The Legend of Renalta (IC)

[RoranHawkins]

Alexander Reumann and Jennifer​

Hunters


Coming from above, the woman easily manages to grapple with Alexander. From what little he saw of her, it was safe to assume that it was Jennifer. "Hör auf zu kämpfen! (Stop fighting!)" He was being grappled from behind, and though it was clear that one of her arms seemed to apply less pressure than the other, she was fighting her wounds. Her tone held a hint of panic in it: She was afraid of him. At the very least, afraid of the situation she was in. Her stronger arm was around his throat, though her weaker arm was struggling to get a dagger up to it.

Assailed from above and completely surprised his poleaxe was of little use. Even though he was wearing his bevor that protected him from being effectively choked by the vicegrip around his neck, it did prevent him from seeing anything beyond the tree which Jennifer'd fallen on him, effectively blind to whatever she as doing. She screamed for him to surrender and experience told him that she'd have a dagger in his visor any second now. "Verdammt!"

He reached for his own dagger and hooked his right leg behind hers and threw his weight backwards in a desperate manoeuvre to stall the struggle and crush his opponent under his armoured weight. His left arm shot up to protect his face while he fumbled with his dagger's sheath.

Though he struggles with her, she would find her both strong and capable of countering his moves. She wasn't quite as strong as he was, but the advantageous position was enough to offset it. Though he manages to start getting his dagger out, he could feel the cold steel of her dagger against his neck. "Ich will nicht, dich zu töten. Ich brauche nur die Zusicherung, dass ich nicht getötet werden. Lassen Sie den Dolch. (I don't want to kill you. I just need assurances that I won't be killed. Drop the dagger.)"

This wasn't working. The cold steel on his neck was a familiar touch, one he had not relished to feel again. "Ich dir ergeben mich, Dame. (I yield to you, lady)" He spat and dropped his dagger on the ground and ceased to resist. It was foolishness to die out of inflated pride. "Sie haben Ihre Faustpfand. Was jetzt? Sie wissen, dass diese Torheit. (You have your bargaining chip. What now? You know that this is foolishness.)"

"No, it's insurance." Jennifer switches to the Common Tongue."I know about your witch. I know that she's a threat to this world, and she would kill me casually given the opportunity. I just... Need to negotiate my way out of this. Sorry."

Alexander scoffed. "Sie sind desillusioniert, wie ich früher war. (You are disillusioned, like I used to be.)" He said as the rest of the hunters convened on his location. "Magie nicht korrupten Menschen. (Magic does not corrupt people.)"

 

[Holmishire]

Sisera, Mikan, Marcus, Ignas, Tahlia, & Faolan
A collab between @Slade, @Brovo, @Jorick, and @Holmishire.​

---

As Tahlia recovered from her previous efforts, Faolan was quickly made aware of the all-too-real threat the spirits posed. Without hesitation, he rushed forward—ears flicking to the side momentarily as he caught sight of Marcus and Ignas from the corner of his eye, barging through the door.

Sisera was a strong man, but Faolan was no weakling himself. A few feet from the struggling pair, the dire wolf leapt and twisted in the air so as to ram the two from the side. While such a move would send both he and Mikan crashing down just as easily as Sisera himself, he couldn't afford a more directed attack with the girl in such a precarious position. At any moment her grip could falter, and such a tiny hesitation would end her life.

Ignas hurried in behind Marcus, following Kouri's command without hesitation. By the time he got a good look at the scene, Faolan was already in motion. He cursed quietly under his breath as he realized the very real danger posed by the two people being knocked aside: Mikan could lose her defensive grip and the possessed man could stab her before she recovered. Ignas aimed avert that possibility entirely. He drew on his magical talents and harnessed the air itself, reaching out with it like a rope to wrap around the sword blade near the handle and ready to tug it toward himself once Faolan struck, hopefully ripping it right out of Sisera's hand in the process.

Faolan is able to impact the pair with full force, sending the trio falling into a corner of the room. Sisera manages to maintain a grasp of his blade, barely, though it's sufficiently weakened that Mikan manages to push it away from her throat at the last moment. Sisera cries out in pain as he lands, smoke flooding out from his sleeves and flooding around Mikan's head and shoulders. "DIE, CHOKE, CANNOT LET LIVE." The spirit cries out angrily from within Sisera's body, before being slugged in the nose with the girl's fist. Sisera grabs his nose in shock and pain, as it was broken by Mikan's blow. Mikan crawls out of the cloud of smoke, coughing hard as her breathing is haggard, her eyes filled with panic.

Sisera slowly opened his eyes, brushing off that groggy, sleepy feeling someone felt when they woke up sooner than they liked. He quickly felt something slick and mushy between his fingers and toes. His hair felt like a dirty, wet rag and his whole body felt damp and slimy. Worst of all was the smell, it was like a latrine. He rose up and saw he was laying in a large puddle of unidentified sludge, with a open, dripping drain pipe on the other side sticking out a familiar sight; the high walls of the Capital. He got on his feet, careful not to slip on the black sludge that seemed to hug and stick to his toes. It almost felt like cement, but far more wet.

A little black speck appeared from the blackness of the drain pipe and sat on it's edge, waiting for Sisera to come near it. The texture of the sludge suddenly changed, it all felt like a combination of water, glue, and paper that stuck to the the soles of his bare feet and ripped off the ground with each lumbering step he took towards the drain pipe. He saw that the little speck was a spider, a tiny, minuscule spider. It's fangs (if it even had any) were too small to pierce human skin. Something compelled Sisera to stretch out his hand for the little thing to crawl on to. Despite the fact that his fingers were coated in the sticky sludge, the spider had no problem dancing and traipsing all over his palm. Sisera took a glance at the blackness inside the Drain Pipe. It wasn't dark, it was black, like it had been painted on. As if this pipe led to nowhere; a fraud, a fake figment, a dirty trick.

He looked back down at the spider again, there was a hatred in his eyes now that the arachnid could never comprehend. With each step it took in Sisera's hand, he began to hate it more and more. "Is this thing dancing for me? Is it trying to entertain me? To seduce me?" It seemed like it was silently begging Sisera to find it cute. And it filled him with absolute disgust and revulsion.

Seconds after Sisera crushed it within his hands he could feel a loud, painful, agitated howl come from within the drain pipe and Sisera grew deathly pale as he yelped and slipped on the sludge. "It wasn't painted on!" he thought. The Pipe led somewhere.

Suddenly, in the midst of the howling, a flood of tiny little specks poured out of the drain pipe and darted right towards Sisera as he tried to get up and run away. Only to have his legs pinned down by the millions of little spiders who clung to his toenails, the rest then crawled up his legs, forcing him on one knee as the manipulated his arms to be outstretched, as if to prepare an embrace of what was to emerge next.

A low growl emerged along with sludge plopping out of the drain and making waves in the puddle as more spewed out. Suddenly, a dark, dripping hand the size of a watermelon emerged, it's fingernails merely a more harden sludge that cracked and chipped away as it rubbed against the concrete drain pipe.

So glorious, I soared through the sky
And now we are reduced​

By the very thing that I was​

Sisera's eyes widened, he thought he heard something. An echo of a thought long dead. Another long, hand of sludge emerged from the drain pipe and pulled the rest of it's body out. What emerged was a cross between something in the final stages of decay and something horribly burnt. With a face of a wolf, it's lower jaw distorted and bent out of shape, it's upper jaw dripping sludge onto the ground, unable to stop the never-ending decadency. It's eyes nothing more than a pathetic small ember. The fire had died out long ago. It's ears were made of a smoke so faint that a slight breeze would whisk them away. The rest of it's body seemingly had no end. An ever lasting log of sludge and smoke that continued to slurp out of the drain pipe.

The wolf wrapped its cumbersome hands around Sisera's neck and began to squeeze, but its grip was weak and was no real threat to Sisera. In it's impotent rage the wolf howled.​

I hate you so much.​

You deserve everything you get​

You don't deserve an ounce of her love​

They look at you like you look at me​

The angel must die anyone who serves the angel must die anyone who gets in your way must die

The hands then gripped his shoulders and began to drag him away. Into the drain pipe, into the painting. Into the fraud.

Sisera seemed to 'Pop' into existence at that moment. He was standing on his two feet in a dark room. He was cleaned up, with his normal clothes on and he was back to his original, pale, bald and burnt self. The wolf was nowhere to be seen, though he could feel its presence. It was watching him. But what made him more nervous was the Spider in front of him, a colossus, suspending in the air. To Sisera's relief it was apparently dead. But his relief didn't last long when he felt blood running down his nose. He tried to wipe it away but it kept flowing. Something was wrong. He couldn't think clearly, where had he been last? Where was everybody, why did something feel... misplaced?

He didn't ask himself where he was, because even though this was all unfamiliar, it felt... comfortable, perhaps safe. Even with the giant suspending dead spider. He approached the creature, subconsciously knowing what to do. He gripped the tips of it's furry legs with his hands, closed his eyes and began to channel raw magical energy into the creature. He didn't know if this would put everything back into place, but it was the only option he had.​

​

Without any sign of Sisera relenting, Tahlia approached the possessed mage as Mikan broke free. Faolan attempted to pin Sisera to the ground with his weight, while still refraining from injuring the man through claw or tooth. He did not seem to heed the threat posed to him by the man's continued grip on his sword, however.

Tahlia turned to Ignas and Marcus. "Elf—can you dispel the smoke?" She began to gather the threads of magic to herself, probing forward to find the unwelcome parasite latched onto Sisera's soul. "I'll deal with the spirit," she muttered, grimacing.

Ignas hurried forward to get between Mikan and the possessed man as Tahlia called for his aid. "I can certainly try." The smoke was clearly a product of magical manipulation, but it would naturally be unfit for standing up against an arcane wind conjured by someone with greater skill and power. Ignas called upon his magic once more, gesturing toward the smoke to create a harsh wind to blow it all away, much stronger than would be necessary for mundane smoke but not enough to send Sisera himself flying backwards, hopefully.

With ease, the smoke dissipates, as Mikan climbs to her feet, coughing and stumbling her way out the front door. It seemed she was not going to stick around to help, choosing to keep herself safe.

Sisera, on the other hand, found himself pinned underneath a large wolf. His attempts to resist the possession didn't do much beyond making it hesitate, but that seemed enough to prevent it from lashing out and attacking with its sword. "DO NOT LET HER GO! KILL HER!" The spirit screams out in rage, as its smoke is blown away by Ignas. This left left Tahlia with a momentary window to try and purge the spirit, if she should so choose.

Tahlia moves over to the pair on the floor and kicks at Sisera's arm to disarm him of his sword. She pulls at the threads holding the spirit to the man's body, not yet trying to banish it fully—instead, she tried to bind it with her magic, hopefully restraining its access to Sisera's magic. In doing so, she had a chance at interrogating the spirit, however briefly. "Why should you care what happens to her? She's done nothing to you—I'm the one who disturbed you from silence."

With Mikan clear of danger, Ignas moved to support Tahlia's impromptu questioning. He couldn't see from his position whether or not she had been able to get the weapon away from the pinned man, so he walked round to Sisera's sword arm to be sure the sword was completely out of reach or to simply stand on the flat of the blade to prevent it from being swung about.

"MECHANIST DIE KILL MURDER BLOOD PAIN SLAVERY HURT~" The spirit screeches in a blood curdling manner. It was maddened with a rage that made it borderline incomprehensible. As Ignas stands on the flat of the blade, they would hear the wall by the front door crack. It seemed there was fighting going on outside, and someone had just been thrown against it violently.

Realizing that she had forgotten the other two spirits as she had focused on the immediate threat of the smoke-mage's possession, Tahlia ceased her interrogation and set about banishing the spirit from Sisera's body. "I won't be long—Marcus, help the others outside." She didn't turn to face the devilspawn, but he would see that her face was beset by worry—pleading him, rather than commanding. "I will fix this."

Marcus nods and heads outside to help with the situation unfolding out there.

The spirit struggles against Tahlia, but it didn't take much from her to force his spirit out of Sisera's body, and into the environment. There, with but one more moment in time, the spirit finds itself torn away from the mortal realm. Those without the talent of magic would see and hear nothing, but those who possessed it would feel the presence of the spirit vanish in a singular moment--almost violent, in a sense.

As Tahlia felt the spirit being torn away, she allowed herself a moment of relief. Noticing that Faolan had yet to release Sisera, she nudged him gently and the wolf lifted himself from the prone man.

Finally, she rose shakily from her knees, looking at the smoke mage with concern. "I can't stay long but—are you okay Sisera? Do you feel like… you?"

It would be a few moments before Sisera came to, and within those few moments, both Tahlia and Faolan picked up a faint, but increasingly familiar smell of smoke. Suddenly, a few feet to their left was the source of the scent, but it wasn't shapeless. It sat on it's hind legs with the flowing whirls of black smoke dancing where it's chest would be. It looked like a wolf. No, less than that. It looked like a hound, a deformed hound; something was wrong with it and it wasn't because of the smoke dissipating and recreating itself constantly. It's muzzle looked crooked and bent in odd directions. But more noticeable than that was it's eyes; dulled red colored smoke were used as eyes and they seemed to glare down the two. As if it hated them and it was hungry.

Sisera began to stir and in an instance, the smoke dissipated, not even leaving a trace of it's aroma. Sisera opened his eyes and glanced with nervous eyes at the wolf and at Tahlia, giving a awkward, if genuine smile. Obviously completely ignorant of what his subconscious had created for a few quick seconds.

"I-I think I know what happened" he said, rubbing the back of his head "I hope I didn't hurt anybody." His face immediately winced as he felt his face and touched his sensitive, broken nose. He sighed as he took a deep breath and clenched his free hand, placing his right hand over his nose.

Crack

Sisera yelped briefly as he slammed his hand on the ground. Hard. He felt that pain reverberate up through his arm but it was a good distraction from the awful sensation of resetting his broken nose as flesh blood ran down his lips. His body was still shaking, but he managed to look back up at Tahlia and give another smile.

"I'm fine. You should go help the others."

Tahlia nodded, her gaze filled with greater concern after having witnessed his fit of magic. Still, she turned from him, leaving the elf to watch over the man as she and Faolan rushed out, hoping that the others had managed to fend for themselves in their brief struggle.[/hr]

 

[Firemind]

Finding Jennifer
(Featuring @Brovo as Jennifer and Hanus, @Jorick as Amaia, @RoranHawkins as Alexander, and @Seba as Kasienka)​

The sound of clattering metal drew his attention to where Alexander had gone in search of their target. He turned to face his new path, gripping the pommel of his blade as he did so. While he didn't want to appear as a threat to the woman it wouldn't serve anyone if it was some other danger that had fallen Alexander. He stepped slowly towards a pair of murmuring voices; both of which spoke in a foreign tongue Dean was able to parse as Rheinfelder. After recognizing Alexander's gruff tone he was able to guess pretty confidently that they had found their target. He sheathed his sword and finished closing in.

Dean looked at the scene before him and sighed, obviously relieved that neither party had behaved overly aggressively. It seemed to his eyes that the armor clad foreigner had submitted to Jennifer- all the better in his mind. So long as they didn't force her hand he should be fine. He cupped his hands to his mouth to signal the rest of the party "Alex has found her, bring it in! Good work bucket head." He said with a thumbs up in Alexander's direction. "Jennifer, always a pleasure. Good to see you won't let a few injuries stop you."

As Jennifer turns herself and Alexander to face Dean, Alexander could could feel the uneasy, pained breathing, and see a tremble in her blade holding arm: Adrenaline and sheer determination were the only things keeping her together at this point. Judging by the awkward way she held her blade to his neck, it was clear that the injury was likely down to the bone itself. Quietly, she replies to Dean. "Don't insult a man who is, or even once was, a Templar. He has sacrificed a lot more than you... Not that I expect servants of a witch to understand what that means." She frowns as she says this, then exhales slowly and holds her position.

