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A sound of impact. A sickening crunch. A scream of a voice that had become familiar to her. As Kula's eye followed the point of impact, her breathing cut out from the tense, short breaths into a choke of total confusion and stunned silence. The fluffy mage... was... was he...
Her body rushing over, Kula's body dropped as it crouched over the critter's body, her breathing so hard you could hear a distressed whimper coming through it.
"N-No, no, don't... don't go yet..." Kula stammered, her lip trembling the closer and closer she looked at him. He was completely bloodied... so many bones were broken... as she looked closer, Kula's body shuddered as the tears began to fall out of her eye, water soaking against her bandage.
"Why did you do that... w-why did you attack him... if you would've just held your fire... fucking damn it!!" Kula sobbed as she addressed the half-dead critter, thumping the ground. Why did she feel so strongly about a creature that was so rude to them; a creature she'd known for not even a day? She always thought she viewed him simply as a way of giving them a quest, but... but... now he was actually gone... it... it...
Suddenly, as Kula's head faced the ground in her sobs, she could hear something. Breathing. Very slow, very faint, but breathing. In an act of desperation, she bought waves forth as hard as her body would allow her. All she could think about was: 'Please, I know my healing isn't strong, but please, Gods... if you're even there... let this one spell fix him.' But it was no use. The water only cleansed the critter of blood and closed shut only his minor injuries. Kula's head slowly dropped in defeat, her arms gently picking up the paralyzed, barely-alive, and likely soon to be dead creature.
Him. It was him. That bastard. That fucking, smiling, yawning, black-haired BASTARD. As the man left the Sári with his final message, Kula's face tilted upwards. Her face previously held a small black splatter, but it was slowly becoming enveloped in the darkness. Out of the sea of black and shining gray came a blinding, blue, watery ball that was Kula's eye, accompanied by a row of sharp white teeth.
"I will come and join you one day." Kula's voice was a monotonic hiss, the tone to her voice completely shattered by her emotions. "And that place will be hell." Despite her absolutely deadly threat and look, she knew she couldn't attack him. She knew he didn't care at all; all he wanted to do was preach his lies and walk away smiling if she or Caris didn't want to believe them. All she could do was hold the critter and fall.
Caris's threat, while no doubt having the same gut wrenching rage, was a lot less eloquent. Letting out a furious cry of anguish, Caris charged at the retreating group. The black spreading across his body as the rage filled fishman charged for revenge. The little...forest...thing, had been a right pain in their ass from the start. But it had grown on the Sari...and such a brutal attack couldn't be forgiven, even in self defense.
"You son of a bitch! You'll pay for that!" He had quite the ground to go, but Caris was angry.
And an Angry Sari was hard to stop.
Reylla had watched the interaction between the tiny fuzzy creature and the lazy man with fascination, holding her hand in front of Vasha’s face so he doesn’t charge forward. This was all so odd and confusing. God elements? Demigods? Was this all part of Vin’s test? If so, she wasn’t sure what was going on, but Reylla felt fairly certain she was doing well.
She jumps back as the creature creates an earthen cage, and puts her hand to her mouth when it is blasted away by the man’s retaliation. She swears under her breath, half disgusted and half incredibly impressed. She starts to approach now, in the back of her head wondering if she’d ever be able to hit that hard. Something to plan on she supposed.
It’s the emotion in Kula’s voice that makes her decide to stay. She couldn’t turn her back on someone who had helped her in the past, especially in such a desperate time. “Thanks, but I came here to join the Guild. And Reylla Stonearm never backs down from a challenge she’s decided to face.” She grins at him, hoping this will smooth things over as it would in her village, but it’s obviously a little forced as she’s intent on getting to Kula.
Reylla’s eyes widen as Caris, apparently overtaken with rage, charges forward at the lazy man. Without thinking she releases Vasha. “Drenth!” She commands in her native tongue and Vasha, well trained, lunges forward, aiming for the large Sari’s legs in order to trip him. At the same time Reylla follows at a sprint, putting her hand out to catch Caris’s shoulder. She barrels into him, putting her weight into stopping him. “You crazy?” She hisses, “You helped me so I’ll help you. Live for the next fight.”
In Caris blind anger, he didn't see either Reylla or Vasha. The two of them managed bring the big fishman to a halt, and hold him down. Caris said nothing at first, just breathing heavily. He wanted to break free and attack, but a small part of him knew the truth. He saw what he did to the small creature...Caris wouldnt' stand a chance. Relaxing himself, Caris' shoulder's dropped somewhat as he stepped back, letting the others leave. He had to focus on what was imporant. If their ally was still alive...he would do whatever he could. That wasn't much, but he would try...
"I'm good...I'm good.." He let out a sigh. "Thank you, friend. You as well dog. I just...I lost control of myself there, I am sorry." He looked back to Kula, before slowly moving over. "Kula! How is he faring? Is it bad?"
