actually doing something." Ezekul shrinks away, starting to recognize the tone in Aben's voice, backing his horse up towards Rydia a bit further, his adoptive father's face colder than the pass.
 
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My cold smile continues. "Why I mean no disrespect. Anyone deserting simply translates into me getting a bonus, and everyone getting through the contract means an even bigger bonus. But please, if you feel the need to try and attack me, then do so now." My smile vanishes, and I dismount, stretching and walking a distance away, slipping my spiked warhammer from my belt, loose, confident, and sure that someone will step up and try and silence me.
 
Serina rides silently, hunched over her horse, and ignoring the conversation going on around her. She still had to tell the captain of what she saw in the forest, but she was in no hurry to relive those images. She noticed Rydia and Ezekul try to make conversation, then Aben and the Oddsman growling at each other. Serina supposed that if she were in a better state of mind, she would be frightened of the Oddsman, but as it were, she was too mentally drained to care.

As the group ride into colder terrain, she put off taking out her cloak until her fingers were turning blue at the tips. She pulled her horse to a stop when the Oddsman suddenly dismounted and drew his weapon.
 
Jonathan nodded at the group and started through the valley. All around the snow became more present, and very abundant. Jonathan pulled his cowl over his head and put on his leather gloves. Every so often he would look back at the group seeing if everyone was there. There was a feeling that someone was watching them, waiting to eviscerate them. It was an uneasy feeling being watched, nothing compared to it. It snowed harder and harder and it was becoming a problem. Jonathan decided that it would be best to stop by a nearby cave. He set the horses by the entrance and began a fire for all to gather around. Jonathan set his cloak on some of the rocks and sat down by the fire. The air whistled through the cavern and the sound of the horses could be heard.

"We may be here for a while, so we should get comfortable."

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Aben would have scoffed at Oddsman, saying "Damned fool, the members of your company are your friends, not your paycheck. What I said to you was not a threat, it was advice, you're clueless on reading a group. You'd be a much better lapdog if you could. Keep barking as if you have a bite, and one day you'll find there's always a bigger dog." He'd have turned his horse back to the group and kept riding afterwords, not having taken the time to actually take up the challenge. Ezekul would stay near the others, but keep going as well,

Aben would take time after getting his horse into the cave to get off, doing his odd motions to keep his knee from bending too much, taking only a few hobbles into the cave, before throwing down his bedroll against a wall, and settling in, not nearly in the mood for anything around a campfire like he would have been in times of old. Ezekul on the other hand gets right up to the fire, warming himself as much as he can by it as he says "Anyone got a good story to tell? Preferably a story about something warm right now?"
 
I grin at the attitude. Bark without bite, apparently this one's blind and deaf.

However, I follow anyways. As if they were friends, they were no friends. Friends betrayed, they always did. The less friends you have, the better, because then there is no weak link.

Instead of mounting on my horse again, however, I simply take his reins and follow along, trudging through the snow without much of a problem. This is what I live for... Aben, I believe. I'm no lapdog, I'm a killer. A mercenary, and far more resilient and durable, from the look of this 'company.' Shaken from the death of a few horses and people. My paycheck is my only friend, because real friends let you down. Paycheck equals money, and money equals easy going.
 
When they set up camp for the night, Serina started a small fire away from the rest of the group. She dug out a small cauldron from her pack and put a small handful of snow in to it, then hung it over the fire. As she waited for the snow to melt and boil, she pulled out the aconitum she had gathered earlier. She knew she was just putting off taking the captain about the things she saw in the forest, but she pushed that nagging voice away and focused on putting her herbalist mitts ad cutting the root of the aconitum into small strips. When the water boiled, Serina carefully put in the strips, and sat back to wait. An idle thought came to her mind. She had never made poison before.
 
I eye all of them, starting fires and making light, generating heat and getting ready to get a night's sleep.

Foolish, all of them. They haven't established a watch system, they already assume that there is nothing around that we might not want any attention from, for a fire will surely bring attention. They'll be burned, soon, with their thought and planning.

"So. It seems that you all are pretty confident 'bout yourselves. But then again, sometimes you have to be wary. We could possibly be stalked by a monstrous beast, that can tear apart a village or whatever in minutes, and we may of lost it in the snow. But then we come and start a fire... excuse me for saying so, but I believe that you all are a bit clueless, yes? Starting a fire would bring unwanted attention, unless you wish to bring something on our doorstep. And what about watches? I'd hardly sleep, knowing that everyone else is asleep, and no one is making sure nothing sneaks into our camp and slit all our throats." Turning to the 'Captain,' I say, "Please, I thought you were some kind of group of hunters! Wary and alert, not ready to bed down after a couple days' travel without a thought to anything that might be stalking us!"
 
"Oh yes, like that never crossed our minds.. And what of this beast? We've never heard of such things before except ancient fairy tales and child stories.. And if you're so apt about it, John Doe, why don't you start watch first? I'm sure we'd all be at ease to have the big, strong warrior keep watch over us for the first shift.. I'm sorry to disappoint, but we're not daft and we just started to make camp." Rydia says, obviously seeming something may have snapped, but she'd keep her composure and tone about it. Shaking her head as she looks off towards the area around them, she once again had her bow ready like she had almost the entire trip after the forest.
 
Aben looks to Oddsman, frowning as he says "You signed up for the wrong thing. We're here to chart a land, decide if it's inhabitable, stick a pretty flag in the ground, and go home. Stand watch yourself if you want, I've had too many sleepless nights myself anyway. If you're any sort of solider you should know anyone combat-ready sleeps light. Besides, what are you going to do if whatever it was /does/ show up? It handled the larger group competently enough, and I saw nothing but human blood on the ground. If it comes for us, we all die, I'd rather die in my sleep, comfortable, rather than sitting trying to keep awake so that I call out when it slits my throat." He grumbles, lying down and facing away before saying "You can run from death, but you'll die tired."

Ezekul looks between everyone, deciding to settle away from the path between Aben and Oddsman, sitting over between the two fires, squirming a bit, before muttering to himself "Guess that's a no on the stories..." He pats at his various things, realizing he forgot to pack himself a bedroll, and starting to dig through to find a replacement instead.
 
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