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<\|description\|>Furnace Appearance: Tall for a gnome, short to anything else. His skin is sickly pale and long straw like white hair has a hint of faded red. His limbs are scarred with fire and chains. He wears grey rags and a thick leather apron. He is covered in soot and grime. His jet black eyes suggest his fey herritage, the grey lines under it suggest he hasn't enjoyed much sleep lately, or even ever. Race: Bleachling Gnome Class: Blight Druid Main-Hand Weapon: Steel broadsword sized and balanced for an Orcish Warlord. Off-Hand Weapon: the broadsword is too large for Furnace, so it becomes a two-hander for him. Secondary Weapon: smiting hammer Armor: rags and a leather apron Powers: Immolate: Furnace can naturally burn his own and readily available energy sources. The flames either fan out to scorch everything nearby or concentrate to melt metal. This requires concentration to manifest, but just energy or fuel to maintain. Enervate: Furnace can force energy to become positively charged, if he infuses this into a living being it heals wounds and energizes the creature. Animate: He can also force energy to become negatively charged, this has the opposite effect as Enervate does. He doesn't know it, but he can use it to heal undead and temporarily animate corpses. Skills: Crafting(Forging weapons and industrial tools), spell-craft(specialty: energy flows) , appraise (he can tell the structural integrity and purity of objects and materials, he has no concept of monetary value though.) Weaknesses: He has never met a real person. Thus he has no idea how anything social works. Everything is new and wondrous to him. A former slave he has a weak will and no instincts to speak of. He can easily be bullied around and clings to anyone who shows him kindness. Personality: Annoyingly submissive, unnaturally calm, depressingly accepting, surprisingly hopeful. Themesong Background: At a very young age, before he had a chance to acquire memories or even a name, Furnace was taken from his home in a bandit raid. The bandits spared his life when they had seen his race's knack for magical fire, so they decided to "raise" him for that purpose. This meant stick him in a small cell made of stone and devoid of light. The only opening and sliver of light was the entrance to their war furnaces. Which he was forced to keep alive day and night for as long as he could remember. Though he never got to see his captors, just the weapons of war he made, he was able to catch parts of conversations through the roaring blaze. This way he managed to learn the language but not much else. Since they never bothered to name him he concluded his name was Furnace. Alone and shackled Furnace toiled through in timeless darkness until one day, months, years or decades later a voice spoke from the earth. "What do you desire child?" He had pointed at the small light at the end of his jail. "Freedom? One day.." For years to come the voice would come back sporadically and talk to Furnace. Never did the otherworldly being reveal his origin or goals. Furnace didn't care. He learned to channel his energy rather than burn it into the air. He learned of other creatures, races, worlds outside. And with every bit of knowledge his craving for freedom grew. The voice always preached patience. One day there was a loud commotion outside the forge. Screaming and the clash of weapons. Weapons which sound Furnace recognized, against those he didn't. Hopefully he dared to let the fires die. A hand reached into the pit and helped him out, broke the shackles. Furnace was free and blinked as he saw the sun for the first time. Other: There is a strange creature from other worlds who's taken an interest in Furnace.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Every stick neatly sorted by length. Every sheet of cloth folded in precise squares, piled and bound. Furnace wrapped every object he owned as well as all other unattended objects in rags and bags. Divided into equal shares, or at least a close approximation. One package for each person here to carry. Furnace looked at Carver as he stood beside his work. It was clear on his face he took pride in it, that he hoped for approval. "We will take these things to 'that way', right?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed Separ staring at her, but really took no mind. The man was strange, and so was she. Most of the time people payed her no mind, but when they noticed her she was truly the center of their attentions. She didn't like it. Once the man turned away, after staring at her for minutes, she tugged her hat down over her eyes. She didn't keep quiet for long, however, as she noticed something while Furnace was packing up camp. There was something on his forehead, something drawing her in. Once the gnome was finished with his task, looking quite proud, Alula limped over to him. With a bit of ungraceful struggle, leaning on her staff for support, she knelled down in front of him. With a strangely sudden movement, one someone might miss if they had blinked, Alula's hand whipped up and moved the gnomes hair off of his forehead. She studied the marking with a strange intensity, her expression looking distressed. "Furnace..." She started, looking into his eyes. "Where...when...did you get...this..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace flinched when Alula suddenly touched his head. Surprisingly close and with eyes filled with concern. Furnace stared back at her in confusion, then at his empty hands before looking back at her. "What did I get?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki frowned as she looked at her scythe. She had a knack for noticing things unusual, and this was quite odd. It hadn't been touched, left where she dropped it. That, and her skeletons alongside it, in pieces. However, standing here was not going to solve her problems. Taking a breath, she reached down, before grabbing the scythe.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula frowned, feeling rather troubled. How could he not know what was on his own body? Perhaps it was a recent addition, and he just hadn't looked at her reflection lately. She furrowed her brow, trying to remember if she had seen it on him when they had first met. She couldn't remember. The voices were keeping rather quiet, unnerving Alula even more. After a few moments of silence Alula realized she still hadn't given the gnome an answer. She spoke, trying to keep the concern out of her voice. "It is...a word...written on your forehead...in a rather...exotic language..." She paused, trying to plan her next words. "I have...met few others...who can read and write...in such a way...other then myself..."</s> <\|message\|>Des As Suki picked up her scythe, the sound of a tripwire being activated could be heard. Before anything could be done, a rope ripped Suki into the air causing her to flip upside down and drop her scythe. Three raiders stepped out from their hiding place, "Look at this one boys, a real cutie. And she's got a nice pair of legs and little something else to show too." (I'm assuming she's wearing a skirt) The raider who was checking her out walked over and placed his hand on her cheek. "Hey sweetie, my name's Daven. And you are?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki only managed to formulate a squeal, as she found herself hoisted upside down. Craning her neck to look down at her feet...or up....she found a rope tied to her ankles that was responsible for holding her in this position. Although the idea of trying to untie the rope had flashed through her mind, she gave up almost immediately. She probably couldn't even reach, since she'd have to fight against gravity, move into an awkward position, and stay in that position to free herself. It was more likely someone would arrive before she could finish. Most likely whoever set up this trap. Not disappointed, she looked at the thee raiders who stepped out from hiding. Only having herself to blame for not being more cautious, she frowned as she heard the raider speak. Hurriedly pushing her skirt over her legs at the front, while accidentally squeezing her bosom together, making her cleavage more pronounced. Fighting the urge to turn slightly and bite the hand on her cheek, Suki chose to try and talk her way out of this. "Well Daven, I'm Suki. If you wouldn't mind me asking, why are you three raiders around here?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis arose from his root and started to snap on some loose segments of his leather armor, making sure they were fitted properly and checking his built for his weapons. "I'll come wif you." Vis called out to Separ, and approached him, he'd rather be going back into town then staying in the clearing with the merchant. As he got to Separ, he felt a tug on his sleeve, turning around, he saw that Khat had latched herself to it with both hands. "I want to come to!" she said, rather too excitedly. Vis however, simply replied. "No." "But why?!" she whined, tugging on his sleeve a bit more. "It'th too dangerouth." "I've been in there before." she rebutted, looking him dead in the eye, which made Vis a bit uncomfortable. "I recall I had thoo carry you outh." "I didn't need you to!" "You didn't protest when I did." "Fine!" she yelled and she stomped back off and plonked herself in her little nook between the roots, crossing her arms over her chest and grumbling. "Shall we be offth?" asked Vis, Khat had been pacified.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace eyes brightened in excitement. "Exotic words? Spontaneously appearing? Sounds like magic! And you know it? Please tell me about it. What kind of energy is it? What's it's purpose? Can I learn it?!" While any other would have picked up on Alula's discomfort and concern immediately Furnace completely failed to notice. His mind immediately swarmed with questions and half answers. Memories of lessons on spell-craft long ago. All magic is energy given shape and purpose. The shape is like a vessel for the energy, an instruction that spends the energy to rewrite the laws of nature to a purpose. The purpose is chosen by the entity who gives shape. Shapes can be learned. The most potent shape, the hardest to master but the most versatile of all shapes, is the word. The voice had refused to teach him how to use words, said it didn't suit him. He had affinity with the natural path, the path of learning to shape energy trough intuition. But that didn't stop Furnace from desiring this knowledge. And suddenly an opportunity stood before him.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula leaned back, eyes wide with shock, when Furnace began to ask her questions in his excited tone. He was smiling, which was a bit of a surprise to Alula. He didn't fear her. Everyone she had ever met eventually became scared of her power. Albeit, he didn't know everything about her. Regardless, it was nice to have him excited. She leaned back forwards, smiling herself. "Yes the words are quite different from what you would see in this world. It's not in a common language or elvish or gnomish." She decided to skip around in his questions. "The words themselves, while not of this realm, are not magic. What is magic is how they got there." Alula looked around, making sure they were far enough away from the group that no one would overhear her. Especially Carver and the children. "I am an Oracle, one who gets power from the moon. Much like how Carver finds his strength in the sun. The marking on your forehead is the result of one of my powers." Alula considered explaining further, but decided to stop there. She felt rather dizzy all of a sudden, pulling her hat down over her eyes. "As for you learning it...I would say...it would be rather impossible..."</s>	<\|message\|>Furnace Furnace listened intensely to her explanation. While he studied her words he thought of the way he could get a hold of energy from deep inside and send it outwards. He saw a mental image of how he'd move his hands to manipulate the strands and strings that flow trough the ether. The image shifted to Alula plucking strings from the sky, weaving sharp beams of moonlight with grace and ease. Then his imagination shifted to an opposite. Carver making the same movements under the sun, weaving bright lances of sunlight with strength and vigilance. Both receiving their power, flowing down from the heavens in a shower of inspiring patterns. These were energies of a nature strange to Furnace. Like the positive and negative they were two sides of a coin, but that was were the similarities stopped. "I understand. Complex forces don't come as natural to me as the more simple energies like light and dark. Or heat." Furnace looked defeated, yet still curious. He carefully touched his forehead. "What words are there here?"</s>
<\|description\|>Furnace Appearance: Tall for a gnome, short to anything else. His skin is sickly pale and long straw like white hair has a hint of faded red. His limbs are scarred with fire and chains. He wears grey rags and a thick leather apron. He is covered in soot and grime. His jet black eyes suggest his fey herritage, the grey lines under it suggest he hasn't enjoyed much sleep lately, or even ever. Race: Bleachling Gnome Class: Blight Druid Main-Hand Weapon: Steel broadsword sized and balanced for an Orcish Warlord. Off-Hand Weapon: the broadsword is too large for Furnace, so it becomes a two-hander for him. Secondary Weapon: smiting hammer Armor: rags and a leather apron Powers: Immolate: Furnace can naturally burn his own and readily available energy sources. The flames either fan out to scorch everything nearby or concentrate to melt metal. This requires concentration to manifest, but just energy or fuel to maintain. Enervate: Furnace can force energy to become positively charged, if he infuses this into a living being it heals wounds and energizes the creature. Animate: He can also force energy to become negatively charged, this has the opposite effect as Enervate does. He doesn't know it, but he can use it to heal undead and temporarily animate corpses. Skills: Crafting(Forging weapons and industrial tools), spell-craft(specialty: energy flows) , appraise (he can tell the structural integrity and purity of objects and materials, he has no concept of monetary value though.) Weaknesses: He has never met a real person. Thus he has no idea how anything social works. Everything is new and wondrous to him. A former slave he has a weak will and no instincts to speak of. He can easily be bullied around and clings to anyone who shows him kindness. Personality: Annoyingly submissive, unnaturally calm, depressingly accepting, surprisingly hopeful. Themesong Background: At a very young age, before he had a chance to acquire memories or even a name, Furnace was taken from his home in a bandit raid. The bandits spared his life when they had seen his race's knack for magical fire, so they decided to "raise" him for that purpose. This meant stick him in a small cell made of stone and devoid of light. The only opening and sliver of light was the entrance to their war furnaces. Which he was forced to keep alive day and night for as long as he could remember. Though he never got to see his captors, just the weapons of war he made, he was able to catch parts of conversations through the roaring blaze. This way he managed to learn the language but not much else. Since they never bothered to name him he concluded his name was Furnace. Alone and shackled Furnace toiled through in timeless darkness until one day, months, years or decades later a voice spoke from the earth. "What do you desire child?" He had pointed at the small light at the end of his jail. "Freedom? One day.." For years to come the voice would come back sporadically and talk to Furnace. Never did the otherworldly being reveal his origin or goals. Furnace didn't care. He learned to channel his energy rather than burn it into the air. He learned of other creatures, races, worlds outside. And with every bit of knowledge his craving for freedom grew. The voice always preached patience. One day there was a loud commotion outside the forge. Screaming and the clash of weapons. Weapons which sound Furnace recognized, against those he didn't. Hopefully he dared to let the fires die. A hand reached into the pit and helped him out, broke the shackles. Furnace was free and blinked as he saw the sun for the first time. Other: There is a strange creature from other worlds who's taken an interest in Furnace.</s> <\|message\|>Des and Voltus "Well if you think you could be of service then maybe..." Then some random dickhead came strolling in. "What do you mean, this was the boss's idea to capture some survivors. What do you care what I do with her now that we've done what the boss asked?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis decided that he would be intimidating, after all, bandits admired that. He marched right up to the man who had talked and pushed his forehead onto his, "Maybe if ya cleaned tha waxth ou' of yer ears ya would 'ave 'eard that the guy in charge wanted them to be put in tha town center, by tha tavern." Vis had his hand on his dagger, drawing his rapier would take too long in such close quarters.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ It's pretty obvious you do care about her Vis. Thought Separ as he glanced towards the girl but it was kind of hard to see her in the dim light. "My name's Separ, what's yours?" He whispered, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible. It wasn't exactly the best way to go about things what with there being a whole bunch of raiders outside, but Separ figured he should at least say something every now and then so the girl didn't become bored or anything. Besides, who knows just how long this rescue mission was going to take. It would probably be a good idea to at least get acquainted with each other on a first name basis.</s> <\|message\|>Des @gammaflux @Kimiyosis Daven started to ignore Vis and walked to the girl and cut her down, leaving her wrists and legs tied, "If it's that big of a deal to you then take her yourself." At that the men walked off. The other group of raiders arrived at the broken down tavern and,seeing no sign of Vis, started a patrol group for a possible impostor with a speech impedement and two or more prisoners. As the searched, Night began to fall. Wanderer @Spoopy Scary @Dragonbud @akje As the party reached the halfway point to BitterBourne, night began to fall and the group had to decide whether to stop for the night or keep going. Des walked up to the noisy lady(Alula) and tugged on her robe to get her attention. "Miss, what's going to happen to the sun man?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula The entire walk away from camp Alula was silent. She had nothing to say to anyone. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, but occasionally peaked out from under her hat to watch the sun sink down behind the trees. Night would be coming and she needed to leave. They soon came across a good place to camp, where Alula stopped right in her tracks. She spoke for the first time in several hours. "I do believe this would be a fine place to stop for the night." She spoke with a strange clarity, uncharacteristic of her slow speech. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was starting to glow. "With any luck, the others will catch up with us before the morning." Without explaining herself she tried to make her way towards the woods, hoping the others would take the hint and stay put for the night. She felt bad leaving the child and the gnome with Kelvin, but he was tough enough for the two of them. Unfortunately, she was stopped before she could get away from the others. Someone was tugging on her cloak. The child. She suppressed a growl and tugged her hat down over her eyes. Alula spoke with a strange amount of anger, as well as the corruption echoing in her voice as she spoke to the boy. "Isn't it obvious? The man ran off into the woods to battle an unseeable amount of bandits. He lacked armor and was clearly outnumbered." She grumbled something about stupid children before, again, trying to get away from the group.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem It was quite a long and eventful day. Between having had no sleep the previous night, half of the party he had recent acquainted himself with going off to who-knows-where on what was apparent to be a mission to willingly swan dive into the dragon's maws - the merchant had little sympathy for the fools - and then they were suddenly surrounded by bandits, with the foolish knight sacrificing his life so that the others may flee. Foolish, certainly; Arastoph definitely would not have done the same, but he appreciated the act as it allowed him to live another day. However, that extra day comprised him of hiking through rough terrain to get to the next town over while he was sleep deprived. While he still detested the idea of sleeping among strangers, he felt that his body might win out this time around. He had no interest in talking with any of those who were left; he was too exhausted and irritable for him to be so patient with them. The boy, however, still seemed to have plenty of energy left to harass the seer girl as she began to wander off. "However you look at it," he began to explain, "every man and woman is a sinner. Some sin less, some sin more, some are better at hiding it." Arastoph sighed and closed his eyes just as a cool breeze blew by and soothed his hot skin and aching muscles. "Carver is probably dead and will be suffering eternal damnation. We can just hope he's being tortured by two hundred ninety-nine pitchforks instead of three hundred."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat climbed up a bookshelf and sat on top, looking down at the suddenly shorter man, "My name is Khat," she hissed down, trying to be quiet but still audible, "What of it?" she scanned the man with a scrutinizing eye, he wore little armor and didn't even carry a weapon, 'what kind of adventurer is this guy?' she thought to herself. Standing up, Khat leapt to the other bookshelf, landing with a gentle tap as opposed to a clumsy thud. "Are you Vis' friend?" she asked. Vis bundled up Suki, throwing her roughly over his shoulder, "if ye artheholes find any more prisoners, 'ow about lockin'em up inthead of trying' tha rape'em?" he walked off back in the in the opposite direction he came in, as if he were going to the center of town, however when he was out of sight he looped around the long way, heading back to the bookstore where he had hid Separ and Khat.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to introduce myself is all. So Khat's your name huh? It's rather pretty. And as for Vis, you could say he's my friend. Though, whether or not he thinks the same of me, well that's debatable." I sighed as my thoughts jumped to Vis and the girl. Hopefully they were both okay, but all I could do was hope. I couldn't even see from outside this building, so that would make things a lot more difficult. Please be safe.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin It was painful. Men seemed to crash in on all sides, breaking the safety of the clearing and leaving it shattered like sharp glass. Luckily, he was packed. Kelvin snatched up two of the packages the gnome had made in either hand, and booked it. He didn't pause- he wasn't a Paladin. Even so, he could feel stabbing pain in his gut- the jerk of leaving behind an ally. Carver had only his sword, his shield, and the blessing of a god to make it through. Brave man, likely a dead one. Kelvin couldn't take the time to look back, just muttering a small offering for the man. "Go Paladin, a man born of plight to fight through sin. Never fall, listen to the child's call. Go my kin. No amount of steel can hide your heart of tin. Enemies may maul, but a hero stands tall. Come Paladin, dance for heaven's ball." He wasn't quite sure where he knew it from, but it was an appropriate lyric for the situation. Kelvin did little as they slowed. Constant running would leave a man tired. "I didn't know you were a believer, merchant." Kelvin glanced at the man. "Odd." He wasn't really that interested. Kelvin glanced about, beginning to count heads.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Exhaustion was already overtaking the merchant, and was slow to address Kelvin's passing comment. The long trek took a lot out of what was left of him and was beginning to drift into slumber as he sat upright with his back against a tree trunk. "I've seen and... experienced enough to be aware there is more to this world than your mortality." Arasatoph answered dismissively with a lazy wave of his hand. "Believing, howe'er, is not the same as holding faith in higher powers..." This was a terrible time for him to be discussing anything, much less religion, and was already growing irritable. He wished to remain left alone so that he may catch up on rest. On the bright side, he felt he had no reason to worry of his safety around these ones. "But for now, let me be," he continued, "I am weary."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki 'vainly struggled', as she was thrown over the disfigured man. "Be more gentle!" Hissing softly at Vis, she shifted around, attempting to settle into a more comfortable position. As comfortable as one can get carried like a sack of flour. She sighed in exasperation after a short moment, before muttering, "Why did you even bother coming? Waste your time on better tasks." with an annoyed tone.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" When they were far enough away from the raiders, Vis decided to hold her differently, one arm under her knees and the other supporting her back, like carrying a dead body. As far as he was concerned, he wasn't wasting time putting her down and cutting her out of her bindings. "Tha way i thee ith.." Began Vis, jogging at a steady pace, "you've done me a favor an ith only righth that I pay you back." He looked own at her and cast the grin light of his eye on her face, there was something about her. "Use your flattery elsewhere," snarked Khat, as she leapt off one of the book cases and landed gently on the ground with barely a tap, "It's just a nickname and thats as far as I'd like to take it with a stranger, Separ." she said his name with disdain, it seemed that being in the town she once called him was bubbling up lots of negativity inside her.</s>	<\|message\|>Furnace Furnace walked in silence as he listened to Kelvin. The words had a strange rhythm to them. They seemed to fit well together. Thou that didn't help to comprehend them. Alulah was gone again. The white orb was rising and the world had gone dark again. There was definitely a pattern here and the floaty girl was part of it. The Aurumancer spoke of fatigue, but they had been told go. "Should we rest?" Furnace pondered out loud. By the way he sounded it was as if he was morally against the idea. "I have plenty of energy left. We can keep walking for a while."</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Des In the small town of Ravenwood, all is peaceful, the villagers farm and raise livestock happily with no burden in there lives. There is a small tavern for travelers in need of supplies and wares, an inn for those wishing to rest there bones, and a blacksmith's forge for those that need weaponry, armor, or repairs. For whatever reason, 8 adventurers have shown up within the past week. They have no clue what kind of hell this small piece of heaven is about to be put through.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Ravenwood was a nice enough village, although Alula never liked staying in one place for very long. It fascinated the oracle how so many walks of life could coexist so perfectly together. It filled her with a strange sense of nostalgia, but her weakened memory could pin no time in her life to what she was doing right now. Which was talking through an almost market district of the small village. It looked mostly like small stands and people trying to appeal their wares to her. But their voices seemed to fade away, alula's hazy eyes sweeping lazily along the stalls as the voice in her head spoke. "Her goods are overpriced, but the man next to her is more pricy. You would be better off waiting until later in the evening. Desperate salesmen make quick barter." The people running the stalls flashed grins as the girl, not noticing the far away look in her eyes. She did not speak, or respond to their chatter about how their prices were the best in town. Instead she grunted softly, and walked off. She had plenty to spend, she really didn't have to worry about high prices. She blamed this mostly on her dislike of material wealth, she always was loosing odd trinkets. As she walked away from the stall she could hear people talking, talking about her. She frowned, pulling the rim of her hat over her eyes. She didn't want to be looked at. She had been in this town for almost a week, and she was just trying to pass through. Eventually, and with all hope, people would soon forget about her. People tended to.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace slowly strolled around the market place. In awe of all the delicious looking foods, the shiny trinkets and all the beautiful people. He studied the people as they went on their business, not noting the vale little gnome. Furnace paid close attention of the way people would walk around delivering small sheets of gold around the people standing in front of tables with all sorts of things. They then would be given these things and they would cary it of elsewhere. He thought how he had found a large bag of gold sheets a while ago. He'd brought them in case he needed to make some armor to go with his shield. But as gold was rather soft it didn't really do much for protection. For a while he pondered if he could pretend to be one of these workers, and using the sheets he could get a hold of some food or something. He had some trouble finding that, and it hasn't just appeared since the dark days. Completely absorbed in his thoughts Furnace had long since ceased to pay attention to his surroundings. Suddenly something bright and colorful caught his eye. Imediately he walked up to it, it was a piece of cloth in fantastic blue. Without paying any attention to what or whomever it was attached to he held it up in the light to witness the celestial patterns with childlike eyes of wonder.</s> <\|message\|>Alula "He is more similar to you then you think." Alula hadn't noticed the gentle tugging on the end of her robe. She rarely noticed anything. She had grown used to the voice in her head, often telling her things she didn't immediately understand. Even with the gnome gripping onto her clothes she continued to walk, and only stopped when she realized the fabric that flowed behind her was now pulled taut. Alula stopped in her tracks, standing ridged. Someone had grabbed ahold of her robes, someone was pulling on her robes. Her eyes stared straight ahead, obscured from view by the brim of her hat. Unfortunately for the gnome, he was short enough to see under her hat as she whipped around, yanking her robes from the gnomes hands. There was a glow to her eyes, but she didn't look particularly angry. Nervous perhaps? Suddenly her mouth opened, and words poured out that didn't belong to her. "Kept to light the fires, and yet the fire inside never died. Dims, but never dies." She blinked several times, glowing eyes replaced with hazy and distant ones. She took a step away from the gnome, pulling the rim of her hat over her eyes. "My...robe...wouldn't fit you." She spoke slowly, her words slurring together.</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose Anew wandered into town about the time as the sun reached its zenith. She kept her hood up to keep the sun off of her face and she kept her left hand laying casually on the pommel of her bastard sword. The scenery around the town had gotten Rose in a peaceful mood. She did not desire conflict here but she tired to give the appearance of confidence. She passed a small shepard boy asleep next to the fence while his flock grazed peacefully. The scene brought a smile to her face and made no effort to wake the boy. This town was clearly peaceful to allow such a lazy scene to exist. Rose was happy to see such a place, but her instincts told her it could never last. Nothing good ever does. Rose made her way to the market place near the towns center. It was a fairly lively place compared to the rest. She looked over the wares of various vendors. She was content with her armor and weapons so most of the shops for people of her talents seemed lacking. What did catch her eyes was a set of cookware that was among a vendor. She really did not need it but it had been so long since she had the proper equipment to cook a full meal under the stars. She could not just walk away. One of the copper cooking sets seemed to call her name. She started bartering for a reasonable price.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Ah, I see you have taken a liking to that cooking set there, madam," The merchant said as he walked over to Rose, "For a pretty lass such as yourself, 75 pieces."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel "So are you excited knowing your about to head off into the world and start your own adventure?" Asked the man sitting next to Separ Kurel, the very man who had trained him on how to be an arcane brawler. This man was known by the name of Millon Baotes. He was incredibly buff with a tall and wide body with almost no traces of fat. His usual messy short black hair was now combed for the special occasion of sending his one and only pupil off into the world. Some scars were located all throughout his torso, and for some reason he wasn't wearing a shirt. Though most of the time he didn't have a shirt on anyways. "Yes, I'm excited if a little nervous." Separ answered truthfully as his eyes darted around the tavern, hopping from person to person. "So where is this group of mine supposed to be at? I'm anxious to meet them. We are meeting them here right?" "No, you're going to be meeting them here by yourself." Said Separ's teacher as he crossed his arms. "How am I supposed to know who my group is then? You haven't told me anything about them, so I don't see how this is going to work." Separ said, a hint of skepticism in his voice. "You know, I first started out in this town as well. I knew no one whatsoever and lived in this town for about two weeks, only spending what money I did have to sleep at an inn and drink in this very tavern. As your teacher I'd like you to experience something similar and make friends on your own to team up with, rather than rely on me introducing you to some people you may not even get along with." Separ's teacher paused for a moment and took another swig of beer. "That's good stuff alright, just like I remembered." He muttered before continuing on where he had left off. "Anyways try to meet some people you know you'll at least somewhat get along with rather than leaving it up to chance. If I find out you left this town without forming a proper group to travel with I'll kill you for making me waste my time trying to train you." And with that Separ's teacher started to chug the entire glass of frothing beer sitting in front of him on the table. Separ nodded at his teacher's words, and while he felt a little put off by that last line, he knew full well that was just his teacher's way of joking around. "Alright, I'll do as you say then." "Then it's settled." And with that Millon stood up from his chair about to leave, only to immediately stop and turn around looking Separ directly in the face. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" "Huh?" Was all Separ could say, before his teacher left leaving him alone at the bar table. Separ looked around at the crowd for a moment wondering if he should talk to anyone, but decided against it. The place was kind of crowded right now, and it would probably be easier to wait until the mass of people thinned out a bit before doing anything else. Instead he opted to just admire how simple this building was. So this is what it was like to be in a small town huh? It was actually kind of peaceful. However his thoughts soon changed into imagining all the adventures he would have. Fighting monsters, saving people, becoming a hero. What a wonderful life that would be.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver arrived in Ravenwood in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day in the country - all around was quiet, and the sun shone through the leaves in just that way that made Carver feel as though the goddess were truly with him. As the wagon he was riding pulled in through the gates, he waved here and there at passing townsfolk, and was often rewarded with a smile or a polite wave. The wagon came to a halt and he dismounted, his armor clanking loudly as he landed. The farmer whose family he had been traveling with for the past few days approached him, and Carver gave the man a warm smile. "My friend," he said, "I believe this is where we part ways." "Yes, milord," the farmer responded, still using the honorific Carver has insisted repeatedly was not necessary. "We will be awful sorry to see you go. How much do we owe you?" The man responded, fumbling for his coinpurse. Carver has expected that the man would attempt to compensate him for his services 'escorting' the family, though in truth he had only scared off a few petty thieves. The paladin held a hand out to the man, still smiling. "No such payment is required. Keep it. Feed your children, and raise them in the light of the sun." The farmer nodded. "I, uh, yes milord. I will. Thank you." Carver put his hand to his breast and bowed before turning away and walking into the crowd. It was time to find some wrongs and set about righting them - the marketplace would be as good a place as any to start.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nervously stepped out from the narrow path between buildings, her eyes shifting as she cautiously looked over everyone nearby. From what it looked like, there wasn't anyone screaming for anything similar to those witch hunt riots that the church had done hunting her down. Making sure her cloak was covering her body, with the hood obscuring her head, she daintily slipped out, mingling with the crowd at the marketplace. Although she tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible, it seems that her cloaked figure was something that my catch the eyes of a few. Suddenly feeling a hand grip her arm, she quickly spun around, only to realize it was a merchant. "We have good prices!" Heavily accented, the merchant gestured at his wares, or in this case, fresh produce. Feeling a slight bit hungry, she nodded, before pointing at an apple. "Good eye, good eye, that would be-" The merchant started to speak, before Suki raised her hood slightly, revealing her face to him. Winking, she raised a finger to her lips. "Bring the apple. I'll make the payment through other means~' Whispering with such a sultry tone, the merchant was by no means resilient against such a tactic. The two hurried towards a more quite alley, where Suki leaned in, and kissed the merchant. Whatever giddy thoughts that raced through the merchant's mind, was soon replaced by a lethargy. The man soon sank to the ground, the expression of ecstasy plastered on his face. "For a farmer, your energy wasn't too bad of a taste." Muttering such words mostly to herself, she quickly picked up the apple, and re-entered the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, taking bites from her newfound food.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis trudged through the dense mud, tired and with a gloomy expression on his face, though it would be difficult to make out, his scarf worn tightly around his face and over his nose, obscuring the expression and the gaping hole in his maw. Vis had been accosted by a group of thugs on the main road, though this generally wasn't an issue as he would run away and they would lose interest eventually but it seemed these things were desperate, as they chased him half way into the moor before deciding it was no longer worth it. He didn't like running away, if there was only one or two of them he would have stood his ground, unfortunately there were half a dozen. He tilted his head up to the sky to find light grey plooms of smoke in the distance, beyond the hill that was beyond the next. There were too many points of smoke for it to be a campsite but not quiet enough to be an industrial estate, so he figured it must have been some little township. Vis made it to 'Ravenwood' in the afternoon, drained from the task of traversing through mud that felt only the need to slow him down, so with some relief he slung his pack around so it was under his nose and opened it. He saw the cobbled street. His mood quickly turned dower, the bottom of his pack must have snagged on a branch and have been torn, spilling it's contents. 'that's why those highway men turned, they just had to pick up what they wanted.' With a sigh, he took what was left in the pack and cast it into an alleyway, though funnily enough all that was in there was the child's encyclopedia his mother gave him before leaving, so he could brush up on reading skills. Vis tucked the book into his leather armor and wandered forth. The market district was buzzing with activity, buyers haggling over prices and venders hawking their wares, though all Vis needed was a replacement pack and a few basic bits. Wandering the stalls and booths, he found nothing met his eye, mostly because of the high prices but also because many of the packs were just of low quality. Unsatisfied, he walked through the market, casting a faint green cone of light from his cursed green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continues to idly imagine adventures he is brought back into reality as he feels a hand touch his back. Separ turns around and listens to the man he starts wondering just how to respond, pausing to think about his actions. "Do I know you? Though actually I am looking for some companions. Wait, out of everyone here why choose me? You're not trying to rob me or something are you? Wait, umm, are you looking just for someone to travel with, or are you an adventurer as well?" Separ's words were quick and somewhat hard to follow. He had never done something like this before and wasn't exactly sure of himself and just how to proceed.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver withdrew his hand quickly at the strange voice's behest. That certainly wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting - glowing eyes and booming commands were usually confined to things paladins were expected either to worship or to kill, but as the girl tottered forward, pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her eyes, Carver was certain that neither of those reactions would be appropriate. No, his initial plan regarding the girl still seemed appropriate - she needed help. It took him a moment to realize the half-elf was talking, and with a severe lisp, too. Something about a tavern? That seemed like it would serve both for getting the girl out of the heat (and the crowd) and for getting the gnome some food. He smiled at the man. "A tavern sounds like a fine idea. Might I trouble you to take us there?" He glanced around at the company. "A bit of rest and a meal, and I'm sure we'll all be feeling right as rain, friends." He moved closer to the girl - not enough to risk triggering the same bizarre reaction, but enough that she could lean on him if she felt the need. He also extended a hand down to the gnome, hoping to prevent the small fellow from being lost in the crowd.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Kelvin jerked around, twisting to look at the woman as she stood upright. He slapped a hand to his face, dragging it down, pulling on his flesh and in general just making him look tired. "See what I mean?" He lowered his voice for his companion, but doubtless the woman could hear as well. She pulled back her hood, fully revealing her features to the both of them. Pristine, perfect. Warning bells everywhere. First. Why was she alone? With a face like that she could easily have been married to a rich man, or already in the bloodline of a powerful one. Second. If she was alone, how had she managed to get so far by herself? It just reeked of alarm. No offense to her, of course. It just didn't look safe... Kelvin glanced at his companion, wondering. Was he a fool for a pretty face? "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." A flush crept across his cheeks for an instant, before he quickly responded. "Aye, no more daring than a lady who sleeps in a commoner's tavern with the ease of a barmaid." His tongue was going to get him into trouble someday. Kelvin averted his eyes from her, towards his companion. "Your call sir."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had seemed to calm down considerably, but was still horribly overwhelmed. Not once voice kept still for very long, and she was very confused as to what they were telling her to do. She peered out from under her hat, watching as the half-elf gathered back up his belongings. He was an interesting one, but the voices could not agree on why. Perhaps he just was because he was. More phantom noises filled the oracles ears, whistling winds and breaths cut short. It was horribly unnerving. She shivered for a moment despite the heat. The noises stopped suddenly, leaving Alula dizzy once more. Unfortunately she was also now out of the loop on the whole bar situation, she hadn't really been comprehending what the two taller men were discussing. But what she did pick up on was the half-Elfs speech impediment. In an almost comical turn of events, her mind was in an even fifty fifty split right now trying to remember and understand what would be socially acceptable. Was she supposed to not say anything or point out his strange pattern of speech. And then Alula noticed he was looking at her. She initially panicked but then noticed something. He had glowing eyes too, or well one eye. For some reason this observation made her next choice very clear to her. And in her slurred voice spoke. "You..talk weird..."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ The moment I laid eyes on this woman I felt my body's temperature rise as my face turned beet red. I could hardly say a word as I was immediately enchanted by her beauty, and in that short moment time seemed to creep to a halt making it feel like an eternity. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" The words of my mentor echoed in my head as I continued to gaze upon this girl's beauty. "Your call sir." Kelvin's words brought me out of my trance and back to reality. Ahh, just how stupid can I be? I can't just gawk at this girl, and besides regardless of how good my mentor's training was, I don't think his last snippet of advice can be considered valid. I sighed for a moment redirecting my focus to try and calm myself down. My body slowly changed back to normal as I now stared at the woman. I would not fall under her spell so easiy, even if I wanted to actually do so. Wait why am I admitting that? Ahh, forget it, just say something so you don't look like an idiot. "I'd love it if you joined us, though I must ask if you know about how to fight or any useful skills really. I wouldn't want you or Kelvin for that matter, to get put into any dangerous situations, so please be truthful to what you can or can't do. Or at the very least understate your abilities so we don't do anything to rash and wind up all dead or something, I don't know." I gulped as while I wasn't going gaga over her anymore, I was still having a bit of trouble talking, as evidenced by the nervousness in my voice. Well it wasn't that big of a deal anyways, I probably just needed to get used to her.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' eyes went wide when she said those words, his cursed left eye flashing an angry green for a moment before it stopped. He wanted to retaliate with words but his throat seized up, locking shut, if he spoke she would just poke fun at him again, he usually stood tall but now he slumped a fraction. "nothed*," he turned around and with a flick of his tattered left ear, he signaled for them to follow, his steps were more unsure now then they'd ever been, almost all people did not comment on his voice, they tended to know what was good for them, the last time someone did they suffered a beating. But he couldn't beat the girl under the pointy hat, he just couldn't bring himself to raise his hand at her, she seemed like she didn't know what she was saying but that didn't make him any less wounded. Vis tightened his scarf. When they arrived at the tavern, Vis held the door open for his group, turning around to see the Paladin, Gnome and the pretty hooded girl who made comments at his expense.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki shifted her gaze to the side slightly, as she was compared to that of a barmaid. Not because she was insulted, but moreso because she ended up thinking about kissing patrons when she was half dead. That was one memory she would love to bury, but at least that was at a different village. "Of course. Although I may not look like it, but I do have confidence in my ability to scout out an area. That, and when I do run into trouble, I trust my skill in a scythe." Answering the other man's questions, she couldn't help but to notice how he had a momentary lapse when he first looked at her. She leaned closer to him, while subtly releasing the top clasp of the cloak, allowing it to part slightly. From this angle, the man could get just a tiny glimps of her chest. "Well~? Do you believe me~?" Whispering these words, at such a low volume, yet with hints of a challenge mixed in with that sultry tone.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace entered the tavern and looked around. The room was filled with wooden constructs, living creatures and ceramics containing, what smelled like food. He didn't see a source for the food though. How did these people find it? Why decide to eat it here? Then he saw a creature with a large wooden plate stacked with cups. Distributing food to people. He noticed a pattern, she went by all the wooden circles and gave foot to those balanced around it. Furnace concluded that if they balanced on the small wooden constructs around the large wooden plates, they would get food. Following the pattern the barmaid followed Furnace chose a table that would soon be serviced. He took the cloth-wrapped bastard sword slung over his shoulder and carefully placed it leaning against the table. After sizing the chair up for a few seconds and studying the other patrons he got up on the seat and sat down cross-legged. Then he waited. If his guesses were correct food would now come to him.</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ A scythe huh, that's an interesting weapon of choice, thought Separ as he continued to talk to this beautiful lady. However as he was listening to her, she seemed to lean forward and unbutton the top of her cloak, an action which surprised Separ. He stared closely for a second and realized he could see a small portion of her cleavage. Was she purposefully trying to make him look? Should he look? Can he? While Separ kind of wanted to take a peek he realized that wouldn't be a good idea. She was most likely just feeling a little hot and wanted some more air. He glanced to the side not wanting to stare at her chest and give off the wrong impression. "I believe you, after all you have no reason to lie right?" His voice had turned even more nervous now, as he wasn't sure quite what to do. "So, uh, welcome to the team I guess." He looked back at her and gave her a somewhat shy smile. Separ turned towards Kelvin and extended a hand, his palm facing the sky. "This here is Kelvin, and my name is Separ. If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" As he said this Separ had a lightbulb moment and turned towards Kelvin and nodded slightly. "I'm sorry, it seems I had forgotten to tell you my name earlier. Sorry about that."</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Carver, huh? That's a nice name you got there. Is that your real name or do you just carve your enemies with one slice?" Separ asked, laughing at his own joke. "But seriously, I'm glad I could persuade you to join the team, and I will happily ask your comrades as well. After all the more the merrier, right?" As he said this Separ quickly stood up and looked at both the childlike gnome and the girl who's body was practically covered by robes. Kelvin seemed to be talking to the gnome though so it probably wasn't a good idea to interrupt them for now, or at least to Separ it wasn't. Separ instead made his way over to the girl only to watch a man with a scarf over his face bump into her which in turn caused both of them to hit the ground. Separ watched as her hat fell off flying under an occupied table. Separ quickly talked with the men so he could get them to move out of the way. The men at the table complained as they were drunk, but relunctantly obliged in the end. After obtaining the hat Separ moved towards the girl, and to his surprise heard her scream. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" The girl then raised her staff before dropping it to the ground, probably figuring it best to not go through with her actions. This stunned Separ, but he ultimately feeled like she had a reason for saying it, after all Carver had not wanted to leave her alone. Perhaps she was under a lot of stress, or maybe something traumatic had happened to her? Either way, this girl seemed nice and merciful, she as Separ expected, was most likely a good person. He quickly walked over only to see the man put his scarf over her face, an act which may not have seemed so great, had the man not been disfigured. Separ actually became frightened of him due to his disfiguration for a moment, not because he was disfigured, but rather because he reminded Separ of the undead. Either way Separ wished he could have him join the team, though Separ did berate himself for being scared of the man, surely this guy must have put up with other people thinking the same thing before. Separ did not want to be just another person that would laugh, point, or be disgusted by something so trivial. You fool, he's alive, you have nothing to worry about. Separ paused for a moment unsure of himself, but finally pressed onwards just as the other attractive girl put her cloak over him. Carver then got in a fight with the bartender and the same girl tried to seduce the man into calming down only it didn't seem to work very well. Tapping the girl on the shoulder Separ handed her the hat. "Here you go, Miss, now if you'll excuse me." Enough was enough, this bartender had gone to far trying to kick someone out because of there looks. Walking up to the bartender Separ pulled out 10 gold pieces, and holding out his hand, grabbed the bartender's right hand with his free hand and plopped it right in the man's palm. "Use this money," Separ's words turned into that of yelling as he threw a wild punch filled with ferocity at the bartender's head. "TO PAY FOR YOUR HOSPITAL BILLS!!!"</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep quickly pulled out the sword he kept behind the counter and blocked the attack, leaving a large gash in Separ's hand and nearly causing him to lose a finger, "It's going to take more then ten gold pieces to pay to fix that, now get out of my sight before I call the town guard on all of you." The barkeep ripped the sword from Separ's hand causing him to bleed profusely and wiped the blood off of his blade with a napkin, "If I have to get the guard, then they will cause a whole lot more damage than that."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Things in the tavern seemed to be heating up. The yelling fest between the barkeep and several of the people, people she was at least slightly acquainted with, continued to grow to the point where Alula was beginning to feel anxious again. She didn't want anyone getting in trouble. She allowed herself to peek out from under the cloth. The half-elf now had a cape, the woman was flirting with the barkeep and the paladin looked almost as red as the sun. Suddenly she was being tapped on the shoulder, a wave of flame passing under her skin. And her hat was being pressed into her hand. She felt the iron heaviness in her gut loosen slighted when she was reunited with her hat. She placed the hat atop her head where it belonged, but kept the cloth in her hands, perhaps not quite ready to part with one of the first physical gifts she had ever received. She was about to timidly thank the man, when she watched him walk right up to the barkeep and attempt to sock him right in the face, only to recieve a bloody hand. Alula let out a shiver, they were in big trouble now. She gripped the cloth in her hands anxiously.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Hold on my friend-" Kelvin turned at the sound of a scream, and the entire tavern just broke apart, people shouting and yelling. The one guy looked like a necromancer had taken his face apart and stuck it back together, the girl had ditched the cloak- finally revealing the full suspicious nature of her beauty. Then suddenly the knight starts going off on the bartender, the bartender spits in the guys face. All chaotically thrown together. Kelvin stood up and moved closer, relaxing a bit as Separ moved towards the man. He would cool this down. ... ... ... nope. He lunged to pull the guy back before it was too late... and missed. Damn. It was quite impressive how quickly the barman had responded. And a bit scary. Kelvin groaned, considering. The knight was almost sure to respond violently to that. "Alright, that's enough." Kelvin stepped forward and slid between the knight and the counter, turning and attempting to shove the man towards the door before turning and attempting to loop an arm around Separ's shoulders to move him towards the door. "Come on already! You too little guy." He glared at the girls each in turn, not sparing the man with the messed up face either. He shoved the stick of dynamite into his pocket. "GET. OUT."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver saw the sword come out in slow motion, but its arc was complete before he had time to shout a warning. Blood had been spilled - there could be no doubt that the barkeep was deserving of punishment. But... not today. Not with the gnome, and the girl, and an already injured friend. Certainly not with the rest of the crowd, who seemed like they might choose the side of the local swindler over the foreign knight. The bearded man grabbed Separ, attempting to pull hims back and call for a retreat. The idea was a sound one. Carver spoke, not breaking eye contact with the barkeep. "This villain will face a judgement, friends - of his own making. A life lived in adversity to the right can have no other outcome. But perhaps now is not the time." He looked across the room, making eye contact with each of the strangers - the gnome, the scarred half-elf, the girl, the bearded man, the injured adventurer, even the woman with the air of evil about her who had tried to soothe tensions. "Let us leave, for now. The sun is too high for bloodshed." The words burned Carver's heart as he said them, but they were true. He promised himself that he would see this man punished one day, but for now he hoped the strangers would take his words to heart.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel This barkeeper sure was strong but I wasn't going to let him get the best of me, after all, I was trained to fight with my fists by a master. I knew how to fight unarmed better than most people would, a weapon like that would not deter me, and neither would threats. Just as the bartender finishes his sentence I throw a gutbuster aimed at his stomach with my right arm, hoping I could get him down on the floor covered in his own puke. The whole time both Kelvin and Carver tried to calm me down, but right now this man was deserving of a punch more than anyone I had ever met. If I didn't punch him now what woukd my mentor say? I wouldn't even be able to sleep tonight knowing he potentially harmed or cheated more people. This had to be done now, and I was going to make sure this worked.</s> <\|message\|>Des The bartender seemed relieved that the paladin and the other guy were getting people out, but then he noticed the kid try and make another punch at him. Sword still in hand, he lowered it so the blade would be in the direct path of the fist. As the fist came in contact with the blade, it slashed it open, causing even more blood to spill on the counter, "Next time, I won't let you keep your hands."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had wished she hadn't decided to peek out from under her hat again, because what she saw disgusted her. It wasn't the blood that truly bothered her, blood was just blood after all. But it was the context everything was it. Pure rage and no reason. Neither of these men, the barkeep or the man who returned her hat, had any reason to be fighting. They should have just left the bar in the first place and that was exactly what Alula decided to do. She moved swiftly pass the half-elf, muttering in a strange voice. "The glory of pride is never quite worth the cost of blood." Once outside she felt immediately relieved. Maybe it was the fresh air or the natural light. She tugged the brim of her hat down over her eyes, waiting for the others to exit.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" -Omitted-</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel I clenched my fists even harder preparing to strike once more at the bartender in my fit of rage. One punch, one punch was all I needed. Only then did I realize my opponent had not even broken a sweat, and he even seemed to be quite calm, as if this fight was something he had participated in many times before. In contrast both of my fists were messed up and bleeding profusely, and my own rage was clouding my actions. I quickly remembered the words of my master. "The calmest person is always the victor." I was a disgrace. After all that hard work and training I had made a stupid mistake. I had lost this fight. The grip on my hands loosened as I calmed down, turned away from the barkeeper and walked outside the tavern as the crowd inside all started to laugh at how stupid and weak I was. Or at least that's what I imagined was happening. I would have to make it up to my group at some point for making a mess of things, if they even still wanted to be a part of my group. I hanged my head in shame. I really messed everything up.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver saw the sword come out in slow motion, but its arc was complete before he had time to shout a warning. Blood had been spilled - there could be no doubt that the barkeep was deserving of punishment. But... not today. Not with the gnome, and the girl, and an already injured friend. Certainly not with the rest of the crowd, who seemed like they might choose the side of the local swindler over the foreign knight. The bearded man grabbed Separ, attempting to pull hims back and call for a retreat. The idea was a sound one. Carver spoke, not breaking eye contact with the barkeep. "This villain will face a judgement, friends - of his own making. A life lived in adversity to the right can have no other outcome. But perhaps now is not the time." He looked across the room, making eye contact with each of the strangers - the gnome, the scarred half-elf, the girl, the bearded man, the injured adventurer, even the woman with the air of evil about her who had tried to soothe tensions. "Let us leave, for now. The sun is too high for bloodshed." The words burned Carver's heart as he said them, but they were true. He promised himself that he would see this man punished one day, but for now he hoped the strangers would take his words to heart.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel This barkeeper sure was strong but I wasn't going to let him get the best of me, after all, I was trained to fight with my fists by a master. I knew how to fight unarmed better than most people would, a weapon like that would not deter me, and neither would threats. Just as the bartender finishes his sentence I throw a gutbuster aimed at his stomach with my right arm, hoping I could get him down on the floor covered in his own puke. The whole time both Kelvin and Carver tried to calm me down, but right now this man was deserving of a punch more than anyone I had ever met. If I didn't punch him now what woukd my mentor say? I wouldn't even be able to sleep tonight knowing he potentially harmed or cheated more people. This had to be done now, and I was going to make sure this worked.</s> <\|message\|>Des The bartender seemed relieved that the paladin and the other guy were getting people out, but then he noticed the kid try and make another punch at him. Sword still in hand, he lowered it so the blade would be in the direct path of the fist. As the fist came in contact with the blade, it slashed it open, causing even more blood to spill on the counter, "Next time, I won't let you keep your hands."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had wished she hadn't decided to peek out from under her hat again, because what she saw disgusted her. It wasn't the blood that truly bothered her, blood was just blood after all. But it was the context everything was it. Pure rage and no reason. Neither of these men, the barkeep or the man who returned her hat, had any reason to be fighting. They should have just left the bar in the first place and that was exactly what Alula decided to do. She moved swiftly pass the half-elf, muttering in a strange voice. "The glory of pride is never quite worth the cost of blood." Once outside she felt immediately relieved. Maybe it was the fresh air or the natural light. She tugged the brim of her hat down over her eyes, waiting for the others to exit.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" -Omitted-</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel I clenched my fists even harder preparing to strike once more at the bartender in my fit of rage. One punch, one punch was all I needed. Only then did I realize my opponent had not even broken a sweat, and he even seemed to be quite calm, as if this fight was something he had participated in many times before. In contrast both of my fists were messed up and bleeding profusely, and my own rage was clouding my actions. I quickly remembered the words of my master. "The calmest person is always the victor." I was a disgrace. After all that hard work and training I had made a stupid mistake. I had lost this fight. The grip on my hands loosened as I calmed down, turned away from the barkeeper and walked outside the tavern as the crowd inside all started to laugh at how stupid and weak I was. Or at least that's what I imagined was happening. I would have to make it up to my group at some point for making a mess of things, if they even still wanted to be a part of my group. I hanged my head in shame. I really messed everything up.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace studied the stick's scent. "Sulphur, charcoal and saltpetre... Spell components?" From the comfort of his seat Furnace regarded the whole scene. From the gasps and screams of the patrons around him he guessed that the scene before him was dramatic in some way. He didn't see it. He followed their gaze to the girls glowing eyes, to the tall figures face and to the fight that broke out between the friend collector and the barkeep. Or at least, the barkeep was behaving as Furnace would expect him to in a fight. Saying mean things and holding a blade. Furnace had heard a lot about battle, that is, he was always near battle. He had never actually seen a fight before, but had heard plenty from his cell. There were incantations, primal screaming and testing of swords. The friend collector had the screaming part down. After a whole lot of tension and threats people were leaving, and Furnace was gestured to come with. A strange request, but this place had probably shown all it had to offer, and these people were intriguing. He took the wrapped blade, slung it on his back and followed the others outside. The scent of blood stuck in the air. The friend collectors hands were bleeding profusely. Furnace felt he should point that out. So he did, he pointed at the blood dripping on to the dusty ground. "Should you not close that? Blood is finite."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ continued to feel bad about the ordeal, questioning why he had acted so rash and acted against his mentor's training. Suddenly Separ was broken out of his thoughts as a small childlike gnome approached him. "Should you not close that? Blood is finite." Said the gnome. Separ looked at his hands and couldn't help but smile at the naivety and innocence of the gnome. "I wish I could, but I don't have any magic or healing tools on me. Not that I even know how to use those tools well, I'm not a doctor. You wouldn't happen to know of a doctor or someone who could heal my hands would you? Also I have to apologize for the way I acted in there. I don't normally do things like that, but for some reason his antics caused me to get extremely angry." Separ looked down at his hands once more. That guy is really fast. I'll need to get stronger so I don't weigh down the group when I'm in a real fight against stronger opponents.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula listened to the bleeding man and the gnome chat for a moment. The gnome was rightfully concerned for the man's hands, were were in worse shape then when Alula decided to leave the bar. She knew she could heal, but was reluctant. Healing magic took a lot of energy, something she was severely lacking at the moment, and it was the man's own fault by taking his fists to a knife fight. And yet today she had already received such kindness, maybe it was time for her to return some. She walked over to the two, glancing around. The three of them were out of view of the street, and if she worked fast enough before anyone left the bar she would be fine. She pulled the brim, of her hat down over her eyes, briefly remembering that it was the bleeding man who returned it to her. And then she spoke. "I can heal your...injuries...but only on...one condition..." She slurred. "I want you both to...look away for a moment..." She paused adding in: "uh...for your own good..." Once they both did this Alula took a deep breath and rolled up the sleeves of her robe. She took the bleeding man's hands in her hands and began to speak in a strange language. "ava'yorn mobi sia ominak ui alula vur si tuor ekess irisv nomeno malai" Her hands and arms began to glow, and Separ would likely feel some stinging and stretching as the skin of his hands reformed. But the pain of healing was nothing in comparison to the pain of cutting. It didn't take long, the wounds were fresh and in a concentrated area. Soon Alula was finished, releasing the man's hands and rolling her sleeves back down over her arms. She felt winded but tried to speak anyway as she tugged down her hat. "There....you go....be more...careful."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ As Alula started to heal his hands on the condition that both he and the gnome look away, Separ couldn't help but feel a bit curious though and while he wanted to look, he respected her decision. After all she was doing him a favor. The healing process hurt a little, but it wasn't nearly as bad as the pain he was feeling just moments ago. When she was done and Separ had confirmed he could look he examined his hands and threw a quick punch at the air. They were as good as new, though Separ did feel quite tired and wasn't fully healed just yet. At least the bleeding had stopped though. Separ looked up turned towards the girl who had healed him. "Th...thank you." Realizing he hadn't asked her the question he had wanted to ask her before he quickly gave a standing bow. "I'm in your debt Miss, and I apologize for the way I acted inside the tavern. Nevertheless, our group could use a healer like you," Separ raised his head and gave a light smile. "Would you care to join us? And, is there anything I can do to repay you back for your kindness in healing me Miss..." Separ's words trailed off as he realized he had not caught her name yet.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace to felt bad for the friend collector. He had assumed the ability to maintain one's own body was universal. He thought back to all the times he was able to undo mistakes and soothe pain. The thought that there were people who couldn't was horrifying. Furnace felt he needed to help him, that would make things better. There was no reason he couldn't channel into someone else, right? At that moment the girl stepped in and showed she could. Though Furnace could follow the incantation he couldn't quite make sense of it because he couldn't see the effect. Since the results seemed similar to his channelling he suspected some sort of energy channelling ability. But the incantation suggested she was calling on to someone or some thing. Was this the result of a pact? Like the friends this man collects, she has a friend who grants her magic. Furnace wanted to confirm it was a healing ability, he looked Alula dead in the eyes, then shifted to Separ staring in the same way, with jet black eyes. He asked for his health curiously and slightly concerned. "Do you feel better?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" The girl in the pointed hat walked away and took his scarf with her, he watched her as she went, his eyes trailing the unsure way she limped. Slowly the combined stares of the patrons hit home with a sharp ferocity, he had disgusted them with his face and that only served to make him feel worse. Vis slipped his hand into his pack and pulled out the bottle of wine and yanking the cork off with his teeth, he needed something, something to numb his feelings. He pushed the bottle to his lips and threw his head back, taking a long draw of the alcoholm, his green eye dimmed and flickered as the alcohol hit his system, depressing him but helping him nor feel their steely gazes. He drank again and with each time he threw his head back and gulped on the nectar, he felt more and more numb and the world around him became more of a blur as he grew intoxicated. He brought his mouth to the bottle for the final time, before finding out it was empty, Vis rose from the chair and slowly shuffled out, his face flushed red with the hear of alcohol. As he passed the counter, he draped the cloak he had around him over it's original owner and he shuffled out the door. Collapsing on the ground and resting his head on the tavern wall, he touched the gaping hole in the side of his face and began to sob hysterically as he remembered what he was trying to forget.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was a bit shocked by his sudden invite into some sort of group. She hadn't been paying any attention while the others were speaking, and now she just felt more confused and a little sick. She wasn't sure what the man meant by group and had no idea who he was referring to when he said 'us'. She took a step back. "Uh..." She spoke slurred, hazy eyes looking from the man to the gnome. She had wished the paladin would walk out of the tavern already, he would likely have something reassuring and wise to say. Instead she just stuttered for a moment. "A man of wisdom and strength is rare, but without check is dangerous." She spoke into the rim of her hat. Well she was just making the situation here worse, she stuttered again. "Perhaps... if I could speak with the...paladin...or knew...more about this...group..." And things only got more hectic as a voice spoke to her. "The man weeps and drinks to numb a pain that will never leave." Alula suspected the half-elf, seeing how he had just bought that pretty bottle of liquor. Perhaps he weeps for his scarf? Which Alula only now realized she was still holding onto. She should go return it. She excused herself from the gnome and man with a grunt and went to find the half-elf. It didn't take her long to find him, he was extremely emotional at the moment. She stood still for a few moments, not sure how to approach the situation. But after a few seconds of not thinking she crouched down next to him, his scarf in her outstretched hands. "Forgive me if my hands tremble; you are the most beautiful thing I have ever known." An argument ensued in her head. "Pothoc malai! You cannot have her say that! Why would you do that? You know she cannot! You endanger her!" Meanwhile Alula was looking at the half-elf with confusion, trying to make sense of what what happening in her head. She didn't recall saying anything, so why were they so upset? She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes. "Here is your...scarf back...thank you...for letting me...wear it."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked up from his tears at the sound of muted footsteps, then a face appeared in his line of sight, the star lady was crouched in front of him and held his scarf in her hands. He looked at her for a few moments, the whites of his eyes bloodshot and tears leaving trails down his face, he calmed his breath down and smiled sadly, his scar contorting to make people cringe if they saw it. He took both of her hands and brought them to one another, "keep ith," he said, his throat soar and hoarse and sounding as if he were speaking through nails, "thare are more thcarfs outh thare." he released her hands and he pulled his knees to his chest, waiting for her to leave so he could cry some more, he had'nt cried in a long time and he found the tears relieving, in a sad way.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace looked at the cloacked creature. With the scarf gone his damaged face was visible, though Furnace hadn't though anything of it before, now that he saw people's reactions to him and the state he was in, it dawned on Furnace that this new friend could also be unable to heal by himself. Maybe his appearance wasn't by his own choice. The girl called it beautiful. He agreed, the man was unique. But Furnace wanted to give him that choice. He walked over to Vis. Vis sat there and Furnace waited patiently until he made eye contact. He cupped his hands together and breathed slowly. With every breath some white golden light escaped between his fingers. Bright white jolts of energy jumped between his hands from the tips of his fingers while he moved his hands further apart. "I can repair you." With his hands crackling with white golden energy he gestured slightly at his feet. Along the ankles and up his legs show the remains of many scars made by shackles a long, long time ago, almost completely faded. "It takes time. But scars fade."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Before Separ could answer the gnome, he seemed to run off following the girl towards the disfigured man. Separ did feel drained of energy, but he knew that at least he wasn't bleeding anymore, and probably didn't need medical attention right this minute. It would be better if the gnome could repair the other man first. His own wounds could wait. Separ instead looked around for Carver and once he spotted him asked if he could talk to Alula and the gnome and possibly persuade them into joining the group. As far as Separ was concerned, Carver knew both of them much better than Separ, and was overall, much more likely to get them to join.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked up with glassy eyes at the gnome, he could tell there was good in his heart, natural good and not good imposed upon him. Vis shook his head sadly, "my thcar ith who I am, if I don'th haf it, then I'm noth me." Vis needed his scar, his blind eye and his ragged ear for a reason, he didn't know what, after years of traveling with them they grew a sentimental meaning to him and he wasn't sure he wanted to part with them, despite how much he hated them. It would be like putting down a stray dog that had followed you from the moment it met you, you may hate it but once it's gone you'll feel the emptiness where once was something. He shook his head again, "Buth thank you.."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Smiling, satisfied with the answer he got Furnace let the light flicker out. He returned to the friend collector, who was now walking towards his kind metal companion. Furnace caught up and joined him, as they stood near Carver and the others Furnace asked Separ the question that was burning on his mind. "What are you gathering friends for? What do you plan to do?"</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ couldn't help but smile at the little gnome's question. "I wish to go on a journey and help those in need, as well as defeat people who abuse their power. To become the hero of the people and such, though uh, apparently I can't even handle a simple bartender yet." Giving both Carver and the gnome a small bow each individually he continued on. "I also want to apologize to you both for acting so rash back there. I probably should not have started a fight. It's just he was trying to throw out that man, and he was a jerk overall. Neverthless, I almost put you all in danger, so I'm sorry. And Carver, if you want you don't have to journey with me after what you just witnessed me do. You don't have to feel any obligation or anything of the sort." Separ quickly turned towards the Gnome as well. "You asked how I was doing earlier right? Well truth be told the lady may have healed my wounds, but I still feel a little tired and weakened. Punching the sharp end of a sword is no joke after all, though I'll bet my mentor could actually punch the sword and break it. He's the most skilled fighter I've ever known, and I'm sure he could do it if he just added in a little magic."</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ could feel warmth slowly seeping into his hands and his entire body, slowly replenishing his strength. When the gnome was done healing him Separ felt energized, yet at the same time tired, and a bit sore. "I...I feel a lot better actually. Though I still feel quite exhausted." Separ clenched his fist. [i]It's numb, I probably just need some rest though.[i] "Thank you for your help. Oh, and would you be interested in joining our group? We're going to go explore and go on adventures and stuff, though I'll understand if you say no after that embarassing moment in the bar." Separ shook his head trying to forget it before watching Kelvin step out of the building. "Please think about it, but for now I have some business to attend to. If you'll excuse me" And with that Separ strode towards Kelvin, and facing him gave him a small bow. "I'm sorry for my actions in there Kelvin, I should have thought more calmly about the situation, it's just, no, no excuses. I should not have caused a scene like that, and truthfully I am sorry. Do you still want to be a part of my group? I honestly won't blame you if you say no, as I acted like an idiot back there. Sorry!" Separ ended his bow and looked back at Kelvin, a look of regret on his face. Sure he was happy so many people had agreed to stay, yet he still felt terrible about losing control and possibly endangering others as well.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded at the girl's acceptance and broke into a broad, warm grin. "Excellent! You shall not regret this decision!" He turned, and called over to Separ, "She'll be joining us, friend!" He turned back and suddenly clapped his hand over his forehead. "By the sun, forgive my rudeness, I still haven't asked your name. I am Sir Carver, Paladin of the Sun. In case you didn't hear when I... um... lost my temper, in there, a moment ago." A very merry company of adventurers they were turning out to be. Carver hoped that the gnome and the half-elf would agree to join them, as well - both seemed like people in need of some looking out for.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Explore. All he'd ever wanted was to see the world for himself. "I'll come with you too. I am Furnace and I'm sorry for uhm.." He looked at Separ and Carver, looking for a clue. When he couldn't think of anything he just shyly shrugged.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Having cried the last of his tears, Vis rose from the floor, using the wall as support. He looked around through tires eyes to see where everyone hade gone, the man who had punched the sword was some ways away with the gnome and the paladin and girl with white hair were but a few feet away and he could hear snippets of their conversation through his deaf ear, they were on his left side. He looked to them and slowly the flickering green light of his eye stabilized into a a dull muted green, having rid himself of his obvious emotions. He approached them, feeling a terribly uncomfortable without a scarf around his face, showing his gnarled cheek in broad day light, he approached them. "If'n thare ith adfenture infolfed, you can counth me in." Though the past 10 minutes had shaken Vis, it would dissuade him from adventuring, if he were to give up so easily, he would have turned home after his eye had been cursed and avoided having his face and ear wrecked. Vis rested his hand on the pommel of his rapier, he was nervous they wouldn't have him.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched as the paladin called over to the punching man. Was he the leader of the party? Alula wouldn't have been surprised, he seemed enthusiastic enough to be a leader but maybe a bit too enthusiastic. He had attacked the barkeep rather quickly, it only took a handful of insults to set the man off. Not only that but he also was defeated in the fight between them, not really thinking before punching a man proficient with a sword. Alula shook her head, she shouldn't be so hard on the man. If they were willing to take her along then she should at least wait before casting judgment. And then the Paladin turned back to her, introducing herself. Alula tried to not show the frown on her face. She was really bad at remembering names. She hoped she would at least be able to remember the paladins name, but more likely then not he would be receiving a nickname soon. Had he really lost his temper? She couldn't remember. What really amused her was that he called himself a paladin of the sun. Yep. They were going to have fun with this. "Three things shine before the world and cannot be hidden. They are the moon, the sun, and the truth." The voice sounded sarcastic and Alula couldn't help but giggle out loud, briefly forgetting that no one but herself could hear them. She watched as the half-elf came over, perhaps finished with his crying, and the gnome introduced himself. What an odd group she had begun to associate with. She was glad to see the half-elf would be coming along as well, and the gnome seemed like good company as well. She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes. "I am Alula...at your service..."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver grinned at the girl's cryptic words. "Four things. You forgot about good cheer." He laughed as though to illustrate, and bowed deeply. "A pleasure to meet you, Lady Alula. I am at your service." The paladin then turned to clap the half-elf on the back. He was greatly pleased to hear of the man's acceptance - surly and ill-tempered as he seemed, his actions had proven to Carver that the man was possessed of a gentle soul. "Good man! You've made an excellent choice, friend. It is ever a great privilege to journey alongside those so fair of spirit." He looked over to the gnome. "That goes for you as well, friend." The company was coming together. There just seemed to Carver to be one thing missing - the black-haired woman with evil in the air around her. Truth be told, Carver wouldn't have minded if the party left without her, save for the fact that he wasn't sure that he could leave this town in her hands. At least if she accompanied them, he could keep an eye on her. "Separ," he called out. "What of that woman who was speaking to you in the bar? Will she be joining us?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula whoops wrong place</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Before Separ could get an answer out of Kelvin, he heard Carver call out to him, asking about the girl from earlier. "Oh, she said yes earlier, but I don't know what she'll think now after seeing what just happened. In fact I'll go talk to her right now." Said Separ as he made his way over to the tavern entrance just as she was coming out of the building. Separ bowed his head to her just like he had done so to all the others prepared to apologize to her. "I'm sorry about all the trouble I caused in there. I was out of control in there, and I should not have acted so rash or made a scene like that. Anyways, if you want you don't have to travel with us after seeing all of that. Though it would make me happy if you did stay." Separ raised his head and flashed a weak smile. "After all, I'm sure you'd make a great asset to the team. Take as much time as you need to think about it, alright?" And with that Separ started to turn around and head back to the group. It would probably be a good time to discuss provisions and supplies, as well as where to explore. Although truth be told, Separ himself didn't even know where to begin, surely they could all come to an agreement at some point right?</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki sighed as the She quickly clasped the cloak around herself. Looking at the barkeeper, she couldn't help but to give him a smile, visible to the barkeeper alone. "Although such events have transpired, my offer is still up for the taking~" Whispering these words, she turned around and walked out of the tavern. However, the moment she exited the building, she found the man named Separ, the one who had injured his fist trying to attack the barkeeper. "No need to be so worried. If even the paladin himself wanted to give the barkeeper a good scolding, you are not in the wrong." Smiling back as she said these words, she gestured at his hands, asking, "Are your hands alright now?". Although, to the question of whether she was coming along or not, Suki was slightly more hesitant than she was when she first answered the man before. "I...will come along, yes." Answering Separ, she couldn't help but to have her gaze drift slightly to the side, as if staring at the paladin behind Separ. However, in a blink of an eye, she wasn't looking at the paladin, but back at Separ. "So, it looks like you have rounded up your party."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly turned around to face the girl again. "Even so, it wasn't exactly such a good idea to cause a scene like that." Separ said while rubbing the back of his neck. "And yes, my hands are all better now. See?" Separ extended both of his hands for her to see that they were now completely healed. "I do feel a bit tired after all of that now though, but I should be fine, and I'm happy you decided to come along, and uh, I don't really consider it my party. I'm not really trying to be the leader or anything, and I'd kind of prefer things that way. This group is yours just as much as it is mine, and the same goes for everyone else." Separ said smiling at the girl, before turning towards the group he would be adventuring with soon. He started walking over to the group happily, content that he could get the girl to join. "Carver, She'll be joining us after all. though I'm still concerned about Kelvin, as he has not made up his mind yet. Either way though, what kind of supplies do you all have, after all we should probably prepare for our journey, and also where would you like to head out to?"" Separ looked at all the members in his group, studying them. So these are my new comrades, huh? They seem like a pretty fine bunch. Yes, I do believe this is going to be the start of something great.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Alula whoops wrong place</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Before Separ could get an answer out of Kelvin, he heard Carver call out to him, asking about the girl from earlier. "Oh, she said yes earlier, but I don't know what she'll think now after seeing what just happened. In fact I'll go talk to her right now." Said Separ as he made his way over to the tavern entrance just as she was coming out of the building. Separ bowed his head to her just like he had done so to all the others prepared to apologize to her. "I'm sorry about all the trouble I caused in there. I was out of control in there, and I should not have acted so rash or made a scene like that. Anyways, if you want you don't have to travel with us after seeing all of that. Though it would make me happy if you did stay." Separ raised his head and flashed a weak smile. "After all, I'm sure you'd make a great asset to the team. Take as much time as you need to think about it, alright?" And with that Separ started to turn around and head back to the group. It would probably be a good time to discuss provisions and supplies, as well as where to explore. Although truth be told, Separ himself didn't even know where to begin, surely they could all come to an agreement at some point right?</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki sighed as the She quickly clasped the cloak around herself. Looking at the barkeeper, she couldn't help but to give him a smile, visible to the barkeeper alone. "Although such events have transpired, my offer is still up for the taking~" Whispering these words, she turned around and walked out of the tavern. However, the moment she exited the building, she found the man named Separ, the one who had injured his fist trying to attack the barkeeper. "No need to be so worried. If even the paladin himself wanted to give the barkeeper a good scolding, you are not in the wrong." Smiling back as she said these words, she gestured at his hands, asking, "Are your hands alright now?". Although, to the question of whether she was coming along or not, Suki was slightly more hesitant than she was when she first answered the man before. "I...will come along, yes." Answering Separ, she couldn't help but to have her gaze drift slightly to the side, as if staring at the paladin behind Separ. However, in a blink of an eye, she wasn't looking at the paladin, but back at Separ. "So, it looks like you have rounded up your party."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly turned around to face the girl again. "Even so, it wasn't exactly such a good idea to cause a scene like that." Separ said while rubbing the back of his neck. "And yes, my hands are all better now. See?" Separ extended both of his hands for her to see that they were now completely healed. "I do feel a bit tired after all of that now though, but I should be fine, and I'm happy you decided to come along, and uh, I don't really consider it my party. I'm not really trying to be the leader or anything, and I'd kind of prefer things that way. This group is yours just as much as it is mine, and the same goes for everyone else." Separ said smiling at the girl, before turning towards the group he would be adventuring with soon. He started walking over to the group happily, content that he could get the girl to join. "Carver, She'll be joining us after all. though I'm still concerned about Kelvin, as he has not made up his mind yet. Either way though, what kind of supplies do you all have, after all we should probably prepare for our journey, and also where would you like to head out to?"" Separ looked at all the members in his group, studying them. So these are my new comrades, huh? They seem like a pretty fine bunch. Yes, I do believe this is going to be the start of something great.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula kept quiet, looking over at the group from behind Carver. Yes. She had found herself in quite a strange situation. Why had she agreed to go on some adventure with a bunch of strangers? She pulled the brim of her hat over her eyes, trying to concentrate. She could hear the punching man agreeing to let the other girl into the group. She was a strange one as well, but she radiated a compelling strength like no other. She took a step further behind Carver as the punching man approached her, as if taking cover behind the man. She muttered softly, her voice slurring and eyes glowing from beneath her hat. "Only a life lived for others is a life worth while." She felt a bit worried when the punching man came over and asked if anyone had any supplies or a destination in mind. The man was gathering people for some sort of adventure and didn't have a plan? She held back a sigh, knowing she would have to learn to trust the others around her. This would truly be a group effort, and as someone who survived on her own for so long she was afraid. Alula had a puzzled look on her face under her hat. Supplies? Why was she thinking of supplies? Did she have supplies? Does she even need to eat? A voice confirmed for her, yes you do eat occasionally. She blinked hazily, holding up her heavy coin purse. "I have...uh...supplies..." She sounded confused.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver caught the woman's gaze and held it as she joined the group. Then she knew. He knew, she knew, he knew she knew, she knew he knew, and she had better know he knew she knew. Of course, that still left the matter of what exactly he knew, but that could come later. If the woman was aware that the Paladin knew what she was, perhaps she'd be on her best behavior. That'd be enough for now. Alula stepped behind him, as though concealing herself from the rest of the group. That fear wasn't ideal, but it was to be expected. The girl would be joining them - Carver was sure she'd come around to them later. "Ah. Supplies. Let's see!" Carver took his pack and began rooting around inside it. "I have... ten gold coins, not bad... this looks like a crust of bread... and, um, a rock." Carver tossed the stone out of his bag and slung it back over his shoulder, smiling sheepishly. "Uh... sorry, I won't be much help on that front. Sounds like Alula might, though. And I imagine that the traditional method of 'asking the barkeeper for rumours' has been ruled out?" The paladin grinned at his own jest and looked to his party for direction.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis raised his voice, "I belief thath we should pool thome coin to buy thupplies for all uf uth." they shouldn't be depending on individual supplies, some most likely didn't have any, Vis supposed, him only having 60 coins, a set of stag antlers and a child's enyclopedia. He took a long hard look at his group, casting green light on every member to scrutinize them, they had a paladin, a sword puncher, a gnome, a rather curvaceous woman and another woman who looked a bit out of it; he could tell that the adventure was going to be something. "Leth all chip in thome coin and buy rathions, things thath will latht a while. Green appleth, hard loafths of bread, dried meath." he had been on the road for a long time and understood what to bring and what not to bring, from personal experience of finding that all the food had rotted in his bag. "And wather thacks." Vis whinced internally, every time he lisped.</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose had paid the barkeeper a nice sum of coin for her cooking set. She had not needed it but she really had not reason not to by it. She had no need for the wealth that came from her wanderer adventurer occupation. Also, She was travelling alone. She had no one other than herself to cook for. She had been alone for a while and even if she wanted. She had entered the tavern with the hopes of spending the night and maybe get some work. She had been upstairs in a room she had rented for the night preparing her things for tomorrow when a commotion occurred downstairs. She walked downstairs armed and ready to defend herself. When she got downstairs it looked like she missed everything. A little annoyed she did not get any action, she wandered outside. Outside she overheard a group talk about getting together for an andventure. Rose wasted no time taking up the opportunity. Rose walks up to the group of adventurers and loudly introduces herself, "Greetings, everyone. I am Rose Anew. Also known simply as Phoenix. I could not help but overhear that all y'all are going on a journey together. I would humbly like to join your group. I am an exceptional front line fighter. Sword and magic are my specialty. I am also a good cook. That should be a plus." Rose was worried she appeared to formal but she did not want to let it show. It would make her look nervous and insecure.</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly studied the supplies of Carver, Alula, and the scarf wearing elf. Carver barely seemed to have anything, Alula on the other hand seemed to have tons of gold, as well as some miscellaneous items that Separ could make neither heads nor tails of. Lastly the scarf wearin elf seemed to have a modest sum of money as well as some various items which made Separ question why he had them in the first place. Disregarding those items Separ listened to the elf talk about buying various food items and such, only for a girl who identified herself as Rose Anew, aka 'Phoenix' to step forward and ask if she could go along with the group. Separ was immediately impressed by her, as she said she was both a capable fighter and a great cook. "A fighter and a cook? You've instantly sold me, I'm happy you could be on the team. So what kind of dishes do you specialize in?" Separ then looked around at his fellow group members. "No one has any objections right?"</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Des Suddenly, guards started running through the streets. Upon first glance, one would assume they would be running after someone and most likely the people who caused trouble at the local tavern. But the guards kept running, and as they drew closer, you could tell they weren't running after, but away. Screams started to fill the streets as kobolds (small dragonfolk with no wings), goblins, men wearing chainmail and black tunics, and even an ettin (two-headed giant) started to swarm the village, destroying and slaughtering everything in sight. The goblins set fire to the stands and the ettin destroyed many houses and even the tavern. A dark silhouette of a man on a horse could be seen amongst the smoke in the distance.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace furiously pondered the meaning and intent of this group. He saw them break, tear and burn the stands, carts and houses. Two huge heads sharing one body came storming past him, massive flail in each hand. As he crashed trough several stands at once, splinters and raw materials flew trough the air. Deconstruction It dawned on Furnace what they were doing. They were harvesting materials for the forge. He saw creatures armed with swords and clubs run to the creatures from the village and hit them until they stopped screaming. Was this a fight? Or could they also harvest life? "A life is cut short so another can begin. Lives are lost in the forest of life to allow the young to grow." Was this what the tired girl had predicted? Either way, Furnace was exited by this development. Much to learn. And in the spirit of learning new thing Furnace took the wrapped package from his back and let the cloth fall to the ground. With two hands and significant effort he held aloft an orcish broadsword. It was about his size and looked right at home between the flails, blades and axes of the newcomers. With care and calculation he mimicked the lumbering brute's movements as he rand after him, then past him, then into a stand. With as mighty a swing he could muster he brought the heavy blade down upon the wooden board. The thin plank snapped instantly, causing copper and tin trinkets to fly everywhere. As Furnace was showered in shiny but function-less pieces of metal he looked behind him at the two-faced giant, looking for confirmation that he got it right.</s> <\|message\|>Des The ettin was about to slay the little one when he had suddenly attacked on of the stands, this caused the ettin to think that the little one was one of them and so he nodded and continued his rampage.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace trembled a little as he regarded the judging eyes of the towering creature. The ettin nodded approvingly. He did it right. He was learning so much today! Happily Furnace followed and continued to smash barrels, poles and carts along with the brute and a growing group of other creatures his size. They did the same. When he jumped, they did. When they struggled to reach up to the thatched rooftops with their torches, he kicked a barrel over to them so they could stand on it. This was going great. That moment he remembered the barkeep, and how he had displayed so much fun cutting the friend collector, clearly he loved a fight. As they were near the tavern Furnace ran ahead of the band and smashed the wooden door open. He pointed inside and yelled at the rampaging group. "In here! There's good fighting and food in here!"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" As Vis walked out of the bakery, sixteen coins lighter and with 8 loaves of bread under his arm, screams echoed out from the other side of the market and people started running away from the direction of the comotion. The owner of the bakery, a woman in her thirties steppes out to see what was going on, Vis turned back to the bakery and ushered as much people inside as possible, he turned to the owner and yelled over the commotion, "Ith there a bathement thoo thith bakery?!" She thought for a moment and nodded, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him to the kitchen, she pointed to a large slate preparation table, "It's under there!" she yelled as what was going on outside was getting closer. Vis groaned with frustration and pushed all his mass against the table, whincing as it grated across the floor, exposing a dusty trap door. When the table was no longer obstructing it, Vis opened it up and climbed down, it was large and could easily hold everyone in the building. He climbed back out and yelled into the main room for everyone to get into the basement, they did as they were told and when the trapdoor shut and everyone was inside, Vis pushed the table back over the hatch and he heard rough voices from the front room. He drew his rapier and escaped through the back door, he'd be back for the people in the basement.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Even moments before the attack Alula's soft and comfortable smile suddenly turned into an expression of extreme horror. She took stumbling steps away from Carver. She appeared to double over slightly, frantically pulling down her hat and covering her eyes as if she was trying to block out the horror filled visions. "Misfortune does not come in drops it comes in storms. I can see the clouds gathering upon the horizon" This voice was different from her normal, lazy, speech. But it was also far different from the commanding and dominant voice. This one sounded calm, almost wise and knowing. But the voice didn't match Alula's expression of pain and dread. Her entire body seemed to be shaking, a bright glow emitting from her eyes and from a source within her robes. She spoke in a grim voice, suddenly looking up at Carver with fear. She could see the monsters on the horizon. "Please ser Paladin you have to go! Something is coming it's not safe here!" It was strange, she didn't seem to be talking about the monsters destroying the town. She nearly collapsed onto the ground, gripping her staff in an iron fist. "And when it comes they will come."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace noticed the iron friend and tired girl still standing where he last left them. They were looking at him. Or they were looking at the large group of creatures working hard on harvesting stone, rock and coal. Or the disagreeing cries of people running and hiding everywhere. Why did they do that? Was it part of the harvesting ritual? Furnace waved at Carver and Alula.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki glanced over at Separ, before nodding. "Yes, I was about to go an search for supplies to purchase." A complete lie, but on the other hand, she didn't have to tell the man what she really was planning on doing. However, before she could accept or decline his offer of accompanying her, the destruction occurred. Quickly turning around to look in the direction of the noise, she noticed the creatures rampaging through the town. Knowing she should run, and just abandon everyone else to their fate, she ended up glancing at Separ. Could she also abandon her newfound companions? They might get in her way, but they might also be of use in dealing with the church. As she was pondering, she noticed the hazy image of a man on horseback beyond the wall of smoke. Perhaps he was the key to this attack? "I'll be right back." Quickly speaking, she ran down the nearest alleyway, taking many of the winding turns rapidly. she never slowed down, until she had reached her destination. Although looking like the dead end of every alleyway, this one was on she had visited earlier. Quickly reaching into one of the crates, she pulled out her scythe.</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Carnage, destruction, and panic. The citizens of Ravenwood were fleeing in distress as what looked like a small army began to siege the town. Buildings collapsed, some were set on fire, and screams could be heard in the distance. No doubt was left in Separ's mind that people were getting both killed, tortured, possibly even taken prisoner. Separ clenched his fist tightly, he wanted to help bring this to an end, but in his mind he knew he could not take on that many enemies. He thought about his master and cursed under his breath knowing he had already left to go home. If he was here, then maybe... Lots of people started to run past Separ, bringing him back into reality. Separ had to do something though, and that's when he remembered the General Shop's store clerk. He quickly turned around and rushed towards the door pushing it open so hard that the door slammed against the wall. The store clerk who was insulated from all the noise started to yell at him but quickly realized something big was going down. "You need to get out of here lady, there's a small army destroying Ravenwood." The store clerk quickly agreed and started to grab a few close supplies before running towards the door and exiting the building. Separ slammed the door shut as both of them left the store. That's something I can do, but that's about it. Staying any longer than I need to will be a bad idea. However as the shop keeper left he heard the cloaked girl say, "I'll be right back." He spun around to find that the girl was already turning into an alleyway. Separ couldn't leave her alone though, they needed to stick together if they wanted to survive. "Hey wait up!" He yelled as he took off after her. The cloaked girl was fast, and while Separ himself was also fast his injuries from earlier had left him feeling a bit tired. Catching up would have been much easier if he was at his full potential. Separ started panting as he turned down another corner only to find that the girl had disappeared. He had lost sight of her. The sound of a building was heard collapsing not to far from where Separ was standing. This isn't good, if they find me or that girl we'll have to fight our way out. Still Separ persevered and turned down a corner, only to then realize he was completely lost. He was afraid to call out to the girl though, knowing it may attract attention from unwanted people. Just where was that girl?</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula let out a cocky laugh as she blinded the Ettin and it tripped over a building. She knew her attacks would do nothing against such a large opponent, and yet it was absolutely hilarious to watch the mighty monster fall. Someone else would have to deal damage to it. Voices soon began talking over each other again. "Your rash attacks endanger the girl. ser carver! You are attracting more attention to us. please he is getting hurt! Cease your whining child. He can handle himself. it's my fault he is hurt! His precious sun can help him. We have more pressing matters." Alula watched as Kelvin shot into the horde of monsters coming their way, and as Furnace displayed his powers. Impressive. Another cocky laugh. To make it even better, one of the humans referred to her as majesty. Finally, a title she deserved. "Nice work kid! Yes, your power is quite grand." Alula held back on using another moonbeam, knowing it was attracting monsters in hordes. Instead she used Furnaces attack to her advantage. She swung her staff like a blunt weapon, hitting monsters towards the fires burning all around them. While being hit with the staff didn't hurt as much as getting blasted with the moon, it was enough force to break bones and stun. It was like getting hit in the head with a giant, burning, flashlight.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace struggled to catch Alulah's words over the roaring fire around him. Did she call out Carver? Wasn't that the name of the iron friend? Kid? Kid.. kind. kindle? Fire? Power is energy and energy burns. She must like the fire! Maybe if he brought the fire over to him? Most goblins and kobolts around him now seemed hesitant to get close to him, maybe they were done fighting. He had collected plenty of material now anyways. He skipped over to Carver under his pile of violence. He held the ball of heat above him, as if planning to meteor hammer it down upon them. Those that could scattered, those that couldn't were damaged and distracted enough for Carver to dispatch them with ease. But Carver did look worse for wear, there were dents, tears and cuts in both his armor and body. As Carver sat on his knees on the ground Furnace could stand before him eye to eye and speechless. Though all carver would see was a silhouette blotting out a large ball of of intense heat above him. When Furnace moved closer the metal started to soften up a little, he took care not to bring the fires above them too close. Such a beautiful work of art shouldn't be reforged. With the metal soft and pliable Furnace hammered some quick fixes, kept it from falling apart. Decent repair would come later. The creature within the armor needed repairs more. With a deep breath Furnace reached out and upwards to the orb ablaze as it slowly turned brighter, paler. yellow turned to white, red turned to gold. With a crackling sound of lightning the orb reduced in size as two coils of white golden energy siphoned out, trough Furnace's hands and surging into Carver. Furnace breathed slowly as he converted all the heat into positive energy. As the flames around them died down and the glowing circle blinked out of existence Carver felt a warm glow spread violently trough his body. His wounds slammed shut and his fatigue ebbed away. All the pain replaced with excess energy, like he had eaten a cart full of sugar directly after a long nap. "Hello again, friend."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ punched another kobold in the face with a quick and brutal flurry knocking it to the ground before hearing the cloaked girl frantically ask him why he was here. "Isn't that obvious? We have to work together if we're going to survive." Separ yelled back, only to watch as she replied saying she could create a diversion. The cloaked girl stabbed her scythe into the ground just as two more skeletons popped out of the ground to continue fighting. Wait, skeletons? Separ turned to face a skeleton who scratched at a goblin's face causing it to bleed profusely. The gruesome sight made Separ realize this whole time skeleton's had been fighting. Sure he saw them earlier but he had kind of ignored them and focused on the group of kobolds and goblins instead. Now it was all so apparent as to what was going on though. The situation they were in. It was obvious, the leader must have been a necromancer, summoning undead creatures to attack the civilians. They probably couldn't tell the difference between friend and foe, but the fact that they were here was scary. If Separ were to knock one down would it just get back up reassembling itself? Would they come after Separ next? Would they go after the girl? Separ turned towards the girl to see that she had fallen over. "...change...of plans.....you run....I'm in no condition....to move..." No, no, no! This could not be happening. Not only did Separ have to save her from both the goblins, and kobolds but now he had to deal with skeletons. I need to get us out of here now. Thought Separ as he quickly ran towards her. Only then did a gigantic version of a kobold appear, covered in metal armor and wielding a broadsword. "Out of my way I don't have time for you." Screamed Separ as he punched the kobold in the stomach. The attack didn't seem to phase him though, and instead the kobold laughed and raised its weapon about to bring it down on Separ. In a panic Separ quickly attacked with four different gut-busters at the creatures stomach. "I said out of my way!" Separ was now frantic, as he noticed one of the skeletons was making its way over towards them, but his attacks were weakened and unfocused as he was both tired and scared now, but with four gut busters the kobold couldn't help but throw up a little, vomit dripping onto its chin. The kobold was now incredibly pissed off that its attack had been interrupted, and that it had puked over itself. With anger the creature swung its sword in a fury only for the sword to miss, and the kobold to hit the ground with a thud. Separ noticed that the back of the kobold's head was bleeding, but what had caused it? Certainly his gut-busters shockwave was not nearly that powerful. Only then did one of the skeleton's jump on top of the kobold only to scratch at the back of it's head, trying to pierce the brain. "Sweet heavens!" Yelled Separ as the skeleton quickly finished with its job and turned, looking at him. "Screw this!" Yelled Separ as he was reinvigorated with energy after seeing the skeleton. His fear was pressing him forwards, spurning him onwards, pushing him to new heights. He ran past the skeleton and ran over to the cloaked girl picking her up in a princess carry. "I'm getting us out of here." He charged off down an alleyway only for another group of kobolds and goblins to appear as he reached the opening. The group of hostile enemies noticed him immediately and brandished their weapons ready to attack. Thinking quickly Separ hopped onto the debris and started running skillfully on top of it. This type of terrain was no big deal for Separ, but he knew that the goblins and kobolds would either have to go around the debris, or try to stumble through it carefully. This would be his advantage! "Don't worry, we'll make it out of here for sure." Said Separ. His face now had a look of determination, as though he was committed to escaping any way he could and at the same time, he looked like he was straining heavily. As though every second he spent running was draining him of precious energy. Separ continued to run on the debris of various buildings as the goblins and kobolds tried to follow after him to no avail. As he continued running a small goblin popped out from behind a broken wardrobe. It wielded a hammer and tried to hit Separ but before it could do so a swift kick sent the creature stumbling backwards. Separ readjusted his grip on the girl and continued to run. He ran for who knows how long, but eventually they were able to make it to the outskirts of the small town of Ravenwood. Kobolds and goblins still tried to follow him but Separ had a large lead by now. In fact, a lot of these buildings weren't even touched. With every ounce of energy he had, Separ continued to focus on running. Focusing on nothing but to run away and reach safety. It was this focus that allowed him to finally escape into the woods and out of sight. Eventually Separ lowered the girl to the ground and sat down next to her feeling extremely exhausted. "A...are you al...alright?" Asked Separ as he glanced at her. "Y...you fell down pretty h...hard back there. Try not to push yourself, and p...please don't run off alone. You really had me worried." Said Separ as he flashed her a small smile. Yet, it was obvious that Separ himself was already pushed past his limits. His breathing was now ragged and if any goblins and kobolds were to appear now, Separ would not be able to fight. Not in his condition. As much as Separ hated to admit it, he doubt he could even stand if he tried. Separ thought about all the other people he had met today, were they still okay? "D...do you th...think the others are o...o...kay?" He asked her. Of course he immediately regretted asking, as he feared the worst for them. Sure he and the girl had escaped, but only just barely. What if the others didn't manage to escape at all? The thought made Separ feel sick, and all he could hope for was the best.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Furnace The fight had been quick, and once it was over chaos fell upon everyone. Furnace didn't know what to do, so he just followed as he was told to. He saw Separ knock the archers down, before he could ask why Separ showed him as he started to hammer the man with his hands. He remembered how Separ didn't have the ability to channel energy like he did. So he had no tools and made do with his bare hands. What a powerful man. Furnace decided he should follow his lead and jumped on top of one of the archers lying on the ground. He dried to swat at the archer, who tried to push him of with his bow. This wasn't working. He did have a tool for hurting. When Furnace held his hands out palms open directed at the man he stopped moving for a second, looking confused at Furnace. The area around his hands lost colour and darkened as sharp shadows danced in strange electric shapes. Crackling sparks of energy as dark as the void between the stars sprang from his hands and leaped to the other. As Furnace moved his hands closer to the archers head the dark coil of negative energy leaped trough the bandit and back. Furnace knew, as warm and pleasant positive was, so cold and painful was the negative. Somehow the thought gave him a similar cold feeling. Was this what he wanted?</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin Kelvin slowed down when he managed to get far enough away that the torches were just flashes of light in the trees, taking his time to pick through the woods. It wasn't easy in the darkening sky. Luckily, the other guy had followed quickly with the child. That meant that Separ and Carver had only to worry about keeping the gnome safe, wherever he was, and running away. The seer seemed to be one of those types that somehow survived, no matter what happened. He chose not to worry about her. Kelvin grimaced. Am I a coward? He had chosen to grab the girl and run, rather than stand and fight… but there was a fine line between bravery and stupidity. The raiders were still somewhere close by, and any noise or light could bring an army down on their heads. "Hey." Kelvin kept his voice quiet, though it was above a whisper. "How far do you think we should go tonight? I need to take a short rest." He couldn't carry this girl forever, his arms were starting to ache from having to carry her as far as he did. With a moment to spare, he could put together a stretcher, and then they could move a lot faster. Kelvin slowed, and then the girl mumbled something in her sleep, opening her eyes. "My, my. First you were daring enough to near a woman that you never met before, and now I find myself being held in your arms." Kelvin looked at her, mouth opening to reply and then halting, blood rushing to his face. So forward. So frustrating. He would never understand women. The flustered engineer almost dropped her right there. "What's happening?" That was enough for him. Kelvin chose a tree, put his back to it, and dropped down, letting her fall into his lap, blanket and all. He sighed and leaned his head back against the tree with his eyes closed. "Since the last time I saw you awake, the town was attacked by an army of goblins. We tried to fight them off, but failed… everyone in it was killed." He motioned towards the other guy. "He managed to save one of the villagers, and most of our group managed to gather back together outside of town safely… but a scouting party found us. The Seer and gnome disappeared, but Separ and Carver squared off against five men while I picked you up and ran for the forest. Scarf-boy here grabbed the girl and came with me." He groaned. "For all I know, they are dead now. That's what's happening."</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman managed to escape as the one archer was beaten to death while the other had his life drained away. He ran to the raider party and informed them of the surviving group. Time until reinforcements arrive: 30 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver grimaced as the flail crashed into his side again. This wasn't working - the flail had reach and power that he couldn't hope to match, and the man's armor was far too much for his sword. He wracked his brain for a moment before arriving at an answer. The flail needed a strong swing to build up power - getting far wouldn't help, so he'd just have to get close. With a roar, Carver launched himself at his enemy, shield raised, attempting to tackle him to the ground with the full weight of his armor.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" "I do noth think thath thith ith a good thime tho retht, we should keep going." Vis said, adjusting how he carried the now squirming child as she tried to get down. "If you are going to carry me, at least let me ride on your back instead of holding me like a baby!" she whined, starting to kick in her search for freedom, Vis did as he was told and levered the girl onto his back in one swift motion, she wobbled there, dizzy for a moment until she spoke again, "this will do." Voltus then proceeded to stoop over and pick up the girl rolled in the blanket, grunting a bit at all the weight he was carrying and Kelvin was right, she was heavy, "Retht if you wish buth I will keep going." With that Vis turned and walked deeper into the forest and away from the camp, lighting the way with his glowing green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Des Bill swung the flail, barely missing Carver. Sadly, what goes around comes around and the chain wrapped around the paladin. Bill tugged on the chain attempting to pull Carver down but the paladin stood strung and did not fall although wrapped in chains.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Rather than try to disentangle himself from the chain, Carver just kept charging, crashing into Bill in an attempt to pin him under the paladin's enormous weight, all while trying to bring his arms up to grapple with him opponent.</s> <\|message\|>Des Bill side-stepped out of the way, allowing Carver to fall to the ground and struggle in his chains. "I don't have time to wrestle with you, it's already going to be hard enough to take on your friends unarmed." Bill raised his fist, ready to take on any opposers. "God I hope reinforcements get here soon." Time until reinforcements arrive: 22 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Furnace While Bill stepped away from Carver, Furnace approached softly. The cold feeling had made him calm. As Bill spoke and looked around to find other opponents Furnace stood right in front of him to present himself. Thick, dark surges of negative energy danced in his hands as he held them before him. Chilled and collected he stared Bill in his eyes, ready to react to any movement with shock and pain. With wide eyes and barely any emotion on his face he spoke softly "I am going to hurt you."</s> <\|message\|>Des A divine light shines down from the heavens upon Carver. The light rusts and breaks the chains, lifts Carver to his feet, heals his wound, and repairs his armor. Bill looks first at the little one, "Ah shit, I should have wasted my flail on this one." Then he sees the light out of his peripheral vision, "Fuck, you're a paladin. Well, you know what, all those times I hit you with my flail, I was just doing my job. I actually have to go sooo..." Bill starts to back away from the two. Time until reinforcements arrive: 18 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Ooooh, ow. The knight didn't seem to be fairing well in his battle with his flailed opponent. Perhaps the last fight took all the energy and speed out of him, because on top of the dynamics of the chain - the user of which actually seemed to be practiced with its use - the looter was dancing around the knight with each charge he made. Was the knight really so simple-minded that he would resort to the same old tactic? Surely they've learned better by now. Before he got himself tangled up, perhaps it would have been better throw him the sword or shield that the looter had been ensnared in the first place. His flail is then tangled in what you've thrown at him and then you're free. "But no, by all means, continue what you're doing now... It's obviously working." Arastoph muttered. His ears perked as soon as the looter began talking and taunting the knight. At least the looter was unarmed, but what he had said set off an alarm. Reinforcements... Arastoph ran out of his hiding place and into the open, his full appearance now being visible to the group and to his enemy. His dragoon in hand, although unloaded (but his enemy didn't have to know that), he yelled at what he saw as the buffoons he had aligned himself with. "Kill him quickly, already! Before more arrive!" Enemy reinforcements also meant that he wouldn't be able to get these fools to carry the wine kegs for him. Whether or not this knight was actually a paladin didn't matter. He couldn't defeat an army alone.</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ After finally defeating the archers with the gnome, Separ stood up to find that Carver was having trouble with the last opponent. Before the gnome could intervene in the fight however, Separ put his hand on the gnome's shoulder holding him back. "Carver, do you need any help? Or would you prefer we stay out of this? If this is your battle I don't want to intervene and hurt your pride. That being said, if you'd like some assistance I wouldn't mind taking this guy down a peg or two." Separ waited quietly for Carver to answer, time was of the essence for sure, but if losing this fight meant a lot to Carver, then there was no reason to jump in. "The decision is up to you, just know that if reinforcements do come me and Calvin, err the gnome should be able to hold them back for a little bit while you finish up your fight." Separ stepped in front of the gnome making direct eye contact and firmly held the gnome's shoulders with both of his hands. "This may be an important battle for Carver, so if he says he doesn't need help you shouldn't help him out. This may be a battle between men and interrupting that may harm Carver mentally. Oh, and by the way, thanks for healing me again, and also just what was your name again? I forgot what it was.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat held on to Vis' sleeve as he conversed with the paladin, she looked up at him as he talked his twisted words, they didn't sound right to her young, unexperienced ears, they were strained, slowly spoken and broken. She pulled up her scarf to cover her face as he did and felt a little bit better, 'maybe this is why he wears it?' she thought to herself but her thinking was cut short by a rumble in her stomach, followed by a hollow pain, Khat was hungry. She pulled on his sleeve and he entertained her tugging. "I'm hungry," she said simply, looking up at him as he looked down at her in a strange way, "Hello! Can't you hear me from all the way up there? I'm hungry." Vis blinked a bit before coming to. Looking at her with her scarf wrapped around her face sent shivers down his spine for some reason. "I don'th haf anyfing for you tho eath." Voltus replied slowly, watching as her face grew into a look of incredulity. "You're telling me that you came to a bakery and bought no bread?" she retorted harshly, glaring daggers at him, 'if he did't buy bread...' she thought but was interrupted by Vis' face turning red in embarrassment as he reached into his bag for one of the loaves of bread. He snapped off a chunk of staleness and handed it to Khat, she took it and tried it in her hands, she looked on the verge of crying, looking at the piece of bread, 'yesterday's bread,' she thought, 'before all this.' She bit back a sob. Voltus looked down at the girl with a mixture of grief and understanding, he touched her shoulder awkwardly, "When you're done you should thleep." She simply nodded, knowing if she opened her mouth she'd burst out sobbing. She walked off to nestle herself in between some exposed roots of a tree, where she nibbled the bread. Vis turned to carver, "I'll thake firtht watch, paladin."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to the half elf. "Your offer is a generous one, and I appreciate it. I will take the last watch, for I see best during sunrise. When your watch draws to a close, wake up Separ. Separ will have to wake up Kelvin. Kelvin will have to wake up..." The paladin glanced around the assembled party. A child, a refugee, a witch, and a wide-eyed gnome. "... Me. I'll take a double watch, it'll be no trouble." The party was sore, tired, frightened and generally worn down, but they were alive, and they were together, which was more than the knight could have hoped for. At least, most of them were - Alula, the very girl he'd sworn to protect, was still missing. Part of Carver wanted to go look for her, but he knew it wouldn't be safe, and that it wouldn't be what she wanted - she'd seemed pretty insistent on being alone at night. His efforts were better spend on those he had eyes on - what they needed now was to rest and recover their strength - their next moved could be planned in the morning. "Carver, do you – or do you not – feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" The refugee's words, the one who'd tried to get a rise out of him earlier. Carver held the man's gaze. His home had been burned to ashes, everyone he'd ever known put to the sword. If he wanted to take it out on the man who should've prevented it, that was more than his right. "Yes. Your village is burned, all those people dead, because I was not wise or fast or strong enough to stop it. On my head was the task, and on my head lay the blame."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Feeling exhausted and tired from such a long day, Separ couldn't help but yawn as he finished the last preparations on his tent. He laid out his sleeping bag and then left to check on the others to see how they were all doing. What he overheard however was a conversation between both the civilian and Carver. "Do you or do you not feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" It felt as though the man wanted someone to blame, a scapegoat to explain why his town had fallen. Listening closely Carver admitted to actually being at fault. Not liking where this conversation was heading, Separ decided to intervene before the conversation could go on any longer. He walked up towards the two of them. "Sorry if I'm interrupting, it's just that I would like to say that the destruction of Ravenwood is not your fault Carver, or at least not entirely. By your logic, I and all of the others are just as much at fault. Why couldn't I be strong enough to knock out an ettin in one blow?" Separ pointed to the little girl and Vis as well to further prove his point. "Why wasn't the elf swift enough to run circles around that whole army? And why couldn't the little girl over there be a master weapons user?" Separ already didn't like this man that much. He seemed to be one of those snobby types that always looked down on others. At least that would be what it seemed like as earlier the man complained about that quick duel between Carver and that Bill guy. Glaring daggers at the civilian, Separ ended his rant. "Finally, why weren't you strong enough to save Ravenwood?" And with that being said Separ glared at the man for a moment before turning around to go into his tent. Separ then called out to the entire group, just audible enough for everyone to hear. "I'm going to bed you guys, I'm pretty exhausted after such a long day. Anyone is free to enter my tent and sleep with me, I'll probably be asleep when you come in anyways." Entering his tent Separ unrolled his sleeping bag and pulling himself inside, drifted off into sleep.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Carver's answer satisfied Arastoph. This was good. This meant that he could more easily get what he needs out of this by milking the "sole survivor" trope. However, there came issue with the brawler, who seems to have taken upon himself to present himself as the ass. Ah; setbacks, setbacks. So, how would be the best way to take care of this monkey while still playing the trope? Perhaps, maybe, undermine the brawler's efforts to absolve themselves of blame and pinning it instead on the "sole survivor", and putting the monkey up on spotlight. He'd have to really milk this, but it was doable. As Separ walked away, Arastoph began, not even bothering to look behind him at he spoke. "So, tell me - Separ, was it? Have you ever seen what it was like to watch closely people being burned alive?" Arastoph asked. He paused for a moment for his words to sink in. "I imagine not, so let me explicitly descriptive: a small child, hunched over a bed of charcoals. Her screams of agony, oh so woeful that they were, have long since evanesced. Her blood is instead boiling, oozing through the pores of her skin. With the sight, the smell of burning skin mingled with burning hair. Her eyes pop like grapes when the water in and behind them boil." He looked at the little girl that the lisping rogue had made her companion. "That could have just as easily been her." He took a deep breathe, as though it were meant to regain his bearings. Now it was time to really milk it. "Now what if I told you, that girl was my daughter?" He stated, clenching his teeth and emboldening his voice. "Would you then be so bold to suggest that I did not do everything in my power to stop that? Whereas the lot of you - all with combat experience, weapon training, and practice - had far more tools to their disposal than I ever had? As a trader, I picked a different path, which just so happened meant I couldn't support a family by ways of fighting." His head turned back to face Carver, his face a little pink with forced, feigned anger. "If you do take responsibility," he said, "I do expect reparations. Safe passage to other towns. The lives of people are not insurable, but I expect at least the compensation for everything I've lost. I'm a merchant who had a pretty penny to his name. I've lost a lot. This would mean paying off a large monetary debt, however long it takes."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ sighed as he listened to the man's words. This guy was unbelievable, trying to get him to feel guilt over something he had nothing to do with, as well as wanting payment to boot. Without turning around either Separ replied with. "I have never seen a person burn alive, I'll give you that. But what does this have to do with anything? Yes it was your daughter, and I feel sorry for your loss. Nonetheless, we're human too. Just because Carver has a sword doesn't mean he's some unstoppable juggernaut. I'm not invincible either, none of us are. We're only human, well excluding the gnome and the elf, but while I do wish I could have saved the town I know I'd just add to the death pile. I barely escaped with my life, and," motioning towards the cloaked girl who was still fast asleep. "I managed to save her life as well. That's as much as I could muster, so sorry if I'm not Mr. Superhero the fourth. Also don't expect much money out of me, I mean I'll help out, but from what I can tell, you appear to be no good. I just hope the only reason you're acting like this is because you just lost your town and family. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Goodnight." And with that Separ finally entered his tent and fell asleep, exhausted from such a long day of fighting.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel "So are you excited knowing your about to head off into the world and start your own adventure?" Asked the man sitting next to Separ Kurel, the very man who had trained him on how to be an arcane brawler. This man was known by the name of Millon Baotes. He was incredibly buff with a tall and wide body with almost no traces of fat. His usual messy short black hair was now combed for the special occasion of sending his one and only pupil off into the world. Some scars were located all throughout his torso, and for some reason he wasn't wearing a shirt. Though most of the time he didn't have a shirt on anyways. "Yes, I'm excited if a little nervous." Separ answered truthfully as his eyes darted around the tavern, hopping from person to person. "So where is this group of mine supposed to be at? I'm anxious to meet them. We are meeting them here right?" "No, you're going to be meeting them here by yourself." Said Separ's teacher as he crossed his arms. "How am I supposed to know who my group is then? You haven't told me anything about them, so I don't see how this is going to work." Separ said, a hint of skepticism in his voice. "You know, I first started out in this town as well. I knew no one whatsoever and lived in this town for about two weeks, only spending what money I did have to sleep at an inn and drink in this very tavern. As your teacher I'd like you to experience something similar and make friends on your own to team up with, rather than rely on me introducing you to some people you may not even get along with." Separ's teacher paused for a moment and took another swig of beer. "That's good stuff alright, just like I remembered." He muttered before continuing on where he had left off. "Anyways try to meet some people you know you'll at least somewhat get along with rather than leaving it up to chance. If I find out you left this town without forming a proper group to travel with I'll kill you for making me waste my time trying to train you." And with that Separ's teacher started to chug the entire glass of frothing beer sitting in front of him on the table. Separ nodded at his teacher's words, and while he felt a little put off by that last line, he knew full well that was just his teacher's way of joking around. "Alright, I'll do as you say then." "Then it's settled." And with that Millon stood up from his chair about to leave, only to immediately stop and turn around looking Separ directly in the face. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" "Huh?" Was all Separ could say, before his teacher left leaving him alone at the bar table. Separ looked around at the crowd for a moment wondering if he should talk to anyone, but decided against it. The place was kind of crowded right now, and it would probably be easier to wait until the mass of people thinned out a bit before doing anything else. Instead he opted to just admire how simple this building was. So this is what it was like to be in a small town huh? It was actually kind of peaceful. However his thoughts soon changed into imagining all the adventures he would have. Fighting monsters, saving people, becoming a hero. What a wonderful life that would be.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver arrived in Ravenwood in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day in the country - all around was quiet, and the sun shone through the leaves in just that way that made Carver feel as though the goddess were truly with him. As the wagon he was riding pulled in through the gates, he waved here and there at passing townsfolk, and was often rewarded with a smile or a polite wave. The wagon came to a halt and he dismounted, his armor clanking loudly as he landed. The farmer whose family he had been traveling with for the past few days approached him, and Carver gave the man a warm smile. "My friend," he said, "I believe this is where we part ways." "Yes, milord," the farmer responded, still using the honorific Carver has insisted repeatedly was not necessary. "We will be awful sorry to see you go. How much do we owe you?" The man responded, fumbling for his coinpurse. Carver has expected that the man would attempt to compensate him for his services 'escorting' the family, though in truth he had only scared off a few petty thieves. The paladin held a hand out to the man, still smiling. "No such payment is required. Keep it. Feed your children, and raise them in the light of the sun." The farmer nodded. "I, uh, yes milord. I will. Thank you." Carver put his hand to his breast and bowed before turning away and walking into the crowd. It was time to find some wrongs and set about righting them - the marketplace would be as good a place as any to start.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nervously stepped out from the narrow path between buildings, her eyes shifting as she cautiously looked over everyone nearby. From what it looked like, there wasn't anyone screaming for anything similar to those witch hunt riots that the church had done hunting her down. Making sure her cloak was covering her body, with the hood obscuring her head, she daintily slipped out, mingling with the crowd at the marketplace. Although she tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible, it seems that her cloaked figure was something that my catch the eyes of a few. Suddenly feeling a hand grip her arm, she quickly spun around, only to realize it was a merchant. "We have good prices!" Heavily accented, the merchant gestured at his wares, or in this case, fresh produce. Feeling a slight bit hungry, she nodded, before pointing at an apple. "Good eye, good eye, that would be-" The merchant started to speak, before Suki raised her hood slightly, revealing her face to him. Winking, she raised a finger to her lips. "Bring the apple. I'll make the payment through other means~' Whispering with such a sultry tone, the merchant was by no means resilient against such a tactic. The two hurried towards a more quite alley, where Suki leaned in, and kissed the merchant. Whatever giddy thoughts that raced through the merchant's mind, was soon replaced by a lethargy. The man soon sank to the ground, the expression of ecstasy plastered on his face. "For a farmer, your energy wasn't too bad of a taste." Muttering such words mostly to herself, she quickly picked up the apple, and re-entered the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, taking bites from her newfound food.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis trudged through the dense mud, tired and with a gloomy expression on his face, though it would be difficult to make out, his scarf worn tightly around his face and over his nose, obscuring the expression and the gaping hole in his maw. Vis had been accosted by a group of thugs on the main road, though this generally wasn't an issue as he would run away and they would lose interest eventually but it seemed these things were desperate, as they chased him half way into the moor before deciding it was no longer worth it. He didn't like running away, if there was only one or two of them he would have stood his ground, unfortunately there were half a dozen. He tilted his head up to the sky to find light grey plooms of smoke in the distance, beyond the hill that was beyond the next. There were too many points of smoke for it to be a campsite but not quiet enough to be an industrial estate, so he figured it must have been some little township. Vis made it to 'Ravenwood' in the afternoon, drained from the task of traversing through mud that felt only the need to slow him down, so with some relief he slung his pack around so it was under his nose and opened it. He saw the cobbled street. His mood quickly turned dower, the bottom of his pack must have snagged on a branch and have been torn, spilling it's contents. 'that's why those highway men turned, they just had to pick up what they wanted.' With a sigh, he took what was left in the pack and cast it into an alleyway, though funnily enough all that was in there was the child's encyclopedia his mother gave him before leaving, so he could brush up on reading skills. Vis tucked the book into his leather armor and wandered forth. The market district was buzzing with activity, buyers haggling over prices and venders hawking their wares, though all Vis needed was a replacement pack and a few basic bits. Wandering the stalls and booths, he found nothing met his eye, mostly because of the high prices but also because many of the packs were just of low quality. Unsatisfied, he walked through the market, casting a faint green cone of light from his cursed green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continues to idly imagine adventures he is brought back into reality as he feels a hand touch his back. Separ turns around and listens to the man he starts wondering just how to respond, pausing to think about his actions. "Do I know you? Though actually I am looking for some companions. Wait, out of everyone here why choose me? You're not trying to rob me or something are you? Wait, umm, are you looking just for someone to travel with, or are you an adventurer as well?" Separ's words were quick and somewhat hard to follow. He had never done something like this before and wasn't exactly sure of himself and just how to proceed.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver strode through the marketplace confidently, his heavy armor clanking with every step. So far, everything seemed to be in order - the hustle and bustle of commerce carried on around him, seemingly unabated by any sort of wickedness or villainy whatsoever. The prices seemed to be reasonable, the merchandise legitimate - nobody was being cheated here. Carver was glad to see it; too many villages he had been to on his journey so far had been rife with dishonesty and corruption. As he ruminated on the morality of the village, he caught sight of a scrawny gnome stumbling through the crowd. He watched as the gnome took hold of a woman's robe, staring at the fabric with childlike wonder. She immediately turned and yanked it from him, saying something unintelligible but obviously rather flustered. Quite a pair - the girl seemed to be moving with a distinct limp, and the gnome clearly wasn't eating very well. It was hardly the stuff of legends, but Carver knew that every good deed mattered. With his best winning smile, Carver approached the pair, regarding them each in turn. "Good day, friends! Keeping safe, I should hope?"</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continues to idly imagine adventures he is brought back into reality as he feels a hand touch his back. Separ turns around and listens to the man he starts wondering just how to respond, pausing to think about his actions. "Do I know you? Though actually I am looking for some companions. Wait, out of everyone here why choose me? You're not trying to rob me or something are you? Wait, umm, are you looking just for someone to travel with, or are you an adventurer as well?" Separ's words were quick and somewhat hard to follow. He had never done something like this before and wasn't exactly sure of himself and just how to proceed.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver strode through the marketplace confidently, his heavy armor clanking with every step. So far, everything seemed to be in order - the hustle and bustle of commerce carried on around him, seemingly unabated by any sort of wickedness or villainy whatsoever. The prices seemed to be reasonable, the merchandise legitimate - nobody was being cheated here. Carver was glad to see it; too many villages he had been to on his journey so far had been rife with dishonesty and corruption. As he ruminated on the morality of the village, he caught sight of a scrawny gnome stumbling through the crowd. He watched as the gnome took hold of a woman's robe, staring at the fabric with childlike wonder. She immediately turned and yanked it from him, saying something unintelligible but obviously rather flustered. Quite a pair - the girl seemed to be moving with a distinct limp, and the gnome clearly wasn't eating very well. It was hardly the stuff of legends, but Carver knew that every good deed mattered. With his best winning smile, Carver approached the pair, regarding them each in turn. "Good day, friends! Keeping safe, I should hope?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou By the time Suki had finished the apple, she had managed to walk her way over to the tavern by chance. Mentally sighing, she pushed open te doors, before walking in. Avoiding eye contact with any curious onlookers, she made her way towards the corner of the building, sitting herself down at an empty table. Carefully glancing about, she didn't recognize anyone, nor see anything out of the ordinary. Nor was there anyone staring at her with the look of death, as the members of the church had done so. Feeling the safest that she had all week, she lightly rested her head on the table, befre falling asleep, her arms around her head, covering any view of her face.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace let the cloth slowly slip away trough his fingers. "It's pretty" Would not fit... light the fires... She knew he was Furnace, and that was his task. So as the fires and hammer fit him the robe fit her? The robe was her tool, he didn't know for what, and thus he could not perform that task. Thus he was not fit. Furnace wondered what her task was. He recognised the patters as those in the sky. Since he'd seen them for the first time he had been unable to find ryme or reason for the lights up there Suddenly a shadow fel over him, as he looked up he saw a large figure fully encased in steel. The man smiled and called them 'friends' and asked them if they 'kept safe'. Furnace double checked. He was talking to them, though he saw no spark of recognition in the robe-user. He struggled to remember the word 'friend'. The voice had never used 'friend'. But the captors had. They had used it to describe each other when they weren't fighting. By the looks of this ironclad giant that seemed like a decent proposal. "Good day.. Friend... I keep no one..."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula wanted to leave, she wanted to hurry away and leave the village and disappear from memory like she always did. She was very conflicted right now, as well as uncomfortable. She knew the gnome meant her no harm, but Alula didn't like being around strangers. She heard the gnome mutter something about her robe, but she didn't comprehend it. The two stood in silence and although her stoic face didn't show it vivid hallucinations played out in front of her eyes. Flames sprouted out from the ground, but left no burn when they touched her skin. Phantom noises filled her ears, crying and screaming. And Alula was extremely distressed, but didn't show it physically. This had never happened before? Or had it? Her eyes went hazy again as she attempted to remember anything pass a few days ago. Nothing. But as quickly as they started the hallucinations of flames and sound stopped. They faded away, leaving Alula dazed and confused. Someone else, another stranger, had approached her and the gnome. And suddenly things seemed a little calmer, a bit more controlled. Alula pulled her hat down over her eyes as she spoke the voice of the other. "A splendent light but his own kindness keeps him in shackles." She kept the glow of her eyes hidden under her hat as she listened to the man speak. Under normal circumstances the man's smile would be welcoming and most likely comforting, but Alula was confused? Was this man her friend? "Calling someone friend is a way of showing you aren't hostile. He is trying to be polite." Oh. But this mad also said 'Good day' when had it become day? She looked up from under the brim of her hat. Yep. The bright light in the sky told her it was a clear day out. She pulled her hat back down. She didn't say anything as the gnome and the man started a conversation, she was far too dizzy. She didn't like meeting this many people in one day.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis had managed to find a decent bag, similar to the one he had though fortunately with hardier stitching. He look up from studying the leather at the wrinkled old face of the leather smith, he did this again a few more times, inspecting the bag and looking up at the man who seemed to have infinite patience. "Thell me Letherthmith," he said, through the scarf that covered his mouth, "Whath kind of lether ith thith." the old man replied quickly, betraying that he indeed make the bag and didn't buy bad quality ones at low price to re-sell later. "Stag leather," he said with pride, looking back to a pile of antlers in the corner of his little shack, "only the best." Vis nodded, feeling the rough interior and the smoothly finished exterior. It was indeed of good quality, it was stitched first with thread, then with thicker thread and over that with robust leather thread, it would hold. "Thirthy gold." said Vis, avoiding the eye contact of the man as it seemed he was staring at his blind green eye, it cast a circle on the old man's face that seemed to unnerve him as he noticed it produced light. "60." replied the man instantly, standing up a bit straighter as he sensed that a haggling war was about to ensue. By the end an agreement was reached, Vis payed 45 golden bits and got the bag thar he so desired and a set of stag antlers, seeing that he might as well get more worth for his pay and take something else, then to just get one thing. Satisfied with his purchase, he thanked the man and dumped his personal effects into the bag, his child's encyclopedia and the antlers; he didn't know what he was going to do with them but he figured it wouldn't hurt. As he made his way out of the market he tripped on an armored boot, looking up he almost shat himself at the paladin, who looked much bigger from the floor.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace The word 'shackles' resonated with Furnace. With eyes full of concern he studied the knights wrists and ankles. "What binds you fr-" Suddenly another tall figure came tumbling past between them. Did he trip over the chains? Furnace found no chains around the giants feet. He sighed in confused relief. He now stared at the creature that had fallen amidst them. Without blinking, without words.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver A splendid light, but his kindness keeps him bound. Carver furrowed his brow, confused. He was opening his mouth to reply to the girl when a tall man in a scarf stumbled over his feet and fell to the floor in front of him. "Apologies, friend!" Carver said, kneeling down to help the half-elf rise to his feet. "I didn't see you approach. Are you injured?" These words were meant to assuage the man's obvious fright at the sight of him - Carver hated being seen as scary, but sadly it sometimes came with the territory of wearing armor. The paladin looked back to the girl, who seemed faint and dizzy in the sun. Perhaps that was why the things she said made so little sense - was the heat getting to her? He placed a hand on her shoulder gently. "Milady, you don't look well. Perhaps you'd like to sit down in the shade?" He smiled back down at the scrawny gnome, still staring at the assembled figures wordlessly. "Come too, little one. We'll see what we can do about getting you something to eat."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula "Take a step back and take a look at the big picture, things about about to fall into place." Alula took this thought as a command, physically taking a step away from the small group. Maybe she needed to clear her mind? Would she understand? Or maybe the voice had a sense of humor, because within moments of Alula moving someone tripped over the knight and fell into the spot she was once standing. It would have been horrible if someone had bumped into her so suddenly. She watched in silence as the knight helped up the man who had tripped. "Pushed down many times, always to get up. Born of love and raised in the shadows." She placed a hand on her forehead, feeling quite dizzy and confused again. When had she stopped walking? Wasn't she going somewhere? Suddenly a distant voice, a knight. And a hand upon her shoulder. Alula immediately tensed up, vibrating as if being shaken at great speed. She stepped away from Carver, yanking her shoulder from his gentle grip. Her hat tipped back in her head, revealing her now brightly glowing eyes. She began to speak, but her voice sounded corrupted, like many voices speaking at once. "DO NOT TOUCH HER." A voice spoke in her mind, her head clearing. "He means you no harm, it was a gentle gesture. Alula blinked a few times, her enraged expression turning to one of confusion and embarrassment. She wasn't sure what to say, she was freezing up. "He wants to take you to the shade of the trees, to get you away from the crowd." Alula pulled the brim of her hat over her eyes, which had ceased glowing. She spoke slowly, slurred. "Um...yes the shade sounds nice." She took a step back towards Carver.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou From the moment she felt her hood gently shift, Suki had woken up. However, the unusually gentle action -unusual to her- was what kept her from springing out of her seat, and attacking the man. She would've preferred her scythe, but she had hid that on the outskirts of town. Such a large weapon drew curious gazes after all. Choosing to slip back into her dreams, her interest was perked as she heard the two men argue. It seemed they weren't looking for any trouble with her, or as a matter of fact, with anyone. They might have been looking for others. However, what really stuck with her, was that these two weren't discussing as if they had met a demon, but instead a normal person. "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Completely on the whim, Suki tossed that question out, while mentally regretting the decision already. Unfortunately, what has been said could not be retracted. Sitting up slowly, while allowing the hood of her cloak to drop, she smiled at the man closest to her. "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." Softly speaking, Suki half reprimanded the man, half teased, as she stood up, making sure the keep the rest of herself covered by the cloak.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded his thanks to the armored man and slowly bent down to scoop his bag up off the floor, he gave it a good dusting and slipped it back on, not taking his good eye off of the paladin and casting a circle of green light on his face with the bad one. "thank you.." mumbled Vis, awkwardly. He still had more things to go and buy but the paladin seemed to have a point, it was very warm outside for some reason and the heat seared Vis' pale skin. "I think thare ith a inn on tha wetht thide of the marketh, pathed ith by when I goth hear." he needed a drink after that much lisping, something to calm his nerves but he only drank in private, so it seemed he wouldn't be able to. Vis tightened his scarf around his face, just in a way it would stay on but not in a way it would show impressions of his scaring. "there ith altho an airy bar thomewhere near thare." Vis turned his eye away from the armored man and looked at the group he had accosted with his tripping, there was a scraggly gnome at his feet, reminding him of an ugly cat but he mentally slapped himself as he knew he wasn't that good looking himself. Then there was the woman cloaked in fine fabric, with the heavens printed on the inside, she spoke to him and Vis shuddered, her words felt strange to him, they came out in a way that sounded like she didn't know what she was saying, yet was very accurate. He kept his eyes on her, one to look at her and the other to cast a ghostly, green glow.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver withdrew his hand quickly at the strange voice's behest. That certainly wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting - glowing eyes and booming commands were usually confined to things paladins were expected either to worship or to kill, but as the girl tottered forward, pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her eyes, Carver was certain that neither of those reactions would be appropriate. No, his initial plan regarding the girl still seemed appropriate - she needed help. It took him a moment to realize the half-elf was talking, and with a severe lisp, too. Something about a tavern? That seemed like it would serve both for getting the girl out of the heat (and the crowd) and for getting the gnome some food. He smiled at the man. "A tavern sounds like a fine idea. Might I trouble you to take us there?" He glanced around at the company. "A bit of rest and a meal, and I'm sure we'll all be feeling right as rain, friends." He moved closer to the girl - not enough to risk triggering the same bizarre reaction, but enough that she could lean on him if she felt the need. He also extended a hand down to the gnome, hoping to prevent the small fellow from being lost in the crowd.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace entered the tavern and looked around. The room was filled with wooden constructs, living creatures and ceramics containing, what smelled like food. He didn't see a source for the food though. How did these people find it? Why decide to eat it here? Then he saw a creature with a large wooden plate stacked with cups. Distributing food to people. He noticed a pattern, she went by all the wooden circles and gave foot to those balanced around it. Furnace concluded that if they balanced on the small wooden constructs around the large wooden plates, they would get food. Following the pattern the barmaid followed Furnace chose a table that would soon be serviced. He took the cloth-wrapped bastard sword slung over his shoulder and carefully placed it leaning against the table. After sizing the chair up for a few seconds and studying the other patrons he got up on the seat and sat down cross-legged. Then he waited. If his guesses were correct food would now come to him.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ A scythe huh, that's an interesting weapon of choice, thought Separ as he continued to talk to this beautiful lady. However as he was listening to her, she seemed to lean forward and unbutton the top of her cloak, an action which surprised Separ. He stared closely for a second and realized he could see a small portion of her cleavage. Was she purposefully trying to make him look? Should he look? Can he? While Separ kind of wanted to take a peek he realized that wouldn't be a good idea. She was most likely just feeling a little hot and wanted some more air. He glanced to the side not wanting to stare at her chest and give off the wrong impression. "I believe you, after all you have no reason to lie right?" His voice had turned even more nervous now, as he wasn't sure quite what to do. "So, uh, welcome to the team I guess." He looked back at her and gave her a somewhat shy smile. Separ turned towards Kelvin and extended a hand, his palm facing the sky. "This here is Kelvin, and my name is Separ. If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" As he said this Separ had a lightbulb moment and turned towards Kelvin and nodded slightly. "I'm sorry, it seems I had forgotten to tell you my name earlier. Sorry about that."</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin Well, at least the other guy was going to keep his head on. Mostly. Not that Kelvin had done much better with that passing insult. A scythe? Scouting? Kelvin shook his head. If she had those skills, it was more concerning. What if she was part of a marauder's crew- luring unsuspecting travelers to the wrong road at the wrong hour. The thought made him shudder. It was just unnatural, for someone with a face like that to be alone in a town like this. Though, in retrospect, it was equally strange for an engineer to be hanging about the area as well. She leaned closer to them, his companion specifically, and murmured towards him, letting her cloak hang open a bit. Whelp. He was done here. Kelvin turned away smartly and sat down at her table, attempting to keep a straight face. Aren't you supposed to seduce them before you get what you want, rather than after? Not that he had experience in such things. Ah, Separ was his name. "It be alright, think nothing of it." Kelvin didn't look at either of them, looking pointedly to the side and then jumping, knocked over his chair and falling to the floor beside it. "What… who is that?!" A strange, whitish childlike creature was sitting on one of the seats beside him. Kelvin spluttered and recovered a bit. "Ah, hello there… little one."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched the half-elf for his reaction, and she couldn't help but think maybe she chose the wrong choice. He had looked mad, and she could feel that she had hurt his feelings. Her face kept neutral, but there was an argument going on in her head. She chose to ignore it, but her headache and dizziness were increasing. And after a few moments Alula had forgotten about what the voices were arguing over. Something about a voice? She knew plenty of those. Oh. They were walking now. She wasn't sure were they were going, or if she should go too. But after taking one teetering step forward she decided going with them was better then staying alone in a crowd. She allowed herself to lean on the paladin a few times, and although the touch of armor felt like a searing through her robes she did not fall. Several times while the small group was walking Alula asked where they were going, and every time she got an answer she soon forgot it and asked again. She also asked several other questions ranging from asking "what time is is" four times to questioning why the paladin was wearing so much armor. Walking into the bar was slightly less overwhelming then walking through the streets. It was still many thoughts being thrown at her at once, so many intermingling voices. But now several of them were drunk. And yet it was still a lot to take in. She opened her mouth, eyes dully glowing under her hat. "A gathering place for people of all kinds, the road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same and yet they end up here." She already felt far more comfortable being out of the heat, and although the bar was noisier she could barely hear them under the voices in her head. She watched as the gnome ran off to find a table, sitting with a few other people. Alula disliked the idea of having to be close to more people so quickly, and instead found herself wobbling over to a small table near the back of the room. All around her phantoms and hallucinations moved, ranging from the joyous to disastrous. From weddings to war. But she didn't mind, they were faded and quiet under a heavy cloud of alcohol.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace noted the other beings around the wooden circle had noticed him and one of them wished to trade words. He eyed the tall figure, he had a magnificent beard, he was tall but not as physically imposing as his new metal bound friend. The thing that stood out about this guy was not his appearance. Furnace tilted his head slightly without breaking eye contact with Kelvin. "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Once the group he had latched himself onto entered, Vis followed, closing the wooden door behind him. Once the merry group had entered, Vis veered to the left and towards the bar counter where the bartender stood and dried out rinsed tankards. "Ith there a chanth I can thake a thankard outh?" asked Vis, watching the man behind the counter dry out the mug. "Sorry mate, nothing leaves the tavern that's not yours." Vis sighed, he didn't like to drink or eat in public, he had to take off the scarf and let people see his gnarled up scar and exposed teeth, he didn't want that. He was about to walk away and find a seat but behind the barman was a sheld of unopened bottles of drink, waiting to be bought. One of the bottles caught his eye, it was a plain green bottle, slimmer and taller then most, with an all too familiar label; it was a bottle of ForestElf, Wildberries and Alderflowers and it was new, Vis didn't like aged. "How muth for tha ForethtElf?" Vis asked, he watched as the man reached up to get a bottle that sat next to the one that caught his eye, it was a lighter color and the wax around the cork was damaged, showing it had been watered down and re-sealed, "Tha fresh one pleath." said Vis patiently, as the man grumbled and brought down the unopened one. "40 gold," said the barkeeper, clearly disgruntled by his failed attempt at selling him watered down booze, "Special discount for you my lispy friend." "fiftheen gold and I'm noth your friend you con artitht." He glared at the man and rested his hand on his rapier, as the man dropped his hand under the counter, probably gripping a weapon. "40, you half-elf mongrel." "Fiftheen, you gold pinthing donkey."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver stepped beside the half-elf and put a hand on his shoulder, smiling at the barkeeper. "No need to ruin this good day with... regrettable actions, friends. What do we say to thirty gold, and I'll put up half of it... provided you share some with our new friends, of course." It was obvious so far that the barkeep was a cheat and a swindler, and in another time Carver would have loved to have words with him on the subject. However, not on such a fine day, in so crowded a place, with friends in need of care nearby. The priority right now was diffusing the situation. "How much for something hot for my diminutive friend, good man?" He gestured back to the gnome sitting nearby, who looked to be sniffing at a bearded stranger. The man didn't seem offended by this, so that was good. Carver jingled his coin purse and was disheartened by its lightness - a life of charity had taken a toll on his funds, it seemed. He'd need to find some form of income soon, but that could wait.</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep looks Carver up and down, "For a respectful man such as yourself, 30 pieces is fine, as for food, that'll be 20 pieces for a nice hot meal." The barkeep brings the down the bottle and holds out his hand, waiting to be paid.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis, shook off Carver's hand and just glared at the barman, ignoring the paladin's offer after hearing the lightness of his pouch, he was too prideful at that moment to accept help and he didn't see it fair to take from someone who had little to begin with. "I'll pay thirthy." growled Vis through clenched teeth, his green eye casting a bright shaft of light at the barman's face. "Fifty." replied the barman, seeing that Vis was willing to pay more, the man smirked. In no mood to barter any further, Vis shoved his fist into the his coin pouched and clenched about half in his fist before throwing them at the taverner's face and snatched the bottle from his grubby clutches, "What the f-!" "You goth tha money, now shuth up!" yelled Vis, not caring who heard him. He turned around and let the paladin get what he wanted from the disgruntled man picking up coins from the floor. Vis found a secluded seat in a dark corner and popped the cork from the bottle, he took a deep whiff of it's smell, 'the smell of home.' he thought, remembering that the brewery was in his home town. He was about to lower his scarf to drink but he noticed a faint white glow coming from his blind, left side. He turned to see the girl in the pointy hat, he groaned, not seeing her as she was on his left side. Sp he went over to another seat, farther into the corner and away from the zoned out woman. As he sat there, on his own, he glanced at the girl in the pointy hat.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Well, since your friend there is so rude, you have to be the normal price, 35 pieces for a nice meal." He sneered at the paladin, then looking at the rogue, "And if he causes any trouble, I expect you to take care of him because you won't like how I do it."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the irritated half-elf storm off and shook his head sadly. If the man wanted to be surly, that was his own business; at least there hadn't been a confrontation. He removed the thirty-five coins from his (now even lighter) coinpurse and slid it across the counter to the barkeep. "A hot meal, then, for the gnome." The barkeep pocketed the money and barked an order to a barmaid. Carver leaned in closer to the man then, still smiling with his mouth, if not with his eyes. "Yes, I will take care of any trouble. And perhaps, another time, you and I may have a discussion about your business practices, and you will not like how I do that." This done, Carver turned and crossed the crowded room back to where the gnome was seated, alongside three others. One was the bearded man that the gnome had been speaking with, while the other two, a muscular looking young man and a very... shapely young woman seemed to be either arguing or flirting. Carver furrowed his brow at the girl. Though looking at her appealed to his baser urges, the higher part of his mind found something undisputably off about her. This was someone who did not know the love of the sun. He sat down next to them and patted the gnome on the back. "Food on its way, my diminutive friend." Just then, a barmaid set a sizeable bowl of stew in front of the gnome and was quickly off. He smiled at the others and nodded his head. "A fine day, friends. Hope you have a seat for another."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis gripped the neck of the bottle tight and his knuckles went white, 'what's with people and my lisp?!' he thought to himself before taking another swig to calm his nerves. "three, with you bring tha third." he took another long draw from his bottle and felt the passivizing rush I got from well rounded fluid, "whath ith it thath you wanth from me?" he asked bluntly, slipping the drink forward to her and pulling his scarf back over his mouth, putting his hands behind his head to tighten it up. His eyes flicked back to the lazy eyed mystic and then to the hooded girl in front of him. "How about you take off your hood?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace happily accepted the bowl. To his surprise the food was already warm. Cautiously he put the stew to lips and imediately he was assaulted by a storm of new flavors. This was without a shadow of a doubt his new definition of 'food'. Whatever the stale goop was he had been given all these years, it could no longer do justice to the word. Rapidly he wolfed the soup down as he followed the conversations around the table. This figure was boasting to his steel friend about how many friends he had aquired, and how he was planning to make more. He must be a powerfull entity to hold so many pacts at once.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula kept in her own corner of the bar, silently observing the patrons around her. This was all rather new to her, or at least she thought it felt new. Several times while sitting a barmaid would walk over to her and ask if she needed anything. Alula would turn them away, flustered, every time. What did that even mean? Was this woman implying that something was wrong with her? No, this certainly couldn't be the case. Alula understood the barmaid. She muttered softly. "Always the maiden and never the man. Working hard to make her place. One day to bark the orders." Her hazy eyes looked over, watching as the half-elf and then the Paladin tried to haggle with the barkeep for food and drink. She could tell the man was lying. Everything in his keeping was extremely overpriced, aimed at the drunk and the desperate. All the man cared for was material wealth. Eventually the paladin received food for the small man and the half-elf carried away as bottle of wine. Alula found herself liking the paladin more and more, his kindness for others was strangely relaxing. Alula watched with a strange transfixion as the half elf took a seat, away from the others. There was something odd about the bottle he had, something that reminded her of something. Her head was swimming, and the voices only seemed to be getting louder and louder as she tried to figure out what was causing such a strong sense of nostalgia. A gentle voice spoke above the rest. "You appear to be staring at the half-elf, and he is staring back. You are making him uncomfortable." Alula hadn't realized she had been looking at him for so long, and with such pained expression. She quickly tore her eyes away from the half-elf and the bottle. And immediately the voices ceased. That was strange. But what was stranger was who next approached the half-elf, another girl. But something was extremely different about this girl, the voices agreed. Alula allowed herself to give into the temptation of looking back over at the table, but wished she hadn't she felt extremely flustered for some reason, tugging her hat back over her eyes and facing away from the half-elfs table. "You and the girl are quite different. You coverup for shame, and she undresses for survival." "A woman raised in a world of hate and dark, now depends on humans for survival. Her hunger is carnivorous."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "She should have some of this food." Furnace set the thuroughly emptied bowl in front of him with a loud thud. Curiously he looked at Alula, failing to make eye contact. "Do you not enjoy the light?" he inquired after her hiding.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver patted the gnome on the back as he devoured the meal. He saw that the woman had gone to sit with the half-elf; a troubling alliance, possibly, but not one that seemed to pose an immediate danger. The strong-looking man has asked him a question, he realized. The offer was a tempting one - he was already traveling, and friends were good to have, especially when one was as poor as he was. "I'd be glad to travel with you, friend." He extended an armored hand. "My name is Sir Carver. A pleasure to make your aquaintance." Although... He coughed slightly. "However, I feel honor-bound to see to the well-being of my new friends," he said, gesturing to the gnome and to the corner, where the strange girl sat. "Perhaps you could propose them the same question, and we may all go off together? I'm not sure I could leave either in the same state I found them."</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting." Kelvin's eyes widened slightly, and a small grin stretched across his lips. Interesting. "I like this one." Kelvin slowly uprighted the stool and slid back onto it, settling to examine this being. He barely acknowledged when the cloaked woman moved away, excusing herself to ask around. It was possible she would have more luck, if for the wrong reasons. Yet... Separ had introduced them both, yet she had still avoided giving a name. He stroked his beard, considering. Strange. He turned his attention back to the gnome as food was brought, and watched the being down it in fascination. "Forty three seconds." Kelvin whispered to himself softly as the gnome slammed the bowl down. Behind him, Separ had already requesitioned the knight into their group. Curver, cover, something like that. He hadn't been paying to much attention to the last part. However, as far as the gnome went... "I don't mind spending time with this one." Kelvin turned on the stool and jerked a thumb towards the gnome. "Separ's in charge as far as I am concerned though." A thought occured, and Kelvin eagerly swung down his backpack, pulling out a long, stiff tube about as long as his forearm. The fuse was curled up and tied with a bit of string to make it compact. He held it out in front of the gnome, careful to keep it out of reach. "What do you make of this then?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki smiled lightly as she heard the rather expected response. As a matter of fact, she was expecting a number larger than three. Of course, this half-elf seemed rather anti-social, if this was how he normally talked, questioning what one wanted from him. Deciding to actually do as she had said, and ask for companions, she answered "It isn't anything really to difficualt. Just join up with 'him'-' here, she stopped talking to casually point towards the one she knew as Separ. "- on his idea of an adventure." Noticing the rather blunt action of sliding the bottle of alcohol towards her, she looked at it with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion, before daintily reaching out and grabbing in. Taking a whiff, and enjoying the aroma of the drink, she had just poured a little bit of it in her mouth when the half-elf ask her to take off the hood. Nearly choking on the drink in surprise, she coughed several times, before finally settling down. "You have your reason to stay covered up, I have mine." Although rather roundabout, her answer was a definite negative in regards to his question.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis shrugged the retrieved his bottle of wine from the other side of the table, taking a long slow draw from it and feeling the liquid being drawn down his throat and ending with a warming splash in his stomach. "Tho be ith.." he slurred slightly before regaining control, "I'll think abouth ith." slowly Vis rose from the chair on unsteady feet and recorked the bottle of booze, putting it in it's rightful place, his bag. He began to make his way to the door but suddenly, his foot caught on a chair leg and he went down like a tree, slamming into the flower with a dense crash, though luckily the bottle of wine was unbroken. He looked up from the floor to see what he tripped on but all he saw was stars and a pointy hat, usually a few sips of wine didn't make him this tipsy.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was not sure what had happened, but she was currently on the ground. Only moments ago she had gotten out of her seat, with the intent of walking over to the paladin and thanking him for escorting her to the bar and then leaving. She had cooled down enough to feel like it was time for her to leave town, she had had enough of strangers and confusion for the day. And once it came nightfall she knew she needed to be away from others. But she never made it to the table where he was sitting Because now she was on the floor. Someone the two of them, with their uncertain steps, collided. It would have been easy to knock Alula off her feet, she already has enough trouble walking with her limp. As soon as the half-elf and Alula collided it was as if someone sent embers through her veins, it burned. Under normal circumstances someone would probably get up and apologize for being so careless. But Alula was not a normal circumstance. With a growl Alula leapt to her feet, all traces of sluggishness and cripples gone, and pointed her staff dangerously close to Vis. She hat remained on the floor, her white hair brightly glowing and matching her illuminated eyes. The dislocated and warped voice again spoke through Alula in a threatening and hostile tone. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" She raised her staff above her head, as if ready to strike the half-elf with it, but she suddenly stopped when a voice spoke to her. "The man means her no danger, it was an accident." As if a light switch had been hit, Alula stopped glowing. Her expression looked shocked and scared. She dropped her staff to the floor with a heavy clunk, and reached up to pull down the brim of her hat, only to realize it wasn't there. She instead covered her eyes with her hands, not sure how to react.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis did not know how to react, so he remained petrified on the floor, staring up in abject horror as the drunkness quickly vacated his body to leave abject soberness. He did not expect such a violent reaction from her, and her staff could have crushed him with ease, esspecially with her new found vigor. But when she started to slow down, his mind went from fear to sympathy, she too had something to hide and noe she didn't have her means to hide it. He looked around on the floor for it but the hat seemed to have vanished, so he slowly brought himself from the floor and with a hesitant, reluctant hand, untied the scarf from around his face, revealing the large gash down it's side that was hidden for so long, exposing all his teeth and even some jaw bone. Vis draped the scarf over her head in a way that it acted like a hood that she could draw over her eyes if she needed to.</s> <\|message\|>Des Everyone in the tavern looked over as the oracle raged. But after Vis took off his scarf, most looked away. Those that kept looking either gave a disgusted look or throw up. One brave soul felt the need to say something, it was the barkeep, "Hey, what did I say about you causing trouble in my tavern, cover your disgusting mess of a face up or get out."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver was up from the table and across the inn almost immediately. He saw the elf remove his scarf, revealing the disfigured face within - but to Carver, he had revealed something else; a character of fairness unsuited to his features. He had shown compassion, in his actions - this was a good man. Then the barkeep opened his mouth, and Carver clenched a fist. A liar, a cheat, a cruel man who spat in the face of kindness. Trying to muster all the gentleness he could in that moment, he put a hand, gingerly, on the girl's shoulders. "You don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "Nobody here will harm you." That done, he retreated his hand and turned to the bar. "You cheat," he said, slowly, steadily, his voice gaining power with every word. "You lie. You prey on the innocent, the drunk, the vulnerable. You spit in the face of an honorable man. You are arrogant, greedy, and cruel, and you know not the love of the sun." He was shouting now, and he rested a both fists on the bar. "My name is Sir Carver. I am a Paladin of the Sun, and I bring these charges before you. What say you in your defense?"</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis did not know how to react, so he remained petrified on the floor, staring up in abject horror as the drunkness quickly vacated his body to leave abject soberness. He did not expect such a violent reaction from her, and her staff could have crushed him with ease, esspecially with her new found vigor. But when she started to slow down, his mind went from fear to sympathy, she too had something to hide and noe she didn't have her means to hide it. He looked around on the floor for it but the hat seemed to have vanished, so he slowly brought himself from the floor and with a hesitant, reluctant hand, untied the scarf from around his face, revealing the large gash down it's side that was hidden for so long, exposing all his teeth and even some jaw bone. Vis draped the scarf over her head in a way that it acted like a hood that she could draw over her eyes if she needed to.</s> <\|message\|>Des Everyone in the tavern looked over as the oracle raged. But after Vis took off his scarf, most looked away. Those that kept looking either gave a disgusted look or throw up. One brave soul felt the need to say something, it was the barkeep, "Hey, what did I say about you causing trouble in my tavern, cover your disgusting mess of a face up or get out."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was up from the table and across the inn almost immediately. He saw the elf remove his scarf, revealing the disfigured face within - but to Carver, he had revealed something else; a character of fairness unsuited to his features. He had shown compassion, in his actions - this was a good man. Then the barkeep opened his mouth, and Carver clenched a fist. A liar, a cheat, a cruel man who spat in the face of kindness. Trying to muster all the gentleness he could in that moment, he put a hand, gingerly, on the girl's shoulders. "You don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "Nobody here will harm you." That done, he retreated his hand and turned to the bar. "You cheat," he said, slowly, steadily, his voice gaining power with every word. "You lie. You prey on the innocent, the drunk, the vulnerable. You spit in the face of an honorable man. You are arrogant, greedy, and cruel, and you know not the love of the sun." He was shouting now, and he rested a both fists on the bar. "My name is Sir Carver. I am a Paladin of the Sun, and I bring these charges before you. What say you in your defense?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had stayed with her hands over her eyes for a few moments, not noticing as the half-elf stood up. She had far too busy panicking about what had just happened, what she could have done. She felt like hyperventilating and running, but her body was frozen. She could feel the entire bar staring at her, and she felt the need to fall back to the floor and hide. What happened next surprised her. She expected the man to run away, many had before, but instead she felt something being placed over her head. It wasn't her hat, but a piece of cloth. He was helping her hide her face. She again felt a lose for words at his kindness. She uttered a soft and slurred "Thank...you." From under the cloth. More gentle touches, this time from the man in the armor. She winced, bracing herself for the burn that she knew was coming, but she never felt the pain. That was new. Even his words held a kindness that was foreign to Alula. She could hear the paladin calling the barkeep out on his actions, but his words felt far away and faded.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Watching as the half-elf had stumbled into the female that reminded her of the night, the sudden escalation into what could only be said to be a possession occurred. Suki had no other words to describe the phenomenon. However, it seems that it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, and the woman was left standing there in embarrassment. Raising an eyebrow at the half-elf taking off the scarf, only to smile subconsciously at the kind act of making a makeshift hood for the other woman. Making her way over, she undid the clasps on her cloak, before slipping it off, revealing her body accented by her dress to the tavern. Taking the cloak, she slipped it over the half-elf, making sure the hood covered his face, just as it had for herself. "It seems your reasons are far more important than mine for the moment." Quietly whispering these words to the half-elf alone, she sighed, before muttering "I'll fix this." yo the others in the 'adventure group', before slowly walking towards the barkeeper, drawing just about every male gaze towards her. Reaching the keeper, she smiled, before leaning forward, hands held behind her back, subtlety pushing out her chest. "Is it alright for you to let this incident slip by~?" Whispering such words with a seductive tone, she winked.</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep stared straight back at Carver and spat in his face, "Yeah, and now I've spit in the face of a dishonorable man, this is my tavern, and I prefer it to be a relaxing place for my customers so they won't be disturbed and if you can't tell by their faces, his is pretty disturbing." The barkeep gestured to all of his customers, "They don't want to see THAT, and if you think you can disrespect and insult me in my place of business, then you thought wrong, you, your disfigured friend, the little one that you brought in, and the starry chick, can get thefuck out of my establishment!" -Edit since I got ninja'd : "And you," He shouted at the necromancer, "If you think that flashing your breasts are going to keep your friends in my bar, then you can get out too!"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Carver, huh? That's a nice name you got there. Is that your real name or do you just carve your enemies with one slice?" Separ asked, laughing at his own joke. "But seriously, I'm glad I could persuade you to join the team, and I will happily ask your comrades as well. After all the more the merrier, right?" As he said this Separ quickly stood up and looked at both the childlike gnome and the girl who's body was practically covered by robes. Kelvin seemed to be talking to the gnome though so it probably wasn't a good idea to interrupt them for now, or at least to Separ it wasn't. Separ instead made his way over to the girl only to watch a man with a scarf over his face bump into her which in turn caused both of them to hit the ground. Separ watched as her hat fell off flying under an occupied table. Separ quickly talked with the men so he could get them to move out of the way. The men at the table complained as they were drunk, but relunctantly obliged in the end. After obtaining the hat Separ moved towards the girl, and to his surprise heard her scream. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" The girl then raised her staff before dropping it to the ground, probably figuring it best to not go through with her actions. This stunned Separ, but he ultimately feeled like she had a reason for saying it, after all Carver had not wanted to leave her alone. Perhaps she was under a lot of stress, or maybe something traumatic had happened to her? Either way, this girl seemed nice and merciful, she as Separ expected, was most likely a good person. He quickly walked over only to see the man put his scarf over her face, an act which may not have seemed so great, had the man not been disfigured. Separ actually became frightened of him due to his disfiguration for a moment, not because he was disfigured, but rather because he reminded Separ of the undead. Either way Separ wished he could have him join the team, though Separ did berate himself for being scared of the man, surely this guy must have put up with other people thinking the same thing before. Separ did not want to be just another person that would laugh, point, or be disgusted by something so trivial. You fool, he's alive, you have nothing to worry about. Separ paused for a moment unsure of himself, but finally pressed onwards just as the other attractive girl put her cloak over him. Carver then got in a fight with the bartender and the same girl tried to seduce the man into calming down only it didn't seem to work very well. Tapping the girl on the shoulder Separ handed her the hat. "Here you go, Miss, now if you'll excuse me." Enough was enough, this bartender had gone to far trying to kick someone out because of there looks. Walking up to the bartender Separ pulled out 10 gold pieces, and holding out his hand, grabbed the bartender's right hand with his free hand and plopped it right in the man's palm. "Use this money," Separ's words turned into that of yelling as he threw a wild punch filled with ferocity at the bartender's head. "TO PAY FOR YOUR HOSPITAL BILLS!!!"</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep quickly pulled out the sword he kept behind the counter and blocked the attack, leaving a large gash in Separ's hand and nearly causing him to lose a finger, "It's going to take more then ten gold pieces to pay to fix that, now get out of my sight before I call the town guard on all of you." The barkeep ripped the sword from Separ's hand causing him to bleed profusely and wiped the blood off of his blade with a napkin, "If I have to get the guard, then they will cause a whole lot more damage than that."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Things in the tavern seemed to be heating up. The yelling fest between the barkeep and several of the people, people she was at least slightly acquainted with, continued to grow to the point where Alula was beginning to feel anxious again. She didn't want anyone getting in trouble. She allowed herself to peek out from under the cloth. The half-elf now had a cape, the woman was flirting with the barkeep and the paladin looked almost as red as the sun. Suddenly she was being tapped on the shoulder, a wave of flame passing under her skin. And her hat was being pressed into her hand. She felt the iron heaviness in her gut loosen slighted when she was reunited with her hat. She placed the hat atop her head where it belonged, but kept the cloth in her hands, perhaps not quite ready to part with one of the first physical gifts she had ever received. She was about to timidly thank the man, when she watched him walk right up to the barkeep and attempt to sock him right in the face, only to recieve a bloody hand. Alula let out a shiver, they were in big trouble now. She gripped the cloth in her hands anxiously.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Hold on my friend-" Kelvin turned at the sound of a scream, and the entire tavern just broke apart, people shouting and yelling. The one guy looked like a necromancer had taken his face apart and stuck it back together, the girl had ditched the cloak- finally revealing the full suspicious nature of her beauty. Then suddenly the knight starts going off on the bartender, the bartender spits in the guys face. All chaotically thrown together. Kelvin stood up and moved closer, relaxing a bit as Separ moved towards the man. He would cool this down. ... ... ... nope. He lunged to pull the guy back before it was too late... and missed. Damn. It was quite impressive how quickly the barman had responded. And a bit scary. Kelvin groaned, considering. The knight was almost sure to respond violently to that. "Alright, that's enough." Kelvin stepped forward and slid between the knight and the counter, turning and attempting to shove the man towards the door before turning and attempting to loop an arm around Separ's shoulders to move him towards the door. "Come on already! You too little guy." He glared at the girls each in turn, not sparing the man with the messed up face either. He shoved the stick of dynamite into his pocket. "GET. OUT."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver saw the sword come out in slow motion, but its arc was complete before he had time to shout a warning. Blood had been spilled - there could be no doubt that the barkeep was deserving of punishment. But... not today. Not with the gnome, and the girl, and an already injured friend. Certainly not with the rest of the crowd, who seemed like they might choose the side of the local swindler over the foreign knight. The bearded man grabbed Separ, attempting to pull hims back and call for a retreat. The idea was a sound one. Carver spoke, not breaking eye contact with the barkeep. "This villain will face a judgement, friends - of his own making. A life lived in adversity to the right can have no other outcome. But perhaps now is not the time." He looked across the room, making eye contact with each of the strangers - the gnome, the scarred half-elf, the girl, the bearded man, the injured adventurer, even the woman with the air of evil about her who had tried to soothe tensions. "Let us leave, for now. The sun is too high for bloodshed." The words burned Carver's heart as he said them, but they were true. He promised himself that he would see this man punished one day, but for now he hoped the strangers would take his words to heart.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "I see. Bartenders are simple, but hard to handle." Furnace listened to Separ apologise and wondered what he meant. Had they made a pact before saying he wouldn't fight bartenders? Breaking a sword with bare hands sounded strange. "Wouldn't you just use a hammer or heavy blade for something like that?" Furnace put his hands together again and reignited the white golden coil of lightning between his palms. "Relax the muscles in your hand." He held his hands around the cuts on Separ's knuckles. Bright sparks jumped from his left hand onto the cuts and ran along the edges of wounded flesh until they reached his other hand. The current of positive energy tingled pleasantly, and Separ could feel a comfortable warmth flow from his hand through his body. Surging trough his muscles he felt an energising boost. The wounds closed further, fading the scars further. Showing only thin white lines. "The scars fade with more healing." Furnace explained while he healed the other hand. When he was done Furnace stepped back and the lights flickered out. "How do you feel now?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver put his hand over his breast. "Your humility does you credit, friend Separ, but you need feel no shame for your actions. You did what you thought was best, and put yourself in harm's way for the sake of another. I think you are very noble - it would be my privilege to journey with one of such spirit." The paladin smiled fondly down at the gnome as set his energy to the man's injuries. "Aha! Our diminutive friend shows talent. Fear not, I will speak to the girl - see if I'm unable to convince her." He approached her, still standing where she had been speaking to the half-elf. "I understand that you are afraid. It's a very sudden offer, to go off journeying with strangers. I don't know much about you save that you have some power, and it frightens you." He smiled. "But you don't have to be frightened anymore." The gnome's childlike curiousity and bizarre manner. The half-elf's bitterness, surliness, and surprising gentleness. Separ's spirit, his temper, his headstrong approach to his problems. The girl's shyness, her fear, the strange power she clearly possessed. These people were innocents, trying to make their way in the world. And innocents needed to be protected. That's what Carver could do, he realized. He could protect them. In a daze, he drew his sword and planted in the ground at the girl's feet. He dropped to one knee, places his hands upon his hilt, closed his eyes. "In terror of the night, the sun is our greatest deliverance. If we should journey together, my lady, I swear on my honor that no harm will come to you. As long as I draw breath, I will keep you safe. All of you." He rose, and sheathed his sword.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had decided not to press matters into the half-elf. If he wanted his space she would grant it to him. And keeping the scarf was a nice addition, she would have to find a nice place to keep it. Or maybe she would find a way to attach it to her robes. She was quite happy to know that her keeping his scarf was not the source of his sorrow, but if not that then why was he upset? She stood up, turning around right as the paladin began speaking to her. She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes, although she tried to resist. The paladin could read her pretty well. She didn't like the unknown, and a lot of things were unknown and confusing to her. Going on a random adventure with a bunch of strangers seemed to be a horrible choice. What the man said next about her powers baffled her. She did indeed have 'some power' but did it scare her? Well maybe a little. She wasn't sure why, but it did indeed scare her knowing what she could do and become. She muttered softly. "Control and restraint are the byproducts of fear. But survival is as well." And in a strange change of events the paladin dropped to one knee, his sword planted in the ground by her feet. He was making a vow, to protect them. Sarcastic voices filled her head, saying that the moon was far superior to the sun and that there are more terrors in the day then the night, but she kept these quiet. The man was clearly doing something important. These vows were obviously serious things. From his lower position, if Carver was paying attention to her face, he would be able to see that her eyes looked strangely clear. Nothing like normal eyes should, but it showed that she might actually be understanding. Perhaps an adventure would be good for her. And as Carver rose she again covered her eyes, but her smile was visible. Her voice was slurred. "Well...how could I...resist such an...offer..." Yep, she was on board. She just hoped this would be the right choice.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin He could only sigh as their fearless leader resisted him and Carver, going for another punch. Again, the bartender's reflexes bested fist with blade. That was going to need some stitches. Slowly though, their group filtered out. The madness was ending. Kelvin took the time to toss his pack up onto their table, stowing the dynamite back inside, tightening straps before slinging it back onto his back. He paused and straightened the chairs before returning to face the barkeeper. "I apologize for my companions rash actions." Kelvin grimaced, but forced himself to bow to the other man."I have known them less than an hour, but I already know this will be a long journey." He straightened, and then turned to leave before noticing the girl, her cloak draped over her again. He sighed. Kelvin still didn't agree with her presence, unanswered questions. She had tried to help though. "Hey," He gently tapped her head and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "You are still welcome to join us, if you are brave enough." That said, he turned and strode out, joining their party outside the building. He didn't mix though, instead choosing to stay back a bit and wait for them to talk it out. There were other productive things to do though. Kelvin sat down off to the side of the road and pulled his pack down next to him, removing the components for his crossbow. He was meticulous, carefully adjusting the metal arms, keeping them balanced as he strung it- piecing together the clip and screwing it together before assembling the trigger system. Done, he finally stood, hiking up his pack and braided the cord into a sling for the crossbow. This way it could hang out of the way at his side until he needed it. He was ready.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ could feel warmth slowly seeping into his hands and his entire body, slowly replenishing his strength. When the gnome was done healing him Separ felt energized, yet at the same time tired, and a bit sore. "I...I feel a lot better actually. Though I still feel quite exhausted." Separ clenched his fist. [i]It's numb, I probably just need some rest though.[i] "Thank you for your help. Oh, and would you be interested in joining our group? We're going to go explore and go on adventures and stuff, though I'll understand if you say no after that embarassing moment in the bar." Separ shook his head trying to forget it before watching Kelvin step out of the building. "Please think about it, but for now I have some business to attend to. If you'll excuse me" And with that Separ strode towards Kelvin, and facing him gave him a small bow. "I'm sorry for my actions in there Kelvin, I should have thought more calmly about the situation, it's just, no, no excuses. I should not have caused a scene like that, and truthfully I am sorry. Do you still want to be a part of my group? I honestly won't blame you if you say no, as I acted like an idiot back there. Sorry!" Separ ended his bow and looked back at Kelvin, a look of regret on his face. Sure he was happy so many people had agreed to stay, yet he still felt terrible about losing control and possibly endangering others as well.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded at the girl's acceptance and broke into a broad, warm grin. "Excellent! You shall not regret this decision!" He turned, and called over to Separ, "She'll be joining us, friend!" He turned back and suddenly clapped his hand over his forehead. "By the sun, forgive my rudeness, I still haven't asked your name. I am Sir Carver, Paladin of the Sun. In case you didn't hear when I... um... lost my temper, in there, a moment ago." A very merry company of adventurers they were turning out to be. Carver hoped that the gnome and the half-elf would agree to join them, as well - both seemed like people in need of some looking out for.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Explore. All he'd ever wanted was to see the world for himself. "I'll come with you too. I am Furnace and I'm sorry for uhm.." He looked at Separ and Carver, looking for a clue. When he couldn't think of anything he just shyly shrugged.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Having cried the last of his tears, Vis rose from the floor, using the wall as support. He looked around through tires eyes to see where everyone hade gone, the man who had punched the sword was some ways away with the gnome and the paladin and girl with white hair were but a few feet away and he could hear snippets of their conversation through his deaf ear, they were on his left side. He looked to them and slowly the flickering green light of his eye stabilized into a a dull muted green, having rid himself of his obvious emotions. He approached them, feeling a terribly uncomfortable without a scarf around his face, showing his gnarled cheek in broad day light, he approached them. "If'n thare ith adfenture infolfed, you can counth me in." Though the past 10 minutes had shaken Vis, it would dissuade him from adventuring, if he were to give up so easily, he would have turned home after his eye had been cursed and avoided having his face and ear wrecked. Vis rested his hand on the pommel of his rapier, he was nervous they wouldn't have him.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched as the paladin called over to the punching man. Was he the leader of the party? Alula wouldn't have been surprised, he seemed enthusiastic enough to be a leader but maybe a bit too enthusiastic. He had attacked the barkeep rather quickly, it only took a handful of insults to set the man off. Not only that but he also was defeated in the fight between them, not really thinking before punching a man proficient with a sword. Alula shook her head, she shouldn't be so hard on the man. If they were willing to take her along then she should at least wait before casting judgment. And then the Paladin turned back to her, introducing herself. Alula tried to not show the frown on her face. She was really bad at remembering names. She hoped she would at least be able to remember the paladins name, but more likely then not he would be receiving a nickname soon. Had he really lost his temper? She couldn't remember. What really amused her was that he called himself a paladin of the sun. Yep. They were going to have fun with this. "Three things shine before the world and cannot be hidden. They are the moon, the sun, and the truth." The voice sounded sarcastic and Alula couldn't help but giggle out loud, briefly forgetting that no one but herself could hear them. She watched as the half-elf came over, perhaps finished with his crying, and the gnome introduced himself. What an odd group she had begun to associate with. She was glad to see the half-elf would be coming along as well, and the gnome seemed like good company as well. She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes. "I am Alula...at your service..."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver grinned at the girl's cryptic words. "Four things. You forgot about good cheer." He laughed as though to illustrate, and bowed deeply. "A pleasure to meet you, Lady Alula. I am at your service." The paladin then turned to clap the half-elf on the back. He was greatly pleased to hear of the man's acceptance - surly and ill-tempered as he seemed, his actions had proven to Carver that the man was possessed of a gentle soul. "Good man! You've made an excellent choice, friend. It is ever a great privilege to journey alongside those so fair of spirit." He looked over to the gnome. "That goes for you as well, friend." The company was coming together. There just seemed to Carver to be one thing missing - the black-haired woman with evil in the air around her. Truth be told, Carver wouldn't have minded if the party left without her, save for the fact that he wasn't sure that he could leave this town in her hands. At least if she accompanied them, he could keep an eye on her. "Separ," he called out. "What of that woman who was speaking to you in the bar? Will she be joining us?"</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver caught the woman's gaze and held it as she joined the group. Then she knew. He knew, she knew, he knew she knew, she knew he knew, and she had better know he knew she knew. Of course, that still left the matter of what exactly he knew, but that could come later. If the woman was aware that the Paladin knew what she was, perhaps she'd be on her best behavior. That'd be enough for now. Alula stepped behind him, as though concealing herself from the rest of the group. That fear wasn't ideal, but it was to be expected. The girl would be joining them - Carver was sure she'd come around to them later. "Ah. Supplies. Let's see!" Carver took his pack and began rooting around inside it. "I have... ten gold coins, not bad... this looks like a crust of bread... and, um, a rock." Carver tossed the stone out of his bag and slung it back over his shoulder, smiling sheepishly. "Uh... sorry, I won't be much help on that front. Sounds like Alula might, though. And I imagine that the traditional method of 'asking the barkeeper for rumours' has been ruled out?" The paladin grinned at his own jest and looked to his party for direction.