"...Very bad..." Kula replied quietly, though she seemed extremely relieved when she heard Caris's voice. "What's a miracle is that he's alive, but... his heartbeat is so faint. He has countless severe bone fractures from the point of impact... all my healing can do is make him look okay by sealing off the external injuries, but really, it's the internal injuries that make his condition so severe. He's paralyzed." Kula looked up, her walk slow and sad as she carried the critter to the other two. She stopped in front of the giant, her eye looking her up and down, before her body arched over into a low bow.
"Thank you stopping Caris. I let my emotions overtake me, and couldn't stop him myself.... so I thought... when he charged, he'd..." Kula didn't stop bowing, and her voice cracked as she almost burst into tears. "...I-If I lost him as well, I don't know what I'd do. I would've lost my mind and tried an attack, which would only result in the same fate. You saved us. You and your pet."
Kula stood up straight again, wiping her watery eye with her arm.
"This village... have you been here? Do you know the area around it?" Kula asked Reylla quietly. "Because if there are no professional doctors around, I need a water source. As long as both me and this critter are submerged in water, my healing becomes improved, enough to mend broken bones with enough time. It may take until nightfall, but I think I could regain his conciousness that way."
Reylla claps Caris on the back when he seems to regain his composure. “No need for thanks.” She murmurs as they walk toward the other Sari, the one who had carried the injured man away on a wave. Reylla gives her a bow back, smiling warmly. “No need for your thanks either. Owed you both one, can’t see the harm in saving decent folk.” Spotting the limp creature in Kula’s hands, Reylla remembers the gravity of the situation and drops her cheerful demeanor.
"Enough, do we plan to live our lives in fear? Unable to sustain our lifestle without the assistance of the Guild? Unhand me, and let me be on my way." The sudden voice burst with gruff anger as several men popped out of a nearby hut--two of which were attempting to hold back the oldest of the group. They all fell silent, however, when the illumination of their torches gave vision of the applicants now crowded round the injured critter.
"Bandits!" The two men screamed as they reached for the weapons at their side; however, the older man smacked them into silence before chastising their outburst. "Do they appear dressed like the others? Did you watch nothing of the giantess' actions?" Without hesitation, the elder confidently walked forward with an inquiry of their condition; however, he quickly fell silent before a single word escaped his lips and lingered on the air, "Shamitheo(Sha-myth-eo)"
In an instant, the elder broke into a surprising sprint and plopped next the critter's broken body after which he rapidly began a general inspection. The process lasted for several minutes until a heavy sigh escaped his lips and beads of sweat dripped off his brow.
"We have no time. If his own spirit is not repairing the damage of his body, then the spirit bond within his body is shattered." With the conclusion of the critter's status, the elder turned towards the pair of men to whom he barked a sharp order. "Fools! Gather and construct a gurney." Without question, they pair rushed off into the village while the elder turned his attention towards Reylla to whom he also directed.
"Giantess, your wolf. He must become a carrier for this creature. We cannot risk the death of his kind."
After drawing the dagger on his belt, the elder began rapidly drawing a crude map atop the dusty ground. The map was limited; however, it displayed far into the south-most side of the forest.
"To the south of our village is a lake--likely you met this critter there. Towards the southside of the lake, there is the remains of a river. It should be dried up by now, but if you follow its path, it will lead you to the original source of the lake. You must get him to that water.
I would do it myself, but...." The elder fell silent while an undescribable emotion flashed on his face; however, it dissapeared just as quickly as it had come. "If he's with you, then its better if you complete this task. You are explorers from the guild, no? As the village elder of Lok, I appoint this quest upon your names--Save Shamitheo."
Shortly after the completion of the elder's declaration, the pair of men returned with a haphazard gurney that was fit for the critter's size. Inside of the gurney were a collection of dried vines to be used for binding, in addition to several soft bundles of fiber to be used as cushion for the rough ride.
After the elder man spoke, Caris took a second back to catch his breath. He needed to calm down, both for his sake...and the others. The black ooze spreading around him had gods kenw what ill effects, and Caris didn't want to find out. His size meant he wasn't going to help much with the gurney either, the Northern Sari was just going to get in people's way. Slowly, as the process went on with the gurney, the black marks around Caris began to diminish slowly, and he walked around to different bandit corpses and collected their vials.
"Once we get past the riverbed, I can take over on holding him. If there's any swimming to do...well, I'll do my best to transport him as safely as possible, on this you two have my word." He gave a reassuring smile to both of them, and put a large hand on Kula's shoulder. "We must move swiftly my friend, for his sake." He looked down at the unconscious Shamitheo. Steeling his will, he nodded over to the others, forcing a confident smile to present a face that he was keeping calm. he had to for the others.