Hanus was nowhere in sight.

The clattering had drawn Kasienka like a fly to honey. She had left Dirge tied to Krasnyy so that she could dart around as she liked without being slowed by a wider creature. It didn't take her long to find the source and then join Dean and Alexander. The elf was certain that Jennifer was far more hurt than she let on, which only made her the more dangerous. Alexander seemed to be alright currently.

After a moment she began to approach Dean sinking her bare toes into the soft earth as she spoke. "The witch is the one who has agreed that we ought to take care of you. This witch is one who is offering to mend your arm, dear. It looks rather nasty and painful, but I'm sure it's an easy fix if you allow me to inspect it. I won't even use magic to ease your comfort." Her voice was soft and she kept her distance, not dare reaching for her weapons.

They had ridden out with Hanus, but she couldn't find him after a few moments of her own exploration. She was hopeful that should things go wrong and she screamed he would appear.

Rahim had answered Dean's call and arrived quickly on the scene of the strange hostage situation. He held his large axe in hand, and listened as Kasienka tried to talk the woman down. Ignoring the danger, both to himself and to Alex, Rahim stepped past the elf and got closer to Alexander and Jennifer than the others, lowering his axe and spreading out one arm. "You remember me, do you not Jennifer? We talked about a great many things last time, and even promised each other a sparring match. You asked about my heritage, and I asked about your place in your homeland." He stopped, still a good few paces away from the woman. "You can trust me." He said, as he slowly lowered his axe head to the floor. "And you can trust her." He said, pointing to Kasienka. "We cannot trust you with a knife to our ally's throat though. Lower the dagger, and no one has to leave here harmed." Rahim spoke with a surprising compassion, considering his normal tendency towards stoicism and pragmatism. To any who paid attention, they would notice he was talking more than normal; and the reason was simple. He was desperately trying to make his word true. He didn't want to see Jennifer harmed.

"I wasn't trying to insult the guy, we're friends, we joke around. Also not for nothing but I hardly think you know me well enough to deem what I have or have not sacrificed." He bit his tongue realizing he was merely antagonizing the woman and relaxed his posture. "But my friends are right. We aren't here to harm you... Only help."

"That's why all of you came armed." Jennifer glares at them all. "The witch that leads you can't be trusted! All you have to go with are fairy tales, made for children, about a place that hasn't existed for a thousand years! Why would you trust her?!" She takes a step back with Alexander still in her grasp. There's no sign she's backing down, but no sign that she's escalating either. "You had horses. Where are they now? I'll take one of those in exchange for this man, nobody has to get hurt."

Behind her, some several feet away, a tall tree stood where Hanus quietly and briefly reveals his presence to Kasienka, Dean, and Rahim. He motions for them to bring her closer, before going back to hiding behind the tree.

Rahim looks at Jennifer, as he hefts his axe for a moment, before lobbing it half way between her and him. "We trust her, because we want better. She is not the one who promises murder and torture for any who even know of her enemies." He said, staring at the woman with an unflinching strength. His biting reference to Typhon was almost spat out at the Silver Shield's feet. "If she were such an evil witch, she would have ordered us kill you in the pass, when your backs were turned." He said, as matter-of-fact as discussing dinner plans. "Release Alexander. I will promise your safety, on my honour." He said, taking a step closer to the woman and to Alexander. He was mostly ignoring Hanus in the back woods, but he knew how best to hunt. Sometimes you had to trust your hunting partners to act as a plan B.

"Which is why I'm at knifepoint." Alexander replied wittily at her remark of their weapons. "Think. If we were here to mean you harm we would have used a far safer and far more potent method to find you than being ambushed." Alexander then said with a voice many times calmer than he was. He trusted his allies enough that they could rescue him if all went awry, but he was ready to act himself should Jennifer lose her wits.

He listened as Rahim defended Kouri to Jennifer. The man was right of course, but he doubted whether Jennifer would simply accept the harsh truth she was being told. "Regardless of who she is this marks the second time our 'Witch' would have peace between us. What could possibly make us out as such evil creatures to you? I would wager the views of those above you. I say that's not good enough, and I'd ask for a chance to prove ourselves." Dean caught Hanus from the corner of his eye and took a cautious step forward with Rahim. Trying to ease Jennifer closer to the tree he showed his hands to relax her and nodded along with what the others were saying. "You know of the many threats lying in wait in these lands. Threats you'll otherwise face alone and injured without some kind of medical attention."

Kasienka was honestly getting bored of all of this talk. She detested violence, but at this point she almost wanted to slap the woman before her into silence. She didn't appear to be reacting to offers of help, peace, or health. She took her bow, quiver, and knife off of her body and dropped it before her. The elf sat on the dirt and looked up at the woman.

"You speak as if we have horses that we can barter. You saw the size of our party before, and it has grown since you last saw us. Given the state of your arm, I doubt you could ride a horse for very far anyhow. Again, I offer to help you. I wish to fix your arm by whatever means you would accept, but how can I if you are being so difficult? What have we done to accept this treatment from you?"

Jennifer jumps in surprise when the axe lands a few feet from her, causing her to cut Alexander's throat. It was a superficial cut, but it showed just how on edge she was as her hands shake, sweat rolling down her face. "Nichts ist so, wie es sein sollte. (Nothing is as it should be.)" Jennifer's grip tightens around Alexander as the other two speak, her lips curling back into a furious snarl, though her eyes screamed of panic. "What have you done? Aligned with the enemy! Aligned with a woman who would destroy our world if you allowed her to win! Don't you get it? The Gods keep greater dangers away no matter how you feel about them! They made our world! All you're doing by enabling this tyrant is a return to the world of old! It was only four hundred years ago that Rheinfeld even came to be, after hundreds of years of civil wars because of THAT witch you're protecting!"

She shoves Alexander away and stumbles backward, coughing heavily as she tries to recover. Emotional fatigue was doing its damage to her already weakened form. She moves her blade to her uninjured arm, and points it toward the group. "What are you even saving us all from? One monarchy for another? The Heavens for The Hells? What exactly are you hoping to accomplish, aside from being yet another divisive force of murderers?"

"We sided with your master's enemy perhaps, but then any ruler that could put an entire civilization to death because they were rebuffed hardly sounds like someone I'd care to live under. So you're right to say we're trading for a Monarchy, but a Tyrant is what we already have in the form of Typhon." He took another few steps forward, eager to close the distance to Alexander and make sure the man was okay, but still keeping distance between himself and Jennifer. "Rheinfeld serves the Gods, and Rheinfeld reaps the benefits of that, there's little surprise the Gods created such a useful tool after Renalta's defiance. Jennifer you must have your doubts, even Legends hold some bit of truth to them and you've certainly seen what Typhon is capable of, you must know that there's a better way. Regardless of what dangers lie in wait."

He looked at her with pity in his eyes, and sighed deeply. "Personally I'm just tired of prayers falling on deaf ears, and I don't want to hear the same stories of corruption and loss that have plagued my own life. If following Kouri in the hopes she can change that makes me a divisive murderer than so be it, but I don't want to kill you, and I feel you think the same."

"Jennifer." He began. "You as a silver shield of Liveria should know better than anyone present here that the Gods' peace of Rheinfeld and Liveria is nothing more than the bloody oppression of those who do not conform. Thousands of lives sacrificed to the Gods every year, and they bask in the glory and the blood of innocent lives." He said compassionately, spreading his arms. "So what if the Gods created the world. We are not their playthings to torment."

Amaia had gone far in the wrong direction when the group split up to search. She'd heard Dean's yell from afar, and it had taken her a while to reach where she thought it came from, then more time still following the sound of voices further off than she'd expected. It was hard to make out the words as she walked, but slowing her pace and stepping carefully allowed her to hear most of what Jennifer said followed by Dean and Alexander more clearly as she drew nearer. She wasn't sure why they were embroiled in a philosophical arguement rather than capturing the prisoner, but if that was how they were handling it then so be it.

Crackling leaves and twigs announced Amaia's arrival a couple seconds before she came into view, thanks to her very purposely going out of her way to not surprise the obviously distraught Jennifer any more than necessary. She gave the injured woman a concerned once over, then shook her head with a sigh. "You of all people are asking what we're saving everyone from? Where's your master, Jennifer?" Her voice was soft, almost sad. "Look at you, injured and alone among people you call enemies. Where's your master, huh? He doesn't give a damn about you, else he'd be helping you right now. We just toys to them, not people who matter. They don't even think twice about killing us or abandoning us."

She took a few steps forward, ending up standing next to Rahim with her hands resting on the pommels of her daggers. "I can't talk for anyone else, but you wanna know what I want to save everyone from? Angels who kill millions of people just because a princess refuses to marry him. People who slaughter infants in the name of the gods. The gods who let all this happen. I want to save everyone from the monsters that treat us like worthless trash. Getting rid of the gods might not make the world a better place, but I know for sure it's going to stay this bad or get worse as long as they're in charge." Amaia took another step forward, hands dropping down to her sides and away from her weapons. "We could kill you, probably pretty easily in your condition, but we're not doing that because you aren't just an enemy. You're a person too, just a victim of the whims of the gods like all of us. Right now you're hurt, probably bad enough to die if you try to travel alone without any treatment, and I don't see any guardian angels around ready to fly you to safety. Let us help you, come have a talk with Kouri and see she's actually just a person and not a monster, continue this whole argument with us about the gods if you want, and if you still want to be our enemy after all that then we can cross that bridge when we come to it."

Rahim listened to all the people speak; including the newly reappearing Amaia. They all made good points, and it felt like Rahim had very little to add. Still, he didn't want to say nothing, in the face of his last claim of protection. "How can the Gods have created the world if there is a world of old to return to?" He said, curious of her response. There was a logical flaw in the contradiction that he wanted to see her deal with. "And is it true that you, a servant as faithful to the gods as you are, are not allowed in Rheinfeld without official business because of your magic? That seems like a cruel and childish system...Picking favorites because of something you have no control over." He said, letting Amaia advance before him; but keeping a few paces behind, just to ensure that the Silver Shield didn't try and tackle her.

Kasienka sat silently, waiting for something to be resolved. She was aware Hanus was near, and hoped he would do the best for the situation.

"It is a rational system. It makes sense..." Jennifer grits her teeth. She glares at Amaia. "Ich bin kein Sklave jemand. (I am not a slave to anyone.)" She then turns and stares at Rahim, a look of bafflement and disbelief in her eyes. Nonetheless, her sword lowers a little. "You really understand nothing, do you?" Her eyes then shift toward Alexander. She appeared to pity him. "We are warriors, Alexander. Like any other, we carry burdens on our shoulders. Those lives aren't sacrificed without purpose, you should understand this. Wie denken Sie, sich so edel und vor allem? Ein Magier kann eine ganze Stadt hundert verschiedene Arten enden - Rheinfeld Methoden sinnvoll. (How do you think yourself so noble and above it all? A mage can end an entire town a hundred different ways--Rheinfeld's methods make sense.)"

Finally, she lowers her blade, and looks at Dean. It seemed she was too weak to really present much in the way of a threat, nonetheless, there was a certain fiery spark in her eyes. "You really think the Princess is going to change anything? You really think that she will somehow destroy corruption? You have a pitiably naive mind." She sheathes her blade as Hanus steps out from his hiding spot. Whether or not she thought she was going to live, it seemed she was calming down her from earlier panic. "Typhon is not a kind man. No truly loyal warrior really is. Nonetheless, Typhon is preferable to the darker things your Princess would casually unleash on this world. Things you don't understand. Maybe, things she doesn't understand." She falls onto her knees and bows her head. "I surrender."

He shrugged off the moment when Jennifer mentioned him understanding nothing. He was used to people thinking him the fool, and there was almost certainly some part of the religion of this world he did not understand. After all, he had never bothered to invest himself with the gods. Instead, when all was said and done; Rahim walked towards the woman. He stepped past his discarded axe and walked over to Jennifer herself, before moving to her good side; avoiding the injured arm as he offered a hand. "Come, there is nothing to be gained here any longer. Let us get you back to our camp, so that we can properly tend to your wounds." Assuming he was allowed, he would tuck his shoulder underneath her good armpit and take most of her weight with relative ease before leading her in the direction they'd came from, towards the horses. As he walked, he made a marked attempt to be as gentle as possible; careful to avoid jarring or clipping the injured arm, and careful to avoid spooking the woman. He did stop to pick up his axe, but only then to use it more like a walking stick than a weapon. The head of the axe was constantly at the ground, to keep the woman from worrying any more than she needed to.

Alexander sighed and turned away from her. "You speak of Kouri as if her magical power makes her a threat deserving of destruction. Consider that the Gods are many times as powerful, and that all the suffering we are inflicting for them is exactly what you fear she might do, but far worse." He collected Jennifer's dagger and his own and grabbed a clean rag of linen with which he checked his throat and cleaned his stuff. He saw Rahim pick up Jennifer and he scoffed in distant amusement at the sight, and went for the horses himself too.

 

[Brovo]

"As you command your highness, this skirmish will be over shortly."
-Sisera, Page 6.​

Jennifer Captured​

Hanus stands up and out of the bushes as Jennifer surrenders. Walking over to her, her eyes remain staring toward the ground. He glances around the group and nods with approval, looking a bit concerned at the small wound on Alexander's neck. "Well done, nobody had to die for this."

Jennifer glares at Hanus, voice is equally cold and distrusting as she speaks. "A dark elf among you. Leave it to snakes to travel with those who risk the world. What do you have to gain, elf?" Hanus doesn't reply to her as he motions for Rahim to take her back to Kouri and the others.

Recovery​

Kouri manages a small smile as she looks around at the rest of the group. Turning, she looks to Marcus. In doing so, he looks at her and bows his head respectfully. "What is your command?" He asks as the princess seems to pause, unsure of how to proceed, but nonetheless still seeing the need for it. She clears her throat, attempting to speak with authority, even as uncertainty found its way into her voice. "Are you capable of treating minor wounds?" He nods. She continues speaking, "gather the wounded by the front door of the house and treat them. Kasienka is not yet here to help them, but let's see what we can do in the meantime." He nods once again, saying nothing more as he simply motions for Baldrik and Mikan to follow him.

James, meanwhile, slowly climbs to his feet. Grabbing his head, he walks in a dazed fashion toward the house, as he tries to avoid everyone else. Marcus, however, grabs his shoulder and drags him back. "You know magic. Do you have some way of creating bandages of some sort?" James glances over at Mikan. He simply shakes his head and shrugs Marcus' hand off. "I am an Illusionist, nothing more." He walks inside, leaving Marcus alone to tend to Mikan and any other injured person there.

With a scowl, Marcus kneels down beside Mikan and glances over her forehead. His fingers wrap around her chin, turning it to look at the wound from a couple different angles. With a pained giggle, Mikan speaks with concerned curiosity. "Are you sure you know what you are doing?" He shrugs and continues looking her over. "I know enough. Are you injured anywhere else?" Mikan smiles mischievously and motions over herself. "I don't know, want to search me?" Marcus merely stares for a moment, blankly, before shaking his head and standing up.

"Say... I've got most people here pegged for one thing or another." Marcus turns to leave, but waits to listen to what the girl had to say. "But not you. Why are you here?" He pauses, then speaks bluntly. "I am a King's Ranger. It is my duty." She scoffs and kicks some dust up at Marcus' feet. "Not buying it. Really, why are you here?" He shakes his head once more. "It is none of your concern." He takes a step, and stops as he hears her voice grow angry. "I think it is! I have been punched, threatened, and just now I nearly had my throat slit and then I was nearly crushed by a Gods damned orc! Scheiße (Shit), I think it is about time you at least told me why you are here. Especially when you asked about The Abomination earlier as your one wish."