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis raised his voice, "I belief thath we should pool thome coin to buy thupplies for all uf uth." they shouldn't be depending on individual supplies, some most likely didn't have any, Vis supposed, him only having 60 coins, a set of stag antlers and a child's enyclopedia. He took a long hard look at his group, casting green light on every member to scrutinize them, they had a paladin, a sword puncher, a gnome, a rather curvaceous woman and another woman who looked a bit out of it; he could tell that the adventure was going to be something. "Leth all chip in thome coin and buy rathions, things thath will latht a while. Green appleth, hard loafths of bread, dried meath." he had been on the road for a long time and understood what to bring and what not to bring, from personal experience of finding that all the food had rotted in his bag. "And wather thacks." Vis whinced internally, every time he lisped.</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose had paid the barkeeper a nice sum of coin for her cooking set. She had not needed it but she really had not reason not to by it. She had no need for the wealth that came from her wanderer adventurer occupation. Also, She was travelling alone. She had no one other than herself to cook for. She had been alone for a while and even if she wanted. She had entered the tavern with the hopes of spending the night and maybe get some work. She had been upstairs in a room she had rented for the night preparing her things for tomorrow when a commotion occurred downstairs. She walked downstairs armed and ready to defend herself. When she got downstairs it looked like she missed everything. A little annoyed she did not get any action, she wandered outside. Outside she overheard a group talk about getting together for an andventure. Rose wasted no time taking up the opportunity. Rose walks up to the group of adventurers and loudly introduces herself, "Greetings, everyone. I am Rose Anew. Also known simply as Phoenix. I could not help but overhear that all y'all are going on a journey together. I would humbly like to join your group. I am an exceptional front line fighter. Sword and magic are my specialty. I am also a good cook. That should be a plus." Rose was worried she appeared to formal but she did not want to let it show. It would make her look nervous and insecure.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly studied the supplies of Carver, Alula, and the scarf wearing elf. Carver barely seemed to have anything, Alula on the other hand seemed to have tons of gold, as well as some miscellaneous items that Separ could make neither heads nor tails of. Lastly the scarf wearin elf seemed to have a modest sum of money as well as some various items which made Separ question why he had them in the first place. Disregarding those items Separ listened to the elf talk about buying various food items and such, only for a girl who identified herself as Rose Anew, aka 'Phoenix' to step forward and ask if she could go along with the group. Separ was immediately impressed by her, as she said she was both a capable fighter and a great cook. "A fighter and a cook? You've instantly sold me, I'm happy you could be on the team. So what kind of dishes do you specialize in?" Separ then looked around at his fellow group members. "No one has any objections right?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Everyone found gold? I think we have enough for a sword or two." Furnace held his heavy bag of coins and shook the bag have it make a sattisfying jingling sound. "Though the metal is soft and not ideal. We can make do."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched with strange interest as Carver tossed the rock out of his bag. She watched it roll and skid away from the group, until it finally settled into a grassy patch several yards away from them. It would have been impossible for anyone to just see the rock if they were walking past, and yet Alula knew it was there, so she could see it. She shivered despite the heat. She turned her blurred attention back to the group. She allowed the punching man who look through her bag, which she had hidden within her robes. She didn't really have anything of importance on her. Her bag was actually a blanket all bundled together with twine. In her bundle was nothing but a few torn up pieces of canvas, likely at one point a tent, and some random odds and ends. Nothing of value, more like junk you would find laying around. She wondered where they came from. And then there was another girl. Alula pulled down the rim of her hat, muttering softly. "A life is cut short so another can begin. Lives are lost in the forest of life to allow the young to grow." She felt horribly dizzy and a bitter cold spreading though her veins. She leaned forward for a moment, resting her weight against Carver until the cold was replaced with the burn. At this point she was hoping no one else would approached the group.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis watched the rock skid to a halt and walked over to it to pick it up off the ground and into his pocket, a man walking past gave him a glance, most likely because of his damaged face but Vis decided to believe that he glanced about the rock, who knew, he might find use for it later. He turned to the group and once more spoke up, "I'm going thu go thearching for bread, anyone wanth thoo thag along?" he asked, hoping someone would want to come with him, though he wasn't too talkative, he didn't mind the company when he had it, it made him feel a little better about being bad at socializing.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver extended a hand to the newcomer as Alula leaned against his back, muttering something incoherent. "No objections at all. My lady Anew, you are quite welcome to travel alongside us. I am Sir Carver, Paladin of the Sun. Our bare-fisted leader here is Separ, the lady is Alula, over there is Kelvin, and I believe the rest of our friends as yet have the advantage of me." The half-elf was saying something about going shopping. Carver was loathe to let anyone travel alone, but he rather doubted that the girl currently passing out on his shoulder would be up to a crowded marketplace, and he knew for a fact that he wouldn't leave her alone. "I think I'll remain here, but you may take my coin with you. It's not much, but I would hate to be a burden on the group already." He smiled as the gnome jingled his coin purse and spoke of golden swords. "Perhaps you could take this one? It seems he could use an education in the wonders of commerce."</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose politely smiled and shook the hand of the paladin, Carver. "It is always a pleasure to meet a man of the cloth and defender of the faith." She then answered the man introduced as Separ inquiry, "I can cook up any game animal. I am good at stews and roasted meats. Of course, I think I could make any dish at request given the right ingredients." She considered elaboration more but she was cut off by the approach of a cloaked woman. Alula spoke cryptically and Rose was unsure if she was even the one the woman was speaking to, if she was speaking to anyone at all. One life cut down for another. Well yes that is the way of the world. A wildfire is a healthy thing for even the most ancient forests. As a mage, Rose understood the role of destruction and reconstruction very well. It was fundamental to the magic arts on many levels, but did this woman intend to imply more. Rose took a step away from the woman, Alula cautiously. Changing the subject she addressed the man who was going for bread. If she was going to cook, this seemed like something she should be involved in, "Sir, I would like to accompany you to find bread."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis took a long hard lookout the new woman to join the little group, she seemed polite enough and hoped that she wouldn't bring the scar up. "All righth then, leth go." Vis turned on the spot and started to make his way to the market again, there was bound to be a bakery somewhere in the maze of stalls and booths and if not there was probably a proper bakery somewhere in the town, though he wished to avoid proper bakeries as they were expensive. But as Vis walked with the company of the of the new one, he found that he wandered into the fleece market, looking around for the exit, his eyes fell on a booth selling scarves. Vis felt compelled to go towards it and so he did, to take a look at what the vendor had on sale, there were many intricate designs but he longed for something simple like the scarf he gave to the girl, 'what was her name?... Alula'. He found what he was looking for, a simple black scarf, though it wasn't identical to his old one as this one had white ends, "How much?" Vis asked calmly, knowing that that phrase never lisped. "25" Said the man, avoiding looking at Vis' disfigured face, Vis counted out the coins and bought the scarf, instantly wrapping it around his face and feeling much more comfortable that no one could see his scar. "Now we thearch for bread." he said, turing to look at his companion.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula finally found the energy in herself to stand back up straight, no longer able to stand the burn from leaning against the Paladin. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, finding her spinning vision extremely disoriented. She listened for a moment, picking up that the new girl and the half-elf were going off to buy bread, and were perhaps planning on taking the gnome along. She wanted to peek out and confirm her suspicions, but didn't want to risk another wave of dizziness. She listened to the paladin and new women speak to each other. The paladin introduced himself to the girl, and Alula mentally scolded herself for not being able to remember their names. The girl sounded pleasant enough, she spoke to Carver in a respectful tone. And yet she knew that the newcomer was already distrustful of Alula. Suddenly, almost too quickly, Alula's hat tipped back. She revealed her glowing eyes to a man who was passing by, a bag full of purchased goods. She took a step away from Carver, speaking to the man in a distant and knowing tone. "Talk to your wife about what you long for, she will understand and heed to your request." The man looked flustered as he looked Alula up and down and hurried off. She tipped her hat back down, dizziness again washing over her as she spoke. "That man wants his wife to tie his hands to the bedpost, I couldn't guess why though."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the man walk off in spite of himself. "Hmm... some things it's best not to know." He turned to sit on a nearby tree stump, regarding Alula quizzically. "So, how does that work, milady? If you don't mind me asking? Are you an oracle, or just particularly intuitive?" In the monastery, he'd heard some stories of oracles - priests and channelers who could predict things that had not yet come to pass. His knowledge on the subject was limited, however, due to the fact that such miracles were generally the providence of night-time deities, the followers of whom the Crusaders that had trained Carver got along with... poorly (rather like rival groups of school-children.) Carver wasn't sure that was what he was seeing now, but it seemed a good start, especially given her vague reference to the moon, earlier. He felt a sudden stab of worry that the question might send her into another panic - being the vessel to some future-telling power seemed rather like the sort of thing someone might get antsy about. "I'm just making small talk while we wait, of course. Don't feel obligated to give me an answer."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des The girl looked up at Separ, "120 gold all together, will that be all?" She asked, she smiled at the size of his coin bag, showing that she upped the price since he had a lot of money, sadly Separ is un-perceptive and didn't notice. "You going on a camping trip or something."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "120 gold pieces? Isn't that a bit much?" Separ asked as he started to pull out the money regardless. Sure he was surprised by the price, but the gear seemed to be of at least decent quality, and well Separ didn't actually know how much these usually rang up for. Maybe all tents were this expensive? Whatever the case, Separ shrugged it off and naively handed her the money. "I'm not really going camping by the way, more like going on an adventure with some people I just met. They're all pretty nice." Separ turned around and looked a little bit more around the store, then realized he had forgotten to pick up sleeping bags. He quickly rushed over and picked up all eight of them and laid them on the counter as well. "And how much for these?"</s> <\|message\|>Des "4 each, so 32." Once again she upped the price, and once again Separ took no notice. "So you and 7 others huh? You sure 4 tents is going to be enough, you may need one more."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Sure thing, here you go." Said Separ as he handed her the cash, but just before he could hand it to her she asked if he needed one more tent. "Huh? Why would I need one more tent? There's eight of us after all so that would be two per tent. Wait are you just trying to get me to buy more stuff so I can spend more money than I should? Well your plan isn't going to work if that's what your suggesting. I'm just going to pay for this stuff and that's it." And with that Separ handed her the money, though as he prepared to leave he saw some simple medical supplies as well. Bandages, gauze, disinfectant, the works. "Uh, but first, how much are those?" Separ asked, pointing at the supplies.</s> <\|message\|>Des "No, of course not, but there may be that one person who wants to be alone." She stops when Separ says something and looks to where he's pointing. "Oh, the medkit, that would be 40 gold." This Separ catches, he's been through enough bandages to know that the medkit is only 20 at best.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ shocked at the price picks up the medkit and examines it thoroughly, there's no way the medkit should cost this much money at all. Confused and a bit annoyed he went up to the woman and placed the medkit on the counter. "This is just a normal medkit, there's no way it should be this expensive. It's double the price of other medkits." Separ sighed as he realized she may have even cheated him on the other prices as well. What a fool I have been. I fell for her trap so easily. "Did you increase the price of everything I have bought in here?" Separ questioned her sternly.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Noooo, why would a merchant ever exaggerate prices, besides you already bought it with no complaints so you can't do anything now, as for the medkit, you're right, it shouldn't be that expensive, but due to supply and demand, especially since you have 8 people going off on an adventure where injuries are certain and the demand for meds will be high, the price of the supply is also, you guessed it, high. Now pay the 40 gold or get out of here."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace wanted to try this wonder thing. He chose a random stand and walked up to it. He could't see what was on the table but as he looked up he saw the strangest thing hanging from the tarp hanging over the stand. It was a long wooden staff ending in a circle. In the circle a weave made of tightly spun rope was attached. It made him think of the spider's webbing. The handle and shape suggested the staff was a tool for some job or function. Furnace was dying to know what it was. He stepped back so he could meet the shop keepers gaze. He pointed up at the butterfly net as he stood there in shabby rags and bare feet. His appearance suggested he couldn't buy anything here, but Furnace didn't know that. With utmost concentration Furnace looked at the shop keep and shouted "How Much!"</s> <\|message\|>Des Startled by the shouts of Furnace, the shopkeep jumped and screamed a bit. After regaining his calm, he looked to where the gnome was pointing and saw the net, "Oh that, that would be 10 gold pieces."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ frowned at the price, but reluctantly decided it would be better to have a medkit than to not have one at all. "40 gold pieces was it?" Said Separ as he pulled out some coins, only to realize he didn't have enough. "Umm, I only have 32 gold pieces..." His words trailed off realizing he wasn't going to be able to afford the medkit. "It looks like I may be forced to buy that at a later time, thanks for the other supplies though." Said Separ as he began to walk off towards the door.</s> <\|message\|>Des The female merchant called out to Separ, "Wait kid, 30 will be just fine. Some money is better than no money."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Huh, you really mean it?" Asked Separ in shock. "I mean, yes that would be great, though are you sure about all of this, after all you're not getting the full price of what it's worth, and someone else might come in later and by it for the full price of 40?" Separ asked her.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Kid, when do you think some other naïve adventurer is going to come in here and buy it, the people in this town don't go on adventures."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "But... didn't you just say this item was in high demand?" Separ's brow furrowed as he realized he was being lied to. "You have been lying to me this whole time haven't you? Sell me this medkit at a price of 15 or I'm leaving."</s> <\|message\|>Des "The item isn't in high demand, but you are in high demand of it with your pack of 8, 25 pieces or walk kid because I'm not going lower."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ thought about her offer for a moment, but then had a 'brilliant' idea. "25 pieces and a date!" He exclaimed proudly, hoping it would cause her to stumble and lower the price. He wasn't actually expecting her to take him up on the offer, and he figured it was worth a shot. "Either that or 20 pieces."</s> <\|message\|>Des "I told you kid, I'm not going lower, so 25 and a date it is, now I get the 25 and a free meal, but good luck treating me anywhere on 7 gold."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ glanced around nervously and then sighed, defeated. "You were supposed to say 'No way am I going out with you, just take the medkit for 20 and get out.'" Separ fumbled with his money and paid her the 25 gold, and then handed her the last seven gold pieces as well. "Just keep it." And with that he began to leave the store, totally crushed, and without any money for himself.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Succes! The first stage of the ritual was going without a hitch. Furnace pulled out the fat sack of coins and reach in to count and take 10 coins exactly. He checked again to be absolutely sure he had the right amount, then placed the coins on the counter and waited in exited anticipation to see if it would work.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" As Vis tightened the scarf around his face, he turned to address the others when he saw the gnome had wondered off to a stall to the north. Vis naturally went to make sure he didn't get into any mischief, as the paladin seemed to entrust Vis with the task of watching the gnome and he didn't want to be on the armored hulk's bad side. Vis crouched by the gnome's side and looked up at the butterfly net, "so you want the net..." he dragged off at the end of the sentence, not having a name to call the gnome, "ask him how low he's willing to go." whispered Vis into the small man's ear, as he snatched the coins from the counter before the vendor could get his grubby hands on them.</s> <\|message\|>Des Before Vis could manipulate the exchange, the merchant grabbed the gold, and handed Furnace the net. -Ignore this, Vis just ninja'd me with his update</s> <\|message\|>Furnace To Furnace's surprise there was a hidden element to the ritual. The recloacked man corrected him but he didn't know why. The man behind the table seemed to have no problem with the way he was chanting. He suggested an incantation returning a riddle. Perhaps this was an advanced form of magic. A ritual using less materials didn't seem like logical step up. Then again, some materials needed to smelt longer at lower temperatures. Maybe this was similar. In the same way, only slightly more confused, Furnace shouted his incantation at the shopkeep. "How low are you willing to go?"</s> <\|message\|>Des Once again startled by the shouting, the merchant jumped again but not as high this time. Once again regaining himself, he looked at Vis and looked back at Furnace, "Still 10 gold pieces, I'm not going lower on a net."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked back at the gnome and tightened up his scarf, "wath and learn." Vis scanned the stall of it's wares, looking for something to add into the deal, he spotted a bobbin of thread, looking up to the vendor Vis spoke, "throw in tha bobbin and conthider ith a deal." he returned to the gnome and whispered in his ear, "if a vendor is unwilling to go lower, try add something else to the deal but at a lower price."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Based on the reactions of the merchant and the recloacked man Furnace guessed he had messed something up. He looked with large sad eyes at Vis, then at the merchant, then at Vis again. "Now what?"</s> <\|message\|>Des "A bobbin of twine and a net for 10 gold, hell, why not?" The merchant holds out his hand to the gnome, waiting to be paid.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace nodded and handed the man the golden sheets. He wondered who hell was, but he or she didn't interrupt him when he gave the gold. The ritual seemed complete as Furnace accepted the net in return and held it aloft in wonder. What magics could this staff hold? "Now we do the same with.. bread.. right?" Furnace tried to imagine what bread was. The words sounded like broad. So he expected it to be flat and heavy, like a broadsword.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver pondered the girl's question for a moment. "Heavy? I suppose it is, but not so bad once you begin to see the benefits," he responded, unsure if he was still talking about armor. "Truth is, I can't imagine I could ever do anything else. I was raised in a monastery - every day I prayed, trained, read, bettered my body and my mind until the Knight Commander deemed I was ready. Past a certain age, of course, I would have been allowed to leave, but... I never wanted to." He smiled fondly at the memories of his youth, particularly the phrase he now repeated that one of his teachers had been so fond of. "There's so much wrong in the world. One man can't fix it all, but... think about how much he'll do if he tries." He shook himself out of his nostalgia and stood up. "Apologies, you didn't ask to hear my life story. Are you feeling well, my lady? I should think our companions will be returning shortly." The woman in black was still here, he realized with a start. He shouldn't have lost track of her. Careless. She could have hurt someone while he was pontificating. He'd have to do better to keep an eye on that one.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Smashing through the flimsy wood that was the back door, suddenly the commotion in the bakery grew more intense as the raiders figured someone had just left the building. Quickly surveying the location, Vis saw that he led himself into the back yard of the bakery and it was enclosed by high wooden fences with sharpened tips, 'Is this a bakery or a fort?!' he yelled mentally, looking franticly for a way to escape. Turning back to look at the bakery, he saw his exit strategy; tucking the style loaves of bread into his bag and securing the buckles, he made his way to the wall and began climbing it, using windowsills and cracks in the mortar and bricks as hand and foot holes as he ascended the face of the building. Once on the shingled roof, he heard the raiders burst into the backyard and bark in confusion, wondering where the escapee had gotten off to, not knowing that Vis was above them. Taking no time to think he began running along the rooftop, looking around at the scene of carnage going down below him, he jumped the gaps between buildings as he ran. From his vantage point, Vis spotted the paladin and the girl in the pointy hat, still near the tavern and to his left were winding alleyways where he heard the echo of running. It seemed the fighting hadn't reached that part of town. Not concentrating, Vis was struck by an arrow in the left shoulder and went tumbling down the left side of the roof he was running on and fell off the edge, smashing into the cobbled streets below. The impact jarred his frame and he could hear the sickening crack of bone as his shoulder and side hit the ground, staggering to his feet he retrieved his rapier from the floor. "Where do you think you're going pretty boy?" Vis snapped his head to the left and saw that a raider had emerged from a side street to confront him. The raider was decked in chainmail and held a bastard sword in one of his brutish hands. Vis' got shakily to his combat stance, his rapier held in front of him. The raider charged and Vis turned and ran.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula fell to her knees, pressing her forehead into the ground. Her hat had fallen off her head and onto the ground, no longer providing any comfort for Alula as she pressed her palms over her eyes. Even with her eyes covered and shut visions danced behind her lids, voices and phantom sounds assaulted her senses. She let out a final cry of pain before a powerful burst of light encompassed her. Once the light faded, and anyone looking directly at her had given their eyes a chance to recover, Alula was no longer on the ground in pain. Alula was barely even there anymore. She was now floating slightly above the ground, her robes and hair lazily flowing around her, as if gravity no longer was applying their force to her. Her eyes were glowing, but with much more intensity. She took no measures to cover them as they stared, unblinking, at the crowd of monsters. Not only her eyes were glowing, however. Even more shocking and noticeable was her skin. It was as if every vein in her body had begun to admit a bright glow, looking like cracks long her flesh. Alula, or at least what she had been reduced to, looked around. She first noticed Carver, raising her now glowing staff as if to aim a projectile attack, but her other arm lifted up, pulling the arm with the staff back down. She spoke in a regal and calm voice that echoed through the area. "Do not harm the ones the girl has grown attached to." The arm holding the staff rose up twice more, as if wanted to go against this command and harm Carver regardless, but it eventually stopped. Alula looked away from Carver, into the crowds of attacking monsters. Without even wincing or bracing herself she lifted her staff, aiming it into the mass of creatures, hoping to hit as many as possible. Out of the tip of the staff blasted a bright beam of moon energy. It was bright enough to be seen for a mile, and was very attention grabby as well as deadly.</s> <\|message\|>Carver In an instant Carver's sword and shield were in his hands. There was no time to think, no time to pontificate on why this attack was occurring. Now was time for action. Carver cast his eyes about him. The situation was bad. Townspeople everywhere in absolute disarray, enemies approaching from all angles and running roughshod through the town, an ettin smashing up just about everything. What was more, two helpless strangers were already in his protection - he couldn't leave them behind to mount a defense for the town. 'Helpless' maybe wasn't the best word for Alula, though. He watched as she exploded into blue light and fired a beam of energy into a crowd of attackers. No time to think about that, either. For now, it would just have to make sense, especially as the light show seemed to have attracted a small horde to their position. Carver grabbed his helmet from his bag and shoved it onto his head, flicking the visor down. "Alula! Furnace! Kelvin! Stay behind me!" He shouted as he brought his shield forward and raised his sword up behind it. "We're going to find the others!" He had to hope they would listen. "In the name of the sun!" he shouted, and surged forward at the fastest pace he could muster, into the throng of foes.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula cast a glare down upon Carver as he commanded her to get behind him. It was rather lucky that the man wore armor, any bare skin would have soon felt itself burning. She did not care at all about the safety and life of Carver or the two other she found herself suddenly allied with. All that mattered was that Alula was kept safe. That the vessel was kept safe. A voice spoke though Alula, her expression still one of anger. "We do not see why we must keep behind a worthless human." A second voice spoke, expression changing to a more playful one. "We do not see why not, the view is quite fine from up here." The voices began arguing with each other, constantly speaking over each other. "You disgust us! please don't hurt them. He is a paladin of the sun for morishacks sake! he will not harm us. If anything he will just get in the way!" By now Carver was half way to the horde, moving at the comedic speed of a snails pace. Alula sighed, raising her staff yet again and firing another beam of searing light into the horde. It was fired dangerously close to Carver, perhaps as a sign of aggression. (8/10 moonbeams remaining)</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace went into the tavern and watched as goblins and kobolts smashed up the place. The barkeep stood alone against a small horde of assailants. Shouting angrily as he waved his sharp knife around. Furnace was glad to see everyone in a fighting spirit, he felt like he was starting to get it. Suddenly the room lit up bright. Pale light pierced trough the open windows and doors and threw longs shadows on the rubble that wasthe interior of the tavern. Furnace looked outside to see Alula hover in the air, flashes of divine power lashing out from her body. He saw coils of lightning run over her skin and her piercing eyes negative to his own. He intended to go and see up closer, but suddenly she released a massive blast of energy into the horde just outside. Furnace had to dive as the blast singed the house and came bursting through the windows. He stared at the devastation it wrought, carefully he looked outside to see even more. She was looking at Carver again as he called his name. Furnace had given to it him with reason, he supposed he should come. Making sure not to stand between the groups of targets he made his way over to the middle of the square where the other 3 where. Though she had grown more voices Alulah seemed calmer than before. No, more confident. Furnace gawked at the power she was emitting, he got closer and studied her. He held his hand up before her, not touching, not in the way, just to draw her attention as carefully as possible. As with holding molten steel. The state in which she has most potential is the most dangerous one. He waited until he met her gaze. "That looks awfully strenuous."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched as her two beams tore holes in the horde as well as the town itself. She didn't really care where her destruction was laying. If she destroyed the town in order to destroy the monsters, so be it. At first she hadn't noticed something as small and insignificant as the gnome standing slightly off to the side, but he was recognized as one of the girls companions. Alula looked down upon Furnace with a smug grin. The voice that spoke this time used a cocky tone, like an older sister trying to show off to a kid. "Strenuous? Hardly. This is a piece of cake." She leaned closer, dangerously so. Close enough for Furnace to feel waves of energy emitting off of her. "You wanna see something cool kid?" And without even waiting for an answer Alula shot off another beam, whizzing dangerously past Carver, aimed right for the Ettin.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki continued moving through the alleyway, taking the twists and turns almost habitually, until she reached the more open areas, where the destruction was occurring. Glancing around to get her bearings, it seemed that there were several kobolds and goblins around. She frowned, as she looked at them. Creatures like these...were generally too dumb to figure out some kind of plan like this. How did they come in as a nearly organized raiding force? However, before she could come up with any kind of plans, the kobolds and goblins around her have noticed her presence. Suki immediately moved, swinging the scythe wide, decapitating on goblin with the blow. With the blade behind her, she pushed forward, slamming the pole end of the staff handle into the face of another that was starting to rear its head at her. Despite her efforts, Suki was frowning again. She was outnumbered here, with no one to help. "Then again, I never had help in the first place..." Muttering self-depreciating words, she slammed the blade of the scythe into the ground. Though surprised by the sudden action, the goblins and kobolds advanced towards her. At least, until a skeletal hand had burst out of the ground, grabbing the closest foot. Using the sudden diversion to back off, Suki winced in pain, falling to one knee, as she watched the skeleton claw its way out of the ground, with another one right behind it. Both skeletons immediately went to work, slashing with sharpened fingernails, sometimes even stabbing with a rib or two.</s> <\|message\|>Des As Carver charged into the herd he trampled a few and was stabbed by many more, although due to his armor only a few actually harmed him and he was dealt 8 damage, but now he his surrounded Alula's attack on the Ettin seemed to have no effect but it did blind him causing him to trip and crush a building beside her</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Ten feet. I walk in her glorious light. I will not falter. Five feet. I bear her glorious purpose. I will not falter. Two feet. I face her foes in combat, my heart pure and unsullied. I will not falter. Carver had just taken the first blow on his shield when his vision was filled with a blinding blue light. The heat from the near miss soaked into his armor and made him break out in a sweat. The paladin staggered to the side, trying to regain sight. What was that? Did the goblins have some sort of spellcaster? How had it gotten behind him? Were the others safe- A rusted blade drove into his side through the chink in his armpit's armor, immediately suspending all further questions. With a cry, Carver swung his shield out and slammed the goblin in the face, sending it spinning to the dirt. Goblins everywhere, now. He kicked one aside, cut another across the chest. He felt blows clanging all against his armor, blocked furious swings with his shield, parried them with his blade. One goblin got lucky and drove a dagger up his knee and into his thigh, and Carver collapsed to one knee for a moment. Another took this opportunity to slam a mace into his helmet, smashing his thoughts and filling his sight with stars. Gritting his teeth, Carver rose, ignoring his injured leg, and cut the mace-wielding goblin in the chest. More swarmed over him, shrieking and clanging and clawing at his plate-covered body, but he was a Paladin of the Sun - and Paladins didn't run. Every blow that fell on him was a blow that could have fallen on Alula, or Kelvin, or Furnace. And so the knight stood, and fought his losing battle.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Suddenly, the adrenaline in Vis' system drained away and he felt immensely tired, from all the strenuous moving and his profuse blood loss and his body was wracked with thudding pains. He leaned against the wall next to him for support but instead he staggered and had to sit on the floor, resting his head on the wall he sighed as the world around him grew silent or maybe his brain was too tired to interpret sound. He whinced as he leaned his back against the wall, the long gash on it inflamed; looking down onto his chest, he furrowed his eyebrows, the front of his leather armor had a bump on it. Deciding to investigate, he pulled back the leather segment and stifled a yell, there, protruding from his chest was a pointed piece of metal, an arrow head. He quickly brought his hands to his back and felt that the fletching of the arrow , it was touching his armor, the arrow had gone all the way through him and had missed everything vital. He was amazed and at the same time horrified, he decided to keep it in to hold back blood, picking himself back up, Vis shambled back to the man he had killed, he had a plan. He pulled the black tunic off of the man and draped it over himself, covering his armor and making him look like one of them, looking back at the man he sighed, if he had a ranged weapon he could gave killed him and took no damage. Vis had an idea. He dropped to his knees and with tired hands, got to work, cutting a patch of leather from the dead mans trousers and poking two holes through it and working twine through the holes. His sling was complete and he rose to his wobbly feet, only to start shuffling and stumbling, Vis was drained and felt as if he were on his last legs. He stumbled back out but instead of coming to the main street he came out in a forest, a bit confused he carried on and step by step he faltered until he fell on the floor, breathing shallowly. Maybe the arrow had hit something vital after all. The black tunic billowed around him as he hit the ground and he moaned in pain, dressed as one of the raiders.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula looked over the chaotic destruction of the town. She seemed rather pleased, Carver was being tended by the gnome and the horde in front of them had seemed to thinned out considerably due to the fires. Yes, this was fine. But something was wrong. The girl was panicking again. "Please! Another is hurt. He is dying. He is far and needs us." It took a lot of effort but Alula was finally able to convince herself to move. Despite the anxious and urgent tone of Alula's voice, she moved at a slow and lazy hover over the battle. It wasn't difficult to find Vis, and yet she hesitated as she hovered down next to him, glowing eyes looking cross. "This man is a raider he doesn't need to be healed, he needs to be killed. no wait please he isn't a raider. Ah yes...now we recognize him. The man who tired to hurt you in the tavern. he didn't try to hurt me it was an accident. And now here he is on the ground, just like back in the tavern." And as it seemed like Vis was soon to be blasted to death, another voice spoke. The same calming one that often kept Alula in line. "The girl speaks the truth. This man is kind and has protected her. We will not harm him." The staff was lowered, and Alula hovered even closer to Vis and carefully turned him, removing the arrow with gentle movements. Despite this care Alula still sounded anxious. "please be gentle with him. You heard as the other said, you cannot harm him. Please let us heal him." Alula's begging finally gave way. The girl first made sure Vis was not watching as she pulled back her sleeves and began to chant. "petranas letoclo ve irisv sia thurirl" This heal was far more energy consuming then healing Separs hands. This was a lot of internal damage and bleeding, but he would live. Alula again hovered over him, glowing eyes devoid of emotion. But she was relieved. She was glowing with far less intensity now, using all of this energy was exhausting her. She wished it was night.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis was nearly unconscious when he felt a soft draft across his face, then a burning pain lanced through his body as he felt his organs shift, the arrow slowly being pulled out of his body, ge writhed in pain but clamped his mouth and eyes shut, not wanting to attract attention. But the pain did not relent, as burning white magic sifted through his broken bones and pulled together parted flesh until he was as whole as possible. Vis groaned and flopped onto his side and clutched at his chest, he gasped for air and relished it's cooling feeling in his lungs, he was better but he did not feel much better. Vis finally opened his eyes but saw only the ground, tilting it to look up, he saw an angel floating by his side, he squinted as it's bright glow hurt his eye he reached out and tried to touch the angel bit found that it was too far, he still held his hand out though hoping the angel would bless him. As he blinked away tears of pain and the haze of exhaustion, he saw that he wasn't looking at an angel but at that girl, Alula. Slowly Vis got to his feet, and his knees buckled for a bit before he leaned on a tree to look up at her, he tightened his scarf, "Um.. Th-thank you." he was frankly a bit scarred of her but at the same time, he felt the need to step closer, "Alula.."</s> <\|message\|>Des The ravaging horde ripped apart Rose, adding her to the pile of rotting flesh. Rose has died</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula looked down upon Vis as he began to breathe, a small smile spreading across her face. He was breathing, he was alive. Thank the stars. She watched as he reached out, as if trying to touch her. She moved away, even though she knew he wouldn't have the reach nor the energy to grab her, she didn't want him to get burned. She watched him struggle to stand, wishing she could have assisted him but being afraid of making things worse. And he spoke as he stood, and Alula let out a soft giggle and a smile before her face contorted back to a serious and emotionless expression. "There is no need for you to thank us. You shall thank the girl once this is all over." Alula drifted over to the tree line, peaking out. "The fight is not yet over. And you are in no shape to be moving." She looked over her shoulder, back at Vis. "And we suggest you keep yourself safe, for your sake as well as the girls."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was on one knee, panting, armor scuffed and battered and dented, aching from a dozen bruises. Another mace cracked onto his shoulder, adding to the count. The armor would take the force of the blow, he knew - it wouldn't harm him, not really. Didn't mean it wouldn't hurt. "Carver, a knight in shining armor is a man who's never had his metal tested. Again." Goblin blood was leaking in his visor. He blinked his eyes clean and beheld something wondrous. It was the sun, right in front of his eyes, burning and bright and powerful. He was bathed in her light - his mind was soothed with her radiance. She was his bright lady, he her knight errant, and she had seen fit to grant him a token of her favor. Tears ran freely down the knight's face, mingling with the blood. She was here, she was with him. For a moment Carver thought he was dead; for a moment he thought he would never die. And then the light faded, and strength surged through his body. He rose, flush with warmth and fire, and lashed out a cut at the goblin who had struck him. He blocked another blow, took another on his armor without flinching. He could not be hurt - not while he bore her purpose. "Hello again, friend." Carver turned his head around to see the gnome there, looking at him. Carver grinned, though he knew the gnome wouldn't be able to see it. "My friend! Stay back, let me take the worst of it! Is everyone safe?"</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin Well, the answer to that one was a solid 'no'. That little guy though. He was amazing. Kelvin only paused for a second to see the midget punch into the enemy lines towards the paladin. Great work there, but- there was more work to be done. Kelvin instead ran towards the tavern, with it's roof fairly busted up by the ettin's weight. He threw open the door and ducked inside, raising his crossbow to release a round almost point blank into the surprised face of a goblin, which promptly fell over, even as Kelvin released a few more bolts into attackers. He paused for a moment and looked over the space, shouting. "There are too many! We got to leave! Follow us if you want to live." He paused long enough to refill his pouch with crossbow darts from his pack and reload his crossbow before charging back out, moving to support the midget and the paladin. Fires still blazed in spots around them, but that was just to his advantage. He dashed forward to use the two warriors as cover. He arrived and shot a goblin coming from Carver's left in the chest, not killing him due to armor, but knocking him down easily. "We can't fight this many, we need to get the townsfolk and leave."</s> <\|message\|>Des As Kelvin leaves the tavern, The ettin wakes up and his rising crushes the building and all those inside. The ettin then looks over at the three in the mosh pit and charges towards them. People who have escaped for now unless they run back in: Separ Suki Vis Alula So only the three trapped in the middle of the horde are left to run and escape or fight the horde and ettin Ettin:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace The lumbering brute rushing towards them gave Furnace considerable alarm. Regardless what the double headed giant was planning, at this rate he was going to step on on Furnace's sword! What a fool he had been for dropping it. Furnace shouted a warning "Don't walk there!" but the monster did not take note. Without a though Furnace ran at him, or rather, the sword arms outstretched. He reached out with heat and cinders as he let magic flow forwards, setting fire to the corpses and rubble between him and the Ettin. Torn armor, lost chains maxes and blades, scraps and rubble. The battlefield was littered with things that burnt and things that melt. Red glowing landmines of liquid metal scattered across the field the Ettin was charging into. The epicenter of scorching pain placed several meters above the now glowing blade of Furnace. The growing ball of fire stood imposing in the path of the Ettin, at chest height and bright enough pierce eyes. Unfazed by the heat and nimble enough to skip and jump between the molten death traps, Furnace bounded forwards, leaving a trail of glitter in his wake as kicked up sand turned to glass. He didn't know if the creature was going to be willing to burn himself, all he had eyes for was his blade.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver "We can't fight this many, we need to get to the townsfolk and leave." Carver couldn't see the man who was shouting to him, but from the voice and the crossbow bolts that appeared in the chests of several goblins, he guessed it was Kelvin. He was just preparing a response when the world caught fire. A great roar came from the battlefield as piles of scrap metal melted into pools of lava. He could feel the heat even from here - if he stayed around this inferno, the knight would be cooked alive in his armor in a few minutes. Obviously, this was the work of whatever spellcaster had singed him earlier - now they were poised to burn the whole town down. The scope of the battle had changed, he realized. There was more power at play here than the party was prepared to handle. Carver hated to run, but laying down his life now would be a pointless waste. The battle was lost; now he just needed to get everyone clear. A proposition that was very suddenly made drastically more difficult when the gnome bounded into the heart of the fires - towards the Ettin. He was moving fast, faster than Carver could have managed even without armor. Well, he'd just have to hope the gnome slowed down, then. He turned to Kelvin. "Get to the others, and get them and as many people as you are able out of the town and into the woods! Keep them safe! I'm going after the gnome! We'll meet you out there!" With that, Carver took off running as fast as the sun's energy would allow him.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Get to the others, and get them and as many people as you are able out of the town and into the woods! Keep them safe! I'm going after the gnome! We'll meet you out there!" "Don't die, Sun worshipper. We are going to need you." Kelvin nodded affirmatively, and turned away, only to find himself facing another force of goblins. They weren't in a hurry, he was clearly outnumbered. He leveled a flat gaze with them, and slowly reached into his belt pouch and pulled out the dynamite, lighting it's fuse easily in a nearby blaze. Thanks, little guy. Kelvin held it up and looked at the fuse mildly as it slowly burned down, the enemies creeping closer. He waited until just three wraps about the thumb of fuse were left before throwing it in an arc over the group, aiming for the center before turning and diving diving to the ground, hold an armored corpse up in front of him in protection. A moment later, the blast seemed to shred through the air like a rabid animal through rotting leather, deafening and overwhelming even the sounds of the horde. Instantaneously, a wave of force pushing out bits of enemy, dead, armor, and dirt picked up Kelvin and his 'body'shield, throwing them back a good ten feet. He didn't hesitate or stop to survey the damage, instead stumbling upright and charging straight through the temporary cloud of dirt and smoke and out the other side, only pausing to shoot those directly in his path. Once outside of the main crowd, Kelvin continued his run through the outskirts of town, only pausing to pound on the doors that were still closed. This could mean the insides were untouched, and the people as well. "Out! We must abandon the city! Follow me if you want to live!" Kelvin barely paused as he reached the woods proper before turning, running just within the cover of the trees along the border of the town. That ditsy mage had fled this direction, though if she was smart she would have kept going once she was out. If not her, maybe he could find Separ. It didn't seem likely though, he must have been near the center of the chaos when it started.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula wasn't looking all that well. Despite not sustaining a single bit of damage from the horde of goblins, she was fading fast. Or something was. She wasn't hovering quite as far off the ground, and several time she actually touched her feet to the ground as if trying to rebalance herself. She didn't speak to Vis, although she occasionally glanced over her shoulder, reaffirming for herself that the half elf hadn't moved or died. And when Alula did speak it was in a strange language, no longer the common tongue. All of her words seemed disjointed and spacey, as she kept watch and made sure no straggling goblins spotted the spot where Vis was recovering. Her glowing was fading as well, no longer as bright and blinding. She could hear someone moving through the trees, and struggled to lift her staff and aim an attack. She never fired however, as she recognized Kelvin. The girl lowered her staff, muttering weakly. "A man who tangles with death and yet never stays."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Once Alula had stopped turning around, Vis disappeared into the forest, giving the Oracle a wide birth so she could not spot him. He felt a bit more steady on his feet but still a bit shaky. He walked and then he started to jog and by the time he reached the edge of the forest he was sprinting, it seemed that magical healing had a delay when it came to pain reduction. Once at the edge of the forest, Vis dropped to a crouch and winced, clutching his side an clamping his eyes shut, 'so much for magic pain reduction.' he thought to himself as he sank out of the tree line and into the outskirts of the town. As he snuck through the town, he heard yells and cheers as raiders celebrated the destruction of the town and the occasional scream of terror. Slowly approaching the area of the bakery, Vis felt his heart sink to his stomach, there was a rising cloud of smoke coming from where he remembered the bakery to be and once he came around to the street where it operated, his hopes were dashed. The building was blackened and charred, and the windows were smashed along with the doors. Vis crept in and went straight to the kitchen and tears stung his eyes as he saw the table flipped over and the hatch wide open, stumbling to the entrance, he hissed down into the basement. "Any one thare?!" He got no reply, so he stuck his head in and illuminated the room with his green eye, he recoiled instantly and hurled not the floor, heaving until his stomach was empty. Every one was dead and the coppery smell of blood was all that came from the room down below. But Vis had to have hope, he climbed down into the space and regretted it as he splashed into a puddle of crimson. He looked around and bathed everything in a green light, they were all dead, butchered and their limbs strewn everywhere. He was about to leave when he heard a meep, he turned to where he thought he heard it and saw the baker woman who had told him of the basement. She was beckoning weakly towards him, Vis quickly went to her side and dropped to his knees and gripped her hand. "I'm thorry," he whined, tears escaping his eyes, "please forgive me-" her weak smile cut him off and she gripped her hand and nodded towards a crate in the corner. "look after-" she rasped, Vis was about to ask what her what he was meant to look after but her eyes had already closed. He clamped his eyes shut and fought back more tears, before rising and approaching the box. Lifting open the lid he was surprised at what was in side</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was burning. The heat from the inferno was cooking him alive inside his armor, and in a strange place in his mind outside lucid thought, he felt a brief pang of pity for all the roast chickens he had eaten in his life time. A thunderous crack filled his eardrums, and a shockwave pushed into him from behind, bowling him off his feet. Perhaps Kelvin's work, or another display of power from the spellcaster? He hoped for the former as he struggled, unsteadily, to his feet. He was torn for a moment between continuing or returning to try and help the others. The gnome was in the most pressing danger - he carried on his course. He could scarcely see from the blood and smoke in his visor, and so he held it as an act of divine providence (or perhaps profound luck) when he almost literally tripped across a small form laying prone in a pile of rubble. Either this was the gnome or a strangely-proportioned child; either way, they very certainly needed to be removed from this situation. The ground shook nearby, and Carver just made out the silhouette of the Ettin a few meters away. A mighty blow landed, and Carver's armor was rained with chips of wood - apparently, the Ettin hadn't noticed the Paladin, and was preoccupying itself with destroying the village. Carver, with as much stealth as a burning man clad in full plate armor could muster, bent over the gnome. He was agonizingly aware of the fact that his armor was more than hot enough to burn skin at the moment, so he grabbed a nearby curtain that was only burned a little, stamped the fire out of it, and swathed the unconscious gnome in it like the world's largest baby. Then, once more that day, the knight ran. He ran until he could breathe without smoke filling lungs, until the cracking of burned wood faded into the distance. He coughed, still holding the gnome to his chest. His burns ached, hiw wounds bled, and his eyes told him that they wanted to close. He told them to shut up. There were trees here. Carver coughed again, and called out hoarsely: "Alula! Kelvin! Separ! Are you there?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed as Vis tried to sneak away. The half elf wasn't exactly graceful, crashing through the forest on weak legs. Her magic really only worked its best when the injured person stayed still, like she had requested of Vis. She wasn't sure why Vis wanted to return to the destroyed town, and yet she didn't seem to care. At least, most of Alula didn't care. There was the gentle, frantic, voice in the back of her mind. Begging herself to pursue the man before he got himself hurt again. "We have healed him once. It is his own fault if he returns to the fighting. We can no longer afford to endanger the girl." And then an explosion shook the ground. The force of it, even from so far away, shook Alula. She lost focus for a moment, almost loosing her trance. It took considerable effort to keep herself hovering above the ground, and the light in her eyes continually flickered out. "We are loosing energy. We should not have healed the half-elf. We leave ourselves vulnerable. We should leave before anything dangerous continues." But before the girl could float herself away from the burning town, as well as the new companions she had acquired, something stopped her. A voice. And it said a name. Her name. Her real name. Her eyes flickered for a few moments, like a strobe light, before illuminating again. The paladin was in distress, and he was holding someone of equal distress. She hovered her way over to him, appearing between trees like a ghost. "The girl is unharmed and she is glad to see you are alive." Alula looked around, back towards the town. "The half-elf ran back in, if you are wise you will not follow him. You should sit down, and wait for the commotion in the town to die down."</s> <\|message\|>Des The Ettin watched as the people had raced out of the town, but he was to be tending to his burned and scarred foot to chase after. The rest of the raiders cheered and began looting the rest of the town. As Vis opened the crate, he heard a wimper and saw a small girl sitting inside.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver The half-elf was still in the town, with the fire and the Ettin and the raiders. Maybe there were others, too; townsfolk who were still alive but couldn't make it out on their own. Carver set Furnace down gently and turned around. "He's hurt," he murmured to the girl. "He needs... help... I'll be back in a few... minutes." He took a step, then another, then a third. This wasn't so hard. Walking was just step after step, after all. Vis and the others were practically rescued already. He was getting quite close to the town now, he was certain - why, he could see the lights from the fires right in front of his eyes. Now he just had to find the half-elf, and everything would be grand. All these thoughts and more ran through the knight's head as he collapsed to the ground at Alula's feet, about a meter away from where he had placed the gnome. Carver tried to push himself back up as he'd done so many times during the day, but found he hadn't the strength. Failing that, he began to crawl, hand on knee, back towards the village. This was somewhat slower, but slow and steady won the race. The half-elf would be rescued, as sure as sure could be. The darkness closed in on the knight slowly and then immediately. A few feet later, he stopped crawling.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver When Carver came to, he was struck by the sensation of not being on fire. He took a moment to appreciate how fine it was to not be immolated, then sat up quickly, his head swimming. He'd passed out. Weak. Selfish. Failure. Carver shook his head in an attempt to clear his brain of these thoughts. There would be time for self-loathing later, but not after everyone who could be saved had been. The knight examined the structure he'd been hidden behind for a moment. It was well-constructed, though obviously done in a hurry. Carver suspected Kelvin might be behind its creation - he wasn't sure who else could have thrown it together. He felt a pang of gratitude for the man who had risen to the occasion when Carver's strength had failed him. His was a noble example, indeed. He rose, shakily, and brought his gloved hands up to touch his unhelmed face. No burn marks. Alula's handiwork, or maybe Furnace's - once again, those he was meant to be protecting seemed to be protecting him. He'd have to do better. His head pounding, Carver stepped back into the clearing and was struck by two sights. One, Furnace was conscious, and conversing with Kelvin a short distance away; and two, Vis had returned, bringing with him someone new - a child, staring at Alula with rapt wonder. Kelvin and Furnace's efforts required thanks, thanks he would be sure to give them sooner rather than later. However, for the moment Carver was concerned with the health of the others - Alula, who had displayed such uncharacteristic power, and the girl, whose home had obviously just been burned down. "My lady!" he called out to Alula, managing not to wince from his soreness as he sauntered over to her. "Are you unharmed? I must offer my most sincere apologies for collapsing, as I did. It was... unbecoming of a knight, and will not happen again." He gave a warm smile to the girl and dropped down to a crouch to look her in the eyes. "And who's this one? Child, do not fear. No harm will come to you, not now. I am Sir Carver, Knight of the Sun, and I am very pleased to meet you."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki grimaced as she sat up. Alright, it seems she was going to have to drain someone soon. As she thought about this, her eyes had drifted over towards the man who had carried her out of the town. No, best not to take him yet...perhaps she'll find someone soon. Besides, he did not look like he could take a kiss from her and live, even if she wasn't trying to kill him. Muttering softly under her breath, "Saving someone like me was a waste of time.", she glanced back towards the rubble of the town. Her scythe was still back there. Although she could probably summon and assign an undead to bring it to her, not did not seem like the right time to do so. Turning towards Separ, she smiled. "I'm pretty certain that Kelvin and the paladin would keep everyone else safe. After all, you've only just gathered us today. It would be a horrible joke of the divines to kill us all off." Attempting to reassure the man, Suki looked around. Now that they were semi-safe, they would probably have to find the rest. Although running away now, while the paladin wasn't around, wasn't such a bad thought either.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin If she wanted to stay awake, that was her own business. But when he decided it was time to sleep, he wasn't going to be waking for a while. "The half elf returns." Kelvin nodded in thanks. It was good to have a bit of warning, not that he would have put more than two crossbow bolts on anyone who jumped them, right at the moment. That girl was interesting, seeming to have multiple voices speaking for her at any one time. Personally though, if he had to choose one it would be the more dominant one. It seemed accustomed to giving out orders- not a trait he prefered, but the voice was practical and could hold up a conversation. He would have to see if he could draw it out more often for conversation, no offense to the poor girl it was speaking through. The scarred rogue appeared, carrying a child. Not a great development, but she could be useful. Old enough to do basic tasks at least, and to learn. Kelvin left them to talk to the oracle, instead choosing to do some more work on the shelter, until the gnome awoke."I wouldn't mind some practical help, I suppose." Kelvin looked at the crooked arm and grimaced. "It won't feel pretty for me to set it though. I am no doctor, so I will just have to straighten by feel." He paused for a moment, and felt his own arm up and down, looking intent. It was an odd idea. He knelt next to the small man and carefully felt the arm. If the little guy was moving about with it, he must have decent pain tolerance. "Start when I tell you, not before- and please don't light me on fire." On a burst of inspiration, he picked up a stick and offered it to the poor guy, mimicking biting it with his teeth. Kelvin turned back to the arm and felt gently above and below the break, then suddenly tightened his grip, twisting the arm just slightly and bracing his body against any possible thrashing. "Now." Kelvin chose to look away from this particular event. Even as a man who had seen fingers crushed in gears and blown apart bits of partners, some memories were best left uncatalogued in ones brain. Other thoughts were better. Such as about Separ. Kelvin winced. It was really a shame. He hadn't anything against him or that hooded girl, though he didn't trust her looks. Survival was the main thing for now.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" (For Alula, happens prior to Carver) Khat looked to the ground and scuffed her boots in the dirt, the floating person was really nice and she could sense the warmth of hair kindness radiating off of her, 'or is that the warmth of her glow?' she wasn't sure but she felt warmth. "What girl?" she asked, looking past Alula with even more interest, tilting her head at her before reaching up to tighten her bandana, "You're here aren't you? at least you look like you are here, its all relative, to me you are here and to someone else you might be there, but to me you are here, so what other girl must there be?" For a very long time, Khat had been blabbering about things that people didn't really understand, or interpreted as the babble of a child, Relativity was one of them and she felt like she was on to something despite the critics of the adults.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" When the knight, Carver, knelt to look at Khat, she squirmed and promptly hugged Vis' leg tighter, making him meep. "Momma told me not to trust a man in armor." Blurted Khat, as her mind was taken back to the first weeks she worked with her mother. A knight of some minor lord had barged into the bakery with his gaggle of squires and demanded free cake for all of them, her mother told them to get out but instead they got violent, smashing up furniture and threatening to do the same for her. Momma finally relented and gave them what they wanted and Khat watched on as the men filed out, laughing and eating her mother's hard work. Then a the knight touched her mother's chest and she ran into the kitchen to cry, though at that young age she didn't know what had happened, she had an idea of what it meant now. She clutched onto Vis' legs more, and Vis put his hand on her shoulder. "He'th noth a knighth, he ith a paladin." Said Vis reassuringly, squeezing her shoulder gently to comfort her. "I don't care," she retorted, glaring at the armored man, "he's wearing armor." Vis frowned beneath his scarf but shrugged the frown away, instead he looked up at the sky and squinted, the sun was setting and throwing it's dying colors out into the sky in a chromatic spectical of oranges, reds and purples. Khat followed his eyes and yawned, it was getting late and she usually slept by nightfall, falling asleep in the kitchen after kneading the next day's dough. She looked up at Vis, "Can I sleep?" Vis nodded and thought about a place where she could bed for the night, looking around, he saw a willow tree with a large branch jutting into the clearing, Vis picked her up and approached the tree, holding her like a baby. He ascended the willow until he reached the branch, finding a a wide divot in it where he then placed the child, Vis looked around and was satisfied she wouldn't fall, anyway, the tree wasn't that tall. "I'll be back, gonna clean up." Vis climbed back down and asked the group, "ith thare a thtream near here?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace didn't get the idea of biting on wood. Wood wasn't food. He tried that. But as Kelvin held his arm right. And what felt like surges of negative energy ran trough his arms, he noticed he was gritting his teeth. The wood was a safeguard? This guy was really smart. When Kelvin gave the signal Furnace concentrated and forced another golden white coil from his hands to dance along his arm. The sparks sank into the flesh and they both heard the unsettling sound of setting bones. Like wet leather being strained against a hollow tree. A few sparks missed their mark and jumped up Kelvins fingers instead. Immediately clearing out diminutive cuts amd bruises on his working hands. "Thmph yuth." Furnace spit out the stick. It had deep bitemarks in it. "Thank you." He stretched his arms. He felt a little sore, but the pain was banished and he noticed a strong feeling of relief. He looked around. The structure was unclear in it's function. But appeared well built regardless. "How can I aid you in return?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula looked over at the child, still hiding behind Vis as she spouted some strange nonsense. Well. At least the kid was curious. And yet the oracle knew that an illiterate child from a poor village wouldn't be able to understand a higher standard of magic, and she didn't really have the patience left to talk to the child. "The girl is here, and yet not. She does not need to concern herself in problems that might cause her harm." Alula looked down upon Carver, her flashing eyes displaying anger. "Yes, but all Knights of the sun are rather unbecoming." Her face contorted again, from anger to defiance and back to anger. An internal struggle, and argument with herself. "do not be so cruel to him. All Paladins are dangerous. he protects us. Yes but for how long. His love of the sun will soon overshadow his protection. the incident was not his fault. It should not take an entire squadron of Paladins to 'guard' a village." Alula shuttered, repressing voices. She put a hand to her forehead, her light fading for a moment. She watched as Vis put the child up the in tree, finding it odd that he would choose that as a place to put her to bed. She only hoped that someone bought tents before the town burned. And she only hoped no one would insist on sleeping with her.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver The child's reaction wasn't one that Carver was entirely unused to. Armor was a mark of power, and power was all too often abused at the detriment of the poor. Likely, this child or her mother had had some bad experience with a thuggish hedge knight or minor lord - perhaps Carver might pay said men a visit, when the matter at hand was attended to. Another voice from his past. "We do not make them love us, Carver. The Sun loves all, and asks for nothing in return. So must we." He smiled at her again as she was lifted to the tree. "I will keep watch, child. You will be safe." He turned, his smile fading as he heard Alula speaking. She was still in the bizarre state she'd entered into during the battle, seemingly at war with herself over everything she said. However, most of her disjointed statements seemed to have a single theme - she was displeased with the knight. He frowned. "My lady, if I have offended you, I offer my most sincere apologies. It is not my intention to threaten, nor to displease. And if you take issue with my faith, then... this need not be a matter of conflict between us. The Sun teaches us to understand, not to convert. If you are no longer desirous of my protection or my company, then you may release me from my vows, and I will depart without incident." He paused. "I... am glad to see you well. I did not stay close enough to you - I feared that that enemy spellcaster may have harmed you, after I was almost hit from behind by some spell." Carver straightened his back and turned on his heels to walk away. "I will keep watch for the rest of our party. You all should rest. We will decide our next move when we are all gathered." It should not take a squad of Paladins to protect a village. He would do better.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula (For your listening pleasure) Alula watched as Carver spoke to the child, glad that at least someone had some sort of skills with childcare, and yet she still had her angry expression when he spoke to her. This man was clearly trying to talk down on her, trying to demean her. And then an expression of confusion. Why was this paladin so kind to her? Why was he so different from the others? His vows. He was still holding strong to his vow, even after seeing what she was and what she had become. He didn't understand, he couldn't understand. But perhaps that didn't matter. He took a pause in his speech, and she looked into his eyes. Her eyes were illuminated and unblinking. Why was he so kind? He was glad to see she was well. He was afraid that something had hurt her, while it was him who was in danger of the attack. He was not the danger, she was. Something snapped in her. Voices screaming to overpower each other. Arguments and battles within her mind. But as Carver turned away a single voice broke through, a weak and slurred voice. "Y...yes...a rest...would be...nice..." Alula slowly reached out her hand, fingers extended as if to grab him. Her eyes flickered, like faulty lighting, before finally fading out. Bright lights again replaced with hazy blue eyes. A soft burst of light. "I am...so tired..." Alula fell to the ground.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace was staring at the sunset as he heard a thud behind him. He saw Alula lie down in the dirt. Confused he looked at the others, most seemed to either pay no mind or looked concerned. He remembered how he had been wrapped in a large blue cloth when he fell asleep. This was no doubt custom. So he chose not to ask questions and act as if he knew this was normal. He threw the cloth over her and rolled her in it. She seemed unhurt, so giving her some positive energy would only wake her. She did claim she wanted rest right? He could help her with that too... He toyed with ideas of experimentation while he glared at his hand where a diminutive black spark danced eagerly. It would help her sleep... But it would probably hurt... Furnace decided against it. At least until he found the taster of smiles. In the end he just dragged the cloth coccoon over to Kelvin. "You seem to have a plan regarding shelter? Where should she be?"</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin The sound of the arm repairing itself was going to haunt him. Good thing he didn't plan on much rest tonight. It was surprising that the durable gnome was willing to help afterword, but he would take it. Kelvin rocked back on his heels. "Separ hasn't come back yet… give me some time to think." He smiled in a way that he hoped was reassuring. Kelvin sat by himself a bit farther from the others, ignoring the drama of various people working out their social differences. They had a bit bigger issue on hand. That army. It had swept away the town with little trouble, other than the small group they had here, which was more than unfortunate. A show of unnecessary force like that had two possible meanings; this was an intimidation technique, or this was a campaign. Being that the raider's were mostly goblin… it looked closer to a campaign. Which put all of them directly in the path of it. They weren't really far enough from town to be completely safe either. Kelvin was still deep in thought when the gnome carried over a bundle. It was a bit comical to see. "I have been thinking." He motioned for him to put the oracle down, close to where the gnome and Carver had been laying. "I have the gear to put a tiny shelter up, but it won't fit all of us... but besides that, I am not sure we should spend the night here." Kelvin gestured back towards town, the smoke and blood could easily be smelt, and the black clouds made the sunset all the more bloody. "It isn't safe to stay so close. It would only take one enemy wandering about to spot us us." Kelvin lightly tapped his crossbow absentmindedly. "And besides that, they will be moving on eventually. I think we should wait for darkness, take some time to rest, and head for the next town. A force that big will be slower than our group, so with some effort we can warn the next town down the road." If they didn't, then this horde might spread from town to town, eliminating them so fast there were few survivors to spread the warning.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "There are more places like this?" Furnace blurted out in response while he carefully aranged Alula next to their stuff as directed. "And you don't desire this harvesting to happen there as well.." He frowned as he spoke slowly. It was clear he understood on some level. But not why. "So I take it we aren't returning there for the friend collector, that girl and all the wonderfull crafting materials strewn about? Then why even have a harvesting?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ frowned a little bit at the girls words. Sure he really wanted everyone to be fine, but would they? For now all Separ could do was hope that Carver, Kelvin, and all the others had come through. "I really hope they're okay." For a moment Separ and the girl sat in silence for a few minutes before Separ tried to stand up almost falling over in the process. While he had gained a little bit of his energy back, he still would be practically useless in a fight. Remembering he was wearing a backpack he took it off and laid it on the ground and pulled out two tents. Handing one towards the girl he began to ask her "Would you like to stay here for the night? I think I can walk, but it's getting pretty late. What would you prefer to do in this situation? I also have a medical kit in my backpack by the way, so we could always heal ourselves up before dark." Sure Separ did not know the girl very well, but he trusted her. She didn't seem like a bad person after all, especially when she herself practically sacrificed her life when she fell down from over-exerting herself.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver crept through the forest with as much stealth as he was able to muster, which was to say, none at all. Had any goblins been in earshot, they probably could have heard the clanking of his armor from quite a distance away - however, it seemed the sun was smiling on him, and no foes produced themselves. A brief moment later, the knight had another stroke of luck. In another small clearing, Separ and the witch sat in a half-unconscious pile. Carver was immediately gladdened to see Separ well - for a moment, he'd almost despaired for the young man's life. The witch, although, was another matter entirely. Carver had been half of the mind that she was part of the attack in some fashion, but her current condition seemed to belie that. She looked half-dead; pale, sallow, and exhausted. If this was the result of her summoning some magical force to aid in the fight, then perhaps his initial reaction to her had been unfair, whatever she was. "Separ! ... Other lady!" He called out to them as he entered the clearing, in the loudest whisper conceivable. "It's good to see you safe! The others are together, they're nearby. Are you able to walk? I can carry one of you."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis turned away from the clearing and walked towards the burning sun, it's light peaking out from between the gaps in the canopy as he ventured out for a stream or a pond of some sort. The further he got from the camp, he felt an indescribable feeling, it was a mixture of relief and heartache. Soon he had stumbled upon a small pond, fed by 3 trickling streams and hidden by the forest canopy, looking around to ensure he wasn't being followed, he began unbuckling his armor. Once the leather plates dropped off his body, he took off his under clothes and tossed them into a pile next to the bank, so he stood naked by the water. Slowly he slipped in, first sitting down then slowly levering himself into the cool pond using his arms but as he got into the pond, he found that from where the land met the water, it was a vertical sloap downwards for about 3 and a half feet. Vis stood in the water for a moment, to get use to the temperature, before submerged himself completely and opened his eyes, casting a green glow in the dusty water. Small fish swam around, eating the green that grew at the bottom, oblivious to Vis or his light. He emerged from the water and returned to the bank, resting his head on his folded arms and letting the rest of his body float. He decided he'd rest before washing his gear.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly turned to see Carver and smiled at his presence. "Carver, you're alive. I'm glad to see you." Separ put the tents back into his backpack and strapped it on to himself. "I think I can walk, but the girl fell down earlier, so maybe you should carry her. I also have some supplies we could use, including a tent and a medkit." Separ started to walk towards Carver only to stop and stare at the ground. "How..., how many died?" Separ's voice was shaky as he asked, not because he was tired, but rather because he was scared of what the answer would be. Perhaps Carver and maybe only a few others survived? Did the whole town die? Kelvin, the disfigured man, the little gnome, the girl who had healed him, "Phoenix". Just how many were still alive? Were the others injured just as bad as I am? Thought Separ as he slowly walked over to Carver. All Separ could do was silently hope for a good outcome.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Tearing flesh, screams of agony, clanking weapons and clattering teeth. Silence. Hazy blue eyes shot open, cutting the gruesome dreams of the oracle short. She glanced rapidly around the tent she had been placed in, trying to remember what had happened up until this point. Alula attempted to move, but found that everything was burning and aching. It felt like every vein in her body had been set alight. She groaned softly, forcing herself to sit up through the pain. But she found she was still constructed, she had been wrapped in a blanket. That's odd. The girl ungracefully squirmed her way out of the blanket, wincing every time she had to move. But if she didn't get up now she might never move again. Her head hurt. A lot. Voices were talking, softly but still there. They were trying to explain what had happened. Her mind felt fuzzy. She remembered agreeing to join a group of adventurers, and then something had happened. Something bad. The rest was blurs. She rubbed her eyes, wanting to pull down her hat. The voices told her that it was long gone, buried beneath the ruins of the burned town, soon to be found by looters. The cloth that the half-elf Vis had given her lost as well. Tucked up into the rim of her hat for safekeeping. And her staff, that was likely in the field where she collapsed. Collapsed. Somehow she had been broken from her trance. That had never happened before. The paladin. The paladin. She was silently panicking. Why couldn't she remember his name? She had to remember. A calm voice echoed through her head, shoving other voices aside. "Carver. Ser Carver. He was the one." Another grunt as she attempted to stand up, her crippled leg buckling out from under her. With bitter determination Alula got to her feet, leaning all of her weight on her good leg. She looked out of the tent, keeping her eyes cast downward. The sun was setting and she needed to get away.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver put a hand on the man's shoulder. "Do not, my friend. Down that path lies madness. There will come a time to mourn for the fallen and commend their souls to the heavens, but now we must turn our minds to those that may still be saved." The paladin bent down and hoisted the witch none-too gently over his shoulder. "Such as those waiting for us, for example. Kelvin, Alula, the gnome and the half-elf are nearby - I have not seen Rose in some time." Carver turned, and began carrying the witch back to camp.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace cocked his head slightly as he processed her words. He followed her, slowly waving the tall grass out of his face. "Of course you can. Choosing to do or not do is how you express who you are. And what you do, create or destroy, that is you. So how could you not be you?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula growled again, her anger growing despite her fatigue. She looked up anxiously at the setting sun. It would set any minute now, she needed to be rid of the gnome and the others. She needed to out distance between them. She glanced into the woods, which still seemed so far away. She wished that Carver would break through the tree line, he would be able to convince the gnome to cease his questions. She was getting stressed. And when the gnome spoke again she stopped walking, angrily planting her staff into the ground. She tried to control her apparent rage. "We are not all...blessed...with your...level of...expression." She growled, repeating his words. "We do not...get to...choose the life we...live." She started walking again, hoping to leave the gnome behind her. "And yet...I am myself..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace was relentless, not recognizing anger or stress. "So then it's like channeling energy, just cause I can doesn't mean you can? I was able to share that with the friend collector though. Let me help you be you. And make the choices you want."</s> <\|message\|>Des As night falls lights can be seen in the town coming from enemy torches. Most of these lights leave and wander out of town while others search the perimeter. None are near the heroes, YET. The five that are searching are making sure to look into the woods and while Kelvin's contraption blocks out eyes from the town, it won't avoid the notice of these guys. Will the team decide to run deeper and face whatever lies in the woods or stay and fight the five and hope none brings backup.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was still carrying the witch back to camp when he saw them. Five torches fanning through the woods. Survivors? No. Any townspeople who were still alive would have the good sense not to carry bright lights when trying to evade the army that had just destroyed their town. No, these were almost certainly foes, searching for survivors of the attack. And they were headed right for the camp. For the umpteenth time that day, Carver broke into an agonizingly slow run, finally breaking into the clearing where the rest of the party was. "Friends, they come! Five foes bear down on us, and I fear there is no time for us to run." He set the witch down gently on a blanket, somewhat guilty of his petty rough treatment of her earlier. He drew his sword and began gesturing around the camp. "I will try to take the worst of it. My gnomish friend, I know not how much energy remains within you, but use what you can to direct the foes to me. My lady Alula, please take the child and climb back to that tree, that we might protect the two of you more easily. Kelvin, I want you to remain at the base of the tree and shoot anything that gets too close. Separ, stay with me in front - they'll hit me, and then you'll hit them back harder. And, half-elf..." He glanced around. "Has anyone seen the half-elf?" The paladin shrugged, and placed his helmet back on his head.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Already Khat had wandered into the woods in the direction a set of foot prints went, she guessed they were Vis' as they were large and he had stated earlier that he was heading to a stream, his lateness was indicative of finding one. As she walked, she pulled her white linen head scarf around her neck, as it was a chilly evening. In the distance, she saw a figure move casually in her direction and as it got closer, she saw that it was Vis, casting a green glow from his eye. She regarded him coolly. "Vis," she said calmly, crossing her arms as she stood in front of him, she took this time to really look at the man who had pulled her out of the crate. He was skinny for an adult and very secretive, as he always had that scarf around his face, not once lowering it. Khat copied him, pulling up her scarf to hide her face, "I'm thirsty." "Hi Thirthty, I'm Vis." he joked dryly, looking down at her and casting a green glow on her freckled face, he noted that she had taken her scarf off of her head, showing the world her long red hair, "There ith a pond clothe by, come on." Vis lead her to the watering hole but the closer he got, the more cautious he became. I spluttering yellow light shone in the distance, it was a torch light and the figure beneath the light was clearly a raider, in the black tunic and holding a sword. Vis snapped to a wide eye'd Khat, "Up tha three!" he hissed, as he helped her climb up to a branch. Once safely high above the forest and tucked into the leaves of the tree, Vis deposited his armor and gear at the foo of the tree, instead pulling out his dagger and dropping into a crouch. From up in her treetop vantage, Khat watched as Vis slunk towards the light. From this height she could see the raider clearly, he was kneeled by the pond and was drinking. As Vis approached, it appeared as if killing the man would be no problem but the man was fast. He had spotted Vis in the reflection of the dark water and had spun around. Vis that quick, he couldn't get the man with the dagger as he could easily block with the torch but the man had yet to reach for his sword. So as he sprinted down to the enemy, he stooped and scooped a fist full of dirt and threw it at the man's face, momentarily blinded Vis took his chances. He hurled himself at the man and they both toppled into the pond, Vis on top of the raider. Quickly, Vis grabbed the man's head and pushed it under water, struggling to hold down the thrashing brute. From atop the tree, Khat could see that the thrashing was getting weaker and the bubbles to the surface less frequent, until the body was still. She could never imagine doing that and grinned as the body floated to the surface. The pair returned to campo and in unison hissed, "The raiders are in the forest!"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was close to lashing out on the gnome. She wouldn't hurt him, or at least not intentionally. Just enough to spook him away from her, so she could sneak off into the trees. She growled, gripping her staff tighter. Her voice was showing that same amount of corruption as before, but far weaker. Her voice lacked confidence but made up for that in anger. "We do not need you to tell us who we are. I know who I am." Alula's luck continued to run out as Carver broke through the treeline, carrying the hooded woman with the punching man behind him. She was hoping he would be able to sense her distress, and pick the gnome off her her, but instead he brought more bad news. More attackers. She didn't have time for this. She couldn't stay. If she did they would have more then just five attackers to deal with. She shook her head when Carver tried to get her up into the tree, his direction would have been disastrous. "No. No no no no." She said, panic and corruption taking over her calm disposition. "I cannot stay and I do not need protection, you do." She shook her head again, looking anxiously up at the sky. The sun was gone and soon the moon would take its place. Without looking at the gathered party Alula moved past them, trying to speed up her limping walk. "I must go." She repeated. She did not fear the enemies in the woods. They should be fearing her. She could see the first rays of moonlight. Her hair was glowing.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver whirled at the sound of the pair's voice. "Friends! Come, quickly. We must make a stand here. Look after the child, half elf. I will draw our foe's attention." Alula stumbled back, staring at the sky. Carver looked at her as she began to stumble away, towards the woods - towards the enemies. As he watched, her hair began to glow again - silver, like the moon. Was she about to enter the same state she'd been in during the battle? That would be catastrophic - there would be no hiding their position from the main body of the foes if she were to begin firing off moonbeams again. She needed to be calmed down before she transformed. The paladin hurried to the girl and spun her around to face him. "My lady," he said, calmy, in spite of the light spreading over her, "If you go into those woods, you will die. You say that we are the ones in need of protection, and this may be so. But I carry my protection with me, and I do not fear. Stay close behind me, and I will protect you. I swear."</s> <\|message\|>Alula She was turned around to face Carver, her glowing hair drifting around her without weight. Her eyes were glowing slightly and her expression was one of restraint. Her entire body trembled, as if something was trying to escape from within her. It was taking all of Alula's strength and resolve to keep herself composed. She seemed to relax for a moment as Carver spoke to her, her glow dying down slightly, but moments later it came back even stronger. Alula trembled again. Even her voice sounded strained. "I do not doubt for a moment that you would be able to protect me." She paused a moment, eyes squeezed shut. "But this is...beyond me..." A shaky exhale, squeezing her eyes shut tighter. "The creatures in the woods cannot kill me, they are too late for that." Alula opened her eyes, brightly glowing and yet still displaying desperation. "You have to trust me. Please." She begged. "I will...return...eventually..." Her voice lacked confidence. "It is only the night. It's who we are. It's part of me." Another violent shake, a curse in a foreign language. "I am dangerous. I don't want to hurt anyone else."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ walked towards Carver and placed a hand on his armored shoulder. "Carver, if she insists on going then we should not stop her. Let us instead focus on fighting by her side. The enemies are dangerous after all, me and the girl back there almost died and this fight may end with the same outcome or worse. Let's just do what we can alright?" Separ turned towards Alula looking at her directly. "I'll back you up any way I can if you have some sort of plan?" Rushing the enemy felt reckless to Separ, but he knew there wasn't much of a choice. Those scouts would find them eventually if they didn't now, defeating them now would be the best option. Though it would probably also be a good idea to relocate camp afterwards, seeing as sooner or later the other raiders will notice the disappearance of this squad. Separ took a deep breath trying to collect himself as he still felt rather tired from everything that had happened. Taking off his backpack he laid it behind a tree a few meters away from the group. Alright, now I can move a little bit better, but still this is going to be tough. Separ turned towards Carver and walking towards him whispered. "So, are you ready to do this then? I'll be right behind you the whole time."</s> <\|message\|>Des The five scouts started to move in closer to where the crew was positioned. One noticed movement and the scouts started racing to where the movement was spotted. Time until they reach the camp: Five minutes of game time</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to Separ hesitantly. "I... yes. You are right. We will do what we can. Stay close behind me, Separ. When their mightiest blows fall upon my guard, that is when you must strike. My lady... do what you must, but stay safe, and keep the light displays to a minimum. Everyone else behind me. Our priority is protecting the child." With that, he strode forward and slowly, rhythmically, began to pound the hilt of his sword against his shield. His mind wandered back to another time, when a much younger man by his name had done much the same thing. Sir Greenvale was striding in front of the line of recruits. The man was like a cliff face - huge, imposing, unyielding. He scanned the line with impassive eyes, and at length asked a question. "Does the Paladin fear pain?" As once, the recruits beat their shields and answered. Clang."No!" "Does the Paladin fear disgrace?" Clang. "No!" "Does the Paladin fear death?" Clang. "No!" "What does the Paladin fear?" Clang. "Failure!" The hammering intensified, growing louder with every blow. Carver would not fail. "On me, friends! They draw near!"</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman managed to escape as the one archer was beaten to death while the other had his life drained away. He ran to the raider party and informed them of the surviving group. Time until reinforcements arrive: 30 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver grimaced as the flail crashed into his side again. This wasn't working - the flail had reach and power that he couldn't hope to match, and the man's armor was far too much for his sword. He wracked his brain for a moment before arriving at an answer. The flail needed a strong swing to build up power - getting far wouldn't help, so he'd just have to get close. With a roar, Carver launched himself at his enemy, shield raised, attempting to tackle him to the ground with the full weight of his armor.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" "I do noth think thath thith ith a good thime tho retht, we should keep going." Vis said, adjusting how he carried the now squirming child as she tried to get down. "If you are going to carry me, at least let me ride on your back instead of holding me like a baby!" she whined, starting to kick in her search for freedom, Vis did as he was told and levered the girl onto his back in one swift motion, she wobbled there, dizzy for a moment until she spoke again, "this will do." Voltus then proceeded to stoop over and pick up the girl rolled in the blanket, grunting a bit at all the weight he was carrying and Kelvin was right, she was heavy, "Retht if you wish buth I will keep going." With that Vis turned and walked deeper into the forest and away from the camp, lighting the way with his glowing green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Des Bill swung the flail, barely missing Carver. Sadly, what goes around comes around and the chain wrapped around the paladin. Bill tugged on the chain attempting to pull Carver down but the paladin stood strung and did not fall although wrapped in chains.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Rather than try to disentangle himself from the chain, Carver just kept charging, crashing into Bill in an attempt to pin him under the paladin's enormous weight, all while trying to bring his arms up to grapple with him opponent.</s> <\|message\|>Des Bill side-stepped out of the way, allowing Carver to fall to the ground and struggle in his chains. "I don't have time to wrestle with you, it's already going to be hard enough to take on your friends unarmed." Bill raised his fist, ready to take on any opposers. "God I hope reinforcements get here soon." Time until reinforcements arrive: 22 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Furnace While Bill stepped away from Carver, Furnace approached softly. The cold feeling had made him calm. As Bill spoke and looked around to find other opponents Furnace stood right in front of him to present himself. Thick, dark surges of negative energy danced in his hands as he held them before him. Chilled and collected he stared Bill in his eyes, ready to react to any movement with shock and pain. With wide eyes and barely any emotion on his face he spoke softly "I am going to hurt you."</s> <\|message\|>Des A divine light shines down from the heavens upon Carver. The light rusts and breaks the chains, lifts Carver to his feet, heals his wound, and repairs his armor. Bill looks first at the little one, "Ah shit, I should have wasted my flail on this one." Then he sees the light out of his peripheral vision, "Fuck, you're a paladin. Well, you know what, all those times I hit you with my flail, I was just doing my job. I actually have to go sooo..." Bill starts to back away from the two. Time until reinforcements arrive: 18 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Ooooh, ow. The knight didn't seem to be fairing well in his battle with his flailed opponent. Perhaps the last fight took all the energy and speed out of him, because on top of the dynamics of the chain - the user of which actually seemed to be practiced with its use - the looter was dancing around the knight with each charge he made. Was the knight really so simple-minded that he would resort to the same old tactic? Surely they've learned better by now. Before he got himself tangled up, perhaps it would have been better throw him the sword or shield that the looter had been ensnared in the first place. His flail is then tangled in what you've thrown at him and then you're free. "But no, by all means, continue what you're doing now... It's obviously working." Arastoph muttered. His ears perked as soon as the looter began talking and taunting the knight. At least the looter was unarmed, but what he had said set off an alarm. Reinforcements... Arastoph ran out of his hiding place and into the open, his full appearance now being visible to the group and to his enemy. His dragoon in hand, although unloaded (but his enemy didn't have to know that), he yelled at what he saw as the buffoons he had aligned himself with. "Kill him quickly, already! Before more arrive!" Enemy reinforcements also meant that he wouldn't be able to get these fools to carry the wine kegs for him. Whether or not this knight was actually a paladin didn't matter. He couldn't defeat an army alone.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ After finally defeating the archers with the gnome, Separ stood up to find that Carver was having trouble with the last opponent. Before the gnome could intervene in the fight however, Separ put his hand on the gnome's shoulder holding him back. "Carver, do you need any help? Or would you prefer we stay out of this? If this is your battle I don't want to intervene and hurt your pride. That being said, if you'd like some assistance I wouldn't mind taking this guy down a peg or two." Separ waited quietly for Carver to answer, time was of the essence for sure, but if losing this fight meant a lot to Carver, then there was no reason to jump in. "The decision is up to you, just know that if reinforcements do come me and Calvin, err the gnome should be able to hold them back for a little bit while you finish up your fight." Separ stepped in front of the gnome making direct eye contact and firmly held the gnome's shoulders with both of his hands. "This may be an important battle for Carver, so if he says he doesn't need help you shouldn't help him out. This may be a battle between men and interrupting that may harm Carver mentally. Oh, and by the way, thanks for healing me again, and also just what was your name again? I forgot what it was.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was somewhere warm, and golden, floating on a sea of soft yellow light. Everything else - the battle, his friends, the chains - it was all outside of this, this beam of sunlight, and everything out there was happening very, very slowly. "Carver..." The voice came from all around him, soft and musical. It was a woman's voice, one he had only heard a few times before; his vigil, his initiation, and once during his training. It was his lady's voice. The sun's. And then she was in front of him, radiant and beautiful, golden-haired, kind-faced, clad in robes of billowing white. "My lady!" the paladin gasped, and tried to fall to one knee, but quickly found he couldn't move. He was rising, being lifted from the ground in the pillar of light. A horrid thought struck him. "My lady, am I dead?" The knight did not fear death, but he feared to die with his duty unfulfilled; if he was dead, he could not protect the others. She laughed, the sound of windchimes on a summer day. "No, brave knight, you have much life left in you." She stroked his helmed cheek with one hand, where the flail had mangled his face. "Oh, Carver, you always did have such faith in people. You deserve to have it rewarded, one of these days." "I ask for no reward, my lady." "You never did. Arise, brave knight, and carry on in my name. Carry on the fortitude you have displayed, and I will be gladdened to have such a champion in the dark days to come." She began to fade, all the light around him dimming. Carver turned his head wildly as the world outside began to speed up again. "My lady! My lady! What is it that I must do?" he called out, desperately. "Protect them, Carver. The task before them is great, and they will need your strength." "I will fight to the end, my lady." "I know, Carver, but that's not what I mean. Arise, your strength restored, and protect them from what's coming. And, let's have rid of those as well - there are enough chains upon you already, my dear knight." The light was gone. Carver landed on the ground with a soft thud. Separ was saying something to him, asking whether he wanted to fight the man alone. The paladin turned to him and spoke. "More are coming to kill us, friend - more than we can fight. We must leave and gather the others, go somewhere far from here." Carver bent and picked up his sword and shield before turning to Bill. "You fight very well - it is a shame that you ended up on the wrong side. However, you cannot be allowed to tell your friends which way we went, and though I'd like to make you swear silence, your word has lost value to me." He gestured his head to Separ. "I am not so proud as to make this take longer than necessary, not when time is of the essence. He'll have to die."</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem After the paladin awoke from his coma, he stated the obvious, addressed the looter, and began consulting the brawler. Oh. Isn't this just adorable? Instead of taking action, they're chit-chatting. The lack of their sense of urgency was enough to consider leaving them to their fate. If only he didn't have to rely on someone else's protection to get to the next town. He sighed in resignation as he drew his stiletto from his sheath and took a few steps toward Bill, while keeping sure to maintain equal distance. "As much as I hate to present an interlude to your... colloquy, we have already made clear that we are running out of time. Will the neither of you warriors finish him, or should I?" Arastoph spat out the word warriors as though they were made to shame them; perhaps done so in a condescending sense, as there are two warriors stalling time and not finishing what they have started, and instead prompting the merchant, the citizen - the survivor - to do the dirty work. "I might have expected the holy order to be so craven." He added.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace People all around him were talking of strange concepts and used words he couldn't understand. Kill. Pride. Mentally. Furnace barely listened. All of his attention thuroughly occupied by the glowing wonder before him. As he peered into the bright lights he saw something akin to the positive energy he was used to. But rather than dancing coils he saw beams of light. Woven masterfully in glorious patterns. Looking at Carver rise from splendourus light made it hard to maintain the current of negative energy. Absorbed as he was he didn't care. When the magical effect had ended Furnace stared into nothingness, the bright images still dancing in his eyes. Until a commanding voice snapped him out of it. "He'll have to die." Die? Finish him? "Okay.. Finish him... How does that go? What do I do?"</s>	<\|message\|>Carver "A life should never be taken lightly," Carver said. The man who had shot one of the enemies earlier was attempting to goad him. Carver wasn't so proud as to start an argument with the survivor - doubtless he was just lashing out thanks to the trauma he'd endured. The paladin stepped towards the man who'd had the flail. "By the power invested in me by my order and my lady, the sun, I judge you guilty of crimes both numerous and heinous, and sentence you to death. May you find whatever rest you deserve." His piece sad, Carver swung his blade at the man's neck, hoping at least to offer him a quick end.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace People all around him were talking of strange concepts and used words he couldn't understand. Kill. Pride. Mentally. Furnace barely listened. All of his attention thuroughly occupied by the glowing wonder before him. As he peered into the bright lights he saw something akin to the positive energy he was used to. But rather than dancing coils he saw beams of light. Woven masterfully in glorious patterns. Looking at Carver rise from splendourus light made it hard to maintain the current of negative energy. Absorbed as he was he didn't care. When the magical effect had ended Furnace stared into nothingness, the bright images still dancing in his eyes. Until a commanding voice snapped him out of it. "He'll have to die." Die? Finish him? "Okay.. Finish him... How does that go? What do I do?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver "A life should never be taken lightly," Carver said. The man who had shot one of the enemies earlier was attempting to goad him. Carver wasn't so proud as to start an argument with the survivor - doubtless he was just lashing out thanks to the trauma he'd endured. The paladin stepped towards the man who'd had the flail. "By the power invested in me by my order and my lady, the sun, I judge you guilty of crimes both numerous and heinous, and sentence you to death. May you find whatever rest you deserve." His piece sad, Carver swung his blade at the man's neck, hoping at least to offer him a quick end.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Even during a time like this, the paladin still had time to preach to him about the value of human life. To this, Arastoph nodded, but subsequently turned away to roll his eyes in a place out of their attention. Regardless, Bill had been quickly slain, prompting the muscles in Arastoph's body to ease. Now that they had the flail guy out of the way, they could focus on escaping this forsaken village. There wasn't any hope of fending off a whole army of reinforcements in their current condition. Well, Arastoph himself was fine, if not low on ammunition. The paladin did his paladin thing. The gnome, though, looked as though he'd be utterly useless in a fight against massive forces. So, as for the escape plan... "The swordsman crawled off that way," he said, pointing in the direction the bandit had escaped. "It stands to reason that he intends on meeting with his reinforcements. We should leave; now. In any direction other than that one. Ideally, we should make haste towards the nearest town."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace followed the head with his eyes as it separated from it's torso and fell followed by a crimson stream of life holding fluid. He wondered how he would repair damage like that. Perhaps this was the kind of destruction the voice had spoken off. The idea was strange and intriguing. What did it mean to be broken? The man with the explosion wands spoke again. His voice as himself unfamiliar to Furnace, but his tone very much so. Although with more words he spoke with a certain.. directness that reminded Furnace of the ones that held him, from the dark days. Without hesitation he started to follow Arastoph. "My friend Kelvin said we had to get to the nearest town too." Furnace put emphasis on the fact he had friends, as it was still a new and exiting development. "We'll likely find him and the others on the way there. We have to prevent the harvest."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver sheathed his bloody blade and regarded the corpse coolly. "Look favorably upon him," he whispered. "All men deserve a kind voice in their judgement." His commendation of the fallen concluded, the Paladin turned to the others. "Right. Now does seem like an excellent time to make an exit. I'll follow your lead, friend, if you say you know the way." The knight began to jog lightly in the direction the man had pointed. "Alula!" he shouted, every so often. "Half-elf! Kelvin! Are you out there? We're leaving, come find us!" It occured to him that this may incur further enemy attention, but it struck the knight as the balance of two paths. He couldn't leave his friends alone to fend for themselves in the woods, nor could he risk the safety of the others by searching for them. With luck, they'd solve his dilemma and come find him.</s> <\|message\|>Des After the fight both parties wandered into the woods. As the night became darker, the parties managed to find each other while setting up camp. What they didn't know is that someone else had found them as well. ~~~~TIMESKIP~~~~</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace felt tired. His eyes weary and movements slow he looked around. He stood before the tent Kelvin and Separ had helped him build. Carver and Vis were standing near the fire seemed to be discussing something called a watch. Furnace didn't care, he felt like lying down. He saw how someone had draped the other girl on the soft cloth. Thinking this a good idea he fell asleep on a bed in his tent. Slowly he drifted away back into the darkness, like he had many times before. "You did well this day." The voice echoed trough the void. Furnace remained silent. "What did you feel when you released your negative energy?" "I felt cold." "You will get used to that, like the heat of the fire." "Will I need to hurt more people?" "There's more to the nature of the dark current, you are close to finding the taster of smiles." The two were silent for a while, time passed while nothing else did, as there was nothing in the void. "I had a question." "Yes my mentee?" "I saw a new form of energy today, it emanated from the steel giant I've come to known named Carver. The brilliant patterns, I can still conjure them in my mind." "What you've seen is divine energy, the man must have been a target of some powerful spell cast by a divine creature." "Divine?" "As you know there are many ways of categorising the creatures that dwell here. Some are mortal, like you and your new friends. And some are creatures from other places or planes even. What you've witnessed was likely something from the higher planes of good and or order, though I could only guess at it's exact orgin and strength." "Where are you from then?" "I think that's enough questions for tonight."</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem They had been hasty in their retreat, lead by Arastoph toward the proper direction, but was expectedly thwarted of his lead by the others who had sought to seek out their companions. Surely, it was an irritable day, between raids and his stubborn protectors (as the term "rescuers" would be lending them too much credence). They did in fact find them, and promptly set up camp in the safest area that they could. From what he has learned from listening in on their conversations, the paladin was Carver, the brawler was Separ, and among the people the two were looking for was an engineer named Kelvin. The little one's name, the gnome, had not been mentioned, and the name of the woman had been mentioned so few times that it had left his mind. The tall half-elf, however; his speech impediment was so pronounced, so strong, that it annoyed the living hell out of the merchant to the point that he didn't even care to learn it. He completely disregarded the child, almost as though he wasn't aware she existed. Arastoph only hoped that they knew how to make a proper fire, even though he himself thought that starting a fire in this proximity to the ruined village invested with bandits was a terrible idea. He was bidding misère on his bet that trouble would arrive before anyone got a full night of sleep. Staying in one place was too dangerous. His input would undoubtedly be disregarded by this band; an infuriating concept that was beyond the merchant, to be degraded to such a degree, that his authority could be so easily undermined. It is under this cognition that Arastoph devises his plans to make the most of the current situation by taking advantage of the paladin's code, and perhaps the moral compass of the others – though he did not know how far the latter would take him. Not once has he said a word during the process of setting up camp. Shared his opinion, his name – nay, not a word. During one brief moment of quiet amongst the camp, however, Arastoph broke his silence. "Carver," Arastoph started simply, "do you – or do you not – feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" His voice ran smooth, like that of a practiced orator, nary a tremble in its consistency. His eyes bore into the paladin's own, expecting an honest answer.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat held on to Vis' sleeve as he conversed with the paladin, she looked up at him as he talked his twisted words, they didn't sound right to her young, unexperienced ears, they were strained, slowly spoken and broken. She pulled up her scarf to cover her face as he did and felt a little bit better, 'maybe this is why he wears it?' she thought to herself but her thinking was cut short by a rumble in her stomach, followed by a hollow pain, Khat was hungry. She pulled on his sleeve and he entertained her tugging. "I'm hungry," she said simply, looking up at him as he looked down at her in a strange way, "Hello! Can't you hear me from all the way up there? I'm hungry." Vis blinked a bit before coming to. Looking at her with her scarf wrapped around her face sent shivers down his spine for some reason. "I don'th haf anyfing for you tho eath." Voltus replied slowly, watching as her face grew into a look of incredulity. "You're telling me that you came to a bakery and bought no bread?" she retorted harshly, glaring daggers at him, 'if he did't buy bread...' she thought but was interrupted by Vis' face turning red in embarrassment as he reached into his bag for one of the loaves of bread. He snapped off a chunk of staleness and handed it to Khat, she took it and tried it in her hands, she looked on the verge of crying, looking at the piece of bread, 'yesterday's bread,' she thought, 'before all this.' She bit back a sob. Voltus looked down at the girl with a mixture of grief and understanding, he touched her shoulder awkwardly, "When you're done you should thleep." She simply nodded, knowing if she opened her mouth she'd burst out sobbing. She walked off to nestle herself in between some exposed roots of a tree, where she nibbled the bread. Vis turned to carver, "I'll thake firtht watch, paladin."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to the half elf. "Your offer is a generous one, and I appreciate it. I will take the last watch, for I see best during sunrise. When your watch draws to a close, wake up Separ. Separ will have to wake up Kelvin. Kelvin will have to wake up..." The paladin glanced around the assembled party. A child, a refugee, a witch, and a wide-eyed gnome. "... Me. I'll take a double watch, it'll be no trouble." The party was sore, tired, frightened and generally worn down, but they were alive, and they were together, which was more than the knight could have hoped for. At least, most of them were - Alula, the very girl he'd sworn to protect, was still missing. Part of Carver wanted to go look for her, but he knew it wouldn't be safe, and that it wouldn't be what she wanted - she'd seemed pretty insistent on being alone at night. His efforts were better spend on those he had eyes on - what they needed now was to rest and recover their strength - their next moved could be planned in the morning. "Carver, do you – or do you not – feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" The refugee's words, the one who'd tried to get a rise out of him earlier. Carver held the man's gaze. His home had been burned to ashes, everyone he'd ever known put to the sword. If he wanted to take it out on the man who should've prevented it, that was more than his right. "Yes. Your village is burned, all those people dead, because I was not wise or fast or strong enough to stop it. On my head was the task, and on my head lay the blame."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to the half elf. "Your offer is a generous one, and I appreciate it. I will take the last watch, for I see best during sunrise. When your watch draws to a close, wake up Separ. Separ will have to wake up Kelvin. Kelvin will have to wake up..." The paladin glanced around the assembled party. A child, a refugee, a witch, and a wide-eyed gnome. "... Me. I'll take a double watch, it'll be no trouble." The party was sore, tired, frightened and generally worn down, but they were alive, and they were together, which was more than the knight could have hoped for. At least, most of them were - Alula, the very girl he'd sworn to protect, was still missing. Part of Carver wanted to go look for her, but he knew it wouldn't be safe, and that it wouldn't be what she wanted - she'd seemed pretty insistent on being alone at night. His efforts were better spend on those he had eyes on - what they needed now was to rest and recover their strength - their next moved could be planned in the morning. "Carver, do you – or do you not – feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" The refugee's words, the one who'd tried to get a rise out of him earlier. Carver held the man's gaze. His home had been burned to ashes, everyone he'd ever known put to the sword. If he wanted to take it out on the man who should've prevented it, that was more than his right. "Yes. Your village is burned, all those people dead, because I was not wise or fast or strong enough to stop it. On my head was the task, and on my head lay the blame."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Feeling exhausted and tired from such a long day, Separ couldn't help but yawn as he finished the last preparations on his tent. He laid out his sleeping bag and then left to check on the others to see how they were all doing. What he overheard however was a conversation between both the civilian and Carver. "Do you or do you not feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" It felt as though the man wanted someone to blame, a scapegoat to explain why his town had fallen. Listening closely Carver admitted to actually being at fault. Not liking where this conversation was heading, Separ decided to intervene before the conversation could go on any longer. He walked up towards the two of them. "Sorry if I'm interrupting, it's just that I would like to say that the destruction of Ravenwood is not your fault Carver, or at least not entirely. By your logic, I and all of the others are just as much at fault. Why couldn't I be strong enough to knock out an ettin in one blow?" Separ pointed to the little girl and Vis as well to further prove his point. "Why wasn't the elf swift enough to run circles around that whole army? And why couldn't the little girl over there be a master weapons user?" Separ already didn't like this man that much. He seemed to be one of those snobby types that always looked down on others. At least that would be what it seemed like as earlier the man complained about that quick duel between Carver and that Bill guy. Glaring daggers at the civilian, Separ ended his rant. "Finally, why weren't you strong enough to save Ravenwood?" And with that being said Separ glared at the man for a moment before turning around to go into his tent. Separ then called out to the entire group, just audible enough for everyone to hear. "I'm going to bed you guys, I'm pretty exhausted after such a long day. Anyone is free to enter my tent and sleep with me, I'll probably be asleep when you come in anyways." Entering his tent Separ unrolled his sleeping bag and pulling himself inside, drifted off into sleep.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Carver's answer satisfied Arastoph. This was good. This meant that he could more easily get what he needs out of this by milking the "sole survivor" trope. However, there came issue with the brawler, who seems to have taken upon himself to present himself as the ass. Ah; setbacks, setbacks. So, how would be the best way to take care of this monkey while still playing the trope? Perhaps, maybe, undermine the brawler's efforts to absolve themselves of blame and pinning it instead on the "sole survivor", and putting the monkey up on spotlight. He'd have to really milk this, but it was doable. As Separ walked away, Arastoph began, not even bothering to look behind him at he spoke. "So, tell me - Separ, was it? Have you ever seen what it was like to watch closely people being burned alive?" Arastoph asked. He paused for a moment for his words to sink in. "I imagine not, so let me explicitly descriptive: a small child, hunched over a bed of charcoals. Her screams of agony, oh so woeful that they were, have long since evanesced. Her blood is instead boiling, oozing through the pores of her skin. With the sight, the smell of burning skin mingled with burning hair. Her eyes pop like grapes when the water in and behind them boil." He looked at the little girl that the lisping rogue had made her companion. "That could have just as easily been her." He took a deep breathe, as though it were meant to regain his bearings. Now it was time to really milk it. "Now what if I told you, that girl was my daughter?" He stated, clenching his teeth and emboldening his voice. "Would you then be so bold to suggest that I did not do everything in my power to stop that? Whereas the lot of you - all with combat experience, weapon training, and practice - had far more tools to their disposal than I ever had? As a trader, I picked a different path, which just so happened meant I couldn't support a family by ways of fighting." His head turned back to face Carver, his face a little pink with forced, feigned anger. "If you do take responsibility," he said, "I do expect reparations. Safe passage to other towns. The lives of people are not insurable, but I expect at least the compensation for everything I've lost. I'm a merchant who had a pretty penny to his name. I've lost a lot. This would mean paying off a large monetary debt, however long it takes."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ sighed as he listened to the man's words. This guy was unbelievable, trying to get him to feel guilt over something he had nothing to do with, as well as wanting payment to boot. Without turning around either Separ replied with. "I have never seen a person burn alive, I'll give you that. But what does this have to do with anything? Yes it was your daughter, and I feel sorry for your loss. Nonetheless, we're human too. Just because Carver has a sword doesn't mean he's some unstoppable juggernaut. I'm not invincible either, none of us are. We're only human, well excluding the gnome and the elf, but while I do wish I could have saved the town I know I'd just add to the death pile. I barely escaped with my life, and," motioning towards the cloaked girl who was still fast asleep. "I managed to save her life as well. That's as much as I could muster, so sorry if I'm not Mr. Superhero the fourth. Also don't expect much money out of me, I mean I'll help out, but from what I can tell, you appear to be no good. I just hope the only reason you're acting like this is because you just lost your town and family. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Goodnight." And with that Separ finally entered his tent and fell asleep, exhausted from such a long day of fighting.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat nestled herself between the pillar like roots of the oak tree, looking small among the woody tendrils of the massive plant. She nibbled into the bread, looking as if she were not hungry, however she was starving but her seized up heart wouldn't let her eat, like a lump in her stomach taking up all the space. As the man spoke of his burning daughter, she shrunk further and further into the recess between the roots, until she was as small as she could be, her head between her knees and her arms pulling them towards her chest. She had lost her appetite. To her own frustration, she started to cry, ever so quietly so she could not be heard. Vis turned away from the flickering flame and cast a green light behind him with his cursed eye, his heart stumbled over itself and reached out to the little girl, his green light softening to almost nothing. He moved towards her, taking his time to shove his way past the new guy to express his feelings. Vis crouched at Khat's feet and looked at her before he spoke. "You're muther wouldn'th wanth you crying, you know thath, righth?" he asked her gently, putting a hand on her's. She shook it off harshly and barked in his face. "How would you know?!" She had had enough, bursting into tears she launched herself at Vis and clung to him, thumping his back with her balled up fists as she wept, "I've got no one! No one but a dumb half-elf!" Vis knew her rage was only fueled by her grief but her words still hurt. Soon she grew exhausted and fell asleep, her face tear stained and her long red hair tangled and matted from her thrashing. Vis rested his head on the tree as he sat, the girl sound asleep on his lap. "Whath am I thoo do?" he mumbled to himself.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver watched Separ enter his tent. The man was generous in his defense of Carver, but ultimately, misguided. It had not been his responsibility to defend the village, nor Kelvin's, nor Vis's. When Carver put on the armor, he swore an oath - he made the defense of all things good and peaceful his responsibility forevermore. The refugee's words were compelling, however. Truly, the man had lost much, endured much, and he deserved to be heard out at the least. "If you do take responsibility," said the refugee, "I do expect reparations. Safe passage to other towns. The lives of people are not insurable, but I expect at least the compensation for everything I've lost. I'm a merchant who had a pretty penny to his name. I've lost a lot. This would mean paying off a large monetary debt, however long it takes." Without him even realizing it, Carver's upper lip curled into an expression of disgust at the words. "So that's it, then? Money." The paladin rounded on the man, hands clenching into fists. "You speak of money when homes are gutted and pillaged. You speak of money when innocents are slaughtered, women defiled, children burned. You've borne witness to carnage indescribable, and yet you have words for your fortune?!" The knight was shouting now, the full weight of his fury bearing down on the man. "What I failed was beyond sums and figures. The peaceful life that was taken from those villagers was worth more than all the coin you could ever put your hands on. I will live in penance for this failure and for many others, but I will not spend my days recompensing a miser his 'pretty penny.'" Carver turned to walk towards his tent. Almost as an after-thought, he yanked his coinpurse from his side and tossed it over to the man. "There. Ten coins, all the money to my name. Take it, if you value it so greatly. I do not care for its stink." With that, the paladin entered the tent, still bristling with indignation.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des Des walked into the clearing once everyone was asleep making sure not to be spotted by Vis. He walked by the entire lot thinking about them. 'This one's presence is loud and annoying, like a bickering family.' He thought as he passed by Alula. He looked into the tent of Kelvin and Furnace. 'This one's head is too busy and the other feels warm, yet somehow cold.' He walked into Separ's tent and stared at him. 'This one can think of only one thing, what is he to do when that purpose is filled.' Finally he walked into the tent of Carver. 'This one is protective and comforting, like the sun.' He then laid next to Carver, the only presence that didn't bother him, and fell asleep.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Time for you to wake up." Furnace woke to the strange melodic sound of chirping. Kelvin was still asleep next to him so he carefully crawled out of the tent. He had dreamt that night. Not just words but lights and visions. "Something big. Something proud." These words echoed in his mind when he stared into the smouldering remains of the camp fire. Furnace rubbed his forehead while scanning the tent, Alula was nowhere to be seen. He wondered why he wondered these things, and why he felt the need to touch his head. Looking around Furnace also noticed Carver sitting in the grass looking at the bright orb of energy rested on hills in the far distance. So peaceful the man sat there in silence. Furnace sat down beside him and stared at the sunrise with him. He'd seen the thing before, high in the sky and falling slowly. Then it would rise again later. Furnace began to assume this always happened. Furnace liked the idea. To have a ready supply of light and warmth from time to time. And the waves of energy laced in the rays of light, woven so brilliantly made the source a sight to behold. He thought back to the energy he'd see wave of Carver some time ago before they had slept. Looking at the patterns he confirmed his earlier guess that their nature was the same. Furnace broke the silence. "It's beautiful isn't it?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou "?!?!" It took almost all of her self control, not to fling herself up in shock, as Suki woke up. The dream she had during the night was disturbingly vivid. Well, the emotions she felt were vivid, the actual content of the dream somewhat hazy. Glancing around, she noticed that she was lying down in a tent, with the sun's rays piercing through the thin fabric of the tent. Yawning lightly, she gracefully slipped out, before stretching. Looking around, it appears they had moved from the ruins of the town, into a hopefully safer clearing. While carefully on guard against anyone, she noticed the gnome nearby. Although it was an amusing idea, she forgone the option of teasing it. She didn't feel up for tempting anyone just yet.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis had not slept well and night had turned to day in a disorientating blur of exhaustion and periodic wakings ups in during the night. Though he was sure that he must have gotten at least some sleep because he remembered waking up a lot, and having stage dreams. He looked like crap. His eyes were bloodshot and his good one turing violet from the redness and it's natural blue and he was slumped over, his eyes only barely open and seemingly unregistering. Vis felt his eyes start to creep shut but he willed them to stay open, 'only a few more minutes and i wake up the paladin' he thought to himself, forgetting he had already woken him up, Vis looking up and grimaced, it was day and he had slept horribly. He sighed and felt Khat stir in her sleep. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked up at Vis, she was still asleep on his laps, it appears he hadn't moved all night. Khat wasn't one for good mornings, "Why do you look like shit?" she asked, Vis simply sorted, not even taken aback by the child's foul language. His hands went around his head shakily and tightened his scarf, she mimicked him, "I had a weird dream." Vis didn't registering what she said, "hello?" she asked, waving a hand in his face, he snorted in acknowledgment, "not a morning person..." she mumbled.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver awoke from his dream with a start. He rubbed his face, blinked his eyes, confirmed in his mind that he was indeed awake, that yes, this was real and what he'd just seen had been fantasy. There was a picture emblazoned on his arm, a strange symbol he couldn't recognize from any of his learning. That was from the dream, but if that was still there, then...? There was something else, too, a sensation that had stuck with him. Weightlessness. Alula. Wherever the girl was, Carver prayed she was safe. There was a sight he wasn't quite prepared for. There was a child curled up next to him, fast asleep, a small, frail thing who obviously hadn't slept in a bed in a long while. He wondered for a moment where the child had come from, and then concluded that it didn't matter. Perhaps he was another survivor, perhaps he was an urchin. What mattered now was that he was clearly alone, and tired, and had come to Carver seeking protection. The paladin lifted his blanket and spread it over the child, taking great care not to wake him. When the time came for his watch, Carver stepped outside the tent dressed in the plain linen clothes he'd been wearing under his armor yesterday. He took up position where he could see the sunrise peeking over the horizon, planted his sword at his feet, and spent a time contemplating her wisdom and beauty in silence. The silence was broken a great while later, when the rest of the party began to awaken. He was content to leave them to their morning rituals until the gnome came to sit next to him. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" The knight smiled softly. "She is. She loves each of us, you know. That is why she blesses us with her radiance. We are all children of the sun."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace looked at Carver like he couldn't understand a word he said. She. Love. Bless. Children. Sun... "Who is the sun?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had slept fantastically. It was the gentle sounds of the world around her, as well as the irritating sunlight piercing through her shut eyes, that finally awoke her. She sat up slowly, stretching her arms up above her with a soft grunt. And as she stretched her arms up to the sky the grass she had slept in moved too. She looked around, blinking the sleep out of her hazy eyes. The events of the previous day were rather unclear to Alula. She remembered joining the group of adventurers, of whom which seemed to have set up camp here. The events of the battle between them and the horde of creatures was nothing more then a hazy feeling, like watching the events unfold from behind dirty glass. The voices filled in the blanks for her, explaining that they eventually had to flee the area. They then tried to bring up the No good dangerous and rotten Paladin but she silently begged them to stick to the facts. And then there was the coming of the moon. And she had barely gotten away from the group before she changed. Alula found herself exhaling with relief. There had been a group of raiders, whom she was able to cunningly outwit. And from then on she had spent the rest of the evening enjoying the moon and recharging. She confirmed with the voices that this was all they had done in the night, which they confirmed. Good. No one had been hurt. She looked over to her side, noticing her staff laying out in the grass an arms length away. Well at least they made one thing easy for her, but she was still upset about her hat being lost. Everyone else was beginning to wake up around her as well. Hopefully everyone else slept well too. She yawned again, stretching out her spine and pulling her staff closer to herself. She could hear her companions having conversations, but they felt so far away despite being so close. And the sunrise was burning her eyes.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem "A celestial body." Arastoph piped up, intervening on the conversation; and hopefully end the religious conversion before it began. Worshiping the light was cute and all, but what kind of man would he be if he let the knight take advantage of a little boy like that? Er-- gnome. How old was the wee guy anyway? Regardless, Arastoph had one thing that the others didn't: a formal education befitting of a noble (perhaps, with time and money, Arastoph could make himself a noble in due time - imagine that!). "Telescopes, the creation of which prompting due thanks to the world's scientists, can allow you to look at the stars and see they are like that of the sun. Granted, we do not know what they are made of yet, but I doubt their making is magical or divine." The trader tipped up the wide-brimmed hat he had scavenged last night, revealing his face from the shade it offered. Light bags formed under his eyes. Nothing severe, but he had spent the whole night doing little more than closing his eyes. A man like him can not sleep among strangers, especially as suspicious of him as they were. Granted, he fared it better than most would, but it didn't make the experience any more pleasurable. He found that there were a couple of people that had joined their crew amidst the night. A young boy, and a girl. Assuming that the watchman had not grown lazy and fallen asleep, he had let them in, indicating he recognized them. Their party was larger than Arastoph had first anticipated. With larger groups come greater solidarity and variety of perspectives. A larger group was much more difficult to manipulate, but assuming he can get just a few to trust him, he should be well off. Even if the monkey and pious knight didn't. "I believe we are better off accepting that there are beneficial consequences of its product, like of the trees, than to humanize it... but that's just my take on it. Decide what you will, wee one."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki's attention was perked up by the man who seemed to be wearing a rather familiar hat. Which made little sense, as she did not recognize the man himself. However, a new male, was a new person to tease. Getting into the mood to play around, she walked over, until she was next to the man talking about celestial bodies. "My, you're quite the knowledgable one aren't you?" Asking in that usual sultry tone of hers. As she was voicing her question, she 'absentmindedly' leaned in, with her cloak opening slightly, allowing a slight view of her bountiful chest.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Celestial body. The voice had used the word celestial before. To describe frightening creatures from other worlds. Furnace attempted to follow the man's words, but as many of them were alien he drew some hasty conclusions. "Good thing there's these telescopes. This place would be dark and cold without those light sources in the sky." The sleepy girl had awoken and confirmed the man was knowledgeable. So furnace asked his questions. He pointed at the big orange orb lazily escaping the mountain-peak's grip and slowly ascending. "The impressive one is the sun? Cause I can see what that's made off."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver turned at the survivor's voice and spread his hands wide. "Love the skeptic, for the light needs not thanks to fall upon one's face. You are permitted to your theory, and I to mine." He patted the gnome on the head. "That she is, my friend. She is made of power, bent to noble purpose. And how magnificently she shines!" He glanced around the camp. It seemed almost everybody was waking now - even the witch was attempting to assert her feminine wiles upon the survivor. The sight interested Carver little, however - he was much more relieved to see Alula, sitting up and rubbing her eyes from the light. He smiled warmly and nodded to her slightly - the two could speak privately later about the symbol, and Carver's obviously mystical dream. The others need not be troubled about it, not yet. "My friends," he said to the general company, "We have much to discuss. First, know that I received a visitor last night - I woke up to find a child sleeping beside me. I know not where he came from, as I did not wish to disturb him; he slumbers still. Secondly, we must chart a course towards the next town or city, warn someone about the evils we have witnessed. I know little of this land, so I will leave this portion of the plan to you. All voices are welcome, and none need fear to share their opinion."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin This guy is as slippery as an oiled dwarf. Kelvin grimaced at both the mental image and the man in front of him as he listed off his conditions. The guy was throwing out numbers and conditions like he had contracts memorized… and he probably did, looking at him. Kelvin repeated the terms in short in his head, trying to think them over. Unfortunately, while he was good at math, economics were not his strong suit. There were some unmentioned holes, but he could use those to his own advantage. The terms looked alright, but no reason not to argue them down if he could. "I don't accept." Kelvin let it roll off his tongue the moment the seer had her hat back. "If you want to trade with us, you will do it fairly, at no more than half again the market price." He scratched his beard, "And only a hundred monthly, unless you want to supply your own food and sleeping gear, and you take twentyfive percent of profit made in trades on the parties behalf, if you also want a fair split of any treasures we find along the way. Otherwise, you are on your own for loot." Kelvin wasn't quite sure they were going to be able to afford another hundred gold a month, but if this guy could keep his word… "I recommend you take that deal." Kelvin waved his hand at the gold and shrugged. "Unless you have a different offer, because I am sure we can find other uses for that gold than stuffing your pockets. It looks to me like you need it more than we do." Kelvin spared a glance at Separ and Carver. Carver to make sure the knight was witnessing what was happening, and Separ because the guy was technically their leader. "I hope this won't take too long, after all, we do have one or two enemies a mile or more that way." Kelvin gestured towards the forest, roughly where they had come from.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Bah. A mile was far away enough. Arastoph gazed at the engineer as though he were a bored man, slightly annoyed at the engineers insistence of his own term. Beginning his terms at catching Arastoph's offer concerning personal trades, and then a measly one hundred piece monthly payment, and just a twenty-five percent share of profit made through his transactions. While yes, the job was to make this man's party some money, the point of the arrangement is to allow Arastoph to profiteer off some of trades. However, he could use the engineer's offer to his own advantage. "Ah, caught that, did you?" Arastoph asked simply and slightly annoyed. "Fair enough. Excluding this section of our contract, no personal trades between me and a separate individual of your party are under this contract's jurisdiction." The corner of Arastoph's mouth curled up into a smirk. "And I recommend that if you want the best results, two hundred piece monthly payments is the best deal I could offer you... I could make your party that much - and perhaps more - in a week. I will accept your offer of twenty-five percent of the profits made upon your behalf, but if the amount divided between your party is not equal to a base amount of coins, I will claim the total remainder of those percentages. It would keep things fair among the members of your party and prevent money from being wasted." Now that he thought about it, he wasn't sure if that was something the engineer would understand. "A person cannot claim ten point seventy-five pieces. You can not just claim seventy-five percent of a gold piece. If the seven of you were to receive that much, I'd take the percentages that do not add up to a base number and add them up together, where I would receive the total of the number equal to the highest solid number. In this example, I would receive five pieces."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver blinked his glazed eyes. All this talk of business and deals had put him into a fugue. By the sun, this survivor could talk a whole day away. He saw Separ standing next to him and coughed. "Ah. Yes. I slept... uncommon well, in fact, considering the previous day's events." With that, the Knight stepped into the middle of the group. "If I might refocus the discussion, there is an enemy horde loose in this area, and they have shown that they are willing to commit acts of terrible barbarism. It might be best to find a heading and proceed from there, discussing what we must while on the road."</s> <\|message\|>Des A ton of words flashed by in an instant. Much of which Des didn't know. Des looked up at Carver and decided to run some of these by him. "Hey metal man. What's the Sun, or stars, or money, or dynamite? Oh, and what's an enemy?" Des whispered, not wanting to talk unless he was describing one's presence.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace followed Astaropth's explanation intensely. Like a wizard's pupil listening to his mentor. He followed the calculations in his head, then did them over when they didn't match up. "Oh I get it! We find a bag with 7 coins. There's...10 of us so he gets all of it. If the bag contains 53 we all get 5 coins and he 3. The smaller the number the larger the chance he get's most of it. Very smart. This gold magic is really strange but interesting."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula didn't pay much attention to Kelvin and the merchant as they talked about potential prices and deals. The concept of material wealth, as well as money itself, was strange to her. She was, in a way, relieved to no longer carry her coin purse on her. It felt like an extra weight, and not just in the physical sense. It felt like too much pressure to have gold, that would mean she would have to spend it wisely. And nothing seemed wiser then spending all of her gold on her hat. His hat. Her prized possession although she could not remember when she became its owner. Their conversation eventually just became background noise. She tried to melt back into the background herself. She didn't like having the spotlight on herself, and trying to make the transaction with the merchant seemed to do just that. But that was over, and her hat was again where it should be. She tugged the rim of the hat down, covering her eyes. She kept herself a few paces away from the rest of the group, wanting to listen and not contribute much more. She listened as Furnace, again, over complicated things and as Separ and Carver had a brief exchange before Carver tried to direct the group back to their current plans. His cries seemed to fall on death ears. Kelvin, the merchant and Furnace were all having their own conversation about wealth and trade agreements. Suki was stranding off on her own, Vis and his child were off as well. Separ would likely have some opinions to state so there was still that. The dangerous child then tried to derail the conversation even more by asking Carver questions. Alula held back a snarl. She was no good at geography, she was foreign to this part of the land, and thus wouldn't be able to add much to the conversation. But getting on their way seemed like a good idea. Walking and talking would be fine, although Alula was bad at both of these things. She nodded to Carver, a gesture that was slightly lost under her hat, willing to do whatever he suggested.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph looked down at the gnome with intrigue. Well, the little guy was getting a few factors wrong (such as the children; Arastoph did not count them as legible for shares of loot, and ideally, would be put in an orphanage in another town while these people continued their travels), and that part of deal had little to do with finding loot, but the leftover gold that became a remainder after a trade, but the merchant was surprised that he was starting to catch on to what was happening. Arastoph admits that he underestimated the wee one's intelligence, even if its actual value was just a little above what he expected. "Not quite," he said, but his voice seemed to gleam with approval, "for instance, I wasn't counting children when distributing shares. Ideally, they'd be dropped at an orphanage at the next town... but you certainly are making strides just by watching." Of course, this pleasant demeanor wasn't much more than a facade. While it was interesting that the little gnome learned quickly, he didn't have any interest in putting the thing under his tutelage.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" At the word Orphanage, Khat forgot that she was trying to interact with the less gullible clocked lady and instead, rounded on the trader, her red hair fanning out in fiery sheets. She glared at hm for a moment and her eye twitched a bit. She marched up to him and poked him harshly in his stomach, accusingly and through grit teeth she spoke. "What makes you think I'm going to an Orphanage, huh buster?" She spat, literally, on his boot. She looked him up and down and her anger only seemed to get hotter, as her pale skin became flushed red in her rage, "Who are you to tell me what I do? You are not my dad, I don't know you and I don't trust you and if you think that you can just get rid of me so you can have more money, You've got another thing coming." She pulled her scarf around her face and marched off, seething in anger. Vis heard everything and a ghost of a smile crept across his face, 'Brave one...' He thought, as she plonked herself down in the dirt by his side and crossed her arms, still glaring at the man from a distance. "An orphanage can't replace her.." She mumbled and Vis' smile turned into a slight frown.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Oh so you turn things into gold and keep a share for yourself? ... But I do think you mean to have more gold coins if possible. Did I get that right? Because then you would want to do this with a group that has a large number to divide by. Of having these children be part of the spell would result in smaller numbers for us and higher numbers for you. Right?" Furnace prattled on doing calculus on his fingers. Completely oblivious to the tension between the others.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver leaned down to the boy. "The sun is the bright yellow orb you see in the sky. Gaze not too long at her, for her radiance may be more than mortals can comprehend, but know that she is my lady and she loves you very dearly. The stars are the points of light you see at night. Money," he gestured to the squabblers, "Is the root of all evil. Dynamite is... dangerous. And enemies are those who would disturb the natural peace and gentleness of my lady's world, such as those loose in these woods right now." He looked back to the others, still arguing over deals and sums. Now Furnace was in on it - Carver shut his eyes for a moment and prayed for strength. "Enough," he said firmly, stepping into the center of the group. "This debate of deals is a matter for another time. Kelvin, I have nothing but respect for you - you have proven yourself wise, brave, and resourceful, and already I owe you very much. As such, I feel confident appealing to you that we must not stay here. Our enemies draw closer every moment - every word we waste endangers the children, and Alula, and Furnace, and all of us. What is more, we could now be well on our way to warning the next settlement, give them time to prepare, evacuate, prevent the horrendous calamity that we have witnessed from repeating itself. To bandy words here is irresponsible, and I am honor-bound not to." "However, wordsmith," he said, rounding on the 'survivor'. "You have impressed me little. Your tact is skillful, your eloquence laudable, but the direction in which you bend it I find... distasteful. As such, this is my humble request, merchant. Travel with us, do not hinder us, do not steal from those under my protection, and at the very least try to keep your drool off your face when you sight a coinpurse. I will not stand in the way of your deal, friends, but please discuss the terms as we travel. Any admirable path you choose to take beyond that may be your own prerogative. My lady gave us all a purpose; do you really think yours was squabbling for money with travelers in the forest?" The knight turned and began dismantling his tent. "Break camp, friends. We should leave in twenty..." he glanced around at his companions. "... Thirty minutes, and until such time as someone suggests a better course, I intend to go that way." Carver pointed in the direction roughly opposite Ravenwood.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver arrived in Ravenwood in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day in the country - all around was quiet, and the sun shone through the leaves in just that way that made Carver feel as though the goddess were truly with him. As the wagon he was riding pulled in through the gates, he waved here and there at passing townsfolk, and was often rewarded with a smile or a polite wave. The wagon came to a halt and he dismounted, his armor clanking loudly as he landed. The farmer whose family he had been traveling with for the past few days approached him, and Carver gave the man a warm smile. "My friend," he said, "I believe this is where we part ways." "Yes, milord," the farmer responded, still using the honorific Carver has insisted repeatedly was not necessary. "We will be awful sorry to see you go. How much do we owe you?" The man responded, fumbling for his coinpurse. Carver has expected that the man would attempt to compensate him for his services 'escorting' the family, though in truth he had only scared off a few petty thieves. The paladin held a hand out to the man, still smiling. "No such payment is required. Keep it. Feed your children, and raise them in the light of the sun." The farmer nodded. "I, uh, yes milord. I will. Thank you." Carver put his hand to his breast and bowed before turning away and walking into the crowd. It was time to find some wrongs and set about righting them - the marketplace would be as good a place as any to start.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nervously stepped out from the narrow path between buildings, her eyes shifting as she cautiously looked over everyone nearby. From what it looked like, there wasn't anyone screaming for anything similar to those witch hunt riots that the church had done hunting her down. Making sure her cloak was covering her body, with the hood obscuring her head, she daintily slipped out, mingling with the crowd at the marketplace. Although she tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible, it seems that her cloaked figure was something that my catch the eyes of a few. Suddenly feeling a hand grip her arm, she quickly spun around, only to realize it was a merchant. "We have good prices!" Heavily accented, the merchant gestured at his wares, or in this case, fresh produce. Feeling a slight bit hungry, she nodded, before pointing at an apple. "Good eye, good eye, that would be-" The merchant started to speak, before Suki raised her hood slightly, revealing her face to him. Winking, she raised a finger to her lips. "Bring the apple. I'll make the payment through other means~' Whispering with such a sultry tone, the merchant was by no means resilient against such a tactic. The two hurried towards a more quite alley, where Suki leaned in, and kissed the merchant. Whatever giddy thoughts that raced through the merchant's mind, was soon replaced by a lethargy. The man soon sank to the ground, the expression of ecstasy plastered on his face. "For a farmer, your energy wasn't too bad of a taste." Muttering such words mostly to herself, she quickly picked up the apple, and re-entered the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, taking bites from her newfound food.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis trudged through the dense mud, tired and with a gloomy expression on his face, though it would be difficult to make out, his scarf worn tightly around his face and over his nose, obscuring the expression and the gaping hole in his maw. Vis had been accosted by a group of thugs on the main road, though this generally wasn't an issue as he would run away and they would lose interest eventually but it seemed these things were desperate, as they chased him half way into the moor before deciding it was no longer worth it. He didn't like running away, if there was only one or two of them he would have stood his ground, unfortunately there were half a dozen. He tilted his head up to the sky to find light grey plooms of smoke in the distance, beyond the hill that was beyond the next. There were too many points of smoke for it to be a campsite but not quiet enough to be an industrial estate, so he figured it must have been some little township. Vis made it to 'Ravenwood' in the afternoon, drained from the task of traversing through mud that felt only the need to slow him down, so with some relief he slung his pack around so it was under his nose and opened it. He saw the cobbled street. His mood quickly turned dower, the bottom of his pack must have snagged on a branch and have been torn, spilling it's contents. 'that's why those highway men turned, they just had to pick up what they wanted.' With a sigh, he took what was left in the pack and cast it into an alleyway, though funnily enough all that was in there was the child's encyclopedia his mother gave him before leaving, so he could brush up on reading skills. Vis tucked the book into his leather armor and wandered forth. The market district was buzzing with activity, buyers haggling over prices and venders hawking their wares, though all Vis needed was a replacement pack and a few basic bits. Wandering the stalls and booths, he found nothing met his eye, mostly because of the high prices but also because many of the packs were just of low quality. Unsatisfied, he walked through the market, casting a faint green cone of light from his cursed green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continues to idly imagine adventures he is brought back into reality as he feels a hand touch his back. Separ turns around and listens to the man he starts wondering just how to respond, pausing to think about his actions. "Do I know you? Though actually I am looking for some companions. Wait, out of everyone here why choose me? You're not trying to rob me or something are you? Wait, umm, are you looking just for someone to travel with, or are you an adventurer as well?" Separ's words were quick and somewhat hard to follow. He had never done something like this before and wasn't exactly sure of himself and just how to proceed.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver strode through the marketplace confidently, his heavy armor clanking with every step. So far, everything seemed to be in order - the hustle and bustle of commerce carried on around him, seemingly unabated by any sort of wickedness or villainy whatsoever. The prices seemed to be reasonable, the merchandise legitimate - nobody was being cheated here. Carver was glad to see it; too many villages he had been to on his journey so far had been rife with dishonesty and corruption. As he ruminated on the morality of the village, he caught sight of a scrawny gnome stumbling through the crowd. He watched as the gnome took hold of a woman's robe, staring at the fabric with childlike wonder. She immediately turned and yanked it from him, saying something unintelligible but obviously rather flustered. Quite a pair - the girl seemed to be moving with a distinct limp, and the gnome clearly wasn't eating very well. It was hardly the stuff of legends, but Carver knew that every good deed mattered. With his best winning smile, Carver approached the pair, regarding them each in turn. "Good day, friends! Keeping safe, I should hope?"</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou By the time Suki had finished the apple, she had managed to walk her way over to the tavern by chance. Mentally sighing, she pushed open te doors, before walking in. Avoiding eye contact with any curious onlookers, she made her way towards the corner of the building, sitting herself down at an empty table. Carefully glancing about, she didn't recognize anyone, nor see anything out of the ordinary. Nor was there anyone staring at her with the look of death, as the members of the church had done so. Feeling the safest that she had all week, she lightly rested her head on the table, befre falling asleep, her arms around her head, covering any view of her face.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou From the moment she felt her hood gently shift, Suki had woken up. However, the unusually gentle action -unusual to her- was what kept her from springing out of her seat, and attacking the man. She would've preferred her scythe, but she had hid that on the outskirts of town. Such a large weapon drew curious gazes after all. Choosing to slip back into her dreams, her interest was perked as she heard the two men argue. It seemed they weren't looking for any trouble with her, or as a matter of fact, with anyone. They might have been looking for others. However, what really stuck with her, was that these two weren't discussing as if they had met a demon, but instead a normal person. "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Completely on the whim, Suki tossed that question out, while mentally regretting the decision already. Unfortunately, what has been said could not be retracted. Sitting up slowly, while allowing the hood of her cloak to drop, she smiled at the man closest to her. "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." Softly speaking, Suki half reprimanded the man, half teased, as she stood up, making sure the keep the rest of herself covered by the cloak.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded his thanks to the armored man and slowly bent down to scoop his bag up off the floor, he gave it a good dusting and slipped it back on, not taking his good eye off of the paladin and casting a circle of green light on his face with the bad one. "thank you.." mumbled Vis, awkwardly. He still had more things to go and buy but the paladin seemed to have a point, it was very warm outside for some reason and the heat seared Vis' pale skin. "I think thare ith a inn on tha wetht thide of the marketh, pathed ith by when I goth hear." he needed a drink after that much lisping, something to calm his nerves but he only drank in private, so it seemed he wouldn't be able to. Vis tightened his scarf around his face, just in a way it would stay on but not in a way it would show impressions of his scaring. "there ith altho an airy bar thomewhere near thare." Vis turned his eye away from the armored man and looked at the group he had accosted with his tripping, there was a scraggly gnome at his feet, reminding him of an ugly cat but he mentally slapped himself as he knew he wasn't that good looking himself. Then there was the woman cloaked in fine fabric, with the heavens printed on the inside, she spoke to him and Vis shuddered, her words felt strange to him, they came out in a way that sounded like she didn't know what she was saying, yet was very accurate. He kept his eyes on her, one to look at her and the other to cast a ghostly, green glow.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver withdrew his hand quickly at the strange voice's behest. That certainly wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting - glowing eyes and booming commands were usually confined to things paladins were expected either to worship or to kill, but as the girl tottered forward, pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her eyes, Carver was certain that neither of those reactions would be appropriate. No, his initial plan regarding the girl still seemed appropriate - she needed help. It took him a moment to realize the half-elf was talking, and with a severe lisp, too. Something about a tavern? That seemed like it would serve both for getting the girl out of the heat (and the crowd) and for getting the gnome some food. He smiled at the man. "A tavern sounds like a fine idea. Might I trouble you to take us there?" He glanced around at the company. "A bit of rest and a meal, and I'm sure we'll all be feeling right as rain, friends." He moved closer to the girl - not enough to risk triggering the same bizarre reaction, but enough that she could lean on him if she felt the need. He also extended a hand down to the gnome, hoping to prevent the small fellow from being lost in the crowd.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Kelvin jerked around, twisting to look at the woman as she stood upright. He slapped a hand to his face, dragging it down, pulling on his flesh and in general just making him look tired. "See what I mean?" He lowered his voice for his companion, but doubtless the woman could hear as well. She pulled back her hood, fully revealing her features to the both of them. Pristine, perfect. Warning bells everywhere. First. Why was she alone? With a face like that she could easily have been married to a rich man, or already in the bloodline of a powerful one. Second. If she was alone, how had she managed to get so far by herself? It just reeked of alarm. No offense to her, of course. It just didn't look safe... Kelvin glanced at his companion, wondering. Was he a fool for a pretty face? "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." A flush crept across his cheeks for an instant, before he quickly responded. "Aye, no more daring than a lady who sleeps in a commoner's tavern with the ease of a barmaid." His tongue was going to get him into trouble someday. Kelvin averted his eyes from her, towards his companion. "Your call sir."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had seemed to calm down considerably, but was still horribly overwhelmed. Not once voice kept still for very long, and she was very confused as to what they were telling her to do. She peered out from under her hat, watching as the half-elf gathered back up his belongings. He was an interesting one, but the voices could not agree on why. Perhaps he just was because he was. More phantom noises filled the oracles ears, whistling winds and breaths cut short. It was horribly unnerving. She shivered for a moment despite the heat. The noises stopped suddenly, leaving Alula dizzy once more. Unfortunately she was also now out of the loop on the whole bar situation, she hadn't really been comprehending what the two taller men were discussing. But what she did pick up on was the half-Elfs speech impediment. In an almost comical turn of events, her mind was in an even fifty fifty split right now trying to remember and understand what would be socially acceptable. Was she supposed to not say anything or point out his strange pattern of speech. And then Alula noticed he was looking at her. She initially panicked but then noticed something. He had glowing eyes too, or well one eye. For some reason this observation made her next choice very clear to her. And in her slurred voice spoke. "You..talk weird..."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ The moment I laid eyes on this woman I felt my body's temperature rise as my face turned beet red. I could hardly say a word as I was immediately enchanted by her beauty, and in that short moment time seemed to creep to a halt making it feel like an eternity. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" The words of my mentor echoed in my head as I continued to gaze upon this girl's beauty. "Your call sir." Kelvin's words brought me out of my trance and back to reality. Ahh, just how stupid can I be? I can't just gawk at this girl, and besides regardless of how good my mentor's training was, I don't think his last snippet of advice can be considered valid. I sighed for a moment redirecting my focus to try and calm myself down. My body slowly changed back to normal as I now stared at the woman. I would not fall under her spell so easiy, even if I wanted to actually do so. Wait why am I admitting that? Ahh, forget it, just say something so you don't look like an idiot. "I'd love it if you joined us, though I must ask if you know about how to fight or any useful skills really. I wouldn't want you or Kelvin for that matter, to get put into any dangerous situations, so please be truthful to what you can or can't do. Or at the very least understate your abilities so we don't do anything to rash and wind up all dead or something, I don't know." I gulped as while I wasn't going gaga over her anymore, I was still having a bit of trouble talking, as evidenced by the nervousness in my voice. Well it wasn't that big of a deal anyways, I probably just needed to get used to her.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' eyes went wide when she said those words, his cursed left eye flashing an angry green for a moment before it stopped. He wanted to retaliate with words but his throat seized up, locking shut, if he spoke she would just poke fun at him again, he usually stood tall but now he slumped a fraction. "nothed*," he turned around and with a flick of his tattered left ear, he signaled for them to follow, his steps were more unsure now then they'd ever been, almost all people did not comment on his voice, they tended to know what was good for them, the last time someone did they suffered a beating. But he couldn't beat the girl under the pointy hat, he just couldn't bring himself to raise his hand at her, she seemed like she didn't know what she was saying but that didn't make him any less wounded. Vis tightened his scarf. When they arrived at the tavern, Vis held the door open for his group, turning around to see the Paladin, Gnome and the pretty hooded girl who made comments at his expense.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki shifted her gaze to the side slightly, as she was compared to that of a barmaid. Not because she was insulted, but moreso because she ended up thinking about kissing patrons when she was half dead. That was one memory she would love to bury, but at least that was at a different village. "Of course. Although I may not look like it, but I do have confidence in my ability to scout out an area. That, and when I do run into trouble, I trust my skill in a scythe." Answering the other man's questions, she couldn't help but to notice how he had a momentary lapse when he first looked at her. She leaned closer to him, while subtly releasing the top clasp of the cloak, allowing it to part slightly. From this angle, the man could get just a tiny glimps of her chest. "Well~? Do you believe me~?" Whispering these words, at such a low volume, yet with hints of a challenge mixed in with that sultry tone.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace noted the other beings around the wooden circle had noticed him and one of them wished to trade words. He eyed the tall figure, he had a magnificent beard, he was tall but not as physically imposing as his new metal bound friend. The thing that stood out about this guy was not his appearance. Furnace tilted his head slightly without breaking eye contact with Kelvin. "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Once the group he had latched himself onto entered, Vis followed, closing the wooden door behind him. Once the merry group had entered, Vis veered to the left and towards the bar counter where the bartender stood and dried out rinsed tankards. "Ith there a chanth I can thake a thankard outh?" asked Vis, watching the man behind the counter dry out the mug. "Sorry mate, nothing leaves the tavern that's not yours." Vis sighed, he didn't like to drink or eat in public, he had to take off the scarf and let people see his gnarled up scar and exposed teeth, he didn't want that. He was about to walk away and find a seat but behind the barman was a sheld of unopened bottles of drink, waiting to be bought. One of the bottles caught his eye, it was a plain green bottle, slimmer and taller then most, with an all too familiar label; it was a bottle of ForestElf, Wildberries and Alderflowers and it was new, Vis didn't like aged. "How muth for tha ForethtElf?" Vis asked, he watched as the man reached up to get a bottle that sat next to the one that caught his eye, it was a lighter color and the wax around the cork was damaged, showing it had been watered down and re-sealed, "Tha fresh one pleath." said Vis patiently, as the man grumbled and brought down the unopened one. "40 gold," said the barkeeper, clearly disgruntled by his failed attempt at selling him watered down booze, "Special discount for you my lispy friend." "fiftheen gold and I'm noth your friend you con artitht." He glared at the man and rested his hand on his rapier, as the man dropped his hand under the counter, probably gripping a weapon. "40, you half-elf mongrel." "Fiftheen, you gold pinthing donkey."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver stepped beside the half-elf and put a hand on his shoulder, smiling at the barkeeper. "No need to ruin this good day with... regrettable actions, friends. What do we say to thirty gold, and I'll put up half of it... provided you share some with our new friends, of course." It was obvious so far that the barkeep was a cheat and a swindler, and in another time Carver would have loved to have words with him on the subject. However, not on such a fine day, in so crowded a place, with friends in need of care nearby. The priority right now was diffusing the situation. "How much for something hot for my diminutive friend, good man?" He gestured back to the gnome sitting nearby, who looked to be sniffing at a bearded stranger. The man didn't seem offended by this, so that was good. Carver jingled his coin purse and was disheartened by its lightness - a life of charity had taken a toll on his funds, it seemed. He'd need to find some form of income soon, but that could wait.</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep looks Carver up and down, "For a respectful man such as yourself, 30 pieces is fine, as for food, that'll be 20 pieces for a nice hot meal." The barkeep brings the down the bottle and holds out his hand, waiting to be paid.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis, shook off Carver's hand and just glared at the barman, ignoring the paladin's offer after hearing the lightness of his pouch, he was too prideful at that moment to accept help and he didn't see it fair to take from someone who had little to begin with. "I'll pay thirthy." growled Vis through clenched teeth, his green eye casting a bright shaft of light at the barman's face. "Fifty." replied the barman, seeing that Vis was willing to pay more, the man smirked. In no mood to barter any further, Vis shoved his fist into the his coin pouched and clenched about half in his fist before throwing them at the taverner's face and snatched the bottle from his grubby clutches, "What the f-!" "You goth tha money, now shuth up!" yelled Vis, not caring who heard him. He turned around and let the paladin get what he wanted from the disgruntled man picking up coins from the floor. Vis found a secluded seat in a dark corner and popped the cork from the bottle, he took a deep whiff of it's smell, 'the smell of home.' he thought, remembering that the brewery was in his home town. He was about to lower his scarf to drink but he noticed a faint white glow coming from his blind, left side. He turned to see the girl in the pointy hat, he groaned, not seeing her as she was on his left side. Sp he went over to another seat, farther into the corner and away from the zoned out woman. As he sat there, on his own, he glanced at the girl in the pointy hat.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Well, since your friend there is so rude, you have to be the normal price, 35 pieces for a nice meal." He sneered at the paladin, then looking at the rogue, "And if he causes any trouble, I expect you to take care of him because you won't like how I do it."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the irritated half-elf storm off and shook his head sadly. If the man wanted to be surly, that was his own business; at least there hadn't been a confrontation. He removed the thirty-five coins from his (now even lighter) coinpurse and slid it across the counter to the barkeep. "A hot meal, then, for the gnome." The barkeep pocketed the money and barked an order to a barmaid. Carver leaned in closer to the man then, still smiling with his mouth, if not with his eyes. "Yes, I will take care of any trouble. And perhaps, another time, you and I may have a discussion about your business practices, and you will not like how I do that." This done, Carver turned and crossed the crowded room back to where the gnome was seated, alongside three others. One was the bearded man that the gnome had been speaking with, while the other two, a muscular looking young man and a very... shapely young woman seemed to be either arguing or flirting. Carver furrowed his brow at the girl. Though looking at her appealed to his baser urges, the higher part of his mind found something undisputably off about her. This was someone who did not know the love of the sun. He sat down next to them and patted the gnome on the back. "Food on its way, my diminutive friend." Just then, a barmaid set a sizeable bowl of stew in front of the gnome and was quickly off. He smiled at the others and nodded his head. "A fine day, friends. Hope you have a seat for another."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki smiled as they -or at least te one introduced himself as Separ- had accepted her into their little team of what might appear to be ragtags or misfits. However, while on the outside, she might no show anything out of the ordinary, Se was warring an internal strife against herself. Why are you associating with strangers? Maybe a bit of company is nice every once in awhile. You don't know who they are. They weren't out for my blood. Kelvin's touch was gentle. There has been similar tricks done, you nearly died twice because of it. ........... She was pulled from her doubts when she noticed more unfamiliar faces join the table. First and foremost, was the armored man. Why was a paladin here, of all places?! Was she found so soon?! Panicking slightly, she glanced over at the other newcomers. A rather small person, and...was that woman glowing? For some odd reason, Suki found the other woman reminded her of the night sky. However, her main problem was still the paladin. Looking around for an excuse to leave, her eyes fell upon the somewhat covered half-elf, sitting in the corner. The opposite corner. "We're still in need of companions, right? I'll go over there and ask." Without waiting for a response, she had already left her table. Along the way, she casually lifted her hood over her head, the overhang casting the rest of her face in darkness. Stopping as she reached the half-elf, she gestured at one o the empty seats. "May I?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" For the second time that day, he was about to lower his scarf to take a swig of the sweet smelling wine when he was interrupted. Looking up from his melancholia, he stared into the darkness of a hood, for a moment he was about to fall back in his chair from how frightening the dark figure looked but when he observed ir again, he saw that it was a rather curvaceous woman, though she didn't distract him from the object of his brooding and to a lesser extant interest. "thake a seath if'n you wanth." Vis was dropped his scarf only slightly to get a swig of the delicious, purply-red wine, only exposing his mouth as he brought the bottle to his parched lips.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nodded at the given permission from the half-elf, before sitting down across from him. Watching as he only shifted the scarf slightly to drink, Suki couldn't help but to feel more....at ease. It didn't feel like she was the only one who had secrets, or a reason to hide. Tilting her head ever so slightly to the left, she couldn't help but to speak. "How many people have commented on your lisp?" As per most people, the first thing that would be a topic started when faced with this half-elf, would be that unusual lisp he had. It sounded almost like something didn't work, or was delayed, with the muscles around his mouth. At least, that's what that one priest had sounded like when she had slashed at his jaw, before decapitating him. She could be wrong, but nonetheless, it was still different.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver patted the gnome on the back as he devoured the meal. He saw that the woman had gone to sit with the half-elf; a troubling alliance, possibly, but not one that seemed to pose an immediate danger. The strong-looking man has asked him a question, he realized. The offer was a tempting one - he was already traveling, and friends were good to have, especially when one was as poor as he was. "I'd be glad to travel with you, friend." He extended an armored hand. "My name is Sir Carver. A pleasure to make your aquaintance." Although... He coughed slightly. "However, I feel honor-bound to see to the well-being of my new friends," he said, gesturing to the gnome and to the corner, where the strange girl sat. "Perhaps you could propose them the same question, and we may all go off together? I'm not sure I could leave either in the same state I found them."</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting." Kelvin's eyes widened slightly, and a small grin stretched across his lips. Interesting. "I like this one." Kelvin slowly uprighted the stool and slid back onto it, settling to examine this being. He barely acknowledged when the cloaked woman moved away, excusing herself to ask around. It was possible she would have more luck, if for the wrong reasons. Yet... Separ had introduced them both, yet she had still avoided giving a name. He stroked his beard, considering. Strange. He turned his attention back to the gnome as food was brought, and watched the being down it in fascination. "Forty three seconds." Kelvin whispered to himself softly as the gnome slammed the bowl down. Behind him, Separ had already requesitioned the knight into their group. Curver, cover, something like that. He hadn't been paying to much attention to the last part. However, as far as the gnome went... "I don't mind spending time with this one." Kelvin turned on the stool and jerked a thumb towards the gnome. "Separ's in charge as far as I am concerned though." A thought occured, and Kelvin eagerly swung down his backpack, pulling out a long, stiff tube about as long as his forearm. The fuse was curled up and tied with a bit of string to make it compact. He held it out in front of the gnome, careful to keep it out of reach. "What do you make of this then?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki smiled lightly as she heard the rather expected response. As a matter of fact, she was expecting a number larger than three. Of course, this half-elf seemed rather anti-social, if this was how he normally talked, questioning what one wanted from him. Deciding to actually do as she had said, and ask for companions, she answered "It isn't anything really to difficualt. Just join up with 'him'-' here, she stopped talking to casually point towards the one she knew as Separ. "- on his idea of an adventure." Noticing the rather blunt action of sliding the bottle of alcohol towards her, she looked at it with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion, before daintily reaching out and grabbing in. Taking a whiff, and enjoying the aroma of the drink, she had just poured a little bit of it in her mouth when the half-elf ask her to take off the hood. Nearly choking on the drink in surprise, she coughed several times, before finally settling down. "You have your reason to stay covered up, I have mine." Although rather roundabout, her answer was a definite negative in regards to his question.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis shrugged the retrieved his bottle of wine from the other side of the table, taking a long slow draw from it and feeling the liquid being drawn down his throat and ending with a warming splash in his stomach. "Tho be ith.." he slurred slightly before regaining control, "I'll think abouth ith." slowly Vis rose from the chair on unsteady feet and recorked the bottle of booze, putting it in it's rightful place, his bag. He began to make his way to the door but suddenly, his foot caught on a chair leg and he went down like a tree, slamming into the flower with a dense crash, though luckily the bottle of wine was unbroken. He looked up from the floor to see what he tripped on but all he saw was stars and a pointy hat, usually a few sips of wine didn't make him this tipsy.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was not sure what had happened, but she was currently on the ground. Only moments ago she had gotten out of her seat, with the intent of walking over to the paladin and thanking him for escorting her to the bar and then leaving. She had cooled down enough to feel like it was time for her to leave town, she had had enough of strangers and confusion for the day. And once it came nightfall she knew she needed to be away from others. But she never made it to the table where he was sitting Because now she was on the floor. Someone the two of them, with their uncertain steps, collided. It would have been easy to knock Alula off her feet, she already has enough trouble walking with her limp. As soon as the half-elf and Alula collided it was as if someone sent embers through her veins, it burned. Under normal circumstances someone would probably get up and apologize for being so careless. But Alula was not a normal circumstance. With a growl Alula leapt to her feet, all traces of sluggishness and cripples gone, and pointed her staff dangerously close to Vis. She hat remained on the floor, her white hair brightly glowing and matching her illuminated eyes. The dislocated and warped voice again spoke through Alula in a threatening and hostile tone. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" She raised her staff above her head, as if ready to strike the half-elf with it, but she suddenly stopped when a voice spoke to her. "The man means her no danger, it was an accident." As if a light switch had been hit, Alula stopped glowing. Her expression looked shocked and scared. She dropped her staff to the floor with a heavy clunk, and reached up to pull down the brim of her hat, only to realize it wasn't there. She instead covered her eyes with her hands, not sure how to react.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis did not know how to react, so he remained petrified on the floor, staring up in abject horror as the drunkness quickly vacated his body to leave abject soberness. He did not expect such a violent reaction from her, and her staff could have crushed him with ease, esspecially with her new found vigor. But when she started to slow down, his mind went from fear to sympathy, she too had something to hide and noe she didn't have her means to hide it. He looked around on the floor for it but the hat seemed to have vanished, so he slowly brought himself from the floor and with a hesitant, reluctant hand, untied the scarf from around his face, revealing the large gash down it's side that was hidden for so long, exposing all his teeth and even some jaw bone. Vis draped the scarf over her head in a way that it acted like a hood that she could draw over her eyes if she needed to.</s> <\|message\|>Des Everyone in the tavern looked over as the oracle raged. But after Vis took off his scarf, most looked away. Those that kept looking either gave a disgusted look or throw up. One brave soul felt the need to say something, it was the barkeep, "Hey, what did I say about you causing trouble in my tavern, cover your disgusting mess of a face up or get out."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was up from the table and across the inn almost immediately. He saw the elf remove his scarf, revealing the disfigured face within - but to Carver, he had revealed something else; a character of fairness unsuited to his features. He had shown compassion, in his actions - this was a good man. Then the barkeep opened his mouth, and Carver clenched a fist. A liar, a cheat, a cruel man who spat in the face of kindness. Trying to muster all the gentleness he could in that moment, he put a hand, gingerly, on the girl's shoulders. "You don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "Nobody here will harm you." That done, he retreated his hand and turned to the bar. "You cheat," he said, slowly, steadily, his voice gaining power with every word. "You lie. You prey on the innocent, the drunk, the vulnerable. You spit in the face of an honorable man. You are arrogant, greedy, and cruel, and you know not the love of the sun." He was shouting now, and he rested a both fists on the bar. "My name is Sir Carver. I am a Paladin of the Sun, and I bring these charges before you. What say you in your defense?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had stayed with her hands over her eyes for a few moments, not noticing as the half-elf stood up. She had far too busy panicking about what had just happened, what she could have done. She felt like hyperventilating and running, but her body was frozen. She could feel the entire bar staring at her, and she felt the need to fall back to the floor and hide. What happened next surprised her. She expected the man to run away, many had before, but instead she felt something being placed over her head. It wasn't her hat, but a piece of cloth. He was helping her hide her face. She again felt a lose for words at his kindness. She uttered a soft and slurred "Thank...you." From under the cloth. More gentle touches, this time from the man in the armor. She winced, bracing herself for the burn that she knew was coming, but she never felt the pain. That was new. Even his words held a kindness that was foreign to Alula. She could hear the paladin calling the barkeep out on his actions, but his words felt far away and faded.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Watching as the half-elf had stumbled into the female that reminded her of the night, the sudden escalation into what could only be said to be a possession occurred. Suki had no other words to describe the phenomenon. However, it seems that it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, and the woman was left standing there in embarrassment. Raising an eyebrow at the half-elf taking off the scarf, only to smile subconsciously at the kind act of making a makeshift hood for the other woman. Making her way over, she undid the clasps on her cloak, before slipping it off, revealing her body accented by her dress to the tavern. Taking the cloak, she slipped it over the half-elf, making sure the hood covered his face, just as it had for herself. "It seems your reasons are far more important than mine for the moment." Quietly whispering these words to the half-elf alone, she sighed, before muttering "I'll fix this." yo the others in the 'adventure group', before slowly walking towards the barkeeper, drawing just about every male gaze towards her. Reaching the keeper, she smiled, before leaning forward, hands held behind her back, subtlety pushing out her chest. "Is it alright for you to let this incident slip by~?" Whispering such words with a seductive tone, she winked.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki continued moving through the alleyway, taking the twists and turns almost habitually, until she reached the more open areas, where the destruction was occurring. Glancing around to get her bearings, it seemed that there were several kobolds and goblins around. She frowned, as she looked at them. Creatures like these...were generally too dumb to figure out some kind of plan like this. How did they come in as a nearly organized raiding force? However, before she could come up with any kind of plans, the kobolds and goblins around her have noticed her presence. Suki immediately moved, swinging the scythe wide, decapitating on goblin with the blow. With the blade behind her, she pushed forward, slamming the pole end of the staff handle into the face of another that was starting to rear its head at her. Despite her efforts, Suki was frowning again. She was outnumbered here, with no one to help. "Then again, I never had help in the first place..." Muttering self-depreciating words, she slammed the blade of the scythe into the ground. Though surprised by the sudden action, the goblins and kobolds advanced towards her. At least, until a skeletal hand had burst out of the ground, grabbing the closest foot. Using the sudden diversion to back off, Suki winced in pain, falling to one knee, as she watched the skeleton claw its way out of the ground, with another one right behind it. Both skeletons immediately went to work, slashing with sharpened fingernails, sometimes even stabbing with a rib or two.</s> <\|message\|>Des As Carver charged into the herd he trampled a few and was stabbed by many more, although due to his armor only a few actually harmed him and he was dealt 8 damage, but now he his surrounded Alula's attack on the Ettin seemed to have no effect but it did blind him causing him to trip and crush a building beside her</s> <\|message\|>Carver Ten feet. I walk in her glorious light. I will not falter. Five feet. I bear her glorious purpose. I will not falter. Two feet. I face her foes in combat, my heart pure and unsullied. I will not falter. Carver had just taken the first blow on his shield when his vision was filled with a blinding blue light. The heat from the near miss soaked into his armor and made him break out in a sweat. The paladin staggered to the side, trying to regain sight. What was that? Did the goblins have some sort of spellcaster? How had it gotten behind him? Were the others safe- A rusted blade drove into his side through the chink in his armpit's armor, immediately suspending all further questions. With a cry, Carver swung his shield out and slammed the goblin in the face, sending it spinning to the dirt. Goblins everywhere, now. He kicked one aside, cut another across the chest. He felt blows clanging all against his armor, blocked furious swings with his shield, parried them with his blade. One goblin got lucky and drove a dagger up his knee and into his thigh, and Carver collapsed to one knee for a moment. Another took this opportunity to slam a mace into his helmet, smashing his thoughts and filling his sight with stars. Gritting his teeth, Carver rose, ignoring his injured leg, and cut the mace-wielding goblin in the chest. More swarmed over him, shrieking and clanging and clawing at his plate-covered body, but he was a Paladin of the Sun - and Paladins didn't run. Every blow that fell on him was a blow that could have fallen on Alula, or Kelvin, or Furnace. And so the knight stood, and fought his losing battle.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' pursuer was unrelenting in his chase, as if wanting nothing more then to see Vis die. The half-elf ducked into an alleyway and began to wind his way through the meandering streets until he found himself at a dead end, with walls to smooth to scale. Vis turned around to see the sneering raider block the only path of escape as he slowly approached, his sword dragging across the floor menacingly. Getting into his combat position, his sword raised infront of him, he knee there was no running from this fight. The raider attacked first, swinging his bastard sword over his head and bringing it at a downward angle towards Vis, Vis rolled and avoided the brunt of the attach but the tip of the sword caught him on his back leaving a long shallow gash. Regaining his footing behind the brute, he thrust outwards with his rapier and pierced the chainmail armor of the man, passing through his under clothes and then between his ribs, catching him in the lung. He roared in pain and quickly swung around, wrenching the rapier the out of Vis' hands and sending it skittering away, Vis pulled the empty bottle out of his bag and smashed it against the side of the man's face, knocking him to the floor. While the man was down, Vis drew his dagger and threw himself ontop of the man, his knees on his chest and stabbed the man in the neck but as he did, the man shot his hands to Vis' neck to strangle him. As Vis was being choked, he stabbed the blade over and over into the man's neck and a puddle of crimson poured around him but the man's grip was unrelenting and Vis' vision was going black around the edges. Then the man's hands fell away as he died. Panting, Vis threw himself off and sat with his back to the wall, his neck bruised by the hands of the raider. He tightened his scarf and retrieved his rapier, then started to pick through the man's pockets and pouches, he found nothing but a scroll and as he opened it his skin flushed red, it was a pornographic scroll. Vis tucked it into his back pack and whinced, first an arrow, then he fell from a roof and now he had a long trailing wound. He emerged into the main street and wished he hadn't, skeletons were climbing out if the ground and beams of blinding light whizzed through the air.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ I continued to jog down the path searching for the cloaked girl to no avail. Where is she? Where is she? Separ asked himself again and again as he made his way through the city. Only as he turned around the corner did he see a man on a horse in the distance, surrounded by what looked a horde of kobolds and goblins. Each of them looked much stronger than an ordinary member of their respective race, and the man on the horse seemed to give off an aura that was refined, and at the same time one of evil. Yes, Separ realized he must have been the one in charge, or at the very least one of the higher ups. Separ quickly hid behind the corner hoping no one had saw him, and as luck would have it, the group appeared to be focusing instead on the razing of a building. The utter chaos on the streets as panicked civillians fought and fled a losing battle also made it easier for Separ to remain unnoticed. Separ turned around realizing there was nothing he could do though. What good is a hero who dies trying to save others from a death, when he can't even save himself? Separ gritted his teeth as he remembered his master's words. Now was not the time to fight, but rather to flee. If there were less civillians or monsters, things would have been much easier. But the sheer chaos and number of people made it hard for him to do anything. As much as it pained him to do so, Separ knew his death would be in vain if he died, only to have the very people he was trying to save also die immediately after, and with this many people around, it was easily bound to happen. Separ turned around, as tears started to form in his eyes. I'm so weak, I can't even help those people over there. His jog started to turn into a sprint as he ran even harder, faster. I need to become stronger so I can protect others. He continued his pace, before hearing the sound of rattling bone and screams from goblins. Holding back his tears and wiping his eyes he ran towards the sound to see two skeletons and the cloaked girl fighting a group of enemies. Perfect, there wasn't nearly as much chaos here. Getting the girl to safety should be relatively simple, somewhat. Separ ran as fast as he could charging at the group. The skeletons seemed strong, but it was apparent they were fighting a losing battle. Focusing energy into his fists he felt his hands heat up slightly as they both started to glow a light orange color. Separ charged forward towards a lone kobold, preparing to strike at it. The kobold reacted just in time though, swinging his sword and knicking Separ in the torso. Luckily it was just a small scratch as Separ had avoided it for the most part, with fervor Separ punched the kobold aiming for its cheek. the attack singing the skin and knocking the kobold a few feet away. Separ then punched at a goblin once, twice, three times with a barrage aimed at its gut, killing the creature before elbowing another goblin in the face, shattering its teeth and creating a small puddle of blood that dribbled onto the ground. Turning to face the cloaked girl, Separ flashed her a small smile. "I'm glad you're safe, but don't run off like that, you had me worried." Only then did Separ's expression turn into a cringe as he punched another goblin only for it to take the blow and swing a mace at him. The mace struck Separ in the side, causing him to grunt in pain. Separ's hands faded of there orange glow for a moment, before restoring themselves as Separ attacked in retaliation, kneeing the goblin in the face and knocking him to the ground. "I don't suppose you have a plan on how to get out of here, do you?" The amount of enemies was much lower here in this area, but Separ knew they'd be overwhelmed if they stayed here for to long.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki slowly stood up on somewhat shaky legs, as she watched the battle rage on. Despite how much the skeletons may be doing, those brittle bones were not going to hold out for long. Frowning, she pulled her scythe out from the ground, and was about to try again, when Separ came around. "Why are you here?!" Frantically asking the man, as she was almost certain he should have ran at the first chance he got. Her attention was diverted a little, as she noticed one of her skeletons crumbling. Turning back to Separ, Suki quickly cobbled together a rather simple plan. "I can create a diversion, then we run." Without waiting for a response, she twirled the scythe around, before embedding the blade once more into the ground, with two skeletons clawing their way out of the dirt. "Alright, let's g-" Pulling her scythe out, Suki was about to start running, when her vision went foggy. Falling down to her knees, one hand braced against the ground, the other letting go of the scythe to cover her mouth, as she coughed multiple times. Pulling back her had, with her hazy vision, she noted the crimson color against the porcelain hand. She pushed herself father than she should have. Quivering, she attempted to stand up, only to collapse onto the ground. "...change...of plans.....you run....I'm in no condition....to move..." Panting these words out, she barely managed to push herself up slightly.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula could tell that Vis was approaching far before he entered the clearing. And yet she was confused. He carried an extra burden with him, of which she did not know. Alula growled. Her staff keeping her propped above the ground. She rubbed her forehead weakly. Her powers were already in a weakened state. If she tried to find out what was happening with the half elf before she was given a chance to rest she would be putting Alula in danger. "The half elf returns." She spoke clearly, over her shoulder at Kelvin. And when Vis broke through the trees to the clearing Alula's expression changed, rather rapidly. Her eyes flashed like strobes. Her face changed from rage, to horror, to joy and then back to expressionless. The half elf had a child. She couldn't tell if his actions were selfish or selfless. To save a child and then bring her into the danger. The oracle remained still, letting Vis approach the group. "This miserable world is full of wonders and tragedy, and to none is it more apparent then the children it holds." She looked up and down Vis, his injuries seemed to be contained and fine. Her healing would be able to hold him over for awhile. What she was really worried about was the girl. Her physical injuries were few, she would be able to heal them easily. But the worst was her emotional damage. Alula could feel every grip of sadness, every anxious shake. She felt them and they felt like her own. She felt a loss for words. "The others are resting over there. You should join them."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat held on tighter to Vis when she heard words, afraid. Though she barely knew the man that she was currently clutching on to, she felt safer with him then she felt in the crate and that satisfied her. "I'm noth thired." Said vis looking into the eyes of the floating oracle with a look of wonder. She looked so strange in this elevated form, Vis looked down at the child in his arms, "Her name with Khat." he stressed the 'T' sound, biting into it so that it sounded like a 'T' and not like a 'th'. Khat lifted her head form the half-elf's shoulder and looked up at Alula with wonder, her mouth slightly ajar as she tilted her head up to bask in her aura, "Vis, what is she?" she asked, her eyes turing form awe to scrutiny. Vis stopped to think for a moment, that was a good question and he didn't know how to answer it, "How abouth you athk her?" "What are you?" she asked, holding onto Vis tighter again and anticipating what the strange floating woman might have to say, she sniffled, trying to find a way to distract herself from her sadness.</s> <\|message\|>Alula When Vis informed her that he was not tired she was ready to leave the conversation. She turned away, perhaps to go check on the others. She wasn't particularly good with children. Or really anyone for that matter. It didn't help that she wasn't entirely herself at the moment. She inwardly cringed when she heard the child and Vis whisper back and forth to each other. She wanted to know what she was. She turned back around, looking slightly irritated. "What we are" she spoke in a pointed voice. "Is a being more powerful then you coul-" She suddenly stopped talking, her expression changing again from anger to a look of tranquility and kindness. She drifted slightly closer to Vis and Khat. She touched her feet gently to the ground, soft bursts of light floating through the grass. She crouched down in front of Khat, wanting to make herself on the same level as the child. The powerful and kind voice spoke through Alula. "My dear child, what we are is not so important right now." She smiled softly. "Time will tell. What you need to know right now is that the girl is rather excited to meet you." She slowly stood up, more soft bursts of light erupting as she pushed herself back into the air. "There will be more time for talking once all this...destruction...is over." She moved away from the girl, giving a final smile to Vis and the girl, before her expression changed to one of disinterest again.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace found himself floating in a delicous bowl of warm soup. Birdcalls and muffled screams played on loop in the distance. "hello again. It has been a while has it not?" Furnace recognised the voice well. "It sure has. I've seen so much since last time." "I predicted your freedom did I not?" The hollow voice grinned without mouth or body, yet it's emotions were clear to Furnace. "You did! And I discovered plants. And food, and friends, and fights and-" "Fights. Yes." The voice interupted Furnace sternly. "And now you've gone and broken yourself you fool." ... "I discovered that too. I can just repair it right?""And what if you break yourself too much one day? To an extent you can't be fixed?" ... "I hadn't thought of that. What happens then? Will I remain broken?" "That is something you will have to find out. Remeber you are more similar to these new.. friends of yours than you are to me." "The friends have given me names for me to call them by. Will you give me yours?" ... "Not until you know your own. Little Furnace. For now go do what you do best. You have barely used any of your potential. Nor have you even touched your negative reserves." "What good is the negative energy!? All it does is hurt!""Ask... the Taster of Smiles." "Who is the taster of smiles!?" Furnace cringed trough the second part of the last sentence. A sharp sting in his shoulder informed him he was awake. Covered in sweat and panting from the exhausting pain he crawled out of the cloth he was wrapped in. As he looked around he saw trees and some of his new friends. He had no idea where he was. But judging by the marks on Carvers skin and armor he had been near him. Was he broken? Was he going to stay broken? He crawled over to the damaged paladin and unceremoneously let himself drop next to him, laying on his back with his good arm on Carver. Slowly he let energy flow from his hands and onto the fallen knights burns. Jolts of golden bright danced along fields of blistered skin until layers reattached, senew regrew and colors turned the right shade of bronze pink. Meanwhile Furnace looked to the other side the strange scented man build something impressive. "Hello again. I'm awake and soon I'll help you build.. that.. But first can you help me?" With his head he nodded at his bloody arm. "I need to repair this. But as is the core will not attach properly. I don't want a crooked arm because I fear it won't work as well. Can you hold it while I pump it full of positive energy?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver When Carver came to, he was struck by the sensation of not being on fire. He took a moment to appreciate how fine it was to not be immolated, then sat up quickly, his head swimming. He'd passed out. Weak. Selfish. Failure. Carver shook his head in an attempt to clear his brain of these thoughts. There would be time for self-loathing later, but not after everyone who could be saved had been. The knight examined the structure he'd been hidden behind for a moment. It was well-constructed, though obviously done in a hurry. Carver suspected Kelvin might be behind its creation - he wasn't sure who else could have thrown it together. He felt a pang of gratitude for the man who had risen to the occasion when Carver's strength had failed him. His was a noble example, indeed. He rose, shakily, and brought his gloved hands up to touch his unhelmed face. No burn marks. Alula's handiwork, or maybe Furnace's - once again, those he was meant to be protecting seemed to be protecting him. He'd have to do better. His head pounding, Carver stepped back into the clearing and was struck by two sights. One, Furnace was conscious, and conversing with Kelvin a short distance away; and two, Vis had returned, bringing with him someone new - a child, staring at Alula with rapt wonder. Kelvin and Furnace's efforts required thanks, thanks he would be sure to give them sooner rather than later. However, for the moment Carver was concerned with the health of the others - Alula, who had displayed such uncharacteristic power, and the girl, whose home had obviously just been burned down. "My lady!" he called out to Alula, managing not to wince from his soreness as he sauntered over to her. "Are you unharmed? I must offer my most sincere apologies for collapsing, as I did. It was... unbecoming of a knight, and will not happen again." He gave a warm smile to the girl and dropped down to a crouch to look her in the eyes. "And who's this one? Child, do not fear. No harm will come to you, not now. I am Sir Carver, Knight of the Sun, and I am very pleased to meet you."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki grimaced as she sat up. Alright, it seems she was going to have to drain someone soon. As she thought about this, her eyes had drifted over towards the man who had carried her out of the town. No, best not to take him yet...perhaps she'll find someone soon. Besides, he did not look like he could take a kiss from her and live, even if she wasn't trying to kill him. Muttering softly under her breath, "Saving someone like me was a waste of time.", she glanced back towards the rubble of the town. Her scythe was still back there. Although she could probably summon and assign an undead to bring it to her, not did not seem like the right time to do so. Turning towards Separ, she smiled. "I'm pretty certain that Kelvin and the paladin would keep everyone else safe. After all, you've only just gathered us today. It would be a horrible joke of the divines to kill us all off." Attempting to reassure the man, Suki looked around. Now that they were semi-safe, they would probably have to find the rest. Although running away now, while the paladin wasn't around, wasn't such a bad thought either.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace It was suddenly crowded in the fields. People were yelling at each other, there were even more people coming with lights. Alula had gotten away and his chance to see what it was that pressured her was gone. Weapons were drawn, the approaching people had fire and weapons also. Had they come to harvest more? We didn't want that. Right? Carver started to beat his sword on his shield repeatedly. Furnace didn't know why the rhythm reminded him of the rhythm of hammer and forge. It was comforting, and though he was conflicted over the idea of forging here in the field he was drawn closer. He stood near to Carver and Separ, close enough that they could see him in the tall grass even when Furnace crouched. "This is no place to have a forge, there is too much fuel here, I won't be able to contain the fire." He pulled out his sword. It was slightly bent and dented. The melting had made the blade a little dull and a little shorter. But it could still hurt. "The glowing girl doesn't want to hurt anyone. I want to help her do that. If that means I have to hurt these people in her stead, I think I want to hurt these people. What do you think?" Furnace stared at Separ and Carver on either side of him. "Do you want to hurt these people?"</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin Kelvin awoke to the ringing of metal on metal, his eyes snapping open. He was disoriented for just a moment. The forge? It had been years since he last had worked metal. Falen had always been an early riser though. He rolled onto his side and found his face two feet from the hooded girl's. "No… what happe-" His face contorted in horror and he rolled the other way, standing upright before realizing where he was. Color slowly returned to his face. This wasn't the inn. He took a deep breath before looking around, spotting the lights moving through the forest towards their small opening in the trees, and more importantly, Carver and Separ squaring up to meet them. At his feet was that woman. However those two had gotten here, it was fortune. First things first. Kelvin quickly repacked his bag, glancing about to make sure there were no misplaced items before slinging it over his shoulders. It took only a moment to fill up the crossbows chamber, loading two more slugs from his belt pouch to bring it back to full clip. Alright. The seer was… He glanced about, not seeing a trace of her, unless the glowing in those trees a bit farther off was her. "Elf, grab the kid, we need to move." Kelvin looked down and knelt, allowing his crossbow to hang off the sling he had made earlier and picked up the black haired beauty, allowing the blanket to fold over her a bit. "Lady, you are heavier than you look. Can't tell if it's you or the dress though." Kelvin grunted to himself and hoisted her a bit higher, adjusting his arms under her legs and shoulder. Truthfully, she wasn't horribly heavy, but he could only go so far like this. "Fair warn'n though. If I need to shoot, I'll be droppin' yeh." Not that she could hear him, but whatever. Kelvin headed diagonally away from where Carver and Separ were making their stand, intending to walk parallel to the Seer and away from both the town and the fight. As long as he and the other guy stuck together, they should be alright. At least, as long as the elf knew how to use that sword. Hopefully Carver was smart enough to realize that he would need a head start if the force in town realized what was happening.