"I'm ready to go. We'll take your quest mister, no need to worry about that...we will save him, no matter what stands in our way. Right guys? Should be nothing more than a simple jog back to the lake. Just follow our lead friend, I'm Caris, and this is Kula...shame we keep meeting like this, but it's nice to see you again, honest!"
Reylla doesn’t waste an instant after the elder delivers his instructions. With a nod of understanding in his direction Reylla kneals and takes Vasha’s head between her hands, staring down into the direwolf’s eyes. She whispers to him in her native tongue gently, petting his head and back as she starts to tie the gurney to his back. Vasha keeps his eyes darting between the strangers surrounding them, but no longer growls ferociously when they approach. Once the contraption is secure, Reylla stands and gives Vasha one last pat on the head. “Good boy.”
She turns to rejoin the elder and her new Sari companions. Reylla nods in agreement with Caris. “Yes, we will complete this quest and return with news when we can. I don’t wish to abandon your people to remaining bandits, have no fear.” She claps him on the shoulder, trying to be gentle. These tiny people all seemed so fragile.
The giantess offers her shovel like hand to each of her new friends in turn. “Reylla Stonearm. Happy to have some companions on this journey. Now let’s save this Shi… the sho… let’s go!” She brings Vasha as close to the tiny battered body as possible, not wanting to move it much. “Go ahead and secure him in there, Vasha knows you’re alright.” Vasha does indeed stay stock still as Shamitheo is settled into the gurney, seeming to understand his task implicitly.
As Caris put a hand on her shoulder, Kula gave a meek nod. He did that a lot.
"I know. We'll make it. And he'd better not call us oafs of thieves when he wakes up." She added, looking up at Caris with the slightest of smiles. The black splotch on her face was fading, but extremely slowly. She looked at Caris for a moment, and for a second, it looked like she wanted to do something, but she didn't, turning to Reylla instead.
As Reylla extended her hand to shake, Kula's little hand wasn't able to grab the whole thing, so she smiled meekly as she settled for shaking one of Reylla's big fingers instead.
"Hello, Reylla. As Caris said, I'm Kula; Kula Aolani. Thank you again for helping us." She quietly introduced with a brief bow, though her voice was still a little cracked from earlier. By the time she looked up, Reylla would find herself being coated in soothing water that washed away the blood and repaired the little cuts and bruises. "Apologies for doing that without asking. But you looked very terrifying."
Setting down Shamitheo into the gurney and wrapping cordage around him to keep the critter in place, Kula's heart pounded a little as she got so close to Vasha. If she made a sudden movement, would the blood-coated direwolf pounce her? By the time Kula was finished, it seemed like he didn't, and she let out a relieved, outwards breath.
"Let's move at a jogging pace. We'll get exhausted if we run, but if we walk, there could be a risk of Shamitheo fading away. Him dying on us isn't an option, so let's move quickly and pray for a safe journey." Kula quickly said, before starting to move. It was getting dark.
She had a feeling this journey wouldn't be one without at least one attack.
Contrary to Kula's beliefs, the journey back to the lake went without any occurrance. The only sighting of potential threats were a set of alternate applicants who passed by in the distance; however, given their focus towards the completion of the Trials, it was unlikely they had even noticed any others under the veil of Lokwood's night.
The lake was exactly how Caris and Kula had left it--the chaos of their battle with Shamitheo littered in and around the altar while practically nothing of interest encompassed the area as a whole. Along the bank, there was plenty of room to maneuver towards the other side, where just as the elder had described, the remnants of a river was imprinted into the ground. Years of errosion had wiped a majority of its trace; however, there remained just enough to track in the darkness which surrounded them--at least if they dared move past the cloud of multi-color smoke which loomed at its mouth.
Without a doubt, the smoke represented the barrier which Vin had described, and this fact became even more apparent, when a familiar voice called out from the darkness.
"Well, well, well. There is also some who dare transcend the rules put in place.
Not to mention, it seems as if the Trials have sent you to hell and back." In a puff of smoke, Vin appeared before the pair of Sari whom he proceeded to poke with a glove-covered finger. "You should hide your blemish, lest the Guild take notice of your curse."
Giggles erupted from his figure, and soon, he began prancing in and about the members of the party to whom he began a sing-song narration.
"Alas, a creature to document their success!
Lest, he perish and failure replaces their bliss.
To save him means that they break the rules!
Oh my! So sad! To know they are fools."
Smoke erupted into a burst of color as Vin suddenly vanished from the field, leaving only his laughter which seemingly lingered on the air. It took nearly a minute for the smog to fully clear; however, a small bit remained around the incision on the Sari's arm--a subtle reminder towards the device that had been implanted prior to the Trial's official commencement.
As the soothing water overtakes Reylla’s sizeable body the giantess stiffens, biting hard down on her lip and holding her breath until the water dissipates. She lets out a little gasp of air, sagging as she relaxes. “Th-that’s alright. Good, all clean.” She laughs nervously, adjusting her coat to hide her embarrassment. It had taken everything in her power not to collapse with laughter, but great heroes weren’t ticklish.