Marcus suddenly turns and glares at her, resting his hand on the pommel of his blade and squeezing it, though merely appearing angry as opposed to threatening. "Why should I tell you—a thief—anything? When first we met you attempted to take my life." Mikan thinks for a moment, then smiles widely. "How about so everyone doesn't think of you as just being a sword wielding version of James?" Marcus chuckles and sighs, the grip on his pommel loosening. "Fair enough. I live for two reasons: Service to the crown of Renalta, and revenge. The Abomination took something from me. Something valuable. Something I cherished. When this is all done, I will destroy him, so he can never do the kind of harm he did to me to anyone else." He lets his hand slip off of his pommel, his eyes were filled with an oddly severe emotion that Mikan couldn't quite understand. "Now, stay here. I will go retrieve some materials to make a bandage." She nods, watching him leave with sympathy in her eyes.

Meeting Back Up​

Though it took several minutes, Hanus' group returns to the abandoned structure in the light peppering of forest. There, Kouri looks at Jennifer with pity, while the Silver Shield returns the look with disdain. Marcus, meanwhile, finishes tying a white cloth bandage around Mikan's head. "There." He states simply, as she giggles happily. "Three layers. You'll need to change this in a few hours." Standing up, he then turns and notices Kasienka. A look of relief briefly enters his eyes before his typically stoic nature kicks in again. "Kasienka, good to see you here again. We have some injured people. I have tended to Baldrik, Sisera, and Mikan. If you are too tired to mend them now, you have time to rest before working on each of them. I recommend healing Sisera first."

Hanus looks around the area, searching for danger. Marcus shrugs and speaks again, as Kouri merely seems to watch and listen with a smile. "Tahlia's attempt at banishing spirits brought three rogue entities out here. They attempted to possess members of our group. The spirits have been banished, nobody was killed, a couple were wounded." Hanus raises an eyebrow at Kouri, but nonetheless turns and faces the King's Ranger. "Anything else?" Marcus shrugs. "Aside from my recommendation to leave? No. So long as we are in this country, any use of magic should facilitate us moving immediately, as Templar from miles away may detect it. This far out on the border we can take this gamble. When we're further into the interior?..." He grimaces as he glances at the barren building behind himself. "We should avoid sharing the fate of many others in these lands."

"Right..." Hanus replies quietly, as he looks to Kouri once again. "Well, Jennifer should be taken inside while we discuss our next move." He motions for Rahim to do just that, and as she's moved inside, Mikan walks over to them, scratching at the bandage wrapped around her head. With a scowl, Marcus slaps her hand away. "Don't do that." Mikan looks at him and sighs, then nods her head. "Fine, okay."

Mikan looks at Kouri, her typically chipper demeanour no longer present for the current conversation. "We should go to the capital. I have friends there, they can help us acquire some documents we will need in order to use the port towns and get a ship. We are heading north after all, right?" Marcus shakes his head. "No. Walking right into the heart of the enemy? Are you out of your mind, thief? We should go to the King's Rangers outpost. They can help us circumnavigate the Blood Sea. It will take longer, and we will have to travel through the Dark Forest, but it is still safer than risking being captured in the heart of Rheinfeld."

As Marcus and Mikan speak, Beatrice attempts to land on Mikan's shoulder. She jumps in surprise and swats the bird away, causing Beatrice to land on the ground instead, looking up at Kouri and seeming to simply listen to their conversation. Hanus looks at Mikan, and smiles a little. "You have friends, you say? How reliable are they?" Mikan shrugs and looks at her feet. "Reliable enough. Trust me, it would not take much to convince them to help you." Marcus disagrees once more. "It's not safe to go that way. If we head for the King's Rangers outpost we stand a better chance of--" Mikan interrupts, her tone of voice showing a strange, timid reservation. "--doing exactly what the Gods think we will do? Yes, I am a thief. I am other things too, but mostly a thief. Hiding in plain sight is one of the first things you learn to avoid authority figures. You do not shy away from guards, you smile at them! You do not go for the most obvious escape paths, you go for the unorthodox ones, that nobody thinks about, and nobody plans for. The Gods are not unorthodox thinkers, they are order incarnate. We tried going to a King's Ranger outpost once and we had our lives threatened. We went to these mountains, and found ourselves ambushed by Typhon. It is just smarter if we go where they would never think we would go, where they least suspect us. The capital is one of those places, and I have friends who will help us." She looks at the Princess, pleadingly. "Please. We cannot depend on figures like Kiune to just whisk us away from every mistake. We have to take some chances! We cannot always play it safe. The safest choice is not always the most obvious choice."

Hanus nods in agreement, and looks at Kouri. She thinks about it for a few moments, then looks at Mikan and also nods in agreement. "I hope your friends are still there, Mikan. We will go to the capital." Marcus looks between them and shakes his head. He still disagreed, but seemed to bite his tongue for a moment while thinking of a more diplomatic approach. "Going there means all of our mages will need to silence their powers. You will essentially be defenseless, Princess." Kouri smiles a little and looks at the sky. "I trust in you. You are here to protect me after all, are you not?" Marcus rolls his fingers along the pommel of his blade. "I am one man. I cannot save you from an army... Nonetheless, I will do my best." He glares at Hanus momentarily, then turns and walks away, having finished with the conversation.

Elsewhere...​

"Garret..."
"What, dear?"
"How long have I been unconscious?"
"Oh, no more than a couple hours, dear. I've been watching over you, carefully."
"I swear if you touched me anywhere you little parasite I'll--"
"Oh, don't you worry about it. I don't have the vivacious form you still lust for... Not yet, anyway."
"Hmph... Why are you even here? Shouldn't you be pursuing her?"
"Oh, I am. I sent three spirits after her little group... I haven't found anything yet, I'm just probing around, feeling out for anything young and supple."
"I hope you aren't lying to me."
"Why would I? It would not take long for you to find the truth, obviously. Besides, I sent out my lieutenants. They're combing a few paths, trying to find where they may be going... I assure you, they can be quite... Energetic. When they do find her, they'll simply... Take her... Er, straight to me, of course. Hehehe."
"Good. I will need a little time to recover from my little fight with Kiune."
"Say, is she dead now? She interfered with a few of my plans. A rather irritating entity."
"She must be dead. I impaled her."
"You really think a sword is all it takes to kill her?"
"Her realm exploded too."
"Well... That might do it."
"What? No terrible puns about molestating her?"
"I hated her, Typhon. She got in my way of another delectable specimen less than a year ago. Her druids threw themselves in front of my lieutenants, stopping them from taking this young Rheinfelder woman... With a wonderful body, well in shape, and her bloodline implied quite a bit of usefulness. I could used it so well... She would have put up so little of a fight... But that damn territorial bitch stayed my hand. Now that she is gone, though... I will have so many more opportunities than I ever had before. Assuming of course I'll ever need them once my hands are all over the Princess."
"Right... Remind me never to ask about these sorts of things with you again."

 

[Grothnor]

[spoili]Missed the deadline because reasons. Happens before the above GM post.[/spoili]
A Collab with Grothnor, Chilum (@Seba), Baldrik (@West), Princess Kouri, Mikan and Marcus (@Brovo).

Everything had gone from near peace to absolute chaos quicker than Chilum could blink. The chill of Kouri's ice wall slapped him in the face, sending his hand to his back to unsheathe his blade and hold it in front of himself, trying to move himself between Kouri and the source of the explosion. He had heard of these weapons before, and wasn't eager to fight it. Then again... it seemed as if he had already burnt his loaded shot.

"Yes, Princess!" He moved to dart around the wall, trying to distract Baldrik from the princess by shouting at him and hitting his blade against the ice. Should he move to shoot, or to reload, the tall man would drop his sword and try to take the weapon.

The world felt... like an inferno. Baldrik's entire body was aching throughout, his veins must've been transporting pure lava throughout them, and his head was pounding at him- just like he had just finished fifty shots of Alcohol without an end. Everything around him just made him feel... angry. He sensed the sudden approach of Chilum, although his sight was heavily clouded, he could still tell by his stupid face who he was. It was pretty clear just by looking at him that he was taunting Baldrik. And that made him well up with just pure rage.

How dare he just stand there instead of fighting?! With a roar reminescent of a Bear, Baldrik took ahold of his musket's barrel with both hands, and twisted his chest slightly to the side- then sent a full head-on swing aimed to Chilum's left side of his head as Baldrik began to untwist his chest in order to gain a clearly potent swing to his attack. It was pretty clear he was going to use it as a club if he needed to.

Baldrik's swing connects with Chilum in a single surprising movement, slamming into his side and sending him stumbling backward, but not knocking him off of his feet, nor dealing a decisive blow. The two are left on equal footing.

Seeing Baldrik switching to melee, Kouri steps around her wall of ice and throws a shard of ice at Baldrik's rifle, striking it and knocking it out of his hands. She narrows her eyes and looks at Baldrik. "Pin him!"

Chilum darted forward to try and catch Kouri as she wavered. If nothing else he would have better luck with this than with trying to restrain Grothnor. He knew he had expended almost all of his magic in keeping up with the horses, but he hoped there was enough residual droplets for him to guard himself from the spirit. If it did choose him... well, it would be an easy enough task to subdue him.

Grothnor bolted upright and towards the others. Hearing the princess' command, he charged Baldrik with a wordless roar, tackling the man off his feet and seizing his arms. Incensed at his apparent betrayal, he screamed, "TRAITOR!" in his face, angry, but still in control.

Chilum felt himself pushed back before he could push in turn, and was readying himself to again pounce onto Baldrik, but found someone else had gotten there first. He grit his teeth as he tried to think of a solution, but instead came up with nothing that was going to be especially comfortable.

"The Princess commanded us not to hurt them! He is not himself! Come on now, Grothnor!" His deep voice was booming now rather than rumbling. He tried to grapple the orc's arm and pull him away, not that he thought he would have much success.

Just as he had landed a solid hit against that dumb-bricked idiot, he felt what he assumed to be the impact of fifty horses collide with him, knocking his ass off to the ground within less than a second and pinning him down to it. Baldrik was able to sift an image of the figure through the fog that was covering his eyes- or was it just the spirit nulling out his senses? Either way, he was able to see... Grothnor. He yelled something, incomprehensible at him, and the fact he yelled at him in such a manner caused him to get even more pissed off with his current predicament. And yet something within Baldrik told him to, just maybe, try another approach. He felt his rage slightly subside- atleast the one that he himself had, and considered the possibility of cooling off. And yet, that just made him feel even more angry. Why the hell would he have to cool off when these pricks are trying to kill him?! Raw strength might not do the trick, but he sure as hell wasn't going to stick around with these arses trying to gut him on the spot! Baldrik felt his face flush with fire, and quickly began to try and struggle out of his predicament. On his feet, that's where he needs to be.

Kouri walks toward the pinned man and kneels beside him. Chilum struggles to get Grothnor to pull back, but it was generally in vain: The orc had quite the chokehold on Baldrik, preventing his escape. The Princess closes her eyes, grasping Baldrik's shoulder and as she exhales, her hand glows with a vaguely purple coloured aura--she was trying to drive the spirit out with raw magic.

Baldrik would cease struggling as the spirit flees from his body. The Princess, momentarily weak, almost slumps forward, but shakes out her head and struggles her way back to her feet. "It's still here, though Baldrik is free. It might try again. Stick together."

Grothnor was unsure what exactly was going on, but going by Kouri's actions, he was able to surmise that something magic was making them attack one another. He grimaced, not at all pleased that he was up against something he couldn't fight with his hands or weapons. "Magic...." he murmured, displeased. He eased his grip on Baldrik once he stopped thrashing against him and released him once Kouri said he was free, nodding at her orders. He looked around uneasily, fearing what might happen if he were next to betray his allies.

Baldrik's fiery wrath felt like it had just been washed away in ice-cold water, causing his inner being to shiver as he felt his sudden anger wash away as quick as it had come. Feeling his muscles come back under his control (although they felt sore), he groaned and raised himself back up to his feet. He raised his right hand upwards and waved it at them in a slow manner, his reptillian skin still showing the flesh underneath. "Thanks uh, for not bashing my head in, Grothnor, thanks for telling him, Chillum, and thanks for getting me out of that state, Kouri." He instinctively reached over for his musket as he noticed it wasn't within his grasp, and yet... Felt that he shouldn't. He backed away from his rifle, and reached instead over for his Bayonett, taking it within his right hand to act as a form of a knife. "Better we not risk me shooting one of our own."

As Chilum grasps Kouri's shoulder, he would feel something pass into her, and for a moment, she pauses and closes her eyes. "Thank you." She murmurs to Chilum as her skin turns as cold as frost. She stands up slowly and exhales deeply as she look at a now visible spirit. It held a vaguely humanoid form, and yet, seemed unmoving, as though stunned. The Princess raises her hand and in one swift motion, encases it in ice with a spell she had prepared. "Animo meo. (My mind.)" She shakes her head out, and looks at Baldrik, Grothnor, and Chilum. She nods, and smiles, though it's a little weak. "Thank you. That is one taken care of for certain. At least, for now. I do not know how many more there are."

With a warm smile Chilum bowed his head to Kouri... which nearly caused him to miss what a wondrous thing she was able to accomplish. His hand was still aching from how cold Kouri had been. He took his hand away and tried to slowly warm it and bring feeling back into it. When the spirit was somehow encased as it were, Chilum tried to gently draw the woman into a brief hug. When he pulled back, or was pushed back, he spoke.

"I believe we just witnessed something none of the rest of us could do as reflexively as you could. I thank you, Princess. I fear if you had failed then I would not be capable of words right now. I cannot thank you enough, so hopefully twice will do for now."

Grothnor only grunted at Baldrik's thanks. He was too polite. "I may bash your head in yet. Be on guard."

He could only blink in confusion at what happened between Chilum and Kouri. Everything to do with magic was beyond him. No one was fighting, so he had nothing to do. "You're all to fucking polite," he grumbled.

Baldrik began to step away from the others, just had to make sure that there was not going to be any more special tricks from the Spirits. There'd always be a downside to being resilient to magic- Sure, you were more protected from spells than others, but that didn't stop angry spirits from swishing through you, or allow you to even sense the bastards approaching. "Right, since we're not sure, it's best we take a few steps back from each other." His voice was still slightly shaking from being overburdened with the rage, and was also scared that the next one that'd be possessed would prove to be Grothnor.

Kouri reacts with surprise at the sudden embrace from Chilum, taking a step back when he lets her go. It was not the most proper behaviour, but there is a hint of a smile at the edges of her lips. She turns and watches as Mikan leaves the building, blood still half-blinding the Rheinfelder. Just then, Kouri turns on her heels in time to get knocked aside by Grothnor. It seemed the orc's turn to be possessed, and he bypassed them all completely to go after Mikan. "DAMMIT," Mikan yells in frustration as she barely rolls out of the way of one of his attacks. It seemed the spirit which had possessed James, found a new target.

Marcus steps in and stares at the situation, shaking his head as he grasps the handle of his blade. "How many times do I have to punch you?"

Well... Shit. He had caught Kouri the first time, but this time the princess ate dirt and he couldn't do anything to stop it. Rather than polish his shining armor routine, the Free Holder ran after the Orc and decided to do something decidedly stupid. He took his scarf completely off, letting his tousled white hair free for the first time in days, and attempted to leap onto Grothnor's back and wrap the fabric around his mouth or neck while gripping the giant creature's body with his legs. It may not work, he may eat more dirt than the princess, but hopefully it would keep him distracted enough not to eat the bleeding woman. Mikan had clearly had a rough enough day already.