</s> <\|message\|>Des As the team moved out the raiders closed in, they could hear the banging of steel but one heard rustling in the leaves. "There's one over here, trying to get away while the one distracts us." They charged into the woods and intercepted Alula and drew their weapons. Two with crossbows, one with dual long-swords, one with a flail, and the last one being a pyromancer.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Gentle, gliding, movements. Barely disturbing the forest around her. Alula had gotten pretty deep into the woods, far enough to no longer see the camp and yet she could still hear the rhythmic thumping of Carver. Or perhaps it was just a memory following her, phantom sounds filling her with dread. She shook her head clear. Alula had nothing to fear from mere humans, and she took a deep breath. No moonbeams. She could handle that. Alula raised her arms above her head, staff pointed directly at the five approaching attackers. Instead of a beam of light striking the attackers, the entire scenery began to change around her and the attackers. It was as if the entire world became a reflection in a pool of water, shimmering and wavering into life. To Alula and the raiders they were no longer in the woods surrounded by trees, but instead they were in a clearing, with a path that leads towards the camp, although the path eventually turned back into trees where it was outside Alula's range of power. All around the foes were other, albeit faded humans. They were all laughing and drinking strange liquor. A few of the hazy men came over and clapped one of the real men on the back, congratulating him on a good raid. "Hey..." One of the vision men said, speaking in a voice that sounded slurred from alcohol. "I hear there is a group of smoking babes just over that way" the dream paused to hiccup, nursing at his drink. "wanting to...heh...reward us brave heroes." The hazy man beckoned towards the fake path, towards where the party was preparing themselves for a fight. The real men would likely now feel extremely strange and disoriented, like getting drunk and then trying to spin around for a few minutes. Even if they didn't believe in the visions they would still be confused and slow. Luckily for Alula, these men were unable to resist the temptation of a willing woman after taking the day to rummage through the ruined town. They began to stumble, as if blind, through the trees. They were headed right for the blades of her allies. This haze would not last long, once they arrived in the field reality would set in. There were no women waiting for them, only a handful of tired adventurers. But by then Alula would be long gone.</s> <\|message\|>Des The men wandered out of the woods and were quite upset to find no women and that they were fooled by the girl, but it was too late for her, the enemy was closing in. The two archers fired arrows at Carver while the swordsman rushed in. If Carver puts up his shield he will block the arrows but will give the swordsman a chance for a sneak attack since Carver will lose sight of him and if he doesn't raise his shield. Well...</s> <\|message\|>Furnace A man ran towards Carver sword raised. But Carver hadn't claimed to desire hurting the man. There was no time, with a few light steps Furnace positioned himself between Carver and the attempted flank. "Then I will hurt this one." He stood crouched, with word held at an angle so the tip reaches the tip of the grass. There, locked in pflug he waited the everlasting seconds while the man stormed closer with his eyes on Carver. The moment the man was close enough. Close enough to see Furnace. Close enough to charge into his reach. Furnace jumped up, sword piercing forward, thrusting in a single forward motion.</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman parried the blade and slashed outwards at Furnace missing only by a hair. Assuming Carver put his shield up the two arrows made a loud bang as they hit the iron. The swordsman looked down at Furnace and laughed, "You think your miserable mess of a weapon can take on a professional swordsman," He then looks up at Carver, "Now there's a man with a blade. How about we have a little one-on-one? My companions will cease fire until you fall to your death. How about it?" The other men caught up and the swordsman motioned for them to stop and then glanced at Carver, waiting for an answer. "Or are you scared you will fail?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace This man was not so simple of taste as the others, he wanted not just to fight. This man wanted to fight Carver specifically. So it was important who you fought? Furnace stepped out to the side, allowing a meter of free room between carver and the swordsman. The man was right after all. His blade was no longer as keen as he had intended it. He had gone and join these people in their fighting with a damaged blade. He wondered if he should apologize for not taking them seriously. It was clear they took it very seriously.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat was about to retort about being carried until Vis swept her off of her feet, literally running towards her and plucking her off of the ground. "I don't need to be carried!" she barked, and all Vis did was point behind him at the raiders squaring off with the other three, Khat got the point and with great reluctance, fell quiet as Vis started to run, chasing after the man who coincidentally was holding another girl. As they ran, Khat watched Vis his pants were ragged as he ran behind the man but nothing portrayed why it would be so. She reached out to his scarf and was about to tug it down, when his eyes flicked to hers for a moment, glaring, as if to say 'don't you dare'. She did not argue, instead she pulled up her scarf around her face to see how it felt, oddly comfortable.</s> <\|message\|>Carver The bandit wanted to duel? Then there was no question. If one of the enemies could be eliminated without any risk to to the others, Carver would have to risk the possiblity of deception. "Let me handle this one, friend," he said to Separ and thumped his sword into his shield again. "A noble offer, one generously accepted. Test your steel against mine, and we will see which among us is worthy of victory." Carver, of course, had little doubt that it would be him.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Good, glad to see you want to die by my blades instead of by the fires of war. It is noble indeed that you would risk your life for your friends, but win or lose, my friends will still strike once this fight is over." The swordsman rushed forward and quickly pounced over the paladin and spun around, using the momentum of the spin the cut through Carver's armor, but luckily not his flesh. The swordsman ripped his sword out and backed up before the paladin could turn around and strike back. "Your move, Paladin."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki unconsciously curled up tighter as she slowly woke up, her mind a tad bit hazy as she tried to get her bearings. Still half asleep, she smiled. "Held gently yet securely." Whispering these words to herself, she looked up and saw Kelvin. This helped her wake up, and although it was hard, she fought down the automatic reflex of wanting to fling herself into stable ground. "My, my. First you were daring enough to near a woman that you never met before, and now I find myself being held in your arms." Teasing the man with the same seductive tone, she then glanced around. "What's happening?" Asking this question, though her cute expression that she had while teasing the man stated, her eyes seem to harden, as she started to worry.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des Des walked into the clearing once everyone was asleep making sure not to be spotted by Vis. He walked by the entire lot thinking about them. 'This one's presence is loud and annoying, like a bickering family.' He thought as he passed by Alula. He looked into the tent of Kelvin and Furnace. 'This one's head is too busy and the other feels warm, yet somehow cold.' He walked into Separ's tent and stared at him. 'This one can think of only one thing, what is he to do when that purpose is filled.' Finally he walked into the tent of Carver. 'This one is protective and comforting, like the sun.' He then laid next to Carver, the only presence that didn't bother him, and fell asleep.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Time for you to wake up." Furnace woke to the strange melodic sound of chirping. Kelvin was still asleep next to him so he carefully crawled out of the tent. He had dreamt that night. Not just words but lights and visions. "Something big. Something proud." These words echoed in his mind when he stared into the smouldering remains of the camp fire. Furnace rubbed his forehead while scanning the tent, Alula was nowhere to be seen. He wondered why he wondered these things, and why he felt the need to touch his head. Looking around Furnace also noticed Carver sitting in the grass looking at the bright orb of energy rested on hills in the far distance. So peaceful the man sat there in silence. Furnace sat down beside him and stared at the sunrise with him. He'd seen the thing before, high in the sky and falling slowly. Then it would rise again later. Furnace began to assume this always happened. Furnace liked the idea. To have a ready supply of light and warmth from time to time. And the waves of energy laced in the rays of light, woven so brilliantly made the source a sight to behold. He thought back to the energy he'd see wave of Carver some time ago before they had slept. Looking at the patterns he confirmed his earlier guess that their nature was the same. Furnace broke the silence. "It's beautiful isn't it?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou "?!?!" It took almost all of her self control, not to fling herself up in shock, as Suki woke up. The dream she had during the night was disturbingly vivid. Well, the emotions she felt were vivid, the actual content of the dream somewhat hazy. Glancing around, she noticed that she was lying down in a tent, with the sun's rays piercing through the thin fabric of the tent. Yawning lightly, she gracefully slipped out, before stretching. Looking around, it appears they had moved from the ruins of the town, into a hopefully safer clearing. While carefully on guard against anyone, she noticed the gnome nearby. Although it was an amusing idea, she forgone the option of teasing it. She didn't feel up for tempting anyone just yet.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis had not slept well and night had turned to day in a disorientating blur of exhaustion and periodic wakings ups in during the night. Though he was sure that he must have gotten at least some sleep because he remembered waking up a lot, and having stage dreams. He looked like crap. His eyes were bloodshot and his good one turing violet from the redness and it's natural blue and he was slumped over, his eyes only barely open and seemingly unregistering. Vis felt his eyes start to creep shut but he willed them to stay open, 'only a few more minutes and i wake up the paladin' he thought to himself, forgetting he had already woken him up, Vis looking up and grimaced, it was day and he had slept horribly. He sighed and felt Khat stir in her sleep. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked up at Vis, she was still asleep on his laps, it appears he hadn't moved all night. Khat wasn't one for good mornings, "Why do you look like shit?" she asked, Vis simply sorted, not even taken aback by the child's foul language. His hands went around his head shakily and tightened his scarf, she mimicked him, "I had a weird dream." Vis didn't registering what she said, "hello?" she asked, waving a hand in his face, he snorted in acknowledgment, "not a morning person..." she mumbled.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver awoke from his dream with a start. He rubbed his face, blinked his eyes, confirmed in his mind that he was indeed awake, that yes, this was real and what he'd just seen had been fantasy. There was a picture emblazoned on his arm, a strange symbol he couldn't recognize from any of his learning. That was from the dream, but if that was still there, then...? There was something else, too, a sensation that had stuck with him. Weightlessness. Alula. Wherever the girl was, Carver prayed she was safe. There was a sight he wasn't quite prepared for. There was a child curled up next to him, fast asleep, a small, frail thing who obviously hadn't slept in a bed in a long while. He wondered for a moment where the child had come from, and then concluded that it didn't matter. Perhaps he was another survivor, perhaps he was an urchin. What mattered now was that he was clearly alone, and tired, and had come to Carver seeking protection. The paladin lifted his blanket and spread it over the child, taking great care not to wake him. When the time came for his watch, Carver stepped outside the tent dressed in the plain linen clothes he'd been wearing under his armor yesterday. He took up position where he could see the sunrise peeking over the horizon, planted his sword at his feet, and spent a time contemplating her wisdom and beauty in silence. The silence was broken a great while later, when the rest of the party began to awaken. He was content to leave them to their morning rituals until the gnome came to sit next to him. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" The knight smiled softly. "She is. She loves each of us, you know. That is why she blesses us with her radiance. We are all children of the sun."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace looked at Carver like he couldn't understand a word he said. She. Love. Bless. Children. Sun... "Who is the sun?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had slept fantastically. It was the gentle sounds of the world around her, as well as the irritating sunlight piercing through her shut eyes, that finally awoke her. She sat up slowly, stretching her arms up above her with a soft grunt. And as she stretched her arms up to the sky the grass she had slept in moved too. She looked around, blinking the sleep out of her hazy eyes. The events of the previous day were rather unclear to Alula. She remembered joining the group of adventurers, of whom which seemed to have set up camp here. The events of the battle between them and the horde of creatures was nothing more then a hazy feeling, like watching the events unfold from behind dirty glass. The voices filled in the blanks for her, explaining that they eventually had to flee the area. They then tried to bring up the No good dangerous and rotten Paladin but she silently begged them to stick to the facts. And then there was the coming of the moon. And she had barely gotten away from the group before she changed. Alula found herself exhaling with relief. There had been a group of raiders, whom she was able to cunningly outwit. And from then on she had spent the rest of the evening enjoying the moon and recharging. She confirmed with the voices that this was all they had done in the night, which they confirmed. Good. No one had been hurt. She looked over to her side, noticing her staff laying out in the grass an arms length away. Well at least they made one thing easy for her, but she was still upset about her hat being lost. Everyone else was beginning to wake up around her as well. Hopefully everyone else slept well too. She yawned again, stretching out her spine and pulling her staff closer to herself. She could hear her companions having conversations, but they felt so far away despite being so close. And the sunrise was burning her eyes.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem "A celestial body." Arastoph piped up, intervening on the conversation; and hopefully end the religious conversion before it began. Worshiping the light was cute and all, but what kind of man would he be if he let the knight take advantage of a little boy like that? Er-- gnome. How old was the wee guy anyway? Regardless, Arastoph had one thing that the others didn't: a formal education befitting of a noble (perhaps, with time and money, Arastoph could make himself a noble in due time - imagine that!). "Telescopes, the creation of which prompting due thanks to the world's scientists, can allow you to look at the stars and see they are like that of the sun. Granted, we do not know what they are made of yet, but I doubt their making is magical or divine." The trader tipped up the wide-brimmed hat he had scavenged last night, revealing his face from the shade it offered. Light bags formed under his eyes. Nothing severe, but he had spent the whole night doing little more than closing his eyes. A man like him can not sleep among strangers, especially as suspicious of him as they were. Granted, he fared it better than most would, but it didn't make the experience any more pleasurable. He found that there were a couple of people that had joined their crew amidst the night. A young boy, and a girl. Assuming that the watchman had not grown lazy and fallen asleep, he had let them in, indicating he recognized them. Their party was larger than Arastoph had first anticipated. With larger groups come greater solidarity and variety of perspectives. A larger group was much more difficult to manipulate, but assuming he can get just a few to trust him, he should be well off. Even if the monkey and pious knight didn't. "I believe we are better off accepting that there are beneficial consequences of its product, like of the trees, than to humanize it... but that's just my take on it. Decide what you will, wee one."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki's attention was perked up by the man who seemed to be wearing a rather familiar hat. Which made little sense, as she did not recognize the man himself. However, a new male, was a new person to tease. Getting into the mood to play around, she walked over, until she was next to the man talking about celestial bodies. "My, you're quite the knowledgable one aren't you?" Asking in that usual sultry tone of hers. As she was voicing her question, she 'absentmindedly' leaned in, with her cloak opening slightly, allowing a slight view of her bountiful chest.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des Des walked out of the tent sleepily and overheard a conversation about him. "Well, technically, he didn't sleep with me, I slept with him. He had no idea." Des walked over to the merchant feeling that something wasn't quite right about this one, "Your presence is dark and cold, evil even. Yet there is a fire that begs to be set free. You're the exact opposite of the gnome." He then noticed the hat wrapped around Arastoph's neck. "Hey, your hat matches the pattern of the loud, bickering lady. Are you two together?" Des then looked around for the oracle and spotted her on the ground. "There she is, that one."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Burning. Burning. Why were her eyes burning? She shivered despite the overwhelming heat encompassing her body. All she could see was a white light, searing out her other senses. Was she staring into the sun? She could hear far away voices, like memories lost in time, but they were overshadowed by music. A song so enchanting that she found herself completely dazed. She felt pulled in by its radiance, the sounds of words she could not comprehend and tones that she could never remember. She blinked a few times, rubbing her eyes, trying to break from its pull. Eventually the light died down, becoming nothing more then sunspots in her vision, but the music remained. It was soft like the final echoes of sound across a lake, but she was still aware of it. Once her vision cleared she noticed she was looking in Carvers direction, and he had smiled and nodded. Alula sat in silence for a few moments, trying to get her bearings again. Her companions were gathering together, maybe to talk about next plans. And there was another child with them. Voices began to scream, a warning, but she did not heed them. The child mentioned her hat, and then beckoned to another stranger. Her hat was tied around his neck, no doubt. She struggled to her feet, trying to keep weight off of her crippled leg, and with staff in hand began to hobble over towards the group. She stopped in front of the strange man, paying no heed to the dangerous child next to her, and looked him dead in the eyes. Without her hat it was clear to see her eyes were glowing. Her expression was one of anger, and she opened her mouth to speak words she did not understand, and yet knew more about then anyone. "Born into this world, pure and yet hated. To atone for crimes never committed. A full life never to live." Her expression changed, from anger to understanding and then quickly back to her default expressionless. She understood. But he still had her hat. Alula grabbed her coin purse out of her robes, trying to force it into the strange man's hands. She pointed to the hat, struggling to find words.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ woke up in a cold sweat as he realized he had just had a nightmare. Try as he might though he couldn't seem to remember anything about the dream at all though. All he could remember was that there was a training dummy he had been practicing on, but what had happened after that? Shaking his head Separ got out of bed to scared to fall back asleep for now, especially since they had been chased by the raiders before. Now was not a time to sleep, but a time to retreat and get away from this area. He quickly packed up his sleeping bag putting it into his tent, but waited to take down his tent for now to see how the others had been faring. Taking a glance around at where everyone was Separ quickly found Carver and strode up to him. "Sleep well last night?" He asked happily, unaware that there was now a new member of the team. Separ's stomach grumbled suddenly however. He had not gotten much of a chance to eat yesterday after the raid occurred, and while Separ felt a little bit better after his rest, he was now hungry and also a bit thirsty. "I don't suppose anyone has managed to procure some food before..." Separ paused for a moment trying to find the right words to say, but ultimately came up short. He instead just glanced to the side avoiding direct eye contact, muttering the name of the town that had just been destroyed instead, the town known as "Ravenwood."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis heard the call for food, and staggered to his feet, Khat got up to try and help him but he gestured for her to stay down. He shambled over, exhausted from his on and off sleep and slightly tripping on rocks and roots as he staggered over to the small group. Once among them, he slipped off his pack and opened it up, reveling the stale loaves in the bag. he darted his hand in and broke off a pice for breakfast, "I had inithially boughth enough for our original group, but I'd be glad to share with the new comers form my bread," He broke off a piece from his loaf and presented it to the new comer, the one who had foretold of his turing daughter and in a sharp hiss, he whispered to hm, throwing his voice into the man's ear so only he could here, "You bether noth thake her money, that is her hath and if you do, I'll thake it back and then some." He thrust the bread into the man's hand and staggered off, even more exhausted then before, he returned to Khat and collapsed by her side. "Did you get me any?" "You thtill have the chunk from yestherday, finish thath."</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph rolled his eyes at the child. Was the thing brain-damaged? Actively walking up to a group of strangers, and then sleeping next to the largest man there? And then this... this thing, this cretin has the audacity to look at him and trying to decipher meaning of his own existence? Labeling him as evil? Nay, evil was subjective. But even amongst subjectivity, mankind was the true evil of the world. He was just now labeled evil by an ignorant little child, when he was the product shaped by mankind's hand. He pointed out the young girl that had come through last night and asked if they were together (an absurd assumption, obviously, as helmets do not associate knights of the same order). This grabbed the attention of the girl, and she too had approached. She had marched towards him, her face angry and her eyes were literally glowing. His hand subtlety moved to touch the grip of his stiletto out of suspicion. "Born into this world, pure and yet hated." She said. Arastoph blinked. The girl continued, "To attune for crimes never committed. A full life never to live." At this moment, Arastoph was slightly disturbed, and very much irritated. He scolded, "if you wouldn't mind, the both of you can keep the preposterous divinations to yourselves." The girl, once appearing angry, looked soft. Then subsequently neutral. Surely there was some damage in this one, much as there was in the child. However, she did something unexpected; she motioned towards the hat resting on Arastoph's shoulders, which was kept from falling with a last-minute modification made of a strip of wool. She showed him a coin purse and nudged. Ah, so already there was a business prospect? Interesting. Unfortunately, there was more than one monkey in the group. Another one, the one with the glowing eye (who Arastoph had assumed had no reason to distrust him, and though he was simply being an ass) approached him with some bread and used a peculiar skill that made his voice sound as though it was right next to his ear. Granted, not expecting the speech impediment present in the half-elf's voice caused the trader to miss most of what he was trying to tell him. But the general message was clear: "don't take the money, or else". Arastoph rolled his eyes. He played out the scenario in his head. This man walks up to a merchant, tells him not to conduct business appropriately as the merchant is wont to do, and threatens the merchant if he does. Arastoph simply laughed to himself softly. He didn't fear a crippled monkey, especially not one so harebrained, and especially not in the presence of the paladin, Carver. While they may have gotten off on the wrong foot, he was sure that Carver wouldn't let anything happen outside of what he deemed moral regardless of who was the victim. He overheard the girl asking the fool for more bread. An entertaining idea entered his head, that selling the piece of bread offered to him to the girl would be the ultimate dismissal of his threats. That and he didn't trust food handed to him by strangers. Especially by a stranger who had threatened him. If poison were the case, giving it to the girl would sure draw him out on his intentions. But in the case of taking these people's money, Arastoph had no qualms. He didn't identify with them. He wasn't one of them. He was a merchant. One who fabricated a life lost. He didn't owe these people anything. Perhaps he'd sell the bread after he dealt with the girl and the hat. 'Conducting business is how I've lived my life, and that isn't going to change because a jumped-up elf got pissy. These people are as much patrons as anyone else.' Despite the warning, Arastoph accepted the whole coin purse into his hand, and began counting the pieces. Not too terrible much, but he was surprised to find this kind of pocket money in a group of vagabonds like this one. He counted up a total of a hundred sixty-five pieces. Not bad. The hat may not be worth that much, but none of these people knew that. They couldn't determine the value of an item like he could. "One hundred and sixty-five pieces?" Arastoph asked, sounding somewhat pleased. "That isn't a bad offer. Though this hat and its craftsmanship does seem rather valuable. I apologize, but I think I could probably fetch a better price someplace else. Perhaps even in the next town over."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki wanted to laugh as she saw the interaction between the merchant and the rest. Covering her momentary lapse with a light cough, she set her expression to as neutral of an appearance as possible. Despite her efforts, the corners of her mouth still quirked up slightly. This merchant was just like the rest of the merchants she 'played' with. Getting everything as cheaply as possible, before burning the other party for as much gold as possible. It was similar to how she easily received 'gifts' from men for doing just a small 'service'. "She's probably the only one you can try that on." With a bemused tone, she couldn't help but to comment on the merchant's actions.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki only continued to watch, before slipping out from the group without making too much noise. Choosing to take a winding, diverging route, she slowly made her way back towards the ruined town. What she was here for, was her scythe. She had left it somewhere in the ground, when Separ carried her, and she wanted it back. Granted, it was only a simple scythe by design, nothing decorative, but it served her well. However, glaring at the rubble in her way, she frowned, before choosing to slip through between the larger pieces of rubble that almost formed an alleyway, making her way deeper into the city.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched in interest as Kelvin and the merchant continued to haggle prices. She tugged her hat down over her eyes as the man mentioned orphanages. Even if that would be far safer to live in a home for parentless children then traveling with a group of first time adventurers, she said nothing. She found the man's tone slightly cynical, but nothing she would really bat an eye at. The rest of the party seemed rather quick to jump down his throat. But she understood. Alula shivered, tugging on her hat again. The young girls outburst was rather odd as well. The child was being rather outspoken and rude for one so young, and she could stand to learn some manners. It wasn't wise to lash out in such a way, especially around the man who had saved her life. Again, Alula understood. And Alula shivered. She watched in silence as Carver again intervened, playing the mediator, when Kelvin and the merchant seemed to be unable to find an agreement. She frowned when he mentioned her name, however. Equating her to the children and innocent of the party. If only they knew. She kept herself from speaking out, she knew the man just wanted what was best. After awhile the voices informed her that someone had tried to sneak away from the party. It would be best to mention it before things got too carried away. "We may...need more then...thirty minutes..." Alula slurred slowly, pulling the rim of her hat down over her eyes. "The girl...has returned to the town...she took measures to...not be detected by you all..." She shivered. "We...I...believe...it would be best...to wait for her here...if she wanted us...to follow she would have...told us to."</s> <\|message\|>Des Des followed Carver, he seemed to be the only one who made sense. "Earlier, you said we are all children of the Sun. Does that make you my brother?" If this guy was Des's family then he might know something about Des's past. Suki's staff was Exactly where she had left it. There was something slightly suspicious about the fact that it was the only thing left untouched, even more so sense her skeletons lay destroyed beside it.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Upon Carver's command Furnace immediately started to break down a tent, attempting to mimic him as well as possible. "We should wait here for her then? Have these goods collected in packages for transport by the time she returns? If she returns." He asked, thinking aloud.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ This was a bad situation for sure, the girl Separ had tried so hard to save was now back in the lions den, but for what reason? Was there something she needed to do in that town that was worth risking such danger? As much as Separ wanted to leave for safety, he couldn't find it in his heart to just leave her behind like that, especially after all that hard work he put in trying to save her. Feeling as though some type of disaster may fall upon the girl, Separ took off his backpack and laid it on the ground before walking over to Carver. "I'm going to go after the girl. You keep everyone else safe and continue on towards the next town over. I'll catch up with you there. Just don't follow after me as moving in a big group could attract unwanted attention. If any of you gets injured there's a medical kit I purchased earlier inside the backpack." Separ looked over at his group and smiled. "So I'll see you later then I guess." However when he saw Alula he felt a bit funny, something was nagging at him making him feel uncomfortable. He stared at her for a minute awkwardly before looking away not wanting to creep her out any longer. Deciding to ignore this feeling his attention turned towards Kelvin. "You have explosives right? Do you mind if I take a stick of dynamite as well as something to light it in case of an emergency?" Asked Separ in a rather serious tone. The last thing he wanted to do was blow up a whole area but if it meant surviving the enemy forces it could be useful in a pinch.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph rolled his eyes as, once again, a transaction was intruded upon. It wasn't just any transaction either, but a contract! That would make great strides in benefiting the party to all here (aside himself) belonged to. And this little girl had the audacity to intrude upon adult matters as though she had any right to? The boot was worth more than she was! "Exactly, you little goblin." He said as his smooth tone gradually dripped with venomous and seething contempt. "You do not know me, nor do you trust me; and by extent, do not know what I would do to you if you dare to try that again." Arastoph caught himself in the midst of his threat, and quickly bound to recover himself. "...Though as once a father, I could not possibly bring myself to do the likes of which. A hypothetical. That said... you are sorely in need of discipline. To which I would leave the responsibility to the... inarticulate one. If you think I would allow a child to possess any sort of your party's spending power, I'm afraid you are mistaken." 'Then again, the simpering, defective imbecile is probably the reason behind her infantile tantrums.' In addition to the abhorrent cretin of a human child, the paladin ushered an end to their negotiations which Arastoph had felt was weighed quite considerably in their favor. Carver insisted that negotiations may be finished another time while they packed up and pressed on towards the other town. 'What a shame; we were almost finished.' Carver praised his skills, but scolded his morality - living up to the stereotype of the rigid moral enforcer, and that his way of living was the one and only way of doing so. However, what had to be the most amusing part of his lecture was what he perceived to be Arastoph's motives! He deducted mere, simple greed! Nay, that was not the case for him; obsession with the mundane, terrestrial concept of currency was not where his heart lies. Rather, it was simply a tool and method of power for him to exert over the less powerful. But as for why this particular path was taken... needless to say, it had nothing to do with worshiping gold coins. "Surely, Sir Carver," Arastoph mused, "you don't think me to be so shallow and banal to be bothered with something as trivial as greed?" "I am not so frivolous," he continued. A sly smile has stretched over his face as his eyes turned to the corner upon hearing the oracle's warning of one of their own ranks attempting to slip out unnoticed. "From the sounds of things, I may not be the one you should be suspicious of, good knight. At least I have been upfront with my business."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Every stick neatly sorted by length. Every sheet of cloth folded in precise squares, piled and bound. Furnace wrapped every object he owned as well as all other unattended objects in rags and bags. Divided into equal shares, or at least a close approximation. One package for each person here to carry. Furnace looked at Carver as he stood beside his work. It was clear on his face he took pride in it, that he hoped for approval. "We will take these things to 'that way', right?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed Separ staring at her, but really took no mind. The man was strange, and so was she. Most of the time people payed her no mind, but when they noticed her she was truly the center of their attentions. She didn't like it. Once the man turned away, after staring at her for minutes, she tugged her hat down over her eyes. She didn't keep quiet for long, however, as she noticed something while Furnace was packing up camp. There was something on his forehead, something drawing her in. Once the gnome was finished with his task, looking quite proud, Alula limped over to him. With a bit of ungraceful struggle, leaning on her staff for support, she knelled down in front of him. With a strangely sudden movement, one someone might miss if they had blinked, Alula's hand whipped up and moved the gnomes hair off of his forehead. She studied the marking with a strange intensity, her expression looking distressed. "Furnace..." She started, looking into his eyes. "Where...when...did you get...this..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace flinched when Alula suddenly touched his head. Surprisingly close and with eyes filled with concern. Furnace stared back at her in confusion, then at his empty hands before looking back at her. "What did I get?"</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki frowned as she looked at her scythe. She had a knack for noticing things unusual, and this was quite odd. It hadn't been touched, left where she dropped it. That, and her skeletons alongside it, in pieces. However, standing here was not going to solve her problems. Taking a breath, she reached down, before grabbing the scythe.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched in interest as Kelvin and the merchant continued to haggle prices. She tugged her hat down over her eyes as the man mentioned orphanages. Even if that would be far safer to live in a home for parentless children then traveling with a group of first time adventurers, she said nothing. She found the man's tone slightly cynical, but nothing she would really bat an eye at. The rest of the party seemed rather quick to jump down his throat. But she understood. Alula shivered, tugging on her hat again. The young girls outburst was rather odd as well. The child was being rather outspoken and rude for one so young, and she could stand to learn some manners. It wasn't wise to lash out in such a way, especially around the man who had saved her life. Again, Alula understood. And Alula shivered. She watched in silence as Carver again intervened, playing the mediator, when Kelvin and the merchant seemed to be unable to find an agreement. She frowned when he mentioned her name, however. Equating her to the children and innocent of the party. If only they knew. She kept herself from speaking out, she knew the man just wanted what was best. After awhile the voices informed her that someone had tried to sneak away from the party. It would be best to mention it before things got too carried away. "We may...need more then...thirty minutes..." Alula slurred slowly, pulling the rim of her hat down over her eyes. "The girl...has returned to the town...she took measures to...not be detected by you all..." She shivered. "We...I...believe...it would be best...to wait for her here...if she wanted us...to follow she would have...told us to."</s> <\|message\|>Des Des followed Carver, he seemed to be the only one who made sense. "Earlier, you said we are all children of the Sun. Does that make you my brother?" If this guy was Des's family then he might know something about Des's past. Suki's staff was Exactly where she had left it. There was something slightly suspicious about the fact that it was the only thing left untouched, even more so sense her skeletons lay destroyed beside it.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Upon Carver's command Furnace immediately started to break down a tent, attempting to mimic him as well as possible. "We should wait here for her then? Have these goods collected in packages for transport by the time she returns? If she returns." He asked, thinking aloud.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ This was a bad situation for sure, the girl Separ had tried so hard to save was now back in the lions den, but for what reason? Was there something she needed to do in that town that was worth risking such danger? As much as Separ wanted to leave for safety, he couldn't find it in his heart to just leave her behind like that, especially after all that hard work he put in trying to save her. Feeling as though some type of disaster may fall upon the girl, Separ took off his backpack and laid it on the ground before walking over to Carver. "I'm going to go after the girl. You keep everyone else safe and continue on towards the next town over. I'll catch up with you there. Just don't follow after me as moving in a big group could attract unwanted attention. If any of you gets injured there's a medical kit I purchased earlier inside the backpack." Separ looked over at his group and smiled. "So I'll see you later then I guess." However when he saw Alula he felt a bit funny, something was nagging at him making him feel uncomfortable. He stared at her for a minute awkwardly before looking away not wanting to creep her out any longer. Deciding to ignore this feeling his attention turned towards Kelvin. "You have explosives right? Do you mind if I take a stick of dynamite as well as something to light it in case of an emergency?" Asked Separ in a rather serious tone. The last thing he wanted to do was blow up a whole area but if it meant surviving the enemy forces it could be useful in a pinch.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph rolled his eyes as, once again, a transaction was intruded upon. It wasn't just any transaction either, but a contract! That would make great strides in benefiting the party to all here (aside himself) belonged to. And this little girl had the audacity to intrude upon adult matters as though she had any right to? The boot was worth more than she was! "Exactly, you little goblin." He said as his smooth tone gradually dripped with venomous and seething contempt. "You do not know me, nor do you trust me; and by extent, do not know what I would do to you if you dare to try that again." Arastoph caught himself in the midst of his threat, and quickly bound to recover himself. "...Though as once a father, I could not possibly bring myself to do the likes of which. A hypothetical. That said... you are sorely in need of discipline. To which I would leave the responsibility to the... inarticulate one. If you think I would allow a child to possess any sort of your party's spending power, I'm afraid you are mistaken." 'Then again, the simpering, defective imbecile is probably the reason behind her infantile tantrums.' In addition to the abhorrent cretin of a human child, the paladin ushered an end to their negotiations which Arastoph had felt was weighed quite considerably in their favor. Carver insisted that negotiations may be finished another time while they packed up and pressed on towards the other town. 'What a shame; we were almost finished.' Carver praised his skills, but scolded his morality - living up to the stereotype of the rigid moral enforcer, and that his way of living was the one and only way of doing so. However, what had to be the most amusing part of his lecture was what he perceived to be Arastoph's motives! He deducted mere, simple greed! Nay, that was not the case for him; obsession with the mundane, terrestrial concept of currency was not where his heart lies. Rather, it was simply a tool and method of power for him to exert over the less powerful. But as for why this particular path was taken... needless to say, it had nothing to do with worshiping gold coins. "Surely, Sir Carver," Arastoph mused, "you don't think me to be so shallow and banal to be bothered with something as trivial as greed?" "I am not so frivolous," he continued. A sly smile has stretched over his face as his eyes turned to the corner upon hearing the oracle's warning of one of their own ranks attempting to slip out unnoticed. "From the sounds of things, I may not be the one you should be suspicious of, good knight. At least I have been upfront with my business."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Every stick neatly sorted by length. Every sheet of cloth folded in precise squares, piled and bound. Furnace wrapped every object he owned as well as all other unattended objects in rags and bags. Divided into equal shares, or at least a close approximation. One package for each person here to carry. Furnace looked at Carver as he stood beside his work. It was clear on his face he took pride in it, that he hoped for approval. "We will take these things to 'that way', right?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed Separ staring at her, but really took no mind. The man was strange, and so was she. Most of the time people payed her no mind, but when they noticed her she was truly the center of their attentions. She didn't like it. Once the man turned away, after staring at her for minutes, she tugged her hat down over her eyes. She didn't keep quiet for long, however, as she noticed something while Furnace was packing up camp. There was something on his forehead, something drawing her in. Once the gnome was finished with his task, looking quite proud, Alula limped over to him. With a bit of ungraceful struggle, leaning on her staff for support, she knelled down in front of him. With a strangely sudden movement, one someone might miss if they had blinked, Alula's hand whipped up and moved the gnomes hair off of his forehead. She studied the marking with a strange intensity, her expression looking distressed. "Furnace..." She started, looking into his eyes. "Where...when...did you get...this..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace flinched when Alula suddenly touched his head. Surprisingly close and with eyes filled with concern. Furnace stared back at her in confusion, then at his empty hands before looking back at her. "What did I get?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki frowned as she looked at her scythe. She had a knack for noticing things unusual, and this was quite odd. It hadn't been touched, left where she dropped it. That, and her skeletons alongside it, in pieces. However, standing here was not going to solve her problems. Taking a breath, she reached down, before grabbing the scythe.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula frowned, feeling rather troubled. How could he not know what was on his own body? Perhaps it was a recent addition, and he just hadn't looked at her reflection lately. She furrowed her brow, trying to remember if she had seen it on him when they had first met. She couldn't remember. The voices were keeping rather quiet, unnerving Alula even more. After a few moments of silence Alula realized she still hadn't given the gnome an answer. She spoke, trying to keep the concern out of her voice. "It is...a word...written on your forehead...in a rather...exotic language..." She paused, trying to plan her next words. "I have...met few others...who can read and write...in such a way...other then myself..."</s> <\|message\|>Des As Suki picked up her scythe, the sound of a tripwire being activated could be heard. Before anything could be done, a rope ripped Suki into the air causing her to flip upside down and drop her scythe. Three raiders stepped out from their hiding place, "Look at this one boys, a real cutie. And she's got a nice pair of legs and little something else to show too." (I'm assuming she's wearing a skirt) The raider who was checking her out walked over and placed his hand on her cheek. "Hey sweetie, my name's Daven. And you are?"</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki only managed to formulate a squeal, as she found herself hoisted upside down. Craning her neck to look down at her feet...or up....she found a rope tied to her ankles that was responsible for holding her in this position. Although the idea of trying to untie the rope had flashed through her mind, she gave up almost immediately. She probably couldn't even reach, since she'd have to fight against gravity, move into an awkward position, and stay in that position to free herself. It was more likely someone would arrive before she could finish. Most likely whoever set up this trap. Not disappointed, she looked at the thee raiders who stepped out from hiding. Only having herself to blame for not being more cautious, she frowned as she heard the raider speak. Hurriedly pushing her skirt over her legs at the front, while accidentally squeezing her bosom together, making her cleavage more pronounced. Fighting the urge to turn slightly and bite the hand on her cheek, Suki chose to try and talk her way out of this. "Well Daven, I'm Suki. If you wouldn't mind me asking, why are you three raiders around here?"</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis wrapped some twine up in a into a coil before he tied it around the man's wrists. He tested it's strength and was satisfied as it tore with one quick tug, if anything were to go wrong, the man could free himself of his bindings and flee (preferable flee as fighting in the town would most likely end inter deaths). As he tied the mans has together, he found himself in need of some one to hold down two crossed pieces of string, he was fiddling around with it before a finger came down and held it in place. "Fank you.." mumbled Vis as he finished the knot, "waith a minuthe.." his head snapped to see a smiling Khat. "Whath are you thooing here?!" he hissed. "I helped you tie the knot." she replied instantly. "Go back!" he ordered, pointing in the direction she came from. "Nope, its a long walk back and I figured you might need me, since we are partners and all." She smiled slyly but Vis didn't notice. "We are not partners," he whispered angrily, as they were close to the town, "now get back to the camp!" Khat lifted up a tiny hand and beckoned for him to come closer, he did and she whispered into his ear. "If you don't let me come, I'll tell everyone about the scroll.." Voltus' heart stopped for a moment and the tips of his ear, both the normal and tattered one, went rouge from embarrassment. "Fine, you wanth acthion? you'll get ith." Vis started to bind her hands too and once done, he turned to the man, "If anyfing happenth thoo me, you are in charthe of her. Break free from those bindingth and geth outh." he hissed into the man's ear.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace stood and stared into the distance with Alula. Pondering the magnificent energies he'd seen and was seeing. This sun. the memory of that moon. It was fascinating. From the corner of his sight he saw the aurumancer point at them. "Do not forget, there are people who we know for certain are still alive that need protecting." He was right. They were both dressed in cloth and nothing but cloth. "That is ok. I can make more, I'll need resources though. We might find them at the town." Furnace started to list materials needed for protection of the top of his head. "I'll need metals, lots of iron, coal,powdered metals like gold, magnesium and silver, a cold-iron or stone surface to work on, a bucket of walnut oil... any other tools like chisels and tongues save some time making them... I already have a hammer."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ looked back at Vis, who now seemed to be a bit annoyed, possibly even angry. Given the circumstances though, it was easy to see why he was so frustrated. Of all the people that had to follow us, it had to be this little girl. Regardless they were now stuck with her, as even if she had agreed to head back to the others it would definitely not be a good idea. By now our group had probably moved on and Separ wasn't sure the girl would be able to find them, and the forest would be dangerous with all the raiders running about. Separ sighed. For now they'd just have to make due, and who knows, perhaps the girl could actually be useful at one point or another. In fact, Separ could probably use this to his advantage to make it really seem like he was a prisoner. If he just acted like the girls father, it would really help sell the whole being captured plan. Suddenly Vis hissed into Separ's ear breaking him from his thoughts. "If anyfing happenth thoo me, you are in charthe of her. Break free from those bindingth and geth outh." Separ glanced at Vis, a small smile forming on his face. "I promise in that case, but I also don't plan on leaving you or anyone here for that matter, not if I can help it anyways."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded, he was sure thar the Separ would follow up on that promise. He took one last look at Khat, with her red hair peaking out of her head scarf, he had promised to himself that he'd look after her and if he botched this up, who knew what he'd have to pay. Vis grabbed the pair by their bindings and shoved them through foliage into town, as a child he use to play bandits and guards and memories of those games came back to mind, he was always the bandit. They had not walked five minutes before they were interrupted by the yelling of a raider, "Oy you!" he barked from a distance, "Where ya goin' wit them prisoners?!" Vis gulped and plunged into himself to find a reply. "I'm thakin'em thoo tha thavern!" He yelled back, in the best gruff voice he could, "boss man wanth'em there!" "What's wit yer voice?" he called back, making the raiders around him laugh, that angered Vis but he knew he was on thin ice, so he reacted appropriately. "Wath with yer face?!" the raiders burst into laughter and Khat stiffled a snigger, it seemed that this rouse was going to work. "I'll come wit ya," said one of the gruff raiders as he walked towards them, "I needa swig anywho." Vis was cursing like mad under his breath, he couldn't have the raider following them around, he wracked his brains until he came on an idea. Vis threw his voice as far as it could go, casting it as a yell behind the collapsed building that the group of raiders had called home, "Oy, you lot! Get yer arses over here!" The raider turned around and yelled. "I'll be there in tad!" he turned to Vis, "sorry mate, duty calls." Vis was elated that it worked. "No bothar, I'll save ye a bo'le." replied Vis as he continued down the road, his panic subsiding a tad. "thath wath close." he mumbled, to no one in particular.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ A bead of sweat dripped down from Separ's chin. Th...that was a close one. It was a miracle that they had managed to get so lucky thanks to that other raider. Continuing down through the destroyed city Separ caught sight of multiple dead bodies and just destruction and carnage everywhere. Turning towards the little girl he looked at her briefly, wondering if she was becoming frightened by the whole ordeal. Whatever the case, she really should not have come. Turning around the corridor Azorel overheard some people talking. It sounded like a small group, as only a few different voices could be heard. "V...Vis, there's a group farther down and to the left, it might be a good idea to see if they know where the girl, or any other survivors for that matter may be." Still though, listening in closely it sounded like they were flirting with someone. Quite a bit strange, were there female raiders as well as male raiders too?</s> <\|message\|>Des "Well Cutie-Pie, if you must know. We are here because somebody slaughtered are patrol group. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that now, would you?" Daven moved to tie up her arms and wrists making it harder to keep them up. "If you have any information, I may be willing to let you go." @Voltus_Ventus The raider with the face, Aran, was walking towards the direction of the voice when something clicked, "Wait a damn minute, the tavern was destroyed. We've been played." He gathered the rest of the men and started heading towards the destroyed tavern to see if there were any excuses for this ignorance. 'And if not.' Aran laughed as he put his hand on the hilt of his blade. else, While arguments were going on about what to do next, a patrol group of ten men sneaked up on the group. With no Vis to hear them and the arguments blocking Alula's capabilities, there was no warning. The men struck out from all sides but the far side that led to the next town. (I'm sorry, I don't like Godmodding but I kind of have to) Carver looked to the men and back towards the group. Assessing the situation, he lifted his sword and shield and cursed himself for not attaching his armor earlier. "Run, I'll hold them. Just get out of here and don't even dare to look back or try to help me! No one else should fall because of my inability to protect them."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace was just tying everything he was going to carry onto his back when armed men jumped them. He panicked in confusion, none of them spoke to declare their intentions. Was this another fight? Just get out of here and don't even dare to look back or try to help me! A clear command. Without blinking Furnace nodded and did as he was told. He started running, unsure where or why. Looking up at the road before him he saw he had instinctively chosen the road to the other village. That made sense, they were already going there so the others would probably go there too. Furnace wondered if the others would run too, he assumed, but would not look back.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki squirmed as the raider tied her arms and wrists, before mentally sighing in resignation as she allowed gravity to take hold of her bound limbs. Though the raider said that he 'may' be willing to let her go, if she spoke, it wasn't as if she could just tell the raider what happened. Besides, that group might prove useful after all, and it would be such a pity if she were to lose them right now. "Unfortunately, I have no clue." Speaking normally, she noticed that, with her being held up be her legs, upside down, it not only dropped her skirt, revealing what was underneath, but along with her chest also being pulled by gravity, pulling them against the front of her dress. Perhaps with this position, she can use it to her advantage. "If you'd let me go, I think I have another way of paying you back. Would you like me~?" She'd never try seducing someone while being in such a disadvantageous position. There were also quite a number of things that could go wrong. However, she still wasn't willing to bring out the undead just yet. So she spoke with her usual sultry tone.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula Thins were rather quiet around camp, until they suddenly weren't. Raiders, likely finding them by following the trails of Vis and Separ. She frowned, knowing what would happen if she was around danger. She tried to level her breathing, telling herself there was no need to get hasty and attack. Because Carver was going to protect them. Alula clenched her jaw, eyes glowing brightly from under her hat. She was horribly confused and overwhelmed. Voices screamed from every direction, and she was unable to hear a single command or vision. It was chaos. Not only did her head feel crowded and distant, her body hurt as well. It was a foreign feeling, watching as Carver ran off into the woods, into the danger. Her stomach was twisting into knots, and her chest felt tight. Perhaps her time was almost up. She glanced around camp, trying to keep herself composed. Everyone was in danger, so many possibilities. Alula frowned, muttering to herself. "Everything is foggy, thick and unseeable. Like fog across a lake. Danger lurks but life stays hidden." She shivered. Vis, Separ, and the female child were off and likely to die. They may or may not have found the woman. Carver was off into the woods. This left herself, the merchant, the gnome, and Kelvin remaining. As well as the young boy, but she refused to take responsibility for him. She couldn't. Alula watched as the gnome began to grab gear and then run ahead, following Carvers direction. She would do the same. She first made sure that Kelvin and the merchant were in front of her. She would take up the rear, it was safer that way. She then, despite the voices, turned to the boy. She didn't speak but instead gestured down the path. Hopefully the child would catch up to the gnome. And then began to limp down the path herself. She refused to look back.</s> <\|message\|>Des and Voltus "Well if you think you could be of service then maybe..." Then some random dickhead came strolling in. "What do you mean, this was the boss's idea to capture some survivors. What do you care what I do with her now that we've done what the boss asked?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis decided that he would be intimidating, after all, bandits admired that. He marched right up to the man who had talked and pushed his forehead onto his, "Maybe if ya cleaned tha waxth ou' of yer ears ya would 'ave 'eard that the guy in charge wanted them to be put in tha town center, by tha tavern." Vis had his hand on his dagger, drawing his rapier would take too long in such close quarters.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ It's pretty obvious you do care about her Vis. Thought Separ as he glanced towards the girl but it was kind of hard to see her in the dim light. "My name's Separ, what's yours?" He whispered, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible. It wasn't exactly the best way to go about things what with there being a whole bunch of raiders outside, but Separ figured he should at least say something every now and then so the girl didn't become bored or anything. Besides, who knows just how long this rescue mission was going to take. It would probably be a good idea to at least get acquainted with each other on a first name basis.</s> <\|message\|>Des @gammaflux @Kimiyosis Daven started to ignore Vis and walked to the girl and cut her down, leaving her wrists and legs tied, "If it's that big of a deal to you then take her yourself." At that the men walked off. The other group of raiders arrived at the broken down tavern and,seeing no sign of Vis, started a patrol group for a possible impostor with a speech impedement and two or more prisoners. As the searched, Night began to fall. Wanderer @Spoopy Scary @Dragonbud @akje As the party reached the halfway point to BitterBourne, night began to fall and the group had to decide whether to stop for the night or keep going. Des walked up to the noisy lady(Alula) and tugged on her robe to get her attention. "Miss, what's going to happen to the sun man?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula The entire walk away from camp Alula was silent. She had nothing to say to anyone. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, but occasionally peaked out from under her hat to watch the sun sink down behind the trees. Night would be coming and she needed to leave. They soon came across a good place to camp, where Alula stopped right in her tracks. She spoke for the first time in several hours. "I do believe this would be a fine place to stop for the night." She spoke with a strange clarity, uncharacteristic of her slow speech. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was starting to glow. "With any luck, the others will catch up with us before the morning." Without explaining herself she tried to make her way towards the woods, hoping the others would take the hint and stay put for the night. She felt bad leaving the child and the gnome with Kelvin, but he was tough enough for the two of them. Unfortunately, she was stopped before she could get away from the others. Someone was tugging on her cloak. The child. She suppressed a growl and tugged her hat down over her eyes. Alula spoke with a strange amount of anger, as well as the corruption echoing in her voice as she spoke to the boy. "Isn't it obvious? The man ran off into the woods to battle an unseeable amount of bandits. He lacked armor and was clearly outnumbered." She grumbled something about stupid children before, again, trying to get away from the group.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem It was quite a long and eventful day. Between having had no sleep the previous night, half of the party he had recent acquainted himself with going off to who-knows-where on what was apparent to be a mission to willingly swan dive into the dragon's maws - the merchant had little sympathy for the fools - and then they were suddenly surrounded by bandits, with the foolish knight sacrificing his life so that the others may flee. Foolish, certainly; Arastoph definitely would not have done the same, but he appreciated the act as it allowed him to live another day. However, that extra day comprised him of hiking through rough terrain to get to the next town over while he was sleep deprived. While he still detested the idea of sleeping among strangers, he felt that his body might win out this time around. He had no interest in talking with any of those who were left; he was too exhausted and irritable for him to be so patient with them. The boy, however, still seemed to have plenty of energy left to harass the seer girl as she began to wander off. "However you look at it," he began to explain, "every man and woman is a sinner. Some sin less, some sin more, some are better at hiding it." Arastoph sighed and closed his eyes just as a cool breeze blew by and soothed his hot skin and aching muscles. "Carver is probably dead and will be suffering eternal damnation. We can just hope he's being tortured by two hundred ninety-nine pitchforks instead of three hundred."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat climbed up a bookshelf and sat on top, looking down at the suddenly shorter man, "My name is Khat," she hissed down, trying to be quiet but still audible, "What of it?" she scanned the man with a scrutinizing eye, he wore little armor and didn't even carry a weapon, 'what kind of adventurer is this guy?' she thought to herself. Standing up, Khat leapt to the other bookshelf, landing with a gentle tap as opposed to a clumsy thud. "Are you Vis' friend?" she asked. Vis bundled up Suki, throwing her roughly over his shoulder, "if ye artheholes find any more prisoners, 'ow about lockin'em up inthead of trying' tha rape'em?" he walked off back in the in the opposite direction he came in, as if he were going to the center of town, however when he was out of sight he looped around the long way, heading back to the bookstore where he had hid Separ and Khat.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to introduce myself is all. So Khat's your name huh? It's rather pretty. And as for Vis, you could say he's my friend. Though, whether or not he thinks the same of me, well that's debatable." I sighed as my thoughts jumped to Vis and the girl. Hopefully they were both okay, but all I could do was hope. I couldn't even see from outside this building, so that would make things a lot more difficult. Please be safe.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin It was painful. Men seemed to crash in on all sides, breaking the safety of the clearing and leaving it shattered like sharp glass. Luckily, he was packed. Kelvin snatched up two of the packages the gnome had made in either hand, and booked it. He didn't pause- he wasn't a Paladin. Even so, he could feel stabbing pain in his gut- the jerk of leaving behind an ally. Carver had only his sword, his shield, and the blessing of a god to make it through. Brave man, likely a dead one. Kelvin couldn't take the time to look back, just muttering a small offering for the man. "Go Paladin, a man born of plight to fight through sin. Never fall, listen to the child's call. Go my kin. No amount of steel can hide your heart of tin. Enemies may maul, but a hero stands tall. Come Paladin, dance for heaven's ball." He wasn't quite sure where he knew it from, but it was an appropriate lyric for the situation. Kelvin did little as they slowed. Constant running would leave a man tired. "I didn't know you were a believer, merchant." Kelvin glanced at the man. "Odd." He wasn't really that interested. Kelvin glanced about, beginning to count heads.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Exhaustion was already overtaking the merchant, and was slow to address Kelvin's passing comment. The long trek took a lot out of what was left of him and was beginning to drift into slumber as he sat upright with his back against a tree trunk. "I've seen and... experienced enough to be aware there is more to this world than your mortality." Arasatoph answered dismissively with a lazy wave of his hand. "Believing, howe'er, is not the same as holding faith in higher powers..." This was a terrible time for him to be discussing anything, much less religion, and was already growing irritable. He wished to remain left alone so that he may catch up on rest. On the bright side, he felt he had no reason to worry of his safety around these ones. "But for now, let me be," he continued, "I am weary."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki 'vainly struggled', as she was thrown over the disfigured man. "Be more gentle!" Hissing softly at Vis, she shifted around, attempting to settle into a more comfortable position. As comfortable as one can get carried like a sack of flour. She sighed in exasperation after a short moment, before muttering, "Why did you even bother coming? Waste your time on better tasks." with an annoyed tone.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula kept quiet, looking over at the group from behind Carver. Yes. She had found herself in quite a strange situation. Why had she agreed to go on some adventure with a bunch of strangers? She pulled the brim of her hat over her eyes, trying to concentrate. She could hear the punching man agreeing to let the other girl into the group. She was a strange one as well, but she radiated a compelling strength like no other. She took a step further behind Carver as the punching man approached her, as if taking cover behind the man. She muttered softly, her voice slurring and eyes glowing from beneath her hat. "Only a life lived for others is a life worth while." She felt a bit worried when the punching man came over and asked if anyone had any supplies or a destination in mind. The man was gathering people for some sort of adventure and didn't have a plan? She held back a sigh, knowing she would have to learn to trust the others around her. This would truly be a group effort, and as someone who survived on her own for so long she was afraid. Alula had a puzzled look on her face under her hat. Supplies? Why was she thinking of supplies? Did she have supplies? Does she even need to eat? A voice confirmed for her, yes you do eat occasionally. She blinked hazily, holding up her heavy coin purse. "I have...uh...supplies..." She sounded confused.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver caught the woman's gaze and held it as she joined the group. Then she knew. He knew, she knew, he knew she knew, she knew he knew, and she had better know he knew she knew. Of course, that still left the matter of what exactly he knew, but that could come later. If the woman was aware that the Paladin knew what she was, perhaps she'd be on her best behavior. That'd be enough for now. Alula stepped behind him, as though concealing herself from the rest of the group. That fear wasn't ideal, but it was to be expected. The girl would be joining them - Carver was sure she'd come around to them later. "Ah. Supplies. Let's see!" Carver took his pack and began rooting around inside it. "I have... ten gold coins, not bad... this looks like a crust of bread... and, um, a rock." Carver tossed the stone out of his bag and slung it back over his shoulder, smiling sheepishly. "Uh... sorry, I won't be much help on that front. Sounds like Alula might, though. And I imagine that the traditional method of 'asking the barkeeper for rumours' has been ruled out?" The paladin grinned at his own jest and looked to his party for direction.</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis raised his voice, "I belief thath we should pool thome coin to buy thupplies for all uf uth." they shouldn't be depending on individual supplies, some most likely didn't have any, Vis supposed, him only having 60 coins, a set of stag antlers and a child's enyclopedia. He took a long hard look at his group, casting green light on every member to scrutinize them, they had a paladin, a sword puncher, a gnome, a rather curvaceous woman and another woman who looked a bit out of it; he could tell that the adventure was going to be something. "Leth all chip in thome coin and buy rathions, things thath will latht a while. Green appleth, hard loafths of bread, dried meath." he had been on the road for a long time and understood what to bring and what not to bring, from personal experience of finding that all the food had rotted in his bag. "And wather thacks." Vis whinced internally, every time he lisped.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly studied the supplies of Carver, Alula, and the scarf wearing elf. Carver barely seemed to have anything, Alula on the other hand seemed to have tons of gold, as well as some miscellaneous items that Separ could make neither heads nor tails of. Lastly the scarf wearin elf seemed to have a modest sum of money as well as some various items which made Separ question why he had them in the first place. Disregarding those items Separ listened to the elf talk about buying various food items and such, only for a girl who identified herself as Rose Anew, aka 'Phoenix' to step forward and ask if she could go along with the group. Separ was immediately impressed by her, as she said she was both a capable fighter and a great cook. "A fighter and a cook? You've instantly sold me, I'm happy you could be on the team. So what kind of dishes do you specialize in?" Separ then looked around at his fellow group members. "No one has any objections right?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Everyone found gold? I think we have enough for a sword or two." Furnace held his heavy bag of coins and shook the bag have it make a sattisfying jingling sound. "Though the metal is soft and not ideal. We can make do."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched with strange interest as Carver tossed the rock out of his bag. She watched it roll and skid away from the group, until it finally settled into a grassy patch several yards away from them. It would have been impossible for anyone to just see the rock if they were walking past, and yet Alula knew it was there, so she could see it. She shivered despite the heat. She turned her blurred attention back to the group. She allowed the punching man who look through her bag, which she had hidden within her robes. She didn't really have anything of importance on her. Her bag was actually a blanket all bundled together with twine. In her bundle was nothing but a few torn up pieces of canvas, likely at one point a tent, and some random odds and ends. Nothing of value, more like junk you would find laying around. She wondered where they came from. And then there was another girl. Alula pulled down the rim of her hat, muttering softly. "A life is cut short so another can begin. Lives are lost in the forest of life to allow the young to grow." She felt horribly dizzy and a bitter cold spreading though her veins. She leaned forward for a moment, resting her weight against Carver until the cold was replaced with the burn. At this point she was hoping no one else would approached the group.</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis watched the rock skid to a halt and walked over to it to pick it up off the ground and into his pocket, a man walking past gave him a glance, most likely because of his damaged face but Vis decided to believe that he glanced about the rock, who knew, he might find use for it later. He turned to the group and once more spoke up, "I'm going thu go thearching for bread, anyone wanth thoo thag along?" he asked, hoping someone would want to come with him, though he wasn't too talkative, he didn't mind the company when he had it, it made him feel a little better about being bad at socializing.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Des The ettin was about to slay the little one when he had suddenly attacked on of the stands, this caused the ettin to think that the little one was one of them and so he nodded and continued his rampage.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace trembled a little as he regarded the judging eyes of the towering creature. The ettin nodded approvingly. He did it right. He was learning so much today! Happily Furnace followed and continued to smash barrels, poles and carts along with the brute and a growing group of other creatures his size. They did the same. When he jumped, they did. When they struggled to reach up to the thatched rooftops with their torches, he kicked a barrel over to them so they could stand on it. This was going great. That moment he remembered the barkeep, and how he had displayed so much fun cutting the friend collector, clearly he loved a fight. As they were near the tavern Furnace ran ahead of the band and smashed the wooden door open. He pointed inside and yelled at the rampaging group. "In here! There's good fighting and food in here!"</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" As Vis walked out of the bakery, sixteen coins lighter and with 8 loaves of bread under his arm, screams echoed out from the other side of the market and people started running away from the direction of the comotion. The owner of the bakery, a woman in her thirties steppes out to see what was going on, Vis turned back to the bakery and ushered as much people inside as possible, he turned to the owner and yelled over the commotion, "Ith there a bathement thoo thith bakery?!" She thought for a moment and nodded, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him to the kitchen, she pointed to a large slate preparation table, "It's under there!" she yelled as what was going on outside was getting closer. Vis groaned with frustration and pushed all his mass against the table, whincing as it grated across the floor, exposing a dusty trap door. When the table was no longer obstructing it, Vis opened it up and climbed down, it was large and could easily hold everyone in the building. He climbed back out and yelled into the main room for everyone to get into the basement, they did as they were told and when the trapdoor shut and everyone was inside, Vis pushed the table back over the hatch and he heard rough voices from the front room. He drew his rapier and escaped through the back door, he'd be back for the people in the basement.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ frowned a little bit at the girls words. Sure he really wanted everyone to be fine, but would they? For now all Separ could do was hope that Carver, Kelvin, and all the others had come through. "I really hope they're okay." For a moment Separ and the girl sat in silence for a few minutes before Separ tried to stand up almost falling over in the process. While he had gained a little bit of his energy back, he still would be practically useless in a fight. Remembering he was wearing a backpack he took it off and laid it on the ground and pulled out two tents. Handing one towards the girl he began to ask her "Would you like to stay here for the night? I think I can walk, but it's getting pretty late. What would you prefer to do in this situation? I also have a medical kit in my backpack by the way, so we could always heal ourselves up before dark." Sure Separ did not know the girl very well, but he trusted her. She didn't seem like a bad person after all, especially when she herself practically sacrificed her life when she fell down from over-exerting herself.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver crept through the forest with as much stealth as he was able to muster, which was to say, none at all. Had any goblins been in earshot, they probably could have heard the clanking of his armor from quite a distance away - however, it seemed the sun was smiling on him, and no foes produced themselves. A brief moment later, the knight had another stroke of luck. In another small clearing, Separ and the witch sat in a half-unconscious pile. Carver was immediately gladdened to see Separ well - for a moment, he'd almost despaired for the young man's life. The witch, although, was another matter entirely. Carver had been half of the mind that she was part of the attack in some fashion, but her current condition seemed to belie that. She looked half-dead; pale, sallow, and exhausted. If this was the result of her summoning some magical force to aid in the fight, then perhaps his initial reaction to her had been unfair, whatever she was. "Separ! ... Other lady!" He called out to them as he entered the clearing, in the loudest whisper conceivable. "It's good to see you safe! The others are together, they're nearby. Are you able to walk? I can carry one of you."</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis turned away from the clearing and walked towards the burning sun, it's light peaking out from between the gaps in the canopy as he ventured out for a stream or a pond of some sort. The further he got from the camp, he felt an indescribable feeling, it was a mixture of relief and heartache. Soon he had stumbled upon a small pond, fed by 3 trickling streams and hidden by the forest canopy, looking around to ensure he wasn't being followed, he began unbuckling his armor. Once the leather plates dropped off his body, he took off his under clothes and tossed them into a pile next to the bank, so he stood naked by the water. Slowly he slipped in, first sitting down then slowly levering himself into the cool pond using his arms but as he got into the pond, he found that from where the land met the water, it was a vertical sloap downwards for about 3 and a half feet. Vis stood in the water for a moment, to get use to the temperature, before submerged himself completely and opened his eyes, casting a green glow in the dusty water. Small fish swam around, eating the green that grew at the bottom, oblivious to Vis or his light. He emerged from the water and returned to the bank, resting his head on his folded arms and letting the rest of his body float. He decided he'd rest before washing his gear.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Des The men wandered out of the woods and were quite upset to find no women and that they were fooled by the girl, but it was too late for her, the enemy was closing in. The two archers fired arrows at Carver while the swordsman rushed in. If Carver puts up his shield he will block the arrows but will give the swordsman a chance for a sneak attack since Carver will lose sight of him and if he doesn't raise his shield. Well...</s> <\|message\|>Furnace A man ran towards Carver sword raised. But Carver hadn't claimed to desire hurting the man. There was no time, with a few light steps Furnace positioned himself between Carver and the attempted flank. "Then I will hurt this one." He stood crouched, with word held at an angle so the tip reaches the tip of the grass. There, locked in pflug he waited the everlasting seconds while the man stormed closer with his eyes on Carver. The moment the man was close enough. Close enough to see Furnace. Close enough to charge into his reach. Furnace jumped up, sword piercing forward, thrusting in a single forward motion.</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman parried the blade and slashed outwards at Furnace missing only by a hair. Assuming Carver put his shield up the two arrows made a loud bang as they hit the iron. The swordsman looked down at Furnace and laughed, "You think your miserable mess of a weapon can take on a professional swordsman," He then looks up at Carver, "Now there's a man with a blade. How about we have a little one-on-one? My companions will cease fire until you fall to your death. How about it?" The other men caught up and the swordsman motioned for them to stop and then glanced at Carver, waiting for an answer. "Or are you scared you will fail?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace This man was not so simple of taste as the others, he wanted not just to fight. This man wanted to fight Carver specifically. So it was important who you fought? Furnace stepped out to the side, allowing a meter of free room between carver and the swordsman. The man was right after all. His blade was no longer as keen as he had intended it. He had gone and join these people in their fighting with a damaged blade. He wondered if he should apologize for not taking them seriously. It was clear they took it very seriously.</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat was about to retort about being carried until Vis swept her off of her feet, literally running towards her and plucking her off of the ground. "I don't need to be carried!" she barked, and all Vis did was point behind him at the raiders squaring off with the other three, Khat got the point and with great reluctance, fell quiet as Vis started to run, chasing after the man who coincidentally was holding another girl. As they ran, Khat watched Vis his pants were ragged as he ran behind the man but nothing portrayed why it would be so. She reached out to his scarf and was about to tug it down, when his eyes flicked to hers for a moment, glaring, as if to say 'don't you dare'. She did not argue, instead she pulled up her scarf around her face to see how it felt, oddly comfortable.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman managed to escape as the one archer was beaten to death while the other had his life drained away. He ran to the raider party and informed them of the surviving group. Time until reinforcements arrive: 30 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver grimaced as the flail crashed into his side again. This wasn't working - the flail had reach and power that he couldn't hope to match, and the man's armor was far too much for his sword. He wracked his brain for a moment before arriving at an answer. The flail needed a strong swing to build up power - getting far wouldn't help, so he'd just have to get close. With a roar, Carver launched himself at his enemy, shield raised, attempting to tackle him to the ground with the full weight of his armor.</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" "I do noth think thath thith ith a good thime tho retht, we should keep going." Vis said, adjusting how he carried the now squirming child as she tried to get down. "If you are going to carry me, at least let me ride on your back instead of holding me like a baby!" she whined, starting to kick in her search for freedom, Vis did as he was told and levered the girl onto his back in one swift motion, she wobbled there, dizzy for a moment until she spoke again, "this will do." Voltus then proceeded to stoop over and pick up the girl rolled in the blanket, grunting a bit at all the weight he was carrying and Kelvin was right, she was heavy, "Retht if you wish buth I will keep going." With that Vis turned and walked deeper into the forest and away from the camp, lighting the way with his glowing green eye.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was pleasantly surprised, and relived, when the merchant refused to take her shoes. At least she got to keep those. She was about to hand over the knife, when Kelvin stepped in. He pushed the knife and shoes back into her hands, and began to speak with the merchant. Everything the man was saying was confusing her. Was Kelvin helping her? All she wanted was her hat back. She bent over, again almost losing her fitting, and put back on her shoes. Once the two were finished speaking Arastoph turned back to her. He asked her if she would be willing to part with the dagger for the hat, not to mention that she had already given up all of her gold for it as well. She didn't really care about the money, she just wanted her hat back. She nodded eagerly, handing him the dagger and in exchange she was given her hat. The little woolen string was a nice touch, it would be much harder to loose now. Tugging her hat down over her eyes, finally content to keep her face away from the sun and the others gaze, she smiled.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace had nodded and stared into the sunrise while his new friends discussed complex theories of trade and commerce. He could barely follow the story but the gist of it seemed Kelvin and Vis testing the new man on the subject. Perhaps they needed to measure his abilities? The new man's words were fast and impressive. His knowledge of movements of gold seemed extensive. It was clear he intended to boast his talent, even when Furnace couldn't really catch on to what exactly the talent was. He would trade for them? Furnace had already learned how that went, but he had not heard anything this complex. This all sounded like a school of magic he'd never heard of. One specialised in reading the movements and fluctuating values of gold? That would be.. Aurumancy? Making this man an Aurumancer. Impressive. "Uhm... Can you explain your spells in a way the uninitiated understand."</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis made himself comfortable in the cradle of roots and rested, closing his eyes from the soft rays of the morning sun, a soft light of his own spilling past the shut eyelid of his green eye. He was tired and could not bring himself to eat the bread that he got for himself and instead, shook it in Khat's direction, her hand snatched out instantly and took the bread. She gobbled it down, stuffing it into her mouth and early chewing before swallowing, she didn't realize how hungry she was. Once finished with the chunk of stale bread, she turned to thank Vis but closed her mouth when she noticed him lying there, his chest rising and falling evenly, a sign of sleep. She mentally shrugged, before walking over to where he deposited his bag, among the rest of the group, to break off another piece of bread from their shared loaf. As she did, she looked up at everyone with a level, cool look. They were interesting, that was for sure but she only knew one of their names, the Knight's, Carver. She spun on the spot for a moment, looking at everyone before her eyes fell on a cloaked lady, the one who had not been so maliciously swindled by the merchant for a pointy hat. She shuffled over, nibbling her new piece of bread, as the last one had sated most of her appetite. Khat tugged the woman's cloak gently. "Hello."</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula frowned, feeling rather troubled. How could he not know what was on his own body? Perhaps it was a recent addition, and he just hadn't looked at her reflection lately. She furrowed her brow, trying to remember if she had seen it on him when they had first met. She couldn't remember. The voices were keeping rather quiet, unnerving Alula even more. After a few moments of silence Alula realized she still hadn't given the gnome an answer. She spoke, trying to keep the concern out of her voice. "It is...a word...written on your forehead...in a rather...exotic language..." She paused, trying to plan her next words. "I have...met few others...who can read and write...in such a way...other then myself..."</s> <\|message\|>Des As Suki picked up her scythe, the sound of a tripwire being activated could be heard. Before anything could be done, a rope ripped Suki into the air causing her to flip upside down and drop her scythe. Three raiders stepped out from their hiding place, "Look at this one boys, a real cutie. And she's got a nice pair of legs and little something else to show too." (I'm assuming she's wearing a skirt) The raider who was checking her out walked over and placed his hand on her cheek. "Hey sweetie, my name's Daven. And you are?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki only managed to formulate a squeal, as she found herself hoisted upside down. Craning her neck to look down at her feet...or up....she found a rope tied to her ankles that was responsible for holding her in this position. Although the idea of trying to untie the rope had flashed through her mind, she gave up almost immediately. She probably couldn't even reach, since she'd have to fight against gravity, move into an awkward position, and stay in that position to free herself. It was more likely someone would arrive before she could finish. Most likely whoever set up this trap. Not disappointed, she looked at the thee raiders who stepped out from hiding. Only having herself to blame for not being more cautious, she frowned as she heard the raider speak. Hurriedly pushing her skirt over her legs at the front, while accidentally squeezing her bosom together, making her cleavage more pronounced. Fighting the urge to turn slightly and bite the hand on her cheek, Suki chose to try and talk her way out of this. "Well Daven, I'm Suki. If you wouldn't mind me asking, why are you three raiders around here?"</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis arose from his root and started to snap on some loose segments of his leather armor, making sure they were fitted properly and checking his built for his weapons. "I'll come wif you." Vis called out to Separ, and approached him, he'd rather be going back into town then staying in the clearing with the merchant. As he got to Separ, he felt a tug on his sleeve, turning around, he saw that Khat had latched herself to it with both hands. "I want to come to!" she said, rather too excitedly. Vis however, simply replied. "No." "But why?!" she whined, tugging on his sleeve a bit more. "It'th too dangerouth." "I've been in there before." she rebutted, looking him dead in the eye, which made Vis a bit uncomfortable. "I recall I had thoo carry you outh." "I didn't need you to!" "You didn't protest when I did." "Fine!" she yelled and she stomped back off and plonked herself in her little nook between the roots, crossing her arms over her chest and grumbling. "Shall we be offth?" asked Vis, Khat had been pacified.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Alula The entire walk away from camp Alula was silent. She had nothing to say to anyone. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, but occasionally peaked out from under her hat to watch the sun sink down behind the trees. Night would be coming and she needed to leave. They soon came across a good place to camp, where Alula stopped right in her tracks. She spoke for the first time in several hours. "I do believe this would be a fine place to stop for the night." She spoke with a strange clarity, uncharacteristic of her slow speech. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was starting to glow. "With any luck, the others will catch up with us before the morning." Without explaining herself she tried to make her way towards the woods, hoping the others would take the hint and stay put for the night. She felt bad leaving the child and the gnome with Kelvin, but he was tough enough for the two of them. Unfortunately, she was stopped before she could get away from the others. Someone was tugging on her cloak. The child. She suppressed a growl and tugged her hat down over her eyes. Alula spoke with a strange amount of anger, as well as the corruption echoing in her voice as she spoke to the boy. "Isn't it obvious? The man ran off into the woods to battle an unseeable amount of bandits. He lacked armor and was clearly outnumbered." She grumbled something about stupid children before, again, trying to get away from the group.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem It was quite a long and eventful day. Between having had no sleep the previous night, half of the party he had recent acquainted himself with going off to who-knows-where on what was apparent to be a mission to willingly swan dive into the dragon's maws - the merchant had little sympathy for the fools - and then they were suddenly surrounded by bandits, with the foolish knight sacrificing his life so that the others may flee. Foolish, certainly; Arastoph definitely would not have done the same, but he appreciated the act as it allowed him to live another day. However, that extra day comprised him of hiking through rough terrain to get to the next town over while he was sleep deprived. While he still detested the idea of sleeping among strangers, he felt that his body might win out this time around. He had no interest in talking with any of those who were left; he was too exhausted and irritable for him to be so patient with them. The boy, however, still seemed to have plenty of energy left to harass the seer girl as she began to wander off. "However you look at it," he began to explain, "every man and woman is a sinner. Some sin less, some sin more, some are better at hiding it." Arastoph sighed and closed his eyes just as a cool breeze blew by and soothed his hot skin and aching muscles. "Carver is probably dead and will be suffering eternal damnation. We can just hope he's being tortured by two hundred ninety-nine pitchforks instead of three hundred."</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat climbed up a bookshelf and sat on top, looking down at the suddenly shorter man, "My name is Khat," she hissed down, trying to be quiet but still audible, "What of it?" she scanned the man with a scrutinizing eye, he wore little armor and didn't even carry a weapon, 'what kind of adventurer is this guy?' she thought to herself. Standing up, Khat leapt to the other bookshelf, landing with a gentle tap as opposed to a clumsy thud. "Are you Vis' friend?" she asked. Vis bundled up Suki, throwing her roughly over his shoulder, "if ye artheholes find any more prisoners, 'ow about lockin'em up inthead of trying' tha rape'em?" he walked off back in the in the opposite direction he came in, as if he were going to the center of town, however when he was out of sight he looped around the long way, heading back to the bookstore where he had hid Separ and Khat.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Des "Ah, I see you have taken a liking to that cooking set there, madam," The merchant said as he walked over to Rose, "For a pretty lass such as yourself, 75 pieces."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel "So are you excited knowing your about to head off into the world and start your own adventure?" Asked the man sitting next to Separ Kurel, the very man who had trained him on how to be an arcane brawler. This man was known by the name of Millon Baotes. He was incredibly buff with a tall and wide body with almost no traces of fat. His usual messy short black hair was now combed for the special occasion of sending his one and only pupil off into the world. Some scars were located all throughout his torso, and for some reason he wasn't wearing a shirt. Though most of the time he didn't have a shirt on anyways. "Yes, I'm excited if a little nervous." Separ answered truthfully as his eyes darted around the tavern, hopping from person to person. "So where is this group of mine supposed to be at? I'm anxious to meet them. We are meeting them here right?" "No, you're going to be meeting them here by yourself." Said Separ's teacher as he crossed his arms. "How am I supposed to know who my group is then? You haven't told me anything about them, so I don't see how this is going to work." Separ said, a hint of skepticism in his voice. "You know, I first started out in this town as well. I knew no one whatsoever and lived in this town for about two weeks, only spending what money I did have to sleep at an inn and drink in this very tavern. As your teacher I'd like you to experience something similar and make friends on your own to team up with, rather than rely on me introducing you to some people you may not even get along with." Separ's teacher paused for a moment and took another swig of beer. "That's good stuff alright, just like I remembered." He muttered before continuing on where he had left off. "Anyways try to meet some people you know you'll at least somewhat get along with rather than leaving it up to chance. If I find out you left this town without forming a proper group to travel with I'll kill you for making me waste my time trying to train you." And with that Separ's teacher started to chug the entire glass of frothing beer sitting in front of him on the table. Separ nodded at his teacher's words, and while he felt a little put off by that last line, he knew full well that was just his teacher's way of joking around. "Alright, I'll do as you say then." "Then it's settled." And with that Millon stood up from his chair about to leave, only to immediately stop and turn around looking Separ directly in the face. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" "Huh?" Was all Separ could say, before his teacher left leaving him alone at the bar table. Separ looked around at the crowd for a moment wondering if he should talk to anyone, but decided against it. The place was kind of crowded right now, and it would probably be easier to wait until the mass of people thinned out a bit before doing anything else. Instead he opted to just admire how simple this building was. So this is what it was like to be in a small town huh? It was actually kind of peaceful. However his thoughts soon changed into imagining all the adventures he would have. Fighting monsters, saving people, becoming a hero. What a wonderful life that would be.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver arrived in Ravenwood in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day in the country - all around was quiet, and the sun shone through the leaves in just that way that made Carver feel as though the goddess were truly with him. As the wagon he was riding pulled in through the gates, he waved here and there at passing townsfolk, and was often rewarded with a smile or a polite wave. The wagon came to a halt and he dismounted, his armor clanking loudly as he landed. The farmer whose family he had been traveling with for the past few days approached him, and Carver gave the man a warm smile. "My friend," he said, "I believe this is where we part ways." "Yes, milord," the farmer responded, still using the honorific Carver has insisted repeatedly was not necessary. "We will be awful sorry to see you go. How much do we owe you?" The man responded, fumbling for his coinpurse. Carver has expected that the man would attempt to compensate him for his services 'escorting' the family, though in truth he had only scared off a few petty thieves. The paladin held a hand out to the man, still smiling. "No such payment is required. Keep it. Feed your children, and raise them in the light of the sun." The farmer nodded. "I, uh, yes milord. I will. Thank you." Carver put his hand to his breast and bowed before turning away and walking into the crowd. It was time to find some wrongs and set about righting them - the marketplace would be as good a place as any to start.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nervously stepped out from the narrow path between buildings, her eyes shifting as she cautiously looked over everyone nearby. From what it looked like, there wasn't anyone screaming for anything similar to those witch hunt riots that the church had done hunting her down. Making sure her cloak was covering her body, with the hood obscuring her head, she daintily slipped out, mingling with the crowd at the marketplace. Although she tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible, it seems that her cloaked figure was something that my catch the eyes of a few. Suddenly feeling a hand grip her arm, she quickly spun around, only to realize it was a merchant. "We have good prices!" Heavily accented, the merchant gestured at his wares, or in this case, fresh produce. Feeling a slight bit hungry, she nodded, before pointing at an apple. "Good eye, good eye, that would be-" The merchant started to speak, before Suki raised her hood slightly, revealing her face to him. Winking, she raised a finger to her lips. "Bring the apple. I'll make the payment through other means~' Whispering with such a sultry tone, the merchant was by no means resilient against such a tactic. The two hurried towards a more quite alley, where Suki leaned in, and kissed the merchant. Whatever giddy thoughts that raced through the merchant's mind, was soon replaced by a lethargy. The man soon sank to the ground, the expression of ecstasy plastered on his face. "For a farmer, your energy wasn't too bad of a taste." Muttering such words mostly to herself, she quickly picked up the apple, and re-entered the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, taking bites from her newfound food.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis trudged through the dense mud, tired and with a gloomy expression on his face, though it would be difficult to make out, his scarf worn tightly around his face and over his nose, obscuring the expression and the gaping hole in his maw. Vis had been accosted by a group of thugs on the main road, though this generally wasn't an issue as he would run away and they would lose interest eventually but it seemed these things were desperate, as they chased him half way into the moor before deciding it was no longer worth it. He didn't like running away, if there was only one or two of them he would have stood his ground, unfortunately there were half a dozen. He tilted his head up to the sky to find light grey plooms of smoke in the distance, beyond the hill that was beyond the next. There were too many points of smoke for it to be a campsite but not quiet enough to be an industrial estate, so he figured it must have been some little township. Vis made it to 'Ravenwood' in the afternoon, drained from the task of traversing through mud that felt only the need to slow him down, so with some relief he slung his pack around so it was under his nose and opened it. He saw the cobbled street. His mood quickly turned dower, the bottom of his pack must have snagged on a branch and have been torn, spilling it's contents. 'that's why those highway men turned, they just had to pick up what they wanted.' With a sigh, he took what was left in the pack and cast it into an alleyway, though funnily enough all that was in there was the child's encyclopedia his mother gave him before leaving, so he could brush up on reading skills. Vis tucked the book into his leather armor and wandered forth. The market district was buzzing with activity, buyers haggling over prices and venders hawking their wares, though all Vis needed was a replacement pack and a few basic bits. Wandering the stalls and booths, he found nothing met his eye, mostly because of the high prices but also because many of the packs were just of low quality. Unsatisfied, he walked through the market, casting a faint green cone of light from his cursed green eye.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded his thanks to the armored man and slowly bent down to scoop his bag up off the floor, he gave it a good dusting and slipped it back on, not taking his good eye off of the paladin and casting a circle of green light on his face with the bad one. "thank you.." mumbled Vis, awkwardly. He still had more things to go and buy but the paladin seemed to have a point, it was very warm outside for some reason and the heat seared Vis' pale skin. "I think thare ith a inn on tha wetht thide of the marketh, pathed ith by when I goth hear." he needed a drink after that much lisping, something to calm his nerves but he only drank in private, so it seemed he wouldn't be able to. Vis tightened his scarf around his face, just in a way it would stay on but not in a way it would show impressions of his scaring. "there ith altho an airy bar thomewhere near thare." Vis turned his eye away from the armored man and looked at the group he had accosted with his tripping, there was a scraggly gnome at his feet, reminding him of an ugly cat but he mentally slapped himself as he knew he wasn't that good looking himself. Then there was the woman cloaked in fine fabric, with the heavens printed on the inside, she spoke to him and Vis shuddered, her words felt strange to him, they came out in a way that sounded like she didn't know what she was saying, yet was very accurate. He kept his eyes on her, one to look at her and the other to cast a ghostly, green glow.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver withdrew his hand quickly at the strange voice's behest. That certainly wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting - glowing eyes and booming commands were usually confined to things paladins were expected either to worship or to kill, but as the girl tottered forward, pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her eyes, Carver was certain that neither of those reactions would be appropriate. No, his initial plan regarding the girl still seemed appropriate - she needed help. It took him a moment to realize the half-elf was talking, and with a severe lisp, too. Something about a tavern? That seemed like it would serve both for getting the girl out of the heat (and the crowd) and for getting the gnome some food. He smiled at the man. "A tavern sounds like a fine idea. Might I trouble you to take us there?" He glanced around at the company. "A bit of rest and a meal, and I'm sure we'll all be feeling right as rain, friends." He moved closer to the girl - not enough to risk triggering the same bizarre reaction, but enough that she could lean on him if she felt the need. He also extended a hand down to the gnome, hoping to prevent the small fellow from being lost in the crowd.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Kelvin jerked around, twisting to look at the woman as she stood upright. He slapped a hand to his face, dragging it down, pulling on his flesh and in general just making him look tired. "See what I mean?" He lowered his voice for his companion, but doubtless the woman could hear as well. She pulled back her hood, fully revealing her features to the both of them. Pristine, perfect. Warning bells everywhere. First. Why was she alone? With a face like that she could easily have been married to a rich man, or already in the bloodline of a powerful one. Second. If she was alone, how had she managed to get so far by herself? It just reeked of alarm. No offense to her, of course. It just didn't look safe... Kelvin glanced at his companion, wondering. Was he a fool for a pretty face? "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." A flush crept across his cheeks for an instant, before he quickly responded. "Aye, no more daring than a lady who sleeps in a commoner's tavern with the ease of a barmaid." His tongue was going to get him into trouble someday. Kelvin averted his eyes from her, towards his companion. "Your call sir."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had seemed to calm down considerably, but was still horribly overwhelmed. Not once voice kept still for very long, and she was very confused as to what they were telling her to do. She peered out from under her hat, watching as the half-elf gathered back up his belongings. He was an interesting one, but the voices could not agree on why. Perhaps he just was because he was. More phantom noises filled the oracles ears, whistling winds and breaths cut short. It was horribly unnerving. She shivered for a moment despite the heat. The noises stopped suddenly, leaving Alula dizzy once more. Unfortunately she was also now out of the loop on the whole bar situation, she hadn't really been comprehending what the two taller men were discussing. But what she did pick up on was the half-Elfs speech impediment. In an almost comical turn of events, her mind was in an even fifty fifty split right now trying to remember and understand what would be socially acceptable. Was she supposed to not say anything or point out his strange pattern of speech. And then Alula noticed he was looking at her. She initially panicked but then noticed something. He had glowing eyes too, or well one eye. For some reason this observation made her next choice very clear to her. And in her slurred voice spoke. "You..talk weird..."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ The moment I laid eyes on this woman I felt my body's temperature rise as my face turned beet red. I could hardly say a word as I was immediately enchanted by her beauty, and in that short moment time seemed to creep to a halt making it feel like an eternity. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" The words of my mentor echoed in my head as I continued to gaze upon this girl's beauty. "Your call sir." Kelvin's words brought me out of my trance and back to reality. Ahh, just how stupid can I be? I can't just gawk at this girl, and besides regardless of how good my mentor's training was, I don't think his last snippet of advice can be considered valid. I sighed for a moment redirecting my focus to try and calm myself down. My body slowly changed back to normal as I now stared at the woman. I would not fall under her spell so easiy, even if I wanted to actually do so. Wait why am I admitting that? Ahh, forget it, just say something so you don't look like an idiot. "I'd love it if you joined us, though I must ask if you know about how to fight or any useful skills really. I wouldn't want you or Kelvin for that matter, to get put into any dangerous situations, so please be truthful to what you can or can't do. Or at the very least understate your abilities so we don't do anything to rash and wind up all dead or something, I don't know." I gulped as while I wasn't going gaga over her anymore, I was still having a bit of trouble talking, as evidenced by the nervousness in my voice. Well it wasn't that big of a deal anyways, I probably just needed to get used to her.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' eyes went wide when she said those words, his cursed left eye flashing an angry green for a moment before it stopped. He wanted to retaliate with words but his throat seized up, locking shut, if he spoke she would just poke fun at him again, he usually stood tall but now he slumped a fraction. "nothed*," he turned around and with a flick of his tattered left ear, he signaled for them to follow, his steps were more unsure now then they'd ever been, almost all people did not comment on his voice, they tended to know what was good for them, the last time someone did they suffered a beating. But he couldn't beat the girl under the pointy hat, he just couldn't bring himself to raise his hand at her, she seemed like she didn't know what she was saying but that didn't make him any less wounded. Vis tightened his scarf. When they arrived at the tavern, Vis held the door open for his group, turning around to see the Paladin, Gnome and the pretty hooded girl who made comments at his expense.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki shifted her gaze to the side slightly, as she was compared to that of a barmaid. Not because she was insulted, but moreso because she ended up thinking about kissing patrons when she was half dead. That was one memory she would love to bury, but at least that was at a different village. "Of course. Although I may not look like it, but I do have confidence in my ability to scout out an area. That, and when I do run into trouble, I trust my skill in a scythe." Answering the other man's questions, she couldn't help but to notice how he had a momentary lapse when he first looked at her. She leaned closer to him, while subtly releasing the top clasp of the cloak, allowing it to part slightly. From this angle, the man could get just a tiny glimps of her chest. "Well~? Do you believe me~?" Whispering these words, at such a low volume, yet with hints of a challenge mixed in with that sultry tone.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace entered the tavern and looked around. The room was filled with wooden constructs, living creatures and ceramics containing, what smelled like food. He didn't see a source for the food though. How did these people find it? Why decide to eat it here? Then he saw a creature with a large wooden plate stacked with cups. Distributing food to people. He noticed a pattern, she went by all the wooden circles and gave foot to those balanced around it. Furnace concluded that if they balanced on the small wooden constructs around the large wooden plates, they would get food. Following the pattern the barmaid followed Furnace chose a table that would soon be serviced. He took the cloth-wrapped bastard sword slung over his shoulder and carefully placed it leaning against the table. After sizing the chair up for a few seconds and studying the other patrons he got up on the seat and sat down cross-legged. Then he waited. If his guesses were correct food would now come to him.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ A scythe huh, that's an interesting weapon of choice, thought Separ as he continued to talk to this beautiful lady. However as he was listening to her, she seemed to lean forward and unbutton the top of her cloak, an action which surprised Separ. He stared closely for a second and realized he could see a small portion of her cleavage. Was she purposefully trying to make him look? Should he look? Can he? While Separ kind of wanted to take a peek he realized that wouldn't be a good idea. She was most likely just feeling a little hot and wanted some more air. He glanced to the side not wanting to stare at her chest and give off the wrong impression. "I believe you, after all you have no reason to lie right?" His voice had turned even more nervous now, as he wasn't sure quite what to do. "So, uh, welcome to the team I guess." He looked back at her and gave her a somewhat shy smile. Separ turned towards Kelvin and extended a hand, his palm facing the sky. "This here is Kelvin, and my name is Separ. If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" As he said this Separ had a lightbulb moment and turned towards Kelvin and nodded slightly. "I'm sorry, it seems I had forgotten to tell you my name earlier. Sorry about that."</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Well, at least the other guy was going to keep his head on. Mostly. Not that Kelvin had done much better with that passing insult. A scythe? Scouting? Kelvin shook his head. If she had those skills, it was more concerning. What if she was part of a marauder's crew- luring unsuspecting travelers to the wrong road at the wrong hour. The thought made him shudder. It was just unnatural, for someone with a face like that to be alone in a town like this. Though, in retrospect, it was equally strange for an engineer to be hanging about the area as well. She leaned closer to them, his companion specifically, and murmured towards him, letting her cloak hang open a bit. Whelp. He was done here. Kelvin turned away smartly and sat down at her table, attempting to keep a straight face. Aren't you supposed to seduce them before you get what you want, rather than after? Not that he had experience in such things. Ah, Separ was his name. "It be alright, think nothing of it." Kelvin didn't look at either of them, looking pointedly to the side and then jumping, knocked over his chair and falling to the floor beside it. "What… who is that?!" A strange, whitish childlike creature was sitting on one of the seats beside him. Kelvin spluttered and recovered a bit. "Ah, hello there… little one."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Des "Well, since your friend there is so rude, you have to be the normal price, 35 pieces for a nice meal." He sneered at the paladin, then looking at the rogue, "And if he causes any trouble, I expect you to take care of him because you won't like how I do it."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the irritated half-elf storm off and shook his head sadly. If the man wanted to be surly, that was his own business; at least there hadn't been a confrontation. He removed the thirty-five coins from his (now even lighter) coinpurse and slid it across the counter to the barkeep. "A hot meal, then, for the gnome." The barkeep pocketed the money and barked an order to a barmaid. Carver leaned in closer to the man then, still smiling with his mouth, if not with his eyes. "Yes, I will take care of any trouble. And perhaps, another time, you and I may have a discussion about your business practices, and you will not like how I do that." This done, Carver turned and crossed the crowded room back to where the gnome was seated, alongside three others. One was the bearded man that the gnome had been speaking with, while the other two, a muscular looking young man and a very... shapely young woman seemed to be either arguing or flirting. Carver furrowed his brow at the girl. Though looking at her appealed to his baser urges, the higher part of his mind found something undisputably off about her. This was someone who did not know the love of the sun. He sat down next to them and patted the gnome on the back. "Food on its way, my diminutive friend." Just then, a barmaid set a sizeable bowl of stew in front of the gnome and was quickly off. He smiled at the others and nodded his head. "A fine day, friends. Hope you have a seat for another."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki smiled as they -or at least te one introduced himself as Separ- had accepted her into their little team of what might appear to be ragtags or misfits. However, while on the outside, she might no show anything out of the ordinary, Se was warring an internal strife against herself. Why are you associating with strangers? Maybe a bit of company is nice every once in awhile. You don't know who they are. They weren't out for my blood. Kelvin's touch was gentle. There has been similar tricks done, you nearly died twice because of it. ........... She was pulled from her doubts when she noticed more unfamiliar faces join the table. First and foremost, was the armored man. Why was a paladin here, of all places?! Was she found so soon?! Panicking slightly, she glanced over at the other newcomers. A rather small person, and...was that woman glowing? For some odd reason, Suki found the other woman reminded her of the night sky. However, her main problem was still the paladin. Looking around for an excuse to leave, her eyes fell upon the somewhat covered half-elf, sitting in the corner. The opposite corner. "We're still in need of companions, right? I'll go over there and ask." Without waiting for a response, she had already left her table. Along the way, she casually lifted her hood over her head, the overhang casting the rest of her face in darkness. Stopping as she reached the half-elf, she gestured at one o the empty seats. "May I?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" For the second time that day, he was about to lower his scarf to take a swig of the sweet smelling wine when he was interrupted. Looking up from his melancholia, he stared into the darkness of a hood, for a moment he was about to fall back in his chair from how frightening the dark figure looked but when he observed ir again, he saw that it was a rather curvaceous woman, though she didn't distract him from the object of his brooding and to a lesser extant interest. "thake a seath if'n you wanth." Vis was dropped his scarf only slightly to get a swig of the delicious, purply-red wine, only exposing his mouth as he brought the bottle to his parched lips.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nodded at the given permission from the half-elf, before sitting down across from him. Watching as he only shifted the scarf slightly to drink, Suki couldn't help but to feel more....at ease. It didn't feel like she was the only one who had secrets, or a reason to hide. Tilting her head ever so slightly to the left, she couldn't help but to speak. "How many people have commented on your lisp?" As per most people, the first thing that would be a topic started when faced with this half-elf, would be that unusual lisp he had. It sounded almost like something didn't work, or was delayed, with the muscles around his mouth. At least, that's what that one priest had sounded like when she had slashed at his jaw, before decapitating him. She could be wrong, but nonetheless, it was still different.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continued to talk to his new female comrade, a man clad in thick armor approached both of them and asked if he could take a seat. "Sure, there's plenty of room for one more," said Separ as he happilly pulled out the chair next to him for the man to sit at. "My name is Separ, what's yours, and what brings you here? Oh and also this is, wait what was your na-" Before Separ could get a word in the girl hurriedly told him she was going to go and ask people about becoming our companions or something. Actually that's not a bad idea. Separ grinned as he realized he had not talked to this man before, which meant there was still a chance he would not get rejected. Besides, he looked ready to fight, especially with all that armor he had on. "Say, would you like to travel and become explorers with me and my brand new friends. You certainly look like a powerful fellow after all. So what do you say, friend?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis gripped the neck of the bottle tight and his knuckles went white, 'what's with people and my lisp?!' he thought to himself before taking another swig to calm his nerves. "three, with you bring tha third." he took another long draw from his bottle and felt the passivizing rush I got from well rounded fluid, "whath ith it thath you wanth from me?" he asked bluntly, slipping the drink forward to her and pulling his scarf back over his mouth, putting his hands behind his head to tighten it up. His eyes flicked back to the lazy eyed mystic and then to the hooded girl in front of him. "How about you take off your hood?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace happily accepted the bowl. To his surprise the food was already warm. Cautiously he put the stew to lips and imediately he was assaulted by a storm of new flavors. This was without a shadow of a doubt his new definition of 'food'. Whatever the stale goop was he had been given all these years, it could no longer do justice to the word. Rapidly he wolfed the soup down as he followed the conversations around the table. This figure was boasting to his steel friend about how many friends he had aquired, and how he was planning to make more. He must be a powerfull entity to hold so many pacts at once.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula kept in her own corner of the bar, silently observing the patrons around her. This was all rather new to her, or at least she thought it felt new. Several times while sitting a barmaid would walk over to her and ask if she needed anything. Alula would turn them away, flustered, every time. What did that even mean? Was this woman implying that something was wrong with her? No, this certainly couldn't be the case. Alula understood the barmaid. She muttered softly. "Always the maiden and never the man. Working hard to make her place. One day to bark the orders." Her hazy eyes looked over, watching as the half-elf and then the Paladin tried to haggle with the barkeep for food and drink. She could tell the man was lying. Everything in his keeping was extremely overpriced, aimed at the drunk and the desperate. All the man cared for was material wealth. Eventually the paladin received food for the small man and the half-elf carried away as bottle of wine. Alula found herself liking the paladin more and more, his kindness for others was strangely relaxing. Alula watched with a strange transfixion as the half elf took a seat, away from the others. There was something odd about the bottle he had, something that reminded her of something. Her head was swimming, and the voices only seemed to be getting louder and louder as she tried to figure out what was causing such a strong sense of nostalgia. A gentle voice spoke above the rest. "You appear to be staring at the half-elf, and he is staring back. You are making him uncomfortable." Alula hadn't realized she had been looking at him for so long, and with such pained expression. She quickly tore her eyes away from the half-elf and the bottle. And immediately the voices ceased. That was strange. But what was stranger was who next approached the half-elf, another girl. But something was extremely different about this girl, the voices agreed. Alula allowed herself to give into the temptation of looking back over at the table, but wished she hadn't she felt extremely flustered for some reason, tugging her hat back over her eyes and facing away from the half-elfs table. "You and the girl are quite different. You coverup for shame, and she undresses for survival." "A woman raised in a world of hate and dark, now depends on humans for survival. Her hunger is carnivorous."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "She should have some of this food." Furnace set the thuroughly emptied bowl in front of him with a loud thud. Curiously he looked at Alula, failing to make eye contact. "Do you not enjoy the light?" he inquired after her hiding.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver patted the gnome on the back as he devoured the meal. He saw that the woman had gone to sit with the half-elf; a troubling alliance, possibly, but not one that seemed to pose an immediate danger. The strong-looking man has asked him a question, he realized. The offer was a tempting one - he was already traveling, and friends were good to have, especially when one was as poor as he was. "I'd be glad to travel with you, friend." He extended an armored hand. "My name is Sir Carver. A pleasure to make your aquaintance." Although... He coughed slightly. "However, I feel honor-bound to see to the well-being of my new friends," he said, gesturing to the gnome and to the corner, where the strange girl sat. "Perhaps you could propose them the same question, and we may all go off together? I'm not sure I could leave either in the same state I found them."</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting." Kelvin's eyes widened slightly, and a small grin stretched across his lips. Interesting. "I like this one." Kelvin slowly uprighted the stool and slid back onto it, settling to examine this being. He barely acknowledged when the cloaked woman moved away, excusing herself to ask around. It was possible she would have more luck, if for the wrong reasons. Yet... Separ had introduced them both, yet she had still avoided giving a name. He stroked his beard, considering. Strange. He turned his attention back to the gnome as food was brought, and watched the being down it in fascination. "Forty three seconds." Kelvin whispered to himself softly as the gnome slammed the bowl down. Behind him, Separ had already requesitioned the knight into their group. Curver, cover, something like that. He hadn't been paying to much attention to the last part. However, as far as the gnome went... "I don't mind spending time with this one." Kelvin turned on the stool and jerked a thumb towards the gnome. "Separ's in charge as far as I am concerned though." A thought occured, and Kelvin eagerly swung down his backpack, pulling out a long, stiff tube about as long as his forearm. The fuse was curled up and tied with a bit of string to make it compact. He held it out in front of the gnome, careful to keep it out of reach. "What do you make of this then?"</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis did not know how to react, so he remained petrified on the floor, staring up in abject horror as the drunkness quickly vacated his body to leave abject soberness. He did not expect such a violent reaction from her, and her staff could have crushed him with ease, esspecially with her new found vigor. But when she started to slow down, his mind went from fear to sympathy, she too had something to hide and noe she didn't have her means to hide it. He looked around on the floor for it but the hat seemed to have vanished, so he slowly brought himself from the floor and with a hesitant, reluctant hand, untied the scarf from around his face, revealing the large gash down it's side that was hidden for so long, exposing all his teeth and even some jaw bone. Vis draped the scarf over her head in a way that it acted like a hood that she could draw over her eyes if she needed to.</s> <\|message\|>Des Everyone in the tavern looked over as the oracle raged. But after Vis took off his scarf, most looked away. Those that kept looking either gave a disgusted look or throw up. One brave soul felt the need to say something, it was the barkeep, "Hey, what did I say about you causing trouble in my tavern, cover your disgusting mess of a face up or get out."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was up from the table and across the inn almost immediately. He saw the elf remove his scarf, revealing the disfigured face within - but to Carver, he had revealed something else; a character of fairness unsuited to his features. He had shown compassion, in his actions - this was a good man. Then the barkeep opened his mouth, and Carver clenched a fist. A liar, a cheat, a cruel man who spat in the face of kindness. Trying to muster all the gentleness he could in that moment, he put a hand, gingerly, on the girl's shoulders. "You don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "Nobody here will harm you." That done, he retreated his hand and turned to the bar. "You cheat," he said, slowly, steadily, his voice gaining power with every word. "You lie. You prey on the innocent, the drunk, the vulnerable. You spit in the face of an honorable man. You are arrogant, greedy, and cruel, and you know not the love of the sun." He was shouting now, and he rested a both fists on the bar. "My name is Sir Carver. I am a Paladin of the Sun, and I bring these charges before you. What say you in your defense?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had stayed with her hands over her eyes for a few moments, not noticing as the half-elf stood up. She had far too busy panicking about what had just happened, what she could have done. She felt like hyperventilating and running, but her body was frozen. She could feel the entire bar staring at her, and she felt the need to fall back to the floor and hide. What happened next surprised her. She expected the man to run away, many had before, but instead she felt something being placed over her head. It wasn't her hat, but a piece of cloth. He was helping her hide her face. She again felt a lose for words at his kindness. She uttered a soft and slurred "Thank...you." From under the cloth. More gentle touches, this time from the man in the armor. She winced, bracing herself for the burn that she knew was coming, but she never felt the pain. That was new. Even his words held a kindness that was foreign to Alula. She could hear the paladin calling the barkeep out on his actions, but his words felt far away and faded.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Watching as the half-elf had stumbled into the female that reminded her of the night, the sudden escalation into what could only be said to be a possession occurred. Suki had no other words to describe the phenomenon. However, it seems that it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, and the woman was left standing there in embarrassment. Raising an eyebrow at the half-elf taking off the scarf, only to smile subconsciously at the kind act of making a makeshift hood for the other woman. Making her way over, she undid the clasps on her cloak, before slipping it off, revealing her body accented by her dress to the tavern. Taking the cloak, she slipped it over the half-elf, making sure the hood covered his face, just as it had for herself. "It seems your reasons are far more important than mine for the moment." Quietly whispering these words to the half-elf alone, she sighed, before muttering "I'll fix this." yo the others in the 'adventure group', before slowly walking towards the barkeeper, drawing just about every male gaze towards her. Reaching the keeper, she smiled, before leaning forward, hands held behind her back, subtlety pushing out her chest. "Is it alright for you to let this incident slip by~?" Whispering such words with a seductive tone, she winked.</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep stared straight back at Carver and spat in his face, "Yeah, and now I've spit in the face of a dishonorable man, this is my tavern, and I prefer it to be a relaxing place for my customers so they won't be disturbed and if you can't tell by their faces, his is pretty disturbing." The barkeep gestured to all of his customers, "They don't want to see THAT, and if you think you can disrespect and insult me in my place of business, then you thought wrong, you, your disfigured friend, the little one that you brought in, and the starry chick, can get thefuck out of my establishment!" -Edit since I got ninja'd : "And you," He shouted at the necromancer, "If you think that flashing your breasts are going to keep your friends in my bar, then you can get out too!"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Carver, huh? That's a nice name you got there. Is that your real name or do you just carve your enemies with one slice?" Separ asked, laughing at his own joke. "But seriously, I'm glad I could persuade you to join the team, and I will happily ask your comrades as well. After all the more the merrier, right?" As he said this Separ quickly stood up and looked at both the childlike gnome and the girl who's body was practically covered by robes. Kelvin seemed to be talking to the gnome though so it probably wasn't a good idea to interrupt them for now, or at least to Separ it wasn't. Separ instead made his way over to the girl only to watch a man with a scarf over his face bump into her which in turn caused both of them to hit the ground. Separ watched as her hat fell off flying under an occupied table. Separ quickly talked with the men so he could get them to move out of the way. The men at the table complained as they were drunk, but relunctantly obliged in the end. After obtaining the hat Separ moved towards the girl, and to his surprise heard her scream. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" The girl then raised her staff before dropping it to the ground, probably figuring it best to not go through with her actions. This stunned Separ, but he ultimately feeled like she had a reason for saying it, after all Carver had not wanted to leave her alone. Perhaps she was under a lot of stress, or maybe something traumatic had happened to her? Either way, this girl seemed nice and merciful, she as Separ expected, was most likely a good person. He quickly walked over only to see the man put his scarf over her face, an act which may not have seemed so great, had the man not been disfigured. Separ actually became frightened of him due to his disfiguration for a moment, not because he was disfigured, but rather because he reminded Separ of the undead. Either way Separ wished he could have him join the team, though Separ did berate himself for being scared of the man, surely this guy must have put up with other people thinking the same thing before. Separ did not want to be just another person that would laugh, point, or be disgusted by something so trivial. You fool, he's alive, you have nothing to worry about. Separ paused for a moment unsure of himself, but finally pressed onwards just as the other attractive girl put her cloak over him. Carver then got in a fight with the bartender and the same girl tried to seduce the man into calming down only it didn't seem to work very well. Tapping the girl on the shoulder Separ handed her the hat. "Here you go, Miss, now if you'll excuse me." Enough was enough, this bartender had gone to far trying to kick someone out because of there looks. Walking up to the bartender Separ pulled out 10 gold pieces, and holding out his hand, grabbed the bartender's right hand with his free hand and plopped it right in the man's palm. "Use this money," Separ's words turned into that of yelling as he threw a wild punch filled with ferocity at the bartender's head. "TO PAY FOR YOUR HOSPITAL BILLS!!!"</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep quickly pulled out the sword he kept behind the counter and blocked the attack, leaving a large gash in Separ's hand and nearly causing him to lose a finger, "It's going to take more then ten gold pieces to pay to fix that, now get out of my sight before I call the town guard on all of you." The barkeep ripped the sword from Separ's hand causing him to bleed profusely and wiped the blood off of his blade with a napkin, "If I have to get the guard, then they will cause a whole lot more damage than that."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Things in the tavern seemed to be heating up. The yelling fest between the barkeep and several of the people, people she was at least slightly acquainted with, continued to grow to the point where Alula was beginning to feel anxious again. She didn't want anyone getting in trouble. She allowed herself to peek out from under the cloth. The half-elf now had a cape, the woman was flirting with the barkeep and the paladin looked almost as red as the sun. Suddenly she was being tapped on the shoulder, a wave of flame passing under her skin. And her hat was being pressed into her hand. She felt the iron heaviness in her gut loosen slighted when she was reunited with her hat. She placed the hat atop her head where it belonged, but kept the cloth in her hands, perhaps not quite ready to part with one of the first physical gifts she had ever received. She was about to timidly thank the man, when she watched him walk right up to the barkeep and attempt to sock him right in the face, only to recieve a bloody hand. Alula let out a shiver, they were in big trouble now. She gripped the cloth in her hands anxiously.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin "Hold on my friend-" Kelvin turned at the sound of a scream, and the entire tavern just broke apart, people shouting and yelling. The one guy looked like a necromancer had taken his face apart and stuck it back together, the girl had ditched the cloak- finally revealing the full suspicious nature of her beauty. Then suddenly the knight starts going off on the bartender, the bartender spits in the guys face. All chaotically thrown together. Kelvin stood up and moved closer, relaxing a bit as Separ moved towards the man. He would cool this down. ... ... ... nope. He lunged to pull the guy back before it was too late... and missed. Damn. It was quite impressive how quickly the barman had responded. And a bit scary. Kelvin groaned, considering. The knight was almost sure to respond violently to that. "Alright, that's enough." Kelvin stepped forward and slid between the knight and the counter, turning and attempting to shove the man towards the door before turning and attempting to loop an arm around Separ's shoulders to move him towards the door. "Come on already! You too little guy." He glared at the girls each in turn, not sparing the man with the messed up face either. He shoved the stick of dynamite into his pocket. "GET. OUT."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked up from his tears at the sound of muted footsteps, then a face appeared in his line of sight, the star lady was crouched in front of him and held his scarf in her hands. He looked at her for a few moments, the whites of his eyes bloodshot and tears leaving trails down his face, he calmed his breath down and smiled sadly, his scar contorting to make people cringe if they saw it. He took both of her hands and brought them to one another, "keep ith," he said, his throat soar and hoarse and sounding as if he were speaking through nails, "thare are more thcarfs outh thare." he released her hands and he pulled his knees to his chest, waiting for her to leave so he could cry some more, he had'nt cried in a long time and he found the tears relieving, in a sad way.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace looked at the cloacked creature. With the scarf gone his damaged face was visible, though Furnace hadn't though anything of it before, now that he saw people's reactions to him and the state he was in, it dawned on Furnace that this new friend could also be unable to heal by himself. Maybe his appearance wasn't by his own choice. The girl called it beautiful. He agreed, the man was unique. But Furnace wanted to give him that choice. He walked over to Vis. Vis sat there and Furnace waited patiently until he made eye contact. He cupped his hands together and breathed slowly. With every breath some white golden light escaped between his fingers. Bright white jolts of energy jumped between his hands from the tips of his fingers while he moved his hands further apart. "I can repair you." With his hands crackling with white golden energy he gestured slightly at his feet. Along the ankles and up his legs show the remains of many scars made by shackles a long, long time ago, almost completely faded. "It takes time. But scars fade."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Before Separ could answer the gnome, he seemed to run off following the girl towards the disfigured man. Separ did feel drained of energy, but he knew that at least he wasn't bleeding anymore, and probably didn't need medical attention right this minute. It would be better if the gnome could repair the other man first. His own wounds could wait. Separ instead looked around for Carver and once he spotted him asked if he could talk to Alula and the gnome and possibly persuade them into joining the group. As far as Separ was concerned, Carver knew both of them much better than Separ, and was overall, much more likely to get them to join.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked up with glassy eyes at the gnome, he could tell there was good in his heart, natural good and not good imposed upon him. Vis shook his head sadly, "my thcar ith who I am, if I don'th haf it, then I'm noth me." Vis needed his scar, his blind eye and his ragged ear for a reason, he didn't know what, after years of traveling with them they grew a sentimental meaning to him and he wasn't sure he wanted to part with them, despite how much he hated them. It would be like putting down a stray dog that had followed you from the moment it met you, you may hate it but once it's gone you'll feel the emptiness where once was something. He shook his head again, "Buth thank you.."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Smiling, satisfied with the answer he got Furnace let the light flicker out. He returned to the friend collector, who was now walking towards his kind metal companion. Furnace caught up and joined him, as they stood near Carver and the others Furnace asked Separ the question that was burning on his mind. "What are you gathering friends for? What do you plan to do?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ couldn't help but smile at the little gnome's question. "I wish to go on a journey and help those in need, as well as defeat people who abuse their power. To become the hero of the people and such, though uh, apparently I can't even handle a simple bartender yet." Giving both Carver and the gnome a small bow each individually he continued on. "I also want to apologize to you both for acting so rash back there. I probably should not have started a fight. It's just he was trying to throw out that man, and he was a jerk overall. Neverthless, I almost put you all in danger, so I'm sorry. And Carver, if you want you don't have to journey with me after what you just witnessed me do. You don't have to feel any obligation or anything of the sort." Separ quickly turned towards the Gnome as well. "You asked how I was doing earlier right? Well truth be told the lady may have healed my wounds, but I still feel a little tired and weakened. Punching the sharp end of a sword is no joke after all, though I'll bet my mentor could actually punch the sword and break it. He's the most skilled fighter I've ever known, and I'm sure he could do it if he just added in a little magic."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "I see. Bartenders are simple, but hard to handle." Furnace listened to Separ apologise and wondered what he meant. Had they made a pact before saying he wouldn't fight bartenders? Breaking a sword with bare hands sounded strange. "Wouldn't you just use a hammer or heavy blade for something like that?" Furnace put his hands together again and reignited the white golden coil of lightning between his palms. "Relax the muscles in your hand." He held his hands around the cuts on Separ's knuckles. Bright sparks jumped from his left hand onto the cuts and ran along the edges of wounded flesh until they reached his other hand. The current of positive energy tingled pleasantly, and Separ could feel a comfortable warmth flow from his hand through his body. Surging trough his muscles he felt an energising boost. The wounds closed further, fading the scars further. Showing only thin white lines. "The scars fade with more healing." Furnace explained while he healed the other hand. When he was done Furnace stepped back and the lights flickered out. "How do you feel now?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver put his hand over his breast. "Your humility does you credit, friend Separ, but you need feel no shame for your actions. You did what you thought was best, and put yourself in harm's way for the sake of another. I think you are very noble - it would be my privilege to journey with one of such spirit." The paladin smiled fondly down at the gnome as set his energy to the man's injuries. "Aha! Our diminutive friend shows talent. Fear not, I will speak to the girl - see if I'm unable to convince her." He approached her, still standing where she had been speaking to the half-elf. "I understand that you are afraid. It's a very sudden offer, to go off journeying with strangers. I don't know much about you save that you have some power, and it frightens you." He smiled. "But you don't have to be frightened anymore." The gnome's childlike curiousity and bizarre manner. The half-elf's bitterness, surliness, and surprising gentleness. Separ's spirit, his temper, his headstrong approach to his problems. The girl's shyness, her fear, the strange power she clearly possessed. These people were innocents, trying to make their way in the world. And innocents needed to be protected. That's what Carver could do, he realized. He could protect them. In a daze, he drew his sword and planted in the ground at the girl's feet. He dropped to one knee, places his hands upon his hilt, closed his eyes. "In terror of the night, the sun is our greatest deliverance. If we should journey together, my lady, I swear on my honor that no harm will come to you. As long as I draw breath, I will keep you safe. All of you." He rose, and sheathed his sword.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had decided not to press matters into the half-elf. If he wanted his space she would grant it to him. And keeping the scarf was a nice addition, she would have to find a nice place to keep it. Or maybe she would find a way to attach it to her robes. She was quite happy to know that her keeping his scarf was not the source of his sorrow, but if not that then why was he upset? She stood up, turning around right as the paladin began speaking to her. She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes, although she tried to resist. The paladin could read her pretty well. She didn't like the unknown, and a lot of things were unknown and confusing to her. Going on a random adventure with a bunch of strangers seemed to be a horrible choice. What the man said next about her powers baffled her. She did indeed have 'some power' but did it scare her? Well maybe a little. She wasn't sure why, but it did indeed scare her knowing what she could do and become. She muttered softly. "Control and restraint are the byproducts of fear. But survival is as well." And in a strange change of events the paladin dropped to one knee, his sword planted in the ground by her feet. He was making a vow, to protect them. Sarcastic voices filled her head, saying that the moon was far superior to the sun and that there are more terrors in the day then the night, but she kept these quiet. The man was clearly doing something important. These vows were obviously serious things. From his lower position, if Carver was paying attention to her face, he would be able to see that her eyes looked strangely clear. Nothing like normal eyes should, but it showed that she might actually be understanding. Perhaps an adventure would be good for her. And as Carver rose she again covered her eyes, but her smile was visible. Her voice was slurred. "Well...how could I...resist such an...offer..." Yep, she was on board. She just hoped this would be the right choice.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin He could only sigh as their fearless leader resisted him and Carver, going for another punch. Again, the bartender's reflexes bested fist with blade. That was going to need some stitches. Slowly though, their group filtered out. The madness was ending. Kelvin took the time to toss his pack up onto their table, stowing the dynamite back inside, tightening straps before slinging it back onto his back. He paused and straightened the chairs before returning to face the barkeeper. "I apologize for my companions rash actions." Kelvin grimaced, but forced himself to bow to the other man."I have known them less than an hour, but I already know this will be a long journey." He straightened, and then turned to leave before noticing the girl, her cloak draped over her again. He sighed. Kelvin still didn't agree with her presence, unanswered questions. She had tried to help though. "Hey," He gently tapped her head and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "You are still welcome to join us, if you are brave enough." That said, he turned and strode out, joining their party outside the building. He didn't mix though, instead choosing to stay back a bit and wait for them to talk it out. There were other productive things to do though. Kelvin sat down off to the side of the road and pulled his pack down next to him, removing the components for his crossbow. He was meticulous, carefully adjusting the metal arms, keeping them balanced as he strung it- piecing together the clip and screwing it together before assembling the trigger system. Done, he finally stood, hiking up his pack and braided the cord into a sling for the crossbow. This way it could hang out of the way at his side until he needed it. He was ready.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Everyone found gold? I think we have enough for a sword or two." Furnace held his heavy bag of coins and shook the bag have it make a sattisfying jingling sound. "Though the metal is soft and not ideal. We can make do."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched with strange interest as Carver tossed the rock out of his bag. She watched it roll and skid away from the group, until it finally settled into a grassy patch several yards away from them. It would have been impossible for anyone to just see the rock if they were walking past, and yet Alula knew it was there, so she could see it. She shivered despite the heat. She turned her blurred attention back to the group. She allowed the punching man who look through her bag, which she had hidden within her robes. She didn't really have anything of importance on her. Her bag was actually a blanket all bundled together with twine. In her bundle was nothing but a few torn up pieces of canvas, likely at one point a tent, and some random odds and ends. Nothing of value, more like junk you would find laying around. She wondered where they came from. And then there was another girl. Alula pulled down the rim of her hat, muttering softly. "A life is cut short so another can begin. Lives are lost in the forest of life to allow the young to grow." She felt horribly dizzy and a bitter cold spreading though her veins. She leaned forward for a moment, resting her weight against Carver until the cold was replaced with the burn. At this point she was hoping no one else would approached the group.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis watched the rock skid to a halt and walked over to it to pick it up off the ground and into his pocket, a man walking past gave him a glance, most likely because of his damaged face but Vis decided to believe that he glanced about the rock, who knew, he might find use for it later. He turned to the group and once more spoke up, "I'm going thu go thearching for bread, anyone wanth thoo thag along?" he asked, hoping someone would want to come with him, though he wasn't too talkative, he didn't mind the company when he had it, it made him feel a little better about being bad at socializing.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver extended a hand to the newcomer as Alula leaned against his back, muttering something incoherent. "No objections at all. My lady Anew, you are quite welcome to travel alongside us. I am Sir Carver, Paladin of the Sun. Our bare-fisted leader here is Separ, the lady is Alula, over there is Kelvin, and I believe the rest of our friends as yet have the advantage of me." The half-elf was saying something about going shopping. Carver was loathe to let anyone travel alone, but he rather doubted that the girl currently passing out on his shoulder would be up to a crowded marketplace, and he knew for a fact that he wouldn't leave her alone. "I think I'll remain here, but you may take my coin with you. It's not much, but I would hate to be a burden on the group already." He smiled as the gnome jingled his coin purse and spoke of golden swords. "Perhaps you could take this one? It seems he could use an education in the wonders of commerce."</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose politely smiled and shook the hand of the paladin, Carver. "It is always a pleasure to meet a man of the cloth and defender of the faith." She then answered the man introduced as Separ inquiry, "I can cook up any game animal. I am good at stews and roasted meats. Of course, I think I could make any dish at request given the right ingredients." She considered elaboration more but she was cut off by the approach of a cloaked woman. Alula spoke cryptically and Rose was unsure if she was even the one the woman was speaking to, if she was speaking to anyone at all. One life cut down for another. Well yes that is the way of the world. A wildfire is a healthy thing for even the most ancient forests. As a mage, Rose understood the role of destruction and reconstruction very well. It was fundamental to the magic arts on many levels, but did this woman intend to imply more. Rose took a step away from the woman, Alula cautiously. Changing the subject she addressed the man who was going for bread. If she was going to cook, this seemed like something she should be involved in, "Sir, I would like to accompany you to find bread."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis took a long hard lookout the new woman to join the little group, she seemed polite enough and hoped that she wouldn't bring the scar up. "All righth then, leth go." Vis turned on the spot and started to make his way to the market again, there was bound to be a bakery somewhere in the maze of stalls and booths and if not there was probably a proper bakery somewhere in the town, though he wished to avoid proper bakeries as they were expensive. But as Vis walked with the company of the of the new one, he found that he wandered into the fleece market, looking around for the exit, his eyes fell on a booth selling scarves. Vis felt compelled to go towards it and so he did, to take a look at what the vendor had on sale, there were many intricate designs but he longed for something simple like the scarf he gave to the girl, 'what was her name?... Alula'. He found what he was looking for, a simple black scarf, though it wasn't identical to his old one as this one had white ends, "How much?" Vis asked calmly, knowing that that phrase never lisped. "25" Said the man, avoiding looking at Vis' disfigured face, Vis counted out the coins and bought the scarf, instantly wrapping it around his face and feeling much more comfortable that no one could see his scar. "Now we thearch for bread." he said, turing to look at his companion.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula finally found the energy in herself to stand back up straight, no longer able to stand the burn from leaning against the Paladin. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, finding her spinning vision extremely disoriented. She listened for a moment, picking up that the new girl and the half-elf were going off to buy bread, and were perhaps planning on taking the gnome along. She wanted to peek out and confirm her suspicions, but didn't want to risk another wave of dizziness. She listened to the paladin and new women speak to each other. The paladin introduced himself to the girl, and Alula mentally scolded herself for not being able to remember their names. The girl sounded pleasant enough, she spoke to Carver in a respectful tone. And yet she knew that the newcomer was already distrustful of Alula. Suddenly, almost too quickly, Alula's hat tipped back. She revealed her glowing eyes to a man who was passing by, a bag full of purchased goods. She took a step away from Carver, speaking to the man in a distant and knowing tone. "Talk to your wife about what you long for, she will understand and heed to your request." The man looked flustered as he looked Alula up and down and hurried off. She tipped her hat back down, dizziness again washing over her as she spoke. "That man wants his wife to tie his hands to the bedpost, I couldn't guess why though."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the man walk off in spite of himself. "Hmm... some things it's best not to know." He turned to sit on a nearby tree stump, regarding Alula quizzically. "So, how does that work, milady? If you don't mind me asking? Are you an oracle, or just particularly intuitive?" In the monastery, he'd heard some stories of oracles - priests and channelers who could predict things that had not yet come to pass. His knowledge on the subject was limited, however, due to the fact that such miracles were generally the providence of night-time deities, the followers of whom the Crusaders that had trained Carver got along with... poorly (rather like rival groups of school-children.) Carver wasn't sure that was what he was seeing now, but it seemed a good start, especially given her vague reference to the moon, earlier. He felt a sudden stab of worry that the question might send her into another panic - being the vessel to some future-telling power seemed rather like the sort of thing someone might get antsy about. "I'm just making small talk while we wait, of course. Don't feel obligated to give me an answer."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace A strange sense of familiarity came over Furnace as he watched Rose. The way she moved with confident certainty, talked clearly and boasted extensive knowledge on food creation. Using many arcane terms Furnace wasn't familiar with. Though strangely she specifically called the iron giant 'a man of the cloth'. All of her was completely alien to Furnace. And yet something resonated with him and he couldn't figure out what it was. "Perhaps you could take this one? It seems he could use an education in the wonders of commerce." Education The steel-clad friend had proposed Furnace forged a bond with the uncloaked man like the one with the voice. This idea made Furnace see Vis in a different light. Could he and the voice be alike? Furnace was sceptical, but intrigued. The food conjurer wished to join Vis, she probably also wanted an education in 'the wonders of commerce' If they were indeed alike, perhaps the idea made sense. Furnace now wished to follow as well. They would learn these wonders, and then maybe she would demonstrate her food conjuring. Furnace followed the two trough the market. The uncloaked man moved swiftly and with calculated step. He knew where he was going. Furnace chose to walk next to the food conjurer. He felt compelled to find out more about her. "Uhm. It is a pleasure to meet a woman of stews and roasted meats." Furnace stood next to her and struggled to divide attention to her and the uncloaked man who suddenly took a turn to approach one of the tables with crafting materials. Presumably so he could demonstrate the first lesson. The first wonder was a small ritual riddle. The instigator chooses a fabric and speaks the incantation "How much" The man at the table gives a number, the instigator must meet that number in golden sheets. A simple test if you know the ritual. Why the sheets were golden or what the purpose of this ritual was was unclear to Furnace.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin He had had plenty of time to think over Separ's words while assembling his crossbow, but honestly, he wasn't sure at all. This was certainly a strange travelling group- and Kelvin wasn't all that interested in adventures so much as the next mechanical project to work on. There was nothing left to do here though. He might as well move on. Kelvin waited for the group to separate off, some going shopping with the new warrior, others staying. He approached Separ. "I'll stay." Kelvin sighed and lowered his bag to the ground, holding up a hand to stall the other man. "Sorry, but you will have to trust me here; going through my bag could be dangerous for others." He shifted things around a bit, careful not to disrupt his organization. It had to be packed carefully to make everything fit- and to ensure all the explosives and paper would stay dry. "I am sorry to say I will be a bit of a burden, as I don't have any food supplies, or much money to compensate for that." Kelvin shrugged. "As for my gear… I have… rope, in multiple sizes, stakes, a tarp, some paper, extra crossbow darts… " Kelvin straightened and put his pack back on, coughing. "And, uh…" He held up a hand and counted on his fingers. "Some gunpowder, a couple of sticks of dynamite, a bucket," Do most people even know what gunpowder is? "In general, stuff that can make a big bang." He scratched his cheek and looked down at his belt, brightening. "Right, and these. Just tools of the trade, hammer, some screwdrivers and bits. A bear trap- you know." Kelvin shifted nervously on his feet. "I just need a bit of food here and there, and I should be alright."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Des As Carver charged into the herd he trampled a few and was stabbed by many more, although due to his armor only a few actually harmed him and he was dealt 8 damage, but now he his surrounded Alula's attack on the Ettin seemed to have no effect but it did blind him causing him to trip and crush a building beside her</s> <\|message\|>Carver Ten feet. I walk in her glorious light. I will not falter. Five feet. I bear her glorious purpose. I will not falter. Two feet. I face her foes in combat, my heart pure and unsullied. I will not falter. Carver had just taken the first blow on his shield when his vision was filled with a blinding blue light. The heat from the near miss soaked into his armor and made him break out in a sweat. The paladin staggered to the side, trying to regain sight. What was that? Did the goblins have some sort of spellcaster? How had it gotten behind him? Were the others safe- A rusted blade drove into his side through the chink in his armpit's armor, immediately suspending all further questions. With a cry, Carver swung his shield out and slammed the goblin in the face, sending it spinning to the dirt. Goblins everywhere, now. He kicked one aside, cut another across the chest. He felt blows clanging all against his armor, blocked furious swings with his shield, parried them with his blade. One goblin got lucky and drove a dagger up his knee and into his thigh, and Carver collapsed to one knee for a moment. Another took this opportunity to slam a mace into his helmet, smashing his thoughts and filling his sight with stars. Gritting his teeth, Carver rose, ignoring his injured leg, and cut the mace-wielding goblin in the chest. More swarmed over him, shrieking and clanging and clawing at his plate-covered body, but he was a Paladin of the Sun - and Paladins didn't run. Every blow that fell on him was a blow that could have fallen on Alula, or Kelvin, or Furnace. And so the knight stood, and fought his losing battle.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' pursuer was unrelenting in his chase, as if wanting nothing more then to see Vis die. The half-elf ducked into an alleyway and began to wind his way through the meandering streets until he found himself at a dead end, with walls to smooth to scale. Vis turned around to see the sneering raider block the only path of escape as he slowly approached, his sword dragging across the floor menacingly. Getting into his combat position, his sword raised infront of him, he knee there was no running from this fight. The raider attacked first, swinging his bastard sword over his head and bringing it at a downward angle towards Vis, Vis rolled and avoided the brunt of the attach but the tip of the sword caught him on his back leaving a long shallow gash. Regaining his footing behind the brute, he thrust outwards with his rapier and pierced the chainmail armor of the man, passing through his under clothes and then between his ribs, catching him in the lung. He roared in pain and quickly swung around, wrenching the rapier the out of Vis' hands and sending it skittering away, Vis pulled the empty bottle out of his bag and smashed it against the side of the man's face, knocking him to the floor. While the man was down, Vis drew his dagger and threw himself ontop of the man, his knees on his chest and stabbed the man in the neck but as he did, the man shot his hands to Vis' neck to strangle him. As Vis was being choked, he stabbed the blade over and over into the man's neck and a puddle of crimson poured around him but the man's grip was unrelenting and Vis' vision was going black around the edges. Then the man's hands fell away as he died. Panting, Vis threw himself off and sat with his back to the wall, his neck bruised by the hands of the raider. He tightened his scarf and retrieved his rapier, then started to pick through the man's pockets and pouches, he found nothing but a scroll and as he opened it his skin flushed red, it was a pornographic scroll. Vis tucked it into his back pack and whinced, first an arrow, then he fell from a roof and now he had a long trailing wound. He emerged into the main street and wished he hadn't, skeletons were climbing out if the ground and beams of blinding light whizzed through the air.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ I continued to jog down the path searching for the cloaked girl to no avail. Where is she? Where is she? Separ asked himself again and again as he made his way through the city. Only as he turned around the corner did he see a man on a horse in the distance, surrounded by what looked a horde of kobolds and goblins. Each of them looked much stronger than an ordinary member of their respective race, and the man on the horse seemed to give off an aura that was refined, and at the same time one of evil. Yes, Separ realized he must have been the one in charge, or at the very least one of the higher ups. Separ quickly hid behind the corner hoping no one had saw him, and as luck would have it, the group appeared to be focusing instead on the razing of a building. The utter chaos on the streets as panicked civillians fought and fled a losing battle also made it easier for Separ to remain unnoticed. Separ turned around realizing there was nothing he could do though. What good is a hero who dies trying to save others from a death, when he can't even save himself? Separ gritted his teeth as he remembered his master's words. Now was not the time to fight, but rather to flee. If there were less civillians or monsters, things would have been much easier. But the sheer chaos and number of people made it hard for him to do anything. As much as it pained him to do so, Separ knew his death would be in vain if he died, only to have the very people he was trying to save also die immediately after, and with this many people around, it was easily bound to happen. Separ turned around, as tears started to form in his eyes. I'm so weak, I can't even help those people over there. His jog started to turn into a sprint as he ran even harder, faster. I need to become stronger so I can protect others. He continued his pace, before hearing the sound of rattling bone and screams from goblins. Holding back his tears and wiping his eyes he ran towards the sound to see two skeletons and the cloaked girl fighting a group of enemies. Perfect, there wasn't nearly as much chaos here. Getting the girl to safety should be relatively simple, somewhat. Separ ran as fast as he could charging at the group. The skeletons seemed strong, but it was apparent they were fighting a losing battle. Focusing energy into his fists he felt his hands heat up slightly as they both started to glow a light orange color. Separ charged forward towards a lone kobold, preparing to strike at it. The kobold reacted just in time though, swinging his sword and knicking Separ in the torso. Luckily it was just a small scratch as Separ had avoided it for the most part, with fervor Separ punched the kobold aiming for its cheek. the attack singing the skin and knocking the kobold a few feet away. Separ then punched at a goblin once, twice, three times with a barrage aimed at its gut, killing the creature before elbowing another goblin in the face, shattering its teeth and creating a small puddle of blood that dribbled onto the ground. Turning to face the cloaked girl, Separ flashed her a small smile. "I'm glad you're safe, but don't run off like that, you had me worried." Only then did Separ's expression turn into a cringe as he punched another goblin only for it to take the blow and swing a mace at him. The mace struck Separ in the side, causing him to grunt in pain. Separ's hands faded of there orange glow for a moment, before restoring themselves as Separ attacked in retaliation, kneeing the goblin in the face and knocking him to the ground. "I don't suppose you have a plan on how to get out of here, do you?" The amount of enemies was much lower here in this area, but Separ knew they'd be overwhelmed if they stayed here for to long.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki slowly stood up on somewhat shaky legs, as she watched the battle rage on. Despite how much the skeletons may be doing, those brittle bones were not going to hold out for long. Frowning, she pulled her scythe out from the ground, and was about to try again, when Separ came around. "Why are you here?!" Frantically asking the man, as she was almost certain he should have ran at the first chance he got. Her attention was diverted a little, as she noticed one of her skeletons crumbling. Turning back to Separ, Suki quickly cobbled together a rather simple plan. "I can create a diversion, then we run." Without waiting for a response, she twirled the scythe around, before embedding the blade once more into the ground, with two skeletons clawing their way out of the dirt. "Alright, let's g-" Pulling her scythe out, Suki was about to start running, when her vision went foggy. Falling down to her knees, one hand braced against the ground, the other letting go of the scythe to cover her mouth, as she coughed multiple times. Pulling back her had, with her hazy vision, she noted the crimson color against the porcelain hand. She pushed herself father than she should have. Quivering, she attempted to stand up, only to collapse onto the ground. "...change...of plans.....you run....I'm in no condition....to move..." Panting these words out, she barely managed to push herself up slightly.</s> <\|message\|>Des A horde of goblins and kobolds snuck up and Rose and ambushed her, dealing out 18 damage in total A grouping of 20 goblins/kobolds split off from Carver's hoard and charged Alula and Furnace and Kelvin</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Chaos. It was the only word to describe it. Kelvin slowly backed away when the hordes of enemies came crashing through, the majority of them ignoring their small group. Their seer had been right on this account. The separate voices were creepy on any account, but he couldn't say that the firepower wasn't appreciated. Their paladin managed to get himself buried- Kelvin had hung back with the others, it was suicide to join that mosh pit. Their midget managed to work his way back, from who knows where, and then suddenly the horde of enemies realized where all this magic was coming from. Kelvin went to one knee and brought up the auto crossbow, aiming at chest height and released five rounds from his clip into the crowd, cranking it back up quickly after each shot. As he loosened his belt pouch and began to reload, he called to their littlest warrior. "Oi, kid! Fight 'em back from us! We are going to need some time!" That said, he turned and moved back, taking up a kneeling position just in front of Alula as he finished reloading, before releasing another round of shots into the crowd- and went back to reloading. "Care to see a way out of this for us, your majesty?" Kelvin slid his pack to the side long enough to extract a stick of dynamite, sliding it into a belt pouch. Just in case.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula wasn't looking all that well. Despite not sustaining a single bit of damage from the horde of goblins, she was fading fast. Or something was. She wasn't hovering quite as far off the ground, and several time she actually touched her feet to the ground as if trying to rebalance herself. She didn't speak to Vis, although she occasionally glanced over her shoulder, reaffirming for herself that the half elf hadn't moved or died. And when Alula did speak it was in a strange language, no longer the common tongue. All of her words seemed disjointed and spacey, as she kept watch and made sure no straggling goblins spotted the spot where Vis was recovering. Her glowing was fading as well, no longer as bright and blinding. She could hear someone moving through the trees, and struggled to lift her staff and aim an attack. She never fired however, as she recognized Kelvin. The girl lowered her staff, muttering weakly. "A man who tangles with death and yet never stays."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Once Alula had stopped turning around, Vis disappeared into the forest, giving the Oracle a wide birth so she could not spot him. He felt a bit more steady on his feet but still a bit shaky. He walked and then he started to jog and by the time he reached the edge of the forest he was sprinting, it seemed that magical healing had a delay when it came to pain reduction. Once at the edge of the forest, Vis dropped to a crouch and winced, clutching his side an clamping his eyes shut, 'so much for magic pain reduction.' he thought to himself as he sank out of the tree line and into the outskirts of the town. As he snuck through the town, he heard yells and cheers as raiders celebrated the destruction of the town and the occasional scream of terror. Slowly approaching the area of the bakery, Vis felt his heart sink to his stomach, there was a rising cloud of smoke coming from where he remembered the bakery to be and once he came around to the street where it operated, his hopes were dashed. The building was blackened and charred, and the windows were smashed along with the doors. Vis crept in and went straight to the kitchen and tears stung his eyes as he saw the table flipped over and the hatch wide open, stumbling to the entrance, he hissed down into the basement. "Any one thare?!" He got no reply, so he stuck his head in and illuminated the room with his green eye, he recoiled instantly and hurled not the floor, heaving until his stomach was empty. Every one was dead and the coppery smell of blood was all that came from the room down below. But Vis had to have hope, he climbed down into the space and regretted it as he splashed into a puddle of crimson. He looked around and bathed everything in a green light, they were all dead, butchered and their limbs strewn everywhere. He was about to leave when he heard a meep, he turned to where he thought he heard it and saw the baker woman who had told him of the basement. She was beckoning weakly towards him, Vis quickly went to her side and dropped to his knees and gripped her hand. "I'm thorry," he whined, tears escaping his eyes, "please forgive me-" her weak smile cut him off and she gripped her hand and nodded towards a crate in the corner. "look after-" she rasped, Vis was about to ask what her what he was meant to look after but her eyes had already closed. He clamped his eyes shut and fought back more tears, before rising and approaching the box. Lifting open the lid he was surprised at what was in side</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was burning. The heat from the inferno was cooking him alive inside his armor, and in a strange place in his mind outside lucid thought, he felt a brief pang of pity for all the roast chickens he had eaten in his life time. A thunderous crack filled his eardrums, and a shockwave pushed into him from behind, bowling him off his feet. Perhaps Kelvin's work, or another display of power from the spellcaster? He hoped for the former as he struggled, unsteadily, to his feet. He was torn for a moment between continuing or returning to try and help the others. The gnome was in the most pressing danger - he carried on his course. He could scarcely see from the blood and smoke in his visor, and so he held it as an act of divine providence (or perhaps profound luck) when he almost literally tripped across a small form laying prone in a pile of rubble. Either this was the gnome or a strangely-proportioned child; either way, they very certainly needed to be removed from this situation. The ground shook nearby, and Carver just made out the silhouette of the Ettin a few meters away. A mighty blow landed, and Carver's armor was rained with chips of wood - apparently, the Ettin hadn't noticed the Paladin, and was preoccupying itself with destroying the village. Carver, with as much stealth as a burning man clad in full plate armor could muster, bent over the gnome. He was agonizingly aware of the fact that his armor was more than hot enough to burn skin at the moment, so he grabbed a nearby curtain that was only burned a little, stamped the fire out of it, and swathed the unconscious gnome in it like the world's largest baby. Then, once more that day, the knight ran. He ran until he could breathe without smoke filling lungs, until the cracking of burned wood faded into the distance. He coughed, still holding the gnome to his chest. His burns ached, hiw wounds bled, and his eyes told him that they wanted to close. He told them to shut up. There were trees here. Carver coughed again, and called out hoarsely: "Alula! Kelvin! Separ! Are you there?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed as Vis tried to sneak away. The half elf wasn't exactly graceful, crashing through the forest on weak legs. Her magic really only worked its best when the injured person stayed still, like she had requested of Vis. She wasn't sure why Vis wanted to return to the destroyed town, and yet she didn't seem to care. At least, most of Alula didn't care. There was the gentle, frantic, voice in the back of her mind. Begging herself to pursue the man before he got himself hurt again. "We have healed him once. It is his own fault if he returns to the fighting. We can no longer afford to endanger the girl." And then an explosion shook the ground. The force of it, even from so far away, shook Alula. She lost focus for a moment, almost loosing her trance. It took considerable effort to keep herself hovering above the ground, and the light in her eyes continually flickered out. "We are loosing energy. We should not have healed the half-elf. We leave ourselves vulnerable. We should leave before anything dangerous continues." But before the girl could float herself away from the burning town, as well as the new companions she had acquired, something stopped her. A voice. And it said a name. Her name. Her real name. Her eyes flickered for a few moments, like a strobe light, before illuminating again. The paladin was in distress, and he was holding someone of equal distress. She hovered her way over to him, appearing between trees like a ghost. "The girl is unharmed and she is glad to see you are alive." Alula looked around, back towards the town. "The half-elf ran back in, if you are wise you will not follow him. You should sit down, and wait for the commotion in the town to die down."</s> <\|message\|>Des The Ettin watched as the people had raced out of the town, but he was to be tending to his burned and scarred foot to chase after. The rest of the raiders cheered and began looting the rest of the town. As Vis opened the crate, he heard a wimper and saw a small girl sitting inside.</s> <\|message\|>Carver The half-elf was still in the town, with the fire and the Ettin and the raiders. Maybe there were others, too; townsfolk who were still alive but couldn't make it out on their own. Carver set Furnace down gently and turned around. "He's hurt," he murmured to the girl. "He needs... help... I'll be back in a few... minutes." He took a step, then another, then a third. This wasn't so hard. Walking was just step after step, after all. Vis and the others were practically rescued already. He was getting quite close to the town now, he was certain - why, he could see the lights from the fires right in front of his eyes. Now he just had to find the half-elf, and everything would be grand. All these thoughts and more ran through the knight's head as he collapsed to the ground at Alula's feet, about a meter away from where he had placed the gnome. Carver tried to push himself back up as he'd done so many times during the day, but found he hadn't the strength. Failing that, he began to crawl, hand on knee, back towards the village. This was somewhat slower, but slow and steady won the race. The half-elf would be rescued, as sure as sure could be. The darkness closed in on the knight slowly and then immediately. A few feet later, he stopped crawling.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Alula was here, but no one else. She was muttering about something though. Seemed to be running out of floating magic too. This wasn't great. If he was going to die with someone, it should be someone more sane than himself. "We need to get moving further from -" And here came Sir Carver. Praise the Sun.... or not. The lump dropped off the wounded midget and then tried to crawl off back to town. Typical paladins; never there when you needed them. Kelvin rolled the armored figure on his back and unlatched the helmet, hissing at its heat as he slid it off. The other man would need to breath. Kelvin left him and eyed the gnome. Nothing he could do there. "It is dangerous, but we can't afford to carry all of these." Kelvin turned to Alula. "I am going to work on a rough shelter, but don't light any fires. We don't need any attention.... besides, with any luck all the invaders will stick around to loot and be off by morning." With that said, Kelvin went about gathering fallen branches and using the shears to clip some bushes. It was just a puzzle, and he was good at those. First, pick an area with close trees, and then use the larger branches as a frame that supports itself. Next, layer on some of the medium sized ones to obstruct vision more, and use the bushes as a light covering to conceal the constructed nature of it all. Luckily, he already had visualized what he wanted. He stood back to look it over, sighing. What he wouldn't give for a saw. It was basically just two rough walls of foliage facing town, with no roof. It was shelter from prying eyes at least. If it started to rain he could put up his tarp. First though... Kelvin moved to the paladin and grabbed him under his arms. Damn was he heavy. He gritted his teeth and dragged the man tug by tug behind the shelter. He picked up the gnome as well and laid him down carefully next to the knight. "I have half a mind to just leave." Kelvin grumbled and let his bag down off of his shoulder, slumping to the ground and examining his crossbow for damage. "So, madam oracle of the flashy lights, I would suggest you take a nap. It only takes one of us to keep watch."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula could tell that Vis was approaching far before he entered the clearing. And yet she was confused. He carried an extra burden with him, of which she did not know. Alula growled. Her staff keeping her propped above the ground. She rubbed her forehead weakly. Her powers were already in a weakened state. If she tried to find out what was happening with the half elf before she was given a chance to rest she would be putting Alula in danger. "The half elf returns." She spoke clearly, over her shoulder at Kelvin. And when Vis broke through the trees to the clearing Alula's expression changed, rather rapidly. Her eyes flashed like strobes. Her face changed from rage, to horror, to joy and then back to expressionless. The half elf had a child. She couldn't tell if his actions were selfish or selfless. To save a child and then bring her into the danger. The oracle remained still, letting Vis approach the group. "This miserable world is full of wonders and tragedy, and to none is it more apparent then the children it holds." She looked up and down Vis, his injuries seemed to be contained and fine. Her healing would be able to hold him over for awhile. What she was really worried about was the girl. Her physical injuries were few, she would be able to heal them easily. But the worst was her emotional damage. Alula could feel every grip of sadness, every anxious shake. She felt them and they felt like her own. She felt a loss for words. "The others are resting over there. You should join them."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat held on tighter to Vis when she heard words, afraid. Though she barely knew the man that she was currently clutching on to, she felt safer with him then she felt in the crate and that satisfied her. "I'm noth thired." Said vis looking into the eyes of the floating oracle with a look of wonder. She looked so strange in this elevated form, Vis looked down at the child in his arms, "Her name with Khat." he stressed the 'T' sound, biting into it so that it sounded like a 'T' and not like a 'th'. Khat lifted her head form the half-elf's shoulder and looked up at Alula with wonder, her mouth slightly ajar as she tilted her head up to bask in her aura, "Vis, what is she?" she asked, her eyes turing form awe to scrutiny. Vis stopped to think for a moment, that was a good question and he didn't know how to answer it, "How abouth you athk her?" "What are you?" she asked, holding onto Vis tighter again and anticipating what the strange floating woman might have to say, she sniffled, trying to find a way to distract herself from her sadness.</s> <\|message\|>Alula When Vis informed her that he was not tired she was ready to leave the conversation. She turned away, perhaps to go check on the others. She wasn't particularly good with children. Or really anyone for that matter. It didn't help that she wasn't entirely herself at the moment. She inwardly cringed when she heard the child and Vis whisper back and forth to each other. She wanted to know what she was. She turned back around, looking slightly irritated. "What we are" she spoke in a pointed voice. "Is a being more powerful then you coul-" She suddenly stopped talking, her expression changing again from anger to a look of tranquility and kindness. She drifted slightly closer to Vis and Khat. She touched her feet gently to the ground, soft bursts of light floating through the grass. She crouched down in front of Khat, wanting to make herself on the same level as the child. The powerful and kind voice spoke through Alula. "My dear child, what we are is not so important right now." She smiled softly. "Time will tell. What you need to know right now is that the girl is rather excited to meet you." She slowly stood up, more soft bursts of light erupting as she pushed herself back into the air. "There will be more time for talking once all this...destruction...is over." She moved away from the girl, giving a final smile to Vis and the girl, before her expression changed to one of disinterest again.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace found himself floating in a delicous bowl of warm soup. Birdcalls and muffled screams played on loop in the distance. "hello again. It has been a while has it not?" Furnace recognised the voice well. "It sure has. I've seen so much since last time." "I predicted your freedom did I not?" The hollow voice grinned without mouth or body, yet it's emotions were clear to Furnace. "You did! And I discovered plants. And food, and friends, and fights and-" "Fights. Yes." The voice interupted Furnace sternly. "And now you've gone and broken yourself you fool." ... "I discovered that too. I can just repair it right?""And what if you break yourself too much one day? To an extent you can't be fixed?" ... "I hadn't thought of that. What happens then? Will I remain broken?" "That is something you will have to find out. Remeber you are more similar to these new.. friends of yours than you are to me." "The friends have given me names for me to call them by. Will you give me yours?" ... "Not until you know your own. Little Furnace. For now go do what you do best. You have barely used any of your potential. Nor have you even touched your negative reserves." "What good is the negative energy!? All it does is hurt!""Ask... the Taster of Smiles." "Who is the taster of smiles!?" Furnace cringed trough the second part of the last sentence. A sharp sting in his shoulder informed him he was awake. Covered in sweat and panting from the exhausting pain he crawled out of the cloth he was wrapped in. As he looked around he saw trees and some of his new friends. He had no idea where he was. But judging by the marks on Carvers skin and armor he had been near him. Was he broken? Was he going to stay broken? He crawled over to the damaged paladin and unceremoneously let himself drop next to him, laying on his back with his good arm on Carver. Slowly he let energy flow from his hands and onto the fallen knights burns. Jolts of golden bright danced along fields of blistered skin until layers reattached, senew regrew and colors turned the right shade of bronze pink. Meanwhile Furnace looked to the other side the strange scented man build something impressive. "Hello again. I'm awake and soon I'll help you build.. that.. But first can you help me?" With his head he nodded at his bloody arm. "I need to repair this. But as is the core will not attach properly. I don't want a crooked arm because I fear it won't work as well. Can you hold it while I pump it full of positive energy?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver When Carver came to, he was struck by the sensation of not being on fire. He took a moment to appreciate how fine it was to not be immolated, then sat up quickly, his head swimming. He'd passed out. Weak. Selfish. Failure. Carver shook his head in an attempt to clear his brain of these thoughts. There would be time for self-loathing later, but not after everyone who could be saved had been. The knight examined the structure he'd been hidden behind for a moment. It was well-constructed, though obviously done in a hurry. Carver suspected Kelvin might be behind its creation - he wasn't sure who else could have thrown it together. He felt a pang of gratitude for the man who had risen to the occasion when Carver's strength had failed him. His was a noble example, indeed. He rose, shakily, and brought his gloved hands up to touch his unhelmed face. No burn marks. Alula's handiwork, or maybe Furnace's - once again, those he was meant to be protecting seemed to be protecting him. He'd have to do better. His head pounding, Carver stepped back into the clearing and was struck by two sights. One, Furnace was conscious, and conversing with Kelvin a short distance away; and two, Vis had returned, bringing with him someone new - a child, staring at Alula with rapt wonder. Kelvin and Furnace's efforts required thanks, thanks he would be sure to give them sooner rather than later. However, for the moment Carver was concerned with the health of the others - Alula, who had displayed such uncharacteristic power, and the girl, whose home had obviously just been burned down. "My lady!" he called out to Alula, managing not to wince from his soreness as he sauntered over to her. "Are you unharmed? I must offer my most sincere apologies for collapsing, as I did. It was... unbecoming of a knight, and will not happen again." He gave a warm smile to the girl and dropped down to a crouch to look her in the eyes. "And who's this one? Child, do not fear. No harm will come to you, not now. I am Sir Carver, Knight of the Sun, and I am very pleased to meet you."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki grimaced as she sat up. Alright, it seems she was going to have to drain someone soon. As she thought about this, her eyes had drifted over towards the man who had carried her out of the town. No, best not to take him yet...perhaps she'll find someone soon. Besides, he did not look like he could take a kiss from her and live, even if she wasn't trying to kill him. Muttering softly under her breath, "Saving someone like me was a waste of time.", she glanced back towards the rubble of the town. Her scythe was still back there. Although she could probably summon and assign an undead to bring it to her, not did not seem like the right time to do so. Turning towards Separ, she smiled. "I'm pretty certain that Kelvin and the paladin would keep everyone else safe. After all, you've only just gathered us today. It would be a horrible joke of the divines to kill us all off." Attempting to reassure the man, Suki looked around. Now that they were semi-safe, they would probably have to find the rest. Although running away now, while the paladin wasn't around, wasn't such a bad thought either.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin If she wanted to stay awake, that was her own business. But when he decided it was time to sleep, he wasn't going to be waking for a while. "The half elf returns." Kelvin nodded in thanks. It was good to have a bit of warning, not that he would have put more than two crossbow bolts on anyone who jumped them, right at the moment. That girl was interesting, seeming to have multiple voices speaking for her at any one time. Personally though, if he had to choose one it would be the more dominant one. It seemed accustomed to giving out orders- not a trait he prefered, but the voice was practical and could hold up a conversation. He would have to see if he could draw it out more often for conversation, no offense to the poor girl it was speaking through. The scarred rogue appeared, carrying a child. Not a great development, but she could be useful. Old enough to do basic tasks at least, and to learn. Kelvin left them to talk to the oracle, instead choosing to do some more work on the shelter, until the gnome awoke."I wouldn't mind some practical help, I suppose." Kelvin looked at the crooked arm and grimaced. "It won't feel pretty for me to set it though. I am no doctor, so I will just have to straighten by feel." He paused for a moment, and felt his own arm up and down, looking intent. It was an odd idea. He knelt next to the small man and carefully felt the arm. If the little guy was moving about with it, he must have decent pain tolerance. "Start when I tell you, not before- and please don't light me on fire." On a burst of inspiration, he picked up a stick and offered it to the poor guy, mimicking biting it with his teeth. Kelvin turned back to the arm and felt gently above and below the break, then suddenly tightened his grip, twisting the arm just slightly and bracing his body against any possible thrashing. "Now." Kelvin chose to look away from this particular event. Even as a man who had seen fingers crushed in gears and blown apart bits of partners, some memories were best left uncatalogued in ones brain. Other thoughts were better. Such as about Separ. Kelvin winced. It was really a shame. He hadn't anything against him or that hooded girl, though he didn't trust her looks. Survival was the main thing for now.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace was staring at the sunset as he heard a thud behind him. He saw Alula lie down in the dirt. Confused he looked at the others, most seemed to either pay no mind or looked concerned. He remembered how he had been wrapped in a large blue cloth when he fell asleep. This was no doubt custom. So he chose not to ask questions and act as if he knew this was normal. He threw the cloth over her and rolled her in it. She seemed unhurt, so giving her some positive energy would only wake her. She did claim she wanted rest right? He could help her with that too... He toyed with ideas of experimentation while he glared at his hand where a diminutive black spark danced eagerly. It would help her sleep... But it would probably hurt... Furnace decided against it. At least until he found the taster of smiles. In the end he just dragged the cloth coccoon over to Kelvin. "You seem to have a plan regarding shelter? Where should she be?"</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin The sound of the arm repairing itself was going to haunt him. Good thing he didn't plan on much rest tonight. It was surprising that the durable gnome was willing to help afterword, but he would take it. Kelvin rocked back on his heels. "Separ hasn't come back yet… give me some time to think." He smiled in a way that he hoped was reassuring. Kelvin sat by himself a bit farther from the others, ignoring the drama of various people working out their social differences. They had a bit bigger issue on hand. That army. It had swept away the town with little trouble, other than the small group they had here, which was more than unfortunate. A show of unnecessary force like that had two possible meanings; this was an intimidation technique, or this was a campaign. Being that the raider's were mostly goblin… it looked closer to a campaign. Which put all of them directly in the path of it. They weren't really far enough from town to be completely safe either. Kelvin was still deep in thought when the gnome carried over a bundle. It was a bit comical to see. "I have been thinking." He motioned for him to put the oracle down, close to where the gnome and Carver had been laying. "I have the gear to put a tiny shelter up, but it won't fit all of us... but besides that, I am not sure we should spend the night here." Kelvin gestured back towards town, the smoke and blood could easily be smelt, and the black clouds made the sunset all the more bloody. "It isn't safe to stay so close. It would only take one enemy wandering about to spot us us." Kelvin lightly tapped his crossbow absentmindedly. "And besides that, they will be moving on eventually. I think we should wait for darkness, take some time to rest, and head for the next town. A force that big will be slower than our group, so with some effort we can warn the next town down the road." If they didn't, then this horde might spread from town to town, eliminating them so fast there were few survivors to spread the warning.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "There are more places like this?" Furnace blurted out in response while he carefully aranged Alula next to their stuff as directed. "And you don't desire this harvesting to happen there as well.." He frowned as he spoke slowly. It was clear he understood on some level. But not why. "So I take it we aren't returning there for the friend collector, that girl and all the wonderfull crafting materials strewn about? Then why even have a harvesting?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ frowned a little bit at the girls words. Sure he really wanted everyone to be fine, but would they? For now all Separ could do was hope that Carver, Kelvin, and all the others had come through. "I really hope they're okay." For a moment Separ and the girl sat in silence for a few minutes before Separ tried to stand up almost falling over in the process. While he had gained a little bit of his energy back, he still would be practically useless in a fight. Remembering he was wearing a backpack he took it off and laid it on the ground and pulled out two tents. Handing one towards the girl he began to ask her "Would you like to stay here for the night? I think I can walk, but it's getting pretty late. What would you prefer to do in this situation? I also have a medical kit in my backpack by the way, so we could always heal ourselves up before dark." Sure Separ did not know the girl very well, but he trusted her. She didn't seem like a bad person after all, especially when she herself practically sacrificed her life when she fell down from over-exerting herself.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver crept through the forest with as much stealth as he was able to muster, which was to say, none at all. Had any goblins been in earshot, they probably could have heard the clanking of his armor from quite a distance away - however, it seemed the sun was smiling on him, and no foes produced themselves. A brief moment later, the knight had another stroke of luck. In another small clearing, Separ and the witch sat in a half-unconscious pile. Carver was immediately gladdened to see Separ well - for a moment, he'd almost despaired for the young man's life. The witch, although, was another matter entirely. Carver had been half of the mind that she was part of the attack in some fashion, but her current condition seemed to belie that. She looked half-dead; pale, sallow, and exhausted. If this was the result of her summoning some magical force to aid in the fight, then perhaps his initial reaction to her had been unfair, whatever she was. "Separ! ... Other lady!" He called out to them as he entered the clearing, in the loudest whisper conceivable. "It's good to see you safe! The others are together, they're nearby. Are you able to walk? I can carry one of you."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis turned away from the clearing and walked towards the burning sun, it's light peaking out from between the gaps in the canopy as he ventured out for a stream or a pond of some sort. The further he got from the camp, he felt an indescribable feeling, it was a mixture of relief and heartache. Soon he had stumbled upon a small pond, fed by 3 trickling streams and hidden by the forest canopy, looking around to ensure he wasn't being followed, he began unbuckling his armor. Once the leather plates dropped off his body, he took off his under clothes and tossed them into a pile next to the bank, so he stood naked by the water. Slowly he slipped in, first sitting down then slowly levering himself into the cool pond using his arms but as he got into the pond, he found that from where the land met the water, it was a vertical sloap downwards for about 3 and a half feet. Vis stood in the water for a moment, to get use to the temperature, before submerged himself completely and opened his eyes, casting a green glow in the dusty water. Small fish swam around, eating the green that grew at the bottom, oblivious to Vis or his light. He emerged from the water and returned to the bank, resting his head on his folded arms and letting the rest of his body float. He decided he'd rest before washing his gear.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly turned to see Carver and smiled at his presence. "Carver, you're alive. I'm glad to see you." Separ put the tents back into his backpack and strapped it on to himself. "I think I can walk, but the girl fell down earlier, so maybe you should carry her. I also have some supplies we could use, including a tent and a medkit." Separ started to walk towards Carver only to stop and stare at the ground. "How..., how many died?" Separ's voice was shaky as he asked, not because he was tired, but rather because he was scared of what the answer would be. Perhaps Carver and maybe only a few others survived? Did the whole town die? Kelvin, the disfigured man, the little gnome, the girl who had healed him, "Phoenix". Just how many were still alive? Were the others injured just as bad as I am? Thought Separ as he slowly walked over to Carver. All Separ could do was silently hope for a good outcome.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Tearing flesh, screams of agony, clanking weapons and clattering teeth. Silence. Hazy blue eyes shot open, cutting the gruesome dreams of the oracle short. She glanced rapidly around the tent she had been placed in, trying to remember what had happened up until this point. Alula attempted to move, but found that everything was burning and aching. It felt like every vein in her body had been set alight. She groaned softly, forcing herself to sit up through the pain. But she found she was still constructed, she had been wrapped in a blanket. That's odd. The girl ungracefully squirmed her way out of the blanket, wincing every time she had to move. But if she didn't get up now she might never move again. Her head hurt. A lot. Voices were talking, softly but still there. They were trying to explain what had happened. Her mind felt fuzzy. She remembered agreeing to join a group of adventurers, and then something had happened. Something bad. The rest was blurs. She rubbed her eyes, wanting to pull down her hat. The voices told her that it was long gone, buried beneath the ruins of the burned town, soon to be found by looters. The cloth that the half-elf Vis had given her lost as well. Tucked up into the rim of her hat for safekeeping. And her staff, that was likely in the field where she collapsed. Collapsed. Somehow she had been broken from her trance. That had never happened before. The paladin. The paladin. She was silently panicking. Why couldn't she remember his name? She had to remember. A calm voice echoed through her head, shoving other voices aside. "Carver. Ser Carver. He was the one." Another grunt as she attempted to stand up, her crippled leg buckling out from under her. With bitter determination Alula got to her feet, leaning all of her weight on her good leg. She looked out of the tent, keeping her eyes cast downward. The sun was setting and she needed to get away.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver put a hand on the man's shoulder. "Do not, my friend. Down that path lies madness. There will come a time to mourn for the fallen and commend their souls to the heavens, but now we must turn our minds to those that may still be saved." The paladin bent down and hoisted the witch none-too gently over his shoulder. "Such as those waiting for us, for example. Kelvin, Alula, the gnome and the half-elf are nearby - I have not seen Rose in some time." Carver turned, and began carrying the witch back to camp.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin "Yeah, a lot more places." Kelvin grimaced and stirred some leaves with his foot. "If the 'harvesting' happens everywhere, there will be no where left to harvest." He turned, laying down. Maybe he would take a rest. Kelvin continued talking, his eyes closed. "They might not be alive anymore. As for the rubble and corpses… they were harvested by someone else. When selfish people want other people's possessions, they take them by force. Harvesting is bad when you take things that other people have, that is why we trade gold for things we want." He opened his eyes to watch Carver move into the woods, noting the elf's absence. That left him alone with the two that needed watched. Luckily, the gnome didn't seem likely to wander, and the oracle was passed out near him. "If you go back, they will harvest you too." His voice had dropped to a low murmur. "Heroism is for the brave." Kelvin had drifted to sleep, propped slightly against the tree with his crossbow in his lap.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was close to lashing out on the gnome. She wouldn't hurt him, or at least not intentionally. Just enough to spook him away from her, so she could sneak off into the trees. She growled, gripping her staff tighter. Her voice was showing that same amount of corruption as before, but far weaker. Her voice lacked confidence but made up for that in anger. "We do not need you to tell us who we are. I know who I am." Alula's luck continued to run out as Carver broke through the treeline, carrying the hooded woman with the punching man behind him. She was hoping he would be able to sense her distress, and pick the gnome off her her, but instead he brought more bad news. More attackers. She didn't have time for this. She couldn't stay. If she did they would have more then just five attackers to deal with. She shook her head when Carver tried to get her up into the tree, his direction would have been disastrous. "No. No no no no." She said, panic and corruption taking over her calm disposition. "I cannot stay and I do not need protection, you do." She shook her head again, looking anxiously up at the sky. The sun was gone and soon the moon would take its place. Without looking at the gathered party Alula moved past them, trying to speed up her limping walk. "I must go." She repeated. She did not fear the enemies in the woods. They should be fearing her. She could see the first rays of moonlight. Her hair was glowing.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver whirled at the sound of the pair's voice. "Friends! Come, quickly. We must make a stand here. Look after the child, half elf. I will draw our foe's attention." Alula stumbled back, staring at the sky. Carver looked at her as she began to stumble away, towards the woods - towards the enemies. As he watched, her hair began to glow again - silver, like the moon. Was she about to enter the same state she'd been in during the battle? That would be catastrophic - there would be no hiding their position from the main body of the foes if she were to begin firing off moonbeams again. She needed to be calmed down before she transformed. The paladin hurried to the girl and spun her around to face him. "My lady," he said, calmy, in spite of the light spreading over her, "If you go into those woods, you will die. You say that we are the ones in need of protection, and this may be so. But I carry my protection with me, and I do not fear. Stay close behind me, and I will protect you. I swear."</s> <\|message\|>Alula She was turned around to face Carver, her glowing hair drifting around her without weight. Her eyes were glowing slightly and her expression was one of restraint. Her entire body trembled, as if something was trying to escape from within her. It was taking all of Alula's strength and resolve to keep herself composed. She seemed to relax for a moment as Carver spoke to her, her glow dying down slightly, but moments later it came back even stronger. Alula trembled again. Even her voice sounded strained. "I do not doubt for a moment that you would be able to protect me." She paused a moment, eyes squeezed shut. "But this is...beyond me..." A shaky exhale, squeezing her eyes shut tighter. "The creatures in the woods cannot kill me, they are too late for that." Alula opened her eyes, brightly glowing and yet still displaying desperation. "You have to trust me. Please." She begged. "I will...return...eventually..." Her voice lacked confidence. "It is only the night. It's who we are. It's part of me." Another violent shake, a curse in a foreign language. "I am dangerous. I don't want to hurt anyone else."