She moves easily with the group, Vasha keeping pacing and walking as steadily as he can. Reylla keeps her axe in hand, not wanting to be overtaken by stray bandits or whatever had injured her new companions. Her eyebrows raise into her hairline at the sight of the battle ground. “You all did this? What, were you fighting the trees themselves?” She chuckles at her little joke. Vasha snorts impatiently.
At Vin’s appearance she skids to a halt, looking between him and the Sari. Of course she had missed his carriage, so she technically had been left behind. If it hadn’t been for the Fytali she wouldn't be here. Therefore she knows nothing about his boundaries, the rules, or the devices buried under their skin. She is silent until the man disappears into the ether, then turns to her companions.
“Good to see he’s enjoying himself.” She mutters, petting Vasha’s head comfortingly. The wolf was disturbed by Vin’s disappearing act, growling angrily and snapping at the air. “I don’t know what he put you through, but I don’t have nothing keeping me here. Kinda failed the trail already by missing that carriage.” She grins and glances to Kula, giving her a wink. “Worth it though. Clocked the bastard that had choked you out. He missed the carriage too, a bit busy picking up his teeth from the ground.
“I’ll take him there with Vasha as the elder had asked us. Hopefully I won’t need to do any magic to help him…” Taking a deep breath and nodding to Vasha, she steps forward onto the riverbed and begins her journey at a clipped pace, keeping her eyes moving the whole time. She doesn't want to be ambused as they approach the water.
Caris watched with a bittersweet smile as Reylla and Vasha walked off into the distance. He had faith in the two of them: After all, he had already seen Reylla hold her own in combat against a panicked crowd and she had the honour to save a man she didn't know. She was worth her weight in gold if she could get their forest critter of a friend to the shrine. Caris was willing to put his faith in her, the problem however, wasn't with Reylla.
Caris had never felt so utterly helpless, and he hated it. A...somewhat odd friend was in danger, and even though Caris had been ad odds with the forest rat...demigod? He did find he was slowly growing on him. The thought of him taken away was...frustrating, to say the least. If not for the uncertainty of what would happen to him, Caris would have charged out already...threat of expellsion from the trial or not. But the danger of whatever may have been implanted in his arm was gnawing at him, he already knew Vin was more than happy to kill...but the possibility of a bluff weighed heavily in his mind. He wanted to scream and shout, take his anger and frustrations out on the forest. But the curse...whatever it did, laid heavier in his mind. He was forced to sit and think, show no emotion.
He was pretty clearly struggling with this.
He paced back and forth, thoughts racing in his mind. Caris was an emotional person, so calming himself down was...difficult to say the least. He never paid much attention to the battle trance some members of his tribe liked to use,...and he was regretting it. Taking in slow, deep breaths, Caris was managing to keep the blemish from flaring up again, but it also wasn't diminishing any further.
After pacing silently for a few minutes, he looked at the barrier seperating him from his...friend? And his ally. Then glanced over to Kula. There was a torn look of anger and frustration on his face, and a general helplessness.
"Kula. I'm going to risk it. I might be a bluff, or it might be simply a mark to prove we left the field...but dammit, I can't just let them go. What if they get ambushed?" He clenched his fists. "Listen, you don't have to go, let me risk it first...then we'll truly know what'll happen...deal?"
"What?!" Kula spluttered at the sudden proposal of Caris. It was true that having to wait around behind the fog was humiliating, especially after Vin personally came to laugh at them and do a little jig, but they were lucky enough to have Vin overlook Reylla and Vasha. Kula put her small arm in front of Caris, looking up at him with a frown. "No. You can't do that. I'm not letting you." She firmly said.
"Think of all those people killed in the first stage of the trials. Vin definietely doesn't mind murdering other applicants in horrible ways." Kula explained. "What he's planted in us is probably something along the lines of an explosive. I don't see why a man like him would bluff about this. I know it's frustrating that all we can do is hope, but it's not worth risking it all." She concluded, folding her arms and standing in front of the big man with no signs of budging. She could easily be pushed out of the way, but she was hoping she helped the large man see sense.
[/hr]
Her body rushing over, Kula's body dropped as it crouched over the critter's body, her breathing so hard you could hear a distressed whimper coming through it.
"N-No, no, don't... don't go yet..." Kula stammered, her lip trembling the closer and closer she looked at him. He was completely bloodied... so many bones were broken... as she looked closer, Kula's body shuddered as the tears began to fall out of her eye, water soaking against her bandage.
"Why did you do that... w-why did you attack him... if you would've just held your fire... fucking damn it!!" Kula sobbed as she addressed the half-dead critter, thumping the ground. Why did she feel so strongly about a creature that was so rude to them; a creature she'd known for not even a day? She always thought she viewed him simply as a way of giving them a quest, but... but... now he was actually gone... it... it...