Grothnor was screaming. Outwardly, he roared with every attack, every exertion, every attempt to wrap his hands around this agile young woman's neck. Inwardly, he was crying out in fear, horror and impotent rage. How easily he had been taken by this dark thing, he who could crush any being lesser than he with his bare hands and could perform feats of strength few other mortals could. He watched himself break every oath he had sworn, if not to the princess, then to himself: to serve her and her companions faithfully, to not lose control. He struggled with the thing controlling him, tried to push it out of... wherever it was, but he could only put up a trifling effort, not knowing how to fight the incorporeal.

A great deal of pressure felt thrust upon Baldrik as he realized what was going on. Now he saw Grothnor running off, chasing Mikan's tail as she quickly began to dodge his swipes. Chilum leaped onto him and tried to more or less piggy-ride him. For what reasons, Baldrik couldn't decypher. What he knew was that he had to get over there and do something, without harming Grothnor badly. He wasn't sure what had truely caused his own spirit's rage, but he needed to find a way to stop Grothnor before it got out of hand.

Only one thought began to act up to him, and it was clear what he needed to do. He ran after Grothnor, and strafed around him so that he was atleast trying to stand inbetween him and Mikan. "Oi, you vile parasite within Grothnor! Come after me, I'm no different from her!" Remembering slightly how the pain-wagon worked last time, he steeled his nerves for what was to come. He knew he had to attack Grothnor to stop it from turning into him being harmed... but he couldn't bring himself. He saw Grothnor, not the spirit within, and hesitated to attack.

Mikan turns just in time to see Baldrik being hit by Grothnor. More accurately, swatted aside, and sent flying into the house, hitting it with enough force to crack the wall, and one of his ribs. Still able to fight and move, but every step would hurt, intensely.

Kouri, meanwhile, gets onto her hands and knees and glares out toward the orc. She threw a shard of ice just in front of Grothnor, leaving a dusting of frost behind. He reaches up to his eyes and tries to wipe away the frost, as he struggled with Chilum's scarf around his throat. Kouri crawls to her feet and runs toward the orc, hoping to flood him with raw magic and shove the spirit out, only for Grothnor to swing out blindly and strike her. She flies for a couple feet, then rolls as she lands on the ground, looking momentarily dazed by the blow.

Mikan blinks and swallows back her fear, clearing the blood away from her eye as she pulls out one of her short blade. "KEEP HIM BLINDED A LITTLE LONGER, HANDSOME!" She yells out to Chilum, before looking over to Baldrik. In her eyes was a thankful, and simultaneously regretful set of emotions, before she runs toward Grothnor. "Nicht gehen Sie zu töten, aber das wird weh tun. (Not going to kill, but this will hurt.)" She mutters under her breath.

Chilum struggled with even staying on Grothnor's back. Now he felt like his already-white eyebrows were made nearly translucent by the ice Kouri sprayed in his direction. Then he was stuck watching the princess get struck. He winced on her behalf only to nearly be bucked off by the possessed Orc. To make things better Mikan was now barking orders at him and he was about to be sent cartwheeling through the air.

Oh, oh no. Oh gods above what was she doing? Chilum did his best to pull the scarf up just enough to over the orc's eyes instead of just choking the poor bastard.

Grothnor had had enough. He had struck the princess twice, assaulted her companions and even attacked the one person in this group he had found any affinity for, naive as he may be. He could not simply watch in horror any longer, so he struggled with all his might to hamper each and every move his body made. He tried to, somehow, force out whatever being inside of him, and, failing that, minimize the damage he was causing. He was grateful he had not killed anyone... yet.

First thing he felt when he took a stance against Grothnor: Was a swat. Second thing he felt: The Wall. Third thing- his right bottom rib. Baldrik hunched over when he felt his chest burst into pain, just staying there, crouched, stinged like a bastard. He gasped for air as his breathing pace hastened to compensate for the air he got knocked out of his lungs. He kept on rushing past him, and he knew if he reached Mikan he'd do more than just roughen her up. Pain is weakness leaving the body. The voice felt, familiar, as if he had heard it before, but he couldn't put it on who it belonged to. It motivated him just enough to get back up on his feet and rush after the enraged Orc.

Each step felt like his organs were shifting violently inside his chest, but he couldn't stop from such mortal limitations, even though he had to hold his breath to convince himself that it wasn't so bad. Baldrik still had his bayonett in his hand, and watched Grothnor rush- he had a few ideas in mind. But most of them involved in harming Grothnor directly. Who cares. Do it. The tune in his mind rang off once more, and he shrugged it off. He couldn't just allow himself to get swayed off by his own insanity, and do some serious damage against his own friend... could he?

"Grothnor... I'm really sorry for what's about to happen!" He rushed forward as fast as he could- hopefully fast enough to catch up to Grothnor, and aimed to slice at Grothnor's left heel after a aiming a very rough leap against his legs. Hopefully with enough force to cut through it, but not with enough force to cause incomprehensible amounts of bleeding. Atleast that's what Baldrik hoped for.

In one, fell swoop, as Mikan and Baldrik dive in to attack, Kouri climbs to her feet. She was in pain, but for the moment, refused to capitulate to it. Yet, she watches as Grothnor stops what he was doing, in spite of Mikan sliding between his legs. "STOP!" She yells quickly, Mikan hesitating just a moment before impaling Grothnor's ankle. "He pushed the spirit out of himself! We're safe." She stays where she is and looks around the area. "I don't... Sense anything else. I think we're done." There is a somewhat impressed look in Mikan's eyes as she sheathes her dagger, rolling to her feet, she giggles and pats the orc on his back. "Well, I... Guess that's that then. No spirit should screw with you, huh?" She giggles, then looks over at Baldrik, with a certain thankfulness still present in her eyes.

With that Chilum dropped off of Grothnor's back. He stumbled on the landing. Holding onto he orc felt like he had ridden a horse for two days straight. He waddled his way over to the princess and clearly checked her for any bumps or scrapes. The man didn't want to answer any questions about how she had become harmed under his eye. Sure he wasn't solely responsible, but looking around he thought he was the most responsible and one of the two that hadn't been possessed.

"How are you, Princess? I saw you fall."

Grothnor was in a daze. He looked down at his hands and clenched his fists, assuring himself that he was indeed in control. The experience had visibly shaken him. He jumped slightly at Mikan's pat-on-the-back. A tired "Yeah..." was all he could muster in response. Now was supposed to be a time of victory; he had bested the unknown, yet he didn't want to rejoice. All he felt was guilt for breaking his oath, even if the woman he had tried to murder moments before had seemingly forgiven him, he doubted he'd be able to forgive himself so easily. He quietly shuffled over to a tree and sat against it, resting his arms on his knees.

Hearing Kouri's command, Baldrik dropped his bayonett before he could complete the swiping motion- causing him to miss Grothnor's heel completely. He landed onto his chest, and felt the rib move just a tiny inch within his body. But that was enough to cause him to groan as his stubborness and willpower had begun to fade, and now the pain was becoming evident. He grasped his right rib-cage with his left hand and forced himself up onto his feet. He let his bayonett rest on the floor for the time being, as he had to take some time to get used to the pain. "Aha... you hit hard, you know that, Grothnor?" Baldrik felt a smile come upon his face before he retracted it and replaced it with an expression of pain.

Typical Baldrik. Never going through with anything. He heard another tune enter his mind, and began to realize that the voices were no longer just mere 'nudges', but now held opinions within his skull. Baldrik tried to keep a poker-face about it, especially when he noticed Mikan eyeing her. He was not really able to tell what she was trying to show behind those eyes, so he only raised her his right hand as a slight wave. Between his own waving and the waves of pain he was experiencing with each step, he forced himself to speak up about this invisible foe to the others: "Right... We're going to need a proper doctor to patch this rib back up..."

 

[Firemind]

Rahim, Jennifer, and Marcus - Sparring Minds
(Feat @Brovo as Marcus and Jennifer)


​

Despite his low levels of confusion and high levels of concern in regards to the apparently volatile incident that had occurred at the Barn, which left Mikan in bandages, Rahim moved Jennifer into the abandoned house as instructed. As he stepped inside, his nose wrinkled at the sudden abrasiveness of kicked up dust from under his nose. "Come, sit." He said, pulling an unused chair over from the side and offering it to Jennifer. He would then move to sit on one of the stairs leading upstairs, as he waited to see if anyone intended to follow them into the house.

After an awkward moment of silence, he would eventually decide to breach the air between them with conversation. "How fare your wounds? They are not too uncomfortable, are they?"

As Jennifer sits on the chair, she closes her eyes and bows her head, reading her hands on her knees and keeping as still as she could. When the silence was broken by Rahim's voice, she replies, quietly. Calmly. "My comfort is irrelevant. I am alive."

Rahim frowns at the woman, shaking his head in disbelief. "I am sure a healer will be able to see to your wounds with magic soon enough. Otherwise, I can help you with a bandage, or a splint." He said, before reaching over to his small bag of belongings. He fished through the sack, pulling out a piece of dried meat and throwing it in the woman's direction. "Eat. It will help you regain your strength."

Her eyes remain closed, her head bowed, unwavered from her position. Her nose wrinkles at the scent of the meat as it lands on her lap. "I need no further strength than discipline and faith provide in ample supply."

Rahim sighed, before walking over to the stairs again. "If you had half the strength you showed in the pass, you would not be sitting here in awkward half-silences nursing an injured arm. I think your faith is feeding you poorly." He said, before reaching into the bag and taking a bite of jerky.

After a moment of quite chewing, he eventually spoke again; unwilling to let the woman sulk and mope until someone came in to interview her. If not for his irritation about being in the dark, and his agitation that Mikan had somehow been wounded while he was away, he might have been less snappy. As it stood though, he had little patience for listening to Jennifer's faith-talk. Instead, he focused on one of the reasons he was willing to take the risk to save her. "Why did you decide to help four strangers in a mountain path? Was that the teachings of your faith and discipline, or was that the woman who carries the Silver Shield?" He said, before quickly adding. "You seemed the only one in your group interested in helping us, at the time."

Finally, Jennifer's eyes open, as she looks up at the tall man of mixed breed. In spite of the determined look in her eyes, she was weary, the bags under her eyes seemed to keep her from responding with fury. That, or perhaps something else entirely. "Faith is not about the material things" she whispers as she wrings out her hand. "It is righteous and honourable to aid those in need. Those who followed me knew not to question my orders, simply follow them on faith. I know not what you have been told of my order, but I believe you must know little truth of it to think our aid so fickle or rare."

Rahim offered a smirk to the woman when she was done speaking. "Do I look like a man who values material things?" He said, still digesting what she'd said. It all sounded so pretty and perfect, until he recalled one simple fact. "How can you follow Typhon if you are driven by honour and righteousness? The first moment I met him; he declared his intent to rape a young woman and force her to watch as he murdered her allies. Even if she brings the doom you say she brings; a simple execution would be enough. He has no interest in justice, or righteousness. He only seeks pain and torture."

"How can you follow a woman who signed away her entire kingdom to ashes simply to save herself?" She glares at him, eye to eye. It seemed that she refused to be cowed, or talked down to. "Certainly she wears a pretty face, but so does Typhon. Certainly she claims grand principles in front of crowds, but what does she really scheme behind her deep blue eyes? Do you think me blind to the flaws of Typhon? He has been looking over me like a lamb. Others, too. His voracious appetite knows few borders." Quietly, she leans forward on her chair, looking down toward the floor. The weary determination remained in her eyes. "There is no pure good in this world, but there are pure evils. Whatever you may think of the Gods, they leave the vast majority of us alone, and created us. Without them, the Nine Hells would come and swallow us whole. Imagine an entire realm comprised of nothing but Typhon's worst aspects--that is what your Princess will doom us to!" She grits her teeth and clenches her hand, and looks back up at him. "So how dare you question me as though I cannot see the blatantly obvious? It is you who knows nothing."

Rahim paused to let Jennifer go about her tirade. When she was done, he stood up and walked forward; standing only inches from the woman. "Can I tell you a secret?" He said, his voice impassive, and his face stone. "I don't give a damn about the gods. I don't even care much about the Renaltan cause." He said, pausing to take in the woman's look. "You want to know why I follow Kouri?" He said, his gaze unflinching as he stared into the woman's unyielding glare. "Before I met your master, I had doubts. Her story seemed too good to be true, and she seemed too weak to be worth following. I thought that maybe she should have just given into Typhon; just as you think she should have." He paused for a moment, to let the gravitas of what he had to say sink in. "But then your 'Angel' showed his real face. When he appeared, shouting his venom, and swearing his torture on the Princess; I saw what she had rejected. What I thought was weakness turned into strength. Typhon is nothing but a child, playing with mice. We are mice to him, and Kouri is just the same as us; a mouse." He said, pausing to glance backwards at the door; as much to make himself feel assured that he was not being watched. "And when that mouse was picked up by the angry child; who was determined to make it his pet; she had the bravery to try and choose a better life. That's all she wants; and all she's ever wanted…a better life." He sighed heavily, before trying to smile at the woman again. "That's why I fight for her; I just want a better life: for me, and for the people I care about."

At that, Rahim turned his back on Jennifer, looking around the room with a curious gaze. "I don't know much about these demons; but if your gods can hold them back, and if Kouri has the power to banish them, then logic would dictate they can also be beaten; does it not?"

"One woman's life is not worth risking this entire realm. Only because the demons are tied up with the Heavens, are the Gods prevented from simply controlling this entire place. When the Gods are gone, nothing will stop them from--" She stops and looks out the front door, spotting Marcus standing there. He held a grim expression on his face. Marcus closes the door behind himself, then looks at Rahim and nods. "I am here to question her. You may go, Rahim."

Rahim faltered when he saw Marcus' grim expression. He did not know what the Tiefling had in store for Jennifer, but it was unlikely to be pleasant. He might have been more inclined to stay if circumstances had not conspired against him. People were injured, and if there was even a chance of danger being about he could ill-afford to waste time on the stubborn woman. He turned to Jennifer one last time so as to speak to her. "Would you choose to live in a world that these Gods of yours controlled everything? Who to know? Who gets to live? Who gets to die? Who you should fall in love with? I would rather die, than be a tyrant's plaything. Perhaps that is the difference between you and me." He said, before walking towards the exit, and past Marcus. He briefly reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. "…Do not be cruel. She does not deserve cruelty." He said, aware how unreasonable his request was. If this was truly a war, then perhaps he should just accept Jennifer was a casualty. His heart remained unwilling to turn to stone though, as he headed towards the exit.

Marcus grasps Rahim's arms and pulls him back just long enough to whisper in his ear. "I do what is necessary, nothing more... Nothing less."

Rahim paused for a moment, before shrugging off Marcus' grip. He exited the barn, and tried to push thoughts of Jennifer aside.

 

[West]

(A Collaboration between @Brovo and @West )​

Mikan adjusts the bandage wrapped around her head, and sighs before noticing Baldrik out of the corner of her eye. She smiles slyly as she walks, quietly, over to his side. "Hi Baldrik. Mind if I have a minute of your time?"

Baldrik looks over towards Mikan, seeming a bit hesitant at first due to her sly smile, but offers her a nod none the less. The bandage around his abdomen had done well to reduce the pain from walking around, and thus he felt better than before. He felt the adrenaline still course through him, some remnants of the angered spirit remaining within him like grains of sand within his veins. "Right, what is it, Mikan?"