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ walked towards Carver and placed a hand on his armored shoulder. "Carver, if she insists on going then we should not stop her. Let us instead focus on fighting by her side. The enemies are dangerous after all, me and the girl back there almost died and this fight may end with the same outcome or worse. Let's just do what we can alright?" Separ turned towards Alula looking at her directly. "I'll back you up any way I can if you have some sort of plan?" Rushing the enemy felt reckless to Separ, but he knew there wasn't much of a choice. Those scouts would find them eventually if they didn't now, defeating them now would be the best option. Though it would probably also be a good idea to relocate camp afterwards, seeing as sooner or later the other raiders will notice the disappearance of this squad. Separ took a deep breath trying to collect himself as he still felt rather tired from everything that had happened. Taking off his backpack he laid it behind a tree a few meters away from the group. Alright, now I can move a little bit better, but still this is going to be tough. Separ turned towards Carver and walking towards him whispered. "So, are you ready to do this then? I'll be right behind you the whole time."</s> <\|message\|>Des The five scouts started to move in closer to where the crew was positioned. One noticed movement and the scouts started racing to where the movement was spotted. Time until they reach the camp: Five minutes of game time</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to Separ hesitantly. "I... yes. You are right. We will do what we can. Stay close behind me, Separ. When their mightiest blows fall upon my guard, that is when you must strike. My lady... do what you must, but stay safe, and keep the light displays to a minimum. Everyone else behind me. Our priority is protecting the child." With that, he strode forward and slowly, rhythmically, began to pound the hilt of his sword against his shield. His mind wandered back to another time, when a much younger man by his name had done much the same thing. Sir Greenvale was striding in front of the line of recruits. The man was like a cliff face - huge, imposing, unyielding. He scanned the line with impassive eyes, and at length asked a question. "Does the Paladin fear pain?" As once, the recruits beat their shields and answered. Clang."No!" "Does the Paladin fear disgrace?" Clang. "No!" "Does the Paladin fear death?" Clang. "No!" "What does the Paladin fear?" Clang. "Failure!" The hammering intensified, growing louder with every blow. Carver would not fail. "On me, friends! They draw near!"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Relief washed over Alula, although she did not relax yet. The possibility of her hurting Carver was still too high for her to relax. And yet her expression visibly softened to a smile, she felt much calmer now knowing that Carver wasn't going to follow her. Her words had finally gotten through to someone. She took a trembling step away from Carver, looking into the woods. "If I am lucky I can sneak around the attackers." She looked up at Carver, and then to the moon, shivering again. "I will try and keep my lights down, if only to protect you, but I am not sure if I will be able to control it." Alula gave a final glance over her shoulder to Carver, opening her mouth as if to say more but then deciding against it. She could explain to him later. She angled her entrance in the woods as a way to flank the enemies. All of her movements became clear and deliberate, her limp dissolving into gentle glides. She moved gracefully through the trees, as if she was passing right through them. Alula looked a bit different from her normal, not glowing, self. But she also looked vastly different from earlier during the fight. Earlier she had cracks of light breaking through her skin, as if her inner forces were fighting against their outer shell. But now she looked more at peace and content, a gentle glow encompassing her whole body. She took a deep breath, trying to remain calm as she drifted through the trees. She could hear the rhythmic pounding of Carvers sword against his shield. The sound reminded her of something, a faded memory from her past. She could feel the dread of the memory in her heart, but her mind was blank. She swallowed nervously, moving as quickly as possible. She wasn't going to hurt him. She was going to hurt any of them.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace It was suddenly crowded in the fields. People were yelling at each other, there were even more people coming with lights. Alula had gotten away and his chance to see what it was that pressured her was gone. Weapons were drawn, the approaching people had fire and weapons also. Had they come to harvest more? We didn't want that. Right? Carver started to beat his sword on his shield repeatedly. Furnace didn't know why the rhythm reminded him of the rhythm of hammer and forge. It was comforting, and though he was conflicted over the idea of forging here in the field he was drawn closer. He stood near to Carver and Separ, close enough that they could see him in the tall grass even when Furnace crouched. "This is no place to have a forge, there is too much fuel here, I won't be able to contain the fire." He pulled out his sword. It was slightly bent and dented. The melting had made the blade a little dull and a little shorter. But it could still hurt. "The glowing girl doesn't want to hurt anyone. I want to help her do that. If that means I have to hurt these people in her stead, I think I want to hurt these people. What do you think?" Furnace stared at Separ and Carver on either side of him. "Do you want to hurt these people?"</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin awoke to the ringing of metal on metal, his eyes snapping open. He was disoriented for just a moment. The forge? It had been years since he last had worked metal. Falen had always been an early riser though. He rolled onto his side and found his face two feet from the hooded girl's. "No… what happe-" His face contorted in horror and he rolled the other way, standing upright before realizing where he was. Color slowly returned to his face. This wasn't the inn. He took a deep breath before looking around, spotting the lights moving through the forest towards their small opening in the trees, and more importantly, Carver and Separ squaring up to meet them. At his feet was that woman. However those two had gotten here, it was fortune. First things first. Kelvin quickly repacked his bag, glancing about to make sure there were no misplaced items before slinging it over his shoulders. It took only a moment to fill up the crossbows chamber, loading two more slugs from his belt pouch to bring it back to full clip. Alright. The seer was… He glanced about, not seeing a trace of her, unless the glowing in those trees a bit farther off was her. "Elf, grab the kid, we need to move." Kelvin looked down and knelt, allowing his crossbow to hang off the sling he had made earlier and picked up the black haired beauty, allowing the blanket to fold over her a bit. "Lady, you are heavier than you look. Can't tell if it's you or the dress though." Kelvin grunted to himself and hoisted her a bit higher, adjusting his arms under her legs and shoulder. Truthfully, she wasn't horribly heavy, but he could only go so far like this. "Fair warn'n though. If I need to shoot, I'll be droppin' yeh." Not that she could hear him, but whatever. Kelvin headed diagonally away from where Carver and Separ were making their stand, intending to walk parallel to the Seer and away from both the town and the fight. As long as he and the other guy stuck together, they should be alright. At least, as long as the elf knew how to use that sword. Hopefully Carver was smart enough to realize that he would need a head start if the force in town realized what was happening.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ sighed as he listened to the man's words. This guy was unbelievable, trying to get him to feel guilt over something he had nothing to do with, as well as wanting payment to boot. Without turning around either Separ replied with. "I have never seen a person burn alive, I'll give you that. But what does this have to do with anything? Yes it was your daughter, and I feel sorry for your loss. Nonetheless, we're human too. Just because Carver has a sword doesn't mean he's some unstoppable juggernaut. I'm not invincible either, none of us are. We're only human, well excluding the gnome and the elf, but while I do wish I could have saved the town I know I'd just add to the death pile. I barely escaped with my life, and," motioning towards the cloaked girl who was still fast asleep. "I managed to save her life as well. That's as much as I could muster, so sorry if I'm not Mr. Superhero the fourth. Also don't expect much money out of me, I mean I'll help out, but from what I can tell, you appear to be no good. I just hope the only reason you're acting like this is because you just lost your town and family. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Goodnight." And with that Separ finally entered his tent and fell asleep, exhausted from such a long day of fighting.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat nestled herself between the pillar like roots of the oak tree, looking small among the woody tendrils of the massive plant. She nibbled into the bread, looking as if she were not hungry, however she was starving but her seized up heart wouldn't let her eat, like a lump in her stomach taking up all the space. As the man spoke of his burning daughter, she shrunk further and further into the recess between the roots, until she was as small as she could be, her head between her knees and her arms pulling them towards her chest. She had lost her appetite. To her own frustration, she started to cry, ever so quietly so she could not be heard. Vis turned away from the flickering flame and cast a green light behind him with his cursed eye, his heart stumbled over itself and reached out to the little girl, his green light softening to almost nothing. He moved towards her, taking his time to shove his way past the new guy to express his feelings. Vis crouched at Khat's feet and looked at her before he spoke. "You're muther wouldn'th wanth you crying, you know thath, righth?" he asked her gently, putting a hand on her's. She shook it off harshly and barked in his face. "How would you know?!" She had had enough, bursting into tears she launched herself at Vis and clung to him, thumping his back with her balled up fists as she wept, "I've got no one! No one but a dumb half-elf!" Vis knew her rage was only fueled by her grief but her words still hurt. Soon she grew exhausted and fell asleep, her face tear stained and her long red hair tangled and matted from her thrashing. Vis rested his head on the tree as he sat, the girl sound asleep on his lap. "Whath am I thoo do?" he mumbled to himself.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver watched Separ enter his tent. The man was generous in his defense of Carver, but ultimately, misguided. It had not been his responsibility to defend the village, nor Kelvin's, nor Vis's. When Carver put on the armor, he swore an oath - he made the defense of all things good and peaceful his responsibility forevermore. The refugee's words were compelling, however. Truly, the man had lost much, endured much, and he deserved to be heard out at the least. "If you do take responsibility," said the refugee, "I do expect reparations. Safe passage to other towns. The lives of people are not insurable, but I expect at least the compensation for everything I've lost. I'm a merchant who had a pretty penny to his name. I've lost a lot. This would mean paying off a large monetary debt, however long it takes." Without him even realizing it, Carver's upper lip curled into an expression of disgust at the words. "So that's it, then? Money." The paladin rounded on the man, hands clenching into fists. "You speak of money when homes are gutted and pillaged. You speak of money when innocents are slaughtered, women defiled, children burned. You've borne witness to carnage indescribable, and yet you have words for your fortune?!" The knight was shouting now, the full weight of his fury bearing down on the man. "What I failed was beyond sums and figures. The peaceful life that was taken from those villagers was worth more than all the coin you could ever put your hands on. I will live in penance for this failure and for many others, but I will not spend my days recompensing a miser his 'pretty penny.'" Carver turned to walk towards his tent. Almost as an after-thought, he yanked his coinpurse from his side and tossed it over to the man. "There. Ten coins, all the money to my name. Take it, if you value it so greatly. I do not care for its stink." With that, the paladin entered the tent, still bristling with indignation.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Only human, of course, that was likely where their value fell short. Only human. Though, he had to wonder - did the brawler come back out only to argue with him, then go back to bed once more? Was arguing with a supposed refugee so important to him? A supposed refugee who had supposedly lost so much? It was adorable, to say the least. Now, back to business... with Carver. He felt that his delivery was smooth and tactful, yet the paladin seemed to have interpreted his words in such a different way. Taken at face value instead of being contemplated upon. Indeed, these holy knights were valued for their initiative, though Arastoph felt they were too quick to act. As the paladin stood at his full height, raining his anger down upon the merchant, Arastoph held his composure but at least kept his eyes wide with intrigue and leaned back - if not to avoid the spittle from the knight's rage as he flung his coins at his lap. He watched the paladin retreat into his tent, annoyed at how poorly negotiations went this time around. Arastoph sighed aloud, then spoke up in a calm and easy voice, in his attempt to temper the paladin's ire. "Perhaps I should have clarified, Carver... but clarifications or no, I wouldn't have expected you to be so naive as to jump to conclusions so quickly without asking me to explain myself. Money is required if I am to rebuild my life. Money is the only thing that our society cares about. Without it, I'm as dead as I would have been back in Ravenwood." Arastoph paused as the reality of his previous situation sunk in. He really could have died. "I just ask that I receive the resources that would allow me to rebuild. As much as I would love to spend the rest of my days grieving over my parted kin... I will make it a mission to carry on; if just for her." He ended his explanation there, not expecting an answer back from the paladin. He hoped, at least, that the knight would hear what he said and consider it. Sleep on it. Arastoph looked around the camp that had suddenly grown quiet. He never was much of a sleeper. Less so outdoors, and less so among strangers. Especially if one or two of those strangers distrusted him. The most he will be able to do this night is to rest his eyes, and listen to the excited activity of the forest.</s> <\|message\|>Alula The rest of the night was rather eventful for Alula. She had returned to the field where she first departed from the group, only to discover that her allies were nowhere to be found. Not only that, but the space at one point had been occupied by raiders. Likely the same raiders that Alula was able to drive away. Alula had considered this a sign, and was ready to leave with Alula to find a newer and quieter location. But a quiet, anxious, voice in the back of her mind urged her to keep searching for the rest of her friends. Of course Alula knew where they were, it wasn't difficult to locate them. They had not yet fallen asleep, and Alula knew she had to wait until at least the majority of them had gone into their tents. After waiting for awhile she noted that all who remained were the current watch, as well as a few stragglers. It disturbed her that the half elf and girl stayed outside. There was also a new presence, two in fact, but she would leave those to the morning. Alula drifted into the field where they had decided to make camp. She looked up at the moon with a smile. She felt much better, much stronger, now that she had had her time to bask out in the moonlight. All she had needed was some alone time to charge. Her glow as much brighter then before, as if she was her own light in the sky. She looked over at each of the tents. The girl seemed content to rest outside. "Child, you are lucky I was given control this night. But your luck will not continue for long. You will have to tell the others, despite that scaring you." She drifted silently through the field, avoiding the gaze of the watch. With a soft sigh Alula floated gently to the ground, the tall grass seeming to pull towards her. Her light slowly dimmed out before leaving Alula completely to sleep in the grass. And she would remain there until morning.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin nodded wordlessly as the elf came over, taking on the burden of both a small child and the young woman himself. He sighed with relief as she was lifted off of him, though the relief came from the release of responsibility, rather than weight. He kept his eyes closed as they trudged deeper into the darkening forest. Alone. It was really his choice now. Continue with their few companions, and bind his fate to theirs, or maybe give up and let worst roll over him. With the others, he had no choice, as their lives became tied to his decisions. Now however, at least those two girls would survive. He had done his duty. Kelvin remained there peacefully, crossbow ready on his lap, until Carver's nearing calls brought him to wakefulness. I guess my story isn't finished quite yet. ~~~TimeSkip~~~ Setting up camp was a simple task, one that he relished. Proper supplies. It was great fortune that Separ had procured supplies before fleeing the ruins. The tents were fine, if they crammed in, but there wasn't a way to stretch the sleeping rolls between so many people decently. Some would go without. Even so, setting up the tents was quick and automatic for him, so Kelvin took pleasure in working with both Separ and the little Gnome, answering questions freely. Even so, it was late when they had finished the cold camp. No fires tonight. He waved a hand in Carver's direction as the watch order was called. "I'll take the double watch. I don't mind the time to think." Kelvin yawned and held up a hand to forestall an inevitable paladinish protest. "Look at it this way, not only have you been fighting today, but you need to be at your best for tomorrow. Let some of us take the smaller loads so you can focus on bigger challenges." He sat back against a tree- not far from the girl- to watch the slight debate between the newest rescued villager, Carver, and Separ. He personally didn't like the way this conversation was going, mostly because he probably had more valuable stuff than anyone else here, save possibly the paladin's armor. On the other hand, he didn't quite feel like crossing this guy either. The man looked more edgy than that half-elf, so Kelvin chose to keep out of the mess. He retired soon after Separ, sparing a thought for the missing Seer, though not for long. She probably had better protection than they could afford. His last act was to move the strange girl he and Vis had carried into a tent, rolling her onto a sleeping bag. Kelvin then proceeded to choose the tent farthest from hers to sleep in. He wouldn't have been able to live with himself if she had woken up with him still in the tent with her. She had too much fun toying with the heads of men, and it was frustrating. Kelvin pulled his backpack into the tent with him, finding himself sharing with the gnome. Not a bad companion, though he still took care to arrange his things away from the creature. No need for accidents. With that taken care of, the engineer let out a breath and let himself sink into sleep.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ woke up in a cold sweat as he realized he had just had a nightmare. Try as he might though he couldn't seem to remember anything about the dream at all though. All he could remember was that there was a training dummy he had been practicing on, but what had happened after that? Shaking his head Separ got out of bed to scared to fall back asleep for now, especially since they had been chased by the raiders before. Now was not a time to sleep, but a time to retreat and get away from this area. He quickly packed up his sleeping bag putting it into his tent, but waited to take down his tent for now to see how the others had been faring. Taking a glance around at where everyone was Separ quickly found Carver and strode up to him. "Sleep well last night?" He asked happily, unaware that there was now a new member of the team. Separ's stomach grumbled suddenly however. He had not gotten much of a chance to eat yesterday after the raid occurred, and while Separ felt a little bit better after his rest, he was now hungry and also a bit thirsty. "I don't suppose anyone has managed to procure some food before..." Separ paused for a moment trying to find the right words to say, but ultimately came up short. He instead just glanced to the side avoiding direct eye contact, muttering the name of the town that had just been destroyed instead, the town known as "Ravenwood."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis heard the call for food, and staggered to his feet, Khat got up to try and help him but he gestured for her to stay down. He shambled over, exhausted from his on and off sleep and slightly tripping on rocks and roots as he staggered over to the small group. Once among them, he slipped off his pack and opened it up, reveling the stale loaves in the bag. he darted his hand in and broke off a pice for breakfast, "I had inithially boughth enough for our original group, but I'd be glad to share with the new comers form my bread," He broke off a piece from his loaf and presented it to the new comer, the one who had foretold of his turing daughter and in a sharp hiss, he whispered to hm, throwing his voice into the man's ear so only he could here, "You bether noth thake her money, that is her hath and if you do, I'll thake it back and then some." He thrust the bread into the man's hand and staggered off, even more exhausted then before, he returned to Khat and collapsed by her side. "Did you get me any?" "You thtill have the chunk from yestherday, finish thath."</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph rolled his eyes at the child. Was the thing brain-damaged? Actively walking up to a group of strangers, and then sleeping next to the largest man there? And then this... this thing, this cretin has the audacity to look at him and trying to decipher meaning of his own existence? Labeling him as evil? Nay, evil was subjective. But even amongst subjectivity, mankind was the true evil of the world. He was just now labeled evil by an ignorant little child, when he was the product shaped by mankind's hand. He pointed out the young girl that had come through last night and asked if they were together (an absurd assumption, obviously, as helmets do not associate knights of the same order). This grabbed the attention of the girl, and she too had approached. She had marched towards him, her face angry and her eyes were literally glowing. His hand subtlety moved to touch the grip of his stiletto out of suspicion. "Born into this world, pure and yet hated." She said. Arastoph blinked. The girl continued, "To attune for crimes never committed. A full life never to live." At this moment, Arastoph was slightly disturbed, and very much irritated. He scolded, "if you wouldn't mind, the both of you can keep the preposterous divinations to yourselves." The girl, once appearing angry, looked soft. Then subsequently neutral. Surely there was some damage in this one, much as there was in the child. However, she did something unexpected; she motioned towards the hat resting on Arastoph's shoulders, which was kept from falling with a last-minute modification made of a strip of wool. She showed him a coin purse and nudged. Ah, so already there was a business prospect? Interesting. Unfortunately, there was more than one monkey in the group. Another one, the one with the glowing eye (who Arastoph had assumed had no reason to distrust him, and though he was simply being an ass) approached him with some bread and used a peculiar skill that made his voice sound as though it was right next to his ear. Granted, not expecting the speech impediment present in the half-elf's voice caused the trader to miss most of what he was trying to tell him. But the general message was clear: "don't take the money, or else". Arastoph rolled his eyes. He played out the scenario in his head. This man walks up to a merchant, tells him not to conduct business appropriately as the merchant is wont to do, and threatens the merchant if he does. Arastoph simply laughed to himself softly. He didn't fear a crippled monkey, especially not one so harebrained, and especially not in the presence of the paladin, Carver. While they may have gotten off on the wrong foot, he was sure that Carver wouldn't let anything happen outside of what he deemed moral regardless of who was the victim. He overheard the girl asking the fool for more bread. An entertaining idea entered his head, that selling the piece of bread offered to him to the girl would be the ultimate dismissal of his threats. That and he didn't trust food handed to him by strangers. Especially by a stranger who had threatened him. If poison were the case, giving it to the girl would sure draw him out on his intentions. But in the case of taking these people's money, Arastoph had no qualms. He didn't identify with them. He wasn't one of them. He was a merchant. One who fabricated a life lost. He didn't owe these people anything. Perhaps he'd sell the bread after he dealt with the girl and the hat. 'Conducting business is how I've lived my life, and that isn't going to change because a jumped-up elf got pissy. These people are as much patrons as anyone else.' Despite the warning, Arastoph accepted the whole coin purse into his hand, and began counting the pieces. Not too terrible much, but he was surprised to find this kind of pocket money in a group of vagabonds like this one. He counted up a total of a hundred sixty-five pieces. Not bad. The hat may not be worth that much, but none of these people knew that. They couldn't determine the value of an item like he could. "One hundred and sixty-five pieces?" Arastoph asked, sounding somewhat pleased. "That isn't a bad offer. Though this hat and its craftsmanship does seem rather valuable. I apologize, but I think I could probably fetch a better price someplace else. Perhaps even in the next town over."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki wanted to laugh as she saw the interaction between the merchant and the rest. Covering her momentary lapse with a light cough, she set her expression to as neutral of an appearance as possible. Despite her efforts, the corners of her mouth still quirked up slightly. This merchant was just like the rest of the merchants she 'played' with. Getting everything as cheaply as possible, before burning the other party for as much gold as possible. It was similar to how she easily received 'gifts' from men for doing just a small 'service'. "She's probably the only one you can try that on." With a bemused tone, she couldn't help but to comment on the merchant's actions.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula twiddled her thumbs anxiously once Arastoph finally took her coin purse. Before the man could acknowledge her money, however, Vis came over. Even with the half-elf attempting to conceal his voice, Alula could hear him. Blame it on her being rather perceptive, or because she is used to hearing whispers in her ears. But Vis had threatened the merchant, much to Alula's dismay. She resisted the urge to glare at the half-elf as he returned over to his tree. In reality the last thing anyone would want to do it threaten a merchant. She tried to keep her expression neutral when the man counted out her money, and said it was more expensive then that. It was obvious that Alula was in distress, however. Hazy eyes widened and her hands began to twitch again. She thought quickly about everything she owned. She needed to keep her staff, it was her only way of moving as well as casting. She bent over, slightly awkwardly because of her crippled leg, and took off her sandals. They had tiny pictures of moons and stars stitched into the canvas. They looked well worn, but maybe they would sweeten the deal. Alula then patted down her sides. She could feel her knife through her robes. She reached into her robes and pulled the knife off of her belt. It was a beautiful dagger, iridescent paint shining in the sun, but she never found herself using it in combat. She knew the knife was important to her, or at least that's what the voices told her, but her hat was more important. She held the sandals and the dagger out to the merchant, trying to keep the desperation out of her eyes. She got the horrible feeling that this might not be enough either. But that was everything she owned. Alula glanced around at her companions. Most of them were broke already.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin bolted upright in the tent, looking around hesitantly. Had that been a dream, or reality? He closed his eyes, rehearsing it in his mind a few times so it wouldn't fade so quickly as dreams normally do. It was strange. Kelvin waved aside the tent flap and glanced out to make sure no one was near before turning away and sliding off his glove. There it was. It made no sense to him though. The engineer examined the writing closely, and flexed his grip. It didn't seem to make much difference, so he pulled the glove on and gathered his gear, tying the sleeping roll to his pack. That finished, rolled up the gnome's sleeping gear as well and hauled it out of the tent after him, turning to repack the tent- the most important part of breaking camp was efficiency. That done, he turned and moved to each of the unoccupied tents, rerolling bedding and taking down tents as he went. He put any misplaced possessions in a small pile next to the other piles, one of tents and one of sleeping gear. Of course, while he did this, he could see what was going on in the background. The girl was up and flirting. It was like she lived off of it. Though it was entertaining to see the merchant turn her away, with more success than Kelvin managed. The elf looked like he had been dragged through the underworld and back, and acted like it too. Kelvin grimaced and tossed the last sleeping roll he had been working on onto the pile. It would be a shame to make separ carry all of it, though Kelvin did have one sleeping roll on him. It wasn't until the fool seer held out her sandals and dagger that Kelvin swept in. A slight grin tugged at the corners of his mouth as he did so though. He hadn't worked in the merchant sector for a blacksmith and chemist for nothing. Kelvin put a hand over the sandals and knife, pushing the girls hands back towards her. "Oh, come now, there is no need for that." He offered a smile the merchant. "See, we are a bit busy, and don't have much on us. But we do need our equipment. I see you are a savvy man, so why don't you join our crew?" Kelvin waved his hand at the other companions. "None of us are great bargainers, and it would be nice if we had someone who could manage our funds. You can take care of equipment, and we'll let you handle the trades." Kelvin shrugged. "Besides, say you need funds to get back on your feet? Why not earn it from us. I am sure you can turn over plenty of cash if you stick around." He nodded at the coins in the other man's hand. "Consider that a down payment for your services… Though I am sure that both Carver, the elf, and the seer would be appreciative if you gave her hat back as a sign of good will." Kelvin hoisted his pack a bit. "Anyway, with that put to the side, I was wondering if you would be interested in helping me in a more… lucrative business venture? As you can see, I am a bit of a craftsman..." Kelvin raised an eyebrow and twirled a stick of dynamite.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Ah, this was good. She offered her fancy knife and even the shoes off her feet for the hat. Clearly this meant a lot to her. He could probably squeeze some more out of her, but he couldn't just get every drip from a cow and expect it to produce more later. Not in a timely fashion at least. There was also the matter of prying eyes, and he had to keep an impression. He would refuse the sandals, but the dagger was a nice touch. It was quite the pretty one too. He could probably sell that off in the next market for a fat coin purse. Just as he was to accept the bargain, another interruption had occurred 'Gods be damned, they really have it out for me.' The man insisted that the trade was unnecessary. Insisted that they had little money and equipment. However, Arastoph's eyes narrowed as soon as the man started setting some honey. Praised him. Buttering him up. In a crowd like this one, where every other person seemed to have it out for him, he was naturally skeptical. Then he followed it up with an offer to join the band of dropouts. He felt tempted to immediately reject the offer. Though being an experienced negotiator, he held his tongue and waited for what else he had to say. The man continued, "None of us are great bargainers, and it would be nice if we had someone who could manage our funds. You can take care of equipment, and we'll let you handle the trades." An interesting prospect, to be sure. Granted, if he were to be this... what, guild? This guild's official fence, then he should be expecting payment. They said they were poor. But at least being their fence would supply them with the money needed to pay him. The idea of working for someone else, though, was uncomfortable. "Besides, say you need funds to get back on your feet? Why not earn it from us. I am sure you can turn over plenty of cash if you stick around. Consider that a down payment for your services... though I am sure that both Carver, the elf, and the seer would be appreciative if you gave her hat back as a sign of good will." Earn it from them was the key phrase. He suggested that he worked for them, and Arastoph did not take orders well. The trader sighed at this idea. Arastoph started, "I do not work for others. I am, however, not opposed to the offer of participating in a business relationship in which we are both separate parties. I can provide my services in exchange for compensation, but I do not take orders. That in mind..." Arastoph shook the coin-purse. "This is a generous down payment. However, you did intrude upon a separate business transaction being made before we've signed our contract and shook on it." That isn't to say he completely disrespected the man. He followed his offer up with another. Apparently the man was an engineer, and showed him his dynamite. His eyes lit up at the sight of it, and he smirked at the engineer. This would make quite the bang in the black market. He'd have to continue his search for contacts before he started introducing them to the market though. Arastoph will agree. On the proper terms, of course. The merchant cleared his throat, ready to set the boundaries of their deal being made. "I will agree upon the following conditions: this arrangement is based upon the mutual understanding that we are two independent and consenting parties, meaning I am under no obligation to follow any order issued by any member of your party. However, failure to uphold my end of the deal, or failure to uphold your end of the deal, will terminate this contract. All major transactions exceeding a twenty-five percent threshold of total monetary savings must consult me with their decision. Income based upon the transaction I, myself, have performed will be divided in a manner where I will receive thirty-five percent of the profit made on behalf of your party, and the rest goes to your party where it will be divided evenly between all members. On top of which, continued services will be maintained by two hundred piece payments monthly. "We both accept that I will be payed one hundred and sixty-five piece down payment prior to services beginning. I am forbidden to perform trades with members within your party that charges them an amount which exceeds a two hundred percent threshold of the actual value of my product or service. In addition, I am also forbidden to receive greater than thirty-five percent of the profit made during trades on behalf of your party. Business and trades on behalf of my party is unrelated to the business of your party and cannot be held accountable by the bindings of this contract. This contract does not bind other potential contracts made with other members of your party and of my party as long as they are made on an individual basis and does not pertain to the welfare of your party. I will also be given protection. Not just from the members of your party, but also from the hazards that could occur whilst traveling." Arastoph took a deep breath, and rolled his eyes. He would have to write that down alter. Much of the deal had a lot pertaining to himself and what he would receive. Of course it did. An arrangement like this has much that can be taken advantage of, and he had no intention of being taken advantage of. Granted, there was enough in their favor that hopefully the engineer would see it as fair. A thirty-five percent cut may seem large, but these people haven't seen what he was capable of just yet. He looked back at the seer girl gave her a sly smile with a twinkle in his eye. "That does mean that the money you give me will go to a different transaction. But given the opportunity offered to me is a fair replacement, the dagger you offer is sufficient. Would you like to continue the trade?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was pleasantly surprised, and relived, when the merchant refused to take her shoes. At least she got to keep those. She was about to hand over the knife, when Kelvin stepped in. He pushed the knife and shoes back into her hands, and began to speak with the merchant. Everything the man was saying was confusing her. Was Kelvin helping her? All she wanted was her hat back. She bent over, again almost losing her fitting, and put back on her shoes. Once the two were finished speaking Arastoph turned back to her. He asked her if she would be willing to part with the dagger for the hat, not to mention that she had already given up all of her gold for it as well. She didn't really care about the money, she just wanted her hat back. She nodded eagerly, handing him the dagger and in exchange she was given her hat. The little woolen string was a nice touch, it would be much harder to loose now. Tugging her hat down over her eyes, finally content to keep her face away from the sun and the others gaze, she smiled.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace had nodded and stared into the sunrise while his new friends discussed complex theories of trade and commerce. He could barely follow the story but the gist of it seemed Kelvin and Vis testing the new man on the subject. Perhaps they needed to measure his abilities? The new man's words were fast and impressive. His knowledge of movements of gold seemed extensive. It was clear he intended to boast his talent, even when Furnace couldn't really catch on to what exactly the talent was. He would trade for them? Furnace had already learned how that went, but he had not heard anything this complex. This all sounded like a school of magic he'd never heard of. One specialised in reading the movements and fluctuating values of gold? That would be.. Aurumancy? Making this man an Aurumancer. Impressive. "Uhm... Can you explain your spells in a way the uninitiated understand."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis made himself comfortable in the cradle of roots and rested, closing his eyes from the soft rays of the morning sun, a soft light of his own spilling past the shut eyelid of his green eye. He was tired and could not bring himself to eat the bread that he got for himself and instead, shook it in Khat's direction, her hand snatched out instantly and took the bread. She gobbled it down, stuffing it into her mouth and early chewing before swallowing, she didn't realize how hungry she was. Once finished with the chunk of stale bread, she turned to thank Vis but closed her mouth when she noticed him lying there, his chest rising and falling evenly, a sign of sleep. She mentally shrugged, before walking over to where he deposited his bag, among the rest of the group, to break off another piece of bread from their shared loaf. As she did, she looked up at everyone with a level, cool look. They were interesting, that was for sure but she only knew one of their names, the Knight's, Carver. She spun on the spot for a moment, looking at everyone before her eyes fell on a cloaked lady, the one who had not been so maliciously swindled by the merchant for a pointy hat. She shuffled over, nibbling her new piece of bread, as the last one had sated most of her appetite. Khat tugged the woman's cloak gently. "Hello."</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin This guy is as slippery as an oiled dwarf. Kelvin grimaced at both the mental image and the man in front of him as he listed off his conditions. The guy was throwing out numbers and conditions like he had contracts memorized… and he probably did, looking at him. Kelvin repeated the terms in short in his head, trying to think them over. Unfortunately, while he was good at math, economics were not his strong suit. There were some unmentioned holes, but he could use those to his own advantage. The terms looked alright, but no reason not to argue them down if he could. "I don't accept." Kelvin let it roll off his tongue the moment the seer had her hat back. "If you want to trade with us, you will do it fairly, at no more than half again the market price." He scratched his beard, "And only a hundred monthly, unless you want to supply your own food and sleeping gear, and you take twentyfive percent of profit made in trades on the parties behalf, if you also want a fair split of any treasures we find along the way. Otherwise, you are on your own for loot." Kelvin wasn't quite sure they were going to be able to afford another hundred gold a month, but if this guy could keep his word… "I recommend you take that deal." Kelvin waved his hand at the gold and shrugged. "Unless you have a different offer, because I am sure we can find other uses for that gold than stuffing your pockets. It looks to me like you need it more than we do." Kelvin spared a glance at Separ and Carver. Carver to make sure the knight was witnessing what was happening, and Separ because the guy was technically their leader. "I hope this won't take too long, after all, we do have one or two enemies a mile or more that way." Kelvin gestured towards the forest, roughly where they had come from.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace eyes brightened in excitement. "Exotic words? Spontaneously appearing? Sounds like magic! And you know it? Please tell me about it. What kind of energy is it? What's it's purpose? Can I learn it?!" While any other would have picked up on Alula's discomfort and concern immediately Furnace completely failed to notice. His mind immediately swarmed with questions and half answers. Memories of lessons on spell-craft long ago. All magic is energy given shape and purpose. The shape is like a vessel for the energy, an instruction that spends the energy to rewrite the laws of nature to a purpose. The purpose is chosen by the entity who gives shape. Shapes can be learned. The most potent shape, the hardest to master but the most versatile of all shapes, is the word. The voice had refused to teach him how to use words, said it didn't suit him. He had affinity with the natural path, the path of learning to shape energy trough intuition. But that didn't stop Furnace from desiring this knowledge. And suddenly an opportunity stood before him.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula leaned back, eyes wide with shock, when Furnace began to ask her questions in his excited tone. He was smiling, which was a bit of a surprise to Alula. He didn't fear her. Everyone she had ever met eventually became scared of her power. Albeit, he didn't know everything about her. Regardless, it was nice to have him excited. She leaned back forwards, smiling herself. "Yes the words are quite different from what you would see in this world. It's not in a common language or elvish or gnomish." She decided to skip around in his questions. "The words themselves, while not of this realm, are not magic. What is magic is how they got there." Alula looked around, making sure they were far enough away from the group that no one would overhear her. Especially Carver and the children. "I am an Oracle, one who gets power from the moon. Much like how Carver finds his strength in the sun. The marking on your forehead is the result of one of my powers." Alula considered explaining further, but decided to stop there. She felt rather dizzy all of a sudden, pulling her hat down over her eyes. "As for you learning it...I would say...it would be rather impossible..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace listened intensely to her explanation. While he studied her words he thought of the way he could get a hold of energy from deep inside and send it outwards. He saw a mental image of how he'd move his hands to manipulate the strands and strings that flow trough the ether. The image shifted to Alula plucking strings from the sky, weaving sharp beams of moonlight with grace and ease. Then his imagination shifted to an opposite. Carver making the same movements under the sun, weaving bright lances of sunlight with strength and vigilance. Both receiving their power, flowing down from the heavens in a shower of inspiring patterns. These were energies of a nature strange to Furnace. Like the positive and negative they were two sides of a coin, but that was were the similarities stopped. "I understand. Complex forces don't come as natural to me as the more simple energies like light and dark. Or heat." Furnace looked defeated, yet still curious. He carefully touched his forehead. "What words are there here?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Hmm, I suppose it would be better to have some sort of back-up in case I have to fight. Alright, you can come with me." Separ then looked towards Kelvin, however from Kelvin's expression he realized he wasn't going to get that stick of dynamite. He'd have to make due without it. "Okay, once we rescue the girl, all three of us will meet you at the next town over okay? If we don't show up in a few days after you arrive, something must have went wrong and you don't have to wait for us. With that being said, let's go!" Separ swung his hand forward pointing into the direction of the Ravenwood, the fallen town. A long walk was ahead of them, but with any luck they'd be able to find the girl and escape without detection. *** A few hours of walking had past and now both Separ and Vis were nearing Ravenwood. Separ cautiously moved forward, sneaking towards the town while hiding behind all manner of trees and shrubs. The town of Ravenwood could now be seen, and Separ figured they had at least a mile left til they reached it. As Separ approached closer, he felt more nervous though, as every little noise was thought to be an ambush of some kind. Eventually however, they both finally made it to the outskirts of town without running into any raiders. Here was where things got interesting though. Without the cover of the trees, only the debris of fallen buildings could hide their presence, and with the girl nowhere to be found, it was only a matter of time until Vis and Separ would be spotted. "What now?" Separ asked himself, as he slowly examined his surroundings. The only thing he could make out were some raiders which all seemed to be occupied or to far away to notice him, as well as the one giant ettin. Separ examined his options, but wasn't able to think of anything other than just picking a random direction. So instead he looked towards Vis and shrugged, "I don't suppose you have any bright ideas do you?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula It seemed like a member of their party was in trouble, Alula could feel it. But she also knew that the women had hidden strengths, and was more then capable of taking care of herself. She didn't mention any of this as Separ and Vis made plans to go after her. She wondered if it would really take them days to find Suki. They were likely to run into trouble. Alula peered out from under her hat, as if waiting for the gnomes expression to change. Hrs it'll seemed excited, and inquisitive. She was pleasantly surprised, as well as relieved, when he ceased his questions. It was true, lunar energy was quite complex. She had trained her entire life and even then some to become as proficient as she was. Alula smiled when he asked what was written on his forehead. She moved closer and moved her hat and hair away from her eyes, in an attempt to make herself see better. She studied the markings intensely before leaning back away from Furnace. She covered her mouth, as if suppressing a laugh. If the girls teachers could see her penmanship now they would be appalled. Alula smiled, uncovering her mouth. "These symbols..." She paused, thinking. "There really isn't a good translation..." She paused again. "Hm...you would often see these written to friends going through a hardship, a condolence." She frowned, pulling her hat back down over her eyes. She felt dizzy. "I am not sure what they mean in relationship to you."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Bright Ideas. Vis was never the sharpest sword on the rack, however this time he was wracking his brains to think of a solution. Then it hit him. "Yeth, I haf one idea." Vis turned around and began to rummage through his backpack until he found what he was looking for, the black poncho he took off the dead raider. He pulled it on and ducted it off from most of it's dirt and mortar dust. "I go in drethed as one off them and you'll be my prithner." Vis didn't know whether this was a good idea or not, he rarely had them but it seemed feasible, as long as no one asked him what he was doing with a living prisoner, everything should be alright. Meanwhile back at the tree, Khat was missing, she had gone after Vis and the shirtless man.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Intresting" Furnace pondered his forehead calligraphy. "Are these words given by or to me? I wonder what hardships the could be. They aren't future ones are they?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ considered the thought for a moment, pretending to be a prisoner, and a raider huh? It was just crazy enough to work, though it was also incredibly dangerous. While Separ would have liked more time to think up and discuss plans, time was of the essence. Finding and saving the girl would not be a simple task by any means. "Alright Vis, we'll go with your plan, let's just hope we can find the girl fast enough so we can get in and slip out though." Separ faced away from Vis and held out both of his hands behind him. "Bind my arms loosely if you have the means too. It should help us really sell it."</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin His expression remained locked during the man's reply. No, he didn't grasp the concept at first, but it didn't catch until the man further expounded the idea. Then it made all the logical sense in the world. He still wanted that two hundred a month lowered- no matter what the man said about what he could make them in profits, that all was dependant on actual trade being performed. Which, while Kelvin was all for employing his services as an engineer, they would need to actually get loot to sell for any large profits. Carver stepped in before he could counter, but the man was right. They needed to move. The little gnome had an impressive grasp of math though. It made Kelvin wonder what else he was capable of, recalling his past experience of having his profession practically guessed by smell in the bar. He waited a bit, considering ways to lower that monthly price, letting the numbers roll through his head like cogs in a wheel. The girl and the gnome had their chances at conversing with the merchant. Kelvin was a bit surprised that the man replied at all, considering the innocence of one and the emotional nature of the other. Men like this weren't usually so patient, even with the venom he used in his wordings. Then Carver planted himself between them. The knight was right in all respects. Kelvin nodded, blinking away the haze of bargaining and numbers. He had a tendency to focus too much on one task, when it came to anything resembling an intellectual challenge. Part of the job. He had turned back to their gear when the seer started speaking. The girl? Kelvin slowly turned about. She was missing alright. He froze. Was she part of the raiding party? He hadn't seen her until Separ had arrived last night- but it would make sense for her to head back if she was. Slip away and rejoin the group, then bring down an avalanche of enemies on their heads. He practically ignored the extra boy who had joined their group. Just another possible survivor, people joining them wasn't as concerning to him as people leaving. Then of course, Separ said his peace. He was your typical hero. Not that it was a bad thing… Kelvin could use more blind optimism in his life. The guy was crazy to ask for dynamite. It wasn't that Kelvin was stingy with his gear, but there was plenty to go wrong with that. All he had on himself was flint and steel anyway- which would take a bit of time to light dynamite with. It wouldn't be much for close combat. Only the gnome had a dependable way to light it up on the fly. He was relieved when the man turned away, and a bit ashamed. Separ and the half-elf left, the little girl going off to pout next to a tree. He spared a glance towards the gnome and seer. She had pulled back the little guys hair and exposed the mark. Kelvin felt a chill go through his spine watching them, flexing his gloved hand unconsciously. That would have to wait for later. "Carver is right." He nodded at the merchant, promising further discussion later in the motion. "We need to be moving, as much as I hate to leave so many team members behind." He didn't feel like alerting the others that, assuming the girl was a traitor, Separ and the elf were going to their deaths. "We can leave behind their packs here, since we don't need the extra gear. When they come back this direction they can pick it up on their way past." He looked about, counting their people. Not so bad… He recounted, and then frowned. Where was the girl. He slowly counted everyone again. Kelvin stared hard at the roots where she had been a moment ago. Various expletives ran through his head in a flash. Kelvin turned sharply to Carver. "The other girl is gone too… I doubt she would have gone anywhere but..." He glanced in the direction of the burned-out town. "I understand if you want to go after her, but let me make a recommendation. Leave behind your armor and take your sword and shield. You will need to travel fast, and if you get bogged down in the fighting you could doom Separ and the elf as well as that girl." He sighed, a sinking feeling in his stomach. It would be simpler if the knight chose to just push on with the party, but that sense of honor would possibly be Carver's undoing. Go after the two girls, or press on to safety with the other innocents in the party. Not a great choice for a paladin to make.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki squirmed as the raider tied her arms and wrists, before mentally sighing in resignation as she allowed gravity to take hold of her bound limbs. Though the raider said that he 'may' be willing to let her go, if she spoke, it wasn't as if she could just tell the raider what happened. Besides, that group might prove useful after all, and it would be such a pity if she were to lose them right now. "Unfortunately, I have no clue." Speaking normally, she noticed that, with her being held up be her legs, upside down, it not only dropped her skirt, revealing what was underneath, but along with her chest also being pulled by gravity, pulling them against the front of her dress. Perhaps with this position, she can use it to her advantage. "If you'd let me go, I think I have another way of paying you back. Would you like me~?" She'd never try seducing someone while being in such a disadvantageous position. There were also quite a number of things that could go wrong. However, she still wasn't willing to bring out the undead just yet. So she spoke with her usual sultry tone.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded and shoved them forwards as a patrol of guards passed by, trying to look as convincing as possible. When he turned left what little color in his skin drained from his face. The girl was suspended upside down and her, 'bits' were exposed. he grabbed the pair by the wrists and hauled them back around the corner, for her sake as well as theirs. He looked around and found a building that didn't look too destroyed and he lead them there, going inside to find it was a book store of some description, "alrighth, hide in here and I'll be righth back, these raiderth don't look thoo welcoming." Vis turned to Separ and leaned in close o his ear, "I hope you inthend on keeping your promise," his eyes flicked to Khat who seemed to be looking around at the books, "I.. I think I mighth care abouth her." He left the building and propped up a wooden plank to obscure the entrance. Vis popped around the corner and kept his eyes off of the woman, he instead acted like he was pissed, "Whath the fuck!" he yelled, waving his arms exaggeratedly, "Cuth 'er down! If tha boss hearth abouth thith, he'll kick yer atheth."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Thins were rather quiet around camp, until they suddenly weren't. Raiders, likely finding them by following the trails of Vis and Separ. She frowned, knowing what would happen if she was around danger. She tried to level her breathing, telling herself there was no need to get hasty and attack. Because Carver was going to protect them. Alula clenched her jaw, eyes glowing brightly from under her hat. She was horribly confused and overwhelmed. Voices screamed from every direction, and she was unable to hear a single command or vision. It was chaos. Not only did her head feel crowded and distant, her body hurt as well. It was a foreign feeling, watching as Carver ran off into the woods, into the danger. Her stomach was twisting into knots, and her chest felt tight. Perhaps her time was almost up. She glanced around camp, trying to keep herself composed. Everyone was in danger, so many possibilities. Alula frowned, muttering to herself. "Everything is foggy, thick and unseeable. Like fog across a lake. Danger lurks but life stays hidden." She shivered. Vis, Separ, and the female child were off and likely to die. They may or may not have found the woman. Carver was off into the woods. This left herself, the merchant, the gnome, and Kelvin remaining. As well as the young boy, but she refused to take responsibility for him. She couldn't. Alula watched as the gnome began to grab gear and then run ahead, following Carvers direction. She would do the same. She first made sure that Kelvin and the merchant were in front of her. She would take up the rear, it was safer that way. She then, despite the voices, turned to the boy. She didn't speak but instead gestured down the path. Hopefully the child would catch up to the gnome. And then began to limp down the path herself. She refused to look back.</s> <\|message\|>Des and Voltus "Well if you think you could be of service then maybe..." Then some random dickhead came strolling in. "What do you mean, this was the boss's idea to capture some survivors. What do you care what I do with her now that we've done what the boss asked?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis decided that he would be intimidating, after all, bandits admired that. He marched right up to the man who had talked and pushed his forehead onto his, "Maybe if ya cleaned tha waxth ou' of yer ears ya would 'ave 'eard that the guy in charge wanted them to be put in tha town center, by tha tavern." Vis had his hand on his dagger, drawing his rapier would take too long in such close quarters.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ It's pretty obvious you do care about her Vis. Thought Separ as he glanced towards the girl but it was kind of hard to see her in the dim light. "My name's Separ, what's yours?" He whispered, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible. It wasn't exactly the best way to go about things what with there being a whole bunch of raiders outside, but Separ figured he should at least say something every now and then so the girl didn't become bored or anything. Besides, who knows just how long this rescue mission was going to take. It would probably be a good idea to at least get acquainted with each other on a first name basis.</s> <\|message\|>Des @gammaflux @Kimiyosis Daven started to ignore Vis and walked to the girl and cut her down, leaving her wrists and legs tied, "If it's that big of a deal to you then take her yourself." At that the men walked off. The other group of raiders arrived at the broken down tavern and,seeing no sign of Vis, started a patrol group for a possible impostor with a speech impedement and two or more prisoners. As the searched, Night began to fall. Wanderer @Spoopy Scary @Dragonbud @akje As the party reached the halfway point to BitterBourne, night began to fall and the group had to decide whether to stop for the night or keep going. Des walked up to the noisy lady(Alula) and tugged on her robe to get her attention. "Miss, what's going to happen to the sun man?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula The entire walk away from camp Alula was silent. She had nothing to say to anyone. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, but occasionally peaked out from under her hat to watch the sun sink down behind the trees. Night would be coming and she needed to leave. They soon came across a good place to camp, where Alula stopped right in her tracks. She spoke for the first time in several hours. "I do believe this would be a fine place to stop for the night." She spoke with a strange clarity, uncharacteristic of her slow speech. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was starting to glow. "With any luck, the others will catch up with us before the morning." Without explaining herself she tried to make her way towards the woods, hoping the others would take the hint and stay put for the night. She felt bad leaving the child and the gnome with Kelvin, but he was tough enough for the two of them. Unfortunately, she was stopped before she could get away from the others. Someone was tugging on her cloak. The child. She suppressed a growl and tugged her hat down over her eyes. Alula spoke with a strange amount of anger, as well as the corruption echoing in her voice as she spoke to the boy. "Isn't it obvious? The man ran off into the woods to battle an unseeable amount of bandits. He lacked armor and was clearly outnumbered." She grumbled something about stupid children before, again, trying to get away from the group.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem It was quite a long and eventful day. Between having had no sleep the previous night, half of the party he had recent acquainted himself with going off to who-knows-where on what was apparent to be a mission to willingly swan dive into the dragon's maws - the merchant had little sympathy for the fools - and then they were suddenly surrounded by bandits, with the foolish knight sacrificing his life so that the others may flee. Foolish, certainly; Arastoph definitely would not have done the same, but he appreciated the act as it allowed him to live another day. However, that extra day comprised him of hiking through rough terrain to get to the next town over while he was sleep deprived. While he still detested the idea of sleeping among strangers, he felt that his body might win out this time around. He had no interest in talking with any of those who were left; he was too exhausted and irritable for him to be so patient with them. The boy, however, still seemed to have plenty of energy left to harass the seer girl as she began to wander off. "However you look at it," he began to explain, "every man and woman is a sinner. Some sin less, some sin more, some are better at hiding it." Arastoph sighed and closed his eyes just as a cool breeze blew by and soothed his hot skin and aching muscles. "Carver is probably dead and will be suffering eternal damnation. We can just hope he's being tortured by two hundred ninety-nine pitchforks instead of three hundred."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat climbed up a bookshelf and sat on top, looking down at the suddenly shorter man, "My name is Khat," she hissed down, trying to be quiet but still audible, "What of it?" she scanned the man with a scrutinizing eye, he wore little armor and didn't even carry a weapon, 'what kind of adventurer is this guy?' she thought to herself. Standing up, Khat leapt to the other bookshelf, landing with a gentle tap as opposed to a clumsy thud. "Are you Vis' friend?" she asked. Vis bundled up Suki, throwing her roughly over his shoulder, "if ye artheholes find any more prisoners, 'ow about lockin'em up inthead of trying' tha rape'em?" he walked off back in the in the opposite direction he came in, as if he were going to the center of town, however when he was out of sight he looped around the long way, heading back to the bookstore where he had hid Separ and Khat.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to introduce myself is all. So Khat's your name huh? It's rather pretty. And as for Vis, you could say he's my friend. Though, whether or not he thinks the same of me, well that's debatable." I sighed as my thoughts jumped to Vis and the girl. Hopefully they were both okay, but all I could do was hope. I couldn't even see from outside this building, so that would make things a lot more difficult. Please be safe.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin It was painful. Men seemed to crash in on all sides, breaking the safety of the clearing and leaving it shattered like sharp glass. Luckily, he was packed. Kelvin snatched up two of the packages the gnome had made in either hand, and booked it. He didn't pause- he wasn't a Paladin. Even so, he could feel stabbing pain in his gut- the jerk of leaving behind an ally. Carver had only his sword, his shield, and the blessing of a god to make it through. Brave man, likely a dead one. Kelvin couldn't take the time to look back, just muttering a small offering for the man. "Go Paladin, a man born of plight to fight through sin. Never fall, listen to the child's call. Go my kin. No amount of steel can hide your heart of tin. Enemies may maul, but a hero stands tall. Come Paladin, dance for heaven's ball." He wasn't quite sure where he knew it from, but it was an appropriate lyric for the situation. Kelvin did little as they slowed. Constant running would leave a man tired. "I didn't know you were a believer, merchant." Kelvin glanced at the man. "Odd." He wasn't really that interested. Kelvin glanced about, beginning to count heads.</s>
<\|description\|>Jack D'oh. Newbie around here, just saw the OOC and Characters tab. Feel free to clean off my reply if need be. Appearance: 5'10", long dirty blonde hair, green eyes. Wears a black vest and a pair of jeans, has a canvas cloth holster on his right hip. Heavy boots, salvaged from an old military base by his father. Most of his equipment is in his home. Weapons: A 9mm pistol (Sig 228), a single shot shotgun made out of a pipe and various miscellaneous parts, a tool kit, and a legged tank that doesn't yet work. Notable traits: Reasonably paranoid, studies human nature when forced to interact. Hermit. Despises thieves and murderers regardless of their excuses. Time spent working on his project has made him fairly strong, so melee combat is a bad idea. Combat pragmatist. Current Situation: Owns a "hangar", really just a piece of long bent aluminum rods jammed in the ground with plastic wrapped over the top. Homesteader. Spends most of his trade goods on materials for his life's work, the quad tank, which still needs completion and is totally worthless until then, even to a raider. Soon he'll have to set out for the three remaining parts, which are too big and rare for the local caravans to have in stock.</s> <\|message\|>Soma (Known as Black Wolf) "Last Touch. An event which destroyed humanity. A will of a God? A punishment for evil deeds? It could be both, although the real answer those who left won't find in this world." - From the Book Of Destruction, writter unknown. Soma was standing on a cliff looking in a distance seeing an endless wasteland before him. Endless desert now covering the whole world where once powerful cities reigned. Last Touched erased it all along side the memory of sinners. Soma was one of the humans who did not departure for Future and now he cries along other android type humans for redemption, for forgivness of his past deeds. Sinners is their name now that perfectly describes this world as a rotten world where only those who sinned can live. Soma was standing leaned on his hover bike, he slowly removed his googles from his head and see clear in a distance. Endless nothingness now ruled, wasteland, deserts and androids is all he know in this ruin of a past world. How can one to find a forgivness in such a place. The thoughts constantly echoed in his mind. He just stared in blank space, trying not to think, but he couldn't block the thoughts. "It's dawn again. Sun's rays are more brighter today." He whispered looking at the sunrise. "It's time to move." He whispered again returning his googles on his face and starting the engine of his bike and drove down the cliff as the wind calmly blew in his face.</s> <\|message\|>Lycetta, Nickname: Lice Lice was busy fixing up her sand-buggy under the makeshift garage of corrugated iron and general scrap. Inside was an array of transportation devices, ranging from sand-buggies, quad-bikes and their only hover-bike (Ghen, their leader, demanded sole access to this gem - and no one complained lest they wanted a new missing limb). Though under shelter, the light of the burning sun directly above pried through the gaps and gauges of the scrap roof made by the beating of many a sandstorm. The rest of the pack were gearing up ready for the next salvage sweep. Just outside the garage through its large, door-less opening, was a large piece of fabric propped up by sticks of metal stuck into the ground; beneath it, her pack were preparing, loading weapons, tweaking the hydraulics of their mechanical limbs, strapping on makeshift armor, loading heavy rucksacks with water and rations for the next few days. The pack only sent out a few men at a time on general scavenge trips, but today there had been word from their crow (a pack boy who sat at the top of a high pylon they had erected at the center of the camp to spot prey) of a caravan making its way across the desert. On trips like this the whole pack was needed, which meant they left absolutely nothing behind - in fear that other scavengers might find something useful to steal. Their normal numbers they left behind would usually have been enough to fend off outsiders, but they could not afford the risk: everything but the walls and tents were coming with them. Lice was lying on top of a plank of wood with crude metal wheels underneath her buggy. She was adjusting the suspension for the ride to come - with such hazardous, ever-changing terrain she could not afford for her vehicle to get stuck in the sand. She noticed a pair of feet stood by her. "Lice," spoke the voice, a mechanical foot lightly kicked her in the side. "We've gotta move, stop tinkering and get to - you've been under that buggy for almost an hour." "Shut up, Quint. You know what happened last time I didn't adjust the hydraulics: you got stranded for three days.", Lice and Quint got on fine enough, but Quint was always complaining she pulled more than her own weight, and Lice complained Quint never pulled his own. "Yeah, yeah, what happened to never bringing that up again?", chuckled Quint. "Anyway, c'mon. It's time to get going. Ghen is out front." Lice slid out from under her vehicle - the sand-buggies weren't the fastest in the pack, the bikes were much faster (especially the hover-bike), but the buggies were always reliable and less likely to get stuck, which is why Lice liked them. "You piggy-backing my left?" "Sure am," replied Quint. "Three's got your right." "Urgh," moaned Lice. "Three can't shoot for hell. But I guess he'll have to do." It was typical for two men to hang on to the sides of the buggies, especially on big hauls: there weren't enough vehicles to go around everyone. Lice stepped outside the garage; she had already suited up in her armor, her shotgun lightly bumped against her leg with each step. She'd managed to strap some small metal sheets across her mechanical arm - save her joints getting shot apart. Ghen stood ferociously on top of an ammunition crate, the pack gathered beneath him dressed in a myriad of armor, clothing and weapons - only the strips of red cloth tied around their arms, heads or necks distinguished them as a unit. "Alright boys!" shouted Ghen. "And girls" whispered Lice. "We've got a big caravan off north ways. Don't know what they're carrying but it looks like a good haul: they've got gunmen supporting them, ten or so." The pack muttered to themselves in self-doubt. "But we've taken on bigger before, and we know these dunes better than anyone else!" "Aye!" cried the rest of the pack. "Bikers follow me, we'll scatter them up. Buggies follow behind, hook the vans and raid every last ounce of scrap you can!". He raised his Kalashnikov above his head with a muscly pump of his arm. The rest of the pack returned the salute, shouting and chanting in excitement and adrenaline. In an organised choas of scrambling feet and shouting, the pack jumped to their vehicles, engines roaring and revving. Ghen glided to the front of them. "WHO ARE WE?" "THE RED SUNS!" "DAMN RIGHT WE ARE! LET'S RIDE!" In a cacophony of screaming and whooping the pack set off. Quint and Three held onto the sides of Lice's buggy, jostling about, but not in discomfort, as they rode out onto the sands. Quint called over over the scream of engines, the packs cries and the wind, "BEEN ON A HAUL THIS BIG BEFORE, THREE?" "NEVER," returned a nervous voice. "YOU'LL BE FINE, JUST SHOOT STRAIGHT AND WE WON'T DIE." "OH"</s> <\|message\|>Kieran Kieran loaded his 50 cal. He looked out into the barren desert, through the dust and sand blowing in the cool breeze. Then a small black dot appeared. It got bigger and bigger until he could make out the shape of a person. He peered through his scope. It was a lone traveler, carrying a large leather knapsack and what looked like three canteens on his waist. Kieran waited and watched the speck grow from his perch on a small cliff. He checked his scope again, and the traveler was closer. It's time. His finger brushed the trigger as he focused on the object. Then he shot. The bullet flew through the air and hit the traveler in the chest. He re-loaded. He shot. He watched the traveler stumble and fall, and then he left his perch and ran toward the person. He took everything, the backpack, the gun and ammunition, (A 9mm pistol and three boxes of ammo.) He then rifled through the brown knapsack. He found some parts and a small black taser. He saw a few more things, but didn't bother to look at them. He dumped the contents of the backpack into his almost empty one. Then he as remembered, a tear rolled down his cheek and he dug a two foot pit in the sand. He stuck his hand into one of the many pockets of his backpack and took out a makeshift cross. He gently lay the travelers body down into the pit and said a small prayer. "May you rest in the heavens forever." He covered the cadaver with sand and stuck the wooden cross into the tan sand. He knelt there until the sun was barely visible behind the horizon. The light cast a orange glow onto the sand and Kieran looked at the now red, glowing sand. He went back to the cliff and took his rifle. He took out his compass and walked north-east until the broken down gas station came into site. It was on a crumbling street in the middle of nowhere. He went into the rusty gas station, overgrown with brown weeds. He crawled in through the back window. He went into the locked "lounge" where he used as a shelter. He took out a gold colored key and slipped it into the keyhole. He had taken advantage of the un-raided gas stations little store. He always had bubblegum to chew and he had framed awkward greeting cards. His moral was boosted every time he stepped into the small lounge and saw the faded white card with a pug on it, two googly eyes stuck to its head, and its pink tongue hanging out of its slobbering mouth. If he looked to the right he saw the framed card with two babies on it in a bath, with bubbles in the back of him. This was his favorite. He locked the door. With no windows, the room was pitch black. He took a match and struck it. With a small flame illuminating the cabinet in front of him, he wrenched open the drawer and picked up the dirty gas lamp. He poured a small amount of gas into the chamber and flicked the switch. The lamp lit up the room and Kieran laid the lamp down onto the cabinet. He Checked the lock and then closed his eyes. Breath in. Breath out. Sleep.</s>	<\|message\|>Jack Jack, the mechanic, was a fairly hefty man, about 5'10", with long dirty blonde hair and green eyes. Jack looked up from his hard work, scanning the horizon for movement. Nothing. There had been nothing happening for days, but still he looked, because caution had been all that had kept him alive through numerous failed raider attacks over the past years. He returned to his work, thankful for the cover of his hangar. A cheaply built thing, made of a pair of large aluminum strips he'd bent into shape and dug deep into the ground, with plastic from an industrial size roll he'd picked up from a trader hung over the top to keep the rain out. The hangar was filled with a small assortment of important things - a small solar panel and battery kept a refrigerator running, and a few plywood walls formed a "bedroom", where he kept sentimental objects and a rope bed. Much of his food and water came from a small plot of "farm" (really, just a series of trash cans, bags, and drums he grew potatoes in) he'd been working on every night before bed, and he made compost with every bit of waste he had and some of the waste he picked up while trading with the caravans that stopped by every few weeks. Two years of trading potatoes for mechanical components, scrap, and engineering textbooks had gotten his biggest project to where it was - a huge set of four vaguely arachnoid legs supported a hip piece with multiple layers of copper and steel circles and gears. The feet at the bottom of the legs had black rubber skirts around them for rudimentary air-cushion type hovering. Two arms were nearby, presumably to go with the legs. All he needed to finish his work were a fairly powerful generator, a computer, and something to serve as a cockpit.</s>
<\|description\|>Avery Penn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Belle Race: Cait-Si Avatar: Beast: Name: Pina Appearance:</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Fine then! I'll just go! I've got someone who would probably answer me, anyways!" James shouts, turning on his heal and walking to his own room. Upon entering, he closed his door and grabbed his NervGear, swinging it onto his head as he laid down on his bed. He lets out a very frustrated and annoyed breath as he enters the world of Fairy Tale Online again. Upon entering the world, Sif was greeted with a notification. An item from Belle, it appeared. He clicks on the item, and accepts the delivery, before he begins to climb onto the roof of the building that he was sitting under. He needed to sit and relax, and then maybe try killing something by himself.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle quickly began making her way out of the town, away from the beginner's field she had been training Sif and out into the wider world, outside of the Cait-Si realm you were met with large fields that eventually gave way to mountains if you were heading towards the center of the world. To the south was Sylph zone and a forest, though the Cait-Si had an alliance going with the Sylph at the moment so she would be fairly safe if she crossed into their territory. To the north was the Pooka. Both routes contained heavy forest and both routes would provide her with something she could hit to vent her anger.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif lays on the roof, and smiles as he sees that the item he received was a rod. "I can go fishing now!" Sif says, a smile on his face. He opens up the menus, and then scrolls through until he finds the message system. He finds Belle's name, and then begins to write a message to send to her. " To Belle, Thank you for the rod! Something happened which kinda made me upset, however it has definitely cheered me up! (yes, I found out how to make kawaii kitten faces). I'll be sure to go fishing soon with the rod! Thank you again! From Sif " He smiles, and begins to slide off of the roof, landing on the ground. He begins to jog to one of the paths that lead out of the town, wanting to find a nice area to fish.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A notification popped up on Belle's screen just as she took down the last of a small group of boars. It was from Sif, which immediately concerned her since shed seen him log off not an hour or so ago. She opened it and it made her smile slightly, she was glad to see she'd been able to cheer him up, though she wondered what had made him upset in the first place. She kind of saw Sif as a little kid so now all she could imagine was him spitting the dummy because he couldn't have any desert without finishing his vegetables. Smiling she eventually slipped down to the ground as she replied. 'I'm glad you liked it. Make sure to stay close to the town and don't go past that beginning field to the west I showed you earlier, the field to the east of the city has stronger monsters.' Either way she could keep an eye on his health bar since they were still in a party anyway. On her shoulder Pina suddenly let out an alarming cry and Belle turned quickly and her eyes widened at the Ursa Minor, which was a small version of an Ursa Major, which was a celestial bear rearing up to attack her.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif receives her warning about the field, and he smiles, nodding at it. He didn't send a reply, but he acknowledges it. Up ahead, he sees a nice looking body of water, and he quickly migrates there, sitting on the edge as he takes out his rod. He didn't know how to fish, but he figured all he had to do was swing and wait. So, that is what he did. He reeled back, and then swung out, watching the end arc into the water. Now was the waiting game. In the time it took to wait, Sif relaxed, and began to think of the day, both in real life and in his little fantasy adventure. Today, after boring tests of varying types, he had went on a game he had never went on -he decided not to count the five minutes of character creation he did when he first got the MMO- and he had met someone on the game. All of these feelings, the feeling of a rod in his hands, the feeling of the air and the smell of the water, it was just so real. He closed his eyes, and began to think of Belle, and what she may be doing.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Pina cried loudly as he circled around the fight going on between Belle and the monster. She'd heard that very rarely Ursa Minors would spawn out in these woods but honestly she hadn't expected to run into one of these out here, and she was willing to admit she wasn't prepared for it. If it had been a Major, which luckily didn't spawn around this area she would be dead. But thanks to her high acrobatic skill she was managing to stay even with it. Her health was down around half, so was the Minors. Pina gave another cry and flew in and fluttered healing dust at her, bringing her health up a little. Drawing her bow back she let another arrow fly, which found its mark and made the Minor roar out loudly. Despite all this though Belle was loving it. She felt alive and it reminded her of why she'd joined the raiding parities earlier on in her game play. Maybe she wasn't ready to rejoin yet, but she would definitely consider taking on some tougher quests or maybe joining a guild again. Something to remind her of why she really enjoyed playing this game.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif opens his eyes, and stares out at the water. "This is nice and calm. I like this life." Sif says, smiling to himself. He then notices something strange. Belle's health bar, which he could see because of the party, appeared to be fluctuating. "She may just be fighting monsters. No big deal. She'll handle it." He says to himself. But then, her health goes down to roughly halfway, and he begins to get concerned. He opens up the messaging system, and begins to type a message. "Belle, you seem to be taking a lot of damage. Is everything okay over there? Sif" Standing up and reeling back in his rod, he searches to find out where Belle was. He felt like he wanted to follow her around, anyways. She was an amazing person, he had to admit. After finding out where she was using the menus, Sif attempts to jog toward where she was, only to figure out he didn't know where it was from where he was. He began to search for a map, instead.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small noise indicating that she had a message could be heard as Belle moved to hide behind a tree, the Ursa Minor swiping at it, its sheer size and strength breaking the thing in two with one swipe. "Don't really have time to answer you now Sif, sorry." The girl muttered to herself as she quickly turned and shot another arrow at it. The Minor was down to about a quarter health, she was down to about one fifth, Pina healing her once more and bringing her back up to one quarter. If it hadn't been for her amour she may be dead by now. As it was her weapons just weren't doing enough damage, Ursas as a rule were slow but they had very strong physical defence and attack strength. The one thing they were weak against was- she once again leapt out of the way, the Minor's attack missing, barely. They were slow, but big. "Magic!" She reminded herself, turning Belle ran a short distance to put some space between her and the bear as she began the incantation. Magic was one of the big things about Fairy Tale, it was so in depth and powerful it could really turn the tide of most battles. That was also why it was so difficult to learn.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Now Sif was really concerned. He had found a map, and was jogging his way in the direction of the forest. Sif was scared for her, and wanted to see what was damaging her so badly. What would I do if she died forever? I may not find someone else to help me. Sif thought to himself, before quivering a little. It was quenched as he entered the forest. Belle would probably scowl him for entering such an area, however he wanted to help if she was being attacked. Upon walking the path, he sees something big in the distance, along with what looked to be a Cait-Si. As Sif moves closer to the two figures, he freezes. "Woah," He says, seeing the Ursa Minor. Something that big froze him from fear, making him quiver again as he stared. He then figured that he should probably be retreating, and began slowly backing away, quivering.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn She wasn't as far away from it as she would like, but she was far away enough that this should work. She drew her bow back however before releasing it she began speaking in a strange language, words floated around her, some glowing strongly and lining up with others. The Ursa Minor was getting closer, which wasn't difficult given its size, its back reaching the tops of the trees. It was probably just out of attacking distance when Belle finally finished her spell, struggling with the last few words before she let the arrow fly. Since the bear was so close it found its mark on one of the stars on the bear's forehead, lightning burst from the arrow, sparking all around the bear as more struck down from. The Ursa Minor cried out before it eventually fell to the ground, exploding in a poof of code and blue sparkly things. Belle sank to the ground, Pina gave a small cry as he flew in, healing her minorly again before resting on her shoulder and, surprisingly, she began laughing. That was probably the most fun she'd had in ages, even though that Minor wasn't even close to a dungeon boss it had still been really fun.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif watches in a mix of awe and fear as Belle casts what looks to be a spell at the bear, and gasps as the bear cries out and falls over, dying. Even though the Ursa Minor had been taken out, Sif was still worried about Belle, who had appeared to have taken major damage. With hesitation in case something more powerful is waiting in the forest just to kill him as he runs over to assist his friend. "Belle!" Sif says, sliding to his knees beside her and pushing himself onto her, grabbing her and wrapping his arms around her. He rests the top of his head under her chin as his arms cuddle her. "Are you okay? Why did you ask for any help? Jesus, Belle." Sif says, keeping his head nuzzled against her, cat ears twitching slightly as his tail droops.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Hu?" She looked up in surprise when she heard her name called and the girl frowned slightly when she saw who was running towards her. "Sif?" She asked curiously as he began cuddling up to her. "What… what are you doing here?" She asked, sounding confused at first but getting more confident as she realised he'd come out into a very dangerous zone. "I didn't ask for help because I didn't need any, not to mention there was no one online who was close enough to help me." She informed him sternly as she rose to her feet, pulling him with her. "Trust me that thing would have eaten you for lunch." She smiled, trying to reassure him. "Plus even if I had died I wouldn't have lost too much and I would have respawned in the town. It's not a big deal. Pina dying would have been more devastating than if anything had happened to me" Belle dismissed as she looked around, her tail flicking and her eats twitching as her eyes darted around. On her shoulder Pina let out a cry as its name was mentioned. "Come on, we should get back to the safe zone." She decided as she began walking back towards the town.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif cuddles Belle, smiling, happy to find that she was okay. "If I was close enough, I would have come to help, despite you saying you wouldn't need any." He says. "And I was afraid of you dying." He says, shrugging. "Emotions, I guess." Sif says as they begin to walk to the town. A tear streamed down his cheek, as if he had been upset that Belle had almost died. He wraps arm across her back, cuddling closer as they walked to the town. "I'm sure that thing wouldn't have eaten me. You'd have been there to protect me, unofficial mentor." He gives a chuckle.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Don't think of it as dying." Belle tried to explain. "Because you come back to life… if it helps, think of it more as a reset or something like that." Anything that may be able to help him. As he cuddled her, she was reminded of her question and decided it was now or never. "Sif… I have to ask you something… if this game is so distressing to you… why on earth did you want to play it in the first place? I could understand maybe being curious about it but wouldn't you have figured out when you fought your first monster and you broke down crying that maybe… there are better games out there for you?" No she didn't feel good saying about it, but it was true. She could understand curiosity, but surely he could see that this game was not a good match for him. She'd never seen anyone have a reaction this bad to the game because they never stuck around long because they realised this was a bad match for them. He didn't make a lot of sense to her.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif continues to cuddle Belle, but the question catches him off guard. Why had I come back? He asks himself, thinking. I was indeed scared by that wolf, especially when I was injured, but... Why? James' eyes look down to the ground as he tries to think of something. Was it the game, the complete-package feeling of... Feelings, or was it just the adrenaline, and the rush he felt during both the fights on the wolves as well as the rush to find his friend. As he looked back up, and at Belle's face, he found another reason. One that basically just enveloped all of the rest, one that was always there during what he had encountered in this universe. "You." Sif says, quietly. "You. You're the reason I came back. You've been there for me throughout this game, you've been here to help me, and..." His face turns red as he looks away from her. "And, you're generally gorgeous."</s>	<\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle practically stopped in her tracks, her body tensing as her ears and tail stuck for a moment before she took a few sharp steps away from him, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Now she felt like an idiot. It had been so obvious but she'd just missed it completely, too drawn in by the innocent exterior. But all the cuddling… that questions about game sex. "Creep." She stated loudly before she brought up her menu and quickly logged out. They were within the town boundaries by now, so she didn't have to worry about her avatar being attacked at least. Avery bolted upright in her bed, ripping the NervGear off her head and pulling her knees up to her chest, shuddering slightly as she picked up the gear and placed it away in her draw. She'd heard of creeps like that before from other players, people who only played to get some kind of sick sexual satisfaction because they were probably too creepy to foster a relationship in real life. But she hadn't thought it would happen to her. For a while the girl contemplated reporting him, but it was late so she decided to just sleep it off and think about it clearly in the morning.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Gaming and eating. Maybe teasing people. Anything but doing another test. Tests were the bane of James' life, and he hated them all, through thankfully they were over. At least, for now. As he roamed the hallway of which his, he caught a glance of Avery disappearing into her room. He chuckles as he walks past. "Have a boring Summer!" He calls out as he passes her door, disappearing into his room soon afterwards. It was time to play some Fairy Tale Online. He was still technically a noob on it, being a low level, however he was willing to learn, particularly with the 'find your mentor' option from in game. James searched through his drawers for the head gear, finding it where he had left it last time he had played, which was months back. He smiles as he rubs a bit of dust off of it, the only dust that was there, thankfully, and he lays on his bed, slipping the head gear on before he was swallowed into the game. Well, more like swallowed into an update screen. Thankfully, it passed within seconds, and he was put on a loading screen as the game attempted to source his character. James had already made a Cait-Si, however he did not know how to use the race properly. He watched as the screen began to load, and he got fully calibrated and pushed into the new reality, the new world. He loved the feeling every time that happened. Spawning into a random town, he decided to find the help center of the town. The help center wasn't much of a help center, but when he walked in he saw an empty booth which he quickly trotted into before anyone else could. James' ears twitched as he looked at the options he could ask for, until he found the 'find your mentor' option. He quickly red the description. "Find your mentor, the ability to, as it says, find your mentor! Your mentor will be randomly selected from experienced players. It automatically selects one from your race, so you have both a friend and a mentor. Select this option, and a message will immediately be sent to a player to meet you in your current location. The mentor has the option to decline, and if he or she accepts, you will be bound for the rest of your playtime! The mentor will have a three day trial period to tell if you are going to be a good mentee, and he or she can remove you within that three day period if they do not feel like you are not for them! Remember: Be nice!" James presses the option, and then clicks 'confirm' within a moment, another message appears. "Thank you for using the mentor program. A message has been sent to... Belle!" "To Belle, You have been selected as the mentor for Sif. He has used the mentor option to select a mentor for him, and you have been selected by the program to be his mentor. If you would like information on mentoring, please visit your nearest help center. Sif's current location is Lemea Town. Remember: Be nice to your mentee! Best of luck, Lemea Town Help Center"</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "To Belle, You have been selected as the mentor for Sif. He has used the mentor option to select a mentor for him, and you have been selected by the program to be his mentor. If you would like information on mentoring, please visit your nearest help center. Sif's current location is Lemea Town. Remember: Be nice to your mentee! Best of luck, Lemea Town Help Center" Belle looked at the notification and sighed softly. She'd read about the new 'mentor program' whilst the updates had been loading. Personally it wasn't something she liked the sound of. Not yet. It was still a beta experience in her opinion and the idea of 'being bound to another player forever' was something she could see causing a lot of outrage amongst players. It wouldn't last. She was happy to help someone, but this was just a little over the top. She hadn't had any help when she'd started all the way back when it had been first released. She kind of thought it was really lazy on the part of new players, especially considering this wasn't a levelled game, they got rid of that function very early into the project to avoid players becoming too powerful. Everything here was skill based. It was about as equal field as a MMORPG was ever going to get in her mind. Sighing she decided to ignore the message for now. She was going to decline, but she could at least explain herself in person. "Looks like we're heading back early." She said, glancing at the small blue creature on her shoulder, who made a small noise in reply, causing Belle to smile. Pulling out a teleportation crystal she appeared at the Lemae Town Square within seconds. It would have taken too long to travel from the woods she'd been in. Now the only challenge was finding this guy. He was the Cait-Si beginner village, rather than the main city so that made things a little bit easier. He had been near the help center just a few moments ago so maybe he was still there. She took off at a quick run, glancing at any character she passed as the small feathered dragon flew high above her. As she arrived at the information center Belle stopped, looking around for this 'Sif' guy. She had no idea what he looked like but he would have a player identification above his head if you were looking for it. The small dragon glided down to rest comfortably on her shoulder. Turning Belle smiled again, running her hands through the creature's feathers, momentarily forgetting herself in how real and soft an artificial creature felt. It still amazed her sometimes, just how real this all felt and how easily she was able to forget about her real life when she was here.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn After waiting at the booth for a few moments, Sif walks outside, back out into the small town, and he begins to look around. Oh, it feels so real, it looks so real, it smells so real! Everything is so real! He thinks to himself, as he walks around. Not too soon, he spots someone running around. Upon closer inspection, the person appears to have the identification 'Belle'. That's her! Sif begins to walk over to her. As he walked, Sif looks around at everything, still mesmerized by how amazing it was. There had definitely been some major updates, and he had only played the game once before, for not that long. Now, it appeared he was going to have to spend much longer on the game. Even the blue creature on Belle's shoulder looked real! Sif stops in front of Belle, certainly a bit shorter than him, as if his size told everyone, Hey, I'm new! He looked shyly toward the creature on Belle's shoulder, and then looked back to her face. "Hi. I'm Sif." He says, his voice suddenly shy.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Pina looked up suddenly from Belle's shoulder and her eyes turned to follow his gaze until they fell upon the boy approaching them. She realised, before he got close who he was, his player ID betraying him. However formal introductions were still always a nice touch. "I'm Belle." She said, her voice gentle as if anything too sudden may startle him. "This is my friend Pina and you're the one who the system paired me up with for the mentoring program aren't you?" A rhetorical question really, they both knew that. "Look… don't take this the wrong way or anything, but I think the idea of permanently being paired up with someone is… stupid. So I have to reject the invitation to be your mentor." She informed him, trying to be as delicate about it as possible. "But I'd be happy to form a party with you and be your mentor unofficially." She offered, feeling maybe a little bad for the kid. She remembered what it was like to be new, it was a big scary world out here. Sometimes the people were a bigger danger than the monsters. Who knew, maybe this would be good for her, she'd gotten Pina later than she was supposed to, so it wouldn't hurt to get some safe practice with him on lower level quests and monsters.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn It was a disappointment for the mentor request to be declined, and Sif couldn't help but let out a tiny breath of sadness as it was, his face turning sad for a moment. However, when Belle said they could form a party, and she could mentor him unofficially, he smiles again. "Y-Yes," He says, his voice sounding a little broken. He swallows his sadness. "But, I sort of don't know what I'm doing. Some people are new..." He pauses. "But, I'm really new. Like, really new." Sif was shy in his Fairy Tale persona. He couldn't help it, it was just his style, much different than his real personality. "I barely even know what that is," He says, pointing to a phoenix that was sitting on another Cait-Si's shoulder, who was walking into the help center. He turns back and shrugs innocently.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle shrugged slightly. "Everyone was new at some point." She assured him as she glanced over at the phoenix and smiled slightly. "Though some of us decided to read the manual before jumping right in. Either way there's nowhere for you to go from here but up." She brought up her menu by using a small flick of the hand downwards and tapped into a few screens before a small noise could be heard and Sif would see a small notification icon on his screen. "I've invited you to join my party." She explained, hoping she didn't have to explain the term 'party' to him. There was being new at this game in particular, which did take a lot of time to master since it's one of the first fully immersive games of its kind. And there was being new at MMORPGs all together. If he was the latter she really had her work cut out for her. "Just do what I did to bring your menu up, and follow the little 'notification icon' to the invitation screen. This way we can keep track of where the other is, see each other's health bars, things like that. What class are you?" She asked absently as she began scrolling through more screens quickly.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Slowly, Sif follows through, flicking his hand downwards and going through the menus until he found the notification, which he accepted. He almost hovered his finger over decline by accident, but corrected himself. Finally, he looks up at her again. "The same as you, I think. A Cait-Si!" He says, his voice having turned adorable. He flicks his tail behind him happy as he stares at her. "I thought you'd know, being an experienced player. And with my cat ears and my tail!" He begins to explore the menus, looking through them. Sif was in awe at the functionality and the options that he could select to tweak. "And, by the way, I did read the manual. The first few pages, anyways. I wasn't about to read through the entire thing. That'd take a while." He says, an innocent look on his face as he scrolls through more options, like a child exploring a new toy.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle opened her mouth as if to say something but eventually closed it, pressing her hand to her forehead. "No that's not what I… what weapons speciality did you pick? Cait-Si is your race, that's something you can't change unless you deleted this entire account and started over. But your class is the type of weapons you're proficient with, you get to pick one when you were making a profile for the game but it can be altered if you simply starting using another weapons class enough. Like, for example I'm an archer class, with a light weapon sub class." She turned slightly, displaying the bow on her back to him and the small dagger at her hip. "I was asking to see if I had anything worth giving you. Here," she clicked a final option and four notifications suddenly appeared on Sif's menu, informing him he'd recived some items including new amour, gloves, boots and a belt. "There's some better gear that will give you an advantage over other people with your experience." She was still waiting to see what class he was though before giving him any of her weapons. If she had any he was compatible with that was. Usually unless she could use them herself she sold them for gold.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Oh! That's what you're talking about!" Sif chuckles, his face turning slightly red in embarrassment. "In that case, I'm a light weapon class!" He says, remembering the class he selected a long time ago. He takes a glance at her bow before he flicks his hand again, returning to his notifications to accept the items. "Belle, because you're giving me armour, and you're a girl, does that mean that I'm going to get female armour?" He asks, laughing shyly. Sif could see himself walking around in female armour. That would be very embarrassing, unless there was some way to do a gender change. He wasn't about to do that, though. His face turns even more red as he imagines this.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle shook her head slightly, laughing lightly at the question. "There is some gender specific amour… yes; most of it is interchangeable though. If I wore it, then yes it would have a girl's design. But to keep the item count lower and make trading easier they made most amour able to have a boy's or a girl's appearance. It does the same thing just looks different. Don't worry it'll look manly on you." She assured him as she scrolled through her weapons. Most of her 'light' stuff was daggers of varying effects. She didn't have much in the way of rapiers or something like that. "I have… this." She eventually said uncertainly as she sent the item over. It was classified as a light sword, but she'd never used it before personally. "I can't say much about it though; I've never used it myself. Okay, you get all that stuff equipped and we'll head out into the nearby field, it's still in Cait-Si territory so we'll be safe there... you do know about the territories and rules surrounding them?" She was certain that was in the manual, but she wasn't sure where. Either way it wouldn't hurt to remind him. "The land is divided up into territories, some belonging to certain races, some neutral. In a territory owned by your own race you're allowed to attack those from other races but they can't attack you back. So if you got caught in enemy territory then you're virtually helpless if one of them decided to attack you. Neutral is more free for all. It's the primary goal of the game right now, seeing as they didn't put in a 'final boss' because then the game would be over and then what? No it's just a constant territory war."</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif almost answered Belle no to the question, however such an action was prevented by her starting to explain. "So, you can't even attack back?" He asks, equipping his armour. Indeed, it did look manly. Manlyish, as he himself did not look that manly. "Belle, what happens if you attack back?" He asks, suddenly looking a bit frightened. If he had a mirror, he would say he is adorable and cute when he looks frightened. Sif remembers that he had been offered another item by Belle, and he quickly opens his notifications for the third time and he accepts the item. "Well, even if it isn't good, it looks good. Does that count for anything?" He asks, chuckling to himself as he idly admires the blade. It was quite shiny, and it looked to be sharp, but that may not mean anything in this world. Sif didn't even know what the Cait-Si had as abilities. He just picked them because of the cat ears and the tail.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Nothing." She answered simply. "I mean you can attack back all you like but they'll take no damage. Don't worry though you'll never have to go into an enemy territory to get somewhere, there are certain Neutral Roads that are unclaimable, also every race's main city, their starter town and the world capital at the center of the map are all cemented territories as well, otherwise the game runs the risk of an entire race having no safe zones, which would suck." She turned slightly once Sif had equipped all his new gear and began leading the way towards the field. "The only time you would is if you decided to join a raid party aiming to take more territory." The girl explained as they walked. "Also, unfortunately style does not grant any battle extras." She said with a small laugh. "Though you can see the benefits of any item in your inventory by clicking on it, the better the gear the better the benefits. Most of that gear I gave you has extra health and defence benefits, because that's how I like to play but once you get the hang of fighting we'll take you on a few quests, you can earn some gold and buy things with the benefits you'd like." She informed him.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Have you been on any raiding parties?" Sif asks, following her. He was a bit disappointed that they didn't grant any benefits. However, maybe there were fashion contests. Something I would never take part in out of game, he thinks to himself as he strolls alongside his unofficial mentor. "So, what else is there to do, other than quests?" He was a bit embarrassed at having to ask so many questions, however he felt he needed to so he could learn the world around him. Sif begins to wonder what time it was outside of game. How long had he spent in-game? He didn't know, but he didn't mind if he missed dinner because he was hanging around with Belle. She was probably from a different time zone, so he would just go and grab dinner whenever she left.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "A couple of times after I'd been playing for about a year." Belle answered, thinking about it. "Even though I'm not that aggressive of a player now I did have a faze where I wanted to fight, a lot, back before I decided to take the defensive path and go solo. I died. A lot during that year. It didn't seem worth it after a while, I was too passive. Besides there's quests… you can join the raiding parties, the risks are high, but so are the rewards if you're good enough. But if fighting really isn't your thin you can join a guild, act as a support, maybe just take up a trade like tailor or blacksmith." "But in saying that you don't even really need to do anything if you don't want to. They have other skills that don't translate to battle like fishing, though the best fishing spots are all in Undine Territory since they like to control the large water sources since they can breathe underwater. Each Race has its own unique talents, Cait-Si are beast-tamers. We're the only ones who can go out and have the option to make a monster our companion rather than kill it. But all the best ones are quest rewards."</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Beast-tamers. Well, it doesn't actually seem like some of them look like beasts or monsters," Sif says, giving a nod to the creature on her shoulder. It looked so beautiful. "If that thing is a monster, I'd like to see what normal everyday pets look like." He gives off a small chuckle, staring at the creature. "Fishing spots are all in Undine Territory? Damn, I could really use a fish," He smiles, but gives kitty eyes to Belle, sadly. Sif was, once again, stunned by how beautiful everything looked and how everything felt. The creature on Belle's shoulder looked stunningly real, he just wanted to touch it, see if it felt real. His ears twitch shyly, tail fluttering slowly up and down behind him.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn As attention was brought to it the small creature on Belle's shoulder perked up and stretched out its wings, roaring in attempt to look more intimidating. However it's 'roar' sounded more like a small cry and was more cute than it was anything else. "Pina is most certainly not a beast." Belle replied, her tail and ears sticking up for a moment in her huff before they returned to a more relaxed state. "He's a Feathered Lidra and I got him about a year and a half into my game play from a limited time event and, frankly, he's adorable." She smiled at that and turned to the dragon, the two gently pressing their heads together. "And, like I said, all the good fishing spots are in Undine territory, that doesn't mean there aren't others in neutral and all territories will have some source of water, water pretty much always means fish here. You'll have to get a rod before you attempt to go fishing though and the only way you're going to get one of those is if you save up some money and buy one. Right now the best way for you to make money is to fight some monsters." They'd made it to the field and she was doing a quick scan, low level monsters always spawned around here, it wouldn't be too hard. "Alrighty." Belle said as she walked back towards Sif and gave him a non too gentle push towards what looked like a wolf. "Go get it." She instructed simply. If worse came to worse she could always jump in, these were one of the lowest difficulty monsters they were going to find.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif smiles at the pair. Pina and Belle were definitely an adorable couple. However, his opinion about Belle being adorable and sweet changed when they arrived at the field. A wolf? Won't that thing rip me to shreds? He asks himself. Sif begins to give kitten eyes to Belle again, for a moment, before turning back to the wolf. Slowly, he approaches the creature, sword in hand, shaking slightly. Get a grip, get a grip, come on, Sif. He walks even closer to the creature, and it notices him. Sif immediately starts to swing his sword down and slice at the wolf, which attempts to attack him. The armour took the hit, and he swings faster, quickly managing to kill it. He turns back to Belle, shaking. The combat felt so real, it felt so real that it was scary.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn When the boy looked at her with pleading eyes Belle only made a small gesture, encouraging him to go forward. "It can't really hurt you." She assured him, since a lot of new players often feared that being attacked would actually hurt, but the game had a pain absorber so even if he got an arm cut off in game he wouldn't feel a thing. Even so she did draw out her bow once he'd turned away to make sure she could cover him in case it proved too much. Whilst his technique could certainly use some work he seemed to get a decent enough grasp on it. She put her bow away once she was sure he was going to win. Once the wolf was defeated and he turned to her the girl gave him a reassuring smile as she walked over. "See? Easy. You did great." She assured him, wrapping her arm around his shoulders and giving him a brief squeeze. "Here's a little trick though, if you have the time, when you're preparing to strike, hold your attack for just a moment." She drew out her dagger to demonstrate, holding it neutrally at first but then moving into a motion where she could attack from but pausing once it was about to come forward. "Then your weapon will glow a little and you'll hear this small noise and then like a ting, and the tip of your weapon will gleam, you'll feel it too, so eventually you can do it all by feel rather than waiting for the external indicators. Once that happens you can move into the attack and you'll activate a 'weapon's skill' which will make your attack stronger as well as auto locking on monsters." She explained as she finished off her move. "Ready for another round?" She challenged, pointing over at another wolf.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif smiles, his face turning red as he is squeezed. The gesture was very warm, and it was certainly welcomed by him. "Y-Yes, it was alright," he says, smiling at her, before he watches her example of weapon skills. It seemed easy enough, though if he was stood there for a second to long, the wolf could pounce on him or something. The second of not attacking would also leave him vulnerable to an attack. He followed her finger to another wolf, before he nods. "Yes, I am. Teach me your ways, master," he chuckles as he approaches the wolf. The wolf barked and growled at him as he neared it, which came about as a bit frightening to Sif. He started to quiver again. If fear was a status infliction, then it had reached a high. It barked louder as he swung his sword, once, then twice, and then he held his sword, waiting for the weapon skill to come up. Unfortunately, what he had thought earlier was right. Waiting had left him open, and the wolf pounces onto him, biting into his left shoulder. He shouts as if he is in pain, but in reality he is not. It is just the reflex of being in pain.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Once again as Sif moved off to fight another wolf Belle drew her bow. The kid seemed jumpy enough as it was, she'd really hate it if he would die because he seemed like the kind of guy who's confidence would be shot by that kind of thing. This was probably his first game of this kind, which was fair enough because other than some really lame little game the NervGear didn't have anything even remotely close to this. She watched him again, it seemed like it was going to take a while for him to get the hang of this fighting thing. He didn't that aggressive nature in him from the looks of things. Sif's cry of pain brought her out of her own thoughts and she quickly drew her bow and fired, the blow not only knocking the wolf off Sif but also killing it. Belle quickly jogged over to him and offered a hand to help him up. "Are you alright?" She asked worriedly. A quick check of his health bar showed he hadn't taken too much damage due to his gear. "Pina?" She asked regardless and the creature let out another soft cry before it flapped its wings in Sif's direction, coating him in a blue, sparkly powder that vanished quickly enough but also restored his health. "Thank you." Belle said, giving the dragon an affectionate scratch.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif blinks as the wolf is shot off of him, and the face of Belle appears. He takes her hand, and pulls himself to his feet, shaking. He wipes a few tears with a shaky hand. He may have not felt any pain, but his character certainly did. The pain had affected his character's emotions, making him cry silently, but he imagined that if he had really felt the pain it would have been quite sore. "I-I'm..." Sif whispers, taking a breath. "I'm fine... I'm okay, I'm okay." He whimpers as he wipes away a few more. The blue powder had certainly done something in the way of healing, but it was still terrifying to be bitten by a wolf, even in a game. The powder did nothing to cure his shaking the same way it had restored some health.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Aww…" Belle couldn't help herself. She'd never really seen someone react so badly to being attacked by an enemy. It was just a game after all and, whilst it was scary at first once most people realised nothing hurt that fear turned into a kind f adrenaline rush. "Come here." She took hold of Sif and gently lowered him to the ground; sitting behind him she wrapped her arms around him and just held him gently, like someone would with their child or maybe younger sibling if something had happened to upset them. "It's gonna be okay." She assured him, taking a gentle tone in her voice. Right now she was wondering if maybe this wasn't the kind of game for him. It was pretty she could see where the concept of it would attract people who maybe weren't usually gamers but if the basic level monsters scared him so much maybe this wasn't the best idea for him, since fighting was a really integral part of the game. She wouldn't tell him that right now though, maybe later once he'd calmed down a little. Right now the only important thing was to at least try and make sure he wouldn't be traumatised by this even later.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif sniffs as he sobs silently, tears spilling down his eyes as he cuddled against Belle. His young character was scared at the attack of the wolf. He felt like he was being cuddled by an older sibling that was trying to comfort him. Sif wondered if there were actual families and relationships in the game. It certainly would be interesting to see a family running around. For now, he was more interested in trying to get his tears away, which was slightly easier with the sympathy coming from Belle. Belle's gentle voice began to calm Sif down a little, and he took deep breaths as he wiped away some of the last of his tears. His tail rubs itself against Belle's side as he nestles his head under her chin. If he was going to get this kind of sympathy from Belle all the time, he knew the player he was going to hang around with the most.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Once Sif seemed to have calmed down a little Belle sighed deeply and slowly separated herself from him, once again offering a hand to help him to his feet. "I think we'll call it quits for the day." She eventually said, trying to be as delicate about it as possible. Who knew, maybe this was just a little kid playing; it could be scary for him. "We'll head back into town, log out and think of a new plan next time you're on okay?" She began leading him back towards the safe zone of the town. The girl was under the assumption he knew the conditions about logging out. Whilst technically you could log out at any time unless you did so in a safe zone your avatar would remain where it was and would be vulnerable to attack. Only in the safe zones, which were usually towns and cities, where monsters couldn't spawn, could you log out fully and your avatar remain safe. Belle figured that it'd probably be really sad for Sif if he logged in to a death notification and all his stuff was gone. As it was it was around dinner time for her anyway and she she was getting hungry.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif nods as he takes her hand and rises to his feet, shakily. "R-Right. Yes." He says quietly. At the very least, he knew to log out in a town. It was one of the main highlights in the manual, one of the only areas he had read, as it was quite important. As they walk, he shyly, gently grabs her arm, walking with her, now completely silent. Maybe it would be alright to log out. His real self needed dinner anyways. Sif decided to ask something while they walked, just to fill in the time. He had been quite silent for a few minutes, apart from the occasional whimper. "Belle," He begins, silently. "Is it possible for there to be families in this game? Like, creating a family, or is there a feature which allows characters to decide upon their relation?" Sif asks as they walk.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Um…" She had to think about that one. "You can't… have kids, if that's what you're asking, they didn't put like a… mature rating on it I suppose? Since anyone any age could play this and they obviously didn't want to open themselves up to lawsuits because… stuff." Really she still had no idea how old this kid was and it was considered really rude to ask about people's real lives so that wasn't something she could do either. "You can get married, if you wanted, the only real perks you get from that though is a shared inventory." It wasn't something a lot of people did, that she knew of, especially strangers. Maybe if a couple were really into gaming they might get married. "But you gotta remember this game is still centred around battle and quests and exploration and junk and while they did make an effort to give a very wide range of experiences and offer options other than those they're still not the focus of the game. You'd be better off waiting for like a Sims to be released or something if you just wanted to play house."</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Right. I was just wondering." Sif smiles through his tear-stained face. "Just a question to fill the time." He was still holding onto her arm lightly, letting her guide him the right way to go. "I'm guessing there are marriage gifts, too." He says, before letting out a breath. "It would be amazing if they updated this so people could actually play house, and stuff. It would attract a lot more players, definitely." He says, his voice quiet. "How far is the town, Belle?" Sif asks, looking up at her face. He could not help but notice how cute she was. Sif's cheeks turn slightly red.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle shrugged slightly. Sure, adding something like that… would maybe attract more characters, but at the same time she felt like it would be drawing a lot away from what was supposed to be the aim of the game. You weren't supposed to get comfortable because at any time someone could come along and take over your land. Heck you couldn't even buy houses in the game because of that factor. She figured if they wanted to attract people who wanted to play house they'd develop a separate game for it. Maybe they were. Or they'd open up a different server where the objectives were different. But really she had no idea and this was why she wasn't a game designer. Either way she didn't want to disagree with him too much. "Just up ahead." She did answer, there was a small hill in front of them and then the town would be visible. This was a really small part of the world after all, compared to the world as a whole. She'd never explored the whole thing yet, but she'd heard from people that it was massive and took a really long time to cross from one side to another using conventional travel.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif's face turns to slight happiness as they near the town. He wondered where he would log out. Maybe he'd just sit on someone's lap and log out with his eyes closed, making it look like they just had a kitten fall asleep on their lap. The thought of that was adorable. He wondered if he could do that with Belle. Then again, it would probably be incredibly awkward, for him, especially since they had met this day. Belle was very sweet, though, and she had helped him out. Pina was adorable, too. As they entered the town, Sif smiles at Belle as he lets go of her arm. If she had friends here, it would be a good move, so that any of them would not see her with a younger person clinging to them and wonder if they were siblings. "So, where should I log out?" He asks her, looking at her shyly but happily. His sadness and fear was now over that they had entered the town.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Where ever you like." She dismissed quickly. "When you log back in you'll be in pretty much the same spot, so it doesn't matter too much." Now that they were back in the town she seemed somewhat distracted, mostly because she was. She had a few things she needed to finish up before she logged out and realised very quickly that this new development was going to affect her game play very significantly. The kid couldn't take a hit without breaking down and that was just… really inconvenient for her. It made her glad she hadn't agreed to be his mentor. She would have never been able to go on a quest again with him there. Well… she would, but he would slow her down and would probably die fairly early in. She was still sympathetic to him, as much as she was able. He did remind her of a younger sibling she needed to take care of but at the same time she didn't come here to babysit kids. She came here to get away from the stresses of real life and it would be difficult to do that if she was constantly worrying about someone who really probably shouldn't be playing this game. She had a lot of things to think over.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Well... Thank you, Belle." Sif says. He stares at her for a few seconds, before grabbing her and pulling her into a tight hug. "Thank you. I-I hope I'll see you again." He says, squeezing her even tight, before eventually letting go. He walks over to a nearby building, and sits down, curling into a ball before he begins to log off, closing his eyes so it would seem like his character was sleeping. The last thing he saw was Belle before his vision faded to black, and he was brought back into the senses of the real world. Immediately upon removing the head gear, James wishes he had a cat tail and cat ears. They were just amazing. He places the head gear on his desk, before he picks up his keys. He was starving, and was planning to get a quick dinner down at the on-campus cafe. Nowhere fancy, but he didn't feel like going out far to eat. He guessed that a few of his friends would be there, too, so he exited his room, locking it and walking down the corridor. As he passes Avery's room, he decides to call out, "Hope you don't choke on your dinner! Oh wait, yes I do!" James smirks as he walks.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn She turned to him, smiling gently though she was caught off guard by the sudden hug. It took her a few moments but she eventually reciprocated it. She watched him as he moved over to a bench before logging out, thinking it was a very odd way to do so. His avatar vanished and she let out a small sigh as she began making her way through the town. She had a bit of useless gear she wanted to sell off and was hoping to upgrade some of her existing, though due to the interruption she doubted she'd have the cash for it just yet. Belle paused as she passed a general goods store, nibbling at her lip as her tail flicked back and forth as she pondered the purchase before eventually groaning and walking over. Once the item was in her inventory she immediately sent it over to Sif for retrieval once he logged back in. Maybe it'd keep him out of trouble if he came back whilst she was gone. Finding herself very short of the necessary funds she decided it was enough for today and logged out, removing the NervGear she placed it delicately on her bedside table before leaving her room. She was really in the mood for pizza.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn James finds that his friends were at the cafe. He bought himself a slice of pizza and some pepsi before he walked to his friends and sat down. The four of them began to talk loudly among themselves about how bad the tests were, and then they moved onto speaking about gaming. Chet, Sophia and Michael all had something to say, and James also had something to say. Once they were done, they listened as it was James' turn to say something. "Oh, well, I started playing Fairy Tale Online, that game I only played for five minutes and then left. I only just realized how real it is. Like, woah. I met this girl, her name was Belle, and she began to teach me about the game. There was this mentor option, and she said she didn't want to be my mentor officially, but could be it unofficially." James says. Sophia chuckles. "You had to have someone show you around the game?" "Well, yes. It's giant. It's literally a fantasy world. And even I have to say that Belle was really sweet to my character." James explains as he eats his pizza.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Avery walked into the on-campus café but paused when she saw who was there and found herself retreating a step just out of habit. She still wasn't sure exactly what it was, but her and James had just never gotten along. He was just always so unnecessarily mean to her. In the end she decided that she'd just order something to go. Walking over she made her order and sat as close to the counter as possible, hoping to avoid and kind of confrontation or attention. Unlike in her online persona Avery was not a very confident person, if anything she was more like Sif than Belle. But that was because she wasn't powerful here, in Fairy Tale she could just beat the crap out of someone who made her mad and if they attacked back they couldn't really hurt her. She wouldn't feel pain and her bones wouldn't break. Sometimes she wished she could just live in Fairy Tale. She wouldn't even miss this world that much, not really. She wouldn't miss the tests or the responsibilities. Most of the people she really considered her friends were online. She certainly wouldn't miss certain people of this world.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Come on, how is she sweet? Did she bang you or something?" Chet asks with a grin. They all laugh. "No, no. Apparently you can't do mature stuff on that game. Well, my character is meant to be all shy and stuff. He cried when a wolf attacked him, and she just cuddled him. Belle also has this dragon-thing pet that can heal. It's adorable, just like she is!" James laughs. "Everyone in my race has cat ears and stuff, too." Hearing this, Sophia can't help but make a small joke by making a purring sound, like a cat. The group can't hold back their chuckles and laughs. James continues on, speaking about Belle and Sif.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Avery shook her head stubbornly at James and his group being loud so she pulled out a pair of headphones and slipped them on, turning the volume up loud enough to drown out their chitter chatter. Her pizza was eventually called and she quickly got up, thanking the man before she took her dinner and quickly made her way back towards her room. As she ate she logged onto her computer, checking up on some new Fairy Tale announcements. She enjoyed reading through about quests she should consider trying. At the moment she had free time, it was in her nature to study things she was interested in because she liked to succeed. She pondered it for a moment before she decided to post a question, asking for advise on her new situation regarding Sif without using any names as well as giving the new mentor system a poor, strongly worded review.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn The friends continued to talk, mainly about gaming stuff but soon Michael and James learned that Chet and Sophia had actually started to date. They made jokes, but eventually, James and his friends all got up, and walked away to their individual rooms. As usual, he decided to advertise his presence to Avery as he passed her room. However, he did it in a separate way than usual. He knocked on her door, alone as his friends had gone away to their rooms. "Hey, Avery! You're a girly girl! Do you know any forums for Fairy Tale online?" He asks through her door, loudly so she could hear.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn The knock startled her for a moment and she turned sharply as she heard James' voice from the other side. The girl groaned in anticipation and covered her head with a pillow as she waited for whatever insult was about to come her way. However what she heard next made her gasp and she flew out of her seat so fast it fell over on her way to the door. She opened it, the glare on her face full of hatred as she stared up at the blue eyes and blonde hair she'd grown to loath so much. "None I would want to see your face on." She said, realising that made little sense but this was the person she disliked most in this world the idea of having to deal with him in the one place she used to escape from here made her blood boil. "And if I ever see you sorry face on my game you had better watch out buddy because you will be sorry." Without another word she slammed the door in his face, turning and marching angrily back into her room. She grabbed her NervGear, roughly throwing it onto her head. She didn't care if she was supposed to go to sleep right now. She needed to kill something.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Fine then! I'll just go! I've got someone who would probably answer me, anyways!" James shouts, turning on his heal and walking to his own room. Upon entering, he closed his door and grabbed his NervGear, swinging it onto his head as he laid down on his bed. He lets out a very frustrated and annoyed breath as he enters the world of Fairy Tale Online again. Upon entering the world, Sif was greeted with a notification. An item from Belle, it appeared. He clicks on the item, and accepts the delivery, before he begins to climb onto the roof of the building that he was sitting under. He needed to sit and relax, and then maybe try killing something by himself.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle quickly began making her way out of the town, away from the beginner's field she had been training Sif and out into the wider world, outside of the Cait-Si realm you were met with large fields that eventually gave way to mountains if you were heading towards the center of the world. To the south was Sylph zone and a forest, though the Cait-Si had an alliance going with the Sylph at the moment so she would be fairly safe if she crossed into their territory. To the north was the Pooka. Both routes contained heavy forest and both routes would provide her with something she could hit to vent her anger.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif lays on the roof, and smiles as he sees that the item he received was a rod. "I can go fishing now!" Sif says, a smile on his face. He opens up the menus, and then scrolls through until he finds the message system. He finds Belle's name, and then begins to write a message to send to her. " To Belle, Thank you for the rod! Something happened which kinda made me upset, however it has definitely cheered me up! (yes, I found out how to make kawaii kitten faces). I'll be sure to go fishing soon with the rod! Thank you again! From Sif " He smiles, and begins to slide off of the roof, landing on the ground. He begins to jog to one of the paths that lead out of the town, wanting to find a nice area to fish.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif lays on the roof, and smiles as he sees that the item he received was a rod. "I can go fishing now!" Sif says, a smile on his face. He opens up the menus, and then scrolls through until he finds the message system. He finds Belle's name, and then begins to write a message to send to her. " To Belle, Thank you for the rod! Something happened which kinda made me upset, however it has definitely cheered me up! (yes, I found out how to make kawaii kitten faces). I'll be sure to go fishing soon with the rod! Thank you again! From Sif " He smiles, and begins to slide off of the roof, landing on the ground. He begins to jog to one of the paths that lead out of the town, wanting to find a nice area to fish.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A notification popped up on Belle's screen just as she took down the last of a small group of boars. It was from Sif, which immediately concerned her since shed seen him log off not an hour or so ago. She opened it and it made her smile slightly, she was glad to see she'd been able to cheer him up, though she wondered what had made him upset in the first place. She kind of saw Sif as a little kid so now all she could imagine was him spitting the dummy because he couldn't have any desert without finishing his vegetables. Smiling she eventually slipped down to the ground as she replied. 'I'm glad you liked it. Make sure to stay close to the town and don't go past that beginning field to the west I showed you earlier, the field to the east of the city has stronger monsters.' Either way she could keep an eye on his health bar since they were still in a party anyway. On her shoulder Pina suddenly let out an alarming cry and Belle turned quickly and her eyes widened at the Ursa Minor, which was a small version of an Ursa Major, which was a celestial bear rearing up to attack her.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif receives her warning about the field, and he smiles, nodding at it. He didn't send a reply, but he acknowledges it. Up ahead, he sees a nice looking body of water, and he quickly migrates there, sitting on the edge as he takes out his rod. He didn't know how to fish, but he figured all he had to do was swing and wait. So, that is what he did. He reeled back, and then swung out, watching the end arc into the water. Now was the waiting game. In the time it took to wait, Sif relaxed, and began to think of the day, both in real life and in his little fantasy adventure. Today, after boring tests of varying types, he had went on a game he had never went on -he decided not to count the five minutes of character creation he did when he first got the MMO- and he had met someone on the game. All of these feelings, the feeling of a rod in his hands, the feeling of the air and the smell of the water, it was just so real. He closed his eyes, and began to think of Belle, and what she may be doing.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Pina cried loudly as he circled around the fight going on between Belle and the monster. She'd heard that very rarely Ursa Minors would spawn out in these woods but honestly she hadn't expected to run into one of these out here, and she was willing to admit she wasn't prepared for it. If it had been a Major, which luckily didn't spawn around this area she would be dead. But thanks to her high acrobatic skill she was managing to stay even with it. Her health was down around half, so was the Minors. Pina gave another cry and flew in and fluttered healing dust at her, bringing her health up a little. Drawing her bow back she let another arrow fly, which found its mark and made the Minor roar out loudly. Despite all this though Belle was loving it. She felt alive and it reminded her of why she'd joined the raiding parities earlier on in her game play. Maybe she wasn't ready to rejoin yet, but she would definitely consider taking on some tougher quests or maybe joining a guild again. Something to remind her of why she really enjoyed playing this game.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif opens his eyes, and stares out at the water. "This is nice and calm. I like this life." Sif says, smiling to himself. He then notices something strange. Belle's health bar, which he could see because of the party, appeared to be fluctuating. "She may just be fighting monsters. No big deal. She'll handle it." He says to himself. But then, her health goes down to roughly halfway, and he begins to get concerned. He opens up the messaging system, and begins to type a message. "Belle, you seem to be taking a lot of damage. Is everything okay over there? Sif" Standing up and reeling back in his rod, he searches to find out where Belle was. He felt like he wanted to follow her around, anyways. She was an amazing person, he had to admit. After finding out where she was using the menus, Sif attempts to jog toward where she was, only to figure out he didn't know where it was from where he was. He began to search for a map, instead.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small noise indicating that she had a message could be heard as Belle moved to hide behind a tree, the Ursa Minor swiping at it, its sheer size and strength breaking the thing in two with one swipe. "Don't really have time to answer you now Sif, sorry." The girl muttered to herself as she quickly turned and shot another arrow at it. The Minor was down to about a quarter health, she was down to about one fifth, Pina healing her once more and bringing her back up to one quarter. If it hadn't been for her amour she may be dead by now. As it was her weapons just weren't doing enough damage, Ursas as a rule were slow but they had very strong physical defence and attack strength. The one thing they were weak against was- she once again leapt out of the way, the Minor's attack missing, barely. They were slow, but big. "Magic!" She reminded herself, turning Belle ran a short distance to put some space between her and the bear as she began the incantation. Magic was one of the big things about Fairy Tale, it was so in depth and powerful it could really turn the tide of most battles. That was also why it was so difficult to learn.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Now Sif was really concerned. He had found a map, and was jogging his way in the direction of the forest. Sif was scared for her, and wanted to see what was damaging her so badly. What would I do if she died forever? I may not find someone else to help me. Sif thought to himself, before quivering a little. It was quenched as he entered the forest. Belle would probably scowl him for entering such an area, however he wanted to help if she was being attacked. Upon walking the path, he sees something big in the distance, along with what looked to be a Cait-Si. As Sif moves closer to the two figures, he freezes. "Woah," He says, seeing the Ursa Minor. Something that big froze him from fear, making him quiver again as he stared. He then figured that he should probably be retreating, and began slowly backing away, quivering.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn She wasn't as far away from it as she would like, but she was far away enough that this should work. She drew her bow back however before releasing it she began speaking in a strange language, words floated around her, some glowing strongly and lining up with others. The Ursa Minor was getting closer, which wasn't difficult given its size, its back reaching the tops of the trees. It was probably just out of attacking distance when Belle finally finished her spell, struggling with the last few words before she let the arrow fly. Since the bear was so close it found its mark on one of the stars on the bear's forehead, lightning burst from the arrow, sparking all around the bear as more struck down from. The Ursa Minor cried out before it eventually fell to the ground, exploding in a poof of code and blue sparkly things. Belle sank to the ground, Pina gave a small cry as he flew in, healing her minorly again before resting on her shoulder and, surprisingly, she began laughing. That was probably the most fun she'd had in ages, even though that Minor wasn't even close to a dungeon boss it had still been really fun.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif watches in a mix of awe and fear as Belle casts what looks to be a spell at the bear, and gasps as the bear cries out and falls over, dying. Even though the Ursa Minor had been taken out, Sif was still worried about Belle, who had appeared to have taken major damage. With hesitation in case something more powerful is waiting in the forest just to kill him as he runs over to assist his friend. "Belle!" Sif says, sliding to his knees beside her and pushing himself onto her, grabbing her and wrapping his arms around her. He rests the top of his head under her chin as his arms cuddle her. "Are you okay? Why did you ask for any help? Jesus, Belle." Sif says, keeping his head nuzzled against her, cat ears twitching slightly as his tail droops.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Hu?" She looked up in surprise when she heard her name called and the girl frowned slightly when she saw who was running towards her. "Sif?" She asked curiously as he began cuddling up to her. "What… what are you doing here?" She asked, sounding confused at first but getting more confident as she realised he'd come out into a very dangerous zone. "I didn't ask for help because I didn't need any, not to mention there was no one online who was close enough to help me." She informed him sternly as she rose to her feet, pulling him with her. "Trust me that thing would have eaten you for lunch." She smiled, trying to reassure him. "Plus even if I had died I wouldn't have lost too much and I would have respawned in the town. It's not a big deal. Pina dying would have been more devastating than if anything had happened to me" Belle dismissed as she looked around, her tail flicking and her eats twitching as her eyes darted around. On her shoulder Pina let out a cry as its name was mentioned. "Come on, we should get back to the safe zone." She decided as she began walking back towards the town.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif cuddles Belle, smiling, happy to find that she was okay. "If I was close enough, I would have come to help, despite you saying you wouldn't need any." He says. "And I was afraid of you dying." He says, shrugging. "Emotions, I guess." Sif says as they begin to walk to the town. A tear streamed down his cheek, as if he had been upset that Belle had almost died. He wraps arm across her back, cuddling closer as they walked to the town. "I'm sure that thing wouldn't have eaten me. You'd have been there to protect me, unofficial mentor." He gives a chuckle.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Don't think of it as dying." Belle tried to explain. "Because you come back to life… if it helps, think of it more as a reset or something like that." Anything that may be able to help him. As he cuddled her, she was reminded of her question and decided it was now or never. "Sif… I have to ask you something… if this game is so distressing to you… why on earth did you want to play it in the first place? I could understand maybe being curious about it but wouldn't you have figured out when you fought your first monster and you broke down crying that maybe… there are better games out there for you?" No she didn't feel good saying about it, but it was true. She could understand curiosity, but surely he could see that this game was not a good match for him. She'd never seen anyone have a reaction this bad to the game because they never stuck around long because they realised this was a bad match for them. He didn't make a lot of sense to her.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif continues to cuddle Belle, but the question catches him off guard. Why had I come back? He asks himself, thinking. I was indeed scared by that wolf, especially when I was injured, but... Why? James' eyes look down to the ground as he tries to think of something. Was it the game, the complete-package feeling of... Feelings, or was it just the adrenaline, and the rush he felt during both the fights on the wolves as well as the rush to find his friend. As he looked back up, and at Belle's face, he found another reason. One that basically just enveloped all of the rest, one that was always there during what he had encountered in this universe. "You." Sif says, quietly. "You. You're the reason I came back. You've been there for me throughout this game, you've been here to help me, and..." His face turns red as he looks away from her. "And, you're generally gorgeous."</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle practically stopped in her tracks, her body tensing as her ears and tail stuck for a moment before she took a few sharp steps away from him, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Now she felt like an idiot. It had been so obvious but she'd just missed it completely, too drawn in by the innocent exterior. But all the cuddling… that questions about game sex. "Creep." She stated loudly before she brought up her menu and quickly logged out. They were within the town boundaries by now, so she didn't have to worry about her avatar being attacked at least. Avery bolted upright in her bed, ripping the NervGear off her head and pulling her knees up to her chest, shuddering slightly as she picked up the gear and placed it away in her draw. She'd heard of creeps like that before from other players, people who only played to get some kind of sick sexual satisfaction because they were probably too creepy to foster a relationship in real life. But she hadn't thought it would happen to her. For a while the girl contemplated reporting him, but it was late so she decided to just sleep it off and think about it clearly in the morning.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif's jaw drops open as Belle leaves. "C-Creep?" He asks himself. He lowers his head, sighing, and begins to type a message to her, his heart broken, feeling like liquid-sadness was being poured into the cracks. To Belle I'm sorry. I did not mean to look like a creep. I really meant it. I like you, Belle. You've escorted me through everything, and shown me yourself. I just, felt... I'm sorry. I shouldn't even try. You hate me. I can't solve that. From Sif Tears in his eyes, he pawed at the 'send' button, and then slowly, shakily reached for the logout button. He closes his eyes and then takes off his NervGear, laying it on his bedside table before he begins to sleep off the tears. Though loud whimpers still came from him.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn The day was deeply overcast, perfect weather to stay inside and play video games. However Avery just wasn't in the mood for it today, not after the events of last night. She felt so violated, relieved that things hadn't gotten to point where something really bad had happened but it didn't stop the betrayed feelings welling up inside her. She grabbed a bag and an umbrella and made her way outside onto the campus in search of something she could do to take her mind off what had happened. It was late in the afternoon, however before she left her apartment. Outside it was pouring down rain and she was glad she'd brought her rain coat and umbrella. Stepping out into the empty campus it was amazing how soothing the rain was as it pattered against the plastic of the umbrella and over the ground, it made her smile slightly. She was about ten minutes away from the dorms when she saw a figure up ahead taking shelter from the rain in a small archway. Apparently they had left before the rain had set in and hadn't through to bring something to keep it off them. Avery pondered this as she made her way towards them.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Damn it." James had been mourning over the loss of his only friend on Fairy Tale Online. His friends were at the Cafe, and where he would normally talk to them in the morning he left them to their selves. He needed something big, something to just flash at him and make him forget what had happened, at least temporarily. James, instead of taking his morning toast to a table and eating it with friends, took a walk while he ate. As James strolled slowly through the campus, he tried to think of things he could do instead of Fairy Tale Online, though it was hard. He had other games, but Fairy Tale just seemed to be the most appealing to him at that time. He could join a club, but he'd end up skipping so many sessions he would just get kicked out. He could get into photography. He liked photography. On the other hand, maybe Fairy Tale Online had cameras, or a screenshot option... God knows how long later, James sighed explosively. "I can't think of anything!" He shouts, holding his head, causing a few people to take glances at him before they walked off. He watched them as they went, ignoring the sudden feeling of an impact upon his shoulder. And then another. At first, James thought that a pigeon of some sort had decided it's lunch had to go, but upon further impacts, combined with a feeling of wetness, he discovered that it was rain that was already beginning to pour upon his shoulders. Spinning on his heels, he quickly moves toward the nearest shelter, which appeared to be an archway of sorts. He didn't care what it was, as long as he was safe from the drops of liquid that poured from the sky. James was definitely not up for having to sit in his dorm to dry clothes. The rain did not seem to be ending any time soon, though. "Come on! I'll do anything!" He shouts at the rain, as if it will say, "Pay me and I will stop." In the distance, he sees a lonely figure moving toward him. Squinting his eyes, as the figure got closer, he recognized her. Oh, not her! She can't see me cowering from the rain like this! He turns away, so it was his back facing her instead of his front.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Despite the back turned to her as Avery approached she was easily able to recognise James and she sighed internally. She'd seen him walking away from her after a slung insult too many times to now know what he looked like from behind. Which was a sad fact. Internally she was debating the best course of action. Most of her wanted to ignore him, so she raised her head, holding it high and staring straight ahead as she walked right past him, however as she re-entered the rain her footsteps slowed until they eventually came to a stop and she sighed internally again. Turning very slightly the girl cast a look over her shoulder to look at him. He looked miserable. She knew this should cause her some sort of happiness, schedenfreude if her German class was to be believed, which essentially translated to 'taking pleasure in the suffering of others'. But all she felt was sympathy. Hell it would take a lot for James to avoid hurling an insult at her. Sighing once more, externally this time she turned and walked back towards him and stood before the boy, holding her umbrella out to him as she stared at the ground. "Take it." She insisted. The rain had been forecast to last all day, so he'd either be stuck here all day or he'd get soaked going home and whilst she understood some people enjoyed that kind of thing personally she hated the rain getting on her. "Go on, I've got a raincoat on anyway." Avery continued, not really knowing if he'd take the offering or not. They'd never really been in a situation like this before and she wondered how proud he was. Worst case she could always just leave the umbrella and walk away, hoping he'd have the decency to take it and not leave it there for someone to steal.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn A lot of things were on the boy's mind, things he expected to happen. James turns away again as she walks past, not wanting to meet eye contact, ashamed that he was having to hide under an archway from the rain. He had expected her to walk past, he had expected her to not bother trying to help him, he expected her to take pleasure in the fact he was cowering from rain, he expected her to hand him her umbrella. W-Wait... She's handing me her umbrella? Her words confirmed this, so he turns, and stares right at her as if she was crazy. Slowly, carefully, gently in case this was some sort of fluke, some sort of prank. If she were to yank the umbrella back and pull him into the rain, James would be whining like a dying cat. Slowly, he grasps the umbrella, and moves it over his head. James was lost for words. Someone he had abused for such a long time, someone he knew hated him... Actually offered him an umbrella to help him out? He struggles to find words, and struggles even more to say them. "T-Thank... You..." He says. "I-I'll be sure to... Leave this... At your dorm..." Not a split second after he says this, he turns tail and begins to walk back to the dorms, shaking a little. Like a child against a wolf, he was afraid of the rain, even with an umbrella. Arriving back at the dorms, James quickly drops off the umbrella at Avery's dorm along with a note that simply said, "Avery, thanks for letting me use your umbrella, James." The note was hell to write, as he had never said anything complimentary to Avery (unless it was intended as a mean joke), however he managed. Walking back into his own dorm, he closes the door, and gets dressed for dinner.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small look crossed the girl's face as he thanked her ad then turned tail and ran. A look that was a mixture of curiosity, amusement and confusion. That small, hesitant and almost timid thankyou was not a side of James she had ever seen before. Then again the only side of him she could really say she'd seen before was insulting ass hat. So it felt fairly easy to say that unless he'd insulted her it would have been a side of him she'd never seen before. She still had a few things she wanted to do, so whilst he ran back to the dorms she continued into town. Thinking about it she could have sworn maybe she'd seen this small look of fear on his face, but thinking it over again she shook her head slightly and realised she was being stupid. And she wasting her time thinking about James. In town Avery picked up a few books, figuring she had to find something else to amuse herself with now that she wasn't comfortable going back to Fairy Tale yet and some things for dinner. A fantasy movie completed her 'staying home' night and she began making her way home. Over the course of her trip the rain had lightened up significantly, now it was only light patters. You could walk through it without getting saturated by now and she assumed it would only get lighter and eventually stop as night rolled around. It was about six by the time she arrived home, glad to see her umbrella had made its way back to her, slightly surprised to see a thank you note from James accompanying it. Sighing she pulled out her notebook and a pen, scribbling down a Fairy Tale forum address on it and sliding it under the boy's door. There was no point keeping it to herself now since she had no clue when she'd be going back. Heading back into her room the girl let herself in, closing the door behind her before she began putting her things away.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Right, it's time to get some dinner." The boy says to himself. Looking at his phone, he begins a back and forth text conversation with Sophia, working out that only she was at the Cafe. James had missed lunch, and was starving, so he figured he may as well join his lonely friend. Turning to the door, he only now sees that a note had been slid under. A quick read of the address written on the paper, and James nods respectively, remembering that he had asked for the forum a while back. He scribbles down a note saying simply two words; "Thank you," before he begins to walk out of his dorm, locking it on his way out. As he passes Avery's room, he slides the note under the door. Arriving at the Cafe, James nodded to Sophia before he bought himself a chicken panini and some chips. He takes a seat, and they begin conversing, James purposefully avoiding starting a conversation about having to receive help from Avery because of the rain. Sophia already knew about James' dislike of the rain, so she did not bring up up (even though she thought it was funny).</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Avery made herself a fairly simple dinner, instant chicken noodle soup since it was perfect weather for it. The bowl in hand she snuggled up on her bed and put the movie into her computer. It was a comfortable night, nights she figured would probably have been better spent in company. It didn't help that all her friends were across the ocean. She'd struggled making friends here, but it made sense, solo player online, solo in real life. For all James' rudeness he at least had friends, which would sometimes lead her to wonder if it had been, in fact, her who was the problem. Then she realised she was thinking about James again and the girl made a face as she finished off her soup and retrieved the ice cream. It was relatively early, about ten at night when she finally decided to turn in for the night. Tomorrow was looming and she had to figure out what she was going to do to amuse herself. Fairy Tale loomed and she figured she could just go off on her own, Sif was still a low level player with no skill. He had no chance of following her if she went out into the neutral zones with even moderately difficult monsters.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Eventually, James decided he shout turn in for the night. He said goodbye to Sophia, and went to his room to sleep. By that time, the Cafe was completely empty, as nobody was going to be eating dinner at midnight. As soon as he enters his room and changes to his pajamas, he thinks of something. Maybe... Will she... Nah. Worth a try, though. He grabs another piece of paper to write a note on, and begins to write. "Avery, I feel kinda... Funny writing this, but you gave me the address to the Fairy Tail Online forum. That means you must be a player, right? Maybe, if you are, we could meet up or something. I'm a bit of a newbie at the game, but I know the basics. Hah. - James" James walks out into the hallways, and slides the note under the door, before walking to his room and jumping into bed. It feels like all he did was blink when he woke up, however the blink appeared to have cured the tiredness of the night before. The rain had appeared to have stopped (thankfully), though James wondered if it was going to start again. Shrugging it off, he grabs his NervGear and slips it on, not even moving from his bed; the advantages of a bedside table. He logs in.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn The blaring of her alarm woke her up and Avery groaned in annoyance. She hated that she was so responsible. In an attempt to keep a regular and healthy sleep schedule she made sure to wake up fairly early each day. It was only seven in the morning, but to a lot of people apparently that was early. Outside the sun was shining, the perfect day to go outside and do something not game related. However the virtual world was calling her. She was sure there was some addictive element to the NervGear, there had to be. Still she should at least get some breakfast before she ate. She was sure she had some toaster waffles stashed somewhere. The notes at her door caught her attention and she moved over to them. Apparently this was a thing they did now. However it did make her giggle slightly. So the forum address told him she was a player but the threat to smite him from the other day if she ever met him in world was nothing. Now she was presented with an interesting dilemma. Honestly she was still very suspicious of James, this could very easily be a ploy to kill her and take all her things online. Sure she was strong but outnumbered no one stood a chance. Eventually she decided to give it some time to think it over and simply decided she'd reply later as she pulled her gear out and slipped it on, logging in and appearing on the hill near Cait-Si starter town. Turning quickly the girl took off into the forest where she figured she stood less chance of running into Sif again.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Okay, it shouldn't be that hard, Sif thought to himself. Someone had came up to him and asked him if he could go and get some wolf hide while he went to fetch some petals of a flower, and he offered a little bit of money as a reward. Sif's first quest. Fortunately, he knew where wolves were because of Belle, so he began to jog there at a light pace. He saw Belle suddenly appear online; the party had never been disbanded. He sighed sadly, and continued to walk, wondering if she had gotten his message. Sif arrived at the fields in record time, and immediately came across a wolf, sitting down, facing away. This was a perfect opportunity, so he approached it from behind, and pulled his weapon out as if he was going to strike, but waiting for the weapon skill to activate. He felt the rush of power, and then struck the wolf, which howled out in pain. However, it appeared this was not going to be as easy as it appeared. More wolves rushed over, and Sif immediately discovered he had run into a pack. He quickly tried to dish out as much damage as possible in the least amount of time, but was taking a lot of damage quickly from the wolves.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Despite the back turned to her as Avery approached she was easily able to recognise James and she sighed internally. She'd seen him walking away from her after a slung insult too many times to now know what he looked like from behind. Which was a sad fact. Internally she was debating the best course of action. Most of her wanted to ignore him, so she raised her head, holding it high and staring straight ahead as she walked right past him, however as she re-entered the rain her footsteps slowed until they eventually came to a stop and she sighed internally again. Turning very slightly the girl cast a look over her shoulder to look at him. He looked miserable. She knew this should cause her some sort of happiness, schedenfreude if her German class was to be believed, which essentially translated to 'taking pleasure in the suffering of others'. But all she felt was sympathy. Hell it would take a lot for James to avoid hurling an insult at her. Sighing once more, externally this time she turned and walked back towards him and stood before the boy, holding her umbrella out to him as she stared at the ground. "Take it." She insisted. The rain had been forecast to last all day, so he'd either be stuck here all day or he'd get soaked going home and whilst she understood some people enjoyed that kind of thing personally she hated the rain getting on her. "Go on, I've got a raincoat on anyway." Avery continued, not really knowing if he'd take the offering or not. They'd never really been in a situation like this before and she wondered how proud he was. Worst case she could always just leave the umbrella and walk away, hoping he'd have the decency to take it and not leave it there for someone to steal.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn A lot of things were on the boy's mind, things he expected to happen. James turns away again as she walks past, not wanting to meet eye contact, ashamed that he was having to hide under an archway from the rain. He had expected her to walk past, he had expected her to not bother trying to help him, he expected her to take pleasure in the fact he was cowering from rain, he expected her to hand him her umbrella. W-Wait... She's handing me her umbrella? Her words confirmed this, so he turns, and stares right at her as if she was crazy. Slowly, carefully, gently in case this was some sort of fluke, some sort of prank. If she were to yank the umbrella back and pull him into the rain, James would be whining like a dying cat. Slowly, he grasps the umbrella, and moves it over his head. James was lost for words. Someone he had abused for such a long time, someone he knew hated him... Actually offered him an umbrella to help him out? He struggles to find words, and struggles even more to say them. "T-Thank... You..." He says. "I-I'll be sure to... Leave this... At your dorm..." Not a split second after he says this, he turns tail and begins to walk back to the dorms, shaking a little. Like a child against a wolf, he was afraid of the rain, even with an umbrella. Arriving back at the dorms, James quickly drops off the umbrella at Avery's dorm along with a note that simply said, "Avery, thanks for letting me use your umbrella, James." The note was hell to write, as he had never said anything complimentary to Avery (unless it was intended as a mean joke), however he managed. Walking back into his own dorm, he closes the door, and gets dressed for dinner.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small look crossed the girl's face as he thanked her ad then turned tail and ran. A look that was a mixture of curiosity, amusement and confusion. That small, hesitant and almost timid thankyou was not a side of James she had ever seen before. Then again the only side of him she could really say she'd seen before was insulting ass hat. So it felt fairly easy to say that unless he'd insulted her it would have been a side of him she'd never seen before. She still had a few things she wanted to do, so whilst he ran back to the dorms she continued into town. Thinking about it she could have sworn maybe she'd seen this small look of fear on his face, but thinking it over again she shook her head slightly and realised she was being stupid. And she wasting her time thinking about James. In town Avery picked up a few books, figuring she had to find something else to amuse herself with now that she wasn't comfortable going back to Fairy Tale yet and some things for dinner. A fantasy movie completed her 'staying home' night and she began making her way home. Over the course of her trip the rain had lightened up significantly, now it was only light patters. You could walk through it without getting saturated by now and she assumed it would only get lighter and eventually stop as night rolled around. It was about six by the time she arrived home, glad to see her umbrella had made its way back to her, slightly surprised to see a thank you note from James accompanying it. Sighing she pulled out her notebook and a pen, scribbling down a Fairy Tale forum address on it and sliding it under the boy's door. There was no point keeping it to herself now since she had no clue when she'd be going back. Heading back into her room the girl let herself in, closing the door behind her before she began putting her things away.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Right, it's time to get some dinner." The boy says to himself. Looking at his phone, he begins a back and forth text conversation with Sophia, working out that only she was at the Cafe. James had missed lunch, and was starving, so he figured he may as well join his lonely friend. Turning to the door, he only now sees that a note had been slid under. A quick read of the address written on the paper, and James nods respectively, remembering that he had asked for the forum a while back. He scribbles down a note saying simply two words; "Thank you," before he begins to walk out of his dorm, locking it on his way out. As he passes Avery's room, he slides the note under the door. Arriving at the Cafe, James nodded to Sophia before he bought himself a chicken panini and some chips. He takes a seat, and they begin conversing, James purposefully avoiding starting a conversation about having to receive help from Avery because of the rain. Sophia already knew about James' dislike of the rain, so she did not bring up up (even though she thought it was funny).</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Avery made herself a fairly simple dinner, instant chicken noodle soup since it was perfect weather for it. The bowl in hand she snuggled up on her bed and put the movie into her computer. It was a comfortable night, nights she figured would probably have been better spent in company. It didn't help that all her friends were across the ocean. She'd struggled making friends here, but it made sense, solo player online, solo in real life. For all James' rudeness he at least had friends, which would sometimes lead her to wonder if it had been, in fact, her who was the problem. Then she realised she was thinking about James again and the girl made a face as she finished off her soup and retrieved the ice cream. It was relatively early, about ten at night when she finally decided to turn in for the night. Tomorrow was looming and she had to figure out what she was going to do to amuse herself. Fairy Tale loomed and she figured she could just go off on her own, Sif was still a low level player with no skill. He had no chance of following her if she went out into the neutral zones with even moderately difficult monsters.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Eventually, James decided he shout turn in for the night. He said goodbye to Sophia, and went to his room to sleep. By that time, the Cafe was completely empty, as nobody was going to be eating dinner at midnight. As soon as he enters his room and changes to his pajamas, he thinks of something. Maybe... Will she... Nah. Worth a try, though. He grabs another piece of paper to write a note on, and begins to write. "Avery, I feel kinda... Funny writing this, but you gave me the address to the Fairy Tail Online forum. That means you must be a player, right? Maybe, if you are, we could meet up or something. I'm a bit of a newbie at the game, but I know the basics. Hah. - James" James walks out into the hallways, and slides the note under the door, before walking to his room and jumping into bed. It feels like all he did was blink when he woke up, however the blink appeared to have cured the tiredness of the night before. The rain had appeared to have stopped (thankfully), though James wondered if it was going to start again. Shrugging it off, he grabs his NervGear and slips it on, not even moving from his bed; the advantages of a bedside table. He logs in.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn The blaring of her alarm woke her up and Avery groaned in annoyance. She hated that she was so responsible. In an attempt to keep a regular and healthy sleep schedule she made sure to wake up fairly early each day. It was only seven in the morning, but to a lot of people apparently that was early. Outside the sun was shining, the perfect day to go outside and do something not game related. However the virtual world was calling her. She was sure there was some addictive element to the NervGear, there had to be. Still she should at least get some breakfast before she ate. She was sure she had some toaster waffles stashed somewhere. The notes at her door caught her attention and she moved over to them. Apparently this was a thing they did now. However it did make her giggle slightly. So the forum address told him she was a player but the threat to smite him from the other day if she ever met him in world was nothing. Now she was presented with an interesting dilemma. Honestly she was still very suspicious of James, this could very easily be a ploy to kill her and take all her things online. Sure she was strong but outnumbered no one stood a chance. Eventually she decided to give it some time to think it over and simply decided she'd reply later as she pulled her gear out and slipped it on, logging in and appearing on the hill near Cait-Si starter town. Turning quickly the girl took off into the forest where she figured she stood less chance of running into Sif again.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Okay, it shouldn't be that hard, Sif thought to himself. Someone had came up to him and asked him if he could go and get some wolf hide while he went to fetch some petals of a flower, and he offered a little bit of money as a reward. Sif's first quest. Fortunately, he knew where wolves were because of Belle, so he began to jog there at a light pace. He saw Belle suddenly appear online; the party had never been disbanded. He sighed sadly, and continued to walk, wondering if she had gotten his message. Sif arrived at the fields in record time, and immediately came across a wolf, sitting down, facing away. This was a perfect opportunity, so he approached it from behind, and pulled his weapon out as if he was going to strike, but waiting for the weapon skill to activate. He felt the rush of power, and then struck the wolf, which howled out in pain. However, it appeared this was not going to be as easy as it appeared. More wolves rushed over, and Sif immediately discovered he had run into a pack. He quickly tried to dish out as much damage as possible in the least amount of time, but was taking a lot of damage quickly from the wolves.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small pinging noise caught Belle's attention and she could see Sif's health going down rapidly and it dawned on her that she'd never disbanded the party in her anger and haste last night. Her first reaction was to simply disband the party, however her hand hesitated and eventually letting it drop. Pina looked at her, cooing softly and causing Belle to growl in annoyance. "Gah I hate myself!" She said angrily as she pulled out a small blue crystal and threw it to the ground, blue light exploding around her before she appeared in the beginner's field next to Sif. Pina spread his wings and took to the air, quickly healing Sif as Belle stood there as she began muttering strange words softly, circles of floating words began circling her, some glowing powerfully as others faded away. The glowing words began lining up. The wolves weren't taking this lying down; however, after the initial shock of Belle's appearance they sprung to attack her, the A.I evaluating her as a bigger threat. However Belle didn't move to defend or retreat, rather focusing on the spell until flames suddenly burst from the circle of words, engulfing the wolves as they began bursting into non-existence whilst leaving Sif unharmed. Pina circled around and landed on her shoulder, Belle letting out a small breath as she turned to Sif with narrowed eyes.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif had been continuing to engage the wolves in close up combat, swinging at them, though he now felt quite weak. It was a surprise when Belle appeared, words floating around her, Pina healing Sif just enough for him to continue holding the few that still had him as their target away from himself. She looks mad, Sif thinks to himself as he takes a glance at Belle. I shouldn't have said what I said yesterday. Suddenly, Sif flinched as the flames burst from the words, holding his hands up instinctively as the flames gushed to the wolves. He relaxed, a little, when it became apparent that the flames were not targeting him, but a new threat appeared; the narrowed eyes of who was his friend, though it was unlikely that she shared the same friend opinion of him. "L-Listen, I'll leave. You didn't need to help me. It's clear I'm disliked now, and..." Sif closed his eyes, sighing. He flicked his hand, brought up the party menu, and opened his eyes to find out where the leave party option was, which he pressed. If she didn't like him, there was no point of him being with her. "There. You don't need to see me again." He whispers sadly.</s>
<\|description\|>Aubrey "Shut up, I'm not that short!" Gender: Male Age: 16 Sexuality: Bisexual Personality: Aubrey is very thoughtful, kind, and passionate, though he has a short fuse. He enjoys the company of others and isn't very particular about who he talks to. Although he seems a little bit shy at times he has a wicked attitude when he is upset. He is immensely stubborn and hot-headed and often makes snap decisions based solely on emotion. The best way to set him off is to tease him for his small size or girly name. Appearance: Considerably small for his age, not only in height but build as well. His brown hair is short and curly, almost always hidden by his favorite snow cap. His vivid blue eyes stand out against his pale skin. Small, almost unnoticeable scars crisscross his arms and shoulders, though he doesn't say what they're from. Weapon of Choice: A small curved dagger with a simple but pleasing design. Other: Absolutely adores cats. Cannot shoot worth a crap. Really good with maps. Does not currently remember his last name. Revealed History: + Been on board the Leviathan about four months. Stats: Strength: 4 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 5 Social: 5 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 3</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter had gotten most of her errands done and was now walking aimlessly through the city, stopping at little shops every now and then for clothes or books. It'd been what, almost an hour since being in Ballard? Someone had probably already kicked up a ruckus. That meant she had a limited amount of time to herself before – Guess my time's up. Just as she'd turned the corner, she came upon three dead bodies. Winter sighed and looked up to the sky for patience. Setting down her bags away from the pooling blood, she walked over and kneeled over the bodies to inspect them. From the long, clean slashes, this was Levi's work. The blood was still fresh and had yet to clot, so the girl was probably still in the area. Winter sighed, getting slightly annoyed. Really, to kill in such a flashy way and then just leave the bodies for anyone to stumble upon? She shook her head at such sloppy work. Her ears perked up when she heard voices reverberating off of the alley walls. People were coming. Straightening up, Winter stepped away from the bodies and backed herself up against the wall where she'd left her bags. She tore at the seam of her dress and pushed her sleeve off her shoulder a bit and then reached down to get the water bottle she'd had in her bag. Opening it, Winter dabbed some onto her fingers and smeared it across her face. She closed her eyes and got into her character. Two patrol officers rounded the corner to find a shivering, fragile girl, staring wide-eyed at the dead bodies. Their voices halted immediately when they saw everything. Winter's head snapped up to look at them and she flinched away, her hands coming up to clutch at her chest, her knuckles white. "I –" her voice broke and she just continued to stare at them. The two men glanced at each other, and one of them came forward, approaching Winter like she was a wild animal. "Hey," he said in a gentle voice. "You're ok, we're not gonna hurt you. Can you tell us what happened?" His hand reached out to her, but he seemed to think better of it and pulled back. Winter pulled her native accent around her voice, thickening it until her words were a broken, stilted version of what they usually were. "There was… men, and they try to…" She bit back a sob and pointed down the opposite alley. "A man come, he defend me, but one ran away. They chase down there." The two officers straightened immediately at hearing that there was still an altercation going on. "Stay here, ok," the officer commanded her, "we'll come back to get you." With that, the two took off, weapons drawn. Without an audience, Winter dropped her act and straightened up. At least now she didn't have to do cleanup work. She tidied herself up and wiped the water from her face. Walking over to the bodies again, Winter picked up their weapons, cleaning them on their shirts and tucked them neatly in her bag. Now she just had to deal with Levi. She looked around, spying an art store and remembered the young girl's drawings. That was a likely place to look then. And sure enough, when Winter walked through the door, there she was. "Levi," she said, voice stern. When she had the girl's attention, she raised her hand and curled her finger in a 'come here' motion.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he heard the familiar voice of the twins nearby and as a result Angelo soon went to the end of the bar waiting on them to do what they did best and cause a commotion and as if on cue Sakuya gave anyone man enough an open pass to come over to them and give them the tour around town. even the guys that he beat up earlier got up at the thought of taking them out however this time "shut up!" when he said that everyone didn't question it or tried to argue about it as they all shut up and Angelo looked at them "why is it wherever you go theirs going to be nothing but white noise crowding the place" Angelo said to Sakuya knowing how Angelo felt about peace and quiet rather then the eruption of noise the both of them make wherever they go. Angelo felt like peace and quiet could let him think and relax anywhere but such noise just pissed him off...</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Oh yeah, it would be good for one of them, you're right." Aubrey took the offered cup from the coffee lady. It was in a little white ceramic mug. The top of the coffee was covered in some kind of foamy stuff, something he had never seen before. He stuck his pinky finger in it and tasted it. Wow, it was sweet alright. He brought the little cup to his lips and sipped it carefully, making sure it wasn't too hot. He nodded his head. "Yeah, you're right. It's really nice here." He was going to add something about it being too nice, that he was starting to twitch from being in such a calm, laid-back atmosphere. But he didn't, and instead just finished his coffee in a few more greedy mouthfuls. Even Levi seemed to have gotten bored with it. Aubrey returned her wave as she left. When Jax asked if he wanted to go after the others with her, his whole face smiled. "I thought you'd never ask! I can't stay still this long, it's making me crazy." He passed his mug back to the counter-lady and thanked her. The lady waited for Jax to hand in her cup, and then Aubrey led his friend back out of the little cafe. Once more, the little bell jingled softly. For some reason, he really liked that bell. "Okay, do you know which way the were going?" He asked, turning to look at Jax. "Taran said something about some fancy place..." He looked up, peering through the smog. In the distance, he could barely see the top of a large building. It's baby blue walls stood out amounts the rest of the rusty, brownish buildings. "That looks promising. Let's head that way." The streets were not particularly crowded anymore. The sun had long since disappeared, and a sickly yellow glow was cast by the old lights lining the streets. The city was definitely worse at night. They walked for a few minutes through the shady place, only passing a few people here and there. "I wonder where everyone went." He said, partly to himself, turning to walk backwards for a second so he could look back to see how far they'd gone. "You'd think that-" Aubrey was cut off when felt a hand grasp the back of his neck. Immediately, he struck back with his elbow, but he missed his assailant, his arm grazing harmlessly across their side. The person pulled Aubrey against them, wrapping a think arm around his neck as the boy squirmed. Based on the strength of the person, Aubrey identified them as male. It felt like the world was moving in slow motion, but the whole exchange happened in about two seconds. He stopped squirming when he felt a blade agaisnt the skin of his neck. He froze, his hands still gripping the arm that was around his neck. "Little girls shouldn't be out at this hour." Someone said. From the shadows of the ally next to them another man appeared, addressing Jax. Aubrey would have kicked him for referring to him as a girl had the circumstances been different. "Now, we don't want any trouble." The man said, "But see, we're sort of running low on cash. I'll make you a deal; hand over your wallets, and we won't hurt your little friend. Unless, of course, you have other services to offer..." The sly way he said it made Aubrey's blood boil, and he gave Jax a look that said 'You better kick his ass'.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax had finished her coffee a little bit before Aubrey and was unnoticeably admiring the somewhat cute way he drank his sugar filled coffee. The internal struggle between the boyish her and the girlish was relentless. She wanted to like Aubrey but felt it was too girly to feel the way she did, all warm and fuzzy inside. Rolling her shoulders a bit she shook it off, waving her hand a little to Levi as she left. "Sweet, let's go" Once he returned his white mug to the woman across the counter she returned hers, smiling mischievously as they headed out. "Yes, I'm pretty sure they were going looting. That building there has got to be our ticket to them, hopefully we're not too late" Once the sun had begun to go down the streets got darker, their were few lights lighting their way and the pollution didn't help their sight either. Aubrey had started to walk backwards for reasons she didn't know and spoke, "you think that-" His words were cut off when a large hand grabbed the back of his neck. Jax's eyes grew wide at the sight of the man behind Aubrey. She hadn't even noticed him creep out of the darkness and grab her crew mate. Now her eyes were narrowed and her hands balled into tight fists. "Bastard" Jax muttered under her breath. The man put a knife to her friend's neck and her own blood boiled as they spoke to her like a child, a girlish child who couldn't fend for herself. Desperate or not they had no right to do such things. Other services? What freaking creeps. Jax cracked her neck and spoke calmly but with a hint of anger and sadism. "Pardon me, I am not a little girl, and that is my friend you have there" She removed the wrench from her back and spun it over her head in one hand, a smirk forming on her face. "Now, if you do not release him I will have to bash both of your skulls in. Find cash and other services elsewhere, will you?" Now trembling with rage, she didn't give them time to reply, no one touched her friends, especially not the boy she liked, and that was final. The pirate girl dashed forward and slammed one end of her wrench into the man's stomach, the one who wasn't holding Aubrey. As he was falling backwards she threw the thing at his head and blood could be seen spewing out of his bashed forehead and broken nose. "No one threatens my friends and gets away with it!!!" Jax than turned with ease and moved behind the other man, rapidly pulling out her flintlock, spinning it and placing it too the man's head. "Now, you will release him or I will have to dislocate your brain, do we have an understanding?"</s>	<\|message\|>Aubrey As soon as Jax moved, the man tightened his grip on Aubrey's throat. Aubrey winced as his air supply was cut off and he felt a trickle of warmth run from where the knife was pressed to the soft skin on his neck. He struggled to turn his head towards the man's elbow, knowing if he could wriggle into the softer flesh he would be able to breath. The man's grip was too strong, and in those vital moments with no oxygen Aubrey's muscles felt useless. Instead of trying to free himself, he managed to bite down on the man's wrist. Simultaneously, he kicked one heel up in between the man's legs and felt a rush of satisfaction when his attacker groaned. Aubrey's feet left the ground as the man lifted him, taking away any leverage the boy had. But then Jax whipped around and slung out a pistol, aiming it at the back of the man's head. He froze, but kept his hold on Aubrey. He stood there for a second, looking at his comrade laying bloodied on the ground, as if contemplating his options. Aubrey's kicks had gotten weak, until he was just hardly moving. He heard Jax speak in a threatening tone, but the words were lost. "Who are you kidding, girly." The man sneered. A confident smirk played across his face as he spoke, as if the sight of his buddy on the ground had no effect on him. "You wouldn't have it in you to actually kill someone, would you?"</s>
<\|description\|>Aubrey "Shut up, I'm not that short!" Gender: Male Age: 16 Sexuality: Bisexual Personality: Aubrey is very thoughtful, kind, and passionate, though he has a short fuse. He enjoys the company of others and isn't very particular about who he talks to. Although he seems a little bit shy at times he has a wicked attitude when he is upset. He is immensely stubborn and hot-headed and often makes snap decisions based solely on emotion. The best way to set him off is to tease him for his small size or girly name. Appearance: Considerably small for his age, not only in height but build as well. His brown hair is short and curly, almost always hidden by his favorite snow cap. His vivid blue eyes stand out against his pale skin. Small, almost unnoticeable scars crisscross his arms and shoulders, though he doesn't say what they're from. Weapon of Choice: A small curved dagger with a simple but pleasing design. Other: Absolutely adores cats. Cannot shoot worth a crap. Really good with maps. Does not currently remember his last name. Revealed History: + Been on board the Leviathan about four months. Stats: Strength: 4 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 5 Social: 5 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 3</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey sighed. "I was afraid you were gonna say that." He looked skeptically at the rusted old fire escape. The ladder wasn't let all the way down, so it dangled a few inches out of his reach. He jumped for it and the metal squeaked in protest as he pulled himself up. Although he would never admit it, his small size did seem to have a positive impact on his agility. He pulled himself up easily, though the motion made him grimace from the pain that shot through his neck. Man, he was gonna have some wicked bruising. He scrambled up and to the window, being careful to try and keep quiet. From his new height advantage, he could now see a group of people running with swords drawn towards them. "Watch out, they're almost on us." He hissed down to Jax, before slipping in through the window. He dropped to the floor and froze for a second while he got his bearings. The room was dark. Something smelled of mildew, and they dust in the room made his eyes water. He moved away from the window so that Jax could follow him in. The fact that he couldn't see the mysterious woman made him edgy. "Kara?" He called out softly, his voice hardly above a whisper.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax "It will be alright" A friendly smile spread across her face, "I promise" And she meant it too. Jax kept watch as her crew mate attempted to climb the old ladder that appeared to be covered in rust and not very safe for use. Luckily he succeeded on his first attempt and climbed quickly up to the top. Jax waited patiently, although a bit jittery from the fact that she could be arrested, she stood there and waited, gun drawn as if she would fight the cops to protect Aubrey and herself. Come on Aubrey, are you there yet?? When she turned her head and glanced up he was in fact at the top, she was too on edge to have noticed. He spoke in a whisper down to her, "Watch out they're almost on us." Subtly she nodded and moved toward the ladder, holstering her gun and reaching up to grab the last rung. She was just too short, a bit taller than Aubrey but not tall enough, only her finger tips touched the rusted metal. "Alright" Jax growled and lept up, gripping the first rung and moving up the ladder with ease. It's not like her hands weren't dirty enough already without rust stains on them. The pirate could see the men from the top of the fire escape and bit her lip, scurrying into the window, nearly landing on Aubrey. Fortunately the dark was no match for her eye piece which helped her see in the dark and see the contents of the room. It was nothing special, not much worth stealing here, but she could clearly see Kara across the way and would quickly pull her gun on her if she tried anything stupid. "Don't worry Brey, I see her. Don't move lady, tell us what you want from us" Hopefully this woman knew better than to test her, considering Jax had just blown the brains out of some guy's head, she was not one to be trifled with.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene "Alright then," Said Taran, turning to head up the stairs into the upper rooms. "Catch you on the flip side, please /try/ to stay out of trouble." With that, he quietly ran up the stairs and started trying various doors. The first few he tried were very much like the one that he and Prince came it. Dusty, dark and full of useless crap. On about the sixth door, he finally hit the jackpot. The door lead into a room that was huge, bigger than most of the common rooms on the Leviathan. There was a great chandler that hung over a bed that could have easily fit seven or eight people. There were more pillows than Taran could count and sitting right on the far corner, was a jewelry stand that was the size of a small tree. Diamond necklaces hung from it like lights on a christmas tree, rubies and emeralds like bulbs. It was quite pretty and Taran wasted no time in removing the jewels and finding them new home in his pockets. Just as his pockets were starting to fill heavy, he heard a cough. "Charlie, is that you?" Taran felt his blood run cold as he turned to see a figure on the darken room shift on the bed. "Charlie dear, come help mummy, she could use a nice cup of tea," Suddenly the lights flicked on and there laid the oldest woman that Taran had ever seen. She was skinny and frail, what little hair was left on her head was white and stood up like cotton candy. "Are you Charlie? You know I don't see too good these day," She motioned for Taran to come to the bed, the woman had a hypnotic nature about her that beaconed Taran forward. The jewels clicked criminally in his pocket as he approached the bed. Soon he found his hand in the woman's much larger, wrinkled one. "No...you aren't my Charlie," She said finally. My Charlie is such a good boy. He bought me this house you know. With the money they gave him for coming to clean up the streets. Always looking after his mother, he is such a good boy," She let out a little laugh, staring off into the distance. "Nothing like his younger brother. Not that I knew that when they were younger, thick as thieves, they used to call them the Lennoxs Brothers. But, I know that my Charlie will turn his brother around in the end. My Charlie is such a good boy. Bought me this house you know. I says to him when he got it, I says, you are going to keep me locked up in that tower. Just like a princess. He is such a good boy," Taran sat on the bed, the woman's grip getting tighter every second. Finally, she spoke again"Ah, Charlie, why don't you help mother get some tea,"Taran nearly jumped, thinking that someone else had entered the room, but he saw no one. Finally it clicked. This woman, was crazy. She made to get up, still holding on to Taran with a iron grip. "A nice cup of chamomile I think, with..with maybe a dash of rum. But don't tell your father," She lead him down the stairs and into a kitchen. She sat down at the table expectantly. Finally Taran was able to come out of the shock he had just been put in at being kidnapped by an old woman. "Ah, okay Mom," he said loudly, hoping to get Prince's attention."I'll just put the kettle on!" "Ah, yes there is my sweet boy, what is your name again? I don't remember you," Kara Saun had gotten the grate out of the wall by the time the other two had reached the bed room. "Well, clearly you are not from around here. See, here, when someone does you a favor, you say, 'thank you'. But I suppose that is what I want. Who are you and where did you come from. Clearly you aren't traders or military, so what are you doing with a ship? Nobody who is travling has a body count as high as your groups. She paused. "But that is talk for another time. We have to move, they'll be sweeping this building soon and I don't want to be here when they do. So, lets just start with names, you already know mine, what are yours?" Even as she spoke there were dogs barking and men enterning the downstairs rooms. People where yelling and babies crying. "Ah, you know what, names can wait. Hurry! And close the gate behind you," With that she climbed into the vent, disappearing from sight.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's eyes narrowed at the third, unfamiliar voice she heard from within the room. This woman was too curious. Though she'd manage to tone down most of her habits since her time aboard the Leviathan, she still had a considerable distrust of strangers – especially when they were interested in what you were doing. When she heard the woman climb into the vent, Winter slinked along the side of the building and dropped silently through the window and into the room. She made no sound as she straightened up, raising both her hands. Then she swatted Jax and Aubrey on the backs of their heads. She brushed past them, walking towards the vent. Picking the grate, she slammed it back onto the vent, jamming her stolen dagger in the side to make sure it stayed closed. Winter turned back to face her two young crew mates, her eyes sharp and icy. "Roof. Now." Her voice was hushed and even, but promised all sorts of things if they didn't get their butts into gear.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince quietly moved downstairs, searching every cupboard and drawers that he could see but still, no luck. "If I was a pile of endless treasure, where would I be?" He whispered, moving towards the kitchen. He spotted a door that led to the basement from the kitchen and you could see his eyes sparkling from excitement. He opened the door, excitedly going down the steep stairs. He turned on the lights, though it was still somewhat dim, his eyes widened at the scene in front of him. The whole room was filled with boxes and boxes of weapons and ammo and it reeked, like something had been left to rot for weeks. He hurriedly ran up the stairs but stopped when he heard Taran call out. He opened a small crack with the door, peeking through it. In front of him was an old lady who had her back towards him and Taran with her. He slowly opened the door, making sure the woman wasn't looking as he slowly made his way out of the basement. He looked towards Taran, signalling that this house wasn't normal. As, he was about to make his way out of the kitchen, he heard multiple footsteps entering through the front door. His palms became sweaty as he scanned the room for anything they could use to escape. The old lady didn't look like she was going to let go of Taran anytime soon, so he had to buy them enough time for Taran to escape and Prince catching up after. He went to the living room, using various furniture to sneak back upstairs. He took a deep breath, slamming the door closest to him and creating as much noise as possible. "There's someone upstairs! Hurry!" He heard someone yell. Now he had just hoped that Taran would be able to escape before he got caught too.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he left the bar pissed that he had to fight all those men for no good reason. Honestly Angelo is going to make sure Sakuya pays for this later, Right now Angelo decided to simply get walking and just clear his head before someone else tries to start a fight from him. Right now Angelo ended up in a sort of market place for supplies and while Angelo was low on money (thanks a lot sakuya!) he would be able to buy something. Maybe just a few sweets just to pass the time between trips. Right now Angelo was looking around making sure to keep track of how much time he had till he had to go back to the ship....</s>	<\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey could hear the group of police in the rooms below them. A few shouts of concern could be heard from the building's residents. The sound of a dog barking angrily raised goose bumps on his skin. He didn't trust dogs. He was definitely a cat person. "Yeah yeah, okay thanks." He muttered, his anxiety clear by the way his eyes kept checking the door to the room, sure it would be broken down any second. "Can we do this later? I really don't want to go to jail again." Kara Saun disappeared into the vent. Before Aubrey could move to crawl in after her, he felt something hit the back of his head. He squeaked in alarm, ducking and reaching for his dagger. Then his eyes rested a freighting sight indeed. Winter moved across the room with purpose, picking up the cover for the vent and putting in back, jamming it into place with an old dagger. Well, so much for Kara Saun. Winter turned to look at them, and he thought she might be able to kill him with that glare. "Roof. Now." She commanded. "Oh, um, nice to see you, Winter." He said with a nervous smile. "What brings you to this side of town?" Her eyes told him she wasn't in the mood for his smart-ass jokes, so he quickly looked away. "Ah, right, the roof sounds like an awesome place. Okay, c'mon, Jax." Without wasting any more time, he swung himself out the window. He moved quickly to reduce the chances of being spotted. Finding footing on a pipe that ran up to the roof alongside the window, he pulled himself up and covered the few feet to the rooftop. The gash on his neck burned like fire as he heaved himself up over the edge, immediately crouching down and moving away from the edge to stay out of sight.</s>
<\|description\|>Aubrey "Shut up, I'm not that short!" Gender: Male Age: 16 Sexuality: Bisexual Personality: Aubrey is very thoughtful, kind, and passionate, though he has a short fuse. He enjoys the company of others and isn't very particular about who he talks to. Although he seems a little bit shy at times he has a wicked attitude when he is upset. He is immensely stubborn and hot-headed and often makes snap decisions based solely on emotion. The best way to set him off is to tease him for his small size or girly name. Appearance: Considerably small for his age, not only in height but build as well. His brown hair is short and curly, almost always hidden by his favorite snow cap. His vivid blue eyes stand out against his pale skin. Small, almost unnoticeable scars crisscross his arms and shoulders, though he doesn't say what they're from. Weapon of Choice: A small curved dagger with a simple but pleasing design. Other: Absolutely adores cats. Cannot shoot worth a crap. Really good with maps. Does not currently remember his last name. Revealed History: + Been on board the Leviathan about four months. Stats: Strength: 4 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 5 Social: 5 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 3</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] "WAAAHHH!" Prince screamed running around the house like an idiot, using every furniture he could get his hands on as a shield from the flying bullets being shot at him. "Why can't we all just be friends?!" He yelled, ducking behind the couch. He scanned his surroundings for an open window but they were all blocked by the people currently shooting at him. "Guess some people aren't meant to be friends," He sighed, taking out his bow and arrow, jumping out from behind the couch and shooting the man on the shoulder before making a break for it out the front door. He pushed everyone on the streets out of the way, yelling sorry down the streets as more guards chased after him. He hastily climbed up to the roofs in an attempt to lessen the shots being fired at him. He looked below him after the shots stopped and laughed to himself. "Ha! No one can outrun the great Pri-OH SHIT!" He yelled, not noticing the last building in front of him which led to a very high fall but it was too late, he jumped, hoping he would land on something soft. "Watch out!" He yelled as he was about to land, he closed his eyes, knowing that he was about to fall to his death. After a few minutes he opened his eyes, "A-Am...Am I dead?" He asked. He heard screams around him, people on the streets staring at him in fear. "Murderer!" They yelled. Prince raised an eyebrow in confusion, until he realized that there was someone underneath him, blood pooling from the man's head. "Wow, okay, that's insulting," He said. "I'm not THAT heavy." He looked up, noticing Taran and a few more members of the Leviathan. "Oh, hey guys!" He waved, laughing. "Glad to see you're all still in one pie--OH MY GOD HE'S DEAD. WHAT. WHAT. I DIDN'T MEAN TO." Just then he heard multiple footsteps running down the street, he looked towards the sound, realizing the amount of guards that were running after them. "Run! Every man for himself!" He yelled, running down the street faster than a cheetah.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's eyes narrowed at Jax as she just made even more of a scene with her laughter. But then Taran was almost barreling into her, there was some mad man swinging his pistol around, and Prince squashed him to his death. Really, how had Winter ever gotten involved with this group in the first place? But she only had a moment to contemplate her questionable life choices, and then it was back into action. "Split up, get to the ship!" Winter shouted at the others. She was about to take off on her own when she suddenly remembered the supplies she'd stashed in the city. Shutting her eyes, she sighed and cursed in her head. Winter turned to the edge of the building and ran, jumping down the outside of the fire escape. Latching onto the railing, she swung herself and landed onto the level below her, the metal rattling. Several officers were rushing up the steps with their weapons in hand. The first one had his pistol pointed at Winter before he was even on the same level as her, but she knew it only had room in it for one shot. He'd want to save it for until he was sure it would hit its mark. Winter crossed the distance to him and kicked his hand away, though he kept his grip strong and didn't release his gun. He pushed himself up the final steps to finally be at the same level as Winter and threw a punch with his other hand, but she grabbed it and turned, using his momentum to throw him over her back. He landed with a rattling crash, but managed to roll out of it, turning to point his pistol at her again. She moved like water, lashing out and disarming him. In the next moment she had the gun pointed at his head. His eyes widened at this turn of events and Winter pulled the hammer back with a smirk. In actuality, she'd aimed the barrel just to the side of his head, but in the split second he'd had to react, he didn't have much opportunity to register anything aside from the fact he was on the wrong side of a pistol. Winter pulled the trigger and the lead ball whizzed past his head, a crack ripping through the night air. The officer threw himself to the side out of reflex – right over the fire escape's railing. He fell with a shout and a loud thud when he hit the ground. At least the groaning told her he was still alive. So much for her non-violence streak. The next officer was almost on her then, rage in his eyes. Winter just threw a wink at him, stuffing the pistol under her belt. Before he could reach her, she was balancing on the railing and launching herself off to the other alley wall. She grabbed onto a pipe and pushed off to land on the ground in a crouch. Most of the officers had chased after their chief's murderer (Prince) so there were only three left in the alley – though Winter could hear footsteps rushing in their direction. The others could handle the remaining two on their own, she figured. Served them right if they had stress to deal with. Plus, they seemed like they hadn't quite had their fill of adventure yet in this grimy, polluted town. And so Winter took off at a sprint, running back into the shopping district where she'd left her bags. When she reached the crowds she pulled out the pistol again, holding it above her head and shouting at people to move. Most tended to stay out of the way when they saw an angry person shouting and waving a gun around. It was more conspicuous than she typically liked, but Winter figured any subtlety had well been chucked out the window long ago. She made quick work retrieving her bags and then looked around, trying to think of some way to get back to the ship when she stood out like a beacon and was weighed down with these bags. Her answer came when she saw a young man, around her age, getting off an old motorcycle, covered in dirt and grease. He was still trying to undo the strap on his helmet when Winter walked towards him, raising her gun. "Get off the bike," she commanded, empty pistol aimed at the poor man's head. "Leave the key." He raised his shaking hands and did as he was told. Still keeping the pistol pointed at him, she marched forward and straddled the motorcycle. She threw the pistol at him then and he flinched, falling back. Winter turned the key in the ignition and felt the bike rumble to life, angry black smoke sputtering out. It'd been a while since she'd driven one of these things, but Winter was fairly certain there was some saying about never forgetting how to ride a bike. She wondered if that applied here. And then she was speeding off towards the dock, leaving the city behind her. That mechanic better have finished fixing the ship. They were out of time.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince turned a sharp corner down an alleyway, taking out his bow and arrow. "I didn't want to use this but it looks like I have no choice," he said, stopping and shooting at the guards. After taking out a few of them he climbed up to one of the house windows and entered the house. Much to his surprise, a woman and her two children were there. "Oh, hey!" He greeted. "Sorry but I'm going to have to use this place for a minute," he said, using the window as a cover while bullets were being shot at him. He left the room running to the room across the hallway and jumped through the window, rolling over once he hit the ground to cover his fall. He put away his bow, deciding to save them in case he gets stuck in a tight spot. He ran through a series of alleyways, eventually losing the guards. He slid down to the floor, desperately trying to catch his breath. [KAI] Kai sighed, trying to squish through the amount of people that were on the streets. Apparently there was a huge commotion going on and he had no doubt in his mind that it had something to do with the crew of the Leviathan. Everywhere they went, they caused a huge scene with their antics, especially Prince. Not that he could blame him though, with Prince's attitude, he's always itching to start something after being cooped up inside the Leviathan without any action for too long. "Out of the way!" He heard someone yell. Trying to find where the voice come from, he was cut off when a couple of guards ran past him, pushing him to the ground. He sighed in annoyance, pulling himself up and dusting off his clothes. After looking around the marketplace, he decided to head back, spending more than enough time wandering the streets. Checking his watch, he didn't have enough time to go through the crowd, deciding to take a detour through the alleyways instead. After a few minutes of navigating through the alleyways, he almost sighed in relief after seeing Prince. He knew Prince could handle himself, but he couldn't help but worry. He walked up to Prince and took out a small pouch that contained water in his pocket. Prince looked up, a grin forming on his lips. "Kai!" he greeted, taking the pouch from him and chugging down the water, leaving it empty. "What kind of trouble did you get in this time?" He asked, rolling his eyes playfully. Prince chuckled, getting up and petting him on the head. "Nothing you need to worry about," Prince said. "Let's get out of here," Prince said, pushing Kai forward. "Before the ship leaves without us." Kai sighed, "Well if you didn't get into so much trouble all the time, you wouldn't have to worry about the ship leaving you behind." Prince snorted, sticking his tongue out. "Okay there, smarty-pants" Prince teased, scanning his surroundings. "Need me to cover you?" Kai asked, earning a nod from Prince. With a disapproving head shake from Kai, they headed back to the ship together.</s>	<\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey heard the sound of gunfire, and turned to see Karan tearing towards them. He didn't slow down after a near collision with Winter, and instead just yelled at them, "Running is good!" Before taking off again. "Wha-" Aubrey flinched as a bullet whizzed past in pursuit of Taran. "What about Pri-" The crewmate in question made a grand appearance as he came falling off of another rooftop and crushed the man after Taran. Well, shit, that was interesting. Winter shouted at them to split up as a large group of very upset guardsmen entered the scene, then flung herself off the side of the building as if she had been trained her whole life for this moment. She took the fire escape and caused a commotion, cutting off that route of escape. Aubrey flashed Jax a smile; this was gonna be fun. He turned and headed for the opposite side of the building as Winter. Luckily, there was a fire escape on that side as well. Not so lucky, the guard had already thought of that. Aubrey jumped down onto the first platform, landing lightly between two of the guys charging up the old steps. "Hi! Nice evening, isn't it?" One of the men lunged for him, but Aubrey twisted out of the way and the man collided with the other, sending both of them tumbling down the steps. "Ah, watch your step!" Aubrey hopped over them before they untangled themselves. So long as nobody got a hold of him, he was fine. He was quick and agile, but easily overpowered if anybody managed to catch him. He skipped the last few steps and vaulted over the railing onto the ground, bypassing a third guard. This one, however, wielded a gun. The man quickly jumped the rail after the boy, landing with a heavy thud. "C'mon kid, come quietly and nobody else has to get hurt!" "Oh, convincing argument, but I better not." Aubrey saw the man's brow twitch in annoyance. He raised his pistol, but Aubrey was already rushing around the next corner into an ally. Running was definitely something he was good at. He changed direction when he spotted another group of men, backtracking a few paces before he found a door exiting into the dark ally. He tried the nob, and to his surprise it was actually unlocked. He opened the door and slipped inside.... the coffee shop? Oh wow, small world. "Oh, hey, I know you." Aubrey was short of breath. Winston was still there. "So, like, some stuff happened, and we should probably skedaddle." The people in the cafe stared at the boy in shock. He probably was a sight, all banged up with that wild-ass grin on his face. He didn't waste time, and quickly headed out the opposite door and back onto the street. Now he knew where he was, even if it was black as sin outside. He turned on his heel and started down the street, covering ground quickly as he put distance between himself and the commotion as he worked his way back to the ship.</s>