Suddenly, as Kula's head faced the ground in her sobs, she could hear something. Breathing. Very slow, very faint, but breathing. In an act of desperation, she bought waves forth as hard as her body would allow her. All she could think about was: 'Please, I know my healing isn't strong, but please, Gods... if you're even there... let this one spell fix him.' But it was no use. The water only cleansed the critter of blood and closed shut only his minor injuries. Kula's head slowly dropped in defeat, her arms gently picking up the paralyzed, barely-alive, and likely soon to be dead creature.
Him. It was him. That bastard. That fucking, smiling, yawning, black-haired BASTARD. As the man left the Sári with his final message, Kula's face tilted upwards. Her face previously held a small black splatter, but it was slowly becoming enveloped in the darkness. Out of the sea of black and shining gray came a blinding, blue, watery ball that was Kula's eye, accompanied by a row of sharp white teeth.
"I will come and join you one day." Kula's voice was a monotonic hiss, the tone to her voice completely shattered by her emotions. "And that place will be hell." Despite her absolutely deadly threat and look, she knew she couldn't attack him. She knew he didn't care at all; all he wanted to do was preach his lies and walk away smiling if she or Caris didn't want to believe them. All she could do was hold the critter and fall.
Caris's threat, while no doubt having the same gut wrenching rage, was a lot less eloquent. Letting out a furious cry of anguish, Caris charged at the retreating group. The black spreading across his body as the rage filled fishman charged for revenge. The little...forest...thing, had been a right pain in their ass from the start. But it had grown on the Sari...and such a brutal attack couldn't be forgiven, even in self defense.
"You son of a bitch! You'll pay for that!" He had quite the ground to go, but Caris was angry.
And an Angry Sari was hard to stop.
Reylla had watched the interaction between the tiny fuzzy creature and the lazy man with fascination, holding her hand in front of Vasha’s face so he doesn’t charge forward. This was all so odd and confusing. God elements? Demigods? Was this all part of Vin’s test? If so, she wasn’t sure what was going on, but Reylla felt fairly certain she was doing well.
She jumps back as the creature creates an earthen cage, and puts her hand to her mouth when it is blasted away by the man’s retaliation. She swears under her breath, half disgusted and half incredibly impressed. She starts to approach now, in the back of her head wondering if she’d ever be able to hit that hard. Something to plan on she supposed.
It’s the emotion in Kula’s voice that makes her decide to stay. She couldn’t turn her back on someone who had helped her in the past, especially in such a desperate time. “Thanks, but I came here to join the Guild. And Reylla Stonearm never backs down from a challenge she’s decided to face.” She grins at him, hoping this will smooth things over as it would in her village, but it’s obviously a little forced as she’s intent on getting to Kula.
Reylla’s eyes widen as Caris, apparently overtaken with rage, charges forward at the lazy man. Without thinking she releases Vasha. “Drenth!” She commands in her native tongue and Vasha, well trained, lunges forward, aiming for the large Sari’s legs in order to trip him. At the same time Reylla follows at a sprint, putting her hand out to catch Caris’s shoulder. She barrels into him, putting her weight into stopping him. “You crazy?” She hisses, “You helped me so I’ll help you. Live for the next fight.”
In Caris blind anger, he didn't see either Reylla or Vasha. The two of them managed bring the big fishman to a halt, and hold him down. Caris said nothing at first, just breathing heavily. He wanted to break free and attack, but a small part of him knew the truth. He saw what he did to the small creature...Caris wouldnt' stand a chance. Relaxing himself, Caris' shoulder's dropped somewhat as he stepped back, letting the others leave. He had to focus on what was imporant. If their ally was still alive...he would do whatever he could. That wasn't much, but he would try...
"I'm good...I'm good.." He let out a sigh. "Thank you, friend. You as well dog. I just...I lost control of myself there, I am sorry." He looked back to Kula, before slowly moving over. "Kula! How is he faring? Is it bad?"
"...Very bad..." Kula replied quietly, though she seemed extremely relieved when she heard Caris's voice. "What's a miracle is that he's alive, but... his heartbeat is so faint. He has countless severe bone fractures from the point of impact... all my healing can do is make him look okay by sealing off the external injuries, but really, it's the internal injuries that make his condition so severe. He's paralyzed." Kula looked up, her walk slow and sad as she carried the critter to the other two. She stopped in front of the giant, her eye looking her up and down, before her body arched over into a low bow.
"Thank you stopping Caris. I let my emotions overtake me, and couldn't stop him myself.... so I thought... when he charged, he'd..." Kula didn't stop bowing, and her voice cracked as she almost burst into tears. "...I-If I lost him as well, I don't know what I'd do. I would've lost my mind and tried an attack, which would only result in the same fate. You saved us. You and your pet."
Kula stood up straight again, wiping her watery eye with her arm.