Without warning, she darts in close and pecks him on the cheek. She then wraps her arms around him and hugs him tightly, energetically as her fingers wrap around his shoulders. She glances down at him, as she was a little taller, with a beaming smile. "Thank you," she says with gratitude as she relaxes her hug and rests her hands on his shoulders. "It takes a special kind of man to risk his life for a street rat. If you ever want me to repay you, you just ask." She giggles and winks flirtatiously.

Baldrik... didn't know how to react. First was the hug. It was warm, her heartbeat throbbing against his owns, and the grasp didn't remind him of anything from his combat training. Second- what followed afterwards. He could tell from her previous actions just what it was she was suggesting, and the combination of the actions were heavy for him to carry. Come on, Baldrik, no need to fear! You know she ought to be good in bed, and you deserve it! You saved her life, after all!

Some of the voices in his mind encouraged him to go the full way, but then there were the other voices speaking out against it. You know this can not end well, Baldrik. Don't be overcome by lust. Was one of the voices speaking against it, the other followed up shortly afterwards: Great, the idiot's trying to hide away the shame by laying with a comrade. Smart move, smart move. Baldrik was rushed with emotions, some that he had never truely felt before until now. He needed... he needed air. His face growing increasingly red, Baldrik put his left hand up on her left arm, his body shaking. "I uh... I am unsure, whether or not that's a good idea."

She giggles and leans on him, looking into his eyes with a playful yet attentive nature. There's a little flicker of recognition in her eyes as she sees him struggling, though her smile softens at the sight of his reddened cheeks. Her tone, though gentle and quiet, is still honest. "I'm not worth getting embarrassed over. It's not hard to get me in a bed, really. It doesn't mean that much to me, it's just what little I can offer in thanks." She pecks him on the cheek again, and takes a step back. "It wouldn't be right now anyway. I think we're leaving soon. Just think it over, it's not like I'm going anywhere, hero."

"I, I think that's still thoughtful of you. To want to reward someone. It's just that, I'm not used to that concept- let alone the specific reward you offered me." Baldrik's breathing eased down a bit as she backed away from him, and her smile was enough to calm his nerves down, for the time being. Of course, Mikan had given him a break- but his voices hadn't.

Smart move, Baldrik. Neither denied, or accepted it. Could come in handy. Just remember that bonding with others can lead to both chivalry, and defeat. his inner voice said. Perhaps he should just accept that he is crazy- after all, he was always abnormal to others. A whiplash here, breaking a bone there, blood pouring out of your arm...

Embracing his difference from these people seemed to instead have the ability of improving him, as oppose to if he kept denying it. Baldrik named the voice who spoke first - Överste (Colonel). It whispered to him tactics, and how to best handle the stress of combat. Huh. That kind of sounded cool. Baldrik left his trail of thoughts to focus back on Mikan, before speaking in a more relaxed tone, and a steady voice- signaling that his previous state was now washed away.

"You're not a street rat, alright? You're clearly a better person than you yourself think. Don't, demean yourself, okay? Otherwise, there's not going to be any light for you, because you won't be able to see it." Hah! I knew it all along! Baldrik's too scared he'll never get another chance like this, so he's gonna play it cool, woe her in, and then you'd get two adults togethe- Baldrik swiftly cleared his mind of those thoughts. Or else he'd get barked at again.

Mikan continues to smile, but shakes her head and closes her eyes as she turns away. "It is not demeaning to state a fact, Baldrik. I am what I am. Just think about what I offered you. That is all I ask." She giggles and walks away, content with having merely thanked him, in her own way

Baldrik stayed there, unsure what to make of his encounter with Mikan. Was he doing... good? Is this what people define as good, if you get rewarded for doing it? He began to grumble it through with his mind, and he realized that he needed to talk to someone else about this. That is what his mind required- outside opinions. But, was he ready for it?

The previous opinions and facts he had heard had... broken, his belief of everything. Perhaps his sanity as well, due to his reality shattering. Of course, it's everyone else's fault, and not yours, Baldrik. How about you stop being a cry-baby and actually man-up. Either way, that was a thing of the past. And the present had to be dealt with. As she began to walk away, Baldrik hollared out "Stay safe, and... I'll be thinking about it!"

Mikan giggles and simply waves at him without even turning to face him.

 

[Holmishire]

Tahlia & Ignas
A Vow of Silence
A collab between @Holmishire and @Jorick.​

---

With the injured mostly tended to, and still awaiting the return of the abduction party, Tahlia spotted Ignas heading outside. She quickly moved to intercept him, gently stopping him with the tips of her fingers against his abdomen. Her voice was low when she spoke, and she glanced around to make sure they wouldn't be overheard. "Can we talk? About Mikan."

Ignas halted and gave the woman a quizzical look for a moment before he nodded and took a short step backward. He mimicked her hushed tone, though his voice also held a note a confusion. "If you wish, yes. Why are we being quiet about it?"

"I know well what it means to carry a secret that can cost a life. I don't know the significance of the spirit's words, yet, and I don't want any rumours trickling out until I've had a chance to talk to her myself." Tahlia shuffled her feet awkwardly. "I know you haven't been among us long, but can I trust you to hold your tongue?"

Ignas opened his mouth with that confusion still on his face, but stopped himself before saying anything. His brows drew down and his lips pursed together in a thin line. After an extended pause, he nodded slowly. "I had not thought of it in that context, of it being a potentially dangerous secret. Hmm. Yes, I am capable of secrecy, and I suppose you are correct to see the need for it here. I shall say nothing of it." Ignas glanced back into the room, where the scuffle with the possessed Sisera had taken place, and a faint smile broke the concerned expression on his face. "It is a little ironic that the one who works with spirits would be the one to show such worry for that secret." There was no question asked, but by tone alone it was obvious he was curious about it.

"Mikan is already shunned for her beliefs—it didn't much matter what the spirit called her. As far as I can tell, she has done no evil since joining our cause, to the living or the dead." She paused for a moment of thought before continuing. "To be honest, I know very little of the Mechanist race—only tales of torture, as they consume spirits of the dead to fuel their dark magics."

"Hm, yes, I know very little of them myself. I may have a few tidbits in my notes, but I know I pursued information to little avail some years ago. They are, amongst other things, a very secretive people." Ignas sighed, irked by the mere fact that such secrets remained out of his grasp. "But whatever their deeds, I agree that Mikan does not deserve any ill treatment for an accident of birth. I will keep quiet until you've spoken with her, and until I get a chance to do so myself in fact, for I would not be so rude as to speak of secrets without the secret-bearer's approval. Perhaps it would be wise for you to speak to her sooner rather than later, to be sure there are no, ah, lasting ill effects from the words spoken by the spirit." He bowed his head respectfully to Tahlia and stepped back from the doorway, allowing her to pass and leave should she so choose.

"Thank you, Ignas. Hopefully we'll be able to put this matter to rest soon." She steps past the elf with looking mildly more relieved than before, but hesitates a moment longer. "I should hope it goes without saying, but… We're in all this together. If you ever need anything, I'll do my best to help."[/hr]​

---

James & Tahlia
James' Concern
A collab between @Brovo and @Holmishire.​

---

James was still dazed from the knock-out blow that Marcus had delivered to him, but entering the house was enough for him to find Tahlia. He waits until she is no longer working with others, and then steps in her way. "Tahlia... Are you alright?" He asks, as he rubs the sides of his head.

"I'm fine—once Mikan left, Sisera didn't put up much of a fight." Her gaze had been distant before, perhaps drained; when her eyes looked up to meet his, however, they were sharp. She raises a hand as if to inspect his face, but stops short of touching him. "You don't look so good. What happened?"

"That... Clumsy oaf, Marcus, he... Hit me. I vaguely remember losing control, something took possession over me." Noticing her concern, he gives a small, genuine smile, before lowering his hands from his head and motioning hers away, gently. "I'm fine. I... I am fine, just, I don't like pain, that's all." He stumbles over himself a bit, his eyes betraying his concern, and an inner turmoil. He was struggling with something. "How is Faolan? Is he alright?"

"He is… stable, I guess." She blushed and glanced towards the doorway, before she continued—Faolan had left the shack at the end of the incident, and had not re-entered as she had done. "It hasn't been easy, since the dream. I want to be able to trust him, I should be able to. What kind of person am I to question my faith in my own husband?"

"A reasonable person." James states plainly, as he glances out the door. "He is imbued with the body of a beast. I am certain he struggles with his nature. Then again, if he is anything like Beatrice, he will never harm you. He will care for you. Trust me, I will fix him." He glances back over at her, his eyes racing over her momentarily before looking past her, acting as though he was simply looking around the area. "In the meantime..." He pauses, then bites his lip. "... Care for him. I just wanted to ensure you were safe, it would be difficult for me to fix him without you."

"You're right, I have nothing to fear." She returned her gaze to him, not having noticed his earlier interest. "But it's not enough that I'm safe, anymore. We don't travel alone, if he hurt Amaia, or Sisera, or you—" She trails off, before moving in to hug James. "Thank you, James. For everything you're doing for us."

With the hug came a wide-eyed James, slowly but surely reciprocating as he awkwardly wraps his arms around her shoulders and hugs her in return. He takes a deep breath, smelling her hair and then pushing her back, gently, as he stands awkwardly, looking down at her feet. "I... Will do what I c-can. Ah... You... N-need anything right now?"

"No. A little rest, perhaps, but that is all. I can't imagine our journey will get any easier as we pass through Rheinfeld." Tahlia took a step away from him to lean against the wall, now aware of his apparent discomfort. Her gaze drifted back to where James had been hit on his head as she spoke. "Don't neglect your own needs out of any sense of chivalry. I may be no elven healer, but I help where I can."

"Me? Chivalrous? Don't insult me." James replies, laughing awkwardly as her clears his throat and kneels down. "I wouldn't really want an elven healer's hands on me anyway... She broke my ankle, after all, who knows what she might do to my skull by accident." His tone seemed distrustful, but not particularly loathing in any way. Taking off his elaborate top hat, he keeps his long black hair pulled back and out of the way of the wound. Though his eyes glance toward Tahlia, for once, they manage to remain fixated on her eyes. There is an intensity in his eyes, as though he was studying her reactions. "Feel free to do what you can. It is not a serious injury, but it does hurt."

"Kasienka does mean well," Tahlia muttered, as she pulled some poultice from her bag. She had prepared extra the day before, while she treated Sisera, and now applied it it lightly to James's head over a thin band of fabric. "If the hit were worse, I'd send you to her—we're not going to have the luxury of her magic to heal us for much longer."

"True, but then I normally don't get possessed by ghosts." James replies as he winces from the stinging sensation of the fabric. "Besides, I like your touch more. It is gentler. It is no wonder that Faolan remains so loyal to you."

"Don't tease me, James," Tahlia blushed, smiling. She sealed off the poultice with another light bandage. "As it seeps in, it should reduce the swelling—and the pain. Try not to antagonize the big guys so much, and you should pull through," she added, her smile widening into a grin.

Seeing her reaction to his words causes him to pause. For a moment, he has a troubled expression, before he clears his throat and pats her on the shoulder. "Right, of course! Thank you. I will stay out of trouble, don't you worry about that." His eyes fall away from her and toward the floor. "You should check on Faolan, too."

Tahlia caught James by the arm, frowning. "Faolan's fine; you're the one I'm talking to right now." She sighed. "You seem nervous—something's bothering you, and I don't think its Marcus."

"Well, I..." James looks up from the floor, then looks straight at Tahlia's face. Though he does his best to put up a smile, his lips waver a bit. "I get certain... Compulsions, from time to time. Certain feelings bubble up at the sight of certain people, and I am afraid of what might happen if I acted upon those compulsions." He swallows back nervousness, and then looks her eye to eye. "Let us simply leave it on the fact that I think Faolan is lucky to have ever found a woman as talented as you." He stands up and brushes off the knees of his robes, breaking eye contact, though a hint of a blush could be seen on his cheeks.

"Oh," she started, at a loss of words. She released him as he stood up and began to rub her arm anxiously. "I'm sorry, I hadn't realized." She paused, before continuing. "Thank you, for not—for staying a friend."

"Indeed?" James questions, but otherwise he nods and takes a sharp breath. "It changes nothing. I will still help you fix Faolan. If... You need, anything, just... Just, let me know. I will be around, somewhere. Even if I am not in plain sight." James then steps away, with Beatrice returning to his shoulder seconds later.[/hr]​

---

Tahlia & Kouri
A Breach of Responsibility
A collab between @Holmishire and @Brovo.​

---

Banishing thoughts of James' confession from her mind and once the commotion had died away, Tahlia stepped over to Kouri. She appeared nervous, greeting the princess with a stiff bow before standing before her, head bowed. When she spoke, her voice shook, either from guilt or trepidation."Princess. I need to—The possessions were my fault. It was reckless of me to mess with the spirits, I put everyone into danger, and I—" She swallowed her words, still not yet having mustered the courage to look the taller woman in the eye as she spoke. "I should have warned you of my intentions first."

The Princess frowns, but in a sympathetic manner as she rests a hand on Tahlia's shoulder. "You should have, in hindsight. Though, we would all be perfect if hindsight was not constrained to the past. I forgive you, you meant no harm. Just tell me next time you want to do something like this, I may even be able to help you." Her frown quietly melts away into a soft, reassuring smile. It seemed whatever concerns she had were secondary to her more merciful nature.

Tahlia finally looked up, and found the princess's smile somewhat infectious. "Amaia was right about you—I only pray your kindness is not tested in the months to come." She straightens up and detaches herself from the princess; her shoulders still bore the burden of her failure, but she seemed relieved by Kouri's forgiveness. "You won't need worry about my magic causing any trouble for a while, at least. In my homeland, I'll have good reason to keep it subdued."

"We both will." Kouri replies simply to Tahlia's last statement, though there is a hint of a melancholic look in her eyes. "It will not be prayer that keeps me kind, Tahlia."

"A habit of speech, nothing more." More relaxed than before, Tahlia offered a curtsy. "I'll not bother you any longer princess. Thank you."

Kouri bows her head respectfully in return. "It was not a bother. You should speak your mind more often."

Contrary to Kouri's suggestion, Tahlia merely responded with a smile as she left, making her way towards a certain furry man waiting further from the shack.[/hr]​

---

[/hr][/hr]

 

[Grothnor]

A Pair of Collabs with Grothnor and Chilum (@Seba) and Grothnor and Tahlia (@Holmishire)​

Grothnor spent a few minutes trying to understand what had happened, but he clearly didn't know enough. Spotting Chilum, he remembered that he knew something of magic. Perhaps he could explain. He got up and approached the other Free Holder. "So, that scarf thing. Clever." He stated.

Chilum slowly bobbed his head, ruffling his platinum locks before combing them back with his fingers and starting to wrap his scarf around his head and neck again. "It was all I could think of at the moment. This thing has helped me in such a way many times before. I didn't want to hurt you." Once he had the fabric where he wanted he looked up at the mountain of an orc before him.

"How are you feeling now?"
Grothnor sniffed at Chilum's desire not to hurt him, doubting he could if he tried, but held his tongue, not wanting to insult the man who helped him.

"Better." He replied, unsure of what to make of the Chilum's kindness. "So, what... happened? That wasn't like when I..." He shook his head, unsure of how to how to explain. "You seem to know more than I do, is all."

"Ahhh... I'm not sure, exactly. I may have a touch of magic in my blood, but not like Missus Tahlia or Princess Kouri. I simply can sometimes feel it, sometimes identify it, and rarely use it. From what they said..." He sighed and roughed his boot against the ground, making a small divot to occupy himself with.

"The Missus Kasienka asked Missus Tahlia to inspect the beings which inhabited the house behind us. Apparently they were not what either of the women anticipated. The spirits, ghouls, or poltergeists, I've no idea what to call them, sought to control whoever they could reach. You were one of the ones they could reach."