<\|description\|>Aubrey "Shut up, I'm not that short!" Gender: Male Age: 16 Sexuality: Bisexual Personality: Aubrey is very thoughtful, kind, and passionate, though he has a short fuse. He enjoys the company of others and isn't very particular about who he talks to. Although he seems a little bit shy at times he has a wicked attitude when he is upset. He is immensely stubborn and hot-headed and often makes snap decisions based solely on emotion. The best way to set him off is to tease him for his small size or girly name. Appearance: Considerably small for his age, not only in height but build as well. His brown hair is short and curly, almost always hidden by his favorite snow cap. His vivid blue eyes stand out against his pale skin. Small, almost unnoticeable scars crisscross his arms and shoulders, though he doesn't say what they're from. Weapon of Choice: A small curved dagger with a simple but pleasing design. Other: Absolutely adores cats. Cannot shoot worth a crap. Really good with maps. Does not currently remember his last name. Revealed History: + Been on board the Leviathan about four months. Stats: Strength: 4 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 5 Social: 5 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 3</s> <\|message\|>Prince [KAI & PRINCE] "Wow, that smells good," Kai said, smelling the dinner that Winter cooked all the way up to him and Prince's joint room. After they got back on the ship they headed straight to their room, in which Kai started fixing up Prince's leg from the small battle in Ballard. He wasn't a professional but he knew his way around the mechanics after fixing Prince's mechanical body parts multiple times. Prince whistled as he was sharpening a new set of arrows after wasting some away from the fight in Ballard. "Yeah," Prince agreed, putting away his arrows. He yawned, stretching his arms above his head. "Are you coming to dinner?" Kai asked. From the small time he's been part of the crew, Prince had never once joined them for dinner and instead ate during the next town they docked in or by himself which is why he kept such an insane amount of food in the room. "Nah," Prince shrugged, taking his leg as Kai passed it to him and attached it back on. "I'll pass," Prince said, waving his hand to shoo Kai away. "Alright, I'll see you later then," Kai said, getting up from his seat and leaving the room. Kai walked over to the galley, following the scent of dinner, he entered seeing Winter putting down the food on the table. ""Hey Winter," he greeted, taking a seat on one of the chairs surrounding the table. "It smells good."</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Waiting while Winter cooked was torture. The smell made his stomach growl and his mouth water. She had shooed him and the rest of the hungry crew out of the galley. He did as he was told and cleaned up around the forming scab on his neck. He winced occasionally when he pressed to hard, but once it was clean he felt better. Although it realistically didn't take that long for Winter to finish, Aubrey was convinced he would starve. The day's adventures had left him wiped out. He waited with Jax, as patiently as he could. He stuck his head through the doorway, making sure he was allowed back in. Winter was just setting bowls of stew out on the table. "Oh my gosh that looks so good." He said, moving inside. A moment later Kai came in. Now that he thought about it, Aubrey realized he hadn't seen him all day. He slid into the seat next to Kai, saving the other one next to him for Jax. "Hey, Kai." He greeted him, smiling warmly. When he sat down, Aubrey pulled his hat off like he usually did, stuffing it in a pocket once more. "How's life?"</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran was munching on a biscuit that he managed to swipe from Winter's cupboard. However, when it mixed with the smell of food, it seemed to simply be making him even more hungry than if he had chosen to skip the ...four...that he had already. He pulled in one of the chairs from the other table and sat down next to Aubrey, he smirked at the boy, raising a finger to press it lighting into the cut on the boy's neck."Looks like breaking into a house was a little bit safer than going to get some coffee, who'd thunk it," a few crumbs fell from his mouth onto his lap. He brushed them off promptly onto the floor. "Winterrrr," he called out, watching the soup fill the bowl. "I'm so hungry, I could die, you look even more lovely than usually because you are feeding me. And I want you to know that I love and appreciate everything that you do. I also like the fact that you could poison me, but you are kind and choose not too. I don't think I say that enough," His voice was neutral and he fought to keep a straight face, but there was a slight glint to his eye when he spoke.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax despised being shooed out of the kitchen when she was hungry. She hadn't eaten all day and just wanted to raid the Winter's food cupboard. However, Winter was having none of it and urged her and Aubrey out of the kitchen. After which they both waited outside of the kitchen desperately for her to let them back in for dinner. Jax watched as Aubrey cleaned his wound, it looked rather painful and she felt guilty for letting him get hurt. I'm sorry Aubrey, she wanted to say but didn't. Once the smell was wafting from the kitchen they knew that it was time to eat and hurried back into the galley. "Finally! It seemed like it took forever, my stomach was singing the song of its people to me for like hours" Jax joked around and went to sit next to Aubrey who had saved a seat beside him when Taran sat down next in a chair next to them. Jax folded her arms across her chest and smacked him on the back of the head as Winter would. "What do you think you're doing? Don't poke at Aubrey!" She fumed After which she sat beside Aubrey, glancing at Taran with a threatening glare. "Winter! Oh thank goodness, I can't wait to eat!" She was setting the table and the somewhat suspicious, probably poisoned soup looked delicious. She'd suffer it, she was that hungry and it wasn't like she hadn't had the experience before. Chills went down her spine thinking about it, silently she prayed to the God of the Air and Sky that Winter wouldn't choose now to poison them all for causing trouble.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter was leaning against the counter, a hand resting on her hip as she watched the crew start to stream in. She gave a smile to Kai and Aubrey as they came in, gushing over the food. She took a moment to eye Aubrey's cut. He'd done a good enough job of cleaning it up, though Winter figured she should still have a look at it. She turned around to wash her hands and heard Taran make his usual ruckus. She didn't turn to look at him as he attempted to shower her with flattery, but if one were to see her face, they would see an amused smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Oh Taran," she said in a teasing voice, "you really do think too highly of me." Winter dried her hands and walked over to another cabinet where a few small jars sat, filled with various colored liquids, along with a needle, some thread, and several rolls of gauze. She kept these little stores all around the ship – it was always best to be prepared with this bunch. Winter picked out a small jar of translucent green liquid, gauze, and medical tape, along with a clean scrap of cloth. Turning back, she walked over so she stood next to Aubrey, opposite of Jax and Taran. "Hold still," she murmured as she to inspect his neck. It was directed just as much to the young boy as it was to Taran and Jax. Winter brought up her hand and gently lifted Aubrey's chin, turning it a bit towards her. Placing the gauze and tape on the table, she took the cloth and dabbed it on his skin, absorbing any leftover water, along with a few drops of blood. Without looking, Winter tossed the cloth onto another area of the counter, well away from the pot. Then she uncorked the bottle and a sharp, minty smell filled the air, mingling with the aroma of the stew. Dipping her finger into the jar, she delicately smeared the liquid across the gash at his neck, as well as on the surrounding skin. Winter put the stopper back on the bottle and placed it on the table, picking up the gauze and tape. She made quick work of covering the wound and then placed her clean hand lightly on top of his head, almost as if to pat him, and gave him a small smile. Then she picked up the jar from the table and put all her supplies away, washing her hands in the sink. "Let me know if it starts bleeding again, alright?" she told Aubrey over her shoulder. With that done, Winter turned back around to lean against the counter again. Kai, Aubrey, Jax, and Taran. Prince and the captain usually never ate with them, Angelo only came down from his roost if she served pork and garlic bread, and if Levi were eating with them, then she'd be here by now. That just left Winston and the twins. Something told her Winston wouldn't be at dinner tonight, but Rin and Sakuya were something of a toss-up. She supposed they could just join in when they got there, then. Winter pushed off from the counter and took a seat at the table. Picking up the mug she'd placed by her bowl when she'd been setting up, she raised it, a playful glint in her eyes. "To another close call, then," she said in a mock toast. She brought the cup to her lips and took a sip, signaling it was officially dinner time.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [KAI] "Hey, Aubrey," Kai greeted, a smile forming on his lips. While Aubrey was only a year older, he admired him. Only a year older and he can fight with the rest of the crew, unlike Kai who doesn't like the thought of fighting. He'll fight if he had too, but he just forces Prince to do his fighting for him, also because Prince just goes around looking for trouble so anything works for him. "I'm doing good, you?" He watched as the others entered the room, smiling at them as a way to greet them. Everyone took their place around the table and Winter patched up the wound on Aubrey's neck from earlier. No matter how long he's stayed on the ship, he could never get used to all the blood and wounds that showed up on a daily basis. At uncomfortable times like these, he wished Prince was here. "To another close call, then," Winter said, raising her cup in the form of a toast. He smiled, lifting up his cup too and taking a sip from it.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he relaxed in the crows next and looked up in the sky above him watching the clouds roll by. They were already off and avoiding the storm Angelo called to the captain earlier so now all he needed to do was to keep an eye out for enemy ships. which Angelo could do easily by just looking in all directions every once in a while. Between that time he could just relax and enjoy the quiet by himself</s>	<\|message\|>Aubrey "Not too bad." Aubrey replied to Kai, "But I got a lil - ow, Taran, stop it, that hurts!" He swatted away Taran's hand, who at some point had drug over another chair so he could be close enough to bother him. Winter took his attention away from Taran, when she tilted up his chin, telling hims to keep still. He did as she asked, careful not to wiggle as she dabbed gently at his neck. She spread that minty stuff he liked on it, the kind that feels all cool and tingly. She taped the bandage to his neck, and placed a hand on his head before she moved away. Aubrey smiled and thanked her. She was one of few people he actually liked to pat him on the head like that. For some reason it didn't feel like she was teasing him – like Prince did – but it was more like an act of affection. "Okay, I will." Winter took her seat and raised her glass in a toast, giving them the okay to eat. That was one of the simple things Aubrey liked about these pirates – they ate together like family. Well, most of them, anyway. It gave them all a chance to be together before everyone got busy with their own tasks. Aubrey took a swig of his drink and then pulled his bowl of stew closer. He took a bite of it, relishing the rich flavors. "You're amazing, Winter." He said, taking a few more large bites in rapid succession.</s>
<\|description\|>Prince Gender: Male Age: 19 Sexuality: He says every body is beautiful, therefore to him gender isn't an issue. Appearance: Due to an accident when he was younger, he lost both his left arm and right leg. His late father, being an inventor, created his a mechanical arm and leg which he takes good care of. Personality Prince is known as a friendly man, almost big brother-like to the younger crew in the Leviathan. He often teases the people he's close to, sometimes showing his sadistic nature whilst cracking the most horrible puns in the worst of situations, but when put in the position that requires fighting, people say it's like something inside him clicks and he becomes a ruthless killer until the task is done. He's been using an alias, 'Prince', as his name ever since he got involved with the crew of the Leviathan, preventing anyone from knowing his real name due to his background. Weapon of Choice: Other: Unlike others, Prince prefers to fight in the shadows. He uses the shadows to blend into his surroundings and attacking the enemy from behind instead of facing them head on. In cases where he has to fight, he uses his skills in martial arts for close combat and relies on his bow and arrow to support his teammates from afar. Stats: Strength: 8 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 4 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 5</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter had gotten most of her errands done and was now walking aimlessly through the city, stopping at little shops every now and then for clothes or books. It'd been what, almost an hour since being in Ballard? Someone had probably already kicked up a ruckus. That meant she had a limited amount of time to herself before – Guess my time's up. Just as she'd turned the corner, she came upon three dead bodies. Winter sighed and looked up to the sky for patience. Setting down her bags away from the pooling blood, she walked over and kneeled over the bodies to inspect them. From the long, clean slashes, this was Levi's work. The blood was still fresh and had yet to clot, so the girl was probably still in the area. Winter sighed, getting slightly annoyed. Really, to kill in such a flashy way and then just leave the bodies for anyone to stumble upon? She shook her head at such sloppy work. Her ears perked up when she heard voices reverberating off of the alley walls. People were coming. Straightening up, Winter stepped away from the bodies and backed herself up against the wall where she'd left her bags. She tore at the seam of her dress and pushed her sleeve off her shoulder a bit and then reached down to get the water bottle she'd had in her bag. Opening it, Winter dabbed some onto her fingers and smeared it across her face. She closed her eyes and got into her character. Two patrol officers rounded the corner to find a shivering, fragile girl, staring wide-eyed at the dead bodies. Their voices halted immediately when they saw everything. Winter's head snapped up to look at them and she flinched away, her hands coming up to clutch at her chest, her knuckles white. "I –" her voice broke and she just continued to stare at them. The two men glanced at each other, and one of them came forward, approaching Winter like she was a wild animal. "Hey," he said in a gentle voice. "You're ok, we're not gonna hurt you. Can you tell us what happened?" His hand reached out to her, but he seemed to think better of it and pulled back. Winter pulled her native accent around her voice, thickening it until her words were a broken, stilted version of what they usually were. "There was… men, and they try to…" She bit back a sob and pointed down the opposite alley. "A man come, he defend me, but one ran away. They chase down there." The two officers straightened immediately at hearing that there was still an altercation going on. "Stay here, ok," the officer commanded her, "we'll come back to get you." With that, the two took off, weapons drawn. Without an audience, Winter dropped her act and straightened up. At least now she didn't have to do cleanup work. She tidied herself up and wiped the water from her face. Walking over to the bodies again, Winter picked up their weapons, cleaning them on their shirts and tucked them neatly in her bag. Now she just had to deal with Levi. She looked around, spying an art store and remembered the young girl's drawings. That was a likely place to look then. And sure enough, when Winter walked through the door, there she was. "Levi," she said, voice stern. When she had the girl's attention, she raised her hand and curled her finger in a 'come here' motion.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he heard the familiar voice of the twins nearby and as a result Angelo soon went to the end of the bar waiting on them to do what they did best and cause a commotion and as if on cue Sakuya gave anyone man enough an open pass to come over to them and give them the tour around town. even the guys that he beat up earlier got up at the thought of taking them out however this time "shut up!" when he said that everyone didn't question it or tried to argue about it as they all shut up and Angelo looked at them "why is it wherever you go theirs going to be nothing but white noise crowding the place" Angelo said to Sakuya knowing how Angelo felt about peace and quiet rather then the eruption of noise the both of them make wherever they go. Angelo felt like peace and quiet could let him think and relax anywhere but such noise just pissed him off...</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Oh yeah, it would be good for one of them, you're right." Aubrey took the offered cup from the coffee lady. It was in a little white ceramic mug. The top of the coffee was covered in some kind of foamy stuff, something he had never seen before. He stuck his pinky finger in it and tasted it. Wow, it was sweet alright. He brought the little cup to his lips and sipped it carefully, making sure it wasn't too hot. He nodded his head. "Yeah, you're right. It's really nice here." He was going to add something about it being too nice, that he was starting to twitch from being in such a calm, laid-back atmosphere. But he didn't, and instead just finished his coffee in a few more greedy mouthfuls. Even Levi seemed to have gotten bored with it. Aubrey returned her wave as she left. When Jax asked if he wanted to go after the others with her, his whole face smiled. "I thought you'd never ask! I can't stay still this long, it's making me crazy." He passed his mug back to the counter-lady and thanked her. The lady waited for Jax to hand in her cup, and then Aubrey led his friend back out of the little cafe. Once more, the little bell jingled softly. For some reason, he really liked that bell. "Okay, do you know which way the were going?" He asked, turning to look at Jax. "Taran said something about some fancy place..." He looked up, peering through the smog. In the distance, he could barely see the top of a large building. It's baby blue walls stood out amounts the rest of the rusty, brownish buildings. "That looks promising. Let's head that way." The streets were not particularly crowded anymore. The sun had long since disappeared, and a sickly yellow glow was cast by the old lights lining the streets. The city was definitely worse at night. They walked for a few minutes through the shady place, only passing a few people here and there. "I wonder where everyone went." He said, partly to himself, turning to walk backwards for a second so he could look back to see how far they'd gone. "You'd think that-" Aubrey was cut off when felt a hand grasp the back of his neck. Immediately, he struck back with his elbow, but he missed his assailant, his arm grazing harmlessly across their side. The person pulled Aubrey against them, wrapping a think arm around his neck as the boy squirmed. Based on the strength of the person, Aubrey identified them as male. It felt like the world was moving in slow motion, but the whole exchange happened in about two seconds. He stopped squirming when he felt a blade agaisnt the skin of his neck. He froze, his hands still gripping the arm that was around his neck. "Little girls shouldn't be out at this hour." Someone said. From the shadows of the ally next to them another man appeared, addressing Jax. Aubrey would have kicked him for referring to him as a girl had the circumstances been different. "Now, we don't want any trouble." The man said, "But see, we're sort of running low on cash. I'll make you a deal; hand over your wallets, and we won't hurt your little friend. Unless, of course, you have other services to offer..." The sly way he said it made Aubrey's blood boil, and he gave Jax a look that said 'You better kick his ass'.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax had finished her coffee a little bit before Aubrey and was unnoticeably admiring the somewhat cute way he drank his sugar filled coffee. The internal struggle between the boyish her and the girlish was relentless. She wanted to like Aubrey but felt it was too girly to feel the way she did, all warm and fuzzy inside. Rolling her shoulders a bit she shook it off, waving her hand a little to Levi as she left. "Sweet, let's go" Once he returned his white mug to the woman across the counter she returned hers, smiling mischievously as they headed out. "Yes, I'm pretty sure they were going looting. That building there has got to be our ticket to them, hopefully we're not too late" Once the sun had begun to go down the streets got darker, their were few lights lighting their way and the pollution didn't help their sight either. Aubrey had started to walk backwards for reasons she didn't know and spoke, "you think that-" His words were cut off when a large hand grabbed the back of his neck. Jax's eyes grew wide at the sight of the man behind Aubrey. She hadn't even noticed him creep out of the darkness and grab her crew mate. Now her eyes were narrowed and her hands balled into tight fists. "Bastard" Jax muttered under her breath. The man put a knife to her friend's neck and her own blood boiled as they spoke to her like a child, a girlish child who couldn't fend for herself. Desperate or not they had no right to do such things. Other services? What freaking creeps. Jax cracked her neck and spoke calmly but with a hint of anger and sadism. "Pardon me, I am not a little girl, and that is my friend you have there" She removed the wrench from her back and spun it over her head in one hand, a smirk forming on her face. "Now, if you do not release him I will have to bash both of your skulls in. Find cash and other services elsewhere, will you?" Now trembling with rage, she didn't give them time to reply, no one touched her friends, especially not the boy she liked, and that was final. The pirate girl dashed forward and slammed one end of her wrench into the man's stomach, the one who wasn't holding Aubrey. As he was falling backwards she threw the thing at his head and blood could be seen spewing out of his bashed forehead and broken nose. "No one threatens my friends and gets away with it!!!" Jax than turned with ease and moved behind the other man, rapidly pulling out her flintlock, spinning it and placing it too the man's head. "Now, you will release him or I will have to dislocate your brain, do we have an understanding?"</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey As soon as Jax moved, the man tightened his grip on Aubrey's throat. Aubrey winced as his air supply was cut off and he felt a trickle of warmth run from where the knife was pressed to the soft skin on his neck. He struggled to turn his head towards the man's elbow, knowing if he could wriggle into the softer flesh he would be able to breath. The man's grip was too strong, and in those vital moments with no oxygen Aubrey's muscles felt useless. Instead of trying to free himself, he managed to bite down on the man's wrist. Simultaneously, he kicked one heel up in between the man's legs and felt a rush of satisfaction when his attacker groaned. Aubrey's feet left the ground as the man lifted him, taking away any leverage the boy had. But then Jax whipped around and slung out a pistol, aiming it at the back of the man's head. He froze, but kept his hold on Aubrey. He stood there for a second, looking at his comrade laying bloodied on the ground, as if contemplating his options. Aubrey's kicks had gotten weak, until he was just hardly moving. He heard Jax speak in a threatening tone, but the words were lost. "Who are you kidding, girly." The man sneered. A confident smirk played across his face as he spoke, as if the sight of his buddy on the ground had no effect on him. "You wouldn't have it in you to actually kill someone, would you?"</s>	<\|message\|>Prince "Jeez, Taran," Prince grinned. "Wouldn't hurt to do a good deed once in a while," He paused, placing a finger on his chin. "Now that I think about that sounded a bit weird knowing we're pirates." He shook his head, chuckling, "It was thanks to kids like those who helped me when my arm and leg got blew off," He said, reminiscing about his past. "I promised myself and father that no matter how things got bad, I would always help those kids. Sure, if they had bad intentions it'll bit me in the ass later, but I'd rather live knowing I did something than nothing at all." Prince grinned scratching the back of his head. "I guess father taught me how to be a pushover in the end, huh?" "Besides, even if people did try to come after us later, doesn't that just make things more interesting?" Prince laughed. He looked towards the direction Taran pointed, a sly smile forming on his lips. "C'mon Taran, wouldn't be any fun if we didn't get at least a little action today, where's your sense of adventure?" He asked, grinning from ear to ear. He ran towards the building and using an alleyway as a cover so people wouldn't see him and scaling up to the roof. "I forgot to tell you, I like the thrill of getting caught," He smirked, winking at Taran before entering the building through a window.</s>
<\|description\|>Prince Gender: Male Age: 19 Sexuality: He says every body is beautiful, therefore to him gender isn't an issue. Appearance: Due to an accident when he was younger, he lost both his left arm and right leg. His late father, being an inventor, created his a mechanical arm and leg which he takes good care of. Personality Prince is known as a friendly man, almost big brother-like to the younger crew in the Leviathan. He often teases the people he's close to, sometimes showing his sadistic nature whilst cracking the most horrible puns in the worst of situations, but when put in the position that requires fighting, people say it's like something inside him clicks and he becomes a ruthless killer until the task is done. He's been using an alias, 'Prince', as his name ever since he got involved with the crew of the Leviathan, preventing anyone from knowing his real name due to his background. Weapon of Choice: Other: Unlike others, Prince prefers to fight in the shadows. He uses the shadows to blend into his surroundings and attacking the enemy from behind instead of facing them head on. In cases where he has to fight, he uses his skills in martial arts for close combat and relies on his bow and arrow to support his teammates from afar. Stats: Strength: 8 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 4 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 5</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran froze as he heard boots hitting the stairs, yet the woman's grip was still like iron. He was trying to pry his arm away, not more similar to a fox trying to chew his own leg off. "M'am, please, let go!"he said, almost whining at this point, his voice kept at a low whisper. He saw Prince right behind the woman's head and was shaking his head for the other to bail and he would follow after. "Mom?"came a voice from downstairs. "Mom, where are you?" It must have been Charlie, and he didn't sound like he was alone in the slightest. "I'm here dear, me and one of your little friends was just sitting down for a nice cup of tea," She called cheerfully. "Shall we pour you a cup as well?" The voices were getting closer, finally he was able to yank his arm away from the woman's hold, leaving half his arm hair behind. "Charlie, your friend isn't very kind, but he is sure cute with that long blond hair of his and those dark brown eyes," 'At least she won't be able to give a good description of me to any one,' thought Taran bitterly, taking off towards the stairs and back to the room and the window that he had once come from. "Mother, where did they go?" came the voice again, but at least it was getting quieter now, instead of louder. Taran couldn't make out the woman's response. He soon hit the room and was crossing for the window when his thoughts finally shifted back to Prince. He paused, debating he should go back for the boy. But he had no idea where Prince was. Heck, for all he knew the boy was already out booking it back to the ship. His hesitation cost him and soon the door to the room was tossed open, and there stood Charlie in all his glory, gun drawn and ready to shoot. " Think you can mess with my mother?" The man's voice was heavy with emotion. "Think you can steal from a little old woman? Well, not tonight you son of a business man. I ran out of fucks to give. I ain't taking prisoners, not tonight. Oh no, not tonight," Taran didn't think twice, he heard the click of the gun, but he was already out the window and scurrying to the next roof. Prince was just going to have to take care of himself. He heard several bullets strike the stone where his foot was only moments before. He flew across the roof tops, but the man wasn't so far behind. He was so focused on what was behind him that he almost crashing right into Winter. It took him a few moments to recognize the trio. "Run! Run! Run! Running is good! He yelled, not so much as paused to properly talk as another bullet whizzed past his head. "You son of a- I knew, I knew this was a part of Jac-.., you...I'll kill you, I swear it!"Awh, dear old Charlie had such a way with words. Kara Saun was less than two feet into the vent when she heard it slam shut. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she had been locked in. Oh well, their loss anyway. Perhaps their little ship was going to have a great need for new crew after tonight away way. She crawled through the vent downward for a little wise longer, soon the sounds of fighting started to fade. Eventually, she hit the sewer and less than a moment later, she stood outside the Leviathan. Clearly, most of the crew wasn't back yet. She spotted a few shadows in the windows, but for the most part it seemed empty. So, of course, she invited herself on board. Most ships were built similar, she soon found the kitchen, helped herself to some cookies and a cup of tea, before finding a hole to bunker down in. The crew was adding her, like it or not. Besides, she did just track the blood of those men into her home, there was no going back. She just hoped that they could get the hunk of junk in the air before the police got here to shut it down.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] "WAAAHHH!" Prince screamed running around the house like an idiot, using every furniture he could get his hands on as a shield from the flying bullets being shot at him. "Why can't we all just be friends?!" He yelled, ducking behind the couch. He scanned his surroundings for an open window but they were all blocked by the people currently shooting at him. "Guess some people aren't meant to be friends," He sighed, taking out his bow and arrow, jumping out from behind the couch and shooting the man on the shoulder before making a break for it out the front door. He pushed everyone on the streets out of the way, yelling sorry down the streets as more guards chased after him. He hastily climbed up to the roofs in an attempt to lessen the shots being fired at him. He looked below him after the shots stopped and laughed to himself. "Ha! No one can outrun the great Pri-OH SHIT!" He yelled, not noticing the last building in front of him which led to a very high fall but it was too late, he jumped, hoping he would land on something soft. "Watch out!" He yelled as he was about to land, he closed his eyes, knowing that he was about to fall to his death. After a few minutes he opened his eyes, "A-Am...Am I dead?" He asked. He heard screams around him, people on the streets staring at him in fear. "Murderer!" They yelled. Prince raised an eyebrow in confusion, until he realized that there was someone underneath him, blood pooling from the man's head. "Wow, okay, that's insulting," He said. "I'm not THAT heavy." He looked up, noticing Taran and a few more members of the Leviathan. "Oh, hey guys!" He waved, laughing. "Glad to see you're all still in one pie--OH MY GOD HE'S DEAD. WHAT. WHAT. I DIDN'T MEAN TO." Just then he heard multiple footsteps running down the street, he looked towards the sound, realizing the amount of guards that were running after them. "Run! Every man for himself!" He yelled, running down the street faster than a cheetah.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's eyes narrowed at Jax as she just made even more of a scene with her laughter. But then Taran was almost barreling into her, there was some mad man swinging his pistol around, and Prince squashed him to his death. Really, how had Winter ever gotten involved with this group in the first place? But she only had a moment to contemplate her questionable life choices, and then it was back into action. "Split up, get to the ship!" Winter shouted at the others. She was about to take off on her own when she suddenly remembered the supplies she'd stashed in the city. Shutting her eyes, she sighed and cursed in her head. Winter turned to the edge of the building and ran, jumping down the outside of the fire escape. Latching onto the railing, she swung herself and landed onto the level below her, the metal rattling. Several officers were rushing up the steps with their weapons in hand. The first one had his pistol pointed at Winter before he was even on the same level as her, but she knew it only had room in it for one shot. He'd want to save it for until he was sure it would hit its mark. Winter crossed the distance to him and kicked his hand away, though he kept his grip strong and didn't release his gun. He pushed himself up the final steps to finally be at the same level as Winter and threw a punch with his other hand, but she grabbed it and turned, using his momentum to throw him over her back. He landed with a rattling crash, but managed to roll out of it, turning to point his pistol at her again. She moved like water, lashing out and disarming him. In the next moment she had the gun pointed at his head. His eyes widened at this turn of events and Winter pulled the hammer back with a smirk. In actuality, she'd aimed the barrel just to the side of his head, but in the split second he'd had to react, he didn't have much opportunity to register anything aside from the fact he was on the wrong side of a pistol. Winter pulled the trigger and the lead ball whizzed past his head, a crack ripping through the night air. The officer threw himself to the side out of reflex – right over the fire escape's railing. He fell with a shout and a loud thud when he hit the ground. At least the groaning told her he was still alive. So much for her non-violence streak. The next officer was almost on her then, rage in his eyes. Winter just threw a wink at him, stuffing the pistol under her belt. Before he could reach her, she was balancing on the railing and launching herself off to the other alley wall. She grabbed onto a pipe and pushed off to land on the ground in a crouch. Most of the officers had chased after their chief's murderer (Prince) so there were only three left in the alley – though Winter could hear footsteps rushing in their direction. The others could handle the remaining two on their own, she figured. Served them right if they had stress to deal with. Plus, they seemed like they hadn't quite had their fill of adventure yet in this grimy, polluted town. And so Winter took off at a sprint, running back into the shopping district where she'd left her bags. When she reached the crowds she pulled out the pistol again, holding it above her head and shouting at people to move. Most tended to stay out of the way when they saw an angry person shouting and waving a gun around. It was more conspicuous than she typically liked, but Winter figured any subtlety had well been chucked out the window long ago. She made quick work retrieving her bags and then looked around, trying to think of some way to get back to the ship when she stood out like a beacon and was weighed down with these bags. Her answer came when she saw a young man, around her age, getting off an old motorcycle, covered in dirt and grease. He was still trying to undo the strap on his helmet when Winter walked towards him, raising her gun. "Get off the bike," she commanded, empty pistol aimed at the poor man's head. "Leave the key." He raised his shaking hands and did as he was told. Still keeping the pistol pointed at him, she marched forward and straddled the motorcycle. She threw the pistol at him then and he flinched, falling back. Winter turned the key in the ignition and felt the bike rumble to life, angry black smoke sputtering out. It'd been a while since she'd driven one of these things, but Winter was fairly certain there was some saying about never forgetting how to ride a bike. She wondered if that applied here. And then she was speeding off towards the dock, leaving the city behind her. That mechanic better have finished fixing the ship. They were out of time.</s>	<\|message\|>Prince Prince turned a sharp corner down an alleyway, taking out his bow and arrow. "I didn't want to use this but it looks like I have no choice," he said, stopping and shooting at the guards. After taking out a few of them he climbed up to one of the house windows and entered the house. Much to his surprise, a woman and her two children were there. "Oh, hey!" He greeted. "Sorry but I'm going to have to use this place for a minute," he said, using the window as a cover while bullets were being shot at him. He left the room running to the room across the hallway and jumped through the window, rolling over once he hit the ground to cover his fall. He put away his bow, deciding to save them in case he gets stuck in a tight spot. He ran through a series of alleyways, eventually losing the guards. He slid down to the floor, desperately trying to catch his breath. [KAI] Kai sighed, trying to squish through the amount of people that were on the streets. Apparently there was a huge commotion going on and he had no doubt in his mind that it had something to do with the crew of the Leviathan. Everywhere they went, they caused a huge scene with their antics, especially Prince. Not that he could blame him though, with Prince's attitude, he's always itching to start something after being cooped up inside the Leviathan without any action for too long. "Out of the way!" He heard someone yell. Trying to find where the voice come from, he was cut off when a couple of guards ran past him, pushing him to the ground. He sighed in annoyance, pulling himself up and dusting off his clothes. After looking around the marketplace, he decided to head back, spending more than enough time wandering the streets. Checking his watch, he didn't have enough time to go through the crowd, deciding to take a detour through the alleyways instead. After a few minutes of navigating through the alleyways, he almost sighed in relief after seeing Prince. He knew Prince could handle himself, but he couldn't help but worry. He walked up to Prince and took out a small pouch that contained water in his pocket. Prince looked up, a grin forming on his lips. "Kai!" he greeted, taking the pouch from him and chugging down the water, leaving it empty. "What kind of trouble did you get in this time?" He asked, rolling his eyes playfully. Prince chuckled, getting up and petting him on the head. "Nothing you need to worry about," Prince said. "Let's get out of here," Prince said, pushing Kai forward. "Before the ship leaves without us." Kai sighed, "Well if you didn't get into so much trouble all the time, you wouldn't have to worry about the ship leaving you behind." Prince snorted, sticking his tongue out. "Okay there, smarty-pants" Prince teased, scanning his surroundings. "Need me to cover you?" Kai asked, earning a nod from Prince. With a disapproving head shake from Kai, they headed back to the ship together.</s>
<\|description\|>Taran Greene Gender: Male Age: 19 Sexuality: Bisexual Appearance: Taran has red-brown hair that always looks messy. Slightly freckled and easily tanned. He stands a short 5'11" with an athletic build. He is equipped with a pair of hazel eyes. Personality: Taran has a hard time taking anything seriously. What he lacks in formal training, he makes up for in spirt and charisma (or so he thinks, it is probably up for debate). Taran spent the majority of his youth with a group of performers, acrobats of a sort. He did not join because he has a hatred of authority, more like bad impulse control and it seeming like a good idea at the time. That being said, he will typically stay loyal to a cause until finding reason not to. However, once something becomes unworthy in his eyes (a cause, a person, an idea) he'll hate it, typically with uncalled for passion, and very little will be able to reverse that particular judgement. Although he is not the best fighter, he strives to become one and will often pester others to train him. Weapon of choice: His body. Seriously, while he cannot fight very well, he is fairly difficult to catch due to his acro training. Also, his inability to differentiate between doors and windows. Other: He is fairly musically inclined. Particularly with the violin and piano. However, he only plays for pay and as a last minute gift for someone because he didn't forget. Stats Strength: 6 Dexterity: 7 Intelligence: 4 Social: 5 Crafting: 2 Fighting: 2</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Winter and Taran probably would have had a better time of avoiding each other if they hadn't tried to avoid each other in the same way. His arms still ached from the half hour in which he hid under one of the tables while Winter cooked breakfast. Usually, he'd send one of the others in to do a look out before he would enter the kitchen, before denying that that was what he was doing. But, on that morning, Taran thought he was up early enough that he wouldn't risk seeing the girl. He was wrong. When he dared enter the hallway, he'd usually end up climbing something because he thought it was Winter coming around the corner, usually it wasn't. He spent the last thirty-two hours kicking himself. Why did he feel the urge to give her that stupid necklace? No only was it the most valuable piece of jewelry that he took that night, but it made things weird. He glanced over at Winter, who was almost pointedly not looking at him. It was dumb, and he wondered if the problem could be fixed by simply asking for it back? Or would that make it worse? 'She isn't that great anyway' he thought to himself ' With her face, and her hair that always smells nice and her eyes that --' he thought was cut off as she spoke and he promptly looked at the Captain, his face flushing slightly having zero idea about what the conversation had been about up til this point. He'd just have to ask Aubrey before they got there... The sound of a meeting was what drew her. After watching the 'Pirates' she decided that she should probably make herself known, help where she could, and hopefully keep them from killing her. Both straight out and by their own incompetence. Kara Saun situated herself in a vent with a clear line of sight towards the man who must have been the captain. If she was being fair, he didn't look nearly old enough, but...on the other hand, this Peter Pan man seemed to have a whole ship of lost little children.</s> <\|message\|>Shiyami Eiji Shiyami Shiyami couldn't help but to mentally sigh as he stared out the triple-layered tempered glass in the captain's quarters. He glanced down at the table in front of him, with multiple papers scattered everywhere on it. There were written reports of all variety mixed in with what appeared to be multiple blueprints of different ships of the government fleet. The first and foremost on was the blueprint of the warship Sovereign, the one he was residing in. Towards the corner of the desk however, was a small, weathered envelope, containing two parchments. One was a rather childish drawing, of three people. The other, was a more well-done drawing, of the same three people. Looking at it, Shiyami couldn't help but to smile faintly. "I wonder what those two little rascals are up to?" Muttering these words to himself, he was reaching over to pick up the envelope, when a knock at his door interrupted him. Quickly pocketing it, she called out, "Enter." A soldier came in, clicked his heels, and saluted. "The first mate requests your presence on the bridge, sir!". Shiyami sighed aloud this time, before rubbing the back of his neck tiredly. "There's no need to call me sir." un-energetically speaking these words that sounds like they have been spoken once to often, Shiyami stood up, before walking towards the bridge. Walking down the corridor, Shiyami kept his eyes shifting, making sure to keep every detail memorized. However, no matter how times he seen it, he still felt amazed that this metal behemoth of an airship actually flew. Thing should be heavy as hell. When he arrived, the crew onboard all saluted, with the commander calling out, "Officer on deck!". "At ease that shit..." Annoyed, Shiyami muttered the usual lines, with the response of, "I see you still dislike formalities." coming from the right. Glancing over, his eyes stopping at his observer, the merc shrugged. "Formalities are a tool to be used only when required." Tossing back his words, he walked up, before looking at the map, before checking the ship's status report. "Alright, we need to refuel and resupply the Sovereign. Take us to The Crumbling Keep." Calling out his order, the Sovereign started to move, slowly getting up to speed.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he hung out in the corner listening to the captain explain the plan of their next raid and when he said that their was no point in being sneaky Angelo had to point out something. "for future reference its not that im not sneaky its that my way usually leaves a trail of bodies" Angelo explained to the captain since Angelo used claws Angelo usual way of killing while unseen meant to literally tear out someone's throat. it was easy with the sharpness of his claws and the fact that when he did they couldn't scream and died in a matter of seconds but because of that method their was a lot of blood and bodies and by the time Angelo gets halfway inside somewhere the alarm sounds. "as far as im concerned to what you feel is right captain ill kill either way" Angelo said simply glad he had already taken a shower before coming here, his claws usually end up smelling for hours if he doesn't shower before putting them on...</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston looked along the various charts that they have laid out. His eyes followed the charts. He remained silent since they left the docks, but his silence was broken by his plan. "We can't do a full scale assault, but we can't do a stealth mission with everyone. There are a few... ruffians among us," he said, his eyes shifting to Angelo "but I digress. Winter, Prince, Taran, and I to sneak in, and check to see if they have any super secret tide-turning weapon. We disable that, and everyone else enters. They're going to see our huge ass mothafuckin' ship a mile off, so we need a large scale fight to happen while we sneak in." Winston had said the description of the ship jokingly, but in a poor impression of the captain. "But it will most likely damage the ship. If we don't want to damage our huge ass mothafuckin' ship, we need to park out on a nearby island, and then drift on boats onto the other island. Which is pretty dangerous, if you ask me." He said, still carrying the joke with him.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Captain, what exactly are we after?" Dexter's eyes rested on Winter for a moment. He tuned Jax out, who seemed to be having some sort of ecliptic seizure, or perhaps was just laughing at something. He wasn't sure what was so funny. He pulled out a blueprint that was covered by some other papers and laid it on top. One finger tapped the paper as he spoke, his mind seemingly elsewhere. "This single creation, one that is about the size of small bookshelf, has more firepower then our ship." He paused again, letting his words sink it. He could tell some of his crew were preoccupied with something else, but he was not curious in the least. Perhaps at a different time, he would have looked more into it and discovered what the issue was, but at the moment he was simply to focused on the task at hand to care. "I don't know if we will be able to use these things." He said, "Our understanding of the technologies used are just not enough. However, we cannot allow something with this much power to be used to the military's advantage. Should they get these things up and running, and find a way to reproduce them, we wouldn't have a chance. If nothing else, we need to destroy them." Winston spoke up, and the corner of Dexter's mouth twitched when he repeated the phrase 'huge ass mothafunkin' ship' several times. Ah, that's what was so funny. "Yes, actually, that's exactly what I was thinking, Winston. Thank you. We have three paddle boats that are currently functional. Each one can hold about four people, plus perhaps an Aubrey." Aubrey crossed his arms and snorted in distaste, not appreciating the captain's dry sense of humor. Dexter continued, "So, Winston, Winter, Prince and Taran will take one and be our stealth team. Everyone else will create a diversion. Any more questions?"</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She couldn't stop laughing hearing Winston say the words over and over several times. Were they trying to make her pass out from lack of Oxygen? Maybe so. "Ahhaha, hahhh" Jax wiped tears from her eyes and giggled a little bit, trying to shake off the laughing fit. Unfortunately, due to her loud, obnoxious laughter, she hadn't heard most of what the others had said, except when the captain said something about Aubrey. Her gazed turned to Aubrey who crossed his arms and pouted a little. She felt bad for him always being made fun of for his size and wanted to speak up but knew better to speak against the captain, that was treachery. "Anymore questions?" The captain asked. Jax turned her head to look at the captain. "Cap'n what do you mean by diversion? I thought I heard Winny say something about entering after the stealth team... or did you want us to create a diversion after they entered? Or before" Jax scratched her head in confusion, trying to make sense of the few things that she had heard and the things the captain had said. "I don't get it..."</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE & KAI] Prince sighed as he saw the plans layed out around the table. He wasn't really one for plans but he had to listen to the captain. He listened intently, nudging Kai beside him who was in his own world. 'Stealth team?' He thought, silently chuckling to himself. 'Right.' He was surprised they put him in stealth, considering the amount of trouble he causes on a daily basis. "Large machines, high security and possibly getting killed?" Prince asked. "Sounds like my kind of place," he grinned. Kai huffed, rolling his eyes. "You better not get yourself killed," he said, crossing his arms. Kai grinned, wrapping an arm around Kai. "Of course I won't," Prince grinned.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's attention was drawn to Winston as he started fleshing out a plan to get in and get out with as few complications as possible. It seemed plausible… but a childish part of her begged for an alternative where she could more actively avoid Taran. (She also wanted to raise an eyebrow at the implication there was anything discreet about Prince or Taran, but she supposed everything was relative when it came to this crew.) Winter quashed that part immediately, frustration growing. This was ridiculous. All he'd done was give her a stolen necklace. She shouldn't have been avoiding him or getting so worked up about a silly trinket when it probably didn't even mean anything. Besides, it was Taran. Taran who was never serious about anything and was likely trying to bribe her so she wouldn't poison his next meal. Against her better judgement, she risked a glance over at the crew mate in question. It was the way he'd looked at her when he'd done it though. How his hand had lingered on hers for just a moment too long… Winter was absolutely not blushing. She didn't blush. She snapped her eyes over to Jax when the girl spoke. Thankful for something else to think about, Winter contemplated what she said. "Diversions tend to work best when done before the criminal act," she said. She was relieved to find her voice steady when she talked. "The four of us will go in, and the rest will stay out, doing what they do best." The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up as she looked at Jax. The young mechanic (and a good portion of the crew) would certainly enjoy the chance to wreak some havoc. "If I'm understanding correctly?" She directed this at the captain, silently asking for clarification.</s>	<\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran felt his cheeks flush red. Alone...in a small boat...with Winter? The very person he had spent all day and night trying to avoid? Granted Prince and Winston would be there as well, but still. He was debating asking what level of injured would excused one from the mission. Was a broken leg enough? Or would one still be expected to perform? He heard Winter speak and he half expected Winter to disagree with the two of them being on the same team, but it never came. Perhaps he was getting too worked up, maybe she just thought of the neckless as a gift from a friend...which they were...right? Or maybe she didn't mind him...maybe she wanted them to be...in the boat...together...with Prince and Winston. Despite the flaw in his logic, the thought did make him perk up slightly. "Alright, fine, drop me into certain death guys, what is it? Tuesday already?" Said Taran, finally having processed enough of the conversation to have something to say about it. "But, in all serouseness Cap'in, you can count on me and Prince to save the day, amIright? Up top!" He held out his hand to the captain, expecting a high five with a grin on his face. When all he got was a glare, he kept the grin going "Well, that is alright, self five it is," He brought his hands together in front of his face creating a loud clapping sound. Taran then brought his hands down to his lap, looking very pleased with himself.</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran froze as he heard boots hitting the stairs, yet the woman's grip was still like iron. He was trying to pry his arm away, not more similar to a fox trying to chew his own leg off. "M'am, please, let go!"he said, almost whining at this point, his voice kept at a low whisper. He saw Prince right behind the woman's head and was shaking his head for the other to bail and he would follow after. "Mom?"came a voice from downstairs. "Mom, where are you?" It must have been Charlie, and he didn't sound like he was alone in the slightest. "I'm here dear, me and one of your little friends was just sitting down for a nice cup of tea," She called cheerfully. "Shall we pour you a cup as well?" The voices were getting closer, finally he was able to yank his arm away from the woman's hold, leaving half his arm hair behind. "Charlie, your friend isn't very kind, but he is sure cute with that long blond hair of his and those dark brown eyes," 'At least she won't be able to give a good description of me to any one,' thought Taran bitterly, taking off towards the stairs and back to the room and the window that he had once come from. "Mother, where did they go?" came the voice again, but at least it was getting quieter now, instead of louder. Taran couldn't make out the woman's response. He soon hit the room and was crossing for the window when his thoughts finally shifted back to Prince. He paused, debating he should go back for the boy. But he had no idea where Prince was. Heck, for all he knew the boy was already out booking it back to the ship. His hesitation cost him and soon the door to the room was tossed open, and there stood Charlie in all his glory, gun drawn and ready to shoot. " Think you can mess with my mother?" The man's voice was heavy with emotion. "Think you can steal from a little old woman? Well, not tonight you son of a business man. I ran out of fucks to give. I ain't taking prisoners, not tonight. Oh no, not tonight," Taran didn't think twice, he heard the click of the gun, but he was already out the window and scurrying to the next roof. Prince was just going to have to take care of himself. He heard several bullets strike the stone where his foot was only moments before. He flew across the roof tops, but the man wasn't so far behind. He was so focused on what was behind him that he almost crashing right into Winter. It took him a few moments to recognize the trio. "Run! Run! Run! Running is good! He yelled, not so much as paused to properly talk as another bullet whizzed past his head. "You son of a- I knew, I knew this was a part of Jac-.., you...I'll kill you, I swear it!"Awh, dear old Charlie had such a way with words. Kara Saun was less than two feet into the vent when she heard it slam shut. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she had been locked in. Oh well, their loss anyway. Perhaps their little ship was going to have a great need for new crew after tonight away way. She crawled through the vent downward for a little wise longer, soon the sounds of fighting started to fade. Eventually, she hit the sewer and less than a moment later, she stood outside the Leviathan. Clearly, most of the crew wasn't back yet. She spotted a few shadows in the windows, but for the most part it seemed empty. So, of course, she invited herself on board. Most ships were built similar, she soon found the kitchen, helped herself to some cookies and a cup of tea, before finding a hole to bunker down in. The crew was adding her, like it or not. Besides, she did just track the blood of those men into her home, there was no going back. She just hoped that they could get the hunk of junk in the air before the police got here to shut it down.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] "WAAAHHH!" Prince screamed running around the house like an idiot, using every furniture he could get his hands on as a shield from the flying bullets being shot at him. "Why can't we all just be friends?!" He yelled, ducking behind the couch. He scanned his surroundings for an open window but they were all blocked by the people currently shooting at him. "Guess some people aren't meant to be friends," He sighed, taking out his bow and arrow, jumping out from behind the couch and shooting the man on the shoulder before making a break for it out the front door. He pushed everyone on the streets out of the way, yelling sorry down the streets as more guards chased after him. He hastily climbed up to the roofs in an attempt to lessen the shots being fired at him. He looked below him after the shots stopped and laughed to himself. "Ha! No one can outrun the great Pri-OH SHIT!" He yelled, not noticing the last building in front of him which led to a very high fall but it was too late, he jumped, hoping he would land on something soft. "Watch out!" He yelled as he was about to land, he closed his eyes, knowing that he was about to fall to his death. After a few minutes he opened his eyes, "A-Am...Am I dead?" He asked. He heard screams around him, people on the streets staring at him in fear. "Murderer!" They yelled. Prince raised an eyebrow in confusion, until he realized that there was someone underneath him, blood pooling from the man's head. "Wow, okay, that's insulting," He said. "I'm not THAT heavy." He looked up, noticing Taran and a few more members of the Leviathan. "Oh, hey guys!" He waved, laughing. "Glad to see you're all still in one pie--OH MY GOD HE'S DEAD. WHAT. WHAT. I DIDN'T MEAN TO." Just then he heard multiple footsteps running down the street, he looked towards the sound, realizing the amount of guards that were running after them. "Run! Every man for himself!" He yelled, running down the street faster than a cheetah.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter's eyes narrowed at Jax as she just made even more of a scene with her laughter. But then Taran was almost barreling into her, there was some mad man swinging his pistol around, and Prince squashed him to his death. Really, how had Winter ever gotten involved with this group in the first place? But she only had a moment to contemplate her questionable life choices, and then it was back into action. "Split up, get to the ship!" Winter shouted at the others. She was about to take off on her own when she suddenly remembered the supplies she'd stashed in the city. Shutting her eyes, she sighed and cursed in her head. Winter turned to the edge of the building and ran, jumping down the outside of the fire escape. Latching onto the railing, she swung herself and landed onto the level below her, the metal rattling. Several officers were rushing up the steps with their weapons in hand. The first one had his pistol pointed at Winter before he was even on the same level as her, but she knew it only had room in it for one shot. He'd want to save it for until he was sure it would hit its mark. Winter crossed the distance to him and kicked his hand away, though he kept his grip strong and didn't release his gun. He pushed himself up the final steps to finally be at the same level as Winter and threw a punch with his other hand, but she grabbed it and turned, using his momentum to throw him over her back. He landed with a rattling crash, but managed to roll out of it, turning to point his pistol at her again. She moved like water, lashing out and disarming him. In the next moment she had the gun pointed at his head. His eyes widened at this turn of events and Winter pulled the hammer back with a smirk. In actuality, she'd aimed the barrel just to the side of his head, but in the split second he'd had to react, he didn't have much opportunity to register anything aside from the fact he was on the wrong side of a pistol. Winter pulled the trigger and the lead ball whizzed past his head, a crack ripping through the night air. The officer threw himself to the side out of reflex – right over the fire escape's railing. He fell with a shout and a loud thud when he hit the ground. At least the groaning told her he was still alive. So much for her non-violence streak. The next officer was almost on her then, rage in his eyes. Winter just threw a wink at him, stuffing the pistol under her belt. Before he could reach her, she was balancing on the railing and launching herself off to the other alley wall. She grabbed onto a pipe and pushed off to land on the ground in a crouch. Most of the officers had chased after their chief's murderer (Prince) so there were only three left in the alley – though Winter could hear footsteps rushing in their direction. The others could handle the remaining two on their own, she figured. Served them right if they had stress to deal with. Plus, they seemed like they hadn't quite had their fill of adventure yet in this grimy, polluted town. And so Winter took off at a sprint, running back into the shopping district where she'd left her bags. When she reached the crowds she pulled out the pistol again, holding it above her head and shouting at people to move. Most tended to stay out of the way when they saw an angry person shouting and waving a gun around. It was more conspicuous than she typically liked, but Winter figured any subtlety had well been chucked out the window long ago. She made quick work retrieving her bags and then looked around, trying to think of some way to get back to the ship when she stood out like a beacon and was weighed down with these bags. Her answer came when she saw a young man, around her age, getting off an old motorcycle, covered in dirt and grease. He was still trying to undo the strap on his helmet when Winter walked towards him, raising her gun. "Get off the bike," she commanded, empty pistol aimed at the poor man's head. "Leave the key." He raised his shaking hands and did as he was told. Still keeping the pistol pointed at him, she marched forward and straddled the motorcycle. She threw the pistol at him then and he flinched, falling back. Winter turned the key in the ignition and felt the bike rumble to life, angry black smoke sputtering out. It'd been a while since she'd driven one of these things, but Winter was fairly certain there was some saying about never forgetting how to ride a bike. She wondered if that applied here. And then she was speeding off towards the dock, leaving the city behind her. That mechanic better have finished fixing the ship. They were out of time.</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey heard the sound of gunfire, and turned to see Karan tearing towards them. He didn't slow down after a near collision with Winter, and instead just yelled at them, "Running is good!" Before taking off again. "Wha-" Aubrey flinched as a bullet whizzed past in pursuit of Taran. "What about Pri-" The crewmate in question made a grand appearance as he came falling off of another rooftop and crushed the man after Taran. Well, shit, that was interesting. Winter shouted at them to split up as a large group of very upset guardsmen entered the scene, then flung herself off the side of the building as if she had been trained her whole life for this moment. She took the fire escape and caused a commotion, cutting off that route of escape. Aubrey flashed Jax a smile; this was gonna be fun. He turned and headed for the opposite side of the building as Winter. Luckily, there was a fire escape on that side as well. Not so lucky, the guard had already thought of that. Aubrey jumped down onto the first platform, landing lightly between two of the guys charging up the old steps. "Hi! Nice evening, isn't it?" One of the men lunged for him, but Aubrey twisted out of the way and the man collided with the other, sending both of them tumbling down the steps. "Ah, watch your step!" Aubrey hopped over them before they untangled themselves. So long as nobody got a hold of him, he was fine. He was quick and agile, but easily overpowered if anybody managed to catch him. He skipped the last few steps and vaulted over the railing onto the ground, bypassing a third guard. This one, however, wielded a gun. The man quickly jumped the rail after the boy, landing with a heavy thud. "C'mon kid, come quietly and nobody else has to get hurt!" "Oh, convincing argument, but I better not." Aubrey saw the man's brow twitch in annoyance. He raised his pistol, but Aubrey was already rushing around the next corner into an ally. Running was definitely something he was good at. He changed direction when he spotted another group of men, backtracking a few paces before he found a door exiting into the dark ally. He tried the nob, and to his surprise it was actually unlocked. He opened the door and slipped inside.... the coffee shop? Oh wow, small world. "Oh, hey, I know you." Aubrey was short of breath. Winston was still there. "So, like, some stuff happened, and we should probably skedaddle." The people in the cafe stared at the boy in shock. He probably was a sight, all banged up with that wild-ass grin on his face. He didn't waste time, and quickly headed out the opposite door and back onto the street. Now he knew where he was, even if it was black as sin outside. He turned on his heel and started down the street, covering ground quickly as he put distance between himself and the commotion as he worked his way back to the ship.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax "Running is good!" Through all the commotion that's all she caught on to besides the fact that Winter had said to split up afterwards. Jax smirked, everyone was around, at least the younger members, all could handle themselves and all were hopefully headed toward the ship. Jax felt feverish knowing that if she was caught she'd be thrown in prison, she hated prison. But at the same time the adrenaline was pumping through her like crazy. Aubrey smiled at her and she smiled back, they would have to go separate ways and meet back at the ship. She didn't want to leave him but it was important to split up, it'd be easier to get home that way. "Looks like I'm up" Jax snickered, the others had already gone their own ways and now it was her town. She bolted off the edge of the building, jumping across to the other side, there were men up there, waiting for her arrival. With a pouty expression she stared at them as they surrounded her. "Aww, you guys wouldn't attack an innocent little mechanic girl would you?" She asked as she gave the man in front of her a perfect puppy dog face. "We would if that girl happened to be a murderer, you've got blood on your face girly." One said. Curses, still? "Alright, no use trying to talk my way out of this, I'm kind of in a hurry." Jax removed her wrench from her back and held it by one end, spinning around like an out of control top, taking out the men with ease, each flew back, some falling off the building. "Weeee!!!" Once she was done spinning, the world seemed to keep going. "Whoa" This pirate had to move, and fast, more men were close behind, it was like every man in the whole city was after the crew now. Her head was still spinning but she kept moving, across to another roof top, since men were following her she had no choice but to climb down. Or y'kno, jump down. Like a trained assassin(which she isn't), she jumped across to a pole jutting out from the front of the building, swung on it and landed on another wooden piece sticking out below. Once more she jumped and landed on a cart on the ground. "Alright! keep moving!" With that she launched herself forward, rolling across the ground, popping up and running like there was a fire trying to engulf her from behind. Aubrey, Winter, Taran, Prince... I hope they're all okay. No time for that. Through the dark and pollution she could see some familiar surroundings, she was nearing the coffee shop, but she wouldn't stop there, there was probably no one left there anyway. In her mind everyone had already made it too the ship and was waiting to cast off. Once to the docks she knelt down, breathing heavily. "Am I the first one or what?"</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter The bike skidded to a halt when she reached the dock and Winter killed the engine. She got off, and marched towards the ship to find Jax already there, and Taran not far behind her. "Jax," she called. "Tell the mechanic his job is done. Take over wherever he left off." She stuck her hand in her bag then and fished around, never breaking her stride. When she pulled it out, she brought with it a pair of fine leather work gloves. Tossing them over to Jax, she added, "Break these in, too." There wasn't much time for any further signs of affection, though. Winter made her way onto the ship, tossing her things in a corner where they wouldn't get in the way. Her mind spun with things to do – Prince and Aubrey could handle themselves well enough to make it to the ship, but Winston, the twins, and Angelo weren't exactly aware of the situation. Hopefully they'd see the commotion and figure it out. But Winter had to do something else before she could worry about any of that. She came to a stop in front of the door to the captain's quarters. Giving a breath, she steadied herself and knocked. Winter waited respectfully with her hands behind her back for the captain to open the door so she could let him know the situation. (Though odds were he knew the crew well enough to have some idea.)</s> <\|message\|>Dexter Kennedy Dexter spent the whole time at Ballard on the ship. He had no desire to go explore this mess of a city. His thoughts were elsewhere. The desk in front of him was laid out with an abundance of colorful charts and graphs. Lines and notes were drawn in small, neat handwriting across them from a charcoal pencil the captain had borrowed from Levi's stash. Blueprints accompanied the other papers; crude drawings of machinery he was familiarizing himself with. Weapons, security, evey nick and cranny that could be used as a hiding place or shelter from enemy fire... Dexter plotted it all out, committing it to memory. This next job was an important one, and he couldn't allow himself or his crew to mess it up. He checked the watch on his wrist. It had been about five hours now, and he was sure that any minute now at least a few of his comrades would come running aboard, apologizing profusely for the trouble they were about to bring him. Sure enough, he heard a soft knock on the door. Never a good sign. With a sigh he slid his chair back and stood up. He moved across the room, his heavy boots making soft thuds on the ships floor as he walked to the door. He opened it, and his steely gaze rested on Winter, who stood patiently with her hands behind her back. "I'm assuming you're going to inform me we should depart soon." He said, raising one eyebrow in question, "Do we need to stop by any prisons on our way, or did they all manage to avoid arrest this time?"</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston had been in the cafe for a long time. Every time his cup ran out, he would just order another one. Each cup had been worse than the last. Probably because Winston drank too much coffee. It was quite boring. Winston didn't really mind, though. He was used to doing nothing. Winston saw Aubrey charging in. All scuffed up and out of breath. Without any notice, Aubrey had told Winston to get to the ship in standard Aubrey manner; joking. Without much further thought, Winston grabbed his bag of things that he bought from earlier and ran out the door. Once he ran outside, he ran to the ship. It was quite a sight. Outside seemed to be a lot panicked. Lots of whispers though the street goers. When Winston got to the docks, he saw that the ship was still there. It seemed to be intact, too. He walked aboard the ship and walked to his quarters. His was different than everybody else's. His was barren. All that was in his medium sized room was an old sleeping bag in a crate that was about seven feet long and three feet wide, his axe beside the crate, a mortar and pestle in the center of the room with a metal cup beside it and a single ceramic cup filled with dirt which had a layer of ash on it. Winston opened his bag and took out the oil from his bag. He poured the oil into the metal cup. Then, he pulled out the petals from the small bag. He grabbed the mortar and pestle from the floor and put the petals in. He crushed the petals into a fine powder, then he poured the petal powder into the cup. He put the mortar and pestle down, and sat against the wall, waiting.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter kept her face blank as she looked up at the captain. He was a tall, imposing man who was even better than her at keeping a pokerface. Under it though, he was a good, reliable sort who was more forgiving and compassionate than he seemed. After all, he'd even agreed to take Winter in, once upon a time. She owed him more than she should be comfortable with, but the captain was one of the few people in the world she wholeheartedly trusted. "No one's in jail that I know of, but it's hard to keep track of them all when they're scattered throughout the city," she answered. And when they're hellbent on wreaking havoc wherever they go, she added to herself. "Jax, Winston and Taran are on the ship, and I sent Levi back here several hours ago." She'd seen Winston rumbling around on the ship on her way to the captain's room. "Kai was on the ship earlier, but it's possible he headed out to explore the town. Prince and Aubrey know to come back, but last I saw they were on the run from the local law enforcement. Rin, Sakuya, and Angelo are unaccounted for." Winter recited the statuses of her crew mates, barely batting an eyelash. "We should also expect the police to find this ship at any moment. On the up side, the crew had a blast, though that means we can never dock in Ballard again." The corner of her mouth quirked up in what could almost be called an amused smile. But it was gone as soon as it appeared and she looked back up to the captain, all business again. "Orders?"</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Sweet, not only will I be steam-fried, I'll also be shredded into bite-size pieces." Aubrey took a moment to gather his nerves. He placed his forehead on the floor of the vent, and inhaled deeply. One, two, three. He picked his head back up and slipped the end of the wrench on the bolt in the center of the fan. No time to waste. "Here goes.... a lot of things, really." He turned the wrench carefully and quickly, making sure he kept a solid grip one it. He turned it in a full circle, and immediately the fan whirred to life. He retracted his hand, yanking back the wrench before he got caught by the metal blades. "Success!" He announced, the relief evident in his voice. "I'll just put this back on..." He pushed the grate for the fan back into place and secured the bolts. It was much easier to put together them to take apart. "Coming out!" Aubrey quickly wiggled backwards through the vent. Once again, getting past the bend proved difficult, but he managed. He slid out of the vent and flopped onto the floor, covered in sweat and the wrench clenched in one hand. "Taa-daa, Aubrey to the rescue." He sighed, grateful to be out of the vent.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax waiting patiently, holding tightly onto the valve while she waited. The noise inside the vent told her how he was fairing and it sounded well. When the fan kicked on she didn't hear screaming but instead, "Success!", from Aubrey. Jax wanted to put her fist up as a victory thing, but she decided against putting her crew mate's life in danger. More waiting as Aubrey wriggled his way out of the burning hot shaft and out onto the floor. Oh man did she want to pull him up and hug him, not the first time she wanted to hug Aubrey. But of course she didn't. "You did it!!" Jax released the valve and ran over to grab Aubrey and carry him over her shoulder and out of the engine room. With a joyous smile she placed him down in front of her and laughed. "Man, I couldn't have done it better myself, with the other repairs from the other mechanics the ship should be working just fine now. We got lucky 'cuz that was the easy stuff, glad you got out safe, might want to go bathe or something, I should too, I feel all gross" She shrugged, it wasn't anything knew, a pirate's life for them. "In any case, I'm starving and need to eat, let's go swipe a snack from the kitchen, yes?" Before he could answer she grinned mischievously and bolted through the ship toward the kitchen yelling behind her, "Race ya!"</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter raised an eyebrow at the captain's command, the beginnings of a sly smile appearing on her face. "Aye, Captain," she said in a voice that promised nothing. Turning away, she walked back to where she'd tossed her bags when she first got on the ship and walked into the galley to find Taran trying to sneak a treat from her cabinet. Winter placed her bags up on the counter and began the process of putting away the various food and medical supplies she'd picked up. She remembered the extra weapons too, and figured she'd have to go down to the armory after to deal with those. Winter moved about the galley in her smooth, controlled way, putting away her various ingredients and medicines. She reached up to give Taran a light swat on the back of his head, never faltering. Then Jax and Aubrey were all but stampeding into the galley, clearly having the same idea as their older crew mate. Winter just shot them a look and continued. She stilled when she saw how dark blood was crusted all over Aubrey's neck, flaking whenever he moved. Some parts were even still wet, though it looked like the bleeding had stopped at least. Grabbing a cloth from the sink, she wet it and tossed it over to Aubrey. "Start cleaning that," she said to him, gesturing to her own neck. "I'll patch you up when I'm done with this." With that she continued with her duties. --- After everything was put away, and Winter'd done the rounds of making sure no one else needed medical care, she'd shooed everyone out of the galley and started on dinner. Tonight was a pot of rich stew, teeming with herbs and spices, along with chunks of vegetables and meat she'd picked up in Ballard. It was a hearty dinner after another close brush with the law – but more importantly, the layered flavors and texture would hide any hint of poison. Not that Winter'd put anything in anyone's bowls this time around. But it was good practice to keep any guilty parties guessing. She found the paranoia and anticipation to be almost as effective as actually following through with the threat. Not to mention it was cleaner. Wiping her hands on a cloth, Winter finished setting all the steaming bowls on the table. Dinner was officially ready. She didn't call out or announce anything – the smell was enough of a dinner bell. Plus, meals were the one time of day when she didn't have to go hunting for anyone. They knew it was either come to the galley or don't eat.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [KAI & PRINCE] "Wow, that smells good," Kai said, smelling the dinner that Winter cooked all the way up to him and Prince's joint room. After they got back on the ship they headed straight to their room, in which Kai started fixing up Prince's leg from the small battle in Ballard. He wasn't a professional but he knew his way around the mechanics after fixing Prince's mechanical body parts multiple times. Prince whistled as he was sharpening a new set of arrows after wasting some away from the fight in Ballard. "Yeah," Prince agreed, putting away his arrows. He yawned, stretching his arms above his head. "Are you coming to dinner?" Kai asked. From the small time he's been part of the crew, Prince had never once joined them for dinner and instead ate during the next town they docked in or by himself which is why he kept such an insane amount of food in the room. "Nah," Prince shrugged, taking his leg as Kai passed it to him and attached it back on. "I'll pass," Prince said, waving his hand to shoo Kai away. "Alright, I'll see you later then," Kai said, getting up from his seat and leaving the room. Kai walked over to the galley, following the scent of dinner, he entered seeing Winter putting down the food on the table. ""Hey Winter," he greeted, taking a seat on one of the chairs surrounding the table. "It smells good."</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Waiting while Winter cooked was torture. The smell made his stomach growl and his mouth water. She had shooed him and the rest of the hungry crew out of the galley. He did as he was told and cleaned up around the forming scab on his neck. He winced occasionally when he pressed to hard, but once it was clean he felt better. Although it realistically didn't take that long for Winter to finish, Aubrey was convinced he would starve. The day's adventures had left him wiped out. He waited with Jax, as patiently as he could. He stuck his head through the doorway, making sure he was allowed back in. Winter was just setting bowls of stew out on the table. "Oh my gosh that looks so good." He said, moving inside. A moment later Kai came in. Now that he thought about it, Aubrey realized he hadn't seen him all day. He slid into the seat next to Kai, saving the other one next to him for Jax. "Hey, Kai." He greeted him, smiling warmly. When he sat down, Aubrey pulled his hat off like he usually did, stuffing it in a pocket once more. "How's life?"</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran was munching on a biscuit that he managed to swipe from Winter's cupboard. However, when it mixed with the smell of food, it seemed to simply be making him even more hungry than if he had chosen to skip the ...four...that he had already. He pulled in one of the chairs from the other table and sat down next to Aubrey, he smirked at the boy, raising a finger to press it lighting into the cut on the boy's neck."Looks like breaking into a house was a little bit safer than going to get some coffee, who'd thunk it," a few crumbs fell from his mouth onto his lap. He brushed them off promptly onto the floor. "Winterrrr," he called out, watching the soup fill the bowl. "I'm so hungry, I could die, you look even more lovely than usually because you are feeding me. And I want you to know that I love and appreciate everything that you do. I also like the fact that you could poison me, but you are kind and choose not too. I don't think I say that enough," His voice was neutral and he fought to keep a straight face, but there was a slight glint to his eye when he spoke.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax despised being shooed out of the kitchen when she was hungry. She hadn't eaten all day and just wanted to raid the Winter's food cupboard. However, Winter was having none of it and urged her and Aubrey out of the kitchen. After which they both waited outside of the kitchen desperately for her to let them back in for dinner. Jax watched as Aubrey cleaned his wound, it looked rather painful and she felt guilty for letting him get hurt. I'm sorry Aubrey, she wanted to say but didn't. Once the smell was wafting from the kitchen they knew that it was time to eat and hurried back into the galley. "Finally! It seemed like it took forever, my stomach was singing the song of its people to me for like hours" Jax joked around and went to sit next to Aubrey who had saved a seat beside him when Taran sat down next in a chair next to them. Jax folded her arms across her chest and smacked him on the back of the head as Winter would. "What do you think you're doing? Don't poke at Aubrey!" She fumed After which she sat beside Aubrey, glancing at Taran with a threatening glare. "Winter! Oh thank goodness, I can't wait to eat!" She was setting the table and the somewhat suspicious, probably poisoned soup looked delicious. She'd suffer it, she was that hungry and it wasn't like she hadn't had the experience before. Chills went down her spine thinking about it, silently she prayed to the God of the Air and Sky that Winter wouldn't choose now to poison them all for causing trouble.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter was leaning against the counter, a hand resting on her hip as she watched the crew start to stream in. She gave a smile to Kai and Aubrey as they came in, gushing over the food. She took a moment to eye Aubrey's cut. He'd done a good enough job of cleaning it up, though Winter figured she should still have a look at it. She turned around to wash her hands and heard Taran make his usual ruckus. She didn't turn to look at him as he attempted to shower her with flattery, but if one were to see her face, they would see an amused smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Oh Taran," she said in a teasing voice, "you really do think too highly of me." Winter dried her hands and walked over to another cabinet where a few small jars sat, filled with various colored liquids, along with a needle, some thread, and several rolls of gauze. She kept these little stores all around the ship – it was always best to be prepared with this bunch. Winter picked out a small jar of translucent green liquid, gauze, and medical tape, along with a clean scrap of cloth. Turning back, she walked over so she stood next to Aubrey, opposite of Jax and Taran. "Hold still," she murmured as she to inspect his neck. It was directed just as much to the young boy as it was to Taran and Jax. Winter brought up her hand and gently lifted Aubrey's chin, turning it a bit towards her. Placing the gauze and tape on the table, she took the cloth and dabbed it on his skin, absorbing any leftover water, along with a few drops of blood. Without looking, Winter tossed the cloth onto another area of the counter, well away from the pot. Then she uncorked the bottle and a sharp, minty smell filled the air, mingling with the aroma of the stew. Dipping her finger into the jar, she delicately smeared the liquid across the gash at his neck, as well as on the surrounding skin. Winter put the stopper back on the bottle and placed it on the table, picking up the gauze and tape. She made quick work of covering the wound and then placed her clean hand lightly on top of his head, almost as if to pat him, and gave him a small smile. Then she picked up the jar from the table and put all her supplies away, washing her hands in the sink. "Let me know if it starts bleeding again, alright?" she told Aubrey over her shoulder. With that done, Winter turned back around to lean against the counter again. Kai, Aubrey, Jax, and Taran. Prince and the captain usually never ate with them, Angelo only came down from his roost if she served pork and garlic bread, and if Levi were eating with them, then she'd be here by now. That just left Winston and the twins. Something told her Winston wouldn't be at dinner tonight, but Rin and Sakuya were something of a toss-up. She supposed they could just join in when they got there, then. Winter pushed off from the counter and took a seat at the table. Picking up the mug she'd placed by her bowl when she'd been setting up, she raised it, a playful glint in her eyes. "To another close call, then," she said in a mock toast. She brought the cup to her lips and took a sip, signaling it was officially dinner time.</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he hung out in the corner listening to the captain explain the plan of their next raid and when he said that their was no point in being sneaky Angelo had to point out something. "for future reference its not that im not sneaky its that my way usually leaves a trail of bodies" Angelo explained to the captain since Angelo used claws Angelo usual way of killing while unseen meant to literally tear out someone's throat. it was easy with the sharpness of his claws and the fact that when he did they couldn't scream and died in a matter of seconds but because of that method their was a lot of blood and bodies and by the time Angelo gets halfway inside somewhere the alarm sounds. "as far as im concerned to what you feel is right captain ill kill either way" Angelo said simply glad he had already taken a shower before coming here, his claws usually end up smelling for hours if he doesn't shower before putting them on...</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston looked along the various charts that they have laid out. His eyes followed the charts. He remained silent since they left the docks, but his silence was broken by his plan. "We can't do a full scale assault, but we can't do a stealth mission with everyone. There are a few... ruffians among us," he said, his eyes shifting to Angelo "but I digress. Winter, Prince, Taran, and I to sneak in, and check to see if they have any super secret tide-turning weapon. We disable that, and everyone else enters. They're going to see our huge ass mothafuckin' ship a mile off, so we need a large scale fight to happen while we sneak in." Winston had said the description of the ship jokingly, but in a poor impression of the captain. "But it will most likely damage the ship. If we don't want to damage our huge ass mothafuckin' ship, we need to park out on a nearby island, and then drift on boats onto the other island. Which is pretty dangerous, if you ask me." He said, still carrying the joke with him.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Captain, what exactly are we after?" Dexter's eyes rested on Winter for a moment. He tuned Jax out, who seemed to be having some sort of ecliptic seizure, or perhaps was just laughing at something. He wasn't sure what was so funny. He pulled out a blueprint that was covered by some other papers and laid it on top. One finger tapped the paper as he spoke, his mind seemingly elsewhere. "This single creation, one that is about the size of small bookshelf, has more firepower then our ship." He paused again, letting his words sink it. He could tell some of his crew were preoccupied with something else, but he was not curious in the least. Perhaps at a different time, he would have looked more into it and discovered what the issue was, but at the moment he was simply to focused on the task at hand to care. "I don't know if we will be able to use these things." He said, "Our understanding of the technologies used are just not enough. However, we cannot allow something with this much power to be used to the military's advantage. Should they get these things up and running, and find a way to reproduce them, we wouldn't have a chance. If nothing else, we need to destroy them." Winston spoke up, and the corner of Dexter's mouth twitched when he repeated the phrase 'huge ass mothafunkin' ship' several times. Ah, that's what was so funny. "Yes, actually, that's exactly what I was thinking, Winston. Thank you. We have three paddle boats that are currently functional. Each one can hold about four people, plus perhaps an Aubrey." Aubrey crossed his arms and snorted in distaste, not appreciating the captain's dry sense of humor. Dexter continued, "So, Winston, Winter, Prince and Taran will take one and be our stealth team. Everyone else will create a diversion. Any more questions?"</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She couldn't stop laughing hearing Winston say the words over and over several times. Were they trying to make her pass out from lack of Oxygen? Maybe so. "Ahhaha, hahhh" Jax wiped tears from her eyes and giggled a little bit, trying to shake off the laughing fit. Unfortunately, due to her loud, obnoxious laughter, she hadn't heard most of what the others had said, except when the captain said something about Aubrey. Her gazed turned to Aubrey who crossed his arms and pouted a little. She felt bad for him always being made fun of for his size and wanted to speak up but knew better to speak against the captain, that was treachery. "Anymore questions?" The captain asked. Jax turned her head to look at the captain. "Cap'n what do you mean by diversion? I thought I heard Winny say something about entering after the stealth team... or did you want us to create a diversion after they entered? Or before" Jax scratched her head in confusion, trying to make sense of the few things that she had heard and the things the captain had said. "I don't get it..."</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE & KAI] Prince sighed as he saw the plans layed out around the table. He wasn't really one for plans but he had to listen to the captain. He listened intently, nudging Kai beside him who was in his own world. 'Stealth team?' He thought, silently chuckling to himself. 'Right.' He was surprised they put him in stealth, considering the amount of trouble he causes on a daily basis. "Large machines, high security and possibly getting killed?" Prince asked. "Sounds like my kind of place," he grinned. Kai huffed, rolling his eyes. "You better not get yourself killed," he said, crossing his arms. Kai grinned, wrapping an arm around Kai. "Of course I won't," Prince grinned.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's attention was drawn to Winston as he started fleshing out a plan to get in and get out with as few complications as possible. It seemed plausible… but a childish part of her begged for an alternative where she could more actively avoid Taran. (She also wanted to raise an eyebrow at the implication there was anything discreet about Prince or Taran, but she supposed everything was relative when it came to this crew.) Winter quashed that part immediately, frustration growing. This was ridiculous. All he'd done was give her a stolen necklace. She shouldn't have been avoiding him or getting so worked up about a silly trinket when it probably didn't even mean anything. Besides, it was Taran. Taran who was never serious about anything and was likely trying to bribe her so she wouldn't poison his next meal. Against her better judgement, she risked a glance over at the crew mate in question. It was the way he'd looked at her when he'd done it though. How his hand had lingered on hers for just a moment too long… Winter was absolutely not blushing. She didn't blush. She snapped her eyes over to Jax when the girl spoke. Thankful for something else to think about, Winter contemplated what she said. "Diversions tend to work best when done before the criminal act," she said. She was relieved to find her voice steady when she talked. "The four of us will go in, and the rest will stay out, doing what they do best." The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up as she looked at Jax. The young mechanic (and a good portion of the crew) would certainly enjoy the chance to wreak some havoc. "If I'm understanding correctly?" She directed this at the captain, silently asking for clarification.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran felt his cheeks flush red. Alone...in a small boat...with Winter? The very person he had spent all day and night trying to avoid? Granted Prince and Winston would be there as well, but still. He was debating asking what level of injured would excused one from the mission. Was a broken leg enough? Or would one still be expected to perform? He heard Winter speak and he half expected Winter to disagree with the two of them being on the same team, but it never came. Perhaps he was getting too worked up, maybe she just thought of the neckless as a gift from a friend...which they were...right? Or maybe she didn't mind him...maybe she wanted them to be...in the boat...together...with Prince and Winston. Despite the flaw in his logic, the thought did make him perk up slightly. "Alright, fine, drop me into certain death guys, what is it? Tuesday already?" Said Taran, finally having processed enough of the conversation to have something to say about it. "But, in all serouseness Cap'in, you can count on me and Prince to save the day, amIright? Up top!" He held out his hand to the captain, expecting a high five with a grin on his face. When all he got was a glare, he kept the grin going "Well, that is alright, self five it is," He brought his hands together in front of his face creating a loud clapping sound. Taran then brought his hands down to his lap, looking very pleased with himself.</s> <\|message\|>Dexter Kennedy Dexter sighed. For whatever reason, explaining this whole ordeal to them seemed to be way too much work. "The diversion team will move in at the same time as the stealth group. Although it would be nice if we could send the stealth team in to... disable the security, I highly doubt that would be successful. If we draw the attention to one side of the building we're after, say here-" his finger tapped a spot on the map, '-then the guards will be forced to gather there, making it easier for the smaller team to get inside." "Once you're in, you will need to be quick. Find wherever they keep all the equipment. If you can't take it with you, break it. There are going to be several scientists and mechanics there, and some of them may be actively working. A large majority of these people are working for the government against their own free will. As much as I would like to get all of them out of there, it's simply too much of an added risk. However, try to avoid getting them killed, if you can." Taran seemed excited about something, and held up his hand for a high-five. Dexter simply looked at him, then the boy clapped his hands together and sat back down, looking accomplished. "Okay, then. If there are no more questions, you're free to go." He checked the watch on his wrist. "You have about two and a half hours."</s> <\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji [h2]Rin/Sakuya[h2] The twins, although a little late, had managed to catch most of the debriefing. Why? Because they ahve been standing behind the closed door the whole time, needing to listen to the next plans, but also afraid of what Winter would do to them if they were to show up in her line of sight. "Looks like we're causing some mayhem, and with permission too!" Sakuya gleefully whispered to her sister, who nodded back, a small smile on her face as well. "Although I'd really love to find out what that 'bookshelf sized weapon' looks like." Rin muttered softly to herself, with Sakuya only paling at the thought of entering the room at this moment.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter nodded to the captain when he dismissed them. Casting one last glance around the room, (she was most definitely not looking at Taran… it was just a general sweep of everyone – no one in particular) she turned away and headed to the door. She opened it to find two twins pressed up against it, clearly eavesdropping. Ah. This was why they weren't at the briefing. The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up into a smirk as she looked at them. It seemed they were still paranoid about seeing the consequences of their little scene in Ballard. Good, she thought as she floated past them. Let them worry a little more. Winter began walking down the hall towards her room. Two and a half hours was more than enough time to change and get everything ready for the mission, but she figured she may as well start now. If she holed herself up in her room for the entirety of that time, she wouldn't have to face… anyone else. The shakiness of her own reasoning made her uncomfortable, but she couldn't really bring herself to care at the moment. She began listing supplies off in her head as she walked, thinking of what she'd need. Her mind drifted to her weapons cabinet, holding all sorts of daggers and knives, wires, poisons… and her two sickle blades. It had been a very long time since she'd brought those out. And she still had no intention to. Winter knew she had a good thing going here, with this odd little crew. And the captain knew about her… situation. He wouldn't throw her into a situation where she'd have to get too violent. Winter scrunched her eyebrows together as she thought back to what she'd done in Ballard. Fighting that guard has been easy. Familiar. Satisfying. When she'd pointed that gun at his head, all she'd wanted to do was pull the trigger and blow him away. It would've been cleaner than leaving him alive. She'd felt hints of long-buried anger creeping to the surface and for a split second, all she'd wanted to do was make him hurt. But then it was gone and she was back. No. That was done and passed. She'd go to her room, get herself ready, they'd go in and either take or break this super-weapon, get out, and then all she'd have to worry about would be… Taran. Oh god. Winter still had to deal with Taran.</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter nodded to the captain when he dismissed them. Casting one last glance around the room, (she was most definitely not looking at Taran… it was just a general sweep of everyone – no one in particular) she turned away and headed to the door. She opened it to find two twins pressed up against it, clearly eavesdropping. Ah. This was why they weren't at the briefing. The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up into a smirk as she looked at them. It seemed they were still paranoid about seeing the consequences of their little scene in Ballard. Good, she thought as she floated past them. Let them worry a little more. Winter began walking down the hall towards her room. Two and a half hours was more than enough time to change and get everything ready for the mission, but she figured she may as well start now. If she holed herself up in her room for the entirety of that time, she wouldn't have to face… anyone else. The shakiness of her own reasoning made her uncomfortable, but she couldn't really bring herself to care at the moment. She began listing supplies off in her head as she walked, thinking of what she'd need. Her mind drifted to her weapons cabinet, holding all sorts of daggers and knives, wires, poisons… and her two sickle blades. It had been a very long time since she'd brought those out. And she still had no intention to. Winter knew she had a good thing going here, with this odd little crew. And the captain knew about her… situation. He wouldn't throw her into a situation where she'd have to get too violent. Winter scrunched her eyebrows together as she thought back to what she'd done in Ballard. Fighting that guard has been easy. Familiar. Satisfying. When she'd pointed that gun at his head, all she'd wanted to do was pull the trigger and blow him away. It would've been cleaner than leaving him alive. She'd felt hints of long-buried anger creeping to the surface and for a split second, all she'd wanted to do was make him hurt. But then it was gone and she was back. No. That was done and passed. She'd go to her room, get herself ready, they'd go in and either take or break this super-weapon, get out, and then all she'd have to worry about would be… Taran. Oh god. Winter still had to deal with Taran.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax After Jax had asked her questions and Winter had answered, the younger of the two girls smiled at Winter in a sort of 'thank-you'. With that the captain began to speak once more, explaining the plan and giving her even more clarity. When he mentioned trying not to get killed she thought of Prince and Taran and how they always had a knack for getting themselves into trouble. Even if it was Jax who was primarily responsible for the officer's brother and the chase in Ballard, it wasn't all her fault, it was the man's fault for attacking Aubrey. Taran spoke and she couldn't help but laugh a little more at how he high-fived himself. He certainly was something else, if him and Winter ever stopped giving each other weird glances maybe they could be a good couple. Who was she to talk, she was awkward around Aubrey all the damn time. There were no more questions and the crew was dismissed. People began to leave, Jax looked toward Aubrey and decided to ask him to help her prepare. After all she still had to decide who would carry her spectacular hand cannon, maybe Aubrey could help her decide. "Hey Aubrey" She nudged him with her elbow. "Want to come prep with me, er I mean" Yea that didn't sound dirty or anything. Shrugging it off she tried again, "do you want to come help me prepare for battle? I need to grab my gun and Hand Cannon from my spot in the sleeping quarters. I also need to grab a some food since I missed breakfast, wanna come?" Her eyes were shining as she asked him, she was really hoping he would say yes.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey After the captain dismissed them, Aubrey leaned back in his chair with a sigh. For some reason, he had a gnawing feeling in his stomach, like something bad was going to happen. He played with the string on his hat, twisting it between his fingers thoughtfully until Jax broke his trance. She nudged him with her elbow and leaned over to speak to him. His mind took a moment to creep back into the real world again. He was glad she repeated herself, because her first attempt had fallen on deaf ears. "Sorry, I was distracted. Gun, cannon, food... Yeah, I'll come." He stood up and stretched his arms over his head, trying to push away his rising sense of unease. He waited for Jax to stand up, then walked with her to the sleeping quarters. He knew the way well enough that he could walk without giving direction much thought. Despite all of his unfortunate... quirks, he did have a very good memory when it came to things like that. He wasn't sure what this feeling was, but he needed to get his mind off of it. "Oh, did you decide who you wanna give the cannon to?" He asked.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Out of everyone, Taran probably had the least to do to get ready for the raid. Or the smash and destroy. He usually didn't carry many, if any weapons. lately he had taken to carrying a small knife, if only for the false sense of security that it gave him. He wasn't trained with a sword, so bringing one would be equivalent to giving him a club to swing around. A gun, or really, any instrument that shot would be useless. People would be wise to be more afraid if they were the thing standing next to his target, rather the the thing he was aiming for. It was also highly likely that anyone with a any sort of fighting talent would be able to disarm any weapon he did have and use it against him and who ever he was with. So, in reality, it was better for everyone that he simply walk into danger completely unarmed. "I should...probably get...more serious about fighting," he said quietly to himself leaving the meeting. He saw a couple of his shipmates split off. He felt a smile stretch across his face as he saw Jax leading Aubrey off, mentioning something about a cannon. Then he saw Winter. Or rather, Winter's back. Without real rhyme or reason, he followed her, slightly behind and occasionally jumping behind things whenever it seemed like she was going to turn around. It was stranger, yesterday he really couldn't have cared less about her, but today he was finding that he never got tired of looking at her. Once she entered her own room, he finally started heading off to his own. There wasn't much for him to grab, however, he take time to grab his lock picking set. Not that he was particularly good at it yet, but he found the process...soothing? He'd been practicing and could unlock most of the doors on the ship by this point. Granted, it could take up to an hour, but as long as no one caught him in the act, every door was his oyster. Sooner than he would have liked, he was done and ready to go, but the drop was still an hour off. There wasn't really any place he felt like being. So he took a nap.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo left the room after the captain said they had an hour or two to get ready for the plan. Honestly it was better that Angelo was going to be in the distraction team rather then the stealth team since he would probably do more good killing people on the front lines. Once Angelo left he washed his hands and then he went to his nest and checked on his gauntlets and he started to polish them and apply a clear coat so that the blood doesn't end up rusting the claws. This would take him a while since Angelo needed to apply 2 coats of the stuff for an effective seal against blood rust knowing he wont be needing his rifle for this but he will take it anyway in case their is a high value target that needs to be killed...</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Time: 1400 hours Location: West of Nowhere and Two Clicks south of Despair Weather: Choppy waves in deeper waters. Winds coming in from the South. Storm coming in around 2200. Take off after 2130 is not advised. "You know," said Taran, looking down the twenty or so feet between the ship and the water. "Of all the skills that I thought I'd need to be a pirate 'swimming' and 'ability to not get sea sick' were never very high on the list until right about now," His feet hung over the side of the hall and where dangling in the open air. "Is that just a me feeling or is that a general consensus?" All of Team Stealth (Code Name: Winter and the Boys) and a few member of Team Distraction (Code Name: Tyrannosaurus Rex Wizard With a Lazer Eye) were situated around the paddle boats that were key in to drop as soon as the ship dropped down another ten feet. The boats were an older model. More keyed into water than air travel. However, they were created to be escape pods, so they did have a rudimentary gliding mechanism that would do in a pinch.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Aubrey had agreed to go with her and once again she was tempted to take his hand and lead the way, but she fought the urge. "I think I might give it to Angelo, but then again he might have a hard time wielding it with his gauntlets" Jax led the way to her small space in the sleeping quarters. She didn't mind that it was such a small area, in fact she was glad she had somewhere to stay at all, it had been her space since she had joined the crew two years ago and she loved it. Once they were to her little living corner she knelt down to pick up her flintlock and holster it at her thigh. "Oo I just decided to add a strap to this thing so it will be easier to carry" She was speaking about the Hand Cannon that she was so proud of. It took her only a moment and a thick strip of leather to attach to both ends of the weapon. That way she could carry it over her shoulder with not as much difficulty. With a bit of a struggle she placed the strap over one shoulder and grinned. "Alright, that's too things taken care of. Thanks for joining me, Brey" After she spoke she nodded to herself and continued on to the kitchen to snag some food. "Or..." She thought out loud, still on the subject of the large weapon. "I guess I could try to use it, but even now it's a bit difficult for me to carry it, it's heavier than my wrench which is a surprise. Hey Brey, you sure there's nothing you want to go grab? No weapons or anything? I can try to fix up an old gun and make it like new so you can have it... maybe?" It was exciting, this big, important mission they were going on, she just wished Brey would fight better so she wouldn't have to worry so much. Jax didn't wait for him to answer, he could speak while he was following her to the kitchen, she was starving. The young mechanic peered into the galley to see if Winter was there, fortunately she wasn't in sight and Jax scurried in heading straight toward the snack cabinet. There were some crackers in there and fresh cheese from Ballard and it was all Jax's, and Aubrey's too if he wanted some. "Sweet! The treasure is mine" She truly was a pirate at heart. The crackers and cheese went well together, Jax hadn't even sat down to eat she was too excited about her findings. "Want some Brey?"</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston had been preparing his gear for the mission. He always packed light. He didn't care so much for armour. He didn't need it. All he brought with him was his old axe, his regular clothing, and a small vial of black powder. He kept it in one of the pockets in his pants. He looked around his room; it was still barren. Barren wouldn't really be the best word, though. It seemed like the room was waiting for something, or someone to come. It had been so long that it was safe to say that nobody was coming to fill what the room was missing. Winston had left his room, looking back to the two smoldering joss sticks. They were almost burnt out. Winston had a rather forlorn look in his eyes. He closed them, clenching his fists. He closed and locked his room, walking out to the deck. When he got out there, most of the crew were waiting for them to get close enough to the island so they could push off and go to the main island on their boats. Winston leaned against a nearby wall. He didn't speak. It was unlike him to not speak to others, but Winston was feeling alone.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter, along with some of her crew mates, was waiting at the paddle boats, ready for the mission to start. She took a quick headcount, finding a few missing. Where were Jax and Aubrey? She had a niggling feeling they were off doing something they knew would get them in trouble, but she just let them be. Those two were always late, and they'd get there when they got there. She raised an eyebrow at Taran as he prattled on, and resisted rolling her eyes. She couldn't stop the fond smirk tugging at the corners of her lips though. Teach Levi to dispose of a body, and Taran to swim, she listed off in her mind. Really, was her work ever done? In the hours since being forced to see Taran again, it'd been easier to ignore the… thing he'd done. Winter still felt too aware of him, too careful to gauge the distance between them so she wasn't ever too close, but she'd managed to fall back into the routine she'd worked out since coming aboard the Leviathan. Winston made his way over to the group, and Winter gave him a glance before looking back out to the water. He seemed pensive today. Curiosity pricked at her, but if he had something he needed to say, he'd say it. Winter and Winston had something of an understanding… they both knew the value of privacy. So, Winter just continued to lean against the railing by the small boats, watching the waves and waiting.</s>
<\|description\|>Sakuya Eiji Rin's Voice(and theme) Sakuya's Voice(ignore the story going on >.>) Appearance: Asides from her dress, she wears a black cloak with a hood to hide her appearance. Nicknames/Titles:Bladedancer, Quicksilver Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Energetic and loves to tease, just about everyone would get along with her. However, just because everyone would like to talk to her, doesn't mean she's easy to be around. Whether you are male or female, she enjoys being flirtatious and teasing them. However, there are moments when she finds something(or someone) who deserves the label adorable. It's easy to tell when she thinks so, because, without a thought of personal space nor proper time and place, she will attempt to hug it. In battle, she is someone who you do not want to be anywhere nearby. Almost seemingly dancing with the blade, with bullets firing out sporadically. One thing to note that, while she enjoys teasing others, even sexually sometimes, she is rather innocent and vulnerable to being teased. Weapon of Choice: The gunblade, a well-balanced weapon(weight wise here). It's capable of loading and firing five paper cartridge rounds before needing to reload. The rifle's range is rather mediocre however, due to the inability to 'aim down iron sights'. She does have a back-up weapon, namely several throwing knives strapped to her thigh. Other: Appearance: She does wear a black trenchcoat over her clothing, almost consistently. Name: Eiji Nicknames/Titles:Bulletstorm, Walking Armory Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Rin is more calmer of the twins, although she would still be counted as more active amongst the family. Loves to eat anything sweet, and her usually passive and blank appearance would change to something that can only be called moe extremely cute, especially if you feed her the cake. Although at first she may seem unemotional, once you get to know her, you would start to understand the slight differences in expressions. She enjoys being doted on, fed anything sugary, using someone as a lap pillow, and even being used as a hug pillow. Something that she might have picked up from her brother, would be the need for efficiency, at least in battle. That, and collecting guns. Her love knowledge of guns is high enough that she can start deducing the type of weapon used(rifle, shotty, pistol, hand cannon, ship cannon). Within battle, it really depends on how close her target is, and what her objective is. It can range from the usual aim and snipe methods, to the ridiculous yet more well known method of literally unleashing death everywhere, with bullets flying every which way. Weapon of Choice:She technically doesn't have a favourite weapon. Ask her to open the jacket, and you will probably hit the floor with your jaw, as the sheer number of different guns can be seen. Sakuya labels her as a walking armory. Bypassing the need to reload every shot, Rin is know for dual wielding, and firing the guns one at a time, before immediately switching. Think of it as a salvo. However, reloading all those firearms is annoying as hell, trying to make all the paper cartridges by hands. Pistols and short barrel firearms can be haters anywhere, rifle sized firearms have to be carried at the back, limiting their numbers. She technically can carry guns on the outside of her cloak as well, but that is in plain sight. The only weapon that she actually HAS to carry outside, is a hand cannon. Other: If you ever try to carry her coat, you'll find that it is heavy. The reason by the 'why' is easily answered if you felt the coat. There are metal plates seen into it, as well as plenty of places to holster guns all over the inside, and some on the outside as well. However, when worn, the coat doesn't show any noticeable bulges. Despite how the twins behave, Rin is actually the older twin.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene "I see that you are busy doing...male bonding, so I'll just..leave you to it," Taran had a slight grin on his face, watching 'Prince' force Audrey into a headlock. "Although I am quite tempted wait and see who still has all of their body parts once Auds breaks free." He took a step back, making to leave and nearly bumping into Levi, his overly observant nature having totally noticed the quite girl who walked with him out of the ship. "Ack- Sorry, didn't...notice you... Maybe while you are here you should think of investing in a bell--" He glanced up at the new voice who joined the quickly forming group just outside of the ship. "Well, there is trouble," He said to the approaching girl. "Awh, Win, you should know by now that my ability to not kick up a fuss is about the same as my ability to read. I can't," Or won't was far more like it on both fronts. "Now, Levi, unless your sign has something to do with licking the all the spoons of the city and seducing the attractive married population, I'm busy,"</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo woke up as they docked in a port. Angelo was getting up and noticed that everyone had left considering that they had some time on their hands he didn't blame them so Angelo changed and made sure to bring his gauntlets with him just in case. Right now Angelo wanted to get a drink and something to eat so he left the ship and started walking towards the nearest bar. Angelo looked back seeing the pride and joy of their crew and Angelo couldn't help but feel proud knowing the many battles and escapes it help them get through. Angelo sighed a little as he kept walking and soon he found a bar nearby and he told the bar keep to get him some food and cheap ale. As he left Angelo looked around the bar to see if anyone was of interest to him in the hole they call a home. The smog and fumes may as well make this place a den of thieves but then Again that's more or less what Angelo and his crew does, but at least they do good with the money they make. Angelo soon got his food and started eating but as bad luck would have it some ruff necks came in and started to disturb the calm atmosphere by yelling and cheering about something stupid and Angelo just wanted some peace and quiet hey shut up! Angelo yelled out and they quiet down almost immediately see the thing was that they were large people with muscles only earned with hard work everyday so one of them came over you got a problem with us punk? he said but Angelo was ignoring him as he ate his lunch and drank his ale and soon the man got annoyed and had the nerve to grab Angelo food and throw it on the ground I said you got a problem with us?! Angelo sighed but he guessed he brought it on himself knowing they wouldn't be civil about it so he turned around and counted one, two, three then Angelo nodded thinking he would be fine and told the bar keep 2 minutes if I take them down that fast then they pay for my meal he looked shocked but nodded and the men just laughed you really think you can take us down that- Angelo got him gasping for air when he threw a hard punch to his chest hearing the cracking of bones. the other men looked shocked but then took up a stance but Angelo wasn't going to go easy on them, he did say two minutes after all. Angelo then ran over to one of the men who was about to use a chair and hit Angelo with it but instead Angelo dodged and gave him a nasty uppercut to his chin sending him flying to one of the tables effectively breaking it. Then the last one Angelo charged at he swept his legs making him start to fall and as he was Angelo jumped and stuck his elbow out and when he fell Angelo fell and landed his elbow right on his chest making another loud crack in the room. He was officially the winner in that's, 1 minute and 43 seconds Angelo sighed a little need to get faster, that took to long Angelo said softly as he walked back and went back to eating his new lunch which was now on the losers tab...</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey --Aubrey He noticed Taran first. He walked up, with Levi trailing along silently beside him. As Taran started to say something, Aubrey was distracted when somebody's arms snaked around his shoulders and put him in a head lock. "Watcha doin' there, kid?" Prince's familiar voice said in his ear. Aubrey played it off like he wasn't surprised by the sneak attract, but for a moment a look of panic crossed his face until he identified that he wasn't in any danger. His flight instincts were strong, especially since he had grow accustomed to always being on alert. "Lemme go, you prick!" He grumbled, though there was a playful tone in his voice that made it clear he wasn't angry, just perhaps a little annoyed. He wriggled in Prince's grip, trying to loosen the hold. Levi stood and seemed to observe the scene, and though she didn't say anything (like usual) he felt like she was thinking something he should be embarrassed about. She wrote something down on her sketch pad and held it up, but the only word Aubrey recognized was 'coffee'. He could have figured it out, but her pretty handwriting was hard to decipher while he was struggling with Prince. Taran said something snarky about 'male bonding' and Audrey suddenly became very self-conscious. He stomped on Price's foot, then leaned back into him, setting them both off balance and allowing him to wriggle free from his grasp. He pulled his hat down further onto his head and puffed his cheeks, making a pouting expression as he stepped away and put a little distance between them. Winter walked up next, warning them not to get into trouble. "Make a fuss? Us? Never." Aubrey teased, "Who gets in trouble getting coffee?"</s> <\|message\|>Viola Gordon "Ach! Stop!" The annoyance dripping off Viola's voice changed to laughter as a fluffy tail tickled her shoulder, then her neck, and then her cheek. "Rufus, what is it?" Her eyes fluttered open and the girl rubbed out the gunk that had accumulated in the corners of her eyes during the long nap she'd had to make up for last night. Pleased that she was awake, the squirrel let out a squeaky chitter and leapt down to perch on Viola's shoulder when she sat up. Only then did the still-sleepy woman realize that the Leviathan had stopped and the air smelled like a mixture of soot and old socks. After a quick glance at Rufus, she decided that he agreed with her extremely accurate conclusion. She coughed softly and stood up, looking out at the city of Ballard. It wasn't the best place to stop, but it was an excellent opportunity to stock up on some supplies--especially fresh food! And maybe some suspicious herbal concoctions, but that was a different story. Viola stretched, walked down and stepped off the ship. It felt kind of good to be on land again, although the location wasn't exactly perfect. A few crew members were horsing around as usual, but she didn't comment. She was busy mentally planning what to look for first and whether to take her syringe gun. The latter, she decided, was a no. That was just asking for trouble. Her dagger though? That was good common sense.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince turned his head, realizing a few members of the Leviathan make their way towards them. "Hey, guys!" He greeted, ignoring the 'Lemme go, you prick!' that came out of Audrey. 'What a cutie," he thought, grinning from ear to ear. Prince's eyes widened, as he felt Audrey stomp on his foot and lean back, causing him to lose his balance and fall on his butt. "Ow," He whined, rubbing his lower back. He watched as Audrey stepped away from him, a pout on his face. "It's okay, shorty," Prince said, getting up and petting Audrey on the head. "You're still cute," He teased, knowing how much Audrey hated to be called short. He hasn't known Audrey for long, but he's always had a soft spot for the younger one's that joined the crew of the Leviathan. He never knew why they decided to join but he decided not to ask. Everyone has their own secrets, after all. "You'll remember not to kick up a fuss while we're here, yes?" He heard Winter say. A pout formed on his face, she was always warning them about not getting into trouble. "You're no fun, Winter," He said, walking over and pinching her left cheek. "What's the point of being a pirate, if we don't cause a little trouble here and there?" He asked, shaking his head. Winter always acted like such a mom, not that he was complaining but he knew she liked causing trouble just as much as anyone else did on the ship, she just doesn't admit it. He laughed at Taran's words, "C'mon now, Taran. No need to corrupt Levi, with your questionable way of living," He teased, wrapping an arm around Levi.</s>	<\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji Sakuya smiled as she leaned on the railing. Finally, a new city! It was about time there were new people to be mischievous around! "Come on Rin!", she had called out. However, she did not receive any response. Frowning slightly, she entered through the door, only to notice her twin calmly napping, holding what appeared to be a rather thick staff wrapped in gauze or the like. Sighing, she lightly tapped on the other girl's head, muttering "Come on sleepyhead, time to go for a walk." Although it might have taken quite a bit, the other girl finally opened her eyes, albeit only slightly. Yawning, she stretched out her arms, before settling down in her seat. Blinking any remaining sleepiness from her eyes, Rin tilted her head as she looked at Sakuya. "Where to?" Short and simple, as expected. "Of course! We're going to go around explore the city!" With such a cheerful answer, Sakuya immediately turned around and ran outside, without bothering to look over her shoulder. Why would she need to anyways? She knew that her sister would definitely follow her, despite preferring to sleep. Hoping onto the railing, before leaping off, landing on the dock with a roll, she pondered for a moment. Where should one go about exploring a new city? Luckily for her, she did not need to think for long, as the quiet grumbling of a stomach beside her gave her the answer. "I'm guessing we go find a place to eat first." Laughing slightly at the slight blush that spread over Rin's face, Sakuya started making her way towards the bar. Along the way, she glanced over at Rin, or more specifically, the 'staff' held in her hands. "Should you really be bringing that with you?".....a shrug for an answer. Sighing, Sakuya herself gave a shrug, before adding, "Well, if push comes to shove, it's an over-sized walking stick."</s>
<\|description\|>Sakuya Eiji Rin's Voice(and theme) Sakuya's Voice(ignore the story going on >.>) Appearance: Asides from her dress, she wears a black cloak with a hood to hide her appearance. Nicknames/Titles:Bladedancer, Quicksilver Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Energetic and loves to tease, just about everyone would get along with her. However, just because everyone would like to talk to her, doesn't mean she's easy to be around. Whether you are male or female, she enjoys being flirtatious and teasing them. However, there are moments when she finds something(or someone) who deserves the label adorable. It's easy to tell when she thinks so, because, without a thought of personal space nor proper time and place, she will attempt to hug it. In battle, she is someone who you do not want to be anywhere nearby. Almost seemingly dancing with the blade, with bullets firing out sporadically. One thing to note that, while she enjoys teasing others, even sexually sometimes, she is rather innocent and vulnerable to being teased. Weapon of Choice: The gunblade, a well-balanced weapon(weight wise here). It's capable of loading and firing five paper cartridge rounds before needing to reload. The rifle's range is rather mediocre however, due to the inability to 'aim down iron sights'. She does have a back-up weapon, namely several throwing knives strapped to her thigh. Other: Appearance: She does wear a black trenchcoat over her clothing, almost consistently. Name: Eiji Nicknames/Titles:Bulletstorm, Walking Armory Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Rin is more calmer of the twins, although she would still be counted as more active amongst the family. Loves to eat anything sweet, and her usually passive and blank appearance would change to something that can only be called moe extremely cute, especially if you feed her the cake. Although at first she may seem unemotional, once you get to know her, you would start to understand the slight differences in expressions. She enjoys being doted on, fed anything sugary, using someone as a lap pillow, and even being used as a hug pillow. Something that she might have picked up from her brother, would be the need for efficiency, at least in battle. That, and collecting guns. Her love knowledge of guns is high enough that she can start deducing the type of weapon used(rifle, shotty, pistol, hand cannon, ship cannon). Within battle, it really depends on how close her target is, and what her objective is. It can range from the usual aim and snipe methods, to the ridiculous yet more well known method of literally unleashing death everywhere, with bullets flying every which way. Weapon of Choice:She technically doesn't have a favourite weapon. Ask her to open the jacket, and you will probably hit the floor with your jaw, as the sheer number of different guns can be seen. Sakuya labels her as a walking armory. Bypassing the need to reload every shot, Rin is know for dual wielding, and firing the guns one at a time, before immediately switching. Think of it as a salvo. However, reloading all those firearms is annoying as hell, trying to make all the paper cartridges by hands. Pistols and short barrel firearms can be haters anywhere, rifle sized firearms have to be carried at the back, limiting their numbers. She technically can carry guns on the outside of her cloak as well, but that is in plain sight. The only weapon that she actually HAS to carry outside, is a hand cannon. Other: If you ever try to carry her coat, you'll find that it is heavy. The reason by the 'why' is easily answered if you felt the coat. There are metal plates seen into it, as well as plenty of places to holster guns all over the inside, and some on the outside as well. However, when worn, the coat doesn't show any noticeable bulges. Despite how the twins behave, Rin is actually the older twin.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth ~JAX~ The young pirate was surprised by the small squirrel climbing up onto her shoulder and squeaking rapidly in her ear. "Hey, hey little guy calm down. Who do ya think you are? The captain. No way" She picked up the little guy by his scruff and placed him gently down. "Scat little man, don't make me show you my wrath..." Nngh, damn it don't be an asshole. "Fine, I'm sorry. Now get going" A huge grin formed on her face when Aubrey acknowledged her. "I built a cannon, like those on the Leviathan, but it can be held like this..." She showed him the way it would be held, similar to that of a rocket launcher. "I imagine it would have quite a kick to it but boy would it be worth it" She was always excited to talk about her work, especially when someone actually showed an interest. When they arrived in the coffee shop she pulled a handful of coins from her pocket and placed them on the counter. "I'll take it black, with a smidge of milk and sugar." The girl loved her coffee that way, dark and almost without sweetener. "Go ahead and order whatever you like Aubrey, I'll cover you" Not like she needed too, they all had some spending money, but she liked to be nice once and a while. Jax saw Winston waiting for his coffee, sitting with Levi and she nodded in their direction, seems like everyone was in the mood for coffee today. But this wasn't good enough for her, she'd have to go join Prince and Taran in their joyous trouble spree. "So anyway, I'm not sure if it will correctly fit cannon ammo, and it ought to be extremely heavy, not many will be able to wield it but it shouldn't be heavier than this" She took the wrench from her back and held it in both hands. "Ohh yes, can you hold this thing?" Jax held out the the wrench to Aubrey. While she was holding the wrench out she noticed Levi's lips moving ever so slightly and felt a little jealous. "Say Levi. how come you won't talk to anyone but Winston?"</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince stared wide-eyed at Taran and grinned. " I thought you'd never ask," Prince said, taking Taran's hand and pulling himself up. He shrugged and shook his head, "Sucks that everyone left," he paused. "You think that since they're pirates they'd have a little more fun." He sighed, scratching the back of his head. "So, what's your plan?" Prince asked, scanning the city. He was a relatively messy person but even this was just too much for him. You can barely see the details that were plastered on the buildings. "I don't think anyone knows how glad I am for not wearing white in this city," he said, scrunching his nose in disgust. He's been to a lot of dirty cities but this one takes the cake, even he felt like scrubbing down the whole city until it was spotless. "I have no idea how these people can stand living here."</s> <\|message\|>Viola Gordon Rufus squirmed and chattered before being placed on the ground, at which point he promptly scampered back to Viola, who chuckled, knelt and scooped up the irritated little fluffball. He crawled up her arm, onto her shoulder and then grabbed one of her dreads to pull himself up onto the top of her head. This was a relatively uncommon position for him to take, but she certainly didn't mind. Now that she was ready to go, she headed off into the thick of this horrible hellhole of a city. She passed a dead cat and looked away, pinching her nose and trying not to get sad. "You feeling ill yet, Rufus?" There was no response. He must have fallen asleep on her head. Viola entered a small produce shop and started to pile some things into a bag, ticking things off as she went. She was the last person anyone would think is a pirate.</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands "How's life?" Winston said. "Life's treating me good, I guess. Honestly, still terrified that I'm hundreds of feet in the air and if the ground under me crumbles, I'll fall for a terrifying amount of time. But that's probably 'cause I'm just an old man." Winston had a light laugh at the end. He looked to Levi. She seemed to have a forlorn look to her. Winston closed his eyes for a few moments and took a deep breath. The woman who worked behind the counter walked out and gave Winston a small cup of coffee. "You know... If you have anything you need to tell me, I will gladly listen." His voice was quiet and collected. He took his cup of coffee and pulled his bandage mask down. He only pulled one of the lengths down. He made sure to hide his mouth with his free hand. Winston saw Jax and Aubrey enter. "Oh, hello!" He said, waving to the two. He, without thinking too much of it, took a large swig from the cup. "Ah! Futhath hawt!" He loudly said, panicking slightly.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene " They are probably born,raised and die here, it really is no different than anywhere else. I bet a bunch would leave given the choice, but there is no choice, so they stay," Taran looked around at the surrounding building. "What do you think, should we go and try to find us some local fun? Or should we try and hunt down one of the Isisorisntit Houses? There are tons here,"Isisorisntit House, places where the fairly well off lived when they didn't, or couldn't, afford hired muscle to guard their extravagant abodes. They would then, instead, buy out entire city blocks and gut the inside and turn them into mansions disguised as low-income housing. They were not particularly well know, Taran only knowing of their existence because of a party that he had once performed at. The inside had peacocks and golden fountains everywhere, while the outside was missing tiles on the roof and a few windows had boards on them. Making plans was something that Taran didn't do, and when he did, he rarely followed it through till the end. Like, how he ended up on the ship. He was going down to the store to get some milk before a street performance. One thing lead to another and now here he was. "Mind where you put your hands," he said to a little boy who had gotten a little too close to Prince. The boy gave him a disgusted look before taking off back into the crowd. "So, what'll it be? Breaking and entering? Or...other?</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Seeing that everyone was going their own ways, searching for entertainment in the city, Winter just resigned herself to having a mess to clean up afterwards and left to make the most of her (no doubt limited) time of peace. She had errands to run, hobbies to indulge, and maybe some light shopping to do. When one of the crew inevitably drew unwanted attention or got in trouble, she'd be there in her odd Winter way. She might not be able to clean up the situation per say, but she could at least keep the collateral damage to a minimum.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey smiled. "A cannon, huh? Awesome." When he opened the door to the shop, a little bell above the door jingled pleasantly. The joint seemed almost out of place; it was clean and cozy, much different then the mess of a city that was going on outside. He followed Jax to the counter, noticing Levi and Winston and returning Winton's wave cheerfully. The whole atmosphere felt almost too good to be true. He suddenly got a little butterfly in his stomach. How long, realistically, could the pirates stay out of trouble. Jax offered to pay for him, and he shrugged and accepted politely. "Erm..." He turned to the woman at the counter, who was looking at him expecting. "Ah, anything with lots of sugar." He said. The woman smiled and nodded her head in acknowledgment, going off to get their drinks. "Hmm?" He turned his attention back to Jax when she asked him to hold her wrench. What could she possibly use that thing for? He took it from her, and a look of surprise immediately crossed his face. "Holy cow, it's heavy! You carry this around all the time?" He asked in awe. He then noticed her looking over at Levi with a slightly annoyed expression. His eyes darted in between the two girls, wondering what he had missed, but not willing to ask.</s>	<\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji As the two sisters made their way through the city, they had consistently received odd looks, mainly at their clothing. The average bystander would only see two cloaked figures, with one carrying a rather large staff wrapped in something like paper. However, the odd looks decreased, the closer they reached their destination. Sakuya smiled as she looked at the rather rustic appearance of the bar, almost anticipating some sort of chaos to occur. Rin on the other hand, had a harder to read expression, but seemingly displeased with the location. This bar was located in the ore shadier ends of the city, with quite a few troublemakers inside. Every city had a place like this, where the troublemakers congregate. Brushing open the doors, Sakuya strolled in, seemingly uncaring about the multitude of curious and cautious onlookers. Sitting herself casually in an empty seat at the counter, she dropped her hood before smiling at the bartender. "Can I have the specialty drink~?" Speaking in a tater flirtatious tone, with a graceful wave of her hand to accent her behavior. Rin only mentally sighed, before following her sister's footsteps, sitting down inconspicuously beside her. Well, as inconspicuous as someone wearing a trenchcoat and a large staff could be. Of course, it didn't take long, before someone made their move. It wasn't often that a female would ever come into a bar like this, where you could almost taste the damn testosterone in the air. A rather well-built yet greasy man came up and sat beside the two. "What a surprise! You two fine ladies don't look to be from around here." Such a cheesy icebreaker, at least from Rin's perspective. However, Sakuya only giggled softly, before responding, "Of course! We're new around here. We wouldn't mind for someone to show us around~" with the same flirtatious tone, before suddenly whispering in a rather sultry voice, "Although we wouldn't mind someone strong to lead us around~". This was definitely the spark that started the small chaos, as many of the other men started trying to move, while restricting each other from getting to the sisters first. Witnessing such an odd but somewhat familiar scene, Rin sighed, her lamentations lost in the depths of her drink.</s>
<\|description\|>Sakuya Eiji Rin's Voice(and theme) Sakuya's Voice(ignore the story going on >.>) Appearance: Asides from her dress, she wears a black cloak with a hood to hide her appearance. Nicknames/Titles:Bladedancer, Quicksilver Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Energetic and loves to tease, just about everyone would get along with her. However, just because everyone would like to talk to her, doesn't mean she's easy to be around. Whether you are male or female, she enjoys being flirtatious and teasing them. However, there are moments when she finds something(or someone) who deserves the label adorable. It's easy to tell when she thinks so, because, without a thought of personal space nor proper time and place, she will attempt to hug it. In battle, she is someone who you do not want to be anywhere nearby. Almost seemingly dancing with the blade, with bullets firing out sporadically. One thing to note that, while she enjoys teasing others, even sexually sometimes, she is rather innocent and vulnerable to being teased. Weapon of Choice: The gunblade, a well-balanced weapon(weight wise here). It's capable of loading and firing five paper cartridge rounds before needing to reload. The rifle's range is rather mediocre however, due to the inability to 'aim down iron sights'. She does have a back-up weapon, namely several throwing knives strapped to her thigh. Other: Appearance: She does wear a black trenchcoat over her clothing, almost consistently. Name: Eiji Nicknames/Titles:Bulletstorm, Walking Armory Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Rin is more calmer of the twins, although she would still be counted as more active amongst the family. Loves to eat anything sweet, and her usually passive and blank appearance would change to something that can only be called moe extremely cute, especially if you feed her the cake. Although at first she may seem unemotional, once you get to know her, you would start to understand the slight differences in expressions. She enjoys being doted on, fed anything sugary, using someone as a lap pillow, and even being used as a hug pillow. Something that she might have picked up from her brother, would be the need for efficiency, at least in battle. That, and collecting guns. Her love knowledge of guns is high enough that she can start deducing the type of weapon used(rifle, shotty, pistol, hand cannon, ship cannon). Within battle, it really depends on how close her target is, and what her objective is. It can range from the usual aim and snipe methods, to the ridiculous yet more well known method of literally unleashing death everywhere, with bullets flying every which way. Weapon of Choice:She technically doesn't have a favourite weapon. Ask her to open the jacket, and you will probably hit the floor with your jaw, as the sheer number of different guns can be seen. Sakuya labels her as a walking armory. Bypassing the need to reload every shot, Rin is know for dual wielding, and firing the guns one at a time, before immediately switching. Think of it as a salvo. However, reloading all those firearms is annoying as hell, trying to make all the paper cartridges by hands. Pistols and short barrel firearms can be haters anywhere, rifle sized firearms have to be carried at the back, limiting their numbers. She technically can carry guns on the outside of her cloak as well, but that is in plain sight. The only weapon that she actually HAS to carry outside, is a hand cannon. Other: If you ever try to carry her coat, you'll find that it is heavy. The reason by the 'why' is easily answered if you felt the coat. There are metal plates seen into it, as well as plenty of places to holster guns all over the inside, and some on the outside as well. However, when worn, the coat doesn't show any noticeable bulges. Despite how the twins behave, Rin is actually the older twin.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey heard the explosion from the gun echo off all the metal surfaces in the city. He felt a spray of liquid across the side of his face, and instantly the grip around his throat loosened. Aubrey fell to the ground, the dead man crumpling beside him and somehow managing not to crush the boy. Aubrey clawed at his own chest, greedily taking in gulps of air between fits of violet coughing. The air seemed to burn as it filled his lungs. He never thought he would miss the stench of that city, but he was very thankful for it now. As his senses came back to him, he was aware of Jax kneeling by his side. He sat up slowly, his head still spinning. He focused on her concerned face and forced a smile. "Never better." He croaked. He reached up and touched his neck carefully, feeling for the spot where the knife had broken the skin. It was bleeding, but had missed everything important. He got to his feet with her help. "Don't feel bad." He said, his voice still raspy, bracing against her for a moment until his head cleared. "I should have been paying more attention." He glanced over to where their attackers lay on the ground. Of course, the big guy that had been holding him was dead. But the other seemed to be squirming, as if he were just on the verge of consciousness. A chill ran down Aubrey's spine as he thought of the bullet going through the man's head. He reached up and wiped the side of his face where he had been sprayed with the man's blood with his sleeve. "A-anyway." He said, his voice abnormally shaky. Although he was never happy about seeing people killed, for some reason his stomach churned at the sight of the man laying there, face down... "Ah, yeah, let's get outta here before someone sees."</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax The guilt that she felt was unbearable. There was blood covering one side of Aubrey's face and it was dreadful. She wanted to use her thumb and spit as a cat tongue to clean the blood off but knew it was weird and would not work. "I'm sorry, man I screwed up." Her body trembled a little at the thought of killing, why now did she feel guilty, was it because Aubrey seemed to disapprove of what she had done? What the hell did I just do?? With a shaky breath she replaced her gun into it's sheath in her workmen's belt with all her tools. It was leather and simple with a few attachments to hang her tools off of and a holster for her gun. It was her favorite thing besides her wrench and gun. Jax spoke as she moved to pick up her weapon, being sure Brey was strong enough to stand on his own, and putting her wrench back in it's place against her back. She adjusted her hat a bit and wiped some of the blood spray off of her face. "I'm glad you're okay, y'know for the most part. I couldn't stand seeing those assholes mess with us like that, I mean you especially. So I had to do something. Even if it meant taking extreme actions. Pirates do what pirates got to do. Never forget that" Sometimes she forgot Aubrey was her same age, even though she had feelings for him she also kind of saw him as a brother who she had to take care of, and that was weird. "You're right though. We should get out of here. Before he gets up..." She looked at the man who was now writhing on the ground clutching his nose in pain, blood was already pooling under him from the wound. In her mind, he deserved it just like what his friend got. "Or before the authorities come and throw us in jail." The thought of being locked up intimidated her. No weapons, no proper tools, nothing to do, no protection. As strong and confident as she was she hated the thought of being imprisoned and someone crazy getting to her. As she was thinking a cold gust of wind made her shiver, damn, no coat still. "Come on Aubrey" Before she could grab his hand her own hand balled into a fist to punch his shoulder. "Let's go" It was a close call, she had almost shown affection to him. She hurried through the night, hoping Aubrey was well enough to follow close behind. They needed to find Winter at the least, wherever she was, was the safest, even if it meant not causing trouble. "Any ideas where Winter might be? With Levi or something? Right? Where did Levi go again?"</s> <\|message\|>Kara Saun Elowy "Too late, somebody has already seen," said a voice, dropping lightly down from an alcove above the ally way. Kara Saun landed a few feet in front of Aubrey and glanced over at the bodies of the rapidly cooling men. "But it is alright, I won't tell, so no need to shoot me. You did the world a favor taking them out," She went over and examined the bodies, lifting one of the arms up and sliding off a watch. "You weren't the first that these lot had taken into the shadows, but you are the first ones to come back," "However, unlucky for you, this one," she said, kicking one of the bodies. "Just happens to be the chief of polices baby brother and that shot you just fired will attract some attention. It would be wise to clear the area sooner rather than later and I just happen to know a short cut," She had moved on to the next body, yanking his coat back and reliving him of his wallet. Already there were voices calling from just beyond the breaks in the walls. "It would be wise to follow me. Unless, of course, you two love birds would rather spend the...rest of your lives in jail together," she said, finally leaving the bodies be and scrambling up to the fire escape and into a nearby window. "By the way, my name is Kara Saun. And I find you two to be /very/ interesting,"</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter raised an eyebrow at the younger girl. "You've got something on your dress," she said dryly, looking at the blood spatters on Levi's clothes. Reaching into her bag she pulled out a new coat she'd spent a good chunk of time haggling for from her shopping bag and handed it to the young girl to cover up. She then made a point of glancing around the store, eyeing all the people in it to communicate they shouldn't talk where there were so many ears. Turning on her heel, Winter walked out the door, expecting Levi to follow. She lead her down the alley, past the corpses, and across another block. When they were a safe distance from the scene, and in a deserted area, she turned to finally face Levi. "Tell me, Levi," she said, voice calm and icy, "What exactly were you going to do when those officers arrived to find three mutilated corpses on the alley floor, and found you in the art store covered in blood? Kill them too? Bring the whole town down on us? And then what? Run back to the Leviathan which is landlocked until further notice?" Throughout the lecture, Winter's voice had remained steady and unwavering, carrying the same coldness that seemed to chill the air. But she sighed then and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she was still stern but a bit of warmth began to leak into her voice again. "You have to be smarter. I'm not lecturing you on the right or wrong of killing, but you have to know how to cover your tracks, or you're just making a mess. I'll teach you how to get rid of a body, ok? But until then you have to get in the habit of at least hiding them." And then Winter plucked Levi's sword away from her. "This is confiscated until you can learn to use your head before flashing it about," she said, slipping it into her bag. Her lecture mode was back. "Go back to the ship and wait there until it's time to leave. I hear you did anything else, you'll find your food tasting a little more unpleasant." With that, Winter turned again and walked back into the city. She was making good time back in the shopping district, weaving between the vendors. Her bags were weighed down with weapons, but she paid them no mind. At least, until she heard a gun shot ring out in the night. People around her jumped and panicked, wondering at the sound. Winter just closed her eyes and dropped her head into her palm.</s>	<\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji "Ara, ara, so unsocial." Muttering these words to herself, as she stood back up from being thrown into her sister, she started walking towards the door. However, before she could leave, the bartender had called out to her, requesting payment for damages. "T-that....might be a problem.....so.....good night~!" Ending her sentence with a flourish and a wave, she quickly ran out. However, before the bartender could chase her, a heavy blunt object hit him across the head, knocking him out. Behind him stood Rin, holding her 'staff'. She then turned around and hurried after her twin. Outside, Sakuya laughed softly to herself, before stretching. "Ah, that was fun to watch." After several minutes of running, she realized she had forgotten her cloak, and decided to take a shortcut back to the bar. Making a dash through the alleyways, she ended up running into something. Flailing, Sakuya stumbled back, before looking at her obstruction. It seems that after the group of five had escaped the bar, they had ended up hiding here. "Hey look, it's the girl." "Hehe, you know you shouldn't be wandering around alone." Back and forth the men spiked, as they blocked Sakuya's path forward and her retreat. Each one had a lecherous expression on their faces as they reached out for her. However, their hands froze, as two pronounced clicks could be heard. Slowly the men turned, only to notice Rin ha snuck up behind them and now had two guns cocked and ready. "Now look here missy, we don't want you to hurt yourself with that thing. Just gently put it dow-" "Little girls shouldn't be going around waving dangerous toys like th-" Any and all words from two of the men were immediately interrupted as she shot both through the head. The other three men immediately dropped the tough guy attitude and started running. Sakuya had immediately gave chase, slicing through the leg of one, before shooting the other two through the heart. "We need to leave." Rin warned her sister, who could only nod in agreement. The two quickly fled the scene, with Rin handing over the cloak that Sakuya left behind at the bar.</s>
<\|description\|>Sakuya Eiji Rin's Voice(and theme) Sakuya's Voice(ignore the story going on >.>) Appearance: Asides from her dress, she wears a black cloak with a hood to hide her appearance. Nicknames/Titles:Bladedancer, Quicksilver Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Energetic and loves to tease, just about everyone would get along with her. However, just because everyone would like to talk to her, doesn't mean she's easy to be around. Whether you are male or female, she enjoys being flirtatious and teasing them. However, there are moments when she finds something(or someone) who deserves the label adorable. It's easy to tell when she thinks so, because, without a thought of personal space nor proper time and place, she will attempt to hug it. In battle, she is someone who you do not want to be anywhere nearby. Almost seemingly dancing with the blade, with bullets firing out sporadically. One thing to note that, while she enjoys teasing others, even sexually sometimes, she is rather innocent and vulnerable to being teased. Weapon of Choice: The gunblade, a well-balanced weapon(weight wise here). It's capable of loading and firing five paper cartridge rounds before needing to reload. The rifle's range is rather mediocre however, due to the inability to 'aim down iron sights'. She does have a back-up weapon, namely several throwing knives strapped to her thigh. Other: Appearance: She does wear a black trenchcoat over her clothing, almost consistently. Name: Eiji Nicknames/Titles:Bulletstorm, Walking Armory Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Rin is more calmer of the twins, although she would still be counted as more active amongst the family. Loves to eat anything sweet, and her usually passive and blank appearance would change to something that can only be called moe extremely cute, especially if you feed her the cake. Although at first she may seem unemotional, once you get to know her, you would start to understand the slight differences in expressions. She enjoys being doted on, fed anything sugary, using someone as a lap pillow, and even being used as a hug pillow. Something that she might have picked up from her brother, would be the need for efficiency, at least in battle. That, and collecting guns. Her love knowledge of guns is high enough that she can start deducing the type of weapon used(rifle, shotty, pistol, hand cannon, ship cannon). Within battle, it really depends on how close her target is, and what her objective is. It can range from the usual aim and snipe methods, to the ridiculous yet more well known method of literally unleashing death everywhere, with bullets flying every which way. Weapon of Choice:She technically doesn't have a favourite weapon. Ask her to open the jacket, and you will probably hit the floor with your jaw, as the sheer number of different guns can be seen. Sakuya labels her as a walking armory. Bypassing the need to reload every shot, Rin is know for dual wielding, and firing the guns one at a time, before immediately switching. Think of it as a salvo. However, reloading all those firearms is annoying as hell, trying to make all the paper cartridges by hands. Pistols and short barrel firearms can be haters anywhere, rifle sized firearms have to be carried at the back, limiting their numbers. She technically can carry guns on the outside of her cloak as well, but that is in plain sight. The only weapon that she actually HAS to carry outside, is a hand cannon. Other: If you ever try to carry her coat, you'll find that it is heavy. The reason by the 'why' is easily answered if you felt the coat. There are metal plates seen into it, as well as plenty of places to holster guns all over the inside, and some on the outside as well. However, when worn, the coat doesn't show any noticeable bulges. Despite how the twins behave, Rin is actually the older twin.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he hung out in the corner listening to the captain explain the plan of their next raid and when he said that their was no point in being sneaky Angelo had to point out something. "for future reference its not that im not sneaky its that my way usually leaves a trail of bodies" Angelo explained to the captain since Angelo used claws Angelo usual way of killing while unseen meant to literally tear out someone's throat. it was easy with the sharpness of his claws and the fact that when he did they couldn't scream and died in a matter of seconds but because of that method their was a lot of blood and bodies and by the time Angelo gets halfway inside somewhere the alarm sounds. "as far as im concerned to what you feel is right captain ill kill either way" Angelo said simply glad he had already taken a shower before coming here, his claws usually end up smelling for hours if he doesn't shower before putting them on...</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston looked along the various charts that they have laid out. His eyes followed the charts. He remained silent since they left the docks, but his silence was broken by his plan. "We can't do a full scale assault, but we can't do a stealth mission with everyone. There are a few... ruffians among us," he said, his eyes shifting to Angelo "but I digress. Winter, Prince, Taran, and I to sneak in, and check to see if they have any super secret tide-turning weapon. We disable that, and everyone else enters. They're going to see our huge ass mothafuckin' ship a mile off, so we need a large scale fight to happen while we sneak in." Winston had said the description of the ship jokingly, but in a poor impression of the captain. "But it will most likely damage the ship. If we don't want to damage our huge ass mothafuckin' ship, we need to park out on a nearby island, and then drift on boats onto the other island. Which is pretty dangerous, if you ask me." He said, still carrying the joke with him.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Captain, what exactly are we after?" Dexter's eyes rested on Winter for a moment. He tuned Jax out, who seemed to be having some sort of ecliptic seizure, or perhaps was just laughing at something. He wasn't sure what was so funny. He pulled out a blueprint that was covered by some other papers and laid it on top. One finger tapped the paper as he spoke, his mind seemingly elsewhere. "This single creation, one that is about the size of small bookshelf, has more firepower then our ship." He paused again, letting his words sink it. He could tell some of his crew were preoccupied with something else, but he was not curious in the least. Perhaps at a different time, he would have looked more into it and discovered what the issue was, but at the moment he was simply to focused on the task at hand to care. "I don't know if we will be able to use these things." He said, "Our understanding of the technologies used are just not enough. However, we cannot allow something with this much power to be used to the military's advantage. Should they get these things up and running, and find a way to reproduce them, we wouldn't have a chance. If nothing else, we need to destroy them." Winston spoke up, and the corner of Dexter's mouth twitched when he repeated the phrase 'huge ass mothafunkin' ship' several times. Ah, that's what was so funny. "Yes, actually, that's exactly what I was thinking, Winston. Thank you. We have three paddle boats that are currently functional. Each one can hold about four people, plus perhaps an Aubrey." Aubrey crossed his arms and snorted in distaste, not appreciating the captain's dry sense of humor. Dexter continued, "So, Winston, Winter, Prince and Taran will take one and be our stealth team. Everyone else will create a diversion. Any more questions?"</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She couldn't stop laughing hearing Winston say the words over and over several times. Were they trying to make her pass out from lack of Oxygen? Maybe so. "Ahhaha, hahhh" Jax wiped tears from her eyes and giggled a little bit, trying to shake off the laughing fit. Unfortunately, due to her loud, obnoxious laughter, she hadn't heard most of what the others had said, except when the captain said something about Aubrey. Her gazed turned to Aubrey who crossed his arms and pouted a little. She felt bad for him always being made fun of for his size and wanted to speak up but knew better to speak against the captain, that was treachery. "Anymore questions?" The captain asked. Jax turned her head to look at the captain. "Cap'n what do you mean by diversion? I thought I heard Winny say something about entering after the stealth team... or did you want us to create a diversion after they entered? Or before" Jax scratched her head in confusion, trying to make sense of the few things that she had heard and the things the captain had said. "I don't get it..."</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE & KAI] Prince sighed as he saw the plans layed out around the table. He wasn't really one for plans but he had to listen to the captain. He listened intently, nudging Kai beside him who was in his own world. 'Stealth team?' He thought, silently chuckling to himself. 'Right.' He was surprised they put him in stealth, considering the amount of trouble he causes on a daily basis. "Large machines, high security and possibly getting killed?" Prince asked. "Sounds like my kind of place," he grinned. Kai huffed, rolling his eyes. "You better not get yourself killed," he said, crossing his arms. Kai grinned, wrapping an arm around Kai. "Of course I won't," Prince grinned.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's attention was drawn to Winston as he started fleshing out a plan to get in and get out with as few complications as possible. It seemed plausible… but a childish part of her begged for an alternative where she could more actively avoid Taran. (She also wanted to raise an eyebrow at the implication there was anything discreet about Prince or Taran, but she supposed everything was relative when it came to this crew.) Winter quashed that part immediately, frustration growing. This was ridiculous. All he'd done was give her a stolen necklace. She shouldn't have been avoiding him or getting so worked up about a silly trinket when it probably didn't even mean anything. Besides, it was Taran. Taran who was never serious about anything and was likely trying to bribe her so she wouldn't poison his next meal. Against her better judgement, she risked a glance over at the crew mate in question. It was the way he'd looked at her when he'd done it though. How his hand had lingered on hers for just a moment too long… Winter was absolutely not blushing. She didn't blush. She snapped her eyes over to Jax when the girl spoke. Thankful for something else to think about, Winter contemplated what she said. "Diversions tend to work best when done before the criminal act," she said. She was relieved to find her voice steady when she talked. "The four of us will go in, and the rest will stay out, doing what they do best." The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up as she looked at Jax. The young mechanic (and a good portion of the crew) would certainly enjoy the chance to wreak some havoc. "If I'm understanding correctly?" She directed this at the captain, silently asking for clarification.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran felt his cheeks flush red. Alone...in a small boat...with Winter? The very person he had spent all day and night trying to avoid? Granted Prince and Winston would be there as well, but still. He was debating asking what level of injured would excused one from the mission. Was a broken leg enough? Or would one still be expected to perform? He heard Winter speak and he half expected Winter to disagree with the two of them being on the same team, but it never came. Perhaps he was getting too worked up, maybe she just thought of the neckless as a gift from a friend...which they were...right? Or maybe she didn't mind him...maybe she wanted them to be...in the boat...together...with Prince and Winston. Despite the flaw in his logic, the thought did make him perk up slightly. "Alright, fine, drop me into certain death guys, what is it? Tuesday already?" Said Taran, finally having processed enough of the conversation to have something to say about it. "But, in all serouseness Cap'in, you can count on me and Prince to save the day, amIright? Up top!" He held out his hand to the captain, expecting a high five with a grin on his face. When all he got was a glare, he kept the grin going "Well, that is alright, self five it is," He brought his hands together in front of his face creating a loud clapping sound. Taran then brought his hands down to his lap, looking very pleased with himself.</s> <\|message\|>Dexter Kennedy Dexter sighed. For whatever reason, explaining this whole ordeal to them seemed to be way too much work. "The diversion team will move in at the same time as the stealth group. Although it would be nice if we could send the stealth team in to... disable the security, I highly doubt that would be successful. If we draw the attention to one side of the building we're after, say here-" his finger tapped a spot on the map, '-then the guards will be forced to gather there, making it easier for the smaller team to get inside." "Once you're in, you will need to be quick. Find wherever they keep all the equipment. If you can't take it with you, break it. There are going to be several scientists and mechanics there, and some of them may be actively working. A large majority of these people are working for the government against their own free will. As much as I would like to get all of them out of there, it's simply too much of an added risk. However, try to avoid getting them killed, if you can." Taran seemed excited about something, and held up his hand for a high-five. Dexter simply looked at him, then the boy clapped his hands together and sat back down, looking accomplished. "Okay, then. If there are no more questions, you're free to go." He checked the watch on his wrist. "You have about two and a half hours."</s>	<\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji [h2]Rin/Sakuya[h2] The twins, although a little late, had managed to catch most of the debriefing. Why? Because they ahve been standing behind the closed door the whole time, needing to listen to the next plans, but also afraid of what Winter would do to them if they were to show up in her line of sight. "Looks like we're causing some mayhem, and with permission too!" Sakuya gleefully whispered to her sister, who nodded back, a small smile on her face as well. "Although I'd really love to find out what that 'bookshelf sized weapon' looks like." Rin muttered softly to herself, with Sakuya only paling at the thought of entering the room at this moment.</s>
<\|description\|>Winston Hollands Gender: Male Age: 34 Appearance: Winston is a large man. He's 6'5" and has an athletic build. He always wears his bandage mask. Sexuality: Heterosexual Personality: Winston is quiet. This doesn't mean he doesn't speak, though. He speaks often. He's just not willing to tell people what his opinions are. He never takes off his mask. He even punched another crew member for repeatedly asking if they can see what's under it. Winston is tough. He recklessly charges from objective to objective, attacking those in the way. He's also more seasoned than the rest of the pirates. He teaches the other pirates on the fundamentals of combat, if they want the knowledge that he has. He knows the navy's general strategies. At some points, Winston seems to have a strange look in his eyes. They just seem angry and frustrated. Thought, this look seems to go away quickly. Weapon of Choice: Winston's weapon of choice is a large, heavy axe. Other: Winston always carries a small letter and a locket with him. Winston punched the same crew member after they asked to see the contents of both. Strength: 8(.1) Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 Fighting: 8 Revealed History: =Nothing yet.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax despised being shooed out of the kitchen when she was hungry. She hadn't eaten all day and just wanted to raid the Winter's food cupboard. However, Winter was having none of it and urged her and Aubrey out of the kitchen. After which they both waited outside of the kitchen desperately for her to let them back in for dinner. Jax watched as Aubrey cleaned his wound, it looked rather painful and she felt guilty for letting him get hurt. I'm sorry Aubrey, she wanted to say but didn't. Once the smell was wafting from the kitchen they knew that it was time to eat and hurried back into the galley. "Finally! It seemed like it took forever, my stomach was singing the song of its people to me for like hours" Jax joked around and went to sit next to Aubrey who had saved a seat beside him when Taran sat down next in a chair next to them. Jax folded her arms across her chest and smacked him on the back of the head as Winter would. "What do you think you're doing? Don't poke at Aubrey!" She fumed After which she sat beside Aubrey, glancing at Taran with a threatening glare. "Winter! Oh thank goodness, I can't wait to eat!" She was setting the table and the somewhat suspicious, probably poisoned soup looked delicious. She'd suffer it, she was that hungry and it wasn't like she hadn't had the experience before. Chills went down her spine thinking about it, silently she prayed to the God of the Air and Sky that Winter wouldn't choose now to poison them all for causing trouble.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter was leaning against the counter, a hand resting on her hip as she watched the crew start to stream in. She gave a smile to Kai and Aubrey as they came in, gushing over the food. She took a moment to eye Aubrey's cut. He'd done a good enough job of cleaning it up, though Winter figured she should still have a look at it. She turned around to wash her hands and heard Taran make his usual ruckus. She didn't turn to look at him as he attempted to shower her with flattery, but if one were to see her face, they would see an amused smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Oh Taran," she said in a teasing voice, "you really do think too highly of me." Winter dried her hands and walked over to another cabinet where a few small jars sat, filled with various colored liquids, along with a needle, some thread, and several rolls of gauze. She kept these little stores all around the ship – it was always best to be prepared with this bunch. Winter picked out a small jar of translucent green liquid, gauze, and medical tape, along with a clean scrap of cloth. Turning back, she walked over so she stood next to Aubrey, opposite of Jax and Taran. "Hold still," she murmured as she to inspect his neck. It was directed just as much to the young boy as it was to Taran and Jax. Winter brought up her hand and gently lifted Aubrey's chin, turning it a bit towards her. Placing the gauze and tape on the table, she took the cloth and dabbed it on his skin, absorbing any leftover water, along with a few drops of blood. Without looking, Winter tossed the cloth onto another area of the counter, well away from the pot. Then she uncorked the bottle and a sharp, minty smell filled the air, mingling with the aroma of the stew. Dipping her finger into the jar, she delicately smeared the liquid across the gash at his neck, as well as on the surrounding skin. Winter put the stopper back on the bottle and placed it on the table, picking up the gauze and tape. She made quick work of covering the wound and then placed her clean hand lightly on top of his head, almost as if to pat him, and gave him a small smile. Then she picked up the jar from the table and put all her supplies away, washing her hands in the sink. "Let me know if it starts bleeding again, alright?" she told Aubrey over her shoulder. With that done, Winter turned back around to lean against the counter again. Kai, Aubrey, Jax, and Taran. Prince and the captain usually never ate with them, Angelo only came down from his roost if she served pork and garlic bread, and if Levi were eating with them, then she'd be here by now. That just left Winston and the twins. Something told her Winston wouldn't be at dinner tonight, but Rin and Sakuya were something of a toss-up. She supposed they could just join in when they got there, then. Winter pushed off from the counter and took a seat at the table. Picking up the mug she'd placed by her bowl when she'd been setting up, she raised it, a playful glint in her eyes. "To another close call, then," she said in a mock toast. She brought the cup to her lips and took a sip, signaling it was officially dinner time.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [KAI] "Hey, Aubrey," Kai greeted, a smile forming on his lips. While Aubrey was only a year older, he admired him. Only a year older and he can fight with the rest of the crew, unlike Kai who doesn't like the thought of fighting. He'll fight if he had too, but he just forces Prince to do his fighting for him, also because Prince just goes around looking for trouble so anything works for him. "I'm doing good, you?" He watched as the others entered the room, smiling at them as a way to greet them. Everyone took their place around the table and Winter patched up the wound on Aubrey's neck from earlier. No matter how long he's stayed on the ship, he could never get used to all the blood and wounds that showed up on a daily basis. At uncomfortable times like these, he wished Prince was here. "To another close call, then," Winter said, raising her cup in the form of a toast. He smiled, lifting up his cup too and taking a sip from it.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he relaxed in the crows next and looked up in the sky above him watching the clouds roll by. They were already off and avoiding the storm Angelo called to the captain earlier so now all he needed to do was to keep an eye out for enemy ships. which Angelo could do easily by just looking in all directions every once in a while. Between that time he could just relax and enjoy the quiet by himself</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Not too bad." Aubrey replied to Kai, "But I got a lil - ow, Taran, stop it, that hurts!" He swatted away Taran's hand, who at some point had drug over another chair so he could be close enough to bother him. Winter took his attention away from Taran, when she tilted up his chin, telling hims to keep still. He did as she asked, careful not to wiggle as she dabbed gently at his neck. She spread that minty stuff he liked on it, the kind that feels all cool and tingly. She taped the bandage to his neck, and placed a hand on his head before she moved away. Aubrey smiled and thanked her. She was one of few people he actually liked to pat him on the head like that. For some reason it didn't feel like she was teasing him – like Prince did – but it was more like an act of affection. "Okay, I will." Winter took her seat and raised her glass in a toast, giving them the okay to eat. That was one of the simple things Aubrey liked about these pirates – they ate together like family. Well, most of them, anyway. It gave them all a chance to be together before everyone got busy with their own tasks. Aubrey took a swig of his drink and then pulled his bowl of stew closer. He took a bite of it, relishing the rich flavors. "You're amazing, Winter." He said, taking a few more large bites in rapid succession.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She watched with interest as Winter tended to Aubrey's wound on his neck. It was sweet the way she treated them like crazy children who needed a good mother. And she was a good mother, firm but she could be kind and gentle when she needed to be. Jax often got jealous when she attended to the others like Prince and Levi but not her. However, she had just gotten amazing and comfy new gloves from 'mother' and couldn't be happier. Thinking about them, Jax cast her gaze down at her lap where her hands were rested. The gloves were all soft all the inside and made a sound when she clenched her hands into fists. "Cool" She thought out loud. Jax reached out and took her bowl in both hands, knocking back a drink of it as if it were a cup of water. It left her with a soup moustache but it felt good and warm on her upper lip. Holy crap this is delicious., "Winter you've almost out done yourself" Jax said smiling over to Winter who had just toasted to their close call. Jax nodded, reaching for her cup and raising it than taking a swig from it too wash down the rich, flavorful soup. It was amazing. Licking her upper lip clean she continued to drink her soup, chewing slowly on the chunks that were in it to enjoy the flavors. There was nothing better than Winter's cooking, especially not the plain old kitchen snacks she was going for before. Thanks momma.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene "Does it hurt more when I do thi-" He was cut off from poking the injury harder by Winter intervening and mending the wound. She looked...like something else when she healed, or when she did anything really that required focus. Her eyes just seemed to light up and she looked...serious, but at ease, like she was letting her guard down. It made her look...really, really, pretty. He found himself just staring at her, not hearing any of the conversation that was going on around him. He found himself trying to see what was suddenly so different about her. At first he thought it must have been make-up, but no, that was the same. Maybe she changed hair? He couldn't tell. Suddenly Taran felt a little less hungry, but he couldn't explain why. He glanced over at Winter again, half tempted to just leave the room, but figuring he should probably eat some of the soup. Taran shook his head and berated himself for being silly. Here he was getting all worked up for no particular reason. He was able to will himself back to normal after a few seconds while Winter finished healing Aubrey. Soon, Taran was giving Winter a thumbs up as he chowed down on the soup. He paused only to do a half hearted cheers and slightly choking when he tried to drink with a mouth full of food. After a few minutes, his bowl was empty. "Well,"he said, standing and grabbing his bowl to rinse it out. "I guess I better go give Prince his share of the treasure, although why he should get any of the jewels is beyond me. He got an ashtray, I find that to be more than equal. But whatever," He rinsed out his bowl and set it on the counter to dry. "Most of it is old lady crap anyway, only worth it's weight in gold, but there was this one," His eyes flicked over Winter and he felt himself reaching into his pocket and pull out the one necklace that he deemed 'decent'. He held it in his hand, showing it for a second before walking over to Winter. "Um, you should...have it," he said, holding out it out to her. He took her hand and set the neckless in it, he held onto her hand for another second after. "Yeah, well," he said suddenly, flushing a little red. " AH, we are out of milk. I'm going to the store...I'll be back later...with..eggs. Yeah," Then he fled the room, vaguely heading towards Prince's. Clearly he had forgotten that they were on a flying ship and could not, in fact, go buy milk, or eggs.</s>	<\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston had waited long enough. He stood and walked to the metal cup and bag, carelessly left on the floor. His hand reached into the bag and pulled out a bundle of stalks, dry, thick, and hollow. He pushed them into the metal cup. The ends of the stalks extruded from the top by two inches. The oil was almost at the top. Winston waited 30 seconds and pulled the stalks out. Winston moved them in a circle as he removed them, leaving a dripping spiral in the cup. Much of the oil was still there. Winston went back to the bag and pulled out the jar of dust. He opened the small jar, dipping the oil-covered tip of each stalk into the dark powder. Once he had all of them, he put two sticks into the cup filled with dirt. Winston took a well used piece of flint from his pocket and pulled out a small key of steel from the other. He scraped the flint with the steel above the stalks, the sparks falling on the powder and making a quiet bang. A line of a dull pink smoke constantly drifted into the air. A soft scent was emitted by the stalks, changing the room's scent of nothing to a very slight flowery smell. Winston put his hands together and put them near his head. He was silent for a moment. He dropped his hands, and pushed him self up. From there, he walked to the door, opened it, went out to the hall, and locked his door. He went to the mess-hall. Once he got there, he instantly was bumped into by a fleeing Taran. Winston saw almost everyone there, all eating. He walked over to an empty seat, and sat there. He began to eat his meal, not speaking to anyone, and covering his mouth with his empty hand.</s>
<\|description\|>Winston Hollands Gender: Male Age: 34 Appearance: Winston is a large man. He's 6'5" and has an athletic build. He always wears his bandage mask. Sexuality: Heterosexual Personality: Winston is quiet. This doesn't mean he doesn't speak, though. He speaks often. He's just not willing to tell people what his opinions are. He never takes off his mask. He even punched another crew member for repeatedly asking if they can see what's under it. Winston is tough. He recklessly charges from objective to objective, attacking those in the way. He's also more seasoned than the rest of the pirates. He teaches the other pirates on the fundamentals of combat, if they want the knowledge that he has. He knows the navy's general strategies. At some points, Winston seems to have a strange look in his eyes. They just seem angry and frustrated. Thought, this look seems to go away quickly. Weapon of Choice: Winston's weapon of choice is a large, heavy axe. Other: Winston always carries a small letter and a locket with him. Winston punched the same crew member after they asked to see the contents of both. Strength: 8(.1) Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 Fighting: 8 Revealed History: =Nothing yet.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter was content as she ate, listening to the sounds of her crew. Meals were the one time no one was rambling on, and yet they still managed to cause a ruckus with all their slurping and munching. Winter just smiled to herself. Taran finished his meal earlier than usual and started running his mouth about something or other. Winter didn't pay it any mind though. At least Taran was cleaning up after himself this time. Then he turned back to the group and she saw him pull out a necklace. It was a delicate thing with a silver chain meant to look like tree branches and bronze flowers set in different intervals. It was beautiful. But then Taran walked over to Winter's side and picked up her hand to gently curl her fingers around it. The cold bite of the metal was a hard contrast with the warmth of his hand, seeping into her own. She was frozen as Taran shifted his weight, clearly awkward. He made some poor excuse to leave and fled the room. Winter's mind was blank save for a long string of curses in every language she knew. She jumped when the sounds of Winston enter the room and her mind snapped back to reality. Which meant she was thinking again. Winter felt her skin begin to heat and suddenly all she wanted was to get away. "Clean up when you're done," she told the others in clipped tones. At the same time she pushed herself up, her chair scraping along the floor. Winter walked quickly out the door, not looking at anyone. She didn't slow her pace until she reached her room, the door slamming shut behind her. The entire time, the necklace she'd thought was beautiful only a few moments before lay heavy in her hand.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey It had been roughly 32 hours since the Leviathan had departed from Ballard. It was a relief to have that place behind them. Dexter hoped they wouldn't have to dock there again, because the whole place made him twitch. He liked things neat, clean, orderly... and Ballard was the exact opposite of all those things. Although that kind of place was common, he was very careful to stay on the ship when they visited those types of places. Now he sat around the mapping table with his crew. It was a little before noon, after the crew had cleaned up from breakfast and everyone gathered in the navigation room, where most of their plans were discussed. The sat around the circular table, everyone facing inwards to make it easier to converse. Dexter spread his charts in front of his crew, letting them examine them on their own. The crew looked well-fed, and some of them had even taken the time to bathe. With the exception of Aubrey, who Dexter noticed was wearing a bandage on his neck, everyone appeared to be in good health. When everyone had taken their seat, Dexter spoke. "In about three hours, we will be arriving at the location of our next raid." He said, "It's a remote island, and I only heard of it through a special connection. Gathering info on it has proven difficult, so there is a lot we might not have on the place." He gestured to the papers on the table. "This is everything I have. Although the name of the place isn't officially documented, it had been referred to as The Crumbling Keep." Aubrey opened his mouth like he was about to speak, but Dexter cut him off by raising a hand. "No, Aubrey, I don't know why they call it that." The boy pouted and sat back, and Dexter continued. "We can expect high security. This place is meant to hold some very advanced... inventions. Large, robotic weapons are housed there, though it's hard to say if they are just being stored or if they are active and being put to use. Either way, this is going to be a tough one. We will not only be worrying about the possibility of these machines coming after us, but there is also a large amount of human guards. Ideally, we would get in without being noticed, take a few things, and then get out. However, you have all proven over and over that you are not good at keeping things low-key. That, and the added problem of that we have a huge ass mothafuckin' ship trying to sneak up on a small island, there is about a 90% chance of a confrontation." He paused to scan the faces of his comrades, judging their reactions thus far.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She had spent the last day or so working on enhancing her eye piece so it could read heat signatures. But for some reason she just couldn't get it to work and it was terribly frustrating. However, she refused to give up and kept trying. Jax took a deep breath, her hat was off, her hair a mess and her arms and face covered in sweat and grime from working on different things. "I need to bathe. badly, I smell like a military dog" Te pirate took off toward the lavatory and stripped, setting her nice gloves aside carefully to get in the tub she had filled prior to removing all her clothes. It wasn't necessarily warm water, but it wasn't freezing either, she and a few other mechanics on the ship had designed a system to make it so the water wasn't icy cold when you had to wash off. Once she was finished, dried off and put her clothes back on, she was notified that the captain had called a meeting... and she was late for it. Crap, why me? Not only had she missed breakfast that morning, but she wasted time bathing and now had to go face the captain, after being late for the meeting. Jax ran to where she knew everyone would be and crept in and took her place beside Aubrey who she smiled at and started to listen to what the captain had to say. Curiously she examined the charts and maps the captain had laid out on the table, what the heck were the charts for? Then he mentioned their raid in about 3 hours in a place called The Crumbling Keep and she knew it would be the perfect place to test her Hand Cannon. She also couldn't wait to take a lot at the "advanced" machinery that the place supposedly held. Once he was finished, Jax broke out into laughter over the fact that he had said huge as mothafuckin' ship, that didn't seem like something her captain would say, it didn't match his usual tone or expressions at all.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter was completely focused on the captain's explanation. Or at least, that's how she looked on the outside. In reality she was trying very hard to look anywhere but at Taran. She'd holed herself up in her room for the remainder of the previous evening, only leaving this morning to make the crew breakfast. As soon as that was done, she left the food in the kitchen for the others to find, instead of waiting for them to arrive as she normally would. It was cowardly but Winter honestly had no idea what to do with this situation. Taran… he… Winter tightened her fists behind her back, nails nearly cutting into her palms. The necklace was hidden in her desk drawer, and her mind kept on wandering back to it. The captain stopped talking and it took a moment for Winter's attention to snap back to reality. The raid. Weapons. High security. She contemplated the situation as all of his words finally registered. "Captain," she started, "what exactly are we after?" It must've been something of exceptional value for him to risk such security.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Winter and Taran probably would have had a better time of avoiding each other if they hadn't tried to avoid each other in the same way. His arms still ached from the half hour in which he hid under one of the tables while Winter cooked breakfast. Usually, he'd send one of the others in to do a look out before he would enter the kitchen, before denying that that was what he was doing. But, on that morning, Taran thought he was up early enough that he wouldn't risk seeing the girl. He was wrong. When he dared enter the hallway, he'd usually end up climbing something because he thought it was Winter coming around the corner, usually it wasn't. He spent the last thirty-two hours kicking himself. Why did he feel the urge to give her that stupid necklace? No only was it the most valuable piece of jewelry that he took that night, but it made things weird. He glanced over at Winter, who was almost pointedly not looking at him. It was dumb, and he wondered if the problem could be fixed by simply asking for it back? Or would that make it worse? 'She isn't that great anyway' he thought to himself ' With her face, and her hair that always smells nice and her eyes that --' he thought was cut off as she spoke and he promptly looked at the Captain, his face flushing slightly having zero idea about what the conversation had been about up til this point. He'd just have to ask Aubrey before they got there... The sound of a meeting was what drew her. After watching the 'Pirates' she decided that she should probably make herself known, help where she could, and hopefully keep them from killing her. Both straight out and by their own incompetence. Kara Saun situated herself in a vent with a clear line of sight towards the man who must have been the captain. If she was being fair, he didn't look nearly old enough, but...on the other hand, this Peter Pan man seemed to have a whole ship of lost little children.</s> <\|message\|>Shiyami Eiji Shiyami Shiyami couldn't help but to mentally sigh as he stared out the triple-layered tempered glass in the captain's quarters. He glanced down at the table in front of him, with multiple papers scattered everywhere on it. There were written reports of all variety mixed in with what appeared to be multiple blueprints of different ships of the government fleet. The first and foremost on was the blueprint of the warship Sovereign, the one he was residing in. Towards the corner of the desk however, was a small, weathered envelope, containing two parchments. One was a rather childish drawing, of three people. The other, was a more well-done drawing, of the same three people. Looking at it, Shiyami couldn't help but to smile faintly. "I wonder what those two little rascals are up to?" Muttering these words to himself, he was reaching over to pick up the envelope, when a knock at his door interrupted him. Quickly pocketing it, she called out, "Enter." A soldier came in, clicked his heels, and saluted. "The first mate requests your presence on the bridge, sir!". Shiyami sighed aloud this time, before rubbing the back of his neck tiredly. "There's no need to call me sir." un-energetically speaking these words that sounds like they have been spoken once to often, Shiyami stood up, before walking towards the bridge. Walking down the corridor, Shiyami kept his eyes shifting, making sure to keep every detail memorized. However, no matter how times he seen it, he still felt amazed that this metal behemoth of an airship actually flew. Thing should be heavy as hell. When he arrived, the crew onboard all saluted, with the commander calling out, "Officer on deck!". "At ease that shit..." Annoyed, Shiyami muttered the usual lines, with the response of, "I see you still dislike formalities." coming from the right. Glancing over, his eyes stopping at his observer, the merc shrugged. "Formalities are a tool to be used only when required." Tossing back his words, he walked up, before looking at the map, before checking the ship's status report. "Alright, we need to refuel and resupply the Sovereign. Take us to The Crumbling Keep." Calling out his order, the Sovereign started to move, slowly getting up to speed.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he hung out in the corner listening to the captain explain the plan of their next raid and when he said that their was no point in being sneaky Angelo had to point out something. "for future reference its not that im not sneaky its that my way usually leaves a trail of bodies" Angelo explained to the captain since Angelo used claws Angelo usual way of killing while unseen meant to literally tear out someone's throat. it was easy with the sharpness of his claws and the fact that when he did they couldn't scream and died in a matter of seconds but because of that method their was a lot of blood and bodies and by the time Angelo gets halfway inside somewhere the alarm sounds. "as far as im concerned to what you feel is right captain ill kill either way" Angelo said simply glad he had already taken a shower before coming here, his claws usually end up smelling for hours if he doesn't shower before putting them on...</s>	<\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston looked along the various charts that they have laid out. His eyes followed the charts. He remained silent since they left the docks, but his silence was broken by his plan. "We can't do a full scale assault, but we can't do a stealth mission with everyone. There are a few... ruffians among us," he said, his eyes shifting to Angelo "but I digress. Winter, Prince, Taran, and I to sneak in, and check to see if they have any super secret tide-turning weapon. We disable that, and everyone else enters. They're going to see our huge ass mothafuckin' ship a mile off, so we need a large scale fight to happen while we sneak in." Winston had said the description of the ship jokingly, but in a poor impression of the captain. "But it will most likely damage the ship. If we don't want to damage our huge ass mothafuckin' ship, we need to park out on a nearby island, and then drift on boats onto the other island. Which is pretty dangerous, if you ask me." He said, still carrying the joke with him.</s>
<\|description\|>Winston Hollands Gender: Male Age: 34 Appearance: Winston is a large man. He's 6'5" and has an athletic build. He always wears his bandage mask. Sexuality: Heterosexual Personality: Winston is quiet. This doesn't mean he doesn't speak, though. He speaks often. He's just not willing to tell people what his opinions are. He never takes off his mask. He even punched another crew member for repeatedly asking if they can see what's under it. Winston is tough. He recklessly charges from objective to objective, attacking those in the way. He's also more seasoned than the rest of the pirates. He teaches the other pirates on the fundamentals of combat, if they want the knowledge that he has. He knows the navy's general strategies. At some points, Winston seems to have a strange look in his eyes. They just seem angry and frustrated. Thought, this look seems to go away quickly. Weapon of Choice: Winston's weapon of choice is a large, heavy axe. Other: Winston always carries a small letter and a locket with him. Winston punched the same crew member after they asked to see the contents of both. Strength: 8(.1) Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 Fighting: 8 Revealed History: =Nothing yet.</s> <\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji [h2]Rin/Sakuya[h2] The twins, although a little late, had managed to catch most of the debriefing. Why? Because they ahve been standing behind the closed door the whole time, needing to listen to the next plans, but also afraid of what Winter would do to them if they were to show up in her line of sight. "Looks like we're causing some mayhem, and with permission too!" Sakuya gleefully whispered to her sister, who nodded back, a small smile on her face as well. "Although I'd really love to find out what that 'bookshelf sized weapon' looks like." Rin muttered softly to herself, with Sakuya only paling at the thought of entering the room at this moment.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter nodded to the captain when he dismissed them. Casting one last glance around the room, (she was most definitely not looking at Taran… it was just a general sweep of everyone – no one in particular) she turned away and headed to the door. She opened it to find two twins pressed up against it, clearly eavesdropping. Ah. This was why they weren't at the briefing. The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up into a smirk as she looked at them. It seemed they were still paranoid about seeing the consequences of their little scene in Ballard. Good, she thought as she floated past them. Let them worry a little more. Winter began walking down the hall towards her room. Two and a half hours was more than enough time to change and get everything ready for the mission, but she figured she may as well start now. If she holed herself up in her room for the entirety of that time, she wouldn't have to face… anyone else. The shakiness of her own reasoning made her uncomfortable, but she couldn't really bring herself to care at the moment. She began listing supplies off in her head as she walked, thinking of what she'd need. Her mind drifted to her weapons cabinet, holding all sorts of daggers and knives, wires, poisons… and her two sickle blades. It had been a very long time since she'd brought those out. And she still had no intention to. Winter knew she had a good thing going here, with this odd little crew. And the captain knew about her… situation. He wouldn't throw her into a situation where she'd have to get too violent. Winter scrunched her eyebrows together as she thought back to what she'd done in Ballard. Fighting that guard has been easy. Familiar. Satisfying. When she'd pointed that gun at his head, all she'd wanted to do was pull the trigger and blow him away. It would've been cleaner than leaving him alive. She'd felt hints of long-buried anger creeping to the surface and for a split second, all she'd wanted to do was make him hurt. But then it was gone and she was back. No. That was done and passed. She'd go to her room, get herself ready, they'd go in and either take or break this super-weapon, get out, and then all she'd have to worry about would be… Taran. Oh god. Winter still had to deal with Taran.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax After Jax had asked her questions and Winter had answered, the younger of the two girls smiled at Winter in a sort of 'thank-you'. With that the captain began to speak once more, explaining the plan and giving her even more clarity. When he mentioned trying not to get killed she thought of Prince and Taran and how they always had a knack for getting themselves into trouble. Even if it was Jax who was primarily responsible for the officer's brother and the chase in Ballard, it wasn't all her fault, it was the man's fault for attacking Aubrey. Taran spoke and she couldn't help but laugh a little more at how he high-fived himself. He certainly was something else, if him and Winter ever stopped giving each other weird glances maybe they could be a good couple. Who was she to talk, she was awkward around Aubrey all the damn time. There were no more questions and the crew was dismissed. People began to leave, Jax looked toward Aubrey and decided to ask him to help her prepare. After all she still had to decide who would carry her spectacular hand cannon, maybe Aubrey could help her decide. "Hey Aubrey" She nudged him with her elbow. "Want to come prep with me, er I mean" Yea that didn't sound dirty or anything. Shrugging it off she tried again, "do you want to come help me prepare for battle? I need to grab my gun and Hand Cannon from my spot in the sleeping quarters. I also need to grab a some food since I missed breakfast, wanna come?" Her eyes were shining as she asked him, she was really hoping he would say yes.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey After the captain dismissed them, Aubrey leaned back in his chair with a sigh. For some reason, he had a gnawing feeling in his stomach, like something bad was going to happen. He played with the string on his hat, twisting it between his fingers thoughtfully until Jax broke his trance. She nudged him with her elbow and leaned over to speak to him. His mind took a moment to creep back into the real world again. He was glad she repeated herself, because her first attempt had fallen on deaf ears. "Sorry, I was distracted. Gun, cannon, food... Yeah, I'll come." He stood up and stretched his arms over his head, trying to push away his rising sense of unease. He waited for Jax to stand up, then walked with her to the sleeping quarters. He knew the way well enough that he could walk without giving direction much thought. Despite all of his unfortunate... quirks, he did have a very good memory when it came to things like that. He wasn't sure what this feeling was, but he needed to get his mind off of it. "Oh, did you decide who you wanna give the cannon to?" He asked.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Out of everyone, Taran probably had the least to do to get ready for the raid. Or the smash and destroy. He usually didn't carry many, if any weapons. lately he had taken to carrying a small knife, if only for the false sense of security that it gave him. He wasn't trained with a sword, so bringing one would be equivalent to giving him a club to swing around. A gun, or really, any instrument that shot would be useless. People would be wise to be more afraid if they were the thing standing next to his target, rather the the thing he was aiming for. It was also highly likely that anyone with a any sort of fighting talent would be able to disarm any weapon he did have and use it against him and who ever he was with. So, in reality, it was better for everyone that he simply walk into danger completely unarmed. "I should...probably get...more serious about fighting," he said quietly to himself leaving the meeting. He saw a couple of his shipmates split off. He felt a smile stretch across his face as he saw Jax leading Aubrey off, mentioning something about a cannon. Then he saw Winter. Or rather, Winter's back. Without real rhyme or reason, he followed her, slightly behind and occasionally jumping behind things whenever it seemed like she was going to turn around. It was stranger, yesterday he really couldn't have cared less about her, but today he was finding that he never got tired of looking at her. Once she entered her own room, he finally started heading off to his own. There wasn't much for him to grab, however, he take time to grab his lock picking set. Not that he was particularly good at it yet, but he found the process...soothing? He'd been practicing and could unlock most of the doors on the ship by this point. Granted, it could take up to an hour, but as long as no one caught him in the act, every door was his oyster. Sooner than he would have liked, he was done and ready to go, but the drop was still an hour off. There wasn't really any place he felt like being. So he took a nap.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo left the room after the captain said they had an hour or two to get ready for the plan. Honestly it was better that Angelo was going to be in the distraction team rather then the stealth team since he would probably do more good killing people on the front lines. Once Angelo left he washed his hands and then he went to his nest and checked on his gauntlets and he started to polish them and apply a clear coat so that the blood doesn't end up rusting the claws. This would take him a while since Angelo needed to apply 2 coats of the stuff for an effective seal against blood rust knowing he wont be needing his rifle for this but he will take it anyway in case their is a high value target that needs to be killed...</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Time: 1400 hours Location: West of Nowhere and Two Clicks south of Despair Weather: Choppy waves in deeper waters. Winds coming in from the South. Storm coming in around 2200. Take off after 2130 is not advised. "You know," said Taran, looking down the twenty or so feet between the ship and the water. "Of all the skills that I thought I'd need to be a pirate 'swimming' and 'ability to not get sea sick' were never very high on the list until right about now," His feet hung over the side of the hall and where dangling in the open air. "Is that just a me feeling or is that a general consensus?" All of Team Stealth (Code Name: Winter and the Boys) and a few member of Team Distraction (Code Name: Tyrannosaurus Rex Wizard With a Lazer Eye) were situated around the paddle boats that were key in to drop as soon as the ship dropped down another ten feet. The boats were an older model. More keyed into water than air travel. However, they were created to be escape pods, so they did have a rudimentary gliding mechanism that would do in a pinch.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Aubrey had agreed to go with her and once again she was tempted to take his hand and lead the way, but she fought the urge. "I think I might give it to Angelo, but then again he might have a hard time wielding it with his gauntlets" Jax led the way to her small space in the sleeping quarters. She didn't mind that it was such a small area, in fact she was glad she had somewhere to stay at all, it had been her space since she had joined the crew two years ago and she loved it. Once they were to her little living corner she knelt down to pick up her flintlock and holster it at her thigh. "Oo I just decided to add a strap to this thing so it will be easier to carry" She was speaking about the Hand Cannon that she was so proud of. It took her only a moment and a thick strip of leather to attach to both ends of the weapon. That way she could carry it over her shoulder with not as much difficulty. With a bit of a struggle she placed the strap over one shoulder and grinned. "Alright, that's too things taken care of. Thanks for joining me, Brey" After she spoke she nodded to herself and continued on to the kitchen to snag some food. "Or..." She thought out loud, still on the subject of the large weapon. "I guess I could try to use it, but even now it's a bit difficult for me to carry it, it's heavier than my wrench which is a surprise. Hey Brey, you sure there's nothing you want to go grab? No weapons or anything? I can try to fix up an old gun and make it like new so you can have it... maybe?" It was exciting, this big, important mission they were going on, she just wished Brey would fight better so she wouldn't have to worry so much. Jax didn't wait for him to answer, he could speak while he was following her to the kitchen, she was starving. The young mechanic peered into the galley to see if Winter was there, fortunately she wasn't in sight and Jax scurried in heading straight toward the snack cabinet. There were some crackers in there and fresh cheese from Ballard and it was all Jax's, and Aubrey's too if he wanted some. "Sweet! The treasure is mine" She truly was a pirate at heart. The crackers and cheese went well together, Jax hadn't even sat down to eat she was too excited about her findings. "Want some Brey?"</s>	<\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston had been preparing his gear for the mission. He always packed light. He didn't care so much for armour. He didn't need it. All he brought with him was his old axe, his regular clothing, and a small vial of black powder. He kept it in one of the pockets in his pants. He looked around his room; it was still barren. Barren wouldn't really be the best word, though. It seemed like the room was waiting for something, or someone to come. It had been so long that it was safe to say that nobody was coming to fill what the room was missing. Winston had left his room, looking back to the two smoldering joss sticks. They were almost burnt out. Winston had a rather forlorn look in his eyes. He closed them, clenching his fists. He closed and locked his room, walking out to the deck. When he got out there, most of the crew were waiting for them to get close enough to the island so they could push off and go to the main island on their boats. Winston leaned against a nearby wall. He didn't speak. It was unlike him to not speak to others, but Winston was feeling alone.</s>