"This village... have you been here? Do you know the area around it?" Kula asked Reylla quietly. "Because if there are no professional doctors around, I need a water source. As long as both me and this critter are submerged in water, my healing becomes improved, enough to mend broken bones with enough time. It may take until nightfall, but I think I could regain his conciousness that way."
Reylla claps Caris on the back when he seems to regain his composure. “No need for thanks.” She murmurs as they walk toward the other Sari, the one who had carried the injured man away on a wave. Reylla gives her a bow back, smiling warmly. “No need for your thanks either. Owed you both one, can’t see the harm in saving decent folk.” Spotting the limp creature in Kula’s hands, Reylla remembers the gravity of the situation and drops her cheerful demeanor.
"Enough, do we plan to live our lives in fear? Unable to sustain our lifestle without the assistance of the Guild? Unhand me, and let me be on my way." The sudden voice burst with gruff anger as several men popped out of a nearby hut--two of which were attempting to hold back the oldest of the group. They all fell silent, however, when the illumination of their torches gave vision of the applicants now crowded round the injured critter.
"Bandits!" The two men screamed as they reached for the weapons at their side; however, the older man smacked them into silence before chastising their outburst. "Do they appear dressed like the others? Did you watch nothing of the giantess' actions?" Without hesitation, the elder confidently walked forward with an inquiry of their condition; however, he quickly fell silent before a single word escaped his lips and lingered on the air, "Shamitheo(Sha-myth-eo)"
In an instant, the elder broke into a surprising sprint and plopped next the critter's broken body after which he rapidly began a general inspection. The process lasted for several minutes until a heavy sigh escaped his lips and beads of sweat dripped off his brow.
"We have no time. If his own spirit is not repairing the damage of his body, then the spirit bond within his body is shattered." With the conclusion of the critter's status, the elder turned towards the pair of men to whom he barked a sharp order. "Fools! Gather and construct a gurney." Without question, they pair rushed off into the village while the elder turned his attention towards Reylla to whom he also directed.
"Giantess, your wolf. He must become a carrier for this creature. We cannot risk the death of his kind."
After drawing the dagger on his belt, the elder began rapidly drawing a crude map atop the dusty ground. The map was limited; however, it displayed far into the south-most side of the forest.
"To the south of our village is a lake--likely you met this critter there. Towards the southside of the lake, there is the remains of a river. It should be dried up by now, but if you follow its path, it will lead you to the original source of the lake. You must get him to that water.
I would do it myself, but...." The elder fell silent while an undescribable emotion flashed on his face; however, it dissapeared just as quickly as it had come. "If he's with you, then its better if you complete this task. You are explorers from the guild, no? As the village elder of Lok, I appoint this quest upon your names--Save Shamitheo."
Shortly after the completion of the elder's declaration, the pair of men returned with a haphazard gurney that was fit for the critter's size. Inside of the gurney were a collection of dried vines to be used for binding, in addition to several soft bundles of fiber to be used as cushion for the rough ride.
After the elder man spoke, Caris took a second back to catch his breath. He needed to calm down, both for his sake...and the others. The black ooze spreading around him had gods kenw what ill effects, and Caris didn't want to find out. His size meant he wasn't going to help much with the gurney either, the Northern Sari was just going to get in people's way. Slowly, as the process went on with the gurney, the black marks around Caris began to diminish slowly, and he walked around to different bandit corpses and collected their vials.
"Once we get past the riverbed, I can take over on holding him. If there's any swimming to do...well, I'll do my best to transport him as safely as possible, on this you two have my word." He gave a reassuring smile to both of them, and put a large hand on Kula's shoulder. "We must move swiftly my friend, for his sake." He looked down at the unconscious Shamitheo. Steeling his will, he nodded over to the others, forcing a confident smile to present a face that he was keeping calm. he had to for the others.
"I'm ready to go. We'll take your quest mister, no need to worry about that...we will save him, no matter what stands in our way. Right guys? Should be nothing more than a simple jog back to the lake. Just follow our lead friend, I'm Caris, and this is Kula...shame we keep meeting like this, but it's nice to see you again, honest!"
Reylla doesn’t waste an instant after the elder delivers his instructions. With a nod of understanding in his direction Reylla kneals and takes Vasha’s head between her hands, staring down into the direwolf’s eyes. She whispers to him in her native tongue gently, petting his head and back as she starts to tie the gurney to his back. Vasha keeps his eyes darting between the strangers surrounding them, but no longer growls ferociously when they approach. Once the contraption is secure, Reylla stands and gives Vasha one last pat on the head. “Good boy.”
She turns to rejoin the elder and her new Sari companions. Reylla nods in agreement with Caris. “Yes, we will complete this quest and return with news when we can. I don’t wish to abandon your people to remaining bandits, have no fear.” She claps him on the shoulder, trying to be gentle. These tiny people all seemed so fragile.