"Spirits?" Grothnor grumbled in disgust, "The dead should stay that way." His scowl soon made way for a grin as something dawned upon him. "That means I fought a ghost, a foe that I could not see and could not touch... and bested it! HAHA!" He slapped Chilum on the back a bit too enthusiastically. "That means it was a good fight!" He looked around eagerly. "I need a trophy. Tell me, do ghosts own anything? I want to take something from it."

Chilum stumbled as he was thumped, immediately readying his hands to touch himself should he find himself dancing with the ground. He steadied himself then adjusted his scarf as he mulled the question over.

"They once owned things. If anything was owned it would be somewhere in the house. I'm sure you could take anything in the house which you want and no one would stop you. If you want to know more you would have to ask Missus Tahlia." He managed to smile up at Grothnor, reaching up to knock the orc on his shoulder. "You did fight exceptionally well, Groth. Quite proud of you."

"Damn right. I'm proud of me too." A toothy grin showed he wasn't completely serious. "You may be a shit Free Holder, but you ain't a shit fighter, or a shit person." He headed off towards the house, looking for Tahlia. "Thanks," he called back.

<> <> <>​

The orc stooped to enter the house. "Tahlia?" he called, looking around for both her and something that would make a suitable trophy.

A pelt of fur—or rather, the wolf to which it was attached—rose from the floorboards to face the orc. Though half his size, the wolf stood his ground, wary of the great man's intentions.

Tahlia, too, rose from her seat to look up to Grothnor, poised with uncertainty between a kneel and a crouch. Unlike Faolan, her face betrayed her apprehension—but she was quick to stifle it with a tired smile. "I am she. What's on your mind?"

Grothnor took a knee and held out his hand for Faolan to sniff and get acquainted with his scent. "Nice dog." He murmured to the wolf, faintly smiling. He was thoroughly unconcerned with their apprehension; it was often routine when meeting new faces. Once Grothnor was certain that the wolf wouldn't bite his hand, he looked to Tahlia and said, "I beat a ghost, so I want a trophy from it. Chilum said you might help."

"Spirits are not corporeal—they rarely leave behind more than pain and regret." As Tahlia spoke, Faolan lifted a paw and pushed Grothnor's hand away. His prior wariness had been replaced by mild annoyance. "I would advise against treating Faolan as a pup; he is as intelligent as either of us."

"I... see..." Grothnor said in regards to Faolan, though the look on his faces clearly said the opposite. "Wait, what you said, does that mean the ghost itself could have left something behind?" He had only expected to be pointed to the ghost's previous belongings. The prospect of taking something directly from his opponent excited him, and he rose to his feet. "You must tell me."

"If I had a host—living, dead, perhaps even inanimate—I could have attempted to seal a spirit inside." She now rose fully to her feet, looking up to him with disapproval. "Instead, I chose to banish them from this place, instead of making them my slaves. What good would a trophy do you?"

"Wait, you can make ghosts into slaves?" Grothnor's excitement gave way to horror and disgust. "I do not want a slave, especially one that is dead. All I want is something that the ghost owned, to remember my good fight."

"Look around, Grothnor—this was a home for children. The spirit you claim to have defeated was not borne from these deaths. It was a foreign entity, disguised among the weak." Though her gaze had lost its disapproving air, her voice was no less tired. "If it means this much to you… I can sew, and I can carve. Perhaps I could make you some token to remember by."

Grothnor thought for a moment before deciding, "No, that is not necessary. If I can not take anything from my foe, then I deserve nothing. I apologize for disturbing you." He nodded to Faolan before turning to leave.

He scowled and sniffed disdainfully as he left. "Fucking ghosts...."

 

[Firemind]

Mikan and Rahim - Romance before Rheinfeld
(Feat. @Brovo as Mikan)​

Rahim saw Mikan alone, distracted by something or some thought. He briefly thought to pry; but instead decided to focus on what was actually important. He walked over to the woman, placing his hands on her shoulders as he started to look over the bandages. "What happened? I heard about some wild spirits, but those would not cause such wounds. Did something else attack you?" He said, an obvious concern shading his voice. After he was happy that no other wounds had been inflicted, he quickly added. "I'm glad you are alright now. I should have been there."

A hint of red comes across Mikan's cheeks as she taps the front of her foot against the ground a few times. Her eyes run down to his chest as she leans against it, smiling widely. "A spirit possessed someone who struck me. It is not the first time I have been hurt, Rahim." She rolls the first letter of his name and giggles. "You cannot be everywhere. I am a big girl, I will be fine... If I did not know better, I might start thinking you loved me or something, big guy."

Rahim paused at the feel of her leaning against his chest. For a moment, he was a bit taken aback by the intimacy of it all, but after that second of hesitation he just let himself smile as he lowered his arms from her shoulders to embrace her. "I care about you. More than I care about the others. You carry the free spirit of my people, with none of their downfalls. I'm not sure if..." He paused for a moment, coughing awkwardly to fill the silence. "If I can stop you getting hurt anymore, I would do so without hesitation."

Her smile turns melancholic as she rests against Rahim's chest."I do not think you can do that... Only one other man made that promise to me, and, well..." She kisses him on the cheek, but otherwise remains happily in his arms, nuzzling into his chest. "Do not get yourself killed for me, Rahim. I am not worth that much."

Rahim felt a moment of peace in the tender moment they shared. The peck on the cheek was enough to make his embrace tighten ever so slightly, and he took a moment to lean down and kiss her on the crown. "It is not for you alone to decide how much you are worth. I do not treasure much, but I will protect my treasures with the ferocity of a dragon." He said, letting the embrace loosen into only the softest of touches.

"Alright... Just do not say I did not warn you." Mikan mutters quietly as she glances around the area they were in. Spotting a few bushes some distance away, she smirks and whispers in his ear. "You know, I think we have a little while before the princess is going to call everyone back together... Want a little riding practice?"

"Why would there be horses in the...Oh." He said, quickly clueing in to what Mikan meant. He felt his cheeks redden slightly, before he smiled. Glancing to the left, and then the right; he quickly moved down to scoop up the much shorter woman. With one hand underneath her knees, and the other on her back, he walked towards the bushes. "A promise is a promise, after all."

Giggling all the way, Mikan happily nuzzles in Rahim's arms as he leads her... Elsewhere.

 

[Seba]

The Elves Forecast
Kasienka and Hanus (@Brovo)​

As the plan is worked out and Marcus walks away, Hanus, too, walks away. Only, he directs his attention toward Kasienka. Walking up behind her, he rests his hand gently on her shoulder and speaks with a serene quiet. "We should talk, Kasienka. About the future."

Kasienka had meant to go to Sisera to work on the man's wounds, but instead found herself stalled by Hanus's gentle touch. He was nearly silent as he moved, but he didn't catch her by surprise. She wrapped her fingers around his hand and quietly led him into the shadows of the trees on the side of the house. Out of earshot for the most part, but not out of sight of the trouble makers. Gone for so short a time and already three or four to piece back together. The poor old man couldn't seem to catch a break.

Hanus walks with her to the shadows of the trees, glancing up at the leaves momentarily and smiling a little. "This won't take long, krasivaya (beautiful)." He gently runs his hand across her cheek, and then glances out toward the abandoned home. "We are going into the heart of human lands. Rheinfeld. Even if they won't hate us as much as they hate mages, we're going to be distrusted. They're going to loathe us." He pats his throwing axes at his waist, and for a brief moment, Kasienka could hear them whispering incoherently. "It will be harder to hide my nature than most anyone else here. If they see through me, I want you to promise me that you will not throw yourself away for me. The Princess' journey is more important than either of us and she will need you. No matter what, Kasienka."

Kasienka was silent, although the more Hanus spoke the more she furrowed and pinched her face. This was distasteful all around and left a foul, metallic taste in her mouth. It was child's play to understand why Hanus said what he did, but to go along with it? She did not reach out for him as he had for her. She would convince him with her words, not her hands.

"No. We will find a compromise. I agree that it would be dulce et decorum (sweet and honorful) to die for the Princess's journey, but at this moment I find it highly doubtful that the party would survive without your help. We will find a way to keep you hidden. Between Mikan being able to disguise herself from authorities and James being apart of a carnival, we will hide you." She glanced down at his axes, not willing to reach for them, but thinking.

"You may have to suck up your pride while we travel through these lands and relinquish your weapons to someone whom they will not speak to, but can still wield them." Her gaze flicked to Grothnor, but her lips stayed together as she waited for his response.

He glances down at his axes, then pulls one of them out. The whispering momentarily intensifies, then suddenly goes silent as Hanus squeezes the grip. His eyes move back up to Kasienka's eyes--it seemed he was thinking over what she had said, and for a few further moments, he remained silent. Finally, after some thought, he replies. "They're burdens, though I could silence them." He glances over at Grothnor momentarily, then back to Kasienka. "Though it would be unwise to hand them off to others. They are bound to me as I am bound to them--I cannot be sure they will stay silent when out of my reach, and a Templar could feel them waking up. They will speak to anyone who touches them, and there are not many I think who could resist them without training. I could find this out, but it would hold an element of danger to it."

He puts his throwing axe back where it belonged, and then looks away from Kasienka. "I am not planning to die, but I need to know that if I am lost, you won't throw away your life going after me. The Princess needs you as well." His hand gently runs across her cheek. "That, and I worry for you. You will be deprived of your magic..."

She shrugged her shoulders as Hanus explained his reluctance and removed the whispering. It eased her worry slightly, and she didn't push his hand away when he expressed his own worries. Kasienka reached back to touch her bow and quiver, then looked down to her feet.

"This will not be my first foray into Rheinfeld, Sir Hanus. I can defend myself without my magic and I can heal others as well. I have hidden knives and my bow. I will be just fine. I would sooner worry about others of our party who do not have such resources due to lack of experience." Now she laid her hand on his, smiling up at him. "I think you are more at a disadvantage than myself, if only because you are more noticeable than myself. I cover my ears with my hair and I am safe."

"Sir?" Hanus smirks with amusement as he draws her in for a simple but loving embrace. "Just call me Hanus, beautiful. I just want to ensure you're safe, and the Princess is as well."

"Sir Hanus, yes. I think we will be just fine." She squirmed herself closer to him through the hug. Her arms tucked between their chests brought her that much closer to him, completely surrounded by him. Each breath was filled with his scent and his warmth would sink into her bones if she lingered long enough. It was a pleasant pause before she had to piece the party members back together.

"Good." He reluctantly lets his grasp weaken before he finally takes a step back, touching her chin and tilting her head up to look into her eyes. "A moment of gentleness before we reach Rheinfeld's capital... Now, go. Take care of everyone, I will keep an eye on the area and ensure we are not ambushed."
Kasienka nodded then near skipped off to find Sisera. He was always getting himself banged and bent out of shape. Then she would care for Jennifer, and then tend to Mikan's cut.

The Healer and the Harmed
featuring Kasienka and Sisera (@Slade)​

Kasienka was still glowing from her moment with Hanus as she swayed over to the first of her patients. She put a hand on his upper arm gently as she sunk down to her knees, hoping to get him to sit if he wasn't already.

"I understand your group got into a bit of a spat while I was gone. Let's see what I can do about putting you together this time." Her voice was soft as her fingers began to try and find the exact ribs that were causing the most pain. The moment he flinched she would lightly lay her palm above the area and begin humming. A faint light glowed along the lines on her hand and sunk into his flesh. This would be one of the last times she was able to let her magic exhibit itself as it wished. Soon she would not be able to let it show at all, even below her appearance.

"Honestly I was lucky enough to not be badly injured" Sisera said, leaning back slightly to ease the discomfort. "I reset my nose earlier, so the worst of it is past". He looked down at the ground, his dull brown eyes flickered with a tinge of guilt.

"I hope I didn't hurt anybody". He raised up on of his hands and a puff of smoke appeared and began to flicker and twirl in between his fingers. It was his way of meditating, of calming himself down and letting his body relax. With a blink of his eyes the smoke turned red, then a dull blue; each color transformation was seamless and focusing on changing it's color brought peace to his mind. He looked at his hand and sighed in frustration, he never had gotten the opportunity to practice his new knowledge of smoke transformation the druid had imparted to him, and since they were heading to Rheinfeld he would have to wait even longer.

"I trust that you were not injured?" he asked warmly.

"There was no fighting during the excursion. The only injured one was Jennifer, and she was this way before we reached her." She reached up to gently tweak Sisera's nose, her magic instantly flowing into it and mending the soft tissue. "And now you should be set, so I shall be moving on to take care for the aforementioned woman."

Patching up the Ingrate
Kasienka, Marcus, Jennifer, Hanus, and Kouri
​

She had a fantastic conversation with Hanus and a good time putting Sisera back together for the second or third time. Now Kasienka was walking towards the barn where she ad seen the men take her when they came in. She rapped her knuckles against the wall a few times then started to come in. She wasn't sure who was in with her, but surely there had to be someone guarding her...

As Kasienka steps inside the abandoned cabin, she would first hear--then see--Marcus punching Jennifer across the face. She spits out a little blood onto the floor, and Marcus glances over toward Kasienka. "You've come just in time. I've gotten what I needed. Tend to her wounds, then we will let the princess decide what to do with her." He pats the handle of his blade, glancing at Jennifer one more time before stepping back to let the elven healer commit to her craft.

Hearing the punch and seeing the blood led Kasienka to gasp and throw her hand against her breast. She was left silent, unable to think of anything to say or anything to do that would justify what she had just seen. Rather than immediately tend to Jennifer she marched up to Marcus with a scowl.

Hands on her hips she looked straight into the scarlet man's eyes and rose a hand to shake her finger at him, "Shame on you for harming our guest. She may be obstinate, secretive, offensive, and ungrateful, but that is no reason to lift a hand to her. I would hope someone of the King's Guards would not have fallen so far as to have forgotten the Renaltan custom of Guests' Rights." Punctuating her rant with a shake of her hand and tut of her tongue she moved over to Jennifer and began to pull out salves and bandages from her satchel.

"I would think that if I tried to use magic to put you back together, but I feel you would object. Instead I will use the classical methods."

"King's Rangers, ma'am. We're Rangers, not Guards. We're survivalists, not diplomats." He rests his hand on the handle of his blade, and glares at Jennifer. "If she had her way, your throat would be slit, and your corpse would be on the floor while she ran out without a second thought. Never forget she's your enemy, healer. Yours, and the Princess's enemy. You may live in a castle made of naivety, but its foundation is paved in the blood and suffering of those willing to do what you will not." Marcus shakes his head as he walks away, clearly not appreciating being spoken down to by someone else.

As Marcus leaves the room, Jennifer looks up at Kasienka and scowls. "I trust your magic. If it is more efficient, use it. If you wished me dead, I would be dead by now."

Kasienka neither flinched nor winced at Marcus's unkind remarks. She stuck her tongue out at him as he left regardless of whether she thought he would see her do it. With a sigh and roll of her eyes she very gently laid her hands on Jennifer's arm to begin putting it back to rights.

"As you are not the only one I must patch up I'm going to use both as you've given me your permission. It won't be perfectly painless, but it will be quicker than nature." Halfway through her words she put a hand on Jennifer's shoulder and her other on the woman's wrist. A second later she pulled to set the bone. Simultaneously she pushed magic into the woman's limb to properly repair the damage.

As her craft wove through Jennifer a faint glow would show under the skin. Wherever it reached was enveloped in a gentle warmth rather than the raging fire of screaming nerves she would have been subjected to otherwise. After a moment Kasienka pulled back and rubbed her hands together, blowing onto them. They had chilled through the process, but she was quick to warm up again.