<\|description\|>Dexter Kennedy The Captain Gender: Male Age: 28 Sexuality: Off Limits .3. Appearance: Dexter is tall with an athletic build. His light skin is riddled abstract tattoos, all down his back, neck, and arms. His intense steely-blue gave often intimidates the younger crew members. Personality: "Distant" would be a good word to sum him up. Dexter, although he adages his crew, has a hard time showing it. His serious expression rarely breaks, and even when it does it's only with a subtle, sly smile that is easy to misinterpret. The Leviathan and crew are his pride and joy, all that he claims to live for. He let's his shipmates do as they please, and normally lets the do all the robbing, plundering and fighting themselves. Although rare, he will occasionally talk to the members of his crew when they are having difficulties dealing with emotion, which is kind of odd seeing as it appears he has virtually none of his own. However cold and prickly he may seem from the outside, his desire is to make a positive change in the world; so, therefore, there must be a kind person in there, even if he hides it well. Weapon of Choice: For the most part? Whatever is handy. He keeps both a simple knife and flintlock pistol on his person, though he can easily adapt to any weapon he needs to "borrow". Other: N/A Revealed History: N/A Stats: Strength: 6 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 7 Social: 4 Crafting: 2 Fighting: 5</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince turned a sharp corner down an alleyway, taking out his bow and arrow. "I didn't want to use this but it looks like I have no choice," he said, stopping and shooting at the guards. After taking out a few of them he climbed up to one of the house windows and entered the house. Much to his surprise, a woman and her two children were there. "Oh, hey!" He greeted. "Sorry but I'm going to have to use this place for a minute," he said, using the window as a cover while bullets were being shot at him. He left the room running to the room across the hallway and jumped through the window, rolling over once he hit the ground to cover his fall. He put away his bow, deciding to save them in case he gets stuck in a tight spot. He ran through a series of alleyways, eventually losing the guards. He slid down to the floor, desperately trying to catch his breath. [KAI] Kai sighed, trying to squish through the amount of people that were on the streets. Apparently there was a huge commotion going on and he had no doubt in his mind that it had something to do with the crew of the Leviathan. Everywhere they went, they caused a huge scene with their antics, especially Prince. Not that he could blame him though, with Prince's attitude, he's always itching to start something after being cooped up inside the Leviathan without any action for too long. "Out of the way!" He heard someone yell. Trying to find where the voice come from, he was cut off when a couple of guards ran past him, pushing him to the ground. He sighed in annoyance, pulling himself up and dusting off his clothes. After looking around the marketplace, he decided to head back, spending more than enough time wandering the streets. Checking his watch, he didn't have enough time to go through the crowd, deciding to take a detour through the alleyways instead. After a few minutes of navigating through the alleyways, he almost sighed in relief after seeing Prince. He knew Prince could handle himself, but he couldn't help but worry. He walked up to Prince and took out a small pouch that contained water in his pocket. Prince looked up, a grin forming on his lips. "Kai!" he greeted, taking the pouch from him and chugging down the water, leaving it empty. "What kind of trouble did you get in this time?" He asked, rolling his eyes playfully. Prince chuckled, getting up and petting him on the head. "Nothing you need to worry about," Prince said. "Let's get out of here," Prince said, pushing Kai forward. "Before the ship leaves without us." Kai sighed, "Well if you didn't get into so much trouble all the time, you wouldn't have to worry about the ship leaving you behind." Prince snorted, sticking his tongue out. "Okay there, smarty-pants" Prince teased, scanning his surroundings. "Need me to cover you?" Kai asked, earning a nod from Prince. With a disapproving head shake from Kai, they headed back to the ship together.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey heard the sound of gunfire, and turned to see Karan tearing towards them. He didn't slow down after a near collision with Winter, and instead just yelled at them, "Running is good!" Before taking off again. "Wha-" Aubrey flinched as a bullet whizzed past in pursuit of Taran. "What about Pri-" The crewmate in question made a grand appearance as he came falling off of another rooftop and crushed the man after Taran. Well, shit, that was interesting. Winter shouted at them to split up as a large group of very upset guardsmen entered the scene, then flung herself off the side of the building as if she had been trained her whole life for this moment. She took the fire escape and caused a commotion, cutting off that route of escape. Aubrey flashed Jax a smile; this was gonna be fun. He turned and headed for the opposite side of the building as Winter. Luckily, there was a fire escape on that side as well. Not so lucky, the guard had already thought of that. Aubrey jumped down onto the first platform, landing lightly between two of the guys charging up the old steps. "Hi! Nice evening, isn't it?" One of the men lunged for him, but Aubrey twisted out of the way and the man collided with the other, sending both of them tumbling down the steps. "Ah, watch your step!" Aubrey hopped over them before they untangled themselves. So long as nobody got a hold of him, he was fine. He was quick and agile, but easily overpowered if anybody managed to catch him. He skipped the last few steps and vaulted over the railing onto the ground, bypassing a third guard. This one, however, wielded a gun. The man quickly jumped the rail after the boy, landing with a heavy thud. "C'mon kid, come quietly and nobody else has to get hurt!" "Oh, convincing argument, but I better not." Aubrey saw the man's brow twitch in annoyance. He raised his pistol, but Aubrey was already rushing around the next corner into an ally. Running was definitely something he was good at. He changed direction when he spotted another group of men, backtracking a few paces before he found a door exiting into the dark ally. He tried the nob, and to his surprise it was actually unlocked. He opened the door and slipped inside.... the coffee shop? Oh wow, small world. "Oh, hey, I know you." Aubrey was short of breath. Winston was still there. "So, like, some stuff happened, and we should probably skedaddle." The people in the cafe stared at the boy in shock. He probably was a sight, all banged up with that wild-ass grin on his face. He didn't waste time, and quickly headed out the opposite door and back onto the street. Now he knew where he was, even if it was black as sin outside. He turned on his heel and started down the street, covering ground quickly as he put distance between himself and the commotion as he worked his way back to the ship.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax "Running is good!" Through all the commotion that's all she caught on to besides the fact that Winter had said to split up afterwards. Jax smirked, everyone was around, at least the younger members, all could handle themselves and all were hopefully headed toward the ship. Jax felt feverish knowing that if she was caught she'd be thrown in prison, she hated prison. But at the same time the adrenaline was pumping through her like crazy. Aubrey smiled at her and she smiled back, they would have to go separate ways and meet back at the ship. She didn't want to leave him but it was important to split up, it'd be easier to get home that way. "Looks like I'm up" Jax snickered, the others had already gone their own ways and now it was her town. She bolted off the edge of the building, jumping across to the other side, there were men up there, waiting for her arrival. With a pouty expression she stared at them as they surrounded her. "Aww, you guys wouldn't attack an innocent little mechanic girl would you?" She asked as she gave the man in front of her a perfect puppy dog face. "We would if that girl happened to be a murderer, you've got blood on your face girly." One said. Curses, still? "Alright, no use trying to talk my way out of this, I'm kind of in a hurry." Jax removed her wrench from her back and held it by one end, spinning around like an out of control top, taking out the men with ease, each flew back, some falling off the building. "Weeee!!!" Once she was done spinning, the world seemed to keep going. "Whoa" This pirate had to move, and fast, more men were close behind, it was like every man in the whole city was after the crew now. Her head was still spinning but she kept moving, across to another roof top, since men were following her she had no choice but to climb down. Or y'kno, jump down. Like a trained assassin(which she isn't), she jumped across to a pole jutting out from the front of the building, swung on it and landed on another wooden piece sticking out below. Once more she jumped and landed on a cart on the ground. "Alright! keep moving!" With that she launched herself forward, rolling across the ground, popping up and running like there was a fire trying to engulf her from behind. Aubrey, Winter, Taran, Prince... I hope they're all okay. No time for that. Through the dark and pollution she could see some familiar surroundings, she was nearing the coffee shop, but she wouldn't stop there, there was probably no one left there anyway. In her mind everyone had already made it too the ship and was waiting to cast off. Once to the docks she knelt down, breathing heavily. "Am I the first one or what?"</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter The bike skidded to a halt when she reached the dock and Winter killed the engine. She got off, and marched towards the ship to find Jax already there, and Taran not far behind her. "Jax," she called. "Tell the mechanic his job is done. Take over wherever he left off." She stuck her hand in her bag then and fished around, never breaking her stride. When she pulled it out, she brought with it a pair of fine leather work gloves. Tossing them over to Jax, she added, "Break these in, too." There wasn't much time for any further signs of affection, though. Winter made her way onto the ship, tossing her things in a corner where they wouldn't get in the way. Her mind spun with things to do – Prince and Aubrey could handle themselves well enough to make it to the ship, but Winston, the twins, and Angelo weren't exactly aware of the situation. Hopefully they'd see the commotion and figure it out. But Winter had to do something else before she could worry about any of that. She came to a stop in front of the door to the captain's quarters. Giving a breath, she steadied herself and knocked. Winter waited respectfully with her hands behind her back for the captain to open the door so she could let him know the situation. (Though odds were he knew the crew well enough to have some idea.)</s>	<\|message\|>Dexter Kennedy Dexter spent the whole time at Ballard on the ship. He had no desire to go explore this mess of a city. His thoughts were elsewhere. The desk in front of him was laid out with an abundance of colorful charts and graphs. Lines and notes were drawn in small, neat handwriting across them from a charcoal pencil the captain had borrowed from Levi's stash. Blueprints accompanied the other papers; crude drawings of machinery he was familiarizing himself with. Weapons, security, evey nick and cranny that could be used as a hiding place or shelter from enemy fire... Dexter plotted it all out, committing it to memory. This next job was an important one, and he couldn't allow himself or his crew to mess it up. He checked the watch on his wrist. It had been about five hours now, and he was sure that any minute now at least a few of his comrades would come running aboard, apologizing profusely for the trouble they were about to bring him. Sure enough, he heard a soft knock on the door. Never a good sign. With a sigh he slid his chair back and stood up. He moved across the room, his heavy boots making soft thuds on the ships floor as he walked to the door. He opened it, and his steely gaze rested on Winter, who stood patiently with her hands behind her back. "I'm assuming you're going to inform me we should depart soon." He said, raising one eyebrow in question, "Do we need to stop by any prisons on our way, or did they all manage to avoid arrest this time?"</s>

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<\|description\|>Furnace Appearance: Tall for a gnome, short to anything else. His skin is sickly pale and long straw like white hair has a hint of faded red. His limbs are scarred with fire and chains. He wears grey rags and a thick leather apron. He is covered in soot and grime. His jet black eyes suggest his fey herritage, the grey lines under it suggest he hasn't enjoyed much sleep lately, or even ever. Race: Bleachling Gnome Class: Blight Druid Main-Hand Weapon: Steel broadsword sized and balanced for an Orcish Warlord. Off-Hand Weapon: the broadsword is too large for Furnace, so it becomes a two-hander for him. Secondary Weapon: smiting hammer Armor: rags and a leather apron Powers: Immolate: Furnace can naturally burn his own and readily available energy sources. The flames either fan out to scorch everything nearby or concentrate to melt metal. This requires concentration to manifest, but just energy or fuel to maintain. Enervate: Furnace can force energy to become positively charged, if he infuses this into a living being it heals wounds and energizes the creature. Animate: He can also force energy to become negatively charged, this has the opposite effect as Enervate does. He doesn't know it, but he can use it to heal undead and temporarily animate corpses. Skills: Crafting(Forging weapons and industrial tools), spell-craft(specialty: energy flows) , appraise (he can tell the structural integrity and purity of objects and materials, he has no concept of monetary value though.) Weaknesses: He has never met a real person. Thus he has no idea how anything social works. Everything is new and wondrous to him. A former slave he has a weak will and no instincts to speak of. He can easily be bullied around and clings to anyone who shows him kindness. Personality: Annoyingly submissive, unnaturally calm, depressingly accepting, surprisingly hopeful. Themesong Background: At a very young age, before he had a chance to acquire memories or even a name, Furnace was taken from his home in a bandit raid. The bandits spared his life when they had seen his race's knack for magical fire, so they decided to "raise" him for that purpose. This meant stick him in a small cell made of stone and devoid of light. The only opening and sliver of light was the entrance to their war furnaces. Which he was forced to keep alive day and night for as long as he could remember. Though he never got to see his captors, just the weapons of war he made, he was able to catch parts of conversations through the roaring blaze. This way he managed to learn the language but not much else. Since they never bothered to name him he concluded his name was Furnace. Alone and shackled Furnace toiled through in timeless darkness until one day, months, years or decades later a voice spoke from the earth. "What do you desire child?" He had pointed at the small light at the end of his jail. "Freedom? One day.." For years to come the voice would come back sporadically and talk to Furnace. Never did the otherworldly being reveal his origin or goals. Furnace didn't care. He learned to channel his energy rather than burn it into the air. He learned of other creatures, races, worlds outside. And with every bit of knowledge his craving for freedom grew. The voice always preached patience. One day there was a loud commotion outside the forge. Screaming and the clash of weapons. Weapons which sound Furnace recognized, against those he didn't. Hopefully he dared to let the fires die. A hand reached into the pit and helped him out, broke the shackles. Furnace was free and blinked as he saw the sun for the first time. Other: There is a strange creature from other worlds who's taken an interest in Furnace.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Every stick neatly sorted by length. Every sheet of cloth folded in precise squares, piled and bound. Furnace wrapped every object he owned as well as all other unattended objects in rags and bags. Divided into equal shares, or at least a close approximation. One package for each person here to carry. Furnace looked at Carver as he stood beside his work. It was clear on his face he took pride in it, that he hoped for approval. "We will take these things to 'that way', right?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed Separ staring at her, but really took no mind. The man was strange, and so was she. Most of the time people payed her no mind, but when they noticed her she was truly the center of their attentions. She didn't like it. Once the man turned away, after staring at her for minutes, she tugged her hat down over her eyes. She didn't keep quiet for long, however, as she noticed something while Furnace was packing up camp. There was something on his forehead, something drawing her in. Once the gnome was finished with his task, looking quite proud, Alula limped over to him. With a bit of ungraceful struggle, leaning on her staff for support, she knelled down in front of him. With a strangely sudden movement, one someone might miss if they had blinked, Alula's hand whipped up and moved the gnomes hair off of his forehead. She studied the marking with a strange intensity, her expression looking distressed. "Furnace..." She started, looking into his eyes. "Where...when...did you get...this..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace flinched when Alula suddenly touched his head. Surprisingly close and with eyes filled with concern. Furnace stared back at her in confusion, then at his empty hands before looking back at her. "What did I get?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki frowned as she looked at her scythe. She had a knack for noticing things unusual, and this was quite odd. It hadn't been touched, left where she dropped it. That, and her skeletons alongside it, in pieces. However, standing here was not going to solve her problems. Taking a breath, she reached down, before grabbing the scythe.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula frowned, feeling rather troubled. How could he not know what was on his own body? Perhaps it was a recent addition, and he just hadn't looked at her reflection lately. She furrowed her brow, trying to remember if she had seen it on him when they had first met. She couldn't remember. The voices were keeping rather quiet, unnerving Alula even more. After a few moments of silence Alula realized she still hadn't given the gnome an answer. She spoke, trying to keep the concern out of her voice. "It is...a word...written on your forehead...in a rather...exotic language..." She paused, trying to plan her next words. "I have...met few others...who can read and write...in such a way...other then myself..."</s> <\|message\|>Des As Suki picked up her scythe, the sound of a tripwire being activated could be heard. Before anything could be done, a rope ripped Suki into the air causing her to flip upside down and drop her scythe. Three raiders stepped out from their hiding place, "Look at this one boys, a real cutie. And she's got a nice pair of legs and little something else to show too." (I'm assuming she's wearing a skirt) The raider who was checking her out walked over and placed his hand on her cheek. "Hey sweetie, my name's Daven. And you are?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki only managed to formulate a squeal, as she found herself hoisted upside down. Craning her neck to look down at her feet...or up....she found a rope tied to her ankles that was responsible for holding her in this position. Although the idea of trying to untie the rope had flashed through her mind, she gave up almost immediately. She probably couldn't even reach, since she'd have to fight against gravity, move into an awkward position, and stay in that position to free herself. It was more likely someone would arrive before she could finish. Most likely whoever set up this trap. Not disappointed, she looked at the thee raiders who stepped out from hiding. Only having herself to blame for not being more cautious, she frowned as she heard the raider speak. Hurriedly pushing her skirt over her legs at the front, while accidentally squeezing her bosom together, making her cleavage more pronounced. Fighting the urge to turn slightly and bite the hand on her cheek, Suki chose to try and talk her way out of this. "Well Daven, I'm Suki. If you wouldn't mind me asking, why are you three raiders around here?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis arose from his root and started to snap on some loose segments of his leather armor, making sure they were fitted properly and checking his built for his weapons. "I'll come wif you." Vis called out to Separ, and approached him, he'd rather be going back into town then staying in the clearing with the merchant. As he got to Separ, he felt a tug on his sleeve, turning around, he saw that Khat had latched herself to it with both hands. "I want to come to!" she said, rather too excitedly. Vis however, simply replied. "No." "But why?!" she whined, tugging on his sleeve a bit more. "It'th too dangerouth." "I've been in there before." she rebutted, looking him dead in the eye, which made Vis a bit uncomfortable. "I recall I had thoo carry you outh." "I didn't need you to!" "You didn't protest when I did." "Fine!" she yelled and she stomped back off and plonked herself in her little nook between the roots, crossing her arms over her chest and grumbling. "Shall we be offth?" asked Vis, Khat had been pacified.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace eyes brightened in excitement. "Exotic words? Spontaneously appearing? Sounds like magic! And you know it? Please tell me about it. What kind of energy is it? What's it's purpose? Can I learn it?!" While any other would have picked up on Alula's discomfort and concern immediately Furnace completely failed to notice. His mind immediately swarmed with questions and half answers. Memories of lessons on spell-craft long ago. All magic is energy given shape and purpose. The shape is like a vessel for the energy, an instruction that spends the energy to rewrite the laws of nature to a purpose. The purpose is chosen by the entity who gives shape. Shapes can be learned. The most potent shape, the hardest to master but the most versatile of all shapes, is the word. The voice had refused to teach him how to use words, said it didn't suit him. He had affinity with the natural path, the path of learning to shape energy trough intuition. But that didn't stop Furnace from desiring this knowledge. And suddenly an opportunity stood before him.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula leaned back, eyes wide with shock, when Furnace began to ask her questions in his excited tone. He was smiling, which was a bit of a surprise to Alula. He didn't fear her. Everyone she had ever met eventually became scared of her power. Albeit, he didn't know everything about her. Regardless, it was nice to have him excited. She leaned back forwards, smiling herself. "Yes the words are quite different from what you would see in this world. It's not in a common language or elvish or gnomish." She decided to skip around in his questions. "The words themselves, while not of this realm, are not magic. What is magic is how they got there." Alula looked around, making sure they were far enough away from the group that no one would overhear her. Especially Carver and the children. "I am an Oracle, one who gets power from the moon. Much like how Carver finds his strength in the sun. The marking on your forehead is the result of one of my powers." Alula considered explaining further, but decided to stop there. She felt rather dizzy all of a sudden, pulling her hat down over her eyes. "As for you learning it...I would say...it would be rather impossible..."</s>	<\|message\|>Furnace Furnace listened intensely to her explanation. While he studied her words he thought of the way he could get a hold of energy from deep inside and send it outwards. He saw a mental image of how he'd move his hands to manipulate the strands and strings that flow trough the ether. The image shifted to Alula plucking strings from the sky, weaving sharp beams of moonlight with grace and ease. Then his imagination shifted to an opposite. Carver making the same movements under the sun, weaving bright lances of sunlight with strength and vigilance. Both receiving their power, flowing down from the heavens in a shower of inspiring patterns. These were energies of a nature strange to Furnace. Like the positive and negative they were two sides of a coin, but that was were the similarities stopped. "I understand. Complex forces don't come as natural to me as the more simple energies like light and dark. Or heat." Furnace looked defeated, yet still curious. He carefully touched his forehead. "What words are there here?"</s>
<\|description\|>Furnace Appearance: Tall for a gnome, short to anything else. His skin is sickly pale and long straw like white hair has a hint of faded red. His limbs are scarred with fire and chains. He wears grey rags and a thick leather apron. He is covered in soot and grime. His jet black eyes suggest his fey herritage, the grey lines under it suggest he hasn't enjoyed much sleep lately, or even ever. Race: Bleachling Gnome Class: Blight Druid Main-Hand Weapon: Steel broadsword sized and balanced for an Orcish Warlord. Off-Hand Weapon: the broadsword is too large for Furnace, so it becomes a two-hander for him. Secondary Weapon: smiting hammer Armor: rags and a leather apron Powers: Immolate: Furnace can naturally burn his own and readily available energy sources. The flames either fan out to scorch everything nearby or concentrate to melt metal. This requires concentration to manifest, but just energy or fuel to maintain. Enervate: Furnace can force energy to become positively charged, if he infuses this into a living being it heals wounds and energizes the creature. Animate: He can also force energy to become negatively charged, this has the opposite effect as Enervate does. He doesn't know it, but he can use it to heal undead and temporarily animate corpses. Skills: Crafting(Forging weapons and industrial tools), spell-craft(specialty: energy flows) , appraise (he can tell the structural integrity and purity of objects and materials, he has no concept of monetary value though.) Weaknesses: He has never met a real person. Thus he has no idea how anything social works. Everything is new and wondrous to him. A former slave he has a weak will and no instincts to speak of. He can easily be bullied around and clings to anyone who shows him kindness. Personality: Annoyingly submissive, unnaturally calm, depressingly accepting, surprisingly hopeful. Themesong Background: At a very young age, before he had a chance to acquire memories or even a name, Furnace was taken from his home in a bandit raid. The bandits spared his life when they had seen his race's knack for magical fire, so they decided to "raise" him for that purpose. This meant stick him in a small cell made of stone and devoid of light. The only opening and sliver of light was the entrance to their war furnaces. Which he was forced to keep alive day and night for as long as he could remember. Though he never got to see his captors, just the weapons of war he made, he was able to catch parts of conversations through the roaring blaze. This way he managed to learn the language but not much else. Since they never bothered to name him he concluded his name was Furnace. Alone and shackled Furnace toiled through in timeless darkness until one day, months, years or decades later a voice spoke from the earth. "What do you desire child?" He had pointed at the small light at the end of his jail. "Freedom? One day.." For years to come the voice would come back sporadically and talk to Furnace. Never did the otherworldly being reveal his origin or goals. Furnace didn't care. He learned to channel his energy rather than burn it into the air. He learned of other creatures, races, worlds outside. And with every bit of knowledge his craving for freedom grew. The voice always preached patience. One day there was a loud commotion outside the forge. Screaming and the clash of weapons. Weapons which sound Furnace recognized, against those he didn't. Hopefully he dared to let the fires die. A hand reached into the pit and helped him out, broke the shackles. Furnace was free and blinked as he saw the sun for the first time. Other: There is a strange creature from other worlds who's taken an interest in Furnace.</s> <\|message\|>Des and Voltus "Well if you think you could be of service then maybe..." Then some random dickhead came strolling in. "What do you mean, this was the boss's idea to capture some survivors. What do you care what I do with her now that we've done what the boss asked?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis decided that he would be intimidating, after all, bandits admired that. He marched right up to the man who had talked and pushed his forehead onto his, "Maybe if ya cleaned tha waxth ou' of yer ears ya would 'ave 'eard that the guy in charge wanted them to be put in tha town center, by tha tavern." Vis had his hand on his dagger, drawing his rapier would take too long in such close quarters.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ It's pretty obvious you do care about her Vis. Thought Separ as he glanced towards the girl but it was kind of hard to see her in the dim light. "My name's Separ, what's yours?" He whispered, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible. It wasn't exactly the best way to go about things what with there being a whole bunch of raiders outside, but Separ figured he should at least say something every now and then so the girl didn't become bored or anything. Besides, who knows just how long this rescue mission was going to take. It would probably be a good idea to at least get acquainted with each other on a first name basis.</s> <\|message\|>Des @gammaflux @Kimiyosis Daven started to ignore Vis and walked to the girl and cut her down, leaving her wrists and legs tied, "If it's that big of a deal to you then take her yourself." At that the men walked off. The other group of raiders arrived at the broken down tavern and,seeing no sign of Vis, started a patrol group for a possible impostor with a speech impedement and two or more prisoners. As the searched, Night began to fall. Wanderer @Spoopy Scary @Dragonbud @akje As the party reached the halfway point to BitterBourne, night began to fall and the group had to decide whether to stop for the night or keep going. Des walked up to the noisy lady(Alula) and tugged on her robe to get her attention. "Miss, what's going to happen to the sun man?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula The entire walk away from camp Alula was silent. She had nothing to say to anyone. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, but occasionally peaked out from under her hat to watch the sun sink down behind the trees. Night would be coming and she needed to leave. They soon came across a good place to camp, where Alula stopped right in her tracks. She spoke for the first time in several hours. "I do believe this would be a fine place to stop for the night." She spoke with a strange clarity, uncharacteristic of her slow speech. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was starting to glow. "With any luck, the others will catch up with us before the morning." Without explaining herself she tried to make her way towards the woods, hoping the others would take the hint and stay put for the night. She felt bad leaving the child and the gnome with Kelvin, but he was tough enough for the two of them. Unfortunately, she was stopped before she could get away from the others. Someone was tugging on her cloak. The child. She suppressed a growl and tugged her hat down over her eyes. Alula spoke with a strange amount of anger, as well as the corruption echoing in her voice as she spoke to the boy. "Isn't it obvious? The man ran off into the woods to battle an unseeable amount of bandits. He lacked armor and was clearly outnumbered." She grumbled something about stupid children before, again, trying to get away from the group.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem It was quite a long and eventful day. Between having had no sleep the previous night, half of the party he had recent acquainted himself with going off to who-knows-where on what was apparent to be a mission to willingly swan dive into the dragon's maws - the merchant had little sympathy for the fools - and then they were suddenly surrounded by bandits, with the foolish knight sacrificing his life so that the others may flee. Foolish, certainly; Arastoph definitely would not have done the same, but he appreciated the act as it allowed him to live another day. However, that extra day comprised him of hiking through rough terrain to get to the next town over while he was sleep deprived. While he still detested the idea of sleeping among strangers, he felt that his body might win out this time around. He had no interest in talking with any of those who were left; he was too exhausted and irritable for him to be so patient with them. The boy, however, still seemed to have plenty of energy left to harass the seer girl as she began to wander off. "However you look at it," he began to explain, "every man and woman is a sinner. Some sin less, some sin more, some are better at hiding it." Arastoph sighed and closed his eyes just as a cool breeze blew by and soothed his hot skin and aching muscles. "Carver is probably dead and will be suffering eternal damnation. We can just hope he's being tortured by two hundred ninety-nine pitchforks instead of three hundred."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat climbed up a bookshelf and sat on top, looking down at the suddenly shorter man, "My name is Khat," she hissed down, trying to be quiet but still audible, "What of it?" she scanned the man with a scrutinizing eye, he wore little armor and didn't even carry a weapon, 'what kind of adventurer is this guy?' she thought to herself. Standing up, Khat leapt to the other bookshelf, landing with a gentle tap as opposed to a clumsy thud. "Are you Vis' friend?" she asked. Vis bundled up Suki, throwing her roughly over his shoulder, "if ye artheholes find any more prisoners, 'ow about lockin'em up inthead of trying' tha rape'em?" he walked off back in the in the opposite direction he came in, as if he were going to the center of town, however when he was out of sight he looped around the long way, heading back to the bookstore where he had hid Separ and Khat.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to introduce myself is all. So Khat's your name huh? It's rather pretty. And as for Vis, you could say he's my friend. Though, whether or not he thinks the same of me, well that's debatable." I sighed as my thoughts jumped to Vis and the girl. Hopefully they were both okay, but all I could do was hope. I couldn't even see from outside this building, so that would make things a lot more difficult. Please be safe.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin It was painful. Men seemed to crash in on all sides, breaking the safety of the clearing and leaving it shattered like sharp glass. Luckily, he was packed. Kelvin snatched up two of the packages the gnome had made in either hand, and booked it. He didn't pause- he wasn't a Paladin. Even so, he could feel stabbing pain in his gut- the jerk of leaving behind an ally. Carver had only his sword, his shield, and the blessing of a god to make it through. Brave man, likely a dead one. Kelvin couldn't take the time to look back, just muttering a small offering for the man. "Go Paladin, a man born of plight to fight through sin. Never fall, listen to the child's call. Go my kin. No amount of steel can hide your heart of tin. Enemies may maul, but a hero stands tall. Come Paladin, dance for heaven's ball." He wasn't quite sure where he knew it from, but it was an appropriate lyric for the situation. Kelvin did little as they slowed. Constant running would leave a man tired. "I didn't know you were a believer, merchant." Kelvin glanced at the man. "Odd." He wasn't really that interested. Kelvin glanced about, beginning to count heads.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Exhaustion was already overtaking the merchant, and was slow to address Kelvin's passing comment. The long trek took a lot out of what was left of him and was beginning to drift into slumber as he sat upright with his back against a tree trunk. "I've seen and... experienced enough to be aware there is more to this world than your mortality." Arasatoph answered dismissively with a lazy wave of his hand. "Believing, howe'er, is not the same as holding faith in higher powers..." This was a terrible time for him to be discussing anything, much less religion, and was already growing irritable. He wished to remain left alone so that he may catch up on rest. On the bright side, he felt he had no reason to worry of his safety around these ones. "But for now, let me be," he continued, "I am weary."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki 'vainly struggled', as she was thrown over the disfigured man. "Be more gentle!" Hissing softly at Vis, she shifted around, attempting to settle into a more comfortable position. As comfortable as one can get carried like a sack of flour. She sighed in exasperation after a short moment, before muttering, "Why did you even bother coming? Waste your time on better tasks." with an annoyed tone.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" When they were far enough away from the raiders, Vis decided to hold her differently, one arm under her knees and the other supporting her back, like carrying a dead body. As far as he was concerned, he wasn't wasting time putting her down and cutting her out of her bindings. "Tha way i thee ith.." Began Vis, jogging at a steady pace, "you've done me a favor an ith only righth that I pay you back." He looked own at her and cast the grin light of his eye on her face, there was something about her. "Use your flattery elsewhere," snarked Khat, as she leapt off one of the book cases and landed gently on the ground with barely a tap, "It's just a nickname and thats as far as I'd like to take it with a stranger, Separ." she said his name with disdain, it seemed that being in the town she once called him was bubbling up lots of negativity inside her.</s>	<\|message\|>Furnace Furnace walked in silence as he listened to Kelvin. The words had a strange rhythm to them. They seemed to fit well together. Thou that didn't help to comprehend them. Alulah was gone again. The white orb was rising and the world had gone dark again. There was definitely a pattern here and the floaty girl was part of it. The Aurumancer spoke of fatigue, but they had been told go. "Should we rest?" Furnace pondered out loud. By the way he sounded it was as if he was morally against the idea. "I have plenty of energy left. We can keep walking for a while."</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Des In the small town of Ravenwood, all is peaceful, the villagers farm and raise livestock happily with no burden in there lives. There is a small tavern for travelers in need of supplies and wares, an inn for those wishing to rest there bones, and a blacksmith's forge for those that need weaponry, armor, or repairs. For whatever reason, 8 adventurers have shown up within the past week. They have no clue what kind of hell this small piece of heaven is about to be put through.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Ravenwood was a nice enough village, although Alula never liked staying in one place for very long. It fascinated the oracle how so many walks of life could coexist so perfectly together. It filled her with a strange sense of nostalgia, but her weakened memory could pin no time in her life to what she was doing right now. Which was talking through an almost market district of the small village. It looked mostly like small stands and people trying to appeal their wares to her. But their voices seemed to fade away, alula's hazy eyes sweeping lazily along the stalls as the voice in her head spoke. "Her goods are overpriced, but the man next to her is more pricy. You would be better off waiting until later in the evening. Desperate salesmen make quick barter." The people running the stalls flashed grins as the girl, not noticing the far away look in her eyes. She did not speak, or respond to their chatter about how their prices were the best in town. Instead she grunted softly, and walked off. She had plenty to spend, she really didn't have to worry about high prices. She blamed this mostly on her dislike of material wealth, she always was loosing odd trinkets. As she walked away from the stall she could hear people talking, talking about her. She frowned, pulling the rim of her hat over her eyes. She didn't want to be looked at. She had been in this town for almost a week, and she was just trying to pass through. Eventually, and with all hope, people would soon forget about her. People tended to.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace slowly strolled around the market place. In awe of all the delicious looking foods, the shiny trinkets and all the beautiful people. He studied the people as they went on their business, not noting the vale little gnome. Furnace paid close attention of the way people would walk around delivering small sheets of gold around the people standing in front of tables with all sorts of things. They then would be given these things and they would cary it of elsewhere. He thought how he had found a large bag of gold sheets a while ago. He'd brought them in case he needed to make some armor to go with his shield. But as gold was rather soft it didn't really do much for protection. For a while he pondered if he could pretend to be one of these workers, and using the sheets he could get a hold of some food or something. He had some trouble finding that, and it hasn't just appeared since the dark days. Completely absorbed in his thoughts Furnace had long since ceased to pay attention to his surroundings. Suddenly something bright and colorful caught his eye. Imediately he walked up to it, it was a piece of cloth in fantastic blue. Without paying any attention to what or whomever it was attached to he held it up in the light to witness the celestial patterns with childlike eyes of wonder.</s> <\|message\|>Alula "He is more similar to you then you think." Alula hadn't noticed the gentle tugging on the end of her robe. She rarely noticed anything. She had grown used to the voice in her head, often telling her things she didn't immediately understand. Even with the gnome gripping onto her clothes she continued to walk, and only stopped when she realized the fabric that flowed behind her was now pulled taut. Alula stopped in her tracks, standing ridged. Someone had grabbed ahold of her robes, someone was pulling on her robes. Her eyes stared straight ahead, obscured from view by the brim of her hat. Unfortunately for the gnome, he was short enough to see under her hat as she whipped around, yanking her robes from the gnomes hands. There was a glow to her eyes, but she didn't look particularly angry. Nervous perhaps? Suddenly her mouth opened, and words poured out that didn't belong to her. "Kept to light the fires, and yet the fire inside never died. Dims, but never dies." She blinked several times, glowing eyes replaced with hazy and distant ones. She took a step away from the gnome, pulling the rim of her hat over her eyes. "My...robe...wouldn't fit you." She spoke slowly, her words slurring together.</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose Anew wandered into town about the time as the sun reached its zenith. She kept her hood up to keep the sun off of her face and she kept her left hand laying casually on the pommel of her bastard sword. The scenery around the town had gotten Rose in a peaceful mood. She did not desire conflict here but she tired to give the appearance of confidence. She passed a small shepard boy asleep next to the fence while his flock grazed peacefully. The scene brought a smile to her face and made no effort to wake the boy. This town was clearly peaceful to allow such a lazy scene to exist. Rose was happy to see such a place, but her instincts told her it could never last. Nothing good ever does. Rose made her way to the market place near the towns center. It was a fairly lively place compared to the rest. She looked over the wares of various vendors. She was content with her armor and weapons so most of the shops for people of her talents seemed lacking. What did catch her eyes was a set of cookware that was among a vendor. She really did not need it but it had been so long since she had the proper equipment to cook a full meal under the stars. She could not just walk away. One of the copper cooking sets seemed to call her name. She started bartering for a reasonable price.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Ah, I see you have taken a liking to that cooking set there, madam," The merchant said as he walked over to Rose, "For a pretty lass such as yourself, 75 pieces."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel "So are you excited knowing your about to head off into the world and start your own adventure?" Asked the man sitting next to Separ Kurel, the very man who had trained him on how to be an arcane brawler. This man was known by the name of Millon Baotes. He was incredibly buff with a tall and wide body with almost no traces of fat. His usual messy short black hair was now combed for the special occasion of sending his one and only pupil off into the world. Some scars were located all throughout his torso, and for some reason he wasn't wearing a shirt. Though most of the time he didn't have a shirt on anyways. "Yes, I'm excited if a little nervous." Separ answered truthfully as his eyes darted around the tavern, hopping from person to person. "So where is this group of mine supposed to be at? I'm anxious to meet them. We are meeting them here right?" "No, you're going to be meeting them here by yourself." Said Separ's teacher as he crossed his arms. "How am I supposed to know who my group is then? You haven't told me anything about them, so I don't see how this is going to work." Separ said, a hint of skepticism in his voice. "You know, I first started out in this town as well. I knew no one whatsoever and lived in this town for about two weeks, only spending what money I did have to sleep at an inn and drink in this very tavern. As your teacher I'd like you to experience something similar and make friends on your own to team up with, rather than rely on me introducing you to some people you may not even get along with." Separ's teacher paused for a moment and took another swig of beer. "That's good stuff alright, just like I remembered." He muttered before continuing on where he had left off. "Anyways try to meet some people you know you'll at least somewhat get along with rather than leaving it up to chance. If I find out you left this town without forming a proper group to travel with I'll kill you for making me waste my time trying to train you." And with that Separ's teacher started to chug the entire glass of frothing beer sitting in front of him on the table. Separ nodded at his teacher's words, and while he felt a little put off by that last line, he knew full well that was just his teacher's way of joking around. "Alright, I'll do as you say then." "Then it's settled." And with that Millon stood up from his chair about to leave, only to immediately stop and turn around looking Separ directly in the face. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" "Huh?" Was all Separ could say, before his teacher left leaving him alone at the bar table. Separ looked around at the crowd for a moment wondering if he should talk to anyone, but decided against it. The place was kind of crowded right now, and it would probably be easier to wait until the mass of people thinned out a bit before doing anything else. Instead he opted to just admire how simple this building was. So this is what it was like to be in a small town huh? It was actually kind of peaceful. However his thoughts soon changed into imagining all the adventures he would have. Fighting monsters, saving people, becoming a hero. What a wonderful life that would be.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver arrived in Ravenwood in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day in the country - all around was quiet, and the sun shone through the leaves in just that way that made Carver feel as though the goddess were truly with him. As the wagon he was riding pulled in through the gates, he waved here and there at passing townsfolk, and was often rewarded with a smile or a polite wave. The wagon came to a halt and he dismounted, his armor clanking loudly as he landed. The farmer whose family he had been traveling with for the past few days approached him, and Carver gave the man a warm smile. "My friend," he said, "I believe this is where we part ways." "Yes, milord," the farmer responded, still using the honorific Carver has insisted repeatedly was not necessary. "We will be awful sorry to see you go. How much do we owe you?" The man responded, fumbling for his coinpurse. Carver has expected that the man would attempt to compensate him for his services 'escorting' the family, though in truth he had only scared off a few petty thieves. The paladin held a hand out to the man, still smiling. "No such payment is required. Keep it. Feed your children, and raise them in the light of the sun." The farmer nodded. "I, uh, yes milord. I will. Thank you." Carver put his hand to his breast and bowed before turning away and walking into the crowd. It was time to find some wrongs and set about righting them - the marketplace would be as good a place as any to start.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nervously stepped out from the narrow path between buildings, her eyes shifting as she cautiously looked over everyone nearby. From what it looked like, there wasn't anyone screaming for anything similar to those witch hunt riots that the church had done hunting her down. Making sure her cloak was covering her body, with the hood obscuring her head, she daintily slipped out, mingling with the crowd at the marketplace. Although she tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible, it seems that her cloaked figure was something that my catch the eyes of a few. Suddenly feeling a hand grip her arm, she quickly spun around, only to realize it was a merchant. "We have good prices!" Heavily accented, the merchant gestured at his wares, or in this case, fresh produce. Feeling a slight bit hungry, she nodded, before pointing at an apple. "Good eye, good eye, that would be-" The merchant started to speak, before Suki raised her hood slightly, revealing her face to him. Winking, she raised a finger to her lips. "Bring the apple. I'll make the payment through other means~' Whispering with such a sultry tone, the merchant was by no means resilient against such a tactic. The two hurried towards a more quite alley, where Suki leaned in, and kissed the merchant. Whatever giddy thoughts that raced through the merchant's mind, was soon replaced by a lethargy. The man soon sank to the ground, the expression of ecstasy plastered on his face. "For a farmer, your energy wasn't too bad of a taste." Muttering such words mostly to herself, she quickly picked up the apple, and re-entered the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, taking bites from her newfound food.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis trudged through the dense mud, tired and with a gloomy expression on his face, though it would be difficult to make out, his scarf worn tightly around his face and over his nose, obscuring the expression and the gaping hole in his maw. Vis had been accosted by a group of thugs on the main road, though this generally wasn't an issue as he would run away and they would lose interest eventually but it seemed these things were desperate, as they chased him half way into the moor before deciding it was no longer worth it. He didn't like running away, if there was only one or two of them he would have stood his ground, unfortunately there were half a dozen. He tilted his head up to the sky to find light grey plooms of smoke in the distance, beyond the hill that was beyond the next. There were too many points of smoke for it to be a campsite but not quiet enough to be an industrial estate, so he figured it must have been some little township. Vis made it to 'Ravenwood' in the afternoon, drained from the task of traversing through mud that felt only the need to slow him down, so with some relief he slung his pack around so it was under his nose and opened it. He saw the cobbled street. His mood quickly turned dower, the bottom of his pack must have snagged on a branch and have been torn, spilling it's contents. 'that's why those highway men turned, they just had to pick up what they wanted.' With a sigh, he took what was left in the pack and cast it into an alleyway, though funnily enough all that was in there was the child's encyclopedia his mother gave him before leaving, so he could brush up on reading skills. Vis tucked the book into his leather armor and wandered forth. The market district was buzzing with activity, buyers haggling over prices and venders hawking their wares, though all Vis needed was a replacement pack and a few basic bits. Wandering the stalls and booths, he found nothing met his eye, mostly because of the high prices but also because many of the packs were just of low quality. Unsatisfied, he walked through the market, casting a faint green cone of light from his cursed green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continues to idly imagine adventures he is brought back into reality as he feels a hand touch his back. Separ turns around and listens to the man he starts wondering just how to respond, pausing to think about his actions. "Do I know you? Though actually I am looking for some companions. Wait, out of everyone here why choose me? You're not trying to rob me or something are you? Wait, umm, are you looking just for someone to travel with, or are you an adventurer as well?" Separ's words were quick and somewhat hard to follow. He had never done something like this before and wasn't exactly sure of himself and just how to proceed.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver withdrew his hand quickly at the strange voice's behest. That certainly wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting - glowing eyes and booming commands were usually confined to things paladins were expected either to worship or to kill, but as the girl tottered forward, pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her eyes, Carver was certain that neither of those reactions would be appropriate. No, his initial plan regarding the girl still seemed appropriate - she needed help. It took him a moment to realize the half-elf was talking, and with a severe lisp, too. Something about a tavern? That seemed like it would serve both for getting the girl out of the heat (and the crowd) and for getting the gnome some food. He smiled at the man. "A tavern sounds like a fine idea. Might I trouble you to take us there?" He glanced around at the company. "A bit of rest and a meal, and I'm sure we'll all be feeling right as rain, friends." He moved closer to the girl - not enough to risk triggering the same bizarre reaction, but enough that she could lean on him if she felt the need. He also extended a hand down to the gnome, hoping to prevent the small fellow from being lost in the crowd.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Kelvin jerked around, twisting to look at the woman as she stood upright. He slapped a hand to his face, dragging it down, pulling on his flesh and in general just making him look tired. "See what I mean?" He lowered his voice for his companion, but doubtless the woman could hear as well. She pulled back her hood, fully revealing her features to the both of them. Pristine, perfect. Warning bells everywhere. First. Why was she alone? With a face like that she could easily have been married to a rich man, or already in the bloodline of a powerful one. Second. If she was alone, how had she managed to get so far by herself? It just reeked of alarm. No offense to her, of course. It just didn't look safe... Kelvin glanced at his companion, wondering. Was he a fool for a pretty face? "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." A flush crept across his cheeks for an instant, before he quickly responded. "Aye, no more daring than a lady who sleeps in a commoner's tavern with the ease of a barmaid." His tongue was going to get him into trouble someday. Kelvin averted his eyes from her, towards his companion. "Your call sir."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had seemed to calm down considerably, but was still horribly overwhelmed. Not once voice kept still for very long, and she was very confused as to what they were telling her to do. She peered out from under her hat, watching as the half-elf gathered back up his belongings. He was an interesting one, but the voices could not agree on why. Perhaps he just was because he was. More phantom noises filled the oracles ears, whistling winds and breaths cut short. It was horribly unnerving. She shivered for a moment despite the heat. The noises stopped suddenly, leaving Alula dizzy once more. Unfortunately she was also now out of the loop on the whole bar situation, she hadn't really been comprehending what the two taller men were discussing. But what she did pick up on was the half-Elfs speech impediment. In an almost comical turn of events, her mind was in an even fifty fifty split right now trying to remember and understand what would be socially acceptable. Was she supposed to not say anything or point out his strange pattern of speech. And then Alula noticed he was looking at her. She initially panicked but then noticed something. He had glowing eyes too, or well one eye. For some reason this observation made her next choice very clear to her. And in her slurred voice spoke. "You..talk weird..."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ The moment I laid eyes on this woman I felt my body's temperature rise as my face turned beet red. I could hardly say a word as I was immediately enchanted by her beauty, and in that short moment time seemed to creep to a halt making it feel like an eternity. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" The words of my mentor echoed in my head as I continued to gaze upon this girl's beauty. "Your call sir." Kelvin's words brought me out of my trance and back to reality. Ahh, just how stupid can I be? I can't just gawk at this girl, and besides regardless of how good my mentor's training was, I don't think his last snippet of advice can be considered valid. I sighed for a moment redirecting my focus to try and calm myself down. My body slowly changed back to normal as I now stared at the woman. I would not fall under her spell so easiy, even if I wanted to actually do so. Wait why am I admitting that? Ahh, forget it, just say something so you don't look like an idiot. "I'd love it if you joined us, though I must ask if you know about how to fight or any useful skills really. I wouldn't want you or Kelvin for that matter, to get put into any dangerous situations, so please be truthful to what you can or can't do. Or at the very least understate your abilities so we don't do anything to rash and wind up all dead or something, I don't know." I gulped as while I wasn't going gaga over her anymore, I was still having a bit of trouble talking, as evidenced by the nervousness in my voice. Well it wasn't that big of a deal anyways, I probably just needed to get used to her.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' eyes went wide when she said those words, his cursed left eye flashing an angry green for a moment before it stopped. He wanted to retaliate with words but his throat seized up, locking shut, if he spoke she would just poke fun at him again, he usually stood tall but now he slumped a fraction. "nothed*," he turned around and with a flick of his tattered left ear, he signaled for them to follow, his steps were more unsure now then they'd ever been, almost all people did not comment on his voice, they tended to know what was good for them, the last time someone did they suffered a beating. But he couldn't beat the girl under the pointy hat, he just couldn't bring himself to raise his hand at her, she seemed like she didn't know what she was saying but that didn't make him any less wounded. Vis tightened his scarf. When they arrived at the tavern, Vis held the door open for his group, turning around to see the Paladin, Gnome and the pretty hooded girl who made comments at his expense.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki shifted her gaze to the side slightly, as she was compared to that of a barmaid. Not because she was insulted, but moreso because she ended up thinking about kissing patrons when she was half dead. That was one memory she would love to bury, but at least that was at a different village. "Of course. Although I may not look like it, but I do have confidence in my ability to scout out an area. That, and when I do run into trouble, I trust my skill in a scythe." Answering the other man's questions, she couldn't help but to notice how he had a momentary lapse when he first looked at her. She leaned closer to him, while subtly releasing the top clasp of the cloak, allowing it to part slightly. From this angle, the man could get just a tiny glimps of her chest. "Well~? Do you believe me~?" Whispering these words, at such a low volume, yet with hints of a challenge mixed in with that sultry tone.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace entered the tavern and looked around. The room was filled with wooden constructs, living creatures and ceramics containing, what smelled like food. He didn't see a source for the food though. How did these people find it? Why decide to eat it here? Then he saw a creature with a large wooden plate stacked with cups. Distributing food to people. He noticed a pattern, she went by all the wooden circles and gave foot to those balanced around it. Furnace concluded that if they balanced on the small wooden constructs around the large wooden plates, they would get food. Following the pattern the barmaid followed Furnace chose a table that would soon be serviced. He took the cloth-wrapped bastard sword slung over his shoulder and carefully placed it leaning against the table. After sizing the chair up for a few seconds and studying the other patrons he got up on the seat and sat down cross-legged. Then he waited. If his guesses were correct food would now come to him.</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ A scythe huh, that's an interesting weapon of choice, thought Separ as he continued to talk to this beautiful lady. However as he was listening to her, she seemed to lean forward and unbutton the top of her cloak, an action which surprised Separ. He stared closely for a second and realized he could see a small portion of her cleavage. Was she purposefully trying to make him look? Should he look? Can he? While Separ kind of wanted to take a peek he realized that wouldn't be a good idea. She was most likely just feeling a little hot and wanted some more air. He glanced to the side not wanting to stare at her chest and give off the wrong impression. "I believe you, after all you have no reason to lie right?" His voice had turned even more nervous now, as he wasn't sure quite what to do. "So, uh, welcome to the team I guess." He looked back at her and gave her a somewhat shy smile. Separ turned towards Kelvin and extended a hand, his palm facing the sky. "This here is Kelvin, and my name is Separ. If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" As he said this Separ had a lightbulb moment and turned towards Kelvin and nodded slightly. "I'm sorry, it seems I had forgotten to tell you my name earlier. Sorry about that."</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Carver, huh? That's a nice name you got there. Is that your real name or do you just carve your enemies with one slice?" Separ asked, laughing at his own joke. "But seriously, I'm glad I could persuade you to join the team, and I will happily ask your comrades as well. After all the more the merrier, right?" As he said this Separ quickly stood up and looked at both the childlike gnome and the girl who's body was practically covered by robes. Kelvin seemed to be talking to the gnome though so it probably wasn't a good idea to interrupt them for now, or at least to Separ it wasn't. Separ instead made his way over to the girl only to watch a man with a scarf over his face bump into her which in turn caused both of them to hit the ground. Separ watched as her hat fell off flying under an occupied table. Separ quickly talked with the men so he could get them to move out of the way. The men at the table complained as they were drunk, but relunctantly obliged in the end. After obtaining the hat Separ moved towards the girl, and to his surprise heard her scream. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" The girl then raised her staff before dropping it to the ground, probably figuring it best to not go through with her actions. This stunned Separ, but he ultimately feeled like she had a reason for saying it, after all Carver had not wanted to leave her alone. Perhaps she was under a lot of stress, or maybe something traumatic had happened to her? Either way, this girl seemed nice and merciful, she as Separ expected, was most likely a good person. He quickly walked over only to see the man put his scarf over her face, an act which may not have seemed so great, had the man not been disfigured. Separ actually became frightened of him due to his disfiguration for a moment, not because he was disfigured, but rather because he reminded Separ of the undead. Either way Separ wished he could have him join the team, though Separ did berate himself for being scared of the man, surely this guy must have put up with other people thinking the same thing before. Separ did not want to be just another person that would laugh, point, or be disgusted by something so trivial. You fool, he's alive, you have nothing to worry about. Separ paused for a moment unsure of himself, but finally pressed onwards just as the other attractive girl put her cloak over him. Carver then got in a fight with the bartender and the same girl tried to seduce the man into calming down only it didn't seem to work very well. Tapping the girl on the shoulder Separ handed her the hat. "Here you go, Miss, now if you'll excuse me." Enough was enough, this bartender had gone to far trying to kick someone out because of there looks. Walking up to the bartender Separ pulled out 10 gold pieces, and holding out his hand, grabbed the bartender's right hand with his free hand and plopped it right in the man's palm. "Use this money," Separ's words turned into that of yelling as he threw a wild punch filled with ferocity at the bartender's head. "TO PAY FOR YOUR HOSPITAL BILLS!!!"</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep quickly pulled out the sword he kept behind the counter and blocked the attack, leaving a large gash in Separ's hand and nearly causing him to lose a finger, "It's going to take more then ten gold pieces to pay to fix that, now get out of my sight before I call the town guard on all of you." The barkeep ripped the sword from Separ's hand causing him to bleed profusely and wiped the blood off of his blade with a napkin, "If I have to get the guard, then they will cause a whole lot more damage than that."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Things in the tavern seemed to be heating up. The yelling fest between the barkeep and several of the people, people she was at least slightly acquainted with, continued to grow to the point where Alula was beginning to feel anxious again. She didn't want anyone getting in trouble. She allowed herself to peek out from under the cloth. The half-elf now had a cape, the woman was flirting with the barkeep and the paladin looked almost as red as the sun. Suddenly she was being tapped on the shoulder, a wave of flame passing under her skin. And her hat was being pressed into her hand. She felt the iron heaviness in her gut loosen slighted when she was reunited with her hat. She placed the hat atop her head where it belonged, but kept the cloth in her hands, perhaps not quite ready to part with one of the first physical gifts she had ever received. She was about to timidly thank the man, when she watched him walk right up to the barkeep and attempt to sock him right in the face, only to recieve a bloody hand. Alula let out a shiver, they were in big trouble now. She gripped the cloth in her hands anxiously.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Hold on my friend-" Kelvin turned at the sound of a scream, and the entire tavern just broke apart, people shouting and yelling. The one guy looked like a necromancer had taken his face apart and stuck it back together, the girl had ditched the cloak- finally revealing the full suspicious nature of her beauty. Then suddenly the knight starts going off on the bartender, the bartender spits in the guys face. All chaotically thrown together. Kelvin stood up and moved closer, relaxing a bit as Separ moved towards the man. He would cool this down. ... ... ... nope. He lunged to pull the guy back before it was too late... and missed. Damn. It was quite impressive how quickly the barman had responded. And a bit scary. Kelvin groaned, considering. The knight was almost sure to respond violently to that. "Alright, that's enough." Kelvin stepped forward and slid between the knight and the counter, turning and attempting to shove the man towards the door before turning and attempting to loop an arm around Separ's shoulders to move him towards the door. "Come on already! You too little guy." He glared at the girls each in turn, not sparing the man with the messed up face either. He shoved the stick of dynamite into his pocket. "GET. OUT."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver saw the sword come out in slow motion, but its arc was complete before he had time to shout a warning. Blood had been spilled - there could be no doubt that the barkeep was deserving of punishment. But... not today. Not with the gnome, and the girl, and an already injured friend. Certainly not with the rest of the crowd, who seemed like they might choose the side of the local swindler over the foreign knight. The bearded man grabbed Separ, attempting to pull hims back and call for a retreat. The idea was a sound one. Carver spoke, not breaking eye contact with the barkeep. "This villain will face a judgement, friends - of his own making. A life lived in adversity to the right can have no other outcome. But perhaps now is not the time." He looked across the room, making eye contact with each of the strangers - the gnome, the scarred half-elf, the girl, the bearded man, the injured adventurer, even the woman with the air of evil about her who had tried to soothe tensions. "Let us leave, for now. The sun is too high for bloodshed." The words burned Carver's heart as he said them, but they were true. He promised himself that he would see this man punished one day, but for now he hoped the strangers would take his words to heart.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel This barkeeper sure was strong but I wasn't going to let him get the best of me, after all, I was trained to fight with my fists by a master. I knew how to fight unarmed better than most people would, a weapon like that would not deter me, and neither would threats. Just as the bartender finishes his sentence I throw a gutbuster aimed at his stomach with my right arm, hoping I could get him down on the floor covered in his own puke. The whole time both Kelvin and Carver tried to calm me down, but right now this man was deserving of a punch more than anyone I had ever met. If I didn't punch him now what woukd my mentor say? I wouldn't even be able to sleep tonight knowing he potentially harmed or cheated more people. This had to be done now, and I was going to make sure this worked.</s> <\|message\|>Des The bartender seemed relieved that the paladin and the other guy were getting people out, but then he noticed the kid try and make another punch at him. Sword still in hand, he lowered it so the blade would be in the direct path of the fist. As the fist came in contact with the blade, it slashed it open, causing even more blood to spill on the counter, "Next time, I won't let you keep your hands."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had wished she hadn't decided to peek out from under her hat again, because what she saw disgusted her. It wasn't the blood that truly bothered her, blood was just blood after all. But it was the context everything was it. Pure rage and no reason. Neither of these men, the barkeep or the man who returned her hat, had any reason to be fighting. They should have just left the bar in the first place and that was exactly what Alula decided to do. She moved swiftly pass the half-elf, muttering in a strange voice. "The glory of pride is never quite worth the cost of blood." Once outside she felt immediately relieved. Maybe it was the fresh air or the natural light. She tugged the brim of her hat down over her eyes, waiting for the others to exit.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" -Omitted-</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel I clenched my fists even harder preparing to strike once more at the bartender in my fit of rage. One punch, one punch was all I needed. Only then did I realize my opponent had not even broken a sweat, and he even seemed to be quite calm, as if this fight was something he had participated in many times before. In contrast both of my fists were messed up and bleeding profusely, and my own rage was clouding my actions. I quickly remembered the words of my master. "The calmest person is always the victor." I was a disgrace. After all that hard work and training I had made a stupid mistake. I had lost this fight. The grip on my hands loosened as I calmed down, turned away from the barkeeper and walked outside the tavern as the crowd inside all started to laugh at how stupid and weak I was. Or at least that's what I imagined was happening. I would have to make it up to my group at some point for making a mess of things, if they even still wanted to be a part of my group. I hanged my head in shame. I really messed everything up.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver saw the sword come out in slow motion, but its arc was complete before he had time to shout a warning. Blood had been spilled - there could be no doubt that the barkeep was deserving of punishment. But... not today. Not with the gnome, and the girl, and an already injured friend. Certainly not with the rest of the crowd, who seemed like they might choose the side of the local swindler over the foreign knight. The bearded man grabbed Separ, attempting to pull hims back and call for a retreat. The idea was a sound one. Carver spoke, not breaking eye contact with the barkeep. "This villain will face a judgement, friends - of his own making. A life lived in adversity to the right can have no other outcome. But perhaps now is not the time." He looked across the room, making eye contact with each of the strangers - the gnome, the scarred half-elf, the girl, the bearded man, the injured adventurer, even the woman with the air of evil about her who had tried to soothe tensions. "Let us leave, for now. The sun is too high for bloodshed." The words burned Carver's heart as he said them, but they were true. He promised himself that he would see this man punished one day, but for now he hoped the strangers would take his words to heart.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel This barkeeper sure was strong but I wasn't going to let him get the best of me, after all, I was trained to fight with my fists by a master. I knew how to fight unarmed better than most people would, a weapon like that would not deter me, and neither would threats. Just as the bartender finishes his sentence I throw a gutbuster aimed at his stomach with my right arm, hoping I could get him down on the floor covered in his own puke. The whole time both Kelvin and Carver tried to calm me down, but right now this man was deserving of a punch more than anyone I had ever met. If I didn't punch him now what woukd my mentor say? I wouldn't even be able to sleep tonight knowing he potentially harmed or cheated more people. This had to be done now, and I was going to make sure this worked.</s> <\|message\|>Des The bartender seemed relieved that the paladin and the other guy were getting people out, but then he noticed the kid try and make another punch at him. Sword still in hand, he lowered it so the blade would be in the direct path of the fist. As the fist came in contact with the blade, it slashed it open, causing even more blood to spill on the counter, "Next time, I won't let you keep your hands."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had wished she hadn't decided to peek out from under her hat again, because what she saw disgusted her. It wasn't the blood that truly bothered her, blood was just blood after all. But it was the context everything was it. Pure rage and no reason. Neither of these men, the barkeep or the man who returned her hat, had any reason to be fighting. They should have just left the bar in the first place and that was exactly what Alula decided to do. She moved swiftly pass the half-elf, muttering in a strange voice. "The glory of pride is never quite worth the cost of blood." Once outside she felt immediately relieved. Maybe it was the fresh air or the natural light. She tugged the brim of her hat down over her eyes, waiting for the others to exit.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" -Omitted-</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel I clenched my fists even harder preparing to strike once more at the bartender in my fit of rage. One punch, one punch was all I needed. Only then did I realize my opponent had not even broken a sweat, and he even seemed to be quite calm, as if this fight was something he had participated in many times before. In contrast both of my fists were messed up and bleeding profusely, and my own rage was clouding my actions. I quickly remembered the words of my master. "The calmest person is always the victor." I was a disgrace. After all that hard work and training I had made a stupid mistake. I had lost this fight. The grip on my hands loosened as I calmed down, turned away from the barkeeper and walked outside the tavern as the crowd inside all started to laugh at how stupid and weak I was. Or at least that's what I imagined was happening. I would have to make it up to my group at some point for making a mess of things, if they even still wanted to be a part of my group. I hanged my head in shame. I really messed everything up.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace studied the stick's scent. "Sulphur, charcoal and saltpetre... Spell components?" From the comfort of his seat Furnace regarded the whole scene. From the gasps and screams of the patrons around him he guessed that the scene before him was dramatic in some way. He didn't see it. He followed their gaze to the girls glowing eyes, to the tall figures face and to the fight that broke out between the friend collector and the barkeep. Or at least, the barkeep was behaving as Furnace would expect him to in a fight. Saying mean things and holding a blade. Furnace had heard a lot about battle, that is, he was always near battle. He had never actually seen a fight before, but had heard plenty from his cell. There were incantations, primal screaming and testing of swords. The friend collector had the screaming part down. After a whole lot of tension and threats people were leaving, and Furnace was gestured to come with. A strange request, but this place had probably shown all it had to offer, and these people were intriguing. He took the wrapped blade, slung it on his back and followed the others outside. The scent of blood stuck in the air. The friend collectors hands were bleeding profusely. Furnace felt he should point that out. So he did, he pointed at the blood dripping on to the dusty ground. "Should you not close that? Blood is finite."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ continued to feel bad about the ordeal, questioning why he had acted so rash and acted against his mentor's training. Suddenly Separ was broken out of his thoughts as a small childlike gnome approached him. "Should you not close that? Blood is finite." Said the gnome. Separ looked at his hands and couldn't help but smile at the naivety and innocence of the gnome. "I wish I could, but I don't have any magic or healing tools on me. Not that I even know how to use those tools well, I'm not a doctor. You wouldn't happen to know of a doctor or someone who could heal my hands would you? Also I have to apologize for the way I acted in there. I don't normally do things like that, but for some reason his antics caused me to get extremely angry." Separ looked down at his hands once more. That guy is really fast. I'll need to get stronger so I don't weigh down the group when I'm in a real fight against stronger opponents.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula listened to the bleeding man and the gnome chat for a moment. The gnome was rightfully concerned for the man's hands, were were in worse shape then when Alula decided to leave the bar. She knew she could heal, but was reluctant. Healing magic took a lot of energy, something she was severely lacking at the moment, and it was the man's own fault by taking his fists to a knife fight. And yet today she had already received such kindness, maybe it was time for her to return some. She walked over to the two, glancing around. The three of them were out of view of the street, and if she worked fast enough before anyone left the bar she would be fine. She pulled the brim, of her hat down over her eyes, briefly remembering that it was the bleeding man who returned it to her. And then she spoke. "I can heal your...injuries...but only on...one condition..." She slurred. "I want you both to...look away for a moment..." She paused adding in: "uh...for your own good..." Once they both did this Alula took a deep breath and rolled up the sleeves of her robe. She took the bleeding man's hands in her hands and began to speak in a strange language. "ava'yorn mobi sia ominak ui alula vur si tuor ekess irisv nomeno malai" Her hands and arms began to glow, and Separ would likely feel some stinging and stretching as the skin of his hands reformed. But the pain of healing was nothing in comparison to the pain of cutting. It didn't take long, the wounds were fresh and in a concentrated area. Soon Alula was finished, releasing the man's hands and rolling her sleeves back down over her arms. She felt winded but tried to speak anyway as she tugged down her hat. "There....you go....be more...careful."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ As Alula started to heal his hands on the condition that both he and the gnome look away, Separ couldn't help but feel a bit curious though and while he wanted to look, he respected her decision. After all she was doing him a favor. The healing process hurt a little, but it wasn't nearly as bad as the pain he was feeling just moments ago. When she was done and Separ had confirmed he could look he examined his hands and threw a quick punch at the air. They were as good as new, though Separ did feel quite tired and wasn't fully healed just yet. At least the bleeding had stopped though. Separ looked up turned towards the girl who had healed him. "Th...thank you." Realizing he hadn't asked her the question he had wanted to ask her before he quickly gave a standing bow. "I'm in your debt Miss, and I apologize for the way I acted inside the tavern. Nevertheless, our group could use a healer like you," Separ raised his head and gave a light smile. "Would you care to join us? And, is there anything I can do to repay you back for your kindness in healing me Miss..." Separ's words trailed off as he realized he had not caught her name yet.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace to felt bad for the friend collector. He had assumed the ability to maintain one's own body was universal. He thought back to all the times he was able to undo mistakes and soothe pain. The thought that there were people who couldn't was horrifying. Furnace felt he needed to help him, that would make things better. There was no reason he couldn't channel into someone else, right? At that moment the girl stepped in and showed she could. Though Furnace could follow the incantation he couldn't quite make sense of it because he couldn't see the effect. Since the results seemed similar to his channelling he suspected some sort of energy channelling ability. But the incantation suggested she was calling on to someone or some thing. Was this the result of a pact? Like the friends this man collects, she has a friend who grants her magic. Furnace wanted to confirm it was a healing ability, he looked Alula dead in the eyes, then shifted to Separ staring in the same way, with jet black eyes. He asked for his health curiously and slightly concerned. "Do you feel better?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" The girl in the pointed hat walked away and took his scarf with her, he watched her as she went, his eyes trailing the unsure way she limped. Slowly the combined stares of the patrons hit home with a sharp ferocity, he had disgusted them with his face and that only served to make him feel worse. Vis slipped his hand into his pack and pulled out the bottle of wine and yanking the cork off with his teeth, he needed something, something to numb his feelings. He pushed the bottle to his lips and threw his head back, taking a long draw of the alcoholm, his green eye dimmed and flickered as the alcohol hit his system, depressing him but helping him nor feel their steely gazes. He drank again and with each time he threw his head back and gulped on the nectar, he felt more and more numb and the world around him became more of a blur as he grew intoxicated. He brought his mouth to the bottle for the final time, before finding out it was empty, Vis rose from the chair and slowly shuffled out, his face flushed red with the hear of alcohol. As he passed the counter, he draped the cloak he had around him over it's original owner and he shuffled out the door. Collapsing on the ground and resting his head on the tavern wall, he touched the gaping hole in the side of his face and began to sob hysterically as he remembered what he was trying to forget.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was a bit shocked by his sudden invite into some sort of group. She hadn't been paying any attention while the others were speaking, and now she just felt more confused and a little sick. She wasn't sure what the man meant by group and had no idea who he was referring to when he said 'us'. She took a step back. "Uh..." She spoke slurred, hazy eyes looking from the man to the gnome. She had wished the paladin would walk out of the tavern already, he would likely have something reassuring and wise to say. Instead she just stuttered for a moment. "A man of wisdom and strength is rare, but without check is dangerous." She spoke into the rim of her hat. Well she was just making the situation here worse, she stuttered again. "Perhaps... if I could speak with the...paladin...or knew...more about this...group..." And things only got more hectic as a voice spoke to her. "The man weeps and drinks to numb a pain that will never leave." Alula suspected the half-elf, seeing how he had just bought that pretty bottle of liquor. Perhaps he weeps for his scarf? Which Alula only now realized she was still holding onto. She should go return it. She excused herself from the gnome and man with a grunt and went to find the half-elf. It didn't take her long to find him, he was extremely emotional at the moment. She stood still for a few moments, not sure how to approach the situation. But after a few seconds of not thinking she crouched down next to him, his scarf in her outstretched hands. "Forgive me if my hands tremble; you are the most beautiful thing I have ever known." An argument ensued in her head. "Pothoc malai! You cannot have her say that! Why would you do that? You know she cannot! You endanger her!" Meanwhile Alula was looking at the half-elf with confusion, trying to make sense of what what happening in her head. She didn't recall saying anything, so why were they so upset? She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes. "Here is your...scarf back...thank you...for letting me...wear it."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked up from his tears at the sound of muted footsteps, then a face appeared in his line of sight, the star lady was crouched in front of him and held his scarf in her hands. He looked at her for a few moments, the whites of his eyes bloodshot and tears leaving trails down his face, he calmed his breath down and smiled sadly, his scar contorting to make people cringe if they saw it. He took both of her hands and brought them to one another, "keep ith," he said, his throat soar and hoarse and sounding as if he were speaking through nails, "thare are more thcarfs outh thare." he released her hands and he pulled his knees to his chest, waiting for her to leave so he could cry some more, he had'nt cried in a long time and he found the tears relieving, in a sad way.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace looked at the cloacked creature. With the scarf gone his damaged face was visible, though Furnace hadn't though anything of it before, now that he saw people's reactions to him and the state he was in, it dawned on Furnace that this new friend could also be unable to heal by himself. Maybe his appearance wasn't by his own choice. The girl called it beautiful. He agreed, the man was unique. But Furnace wanted to give him that choice. He walked over to Vis. Vis sat there and Furnace waited patiently until he made eye contact. He cupped his hands together and breathed slowly. With every breath some white golden light escaped between his fingers. Bright white jolts of energy jumped between his hands from the tips of his fingers while he moved his hands further apart. "I can repair you." With his hands crackling with white golden energy he gestured slightly at his feet. Along the ankles and up his legs show the remains of many scars made by shackles a long, long time ago, almost completely faded. "It takes time. But scars fade."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Before Separ could answer the gnome, he seemed to run off following the girl towards the disfigured man. Separ did feel drained of energy, but he knew that at least he wasn't bleeding anymore, and probably didn't need medical attention right this minute. It would be better if the gnome could repair the other man first. His own wounds could wait. Separ instead looked around for Carver and once he spotted him asked if he could talk to Alula and the gnome and possibly persuade them into joining the group. As far as Separ was concerned, Carver knew both of them much better than Separ, and was overall, much more likely to get them to join.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked up with glassy eyes at the gnome, he could tell there was good in his heart, natural good and not good imposed upon him. Vis shook his head sadly, "my thcar ith who I am, if I don'th haf it, then I'm noth me." Vis needed his scar, his blind eye and his ragged ear for a reason, he didn't know what, after years of traveling with them they grew a sentimental meaning to him and he wasn't sure he wanted to part with them, despite how much he hated them. It would be like putting down a stray dog that had followed you from the moment it met you, you may hate it but once it's gone you'll feel the emptiness where once was something. He shook his head again, "Buth thank you.."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Smiling, satisfied with the answer he got Furnace let the light flicker out. He returned to the friend collector, who was now walking towards his kind metal companion. Furnace caught up and joined him, as they stood near Carver and the others Furnace asked Separ the question that was burning on his mind. "What are you gathering friends for? What do you plan to do?"</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ couldn't help but smile at the little gnome's question. "I wish to go on a journey and help those in need, as well as defeat people who abuse their power. To become the hero of the people and such, though uh, apparently I can't even handle a simple bartender yet." Giving both Carver and the gnome a small bow each individually he continued on. "I also want to apologize to you both for acting so rash back there. I probably should not have started a fight. It's just he was trying to throw out that man, and he was a jerk overall. Neverthless, I almost put you all in danger, so I'm sorry. And Carver, if you want you don't have to journey with me after what you just witnessed me do. You don't have to feel any obligation or anything of the sort." Separ quickly turned towards the Gnome as well. "You asked how I was doing earlier right? Well truth be told the lady may have healed my wounds, but I still feel a little tired and weakened. Punching the sharp end of a sword is no joke after all, though I'll bet my mentor could actually punch the sword and break it. He's the most skilled fighter I've ever known, and I'm sure he could do it if he just added in a little magic."</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ could feel warmth slowly seeping into his hands and his entire body, slowly replenishing his strength. When the gnome was done healing him Separ felt energized, yet at the same time tired, and a bit sore. "I...I feel a lot better actually. Though I still feel quite exhausted." Separ clenched his fist. [i]It's numb, I probably just need some rest though.[i] "Thank you for your help. Oh, and would you be interested in joining our group? We're going to go explore and go on adventures and stuff, though I'll understand if you say no after that embarassing moment in the bar." Separ shook his head trying to forget it before watching Kelvin step out of the building. "Please think about it, but for now I have some business to attend to. If you'll excuse me" And with that Separ strode towards Kelvin, and facing him gave him a small bow. "I'm sorry for my actions in there Kelvin, I should have thought more calmly about the situation, it's just, no, no excuses. I should not have caused a scene like that, and truthfully I am sorry. Do you still want to be a part of my group? I honestly won't blame you if you say no, as I acted like an idiot back there. Sorry!" Separ ended his bow and looked back at Kelvin, a look of regret on his face. Sure he was happy so many people had agreed to stay, yet he still felt terrible about losing control and possibly endangering others as well.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded at the girl's acceptance and broke into a broad, warm grin. "Excellent! You shall not regret this decision!" He turned, and called over to Separ, "She'll be joining us, friend!" He turned back and suddenly clapped his hand over his forehead. "By the sun, forgive my rudeness, I still haven't asked your name. I am Sir Carver, Paladin of the Sun. In case you didn't hear when I... um... lost my temper, in there, a moment ago." A very merry company of adventurers they were turning out to be. Carver hoped that the gnome and the half-elf would agree to join them, as well - both seemed like people in need of some looking out for.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Explore. All he'd ever wanted was to see the world for himself. "I'll come with you too. I am Furnace and I'm sorry for uhm.." He looked at Separ and Carver, looking for a clue. When he couldn't think of anything he just shyly shrugged.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Having cried the last of his tears, Vis rose from the floor, using the wall as support. He looked around through tires eyes to see where everyone hade gone, the man who had punched the sword was some ways away with the gnome and the paladin and girl with white hair were but a few feet away and he could hear snippets of their conversation through his deaf ear, they were on his left side. He looked to them and slowly the flickering green light of his eye stabilized into a a dull muted green, having rid himself of his obvious emotions. He approached them, feeling a terribly uncomfortable without a scarf around his face, showing his gnarled cheek in broad day light, he approached them. "If'n thare ith adfenture infolfed, you can counth me in." Though the past 10 minutes had shaken Vis, it would dissuade him from adventuring, if he were to give up so easily, he would have turned home after his eye had been cursed and avoided having his face and ear wrecked. Vis rested his hand on the pommel of his rapier, he was nervous they wouldn't have him.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched as the paladin called over to the punching man. Was he the leader of the party? Alula wouldn't have been surprised, he seemed enthusiastic enough to be a leader but maybe a bit too enthusiastic. He had attacked the barkeep rather quickly, it only took a handful of insults to set the man off. Not only that but he also was defeated in the fight between them, not really thinking before punching a man proficient with a sword. Alula shook her head, she shouldn't be so hard on the man. If they were willing to take her along then she should at least wait before casting judgment. And then the Paladin turned back to her, introducing herself. Alula tried to not show the frown on her face. She was really bad at remembering names. She hoped she would at least be able to remember the paladins name, but more likely then not he would be receiving a nickname soon. Had he really lost his temper? She couldn't remember. What really amused her was that he called himself a paladin of the sun. Yep. They were going to have fun with this. "Three things shine before the world and cannot be hidden. They are the moon, the sun, and the truth." The voice sounded sarcastic and Alula couldn't help but giggle out loud, briefly forgetting that no one but herself could hear them. She watched as the half-elf came over, perhaps finished with his crying, and the gnome introduced himself. What an odd group she had begun to associate with. She was glad to see the half-elf would be coming along as well, and the gnome seemed like good company as well. She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes. "I am Alula...at your service..."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver grinned at the girl's cryptic words. "Four things. You forgot about good cheer." He laughed as though to illustrate, and bowed deeply. "A pleasure to meet you, Lady Alula. I am at your service." The paladin then turned to clap the half-elf on the back. He was greatly pleased to hear of the man's acceptance - surly and ill-tempered as he seemed, his actions had proven to Carver that the man was possessed of a gentle soul. "Good man! You've made an excellent choice, friend. It is ever a great privilege to journey alongside those so fair of spirit." He looked over to the gnome. "That goes for you as well, friend." The company was coming together. There just seemed to Carver to be one thing missing - the black-haired woman with evil in the air around her. Truth be told, Carver wouldn't have minded if the party left without her, save for the fact that he wasn't sure that he could leave this town in her hands. At least if she accompanied them, he could keep an eye on her. "Separ," he called out. "What of that woman who was speaking to you in the bar? Will she be joining us?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula whoops wrong place</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Before Separ could get an answer out of Kelvin, he heard Carver call out to him, asking about the girl from earlier. "Oh, she said yes earlier, but I don't know what she'll think now after seeing what just happened. In fact I'll go talk to her right now." Said Separ as he made his way over to the tavern entrance just as she was coming out of the building. Separ bowed his head to her just like he had done so to all the others prepared to apologize to her. "I'm sorry about all the trouble I caused in there. I was out of control in there, and I should not have acted so rash or made a scene like that. Anyways, if you want you don't have to travel with us after seeing all of that. Though it would make me happy if you did stay." Separ raised his head and flashed a weak smile. "After all, I'm sure you'd make a great asset to the team. Take as much time as you need to think about it, alright?" And with that Separ started to turn around and head back to the group. It would probably be a good time to discuss provisions and supplies, as well as where to explore. Although truth be told, Separ himself didn't even know where to begin, surely they could all come to an agreement at some point right?</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki sighed as the She quickly clasped the cloak around herself. Looking at the barkeeper, she couldn't help but to give him a smile, visible to the barkeeper alone. "Although such events have transpired, my offer is still up for the taking~" Whispering these words, she turned around and walked out of the tavern. However, the moment she exited the building, she found the man named Separ, the one who had injured his fist trying to attack the barkeeper. "No need to be so worried. If even the paladin himself wanted to give the barkeeper a good scolding, you are not in the wrong." Smiling back as she said these words, she gestured at his hands, asking, "Are your hands alright now?". Although, to the question of whether she was coming along or not, Suki was slightly more hesitant than she was when she first answered the man before. "I...will come along, yes." Answering Separ, she couldn't help but to have her gaze drift slightly to the side, as if staring at the paladin behind Separ. However, in a blink of an eye, she wasn't looking at the paladin, but back at Separ. "So, it looks like you have rounded up your party."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly turned around to face the girl again. "Even so, it wasn't exactly such a good idea to cause a scene like that." Separ said while rubbing the back of his neck. "And yes, my hands are all better now. See?" Separ extended both of his hands for her to see that they were now completely healed. "I do feel a bit tired after all of that now though, but I should be fine, and I'm happy you decided to come along, and uh, I don't really consider it my party. I'm not really trying to be the leader or anything, and I'd kind of prefer things that way. This group is yours just as much as it is mine, and the same goes for everyone else." Separ said smiling at the girl, before turning towards the group he would be adventuring with soon. He started walking over to the group happily, content that he could get the girl to join. "Carver, She'll be joining us after all. though I'm still concerned about Kelvin, as he has not made up his mind yet. Either way though, what kind of supplies do you all have, after all we should probably prepare for our journey, and also where would you like to head out to?"" Separ looked at all the members in his group, studying them. So these are my new comrades, huh? They seem like a pretty fine bunch. Yes, I do believe this is going to be the start of something great.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Alula whoops wrong place</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Before Separ could get an answer out of Kelvin, he heard Carver call out to him, asking about the girl from earlier. "Oh, she said yes earlier, but I don't know what she'll think now after seeing what just happened. In fact I'll go talk to her right now." Said Separ as he made his way over to the tavern entrance just as she was coming out of the building. Separ bowed his head to her just like he had done so to all the others prepared to apologize to her. "I'm sorry about all the trouble I caused in there. I was out of control in there, and I should not have acted so rash or made a scene like that. Anyways, if you want you don't have to travel with us after seeing all of that. Though it would make me happy if you did stay." Separ raised his head and flashed a weak smile. "After all, I'm sure you'd make a great asset to the team. Take as much time as you need to think about it, alright?" And with that Separ started to turn around and head back to the group. It would probably be a good time to discuss provisions and supplies, as well as where to explore. Although truth be told, Separ himself didn't even know where to begin, surely they could all come to an agreement at some point right?</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki sighed as the She quickly clasped the cloak around herself. Looking at the barkeeper, she couldn't help but to give him a smile, visible to the barkeeper alone. "Although such events have transpired, my offer is still up for the taking~" Whispering these words, she turned around and walked out of the tavern. However, the moment she exited the building, she found the man named Separ, the one who had injured his fist trying to attack the barkeeper. "No need to be so worried. If even the paladin himself wanted to give the barkeeper a good scolding, you are not in the wrong." Smiling back as she said these words, she gestured at his hands, asking, "Are your hands alright now?". Although, to the question of whether she was coming along or not, Suki was slightly more hesitant than she was when she first answered the man before. "I...will come along, yes." Answering Separ, she couldn't help but to have her gaze drift slightly to the side, as if staring at the paladin behind Separ. However, in a blink of an eye, she wasn't looking at the paladin, but back at Separ. "So, it looks like you have rounded up your party."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly turned around to face the girl again. "Even so, it wasn't exactly such a good idea to cause a scene like that." Separ said while rubbing the back of his neck. "And yes, my hands are all better now. See?" Separ extended both of his hands for her to see that they were now completely healed. "I do feel a bit tired after all of that now though, but I should be fine, and I'm happy you decided to come along, and uh, I don't really consider it my party. I'm not really trying to be the leader or anything, and I'd kind of prefer things that way. This group is yours just as much as it is mine, and the same goes for everyone else." Separ said smiling at the girl, before turning towards the group he would be adventuring with soon. He started walking over to the group happily, content that he could get the girl to join. "Carver, She'll be joining us after all. though I'm still concerned about Kelvin, as he has not made up his mind yet. Either way though, what kind of supplies do you all have, after all we should probably prepare for our journey, and also where would you like to head out to?"" Separ looked at all the members in his group, studying them. So these are my new comrades, huh? They seem like a pretty fine bunch. Yes, I do believe this is going to be the start of something great.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula kept quiet, looking over at the group from behind Carver. Yes. She had found herself in quite a strange situation. Why had she agreed to go on some adventure with a bunch of strangers? She pulled the brim of her hat over her eyes, trying to concentrate. She could hear the punching man agreeing to let the other girl into the group. She was a strange one as well, but she radiated a compelling strength like no other. She took a step further behind Carver as the punching man approached her, as if taking cover behind the man. She muttered softly, her voice slurring and eyes glowing from beneath her hat. "Only a life lived for others is a life worth while." She felt a bit worried when the punching man came over and asked if anyone had any supplies or a destination in mind. The man was gathering people for some sort of adventure and didn't have a plan? She held back a sigh, knowing she would have to learn to trust the others around her. This would truly be a group effort, and as someone who survived on her own for so long she was afraid. Alula had a puzzled look on her face under her hat. Supplies? Why was she thinking of supplies? Did she have supplies? Does she even need to eat? A voice confirmed for her, yes you do eat occasionally. She blinked hazily, holding up her heavy coin purse. "I have...uh...supplies..." She sounded confused.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver caught the woman's gaze and held it as she joined the group. Then she knew. He knew, she knew, he knew she knew, she knew he knew, and she had better know he knew she knew. Of course, that still left the matter of what exactly he knew, but that could come later. If the woman was aware that the Paladin knew what she was, perhaps she'd be on her best behavior. That'd be enough for now. Alula stepped behind him, as though concealing herself from the rest of the group. That fear wasn't ideal, but it was to be expected. The girl would be joining them - Carver was sure she'd come around to them later. "Ah. Supplies. Let's see!" Carver took his pack and began rooting around inside it. "I have... ten gold coins, not bad... this looks like a crust of bread... and, um, a rock." Carver tossed the stone out of his bag and slung it back over his shoulder, smiling sheepishly. "Uh... sorry, I won't be much help on that front. Sounds like Alula might, though. And I imagine that the traditional method of 'asking the barkeeper for rumours' has been ruled out?" The paladin grinned at his own jest and looked to his party for direction.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis raised his voice, "I belief thath we should pool thome coin to buy thupplies for all uf uth." they shouldn't be depending on individual supplies, some most likely didn't have any, Vis supposed, him only having 60 coins, a set of stag antlers and a child's enyclopedia. He took a long hard look at his group, casting green light on every member to scrutinize them, they had a paladin, a sword puncher, a gnome, a rather curvaceous woman and another woman who looked a bit out of it; he could tell that the adventure was going to be something. "Leth all chip in thome coin and buy rathions, things thath will latht a while. Green appleth, hard loafths of bread, dried meath." he had been on the road for a long time and understood what to bring and what not to bring, from personal experience of finding that all the food had rotted in his bag. "And wather thacks." Vis whinced internally, every time he lisped.</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose had paid the barkeeper a nice sum of coin for her cooking set. She had not needed it but she really had not reason not to by it. She had no need for the wealth that came from her wanderer adventurer occupation. Also, She was travelling alone. She had no one other than herself to cook for. She had been alone for a while and even if she wanted. She had entered the tavern with the hopes of spending the night and maybe get some work. She had been upstairs in a room she had rented for the night preparing her things for tomorrow when a commotion occurred downstairs. She walked downstairs armed and ready to defend herself. When she got downstairs it looked like she missed everything. A little annoyed she did not get any action, she wandered outside. Outside she overheard a group talk about getting together for an andventure. Rose wasted no time taking up the opportunity. Rose walks up to the group of adventurers and loudly introduces herself, "Greetings, everyone. I am Rose Anew. Also known simply as Phoenix. I could not help but overhear that all y'all are going on a journey together. I would humbly like to join your group. I am an exceptional front line fighter. Sword and magic are my specialty. I am also a good cook. That should be a plus." Rose was worried she appeared to formal but she did not want to let it show. It would make her look nervous and insecure.</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly studied the supplies of Carver, Alula, and the scarf wearing elf. Carver barely seemed to have anything, Alula on the other hand seemed to have tons of gold, as well as some miscellaneous items that Separ could make neither heads nor tails of. Lastly the scarf wearin elf seemed to have a modest sum of money as well as some various items which made Separ question why he had them in the first place. Disregarding those items Separ listened to the elf talk about buying various food items and such, only for a girl who identified herself as Rose Anew, aka 'Phoenix' to step forward and ask if she could go along with the group. Separ was immediately impressed by her, as she said she was both a capable fighter and a great cook. "A fighter and a cook? You've instantly sold me, I'm happy you could be on the team. So what kind of dishes do you specialize in?" Separ then looked around at his fellow group members. "No one has any objections right?"</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Des Suddenly, guards started running through the streets. Upon first glance, one would assume they would be running after someone and most likely the people who caused trouble at the local tavern. But the guards kept running, and as they drew closer, you could tell they weren't running after, but away. Screams started to fill the streets as kobolds (small dragonfolk with no wings), goblins, men wearing chainmail and black tunics, and even an ettin (two-headed giant) started to swarm the village, destroying and slaughtering everything in sight. The goblins set fire to the stands and the ettin destroyed many houses and even the tavern. A dark silhouette of a man on a horse could be seen amongst the smoke in the distance.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace furiously pondered the meaning and intent of this group. He saw them break, tear and burn the stands, carts and houses. Two huge heads sharing one body came storming past him, massive flail in each hand. As he crashed trough several stands at once, splinters and raw materials flew trough the air. Deconstruction It dawned on Furnace what they were doing. They were harvesting materials for the forge. He saw creatures armed with swords and clubs run to the creatures from the village and hit them until they stopped screaming. Was this a fight? Or could they also harvest life? "A life is cut short so another can begin. Lives are lost in the forest of life to allow the young to grow." Was this what the tired girl had predicted? Either way, Furnace was exited by this development. Much to learn. And in the spirit of learning new thing Furnace took the wrapped package from his back and let the cloth fall to the ground. With two hands and significant effort he held aloft an orcish broadsword. It was about his size and looked right at home between the flails, blades and axes of the newcomers. With care and calculation he mimicked the lumbering brute's movements as he rand after him, then past him, then into a stand. With as mighty a swing he could muster he brought the heavy blade down upon the wooden board. The thin plank snapped instantly, causing copper and tin trinkets to fly everywhere. As Furnace was showered in shiny but function-less pieces of metal he looked behind him at the two-faced giant, looking for confirmation that he got it right.</s> <\|message\|>Des The ettin was about to slay the little one when he had suddenly attacked on of the stands, this caused the ettin to think that the little one was one of them and so he nodded and continued his rampage.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace trembled a little as he regarded the judging eyes of the towering creature. The ettin nodded approvingly. He did it right. He was learning so much today! Happily Furnace followed and continued to smash barrels, poles and carts along with the brute and a growing group of other creatures his size. They did the same. When he jumped, they did. When they struggled to reach up to the thatched rooftops with their torches, he kicked a barrel over to them so they could stand on it. This was going great. That moment he remembered the barkeep, and how he had displayed so much fun cutting the friend collector, clearly he loved a fight. As they were near the tavern Furnace ran ahead of the band and smashed the wooden door open. He pointed inside and yelled at the rampaging group. "In here! There's good fighting and food in here!"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" As Vis walked out of the bakery, sixteen coins lighter and with 8 loaves of bread under his arm, screams echoed out from the other side of the market and people started running away from the direction of the comotion. The owner of the bakery, a woman in her thirties steppes out to see what was going on, Vis turned back to the bakery and ushered as much people inside as possible, he turned to the owner and yelled over the commotion, "Ith there a bathement thoo thith bakery?!" She thought for a moment and nodded, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him to the kitchen, she pointed to a large slate preparation table, "It's under there!" she yelled as what was going on outside was getting closer. Vis groaned with frustration and pushed all his mass against the table, whincing as it grated across the floor, exposing a dusty trap door. When the table was no longer obstructing it, Vis opened it up and climbed down, it was large and could easily hold everyone in the building. He climbed back out and yelled into the main room for everyone to get into the basement, they did as they were told and when the trapdoor shut and everyone was inside, Vis pushed the table back over the hatch and he heard rough voices from the front room. He drew his rapier and escaped through the back door, he'd be back for the people in the basement.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Even moments before the attack Alula's soft and comfortable smile suddenly turned into an expression of extreme horror. She took stumbling steps away from Carver. She appeared to double over slightly, frantically pulling down her hat and covering her eyes as if she was trying to block out the horror filled visions. "Misfortune does not come in drops it comes in storms. I can see the clouds gathering upon the horizon" This voice was different from her normal, lazy, speech. But it was also far different from the commanding and dominant voice. This one sounded calm, almost wise and knowing. But the voice didn't match Alula's expression of pain and dread. Her entire body seemed to be shaking, a bright glow emitting from her eyes and from a source within her robes. She spoke in a grim voice, suddenly looking up at Carver with fear. She could see the monsters on the horizon. "Please ser Paladin you have to go! Something is coming it's not safe here!" It was strange, she didn't seem to be talking about the monsters destroying the town. She nearly collapsed onto the ground, gripping her staff in an iron fist. "And when it comes they will come."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace noticed the iron friend and tired girl still standing where he last left them. They were looking at him. Or they were looking at the large group of creatures working hard on harvesting stone, rock and coal. Or the disagreeing cries of people running and hiding everywhere. Why did they do that? Was it part of the harvesting ritual? Furnace waved at Carver and Alula.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki glanced over at Separ, before nodding. "Yes, I was about to go an search for supplies to purchase." A complete lie, but on the other hand, she didn't have to tell the man what she really was planning on doing. However, before she could accept or decline his offer of accompanying her, the destruction occurred. Quickly turning around to look in the direction of the noise, she noticed the creatures rampaging through the town. Knowing she should run, and just abandon everyone else to their fate, she ended up glancing at Separ. Could she also abandon her newfound companions? They might get in her way, but they might also be of use in dealing with the church. As she was pondering, she noticed the hazy image of a man on horseback beyond the wall of smoke. Perhaps he was the key to this attack? "I'll be right back." Quickly speaking, she ran down the nearest alleyway, taking many of the winding turns rapidly. she never slowed down, until she had reached her destination. Although looking like the dead end of every alleyway, this one was on she had visited earlier. Quickly reaching into one of the crates, she pulled out her scythe.</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Carnage, destruction, and panic. The citizens of Ravenwood were fleeing in distress as what looked like a small army began to siege the town. Buildings collapsed, some were set on fire, and screams could be heard in the distance. No doubt was left in Separ's mind that people were getting both killed, tortured, possibly even taken prisoner. Separ clenched his fist tightly, he wanted to help bring this to an end, but in his mind he knew he could not take on that many enemies. He thought about his master and cursed under his breath knowing he had already left to go home. If he was here, then maybe... Lots of people started to run past Separ, bringing him back into reality. Separ had to do something though, and that's when he remembered the General Shop's store clerk. He quickly turned around and rushed towards the door pushing it open so hard that the door slammed against the wall. The store clerk who was insulated from all the noise started to yell at him but quickly realized something big was going down. "You need to get out of here lady, there's a small army destroying Ravenwood." The store clerk quickly agreed and started to grab a few close supplies before running towards the door and exiting the building. Separ slammed the door shut as both of them left the store. That's something I can do, but that's about it. Staying any longer than I need to will be a bad idea. However as the shop keeper left he heard the cloaked girl say, "I'll be right back." He spun around to find that the girl was already turning into an alleyway. Separ couldn't leave her alone though, they needed to stick together if they wanted to survive. "Hey wait up!" He yelled as he took off after her. The cloaked girl was fast, and while Separ himself was also fast his injuries from earlier had left him feeling a bit tired. Catching up would have been much easier if he was at his full potential. Separ started panting as he turned down another corner only to find that the girl had disappeared. He had lost sight of her. The sound of a building was heard collapsing not to far from where Separ was standing. This isn't good, if they find me or that girl we'll have to fight our way out. Still Separ persevered and turned down a corner, only to then realize he was completely lost. He was afraid to call out to the girl though, knowing it may attract attention from unwanted people. Just where was that girl?</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula let out a cocky laugh as she blinded the Ettin and it tripped over a building. She knew her attacks would do nothing against such a large opponent, and yet it was absolutely hilarious to watch the mighty monster fall. Someone else would have to deal damage to it. Voices soon began talking over each other again. "Your rash attacks endanger the girl. ser carver! You are attracting more attention to us. please he is getting hurt! Cease your whining child. He can handle himself. it's my fault he is hurt! His precious sun can help him. We have more pressing matters." Alula watched as Kelvin shot into the horde of monsters coming their way, and as Furnace displayed his powers. Impressive. Another cocky laugh. To make it even better, one of the humans referred to her as majesty. Finally, a title she deserved. "Nice work kid! Yes, your power is quite grand." Alula held back on using another moonbeam, knowing it was attracting monsters in hordes. Instead she used Furnaces attack to her advantage. She swung her staff like a blunt weapon, hitting monsters towards the fires burning all around them. While being hit with the staff didn't hurt as much as getting blasted with the moon, it was enough force to break bones and stun. It was like getting hit in the head with a giant, burning, flashlight.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace struggled to catch Alulah's words over the roaring fire around him. Did she call out Carver? Wasn't that the name of the iron friend? Kid? Kid.. kind. kindle? Fire? Power is energy and energy burns. She must like the fire! Maybe if he brought the fire over to him? Most goblins and kobolts around him now seemed hesitant to get close to him, maybe they were done fighting. He had collected plenty of material now anyways. He skipped over to Carver under his pile of violence. He held the ball of heat above him, as if planning to meteor hammer it down upon them. Those that could scattered, those that couldn't were damaged and distracted enough for Carver to dispatch them with ease. But Carver did look worse for wear, there were dents, tears and cuts in both his armor and body. As Carver sat on his knees on the ground Furnace could stand before him eye to eye and speechless. Though all carver would see was a silhouette blotting out a large ball of of intense heat above him. When Furnace moved closer the metal started to soften up a little, he took care not to bring the fires above them too close. Such a beautiful work of art shouldn't be reforged. With the metal soft and pliable Furnace hammered some quick fixes, kept it from falling apart. Decent repair would come later. The creature within the armor needed repairs more. With a deep breath Furnace reached out and upwards to the orb ablaze as it slowly turned brighter, paler. yellow turned to white, red turned to gold. With a crackling sound of lightning the orb reduced in size as two coils of white golden energy siphoned out, trough Furnace's hands and surging into Carver. Furnace breathed slowly as he converted all the heat into positive energy. As the flames around them died down and the glowing circle blinked out of existence Carver felt a warm glow spread violently trough his body. His wounds slammed shut and his fatigue ebbed away. All the pain replaced with excess energy, like he had eaten a cart full of sugar directly after a long nap. "Hello again, friend."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ punched another kobold in the face with a quick and brutal flurry knocking it to the ground before hearing the cloaked girl frantically ask him why he was here. "Isn't that obvious? We have to work together if we're going to survive." Separ yelled back, only to watch as she replied saying she could create a diversion. The cloaked girl stabbed her scythe into the ground just as two more skeletons popped out of the ground to continue fighting. Wait, skeletons? Separ turned to face a skeleton who scratched at a goblin's face causing it to bleed profusely. The gruesome sight made Separ realize this whole time skeleton's had been fighting. Sure he saw them earlier but he had kind of ignored them and focused on the group of kobolds and goblins instead. Now it was all so apparent as to what was going on though. The situation they were in. It was obvious, the leader must have been a necromancer, summoning undead creatures to attack the civilians. They probably couldn't tell the difference between friend and foe, but the fact that they were here was scary. If Separ were to knock one down would it just get back up reassembling itself? Would they come after Separ next? Would they go after the girl? Separ turned towards the girl to see that she had fallen over. "...change...of plans.....you run....I'm in no condition....to move..." No, no, no! This could not be happening. Not only did Separ have to save her from both the goblins, and kobolds but now he had to deal with skeletons. I need to get us out of here now. Thought Separ as he quickly ran towards her. Only then did a gigantic version of a kobold appear, covered in metal armor and wielding a broadsword. "Out of my way I don't have time for you." Screamed Separ as he punched the kobold in the stomach. The attack didn't seem to phase him though, and instead the kobold laughed and raised its weapon about to bring it down on Separ. In a panic Separ quickly attacked with four different gut-busters at the creatures stomach. "I said out of my way!" Separ was now frantic, as he noticed one of the skeletons was making its way over towards them, but his attacks were weakened and unfocused as he was both tired and scared now, but with four gut busters the kobold couldn't help but throw up a little, vomit dripping onto its chin. The kobold was now incredibly pissed off that its attack had been interrupted, and that it had puked over itself. With anger the creature swung its sword in a fury only for the sword to miss, and the kobold to hit the ground with a thud. Separ noticed that the back of the kobold's head was bleeding, but what had caused it? Certainly his gut-busters shockwave was not nearly that powerful. Only then did one of the skeleton's jump on top of the kobold only to scratch at the back of it's head, trying to pierce the brain. "Sweet heavens!" Yelled Separ as the skeleton quickly finished with its job and turned, looking at him. "Screw this!" Yelled Separ as he was reinvigorated with energy after seeing the skeleton. His fear was pressing him forwards, spurning him onwards, pushing him to new heights. He ran past the skeleton and ran over to the cloaked girl picking her up in a princess carry. "I'm getting us out of here." He charged off down an alleyway only for another group of kobolds and goblins to appear as he reached the opening. The group of hostile enemies noticed him immediately and brandished their weapons ready to attack. Thinking quickly Separ hopped onto the debris and started running skillfully on top of it. This type of terrain was no big deal for Separ, but he knew that the goblins and kobolds would either have to go around the debris, or try to stumble through it carefully. This would be his advantage! "Don't worry, we'll make it out of here for sure." Said Separ. His face now had a look of determination, as though he was committed to escaping any way he could and at the same time, he looked like he was straining heavily. As though every second he spent running was draining him of precious energy. Separ continued to run on the debris of various buildings as the goblins and kobolds tried to follow after him to no avail. As he continued running a small goblin popped out from behind a broken wardrobe. It wielded a hammer and tried to hit Separ but before it could do so a swift kick sent the creature stumbling backwards. Separ readjusted his grip on the girl and continued to run. He ran for who knows how long, but eventually they were able to make it to the outskirts of the small town of Ravenwood. Kobolds and goblins still tried to follow him but Separ had a large lead by now. In fact, a lot of these buildings weren't even touched. With every ounce of energy he had, Separ continued to focus on running. Focusing on nothing but to run away and reach safety. It was this focus that allowed him to finally escape into the woods and out of sight. Eventually Separ lowered the girl to the ground and sat down next to her feeling extremely exhausted. "A...are you al...alright?" Asked Separ as he glanced at her. "Y...you fell down pretty h...hard back there. Try not to push yourself, and p...please don't run off alone. You really had me worried." Said Separ as he flashed her a small smile. Yet, it was obvious that Separ himself was already pushed past his limits. His breathing was now ragged and if any goblins and kobolds were to appear now, Separ would not be able to fight. Not in his condition. As much as Separ hated to admit it, he doubt he could even stand if he tried. Separ thought about all the other people he had met today, were they still okay? "D...do you th...think the others are o...o...kay?" He asked her. Of course he immediately regretted asking, as he feared the worst for them. Sure he and the girl had escaped, but only just barely. What if the others didn't manage to escape at all? The thought made Separ feel sick, and all he could hope for was the best.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Furnace The fight had been quick, and once it was over chaos fell upon everyone. Furnace didn't know what to do, so he just followed as he was told to. He saw Separ knock the archers down, before he could ask why Separ showed him as he started to hammer the man with his hands. He remembered how Separ didn't have the ability to channel energy like he did. So he had no tools and made do with his bare hands. What a powerful man. Furnace decided he should follow his lead and jumped on top of one of the archers lying on the ground. He dried to swat at the archer, who tried to push him of with his bow. This wasn't working. He did have a tool for hurting. When Furnace held his hands out palms open directed at the man he stopped moving for a second, looking confused at Furnace. The area around his hands lost colour and darkened as sharp shadows danced in strange electric shapes. Crackling sparks of energy as dark as the void between the stars sprang from his hands and leaped to the other. As Furnace moved his hands closer to the archers head the dark coil of negative energy leaped trough the bandit and back. Furnace knew, as warm and pleasant positive was, so cold and painful was the negative. Somehow the thought gave him a similar cold feeling. Was this what he wanted?</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin Kelvin slowed down when he managed to get far enough away that the torches were just flashes of light in the trees, taking his time to pick through the woods. It wasn't easy in the darkening sky. Luckily, the other guy had followed quickly with the child. That meant that Separ and Carver had only to worry about keeping the gnome safe, wherever he was, and running away. The seer seemed to be one of those types that somehow survived, no matter what happened. He chose not to worry about her. Kelvin grimaced. Am I a coward? He had chosen to grab the girl and run, rather than stand and fight… but there was a fine line between bravery and stupidity. The raiders were still somewhere close by, and any noise or light could bring an army down on their heads. "Hey." Kelvin kept his voice quiet, though it was above a whisper. "How far do you think we should go tonight? I need to take a short rest." He couldn't carry this girl forever, his arms were starting to ache from having to carry her as far as he did. With a moment to spare, he could put together a stretcher, and then they could move a lot faster. Kelvin slowed, and then the girl mumbled something in her sleep, opening her eyes. "My, my. First you were daring enough to near a woman that you never met before, and now I find myself being held in your arms." Kelvin looked at her, mouth opening to reply and then halting, blood rushing to his face. So forward. So frustrating. He would never understand women. The flustered engineer almost dropped her right there. "What's happening?" That was enough for him. Kelvin chose a tree, put his back to it, and dropped down, letting her fall into his lap, blanket and all. He sighed and leaned his head back against the tree with his eyes closed. "Since the last time I saw you awake, the town was attacked by an army of goblins. We tried to fight them off, but failed… everyone in it was killed." He motioned towards the other guy. "He managed to save one of the villagers, and most of our group managed to gather back together outside of town safely… but a scouting party found us. The Seer and gnome disappeared, but Separ and Carver squared off against five men while I picked you up and ran for the forest. Scarf-boy here grabbed the girl and came with me." He groaned. "For all I know, they are dead now. That's what's happening."</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman managed to escape as the one archer was beaten to death while the other had his life drained away. He ran to the raider party and informed them of the surviving group. Time until reinforcements arrive: 30 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver grimaced as the flail crashed into his side again. This wasn't working - the flail had reach and power that he couldn't hope to match, and the man's armor was far too much for his sword. He wracked his brain for a moment before arriving at an answer. The flail needed a strong swing to build up power - getting far wouldn't help, so he'd just have to get close. With a roar, Carver launched himself at his enemy, shield raised, attempting to tackle him to the ground with the full weight of his armor.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" "I do noth think thath thith ith a good thime tho retht, we should keep going." Vis said, adjusting how he carried the now squirming child as she tried to get down. "If you are going to carry me, at least let me ride on your back instead of holding me like a baby!" she whined, starting to kick in her search for freedom, Vis did as he was told and levered the girl onto his back in one swift motion, she wobbled there, dizzy for a moment until she spoke again, "this will do." Voltus then proceeded to stoop over and pick up the girl rolled in the blanket, grunting a bit at all the weight he was carrying and Kelvin was right, she was heavy, "Retht if you wish buth I will keep going." With that Vis turned and walked deeper into the forest and away from the camp, lighting the way with his glowing green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Des Bill swung the flail, barely missing Carver. Sadly, what goes around comes around and the chain wrapped around the paladin. Bill tugged on the chain attempting to pull Carver down but the paladin stood strung and did not fall although wrapped in chains.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Rather than try to disentangle himself from the chain, Carver just kept charging, crashing into Bill in an attempt to pin him under the paladin's enormous weight, all while trying to bring his arms up to grapple with him opponent.</s> <\|message\|>Des Bill side-stepped out of the way, allowing Carver to fall to the ground and struggle in his chains. "I don't have time to wrestle with you, it's already going to be hard enough to take on your friends unarmed." Bill raised his fist, ready to take on any opposers. "God I hope reinforcements get here soon." Time until reinforcements arrive: 22 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Furnace While Bill stepped away from Carver, Furnace approached softly. The cold feeling had made him calm. As Bill spoke and looked around to find other opponents Furnace stood right in front of him to present himself. Thick, dark surges of negative energy danced in his hands as he held them before him. Chilled and collected he stared Bill in his eyes, ready to react to any movement with shock and pain. With wide eyes and barely any emotion on his face he spoke softly "I am going to hurt you."</s> <\|message\|>Des A divine light shines down from the heavens upon Carver. The light rusts and breaks the chains, lifts Carver to his feet, heals his wound, and repairs his armor. Bill looks first at the little one, "Ah shit, I should have wasted my flail on this one." Then he sees the light out of his peripheral vision, "Fuck, you're a paladin. Well, you know what, all those times I hit you with my flail, I was just doing my job. I actually have to go sooo..." Bill starts to back away from the two. Time until reinforcements arrive: 18 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Ooooh, ow. The knight didn't seem to be fairing well in his battle with his flailed opponent. Perhaps the last fight took all the energy and speed out of him, because on top of the dynamics of the chain - the user of which actually seemed to be practiced with its use - the looter was dancing around the knight with each charge he made. Was the knight really so simple-minded that he would resort to the same old tactic? Surely they've learned better by now. Before he got himself tangled up, perhaps it would have been better throw him the sword or shield that the looter had been ensnared in the first place. His flail is then tangled in what you've thrown at him and then you're free. "But no, by all means, continue what you're doing now... It's obviously working." Arastoph muttered. His ears perked as soon as the looter began talking and taunting the knight. At least the looter was unarmed, but what he had said set off an alarm. Reinforcements... Arastoph ran out of his hiding place and into the open, his full appearance now being visible to the group and to his enemy. His dragoon in hand, although unloaded (but his enemy didn't have to know that), he yelled at what he saw as the buffoons he had aligned himself with. "Kill him quickly, already! Before more arrive!" Enemy reinforcements also meant that he wouldn't be able to get these fools to carry the wine kegs for him. Whether or not this knight was actually a paladin didn't matter. He couldn't defeat an army alone.</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ After finally defeating the archers with the gnome, Separ stood up to find that Carver was having trouble with the last opponent. Before the gnome could intervene in the fight however, Separ put his hand on the gnome's shoulder holding him back. "Carver, do you need any help? Or would you prefer we stay out of this? If this is your battle I don't want to intervene and hurt your pride. That being said, if you'd like some assistance I wouldn't mind taking this guy down a peg or two." Separ waited quietly for Carver to answer, time was of the essence for sure, but if losing this fight meant a lot to Carver, then there was no reason to jump in. "The decision is up to you, just know that if reinforcements do come me and Calvin, err the gnome should be able to hold them back for a little bit while you finish up your fight." Separ stepped in front of the gnome making direct eye contact and firmly held the gnome's shoulders with both of his hands. "This may be an important battle for Carver, so if he says he doesn't need help you shouldn't help him out. This may be a battle between men and interrupting that may harm Carver mentally. Oh, and by the way, thanks for healing me again, and also just what was your name again? I forgot what it was.</s>
<\|description\|>Separ Kurel Appearance: He's doesn't look nearly as muscular looking Race: Human Class: Arcane Brawler Main-Hand Weapon: Unarmed Off-Hand Weapon: None Secondary Weapon: Dagger Armor: Cloth Powers: Heated Hand: By channeling mana into his hand, Separ can heat his hands up till they are as hot as a small campfire. The effect doesn't last all that long, but it does hurt quite a bit if you get punched with it. Gut-buster: Separ throws a strong punch towards an opponents gut and sends a small shockwave of energy through them. The shockwave itself doesn't do any damage, but it does have the chance of causing nausea in the opponent. A particularly lucky strike may even have Separ's adversary throw up on the spot. (slight damage increase, may cause nausea) Flurry of blows (stance): Attacks an enemy rapidly at the cost of accuracy. Skills: Fighting Unarmed: Separ Kurel is skilled at fighting unarmed. His fists and feet are a deadly weapon. Immense Focus: Separ Kurel has a large amount of focus, and is not easily distracted during battle or any other task that involves an attention to detail or a large amount of concentration. (See Weaknesses) Mobility: Separ Kurel has no trouble moving or fighting on uneven/unstable terrain unless the terrain is extremely bad. Weaknesses: Larger Opponents: Separ has trouble harming any creature that is more than twice his size. Punches and kicks just don't seem to be as effective. Scared of the undead: Separ is both afraid and repulsed by undead creatures such as (but not limited to) zombies, ghosts, and ghouls. He oftentimes will refuse to go near one of them unless it's a desperate situation. He finds them to be unnatural, and will easily get distracted by them, especially if they're rotting and/or targeting him specifically. Personality: Separ is an alright guy. He's nice, decently reliable, and likes helping other people out, though at times he can be a bit lazy, opting to relax and do the work later if it's something he considers unimportant. He loves the thrill of a good fight, but doesn't go out of his way to actually start a fight unless he has an actual reason to do so. He loves all kinds of food, and will happily chow down on most dishes. Flirting woman may cause him to become a little flustered, as he does not know how to react to their advances. Background: Separ Kurel was born to your pretty standard family. He was an only child and lived happily with his parents. They weren't rich, but they weren't poor either and could afford a little luxury now and then. As Separ grew older he decided that he'd like to be an adventurer. Thoughts raced in his head, ones of him fighting dragons and demons, saving peoples lives, and the like. Of course once he was finally old enough, Separ realized he couldn't decide on what path to pursue. The path of weaponry, or the path of magic. A few weeks had passed without any progress on what would be the best profession to choose. One day Separ witnessed a fight though, one between an unarmed man fighting off one magic user, as well as a swordsman and hammerman. The unarmed man's movements were graceful and fluid as he dodged, weaved, and countered each and every attack. Separ immediately was entranced and thought about becoming a fist fighter for a moment, but quickly realized he could still be easily killed with just plain fist fighting. However at that very moment the magic user charged up a particularly powerful fireball as the unarmed man was distracted punching and kicking the hammerman. He quickly turned around at the sound of the fireball and instead of dodging it his hands seemed to glow a bluish color as he punched the fireball breaking it apart with his magic power. At this the other three men surrendered and the man went on his way back home. Separ could hardly believe his eyes and after a moment of reminiscing about what had just happened moments ago before running after the man and begging him to teach him how to fight. The man agreed to give him a few pointers in exchange for beer money which Separ happily paid. The advice the man gave however, was rather shallow leaving Separ wanting to learn more. The man realized Separ was serious and decided to become his teacher for free (and more beer money) The training was long, tough and arduous, but it eventually paid off as Separ could now channel mana into his body and limbs and fight decently using only his body. He was now ready for an adventure. Other: Arcane Brawler spells are sophisticated enough so that they don't burn their own clothes off. (Separ actually lost quite a bit of money replacing his clothes when training.)</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat held on to Vis' sleeve as he conversed with the paladin, she looked up at him as he talked his twisted words, they didn't sound right to her young, unexperienced ears, they were strained, slowly spoken and broken. She pulled up her scarf to cover her face as he did and felt a little bit better, 'maybe this is why he wears it?' she thought to herself but her thinking was cut short by a rumble in her stomach, followed by a hollow pain, Khat was hungry. She pulled on his sleeve and he entertained her tugging. "I'm hungry," she said simply, looking up at him as he looked down at her in a strange way, "Hello! Can't you hear me from all the way up there? I'm hungry." Vis blinked a bit before coming to. Looking at her with her scarf wrapped around her face sent shivers down his spine for some reason. "I don'th haf anyfing for you tho eath." Voltus replied slowly, watching as her face grew into a look of incredulity. "You're telling me that you came to a bakery and bought no bread?" she retorted harshly, glaring daggers at him, 'if he did't buy bread...' she thought but was interrupted by Vis' face turning red in embarrassment as he reached into his bag for one of the loaves of bread. He snapped off a chunk of staleness and handed it to Khat, she took it and tried it in her hands, she looked on the verge of crying, looking at the piece of bread, 'yesterday's bread,' she thought, 'before all this.' She bit back a sob. Voltus looked down at the girl with a mixture of grief and understanding, he touched her shoulder awkwardly, "When you're done you should thleep." She simply nodded, knowing if she opened her mouth she'd burst out sobbing. She walked off to nestle herself in between some exposed roots of a tree, where she nibbled the bread. Vis turned to carver, "I'll thake firtht watch, paladin."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to the half elf. "Your offer is a generous one, and I appreciate it. I will take the last watch, for I see best during sunrise. When your watch draws to a close, wake up Separ. Separ will have to wake up Kelvin. Kelvin will have to wake up..." The paladin glanced around the assembled party. A child, a refugee, a witch, and a wide-eyed gnome. "... Me. I'll take a double watch, it'll be no trouble." The party was sore, tired, frightened and generally worn down, but they were alive, and they were together, which was more than the knight could have hoped for. At least, most of them were - Alula, the very girl he'd sworn to protect, was still missing. Part of Carver wanted to go look for her, but he knew it wouldn't be safe, and that it wouldn't be what she wanted - she'd seemed pretty insistent on being alone at night. His efforts were better spend on those he had eyes on - what they needed now was to rest and recover their strength - their next moved could be planned in the morning. "Carver, do you – or do you not – feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" The refugee's words, the one who'd tried to get a rise out of him earlier. Carver held the man's gaze. His home had been burned to ashes, everyone he'd ever known put to the sword. If he wanted to take it out on the man who should've prevented it, that was more than his right. "Yes. Your village is burned, all those people dead, because I was not wise or fast or strong enough to stop it. On my head was the task, and on my head lay the blame."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Feeling exhausted and tired from such a long day, Separ couldn't help but yawn as he finished the last preparations on his tent. He laid out his sleeping bag and then left to check on the others to see how they were all doing. What he overheard however was a conversation between both the civilian and Carver. "Do you or do you not feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" It felt as though the man wanted someone to blame, a scapegoat to explain why his town had fallen. Listening closely Carver admitted to actually being at fault. Not liking where this conversation was heading, Separ decided to intervene before the conversation could go on any longer. He walked up towards the two of them. "Sorry if I'm interrupting, it's just that I would like to say that the destruction of Ravenwood is not your fault Carver, or at least not entirely. By your logic, I and all of the others are just as much at fault. Why couldn't I be strong enough to knock out an ettin in one blow?" Separ pointed to the little girl and Vis as well to further prove his point. "Why wasn't the elf swift enough to run circles around that whole army? And why couldn't the little girl over there be a master weapons user?" Separ already didn't like this man that much. He seemed to be one of those snobby types that always looked down on others. At least that would be what it seemed like as earlier the man complained about that quick duel between Carver and that Bill guy. Glaring daggers at the civilian, Separ ended his rant. "Finally, why weren't you strong enough to save Ravenwood?" And with that being said Separ glared at the man for a moment before turning around to go into his tent. Separ then called out to the entire group, just audible enough for everyone to hear. "I'm going to bed you guys, I'm pretty exhausted after such a long day. Anyone is free to enter my tent and sleep with me, I'll probably be asleep when you come in anyways." Entering his tent Separ unrolled his sleeping bag and pulling himself inside, drifted off into sleep.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Carver's answer satisfied Arastoph. This was good. This meant that he could more easily get what he needs out of this by milking the "sole survivor" trope. However, there came issue with the brawler, who seems to have taken upon himself to present himself as the ass. Ah; setbacks, setbacks. So, how would be the best way to take care of this monkey while still playing the trope? Perhaps, maybe, undermine the brawler's efforts to absolve themselves of blame and pinning it instead on the "sole survivor", and putting the monkey up on spotlight. He'd have to really milk this, but it was doable. As Separ walked away, Arastoph began, not even bothering to look behind him at he spoke. "So, tell me - Separ, was it? Have you ever seen what it was like to watch closely people being burned alive?" Arastoph asked. He paused for a moment for his words to sink in. "I imagine not, so let me explicitly descriptive: a small child, hunched over a bed of charcoals. Her screams of agony, oh so woeful that they were, have long since evanesced. Her blood is instead boiling, oozing through the pores of her skin. With the sight, the smell of burning skin mingled with burning hair. Her eyes pop like grapes when the water in and behind them boil." He looked at the little girl that the lisping rogue had made her companion. "That could have just as easily been her." He took a deep breathe, as though it were meant to regain his bearings. Now it was time to really milk it. "Now what if I told you, that girl was my daughter?" He stated, clenching his teeth and emboldening his voice. "Would you then be so bold to suggest that I did not do everything in my power to stop that? Whereas the lot of you - all with combat experience, weapon training, and practice - had far more tools to their disposal than I ever had? As a trader, I picked a different path, which just so happened meant I couldn't support a family by ways of fighting." His head turned back to face Carver, his face a little pink with forced, feigned anger. "If you do take responsibility," he said, "I do expect reparations. Safe passage to other towns. The lives of people are not insurable, but I expect at least the compensation for everything I've lost. I'm a merchant who had a pretty penny to his name. I've lost a lot. This would mean paying off a large monetary debt, however long it takes."</s>	<\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ sighed as he listened to the man's words. This guy was unbelievable, trying to get him to feel guilt over something he had nothing to do with, as well as wanting payment to boot. Without turning around either Separ replied with. "I have never seen a person burn alive, I'll give you that. But what does this have to do with anything? Yes it was your daughter, and I feel sorry for your loss. Nonetheless, we're human too. Just because Carver has a sword doesn't mean he's some unstoppable juggernaut. I'm not invincible either, none of us are. We're only human, well excluding the gnome and the elf, but while I do wish I could have saved the town I know I'd just add to the death pile. I barely escaped with my life, and," motioning towards the cloaked girl who was still fast asleep. "I managed to save her life as well. That's as much as I could muster, so sorry if I'm not Mr. Superhero the fourth. Also don't expect much money out of me, I mean I'll help out, but from what I can tell, you appear to be no good. I just hope the only reason you're acting like this is because you just lost your town and family. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Goodnight." And with that Separ finally entered his tent and fell asleep, exhausted from such a long day of fighting.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel "So are you excited knowing your about to head off into the world and start your own adventure?" Asked the man sitting next to Separ Kurel, the very man who had trained him on how to be an arcane brawler. This man was known by the name of Millon Baotes. He was incredibly buff with a tall and wide body with almost no traces of fat. His usual messy short black hair was now combed for the special occasion of sending his one and only pupil off into the world. Some scars were located all throughout his torso, and for some reason he wasn't wearing a shirt. Though most of the time he didn't have a shirt on anyways. "Yes, I'm excited if a little nervous." Separ answered truthfully as his eyes darted around the tavern, hopping from person to person. "So where is this group of mine supposed to be at? I'm anxious to meet them. We are meeting them here right?" "No, you're going to be meeting them here by yourself." Said Separ's teacher as he crossed his arms. "How am I supposed to know who my group is then? You haven't told me anything about them, so I don't see how this is going to work." Separ said, a hint of skepticism in his voice. "You know, I first started out in this town as well. I knew no one whatsoever and lived in this town for about two weeks, only spending what money I did have to sleep at an inn and drink in this very tavern. As your teacher I'd like you to experience something similar and make friends on your own to team up with, rather than rely on me introducing you to some people you may not even get along with." Separ's teacher paused for a moment and took another swig of beer. "That's good stuff alright, just like I remembered." He muttered before continuing on where he had left off. "Anyways try to meet some people you know you'll at least somewhat get along with rather than leaving it up to chance. If I find out you left this town without forming a proper group to travel with I'll kill you for making me waste my time trying to train you." And with that Separ's teacher started to chug the entire glass of frothing beer sitting in front of him on the table. Separ nodded at his teacher's words, and while he felt a little put off by that last line, he knew full well that was just his teacher's way of joking around. "Alright, I'll do as you say then." "Then it's settled." And with that Millon stood up from his chair about to leave, only to immediately stop and turn around looking Separ directly in the face. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" "Huh?" Was all Separ could say, before his teacher left leaving him alone at the bar table. Separ looked around at the crowd for a moment wondering if he should talk to anyone, but decided against it. The place was kind of crowded right now, and it would probably be easier to wait until the mass of people thinned out a bit before doing anything else. Instead he opted to just admire how simple this building was. So this is what it was like to be in a small town huh? It was actually kind of peaceful. However his thoughts soon changed into imagining all the adventures he would have. Fighting monsters, saving people, becoming a hero. What a wonderful life that would be.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver arrived in Ravenwood in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day in the country - all around was quiet, and the sun shone through the leaves in just that way that made Carver feel as though the goddess were truly with him. As the wagon he was riding pulled in through the gates, he waved here and there at passing townsfolk, and was often rewarded with a smile or a polite wave. The wagon came to a halt and he dismounted, his armor clanking loudly as he landed. The farmer whose family he had been traveling with for the past few days approached him, and Carver gave the man a warm smile. "My friend," he said, "I believe this is where we part ways." "Yes, milord," the farmer responded, still using the honorific Carver has insisted repeatedly was not necessary. "We will be awful sorry to see you go. How much do we owe you?" The man responded, fumbling for his coinpurse. Carver has expected that the man would attempt to compensate him for his services 'escorting' the family, though in truth he had only scared off a few petty thieves. The paladin held a hand out to the man, still smiling. "No such payment is required. Keep it. Feed your children, and raise them in the light of the sun." The farmer nodded. "I, uh, yes milord. I will. Thank you." Carver put his hand to his breast and bowed before turning away and walking into the crowd. It was time to find some wrongs and set about righting them - the marketplace would be as good a place as any to start.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nervously stepped out from the narrow path between buildings, her eyes shifting as she cautiously looked over everyone nearby. From what it looked like, there wasn't anyone screaming for anything similar to those witch hunt riots that the church had done hunting her down. Making sure her cloak was covering her body, with the hood obscuring her head, she daintily slipped out, mingling with the crowd at the marketplace. Although she tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible, it seems that her cloaked figure was something that my catch the eyes of a few. Suddenly feeling a hand grip her arm, she quickly spun around, only to realize it was a merchant. "We have good prices!" Heavily accented, the merchant gestured at his wares, or in this case, fresh produce. Feeling a slight bit hungry, she nodded, before pointing at an apple. "Good eye, good eye, that would be-" The merchant started to speak, before Suki raised her hood slightly, revealing her face to him. Winking, she raised a finger to her lips. "Bring the apple. I'll make the payment through other means~' Whispering with such a sultry tone, the merchant was by no means resilient against such a tactic. The two hurried towards a more quite alley, where Suki leaned in, and kissed the merchant. Whatever giddy thoughts that raced through the merchant's mind, was soon replaced by a lethargy. The man soon sank to the ground, the expression of ecstasy plastered on his face. "For a farmer, your energy wasn't too bad of a taste." Muttering such words mostly to herself, she quickly picked up the apple, and re-entered the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, taking bites from her newfound food.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis trudged through the dense mud, tired and with a gloomy expression on his face, though it would be difficult to make out, his scarf worn tightly around his face and over his nose, obscuring the expression and the gaping hole in his maw. Vis had been accosted by a group of thugs on the main road, though this generally wasn't an issue as he would run away and they would lose interest eventually but it seemed these things were desperate, as they chased him half way into the moor before deciding it was no longer worth it. He didn't like running away, if there was only one or two of them he would have stood his ground, unfortunately there were half a dozen. He tilted his head up to the sky to find light grey plooms of smoke in the distance, beyond the hill that was beyond the next. There were too many points of smoke for it to be a campsite but not quiet enough to be an industrial estate, so he figured it must have been some little township. Vis made it to 'Ravenwood' in the afternoon, drained from the task of traversing through mud that felt only the need to slow him down, so with some relief he slung his pack around so it was under his nose and opened it. He saw the cobbled street. His mood quickly turned dower, the bottom of his pack must have snagged on a branch and have been torn, spilling it's contents. 'that's why those highway men turned, they just had to pick up what they wanted.' With a sigh, he took what was left in the pack and cast it into an alleyway, though funnily enough all that was in there was the child's encyclopedia his mother gave him before leaving, so he could brush up on reading skills. Vis tucked the book into his leather armor and wandered forth. The market district was buzzing with activity, buyers haggling over prices and venders hawking their wares, though all Vis needed was a replacement pack and a few basic bits. Wandering the stalls and booths, he found nothing met his eye, mostly because of the high prices but also because many of the packs were just of low quality. Unsatisfied, he walked through the market, casting a faint green cone of light from his cursed green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continues to idly imagine adventures he is brought back into reality as he feels a hand touch his back. Separ turns around and listens to the man he starts wondering just how to respond, pausing to think about his actions. "Do I know you? Though actually I am looking for some companions. Wait, out of everyone here why choose me? You're not trying to rob me or something are you? Wait, umm, are you looking just for someone to travel with, or are you an adventurer as well?" Separ's words were quick and somewhat hard to follow. He had never done something like this before and wasn't exactly sure of himself and just how to proceed.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver strode through the marketplace confidently, his heavy armor clanking with every step. So far, everything seemed to be in order - the hustle and bustle of commerce carried on around him, seemingly unabated by any sort of wickedness or villainy whatsoever. The prices seemed to be reasonable, the merchandise legitimate - nobody was being cheated here. Carver was glad to see it; too many villages he had been to on his journey so far had been rife with dishonesty and corruption. As he ruminated on the morality of the village, he caught sight of a scrawny gnome stumbling through the crowd. He watched as the gnome took hold of a woman's robe, staring at the fabric with childlike wonder. She immediately turned and yanked it from him, saying something unintelligible but obviously rather flustered. Quite a pair - the girl seemed to be moving with a distinct limp, and the gnome clearly wasn't eating very well. It was hardly the stuff of legends, but Carver knew that every good deed mattered. With his best winning smile, Carver approached the pair, regarding them each in turn. "Good day, friends! Keeping safe, I should hope?"</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continues to idly imagine adventures he is brought back into reality as he feels a hand touch his back. Separ turns around and listens to the man he starts wondering just how to respond, pausing to think about his actions. "Do I know you? Though actually I am looking for some companions. Wait, out of everyone here why choose me? You're not trying to rob me or something are you? Wait, umm, are you looking just for someone to travel with, or are you an adventurer as well?" Separ's words were quick and somewhat hard to follow. He had never done something like this before and wasn't exactly sure of himself and just how to proceed.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver strode through the marketplace confidently, his heavy armor clanking with every step. So far, everything seemed to be in order - the hustle and bustle of commerce carried on around him, seemingly unabated by any sort of wickedness or villainy whatsoever. The prices seemed to be reasonable, the merchandise legitimate - nobody was being cheated here. Carver was glad to see it; too many villages he had been to on his journey so far had been rife with dishonesty and corruption. As he ruminated on the morality of the village, he caught sight of a scrawny gnome stumbling through the crowd. He watched as the gnome took hold of a woman's robe, staring at the fabric with childlike wonder. She immediately turned and yanked it from him, saying something unintelligible but obviously rather flustered. Quite a pair - the girl seemed to be moving with a distinct limp, and the gnome clearly wasn't eating very well. It was hardly the stuff of legends, but Carver knew that every good deed mattered. With his best winning smile, Carver approached the pair, regarding them each in turn. "Good day, friends! Keeping safe, I should hope?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou By the time Suki had finished the apple, she had managed to walk her way over to the tavern by chance. Mentally sighing, she pushed open te doors, before walking in. Avoiding eye contact with any curious onlookers, she made her way towards the corner of the building, sitting herself down at an empty table. Carefully glancing about, she didn't recognize anyone, nor see anything out of the ordinary. Nor was there anyone staring at her with the look of death, as the members of the church had done so. Feeling the safest that she had all week, she lightly rested her head on the table, befre falling asleep, her arms around her head, covering any view of her face.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace let the cloth slowly slip away trough his fingers. "It's pretty" Would not fit... light the fires... She knew he was Furnace, and that was his task. So as the fires and hammer fit him the robe fit her? The robe was her tool, he didn't know for what, and thus he could not perform that task. Thus he was not fit. Furnace wondered what her task was. He recognised the patters as those in the sky. Since he'd seen them for the first time he had been unable to find ryme or reason for the lights up there Suddenly a shadow fel over him, as he looked up he saw a large figure fully encased in steel. The man smiled and called them 'friends' and asked them if they 'kept safe'. Furnace double checked. He was talking to them, though he saw no spark of recognition in the robe-user. He struggled to remember the word 'friend'. The voice had never used 'friend'. But the captors had. They had used it to describe each other when they weren't fighting. By the looks of this ironclad giant that seemed like a decent proposal. "Good day.. Friend... I keep no one..."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula wanted to leave, she wanted to hurry away and leave the village and disappear from memory like she always did. She was very conflicted right now, as well as uncomfortable. She knew the gnome meant her no harm, but Alula didn't like being around strangers. She heard the gnome mutter something about her robe, but she didn't comprehend it. The two stood in silence and although her stoic face didn't show it vivid hallucinations played out in front of her eyes. Flames sprouted out from the ground, but left no burn when they touched her skin. Phantom noises filled her ears, crying and screaming. And Alula was extremely distressed, but didn't show it physically. This had never happened before? Or had it? Her eyes went hazy again as she attempted to remember anything pass a few days ago. Nothing. But as quickly as they started the hallucinations of flames and sound stopped. They faded away, leaving Alula dazed and confused. Someone else, another stranger, had approached her and the gnome. And suddenly things seemed a little calmer, a bit more controlled. Alula pulled her hat down over her eyes as she spoke the voice of the other. "A splendent light but his own kindness keeps him in shackles." She kept the glow of her eyes hidden under her hat as she listened to the man speak. Under normal circumstances the man's smile would be welcoming and most likely comforting, but Alula was confused? Was this man her friend? "Calling someone friend is a way of showing you aren't hostile. He is trying to be polite." Oh. But this mad also said 'Good day' when had it become day? She looked up from under the brim of her hat. Yep. The bright light in the sky told her it was a clear day out. She pulled her hat back down. She didn't say anything as the gnome and the man started a conversation, she was far too dizzy. She didn't like meeting this many people in one day.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis had managed to find a decent bag, similar to the one he had though fortunately with hardier stitching. He look up from studying the leather at the wrinkled old face of the leather smith, he did this again a few more times, inspecting the bag and looking up at the man who seemed to have infinite patience. "Thell me Letherthmith," he said, through the scarf that covered his mouth, "Whath kind of lether ith thith." the old man replied quickly, betraying that he indeed make the bag and didn't buy bad quality ones at low price to re-sell later. "Stag leather," he said with pride, looking back to a pile of antlers in the corner of his little shack, "only the best." Vis nodded, feeling the rough interior and the smoothly finished exterior. It was indeed of good quality, it was stitched first with thread, then with thicker thread and over that with robust leather thread, it would hold. "Thirthy gold." said Vis, avoiding the eye contact of the man as it seemed he was staring at his blind green eye, it cast a circle on the old man's face that seemed to unnerve him as he noticed it produced light. "60." replied the man instantly, standing up a bit straighter as he sensed that a haggling war was about to ensue. By the end an agreement was reached, Vis payed 45 golden bits and got the bag thar he so desired and a set of stag antlers, seeing that he might as well get more worth for his pay and take something else, then to just get one thing. Satisfied with his purchase, he thanked the man and dumped his personal effects into the bag, his child's encyclopedia and the antlers; he didn't know what he was going to do with them but he figured it wouldn't hurt. As he made his way out of the market he tripped on an armored boot, looking up he almost shat himself at the paladin, who looked much bigger from the floor.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace The word 'shackles' resonated with Furnace. With eyes full of concern he studied the knights wrists and ankles. "What binds you fr-" Suddenly another tall figure came tumbling past between them. Did he trip over the chains? Furnace found no chains around the giants feet. He sighed in confused relief. He now stared at the creature that had fallen amidst them. Without blinking, without words.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver A splendid light, but his kindness keeps him bound. Carver furrowed his brow, confused. He was opening his mouth to reply to the girl when a tall man in a scarf stumbled over his feet and fell to the floor in front of him. "Apologies, friend!" Carver said, kneeling down to help the half-elf rise to his feet. "I didn't see you approach. Are you injured?" These words were meant to assuage the man's obvious fright at the sight of him - Carver hated being seen as scary, but sadly it sometimes came with the territory of wearing armor. The paladin looked back to the girl, who seemed faint and dizzy in the sun. Perhaps that was why the things she said made so little sense - was the heat getting to her? He placed a hand on her shoulder gently. "Milady, you don't look well. Perhaps you'd like to sit down in the shade?" He smiled back down at the scrawny gnome, still staring at the assembled figures wordlessly. "Come too, little one. We'll see what we can do about getting you something to eat."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula "Take a step back and take a look at the big picture, things about about to fall into place." Alula took this thought as a command, physically taking a step away from the small group. Maybe she needed to clear her mind? Would she understand? Or maybe the voice had a sense of humor, because within moments of Alula moving someone tripped over the knight and fell into the spot she was once standing. It would have been horrible if someone had bumped into her so suddenly. She watched in silence as the knight helped up the man who had tripped. "Pushed down many times, always to get up. Born of love and raised in the shadows." She placed a hand on her forehead, feeling quite dizzy and confused again. When had she stopped walking? Wasn't she going somewhere? Suddenly a distant voice, a knight. And a hand upon her shoulder. Alula immediately tensed up, vibrating as if being shaken at great speed. She stepped away from Carver, yanking her shoulder from his gentle grip. Her hat tipped back in her head, revealing her now brightly glowing eyes. She began to speak, but her voice sounded corrupted, like many voices speaking at once. "DO NOT TOUCH HER." A voice spoke in her mind, her head clearing. "He means you no harm, it was a gentle gesture. Alula blinked a few times, her enraged expression turning to one of confusion and embarrassment. She wasn't sure what to say, she was freezing up. "He wants to take you to the shade of the trees, to get you away from the crowd." Alula pulled the brim of her hat over her eyes, which had ceased glowing. She spoke slowly, slurred. "Um...yes the shade sounds nice." She took a step back towards Carver.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou From the moment she felt her hood gently shift, Suki had woken up. However, the unusually gentle action -unusual to her- was what kept her from springing out of her seat, and attacking the man. She would've preferred her scythe, but she had hid that on the outskirts of town. Such a large weapon drew curious gazes after all. Choosing to slip back into her dreams, her interest was perked as she heard the two men argue. It seemed they weren't looking for any trouble with her, or as a matter of fact, with anyone. They might have been looking for others. However, what really stuck with her, was that these two weren't discussing as if they had met a demon, but instead a normal person. "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Completely on the whim, Suki tossed that question out, while mentally regretting the decision already. Unfortunately, what has been said could not be retracted. Sitting up slowly, while allowing the hood of her cloak to drop, she smiled at the man closest to her. "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." Softly speaking, Suki half reprimanded the man, half teased, as she stood up, making sure the keep the rest of herself covered by the cloak.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded his thanks to the armored man and slowly bent down to scoop his bag up off the floor, he gave it a good dusting and slipped it back on, not taking his good eye off of the paladin and casting a circle of green light on his face with the bad one. "thank you.." mumbled Vis, awkwardly. He still had more things to go and buy but the paladin seemed to have a point, it was very warm outside for some reason and the heat seared Vis' pale skin. "I think thare ith a inn on tha wetht thide of the marketh, pathed ith by when I goth hear." he needed a drink after that much lisping, something to calm his nerves but he only drank in private, so it seemed he wouldn't be able to. Vis tightened his scarf around his face, just in a way it would stay on but not in a way it would show impressions of his scaring. "there ith altho an airy bar thomewhere near thare." Vis turned his eye away from the armored man and looked at the group he had accosted with his tripping, there was a scraggly gnome at his feet, reminding him of an ugly cat but he mentally slapped himself as he knew he wasn't that good looking himself. Then there was the woman cloaked in fine fabric, with the heavens printed on the inside, she spoke to him and Vis shuddered, her words felt strange to him, they came out in a way that sounded like she didn't know what she was saying, yet was very accurate. He kept his eyes on her, one to look at her and the other to cast a ghostly, green glow.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver withdrew his hand quickly at the strange voice's behest. That certainly wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting - glowing eyes and booming commands were usually confined to things paladins were expected either to worship or to kill, but as the girl tottered forward, pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her eyes, Carver was certain that neither of those reactions would be appropriate. No, his initial plan regarding the girl still seemed appropriate - she needed help. It took him a moment to realize the half-elf was talking, and with a severe lisp, too. Something about a tavern? That seemed like it would serve both for getting the girl out of the heat (and the crowd) and for getting the gnome some food. He smiled at the man. "A tavern sounds like a fine idea. Might I trouble you to take us there?" He glanced around at the company. "A bit of rest and a meal, and I'm sure we'll all be feeling right as rain, friends." He moved closer to the girl - not enough to risk triggering the same bizarre reaction, but enough that she could lean on him if she felt the need. He also extended a hand down to the gnome, hoping to prevent the small fellow from being lost in the crowd.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace entered the tavern and looked around. The room was filled with wooden constructs, living creatures and ceramics containing, what smelled like food. He didn't see a source for the food though. How did these people find it? Why decide to eat it here? Then he saw a creature with a large wooden plate stacked with cups. Distributing food to people. He noticed a pattern, she went by all the wooden circles and gave foot to those balanced around it. Furnace concluded that if they balanced on the small wooden constructs around the large wooden plates, they would get food. Following the pattern the barmaid followed Furnace chose a table that would soon be serviced. He took the cloth-wrapped bastard sword slung over his shoulder and carefully placed it leaning against the table. After sizing the chair up for a few seconds and studying the other patrons he got up on the seat and sat down cross-legged. Then he waited. If his guesses were correct food would now come to him.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ A scythe huh, that's an interesting weapon of choice, thought Separ as he continued to talk to this beautiful lady. However as he was listening to her, she seemed to lean forward and unbutton the top of her cloak, an action which surprised Separ. He stared closely for a second and realized he could see a small portion of her cleavage. Was she purposefully trying to make him look? Should he look? Can he? While Separ kind of wanted to take a peek he realized that wouldn't be a good idea. She was most likely just feeling a little hot and wanted some more air. He glanced to the side not wanting to stare at her chest and give off the wrong impression. "I believe you, after all you have no reason to lie right?" His voice had turned even more nervous now, as he wasn't sure quite what to do. "So, uh, welcome to the team I guess." He looked back at her and gave her a somewhat shy smile. Separ turned towards Kelvin and extended a hand, his palm facing the sky. "This here is Kelvin, and my name is Separ. If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" As he said this Separ had a lightbulb moment and turned towards Kelvin and nodded slightly. "I'm sorry, it seems I had forgotten to tell you my name earlier. Sorry about that."</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin Well, at least the other guy was going to keep his head on. Mostly. Not that Kelvin had done much better with that passing insult. A scythe? Scouting? Kelvin shook his head. If she had those skills, it was more concerning. What if she was part of a marauder's crew- luring unsuspecting travelers to the wrong road at the wrong hour. The thought made him shudder. It was just unnatural, for someone with a face like that to be alone in a town like this. Though, in retrospect, it was equally strange for an engineer to be hanging about the area as well. She leaned closer to them, his companion specifically, and murmured towards him, letting her cloak hang open a bit. Whelp. He was done here. Kelvin turned away smartly and sat down at her table, attempting to keep a straight face. Aren't you supposed to seduce them before you get what you want, rather than after? Not that he had experience in such things. Ah, Separ was his name. "It be alright, think nothing of it." Kelvin didn't look at either of them, looking pointedly to the side and then jumping, knocked over his chair and falling to the floor beside it. "What… who is that?!" A strange, whitish childlike creature was sitting on one of the seats beside him. Kelvin spluttered and recovered a bit. "Ah, hello there… little one."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched the half-elf for his reaction, and she couldn't help but think maybe she chose the wrong choice. He had looked mad, and she could feel that she had hurt his feelings. Her face kept neutral, but there was an argument going on in her head. She chose to ignore it, but her headache and dizziness were increasing. And after a few moments Alula had forgotten about what the voices were arguing over. Something about a voice? She knew plenty of those. Oh. They were walking now. She wasn't sure were they were going, or if she should go too. But after taking one teetering step forward she decided going with them was better then staying alone in a crowd. She allowed herself to lean on the paladin a few times, and although the touch of armor felt like a searing through her robes she did not fall. Several times while the small group was walking Alula asked where they were going, and every time she got an answer she soon forgot it and asked again. She also asked several other questions ranging from asking "what time is is" four times to questioning why the paladin was wearing so much armor. Walking into the bar was slightly less overwhelming then walking through the streets. It was still many thoughts being thrown at her at once, so many intermingling voices. But now several of them were drunk. And yet it was still a lot to take in. She opened her mouth, eyes dully glowing under her hat. "A gathering place for people of all kinds, the road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same and yet they end up here." She already felt far more comfortable being out of the heat, and although the bar was noisier she could barely hear them under the voices in her head. She watched as the gnome ran off to find a table, sitting with a few other people. Alula disliked the idea of having to be close to more people so quickly, and instead found herself wobbling over to a small table near the back of the room. All around her phantoms and hallucinations moved, ranging from the joyous to disastrous. From weddings to war. But she didn't mind, they were faded and quiet under a heavy cloud of alcohol.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace noted the other beings around the wooden circle had noticed him and one of them wished to trade words. He eyed the tall figure, he had a magnificent beard, he was tall but not as physically imposing as his new metal bound friend. The thing that stood out about this guy was not his appearance. Furnace tilted his head slightly without breaking eye contact with Kelvin. "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Once the group he had latched himself onto entered, Vis followed, closing the wooden door behind him. Once the merry group had entered, Vis veered to the left and towards the bar counter where the bartender stood and dried out rinsed tankards. "Ith there a chanth I can thake a thankard outh?" asked Vis, watching the man behind the counter dry out the mug. "Sorry mate, nothing leaves the tavern that's not yours." Vis sighed, he didn't like to drink or eat in public, he had to take off the scarf and let people see his gnarled up scar and exposed teeth, he didn't want that. He was about to walk away and find a seat but behind the barman was a sheld of unopened bottles of drink, waiting to be bought. One of the bottles caught his eye, it was a plain green bottle, slimmer and taller then most, with an all too familiar label; it was a bottle of ForestElf, Wildberries and Alderflowers and it was new, Vis didn't like aged. "How muth for tha ForethtElf?" Vis asked, he watched as the man reached up to get a bottle that sat next to the one that caught his eye, it was a lighter color and the wax around the cork was damaged, showing it had been watered down and re-sealed, "Tha fresh one pleath." said Vis patiently, as the man grumbled and brought down the unopened one. "40 gold," said the barkeeper, clearly disgruntled by his failed attempt at selling him watered down booze, "Special discount for you my lispy friend." "fiftheen gold and I'm noth your friend you con artitht." He glared at the man and rested his hand on his rapier, as the man dropped his hand under the counter, probably gripping a weapon. "40, you half-elf mongrel." "Fiftheen, you gold pinthing donkey."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver stepped beside the half-elf and put a hand on his shoulder, smiling at the barkeeper. "No need to ruin this good day with... regrettable actions, friends. What do we say to thirty gold, and I'll put up half of it... provided you share some with our new friends, of course." It was obvious so far that the barkeep was a cheat and a swindler, and in another time Carver would have loved to have words with him on the subject. However, not on such a fine day, in so crowded a place, with friends in need of care nearby. The priority right now was diffusing the situation. "How much for something hot for my diminutive friend, good man?" He gestured back to the gnome sitting nearby, who looked to be sniffing at a bearded stranger. The man didn't seem offended by this, so that was good. Carver jingled his coin purse and was disheartened by its lightness - a life of charity had taken a toll on his funds, it seemed. He'd need to find some form of income soon, but that could wait.</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep looks Carver up and down, "For a respectful man such as yourself, 30 pieces is fine, as for food, that'll be 20 pieces for a nice hot meal." The barkeep brings the down the bottle and holds out his hand, waiting to be paid.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis, shook off Carver's hand and just glared at the barman, ignoring the paladin's offer after hearing the lightness of his pouch, he was too prideful at that moment to accept help and he didn't see it fair to take from someone who had little to begin with. "I'll pay thirthy." growled Vis through clenched teeth, his green eye casting a bright shaft of light at the barman's face. "Fifty." replied the barman, seeing that Vis was willing to pay more, the man smirked. In no mood to barter any further, Vis shoved his fist into the his coin pouched and clenched about half in his fist before throwing them at the taverner's face and snatched the bottle from his grubby clutches, "What the f-!" "You goth tha money, now shuth up!" yelled Vis, not caring who heard him. He turned around and let the paladin get what he wanted from the disgruntled man picking up coins from the floor. Vis found a secluded seat in a dark corner and popped the cork from the bottle, he took a deep whiff of it's smell, 'the smell of home.' he thought, remembering that the brewery was in his home town. He was about to lower his scarf to drink but he noticed a faint white glow coming from his blind, left side. He turned to see the girl in the pointy hat, he groaned, not seeing her as she was on his left side. Sp he went over to another seat, farther into the corner and away from the zoned out woman. As he sat there, on his own, he glanced at the girl in the pointy hat.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Well, since your friend there is so rude, you have to be the normal price, 35 pieces for a nice meal." He sneered at the paladin, then looking at the rogue, "And if he causes any trouble, I expect you to take care of him because you won't like how I do it."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the irritated half-elf storm off and shook his head sadly. If the man wanted to be surly, that was his own business; at least there hadn't been a confrontation. He removed the thirty-five coins from his (now even lighter) coinpurse and slid it across the counter to the barkeep. "A hot meal, then, for the gnome." The barkeep pocketed the money and barked an order to a barmaid. Carver leaned in closer to the man then, still smiling with his mouth, if not with his eyes. "Yes, I will take care of any trouble. And perhaps, another time, you and I may have a discussion about your business practices, and you will not like how I do that." This done, Carver turned and crossed the crowded room back to where the gnome was seated, alongside three others. One was the bearded man that the gnome had been speaking with, while the other two, a muscular looking young man and a very... shapely young woman seemed to be either arguing or flirting. Carver furrowed his brow at the girl. Though looking at her appealed to his baser urges, the higher part of his mind found something undisputably off about her. This was someone who did not know the love of the sun. He sat down next to them and patted the gnome on the back. "Food on its way, my diminutive friend." Just then, a barmaid set a sizeable bowl of stew in front of the gnome and was quickly off. He smiled at the others and nodded his head. "A fine day, friends. Hope you have a seat for another."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis gripped the neck of the bottle tight and his knuckles went white, 'what's with people and my lisp?!' he thought to himself before taking another swig to calm his nerves. "three, with you bring tha third." he took another long draw from his bottle and felt the passivizing rush I got from well rounded fluid, "whath ith it thath you wanth from me?" he asked bluntly, slipping the drink forward to her and pulling his scarf back over his mouth, putting his hands behind his head to tighten it up. His eyes flicked back to the lazy eyed mystic and then to the hooded girl in front of him. "How about you take off your hood?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace happily accepted the bowl. To his surprise the food was already warm. Cautiously he put the stew to lips and imediately he was assaulted by a storm of new flavors. This was without a shadow of a doubt his new definition of 'food'. Whatever the stale goop was he had been given all these years, it could no longer do justice to the word. Rapidly he wolfed the soup down as he followed the conversations around the table. This figure was boasting to his steel friend about how many friends he had aquired, and how he was planning to make more. He must be a powerfull entity to hold so many pacts at once.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula kept in her own corner of the bar, silently observing the patrons around her. This was all rather new to her, or at least she thought it felt new. Several times while sitting a barmaid would walk over to her and ask if she needed anything. Alula would turn them away, flustered, every time. What did that even mean? Was this woman implying that something was wrong with her? No, this certainly couldn't be the case. Alula understood the barmaid. She muttered softly. "Always the maiden and never the man. Working hard to make her place. One day to bark the orders." Her hazy eyes looked over, watching as the half-elf and then the Paladin tried to haggle with the barkeep for food and drink. She could tell the man was lying. Everything in his keeping was extremely overpriced, aimed at the drunk and the desperate. All the man cared for was material wealth. Eventually the paladin received food for the small man and the half-elf carried away as bottle of wine. Alula found herself liking the paladin more and more, his kindness for others was strangely relaxing. Alula watched with a strange transfixion as the half elf took a seat, away from the others. There was something odd about the bottle he had, something that reminded her of something. Her head was swimming, and the voices only seemed to be getting louder and louder as she tried to figure out what was causing such a strong sense of nostalgia. A gentle voice spoke above the rest. "You appear to be staring at the half-elf, and he is staring back. You are making him uncomfortable." Alula hadn't realized she had been looking at him for so long, and with such pained expression. She quickly tore her eyes away from the half-elf and the bottle. And immediately the voices ceased. That was strange. But what was stranger was who next approached the half-elf, another girl. But something was extremely different about this girl, the voices agreed. Alula allowed herself to give into the temptation of looking back over at the table, but wished she hadn't she felt extremely flustered for some reason, tugging her hat back over her eyes and facing away from the half-elfs table. "You and the girl are quite different. You coverup for shame, and she undresses for survival." "A woman raised in a world of hate and dark, now depends on humans for survival. Her hunger is carnivorous."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "She should have some of this food." Furnace set the thuroughly emptied bowl in front of him with a loud thud. Curiously he looked at Alula, failing to make eye contact. "Do you not enjoy the light?" he inquired after her hiding.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver patted the gnome on the back as he devoured the meal. He saw that the woman had gone to sit with the half-elf; a troubling alliance, possibly, but not one that seemed to pose an immediate danger. The strong-looking man has asked him a question, he realized. The offer was a tempting one - he was already traveling, and friends were good to have, especially when one was as poor as he was. "I'd be glad to travel with you, friend." He extended an armored hand. "My name is Sir Carver. A pleasure to make your aquaintance." Although... He coughed slightly. "However, I feel honor-bound to see to the well-being of my new friends," he said, gesturing to the gnome and to the corner, where the strange girl sat. "Perhaps you could propose them the same question, and we may all go off together? I'm not sure I could leave either in the same state I found them."</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting." Kelvin's eyes widened slightly, and a small grin stretched across his lips. Interesting. "I like this one." Kelvin slowly uprighted the stool and slid back onto it, settling to examine this being. He barely acknowledged when the cloaked woman moved away, excusing herself to ask around. It was possible she would have more luck, if for the wrong reasons. Yet... Separ had introduced them both, yet she had still avoided giving a name. He stroked his beard, considering. Strange. He turned his attention back to the gnome as food was brought, and watched the being down it in fascination. "Forty three seconds." Kelvin whispered to himself softly as the gnome slammed the bowl down. Behind him, Separ had already requesitioned the knight into their group. Curver, cover, something like that. He hadn't been paying to much attention to the last part. However, as far as the gnome went... "I don't mind spending time with this one." Kelvin turned on the stool and jerked a thumb towards the gnome. "Separ's in charge as far as I am concerned though." A thought occured, and Kelvin eagerly swung down his backpack, pulling out a long, stiff tube about as long as his forearm. The fuse was curled up and tied with a bit of string to make it compact. He held it out in front of the gnome, careful to keep it out of reach. "What do you make of this then?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki smiled lightly as she heard the rather expected response. As a matter of fact, she was expecting a number larger than three. Of course, this half-elf seemed rather anti-social, if this was how he normally talked, questioning what one wanted from him. Deciding to actually do as she had said, and ask for companions, she answered "It isn't anything really to difficualt. Just join up with 'him'-' here, she stopped talking to casually point towards the one she knew as Separ. "- on his idea of an adventure." Noticing the rather blunt action of sliding the bottle of alcohol towards her, she looked at it with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion, before daintily reaching out and grabbing in. Taking a whiff, and enjoying the aroma of the drink, she had just poured a little bit of it in her mouth when the half-elf ask her to take off the hood. Nearly choking on the drink in surprise, she coughed several times, before finally settling down. "You have your reason to stay covered up, I have mine." Although rather roundabout, her answer was a definite negative in regards to his question.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis shrugged the retrieved his bottle of wine from the other side of the table, taking a long slow draw from it and feeling the liquid being drawn down his throat and ending with a warming splash in his stomach. "Tho be ith.." he slurred slightly before regaining control, "I'll think abouth ith." slowly Vis rose from the chair on unsteady feet and recorked the bottle of booze, putting it in it's rightful place, his bag. He began to make his way to the door but suddenly, his foot caught on a chair leg and he went down like a tree, slamming into the flower with a dense crash, though luckily the bottle of wine was unbroken. He looked up from the floor to see what he tripped on but all he saw was stars and a pointy hat, usually a few sips of wine didn't make him this tipsy.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was not sure what had happened, but she was currently on the ground. Only moments ago she had gotten out of her seat, with the intent of walking over to the paladin and thanking him for escorting her to the bar and then leaving. She had cooled down enough to feel like it was time for her to leave town, she had had enough of strangers and confusion for the day. And once it came nightfall she knew she needed to be away from others. But she never made it to the table where he was sitting Because now she was on the floor. Someone the two of them, with their uncertain steps, collided. It would have been easy to knock Alula off her feet, she already has enough trouble walking with her limp. As soon as the half-elf and Alula collided it was as if someone sent embers through her veins, it burned. Under normal circumstances someone would probably get up and apologize for being so careless. But Alula was not a normal circumstance. With a growl Alula leapt to her feet, all traces of sluggishness and cripples gone, and pointed her staff dangerously close to Vis. She hat remained on the floor, her white hair brightly glowing and matching her illuminated eyes. The dislocated and warped voice again spoke through Alula in a threatening and hostile tone. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" She raised her staff above her head, as if ready to strike the half-elf with it, but she suddenly stopped when a voice spoke to her. "The man means her no danger, it was an accident." As if a light switch had been hit, Alula stopped glowing. Her expression looked shocked and scared. She dropped her staff to the floor with a heavy clunk, and reached up to pull down the brim of her hat, only to realize it wasn't there. She instead covered her eyes with her hands, not sure how to react.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis did not know how to react, so he remained petrified on the floor, staring up in abject horror as the drunkness quickly vacated his body to leave abject soberness. He did not expect such a violent reaction from her, and her staff could have crushed him with ease, esspecially with her new found vigor. But when she started to slow down, his mind went from fear to sympathy, she too had something to hide and noe she didn't have her means to hide it. He looked around on the floor for it but the hat seemed to have vanished, so he slowly brought himself from the floor and with a hesitant, reluctant hand, untied the scarf from around his face, revealing the large gash down it's side that was hidden for so long, exposing all his teeth and even some jaw bone. Vis draped the scarf over her head in a way that it acted like a hood that she could draw over her eyes if she needed to.</s> <\|message\|>Des Everyone in the tavern looked over as the oracle raged. But after Vis took off his scarf, most looked away. Those that kept looking either gave a disgusted look or throw up. One brave soul felt the need to say something, it was the barkeep, "Hey, what did I say about you causing trouble in my tavern, cover your disgusting mess of a face up or get out."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver was up from the table and across the inn almost immediately. He saw the elf remove his scarf, revealing the disfigured face within - but to Carver, he had revealed something else; a character of fairness unsuited to his features. He had shown compassion, in his actions - this was a good man. Then the barkeep opened his mouth, and Carver clenched a fist. A liar, a cheat, a cruel man who spat in the face of kindness. Trying to muster all the gentleness he could in that moment, he put a hand, gingerly, on the girl's shoulders. "You don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "Nobody here will harm you." That done, he retreated his hand and turned to the bar. "You cheat," he said, slowly, steadily, his voice gaining power with every word. "You lie. You prey on the innocent, the drunk, the vulnerable. You spit in the face of an honorable man. You are arrogant, greedy, and cruel, and you know not the love of the sun." He was shouting now, and he rested a both fists on the bar. "My name is Sir Carver. I am a Paladin of the Sun, and I bring these charges before you. What say you in your defense?"</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis did not know how to react, so he remained petrified on the floor, staring up in abject horror as the drunkness quickly vacated his body to leave abject soberness. He did not expect such a violent reaction from her, and her staff could have crushed him with ease, esspecially with her new found vigor. But when she started to slow down, his mind went from fear to sympathy, she too had something to hide and noe she didn't have her means to hide it. He looked around on the floor for it but the hat seemed to have vanished, so he slowly brought himself from the floor and with a hesitant, reluctant hand, untied the scarf from around his face, revealing the large gash down it's side that was hidden for so long, exposing all his teeth and even some jaw bone. Vis draped the scarf over her head in a way that it acted like a hood that she could draw over her eyes if she needed to.</s> <\|message\|>Des Everyone in the tavern looked over as the oracle raged. But after Vis took off his scarf, most looked away. Those that kept looking either gave a disgusted look or throw up. One brave soul felt the need to say something, it was the barkeep, "Hey, what did I say about you causing trouble in my tavern, cover your disgusting mess of a face up or get out."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was up from the table and across the inn almost immediately. He saw the elf remove his scarf, revealing the disfigured face within - but to Carver, he had revealed something else; a character of fairness unsuited to his features. He had shown compassion, in his actions - this was a good man. Then the barkeep opened his mouth, and Carver clenched a fist. A liar, a cheat, a cruel man who spat in the face of kindness. Trying to muster all the gentleness he could in that moment, he put a hand, gingerly, on the girl's shoulders. "You don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "Nobody here will harm you." That done, he retreated his hand and turned to the bar. "You cheat," he said, slowly, steadily, his voice gaining power with every word. "You lie. You prey on the innocent, the drunk, the vulnerable. You spit in the face of an honorable man. You are arrogant, greedy, and cruel, and you know not the love of the sun." He was shouting now, and he rested a both fists on the bar. "My name is Sir Carver. I am a Paladin of the Sun, and I bring these charges before you. What say you in your defense?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had stayed with her hands over her eyes for a few moments, not noticing as the half-elf stood up. She had far too busy panicking about what had just happened, what she could have done. She felt like hyperventilating and running, but her body was frozen. She could feel the entire bar staring at her, and she felt the need to fall back to the floor and hide. What happened next surprised her. She expected the man to run away, many had before, but instead she felt something being placed over her head. It wasn't her hat, but a piece of cloth. He was helping her hide her face. She again felt a lose for words at his kindness. She uttered a soft and slurred "Thank...you." From under the cloth. More gentle touches, this time from the man in the armor. She winced, bracing herself for the burn that she knew was coming, but she never felt the pain. That was new. Even his words held a kindness that was foreign to Alula. She could hear the paladin calling the barkeep out on his actions, but his words felt far away and faded.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Watching as the half-elf had stumbled into the female that reminded her of the night, the sudden escalation into what could only be said to be a possession occurred. Suki had no other words to describe the phenomenon. However, it seems that it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, and the woman was left standing there in embarrassment. Raising an eyebrow at the half-elf taking off the scarf, only to smile subconsciously at the kind act of making a makeshift hood for the other woman. Making her way over, she undid the clasps on her cloak, before slipping it off, revealing her body accented by her dress to the tavern. Taking the cloak, she slipped it over the half-elf, making sure the hood covered his face, just as it had for herself. "It seems your reasons are far more important than mine for the moment." Quietly whispering these words to the half-elf alone, she sighed, before muttering "I'll fix this." yo the others in the 'adventure group', before slowly walking towards the barkeeper, drawing just about every male gaze towards her. Reaching the keeper, she smiled, before leaning forward, hands held behind her back, subtlety pushing out her chest. "Is it alright for you to let this incident slip by~?" Whispering such words with a seductive tone, she winked.