The giantess offers her shovel like hand to each of her new friends in turn. “Reylla Stonearm. Happy to have some companions on this journey. Now let’s save this Shi… the sho… let’s go!” She brings Vasha as close to the tiny battered body as possible, not wanting to move it much. “Go ahead and secure him in there, Vasha knows you’re alright.” Vasha does indeed stay stock still as Shamitheo is settled into the gurney, seeming to understand his task implicitly.
As Caris put a hand on her shoulder, Kula gave a meek nod. He did that a lot.
"I know. We'll make it. And he'd better not call us oafs of thieves when he wakes up." She added, looking up at Caris with the slightest of smiles. The black splotch on her face was fading, but extremely slowly. She looked at Caris for a moment, and for a second, it looked like she wanted to do something, but she didn't, turning to Reylla instead.
As Reylla extended her hand to shake, Kula's little hand wasn't able to grab the whole thing, so she smiled meekly as she settled for shaking one of Reylla's big fingers instead.
"Hello, Reylla. As Caris said, I'm Kula; Kula Aolani. Thank you again for helping us." She quietly introduced with a brief bow, though her voice was still a little cracked from earlier. By the time she looked up, Reylla would find herself being coated in soothing water that washed away the blood and repaired the little cuts and bruises. "Apologies for doing that without asking. But you looked very terrifying."
Setting down Shamitheo into the gurney and wrapping cordage around him to keep the critter in place, Kula's heart pounded a little as she got so close to Vasha. If she made a sudden movement, would the blood-coated direwolf pounce her? By the time Kula was finished, it seemed like he didn't, and she let out a relieved, outwards breath.
"Let's move at a jogging pace. We'll get exhausted if we run, but if we walk, there could be a risk of Shamitheo fading away. Him dying on us isn't an option, so let's move quickly and pray for a safe journey." Kula quickly said, before starting to move. It was getting dark.
She had a feeling this journey wouldn't be one without at least one attack.
Contrary to Kula's beliefs, the journey back to the lake went without any occurrance. The only sighting of potential threats were a set of alternate applicants who passed by in the distance; however, given their focus towards the completion of the Trials, it was unlikely they had even noticed any others under the veil of Lokwood's night.
The lake was exactly how Caris and Kula had left it--the chaos of their battle with Shamitheo littered in and around the altar while practically nothing of interest encompassed the area as a whole. Along the bank, there was plenty of room to maneuver towards the other side, where just as the elder had described, the remnants of a river was imprinted into the ground. Years of errosion had wiped a majority of its trace; however, there remained just enough to track in the darkness which surrounded them--at least if they dared move past the cloud of multi-color smoke which loomed at its mouth.
Without a doubt, the smoke represented the barrier which Vin had described, and this fact became even more apparent, when a familiar voice called out from the darkness.
"Well, well, well. There is also some who dare transcend the rules put in place.
Not to mention, it seems as if the Trials have sent you to hell and back." In a puff of smoke, Vin appeared before the pair of Sari whom he proceeded to poke with a glove-covered finger. "You should hide your blemish, lest the Guild take notice of your curse."
Giggles erupted from his figure, and soon, he began prancing in and about the members of the party to whom he began a sing-song narration.
"Alas, a creature to document their success!
Lest, he perish and failure replaces their bliss.
To save him means that they break the rules!
Oh my! So sad! To know they are fools."
Smoke erupted into a burst of color as Vin suddenly vanished from the field, leaving only his laughter which seemingly lingered on the air. It took nearly a minute for the smog to fully clear; however, a small bit remained around the incision on the Sari's arm--a subtle reminder towards the device that had been implanted prior to the Trial's official commencement.
As the soothing water overtakes Reylla’s sizeable body the giantess stiffens, biting hard down on her lip and holding her breath until the water dissipates. She lets out a little gasp of air, sagging as she relaxes. “Th-that’s alright. Good, all clean.” She laughs nervously, adjusting her coat to hide her embarrassment. It had taken everything in her power not to collapse with laughter, but great heroes weren’t ticklish.
She moves easily with the group, Vasha keeping pacing and walking as steadily as he can. Reylla keeps her axe in hand, not wanting to be overtaken by stray bandits or whatever had injured her new companions. Her eyebrows raise into her hairline at the sight of the battle ground. “You all did this? What, were you fighting the trees themselves?” She chuckles at her little joke. Vasha snorts impatiently.
At Vin’s appearance she skids to a halt, looking between him and the Sari. Of course she had missed his carriage, so she technically had been left behind. If it hadn’t been for the Fytali she wouldn't be here. Therefore she knows nothing about his boundaries, the rules, or the devices buried under their skin. She is silent until the man disappears into the ether, then turns to her companions.