"So that is your arm taken care of..." she paused to yawn, covering her mouth daintily, "Now let's see to what Marcus of the King's Rangers did to you." She giggled to herself when she used the correct term. It was easy to get under his skin.

As her arm is set back into place, Jennifer flinches, but does not make even so much as a single noise in pain. "Nothing more than what I would have done to him. If anything, he was rather generous." Jennifer replies bluntly. She then glares straight into Kasienka's eyes, and speaks coldly.
"Why are you following a mass murderer? The Princess will get many killed in her mad quest for power."

Kasienka sighed again. There was no conversing with this lady. She sounded like a poor bard who knew two songs.

"After watching Typhon and his cretins eradicate my home so many, many years ago I am more than happy to follow this mass murderer than he. I also see no reason to stand aside. I may as well tag along and put together as many people as I can. Besides, I am a creature of magic. There are so few people who would accept me. You are one of them. I feel more at home with this 'mass murderer' than I do wandering this plane until I lose a battle or fade away." Talking with Jennifer was getting boring. She could only say the same things so many times. Her hands went to trace the wounds Marcus left so that the Silver Shield's face was no worse than it was before she arrived.

As Kasienka finishes healing Jennifer's face, she watches as Jennifer stands up suddenly from her chair. One of her hands grasps Kasienka's wrist and twists it, though not far enough to truly hurt her. Only, seemingly, to make a point. Still, a look of mild surprise crosses her face at the amount of strength the elf in front of her had. "That's enough. I am sure your compatriots need and deserve more of your talents than I do." She lets go of Kasienka's wrist and takes a step back, away from the chair and the healer. She wrings out her wrists, and rubs her previously injured arm. "Vielen Dank. (Thank you.) Please understand that as you fight to avenge the Princess's home, I fight to defend mine. I just hope that when you learn how fallible your Princess truly is, you will remember that I tried to warn you."

As she finishes saying this, the front door opens, and Kouri steps inside. Hanus is behind her, and though he glances at Kasienka and smiles, he otherwise maintains a severe attitude.

"Ah, and the world's greatest deceiver shows her face" Jennifer states with a glare, as Kouri nods to Kasienka with a somber smile. "Go, tend to the others outside. I would wish to speak with this one alone, only Hanus to watch out for my safety."

After having faced her mortality so many times throughout the years Kasienka had learned how to keep calm when she met it again. She knew Jennifer was unarmed (as she couldn't imagine Marcus leaving her with anything sharp) and that she was likely stronger than the woman. She would have the advantage.

When she was released she came out of her own head and looked Jennifer in the eye until Hanus and Kouri came in. Slowly she lifted her eyes to the pair and returned Hanus's smile as she collected her bag and began to exit as Kouri requested. She paused by Hanus and laid a hand on his shoulder as she rose onto her toes to whisper into his ear, "Quaesivit me occidere. (She tried to kill me.)"

The elf left without another sound, her bare feet not even seeming to disturb the rotten hay beneath them.

 

[HerziQuerzi]

Kalemn, Faolan, and Cennick​

---

Wringing out as much water from her hair as she could, Kalemn trudged her way out of the stream and towards the rock she had laid out her belongings. She'd had to wander some ways away from the cabin to find somewhere she could bathe, but that was fine by her. Some distance from the others was appreciated, and she'd made sure to head in the opposite direction from where Jennifer was.

Hair still stubbornly dripping, Kalemn wrapped up the bar of soap Cennick had given her and shoved it into her bag. She couldn't remember the last time she'd bathed with soap; if she ever had. Had never seen the point in wasting good coin on it. Sniffing at the inside of her elbow, she reflected that she smelled like the flower James had conjured for her that morning. Like a meadow in spring, but with less dirt. Like a whore at twilight, before the night's work had gotten underway. In short, she smelled pleasant.

"Shame to ruin it so quickly," she muttered to herself, as she started to pull on her battered and dirt stained clothes. Perhaps she could've washed them in the stream, if she'd had a spare set to wear while they dried. As it was, dusty gear went over top fragrant skin, James flower tucked behind her ear once she was fully dressed.

Stretching, Kalemn looked in the direction the cabin was before sitting down and pulling out an apple. The others would keep for a little longer.

A low woof announced the possibility that perhaps they wouldn't.

The dire wolf treads confidently around the rock, making no attempt at stealth now that he had become aware of Kalemn's presence. Instead, he moves in front of the woman and seats himself upon his hind legs, looking up to her with a regard that might be described as disinterested.

After a moment to be sure that he had her attention, he lifted his paw and dragged his claws across his throat lightly—as he did so, he motioned with a nod of his head towards the shack. Still, nothing in his motions betrayed any urgency.

Kalemn blinked at the wolf's actions, letting her hand rest on the hilt of her sword. "Are you threatening me?"

Faolan rolled his eyes then shook his head impatiently. After a moments hesitation, he feigned a snarl to the side before striking himself across the face with back of his paw.

The wolf came crashing down onto the ground, moaning as if wounded—until he suddenly grew quiet, looking up at Kalemn expectantly with one eye open as he lay motionless upon his back.

"Oh," Kalemn exclaimed, dropping her apple as she scrambled to her feet. "Shit. Lead on, scruffy. Who attacked? Jennifer?"

The wolf visibly slumped in the dirt, then rolled back onto his feet, shaking his head again. Stepping closer to her, he lifted a paw in front of him, and raised it up and down a couple times. That done, he took a deliberately slow step towards the shack, looking over his shoulder to see if she followed and keeping his posture relaxed.

"Huh. No rush, then?" Stooping, Kalemn picked up her dropped apple and buffed it out on her sleeve before taking a bite. With a shrug, she went to follow the direwolf back to the others. "Can't wait to see what stupid shit everyone got caught up in this time."

About half of the way back, the wolf stopped in his tracks, ears perking up momentarily as he sniffed the air. After only a brief hesitation, he turned towards Kalemn, raised an eyebrow, and then rushed off in a direction that was decidedly not the shack.

Cennick was rudely awakened from his aimless day-dreaming by the sudden crunching of shrubs under heavy, hurried footsteps. His hand shot to the grip of his longsword, his half-empty flask of whisky sent clattering to the ground in the panicked moment.

"Who goes there?" He bellowed, summoning all of his remaining focus in order to make out the lumbering form of a direwolf. "Fa-Faolan?"

Faolan skidded to a halt a short distance from Cennick, and moved to bow his head respectfully—as his eyes locked onto the discarded alcohol, however, he froze, scrunching up his nose in distaste. He slowly returned his gaze up to the man, tilted his head to the side, and raised one eyebrow.

"Getting drunk on your lonesome?" Kalemn remarked, as she followed Faolan out of the underbrush. "That's not very savior-of-the-kingdom of you, is it?"

"Of all the people to judge..." Cen grumbled, just audible enough to be heard by his companions. He stooped to retrieve his thrown flask, wiping off the dirt before carefully depositing it into a belt pocket. "We all have our hobbies", He shrugged, and glanced between his two companions, "Now, what is it you two are up to? Out to enjoy nature's wonder with a crazed zealot on the loose? Maybe enjoying a bout of inter-species adultery?"

Faolan let loose a short bark of laughter, shaking his head. He tapped his chest with his right paw before sweeping it out to point at the other two and swirling it back around to a circle.

"Out gathering us stray lambs," Kalemn translated, "Seems something happened back at the cabin."

"I could have figured that out!" Cennick lied, "Whatever, best we head back to the cabin then. See how well Tahlia's little exorcism went." He looked down at Faolan, "Probably not too poorly, you seem in a fine enough mood."

The duelist turned heel in the direction of the cabin, stumbling a bit as he did so. "By the way Kalemn, I noticed the absence of your usual musk. Nice to see you took my advice to heart." He winked and started making his way through the woods.[/hr]

 

[Orion]

Dean, Kouri and Hanus ​

Dean approached the Cabin with the others still lost in his own thoughts. While successful the capture of Jennifer had raised more questions for him than anything. He hadn't expected such staunch refusal of the case they were presenting or for Jennifer to present convincing arguments against their cause. The Cabin now looked even worse than when they had left it, and Marcus was quick to fill in what they had missed. Dean stood unsurprisingly they had met further delay, and listened as plans were outlined.

There wasn't anything wrong with the plan in his eyes; nothing great about it either but they weren't left with many options. His gaze shifted ahead as he sear he'd for Kouri in the small crowd, his eyes quickly picking her out. He approached with a warm smile on his face "Seems you've led us through another bump in the road, Princess. Cleaner work every time by the look of it as well. This Cabin looks much less devastated than that forest we destroyed."

"We destroyed a forest?" The Princess mumbles with curiosity, before turning and looking at Dean. She smiles politely, and bows her head respectfully. "I would like to think I have been improving in avoiding casualties. I don't really want anyone here to die for my sake--too many already have."

"That's right. We. Part of that 'sharing the load' thing I mentioned earlier." He said while keeping a light chuckle at bay. He grinned at her in silence for a moment before his expression shifted to one of worry. "I was hoping to get a word in private if you have a moment to spare."

"Certainly." Kouri replies simply, as she motions to a spot around the building, where nobody else was. She guides him there and then places her hands behind her back, and looks at him eye to eye. Within her sharp blue eyes, curiosity showed. "Speak your mind, I will listen."

"I didn't want to question this in front of everyone else, but after speaking with Jennifer again I can't help it so hear me out." Dean's hands raise in between the two of them, his fingers seeming to frame her in his sight. "Perfect." Pleased with the mental image he quickly steps to Kouri's side and frames the empty space before them, he leans in over her shoulder trying not to invade her personal space."You stand victorious. Your goals achieved, and the gods banished. Me, Rahim, Samuel, Cennick -or whomever doesn't matter, stand with you, and the question that's been knawing at me now- What's next? How do you see this playing out?

The Princess turns her head to follow Dean's movements, seeming a bit confused with his movements, or at the very least, making no comment one way or another about them. The question, on the other hand, causes a slight and momentary wavering of her otherwise polite look. Nonetheless, she answers with a neutral tone of voice--almost monotone save for the politeness in it. "I will travel back to the lands of my kingdom, and restore my old homeland. I am certain there will be further conflicts along the way, but that is to be expected with any significant change, is it not?" A smile graces her lips as she answers the question.

Dean scoffed lightly after she spoke "Oh it certainly is." He ran his hands through his hair and looked the Princess in the eye. "You're polite and polished to a fault, you know that?" crossing his arms in front of his chest he proceeded, controlled amusements danced in his eyes. "There's no need of it Kouri. Not with me at least. I'm not some starry-eyed suitor trying to gain fame from your favor."

"We're friends... I'd like to think so anyway, and as your friend I'm asking honestly whether you know what we're faced with after the Gods are banished. Because to hear Jennifer speak on it, it's nothing but an uphill battle from here on out.

"I cannot proclaim to know with certainty." Kouri replies quietly, as she looks Dean back in the eyes. There's a sombre moment as she takes a deep breath. "There are many promised terrible things that will happen if the Gods are banished. Much of it is propaganda, some of it is true. However, I cannot live in fear of what might be. If I did, I would never have stepped out of my frozen state knowing that Typhon was out there somewhere. I suspect my whole life will be consumed with rebuilding my kingdom and protecting it from a series of threats... Rheinfeld, Liveria, numerous different places." She glances around at the surrounding forest. "From what I have heard, though, there is not much to fear losing for most people. Only a few, with power."

Dean stood listening to the Princess as she spoke. Keen to learn exactly what she was aware of on the subject. "I wouldn't want you to think I was suggesting you give up. I was once told that you win a battle by keeping on your toes, but you win a war by predicting every battle." he leaned against the wall and lowered himself until he was seated on the ground. "I dont know if thats true but all I mean to say, with all of this is that this war won't end even after the Gods are banished, and it doesn't hurt to start planning now... But if you'll have me I've got every intention to see it through to whichever end we find."

"I can only plan so far ahead." Kouri replies softly, with a hint of confusion. Nonetheless, as Dean sat on the ground, Kouri takes a step closer and kneels in front of him, ensuring that she remained at the same level he was. She tries to look at him eye to eye, smiling a little. "I would be honoured to have you aid me for however long you wish, Dean. We will solve issues one by one, until there are none left for us to solve. For now, that's getting across Rheinfeld." She stands up, and offers Dean a hand up. "One day, I will rebuild my kingdom. Once that is done, I will have many times the resources I have now to deal with future problems... However, I cannot rebuild my kingdom until the Gods are gone. Thus, why my sights are so focused upon them, for now."

Dean catches the look of confusion briefly spread across Kouri's face, and a pang of disappointment shot through him as he feared he'd done nothing but make matters worse. He wished to help, but was limited in what he knew, and despite Mikan's advice to trust her, Jennifer's claims served to fuel further doubts. None that rested on the Princess, but doubts nonetheless.

He tries to smile back as Kouri kneels to his level, and though her words register with him Dean finds himself unable to keep contact with other thoughts pulling his gaze to the side and away. The Princess rising brought his attention back to her, and as she offered his hand he mindlessly reached for it. "Until the issues are solved, then..." he managed to mumble while reaching. His own words set him back to thinking however, and swiftly he withdrew his hand before they touched. He cupped one hand in the other and rested both on his knees, looking back up to Kouri, he forced a smile "But I think I'll stay here rather than return immediately, a moment's peace is a rare thing in our travels. I'll understand if you can't join me, though I'd recommend it given all you've been through." he added with as much practiced politeness a farmhand could be expected to possess before resting his head against the wall, and sighing contently.

Kouri glances around, then smiles softly and rests her back against the wall beside Dean. She closes her eyes, saying nothing, though her relaxed shoulders demonstrated a level of trust Dean hadn't seen from her around the rest of the group.

Dean's face took a genuine look of surprise as the Princess sat beside him. He had made the suggestion under the assumption Kouri would refuse, and he would be free to seek out Hanus for other matters. In truth resting was the last thing on his mind, but as Kouri sat he could hardly tell her that. A mindless pleasure rushed across his face, a nervousness filled his stomach and he felt sure if he tried to speak there would be little but a squeak that escaped his lips. As luck would have it Kouri didnt seem to have much interest in chatting and they both sat quietly for a time before deciding unanimously that there was too much to be done to spend anymore time resting.

Dean, for his part, sought out the Drow with a look of determination about him. He found him along the edge of the forest where Hanus had been supposedly been keeping watch the entire time they had been here. In Dean's mind there came a thought of wanting to be more like this vampire regardless of the atorcities tied to his heritage. There was no doubt in Dean's mind that Hanus was most fit to train him. He approached as relaxed as he could and cleared his throat. "Hanus, I want you to train me. Train me and make me useful in our cause."

Hanus responds without so much as even glancing over his shoulder. "You are not ready to train with me. Train with Marcus." He's simply blunt, it seemed, as his mind was preoccupied with other thoughts.

"I would wager Marcus has little interest in training me given his views of my past mentor and the choices I've made. I find it fitting however, considering how little the prospect of learning from him excites me as well. At any length, fine, I'll find some other way to train myself. Sorry to bother you."

"Your attitude is the reason why." Hanus states, bluntly. "I can no more teach the stars to shine brighter than I can teach a student who feels more than he thinks." Dean had been backed into a corner and he knew it. Sarcasm or snark wouldn't serve him at the moment, Hanus had left him with really only one recourse. He bit his tongue turned away, and would suck it up and ask Marcus. Later.