</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep stared straight back at Carver and spat in his face, "Yeah, and now I've spit in the face of a dishonorable man, this is my tavern, and I prefer it to be a relaxing place for my customers so they won't be disturbed and if you can't tell by their faces, his is pretty disturbing." The barkeep gestured to all of his customers, "They don't want to see THAT, and if you think you can disrespect and insult me in my place of business, then you thought wrong, you, your disfigured friend, the little one that you brought in, and the starry chick, can get thefuck out of my establishment!" -Edit since I got ninja'd : "And you," He shouted at the necromancer, "If you think that flashing your breasts are going to keep your friends in my bar, then you can get out too!"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Carver, huh? That's a nice name you got there. Is that your real name or do you just carve your enemies with one slice?" Separ asked, laughing at his own joke. "But seriously, I'm glad I could persuade you to join the team, and I will happily ask your comrades as well. After all the more the merrier, right?" As he said this Separ quickly stood up and looked at both the childlike gnome and the girl who's body was practically covered by robes. Kelvin seemed to be talking to the gnome though so it probably wasn't a good idea to interrupt them for now, or at least to Separ it wasn't. Separ instead made his way over to the girl only to watch a man with a scarf over his face bump into her which in turn caused both of them to hit the ground. Separ watched as her hat fell off flying under an occupied table. Separ quickly talked with the men so he could get them to move out of the way. The men at the table complained as they were drunk, but relunctantly obliged in the end. After obtaining the hat Separ moved towards the girl, and to his surprise heard her scream. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" The girl then raised her staff before dropping it to the ground, probably figuring it best to not go through with her actions. This stunned Separ, but he ultimately feeled like she had a reason for saying it, after all Carver had not wanted to leave her alone. Perhaps she was under a lot of stress, or maybe something traumatic had happened to her? Either way, this girl seemed nice and merciful, she as Separ expected, was most likely a good person. He quickly walked over only to see the man put his scarf over her face, an act which may not have seemed so great, had the man not been disfigured. Separ actually became frightened of him due to his disfiguration for a moment, not because he was disfigured, but rather because he reminded Separ of the undead. Either way Separ wished he could have him join the team, though Separ did berate himself for being scared of the man, surely this guy must have put up with other people thinking the same thing before. Separ did not want to be just another person that would laugh, point, or be disgusted by something so trivial. You fool, he's alive, you have nothing to worry about. Separ paused for a moment unsure of himself, but finally pressed onwards just as the other attractive girl put her cloak over him. Carver then got in a fight with the bartender and the same girl tried to seduce the man into calming down only it didn't seem to work very well. Tapping the girl on the shoulder Separ handed her the hat. "Here you go, Miss, now if you'll excuse me." Enough was enough, this bartender had gone to far trying to kick someone out because of there looks. Walking up to the bartender Separ pulled out 10 gold pieces, and holding out his hand, grabbed the bartender's right hand with his free hand and plopped it right in the man's palm. "Use this money," Separ's words turned into that of yelling as he threw a wild punch filled with ferocity at the bartender's head. "TO PAY FOR YOUR HOSPITAL BILLS!!!"</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep quickly pulled out the sword he kept behind the counter and blocked the attack, leaving a large gash in Separ's hand and nearly causing him to lose a finger, "It's going to take more then ten gold pieces to pay to fix that, now get out of my sight before I call the town guard on all of you." The barkeep ripped the sword from Separ's hand causing him to bleed profusely and wiped the blood off of his blade with a napkin, "If I have to get the guard, then they will cause a whole lot more damage than that."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Things in the tavern seemed to be heating up. The yelling fest between the barkeep and several of the people, people she was at least slightly acquainted with, continued to grow to the point where Alula was beginning to feel anxious again. She didn't want anyone getting in trouble. She allowed herself to peek out from under the cloth. The half-elf now had a cape, the woman was flirting with the barkeep and the paladin looked almost as red as the sun. Suddenly she was being tapped on the shoulder, a wave of flame passing under her skin. And her hat was being pressed into her hand. She felt the iron heaviness in her gut loosen slighted when she was reunited with her hat. She placed the hat atop her head where it belonged, but kept the cloth in her hands, perhaps not quite ready to part with one of the first physical gifts she had ever received. She was about to timidly thank the man, when she watched him walk right up to the barkeep and attempt to sock him right in the face, only to recieve a bloody hand. Alula let out a shiver, they were in big trouble now. She gripped the cloth in her hands anxiously.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Hold on my friend-" Kelvin turned at the sound of a scream, and the entire tavern just broke apart, people shouting and yelling. The one guy looked like a necromancer had taken his face apart and stuck it back together, the girl had ditched the cloak- finally revealing the full suspicious nature of her beauty. Then suddenly the knight starts going off on the bartender, the bartender spits in the guys face. All chaotically thrown together. Kelvin stood up and moved closer, relaxing a bit as Separ moved towards the man. He would cool this down. ... ... ... nope. He lunged to pull the guy back before it was too late... and missed. Damn. It was quite impressive how quickly the barman had responded. And a bit scary. Kelvin groaned, considering. The knight was almost sure to respond violently to that. "Alright, that's enough." Kelvin stepped forward and slid between the knight and the counter, turning and attempting to shove the man towards the door before turning and attempting to loop an arm around Separ's shoulders to move him towards the door. "Come on already! You too little guy." He glared at the girls each in turn, not sparing the man with the messed up face either. He shoved the stick of dynamite into his pocket. "GET. OUT."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver saw the sword come out in slow motion, but its arc was complete before he had time to shout a warning. Blood had been spilled - there could be no doubt that the barkeep was deserving of punishment. But... not today. Not with the gnome, and the girl, and an already injured friend. Certainly not with the rest of the crowd, who seemed like they might choose the side of the local swindler over the foreign knight. The bearded man grabbed Separ, attempting to pull hims back and call for a retreat. The idea was a sound one. Carver spoke, not breaking eye contact with the barkeep. "This villain will face a judgement, friends - of his own making. A life lived in adversity to the right can have no other outcome. But perhaps now is not the time." He looked across the room, making eye contact with each of the strangers - the gnome, the scarred half-elf, the girl, the bearded man, the injured adventurer, even the woman with the air of evil about her who had tried to soothe tensions. "Let us leave, for now. The sun is too high for bloodshed." The words burned Carver's heart as he said them, but they were true. He promised himself that he would see this man punished one day, but for now he hoped the strangers would take his words to heart.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "I see. Bartenders are simple, but hard to handle." Furnace listened to Separ apologise and wondered what he meant. Had they made a pact before saying he wouldn't fight bartenders? Breaking a sword with bare hands sounded strange. "Wouldn't you just use a hammer or heavy blade for something like that?" Furnace put his hands together again and reignited the white golden coil of lightning between his palms. "Relax the muscles in your hand." He held his hands around the cuts on Separ's knuckles. Bright sparks jumped from his left hand onto the cuts and ran along the edges of wounded flesh until they reached his other hand. The current of positive energy tingled pleasantly, and Separ could feel a comfortable warmth flow from his hand through his body. Surging trough his muscles he felt an energising boost. The wounds closed further, fading the scars further. Showing only thin white lines. "The scars fade with more healing." Furnace explained while he healed the other hand. When he was done Furnace stepped back and the lights flickered out. "How do you feel now?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver put his hand over his breast. "Your humility does you credit, friend Separ, but you need feel no shame for your actions. You did what you thought was best, and put yourself in harm's way for the sake of another. I think you are very noble - it would be my privilege to journey with one of such spirit." The paladin smiled fondly down at the gnome as set his energy to the man's injuries. "Aha! Our diminutive friend shows talent. Fear not, I will speak to the girl - see if I'm unable to convince her." He approached her, still standing where she had been speaking to the half-elf. "I understand that you are afraid. It's a very sudden offer, to go off journeying with strangers. I don't know much about you save that you have some power, and it frightens you." He smiled. "But you don't have to be frightened anymore." The gnome's childlike curiousity and bizarre manner. The half-elf's bitterness, surliness, and surprising gentleness. Separ's spirit, his temper, his headstrong approach to his problems. The girl's shyness, her fear, the strange power she clearly possessed. These people were innocents, trying to make their way in the world. And innocents needed to be protected. That's what Carver could do, he realized. He could protect them. In a daze, he drew his sword and planted in the ground at the girl's feet. He dropped to one knee, places his hands upon his hilt, closed his eyes. "In terror of the night, the sun is our greatest deliverance. If we should journey together, my lady, I swear on my honor that no harm will come to you. As long as I draw breath, I will keep you safe. All of you." He rose, and sheathed his sword.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had decided not to press matters into the half-elf. If he wanted his space she would grant it to him. And keeping the scarf was a nice addition, she would have to find a nice place to keep it. Or maybe she would find a way to attach it to her robes. She was quite happy to know that her keeping his scarf was not the source of his sorrow, but if not that then why was he upset? She stood up, turning around right as the paladin began speaking to her. She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes, although she tried to resist. The paladin could read her pretty well. She didn't like the unknown, and a lot of things were unknown and confusing to her. Going on a random adventure with a bunch of strangers seemed to be a horrible choice. What the man said next about her powers baffled her. She did indeed have 'some power' but did it scare her? Well maybe a little. She wasn't sure why, but it did indeed scare her knowing what she could do and become. She muttered softly. "Control and restraint are the byproducts of fear. But survival is as well." And in a strange change of events the paladin dropped to one knee, his sword planted in the ground by her feet. He was making a vow, to protect them. Sarcastic voices filled her head, saying that the moon was far superior to the sun and that there are more terrors in the day then the night, but she kept these quiet. The man was clearly doing something important. These vows were obviously serious things. From his lower position, if Carver was paying attention to her face, he would be able to see that her eyes looked strangely clear. Nothing like normal eyes should, but it showed that she might actually be understanding. Perhaps an adventure would be good for her. And as Carver rose she again covered her eyes, but her smile was visible. Her voice was slurred. "Well...how could I...resist such an...offer..." Yep, she was on board. She just hoped this would be the right choice.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin He could only sigh as their fearless leader resisted him and Carver, going for another punch. Again, the bartender's reflexes bested fist with blade. That was going to need some stitches. Slowly though, their group filtered out. The madness was ending. Kelvin took the time to toss his pack up onto their table, stowing the dynamite back inside, tightening straps before slinging it back onto his back. He paused and straightened the chairs before returning to face the barkeeper. "I apologize for my companions rash actions." Kelvin grimaced, but forced himself to bow to the other man."I have known them less than an hour, but I already know this will be a long journey." He straightened, and then turned to leave before noticing the girl, her cloak draped over her again. He sighed. Kelvin still didn't agree with her presence, unanswered questions. She had tried to help though. "Hey," He gently tapped her head and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "You are still welcome to join us, if you are brave enough." That said, he turned and strode out, joining their party outside the building. He didn't mix though, instead choosing to stay back a bit and wait for them to talk it out. There were other productive things to do though. Kelvin sat down off to the side of the road and pulled his pack down next to him, removing the components for his crossbow. He was meticulous, carefully adjusting the metal arms, keeping them balanced as he strung it- piecing together the clip and screwing it together before assembling the trigger system. Done, he finally stood, hiking up his pack and braided the cord into a sling for the crossbow. This way it could hang out of the way at his side until he needed it. He was ready.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ could feel warmth slowly seeping into his hands and his entire body, slowly replenishing his strength. When the gnome was done healing him Separ felt energized, yet at the same time tired, and a bit sore. "I...I feel a lot better actually. Though I still feel quite exhausted." Separ clenched his fist. [i]It's numb, I probably just need some rest though.[i] "Thank you for your help. Oh, and would you be interested in joining our group? We're going to go explore and go on adventures and stuff, though I'll understand if you say no after that embarassing moment in the bar." Separ shook his head trying to forget it before watching Kelvin step out of the building. "Please think about it, but for now I have some business to attend to. If you'll excuse me" And with that Separ strode towards Kelvin, and facing him gave him a small bow. "I'm sorry for my actions in there Kelvin, I should have thought more calmly about the situation, it's just, no, no excuses. I should not have caused a scene like that, and truthfully I am sorry. Do you still want to be a part of my group? I honestly won't blame you if you say no, as I acted like an idiot back there. Sorry!" Separ ended his bow and looked back at Kelvin, a look of regret on his face. Sure he was happy so many people had agreed to stay, yet he still felt terrible about losing control and possibly endangering others as well.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded at the girl's acceptance and broke into a broad, warm grin. "Excellent! You shall not regret this decision!" He turned, and called over to Separ, "She'll be joining us, friend!" He turned back and suddenly clapped his hand over his forehead. "By the sun, forgive my rudeness, I still haven't asked your name. I am Sir Carver, Paladin of the Sun. In case you didn't hear when I... um... lost my temper, in there, a moment ago." A very merry company of adventurers they were turning out to be. Carver hoped that the gnome and the half-elf would agree to join them, as well - both seemed like people in need of some looking out for.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Explore. All he'd ever wanted was to see the world for himself. "I'll come with you too. I am Furnace and I'm sorry for uhm.." He looked at Separ and Carver, looking for a clue. When he couldn't think of anything he just shyly shrugged.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Having cried the last of his tears, Vis rose from the floor, using the wall as support. He looked around through tires eyes to see where everyone hade gone, the man who had punched the sword was some ways away with the gnome and the paladin and girl with white hair were but a few feet away and he could hear snippets of their conversation through his deaf ear, they were on his left side. He looked to them and slowly the flickering green light of his eye stabilized into a a dull muted green, having rid himself of his obvious emotions. He approached them, feeling a terribly uncomfortable without a scarf around his face, showing his gnarled cheek in broad day light, he approached them. "If'n thare ith adfenture infolfed, you can counth me in." Though the past 10 minutes had shaken Vis, it would dissuade him from adventuring, if he were to give up so easily, he would have turned home after his eye had been cursed and avoided having his face and ear wrecked. Vis rested his hand on the pommel of his rapier, he was nervous they wouldn't have him.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched as the paladin called over to the punching man. Was he the leader of the party? Alula wouldn't have been surprised, he seemed enthusiastic enough to be a leader but maybe a bit too enthusiastic. He had attacked the barkeep rather quickly, it only took a handful of insults to set the man off. Not only that but he also was defeated in the fight between them, not really thinking before punching a man proficient with a sword. Alula shook her head, she shouldn't be so hard on the man. If they were willing to take her along then she should at least wait before casting judgment. And then the Paladin turned back to her, introducing herself. Alula tried to not show the frown on her face. She was really bad at remembering names. She hoped she would at least be able to remember the paladins name, but more likely then not he would be receiving a nickname soon. Had he really lost his temper? She couldn't remember. What really amused her was that he called himself a paladin of the sun. Yep. They were going to have fun with this. "Three things shine before the world and cannot be hidden. They are the moon, the sun, and the truth." The voice sounded sarcastic and Alula couldn't help but giggle out loud, briefly forgetting that no one but herself could hear them. She watched as the half-elf came over, perhaps finished with his crying, and the gnome introduced himself. What an odd group she had begun to associate with. She was glad to see the half-elf would be coming along as well, and the gnome seemed like good company as well. She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes. "I am Alula...at your service..."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver grinned at the girl's cryptic words. "Four things. You forgot about good cheer." He laughed as though to illustrate, and bowed deeply. "A pleasure to meet you, Lady Alula. I am at your service." The paladin then turned to clap the half-elf on the back. He was greatly pleased to hear of the man's acceptance - surly and ill-tempered as he seemed, his actions had proven to Carver that the man was possessed of a gentle soul. "Good man! You've made an excellent choice, friend. It is ever a great privilege to journey alongside those so fair of spirit." He looked over to the gnome. "That goes for you as well, friend." The company was coming together. There just seemed to Carver to be one thing missing - the black-haired woman with evil in the air around her. Truth be told, Carver wouldn't have minded if the party left without her, save for the fact that he wasn't sure that he could leave this town in her hands. At least if she accompanied them, he could keep an eye on her. "Separ," he called out. "What of that woman who was speaking to you in the bar? Will she be joining us?"</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver caught the woman's gaze and held it as she joined the group. Then she knew. He knew, she knew, he knew she knew, she knew he knew, and she had better know he knew she knew. Of course, that still left the matter of what exactly he knew, but that could come later. If the woman was aware that the Paladin knew what she was, perhaps she'd be on her best behavior. That'd be enough for now. Alula stepped behind him, as though concealing herself from the rest of the group. That fear wasn't ideal, but it was to be expected. The girl would be joining them - Carver was sure she'd come around to them later. "Ah. Supplies. Let's see!" Carver took his pack and began rooting around inside it. "I have... ten gold coins, not bad... this looks like a crust of bread... and, um, a rock." Carver tossed the stone out of his bag and slung it back over his shoulder, smiling sheepishly. "Uh... sorry, I won't be much help on that front. Sounds like Alula might, though. And I imagine that the traditional method of 'asking the barkeeper for rumours' has been ruled out?" The paladin grinned at his own jest and looked to his party for direction.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis raised his voice, "I belief thath we should pool thome coin to buy thupplies for all uf uth." they shouldn't be depending on individual supplies, some most likely didn't have any, Vis supposed, him only having 60 coins, a set of stag antlers and a child's enyclopedia. He took a long hard look at his group, casting green light on every member to scrutinize them, they had a paladin, a sword puncher, a gnome, a rather curvaceous woman and another woman who looked a bit out of it; he could tell that the adventure was going to be something. "Leth all chip in thome coin and buy rathions, things thath will latht a while. Green appleth, hard loafths of bread, dried meath." he had been on the road for a long time and understood what to bring and what not to bring, from personal experience of finding that all the food had rotted in his bag. "And wather thacks." Vis whinced internally, every time he lisped.</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose had paid the barkeeper a nice sum of coin for her cooking set. She had not needed it but she really had not reason not to by it. She had no need for the wealth that came from her wanderer adventurer occupation. Also, She was travelling alone. She had no one other than herself to cook for. She had been alone for a while and even if she wanted. She had entered the tavern with the hopes of spending the night and maybe get some work. She had been upstairs in a room she had rented for the night preparing her things for tomorrow when a commotion occurred downstairs. She walked downstairs armed and ready to defend herself. When she got downstairs it looked like she missed everything. A little annoyed she did not get any action, she wandered outside. Outside she overheard a group talk about getting together for an andventure. Rose wasted no time taking up the opportunity. Rose walks up to the group of adventurers and loudly introduces herself, "Greetings, everyone. I am Rose Anew. Also known simply as Phoenix. I could not help but overhear that all y'all are going on a journey together. I would humbly like to join your group. I am an exceptional front line fighter. Sword and magic are my specialty. I am also a good cook. That should be a plus." Rose was worried she appeared to formal but she did not want to let it show. It would make her look nervous and insecure.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly studied the supplies of Carver, Alula, and the scarf wearing elf. Carver barely seemed to have anything, Alula on the other hand seemed to have tons of gold, as well as some miscellaneous items that Separ could make neither heads nor tails of. Lastly the scarf wearin elf seemed to have a modest sum of money as well as some various items which made Separ question why he had them in the first place. Disregarding those items Separ listened to the elf talk about buying various food items and such, only for a girl who identified herself as Rose Anew, aka 'Phoenix' to step forward and ask if she could go along with the group. Separ was immediately impressed by her, as she said she was both a capable fighter and a great cook. "A fighter and a cook? You've instantly sold me, I'm happy you could be on the team. So what kind of dishes do you specialize in?" Separ then looked around at his fellow group members. "No one has any objections right?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Everyone found gold? I think we have enough for a sword or two." Furnace held his heavy bag of coins and shook the bag have it make a sattisfying jingling sound. "Though the metal is soft and not ideal. We can make do."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched with strange interest as Carver tossed the rock out of his bag. She watched it roll and skid away from the group, until it finally settled into a grassy patch several yards away from them. It would have been impossible for anyone to just see the rock if they were walking past, and yet Alula knew it was there, so she could see it. She shivered despite the heat. She turned her blurred attention back to the group. She allowed the punching man who look through her bag, which she had hidden within her robes. She didn't really have anything of importance on her. Her bag was actually a blanket all bundled together with twine. In her bundle was nothing but a few torn up pieces of canvas, likely at one point a tent, and some random odds and ends. Nothing of value, more like junk you would find laying around. She wondered where they came from. And then there was another girl. Alula pulled down the rim of her hat, muttering softly. "A life is cut short so another can begin. Lives are lost in the forest of life to allow the young to grow." She felt horribly dizzy and a bitter cold spreading though her veins. She leaned forward for a moment, resting her weight against Carver until the cold was replaced with the burn. At this point she was hoping no one else would approached the group.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis watched the rock skid to a halt and walked over to it to pick it up off the ground and into his pocket, a man walking past gave him a glance, most likely because of his damaged face but Vis decided to believe that he glanced about the rock, who knew, he might find use for it later. He turned to the group and once more spoke up, "I'm going thu go thearching for bread, anyone wanth thoo thag along?" he asked, hoping someone would want to come with him, though he wasn't too talkative, he didn't mind the company when he had it, it made him feel a little better about being bad at socializing.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver extended a hand to the newcomer as Alula leaned against his back, muttering something incoherent. "No objections at all. My lady Anew, you are quite welcome to travel alongside us. I am Sir Carver, Paladin of the Sun. Our bare-fisted leader here is Separ, the lady is Alula, over there is Kelvin, and I believe the rest of our friends as yet have the advantage of me." The half-elf was saying something about going shopping. Carver was loathe to let anyone travel alone, but he rather doubted that the girl currently passing out on his shoulder would be up to a crowded marketplace, and he knew for a fact that he wouldn't leave her alone. "I think I'll remain here, but you may take my coin with you. It's not much, but I would hate to be a burden on the group already." He smiled as the gnome jingled his coin purse and spoke of golden swords. "Perhaps you could take this one? It seems he could use an education in the wonders of commerce."</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose politely smiled and shook the hand of the paladin, Carver. "It is always a pleasure to meet a man of the cloth and defender of the faith." She then answered the man introduced as Separ inquiry, "I can cook up any game animal. I am good at stews and roasted meats. Of course, I think I could make any dish at request given the right ingredients." She considered elaboration more but she was cut off by the approach of a cloaked woman. Alula spoke cryptically and Rose was unsure if she was even the one the woman was speaking to, if she was speaking to anyone at all. One life cut down for another. Well yes that is the way of the world. A wildfire is a healthy thing for even the most ancient forests. As a mage, Rose understood the role of destruction and reconstruction very well. It was fundamental to the magic arts on many levels, but did this woman intend to imply more. Rose took a step away from the woman, Alula cautiously. Changing the subject she addressed the man who was going for bread. If she was going to cook, this seemed like something she should be involved in, "Sir, I would like to accompany you to find bread."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis took a long hard lookout the new woman to join the little group, she seemed polite enough and hoped that she wouldn't bring the scar up. "All righth then, leth go." Vis turned on the spot and started to make his way to the market again, there was bound to be a bakery somewhere in the maze of stalls and booths and if not there was probably a proper bakery somewhere in the town, though he wished to avoid proper bakeries as they were expensive. But as Vis walked with the company of the of the new one, he found that he wandered into the fleece market, looking around for the exit, his eyes fell on a booth selling scarves. Vis felt compelled to go towards it and so he did, to take a look at what the vendor had on sale, there were many intricate designs but he longed for something simple like the scarf he gave to the girl, 'what was her name?... Alula'. He found what he was looking for, a simple black scarf, though it wasn't identical to his old one as this one had white ends, "How much?" Vis asked calmly, knowing that that phrase never lisped. "25" Said the man, avoiding looking at Vis' disfigured face, Vis counted out the coins and bought the scarf, instantly wrapping it around his face and feeling much more comfortable that no one could see his scar. "Now we thearch for bread." he said, turing to look at his companion.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula finally found the energy in herself to stand back up straight, no longer able to stand the burn from leaning against the Paladin. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, finding her spinning vision extremely disoriented. She listened for a moment, picking up that the new girl and the half-elf were going off to buy bread, and were perhaps planning on taking the gnome along. She wanted to peek out and confirm her suspicions, but didn't want to risk another wave of dizziness. She listened to the paladin and new women speak to each other. The paladin introduced himself to the girl, and Alula mentally scolded herself for not being able to remember their names. The girl sounded pleasant enough, she spoke to Carver in a respectful tone. And yet she knew that the newcomer was already distrustful of Alula. Suddenly, almost too quickly, Alula's hat tipped back. She revealed her glowing eyes to a man who was passing by, a bag full of purchased goods. She took a step away from Carver, speaking to the man in a distant and knowing tone. "Talk to your wife about what you long for, she will understand and heed to your request." The man looked flustered as he looked Alula up and down and hurried off. She tipped her hat back down, dizziness again washing over her as she spoke. "That man wants his wife to tie his hands to the bedpost, I couldn't guess why though."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the man walk off in spite of himself. "Hmm... some things it's best not to know." He turned to sit on a nearby tree stump, regarding Alula quizzically. "So, how does that work, milady? If you don't mind me asking? Are you an oracle, or just particularly intuitive?" In the monastery, he'd heard some stories of oracles - priests and channelers who could predict things that had not yet come to pass. His knowledge on the subject was limited, however, due to the fact that such miracles were generally the providence of night-time deities, the followers of whom the Crusaders that had trained Carver got along with... poorly (rather like rival groups of school-children.) Carver wasn't sure that was what he was seeing now, but it seemed a good start, especially given her vague reference to the moon, earlier. He felt a sudden stab of worry that the question might send her into another panic - being the vessel to some future-telling power seemed rather like the sort of thing someone might get antsy about. "I'm just making small talk while we wait, of course. Don't feel obligated to give me an answer."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des The girl looked up at Separ, "120 gold all together, will that be all?" She asked, she smiled at the size of his coin bag, showing that she upped the price since he had a lot of money, sadly Separ is un-perceptive and didn't notice. "You going on a camping trip or something."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "120 gold pieces? Isn't that a bit much?" Separ asked as he started to pull out the money regardless. Sure he was surprised by the price, but the gear seemed to be of at least decent quality, and well Separ didn't actually know how much these usually rang up for. Maybe all tents were this expensive? Whatever the case, Separ shrugged it off and naively handed her the money. "I'm not really going camping by the way, more like going on an adventure with some people I just met. They're all pretty nice." Separ turned around and looked a little bit more around the store, then realized he had forgotten to pick up sleeping bags. He quickly rushed over and picked up all eight of them and laid them on the counter as well. "And how much for these?"</s> <\|message\|>Des "4 each, so 32." Once again she upped the price, and once again Separ took no notice. "So you and 7 others huh? You sure 4 tents is going to be enough, you may need one more."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Sure thing, here you go." Said Separ as he handed her the cash, but just before he could hand it to her she asked if he needed one more tent. "Huh? Why would I need one more tent? There's eight of us after all so that would be two per tent. Wait are you just trying to get me to buy more stuff so I can spend more money than I should? Well your plan isn't going to work if that's what your suggesting. I'm just going to pay for this stuff and that's it." And with that Separ handed her the money, though as he prepared to leave he saw some simple medical supplies as well. Bandages, gauze, disinfectant, the works. "Uh, but first, how much are those?" Separ asked, pointing at the supplies.</s> <\|message\|>Des "No, of course not, but there may be that one person who wants to be alone." She stops when Separ says something and looks to where he's pointing. "Oh, the medkit, that would be 40 gold." This Separ catches, he's been through enough bandages to know that the medkit is only 20 at best.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ shocked at the price picks up the medkit and examines it thoroughly, there's no way the medkit should cost this much money at all. Confused and a bit annoyed he went up to the woman and placed the medkit on the counter. "This is just a normal medkit, there's no way it should be this expensive. It's double the price of other medkits." Separ sighed as he realized she may have even cheated him on the other prices as well. What a fool I have been. I fell for her trap so easily. "Did you increase the price of everything I have bought in here?" Separ questioned her sternly.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Noooo, why would a merchant ever exaggerate prices, besides you already bought it with no complaints so you can't do anything now, as for the medkit, you're right, it shouldn't be that expensive, but due to supply and demand, especially since you have 8 people going off on an adventure where injuries are certain and the demand for meds will be high, the price of the supply is also, you guessed it, high. Now pay the 40 gold or get out of here."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace wanted to try this wonder thing. He chose a random stand and walked up to it. He could't see what was on the table but as he looked up he saw the strangest thing hanging from the tarp hanging over the stand. It was a long wooden staff ending in a circle. In the circle a weave made of tightly spun rope was attached. It made him think of the spider's webbing. The handle and shape suggested the staff was a tool for some job or function. Furnace was dying to know what it was. He stepped back so he could meet the shop keepers gaze. He pointed up at the butterfly net as he stood there in shabby rags and bare feet. His appearance suggested he couldn't buy anything here, but Furnace didn't know that. With utmost concentration Furnace looked at the shop keep and shouted "How Much!"</s> <\|message\|>Des Startled by the shouts of Furnace, the shopkeep jumped and screamed a bit. After regaining his calm, he looked to where the gnome was pointing and saw the net, "Oh that, that would be 10 gold pieces."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ frowned at the price, but reluctantly decided it would be better to have a medkit than to not have one at all. "40 gold pieces was it?" Said Separ as he pulled out some coins, only to realize he didn't have enough. "Umm, I only have 32 gold pieces..." His words trailed off realizing he wasn't going to be able to afford the medkit. "It looks like I may be forced to buy that at a later time, thanks for the other supplies though." Said Separ as he began to walk off towards the door.</s> <\|message\|>Des The female merchant called out to Separ, "Wait kid, 30 will be just fine. Some money is better than no money."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Huh, you really mean it?" Asked Separ in shock. "I mean, yes that would be great, though are you sure about all of this, after all you're not getting the full price of what it's worth, and someone else might come in later and by it for the full price of 40?" Separ asked her.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Kid, when do you think some other naïve adventurer is going to come in here and buy it, the people in this town don't go on adventures."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "But... didn't you just say this item was in high demand?" Separ's brow furrowed as he realized he was being lied to. "You have been lying to me this whole time haven't you? Sell me this medkit at a price of 15 or I'm leaving."</s> <\|message\|>Des "The item isn't in high demand, but you are in high demand of it with your pack of 8, 25 pieces or walk kid because I'm not going lower."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ thought about her offer for a moment, but then had a 'brilliant' idea. "25 pieces and a date!" He exclaimed proudly, hoping it would cause her to stumble and lower the price. He wasn't actually expecting her to take him up on the offer, and he figured it was worth a shot. "Either that or 20 pieces."</s> <\|message\|>Des "I told you kid, I'm not going lower, so 25 and a date it is, now I get the 25 and a free meal, but good luck treating me anywhere on 7 gold."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ glanced around nervously and then sighed, defeated. "You were supposed to say 'No way am I going out with you, just take the medkit for 20 and get out.'" Separ fumbled with his money and paid her the 25 gold, and then handed her the last seven gold pieces as well. "Just keep it." And with that he began to leave the store, totally crushed, and without any money for himself.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Succes! The first stage of the ritual was going without a hitch. Furnace pulled out the fat sack of coins and reach in to count and take 10 coins exactly. He checked again to be absolutely sure he had the right amount, then placed the coins on the counter and waited in exited anticipation to see if it would work.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" As Vis tightened the scarf around his face, he turned to address the others when he saw the gnome had wondered off to a stall to the north. Vis naturally went to make sure he didn't get into any mischief, as the paladin seemed to entrust Vis with the task of watching the gnome and he didn't want to be on the armored hulk's bad side. Vis crouched by the gnome's side and looked up at the butterfly net, "so you want the net..." he dragged off at the end of the sentence, not having a name to call the gnome, "ask him how low he's willing to go." whispered Vis into the small man's ear, as he snatched the coins from the counter before the vendor could get his grubby hands on them.</s> <\|message\|>Des Before Vis could manipulate the exchange, the merchant grabbed the gold, and handed Furnace the net. -Ignore this, Vis just ninja'd me with his update</s> <\|message\|>Furnace To Furnace's surprise there was a hidden element to the ritual. The recloacked man corrected him but he didn't know why. The man behind the table seemed to have no problem with the way he was chanting. He suggested an incantation returning a riddle. Perhaps this was an advanced form of magic. A ritual using less materials didn't seem like logical step up. Then again, some materials needed to smelt longer at lower temperatures. Maybe this was similar. In the same way, only slightly more confused, Furnace shouted his incantation at the shopkeep. "How low are you willing to go?"</s> <\|message\|>Des Once again startled by the shouting, the merchant jumped again but not as high this time. Once again regaining himself, he looked at Vis and looked back at Furnace, "Still 10 gold pieces, I'm not going lower on a net."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked back at the gnome and tightened up his scarf, "wath and learn." Vis scanned the stall of it's wares, looking for something to add into the deal, he spotted a bobbin of thread, looking up to the vendor Vis spoke, "throw in tha bobbin and conthider ith a deal." he returned to the gnome and whispered in his ear, "if a vendor is unwilling to go lower, try add something else to the deal but at a lower price."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Based on the reactions of the merchant and the recloacked man Furnace guessed he had messed something up. He looked with large sad eyes at Vis, then at the merchant, then at Vis again. "Now what?"</s> <\|message\|>Des "A bobbin of twine and a net for 10 gold, hell, why not?" The merchant holds out his hand to the gnome, waiting to be paid.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace nodded and handed the man the golden sheets. He wondered who hell was, but he or she didn't interrupt him when he gave the gold. The ritual seemed complete as Furnace accepted the net in return and held it aloft in wonder. What magics could this staff hold? "Now we do the same with.. bread.. right?" Furnace tried to imagine what bread was. The words sounded like broad. So he expected it to be flat and heavy, like a broadsword.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver pondered the girl's question for a moment. "Heavy? I suppose it is, but not so bad once you begin to see the benefits," he responded, unsure if he was still talking about armor. "Truth is, I can't imagine I could ever do anything else. I was raised in a monastery - every day I prayed, trained, read, bettered my body and my mind until the Knight Commander deemed I was ready. Past a certain age, of course, I would have been allowed to leave, but... I never wanted to." He smiled fondly at the memories of his youth, particularly the phrase he now repeated that one of his teachers had been so fond of. "There's so much wrong in the world. One man can't fix it all, but... think about how much he'll do if he tries." He shook himself out of his nostalgia and stood up. "Apologies, you didn't ask to hear my life story. Are you feeling well, my lady? I should think our companions will be returning shortly." The woman in black was still here, he realized with a start. He shouldn't have lost track of her. Careless. She could have hurt someone while he was pontificating. He'd have to do better to keep an eye on that one.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Smashing through the flimsy wood that was the back door, suddenly the commotion in the bakery grew more intense as the raiders figured someone had just left the building. Quickly surveying the location, Vis saw that he led himself into the back yard of the bakery and it was enclosed by high wooden fences with sharpened tips, 'Is this a bakery or a fort?!' he yelled mentally, looking franticly for a way to escape. Turning back to look at the bakery, he saw his exit strategy; tucking the style loaves of bread into his bag and securing the buckles, he made his way to the wall and began climbing it, using windowsills and cracks in the mortar and bricks as hand and foot holes as he ascended the face of the building. Once on the shingled roof, he heard the raiders burst into the backyard and bark in confusion, wondering where the escapee had gotten off to, not knowing that Vis was above them. Taking no time to think he began running along the rooftop, looking around at the scene of carnage going down below him, he jumped the gaps between buildings as he ran. From his vantage point, Vis spotted the paladin and the girl in the pointy hat, still near the tavern and to his left were winding alleyways where he heard the echo of running. It seemed the fighting hadn't reached that part of town. Not concentrating, Vis was struck by an arrow in the left shoulder and went tumbling down the left side of the roof he was running on and fell off the edge, smashing into the cobbled streets below. The impact jarred his frame and he could hear the sickening crack of bone as his shoulder and side hit the ground, staggering to his feet he retrieved his rapier from the floor. "Where do you think you're going pretty boy?" Vis snapped his head to the left and saw that a raider had emerged from a side street to confront him. The raider was decked in chainmail and held a bastard sword in one of his brutish hands. Vis' got shakily to his combat stance, his rapier held in front of him. The raider charged and Vis turned and ran.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula fell to her knees, pressing her forehead into the ground. Her hat had fallen off her head and onto the ground, no longer providing any comfort for Alula as she pressed her palms over her eyes. Even with her eyes covered and shut visions danced behind her lids, voices and phantom sounds assaulted her senses. She let out a final cry of pain before a powerful burst of light encompassed her. Once the light faded, and anyone looking directly at her had given their eyes a chance to recover, Alula was no longer on the ground in pain. Alula was barely even there anymore. She was now floating slightly above the ground, her robes and hair lazily flowing around her, as if gravity no longer was applying their force to her. Her eyes were glowing, but with much more intensity. She took no measures to cover them as they stared, unblinking, at the crowd of monsters. Not only her eyes were glowing, however. Even more shocking and noticeable was her skin. It was as if every vein in her body had begun to admit a bright glow, looking like cracks long her flesh. Alula, or at least what she had been reduced to, looked around. She first noticed Carver, raising her now glowing staff as if to aim a projectile attack, but her other arm lifted up, pulling the arm with the staff back down. She spoke in a regal and calm voice that echoed through the area. "Do not harm the ones the girl has grown attached to." The arm holding the staff rose up twice more, as if wanted to go against this command and harm Carver regardless, but it eventually stopped. Alula looked away from Carver, into the crowds of attacking monsters. Without even wincing or bracing herself she lifted her staff, aiming it into the mass of creatures, hoping to hit as many as possible. Out of the tip of the staff blasted a bright beam of moon energy. It was bright enough to be seen for a mile, and was very attention grabby as well as deadly.</s> <\|message\|>Carver In an instant Carver's sword and shield were in his hands. There was no time to think, no time to pontificate on why this attack was occurring. Now was time for action. Carver cast his eyes about him. The situation was bad. Townspeople everywhere in absolute disarray, enemies approaching from all angles and running roughshod through the town, an ettin smashing up just about everything. What was more, two helpless strangers were already in his protection - he couldn't leave them behind to mount a defense for the town. 'Helpless' maybe wasn't the best word for Alula, though. He watched as she exploded into blue light and fired a beam of energy into a crowd of attackers. No time to think about that, either. For now, it would just have to make sense, especially as the light show seemed to have attracted a small horde to their position. Carver grabbed his helmet from his bag and shoved it onto his head, flicking the visor down. "Alula! Furnace! Kelvin! Stay behind me!" He shouted as he brought his shield forward and raised his sword up behind it. "We're going to find the others!" He had to hope they would listen. "In the name of the sun!" he shouted, and surged forward at the fastest pace he could muster, into the throng of foes.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula cast a glare down upon Carver as he commanded her to get behind him. It was rather lucky that the man wore armor, any bare skin would have soon felt itself burning. She did not care at all about the safety and life of Carver or the two other she found herself suddenly allied with. All that mattered was that Alula was kept safe. That the vessel was kept safe. A voice spoke though Alula, her expression still one of anger. "We do not see why we must keep behind a worthless human." A second voice spoke, expression changing to a more playful one. "We do not see why not, the view is quite fine from up here." The voices began arguing with each other, constantly speaking over each other. "You disgust us! please don't hurt them. He is a paladin of the sun for morishacks sake! he will not harm us. If anything he will just get in the way!" By now Carver was half way to the horde, moving at the comedic speed of a snails pace. Alula sighed, raising her staff yet again and firing another beam of searing light into the horde. It was fired dangerously close to Carver, perhaps as a sign of aggression. (8/10 moonbeams remaining)</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace went into the tavern and watched as goblins and kobolts smashed up the place. The barkeep stood alone against a small horde of assailants. Shouting angrily as he waved his sharp knife around. Furnace was glad to see everyone in a fighting spirit, he felt like he was starting to get it. Suddenly the room lit up bright. Pale light pierced trough the open windows and doors and threw longs shadows on the rubble that wasthe interior of the tavern. Furnace looked outside to see Alula hover in the air, flashes of divine power lashing out from her body. He saw coils of lightning run over her skin and her piercing eyes negative to his own. He intended to go and see up closer, but suddenly she released a massive blast of energy into the horde just outside. Furnace had to dive as the blast singed the house and came bursting through the windows. He stared at the devastation it wrought, carefully he looked outside to see even more. She was looking at Carver again as he called his name. Furnace had given to it him with reason, he supposed he should come. Making sure not to stand between the groups of targets he made his way over to the middle of the square where the other 3 where. Though she had grown more voices Alulah seemed calmer than before. No, more confident. Furnace gawked at the power she was emitting, he got closer and studied her. He held his hand up before her, not touching, not in the way, just to draw her attention as carefully as possible. As with holding molten steel. The state in which she has most potential is the most dangerous one. He waited until he met her gaze. "That looks awfully strenuous."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched as her two beams tore holes in the horde as well as the town itself. She didn't really care where her destruction was laying. If she destroyed the town in order to destroy the monsters, so be it. At first she hadn't noticed something as small and insignificant as the gnome standing slightly off to the side, but he was recognized as one of the girls companions. Alula looked down upon Furnace with a smug grin. The voice that spoke this time used a cocky tone, like an older sister trying to show off to a kid. "Strenuous? Hardly. This is a piece of cake." She leaned closer, dangerously so. Close enough for Furnace to feel waves of energy emitting off of her. "You wanna see something cool kid?" And without even waiting for an answer Alula shot off another beam, whizzing dangerously past Carver, aimed right for the Ettin.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki continued moving through the alleyway, taking the twists and turns almost habitually, until she reached the more open areas, where the destruction was occurring. Glancing around to get her bearings, it seemed that there were several kobolds and goblins around. She frowned, as she looked at them. Creatures like these...were generally too dumb to figure out some kind of plan like this. How did they come in as a nearly organized raiding force? However, before she could come up with any kind of plans, the kobolds and goblins around her have noticed her presence. Suki immediately moved, swinging the scythe wide, decapitating on goblin with the blow. With the blade behind her, she pushed forward, slamming the pole end of the staff handle into the face of another that was starting to rear its head at her. Despite her efforts, Suki was frowning again. She was outnumbered here, with no one to help. "Then again, I never had help in the first place..." Muttering self-depreciating words, she slammed the blade of the scythe into the ground. Though surprised by the sudden action, the goblins and kobolds advanced towards her. At least, until a skeletal hand had burst out of the ground, grabbing the closest foot. Using the sudden diversion to back off, Suki winced in pain, falling to one knee, as she watched the skeleton claw its way out of the ground, with another one right behind it. Both skeletons immediately went to work, slashing with sharpened fingernails, sometimes even stabbing with a rib or two.</s> <\|message\|>Des As Carver charged into the herd he trampled a few and was stabbed by many more, although due to his armor only a few actually harmed him and he was dealt 8 damage, but now he his surrounded Alula's attack on the Ettin seemed to have no effect but it did blind him causing him to trip and crush a building beside her</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Ten feet. I walk in her glorious light. I will not falter. Five feet. I bear her glorious purpose. I will not falter. Two feet. I face her foes in combat, my heart pure and unsullied. I will not falter. Carver had just taken the first blow on his shield when his vision was filled with a blinding blue light. The heat from the near miss soaked into his armor and made him break out in a sweat. The paladin staggered to the side, trying to regain sight. What was that? Did the goblins have some sort of spellcaster? How had it gotten behind him? Were the others safe- A rusted blade drove into his side through the chink in his armpit's armor, immediately suspending all further questions. With a cry, Carver swung his shield out and slammed the goblin in the face, sending it spinning to the dirt. Goblins everywhere, now. He kicked one aside, cut another across the chest. He felt blows clanging all against his armor, blocked furious swings with his shield, parried them with his blade. One goblin got lucky and drove a dagger up his knee and into his thigh, and Carver collapsed to one knee for a moment. Another took this opportunity to slam a mace into his helmet, smashing his thoughts and filling his sight with stars. Gritting his teeth, Carver rose, ignoring his injured leg, and cut the mace-wielding goblin in the chest. More swarmed over him, shrieking and clanging and clawing at his plate-covered body, but he was a Paladin of the Sun - and Paladins didn't run. Every blow that fell on him was a blow that could have fallen on Alula, or Kelvin, or Furnace. And so the knight stood, and fought his losing battle.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Suddenly, the adrenaline in Vis' system drained away and he felt immensely tired, from all the strenuous moving and his profuse blood loss and his body was wracked with thudding pains. He leaned against the wall next to him for support but instead he staggered and had to sit on the floor, resting his head on the wall he sighed as the world around him grew silent or maybe his brain was too tired to interpret sound. He whinced as he leaned his back against the wall, the long gash on it inflamed; looking down onto his chest, he furrowed his eyebrows, the front of his leather armor had a bump on it. Deciding to investigate, he pulled back the leather segment and stifled a yell, there, protruding from his chest was a pointed piece of metal, an arrow head. He quickly brought his hands to his back and felt that the fletching of the arrow , it was touching his armor, the arrow had gone all the way through him and had missed everything vital. He was amazed and at the same time horrified, he decided to keep it in to hold back blood, picking himself back up, Vis shambled back to the man he had killed, he had a plan. He pulled the black tunic off of the man and draped it over himself, covering his armor and making him look like one of them, looking back at the man he sighed, if he had a ranged weapon he could gave killed him and took no damage. Vis had an idea. He dropped to his knees and with tired hands, got to work, cutting a patch of leather from the dead mans trousers and poking two holes through it and working twine through the holes. His sling was complete and he rose to his wobbly feet, only to start shuffling and stumbling, Vis was drained and felt as if he were on his last legs. He stumbled back out but instead of coming to the main street he came out in a forest, a bit confused he carried on and step by step he faltered until he fell on the floor, breathing shallowly. Maybe the arrow had hit something vital after all. The black tunic billowed around him as he hit the ground and he moaned in pain, dressed as one of the raiders.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula looked over the chaotic destruction of the town. She seemed rather pleased, Carver was being tended by the gnome and the horde in front of them had seemed to thinned out considerably due to the fires. Yes, this was fine. But something was wrong. The girl was panicking again. "Please! Another is hurt. He is dying. He is far and needs us." It took a lot of effort but Alula was finally able to convince herself to move. Despite the anxious and urgent tone of Alula's voice, she moved at a slow and lazy hover over the battle. It wasn't difficult to find Vis, and yet she hesitated as she hovered down next to him, glowing eyes looking cross. "This man is a raider he doesn't need to be healed, he needs to be killed. no wait please he isn't a raider. Ah yes...now we recognize him. The man who tired to hurt you in the tavern. he didn't try to hurt me it was an accident. And now here he is on the ground, just like back in the tavern." And as it seemed like Vis was soon to be blasted to death, another voice spoke. The same calming one that often kept Alula in line. "The girl speaks the truth. This man is kind and has protected her. We will not harm him." The staff was lowered, and Alula hovered even closer to Vis and carefully turned him, removing the arrow with gentle movements. Despite this care Alula still sounded anxious. "please be gentle with him. You heard as the other said, you cannot harm him. Please let us heal him." Alula's begging finally gave way. The girl first made sure Vis was not watching as she pulled back her sleeves and began to chant. "petranas letoclo ve irisv sia thurirl" This heal was far more energy consuming then healing Separs hands. This was a lot of internal damage and bleeding, but he would live. Alula again hovered over him, glowing eyes devoid of emotion. But she was relieved. She was glowing with far less intensity now, using all of this energy was exhausting her. She wished it was night.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis was nearly unconscious when he felt a soft draft across his face, then a burning pain lanced through his body as he felt his organs shift, the arrow slowly being pulled out of his body, ge writhed in pain but clamped his mouth and eyes shut, not wanting to attract attention. But the pain did not relent, as burning white magic sifted through his broken bones and pulled together parted flesh until he was as whole as possible. Vis groaned and flopped onto his side and clutched at his chest, he gasped for air and relished it's cooling feeling in his lungs, he was better but he did not feel much better. Vis finally opened his eyes but saw only the ground, tilting it to look up, he saw an angel floating by his side, he squinted as it's bright glow hurt his eye he reached out and tried to touch the angel bit found that it was too far, he still held his hand out though hoping the angel would bless him. As he blinked away tears of pain and the haze of exhaustion, he saw that he wasn't looking at an angel but at that girl, Alula. Slowly Vis got to his feet, and his knees buckled for a bit before he leaned on a tree to look up at her, he tightened his scarf, "Um.. Th-thank you." he was frankly a bit scarred of her but at the same time, he felt the need to step closer, "Alula.."</s> <\|message\|>Des The ravaging horde ripped apart Rose, adding her to the pile of rotting flesh. Rose has died</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula looked down upon Vis as he began to breathe, a small smile spreading across her face. He was breathing, he was alive. Thank the stars. She watched as he reached out, as if trying to touch her. She moved away, even though she knew he wouldn't have the reach nor the energy to grab her, she didn't want him to get burned. She watched him struggle to stand, wishing she could have assisted him but being afraid of making things worse. And he spoke as he stood, and Alula let out a soft giggle and a smile before her face contorted back to a serious and emotionless expression. "There is no need for you to thank us. You shall thank the girl once this is all over." Alula drifted over to the tree line, peaking out. "The fight is not yet over. And you are in no shape to be moving." She looked over her shoulder, back at Vis. "And we suggest you keep yourself safe, for your sake as well as the girls."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was on one knee, panting, armor scuffed and battered and dented, aching from a dozen bruises. Another mace cracked onto his shoulder, adding to the count. The armor would take the force of the blow, he knew - it wouldn't harm him, not really. Didn't mean it wouldn't hurt. "Carver, a knight in shining armor is a man who's never had his metal tested. Again." Goblin blood was leaking in his visor. He blinked his eyes clean and beheld something wondrous. It was the sun, right in front of his eyes, burning and bright and powerful. He was bathed in her light - his mind was soothed with her radiance. She was his bright lady, he her knight errant, and she had seen fit to grant him a token of her favor. Tears ran freely down the knight's face, mingling with the blood. She was here, she was with him. For a moment Carver thought he was dead; for a moment he thought he would never die. And then the light faded, and strength surged through his body. He rose, flush with warmth and fire, and lashed out a cut at the goblin who had struck him. He blocked another blow, took another on his armor without flinching. He could not be hurt - not while he bore her purpose. "Hello again, friend." Carver turned his head around to see the gnome there, looking at him. Carver grinned, though he knew the gnome wouldn't be able to see it. "My friend! Stay back, let me take the worst of it! Is everyone safe?"</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin Well, the answer to that one was a solid 'no'. That little guy though. He was amazing. Kelvin only paused for a second to see the midget punch into the enemy lines towards the paladin. Great work there, but- there was more work to be done. Kelvin instead ran towards the tavern, with it's roof fairly busted up by the ettin's weight. He threw open the door and ducked inside, raising his crossbow to release a round almost point blank into the surprised face of a goblin, which promptly fell over, even as Kelvin released a few more bolts into attackers. He paused for a moment and looked over the space, shouting. "There are too many! We got to leave! Follow us if you want to live." He paused long enough to refill his pouch with crossbow darts from his pack and reload his crossbow before charging back out, moving to support the midget and the paladin. Fires still blazed in spots around them, but that was just to his advantage. He dashed forward to use the two warriors as cover. He arrived and shot a goblin coming from Carver's left in the chest, not killing him due to armor, but knocking him down easily. "We can't fight this many, we need to get the townsfolk and leave."</s> <\|message\|>Des As Kelvin leaves the tavern, The ettin wakes up and his rising crushes the building and all those inside. The ettin then looks over at the three in the mosh pit and charges towards them. People who have escaped for now unless they run back in: Separ Suki Vis Alula So only the three trapped in the middle of the horde are left to run and escape or fight the horde and ettin Ettin:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace The lumbering brute rushing towards them gave Furnace considerable alarm. Regardless what the double headed giant was planning, at this rate he was going to step on on Furnace's sword! What a fool he had been for dropping it. Furnace shouted a warning "Don't walk there!" but the monster did not take note. Without a though Furnace ran at him, or rather, the sword arms outstretched. He reached out with heat and cinders as he let magic flow forwards, setting fire to the corpses and rubble between him and the Ettin. Torn armor, lost chains maxes and blades, scraps and rubble. The battlefield was littered with things that burnt and things that melt. Red glowing landmines of liquid metal scattered across the field the Ettin was charging into. The epicenter of scorching pain placed several meters above the now glowing blade of Furnace. The growing ball of fire stood imposing in the path of the Ettin, at chest height and bright enough pierce eyes. Unfazed by the heat and nimble enough to skip and jump between the molten death traps, Furnace bounded forwards, leaving a trail of glitter in his wake as kicked up sand turned to glass. He didn't know if the creature was going to be willing to burn himself, all he had eyes for was his blade.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver "We can't fight this many, we need to get to the townsfolk and leave." Carver couldn't see the man who was shouting to him, but from the voice and the crossbow bolts that appeared in the chests of several goblins, he guessed it was Kelvin. He was just preparing a response when the world caught fire. A great roar came from the battlefield as piles of scrap metal melted into pools of lava. He could feel the heat even from here - if he stayed around this inferno, the knight would be cooked alive in his armor in a few minutes. Obviously, this was the work of whatever spellcaster had singed him earlier - now they were poised to burn the whole town down. The scope of the battle had changed, he realized. There was more power at play here than the party was prepared to handle. Carver hated to run, but laying down his life now would be a pointless waste. The battle was lost; now he just needed to get everyone clear. A proposition that was very suddenly made drastically more difficult when the gnome bounded into the heart of the fires - towards the Ettin. He was moving fast, faster than Carver could have managed even without armor. Well, he'd just have to hope the gnome slowed down, then. He turned to Kelvin. "Get to the others, and get them and as many people as you are able out of the town and into the woods! Keep them safe! I'm going after the gnome! We'll meet you out there!" With that, Carver took off running as fast as the sun's energy would allow him.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Get to the others, and get them and as many people as you are able out of the town and into the woods! Keep them safe! I'm going after the gnome! We'll meet you out there!" "Don't die, Sun worshipper. We are going to need you." Kelvin nodded affirmatively, and turned away, only to find himself facing another force of goblins. They weren't in a hurry, he was clearly outnumbered. He leveled a flat gaze with them, and slowly reached into his belt pouch and pulled out the dynamite, lighting it's fuse easily in a nearby blaze. Thanks, little guy. Kelvin held it up and looked at the fuse mildly as it slowly burned down, the enemies creeping closer. He waited until just three wraps about the thumb of fuse were left before throwing it in an arc over the group, aiming for the center before turning and diving diving to the ground, hold an armored corpse up in front of him in protection. A moment later, the blast seemed to shred through the air like a rabid animal through rotting leather, deafening and overwhelming even the sounds of the horde. Instantaneously, a wave of force pushing out bits of enemy, dead, armor, and dirt picked up Kelvin and his 'body'shield, throwing them back a good ten feet. He didn't hesitate or stop to survey the damage, instead stumbling upright and charging straight through the temporary cloud of dirt and smoke and out the other side, only pausing to shoot those directly in his path. Once outside of the main crowd, Kelvin continued his run through the outskirts of town, only pausing to pound on the doors that were still closed. This could mean the insides were untouched, and the people as well. "Out! We must abandon the city! Follow me if you want to live!" Kelvin barely paused as he reached the woods proper before turning, running just within the cover of the trees along the border of the town. That ditsy mage had fled this direction, though if she was smart she would have kept going once she was out. If not her, maybe he could find Separ. It didn't seem likely though, he must have been near the center of the chaos when it started.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula wasn't looking all that well. Despite not sustaining a single bit of damage from the horde of goblins, she was fading fast. Or something was. She wasn't hovering quite as far off the ground, and several time she actually touched her feet to the ground as if trying to rebalance herself. She didn't speak to Vis, although she occasionally glanced over her shoulder, reaffirming for herself that the half elf hadn't moved or died. And when Alula did speak it was in a strange language, no longer the common tongue. All of her words seemed disjointed and spacey, as she kept watch and made sure no straggling goblins spotted the spot where Vis was recovering. Her glowing was fading as well, no longer as bright and blinding. She could hear someone moving through the trees, and struggled to lift her staff and aim an attack. She never fired however, as she recognized Kelvin. The girl lowered her staff, muttering weakly. "A man who tangles with death and yet never stays."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Once Alula had stopped turning around, Vis disappeared into the forest, giving the Oracle a wide birth so she could not spot him. He felt a bit more steady on his feet but still a bit shaky. He walked and then he started to jog and by the time he reached the edge of the forest he was sprinting, it seemed that magical healing had a delay when it came to pain reduction. Once at the edge of the forest, Vis dropped to a crouch and winced, clutching his side an clamping his eyes shut, 'so much for magic pain reduction.' he thought to himself as he sank out of the tree line and into the outskirts of the town. As he snuck through the town, he heard yells and cheers as raiders celebrated the destruction of the town and the occasional scream of terror. Slowly approaching the area of the bakery, Vis felt his heart sink to his stomach, there was a rising cloud of smoke coming from where he remembered the bakery to be and once he came around to the street where it operated, his hopes were dashed. The building was blackened and charred, and the windows were smashed along with the doors. Vis crept in and went straight to the kitchen and tears stung his eyes as he saw the table flipped over and the hatch wide open, stumbling to the entrance, he hissed down into the basement. "Any one thare?!" He got no reply, so he stuck his head in and illuminated the room with his green eye, he recoiled instantly and hurled not the floor, heaving until his stomach was empty. Every one was dead and the coppery smell of blood was all that came from the room down below. But Vis had to have hope, he climbed down into the space and regretted it as he splashed into a puddle of crimson. He looked around and bathed everything in a green light, they were all dead, butchered and their limbs strewn everywhere. He was about to leave when he heard a meep, he turned to where he thought he heard it and saw the baker woman who had told him of the basement. She was beckoning weakly towards him, Vis quickly went to her side and dropped to his knees and gripped her hand. "I'm thorry," he whined, tears escaping his eyes, "please forgive me-" her weak smile cut him off and she gripped her hand and nodded towards a crate in the corner. "look after-" she rasped, Vis was about to ask what her what he was meant to look after but her eyes had already closed. He clamped his eyes shut and fought back more tears, before rising and approaching the box. Lifting open the lid he was surprised at what was in side</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was burning. The heat from the inferno was cooking him alive inside his armor, and in a strange place in his mind outside lucid thought, he felt a brief pang of pity for all the roast chickens he had eaten in his life time. A thunderous crack filled his eardrums, and a shockwave pushed into him from behind, bowling him off his feet. Perhaps Kelvin's work, or another display of power from the spellcaster? He hoped for the former as he struggled, unsteadily, to his feet. He was torn for a moment between continuing or returning to try and help the others. The gnome was in the most pressing danger - he carried on his course. He could scarcely see from the blood and smoke in his visor, and so he held it as an act of divine providence (or perhaps profound luck) when he almost literally tripped across a small form laying prone in a pile of rubble. Either this was the gnome or a strangely-proportioned child; either way, they very certainly needed to be removed from this situation. The ground shook nearby, and Carver just made out the silhouette of the Ettin a few meters away. A mighty blow landed, and Carver's armor was rained with chips of wood - apparently, the Ettin hadn't noticed the Paladin, and was preoccupying itself with destroying the village. Carver, with as much stealth as a burning man clad in full plate armor could muster, bent over the gnome. He was agonizingly aware of the fact that his armor was more than hot enough to burn skin at the moment, so he grabbed a nearby curtain that was only burned a little, stamped the fire out of it, and swathed the unconscious gnome in it like the world's largest baby. Then, once more that day, the knight ran. He ran until he could breathe without smoke filling lungs, until the cracking of burned wood faded into the distance. He coughed, still holding the gnome to his chest. His burns ached, hiw wounds bled, and his eyes told him that they wanted to close. He told them to shut up. There were trees here. Carver coughed again, and called out hoarsely: "Alula! Kelvin! Separ! Are you there?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed as Vis tried to sneak away. The half elf wasn't exactly graceful, crashing through the forest on weak legs. Her magic really only worked its best when the injured person stayed still, like she had requested of Vis. She wasn't sure why Vis wanted to return to the destroyed town, and yet she didn't seem to care. At least, most of Alula didn't care. There was the gentle, frantic, voice in the back of her mind. Begging herself to pursue the man before he got himself hurt again. "We have healed him once. It is his own fault if he returns to the fighting. We can no longer afford to endanger the girl." And then an explosion shook the ground. The force of it, even from so far away, shook Alula. She lost focus for a moment, almost loosing her trance. It took considerable effort to keep herself hovering above the ground, and the light in her eyes continually flickered out. "We are loosing energy. We should not have healed the half-elf. We leave ourselves vulnerable. We should leave before anything dangerous continues." But before the girl could float herself away from the burning town, as well as the new companions she had acquired, something stopped her. A voice. And it said a name. Her name. Her real name. Her eyes flickered for a few moments, like a strobe light, before illuminating again. The paladin was in distress, and he was holding someone of equal distress. She hovered her way over to him, appearing between trees like a ghost. "The girl is unharmed and she is glad to see you are alive." Alula looked around, back towards the town. "The half-elf ran back in, if you are wise you will not follow him. You should sit down, and wait for the commotion in the town to die down."</s> <\|message\|>Des The Ettin watched as the people had raced out of the town, but he was to be tending to his burned and scarred foot to chase after. The rest of the raiders cheered and began looting the rest of the town. As Vis opened the crate, he heard a wimper and saw a small girl sitting inside.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver The half-elf was still in the town, with the fire and the Ettin and the raiders. Maybe there were others, too; townsfolk who were still alive but couldn't make it out on their own. Carver set Furnace down gently and turned around. "He's hurt," he murmured to the girl. "He needs... help... I'll be back in a few... minutes." He took a step, then another, then a third. This wasn't so hard. Walking was just step after step, after all. Vis and the others were practically rescued already. He was getting quite close to the town now, he was certain - why, he could see the lights from the fires right in front of his eyes. Now he just had to find the half-elf, and everything would be grand. All these thoughts and more ran through the knight's head as he collapsed to the ground at Alula's feet, about a meter away from where he had placed the gnome. Carver tried to push himself back up as he'd done so many times during the day, but found he hadn't the strength. Failing that, he began to crawl, hand on knee, back towards the village. This was somewhat slower, but slow and steady won the race. The half-elf would be rescued, as sure as sure could be. The darkness closed in on the knight slowly and then immediately. A few feet later, he stopped crawling.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver When Carver came to, he was struck by the sensation of not being on fire. He took a moment to appreciate how fine it was to not be immolated, then sat up quickly, his head swimming. He'd passed out. Weak. Selfish. Failure. Carver shook his head in an attempt to clear his brain of these thoughts. There would be time for self-loathing later, but not after everyone who could be saved had been. The knight examined the structure he'd been hidden behind for a moment. It was well-constructed, though obviously done in a hurry. Carver suspected Kelvin might be behind its creation - he wasn't sure who else could have thrown it together. He felt a pang of gratitude for the man who had risen to the occasion when Carver's strength had failed him. His was a noble example, indeed. He rose, shakily, and brought his gloved hands up to touch his unhelmed face. No burn marks. Alula's handiwork, or maybe Furnace's - once again, those he was meant to be protecting seemed to be protecting him. He'd have to do better. His head pounding, Carver stepped back into the clearing and was struck by two sights. One, Furnace was conscious, and conversing with Kelvin a short distance away; and two, Vis had returned, bringing with him someone new - a child, staring at Alula with rapt wonder. Kelvin and Furnace's efforts required thanks, thanks he would be sure to give them sooner rather than later. However, for the moment Carver was concerned with the health of the others - Alula, who had displayed such uncharacteristic power, and the girl, whose home had obviously just been burned down. "My lady!" he called out to Alula, managing not to wince from his soreness as he sauntered over to her. "Are you unharmed? I must offer my most sincere apologies for collapsing, as I did. It was... unbecoming of a knight, and will not happen again." He gave a warm smile to the girl and dropped down to a crouch to look her in the eyes. "And who's this one? Child, do not fear. No harm will come to you, not now. I am Sir Carver, Knight of the Sun, and I am very pleased to meet you."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki grimaced as she sat up. Alright, it seems she was going to have to drain someone soon. As she thought about this, her eyes had drifted over towards the man who had carried her out of the town. No, best not to take him yet...perhaps she'll find someone soon. Besides, he did not look like he could take a kiss from her and live, even if she wasn't trying to kill him. Muttering softly under her breath, "Saving someone like me was a waste of time.", she glanced back towards the rubble of the town. Her scythe was still back there. Although she could probably summon and assign an undead to bring it to her, not did not seem like the right time to do so. Turning towards Separ, she smiled. "I'm pretty certain that Kelvin and the paladin would keep everyone else safe. After all, you've only just gathered us today. It would be a horrible joke of the divines to kill us all off." Attempting to reassure the man, Suki looked around. Now that they were semi-safe, they would probably have to find the rest. Although running away now, while the paladin wasn't around, wasn't such a bad thought either.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin If she wanted to stay awake, that was her own business. But when he decided it was time to sleep, he wasn't going to be waking for a while. "The half elf returns." Kelvin nodded in thanks. It was good to have a bit of warning, not that he would have put more than two crossbow bolts on anyone who jumped them, right at the moment. That girl was interesting, seeming to have multiple voices speaking for her at any one time. Personally though, if he had to choose one it would be the more dominant one. It seemed accustomed to giving out orders- not a trait he prefered, but the voice was practical and could hold up a conversation. He would have to see if he could draw it out more often for conversation, no offense to the poor girl it was speaking through. The scarred rogue appeared, carrying a child. Not a great development, but she could be useful. Old enough to do basic tasks at least, and to learn. Kelvin left them to talk to the oracle, instead choosing to do some more work on the shelter, until the gnome awoke."I wouldn't mind some practical help, I suppose." Kelvin looked at the crooked arm and grimaced. "It won't feel pretty for me to set it though. I am no doctor, so I will just have to straighten by feel." He paused for a moment, and felt his own arm up and down, looking intent. It was an odd idea. He knelt next to the small man and carefully felt the arm. If the little guy was moving about with it, he must have decent pain tolerance. "Start when I tell you, not before- and please don't light me on fire." On a burst of inspiration, he picked up a stick and offered it to the poor guy, mimicking biting it with his teeth. Kelvin turned back to the arm and felt gently above and below the break, then suddenly tightened his grip, twisting the arm just slightly and bracing his body against any possible thrashing. "Now." Kelvin chose to look away from this particular event. Even as a man who had seen fingers crushed in gears and blown apart bits of partners, some memories were best left uncatalogued in ones brain. Other thoughts were better. Such as about Separ. Kelvin winced. It was really a shame. He hadn't anything against him or that hooded girl, though he didn't trust her looks. Survival was the main thing for now.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" (For Alula, happens prior to Carver) Khat looked to the ground and scuffed her boots in the dirt, the floating person was really nice and she could sense the warmth of hair kindness radiating off of her, 'or is that the warmth of her glow?' she wasn't sure but she felt warmth. "What girl?" she asked, looking past Alula with even more interest, tilting her head at her before reaching up to tighten her bandana, "You're here aren't you? at least you look like you are here, its all relative, to me you are here and to someone else you might be there, but to me you are here, so what other girl must there be?" For a very long time, Khat had been blabbering about things that people didn't really understand, or interpreted as the babble of a child, Relativity was one of them and she felt like she was on to something despite the critics of the adults.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" When the knight, Carver, knelt to look at Khat, she squirmed and promptly hugged Vis' leg tighter, making him meep. "Momma told me not to trust a man in armor." Blurted Khat, as her mind was taken back to the first weeks she worked with her mother. A knight of some minor lord had barged into the bakery with his gaggle of squires and demanded free cake for all of them, her mother told them to get out but instead they got violent, smashing up furniture and threatening to do the same for her. Momma finally relented and gave them what they wanted and Khat watched on as the men filed out, laughing and eating her mother's hard work. Then a the knight touched her mother's chest and she ran into the kitchen to cry, though at that young age she didn't know what had happened, she had an idea of what it meant now. She clutched onto Vis' legs more, and Vis put his hand on her shoulder. "He'th noth a knighth, he ith a paladin." Said Vis reassuringly, squeezing her shoulder gently to comfort her. "I don't care," she retorted, glaring at the armored man, "he's wearing armor." Vis frowned beneath his scarf but shrugged the frown away, instead he looked up at the sky and squinted, the sun was setting and throwing it's dying colors out into the sky in a chromatic spectical of oranges, reds and purples. Khat followed his eyes and yawned, it was getting late and she usually slept by nightfall, falling asleep in the kitchen after kneading the next day's dough. She looked up at Vis, "Can I sleep?" Vis nodded and thought about a place where she could bed for the night, looking around, he saw a willow tree with a large branch jutting into the clearing, Vis picked her up and approached the tree, holding her like a baby. He ascended the willow until he reached the branch, finding a a wide divot in it where he then placed the child, Vis looked around and was satisfied she wouldn't fall, anyway, the tree wasn't that tall. "I'll be back, gonna clean up." Vis climbed back down and asked the group, "ith thare a thtream near here?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace didn't get the idea of biting on wood. Wood wasn't food. He tried that. But as Kelvin held his arm right. And what felt like surges of negative energy ran trough his arms, he noticed he was gritting his teeth. The wood was a safeguard? This guy was really smart. When Kelvin gave the signal Furnace concentrated and forced another golden white coil from his hands to dance along his arm. The sparks sank into the flesh and they both heard the unsettling sound of setting bones. Like wet leather being strained against a hollow tree. A few sparks missed their mark and jumped up Kelvins fingers instead. Immediately clearing out diminutive cuts amd bruises on his working hands. "Thmph yuth." Furnace spit out the stick. It had deep bitemarks in it. "Thank you." He stretched his arms. He felt a little sore, but the pain was banished and he noticed a strong feeling of relief. He looked around. The structure was unclear in it's function. But appeared well built regardless. "How can I aid you in return?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula looked over at the child, still hiding behind Vis as she spouted some strange nonsense. Well. At least the kid was curious. And yet the oracle knew that an illiterate child from a poor village wouldn't be able to understand a higher standard of magic, and she didn't really have the patience left to talk to the child. "The girl is here, and yet not. She does not need to concern herself in problems that might cause her harm." Alula looked down upon Carver, her flashing eyes displaying anger. "Yes, but all Knights of the sun are rather unbecoming." Her face contorted again, from anger to defiance and back to anger. An internal struggle, and argument with herself. "do not be so cruel to him. All Paladins are dangerous. he protects us. Yes but for how long. His love of the sun will soon overshadow his protection. the incident was not his fault. It should not take an entire squadron of Paladins to 'guard' a village." Alula shuttered, repressing voices. She put a hand to her forehead, her light fading for a moment. She watched as Vis put the child up the in tree, finding it odd that he would choose that as a place to put her to bed. She only hoped that someone bought tents before the town burned. And she only hoped no one would insist on sleeping with her.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver The child's reaction wasn't one that Carver was entirely unused to. Armor was a mark of power, and power was all too often abused at the detriment of the poor. Likely, this child or her mother had had some bad experience with a thuggish hedge knight or minor lord - perhaps Carver might pay said men a visit, when the matter at hand was attended to. Another voice from his past. "We do not make them love us, Carver. The Sun loves all, and asks for nothing in return. So must we." He smiled at her again as she was lifted to the tree. "I will keep watch, child. You will be safe." He turned, his smile fading as he heard Alula speaking. She was still in the bizarre state she'd entered into during the battle, seemingly at war with herself over everything she said. However, most of her disjointed statements seemed to have a single theme - she was displeased with the knight. He frowned. "My lady, if I have offended you, I offer my most sincere apologies. It is not my intention to threaten, nor to displease. And if you take issue with my faith, then... this need not be a matter of conflict between us. The Sun teaches us to understand, not to convert. If you are no longer desirous of my protection or my company, then you may release me from my vows, and I will depart without incident." He paused. "I... am glad to see you well. I did not stay close enough to you - I feared that that enemy spellcaster may have harmed you, after I was almost hit from behind by some spell." Carver straightened his back and turned on his heels to walk away. "I will keep watch for the rest of our party. You all should rest. We will decide our next move when we are all gathered." It should not take a squad of Paladins to protect a village. He would do better.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula (For your listening pleasure) Alula watched as Carver spoke to the child, glad that at least someone had some sort of skills with childcare, and yet she still had her angry expression when he spoke to her. This man was clearly trying to talk down on her, trying to demean her. And then an expression of confusion. Why was this paladin so kind to her? Why was he so different from the others? His vows. He was still holding strong to his vow, even after seeing what she was and what she had become. He didn't understand, he couldn't understand. But perhaps that didn't matter. He took a pause in his speech, and she looked into his eyes. Her eyes were illuminated and unblinking. Why was he so kind? He was glad to see she was well. He was afraid that something had hurt her, while it was him who was in danger of the attack. He was not the danger, she was. Something snapped in her. Voices screaming to overpower each other. Arguments and battles within her mind. But as Carver turned away a single voice broke through, a weak and slurred voice. "Y...yes...a rest...would be...nice..." Alula slowly reached out her hand, fingers extended as if to grab him. Her eyes flickered, like faulty lighting, before finally fading out. Bright lights again replaced with hazy blue eyes. A soft burst of light. "I am...so tired..." Alula fell to the ground.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace was staring at the sunset as he heard a thud behind him. He saw Alula lie down in the dirt. Confused he looked at the others, most seemed to either pay no mind or looked concerned. He remembered how he had been wrapped in a large blue cloth when he fell asleep. This was no doubt custom. So he chose not to ask questions and act as if he knew this was normal. He threw the cloth over her and rolled her in it. She seemed unhurt, so giving her some positive energy would only wake her. She did claim she wanted rest right? He could help her with that too... He toyed with ideas of experimentation while he glared at his hand where a diminutive black spark danced eagerly. It would help her sleep... But it would probably hurt... Furnace decided against it. At least until he found the taster of smiles. In the end he just dragged the cloth coccoon over to Kelvin. "You seem to have a plan regarding shelter? Where should she be?"</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin The sound of the arm repairing itself was going to haunt him. Good thing he didn't plan on much rest tonight. It was surprising that the durable gnome was willing to help afterword, but he would take it. Kelvin rocked back on his heels. "Separ hasn't come back yet… give me some time to think." He smiled in a way that he hoped was reassuring. Kelvin sat by himself a bit farther from the others, ignoring the drama of various people working out their social differences. They had a bit bigger issue on hand. That army. It had swept away the town with little trouble, other than the small group they had here, which was more than unfortunate. A show of unnecessary force like that had two possible meanings; this was an intimidation technique, or this was a campaign. Being that the raider's were mostly goblin… it looked closer to a campaign. Which put all of them directly in the path of it. They weren't really far enough from town to be completely safe either. Kelvin was still deep in thought when the gnome carried over a bundle. It was a bit comical to see. "I have been thinking." He motioned for him to put the oracle down, close to where the gnome and Carver had been laying. "I have the gear to put a tiny shelter up, but it won't fit all of us... but besides that, I am not sure we should spend the night here." Kelvin gestured back towards town, the smoke and blood could easily be smelt, and the black clouds made the sunset all the more bloody. "It isn't safe to stay so close. It would only take one enemy wandering about to spot us us." Kelvin lightly tapped his crossbow absentmindedly. "And besides that, they will be moving on eventually. I think we should wait for darkness, take some time to rest, and head for the next town. A force that big will be slower than our group, so with some effort we can warn the next town down the road." If they didn't, then this horde might spread from town to town, eliminating them so fast there were few survivors to spread the warning.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "There are more places like this?" Furnace blurted out in response while he carefully aranged Alula next to their stuff as directed. "And you don't desire this harvesting to happen there as well.." He frowned as he spoke slowly. It was clear he understood on some level. But not why. "So I take it we aren't returning there for the friend collector, that girl and all the wonderfull crafting materials strewn about? Then why even have a harvesting?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ frowned a little bit at the girls words. Sure he really wanted everyone to be fine, but would they? For now all Separ could do was hope that Carver, Kelvin, and all the others had come through. "I really hope they're okay." For a moment Separ and the girl sat in silence for a few minutes before Separ tried to stand up almost falling over in the process. While he had gained a little bit of his energy back, he still would be practically useless in a fight. Remembering he was wearing a backpack he took it off and laid it on the ground and pulled out two tents. Handing one towards the girl he began to ask her "Would you like to stay here for the night? I think I can walk, but it's getting pretty late. What would you prefer to do in this situation? I also have a medical kit in my backpack by the way, so we could always heal ourselves up before dark." Sure Separ did not know the girl very well, but he trusted her. She didn't seem like a bad person after all, especially when she herself practically sacrificed her life when she fell down from over-exerting herself.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver crept through the forest with as much stealth as he was able to muster, which was to say, none at all. Had any goblins been in earshot, they probably could have heard the clanking of his armor from quite a distance away - however, it seemed the sun was smiling on him, and no foes produced themselves. A brief moment later, the knight had another stroke of luck. In another small clearing, Separ and the witch sat in a half-unconscious pile. Carver was immediately gladdened to see Separ well - for a moment, he'd almost despaired for the young man's life. The witch, although, was another matter entirely. Carver had been half of the mind that she was part of the attack in some fashion, but her current condition seemed to belie that. She looked half-dead; pale, sallow, and exhausted. If this was the result of her summoning some magical force to aid in the fight, then perhaps his initial reaction to her had been unfair, whatever she was. "Separ! ... Other lady!" He called out to them as he entered the clearing, in the loudest whisper conceivable. "It's good to see you safe! The others are together, they're nearby. Are you able to walk? I can carry one of you."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis turned away from the clearing and walked towards the burning sun, it's light peaking out from between the gaps in the canopy as he ventured out for a stream or a pond of some sort. The further he got from the camp, he felt an indescribable feeling, it was a mixture of relief and heartache. Soon he had stumbled upon a small pond, fed by 3 trickling streams and hidden by the forest canopy, looking around to ensure he wasn't being followed, he began unbuckling his armor. Once the leather plates dropped off his body, he took off his under clothes and tossed them into a pile next to the bank, so he stood naked by the water. Slowly he slipped in, first sitting down then slowly levering himself into the cool pond using his arms but as he got into the pond, he found that from where the land met the water, it was a vertical sloap downwards for about 3 and a half feet. Vis stood in the water for a moment, to get use to the temperature, before submerged himself completely and opened his eyes, casting a green glow in the dusty water. Small fish swam around, eating the green that grew at the bottom, oblivious to Vis or his light. He emerged from the water and returned to the bank, resting his head on his folded arms and letting the rest of his body float. He decided he'd rest before washing his gear.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly turned to see Carver and smiled at his presence. "Carver, you're alive. I'm glad to see you." Separ put the tents back into his backpack and strapped it on to himself. "I think I can walk, but the girl fell down earlier, so maybe you should carry her. I also have some supplies we could use, including a tent and a medkit." Separ started to walk towards Carver only to stop and stare at the ground. "How..., how many died?" Separ's voice was shaky as he asked, not because he was tired, but rather because he was scared of what the answer would be. Perhaps Carver and maybe only a few others survived? Did the whole town die? Kelvin, the disfigured man, the little gnome, the girl who had healed him, "Phoenix". Just how many were still alive? Were the others injured just as bad as I am? Thought Separ as he slowly walked over to Carver. All Separ could do was silently hope for a good outcome.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Tearing flesh, screams of agony, clanking weapons and clattering teeth. Silence. Hazy blue eyes shot open, cutting the gruesome dreams of the oracle short. She glanced rapidly around the tent she had been placed in, trying to remember what had happened up until this point. Alula attempted to move, but found that everything was burning and aching. It felt like every vein in her body had been set alight. She groaned softly, forcing herself to sit up through the pain. But she found she was still constructed, she had been wrapped in a blanket. That's odd. The girl ungracefully squirmed her way out of the blanket, wincing every time she had to move. But if she didn't get up now she might never move again. Her head hurt. A lot. Voices were talking, softly but still there. They were trying to explain what had happened. Her mind felt fuzzy. She remembered agreeing to join a group of adventurers, and then something had happened. Something bad. The rest was blurs. She rubbed her eyes, wanting to pull down her hat. The voices told her that it was long gone, buried beneath the ruins of the burned town, soon to be found by looters. The cloth that the half-elf Vis had given her lost as well. Tucked up into the rim of her hat for safekeeping. And her staff, that was likely in the field where she collapsed. Collapsed. Somehow she had been broken from her trance. That had never happened before. The paladin. The paladin. She was silently panicking. Why couldn't she remember his name? She had to remember. A calm voice echoed through her head, shoving other voices aside. "Carver. Ser Carver. He was the one." Another grunt as she attempted to stand up, her crippled leg buckling out from under her. With bitter determination Alula got to her feet, leaning all of her weight on her good leg. She looked out of the tent, keeping her eyes cast downward. The sun was setting and she needed to get away.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver put a hand on the man's shoulder. "Do not, my friend. Down that path lies madness. There will come a time to mourn for the fallen and commend their souls to the heavens, but now we must turn our minds to those that may still be saved." The paladin bent down and hoisted the witch none-too gently over his shoulder. "Such as those waiting for us, for example. Kelvin, Alula, the gnome and the half-elf are nearby - I have not seen Rose in some time." Carver turned, and began carrying the witch back to camp.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace cocked his head slightly as he processed her words. He followed her, slowly waving the tall grass out of his face. "Of course you can. Choosing to do or not do is how you express who you are. And what you do, create or destroy, that is you. So how could you not be you?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula growled again, her anger growing despite her fatigue. She looked up anxiously at the setting sun. It would set any minute now, she needed to be rid of the gnome and the others. She needed to out distance between them. She glanced into the woods, which still seemed so far away. She wished that Carver would break through the tree line, he would be able to convince the gnome to cease his questions. She was getting stressed. And when the gnome spoke again she stopped walking, angrily planting her staff into the ground. She tried to control her apparent rage. "We are not all...blessed...with your...level of...expression." She growled, repeating his words. "We do not...get to...choose the life we...live." She started walking again, hoping to leave the gnome behind her. "And yet...I am myself..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace was relentless, not recognizing anger or stress. "So then it's like channeling energy, just cause I can doesn't mean you can? I was able to share that with the friend collector though. Let me help you be you. And make the choices you want."</s> <\|message\|>Des As night falls lights can be seen in the town coming from enemy torches. Most of these lights leave and wander out of town while others search the perimeter. None are near the heroes, YET. The five that are searching are making sure to look into the woods and while Kelvin's contraption blocks out eyes from the town, it won't avoid the notice of these guys. Will the team decide to run deeper and face whatever lies in the woods or stay and fight the five and hope none brings backup.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was still carrying the witch back to camp when he saw them. Five torches fanning through the woods. Survivors? No. Any townspeople who were still alive would have the good sense not to carry bright lights when trying to evade the army that had just destroyed their town. No, these were almost certainly foes, searching for survivors of the attack. And they were headed right for the camp. For the umpteenth time that day, Carver broke into an agonizingly slow run, finally breaking into the clearing where the rest of the party was. "Friends, they come! Five foes bear down on us, and I fear there is no time for us to run." He set the witch down gently on a blanket, somewhat guilty of his petty rough treatment of her earlier. He drew his sword and began gesturing around the camp. "I will try to take the worst of it. My gnomish friend, I know not how much energy remains within you, but use what you can to direct the foes to me. My lady Alula, please take the child and climb back to that tree, that we might protect the two of you more easily. Kelvin, I want you to remain at the base of the tree and shoot anything that gets too close. Separ, stay with me in front - they'll hit me, and then you'll hit them back harder. And, half-elf..." He glanced around. "Has anyone seen the half-elf?" The paladin shrugged, and placed his helmet back on his head.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Already Khat had wandered into the woods in the direction a set of foot prints went, she guessed they were Vis' as they were large and he had stated earlier that he was heading to a stream, his lateness was indicative of finding one. As she walked, she pulled her white linen head scarf around her neck, as it was a chilly evening. In the distance, she saw a figure move casually in her direction and as it got closer, she saw that it was Vis, casting a green glow from his eye. She regarded him coolly. "Vis," she said calmly, crossing her arms as she stood in front of him, she took this time to really look at the man who had pulled her out of the crate. He was skinny for an adult and very secretive, as he always had that scarf around his face, not once lowering it. Khat copied him, pulling up her scarf to hide her face, "I'm thirsty." "Hi Thirthty, I'm Vis." he joked dryly, looking down at her and casting a green glow on her freckled face, he noted that she had taken her scarf off of her head, showing the world her long red hair, "There ith a pond clothe by, come on." Vis lead her to the watering hole but the closer he got, the more cautious he became. I spluttering yellow light shone in the distance, it was a torch light and the figure beneath the light was clearly a raider, in the black tunic and holding a sword. Vis snapped to a wide eye'd Khat, "Up tha three!" he hissed, as he helped her climb up to a branch. Once safely high above the forest and tucked into the leaves of the tree, Vis deposited his armor and gear at the foo of the tree, instead pulling out his dagger and dropping into a crouch. From up in her treetop vantage, Khat watched as Vis slunk towards the light. From this height she could see the raider clearly, he was kneeled by the pond and was drinking. As Vis approached, it appeared as if killing the man would be no problem but the man was fast. He had spotted Vis in the reflection of the dark water and had spun around. Vis that quick, he couldn't get the man with the dagger as he could easily block with the torch but the man had yet to reach for his sword. So as he sprinted down to the enemy, he stooped and scooped a fist full of dirt and threw it at the man's face, momentarily blinded Vis took his chances. He hurled himself at the man and they both toppled into the pond, Vis on top of the raider. Quickly, Vis grabbed the man's head and pushed it under water, struggling to hold down the thrashing brute. From atop the tree, Khat could see that the thrashing was getting weaker and the bubbles to the surface less frequent, until the body was still. She could never imagine doing that and grinned as the body floated to the surface. The pair returned to campo and in unison hissed, "The raiders are in the forest!"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was close to lashing out on the gnome. She wouldn't hurt him, or at least not intentionally. Just enough to spook him away from her, so she could sneak off into the trees. She growled, gripping her staff tighter. Her voice was showing that same amount of corruption as before, but far weaker. Her voice lacked confidence but made up for that in anger. "We do not need you to tell us who we are. I know who I am." Alula's luck continued to run out as Carver broke through the treeline, carrying the hooded woman with the punching man behind him. She was hoping he would be able to sense her distress, and pick the gnome off her her, but instead he brought more bad news. More attackers. She didn't have time for this. She couldn't stay. If she did they would have more then just five attackers to deal with. She shook her head when Carver tried to get her up into the tree, his direction would have been disastrous. "No. No no no no." She said, panic and corruption taking over her calm disposition. "I cannot stay and I do not need protection, you do." She shook her head again, looking anxiously up at the sky. The sun was gone and soon the moon would take its place. Without looking at the gathered party Alula moved past them, trying to speed up her limping walk. "I must go." She repeated. She did not fear the enemies in the woods. They should be fearing her. She could see the first rays of moonlight. Her hair was glowing.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver whirled at the sound of the pair's voice. "Friends! Come, quickly. We must make a stand here. Look after the child, half elf. I will draw our foe's attention." Alula stumbled back, staring at the sky. Carver looked at her as she began to stumble away, towards the woods - towards the enemies. As he watched, her hair began to glow again - silver, like the moon. Was she about to enter the same state she'd been in during the battle? That would be catastrophic - there would be no hiding their position from the main body of the foes if she were to begin firing off moonbeams again. She needed to be calmed down before she transformed. The paladin hurried to the girl and spun her around to face him. "My lady," he said, calmy, in spite of the light spreading over her, "If you go into those woods, you will die. You say that we are the ones in need of protection, and this may be so. But I carry my protection with me, and I do not fear. Stay close behind me, and I will protect you. I swear."</s> <\|message\|>Alula She was turned around to face Carver, her glowing hair drifting around her without weight. Her eyes were glowing slightly and her expression was one of restraint. Her entire body trembled, as if something was trying to escape from within her. It was taking all of Alula's strength and resolve to keep herself composed. She seemed to relax for a moment as Carver spoke to her, her glow dying down slightly, but moments later it came back even stronger. Alula trembled again. Even her voice sounded strained. "I do not doubt for a moment that you would be able to protect me." She paused a moment, eyes squeezed shut. "But this is...beyond me..." A shaky exhale, squeezing her eyes shut tighter. "The creatures in the woods cannot kill me, they are too late for that." Alula opened her eyes, brightly glowing and yet still displaying desperation. "You have to trust me. Please." She begged. "I will...return...eventually..." Her voice lacked confidence. "It is only the night. It's who we are. It's part of me." Another violent shake, a curse in a foreign language. "I am dangerous. I don't want to hurt anyone else."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ walked towards Carver and placed a hand on his armored shoulder. "Carver, if she insists on going then we should not stop her. Let us instead focus on fighting by her side. The enemies are dangerous after all, me and the girl back there almost died and this fight may end with the same outcome or worse. Let's just do what we can alright?" Separ turned towards Alula looking at her directly. "I'll back you up any way I can if you have some sort of plan?" Rushing the enemy felt reckless to Separ, but he knew there wasn't much of a choice. Those scouts would find them eventually if they didn't now, defeating them now would be the best option. Though it would probably also be a good idea to relocate camp afterwards, seeing as sooner or later the other raiders will notice the disappearance of this squad. Separ took a deep breath trying to collect himself as he still felt rather tired from everything that had happened. Taking off his backpack he laid it behind a tree a few meters away from the group. Alright, now I can move a little bit better, but still this is going to be tough. Separ turned towards Carver and walking towards him whispered. "So, are you ready to do this then? I'll be right behind you the whole time."</s> <\|message\|>Des The five scouts started to move in closer to where the crew was positioned. One noticed movement and the scouts started racing to where the movement was spotted. Time until they reach the camp: Five minutes of game time</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to Separ hesitantly. "I... yes. You are right. We will do what we can. Stay close behind me, Separ. When their mightiest blows fall upon my guard, that is when you must strike. My lady... do what you must, but stay safe, and keep the light displays to a minimum. Everyone else behind me. Our priority is protecting the child." With that, he strode forward and slowly, rhythmically, began to pound the hilt of his sword against his shield. His mind wandered back to another time, when a much younger man by his name had done much the same thing. Sir Greenvale was striding in front of the line of recruits. The man was like a cliff face - huge, imposing, unyielding. He scanned the line with impassive eyes, and at length asked a question. "Does the Paladin fear pain?" As once, the recruits beat their shields and answered. Clang."No!" "Does the Paladin fear disgrace?" Clang. "No!" "Does the Paladin fear death?" Clang. "No!" "What does the Paladin fear?" Clang. "Failure!" The hammering intensified, growing louder with every blow. Carver would not fail. "On me, friends! They draw near!"</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman managed to escape as the one archer was beaten to death while the other had his life drained away. He ran to the raider party and informed them of the surviving group. Time until reinforcements arrive: 30 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver grimaced as the flail crashed into his side again. This wasn't working - the flail had reach and power that he couldn't hope to match, and the man's armor was far too much for his sword. He wracked his brain for a moment before arriving at an answer. The flail needed a strong swing to build up power - getting far wouldn't help, so he'd just have to get close. With a roar, Carver launched himself at his enemy, shield raised, attempting to tackle him to the ground with the full weight of his armor.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" "I do noth think thath thith ith a good thime tho retht, we should keep going." Vis said, adjusting how he carried the now squirming child as she tried to get down. "If you are going to carry me, at least let me ride on your back instead of holding me like a baby!" she whined, starting to kick in her search for freedom, Vis did as he was told and levered the girl onto his back in one swift motion, she wobbled there, dizzy for a moment until she spoke again, "this will do." Voltus then proceeded to stoop over and pick up the girl rolled in the blanket, grunting a bit at all the weight he was carrying and Kelvin was right, she was heavy, "Retht if you wish buth I will keep going." With that Vis turned and walked deeper into the forest and away from the camp, lighting the way with his glowing green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Des Bill swung the flail, barely missing Carver. Sadly, what goes around comes around and the chain wrapped around the paladin. Bill tugged on the chain attempting to pull Carver down but the paladin stood strung and did not fall although wrapped in chains.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Rather than try to disentangle himself from the chain, Carver just kept charging, crashing into Bill in an attempt to pin him under the paladin's enormous weight, all while trying to bring his arms up to grapple with him opponent.</s> <\|message\|>Des Bill side-stepped out of the way, allowing Carver to fall to the ground and struggle in his chains. "I don't have time to wrestle with you, it's already going to be hard enough to take on your friends unarmed." Bill raised his fist, ready to take on any opposers. "God I hope reinforcements get here soon." Time until reinforcements arrive: 22 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Furnace While Bill stepped away from Carver, Furnace approached softly. The cold feeling had made him calm. As Bill spoke and looked around to find other opponents Furnace stood right in front of him to present himself. Thick, dark surges of negative energy danced in his hands as he held them before him. Chilled and collected he stared Bill in his eyes, ready to react to any movement with shock and pain. With wide eyes and barely any emotion on his face he spoke softly "I am going to hurt you."</s> <\|message\|>Des A divine light shines down from the heavens upon Carver. The light rusts and breaks the chains, lifts Carver to his feet, heals his wound, and repairs his armor. Bill looks first at the little one, "Ah shit, I should have wasted my flail on this one." Then he sees the light out of his peripheral vision, "Fuck, you're a paladin. Well, you know what, all those times I hit you with my flail, I was just doing my job. I actually have to go sooo..." Bill starts to back away from the two. Time until reinforcements arrive: 18 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Ooooh, ow. The knight didn't seem to be fairing well in his battle with his flailed opponent. Perhaps the last fight took all the energy and speed out of him, because on top of the dynamics of the chain - the user of which actually seemed to be practiced with its use - the looter was dancing around the knight with each charge he made. Was the knight really so simple-minded that he would resort to the same old tactic? Surely they've learned better by now. Before he got himself tangled up, perhaps it would have been better throw him the sword or shield that the looter had been ensnared in the first place. His flail is then tangled in what you've thrown at him and then you're free. "But no, by all means, continue what you're doing now... It's obviously working." Arastoph muttered. His ears perked as soon as the looter began talking and taunting the knight. At least the looter was unarmed, but what he had said set off an alarm. Reinforcements... Arastoph ran out of his hiding place and into the open, his full appearance now being visible to the group and to his enemy. His dragoon in hand, although unloaded (but his enemy didn't have to know that), he yelled at what he saw as the buffoons he had aligned himself with. "Kill him quickly, already! Before more arrive!" Enemy reinforcements also meant that he wouldn't be able to get these fools to carry the wine kegs for him. Whether or not this knight was actually a paladin didn't matter. He couldn't defeat an army alone.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ After finally defeating the archers with the gnome, Separ stood up to find that Carver was having trouble with the last opponent. Before the gnome could intervene in the fight however, Separ put his hand on the gnome's shoulder holding him back. "Carver, do you need any help? Or would you prefer we stay out of this? If this is your battle I don't want to intervene and hurt your pride. That being said, if you'd like some assistance I wouldn't mind taking this guy down a peg or two." Separ waited quietly for Carver to answer, time was of the essence for sure, but if losing this fight meant a lot to Carver, then there was no reason to jump in. "The decision is up to you, just know that if reinforcements do come me and Calvin, err the gnome should be able to hold them back for a little bit while you finish up your fight." Separ stepped in front of the gnome making direct eye contact and firmly held the gnome's shoulders with both of his hands. "This may be an important battle for Carver, so if he says he doesn't need help you shouldn't help him out. This may be a battle between men and interrupting that may harm Carver mentally. Oh, and by the way, thanks for healing me again, and also just what was your name again? I forgot what it was.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was somewhere warm, and golden, floating on a sea of soft yellow light. Everything else - the battle, his friends, the chains - it was all outside of this, this beam of sunlight, and everything out there was happening very, very slowly. "Carver..." The voice came from all around him, soft and musical. It was a woman's voice, one he had only heard a few times before; his vigil, his initiation, and once during his training. It was his lady's voice. The sun's. And then she was in front of him, radiant and beautiful, golden-haired, kind-faced, clad in robes of billowing white. "My lady!" the paladin gasped, and tried to fall to one knee, but quickly found he couldn't move. He was rising, being lifted from the ground in the pillar of light. A horrid thought struck him. "My lady, am I dead?" The knight did not fear death, but he feared to die with his duty unfulfilled; if he was dead, he could not protect the others. She laughed, the sound of windchimes on a summer day. "No, brave knight, you have much life left in you." She stroked his helmed cheek with one hand, where the flail had mangled his face. "Oh, Carver, you always did have such faith in people. You deserve to have it rewarded, one of these days." "I ask for no reward, my lady." "You never did. Arise, brave knight, and carry on in my name. Carry on the fortitude you have displayed, and I will be gladdened to have such a champion in the dark days to come." She began to fade, all the light around him dimming. Carver turned his head wildly as the world outside began to speed up again. "My lady! My lady! What is it that I must do?" he called out, desperately. "Protect them, Carver. The task before them is great, and they will need your strength." "I will fight to the end, my lady." "I know, Carver, but that's not what I mean. Arise, your strength restored, and protect them from what's coming. And, let's have rid of those as well - there are enough chains upon you already, my dear knight." The light was gone. Carver landed on the ground with a soft thud. Separ was saying something to him, asking whether he wanted to fight the man alone. The paladin turned to him and spoke. "More are coming to kill us, friend - more than we can fight. We must leave and gather the others, go somewhere far from here." Carver bent and picked up his sword and shield before turning to Bill. "You fight very well - it is a shame that you ended up on the wrong side. However, you cannot be allowed to tell your friends which way we went, and though I'd like to make you swear silence, your word has lost value to me." He gestured his head to Separ. "I am not so proud as to make this take longer than necessary, not when time is of the essence. He'll have to die."</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem After the paladin awoke from his coma, he stated the obvious, addressed the looter, and began consulting the brawler. Oh. Isn't this just adorable? Instead of taking action, they're chit-chatting. The lack of their sense of urgency was enough to consider leaving them to their fate. If only he didn't have to rely on someone else's protection to get to the next town. He sighed in resignation as he drew his stiletto from his sheath and took a few steps toward Bill, while keeping sure to maintain equal distance. "As much as I hate to present an interlude to your... colloquy, we have already made clear that we are running out of time. Will the neither of you warriors finish him, or should I?" Arastoph spat out the word warriors as though they were made to shame them; perhaps done so in a condescending sense, as there are two warriors stalling time and not finishing what they have started, and instead prompting the merchant, the citizen - the survivor - to do the dirty work. "I might have expected the holy order to be so craven." He added.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace People all around him were talking of strange concepts and used words he couldn't understand. Kill. Pride. Mentally. Furnace barely listened. All of his attention thuroughly occupied by the glowing wonder before him. As he peered into the bright lights he saw something akin to the positive energy he was used to. But rather than dancing coils he saw beams of light. Woven masterfully in glorious patterns. Looking at Carver rise from splendourus light made it hard to maintain the current of negative energy. Absorbed as he was he didn't care. When the magical effect had ended Furnace stared into nothingness, the bright images still dancing in his eyes. Until a commanding voice snapped him out of it. "He'll have to die." Die? Finish him? "Okay.. Finish him... How does that go? What do I do?"</s>	<\|message\|>Carver "A life should never be taken lightly," Carver said. The man who had shot one of the enemies earlier was attempting to goad him. Carver wasn't so proud as to start an argument with the survivor - doubtless he was just lashing out thanks to the trauma he'd endured. The paladin stepped towards the man who'd had the flail. "By the power invested in me by my order and my lady, the sun, I judge you guilty of crimes both numerous and heinous, and sentence you to death. May you find whatever rest you deserve." His piece sad, Carver swung his blade at the man's neck, hoping at least to offer him a quick end.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace People all around him were talking of strange concepts and used words he couldn't understand. Kill. Pride. Mentally. Furnace barely listened. All of his attention thuroughly occupied by the glowing wonder before him. As he peered into the bright lights he saw something akin to the positive energy he was used to. But rather than dancing coils he saw beams of light. Woven masterfully in glorious patterns. Looking at Carver rise from splendourus light made it hard to maintain the current of negative energy. Absorbed as he was he didn't care. When the magical effect had ended Furnace stared into nothingness, the bright images still dancing in his eyes. Until a commanding voice snapped him out of it. "He'll have to die." Die? Finish him? "Okay.. Finish him... How does that go? What do I do?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver "A life should never be taken lightly," Carver said. The man who had shot one of the enemies earlier was attempting to goad him. Carver wasn't so proud as to start an argument with the survivor - doubtless he was just lashing out thanks to the trauma he'd endured. The paladin stepped towards the man who'd had the flail. "By the power invested in me by my order and my lady, the sun, I judge you guilty of crimes both numerous and heinous, and sentence you to death. May you find whatever rest you deserve." His piece sad, Carver swung his blade at the man's neck, hoping at least to offer him a quick end.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Even during a time like this, the paladin still had time to preach to him about the value of human life. To this, Arastoph nodded, but subsequently turned away to roll his eyes in a place out of their attention. Regardless, Bill had been quickly slain, prompting the muscles in Arastoph's body to ease. Now that they had the flail guy out of the way, they could focus on escaping this forsaken village. There wasn't any hope of fending off a whole army of reinforcements in their current condition. Well, Arastoph himself was fine, if not low on ammunition. The paladin did his paladin thing. The gnome, though, looked as though he'd be utterly useless in a fight against massive forces. So, as for the escape plan... "The swordsman crawled off that way," he said, pointing in the direction the bandit had escaped. "It stands to reason that he intends on meeting with his reinforcements. We should leave; now. In any direction other than that one. Ideally, we should make haste towards the nearest town."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace followed the head with his eyes as it separated from it's torso and fell followed by a crimson stream of life holding fluid. He wondered how he would repair damage like that. Perhaps this was the kind of destruction the voice had spoken off. The idea was strange and intriguing. What did it mean to be broken? The man with the explosion wands spoke again. His voice as himself unfamiliar to Furnace, but his tone very much so. Although with more words he spoke with a certain.. directness that reminded Furnace of the ones that held him, from the dark days. Without hesitation he started to follow Arastoph. "My friend Kelvin said we had to get to the nearest town too." Furnace put emphasis on the fact he had friends, as it was still a new and exiting development. "We'll likely find him and the others on the way there. We have to prevent the harvest."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver sheathed his bloody blade and regarded the corpse coolly. "Look favorably upon him," he whispered. "All men deserve a kind voice in their judgement." His commendation of the fallen concluded, the Paladin turned to the others. "Right. Now does seem like an excellent time to make an exit. I'll follow your lead, friend, if you say you know the way." The knight began to jog lightly in the direction the man had pointed. "Alula!" he shouted, every so often. "Half-elf! Kelvin! Are you out there? We're leaving, come find us!" It occured to him that this may incur further enemy attention, but it struck the knight as the balance of two paths. He couldn't leave his friends alone to fend for themselves in the woods, nor could he risk the safety of the others by searching for them. With luck, they'd solve his dilemma and come find him.</s> <\|message\|>Des After the fight both parties wandered into the woods. As the night became darker, the parties managed to find each other while setting up camp. What they didn't know is that someone else had found them as well. ~~~~TIMESKIP~~~~</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace felt tired. His eyes weary and movements slow he looked around. He stood before the tent Kelvin and Separ had helped him build. Carver and Vis were standing near the fire seemed to be discussing something called a watch. Furnace didn't care, he felt like lying down. He saw how someone had draped the other girl on the soft cloth. Thinking this a good idea he fell asleep on a bed in his tent. Slowly he drifted away back into the darkness, like he had many times before. "You did well this day." The voice echoed trough the void. Furnace remained silent. "What did you feel when you released your negative energy?" "I felt cold." "You will get used to that, like the heat of the fire." "Will I need to hurt more people?" "There's more to the nature of the dark current, you are close to finding the taster of smiles." The two were silent for a while, time passed while nothing else did, as there was nothing in the void. "I had a question." "Yes my mentee?" "I saw a new form of energy today, it emanated from the steel giant I've come to known named Carver. The brilliant patterns, I can still conjure them in my mind." "What you've seen is divine energy, the man must have been a target of some powerful spell cast by a divine creature." "Divine?" "As you know there are many ways of categorising the creatures that dwell here. Some are mortal, like you and your new friends. And some are creatures from other places or planes even. What you've witnessed was likely something from the higher planes of good and or order, though I could only guess at it's exact orgin and strength." "Where are you from then?" "I think that's enough questions for tonight."</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem They had been hasty in their retreat, lead by Arastoph toward the proper direction, but was expectedly thwarted of his lead by the others who had sought to seek out their companions. Surely, it was an irritable day, between raids and his stubborn protectors (as the term "rescuers" would be lending them too much credence). They did in fact find them, and promptly set up camp in the safest area that they could. From what he has learned from listening in on their conversations, the paladin was Carver, the brawler was Separ, and among the people the two were looking for was an engineer named Kelvin. The little one's name, the gnome, had not been mentioned, and the name of the woman had been mentioned so few times that it had left his mind. The tall half-elf, however; his speech impediment was so pronounced, so strong, that it annoyed the living hell out of the merchant to the point that he didn't even care to learn it. He completely disregarded the child, almost as though he wasn't aware she existed. Arastoph only hoped that they knew how to make a proper fire, even though he himself thought that starting a fire in this proximity to the ruined village invested with bandits was a terrible idea. He was bidding misère on his bet that trouble would arrive before anyone got a full night of sleep. Staying in one place was too dangerous. His input would undoubtedly be disregarded by this band; an infuriating concept that was beyond the merchant, to be degraded to such a degree, that his authority could be so easily undermined. It is under this cognition that Arastoph devises his plans to make the most of the current situation by taking advantage of the paladin's code, and perhaps the moral compass of the others – though he did not know how far the latter would take him. Not once has he said a word during the process of setting up camp. Shared his opinion, his name – nay, not a word. During one brief moment of quiet amongst the camp, however, Arastoph broke his silence. "Carver," Arastoph started simply, "do you – or do you not – feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" His voice ran smooth, like that of a practiced orator, nary a tremble in its consistency. His eyes bore into the paladin's own, expecting an honest answer.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat held on to Vis' sleeve as he conversed with the paladin, she looked up at him as he talked his twisted words, they didn't sound right to her young, unexperienced ears, they were strained, slowly spoken and broken. She pulled up her scarf to cover her face as he did and felt a little bit better, 'maybe this is why he wears it?' she thought to herself but her thinking was cut short by a rumble in her stomach, followed by a hollow pain, Khat was hungry. She pulled on his sleeve and he entertained her tugging. "I'm hungry," she said simply, looking up at him as he looked down at her in a strange way, "Hello! Can't you hear me from all the way up there? I'm hungry." Vis blinked a bit before coming to. Looking at her with her scarf wrapped around her face sent shivers down his spine for some reason. "I don'th haf anyfing for you tho eath." Voltus replied slowly, watching as her face grew into a look of incredulity. "You're telling me that you came to a bakery and bought no bread?" she retorted harshly, glaring daggers at him, 'if he did't buy bread...' she thought but was interrupted by Vis' face turning red in embarrassment as he reached into his bag for one of the loaves of bread. He snapped off a chunk of staleness and handed it to Khat, she took it and tried it in her hands, she looked on the verge of crying, looking at the piece of bread, 'yesterday's bread,' she thought, 'before all this.' She bit back a sob. Voltus looked down at the girl with a mixture of grief and understanding, he touched her shoulder awkwardly, "When you're done you should thleep." She simply nodded, knowing if she opened her mouth she'd burst out sobbing. She walked off to nestle herself in between some exposed roots of a tree, where she nibbled the bread. Vis turned to carver, "I'll thake firtht watch, paladin."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to the half elf. "Your offer is a generous one, and I appreciate it. I will take the last watch, for I see best during sunrise. When your watch draws to a close, wake up Separ. Separ will have to wake up Kelvin. Kelvin will have to wake up..." The paladin glanced around the assembled party. A child, a refugee, a witch, and a wide-eyed gnome. "... Me. I'll take a double watch, it'll be no trouble." The party was sore, tired, frightened and generally worn down, but they were alive, and they were together, which was more than the knight could have hoped for. At least, most of them were - Alula, the very girl he'd sworn to protect, was still missing. Part of Carver wanted to go look for her, but he knew it wouldn't be safe, and that it wouldn't be what she wanted - she'd seemed pretty insistent on being alone at night. His efforts were better spend on those he had eyes on - what they needed now was to rest and recover their strength - their next moved could be planned in the morning. "Carver, do you – or do you not – feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" The refugee's words, the one who'd tried to get a rise out of him earlier. Carver held the man's gaze. His home had been burned to ashes, everyone he'd ever known put to the sword. If he wanted to take it out on the man who should've prevented it, that was more than his right. "Yes. Your village is burned, all those people dead, because I was not wise or fast or strong enough to stop it. On my head was the task, and on my head lay the blame."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to the half elf. "Your offer is a generous one, and I appreciate it. I will take the last watch, for I see best during sunrise. When your watch draws to a close, wake up Separ. Separ will have to wake up Kelvin. Kelvin will have to wake up..." The paladin glanced around the assembled party. A child, a refugee, a witch, and a wide-eyed gnome. "... Me. I'll take a double watch, it'll be no trouble." The party was sore, tired, frightened and generally worn down, but they were alive, and they were together, which was more than the knight could have hoped for. At least, most of them were - Alula, the very girl he'd sworn to protect, was still missing. Part of Carver wanted to go look for her, but he knew it wouldn't be safe, and that it wouldn't be what she wanted - she'd seemed pretty insistent on being alone at night. His efforts were better spend on those he had eyes on - what they needed now was to rest and recover their strength - their next moved could be planned in the morning. "Carver, do you – or do you not – feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" The refugee's words, the one who'd tried to get a rise out of him earlier. Carver held the man's gaze. His home had been burned to ashes, everyone he'd ever known put to the sword. If he wanted to take it out on the man who should've prevented it, that was more than his right. "Yes. Your village is burned, all those people dead, because I was not wise or fast or strong enough to stop it. On my head was the task, and on my head lay the blame."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Feeling exhausted and tired from such a long day, Separ couldn't help but yawn as he finished the last preparations on his tent. He laid out his sleeping bag and then left to check on the others to see how they were all doing. What he overheard however was a conversation between both the civilian and Carver. "Do you or do you not feel responsible for the failure in preventing the destruction of Ravenwood and of all its citizens?" It felt as though the man wanted someone to blame, a scapegoat to explain why his town had fallen. Listening closely Carver admitted to actually being at fault. Not liking where this conversation was heading, Separ decided to intervene before the conversation could go on any longer. He walked up towards the two of them. "Sorry if I'm interrupting, it's just that I would like to say that the destruction of Ravenwood is not your fault Carver, or at least not entirely. By your logic, I and all of the others are just as much at fault. Why couldn't I be strong enough to knock out an ettin in one blow?" Separ pointed to the little girl and Vis as well to further prove his point. "Why wasn't the elf swift enough to run circles around that whole army? And why couldn't the little girl over there be a master weapons user?" Separ already didn't like this man that much. He seemed to be one of those snobby types that always looked down on others. At least that would be what it seemed like as earlier the man complained about that quick duel between Carver and that Bill guy. Glaring daggers at the civilian, Separ ended his rant. "Finally, why weren't you strong enough to save Ravenwood?" And with that being said Separ glared at the man for a moment before turning around to go into his tent. Separ then called out to the entire group, just audible enough for everyone to hear. "I'm going to bed you guys, I'm pretty exhausted after such a long day. Anyone is free to enter my tent and sleep with me, I'll probably be asleep when you come in anyways." Entering his tent Separ unrolled his sleeping bag and pulling himself inside, drifted off into sleep.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Carver's answer satisfied Arastoph. This was good. This meant that he could more easily get what he needs out of this by milking the "sole survivor" trope. However, there came issue with the brawler, who seems to have taken upon himself to present himself as the ass. Ah; setbacks, setbacks. So, how would be the best way to take care of this monkey while still playing the trope? Perhaps, maybe, undermine the brawler's efforts to absolve themselves of blame and pinning it instead on the "sole survivor", and putting the monkey up on spotlight. He'd have to really milk this, but it was doable. As Separ walked away, Arastoph began, not even bothering to look behind him at he spoke. "So, tell me - Separ, was it? Have you ever seen what it was like to watch closely people being burned alive?" Arastoph asked. He paused for a moment for his words to sink in. "I imagine not, so let me explicitly descriptive: a small child, hunched over a bed of charcoals. Her screams of agony, oh so woeful that they were, have long since evanesced. Her blood is instead boiling, oozing through the pores of her skin. With the sight, the smell of burning skin mingled with burning hair. Her eyes pop like grapes when the water in and behind them boil." He looked at the little girl that the lisping rogue had made her companion. "That could have just as easily been her." He took a deep breathe, as though it were meant to regain his bearings. Now it was time to really milk it. "Now what if I told you, that girl was my daughter?" He stated, clenching his teeth and emboldening his voice. "Would you then be so bold to suggest that I did not do everything in my power to stop that? Whereas the lot of you - all with combat experience, weapon training, and practice - had far more tools to their disposal than I ever had? As a trader, I picked a different path, which just so happened meant I couldn't support a family by ways of fighting." His head turned back to face Carver, his face a little pink with forced, feigned anger. "If you do take responsibility," he said, "I do expect reparations. Safe passage to other towns. The lives of people are not insurable, but I expect at least the compensation for everything I've lost. I'm a merchant who had a pretty penny to his name. I've lost a lot. This would mean paying off a large monetary debt, however long it takes."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ sighed as he listened to the man's words. This guy was unbelievable, trying to get him to feel guilt over something he had nothing to do with, as well as wanting payment to boot. Without turning around either Separ replied with. "I have never seen a person burn alive, I'll give you that. But what does this have to do with anything? Yes it was your daughter, and I feel sorry for your loss. Nonetheless, we're human too. Just because Carver has a sword doesn't mean he's some unstoppable juggernaut. I'm not invincible either, none of us are. We're only human, well excluding the gnome and the elf, but while I do wish I could have saved the town I know I'd just add to the death pile. I barely escaped with my life, and," motioning towards the cloaked girl who was still fast asleep. "I managed to save her life as well. That's as much as I could muster, so sorry if I'm not Mr. Superhero the fourth. Also don't expect much money out of me, I mean I'll help out, but from what I can tell, you appear to be no good. I just hope the only reason you're acting like this is because you just lost your town and family. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Goodnight." And with that Separ finally entered his tent and fell asleep, exhausted from such a long day of fighting.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat nestled herself between the pillar like roots of the oak tree, looking small among the woody tendrils of the massive plant. She nibbled into the bread, looking as if she were not hungry, however she was starving but her seized up heart wouldn't let her eat, like a lump in her stomach taking up all the space. As the man spoke of his burning daughter, she shrunk further and further into the recess between the roots, until she was as small as she could be, her head between her knees and her arms pulling them towards her chest. She had lost her appetite. To her own frustration, she started to cry, ever so quietly so she could not be heard. Vis turned away from the flickering flame and cast a green light behind him with his cursed eye, his heart stumbled over itself and reached out to the little girl, his green light softening to almost nothing. He moved towards her, taking his time to shove his way past the new guy to express his feelings. Vis crouched at Khat's feet and looked at her before he spoke. "You're muther wouldn'th wanth you crying, you know thath, righth?" he asked her gently, putting a hand on her's. She shook it off harshly and barked in his face. "How would you know?!" She had had enough, bursting into tears she launched herself at Vis and clung to him, thumping his back with her balled up fists as she wept, "I've got no one! No one but a dumb half-elf!" Vis knew her rage was only fueled by her grief but her words still hurt. Soon she grew exhausted and fell asleep, her face tear stained and her long red hair tangled and matted from her thrashing. Vis rested his head on the tree as he sat, the girl sound asleep on his lap. "Whath am I thoo do?" he mumbled to himself.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver watched Separ enter his tent. The man was generous in his defense of Carver, but ultimately, misguided. It had not been his responsibility to defend the village, nor Kelvin's, nor Vis's. When Carver put on the armor, he swore an oath - he made the defense of all things good and peaceful his responsibility forevermore. The refugee's words were compelling, however. Truly, the man had lost much, endured much, and he deserved to be heard out at the least. "If you do take responsibility," said the refugee, "I do expect reparations. Safe passage to other towns. The lives of people are not insurable, but I expect at least the compensation for everything I've lost. I'm a merchant who had a pretty penny to his name. I've lost a lot. This would mean paying off a large monetary debt, however long it takes." Without him even realizing it, Carver's upper lip curled into an expression of disgust at the words. "So that's it, then? Money." The paladin rounded on the man, hands clenching into fists. "You speak of money when homes are gutted and pillaged. You speak of money when innocents are slaughtered, women defiled, children burned. You've borne witness to carnage indescribable, and yet you have words for your fortune?!" The knight was shouting now, the full weight of his fury bearing down on the man. "What I failed was beyond sums and figures. The peaceful life that was taken from those villagers was worth more than all the coin you could ever put your hands on. I will live in penance for this failure and for many others, but I will not spend my days recompensing a miser his 'pretty penny.'" Carver turned to walk towards his tent. Almost as an after-thought, he yanked his coinpurse from his side and tossed it over to the man. "There. Ten coins, all the money to my name. Take it, if you value it so greatly. I do not care for its stink." With that, the paladin entered the tent, still bristling with indignation.</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des Des walked into the clearing once everyone was asleep making sure not to be spotted by Vis. He walked by the entire lot thinking about them. 'This one's presence is loud and annoying, like a bickering family.' He thought as he passed by Alula. He looked into the tent of Kelvin and Furnace. 'This one's head is too busy and the other feels warm, yet somehow cold.' He walked into Separ's tent and stared at him. 'This one can think of only one thing, what is he to do when that purpose is filled.' Finally he walked into the tent of Carver. 'This one is protective and comforting, like the sun.' He then laid next to Carver, the only presence that didn't bother him, and fell asleep.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Time for you to wake up." Furnace woke to the strange melodic sound of chirping. Kelvin was still asleep next to him so he carefully crawled out of the tent. He had dreamt that night. Not just words but lights and visions. "Something big. Something proud." These words echoed in his mind when he stared into the smouldering remains of the camp fire. Furnace rubbed his forehead while scanning the tent, Alula was nowhere to be seen. He wondered why he wondered these things, and why he felt the need to touch his head. Looking around Furnace also noticed Carver sitting in the grass looking at the bright orb of energy rested on hills in the far distance. So peaceful the man sat there in silence. Furnace sat down beside him and stared at the sunrise with him. He'd seen the thing before, high in the sky and falling slowly. Then it would rise again later. Furnace began to assume this always happened. Furnace liked the idea. To have a ready supply of light and warmth from time to time. And the waves of energy laced in the rays of light, woven so brilliantly made the source a sight to behold. He thought back to the energy he'd see wave of Carver some time ago before they had slept. Looking at the patterns he confirmed his earlier guess that their nature was the same. Furnace broke the silence. "It's beautiful isn't it?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou "?!?!" It took almost all of her self control, not to fling herself up in shock, as Suki woke up. The dream she had during the night was disturbingly vivid. Well, the emotions she felt were vivid, the actual content of the dream somewhat hazy. Glancing around, she noticed that she was lying down in a tent, with the sun's rays piercing through the thin fabric of the tent. Yawning lightly, she gracefully slipped out, before stretching. Looking around, it appears they had moved from the ruins of the town, into a hopefully safer clearing. While carefully on guard against anyone, she noticed the gnome nearby. Although it was an amusing idea, she forgone the option of teasing it. She didn't feel up for tempting anyone just yet.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis had not slept well and night had turned to day in a disorientating blur of exhaustion and periodic wakings ups in during the night. Though he was sure that he must have gotten at least some sleep because he remembered waking up a lot, and having stage dreams. He looked like crap. His eyes were bloodshot and his good one turing violet from the redness and it's natural blue and he was slumped over, his eyes only barely open and seemingly unregistering. Vis felt his eyes start to creep shut but he willed them to stay open, 'only a few more minutes and i wake up the paladin' he thought to himself, forgetting he had already woken him up, Vis looking up and grimaced, it was day and he had slept horribly. He sighed and felt Khat stir in her sleep. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked up at Vis, she was still asleep on his laps, it appears he hadn't moved all night. Khat wasn't one for good mornings, "Why do you look like shit?" she asked, Vis simply sorted, not even taken aback by the child's foul language. His hands went around his head shakily and tightened his scarf, she mimicked him, "I had a weird dream." Vis didn't registering what she said, "hello?" she asked, waving a hand in his face, he snorted in acknowledgment, "not a morning person..." she mumbled.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver awoke from his dream with a start. He rubbed his face, blinked his eyes, confirmed in his mind that he was indeed awake, that yes, this was real and what he'd just seen had been fantasy. There was a picture emblazoned on his arm, a strange symbol he couldn't recognize from any of his learning. That was from the dream, but if that was still there, then...? There was something else, too, a sensation that had stuck with him. Weightlessness. Alula. Wherever the girl was, Carver prayed she was safe. There was a sight he wasn't quite prepared for. There was a child curled up next to him, fast asleep, a small, frail thing who obviously hadn't slept in a bed in a long while. He wondered for a moment where the child had come from, and then concluded that it didn't matter. Perhaps he was another survivor, perhaps he was an urchin. What mattered now was that he was clearly alone, and tired, and had come to Carver seeking protection. The paladin lifted his blanket and spread it over the child, taking great care not to wake him. When the time came for his watch, Carver stepped outside the tent dressed in the plain linen clothes he'd been wearing under his armor yesterday. He took up position where he could see the sunrise peeking over the horizon, planted his sword at his feet, and spent a time contemplating her wisdom and beauty in silence. The silence was broken a great while later, when the rest of the party began to awaken. He was content to leave them to their morning rituals until the gnome came to sit next to him. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" The knight smiled softly. "She is. She loves each of us, you know. That is why she blesses us with her radiance. We are all children of the sun."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace looked at Carver like he couldn't understand a word he said. She. Love. Bless. Children. Sun... "Who is the sun?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had slept fantastically. It was the gentle sounds of the world around her, as well as the irritating sunlight piercing through her shut eyes, that finally awoke her. She sat up slowly, stretching her arms up above her with a soft grunt. And as she stretched her arms up to the sky the grass she had slept in moved too. She looked around, blinking the sleep out of her hazy eyes. The events of the previous day were rather unclear to Alula. She remembered joining the group of adventurers, of whom which seemed to have set up camp here. The events of the battle between them and the horde of creatures was nothing more then a hazy feeling, like watching the events unfold from behind dirty glass. The voices filled in the blanks for her, explaining that they eventually had to flee the area. They then tried to bring up the No good dangerous and rotten Paladin but she silently begged them to stick to the facts. And then there was the coming of the moon. And she had barely gotten away from the group before she changed. Alula found herself exhaling with relief. There had been a group of raiders, whom she was able to cunningly outwit. And from then on she had spent the rest of the evening enjoying the moon and recharging. She confirmed with the voices that this was all they had done in the night, which they confirmed. Good. No one had been hurt. She looked over to her side, noticing her staff laying out in the grass an arms length away. Well at least they made one thing easy for her, but she was still upset about her hat being lost. Everyone else was beginning to wake up around her as well. Hopefully everyone else slept well too. She yawned again, stretching out her spine and pulling her staff closer to herself. She could hear her companions having conversations, but they felt so far away despite being so close. And the sunrise was burning her eyes.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem "A celestial body." Arastoph piped up, intervening on the conversation; and hopefully end the religious conversion before it began. Worshiping the light was cute and all, but what kind of man would he be if he let the knight take advantage of a little boy like that? Er-- gnome. How old was the wee guy anyway? Regardless, Arastoph had one thing that the others didn't: a formal education befitting of a noble (perhaps, with time and money, Arastoph could make himself a noble in due time - imagine that!). "Telescopes, the creation of which prompting due thanks to the world's scientists, can allow you to look at the stars and see they are like that of the sun. Granted, we do not know what they are made of yet, but I doubt their making is magical or divine." The trader tipped up the wide-brimmed hat he had scavenged last night, revealing his face from the shade it offered. Light bags formed under his eyes. Nothing severe, but he had spent the whole night doing little more than closing his eyes. A man like him can not sleep among strangers, especially as suspicious of him as they were. Granted, he fared it better than most would, but it didn't make the experience any more pleasurable. He found that there were a couple of people that had joined their crew amidst the night. A young boy, and a girl. Assuming that the watchman had not grown lazy and fallen asleep, he had let them in, indicating he recognized them. Their party was larger than Arastoph had first anticipated. With larger groups come greater solidarity and variety of perspectives. A larger group was much more difficult to manipulate, but assuming he can get just a few to trust him, he should be well off. Even if the monkey and pious knight didn't. "I believe we are better off accepting that there are beneficial consequences of its product, like of the trees, than to humanize it... but that's just my take on it. Decide what you will, wee one."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki's attention was perked up by the man who seemed to be wearing a rather familiar hat. Which made little sense, as she did not recognize the man himself. However, a new male, was a new person to tease. Getting into the mood to play around, she walked over, until she was next to the man talking about celestial bodies. "My, you're quite the knowledgable one aren't you?" Asking in that usual sultry tone of hers. As she was voicing her question, she 'absentmindedly' leaned in, with her cloak opening slightly, allowing a slight view of her bountiful chest.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Celestial body. The voice had used the word celestial before. To describe frightening creatures from other worlds. Furnace attempted to follow the man's words, but as many of them were alien he drew some hasty conclusions. "Good thing there's these telescopes. This place would be dark and cold without those light sources in the sky." The sleepy girl had awoken and confirmed the man was knowledgeable. So furnace asked his questions. He pointed at the big orange orb lazily escaping the mountain-peak's grip and slowly ascending. "The impressive one is the sun? Cause I can see what that's made off."</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver turned at the survivor's voice and spread his hands wide. "Love the skeptic, for the light needs not thanks to fall upon one's face. You are permitted to your theory, and I to mine." He patted the gnome on the head. "That she is, my friend. She is made of power, bent to noble purpose. And how magnificently she shines!" He glanced around the camp. It seemed almost everybody was waking now - even the witch was attempting to assert her feminine wiles upon the survivor. The sight interested Carver little, however - he was much more relieved to see Alula, sitting up and rubbing her eyes from the light. He smiled warmly and nodded to her slightly - the two could speak privately later about the symbol, and Carver's obviously mystical dream. The others need not be troubled about it, not yet. "My friends," he said to the general company, "We have much to discuss. First, know that I received a visitor last night - I woke up to find a child sleeping beside me. I know not where he came from, as I did not wish to disturb him; he slumbers still. Secondly, we must chart a course towards the next town or city, warn someone about the evils we have witnessed. I know little of this land, so I will leave this portion of the plan to you. All voices are welcome, and none need fear to share their opinion."</s>
<\|description\|>Carver Appearance: Race: Human Class: Paladin Main-Hand Weapon: Longsword Off-Hand Weapon: Kite Shield, Steel Secondary Weapon: Greatsword Armor: Full Plate Powers: None - his faith is all the power he needs. Skills: Diplomacy - Carver is a great communicator, able to get what he wants out of people by being straightforward with them. In additon, his palpable earnestness and good looks tend to make him very popular wherever he goes. Knowledge of Religion - Having lived in a monastery all his life, he knows a fair deal about the various faiths of the realm. Tenacity - With faith as his armor and honor his shield, there his little Carver cannot endure - he will get back up and get back up and get back up. Weaknesses: Cannot tell a lie to save his life. Utterly shackled to the (very rigid) moral codes of his order. Personality: Carver is the quintessential knight - he is obsessed with justice, honor, courage, and compassion. He's a compulsive do-gooder and sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, and sometimes he can be a little too sure of his own judgements, but he is really, fundamentally a good person out to spread good into the world. In combat, he is a protective fighter - a blow will not fall on his comrades if it may fall on him instead, and he prioritizes a solid defense over any kind of offense. Background: Carver was born in a great city far to the north, and given over by his parents at a young age to the local order of holy warriors. He was brought up as a crusader, a servant of the goddess of the sun and compassion, and taught his whole life the virtues of justice, integrity, and faith. Now, as part of his Crusader's Rite of Passage, he has journeyed to the south, seeking to right the wrongs, uplift the downtrodden, and spread the radiant light of the sun to all dark corners of the world. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin This guy is as slippery as an oiled dwarf. Kelvin grimaced at both the mental image and the man in front of him as he listed off his conditions. The guy was throwing out numbers and conditions like he had contracts memorized… and he probably did, looking at him. Kelvin repeated the terms in short in his head, trying to think them over. Unfortunately, while he was good at math, economics were not his strong suit. There were some unmentioned holes, but he could use those to his own advantage. The terms looked alright, but no reason not to argue them down if he could. "I don't accept." Kelvin let it roll off his tongue the moment the seer had her hat back. "If you want to trade with us, you will do it fairly, at no more than half again the market price." He scratched his beard, "And only a hundred monthly, unless you want to supply your own food and sleeping gear, and you take twentyfive percent of profit made in trades on the parties behalf, if you also want a fair split of any treasures we find along the way. Otherwise, you are on your own for loot." Kelvin wasn't quite sure they were going to be able to afford another hundred gold a month, but if this guy could keep his word… "I recommend you take that deal." Kelvin waved his hand at the gold and shrugged. "Unless you have a different offer, because I am sure we can find other uses for that gold than stuffing your pockets. It looks to me like you need it more than we do." Kelvin spared a glance at Separ and Carver. Carver to make sure the knight was witnessing what was happening, and Separ because the guy was technically their leader. "I hope this won't take too long, after all, we do have one or two enemies a mile or more that way." Kelvin gestured towards the forest, roughly where they had come from.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Bah. A mile was far away enough. Arastoph gazed at the engineer as though he were a bored man, slightly annoyed at the engineers insistence of his own term. Beginning his terms at catching Arastoph's offer concerning personal trades, and then a measly one hundred piece monthly payment, and just a twenty-five percent share of profit made through his transactions. While yes, the job was to make this man's party some money, the point of the arrangement is to allow Arastoph to profiteer off some of trades. However, he could use the engineer's offer to his own advantage. "Ah, caught that, did you?" Arastoph asked simply and slightly annoyed. "Fair enough. Excluding this section of our contract, no personal trades between me and a separate individual of your party are under this contract's jurisdiction." The corner of Arastoph's mouth curled up into a smirk. "And I recommend that if you want the best results, two hundred piece monthly payments is the best deal I could offer you... I could make your party that much - and perhaps more - in a week. I will accept your offer of twenty-five percent of the profits made upon your behalf, but if the amount divided between your party is not equal to a base amount of coins, I will claim the total remainder of those percentages. It would keep things fair among the members of your party and prevent money from being wasted." Now that he thought about it, he wasn't sure if that was something the engineer would understand. "A person cannot claim ten point seventy-five pieces. You can not just claim seventy-five percent of a gold piece. If the seven of you were to receive that much, I'd take the percentages that do not add up to a base number and add them up together, where I would receive the total of the number equal to the highest solid number. In this example, I would receive five pieces."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver blinked his glazed eyes. All this talk of business and deals had put him into a fugue. By the sun, this survivor could talk a whole day away. He saw Separ standing next to him and coughed. "Ah. Yes. I slept... uncommon well, in fact, considering the previous day's events." With that, the Knight stepped into the middle of the group. "If I might refocus the discussion, there is an enemy horde loose in this area, and they have shown that they are willing to commit acts of terrible barbarism. It might be best to find a heading and proceed from there, discussing what we must while on the road."</s> <\|message\|>Des A ton of words flashed by in an instant. Much of which Des didn't know. Des looked up at Carver and decided to run some of these by him. "Hey metal man. What's the Sun, or stars, or money, or dynamite? Oh, and what's an enemy?" Des whispered, not wanting to talk unless he was describing one's presence.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace followed Astaropth's explanation intensely. Like a wizard's pupil listening to his mentor. He followed the calculations in his head, then did them over when they didn't match up. "Oh I get it! We find a bag with 7 coins. There's...10 of us so he gets all of it. If the bag contains 53 we all get 5 coins and he 3. The smaller the number the larger the chance he get's most of it. Very smart. This gold magic is really strange but interesting."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula didn't pay much attention to Kelvin and the merchant as they talked about potential prices and deals. The concept of material wealth, as well as money itself, was strange to her. She was, in a way, relieved to no longer carry her coin purse on her. It felt like an extra weight, and not just in the physical sense. It felt like too much pressure to have gold, that would mean she would have to spend it wisely. And nothing seemed wiser then spending all of her gold on her hat. His hat. Her prized possession although she could not remember when she became its owner. Their conversation eventually just became background noise. She tried to melt back into the background herself. She didn't like having the spotlight on herself, and trying to make the transaction with the merchant seemed to do just that. But that was over, and her hat was again where it should be. She tugged the rim of the hat down, covering her eyes. She kept herself a few paces away from the rest of the group, wanting to listen and not contribute much more. She listened as Furnace, again, over complicated things and as Separ and Carver had a brief exchange before Carver tried to direct the group back to their current plans. His cries seemed to fall on death ears. Kelvin, the merchant and Furnace were all having their own conversation about wealth and trade agreements. Suki was stranding off on her own, Vis and his child were off as well. Separ would likely have some opinions to state so there was still that. The dangerous child then tried to derail the conversation even more by asking Carver questions. Alula held back a snarl. She was no good at geography, she was foreign to this part of the land, and thus wouldn't be able to add much to the conversation. But getting on their way seemed like a good idea. Walking and talking would be fine, although Alula was bad at both of these things. She nodded to Carver, a gesture that was slightly lost under her hat, willing to do whatever he suggested.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph looked down at the gnome with intrigue. Well, the little guy was getting a few factors wrong (such as the children; Arastoph did not count them as legible for shares of loot, and ideally, would be put in an orphanage in another town while these people continued their travels), and that part of deal had little to do with finding loot, but the leftover gold that became a remainder after a trade, but the merchant was surprised that he was starting to catch on to what was happening. Arastoph admits that he underestimated the wee one's intelligence, even if its actual value was just a little above what he expected. "Not quite," he said, but his voice seemed to gleam with approval, "for instance, I wasn't counting children when distributing shares. Ideally, they'd be dropped at an orphanage at the next town... but you certainly are making strides just by watching." Of course, this pleasant demeanor wasn't much more than a facade. While it was interesting that the little gnome learned quickly, he didn't have any interest in putting the thing under his tutelage.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" At the word Orphanage, Khat forgot that she was trying to interact with the less gullible clocked lady and instead, rounded on the trader, her red hair fanning out in fiery sheets. She glared at hm for a moment and her eye twitched a bit. She marched up to him and poked him harshly in his stomach, accusingly and through grit teeth she spoke. "What makes you think I'm going to an Orphanage, huh buster?" She spat, literally, on his boot. She looked him up and down and her anger only seemed to get hotter, as her pale skin became flushed red in her rage, "Who are you to tell me what I do? You are not my dad, I don't know you and I don't trust you and if you think that you can just get rid of me so you can have more money, You've got another thing coming." She pulled her scarf around her face and marched off, seething in anger. Vis heard everything and a ghost of a smile crept across his face, 'Brave one...' He thought, as she plonked herself down in the dirt by his side and crossed her arms, still glaring at the man from a distance. "An orphanage can't replace her.." She mumbled and Vis' smile turned into a slight frown.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Oh so you turn things into gold and keep a share for yourself? ... But I do think you mean to have more gold coins if possible. Did I get that right? Because then you would want to do this with a group that has a large number to divide by. Of having these children be part of the spell would result in smaller numbers for us and higher numbers for you. Right?" Furnace prattled on doing calculus on his fingers. Completely oblivious to the tension between the others.</s>	<\|message\|>Carver Carver leaned down to the boy. "The sun is the bright yellow orb you see in the sky. Gaze not too long at her, for her radiance may be more than mortals can comprehend, but know that she is my lady and she loves you very dearly. The stars are the points of light you see at night. Money," he gestured to the squabblers, "Is the root of all evil. Dynamite is... dangerous. And enemies are those who would disturb the natural peace and gentleness of my lady's world, such as those loose in these woods right now." He looked back to the others, still arguing over deals and sums. Now Furnace was in on it - Carver shut his eyes for a moment and prayed for strength. "Enough," he said firmly, stepping into the center of the group. "This debate of deals is a matter for another time. Kelvin, I have nothing but respect for you - you have proven yourself wise, brave, and resourceful, and already I owe you very much. As such, I feel confident appealing to you that we must not stay here. Our enemies draw closer every moment - every word we waste endangers the children, and Alula, and Furnace, and all of us. What is more, we could now be well on our way to warning the next settlement, give them time to prepare, evacuate, prevent the horrendous calamity that we have witnessed from repeating itself. To bandy words here is irresponsible, and I am honor-bound not to." "However, wordsmith," he said, rounding on the 'survivor'. "You have impressed me little. Your tact is skillful, your eloquence laudable, but the direction in which you bend it I find... distasteful. As such, this is my humble request, merchant. Travel with us, do not hinder us, do not steal from those under my protection, and at the very least try to keep your drool off your face when you sight a coinpurse. I will not stand in the way of your deal, friends, but please discuss the terms as we travel. Any admirable path you choose to take beyond that may be your own prerogative. My lady gave us all a purpose; do you really think yours was squabbling for money with travelers in the forest?" The knight turned and began dismantling his tent. "Break camp, friends. We should leave in twenty..." he glanced around at his companions. "... Thirty minutes, and until such time as someone suggests a better course, I intend to go that way." Carver pointed in the direction roughly opposite Ravenwood.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver arrived in Ravenwood in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day in the country - all around was quiet, and the sun shone through the leaves in just that way that made Carver feel as though the goddess were truly with him. As the wagon he was riding pulled in through the gates, he waved here and there at passing townsfolk, and was often rewarded with a smile or a polite wave. The wagon came to a halt and he dismounted, his armor clanking loudly as he landed. The farmer whose family he had been traveling with for the past few days approached him, and Carver gave the man a warm smile. "My friend," he said, "I believe this is where we part ways." "Yes, milord," the farmer responded, still using the honorific Carver has insisted repeatedly was not necessary. "We will be awful sorry to see you go. How much do we owe you?" The man responded, fumbling for his coinpurse. Carver has expected that the man would attempt to compensate him for his services 'escorting' the family, though in truth he had only scared off a few petty thieves. The paladin held a hand out to the man, still smiling. "No such payment is required. Keep it. Feed your children, and raise them in the light of the sun." The farmer nodded. "I, uh, yes milord. I will. Thank you." Carver put his hand to his breast and bowed before turning away and walking into the crowd. It was time to find some wrongs and set about righting them - the marketplace would be as good a place as any to start.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nervously stepped out from the narrow path between buildings, her eyes shifting as she cautiously looked over everyone nearby. From what it looked like, there wasn't anyone screaming for anything similar to those witch hunt riots that the church had done hunting her down. Making sure her cloak was covering her body, with the hood obscuring her head, she daintily slipped out, mingling with the crowd at the marketplace. Although she tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible, it seems that her cloaked figure was something that my catch the eyes of a few. Suddenly feeling a hand grip her arm, she quickly spun around, only to realize it was a merchant. "We have good prices!" Heavily accented, the merchant gestured at his wares, or in this case, fresh produce. Feeling a slight bit hungry, she nodded, before pointing at an apple. "Good eye, good eye, that would be-" The merchant started to speak, before Suki raised her hood slightly, revealing her face to him. Winking, she raised a finger to her lips. "Bring the apple. I'll make the payment through other means~' Whispering with such a sultry tone, the merchant was by no means resilient against such a tactic. The two hurried towards a more quite alley, where Suki leaned in, and kissed the merchant. Whatever giddy thoughts that raced through the merchant's mind, was soon replaced by a lethargy. The man soon sank to the ground, the expression of ecstasy plastered on his face. "For a farmer, your energy wasn't too bad of a taste." Muttering such words mostly to herself, she quickly picked up the apple, and re-entered the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, taking bites from her newfound food.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis trudged through the dense mud, tired and with a gloomy expression on his face, though it would be difficult to make out, his scarf worn tightly around his face and over his nose, obscuring the expression and the gaping hole in his maw. Vis had been accosted by a group of thugs on the main road, though this generally wasn't an issue as he would run away and they would lose interest eventually but it seemed these things were desperate, as they chased him half way into the moor before deciding it was no longer worth it. He didn't like running away, if there was only one or two of them he would have stood his ground, unfortunately there were half a dozen. He tilted his head up to the sky to find light grey plooms of smoke in the distance, beyond the hill that was beyond the next. There were too many points of smoke for it to be a campsite but not quiet enough to be an industrial estate, so he figured it must have been some little township. Vis made it to 'Ravenwood' in the afternoon, drained from the task of traversing through mud that felt only the need to slow him down, so with some relief he slung his pack around so it was under his nose and opened it. He saw the cobbled street. His mood quickly turned dower, the bottom of his pack must have snagged on a branch and have been torn, spilling it's contents. 'that's why those highway men turned, they just had to pick up what they wanted.' With a sigh, he took what was left in the pack and cast it into an alleyway, though funnily enough all that was in there was the child's encyclopedia his mother gave him before leaving, so he could brush up on reading skills. Vis tucked the book into his leather armor and wandered forth. The market district was buzzing with activity, buyers haggling over prices and venders hawking their wares, though all Vis needed was a replacement pack and a few basic bits. Wandering the stalls and booths, he found nothing met his eye, mostly because of the high prices but also because many of the packs were just of low quality. Unsatisfied, he walked through the market, casting a faint green cone of light from his cursed green eye.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continues to idly imagine adventures he is brought back into reality as he feels a hand touch his back. Separ turns around and listens to the man he starts wondering just how to respond, pausing to think about his actions. "Do I know you? Though actually I am looking for some companions. Wait, out of everyone here why choose me? You're not trying to rob me or something are you? Wait, umm, are you looking just for someone to travel with, or are you an adventurer as well?" Separ's words were quick and somewhat hard to follow. He had never done something like this before and wasn't exactly sure of himself and just how to proceed.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver strode through the marketplace confidently, his heavy armor clanking with every step. So far, everything seemed to be in order - the hustle and bustle of commerce carried on around him, seemingly unabated by any sort of wickedness or villainy whatsoever. The prices seemed to be reasonable, the merchandise legitimate - nobody was being cheated here. Carver was glad to see it; too many villages he had been to on his journey so far had been rife with dishonesty and corruption. As he ruminated on the morality of the village, he caught sight of a scrawny gnome stumbling through the crowd. He watched as the gnome took hold of a woman's robe, staring at the fabric with childlike wonder. She immediately turned and yanked it from him, saying something unintelligible but obviously rather flustered. Quite a pair - the girl seemed to be moving with a distinct limp, and the gnome clearly wasn't eating very well. It was hardly the stuff of legends, but Carver knew that every good deed mattered. With his best winning smile, Carver approached the pair, regarding them each in turn. "Good day, friends! Keeping safe, I should hope?"</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou By the time Suki had finished the apple, she had managed to walk her way over to the tavern by chance. Mentally sighing, she pushed open te doors, before walking in. Avoiding eye contact with any curious onlookers, she made her way towards the corner of the building, sitting herself down at an empty table. Carefully glancing about, she didn't recognize anyone, nor see anything out of the ordinary. Nor was there anyone staring at her with the look of death, as the members of the church had done so. Feeling the safest that she had all week, she lightly rested her head on the table, befre falling asleep, her arms around her head, covering any view of her face.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou From the moment she felt her hood gently shift, Suki had woken up. However, the unusually gentle action -unusual to her- was what kept her from springing out of her seat, and attacking the man. She would've preferred her scythe, but she had hid that on the outskirts of town. Such a large weapon drew curious gazes after all. Choosing to slip back into her dreams, her interest was perked as she heard the two men argue. It seemed they weren't looking for any trouble with her, or as a matter of fact, with anyone. They might have been looking for others. However, what really stuck with her, was that these two weren't discussing as if they had met a demon, but instead a normal person. "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Completely on the whim, Suki tossed that question out, while mentally regretting the decision already. Unfortunately, what has been said could not be retracted. Sitting up slowly, while allowing the hood of her cloak to drop, she smiled at the man closest to her. "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." Softly speaking, Suki half reprimanded the man, half teased, as she stood up, making sure the keep the rest of herself covered by the cloak.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded his thanks to the armored man and slowly bent down to scoop his bag up off the floor, he gave it a good dusting and slipped it back on, not taking his good eye off of the paladin and casting a circle of green light on his face with the bad one. "thank you.." mumbled Vis, awkwardly. He still had more things to go and buy but the paladin seemed to have a point, it was very warm outside for some reason and the heat seared Vis' pale skin. "I think thare ith a inn on tha wetht thide of the marketh, pathed ith by when I goth hear." he needed a drink after that much lisping, something to calm his nerves but he only drank in private, so it seemed he wouldn't be able to. Vis tightened his scarf around his face, just in a way it would stay on but not in a way it would show impressions of his scaring. "there ith altho an airy bar thomewhere near thare." Vis turned his eye away from the armored man and looked at the group he had accosted with his tripping, there was a scraggly gnome at his feet, reminding him of an ugly cat but he mentally slapped himself as he knew he wasn't that good looking himself. Then there was the woman cloaked in fine fabric, with the heavens printed on the inside, she spoke to him and Vis shuddered, her words felt strange to him, they came out in a way that sounded like she didn't know what she was saying, yet was very accurate. He kept his eyes on her, one to look at her and the other to cast a ghostly, green glow.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver withdrew his hand quickly at the strange voice's behest. That certainly wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting - glowing eyes and booming commands were usually confined to things paladins were expected either to worship or to kill, but as the girl tottered forward, pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her eyes, Carver was certain that neither of those reactions would be appropriate. No, his initial plan regarding the girl still seemed appropriate - she needed help. It took him a moment to realize the half-elf was talking, and with a severe lisp, too. Something about a tavern? That seemed like it would serve both for getting the girl out of the heat (and the crowd) and for getting the gnome some food. He smiled at the man. "A tavern sounds like a fine idea. Might I trouble you to take us there?" He glanced around at the company. "A bit of rest and a meal, and I'm sure we'll all be feeling right as rain, friends." He moved closer to the girl - not enough to risk triggering the same bizarre reaction, but enough that she could lean on him if she felt the need. He also extended a hand down to the gnome, hoping to prevent the small fellow from being lost in the crowd.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Kelvin jerked around, twisting to look at the woman as she stood upright. He slapped a hand to his face, dragging it down, pulling on his flesh and in general just making him look tired. "See what I mean?" He lowered his voice for his companion, but doubtless the woman could hear as well. She pulled back her hood, fully revealing her features to the both of them. Pristine, perfect. Warning bells everywhere. First. Why was she alone? With a face like that she could easily have been married to a rich man, or already in the bloodline of a powerful one. Second. If she was alone, how had she managed to get so far by herself? It just reeked of alarm. No offense to her, of course. It just didn't look safe... Kelvin glanced at his companion, wondering. Was he a fool for a pretty face? "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." A flush crept across his cheeks for an instant, before he quickly responded. "Aye, no more daring than a lady who sleeps in a commoner's tavern with the ease of a barmaid." His tongue was going to get him into trouble someday. Kelvin averted his eyes from her, towards his companion. "Your call sir."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had seemed to calm down considerably, but was still horribly overwhelmed. Not once voice kept still for very long, and she was very confused as to what they were telling her to do. She peered out from under her hat, watching as the half-elf gathered back up his belongings. He was an interesting one, but the voices could not agree on why. Perhaps he just was because he was. More phantom noises filled the oracles ears, whistling winds and breaths cut short. It was horribly unnerving. She shivered for a moment despite the heat. The noises stopped suddenly, leaving Alula dizzy once more. Unfortunately she was also now out of the loop on the whole bar situation, she hadn't really been comprehending what the two taller men were discussing. But what she did pick up on was the half-Elfs speech impediment. In an almost comical turn of events, her mind was in an even fifty fifty split right now trying to remember and understand what would be socially acceptable. Was she supposed to not say anything or point out his strange pattern of speech. And then Alula noticed he was looking at her. She initially panicked but then noticed something. He had glowing eyes too, or well one eye. For some reason this observation made her next choice very clear to her. And in her slurred voice spoke. "You..talk weird..."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ The moment I laid eyes on this woman I felt my body's temperature rise as my face turned beet red. I could hardly say a word as I was immediately enchanted by her beauty, and in that short moment time seemed to creep to a halt making it feel like an eternity. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" The words of my mentor echoed in my head as I continued to gaze upon this girl's beauty. "Your call sir." Kelvin's words brought me out of my trance and back to reality. Ahh, just how stupid can I be? I can't just gawk at this girl, and besides regardless of how good my mentor's training was, I don't think his last snippet of advice can be considered valid. I sighed for a moment redirecting my focus to try and calm myself down. My body slowly changed back to normal as I now stared at the woman. I would not fall under her spell so easiy, even if I wanted to actually do so. Wait why am I admitting that? Ahh, forget it, just say something so you don't look like an idiot. "I'd love it if you joined us, though I must ask if you know about how to fight or any useful skills really. I wouldn't want you or Kelvin for that matter, to get put into any dangerous situations, so please be truthful to what you can or can't do. Or at the very least understate your abilities so we don't do anything to rash and wind up all dead or something, I don't know." I gulped as while I wasn't going gaga over her anymore, I was still having a bit of trouble talking, as evidenced by the nervousness in my voice. Well it wasn't that big of a deal anyways, I probably just needed to get used to her.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' eyes went wide when she said those words, his cursed left eye flashing an angry green for a moment before it stopped. He wanted to retaliate with words but his throat seized up, locking shut, if he spoke she would just poke fun at him again, he usually stood tall but now he slumped a fraction. "nothed*," he turned around and with a flick of his tattered left ear, he signaled for them to follow, his steps were more unsure now then they'd ever been, almost all people did not comment on his voice, they tended to know what was good for them, the last time someone did they suffered a beating. But he couldn't beat the girl under the pointy hat, he just couldn't bring himself to raise his hand at her, she seemed like she didn't know what she was saying but that didn't make him any less wounded. Vis tightened his scarf. When they arrived at the tavern, Vis held the door open for his group, turning around to see the Paladin, Gnome and the pretty hooded girl who made comments at his expense.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki shifted her gaze to the side slightly, as she was compared to that of a barmaid. Not because she was insulted, but moreso because she ended up thinking about kissing patrons when she was half dead. That was one memory she would love to bury, but at least that was at a different village. "Of course. Although I may not look like it, but I do have confidence in my ability to scout out an area. That, and when I do run into trouble, I trust my skill in a scythe." Answering the other man's questions, she couldn't help but to notice how he had a momentary lapse when he first looked at her. She leaned closer to him, while subtly releasing the top clasp of the cloak, allowing it to part slightly. From this angle, the man could get just a tiny glimps of her chest. "Well~? Do you believe me~?" Whispering these words, at such a low volume, yet with hints of a challenge mixed in with that sultry tone.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace noted the other beings around the wooden circle had noticed him and one of them wished to trade words. He eyed the tall figure, he had a magnificent beard, he was tall but not as physically imposing as his new metal bound friend. The thing that stood out about this guy was not his appearance. Furnace tilted his head slightly without breaking eye contact with Kelvin. "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Once the group he had latched himself onto entered, Vis followed, closing the wooden door behind him. Once the merry group had entered, Vis veered to the left and towards the bar counter where the bartender stood and dried out rinsed tankards. "Ith there a chanth I can thake a thankard outh?" asked Vis, watching the man behind the counter dry out the mug. "Sorry mate, nothing leaves the tavern that's not yours." Vis sighed, he didn't like to drink or eat in public, he had to take off the scarf and let people see his gnarled up scar and exposed teeth, he didn't want that. He was about to walk away and find a seat but behind the barman was a sheld of unopened bottles of drink, waiting to be bought. One of the bottles caught his eye, it was a plain green bottle, slimmer and taller then most, with an all too familiar label; it was a bottle of ForestElf, Wildberries and Alderflowers and it was new, Vis didn't like aged. "How muth for tha ForethtElf?" Vis asked, he watched as the man reached up to get a bottle that sat next to the one that caught his eye, it was a lighter color and the wax around the cork was damaged, showing it had been watered down and re-sealed, "Tha fresh one pleath." said Vis patiently, as the man grumbled and brought down the unopened one. "40 gold," said the barkeeper, clearly disgruntled by his failed attempt at selling him watered down booze, "Special discount for you my lispy friend." "fiftheen gold and I'm noth your friend you con artitht." He glared at the man and rested his hand on his rapier, as the man dropped his hand under the counter, probably gripping a weapon. "40, you half-elf mongrel." "Fiftheen, you gold pinthing donkey."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver stepped beside the half-elf and put a hand on his shoulder, smiling at the barkeeper. "No need to ruin this good day with... regrettable actions, friends. What do we say to thirty gold, and I'll put up half of it... provided you share some with our new friends, of course." It was obvious so far that the barkeep was a cheat and a swindler, and in another time Carver would have loved to have words with him on the subject. However, not on such a fine day, in so crowded a place, with friends in need of care nearby. The priority right now was diffusing the situation. "How much for something hot for my diminutive friend, good man?" He gestured back to the gnome sitting nearby, who looked to be sniffing at a bearded stranger. The man didn't seem offended by this, so that was good. Carver jingled his coin purse and was disheartened by its lightness - a life of charity had taken a toll on his funds, it seemed. He'd need to find some form of income soon, but that could wait.</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep looks Carver up and down, "For a respectful man such as yourself, 30 pieces is fine, as for food, that'll be 20 pieces for a nice hot meal." The barkeep brings the down the bottle and holds out his hand, waiting to be paid.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis, shook off Carver's hand and just glared at the barman, ignoring the paladin's offer after hearing the lightness of his pouch, he was too prideful at that moment to accept help and he didn't see it fair to take from someone who had little to begin with. "I'll pay thirthy." growled Vis through clenched teeth, his green eye casting a bright shaft of light at the barman's face. "Fifty." replied the barman, seeing that Vis was willing to pay more, the man smirked. In no mood to barter any further, Vis shoved his fist into the his coin pouched and clenched about half in his fist before throwing them at the taverner's face and snatched the bottle from his grubby clutches, "What the f-!" "You goth tha money, now shuth up!" yelled Vis, not caring who heard him. He turned around and let the paladin get what he wanted from the disgruntled man picking up coins from the floor. Vis found a secluded seat in a dark corner and popped the cork from the bottle, he took a deep whiff of it's smell, 'the smell of home.' he thought, remembering that the brewery was in his home town. He was about to lower his scarf to drink but he noticed a faint white glow coming from his blind, left side. He turned to see the girl in the pointy hat, he groaned, not seeing her as she was on his left side. Sp he went over to another seat, farther into the corner and away from the zoned out woman. As he sat there, on his own, he glanced at the girl in the pointy hat.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Well, since your friend there is so rude, you have to be the normal price, 35 pieces for a nice meal." He sneered at the paladin, then looking at the rogue, "And if he causes any trouble, I expect you to take care of him because you won't like how I do it."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the irritated half-elf storm off and shook his head sadly. If the man wanted to be surly, that was his own business; at least there hadn't been a confrontation. He removed the thirty-five coins from his (now even lighter) coinpurse and slid it across the counter to the barkeep. "A hot meal, then, for the gnome." The barkeep pocketed the money and barked an order to a barmaid. Carver leaned in closer to the man then, still smiling with his mouth, if not with his eyes. "Yes, I will take care of any trouble. And perhaps, another time, you and I may have a discussion about your business practices, and you will not like how I do that." This done, Carver turned and crossed the crowded room back to where the gnome was seated, alongside three others. One was the bearded man that the gnome had been speaking with, while the other two, a muscular looking young man and a very... shapely young woman seemed to be either arguing or flirting. Carver furrowed his brow at the girl. Though looking at her appealed to his baser urges, the higher part of his mind found something undisputably off about her. This was someone who did not know the love of the sun. He sat down next to them and patted the gnome on the back. "Food on its way, my diminutive friend." Just then, a barmaid set a sizeable bowl of stew in front of the gnome and was quickly off. He smiled at the others and nodded his head. "A fine day, friends. Hope you have a seat for another."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki smiled as they -or at least te one introduced himself as Separ- had accepted her into their little team of what might appear to be ragtags or misfits. However, while on the outside, she might no show anything out of the ordinary, Se was warring an internal strife against herself. Why are you associating with strangers? Maybe a bit of company is nice every once in awhile. You don't know who they are. They weren't out for my blood. Kelvin's touch was gentle. There has been similar tricks done, you nearly died twice because of it. ........... She was pulled from her doubts when she noticed more unfamiliar faces join the table. First and foremost, was the armored man. Why was a paladin here, of all places?! Was she found so soon?! Panicking slightly, she glanced over at the other newcomers. A rather small person, and...was that woman glowing? For some odd reason, Suki found the other woman reminded her of the night sky. However, her main problem was still the paladin. Looking around for an excuse to leave, her eyes fell upon the somewhat covered half-elf, sitting in the corner. The opposite corner. "We're still in need of companions, right? I'll go over there and ask." Without waiting for a response, she had already left her table. Along the way, she casually lifted her hood over her head, the overhang casting the rest of her face in darkness. Stopping as she reached the half-elf, she gestured at one o the empty seats. "May I?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" For the second time that day, he was about to lower his scarf to take a swig of the sweet smelling wine when he was interrupted. Looking up from his melancholia, he stared into the darkness of a hood, for a moment he was about to fall back in his chair from how frightening the dark figure looked but when he observed ir again, he saw that it was a rather curvaceous woman, though she didn't distract him from the object of his brooding and to a lesser extant interest. "thake a seath if'n you wanth." Vis was dropped his scarf only slightly to get a swig of the delicious, purply-red wine, only exposing his mouth as he brought the bottle to his parched lips.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nodded at the given permission from the half-elf, before sitting down across from him. Watching as he only shifted the scarf slightly to drink, Suki couldn't help but to feel more....at ease. It didn't feel like she was the only one who had secrets, or a reason to hide. Tilting her head ever so slightly to the left, she couldn't help but to speak. "How many people have commented on your lisp?" As per most people, the first thing that would be a topic started when faced with this half-elf, would be that unusual lisp he had. It sounded almost like something didn't work, or was delayed, with the muscles around his mouth. At least, that's what that one priest had sounded like when she had slashed at his jaw, before decapitating him. She could be wrong, but nonetheless, it was still different.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver patted the gnome on the back as he devoured the meal. He saw that the woman had gone to sit with the half-elf; a troubling alliance, possibly, but not one that seemed to pose an immediate danger. The strong-looking man has asked him a question, he realized. The offer was a tempting one - he was already traveling, and friends were good to have, especially when one was as poor as he was. "I'd be glad to travel with you, friend." He extended an armored hand. "My name is Sir Carver. A pleasure to make your aquaintance." Although... He coughed slightly. "However, I feel honor-bound to see to the well-being of my new friends," he said, gesturing to the gnome and to the corner, where the strange girl sat. "Perhaps you could propose them the same question, and we may all go off together? I'm not sure I could leave either in the same state I found them."</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting." Kelvin's eyes widened slightly, and a small grin stretched across his lips. Interesting. "I like this one." Kelvin slowly uprighted the stool and slid back onto it, settling to examine this being. He barely acknowledged when the cloaked woman moved away, excusing herself to ask around. It was possible she would have more luck, if for the wrong reasons. Yet... Separ had introduced them both, yet she had still avoided giving a name. He stroked his beard, considering. Strange. He turned his attention back to the gnome as food was brought, and watched the being down it in fascination. "Forty three seconds." Kelvin whispered to himself softly as the gnome slammed the bowl down. Behind him, Separ had already requesitioned the knight into their group. Curver, cover, something like that. He hadn't been paying to much attention to the last part. However, as far as the gnome went... "I don't mind spending time with this one." Kelvin turned on the stool and jerked a thumb towards the gnome. "Separ's in charge as far as I am concerned though." A thought occured, and Kelvin eagerly swung down his backpack, pulling out a long, stiff tube about as long as his forearm. The fuse was curled up and tied with a bit of string to make it compact. He held it out in front of the gnome, careful to keep it out of reach. "What do you make of this then?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki smiled lightly as she heard the rather expected response. As a matter of fact, she was expecting a number larger than three. Of course, this half-elf seemed rather anti-social, if this was how he normally talked, questioning what one wanted from him. Deciding to actually do as she had said, and ask for companions, she answered "It isn't anything really to difficualt. Just join up with 'him'-' here, she stopped talking to casually point towards the one she knew as Separ. "- on his idea of an adventure." Noticing the rather blunt action of sliding the bottle of alcohol towards her, she looked at it with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion, before daintily reaching out and grabbing in. Taking a whiff, and enjoying the aroma of the drink, she had just poured a little bit of it in her mouth when the half-elf ask her to take off the hood. Nearly choking on the drink in surprise, she coughed several times, before finally settling down. "You have your reason to stay covered up, I have mine." Although rather roundabout, her answer was a definite negative in regards to his question.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis shrugged the retrieved his bottle of wine from the other side of the table, taking a long slow draw from it and feeling the liquid being drawn down his throat and ending with a warming splash in his stomach. "Tho be ith.." he slurred slightly before regaining control, "I'll think abouth ith." slowly Vis rose from the chair on unsteady feet and recorked the bottle of booze, putting it in it's rightful place, his bag. He began to make his way to the door but suddenly, his foot caught on a chair leg and he went down like a tree, slamming into the flower with a dense crash, though luckily the bottle of wine was unbroken. He looked up from the floor to see what he tripped on but all he saw was stars and a pointy hat, usually a few sips of wine didn't make him this tipsy.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was not sure what had happened, but she was currently on the ground. Only moments ago she had gotten out of her seat, with the intent of walking over to the paladin and thanking him for escorting her to the bar and then leaving. She had cooled down enough to feel like it was time for her to leave town, she had had enough of strangers and confusion for the day. And once it came nightfall she knew she needed to be away from others. But she never made it to the table where he was sitting Because now she was on the floor. Someone the two of them, with their uncertain steps, collided. It would have been easy to knock Alula off her feet, she already has enough trouble walking with her limp. As soon as the half-elf and Alula collided it was as if someone sent embers through her veins, it burned. Under normal circumstances someone would probably get up and apologize for being so careless. But Alula was not a normal circumstance. With a growl Alula leapt to her feet, all traces of sluggishness and cripples gone, and pointed her staff dangerously close to Vis. She hat remained on the floor, her white hair brightly glowing and matching her illuminated eyes. The dislocated and warped voice again spoke through Alula in a threatening and hostile tone. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" She raised her staff above her head, as if ready to strike the half-elf with it, but she suddenly stopped when a voice spoke to her. "The man means her no danger, it was an accident." As if a light switch had been hit, Alula stopped glowing. Her expression looked shocked and scared. She dropped her staff to the floor with a heavy clunk, and reached up to pull down the brim of her hat, only to realize it wasn't there. She instead covered her eyes with her hands, not sure how to react.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis did not know how to react, so he remained petrified on the floor, staring up in abject horror as the drunkness quickly vacated his body to leave abject soberness. He did not expect such a violent reaction from her, and her staff could have crushed him with ease, esspecially with her new found vigor. But when she started to slow down, his mind went from fear to sympathy, she too had something to hide and noe she didn't have her means to hide it. He looked around on the floor for it but the hat seemed to have vanished, so he slowly brought himself from the floor and with a hesitant, reluctant hand, untied the scarf from around his face, revealing the large gash down it's side that was hidden for so long, exposing all his teeth and even some jaw bone. Vis draped the scarf over her head in a way that it acted like a hood that she could draw over her eyes if she needed to.</s> <\|message\|>Des Everyone in the tavern looked over as the oracle raged. But after Vis took off his scarf, most looked away. Those that kept looking either gave a disgusted look or throw up. One brave soul felt the need to say something, it was the barkeep, "Hey, what did I say about you causing trouble in my tavern, cover your disgusting mess of a face up or get out."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was up from the table and across the inn almost immediately. He saw the elf remove his scarf, revealing the disfigured face within - but to Carver, he had revealed something else; a character of fairness unsuited to his features. He had shown compassion, in his actions - this was a good man. Then the barkeep opened his mouth, and Carver clenched a fist. A liar, a cheat, a cruel man who spat in the face of kindness. Trying to muster all the gentleness he could in that moment, he put a hand, gingerly, on the girl's shoulders. "You don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "Nobody here will harm you." That done, he retreated his hand and turned to the bar. "You cheat," he said, slowly, steadily, his voice gaining power with every word. "You lie. You prey on the innocent, the drunk, the vulnerable. You spit in the face of an honorable man. You are arrogant, greedy, and cruel, and you know not the love of the sun." He was shouting now, and he rested a both fists on the bar. "My name is Sir Carver. I am a Paladin of the Sun, and I bring these charges before you. What say you in your defense?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had stayed with her hands over her eyes for a few moments, not noticing as the half-elf stood up. She had far too busy panicking about what had just happened, what she could have done. She felt like hyperventilating and running, but her body was frozen. She could feel the entire bar staring at her, and she felt the need to fall back to the floor and hide. What happened next surprised her. She expected the man to run away, many had before, but instead she felt something being placed over her head. It wasn't her hat, but a piece of cloth. He was helping her hide her face. She again felt a lose for words at his kindness. She uttered a soft and slurred "Thank...you." From under the cloth. More gentle touches, this time from the man in the armor. She winced, bracing herself for the burn that she knew was coming, but she never felt the pain. That was new. Even his words held a kindness that was foreign to Alula. She could hear the paladin calling the barkeep out on his actions, but his words felt far away and faded.