“Good to see he’s enjoying himself.” She mutters, petting Vasha’s head comfortingly. The wolf was disturbed by Vin’s disappearing act, growling angrily and snapping at the air. “I don’t know what he put you through, but I don’t have nothing keeping me here. Kinda failed the trail already by missing that carriage.” She grins and glances to Kula, giving her a wink. “Worth it though. Clocked the bastard that had choked you out. He missed the carriage too, a bit busy picking up his teeth from the ground.
“I’ll take him there with Vasha as the elder had asked us. Hopefully I won’t need to do any magic to help him…” Taking a deep breath and nodding to Vasha, she steps forward onto the riverbed and begins her journey at a clipped pace, keeping her eyes moving the whole time. She doesn't want to be ambused as they approach the water.
Caris watched with a bittersweet smile as Reylla and Vasha walked off into the distance. He had faith in the two of them: After all, he had already seen Reylla hold her own in combat against a panicked crowd and she had the honour to save a man she didn't know. She was worth her weight in gold if she could get their forest critter of a friend to the shrine. Caris was willing to put his faith in her, the problem however, wasn't with Reylla.
Caris had never felt so utterly helpless, and he hated it. A...somewhat odd friend was in danger, and even though Caris had been ad odds with the forest rat...demigod? He did find he was slowly growing on him. The thought of him taken away was...frustrating, to say the least. If not for the uncertainty of what would happen to him, Caris would have charged out already...threat of expellsion from the trial or not. But the danger of whatever may have been implanted in his arm was gnawing at him, he already knew Vin was more than happy to kill...but the possibility of a bluff weighed heavily in his mind. He wanted to scream and shout, take his anger and frustrations out on the forest. But the curse...whatever it did, laid heavier in his mind. He was forced to sit and think, show no emotion.
He was pretty clearly struggling with this.
He paced back and forth, thoughts racing in his mind. Caris was an emotional person, so calming himself down was...difficult to say the least. He never paid much attention to the battle trance some members of his tribe liked to use,...and he was regretting it. Taking in slow, deep breaths, Caris was managing to keep the blemish from flaring up again, but it also wasn't diminishing any further.
After pacing silently for a few minutes, he looked at the barrier seperating him from his...friend? And his ally. Then glanced over to Kula. There was a torn look of anger and frustration on his face, and a general helplessness.
"Kula. I'm going to risk it. I might be a bluff, or it might be simply a mark to prove we left the field...but dammit, I can't just let them go. What if they get ambushed?" He clenched his fists. "Listen, you don't have to go, let me risk it first...then we'll truly know what'll happen...deal?"
"What?!" Kula spluttered at the sudden proposal of Caris. It was true that having to wait around behind the fog was humiliating, especially after Vin personally came to laugh at them and do a little jig, but they were lucky enough to have Vin overlook Reylla and Vasha. Kula put her small arm in front of Caris, looking up at him with a frown. "No. You can't do that. I'm not letting you." She firmly said.
"Think of all those people killed in the first stage of the trials. Vin definietely doesn't mind murdering other applicants in horrible ways." Kula explained. "What he's planted in us is probably something along the lines of an explosive. I don't see why a man like him would bluff about this. I know it's frustrating that all we can do is hope, but it's not worth risking it all." She concluded, folding her arms and standing in front of the big man with no signs of budging. She could easily be pushed out of the way, but she was hoping she helped the large man see sense.
A gilded trident [Stained]
Leather/cloth battle garments [Stained]
A deep blue bag [Stained]
Blue silk bandage [Stained]
A shortbow
Quiver with 20 arrows [Equipped]
A sapphire lamp
Climbing equipment
A long length of rope
A utility knife [Stained]
A decorated steel flute
Cyan robes [Torn]
Tinderbox
Various maps
A notebook
A quill and inkpot
Leather/cloth battle garments [Stained]
A deep blue bag [Stained]
Blue silk bandage [Stained]
A shortbow
Quiver with 20 arrows [Equipped]
A sapphire lamp
Climbing equipment
A long length of rope
A utility knife [Stained]
A decorated steel flute
Cyan robes [Torn]
Tinderbox
Various maps
A notebook
A quill and inkpot
Jarasian Trident
Brown shorts
Smoke filled vial
6 poisoned vials
6 empty vials
A small hatchet
A length of rope
A harpoon
Bag of rations
Brown shorts
Smoke filled vial
6 poisoned vials
6 empty vials
A small hatchet
A length of rope
A harpoon
Bag of rations
Backpack
Crossbow
Bolts
Hand axe
Waterskin (ale)
Waterskin (water)
Dagger
Trail rations
Heavy fur coat and cold resistant outfit
Locket on gold chain
Bedroll
Cooking pan
Small journal with pencil
Pipe
Flute
Smelling Salts
Crossbow
Bolts
Hand axe
Waterskin (ale)
Waterskin (water)
Dagger
Trail rations
Heavy fur coat and cold resistant outfit
Locket on gold chain
Bedroll
Cooking pan
Small journal with pencil
Pipe
Flute
Smelling Salts