 

[Brovo]

"Let them not know of my nature or they will kill me without hesitation."
-Hanus, Page 8.​

Interrogation​

With Hanus at the door, Kouri stands in front of Jennifer and looks down upon her. A look of concern reaches her eyes. "You have been through a lot in the past few hours." Jennifer glares, coldly, up at the Princess. "It pales in comparison to what you will unleash on my homeland." Kneeling down, Kouri gets to eye level with Jennifer. The Princess's eyes narrow.

"Your homeland is a nightmare for those who live in it."
"It's safe."
"What is the point to being safe if their every moment is spent toiling in misery, with no hope of a better life?"
"What is the point to a life of free movement if every moment of it is spent in fear of a greater evil?"
"A greater evil, like... Typhon?"
"Evil is relative."
"I know you don't think that for someone like him. We're both women, you must know what he would do to me if he got his hands on me."
"I heard his threats."
"And? What of them? Does it not move you in some way?"
"... You left a broken man behind you."
"I'm not responsible for how he feels!"
"You are responsible for having sacrificed everyone around you just for your own selfish desire to live free."
"I didn't know he was going to react so harshly. I believed that the Gods were kind."
"Some are. Some are not."
"... You said your name is Jennifer, correct?"
"Yes."
"If I truly thought only of myself, why would I bring you here, and have you healed? Why would I not simply have you killed? Think through this for a moment. Leaving you alive would present a great risk to me and my allies. You could tell Typhon exactly where we were. You might even follow me from afar, wait until we are all sleeping, and kill me where I rest."
"You would have a guard watching over you."
"Perhaps, or perhaps my guards are secretly waiting for the opportune moment to kill me in my sleep in hopes of winning some mercy from Typhon. I do not, and cannot know... I can only trust them. I've been slowly... Learning, to do that. From my allies. From Dean, and Hanus, and Kasienka... I can't spend my entire life in fear of what others might do, Jennifer! Can't you see? A life lived in fear is not much of a life at all!"
"A mass murderer lectures me on the ethics of fear. Amusing."
"Are you really so incapable of just... Listening, for a moment, and considering what I have to say?"
"I listen, I do not agree. I heard the tales."
"From who, the man who wants me dead? Like he's the most unbiased source of information you could find? Come now, I lived in those times."
"..."
"I'm going to let you go. Just, ask yourself one question. Will you do that for me? If not for me, than for yourself?... For the pursuit of the truth?"
"I will think about it."
"I am letting you go. If Typhon thought you were working with me and captured you, do you think he would grant you the same mercy?"
"One should not allow an enemy to live."
"And why not? You can reform them."
"What if they choose not to reform?"
"Then you deal with it then. You don't damn someone for eternity based on a single mistake. By that extension, we would all be damned for eternity. Now... If you wish to leave, then the door is that way. You are free to go."
"This is not some sort of trick?"
"Are you not a woman of faith? Believe."
"Only a fool places their faith in false prophets."
"Then why have you placed yours in Typhon?"

The two stare at each other a moment longer, before Jennifer simply departs from the cabin. Hanus follows her out to ensure nobody stops her. Shortly after, Kouri leaves, with a deep breath to steady herself.

To Heiligen Stuhl!​

As Kouri steps outside, she finds Mikan and Marcus waiting for her. Mikan is brushing herself off, while Marcus shakes his head, but nonetheless, bows it respectfully to the Princess. "I see, you allowed Jennifer to leave." Kouri narrows her eyes. "I did." Marcus bites his tongue, then clears his throat, and speaks on an entirely different matter altogether. "We should leave for the capital, as soon as possible." The Princess nods, then motions for Marcus to walk with her as Mikan gathers everyone together to move out. "What do you know of the capital?" Marcus raises an eyebrow, and glances out toward the sky.

"I have been there a couple of times, Princess. It is a grand city, with grand walls. Inside lies a cathedral-castle, where thousands live. Surrounding it are houses and businesses, taverns, and so on, as far as the eye can see. There are many churches as well. It is a beautiful city, muddied by the frustrations and suffering of the many impoverished who live within it... Who are dependent on the aforementioned churches to help feed them and their families. It's a rather cunning way to ensure the population never rises up against them. Why bite the hand that feeds you?" Kouri glances over toward Marcus with a concerned look, and he looks back at her with an apologetic look. "I'm not promoting such a system, just commenting on its effectiveness."

Mikan returns with everyone else, and smiles widely as she pats the head of her horse. "I know where to go from here if everyone else will just follow me... To Heiligen Stuhl!"

Within a Thief's Mind​

It takes approximately a week for the party to travel through various woods, foothills, and fields, to finally reach the outskirts of the capital city. They go off the roads on the last day of travel, and, upon cresting a hill, they can see the city's towering walls in the distance. Heiligen Stuhl, the Capital of Rheinfeld. There, Mikan slips off of her horse, and turns back to the rest of the group. She winks at Rahim as she slips past him, and starts talking to Kouri. "There it is, the big, bright city of Heiligen Stuhl! Where I was born and raised..." She looks down at her feet for a moment, with a little bit of bitterness in her eyes.

James rolls his eyes and sighs as he slips off of his horse. Beatrice hops off of his shoulder and takes to the skies, looking out above the area for them all. He speaks, with a tired sounding tone of voice. He appeared rather uncomfortable with the entire place. "Oh yes, it's truly pretty and all that, blah blah blah. I'm sure a city of executioners looks pretty to those who don't fear being held underneath its axehead. Look at us, we'll be stopped the moment we reach the city gates! We need to come up with disguises. Change our appearances." He reaches into the supply bag on his horse and pulls out several pieces of makeup. "I can make us to be whatever we need to be!... Within reason, of course." He specifically looks at Kasienka and Hanus as he says this, then turns his attention back to the Princess. "All we need are some disguises... Adopted roles, so that we can pass off as a group of foreigners."

Mikan looks at James, then the rest of the group. "We will also want to split into two groups and meet at the same location. Just head to King's Cross. Once you get into the city you can just ask for directions there, it's a church and orphanage. Enough foreigners pass through there, nobody will ask what your business is—at least, none of the commoners will. The nobility might. So might the soldiers, and guards. So... You know what? Just ask the commoners, if you can. I will lead one group through the city, a different group from Kouri—just in case I am recognized after all this time. Though, I have gone to some lengths to hide what I was." She reaches into the supply bags of her own horse and pulls out a few supplies of her own. "I can change your hair colours, and uh..." She looks at Kouri. "You... Really should." Kouri frowns and glances at the ground. "Let me think on it first."

Marcus motions to the rest of the group to approach. "Alright. Let's decide what we're going to be. I will be a Free Holder Mercenary, I'm sure I can pass off as one." Hanus nods in agreement. "Agreed, as I will be taking the same role." He smiles at Kasienka, and pats his weapons. They were muted, whatever magical properties they had were kept away the same way it was with the mages. James looks up, then looks over everyone else. "We will need bodyguards, an entourage, and nobility if we truly wish to explain our... Diversity." Kouri continues to look at the ground, as she contemplates what to do about her hair. "I will be a noble. I doubt I could pass for much else."

 

[Slade]

The day was a cool, breezy Autumn. It was the Captain's favorite kind of day, it meant that with all the training and sparring, he and the Royal guard could let the wind roll over the pools of sweat that layered thickly on their skin. The Royal Guard of Renalta was an exclusive force that was difficult to get into and not just because all the men were solid fighters, but because it was simply a lifestyle that most people wouldn't want. Their entire existence revolved around guarding the court and the royal family and when they were off duty they did nothing more then train, eat and sleep. Other pleasures were...discouraged. It was a stoic and simple life, not something the average soldier seeking fame and glory would likely wish to engage himself in. Despite being called the Royal guard, most were not from nobility but from common stock, usually the sons of poor urban workers who proved themselves capable soldiers. There was the occasional guard with farming origins and even a few from rich merchant families who were jokingly, but also affectionately called "Nancies" .

The Captain, however did come from noble stock as was obvious by his name, Brutus. A generic name for a noble son, his family had never been all that creative. Though despite coming from purer stock, the grizzled vet could act just as crude as the rest of the Royal guard when they were off duty. There was a good reason their training grounds were on the other side of the castle; so that no one could hear the respected Royal guard curse and swear in their common, rough tongue when they were hitting each other with practice swords .

"So what's all this about some kid coming around here?" a fellow soldier asked Brutus, a slight tinge of annoyance in his voice. Brutus sighed, "The Steward asked me to give his boy some sword lessons. I owe him a favor so I couldn't say no."

Before the soldier could protest, Brutus interrupted him, "But I gave him a condition, if the boy proves useless after a few lessons I'll send him away. He can pay someone else to train his brat." The soldier gave a nod, seemingly satisfied with the answer, Brutus could see a slight smile in the man's face. perhaps looking forward to the runt getting the stuffing knocked out of him.

The other off-duty guards had picked up the conversation and it became a sudden topic of discussion:

"We get to wail on some Noble's kid? Sign me up!"

"You're just tired of getting beaten all the time."​

"Fuck you"​

"Captain said he was the Steward's son right? You know they aren't technically Nobles right?"

"Bullshit, You've seen that Steward eat? Fat pig. Only Nobles eat that much meat."​

"Well I heard all the other Noble runts pick on the boy, so he can't that important."​

"Can't say I'm that surprised. Ol' Ben ain't a friendly man, I hear he treats them Nobles pretty nastily when no one is looking. Some are even afraid of him."​

"So they get their kids to fuck with his brat? Bunch o' cunts."

"I think That Steward is friendly! He apologized when he spilled wine on me at that one party the King hosted!"​

"Yeah cuz he was drunk and thought you was a pretty dame with your golden nancy locks!"

"hahaha good one, Rickert"
"Fuck you"​

The prattle stopped suddenly when Brutus gave them all one stern look. The Boy in question had arrived, escorted by a guard who had picked him up from his Father's mansion. In one instant, Brutus and the rest of the men sized him up and didn't think much of him. He was still pretty young, but he was still a bit smaller then boys his age. His body looked soft, and pampered. If he wasn't a noble, he sure looked like one. Especially with that black hair of his, with how much it glistened and shined. Brutus walked up to the boy, who eyed him cautiously, obviously intimidated.

"Whats your name boy?" Brutus asked gruffly.
"S-Sisera sir" the boy stammered.

Brutus nodded before pointing to one of the men and telling him to get into the sparring ring. "Tell me Sisera, why did your father make you get weapon tra-

"He didn't make me!" The boy interupted, somewhat impudently, "I asked for if he could find someone to... train me"

Brutus whistled as he put a hand on the boy's shoulder and led him into the heart of the training grounds. "Be careful what you ask for, cuz you're gonna get it. And its gonna hurt. We don't have any small practice swords for children, so you'll just have to use what we have." Brutus pulled a wooden sword off the weapon wrack and handed it to Sisera, the wood felt heavy to Sisera, it was obviously a one handed weapon but Sisera felt he would have to wrap both his hands around the handle to hold it properly.

"Now listen Sisera, me and that man over there are gonna spar, and you're gonna watch. We'll go slow for you so you can look at our stances. After we're done, we're gonna put you in." Sisera could only nod, somewhat terrified.

Like Brutus said, the sparring went slow, it could barely be called sparring as both men made obvious slow swings and parries. But it was all so Sisera could notice their leg and footwork, which he began to mimic as the "fight" continued. Making some of the other onlooking guards chuckle. Suddenly, without any warning, Brutus made a hard swing towards his opponent's skull. Which was blocked easily, shocking Sisera with how fast and hard the hit was. The sound the dark wooden swords made against each other made him afraid, as he imagined how it would sound when it would connect against his own head.

The fight last for another 30 seconds, Brutus's opponent put up a good defense but was wasn't fast enough to put up a counter-attack. Brutus found an opening, stepped in and swung the pommel into the guard's face. Putting him on one knee while the others on the sidelines lightly jeered at him. Soon after, Sisera found himself pushed into the ring with Brutus on the other side. He gulped and assumed the stance he earlier mimicked. Sisera's face grew red as he realized all the mens eyes were on him, judging him and waiting for him to get beaten into submission.

Brutus quickly ran towards him, making a wide swing into Sisera's right shoulder, which he blocked. Wait, he blocked it? He blocked the first attack! He could tell that Brutus was swinging much slower than earlier. But still, he blocked the attack. Brutus seemed a little surprised too, he half expected the boy to freeze in fear. Sisera remembered Brutus's finishing move against the other guard and step into Brutus's space, his eyes wild as he thrusted the practice sword into Brutus's chest. He got him! Brutus's sword was out of reach, he couldn't parry this thrust~

Brutus merely grabbed the sword with his free hand, pushed it away and proceeded to give Sisera a stomach punch, making sure to dig his knuckles in nice and deep. Sisera dropped his sword and gave a yell as he fell to his knees, holding his gut.

There were some jeers and hoots, but what was surprising were the encouraging words of "get up and ask for more!" Brutus had done his work, with a punch like that the boy would cry, and go back to his soft, comfortable home. Though Brutus was born from noble blood. He was the exception to the rule. When weak, spoiled men (or boys) tried their hands at playing hero they would just get others killed. With that punch, he prevented at least one weak brat from ever going near a weapon again.

At least he thought that until the boy looked up. There were tears in his eyes, but the clenching of his teeth showed he was holding them back, but there was something else in his eyes. A savage flame, something furious and ugly.

"I HAD YOU!" the boy screamed. "You knew your sword couldn't parry the thrust in time so you used your damn hand! You're the royal guard! What kind of honor do you have playing dirty like that!?"

The on-lookers were silent as they watched Brutus for a response, thinking he would explode in fury. And why shouldn't he, the gall of that brat was stunning. He had transformed from a meek, scared little runt to a prideful bastard with blood in his eyes.

In the end, all Brutus could do was laugh. Which only scared the other men.

"Honor huh?" Brutus said "Listen you brat. If that was a real fight, honor would have gotten me killed, and there is no honor in a corpse. The real question is why couldn't you avoid a simple punch?"

Sisera gritted his teeth as he wiped away his tears.

"Benjamin Del Azul is your Father right? I'm sure he tells you all about your duty to the Royal Family right?

Sisera nodded slowly

"Well that's my duty too, to protect the King and his Queen. What if some nut pulls out a knife and charges him eh? Is it honorable to have five spears thrusted in his gut before he takes three steps?.

Brutus stood over the still kneeling Sisera, pulling him up to his feet by his collar.

"You don't fight for honor. You fight to win!"

Suddenly, Sisera swung his sword, aiming for Brutus's ribs. It was blocked easily, but Brutus could tell the swing was much faster than his earlier thrust, and there was actual power behind it this time. The cheering of the spectating soldiers made Brutus smile.

"Good. You've already learned your first lesson. Save honor for the fancy courts. All it really does is get your friends killed."
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sisera steps into the group, having listened to the situation. A place like Rheinfeld was probably the last place he wanted to end up, but this was Kouri's choice so he would adapt and try to be useful.

"I can pass for nobility" he said, mostly to Marcus, Hanus and Kouri. "I can speak in the noble tongue, though its been a while since I've stretched that muscle. Plus I'm familiar with how court politics works" he briefly thought back to his days as his Father's stand in at court. Though not with any sense of nostalgia. Those days were...not pleasant to say the least.

He turned to Kouri "I can pass off as a minor Liverian Noble, since their customs are an offshoot of Renalta to begin with. It shouldn't be too hard to adapt." He frowned at Kouri's hair, Mikan had a point that she might be easily recognizable but Sisera had a feeling that changing her hair was something she was not totally comfortable with. He turned to Mikan and Kouri with a friendly smile. Trying to come up with a solution.

"I might be mistaken, but I believe more conservative nobility have their women wear head wraps. I think they're mostly popular up in the Freeholds but it wouldn't surprise me to see a Liverian woman wear it either. It could serve as a good disguise for you Kouri.