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Watching as the half-elf had stumbled into the female that reminded her of the night, the sudden escalation into what could only be said to be a possession occurred. Suki had no other words to describe the phenomenon. However, it seems that it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, and the woman was left standing there in embarrassment. Raising an eyebrow at the half-elf taking off the scarf, only to smile subconsciously at the kind act of making a makeshift hood for the other woman. Making her way over, she undid the clasps on her cloak, before slipping it off, revealing her body accented by her dress to the tavern. Taking the cloak, she slipped it over the half-elf, making sure the hood covered his face, just as it had for herself. "It seems your reasons are far more important than mine for the moment." Quietly whispering these words to the half-elf alone, she sighed, before muttering "I'll fix this." yo the others in the 'adventure group', before slowly walking towards the barkeeper, drawing just about every male gaze towards her. Reaching the keeper, she smiled, before leaning forward, hands held behind her back, subtlety pushing out her chest. "Is it alright for you to let this incident slip by~?" Whispering such words with a seductive tone, she winked.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki continued moving through the alleyway, taking the twists and turns almost habitually, until she reached the more open areas, where the destruction was occurring. Glancing around to get her bearings, it seemed that there were several kobolds and goblins around. She frowned, as she looked at them. Creatures like these...were generally too dumb to figure out some kind of plan like this. How did they come in as a nearly organized raiding force? However, before she could come up with any kind of plans, the kobolds and goblins around her have noticed her presence. Suki immediately moved, swinging the scythe wide, decapitating on goblin with the blow. With the blade behind her, she pushed forward, slamming the pole end of the staff handle into the face of another that was starting to rear its head at her. Despite her efforts, Suki was frowning again. She was outnumbered here, with no one to help. "Then again, I never had help in the first place..." Muttering self-depreciating words, she slammed the blade of the scythe into the ground. Though surprised by the sudden action, the goblins and kobolds advanced towards her. At least, until a skeletal hand had burst out of the ground, grabbing the closest foot. Using the sudden diversion to back off, Suki winced in pain, falling to one knee, as she watched the skeleton claw its way out of the ground, with another one right behind it. Both skeletons immediately went to work, slashing with sharpened fingernails, sometimes even stabbing with a rib or two.</s> <\|message\|>Des As Carver charged into the herd he trampled a few and was stabbed by many more, although due to his armor only a few actually harmed him and he was dealt 8 damage, but now he his surrounded Alula's attack on the Ettin seemed to have no effect but it did blind him causing him to trip and crush a building beside her</s> <\|message\|>Carver Ten feet. I walk in her glorious light. I will not falter. Five feet. I bear her glorious purpose. I will not falter. Two feet. I face her foes in combat, my heart pure and unsullied. I will not falter. Carver had just taken the first blow on his shield when his vision was filled with a blinding blue light. The heat from the near miss soaked into his armor and made him break out in a sweat. The paladin staggered to the side, trying to regain sight. What was that? Did the goblins have some sort of spellcaster? How had it gotten behind him? Were the others safe- A rusted blade drove into his side through the chink in his armpit's armor, immediately suspending all further questions. With a cry, Carver swung his shield out and slammed the goblin in the face, sending it spinning to the dirt. Goblins everywhere, now. He kicked one aside, cut another across the chest. He felt blows clanging all against his armor, blocked furious swings with his shield, parried them with his blade. One goblin got lucky and drove a dagger up his knee and into his thigh, and Carver collapsed to one knee for a moment. Another took this opportunity to slam a mace into his helmet, smashing his thoughts and filling his sight with stars. Gritting his teeth, Carver rose, ignoring his injured leg, and cut the mace-wielding goblin in the chest. More swarmed over him, shrieking and clanging and clawing at his plate-covered body, but he was a Paladin of the Sun - and Paladins didn't run. Every blow that fell on him was a blow that could have fallen on Alula, or Kelvin, or Furnace. And so the knight stood, and fought his losing battle.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' pursuer was unrelenting in his chase, as if wanting nothing more then to see Vis die. The half-elf ducked into an alleyway and began to wind his way through the meandering streets until he found himself at a dead end, with walls to smooth to scale. Vis turned around to see the sneering raider block the only path of escape as he slowly approached, his sword dragging across the floor menacingly. Getting into his combat position, his sword raised infront of him, he knee there was no running from this fight. The raider attacked first, swinging his bastard sword over his head and bringing it at a downward angle towards Vis, Vis rolled and avoided the brunt of the attach but the tip of the sword caught him on his back leaving a long shallow gash. Regaining his footing behind the brute, he thrust outwards with his rapier and pierced the chainmail armor of the man, passing through his under clothes and then between his ribs, catching him in the lung. He roared in pain and quickly swung around, wrenching the rapier the out of Vis' hands and sending it skittering away, Vis pulled the empty bottle out of his bag and smashed it against the side of the man's face, knocking him to the floor. While the man was down, Vis drew his dagger and threw himself ontop of the man, his knees on his chest and stabbed the man in the neck but as he did, the man shot his hands to Vis' neck to strangle him. As Vis was being choked, he stabbed the blade over and over into the man's neck and a puddle of crimson poured around him but the man's grip was unrelenting and Vis' vision was going black around the edges. Then the man's hands fell away as he died. Panting, Vis threw himself off and sat with his back to the wall, his neck bruised by the hands of the raider. He tightened his scarf and retrieved his rapier, then started to pick through the man's pockets and pouches, he found nothing but a scroll and as he opened it his skin flushed red, it was a pornographic scroll. Vis tucked it into his back pack and whinced, first an arrow, then he fell from a roof and now he had a long trailing wound. He emerged into the main street and wished he hadn't, skeletons were climbing out if the ground and beams of blinding light whizzed through the air.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ I continued to jog down the path searching for the cloaked girl to no avail. Where is she? Where is she? Separ asked himself again and again as he made his way through the city. Only as he turned around the corner did he see a man on a horse in the distance, surrounded by what looked a horde of kobolds and goblins. Each of them looked much stronger than an ordinary member of their respective race, and the man on the horse seemed to give off an aura that was refined, and at the same time one of evil. Yes, Separ realized he must have been the one in charge, or at the very least one of the higher ups. Separ quickly hid behind the corner hoping no one had saw him, and as luck would have it, the group appeared to be focusing instead on the razing of a building. The utter chaos on the streets as panicked civillians fought and fled a losing battle also made it easier for Separ to remain unnoticed. Separ turned around realizing there was nothing he could do though. What good is a hero who dies trying to save others from a death, when he can't even save himself? Separ gritted his teeth as he remembered his master's words. Now was not the time to fight, but rather to flee. If there were less civillians or monsters, things would have been much easier. But the sheer chaos and number of people made it hard for him to do anything. As much as it pained him to do so, Separ knew his death would be in vain if he died, only to have the very people he was trying to save also die immediately after, and with this many people around, it was easily bound to happen. Separ turned around, as tears started to form in his eyes. I'm so weak, I can't even help those people over there. His jog started to turn into a sprint as he ran even harder, faster. I need to become stronger so I can protect others. He continued his pace, before hearing the sound of rattling bone and screams from goblins. Holding back his tears and wiping his eyes he ran towards the sound to see two skeletons and the cloaked girl fighting a group of enemies. Perfect, there wasn't nearly as much chaos here. Getting the girl to safety should be relatively simple, somewhat. Separ ran as fast as he could charging at the group. The skeletons seemed strong, but it was apparent they were fighting a losing battle. Focusing energy into his fists he felt his hands heat up slightly as they both started to glow a light orange color. Separ charged forward towards a lone kobold, preparing to strike at it. The kobold reacted just in time though, swinging his sword and knicking Separ in the torso. Luckily it was just a small scratch as Separ had avoided it for the most part, with fervor Separ punched the kobold aiming for its cheek. the attack singing the skin and knocking the kobold a few feet away. Separ then punched at a goblin once, twice, three times with a barrage aimed at its gut, killing the creature before elbowing another goblin in the face, shattering its teeth and creating a small puddle of blood that dribbled onto the ground. Turning to face the cloaked girl, Separ flashed her a small smile. "I'm glad you're safe, but don't run off like that, you had me worried." Only then did Separ's expression turn into a cringe as he punched another goblin only for it to take the blow and swing a mace at him. The mace struck Separ in the side, causing him to grunt in pain. Separ's hands faded of there orange glow for a moment, before restoring themselves as Separ attacked in retaliation, kneeing the goblin in the face and knocking him to the ground. "I don't suppose you have a plan on how to get out of here, do you?" The amount of enemies was much lower here in this area, but Separ knew they'd be overwhelmed if they stayed here for to long.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki slowly stood up on somewhat shaky legs, as she watched the battle rage on. Despite how much the skeletons may be doing, those brittle bones were not going to hold out for long. Frowning, she pulled her scythe out from the ground, and was about to try again, when Separ came around. "Why are you here?!" Frantically asking the man, as she was almost certain he should have ran at the first chance he got. Her attention was diverted a little, as she noticed one of her skeletons crumbling. Turning back to Separ, Suki quickly cobbled together a rather simple plan. "I can create a diversion, then we run." Without waiting for a response, she twirled the scythe around, before embedding the blade once more into the ground, with two skeletons clawing their way out of the dirt. "Alright, let's g-" Pulling her scythe out, Suki was about to start running, when her vision went foggy. Falling down to her knees, one hand braced against the ground, the other letting go of the scythe to cover her mouth, as she coughed multiple times. Pulling back her had, with her hazy vision, she noted the crimson color against the porcelain hand. She pushed herself father than she should have. Quivering, she attempted to stand up, only to collapse onto the ground. "...change...of plans.....you run....I'm in no condition....to move..." Panting these words out, she barely managed to push herself up slightly.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula could tell that Vis was approaching far before he entered the clearing. And yet she was confused. He carried an extra burden with him, of which she did not know. Alula growled. Her staff keeping her propped above the ground. She rubbed her forehead weakly. Her powers were already in a weakened state. If she tried to find out what was happening with the half elf before she was given a chance to rest she would be putting Alula in danger. "The half elf returns." She spoke clearly, over her shoulder at Kelvin. And when Vis broke through the trees to the clearing Alula's expression changed, rather rapidly. Her eyes flashed like strobes. Her face changed from rage, to horror, to joy and then back to expressionless. The half elf had a child. She couldn't tell if his actions were selfish or selfless. To save a child and then bring her into the danger. The oracle remained still, letting Vis approach the group. "This miserable world is full of wonders and tragedy, and to none is it more apparent then the children it holds." She looked up and down Vis, his injuries seemed to be contained and fine. Her healing would be able to hold him over for awhile. What she was really worried about was the girl. Her physical injuries were few, she would be able to heal them easily. But the worst was her emotional damage. Alula could feel every grip of sadness, every anxious shake. She felt them and they felt like her own. She felt a loss for words. "The others are resting over there. You should join them."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat held on tighter to Vis when she heard words, afraid. Though she barely knew the man that she was currently clutching on to, she felt safer with him then she felt in the crate and that satisfied her. "I'm noth thired." Said vis looking into the eyes of the floating oracle with a look of wonder. She looked so strange in this elevated form, Vis looked down at the child in his arms, "Her name with Khat." he stressed the 'T' sound, biting into it so that it sounded like a 'T' and not like a 'th'. Khat lifted her head form the half-elf's shoulder and looked up at Alula with wonder, her mouth slightly ajar as she tilted her head up to bask in her aura, "Vis, what is she?" she asked, her eyes turing form awe to scrutiny. Vis stopped to think for a moment, that was a good question and he didn't know how to answer it, "How abouth you athk her?" "What are you?" she asked, holding onto Vis tighter again and anticipating what the strange floating woman might have to say, she sniffled, trying to find a way to distract herself from her sadness.</s> <\|message\|>Alula When Vis informed her that he was not tired she was ready to leave the conversation. She turned away, perhaps to go check on the others. She wasn't particularly good with children. Or really anyone for that matter. It didn't help that she wasn't entirely herself at the moment. She inwardly cringed when she heard the child and Vis whisper back and forth to each other. She wanted to know what she was. She turned back around, looking slightly irritated. "What we are" she spoke in a pointed voice. "Is a being more powerful then you coul-" She suddenly stopped talking, her expression changing again from anger to a look of tranquility and kindness. She drifted slightly closer to Vis and Khat. She touched her feet gently to the ground, soft bursts of light floating through the grass. She crouched down in front of Khat, wanting to make herself on the same level as the child. The powerful and kind voice spoke through Alula. "My dear child, what we are is not so important right now." She smiled softly. "Time will tell. What you need to know right now is that the girl is rather excited to meet you." She slowly stood up, more soft bursts of light erupting as she pushed herself back into the air. "There will be more time for talking once all this...destruction...is over." She moved away from the girl, giving a final smile to Vis and the girl, before her expression changed to one of disinterest again.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace found himself floating in a delicous bowl of warm soup. Birdcalls and muffled screams played on loop in the distance. "hello again. It has been a while has it not?" Furnace recognised the voice well. "It sure has. I've seen so much since last time." "I predicted your freedom did I not?" The hollow voice grinned without mouth or body, yet it's emotions were clear to Furnace. "You did! And I discovered plants. And food, and friends, and fights and-" "Fights. Yes." The voice interupted Furnace sternly. "And now you've gone and broken yourself you fool." ... "I discovered that too. I can just repair it right?""And what if you break yourself too much one day? To an extent you can't be fixed?" ... "I hadn't thought of that. What happens then? Will I remain broken?" "That is something you will have to find out. Remeber you are more similar to these new.. friends of yours than you are to me." "The friends have given me names for me to call them by. Will you give me yours?" ... "Not until you know your own. Little Furnace. For now go do what you do best. You have barely used any of your potential. Nor have you even touched your negative reserves." "What good is the negative energy!? All it does is hurt!""Ask... the Taster of Smiles." "Who is the taster of smiles!?" Furnace cringed trough the second part of the last sentence. A sharp sting in his shoulder informed him he was awake. Covered in sweat and panting from the exhausting pain he crawled out of the cloth he was wrapped in. As he looked around he saw trees and some of his new friends. He had no idea where he was. But judging by the marks on Carvers skin and armor he had been near him. Was he broken? Was he going to stay broken? He crawled over to the damaged paladin and unceremoneously let himself drop next to him, laying on his back with his good arm on Carver. Slowly he let energy flow from his hands and onto the fallen knights burns. Jolts of golden bright danced along fields of blistered skin until layers reattached, senew regrew and colors turned the right shade of bronze pink. Meanwhile Furnace looked to the other side the strange scented man build something impressive. "Hello again. I'm awake and soon I'll help you build.. that.. But first can you help me?" With his head he nodded at his bloody arm. "I need to repair this. But as is the core will not attach properly. I don't want a crooked arm because I fear it won't work as well. Can you hold it while I pump it full of positive energy?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver When Carver came to, he was struck by the sensation of not being on fire. He took a moment to appreciate how fine it was to not be immolated, then sat up quickly, his head swimming. He'd passed out. Weak. Selfish. Failure. Carver shook his head in an attempt to clear his brain of these thoughts. There would be time for self-loathing later, but not after everyone who could be saved had been. The knight examined the structure he'd been hidden behind for a moment. It was well-constructed, though obviously done in a hurry. Carver suspected Kelvin might be behind its creation - he wasn't sure who else could have thrown it together. He felt a pang of gratitude for the man who had risen to the occasion when Carver's strength had failed him. His was a noble example, indeed. He rose, shakily, and brought his gloved hands up to touch his unhelmed face. No burn marks. Alula's handiwork, or maybe Furnace's - once again, those he was meant to be protecting seemed to be protecting him. He'd have to do better. His head pounding, Carver stepped back into the clearing and was struck by two sights. One, Furnace was conscious, and conversing with Kelvin a short distance away; and two, Vis had returned, bringing with him someone new - a child, staring at Alula with rapt wonder. Kelvin and Furnace's efforts required thanks, thanks he would be sure to give them sooner rather than later. However, for the moment Carver was concerned with the health of the others - Alula, who had displayed such uncharacteristic power, and the girl, whose home had obviously just been burned down. "My lady!" he called out to Alula, managing not to wince from his soreness as he sauntered over to her. "Are you unharmed? I must offer my most sincere apologies for collapsing, as I did. It was... unbecoming of a knight, and will not happen again." He gave a warm smile to the girl and dropped down to a crouch to look her in the eyes. "And who's this one? Child, do not fear. No harm will come to you, not now. I am Sir Carver, Knight of the Sun, and I am very pleased to meet you."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki grimaced as she sat up. Alright, it seems she was going to have to drain someone soon. As she thought about this, her eyes had drifted over towards the man who had carried her out of the town. No, best not to take him yet...perhaps she'll find someone soon. Besides, he did not look like he could take a kiss from her and live, even if she wasn't trying to kill him. Muttering softly under her breath, "Saving someone like me was a waste of time.", she glanced back towards the rubble of the town. Her scythe was still back there. Although she could probably summon and assign an undead to bring it to her, not did not seem like the right time to do so. Turning towards Separ, she smiled. "I'm pretty certain that Kelvin and the paladin would keep everyone else safe. After all, you've only just gathered us today. It would be a horrible joke of the divines to kill us all off." Attempting to reassure the man, Suki looked around. Now that they were semi-safe, they would probably have to find the rest. Although running away now, while the paladin wasn't around, wasn't such a bad thought either.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Furnace It was suddenly crowded in the fields. People were yelling at each other, there were even more people coming with lights. Alula had gotten away and his chance to see what it was that pressured her was gone. Weapons were drawn, the approaching people had fire and weapons also. Had they come to harvest more? We didn't want that. Right? Carver started to beat his sword on his shield repeatedly. Furnace didn't know why the rhythm reminded him of the rhythm of hammer and forge. It was comforting, and though he was conflicted over the idea of forging here in the field he was drawn closer. He stood near to Carver and Separ, close enough that they could see him in the tall grass even when Furnace crouched. "This is no place to have a forge, there is too much fuel here, I won't be able to contain the fire." He pulled out his sword. It was slightly bent and dented. The melting had made the blade a little dull and a little shorter. But it could still hurt. "The glowing girl doesn't want to hurt anyone. I want to help her do that. If that means I have to hurt these people in her stead, I think I want to hurt these people. What do you think?" Furnace stared at Separ and Carver on either side of him. "Do you want to hurt these people?"</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin Kelvin awoke to the ringing of metal on metal, his eyes snapping open. He was disoriented for just a moment. The forge? It had been years since he last had worked metal. Falen had always been an early riser though. He rolled onto his side and found his face two feet from the hooded girl's. "No… what happe-" His face contorted in horror and he rolled the other way, standing upright before realizing where he was. Color slowly returned to his face. This wasn't the inn. He took a deep breath before looking around, spotting the lights moving through the forest towards their small opening in the trees, and more importantly, Carver and Separ squaring up to meet them. At his feet was that woman. However those two had gotten here, it was fortune. First things first. Kelvin quickly repacked his bag, glancing about to make sure there were no misplaced items before slinging it over his shoulders. It took only a moment to fill up the crossbows chamber, loading two more slugs from his belt pouch to bring it back to full clip. Alright. The seer was… He glanced about, not seeing a trace of her, unless the glowing in those trees a bit farther off was her. "Elf, grab the kid, we need to move." Kelvin looked down and knelt, allowing his crossbow to hang off the sling he had made earlier and picked up the black haired beauty, allowing the blanket to fold over her a bit. "Lady, you are heavier than you look. Can't tell if it's you or the dress though." Kelvin grunted to himself and hoisted her a bit higher, adjusting his arms under her legs and shoulder. Truthfully, she wasn't horribly heavy, but he could only go so far like this. "Fair warn'n though. If I need to shoot, I'll be droppin' yeh." Not that she could hear him, but whatever. Kelvin headed diagonally away from where Carver and Separ were making their stand, intending to walk parallel to the Seer and away from both the town and the fight. As long as he and the other guy stuck together, they should be alright. At least, as long as the elf knew how to use that sword. Hopefully Carver was smart enough to realize that he would need a head start if the force in town realized what was happening.</s> <\|message\|>Des As the team moved out the raiders closed in, they could hear the banging of steel but one heard rustling in the leaves. "There's one over here, trying to get away while the one distracts us." They charged into the woods and intercepted Alula and drew their weapons. Two with crossbows, one with dual long-swords, one with a flail, and the last one being a pyromancer.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Gentle, gliding, movements. Barely disturbing the forest around her. Alula had gotten pretty deep into the woods, far enough to no longer see the camp and yet she could still hear the rhythmic thumping of Carver. Or perhaps it was just a memory following her, phantom sounds filling her with dread. She shook her head clear. Alula had nothing to fear from mere humans, and she took a deep breath. No moonbeams. She could handle that. Alula raised her arms above her head, staff pointed directly at the five approaching attackers. Instead of a beam of light striking the attackers, the entire scenery began to change around her and the attackers. It was as if the entire world became a reflection in a pool of water, shimmering and wavering into life. To Alula and the raiders they were no longer in the woods surrounded by trees, but instead they were in a clearing, with a path that leads towards the camp, although the path eventually turned back into trees where it was outside Alula's range of power. All around the foes were other, albeit faded humans. They were all laughing and drinking strange liquor. A few of the hazy men came over and clapped one of the real men on the back, congratulating him on a good raid. "Hey..." One of the vision men said, speaking in a voice that sounded slurred from alcohol. "I hear there is a group of smoking babes just over that way" the dream paused to hiccup, nursing at his drink. "wanting to...heh...reward us brave heroes." The hazy man beckoned towards the fake path, towards where the party was preparing themselves for a fight. The real men would likely now feel extremely strange and disoriented, like getting drunk and then trying to spin around for a few minutes. Even if they didn't believe in the visions they would still be confused and slow. Luckily for Alula, these men were unable to resist the temptation of a willing woman after taking the day to rummage through the ruined town. They began to stumble, as if blind, through the trees. They were headed right for the blades of her allies. This haze would not last long, once they arrived in the field reality would set in. There were no women waiting for them, only a handful of tired adventurers. But by then Alula would be long gone.</s> <\|message\|>Des The men wandered out of the woods and were quite upset to find no women and that they were fooled by the girl, but it was too late for her, the enemy was closing in. The two archers fired arrows at Carver while the swordsman rushed in. If Carver puts up his shield he will block the arrows but will give the swordsman a chance for a sneak attack since Carver will lose sight of him and if he doesn't raise his shield. Well...</s> <\|message\|>Furnace A man ran towards Carver sword raised. But Carver hadn't claimed to desire hurting the man. There was no time, with a few light steps Furnace positioned himself between Carver and the attempted flank. "Then I will hurt this one." He stood crouched, with word held at an angle so the tip reaches the tip of the grass. There, locked in pflug he waited the everlasting seconds while the man stormed closer with his eyes on Carver. The moment the man was close enough. Close enough to see Furnace. Close enough to charge into his reach. Furnace jumped up, sword piercing forward, thrusting in a single forward motion.</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman parried the blade and slashed outwards at Furnace missing only by a hair. Assuming Carver put his shield up the two arrows made a loud bang as they hit the iron. The swordsman looked down at Furnace and laughed, "You think your miserable mess of a weapon can take on a professional swordsman," He then looks up at Carver, "Now there's a man with a blade. How about we have a little one-on-one? My companions will cease fire until you fall to your death. How about it?" The other men caught up and the swordsman motioned for them to stop and then glanced at Carver, waiting for an answer. "Or are you scared you will fail?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace This man was not so simple of taste as the others, he wanted not just to fight. This man wanted to fight Carver specifically. So it was important who you fought? Furnace stepped out to the side, allowing a meter of free room between carver and the swordsman. The man was right after all. His blade was no longer as keen as he had intended it. He had gone and join these people in their fighting with a damaged blade. He wondered if he should apologize for not taking them seriously. It was clear they took it very seriously.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat was about to retort about being carried until Vis swept her off of her feet, literally running towards her and plucking her off of the ground. "I don't need to be carried!" she barked, and all Vis did was point behind him at the raiders squaring off with the other three, Khat got the point and with great reluctance, fell quiet as Vis started to run, chasing after the man who coincidentally was holding another girl. As they ran, Khat watched Vis his pants were ragged as he ran behind the man but nothing portrayed why it would be so. She reached out to his scarf and was about to tug it down, when his eyes flicked to hers for a moment, glaring, as if to say 'don't you dare'. She did not argue, instead she pulled up her scarf around her face to see how it felt, oddly comfortable.</s> <\|message\|>Carver The bandit wanted to duel? Then there was no question. If one of the enemies could be eliminated without any risk to to the others, Carver would have to risk the possiblity of deception. "Let me handle this one, friend," he said to Separ and thumped his sword into his shield again. "A noble offer, one generously accepted. Test your steel against mine, and we will see which among us is worthy of victory." Carver, of course, had little doubt that it would be him.</s> <\|message\|>Des "Good, glad to see you want to die by my blades instead of by the fires of war. It is noble indeed that you would risk your life for your friends, but win or lose, my friends will still strike once this fight is over." The swordsman rushed forward and quickly pounced over the paladin and spun around, using the momentum of the spin the cut through Carver's armor, but luckily not his flesh. The swordsman ripped his sword out and backed up before the paladin could turn around and strike back. "Your move, Paladin."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki unconsciously curled up tighter as she slowly woke up, her mind a tad bit hazy as she tried to get her bearings. Still half asleep, she smiled. "Held gently yet securely." Whispering these words to herself, she looked up and saw Kelvin. This helped her wake up, and although it was hard, she fought down the automatic reflex of wanting to fling herself into stable ground. "My, my. First you were daring enough to near a woman that you never met before, and now I find myself being held in your arms." Teasing the man with the same seductive tone, she then glanced around. "What's happening?" Asking this question, though her cute expression that she had while teasing the man stated, her eyes seem to harden, as she started to worry.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des Des walked into the clearing once everyone was asleep making sure not to be spotted by Vis. He walked by the entire lot thinking about them. 'This one's presence is loud and annoying, like a bickering family.' He thought as he passed by Alula. He looked into the tent of Kelvin and Furnace. 'This one's head is too busy and the other feels warm, yet somehow cold.' He walked into Separ's tent and stared at him. 'This one can think of only one thing, what is he to do when that purpose is filled.' Finally he walked into the tent of Carver. 'This one is protective and comforting, like the sun.' He then laid next to Carver, the only presence that didn't bother him, and fell asleep.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Time for you to wake up." Furnace woke to the strange melodic sound of chirping. Kelvin was still asleep next to him so he carefully crawled out of the tent. He had dreamt that night. Not just words but lights and visions. "Something big. Something proud." These words echoed in his mind when he stared into the smouldering remains of the camp fire. Furnace rubbed his forehead while scanning the tent, Alula was nowhere to be seen. He wondered why he wondered these things, and why he felt the need to touch his head. Looking around Furnace also noticed Carver sitting in the grass looking at the bright orb of energy rested on hills in the far distance. So peaceful the man sat there in silence. Furnace sat down beside him and stared at the sunrise with him. He'd seen the thing before, high in the sky and falling slowly. Then it would rise again later. Furnace began to assume this always happened. Furnace liked the idea. To have a ready supply of light and warmth from time to time. And the waves of energy laced in the rays of light, woven so brilliantly made the source a sight to behold. He thought back to the energy he'd see wave of Carver some time ago before they had slept. Looking at the patterns he confirmed his earlier guess that their nature was the same. Furnace broke the silence. "It's beautiful isn't it?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou "?!?!" It took almost all of her self control, not to fling herself up in shock, as Suki woke up. The dream she had during the night was disturbingly vivid. Well, the emotions she felt were vivid, the actual content of the dream somewhat hazy. Glancing around, she noticed that she was lying down in a tent, with the sun's rays piercing through the thin fabric of the tent. Yawning lightly, she gracefully slipped out, before stretching. Looking around, it appears they had moved from the ruins of the town, into a hopefully safer clearing. While carefully on guard against anyone, she noticed the gnome nearby. Although it was an amusing idea, she forgone the option of teasing it. She didn't feel up for tempting anyone just yet.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis had not slept well and night had turned to day in a disorientating blur of exhaustion and periodic wakings ups in during the night. Though he was sure that he must have gotten at least some sleep because he remembered waking up a lot, and having stage dreams. He looked like crap. His eyes were bloodshot and his good one turing violet from the redness and it's natural blue and he was slumped over, his eyes only barely open and seemingly unregistering. Vis felt his eyes start to creep shut but he willed them to stay open, 'only a few more minutes and i wake up the paladin' he thought to himself, forgetting he had already woken him up, Vis looking up and grimaced, it was day and he had slept horribly. He sighed and felt Khat stir in her sleep. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked up at Vis, she was still asleep on his laps, it appears he hadn't moved all night. Khat wasn't one for good mornings, "Why do you look like shit?" she asked, Vis simply sorted, not even taken aback by the child's foul language. His hands went around his head shakily and tightened his scarf, she mimicked him, "I had a weird dream." Vis didn't registering what she said, "hello?" she asked, waving a hand in his face, he snorted in acknowledgment, "not a morning person..." she mumbled.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver awoke from his dream with a start. He rubbed his face, blinked his eyes, confirmed in his mind that he was indeed awake, that yes, this was real and what he'd just seen had been fantasy. There was a picture emblazoned on his arm, a strange symbol he couldn't recognize from any of his learning. That was from the dream, but if that was still there, then...? There was something else, too, a sensation that had stuck with him. Weightlessness. Alula. Wherever the girl was, Carver prayed she was safe. There was a sight he wasn't quite prepared for. There was a child curled up next to him, fast asleep, a small, frail thing who obviously hadn't slept in a bed in a long while. He wondered for a moment where the child had come from, and then concluded that it didn't matter. Perhaps he was another survivor, perhaps he was an urchin. What mattered now was that he was clearly alone, and tired, and had come to Carver seeking protection. The paladin lifted his blanket and spread it over the child, taking great care not to wake him. When the time came for his watch, Carver stepped outside the tent dressed in the plain linen clothes he'd been wearing under his armor yesterday. He took up position where he could see the sunrise peeking over the horizon, planted his sword at his feet, and spent a time contemplating her wisdom and beauty in silence. The silence was broken a great while later, when the rest of the party began to awaken. He was content to leave them to their morning rituals until the gnome came to sit next to him. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" The knight smiled softly. "She is. She loves each of us, you know. That is why she blesses us with her radiance. We are all children of the sun."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace looked at Carver like he couldn't understand a word he said. She. Love. Bless. Children. Sun... "Who is the sun?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had slept fantastically. It was the gentle sounds of the world around her, as well as the irritating sunlight piercing through her shut eyes, that finally awoke her. She sat up slowly, stretching her arms up above her with a soft grunt. And as she stretched her arms up to the sky the grass she had slept in moved too. She looked around, blinking the sleep out of her hazy eyes. The events of the previous day were rather unclear to Alula. She remembered joining the group of adventurers, of whom which seemed to have set up camp here. The events of the battle between them and the horde of creatures was nothing more then a hazy feeling, like watching the events unfold from behind dirty glass. The voices filled in the blanks for her, explaining that they eventually had to flee the area. They then tried to bring up the No good dangerous and rotten Paladin but she silently begged them to stick to the facts. And then there was the coming of the moon. And she had barely gotten away from the group before she changed. Alula found herself exhaling with relief. There had been a group of raiders, whom she was able to cunningly outwit. And from then on she had spent the rest of the evening enjoying the moon and recharging. She confirmed with the voices that this was all they had done in the night, which they confirmed. Good. No one had been hurt. She looked over to her side, noticing her staff laying out in the grass an arms length away. Well at least they made one thing easy for her, but she was still upset about her hat being lost. Everyone else was beginning to wake up around her as well. Hopefully everyone else slept well too. She yawned again, stretching out her spine and pulling her staff closer to herself. She could hear her companions having conversations, but they felt so far away despite being so close. And the sunrise was burning her eyes.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem "A celestial body." Arastoph piped up, intervening on the conversation; and hopefully end the religious conversion before it began. Worshiping the light was cute and all, but what kind of man would he be if he let the knight take advantage of a little boy like that? Er-- gnome. How old was the wee guy anyway? Regardless, Arastoph had one thing that the others didn't: a formal education befitting of a noble (perhaps, with time and money, Arastoph could make himself a noble in due time - imagine that!). "Telescopes, the creation of which prompting due thanks to the world's scientists, can allow you to look at the stars and see they are like that of the sun. Granted, we do not know what they are made of yet, but I doubt their making is magical or divine." The trader tipped up the wide-brimmed hat he had scavenged last night, revealing his face from the shade it offered. Light bags formed under his eyes. Nothing severe, but he had spent the whole night doing little more than closing his eyes. A man like him can not sleep among strangers, especially as suspicious of him as they were. Granted, he fared it better than most would, but it didn't make the experience any more pleasurable. He found that there were a couple of people that had joined their crew amidst the night. A young boy, and a girl. Assuming that the watchman had not grown lazy and fallen asleep, he had let them in, indicating he recognized them. Their party was larger than Arastoph had first anticipated. With larger groups come greater solidarity and variety of perspectives. A larger group was much more difficult to manipulate, but assuming he can get just a few to trust him, he should be well off. Even if the monkey and pious knight didn't. "I believe we are better off accepting that there are beneficial consequences of its product, like of the trees, than to humanize it... but that's just my take on it. Decide what you will, wee one."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki's attention was perked up by the man who seemed to be wearing a rather familiar hat. Which made little sense, as she did not recognize the man himself. However, a new male, was a new person to tease. Getting into the mood to play around, she walked over, until she was next to the man talking about celestial bodies. "My, you're quite the knowledgable one aren't you?" Asking in that usual sultry tone of hers. As she was voicing her question, she 'absentmindedly' leaned in, with her cloak opening slightly, allowing a slight view of her bountiful chest.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Des Des walked out of the tent sleepily and overheard a conversation about him. "Well, technically, he didn't sleep with me, I slept with him. He had no idea." Des walked over to the merchant feeling that something wasn't quite right about this one, "Your presence is dark and cold, evil even. Yet there is a fire that begs to be set free. You're the exact opposite of the gnome." He then noticed the hat wrapped around Arastoph's neck. "Hey, your hat matches the pattern of the loud, bickering lady. Are you two together?" Des then looked around for the oracle and spotted her on the ground. "There she is, that one."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Burning. Burning. Why were her eyes burning? She shivered despite the overwhelming heat encompassing her body. All she could see was a white light, searing out her other senses. Was she staring into the sun? She could hear far away voices, like memories lost in time, but they were overshadowed by music. A song so enchanting that she found herself completely dazed. She felt pulled in by its radiance, the sounds of words she could not comprehend and tones that she could never remember. She blinked a few times, rubbing her eyes, trying to break from its pull. Eventually the light died down, becoming nothing more then sunspots in her vision, but the music remained. It was soft like the final echoes of sound across a lake, but she was still aware of it. Once her vision cleared she noticed she was looking in Carvers direction, and he had smiled and nodded. Alula sat in silence for a few moments, trying to get her bearings again. Her companions were gathering together, maybe to talk about next plans. And there was another child with them. Voices began to scream, a warning, but she did not heed them. The child mentioned her hat, and then beckoned to another stranger. Her hat was tied around his neck, no doubt. She struggled to her feet, trying to keep weight off of her crippled leg, and with staff in hand began to hobble over towards the group. She stopped in front of the strange man, paying no heed to the dangerous child next to her, and looked him dead in the eyes. Without her hat it was clear to see her eyes were glowing. Her expression was one of anger, and she opened her mouth to speak words she did not understand, and yet knew more about then anyone. "Born into this world, pure and yet hated. To atone for crimes never committed. A full life never to live." Her expression changed, from anger to understanding and then quickly back to her default expressionless. She understood. But he still had her hat. Alula grabbed her coin purse out of her robes, trying to force it into the strange man's hands. She pointed to the hat, struggling to find words.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ woke up in a cold sweat as he realized he had just had a nightmare. Try as he might though he couldn't seem to remember anything about the dream at all though. All he could remember was that there was a training dummy he had been practicing on, but what had happened after that? Shaking his head Separ got out of bed to scared to fall back asleep for now, especially since they had been chased by the raiders before. Now was not a time to sleep, but a time to retreat and get away from this area. He quickly packed up his sleeping bag putting it into his tent, but waited to take down his tent for now to see how the others had been faring. Taking a glance around at where everyone was Separ quickly found Carver and strode up to him. "Sleep well last night?" He asked happily, unaware that there was now a new member of the team. Separ's stomach grumbled suddenly however. He had not gotten much of a chance to eat yesterday after the raid occurred, and while Separ felt a little bit better after his rest, he was now hungry and also a bit thirsty. "I don't suppose anyone has managed to procure some food before..." Separ paused for a moment trying to find the right words to say, but ultimately came up short. He instead just glanced to the side avoiding direct eye contact, muttering the name of the town that had just been destroyed instead, the town known as "Ravenwood."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis heard the call for food, and staggered to his feet, Khat got up to try and help him but he gestured for her to stay down. He shambled over, exhausted from his on and off sleep and slightly tripping on rocks and roots as he staggered over to the small group. Once among them, he slipped off his pack and opened it up, reveling the stale loaves in the bag. he darted his hand in and broke off a pice for breakfast, "I had inithially boughth enough for our original group, but I'd be glad to share with the new comers form my bread," He broke off a piece from his loaf and presented it to the new comer, the one who had foretold of his turing daughter and in a sharp hiss, he whispered to hm, throwing his voice into the man's ear so only he could here, "You bether noth thake her money, that is her hath and if you do, I'll thake it back and then some." He thrust the bread into the man's hand and staggered off, even more exhausted then before, he returned to Khat and collapsed by her side. "Did you get me any?" "You thtill have the chunk from yestherday, finish thath."</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph rolled his eyes at the child. Was the thing brain-damaged? Actively walking up to a group of strangers, and then sleeping next to the largest man there? And then this... this thing, this cretin has the audacity to look at him and trying to decipher meaning of his own existence? Labeling him as evil? Nay, evil was subjective. But even amongst subjectivity, mankind was the true evil of the world. He was just now labeled evil by an ignorant little child, when he was the product shaped by mankind's hand. He pointed out the young girl that had come through last night and asked if they were together (an absurd assumption, obviously, as helmets do not associate knights of the same order). This grabbed the attention of the girl, and she too had approached. She had marched towards him, her face angry and her eyes were literally glowing. His hand subtlety moved to touch the grip of his stiletto out of suspicion. "Born into this world, pure and yet hated." She said. Arastoph blinked. The girl continued, "To attune for crimes never committed. A full life never to live." At this moment, Arastoph was slightly disturbed, and very much irritated. He scolded, "if you wouldn't mind, the both of you can keep the preposterous divinations to yourselves." The girl, once appearing angry, looked soft. Then subsequently neutral. Surely there was some damage in this one, much as there was in the child. However, she did something unexpected; she motioned towards the hat resting on Arastoph's shoulders, which was kept from falling with a last-minute modification made of a strip of wool. She showed him a coin purse and nudged. Ah, so already there was a business prospect? Interesting. Unfortunately, there was more than one monkey in the group. Another one, the one with the glowing eye (who Arastoph had assumed had no reason to distrust him, and though he was simply being an ass) approached him with some bread and used a peculiar skill that made his voice sound as though it was right next to his ear. Granted, not expecting the speech impediment present in the half-elf's voice caused the trader to miss most of what he was trying to tell him. But the general message was clear: "don't take the money, or else". Arastoph rolled his eyes. He played out the scenario in his head. This man walks up to a merchant, tells him not to conduct business appropriately as the merchant is wont to do, and threatens the merchant if he does. Arastoph simply laughed to himself softly. He didn't fear a crippled monkey, especially not one so harebrained, and especially not in the presence of the paladin, Carver. While they may have gotten off on the wrong foot, he was sure that Carver wouldn't let anything happen outside of what he deemed moral regardless of who was the victim. He overheard the girl asking the fool for more bread. An entertaining idea entered his head, that selling the piece of bread offered to him to the girl would be the ultimate dismissal of his threats. That and he didn't trust food handed to him by strangers. Especially by a stranger who had threatened him. If poison were the case, giving it to the girl would sure draw him out on his intentions. But in the case of taking these people's money, Arastoph had no qualms. He didn't identify with them. He wasn't one of them. He was a merchant. One who fabricated a life lost. He didn't owe these people anything. Perhaps he'd sell the bread after he dealt with the girl and the hat. 'Conducting business is how I've lived my life, and that isn't going to change because a jumped-up elf got pissy. These people are as much patrons as anyone else.' Despite the warning, Arastoph accepted the whole coin purse into his hand, and began counting the pieces. Not too terrible much, but he was surprised to find this kind of pocket money in a group of vagabonds like this one. He counted up a total of a hundred sixty-five pieces. Not bad. The hat may not be worth that much, but none of these people knew that. They couldn't determine the value of an item like he could. "One hundred and sixty-five pieces?" Arastoph asked, sounding somewhat pleased. "That isn't a bad offer. Though this hat and its craftsmanship does seem rather valuable. I apologize, but I think I could probably fetch a better price someplace else. Perhaps even in the next town over."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki wanted to laugh as she saw the interaction between the merchant and the rest. Covering her momentary lapse with a light cough, she set her expression to as neutral of an appearance as possible. Despite her efforts, the corners of her mouth still quirked up slightly. This merchant was just like the rest of the merchants she 'played' with. Getting everything as cheaply as possible, before burning the other party for as much gold as possible. It was similar to how she easily received 'gifts' from men for doing just a small 'service'. "She's probably the only one you can try that on." With a bemused tone, she couldn't help but to comment on the merchant's actions.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki only continued to watch, before slipping out from the group without making too much noise. Choosing to take a winding, diverging route, she slowly made her way back towards the ruined town. What she was here for, was her scythe. She had left it somewhere in the ground, when Separ carried her, and she wanted it back. Granted, it was only a simple scythe by design, nothing decorative, but it served her well. However, glaring at the rubble in her way, she frowned, before choosing to slip through between the larger pieces of rubble that almost formed an alleyway, making her way deeper into the city.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched in interest as Kelvin and the merchant continued to haggle prices. She tugged her hat down over her eyes as the man mentioned orphanages. Even if that would be far safer to live in a home for parentless children then traveling with a group of first time adventurers, she said nothing. She found the man's tone slightly cynical, but nothing she would really bat an eye at. The rest of the party seemed rather quick to jump down his throat. But she understood. Alula shivered, tugging on her hat again. The young girls outburst was rather odd as well. The child was being rather outspoken and rude for one so young, and she could stand to learn some manners. It wasn't wise to lash out in such a way, especially around the man who had saved her life. Again, Alula understood. And Alula shivered. She watched in silence as Carver again intervened, playing the mediator, when Kelvin and the merchant seemed to be unable to find an agreement. She frowned when he mentioned her name, however. Equating her to the children and innocent of the party. If only they knew. She kept herself from speaking out, she knew the man just wanted what was best. After awhile the voices informed her that someone had tried to sneak away from the party. It would be best to mention it before things got too carried away. "We may...need more then...thirty minutes..." Alula slurred slowly, pulling the rim of her hat down over her eyes. "The girl...has returned to the town...she took measures to...not be detected by you all..." She shivered. "We...I...believe...it would be best...to wait for her here...if she wanted us...to follow she would have...told us to."</s> <\|message\|>Des Des followed Carver, he seemed to be the only one who made sense. "Earlier, you said we are all children of the Sun. Does that make you my brother?" If this guy was Des's family then he might know something about Des's past. Suki's staff was Exactly where she had left it. There was something slightly suspicious about the fact that it was the only thing left untouched, even more so sense her skeletons lay destroyed beside it.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Upon Carver's command Furnace immediately started to break down a tent, attempting to mimic him as well as possible. "We should wait here for her then? Have these goods collected in packages for transport by the time she returns? If she returns." He asked, thinking aloud.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ This was a bad situation for sure, the girl Separ had tried so hard to save was now back in the lions den, but for what reason? Was there something she needed to do in that town that was worth risking such danger? As much as Separ wanted to leave for safety, he couldn't find it in his heart to just leave her behind like that, especially after all that hard work he put in trying to save her. Feeling as though some type of disaster may fall upon the girl, Separ took off his backpack and laid it on the ground before walking over to Carver. "I'm going to go after the girl. You keep everyone else safe and continue on towards the next town over. I'll catch up with you there. Just don't follow after me as moving in a big group could attract unwanted attention. If any of you gets injured there's a medical kit I purchased earlier inside the backpack." Separ looked over at his group and smiled. "So I'll see you later then I guess." However when he saw Alula he felt a bit funny, something was nagging at him making him feel uncomfortable. He stared at her for a minute awkwardly before looking away not wanting to creep her out any longer. Deciding to ignore this feeling his attention turned towards Kelvin. "You have explosives right? Do you mind if I take a stick of dynamite as well as something to light it in case of an emergency?" Asked Separ in a rather serious tone. The last thing he wanted to do was blow up a whole area but if it meant surviving the enemy forces it could be useful in a pinch.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph rolled his eyes as, once again, a transaction was intruded upon. It wasn't just any transaction either, but a contract! That would make great strides in benefiting the party to all here (aside himself) belonged to. And this little girl had the audacity to intrude upon adult matters as though she had any right to? The boot was worth more than she was! "Exactly, you little goblin." He said as his smooth tone gradually dripped with venomous and seething contempt. "You do not know me, nor do you trust me; and by extent, do not know what I would do to you if you dare to try that again." Arastoph caught himself in the midst of his threat, and quickly bound to recover himself. "...Though as once a father, I could not possibly bring myself to do the likes of which. A hypothetical. That said... you are sorely in need of discipline. To which I would leave the responsibility to the... inarticulate one. If you think I would allow a child to possess any sort of your party's spending power, I'm afraid you are mistaken." 'Then again, the simpering, defective imbecile is probably the reason behind her infantile tantrums.' In addition to the abhorrent cretin of a human child, the paladin ushered an end to their negotiations which Arastoph had felt was weighed quite considerably in their favor. Carver insisted that negotiations may be finished another time while they packed up and pressed on towards the other town. 'What a shame; we were almost finished.' Carver praised his skills, but scolded his morality - living up to the stereotype of the rigid moral enforcer, and that his way of living was the one and only way of doing so. However, what had to be the most amusing part of his lecture was what he perceived to be Arastoph's motives! He deducted mere, simple greed! Nay, that was not the case for him; obsession with the mundane, terrestrial concept of currency was not where his heart lies. Rather, it was simply a tool and method of power for him to exert over the less powerful. But as for why this particular path was taken... needless to say, it had nothing to do with worshiping gold coins. "Surely, Sir Carver," Arastoph mused, "you don't think me to be so shallow and banal to be bothered with something as trivial as greed?" "I am not so frivolous," he continued. A sly smile has stretched over his face as his eyes turned to the corner upon hearing the oracle's warning of one of their own ranks attempting to slip out unnoticed. "From the sounds of things, I may not be the one you should be suspicious of, good knight. At least I have been upfront with my business."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Every stick neatly sorted by length. Every sheet of cloth folded in precise squares, piled and bound. Furnace wrapped every object he owned as well as all other unattended objects in rags and bags. Divided into equal shares, or at least a close approximation. One package for each person here to carry. Furnace looked at Carver as he stood beside his work. It was clear on his face he took pride in it, that he hoped for approval. "We will take these things to 'that way', right?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed Separ staring at her, but really took no mind. The man was strange, and so was she. Most of the time people payed her no mind, but when they noticed her she was truly the center of their attentions. She didn't like it. Once the man turned away, after staring at her for minutes, she tugged her hat down over her eyes. She didn't keep quiet for long, however, as she noticed something while Furnace was packing up camp. There was something on his forehead, something drawing her in. Once the gnome was finished with his task, looking quite proud, Alula limped over to him. With a bit of ungraceful struggle, leaning on her staff for support, she knelled down in front of him. With a strangely sudden movement, one someone might miss if they had blinked, Alula's hand whipped up and moved the gnomes hair off of his forehead. She studied the marking with a strange intensity, her expression looking distressed. "Furnace..." She started, looking into his eyes. "Where...when...did you get...this..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace flinched when Alula suddenly touched his head. Surprisingly close and with eyes filled with concern. Furnace stared back at her in confusion, then at his empty hands before looking back at her. "What did I get?"</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki frowned as she looked at her scythe. She had a knack for noticing things unusual, and this was quite odd. It hadn't been touched, left where she dropped it. That, and her skeletons alongside it, in pieces. However, standing here was not going to solve her problems. Taking a breath, she reached down, before grabbing the scythe.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched in interest as Kelvin and the merchant continued to haggle prices. She tugged her hat down over her eyes as the man mentioned orphanages. Even if that would be far safer to live in a home for parentless children then traveling with a group of first time adventurers, she said nothing. She found the man's tone slightly cynical, but nothing she would really bat an eye at. The rest of the party seemed rather quick to jump down his throat. But she understood. Alula shivered, tugging on her hat again. The young girls outburst was rather odd as well. The child was being rather outspoken and rude for one so young, and she could stand to learn some manners. It wasn't wise to lash out in such a way, especially around the man who had saved her life. Again, Alula understood. And Alula shivered. She watched in silence as Carver again intervened, playing the mediator, when Kelvin and the merchant seemed to be unable to find an agreement. She frowned when he mentioned her name, however. Equating her to the children and innocent of the party. If only they knew. She kept herself from speaking out, she knew the man just wanted what was best. After awhile the voices informed her that someone had tried to sneak away from the party. It would be best to mention it before things got too carried away. "We may...need more then...thirty minutes..." Alula slurred slowly, pulling the rim of her hat down over her eyes. "The girl...has returned to the town...she took measures to...not be detected by you all..." She shivered. "We...I...believe...it would be best...to wait for her here...if she wanted us...to follow she would have...told us to."</s> <\|message\|>Des Des followed Carver, he seemed to be the only one who made sense. "Earlier, you said we are all children of the Sun. Does that make you my brother?" If this guy was Des's family then he might know something about Des's past. Suki's staff was Exactly where she had left it. There was something slightly suspicious about the fact that it was the only thing left untouched, even more so sense her skeletons lay destroyed beside it.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Upon Carver's command Furnace immediately started to break down a tent, attempting to mimic him as well as possible. "We should wait here for her then? Have these goods collected in packages for transport by the time she returns? If she returns." He asked, thinking aloud.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ This was a bad situation for sure, the girl Separ had tried so hard to save was now back in the lions den, but for what reason? Was there something she needed to do in that town that was worth risking such danger? As much as Separ wanted to leave for safety, he couldn't find it in his heart to just leave her behind like that, especially after all that hard work he put in trying to save her. Feeling as though some type of disaster may fall upon the girl, Separ took off his backpack and laid it on the ground before walking over to Carver. "I'm going to go after the girl. You keep everyone else safe and continue on towards the next town over. I'll catch up with you there. Just don't follow after me as moving in a big group could attract unwanted attention. If any of you gets injured there's a medical kit I purchased earlier inside the backpack." Separ looked over at his group and smiled. "So I'll see you later then I guess." However when he saw Alula he felt a bit funny, something was nagging at him making him feel uncomfortable. He stared at her for a minute awkwardly before looking away not wanting to creep her out any longer. Deciding to ignore this feeling his attention turned towards Kelvin. "You have explosives right? Do you mind if I take a stick of dynamite as well as something to light it in case of an emergency?" Asked Separ in a rather serious tone. The last thing he wanted to do was blow up a whole area but if it meant surviving the enemy forces it could be useful in a pinch.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph rolled his eyes as, once again, a transaction was intruded upon. It wasn't just any transaction either, but a contract! That would make great strides in benefiting the party to all here (aside himself) belonged to. And this little girl had the audacity to intrude upon adult matters as though she had any right to? The boot was worth more than she was! "Exactly, you little goblin." He said as his smooth tone gradually dripped with venomous and seething contempt. "You do not know me, nor do you trust me; and by extent, do not know what I would do to you if you dare to try that again." Arastoph caught himself in the midst of his threat, and quickly bound to recover himself. "...Though as once a father, I could not possibly bring myself to do the likes of which. A hypothetical. That said... you are sorely in need of discipline. To which I would leave the responsibility to the... inarticulate one. If you think I would allow a child to possess any sort of your party's spending power, I'm afraid you are mistaken." 'Then again, the simpering, defective imbecile is probably the reason behind her infantile tantrums.' In addition to the abhorrent cretin of a human child, the paladin ushered an end to their negotiations which Arastoph had felt was weighed quite considerably in their favor. Carver insisted that negotiations may be finished another time while they packed up and pressed on towards the other town. 'What a shame; we were almost finished.' Carver praised his skills, but scolded his morality - living up to the stereotype of the rigid moral enforcer, and that his way of living was the one and only way of doing so. However, what had to be the most amusing part of his lecture was what he perceived to be Arastoph's motives! He deducted mere, simple greed! Nay, that was not the case for him; obsession with the mundane, terrestrial concept of currency was not where his heart lies. Rather, it was simply a tool and method of power for him to exert over the less powerful. But as for why this particular path was taken... needless to say, it had nothing to do with worshiping gold coins. "Surely, Sir Carver," Arastoph mused, "you don't think me to be so shallow and banal to be bothered with something as trivial as greed?" "I am not so frivolous," he continued. A sly smile has stretched over his face as his eyes turned to the corner upon hearing the oracle's warning of one of their own ranks attempting to slip out unnoticed. "From the sounds of things, I may not be the one you should be suspicious of, good knight. At least I have been upfront with my business."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Every stick neatly sorted by length. Every sheet of cloth folded in precise squares, piled and bound. Furnace wrapped every object he owned as well as all other unattended objects in rags and bags. Divided into equal shares, or at least a close approximation. One package for each person here to carry. Furnace looked at Carver as he stood beside his work. It was clear on his face he took pride in it, that he hoped for approval. "We will take these things to 'that way', right?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed Separ staring at her, but really took no mind. The man was strange, and so was she. Most of the time people payed her no mind, but when they noticed her she was truly the center of their attentions. She didn't like it. Once the man turned away, after staring at her for minutes, she tugged her hat down over her eyes. She didn't keep quiet for long, however, as she noticed something while Furnace was packing up camp. There was something on his forehead, something drawing her in. Once the gnome was finished with his task, looking quite proud, Alula limped over to him. With a bit of ungraceful struggle, leaning on her staff for support, she knelled down in front of him. With a strangely sudden movement, one someone might miss if they had blinked, Alula's hand whipped up and moved the gnomes hair off of his forehead. She studied the marking with a strange intensity, her expression looking distressed. "Furnace..." She started, looking into his eyes. "Where...when...did you get...this..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace flinched when Alula suddenly touched his head. Surprisingly close and with eyes filled with concern. Furnace stared back at her in confusion, then at his empty hands before looking back at her. "What did I get?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki frowned as she looked at her scythe. She had a knack for noticing things unusual, and this was quite odd. It hadn't been touched, left where she dropped it. That, and her skeletons alongside it, in pieces. However, standing here was not going to solve her problems. Taking a breath, she reached down, before grabbing the scythe.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula frowned, feeling rather troubled. How could he not know what was on his own body? Perhaps it was a recent addition, and he just hadn't looked at her reflection lately. She furrowed her brow, trying to remember if she had seen it on him when they had first met. She couldn't remember. The voices were keeping rather quiet, unnerving Alula even more. After a few moments of silence Alula realized she still hadn't given the gnome an answer. She spoke, trying to keep the concern out of her voice. "It is...a word...written on your forehead...in a rather...exotic language..." She paused, trying to plan her next words. "I have...met few others...who can read and write...in such a way...other then myself..."</s> <\|message\|>Des As Suki picked up her scythe, the sound of a tripwire being activated could be heard. Before anything could be done, a rope ripped Suki into the air causing her to flip upside down and drop her scythe. Three raiders stepped out from their hiding place, "Look at this one boys, a real cutie. And she's got a nice pair of legs and little something else to show too." (I'm assuming she's wearing a skirt) The raider who was checking her out walked over and placed his hand on her cheek. "Hey sweetie, my name's Daven. And you are?"</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki only managed to formulate a squeal, as she found herself hoisted upside down. Craning her neck to look down at her feet...or up....she found a rope tied to her ankles that was responsible for holding her in this position. Although the idea of trying to untie the rope had flashed through her mind, she gave up almost immediately. She probably couldn't even reach, since she'd have to fight against gravity, move into an awkward position, and stay in that position to free herself. It was more likely someone would arrive before she could finish. Most likely whoever set up this trap. Not disappointed, she looked at the thee raiders who stepped out from hiding. Only having herself to blame for not being more cautious, she frowned as she heard the raider speak. Hurriedly pushing her skirt over her legs at the front, while accidentally squeezing her bosom together, making her cleavage more pronounced. Fighting the urge to turn slightly and bite the hand on her cheek, Suki chose to try and talk her way out of this. "Well Daven, I'm Suki. If you wouldn't mind me asking, why are you three raiders around here?"</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis wrapped some twine up in a into a coil before he tied it around the man's wrists. He tested it's strength and was satisfied as it tore with one quick tug, if anything were to go wrong, the man could free himself of his bindings and flee (preferable flee as fighting in the town would most likely end inter deaths). As he tied the mans has together, he found himself in need of some one to hold down two crossed pieces of string, he was fiddling around with it before a finger came down and held it in place. "Fank you.." mumbled Vis as he finished the knot, "waith a minuthe.." his head snapped to see a smiling Khat. "Whath are you thooing here?!" he hissed. "I helped you tie the knot." she replied instantly. "Go back!" he ordered, pointing in the direction she came from. "Nope, its a long walk back and I figured you might need me, since we are partners and all." She smiled slyly but Vis didn't notice. "We are not partners," he whispered angrily, as they were close to the town, "now get back to the camp!" Khat lifted up a tiny hand and beckoned for him to come closer, he did and she whispered into his ear. "If you don't let me come, I'll tell everyone about the scroll.." Voltus' heart stopped for a moment and the tips of his ear, both the normal and tattered one, went rouge from embarrassment. "Fine, you wanth acthion? you'll get ith." Vis started to bind her hands too and once done, he turned to the man, "If anyfing happenth thoo me, you are in charthe of her. Break free from those bindingth and geth outh." he hissed into the man's ear.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace stood and stared into the distance with Alula. Pondering the magnificent energies he'd seen and was seeing. This sun. the memory of that moon. It was fascinating. From the corner of his sight he saw the aurumancer point at them. "Do not forget, there are people who we know for certain are still alive that need protecting." He was right. They were both dressed in cloth and nothing but cloth. "That is ok. I can make more, I'll need resources though. We might find them at the town." Furnace started to list materials needed for protection of the top of his head. "I'll need metals, lots of iron, coal,powdered metals like gold, magnesium and silver, a cold-iron or stone surface to work on, a bucket of walnut oil... any other tools like chisels and tongues save some time making them... I already have a hammer."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ looked back at Vis, who now seemed to be a bit annoyed, possibly even angry. Given the circumstances though, it was easy to see why he was so frustrated. Of all the people that had to follow us, it had to be this little girl. Regardless they were now stuck with her, as even if she had agreed to head back to the others it would definitely not be a good idea. By now our group had probably moved on and Separ wasn't sure the girl would be able to find them, and the forest would be dangerous with all the raiders running about. Separ sighed. For now they'd just have to make due, and who knows, perhaps the girl could actually be useful at one point or another. In fact, Separ could probably use this to his advantage to make it really seem like he was a prisoner. If he just acted like the girls father, it would really help sell the whole being captured plan. Suddenly Vis hissed into Separ's ear breaking him from his thoughts. "If anyfing happenth thoo me, you are in charthe of her. Break free from those bindingth and geth outh." Separ glanced at Vis, a small smile forming on his face. "I promise in that case, but I also don't plan on leaving you or anyone here for that matter, not if I can help it anyways."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded, he was sure thar the Separ would follow up on that promise. He took one last look at Khat, with her red hair peaking out of her head scarf, he had promised to himself that he'd look after her and if he botched this up, who knew what he'd have to pay. Vis grabbed the pair by their bindings and shoved them through foliage into town, as a child he use to play bandits and guards and memories of those games came back to mind, he was always the bandit. They had not walked five minutes before they were interrupted by the yelling of a raider, "Oy you!" he barked from a distance, "Where ya goin' wit them prisoners?!" Vis gulped and plunged into himself to find a reply. "I'm thakin'em thoo tha thavern!" He yelled back, in the best gruff voice he could, "boss man wanth'em there!" "What's wit yer voice?" he called back, making the raiders around him laugh, that angered Vis but he knew he was on thin ice, so he reacted appropriately. "Wath with yer face?!" the raiders burst into laughter and Khat stiffled a snigger, it seemed that this rouse was going to work. "I'll come wit ya," said one of the gruff raiders as he walked towards them, "I needa swig anywho." Vis was cursing like mad under his breath, he couldn't have the raider following them around, he wracked his brains until he came on an idea. Vis threw his voice as far as it could go, casting it as a yell behind the collapsed building that the group of raiders had called home, "Oy, you lot! Get yer arses over here!" The raider turned around and yelled. "I'll be there in tad!" he turned to Vis, "sorry mate, duty calls." Vis was elated that it worked. "No bothar, I'll save ye a bo'le." replied Vis as he continued down the road, his panic subsiding a tad. "thath wath close." he mumbled, to no one in particular.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ A bead of sweat dripped down from Separ's chin. Th...that was a close one. It was a miracle that they had managed to get so lucky thanks to that other raider. Continuing down through the destroyed city Separ caught sight of multiple dead bodies and just destruction and carnage everywhere. Turning towards the little girl he looked at her briefly, wondering if she was becoming frightened by the whole ordeal. Whatever the case, she really should not have come. Turning around the corridor Azorel overheard some people talking. It sounded like a small group, as only a few different voices could be heard. "V...Vis, there's a group farther down and to the left, it might be a good idea to see if they know where the girl, or any other survivors for that matter may be." Still though, listening in closely it sounded like they were flirting with someone. Quite a bit strange, were there female raiders as well as male raiders too?</s> <\|message\|>Des "Well Cutie-Pie, if you must know. We are here because somebody slaughtered are patrol group. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that now, would you?" Daven moved to tie up her arms and wrists making it harder to keep them up. "If you have any information, I may be willing to let you go." @Voltus_Ventus The raider with the face, Aran, was walking towards the direction of the voice when something clicked, "Wait a damn minute, the tavern was destroyed. We've been played." He gathered the rest of the men and started heading towards the destroyed tavern to see if there were any excuses for this ignorance. 'And if not.' Aran laughed as he put his hand on the hilt of his blade. else, While arguments were going on about what to do next, a patrol group of ten men sneaked up on the group. With no Vis to hear them and the arguments blocking Alula's capabilities, there was no warning. The men struck out from all sides but the far side that led to the next town. (I'm sorry, I don't like Godmodding but I kind of have to) Carver looked to the men and back towards the group. Assessing the situation, he lifted his sword and shield and cursed himself for not attaching his armor earlier. "Run, I'll hold them. Just get out of here and don't even dare to look back or try to help me! No one else should fall because of my inability to protect them."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace was just tying everything he was going to carry onto his back when armed men jumped them. He panicked in confusion, none of them spoke to declare their intentions. Was this another fight? Just get out of here and don't even dare to look back or try to help me! A clear command. Without blinking Furnace nodded and did as he was told. He started running, unsure where or why. Looking up at the road before him he saw he had instinctively chosen the road to the other village. That made sense, they were already going there so the others would probably go there too. Furnace wondered if the others would run too, he assumed, but would not look back.</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki squirmed as the raider tied her arms and wrists, before mentally sighing in resignation as she allowed gravity to take hold of her bound limbs. Though the raider said that he 'may' be willing to let her go, if she spoke, it wasn't as if she could just tell the raider what happened. Besides, that group might prove useful after all, and it would be such a pity if she were to lose them right now. "Unfortunately, I have no clue." Speaking normally, she noticed that, with her being held up be her legs, upside down, it not only dropped her skirt, revealing what was underneath, but along with her chest also being pulled by gravity, pulling them against the front of her dress. Perhaps with this position, she can use it to her advantage. "If you'd let me go, I think I have another way of paying you back. Would you like me~?" She'd never try seducing someone while being in such a disadvantageous position. There were also quite a number of things that could go wrong. However, she still wasn't willing to bring out the undead just yet. So she spoke with her usual sultry tone.</s>
<\|description\|>Suki Enkou Nickname/Title: Calamity Queen Appearance:(ignore the gunblade), and add a black cloak with a hood. Race: Human, although she views herself as a shade. Class: Necromancer Main-Hand Weapon:Double Edged Battle Scythe Off-Hand Weapon: Find someone who wields a normal scythe with one hand effectively :P Secondary Weapon: Her lips Armor: Cloth Powers: -Necropolis: The mainstay of almost all necromancy, this allows her to summon up either skeleton or zombie creatures. Skeletons have the advantage of damage dealing, but are more brittle than their fleshier counterparts, who in turn, deal less damage. The more numerous/powerful the summon(s), the more it costs. -Shadow Step: A more effective method of dodging attacks. Whenever an attack is about to hit, she will seemingly dissipate into the shadows, before appearing elsewhere. Can also be done for movement to a hard to reach location, or surprise attacks. Range and strength of natural shadows in the surroundings dictate how much life it costs. -Devouring Kiss: A seemingly simple spell, this is also one of the most important spells that allows Suki to stay alive. She basically kisses someone, regardless of gender, and can either drain them of energy, or their life. The former has the advantage of not killing the target, but the later is more efficient in sustaining her. Skills: -Seducing: She has gotten rather capable of seducing someone, mostly to keep herself alive. With her looks complimented by the dress, it isn't too hard to do. -Stealth: When required, she can be extremely stealthy, moving silently at an acceptable pace, which is something one can't exactly do with heavier armor. -Information Gathering: Combining both her abilities to seduce someone, and her stealth capabilities, it's not surprise that she can gather information. Weaknesses: -Dying Life: Necropolis and Shadow Step have a cost. Compared to most spells and magic styles, which consume the caster's energy, necromancy based spells consume the caster's life. Thus, requiring the caster to consistently drain someone to keep herself alive. -Active Dodge: Despite having the Shadow Step spell, it is an 'active' spell, meaning she has to deliberately cast it. If a surprise attack hits her, it's going to hurt, especially with the cloth armor. -Thin Armor: Cloth armor, while extremely light and allows for agile movement, doesn't give way much in terms of taking hits. -Easily Flustered: Despite having to kiss to keep herself alive, Suki is flustered quite easily. This is evident when she tries to kiss someone she knows Personality: Cautious and prone to hiding, one might find Suki hard to associate with. Not because she's violent, or unsocial or anything of the like. It's just that you might have a hard time finding her. And even when you manage to get we to talk, she seems to talk rather softly. However, once you get to know her, and gain her trust, she becomes a rather useful and adorable companion. Whenever tired, she would not be afraid to use someone as a lap pillow, nor be used as a hug pillow herself, despite blushing very profusely. Also, she will come to you for a kiss quite often. Whenever scared, she has a habit of squeezing herself into a small corner or a tight space between furniture, the look of doom gloom on her face. Background: Coming from a village that had religion as a pillar of support, it isn't too hard to imagine what kind of suffering Suki had went through just for being born with the powers of a 'demon'. Consistently being chased away from others, even having rocks thrown at her. Having to survive on her own, she found her way through rather underhanded methods. By far the most effective seemed to be seduction, before draining her victim into unconsciousness. Nowadays, she moves around consistently, since most of her victims would be out to look for her, and churches would be out to hunt her down. Other:</s> <\|message\|>Alula Thins were rather quiet around camp, until they suddenly weren't. Raiders, likely finding them by following the trails of Vis and Separ. She frowned, knowing what would happen if she was around danger. She tried to level her breathing, telling herself there was no need to get hasty and attack. Because Carver was going to protect them. Alula clenched her jaw, eyes glowing brightly from under her hat. She was horribly confused and overwhelmed. Voices screamed from every direction, and she was unable to hear a single command or vision. It was chaos. Not only did her head feel crowded and distant, her body hurt as well. It was a foreign feeling, watching as Carver ran off into the woods, into the danger. Her stomach was twisting into knots, and her chest felt tight. Perhaps her time was almost up. She glanced around camp, trying to keep herself composed. Everyone was in danger, so many possibilities. Alula frowned, muttering to herself. "Everything is foggy, thick and unseeable. Like fog across a lake. Danger lurks but life stays hidden." She shivered. Vis, Separ, and the female child were off and likely to die. They may or may not have found the woman. Carver was off into the woods. This left herself, the merchant, the gnome, and Kelvin remaining. As well as the young boy, but she refused to take responsibility for him. She couldn't. Alula watched as the gnome began to grab gear and then run ahead, following Carvers direction. She would do the same. She first made sure that Kelvin and the merchant were in front of her. She would take up the rear, it was safer that way. She then, despite the voices, turned to the boy. She didn't speak but instead gestured down the path. Hopefully the child would catch up to the gnome. And then began to limp down the path herself. She refused to look back.</s> <\|message\|>Des and Voltus "Well if you think you could be of service then maybe..." Then some random dickhead came strolling in. "What do you mean, this was the boss's idea to capture some survivors. What do you care what I do with her now that we've done what the boss asked?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis decided that he would be intimidating, after all, bandits admired that. He marched right up to the man who had talked and pushed his forehead onto his, "Maybe if ya cleaned tha waxth ou' of yer ears ya would 'ave 'eard that the guy in charge wanted them to be put in tha town center, by tha tavern." Vis had his hand on his dagger, drawing his rapier would take too long in such close quarters.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ It's pretty obvious you do care about her Vis. Thought Separ as he glanced towards the girl but it was kind of hard to see her in the dim light. "My name's Separ, what's yours?" He whispered, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible. It wasn't exactly the best way to go about things what with there being a whole bunch of raiders outside, but Separ figured he should at least say something every now and then so the girl didn't become bored or anything. Besides, who knows just how long this rescue mission was going to take. It would probably be a good idea to at least get acquainted with each other on a first name basis.</s> <\|message\|>Des @gammaflux @Kimiyosis Daven started to ignore Vis and walked to the girl and cut her down, leaving her wrists and legs tied, "If it's that big of a deal to you then take her yourself." At that the men walked off. The other group of raiders arrived at the broken down tavern and,seeing no sign of Vis, started a patrol group for a possible impostor with a speech impedement and two or more prisoners. As the searched, Night began to fall. Wanderer @Spoopy Scary @Dragonbud @akje As the party reached the halfway point to BitterBourne, night began to fall and the group had to decide whether to stop for the night or keep going. Des walked up to the noisy lady(Alula) and tugged on her robe to get her attention. "Miss, what's going to happen to the sun man?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula The entire walk away from camp Alula was silent. She had nothing to say to anyone. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, but occasionally peaked out from under her hat to watch the sun sink down behind the trees. Night would be coming and she needed to leave. They soon came across a good place to camp, where Alula stopped right in her tracks. She spoke for the first time in several hours. "I do believe this would be a fine place to stop for the night." She spoke with a strange clarity, uncharacteristic of her slow speech. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was starting to glow. "With any luck, the others will catch up with us before the morning." Without explaining herself she tried to make her way towards the woods, hoping the others would take the hint and stay put for the night. She felt bad leaving the child and the gnome with Kelvin, but he was tough enough for the two of them. Unfortunately, she was stopped before she could get away from the others. Someone was tugging on her cloak. The child. She suppressed a growl and tugged her hat down over her eyes. Alula spoke with a strange amount of anger, as well as the corruption echoing in her voice as she spoke to the boy. "Isn't it obvious? The man ran off into the woods to battle an unseeable amount of bandits. He lacked armor and was clearly outnumbered." She grumbled something about stupid children before, again, trying to get away from the group.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem It was quite a long and eventful day. Between having had no sleep the previous night, half of the party he had recent acquainted himself with going off to who-knows-where on what was apparent to be a mission to willingly swan dive into the dragon's maws - the merchant had little sympathy for the fools - and then they were suddenly surrounded by bandits, with the foolish knight sacrificing his life so that the others may flee. Foolish, certainly; Arastoph definitely would not have done the same, but he appreciated the act as it allowed him to live another day. However, that extra day comprised him of hiking through rough terrain to get to the next town over while he was sleep deprived. While he still detested the idea of sleeping among strangers, he felt that his body might win out this time around. He had no interest in talking with any of those who were left; he was too exhausted and irritable for him to be so patient with them. The boy, however, still seemed to have plenty of energy left to harass the seer girl as she began to wander off. "However you look at it," he began to explain, "every man and woman is a sinner. Some sin less, some sin more, some are better at hiding it." Arastoph sighed and closed his eyes just as a cool breeze blew by and soothed his hot skin and aching muscles. "Carver is probably dead and will be suffering eternal damnation. We can just hope he's being tortured by two hundred ninety-nine pitchforks instead of three hundred."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat climbed up a bookshelf and sat on top, looking down at the suddenly shorter man, "My name is Khat," she hissed down, trying to be quiet but still audible, "What of it?" she scanned the man with a scrutinizing eye, he wore little armor and didn't even carry a weapon, 'what kind of adventurer is this guy?' she thought to herself. Standing up, Khat leapt to the other bookshelf, landing with a gentle tap as opposed to a clumsy thud. "Are you Vis' friend?" she asked. Vis bundled up Suki, throwing her roughly over his shoulder, "if ye artheholes find any more prisoners, 'ow about lockin'em up inthead of trying' tha rape'em?" he walked off back in the in the opposite direction he came in, as if he were going to the center of town, however when he was out of sight he looped around the long way, heading back to the bookstore where he had hid Separ and Khat.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to introduce myself is all. So Khat's your name huh? It's rather pretty. And as for Vis, you could say he's my friend. Though, whether or not he thinks the same of me, well that's debatable." I sighed as my thoughts jumped to Vis and the girl. Hopefully they were both okay, but all I could do was hope. I couldn't even see from outside this building, so that would make things a lot more difficult. Please be safe.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin It was painful. Men seemed to crash in on all sides, breaking the safety of the clearing and leaving it shattered like sharp glass. Luckily, he was packed. Kelvin snatched up two of the packages the gnome had made in either hand, and booked it. He didn't pause- he wasn't a Paladin. Even so, he could feel stabbing pain in his gut- the jerk of leaving behind an ally. Carver had only his sword, his shield, and the blessing of a god to make it through. Brave man, likely a dead one. Kelvin couldn't take the time to look back, just muttering a small offering for the man. "Go Paladin, a man born of plight to fight through sin. Never fall, listen to the child's call. Go my kin. No amount of steel can hide your heart of tin. Enemies may maul, but a hero stands tall. Come Paladin, dance for heaven's ball." He wasn't quite sure where he knew it from, but it was an appropriate lyric for the situation. Kelvin did little as they slowed. Constant running would leave a man tired. "I didn't know you were a believer, merchant." Kelvin glanced at the man. "Odd." He wasn't really that interested. Kelvin glanced about, beginning to count heads.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Exhaustion was already overtaking the merchant, and was slow to address Kelvin's passing comment. The long trek took a lot out of what was left of him and was beginning to drift into slumber as he sat upright with his back against a tree trunk. "I've seen and... experienced enough to be aware there is more to this world than your mortality." Arasatoph answered dismissively with a lazy wave of his hand. "Believing, howe'er, is not the same as holding faith in higher powers..." This was a terrible time for him to be discussing anything, much less religion, and was already growing irritable. He wished to remain left alone so that he may catch up on rest. On the bright side, he felt he had no reason to worry of his safety around these ones. "But for now, let me be," he continued, "I am weary."</s>	<\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki 'vainly struggled', as she was thrown over the disfigured man. "Be more gentle!" Hissing softly at Vis, she shifted around, attempting to settle into a more comfortable position. As comfortable as one can get carried like a sack of flour. She sighed in exasperation after a short moment, before muttering, "Why did you even bother coming? Waste your time on better tasks." with an annoyed tone.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula kept quiet, looking over at the group from behind Carver. Yes. She had found herself in quite a strange situation. Why had she agreed to go on some adventure with a bunch of strangers? She pulled the brim of her hat over her eyes, trying to concentrate. She could hear the punching man agreeing to let the other girl into the group. She was a strange one as well, but she radiated a compelling strength like no other. She took a step further behind Carver as the punching man approached her, as if taking cover behind the man. She muttered softly, her voice slurring and eyes glowing from beneath her hat. "Only a life lived for others is a life worth while." She felt a bit worried when the punching man came over and asked if anyone had any supplies or a destination in mind. The man was gathering people for some sort of adventure and didn't have a plan? She held back a sigh, knowing she would have to learn to trust the others around her. This would truly be a group effort, and as someone who survived on her own for so long she was afraid. Alula had a puzzled look on her face under her hat. Supplies? Why was she thinking of supplies? Did she have supplies? Does she even need to eat? A voice confirmed for her, yes you do eat occasionally. She blinked hazily, holding up her heavy coin purse. "I have...uh...supplies..." She sounded confused.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver caught the woman's gaze and held it as she joined the group. Then she knew. He knew, she knew, he knew she knew, she knew he knew, and she had better know he knew she knew. Of course, that still left the matter of what exactly he knew, but that could come later. If the woman was aware that the Paladin knew what she was, perhaps she'd be on her best behavior. That'd be enough for now. Alula stepped behind him, as though concealing herself from the rest of the group. That fear wasn't ideal, but it was to be expected. The girl would be joining them - Carver was sure she'd come around to them later. "Ah. Supplies. Let's see!" Carver took his pack and began rooting around inside it. "I have... ten gold coins, not bad... this looks like a crust of bread... and, um, a rock." Carver tossed the stone out of his bag and slung it back over his shoulder, smiling sheepishly. "Uh... sorry, I won't be much help on that front. Sounds like Alula might, though. And I imagine that the traditional method of 'asking the barkeeper for rumours' has been ruled out?" The paladin grinned at his own jest and looked to his party for direction.</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis raised his voice, "I belief thath we should pool thome coin to buy thupplies for all uf uth." they shouldn't be depending on individual supplies, some most likely didn't have any, Vis supposed, him only having 60 coins, a set of stag antlers and a child's enyclopedia. He took a long hard look at his group, casting green light on every member to scrutinize them, they had a paladin, a sword puncher, a gnome, a rather curvaceous woman and another woman who looked a bit out of it; he could tell that the adventure was going to be something. "Leth all chip in thome coin and buy rathions, things thath will latht a while. Green appleth, hard loafths of bread, dried meath." he had been on the road for a long time and understood what to bring and what not to bring, from personal experience of finding that all the food had rotted in his bag. "And wather thacks." Vis whinced internally, every time he lisped.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly studied the supplies of Carver, Alula, and the scarf wearing elf. Carver barely seemed to have anything, Alula on the other hand seemed to have tons of gold, as well as some miscellaneous items that Separ could make neither heads nor tails of. Lastly the scarf wearin elf seemed to have a modest sum of money as well as some various items which made Separ question why he had them in the first place. Disregarding those items Separ listened to the elf talk about buying various food items and such, only for a girl who identified herself as Rose Anew, aka 'Phoenix' to step forward and ask if she could go along with the group. Separ was immediately impressed by her, as she said she was both a capable fighter and a great cook. "A fighter and a cook? You've instantly sold me, I'm happy you could be on the team. So what kind of dishes do you specialize in?" Separ then looked around at his fellow group members. "No one has any objections right?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Everyone found gold? I think we have enough for a sword or two." Furnace held his heavy bag of coins and shook the bag have it make a sattisfying jingling sound. "Though the metal is soft and not ideal. We can make do."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched with strange interest as Carver tossed the rock out of his bag. She watched it roll and skid away from the group, until it finally settled into a grassy patch several yards away from them. It would have been impossible for anyone to just see the rock if they were walking past, and yet Alula knew it was there, so she could see it. She shivered despite the heat. She turned her blurred attention back to the group. She allowed the punching man who look through her bag, which she had hidden within her robes. She didn't really have anything of importance on her. Her bag was actually a blanket all bundled together with twine. In her bundle was nothing but a few torn up pieces of canvas, likely at one point a tent, and some random odds and ends. Nothing of value, more like junk you would find laying around. She wondered where they came from. And then there was another girl. Alula pulled down the rim of her hat, muttering softly. "A life is cut short so another can begin. Lives are lost in the forest of life to allow the young to grow." She felt horribly dizzy and a bitter cold spreading though her veins. She leaned forward for a moment, resting her weight against Carver until the cold was replaced with the burn. At this point she was hoping no one else would approached the group.</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis watched the rock skid to a halt and walked over to it to pick it up off the ground and into his pocket, a man walking past gave him a glance, most likely because of his damaged face but Vis decided to believe that he glanced about the rock, who knew, he might find use for it later. He turned to the group and once more spoke up, "I'm going thu go thearching for bread, anyone wanth thoo thag along?" he asked, hoping someone would want to come with him, though he wasn't too talkative, he didn't mind the company when he had it, it made him feel a little better about being bad at socializing.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Des The ettin was about to slay the little one when he had suddenly attacked on of the stands, this caused the ettin to think that the little one was one of them and so he nodded and continued his rampage.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace trembled a little as he regarded the judging eyes of the towering creature. The ettin nodded approvingly. He did it right. He was learning so much today! Happily Furnace followed and continued to smash barrels, poles and carts along with the brute and a growing group of other creatures his size. They did the same. When he jumped, they did. When they struggled to reach up to the thatched rooftops with their torches, he kicked a barrel over to them so they could stand on it. This was going great. That moment he remembered the barkeep, and how he had displayed so much fun cutting the friend collector, clearly he loved a fight. As they were near the tavern Furnace ran ahead of the band and smashed the wooden door open. He pointed inside and yelled at the rampaging group. "In here! There's good fighting and food in here!"</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" As Vis walked out of the bakery, sixteen coins lighter and with 8 loaves of bread under his arm, screams echoed out from the other side of the market and people started running away from the direction of the comotion. The owner of the bakery, a woman in her thirties steppes out to see what was going on, Vis turned back to the bakery and ushered as much people inside as possible, he turned to the owner and yelled over the commotion, "Ith there a bathement thoo thith bakery?!" She thought for a moment and nodded, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him to the kitchen, she pointed to a large slate preparation table, "It's under there!" she yelled as what was going on outside was getting closer. Vis groaned with frustration and pushed all his mass against the table, whincing as it grated across the floor, exposing a dusty trap door. When the table was no longer obstructing it, Vis opened it up and climbed down, it was large and could easily hold everyone in the building. He climbed back out and yelled into the main room for everyone to get into the basement, they did as they were told and when the trapdoor shut and everyone was inside, Vis pushed the table back over the hatch and he heard rough voices from the front room. He drew his rapier and escaped through the back door, he'd be back for the people in the basement.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ frowned a little bit at the girls words. Sure he really wanted everyone to be fine, but would they? For now all Separ could do was hope that Carver, Kelvin, and all the others had come through. "I really hope they're okay." For a moment Separ and the girl sat in silence for a few minutes before Separ tried to stand up almost falling over in the process. While he had gained a little bit of his energy back, he still would be practically useless in a fight. Remembering he was wearing a backpack he took it off and laid it on the ground and pulled out two tents. Handing one towards the girl he began to ask her "Would you like to stay here for the night? I think I can walk, but it's getting pretty late. What would you prefer to do in this situation? I also have a medical kit in my backpack by the way, so we could always heal ourselves up before dark." Sure Separ did not know the girl very well, but he trusted her. She didn't seem like a bad person after all, especially when she herself practically sacrificed her life when she fell down from over-exerting herself.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver crept through the forest with as much stealth as he was able to muster, which was to say, none at all. Had any goblins been in earshot, they probably could have heard the clanking of his armor from quite a distance away - however, it seemed the sun was smiling on him, and no foes produced themselves. A brief moment later, the knight had another stroke of luck. In another small clearing, Separ and the witch sat in a half-unconscious pile. Carver was immediately gladdened to see Separ well - for a moment, he'd almost despaired for the young man's life. The witch, although, was another matter entirely. Carver had been half of the mind that she was part of the attack in some fashion, but her current condition seemed to belie that. She looked half-dead; pale, sallow, and exhausted. If this was the result of her summoning some magical force to aid in the fight, then perhaps his initial reaction to her had been unfair, whatever she was. "Separ! ... Other lady!" He called out to them as he entered the clearing, in the loudest whisper conceivable. "It's good to see you safe! The others are together, they're nearby. Are you able to walk? I can carry one of you."</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis turned away from the clearing and walked towards the burning sun, it's light peaking out from between the gaps in the canopy as he ventured out for a stream or a pond of some sort. The further he got from the camp, he felt an indescribable feeling, it was a mixture of relief and heartache. Soon he had stumbled upon a small pond, fed by 3 trickling streams and hidden by the forest canopy, looking around to ensure he wasn't being followed, he began unbuckling his armor. Once the leather plates dropped off his body, he took off his under clothes and tossed them into a pile next to the bank, so he stood naked by the water. Slowly he slipped in, first sitting down then slowly levering himself into the cool pond using his arms but as he got into the pond, he found that from where the land met the water, it was a vertical sloap downwards for about 3 and a half feet. Vis stood in the water for a moment, to get use to the temperature, before submerged himself completely and opened his eyes, casting a green glow in the dusty water. Small fish swam around, eating the green that grew at the bottom, oblivious to Vis or his light. He emerged from the water and returned to the bank, resting his head on his folded arms and letting the rest of his body float. He decided he'd rest before washing his gear.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Des The men wandered out of the woods and were quite upset to find no women and that they were fooled by the girl, but it was too late for her, the enemy was closing in. The two archers fired arrows at Carver while the swordsman rushed in. If Carver puts up his shield he will block the arrows but will give the swordsman a chance for a sneak attack since Carver will lose sight of him and if he doesn't raise his shield. Well...</s> <\|message\|>Furnace A man ran towards Carver sword raised. But Carver hadn't claimed to desire hurting the man. There was no time, with a few light steps Furnace positioned himself between Carver and the attempted flank. "Then I will hurt this one." He stood crouched, with word held at an angle so the tip reaches the tip of the grass. There, locked in pflug he waited the everlasting seconds while the man stormed closer with his eyes on Carver. The moment the man was close enough. Close enough to see Furnace. Close enough to charge into his reach. Furnace jumped up, sword piercing forward, thrusting in a single forward motion.</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman parried the blade and slashed outwards at Furnace missing only by a hair. Assuming Carver put his shield up the two arrows made a loud bang as they hit the iron. The swordsman looked down at Furnace and laughed, "You think your miserable mess of a weapon can take on a professional swordsman," He then looks up at Carver, "Now there's a man with a blade. How about we have a little one-on-one? My companions will cease fire until you fall to your death. How about it?" The other men caught up and the swordsman motioned for them to stop and then glanced at Carver, waiting for an answer. "Or are you scared you will fail?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace This man was not so simple of taste as the others, he wanted not just to fight. This man wanted to fight Carver specifically. So it was important who you fought? Furnace stepped out to the side, allowing a meter of free room between carver and the swordsman. The man was right after all. His blade was no longer as keen as he had intended it. He had gone and join these people in their fighting with a damaged blade. He wondered if he should apologize for not taking them seriously. It was clear they took it very seriously.</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat was about to retort about being carried until Vis swept her off of her feet, literally running towards her and plucking her off of the ground. "I don't need to be carried!" she barked, and all Vis did was point behind him at the raiders squaring off with the other three, Khat got the point and with great reluctance, fell quiet as Vis started to run, chasing after the man who coincidentally was holding another girl. As they ran, Khat watched Vis his pants were ragged as he ran behind the man but nothing portrayed why it would be so. She reached out to his scarf and was about to tug it down, when his eyes flicked to hers for a moment, glaring, as if to say 'don't you dare'. She did not argue, instead she pulled up her scarf around her face to see how it felt, oddly comfortable.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Des The swordsman managed to escape as the one archer was beaten to death while the other had his life drained away. He ran to the raider party and informed them of the surviving group. Time until reinforcements arrive: 30 minutes</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver grimaced as the flail crashed into his side again. This wasn't working - the flail had reach and power that he couldn't hope to match, and the man's armor was far too much for his sword. He wracked his brain for a moment before arriving at an answer. The flail needed a strong swing to build up power - getting far wouldn't help, so he'd just have to get close. With a roar, Carver launched himself at his enemy, shield raised, attempting to tackle him to the ground with the full weight of his armor.</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" "I do noth think thath thith ith a good thime tho retht, we should keep going." Vis said, adjusting how he carried the now squirming child as she tried to get down. "If you are going to carry me, at least let me ride on your back instead of holding me like a baby!" she whined, starting to kick in her search for freedom, Vis did as he was told and levered the girl onto his back in one swift motion, she wobbled there, dizzy for a moment until she spoke again, "this will do." Voltus then proceeded to stoop over and pick up the girl rolled in the blanket, grunting a bit at all the weight he was carrying and Kelvin was right, she was heavy, "Retht if you wish buth I will keep going." With that Vis turned and walked deeper into the forest and away from the camp, lighting the way with his glowing green eye.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was pleasantly surprised, and relived, when the merchant refused to take her shoes. At least she got to keep those. She was about to hand over the knife, when Kelvin stepped in. He pushed the knife and shoes back into her hands, and began to speak with the merchant. Everything the man was saying was confusing her. Was Kelvin helping her? All she wanted was her hat back. She bent over, again almost losing her fitting, and put back on her shoes. Once the two were finished speaking Arastoph turned back to her. He asked her if she would be willing to part with the dagger for the hat, not to mention that she had already given up all of her gold for it as well. She didn't really care about the money, she just wanted her hat back. She nodded eagerly, handing him the dagger and in exchange she was given her hat. The little woolen string was a nice touch, it would be much harder to loose now. Tugging her hat down over her eyes, finally content to keep her face away from the sun and the others gaze, she smiled.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace had nodded and stared into the sunrise while his new friends discussed complex theories of trade and commerce. He could barely follow the story but the gist of it seemed Kelvin and Vis testing the new man on the subject. Perhaps they needed to measure his abilities? The new man's words were fast and impressive. His knowledge of movements of gold seemed extensive. It was clear he intended to boast his talent, even when Furnace couldn't really catch on to what exactly the talent was. He would trade for them? Furnace had already learned how that went, but he had not heard anything this complex. This all sounded like a school of magic he'd never heard of. One specialised in reading the movements and fluctuating values of gold? That would be.. Aurumancy? Making this man an Aurumancer. Impressive. "Uhm... Can you explain your spells in a way the uninitiated understand."</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis made himself comfortable in the cradle of roots and rested, closing his eyes from the soft rays of the morning sun, a soft light of his own spilling past the shut eyelid of his green eye. He was tired and could not bring himself to eat the bread that he got for himself and instead, shook it in Khat's direction, her hand snatched out instantly and took the bread. She gobbled it down, stuffing it into her mouth and early chewing before swallowing, she didn't realize how hungry she was. Once finished with the chunk of stale bread, she turned to thank Vis but closed her mouth when she noticed him lying there, his chest rising and falling evenly, a sign of sleep. She mentally shrugged, before walking over to where he deposited his bag, among the rest of the group, to break off another piece of bread from their shared loaf. As she did, she looked up at everyone with a level, cool look. They were interesting, that was for sure but she only knew one of their names, the Knight's, Carver. She spun on the spot for a moment, looking at everyone before her eyes fell on a cloaked lady, the one who had not been so maliciously swindled by the merchant for a pointy hat. She shuffled over, nibbling her new piece of bread, as the last one had sated most of her appetite. Khat tugged the woman's cloak gently. "Hello."</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula frowned, feeling rather troubled. How could he not know what was on his own body? Perhaps it was a recent addition, and he just hadn't looked at her reflection lately. She furrowed her brow, trying to remember if she had seen it on him when they had first met. She couldn't remember. The voices were keeping rather quiet, unnerving Alula even more. After a few moments of silence Alula realized she still hadn't given the gnome an answer. She spoke, trying to keep the concern out of her voice. "It is...a word...written on your forehead...in a rather...exotic language..." She paused, trying to plan her next words. "I have...met few others...who can read and write...in such a way...other then myself..."</s> <\|message\|>Des As Suki picked up her scythe, the sound of a tripwire being activated could be heard. Before anything could be done, a rope ripped Suki into the air causing her to flip upside down and drop her scythe. Three raiders stepped out from their hiding place, "Look at this one boys, a real cutie. And she's got a nice pair of legs and little something else to show too." (I'm assuming she's wearing a skirt) The raider who was checking her out walked over and placed his hand on her cheek. "Hey sweetie, my name's Daven. And you are?"</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki only managed to formulate a squeal, as she found herself hoisted upside down. Craning her neck to look down at her feet...or up....she found a rope tied to her ankles that was responsible for holding her in this position. Although the idea of trying to untie the rope had flashed through her mind, she gave up almost immediately. She probably couldn't even reach, since she'd have to fight against gravity, move into an awkward position, and stay in that position to free herself. It was more likely someone would arrive before she could finish. Most likely whoever set up this trap. Not disappointed, she looked at the thee raiders who stepped out from hiding. Only having herself to blame for not being more cautious, she frowned as she heard the raider speak. Hurriedly pushing her skirt over her legs at the front, while accidentally squeezing her bosom together, making her cleavage more pronounced. Fighting the urge to turn slightly and bite the hand on her cheek, Suki chose to try and talk her way out of this. "Well Daven, I'm Suki. If you wouldn't mind me asking, why are you three raiders around here?"</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis arose from his root and started to snap on some loose segments of his leather armor, making sure they were fitted properly and checking his built for his weapons. "I'll come wif you." Vis called out to Separ, and approached him, he'd rather be going back into town then staying in the clearing with the merchant. As he got to Separ, he felt a tug on his sleeve, turning around, he saw that Khat had latched herself to it with both hands. "I want to come to!" she said, rather too excitedly. Vis however, simply replied. "No." "But why?!" she whined, tugging on his sleeve a bit more. "It'th too dangerouth." "I've been in there before." she rebutted, looking him dead in the eye, which made Vis a bit uncomfortable. "I recall I had thoo carry you outh." "I didn't need you to!" "You didn't protest when I did." "Fine!" she yelled and she stomped back off and plonked herself in her little nook between the roots, crossing her arms over her chest and grumbling. "Shall we be offth?" asked Vis, Khat had been pacified.</s>
<\|description\|>Katya "Khat" Vis Starkweather Appearance: Vis stands at 6ft 4 inches tall and weighs 170Ibs, his figure would be classed as lanky though he has enough muscle mass to avoid that (but not enough to be called muscular), his skin is pale but not too pale, it is comparable to milk. He has snow white, pigmentless hair, courtesy of his father, which he generally has slicked back, the color of his right eye is a deep, electric blue, his left eye is a bright green (this one is blind as it was struck with a curse. He has a slim head with rounded features, not the sharp features of his elven father, though he does have the elven ears even though the left one is in tatters, hanging limpy to the side. On the lower left side of his face he is missing the skin and flesh of his jaw and lower cheek, exposing his gums and teeth, this occured from the same accident as the one that ruined his ear, a cross bolt that narrowly missed destroying his life, he covers up the facial scar with a black scarf. Race: Half-Elf Class: Rogue Main-Hand Weapon: Iron Rapier Off-Hand Weapon: Slim Iron Dagger Secondary Weapon: Knuckle Dusters Armor: When he is not traveling or not engaged in anything that could end his life, he wears a white puffy shirt, with long sleeves and buttons down the front, as for legs he wears grey trousers and a pair of black leather boots, the scarf around his face doesn't go unless he's in private. When he is traveling however he does wear armor, a set of grey leather armor with azure highlights in the place of tassels and the odd leather plate, the armor has a fur neckline and full segmented leather arms and legs. He always has his sword by his side. Powers: Not Magically Inclined. Skills: He has turned the simple act of stealth into an art, having mastered the shadows and the ways to be at one with them; he can hide like no other, may it be active or in plain sight, if he doesn't want you to see him, he won't be seen. Another skill that he possesses is the ability to climb and scale natural and unnatural surfaces, though he much prefers to climb buildings and other structures because he feels more at ease with them. And the final skill of note is that he is streetwise, using his logic and intuition to find who, what or where he wants to find, he can build an interactive map of the city around him, using key figures and places as guides to finding things, picking up on things most wouldn't notice. Weaknesses: One of his major flaws is that, though he can dodge hits very well, he can only get hit a few times before he is down for the count. His slighter than average frame and and lack of heavy armor don't exactly help and his sword isn't the best for attacking heavily armored opponents. Another one of his flaws is that he's not precisely a people's person, it's not because he doesn't like to interact but because he feels that he can't do it due to his horrible lisping and bad temperament when people refer to the scarf that is constantly around his neck. On his left side he has sensory underload, he's completely blind and partially deaf, one caused by a witch's curse (the witch is now dead) and a crossbow bolt (like the witch, his assailant is dead), his inability to hear and see on the left side doesn't help when he's fighting in a croud or when he's trying to be perceptive (but he manages well). His cursed, green left eye glows in the dark, though this helps when he wants to see in the dark, projecting a cone of soft green light, when he is trying to hide, he needs to close it and cover it with a hand (he only has two and he'd rather have use of both). Personality: He has a rather quiet demeanor, not because he is shy but because he despises the way he sounds due to the hole in his mouth, though he still does prefer to listen because there is more to gain by doing so. He doesn't like arguments, usually finding a way to dodge them, usually elegantly but when that doesn't work he's not afraid to fight, though he usually doesn't raise his sword offensively. Vis is very fond of books, though his reading skills are weak he finds great pleasure in trying to desipher the ink; he is not the most intelligent, he can't tell you how magic works, or guess the mass of a brick by the light it reflects but he is crafty and cunning, able to put two and two together faster than most. Before he says things he tries to stop and thinks for a while to make sure what he's saying is right, he us cautious not wanting or willing to make mistakes if it will put him or the people he cares about in less then comfortable conditions. Background: He was the child of a human and an elf, his mother and father respectively. His mother was a baker's assistant in the kitchen of some duke who ran the area, she would go to the castle kitchen every morning at around dawn and returned every night after the sun had set, she wasn't happy with her job but the money was good so she stayed. However one autumn day she suddenly didn't dislike her job as much, there was a visit by a group of royal dignitaries, they must have been high up because they had a whole host of guards and courtiers with them, she knew because she had to back so much more bread and pastries but that is irrelevant. One evening she was taking some roles over to the dinner table where more were asked for, when she bumped into one of the guard, literally bumping into him and spilling all the roles onto the floor, however that wasn't on her mind at that moment, what was on her mind was the handsome elven guard she bumped into and likewise she was on his. That was the start of their romance, they spent evenings together and days eyeing eachother from across rooms and halls as they passed eachother, during this autumn Vis was conceived and by the time his father had to leave (he had to stay with the royal group because the winter had become too harsh to travel) he was born. However Vis had only seen his father by the time he was 6, he had to leave once the weather had cleared, which was a few days before Vis was born. He had made an instant connection with his father and visa versa, his father had decided to leave the employment of his former masters and become the head of guard of the duke's castle, with his baker's assistant wife. His father had taught him many things through his youth, primarly how to use a sword but other things as well, like how to skin a cat, however the one thing that he wasn't taught was how to read or write, he picked some of that up himself and it hasn't improved yet, most likely it's worse. By the time he was a young man, he started getting restless, wanting to go out and see the world instead of being an assisstant to an assisstant baker. His parents told him time and time again to reconsider but Vis was too stubborn, and his father noticed this stubbornness as his own, the elf allowed him to go under one condition, that he was to practice his reading and send them letters. Vis agreed, rather too quickly, forgetting that he was horrible at both reading and writing, so he set off and had many adventures, most of them ending badly, some of them ending horribly and abruptly with an injury. But he adventured on undeterred, half blind, hard at hearing and with a hole in his maw. Other: Vis' Companion Age: 9 or 10 Appearance: Kat is a spindly girl of around 5'2", weighing not much more then a sack of flour. Her slim body boasts no fat and little muscle, though she is full enough to avoid the shape of her bones coming through her skin. She has fair skin, lightly dusted by the rays of the sun and with faded freckles peppered across her cheeks and nose. Her face is small and clustered around a small area, she has a small nose and wide lips that are naturally red, with a protruding chin and large ears to fram her head. Her hair is long and flat, rough to the touch and rolls to the small of her back, it is dull copper in color, with subdued tones of richer reds, browns and auburns. Her eyes hazel, though mostly green have flecks of brown, gold and blue in them. On her left hand, the pinky and the ring finger up to the middle are missing, her forearms are also speckled with black burn marks and small scars. Race: Human (Of the Ginger variety) Class: None, at the moment... Clothes: Kat where's on her head a tightly wrapped white linen bandana, it conceals everything above her hairline and ends at the back of her head with a tightly wound bun, all her hair is concealed; she often takes it off and uses it as a scarf though, when she is not working. On her body she wears a grey woolen poncho over a lime green tunic, covering her legs with a leather skirt that goes down to the base of her ankles; on her feet she wears black boots and instead od socks a pair of white leggings made of close fitting cotton. On her hands she wears fingerless gloves that are open at the top and secured around her wrist by a strap and a button. Weapon: Nothing (Vis' Dagger in due time) Skills: One of her skills is climbing, though she is fairly new to it, she can climb fairly well but at a slow pace compared to Vis, she often uses her skills at climbing to explore or hide from someone or thing. Another of her skills is that she knows how to cook, often sticking to recipes she knows but still willing to try something new, though most people would not really care about cooking, when on the road good cooking can make a long journey bearable. Hiding, a mixture of her small size and ability to be very quiet, she can become invisible, helped by the neutral color of her visible clothing. Weaknesses: She is completely illiterate, not even knowing how to write or read her name. This is a problem when it comes to bring on the road, as she can't read signs or maps. She reacts badly to critiscm or negative situations, often yelling and crying and being a roucus child. She can't keep her mouth shut and often talks at inopportune times, saying things she shouldn't say or at the wrong moment, often speaking her mind instead of keeping it there. Doesn't know how to control anger very well, often vents it as tears or yelling and punching. Personality: Kat is a rather brash individual, often blurting out and avoiding general manners like thanking people and asking politely, often being rather blunt and indifferent to people's opinions. When not at work at the bakery, she often finds herself getting into trouble, often finding her way into "adventures" that she shouldn't be partaking in. Though her attitude is rough, she has some kindness to her, not knowing when far is but understanding when too far is and realizing when to back off and when to approach with an (awkward) gentles hand. Kat is also a fairly curious person, often asking things she shouldn't and getting into situations that could otherwise be avoided with s level head, not saying she thick. She had the ability to pick things up quickly, it's just that she's not given the opportunity to try often. Background: Kat was born in the spring, on the morning of last frost, her mother was a baker and her father a forester. From a young age, her parents struggled to get her affection and this struggle developed into a heated fight for Kat's heart. This ultimately tore the marriage apart, the end signaled by the father running off in the middle of the night and taking Kat with him. She was relatively calm with the situation and lived with her father, until he was killed by a bunch of thugs for not being able to pay back some debt. Her neighbors helped her get back to her mother, and it appeared that all was smooth sailing, working at the bakery. That is until the attack...</s> <\|message\|>Alula The entire walk away from camp Alula was silent. She had nothing to say to anyone. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, but occasionally peaked out from under her hat to watch the sun sink down behind the trees. Night would be coming and she needed to leave. They soon came across a good place to camp, where Alula stopped right in her tracks. She spoke for the first time in several hours. "I do believe this would be a fine place to stop for the night." She spoke with a strange clarity, uncharacteristic of her slow speech. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was starting to glow. "With any luck, the others will catch up with us before the morning." Without explaining herself she tried to make her way towards the woods, hoping the others would take the hint and stay put for the night. She felt bad leaving the child and the gnome with Kelvin, but he was tough enough for the two of them. Unfortunately, she was stopped before she could get away from the others. Someone was tugging on her cloak. The child. She suppressed a growl and tugged her hat down over her eyes. Alula spoke with a strange amount of anger, as well as the corruption echoing in her voice as she spoke to the boy. "Isn't it obvious? The man ran off into the woods to battle an unseeable amount of bandits. He lacked armor and was clearly outnumbered." She grumbled something about stupid children before, again, trying to get away from the group.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem It was quite a long and eventful day. Between having had no sleep the previous night, half of the party he had recent acquainted himself with going off to who-knows-where on what was apparent to be a mission to willingly swan dive into the dragon's maws - the merchant had little sympathy for the fools - and then they were suddenly surrounded by bandits, with the foolish knight sacrificing his life so that the others may flee. Foolish, certainly; Arastoph definitely would not have done the same, but he appreciated the act as it allowed him to live another day. However, that extra day comprised him of hiking through rough terrain to get to the next town over while he was sleep deprived. While he still detested the idea of sleeping among strangers, he felt that his body might win out this time around. He had no interest in talking with any of those who were left; he was too exhausted and irritable for him to be so patient with them. The boy, however, still seemed to have plenty of energy left to harass the seer girl as she began to wander off. "However you look at it," he began to explain, "every man and woman is a sinner. Some sin less, some sin more, some are better at hiding it." Arastoph sighed and closed his eyes just as a cool breeze blew by and soothed his hot skin and aching muscles. "Carver is probably dead and will be suffering eternal damnation. We can just hope he's being tortured by two hundred ninety-nine pitchforks instead of three hundred."</s>	<\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat climbed up a bookshelf and sat on top, looking down at the suddenly shorter man, "My name is Khat," she hissed down, trying to be quiet but still audible, "What of it?" she scanned the man with a scrutinizing eye, he wore little armor and didn't even carry a weapon, 'what kind of adventurer is this guy?' she thought to herself. Standing up, Khat leapt to the other bookshelf, landing with a gentle tap as opposed to a clumsy thud. "Are you Vis' friend?" she asked. Vis bundled up Suki, throwing her roughly over his shoulder, "if ye artheholes find any more prisoners, 'ow about lockin'em up inthead of trying' tha rape'em?" he walked off back in the in the opposite direction he came in, as if he were going to the center of town, however when he was out of sight he looped around the long way, heading back to the bookstore where he had hid Separ and Khat.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Des "Ah, I see you have taken a liking to that cooking set there, madam," The merchant said as he walked over to Rose, "For a pretty lass such as yourself, 75 pieces."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel "So are you excited knowing your about to head off into the world and start your own adventure?" Asked the man sitting next to Separ Kurel, the very man who had trained him on how to be an arcane brawler. This man was known by the name of Millon Baotes. He was incredibly buff with a tall and wide body with almost no traces of fat. His usual messy short black hair was now combed for the special occasion of sending his one and only pupil off into the world. Some scars were located all throughout his torso, and for some reason he wasn't wearing a shirt. Though most of the time he didn't have a shirt on anyways. "Yes, I'm excited if a little nervous." Separ answered truthfully as his eyes darted around the tavern, hopping from person to person. "So where is this group of mine supposed to be at? I'm anxious to meet them. We are meeting them here right?" "No, you're going to be meeting them here by yourself." Said Separ's teacher as he crossed his arms. "How am I supposed to know who my group is then? You haven't told me anything about them, so I don't see how this is going to work." Separ said, a hint of skepticism in his voice. "You know, I first started out in this town as well. I knew no one whatsoever and lived in this town for about two weeks, only spending what money I did have to sleep at an inn and drink in this very tavern. As your teacher I'd like you to experience something similar and make friends on your own to team up with, rather than rely on me introducing you to some people you may not even get along with." Separ's teacher paused for a moment and took another swig of beer. "That's good stuff alright, just like I remembered." He muttered before continuing on where he had left off. "Anyways try to meet some people you know you'll at least somewhat get along with rather than leaving it up to chance. If I find out you left this town without forming a proper group to travel with I'll kill you for making me waste my time trying to train you." And with that Separ's teacher started to chug the entire glass of frothing beer sitting in front of him on the table. Separ nodded at his teacher's words, and while he felt a little put off by that last line, he knew full well that was just his teacher's way of joking around. "Alright, I'll do as you say then." "Then it's settled." And with that Millon stood up from his chair about to leave, only to immediately stop and turn around looking Separ directly in the face. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" "Huh?" Was all Separ could say, before his teacher left leaving him alone at the bar table. Separ looked around at the crowd for a moment wondering if he should talk to anyone, but decided against it. The place was kind of crowded right now, and it would probably be easier to wait until the mass of people thinned out a bit before doing anything else. Instead he opted to just admire how simple this building was. So this is what it was like to be in a small town huh? It was actually kind of peaceful. However his thoughts soon changed into imagining all the adventures he would have. Fighting monsters, saving people, becoming a hero. What a wonderful life that would be.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver arrived in Ravenwood in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day in the country - all around was quiet, and the sun shone through the leaves in just that way that made Carver feel as though the goddess were truly with him. As the wagon he was riding pulled in through the gates, he waved here and there at passing townsfolk, and was often rewarded with a smile or a polite wave. The wagon came to a halt and he dismounted, his armor clanking loudly as he landed. The farmer whose family he had been traveling with for the past few days approached him, and Carver gave the man a warm smile. "My friend," he said, "I believe this is where we part ways." "Yes, milord," the farmer responded, still using the honorific Carver has insisted repeatedly was not necessary. "We will be awful sorry to see you go. How much do we owe you?" The man responded, fumbling for his coinpurse. Carver has expected that the man would attempt to compensate him for his services 'escorting' the family, though in truth he had only scared off a few petty thieves. The paladin held a hand out to the man, still smiling. "No such payment is required. Keep it. Feed your children, and raise them in the light of the sun." The farmer nodded. "I, uh, yes milord. I will. Thank you." Carver put his hand to his breast and bowed before turning away and walking into the crowd. It was time to find some wrongs and set about righting them - the marketplace would be as good a place as any to start.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nervously stepped out from the narrow path between buildings, her eyes shifting as she cautiously looked over everyone nearby. From what it looked like, there wasn't anyone screaming for anything similar to those witch hunt riots that the church had done hunting her down. Making sure her cloak was covering her body, with the hood obscuring her head, she daintily slipped out, mingling with the crowd at the marketplace. Although she tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible, it seems that her cloaked figure was something that my catch the eyes of a few. Suddenly feeling a hand grip her arm, she quickly spun around, only to realize it was a merchant. "We have good prices!" Heavily accented, the merchant gestured at his wares, or in this case, fresh produce. Feeling a slight bit hungry, she nodded, before pointing at an apple. "Good eye, good eye, that would be-" The merchant started to speak, before Suki raised her hood slightly, revealing her face to him. Winking, she raised a finger to her lips. "Bring the apple. I'll make the payment through other means~' Whispering with such a sultry tone, the merchant was by no means resilient against such a tactic. The two hurried towards a more quite alley, where Suki leaned in, and kissed the merchant. Whatever giddy thoughts that raced through the merchant's mind, was soon replaced by a lethargy. The man soon sank to the ground, the expression of ecstasy plastered on his face. "For a farmer, your energy wasn't too bad of a taste." Muttering such words mostly to herself, she quickly picked up the apple, and re-entered the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, taking bites from her newfound food.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis trudged through the dense mud, tired and with a gloomy expression on his face, though it would be difficult to make out, his scarf worn tightly around his face and over his nose, obscuring the expression and the gaping hole in his maw. Vis had been accosted by a group of thugs on the main road, though this generally wasn't an issue as he would run away and they would lose interest eventually but it seemed these things were desperate, as they chased him half way into the moor before deciding it was no longer worth it. He didn't like running away, if there was only one or two of them he would have stood his ground, unfortunately there were half a dozen. He tilted his head up to the sky to find light grey plooms of smoke in the distance, beyond the hill that was beyond the next. There were too many points of smoke for it to be a campsite but not quiet enough to be an industrial estate, so he figured it must have been some little township. Vis made it to 'Ravenwood' in the afternoon, drained from the task of traversing through mud that felt only the need to slow him down, so with some relief he slung his pack around so it was under his nose and opened it. He saw the cobbled street. His mood quickly turned dower, the bottom of his pack must have snagged on a branch and have been torn, spilling it's contents. 'that's why those highway men turned, they just had to pick up what they wanted.' With a sigh, he took what was left in the pack and cast it into an alleyway, though funnily enough all that was in there was the child's encyclopedia his mother gave him before leaving, so he could brush up on reading skills. Vis tucked the book into his leather armor and wandered forth. The market district was buzzing with activity, buyers haggling over prices and venders hawking their wares, though all Vis needed was a replacement pack and a few basic bits. Wandering the stalls and booths, he found nothing met his eye, mostly because of the high prices but also because many of the packs were just of low quality. Unsatisfied, he walked through the market, casting a faint green cone of light from his cursed green eye.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin There could be nothing, nothing at all in the whole world quite so amazing and attractive as black powder. It was a wonderful thing. Not that had anything to do with this however. "Alrighty then sir, all fixed up! I told you it would be worth the tools." Kelvin ducked back out from beneath the wagon, finished working on the new fixed-axle bearings. Intricate things, and prone to sticking if not kept clean and well greased. In this particular case, the owner had left an axle cap off whilst traveling, and a bit of dirt and mud later... BAM. Frozen axle. It really didn't take much in the ways of tools to fix, just a delicate touch, some boiling water, and some clean grease. The owner didn't need to know that though. "Aye, was a pleasure indeed sir." He had always wanted to get in on the inside of one of those fixed-axle wagon wheels, see what was really going on in that hub. It was quite intriguing really, two cones, one inside of the other, and each lined with miniscule rollers that spun about eachother. Combined with a slathering of grease, and the wheels were practically floating! Of course... If yeh didn't cover them properly, the dirt and debris would foul it up quicker than a necromancer in a chapel. It was payment enough to just take one apart. Kelvin opened his backpack, scanned over it's contents quickly, and sighed. No food, only a bit of gold. Besides that, he didn't truly feel like sleeping on the cold, hard ground again tonight. Tools of the trade were expensive, especially when most people had no idea what black powder even was. Only one thing to do. Head for an inn. Kelvin kicked the door open to the inn loudly, if he was going to do this, he would do it in style. Not that anyone inside could have seen him turn the handle on the door before kicking it- partially so he wouldn't have to fix it later, and partially because he wasn't strong enough to kick it open anyway. "You there! I'm calling you out." He strode to the small bar, heads rotating, and took a short survey, picking a semi-muscular man who wasn't facing him. Kelvin put a hand on his shoulder, and turned the man around, finding a woman instead. Inside, part of him died a bit, and the other shrieked with fright. "Sorry, wrong person." Just had to sidle away from that one. This time he chose a younger looking man. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you." He made is voice deeper for a moment, and then winked conspiritorially, sitting down. "I am in need of a dry place to sleep, and you look like you need a travel companion. Care to figure it out?" It was a shot in the dark, but worth making. There was a reason this guy was in an inn, sitting alone. "Call me Kelvin, by the way."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded his thanks to the armored man and slowly bent down to scoop his bag up off the floor, he gave it a good dusting and slipped it back on, not taking his good eye off of the paladin and casting a circle of green light on his face with the bad one. "thank you.." mumbled Vis, awkwardly. He still had more things to go and buy but the paladin seemed to have a point, it was very warm outside for some reason and the heat seared Vis' pale skin. "I think thare ith a inn on tha wetht thide of the marketh, pathed ith by when I goth hear." he needed a drink after that much lisping, something to calm his nerves but he only drank in private, so it seemed he wouldn't be able to. Vis tightened his scarf around his face, just in a way it would stay on but not in a way it would show impressions of his scaring. "there ith altho an airy bar thomewhere near thare." Vis turned his eye away from the armored man and looked at the group he had accosted with his tripping, there was a scraggly gnome at his feet, reminding him of an ugly cat but he mentally slapped himself as he knew he wasn't that good looking himself. Then there was the woman cloaked in fine fabric, with the heavens printed on the inside, she spoke to him and Vis shuddered, her words felt strange to him, they came out in a way that sounded like she didn't know what she was saying, yet was very accurate. He kept his eyes on her, one to look at her and the other to cast a ghostly, green glow.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver withdrew his hand quickly at the strange voice's behest. That certainly wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting - glowing eyes and booming commands were usually confined to things paladins were expected either to worship or to kill, but as the girl tottered forward, pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her eyes, Carver was certain that neither of those reactions would be appropriate. No, his initial plan regarding the girl still seemed appropriate - she needed help. It took him a moment to realize the half-elf was talking, and with a severe lisp, too. Something about a tavern? That seemed like it would serve both for getting the girl out of the heat (and the crowd) and for getting the gnome some food. He smiled at the man. "A tavern sounds like a fine idea. Might I trouble you to take us there?" He glanced around at the company. "A bit of rest and a meal, and I'm sure we'll all be feeling right as rain, friends." He moved closer to the girl - not enough to risk triggering the same bizarre reaction, but enough that she could lean on him if she felt the need. He also extended a hand down to the gnome, hoping to prevent the small fellow from being lost in the crowd.</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin "Mayhaps you'd like me to join you?" Kelvin jerked around, twisting to look at the woman as she stood upright. He slapped a hand to his face, dragging it down, pulling on his flesh and in general just making him look tired. "See what I mean?" He lowered his voice for his companion, but doubtless the woman could hear as well. She pulled back her hood, fully revealing her features to the both of them. Pristine, perfect. Warning bells everywhere. First. Why was she alone? With a face like that she could easily have been married to a rich man, or already in the bloodline of a powerful one. Second. If she was alone, how had she managed to get so far by herself? It just reeked of alarm. No offense to her, of course. It just didn't look safe... Kelvin glanced at his companion, wondering. Was he a fool for a pretty face? "However, to be willing to place one's hand so close to a lady, you must be rather daring of a person." A flush crept across his cheeks for an instant, before he quickly responded. "Aye, no more daring than a lady who sleeps in a commoner's tavern with the ease of a barmaid." His tongue was going to get him into trouble someday. Kelvin averted his eyes from her, towards his companion. "Your call sir."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had seemed to calm down considerably, but was still horribly overwhelmed. Not once voice kept still for very long, and she was very confused as to what they were telling her to do. She peered out from under her hat, watching as the half-elf gathered back up his belongings. He was an interesting one, but the voices could not agree on why. Perhaps he just was because he was. More phantom noises filled the oracles ears, whistling winds and breaths cut short. It was horribly unnerving. She shivered for a moment despite the heat. The noises stopped suddenly, leaving Alula dizzy once more. Unfortunately she was also now out of the loop on the whole bar situation, she hadn't really been comprehending what the two taller men were discussing. But what she did pick up on was the half-Elfs speech impediment. In an almost comical turn of events, her mind was in an even fifty fifty split right now trying to remember and understand what would be socially acceptable. Was she supposed to not say anything or point out his strange pattern of speech. And then Alula noticed he was looking at her. She initially panicked but then noticed something. He had glowing eyes too, or well one eye. For some reason this observation made her next choice very clear to her. And in her slurred voice spoke. "You..talk weird..."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ The moment I laid eyes on this woman I felt my body's temperature rise as my face turned beet red. I could hardly say a word as I was immediately enchanted by her beauty, and in that short moment time seemed to creep to a halt making it feel like an eternity. "Make sure there's at least one cute girl in your group as well, okay?" The words of my mentor echoed in my head as I continued to gaze upon this girl's beauty. "Your call sir." Kelvin's words brought me out of my trance and back to reality. Ahh, just how stupid can I be? I can't just gawk at this girl, and besides regardless of how good my mentor's training was, I don't think his last snippet of advice can be considered valid. I sighed for a moment redirecting my focus to try and calm myself down. My body slowly changed back to normal as I now stared at the woman. I would not fall under her spell so easiy, even if I wanted to actually do so. Wait why am I admitting that? Ahh, forget it, just say something so you don't look like an idiot. "I'd love it if you joined us, though I must ask if you know about how to fight or any useful skills really. I wouldn't want you or Kelvin for that matter, to get put into any dangerous situations, so please be truthful to what you can or can't do. Or at the very least understate your abilities so we don't do anything to rash and wind up all dead or something, I don't know." I gulped as while I wasn't going gaga over her anymore, I was still having a bit of trouble talking, as evidenced by the nervousness in my voice. Well it wasn't that big of a deal anyways, I probably just needed to get used to her.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' eyes went wide when she said those words, his cursed left eye flashing an angry green for a moment before it stopped. He wanted to retaliate with words but his throat seized up, locking shut, if he spoke she would just poke fun at him again, he usually stood tall but now he slumped a fraction. "nothed*," he turned around and with a flick of his tattered left ear, he signaled for them to follow, his steps were more unsure now then they'd ever been, almost all people did not comment on his voice, they tended to know what was good for them, the last time someone did they suffered a beating. But he couldn't beat the girl under the pointy hat, he just couldn't bring himself to raise his hand at her, she seemed like she didn't know what she was saying but that didn't make him any less wounded. Vis tightened his scarf. When they arrived at the tavern, Vis held the door open for his group, turning around to see the Paladin, Gnome and the pretty hooded girl who made comments at his expense.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki shifted her gaze to the side slightly, as she was compared to that of a barmaid. Not because she was insulted, but moreso because she ended up thinking about kissing patrons when she was half dead. That was one memory she would love to bury, but at least that was at a different village. "Of course. Although I may not look like it, but I do have confidence in my ability to scout out an area. That, and when I do run into trouble, I trust my skill in a scythe." Answering the other man's questions, she couldn't help but to notice how he had a momentary lapse when he first looked at her. She leaned closer to him, while subtly releasing the top clasp of the cloak, allowing it to part slightly. From this angle, the man could get just a tiny glimps of her chest. "Well~? Do you believe me~?" Whispering these words, at such a low volume, yet with hints of a challenge mixed in with that sultry tone.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace entered the tavern and looked around. The room was filled with wooden constructs, living creatures and ceramics containing, what smelled like food. He didn't see a source for the food though. How did these people find it? Why decide to eat it here? Then he saw a creature with a large wooden plate stacked with cups. Distributing food to people. He noticed a pattern, she went by all the wooden circles and gave foot to those balanced around it. Furnace concluded that if they balanced on the small wooden constructs around the large wooden plates, they would get food. Following the pattern the barmaid followed Furnace chose a table that would soon be serviced. He took the cloth-wrapped bastard sword slung over his shoulder and carefully placed it leaning against the table. After sizing the chair up for a few seconds and studying the other patrons he got up on the seat and sat down cross-legged. Then he waited. If his guesses were correct food would now come to him.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ A scythe huh, that's an interesting weapon of choice, thought Separ as he continued to talk to this beautiful lady. However as he was listening to her, she seemed to lean forward and unbutton the top of her cloak, an action which surprised Separ. He stared closely for a second and realized he could see a small portion of her cleavage. Was she purposefully trying to make him look? Should he look? Can he? While Separ kind of wanted to take a peek he realized that wouldn't be a good idea. She was most likely just feeling a little hot and wanted some more air. He glanced to the side not wanting to stare at her chest and give off the wrong impression. "I believe you, after all you have no reason to lie right?" His voice had turned even more nervous now, as he wasn't sure quite what to do. "So, uh, welcome to the team I guess." He looked back at her and gave her a somewhat shy smile. Separ turned towards Kelvin and extended a hand, his palm facing the sky. "This here is Kelvin, and my name is Separ. If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" As he said this Separ had a lightbulb moment and turned towards Kelvin and nodded slightly. "I'm sorry, it seems I had forgotten to tell you my name earlier. Sorry about that."</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Well, at least the other guy was going to keep his head on. Mostly. Not that Kelvin had done much better with that passing insult. A scythe? Scouting? Kelvin shook his head. If she had those skills, it was more concerning. What if she was part of a marauder's crew- luring unsuspecting travelers to the wrong road at the wrong hour. The thought made him shudder. It was just unnatural, for someone with a face like that to be alone in a town like this. Though, in retrospect, it was equally strange for an engineer to be hanging about the area as well. She leaned closer to them, his companion specifically, and murmured towards him, letting her cloak hang open a bit. Whelp. He was done here. Kelvin turned away smartly and sat down at her table, attempting to keep a straight face. Aren't you supposed to seduce them before you get what you want, rather than after? Not that he had experience in such things. Ah, Separ was his name. "It be alright, think nothing of it." Kelvin didn't look at either of them, looking pointedly to the side and then jumping, knocked over his chair and falling to the floor beside it. "What… who is that?!" A strange, whitish childlike creature was sitting on one of the seats beside him. Kelvin spluttered and recovered a bit. "Ah, hello there… little one."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Des "Well, since your friend there is so rude, you have to be the normal price, 35 pieces for a nice meal." He sneered at the paladin, then looking at the rogue, "And if he causes any trouble, I expect you to take care of him because you won't like how I do it."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the irritated half-elf storm off and shook his head sadly. If the man wanted to be surly, that was his own business; at least there hadn't been a confrontation. He removed the thirty-five coins from his (now even lighter) coinpurse and slid it across the counter to the barkeep. "A hot meal, then, for the gnome." The barkeep pocketed the money and barked an order to a barmaid. Carver leaned in closer to the man then, still smiling with his mouth, if not with his eyes. "Yes, I will take care of any trouble. And perhaps, another time, you and I may have a discussion about your business practices, and you will not like how I do that." This done, Carver turned and crossed the crowded room back to where the gnome was seated, alongside three others. One was the bearded man that the gnome had been speaking with, while the other two, a muscular looking young man and a very... shapely young woman seemed to be either arguing or flirting. Carver furrowed his brow at the girl. Though looking at her appealed to his baser urges, the higher part of his mind found something undisputably off about her. This was someone who did not know the love of the sun. He sat down next to them and patted the gnome on the back. "Food on its way, my diminutive friend." Just then, a barmaid set a sizeable bowl of stew in front of the gnome and was quickly off. He smiled at the others and nodded his head. "A fine day, friends. Hope you have a seat for another."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki smiled as they -or at least te one introduced himself as Separ- had accepted her into their little team of what might appear to be ragtags or misfits. However, while on the outside, she might no show anything out of the ordinary, Se was warring an internal strife against herself. Why are you associating with strangers? Maybe a bit of company is nice every once in awhile. You don't know who they are. They weren't out for my blood. Kelvin's touch was gentle. There has been similar tricks done, you nearly died twice because of it. ........... She was pulled from her doubts when she noticed more unfamiliar faces join the table. First and foremost, was the armored man. Why was a paladin here, of all places?! Was she found so soon?! Panicking slightly, she glanced over at the other newcomers. A rather small person, and...was that woman glowing? For some odd reason, Suki found the other woman reminded her of the night sky. However, her main problem was still the paladin. Looking around for an excuse to leave, her eyes fell upon the somewhat covered half-elf, sitting in the corner. The opposite corner. "We're still in need of companions, right? I'll go over there and ask." Without waiting for a response, she had already left her table. Along the way, she casually lifted her hood over her head, the overhang casting the rest of her face in darkness. Stopping as she reached the half-elf, she gestured at one o the empty seats. "May I?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" For the second time that day, he was about to lower his scarf to take a swig of the sweet smelling wine when he was interrupted. Looking up from his melancholia, he stared into the darkness of a hood, for a moment he was about to fall back in his chair from how frightening the dark figure looked but when he observed ir again, he saw that it was a rather curvaceous woman, though she didn't distract him from the object of his brooding and to a lesser extant interest. "thake a seath if'n you wanth." Vis was dropped his scarf only slightly to get a swig of the delicious, purply-red wine, only exposing his mouth as he brought the bottle to his parched lips.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki nodded at the given permission from the half-elf, before sitting down across from him. Watching as he only shifted the scarf slightly to drink, Suki couldn't help but to feel more....at ease. It didn't feel like she was the only one who had secrets, or a reason to hide. Tilting her head ever so slightly to the left, she couldn't help but to speak. "How many people have commented on your lisp?" As per most people, the first thing that would be a topic started when faced with this half-elf, would be that unusual lisp he had. It sounded almost like something didn't work, or was delayed, with the muscles around his mouth. At least, that's what that one priest had sounded like when she had slashed at his jaw, before decapitating him. She could be wrong, but nonetheless, it was still different.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel As Separ continued to talk to his new female comrade, a man clad in thick armor approached both of them and asked if he could take a seat. "Sure, there's plenty of room for one more," said Separ as he happilly pulled out the chair next to him for the man to sit at. "My name is Separ, what's yours, and what brings you here? Oh and also this is, wait what was your na-" Before Separ could get a word in the girl hurriedly told him she was going to go and ask people about becoming our companions or something. Actually that's not a bad idea. Separ grinned as he realized he had not talked to this man before, which meant there was still a chance he would not get rejected. Besides, he looked ready to fight, especially with all that armor he had on. "Say, would you like to travel and become explorers with me and my brand new friends. You certainly look like a powerful fellow after all. So what do you say, friend?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis gripped the neck of the bottle tight and his knuckles went white, 'what's with people and my lisp?!' he thought to himself before taking another swig to calm his nerves. "three, with you bring tha third." he took another long draw from his bottle and felt the passivizing rush I got from well rounded fluid, "whath ith it thath you wanth from me?" he asked bluntly, slipping the drink forward to her and pulling his scarf back over his mouth, putting his hands behind his head to tighten it up. His eyes flicked back to the lazy eyed mystic and then to the hooded girl in front of him. "How about you take off your hood?"</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace happily accepted the bowl. To his surprise the food was already warm. Cautiously he put the stew to lips and imediately he was assaulted by a storm of new flavors. This was without a shadow of a doubt his new definition of 'food'. Whatever the stale goop was he had been given all these years, it could no longer do justice to the word. Rapidly he wolfed the soup down as he followed the conversations around the table. This figure was boasting to his steel friend about how many friends he had aquired, and how he was planning to make more. He must be a powerfull entity to hold so many pacts at once.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula kept in her own corner of the bar, silently observing the patrons around her. This was all rather new to her, or at least she thought it felt new. Several times while sitting a barmaid would walk over to her and ask if she needed anything. Alula would turn them away, flustered, every time. What did that even mean? Was this woman implying that something was wrong with her? No, this certainly couldn't be the case. Alula understood the barmaid. She muttered softly. "Always the maiden and never the man. Working hard to make her place. One day to bark the orders." Her hazy eyes looked over, watching as the half-elf and then the Paladin tried to haggle with the barkeep for food and drink. She could tell the man was lying. Everything in his keeping was extremely overpriced, aimed at the drunk and the desperate. All the man cared for was material wealth. Eventually the paladin received food for the small man and the half-elf carried away as bottle of wine. Alula found herself liking the paladin more and more, his kindness for others was strangely relaxing. Alula watched with a strange transfixion as the half elf took a seat, away from the others. There was something odd about the bottle he had, something that reminded her of something. Her head was swimming, and the voices only seemed to be getting louder and louder as she tried to figure out what was causing such a strong sense of nostalgia. A gentle voice spoke above the rest. "You appear to be staring at the half-elf, and he is staring back. You are making him uncomfortable." Alula hadn't realized she had been looking at him for so long, and with such pained expression. She quickly tore her eyes away from the half-elf and the bottle. And immediately the voices ceased. That was strange. But what was stranger was who next approached the half-elf, another girl. But something was extremely different about this girl, the voices agreed. Alula allowed herself to give into the temptation of looking back over at the table, but wished she hadn't she felt extremely flustered for some reason, tugging her hat back over her eyes and facing away from the half-elfs table. "You and the girl are quite different. You coverup for shame, and she undresses for survival." "A woman raised in a world of hate and dark, now depends on humans for survival. Her hunger is carnivorous."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "She should have some of this food." Furnace set the thuroughly emptied bowl in front of him with a loud thud. Curiously he looked at Alula, failing to make eye contact. "Do you not enjoy the light?" he inquired after her hiding.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver patted the gnome on the back as he devoured the meal. He saw that the woman had gone to sit with the half-elf; a troubling alliance, possibly, but not one that seemed to pose an immediate danger. The strong-looking man has asked him a question, he realized. The offer was a tempting one - he was already traveling, and friends were good to have, especially when one was as poor as he was. "I'd be glad to travel with you, friend." He extended an armored hand. "My name is Sir Carver. A pleasure to make your aquaintance." Although... He coughed slightly. "However, I feel honor-bound to see to the well-being of my new friends," he said, gesturing to the gnome and to the corner, where the strange girl sat. "Perhaps you could propose them the same question, and we may all go off together? I'm not sure I could leave either in the same state I found them."</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin "Petroleum, iron filings, sulfur, fresh paper...and something else... You smell interesting." Kelvin's eyes widened slightly, and a small grin stretched across his lips. Interesting. "I like this one." Kelvin slowly uprighted the stool and slid back onto it, settling to examine this being. He barely acknowledged when the cloaked woman moved away, excusing herself to ask around. It was possible she would have more luck, if for the wrong reasons. Yet... Separ had introduced them both, yet she had still avoided giving a name. He stroked his beard, considering. Strange. He turned his attention back to the gnome as food was brought, and watched the being down it in fascination. "Forty three seconds." Kelvin whispered to himself softly as the gnome slammed the bowl down. Behind him, Separ had already requesitioned the knight into their group. Curver, cover, something like that. He hadn't been paying to much attention to the last part. However, as far as the gnome went... "I don't mind spending time with this one." Kelvin turned on the stool and jerked a thumb towards the gnome. "Separ's in charge as far as I am concerned though." A thought occured, and Kelvin eagerly swung down his backpack, pulling out a long, stiff tube about as long as his forearm. The fuse was curled up and tied with a bit of string to make it compact. He held it out in front of the gnome, careful to keep it out of reach. "What do you make of this then?"</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis did not know how to react, so he remained petrified on the floor, staring up in abject horror as the drunkness quickly vacated his body to leave abject soberness. He did not expect such a violent reaction from her, and her staff could have crushed him with ease, esspecially with her new found vigor. But when she started to slow down, his mind went from fear to sympathy, she too had something to hide and noe she didn't have her means to hide it. He looked around on the floor for it but the hat seemed to have vanished, so he slowly brought himself from the floor and with a hesitant, reluctant hand, untied the scarf from around his face, revealing the large gash down it's side that was hidden for so long, exposing all his teeth and even some jaw bone. Vis draped the scarf over her head in a way that it acted like a hood that she could draw over her eyes if she needed to.</s> <\|message\|>Des Everyone in the tavern looked over as the oracle raged. But after Vis took off his scarf, most looked away. Those that kept looking either gave a disgusted look or throw up. One brave soul felt the need to say something, it was the barkeep, "Hey, what did I say about you causing trouble in my tavern, cover your disgusting mess of a face up or get out."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was up from the table and across the inn almost immediately. He saw the elf remove his scarf, revealing the disfigured face within - but to Carver, he had revealed something else; a character of fairness unsuited to his features. He had shown compassion, in his actions - this was a good man. Then the barkeep opened his mouth, and Carver clenched a fist. A liar, a cheat, a cruel man who spat in the face of kindness. Trying to muster all the gentleness he could in that moment, he put a hand, gingerly, on the girl's shoulders. "You don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "Nobody here will harm you." That done, he retreated his hand and turned to the bar. "You cheat," he said, slowly, steadily, his voice gaining power with every word. "You lie. You prey on the innocent, the drunk, the vulnerable. You spit in the face of an honorable man. You are arrogant, greedy, and cruel, and you know not the love of the sun." He was shouting now, and he rested a both fists on the bar. "My name is Sir Carver. I am a Paladin of the Sun, and I bring these charges before you. What say you in your defense?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had stayed with her hands over her eyes for a few moments, not noticing as the half-elf stood up. She had far too busy panicking about what had just happened, what she could have done. She felt like hyperventilating and running, but her body was frozen. She could feel the entire bar staring at her, and she felt the need to fall back to the floor and hide. What happened next surprised her. She expected the man to run away, many had before, but instead she felt something being placed over her head. It wasn't her hat, but a piece of cloth. He was helping her hide her face. She again felt a lose for words at his kindness. She uttered a soft and slurred "Thank...you." From under the cloth. More gentle touches, this time from the man in the armor. She winced, bracing herself for the burn that she knew was coming, but she never felt the pain. That was new. Even his words held a kindness that was foreign to Alula. She could hear the paladin calling the barkeep out on his actions, but his words felt far away and faded.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Watching as the half-elf had stumbled into the female that reminded her of the night, the sudden escalation into what could only be said to be a possession occurred. Suki had no other words to describe the phenomenon. However, it seems that it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, and the woman was left standing there in embarrassment. Raising an eyebrow at the half-elf taking off the scarf, only to smile subconsciously at the kind act of making a makeshift hood for the other woman. Making her way over, she undid the clasps on her cloak, before slipping it off, revealing her body accented by her dress to the tavern. Taking the cloak, she slipped it over the half-elf, making sure the hood covered his face, just as it had for herself. "It seems your reasons are far more important than mine for the moment." Quietly whispering these words to the half-elf alone, she sighed, before muttering "I'll fix this." yo the others in the 'adventure group', before slowly walking towards the barkeeper, drawing just about every male gaze towards her. Reaching the keeper, she smiled, before leaning forward, hands held behind her back, subtlety pushing out her chest. "Is it alright for you to let this incident slip by~?" Whispering such words with a seductive tone, she winked.</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep stared straight back at Carver and spat in his face, "Yeah, and now I've spit in the face of a dishonorable man, this is my tavern, and I prefer it to be a relaxing place for my customers so they won't be disturbed and if you can't tell by their faces, his is pretty disturbing." The barkeep gestured to all of his customers, "They don't want to see THAT, and if you think you can disrespect and insult me in my place of business, then you thought wrong, you, your disfigured friend, the little one that you brought in, and the starry chick, can get thefuck out of my establishment!" -Edit since I got ninja'd : "And you," He shouted at the necromancer, "If you think that flashing your breasts are going to keep your friends in my bar, then you can get out too!"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Carver, huh? That's a nice name you got there. Is that your real name or do you just carve your enemies with one slice?" Separ asked, laughing at his own joke. "But seriously, I'm glad I could persuade you to join the team, and I will happily ask your comrades as well. After all the more the merrier, right?" As he said this Separ quickly stood up and looked at both the childlike gnome and the girl who's body was practically covered by robes. Kelvin seemed to be talking to the gnome though so it probably wasn't a good idea to interrupt them for now, or at least to Separ it wasn't. Separ instead made his way over to the girl only to watch a man with a scarf over his face bump into her which in turn caused both of them to hit the ground. Separ watched as her hat fell off flying under an occupied table. Separ quickly talked with the men so he could get them to move out of the way. The men at the table complained as they were drunk, but relunctantly obliged in the end. After obtaining the hat Separ moved towards the girl, and to his surprise heard her scream. "HOW DARE YOU HARM HER!" The girl then raised her staff before dropping it to the ground, probably figuring it best to not go through with her actions. This stunned Separ, but he ultimately feeled like she had a reason for saying it, after all Carver had not wanted to leave her alone. Perhaps she was under a lot of stress, or maybe something traumatic had happened to her? Either way, this girl seemed nice and merciful, she as Separ expected, was most likely a good person. He quickly walked over only to see the man put his scarf over her face, an act which may not have seemed so great, had the man not been disfigured. Separ actually became frightened of him due to his disfiguration for a moment, not because he was disfigured, but rather because he reminded Separ of the undead. Either way Separ wished he could have him join the team, though Separ did berate himself for being scared of the man, surely this guy must have put up with other people thinking the same thing before. Separ did not want to be just another person that would laugh, point, or be disgusted by something so trivial. You fool, he's alive, you have nothing to worry about. Separ paused for a moment unsure of himself, but finally pressed onwards just as the other attractive girl put her cloak over him. Carver then got in a fight with the bartender and the same girl tried to seduce the man into calming down only it didn't seem to work very well. Tapping the girl on the shoulder Separ handed her the hat. "Here you go, Miss, now if you'll excuse me." Enough was enough, this bartender had gone to far trying to kick someone out because of there looks. Walking up to the bartender Separ pulled out 10 gold pieces, and holding out his hand, grabbed the bartender's right hand with his free hand and plopped it right in the man's palm. "Use this money," Separ's words turned into that of yelling as he threw a wild punch filled with ferocity at the bartender's head. "TO PAY FOR YOUR HOSPITAL BILLS!!!"</s> <\|message\|>Des The barkeep quickly pulled out the sword he kept behind the counter and blocked the attack, leaving a large gash in Separ's hand and nearly causing him to lose a finger, "It's going to take more then ten gold pieces to pay to fix that, now get out of my sight before I call the town guard on all of you." The barkeep ripped the sword from Separ's hand causing him to bleed profusely and wiped the blood off of his blade with a napkin, "If I have to get the guard, then they will cause a whole lot more damage than that."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Things in the tavern seemed to be heating up. The yelling fest between the barkeep and several of the people, people she was at least slightly acquainted with, continued to grow to the point where Alula was beginning to feel anxious again. She didn't want anyone getting in trouble. She allowed herself to peek out from under the cloth. The half-elf now had a cape, the woman was flirting with the barkeep and the paladin looked almost as red as the sun. Suddenly she was being tapped on the shoulder, a wave of flame passing under her skin. And her hat was being pressed into her hand. She felt the iron heaviness in her gut loosen slighted when she was reunited with her hat. She placed the hat atop her head where it belonged, but kept the cloth in her hands, perhaps not quite ready to part with one of the first physical gifts she had ever received. She was about to timidly thank the man, when she watched him walk right up to the barkeep and attempt to sock him right in the face, only to recieve a bloody hand. Alula let out a shiver, they were in big trouble now. She gripped the cloth in her hands anxiously.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin "Hold on my friend-" Kelvin turned at the sound of a scream, and the entire tavern just broke apart, people shouting and yelling. The one guy looked like a necromancer had taken his face apart and stuck it back together, the girl had ditched the cloak- finally revealing the full suspicious nature of her beauty. Then suddenly the knight starts going off on the bartender, the bartender spits in the guys face. All chaotically thrown together. Kelvin stood up and moved closer, relaxing a bit as Separ moved towards the man. He would cool this down. ... ... ... nope. He lunged to pull the guy back before it was too late... and missed. Damn. It was quite impressive how quickly the barman had responded. And a bit scary. Kelvin groaned, considering. The knight was almost sure to respond violently to that. "Alright, that's enough." Kelvin stepped forward and slid between the knight and the counter, turning and attempting to shove the man towards the door before turning and attempting to loop an arm around Separ's shoulders to move him towards the door. "Come on already! You too little guy." He glared at the girls each in turn, not sparing the man with the messed up face either. He shoved the stick of dynamite into his pocket. "GET. OUT."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked up from his tears at the sound of muted footsteps, then a face appeared in his line of sight, the star lady was crouched in front of him and held his scarf in her hands. He looked at her for a few moments, the whites of his eyes bloodshot and tears leaving trails down his face, he calmed his breath down and smiled sadly, his scar contorting to make people cringe if they saw it. He took both of her hands and brought them to one another, "keep ith," he said, his throat soar and hoarse and sounding as if he were speaking through nails, "thare are more thcarfs outh thare." he released her hands and he pulled his knees to his chest, waiting for her to leave so he could cry some more, he had'nt cried in a long time and he found the tears relieving, in a sad way.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace looked at the cloacked creature. With the scarf gone his damaged face was visible, though Furnace hadn't though anything of it before, now that he saw people's reactions to him and the state he was in, it dawned on Furnace that this new friend could also be unable to heal by himself. Maybe his appearance wasn't by his own choice. The girl called it beautiful. He agreed, the man was unique. But Furnace wanted to give him that choice. He walked over to Vis. Vis sat there and Furnace waited patiently until he made eye contact. He cupped his hands together and breathed slowly. With every breath some white golden light escaped between his fingers. Bright white jolts of energy jumped between his hands from the tips of his fingers while he moved his hands further apart. "I can repair you." With his hands crackling with white golden energy he gestured slightly at his feet. Along the ankles and up his legs show the remains of many scars made by shackles a long, long time ago, almost completely faded. "It takes time. But scars fade."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Before Separ could answer the gnome, he seemed to run off following the girl towards the disfigured man. Separ did feel drained of energy, but he knew that at least he wasn't bleeding anymore, and probably didn't need medical attention right this minute. It would be better if the gnome could repair the other man first. His own wounds could wait. Separ instead looked around for Carver and once he spotted him asked if he could talk to Alula and the gnome and possibly persuade them into joining the group. As far as Separ was concerned, Carver knew both of them much better than Separ, and was overall, much more likely to get them to join.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis looked up with glassy eyes at the gnome, he could tell there was good in his heart, natural good and not good imposed upon him. Vis shook his head sadly, "my thcar ith who I am, if I don'th haf it, then I'm noth me." Vis needed his scar, his blind eye and his ragged ear for a reason, he didn't know what, after years of traveling with them they grew a sentimental meaning to him and he wasn't sure he wanted to part with them, despite how much he hated them. It would be like putting down a stray dog that had followed you from the moment it met you, you may hate it but once it's gone you'll feel the emptiness where once was something. He shook his head again, "Buth thank you.."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Smiling, satisfied with the answer he got Furnace let the light flicker out. He returned to the friend collector, who was now walking towards his kind metal companion. Furnace caught up and joined him, as they stood near Carver and the others Furnace asked Separ the question that was burning on his mind. "What are you gathering friends for? What do you plan to do?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ couldn't help but smile at the little gnome's question. "I wish to go on a journey and help those in need, as well as defeat people who abuse their power. To become the hero of the people and such, though uh, apparently I can't even handle a simple bartender yet." Giving both Carver and the gnome a small bow each individually he continued on. "I also want to apologize to you both for acting so rash back there. I probably should not have started a fight. It's just he was trying to throw out that man, and he was a jerk overall. Neverthless, I almost put you all in danger, so I'm sorry. And Carver, if you want you don't have to journey with me after what you just witnessed me do. You don't have to feel any obligation or anything of the sort." Separ quickly turned towards the Gnome as well. "You asked how I was doing earlier right? Well truth be told the lady may have healed my wounds, but I still feel a little tired and weakened. Punching the sharp end of a sword is no joke after all, though I'll bet my mentor could actually punch the sword and break it. He's the most skilled fighter I've ever known, and I'm sure he could do it if he just added in a little magic."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "I see. Bartenders are simple, but hard to handle." Furnace listened to Separ apologise and wondered what he meant. Had they made a pact before saying he wouldn't fight bartenders? Breaking a sword with bare hands sounded strange. "Wouldn't you just use a hammer or heavy blade for something like that?" Furnace put his hands together again and reignited the white golden coil of lightning between his palms. "Relax the muscles in your hand." He held his hands around the cuts on Separ's knuckles. Bright sparks jumped from his left hand onto the cuts and ran along the edges of wounded flesh until they reached his other hand. The current of positive energy tingled pleasantly, and Separ could feel a comfortable warmth flow from his hand through his body. Surging trough his muscles he felt an energising boost. The wounds closed further, fading the scars further. Showing only thin white lines. "The scars fade with more healing." Furnace explained while he healed the other hand. When he was done Furnace stepped back and the lights flickered out. "How do you feel now?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver put his hand over his breast. "Your humility does you credit, friend Separ, but you need feel no shame for your actions. You did what you thought was best, and put yourself in harm's way for the sake of another. I think you are very noble - it would be my privilege to journey with one of such spirit." The paladin smiled fondly down at the gnome as set his energy to the man's injuries. "Aha! Our diminutive friend shows talent. Fear not, I will speak to the girl - see if I'm unable to convince her." He approached her, still standing where she had been speaking to the half-elf. "I understand that you are afraid. It's a very sudden offer, to go off journeying with strangers. I don't know much about you save that you have some power, and it frightens you." He smiled. "But you don't have to be frightened anymore." The gnome's childlike curiousity and bizarre manner. The half-elf's bitterness, surliness, and surprising gentleness. Separ's spirit, his temper, his headstrong approach to his problems. The girl's shyness, her fear, the strange power she clearly possessed. These people were innocents, trying to make their way in the world. And innocents needed to be protected. That's what Carver could do, he realized. He could protect them. In a daze, he drew his sword and planted in the ground at the girl's feet. He dropped to one knee, places his hands upon his hilt, closed his eyes. "In terror of the night, the sun is our greatest deliverance. If we should journey together, my lady, I swear on my honor that no harm will come to you. As long as I draw breath, I will keep you safe. All of you." He rose, and sheathed his sword.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had decided not to press matters into the half-elf. If he wanted his space she would grant it to him. And keeping the scarf was a nice addition, she would have to find a nice place to keep it. Or maybe she would find a way to attach it to her robes. She was quite happy to know that her keeping his scarf was not the source of his sorrow, but if not that then why was he upset? She stood up, turning around right as the paladin began speaking to her. She pulled the brim of her hat down over her eyes, although she tried to resist. The paladin could read her pretty well. She didn't like the unknown, and a lot of things were unknown and confusing to her. Going on a random adventure with a bunch of strangers seemed to be a horrible choice. What the man said next about her powers baffled her. She did indeed have 'some power' but did it scare her? Well maybe a little. She wasn't sure why, but it did indeed scare her knowing what she could do and become. She muttered softly. "Control and restraint are the byproducts of fear. But survival is as well." And in a strange change of events the paladin dropped to one knee, his sword planted in the ground by her feet. He was making a vow, to protect them. Sarcastic voices filled her head, saying that the moon was far superior to the sun and that there are more terrors in the day then the night, but she kept these quiet. The man was clearly doing something important. These vows were obviously serious things. From his lower position, if Carver was paying attention to her face, he would be able to see that her eyes looked strangely clear. Nothing like normal eyes should, but it showed that she might actually be understanding. Perhaps an adventure would be good for her. And as Carver rose she again covered her eyes, but her smile was visible. Her voice was slurred. "Well...how could I...resist such an...offer..." Yep, she was on board. She just hoped this would be the right choice.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin He could only sigh as their fearless leader resisted him and Carver, going for another punch. Again, the bartender's reflexes bested fist with blade. That was going to need some stitches. Slowly though, their group filtered out. The madness was ending. Kelvin took the time to toss his pack up onto their table, stowing the dynamite back inside, tightening straps before slinging it back onto his back. He paused and straightened the chairs before returning to face the barkeeper. "I apologize for my companions rash actions." Kelvin grimaced, but forced himself to bow to the other man."I have known them less than an hour, but I already know this will be a long journey." He straightened, and then turned to leave before noticing the girl, her cloak draped over her again. He sighed. Kelvin still didn't agree with her presence, unanswered questions. She had tried to help though. "Hey," He gently tapped her head and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "You are still welcome to join us, if you are brave enough." That said, he turned and strode out, joining their party outside the building. He didn't mix though, instead choosing to stay back a bit and wait for them to talk it out. There were other productive things to do though. Kelvin sat down off to the side of the road and pulled his pack down next to him, removing the components for his crossbow. He was meticulous, carefully adjusting the metal arms, keeping them balanced as he strung it- piecing together the clip and screwing it together before assembling the trigger system. Done, he finally stood, hiking up his pack and braided the cord into a sling for the crossbow. This way it could hang out of the way at his side until he needed it. He was ready.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Everyone found gold? I think we have enough for a sword or two." Furnace held his heavy bag of coins and shook the bag have it make a sattisfying jingling sound. "Though the metal is soft and not ideal. We can make do."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula watched with strange interest as Carver tossed the rock out of his bag. She watched it roll and skid away from the group, until it finally settled into a grassy patch several yards away from them. It would have been impossible for anyone to just see the rock if they were walking past, and yet Alula knew it was there, so she could see it. She shivered despite the heat. She turned her blurred attention back to the group. She allowed the punching man who look through her bag, which she had hidden within her robes. She didn't really have anything of importance on her. Her bag was actually a blanket all bundled together with twine. In her bundle was nothing but a few torn up pieces of canvas, likely at one point a tent, and some random odds and ends. Nothing of value, more like junk you would find laying around. She wondered where they came from. And then there was another girl. Alula pulled down the rim of her hat, muttering softly. "A life is cut short so another can begin. Lives are lost in the forest of life to allow the young to grow." She felt horribly dizzy and a bitter cold spreading though her veins. She leaned forward for a moment, resting her weight against Carver until the cold was replaced with the burn. At this point she was hoping no one else would approached the group.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis watched the rock skid to a halt and walked over to it to pick it up off the ground and into his pocket, a man walking past gave him a glance, most likely because of his damaged face but Vis decided to believe that he glanced about the rock, who knew, he might find use for it later. He turned to the group and once more spoke up, "I'm going thu go thearching for bread, anyone wanth thoo thag along?" he asked, hoping someone would want to come with him, though he wasn't too talkative, he didn't mind the company when he had it, it made him feel a little better about being bad at socializing.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver extended a hand to the newcomer as Alula leaned against his back, muttering something incoherent. "No objections at all. My lady Anew, you are quite welcome to travel alongside us. I am Sir Carver, Paladin of the Sun. Our bare-fisted leader here is Separ, the lady is Alula, over there is Kelvin, and I believe the rest of our friends as yet have the advantage of me." The half-elf was saying something about going shopping. Carver was loathe to let anyone travel alone, but he rather doubted that the girl currently passing out on his shoulder would be up to a crowded marketplace, and he knew for a fact that he wouldn't leave her alone. "I think I'll remain here, but you may take my coin with you. It's not much, but I would hate to be a burden on the group already." He smiled as the gnome jingled his coin purse and spoke of golden swords. "Perhaps you could take this one? It seems he could use an education in the wonders of commerce."</s> <\|message\|>Rose Anew aka "Phoenix" Rose politely smiled and shook the hand of the paladin, Carver. "It is always a pleasure to meet a man of the cloth and defender of the faith." She then answered the man introduced as Separ inquiry, "I can cook up any game animal. I am good at stews and roasted meats. Of course, I think I could make any dish at request given the right ingredients." She considered elaboration more but she was cut off by the approach of a cloaked woman. Alula spoke cryptically and Rose was unsure if she was even the one the woman was speaking to, if she was speaking to anyone at all. One life cut down for another. Well yes that is the way of the world. A wildfire is a healthy thing for even the most ancient forests. As a mage, Rose understood the role of destruction and reconstruction very well. It was fundamental to the magic arts on many levels, but did this woman intend to imply more. Rose took a step away from the woman, Alula cautiously. Changing the subject she addressed the man who was going for bread. If she was going to cook, this seemed like something she should be involved in, "Sir, I would like to accompany you to find bread."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis took a long hard lookout the new woman to join the little group, she seemed polite enough and hoped that she wouldn't bring the scar up. "All righth then, leth go." Vis turned on the spot and started to make his way to the market again, there was bound to be a bakery somewhere in the maze of stalls and booths and if not there was probably a proper bakery somewhere in the town, though he wished to avoid proper bakeries as they were expensive. But as Vis walked with the company of the of the new one, he found that he wandered into the fleece market, looking around for the exit, his eyes fell on a booth selling scarves. Vis felt compelled to go towards it and so he did, to take a look at what the vendor had on sale, there were many intricate designs but he longed for something simple like the scarf he gave to the girl, 'what was her name?... Alula'. He found what he was looking for, a simple black scarf, though it wasn't identical to his old one as this one had white ends, "How much?" Vis asked calmly, knowing that that phrase never lisped. "25" Said the man, avoiding looking at Vis' disfigured face, Vis counted out the coins and bought the scarf, instantly wrapping it around his face and feeling much more comfortable that no one could see his scar. "Now we thearch for bread." he said, turing to look at his companion.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula finally found the energy in herself to stand back up straight, no longer able to stand the burn from leaning against the Paladin. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, finding her spinning vision extremely disoriented. She listened for a moment, picking up that the new girl and the half-elf were going off to buy bread, and were perhaps planning on taking the gnome along. She wanted to peek out and confirm her suspicions, but didn't want to risk another wave of dizziness. She listened to the paladin and new women speak to each other. The paladin introduced himself to the girl, and Alula mentally scolded herself for not being able to remember their names. The girl sounded pleasant enough, she spoke to Carver in a respectful tone. And yet she knew that the newcomer was already distrustful of Alula. Suddenly, almost too quickly, Alula's hat tipped back. She revealed her glowing eyes to a man who was passing by, a bag full of purchased goods. She took a step away from Carver, speaking to the man in a distant and knowing tone. "Talk to your wife about what you long for, she will understand and heed to your request." The man looked flustered as he looked Alula up and down and hurried off. She tipped her hat back down, dizziness again washing over her as she spoke. "That man wants his wife to tie his hands to the bedpost, I couldn't guess why though."</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver watched the man walk off in spite of himself. "Hmm... some things it's best not to know." He turned to sit on a nearby tree stump, regarding Alula quizzically. "So, how does that work, milady? If you don't mind me asking? Are you an oracle, or just particularly intuitive?" In the monastery, he'd heard some stories of oracles - priests and channelers who could predict things that had not yet come to pass. His knowledge on the subject was limited, however, due to the fact that such miracles were generally the providence of night-time deities, the followers of whom the Crusaders that had trained Carver got along with... poorly (rather like rival groups of school-children.) Carver wasn't sure that was what he was seeing now, but it seemed a good start, especially given her vague reference to the moon, earlier. He felt a sudden stab of worry that the question might send her into another panic - being the vessel to some future-telling power seemed rather like the sort of thing someone might get antsy about. "I'm just making small talk while we wait, of course. Don't feel obligated to give me an answer."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace A strange sense of familiarity came over Furnace as he watched Rose. The way she moved with confident certainty, talked clearly and boasted extensive knowledge on food creation. Using many arcane terms Furnace wasn't familiar with. Though strangely she specifically called the iron giant 'a man of the cloth'. All of her was completely alien to Furnace. And yet something resonated with him and he couldn't figure out what it was. "Perhaps you could take this one? It seems he could use an education in the wonders of commerce." Education The steel-clad friend had proposed Furnace forged a bond with the uncloaked man like the one with the voice. This idea made Furnace see Vis in a different light. Could he and the voice be alike? Furnace was sceptical, but intrigued. The food conjurer wished to join Vis, she probably also wanted an education in 'the wonders of commerce' If they were indeed alike, perhaps the idea made sense. Furnace now wished to follow as well. They would learn these wonders, and then maybe she would demonstrate her food conjuring. Furnace followed the two trough the market. The uncloaked man moved swiftly and with calculated step. He knew where he was going. Furnace chose to walk next to the food conjurer. He felt compelled to find out more about her. "Uhm. It is a pleasure to meet a woman of stews and roasted meats." Furnace stood next to her and struggled to divide attention to her and the uncloaked man who suddenly took a turn to approach one of the tables with crafting materials. Presumably so he could demonstrate the first lesson. The first wonder was a small ritual riddle. The instigator chooses a fabric and speaks the incantation "How much" The man at the table gives a number, the instigator must meet that number in golden sheets. A simple test if you know the ritual. Why the sheets were golden or what the purpose of this ritual was was unclear to Furnace.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin He had had plenty of time to think over Separ's words while assembling his crossbow, but honestly, he wasn't sure at all. This was certainly a strange travelling group- and Kelvin wasn't all that interested in adventures so much as the next mechanical project to work on. There was nothing left to do here though. He might as well move on. Kelvin waited for the group to separate off, some going shopping with the new warrior, others staying. He approached Separ. "I'll stay." Kelvin sighed and lowered his bag to the ground, holding up a hand to stall the other man. "Sorry, but you will have to trust me here; going through my bag could be dangerous for others." He shifted things around a bit, careful not to disrupt his organization. It had to be packed carefully to make everything fit- and to ensure all the explosives and paper would stay dry. "I am sorry to say I will be a bit of a burden, as I don't have any food supplies, or much money to compensate for that." Kelvin shrugged. "As for my gear… I have… rope, in multiple sizes, stakes, a tarp, some paper, extra crossbow darts… " Kelvin straightened and put his pack back on, coughing. "And, uh…" He held up a hand and counted on his fingers. "Some gunpowder, a couple of sticks of dynamite, a bucket," Do most people even know what gunpowder is? "In general, stuff that can make a big bang." He scratched his cheek and looked down at his belt, brightening. "Right, and these. Just tools of the trade, hammer, some screwdrivers and bits. A bear trap- you know." Kelvin shifted nervously on his feet. "I just need a bit of food here and there, and I should be alright."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Des As Carver charged into the herd he trampled a few and was stabbed by many more, although due to his armor only a few actually harmed him and he was dealt 8 damage, but now he his surrounded Alula's attack on the Ettin seemed to have no effect but it did blind him causing him to trip and crush a building beside her</s> <\|message\|>Carver Ten feet. I walk in her glorious light. I will not falter. Five feet. I bear her glorious purpose. I will not falter. Two feet. I face her foes in combat, my heart pure and unsullied. I will not falter. Carver had just taken the first blow on his shield when his vision was filled with a blinding blue light. The heat from the near miss soaked into his armor and made him break out in a sweat. The paladin staggered to the side, trying to regain sight. What was that? Did the goblins have some sort of spellcaster? How had it gotten behind him? Were the others safe- A rusted blade drove into his side through the chink in his armpit's armor, immediately suspending all further questions. With a cry, Carver swung his shield out and slammed the goblin in the face, sending it spinning to the dirt. Goblins everywhere, now. He kicked one aside, cut another across the chest. He felt blows clanging all against his armor, blocked furious swings with his shield, parried them with his blade. One goblin got lucky and drove a dagger up his knee and into his thigh, and Carver collapsed to one knee for a moment. Another took this opportunity to slam a mace into his helmet, smashing his thoughts and filling his sight with stars. Gritting his teeth, Carver rose, ignoring his injured leg, and cut the mace-wielding goblin in the chest. More swarmed over him, shrieking and clanging and clawing at his plate-covered body, but he was a Paladin of the Sun - and Paladins didn't run. Every blow that fell on him was a blow that could have fallen on Alula, or Kelvin, or Furnace. And so the knight stood, and fought his losing battle.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis' pursuer was unrelenting in his chase, as if wanting nothing more then to see Vis die. The half-elf ducked into an alleyway and began to wind his way through the meandering streets until he found himself at a dead end, with walls to smooth to scale. Vis turned around to see the sneering raider block the only path of escape as he slowly approached, his sword dragging across the floor menacingly. Getting into his combat position, his sword raised infront of him, he knee there was no running from this fight. The raider attacked first, swinging his bastard sword over his head and bringing it at a downward angle towards Vis, Vis rolled and avoided the brunt of the attach but the tip of the sword caught him on his back leaving a long shallow gash. Regaining his footing behind the brute, he thrust outwards with his rapier and pierced the chainmail armor of the man, passing through his under clothes and then between his ribs, catching him in the lung. He roared in pain and quickly swung around, wrenching the rapier the out of Vis' hands and sending it skittering away, Vis pulled the empty bottle out of his bag and smashed it against the side of the man's face, knocking him to the floor. While the man was down, Vis drew his dagger and threw himself ontop of the man, his knees on his chest and stabbed the man in the neck but as he did, the man shot his hands to Vis' neck to strangle him. As Vis was being choked, he stabbed the blade over and over into the man's neck and a puddle of crimson poured around him but the man's grip was unrelenting and Vis' vision was going black around the edges. Then the man's hands fell away as he died. Panting, Vis threw himself off and sat with his back to the wall, his neck bruised by the hands of the raider. He tightened his scarf and retrieved his rapier, then started to pick through the man's pockets and pouches, he found nothing but a scroll and as he opened it his skin flushed red, it was a pornographic scroll. Vis tucked it into his back pack and whinced, first an arrow, then he fell from a roof and now he had a long trailing wound. He emerged into the main street and wished he hadn't, skeletons were climbing out if the ground and beams of blinding light whizzed through the air.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ I continued to jog down the path searching for the cloaked girl to no avail. Where is she? Where is she? Separ asked himself again and again as he made his way through the city. Only as he turned around the corner did he see a man on a horse in the distance, surrounded by what looked a horde of kobolds and goblins. Each of them looked much stronger than an ordinary member of their respective race, and the man on the horse seemed to give off an aura that was refined, and at the same time one of evil. Yes, Separ realized he must have been the one in charge, or at the very least one of the higher ups. Separ quickly hid behind the corner hoping no one had saw him, and as luck would have it, the group appeared to be focusing instead on the razing of a building. The utter chaos on the streets as panicked civillians fought and fled a losing battle also made it easier for Separ to remain unnoticed. Separ turned around realizing there was nothing he could do though. What good is a hero who dies trying to save others from a death, when he can't even save himself? Separ gritted his teeth as he remembered his master's words. Now was not the time to fight, but rather to flee. If there were less civillians or monsters, things would have been much easier. But the sheer chaos and number of people made it hard for him to do anything. As much as it pained him to do so, Separ knew his death would be in vain if he died, only to have the very people he was trying to save also die immediately after, and with this many people around, it was easily bound to happen. Separ turned around, as tears started to form in his eyes. I'm so weak, I can't even help those people over there. His jog started to turn into a sprint as he ran even harder, faster. I need to become stronger so I can protect others. He continued his pace, before hearing the sound of rattling bone and screams from goblins. Holding back his tears and wiping his eyes he ran towards the sound to see two skeletons and the cloaked girl fighting a group of enemies. Perfect, there wasn't nearly as much chaos here. Getting the girl to safety should be relatively simple, somewhat. Separ ran as fast as he could charging at the group. The skeletons seemed strong, but it was apparent they were fighting a losing battle. Focusing energy into his fists he felt his hands heat up slightly as they both started to glow a light orange color. Separ charged forward towards a lone kobold, preparing to strike at it. The kobold reacted just in time though, swinging his sword and knicking Separ in the torso. Luckily it was just a small scratch as Separ had avoided it for the most part, with fervor Separ punched the kobold aiming for its cheek. the attack singing the skin and knocking the kobold a few feet away. Separ then punched at a goblin once, twice, three times with a barrage aimed at its gut, killing the creature before elbowing another goblin in the face, shattering its teeth and creating a small puddle of blood that dribbled onto the ground. Turning to face the cloaked girl, Separ flashed her a small smile. "I'm glad you're safe, but don't run off like that, you had me worried." Only then did Separ's expression turn into a cringe as he punched another goblin only for it to take the blow and swing a mace at him. The mace struck Separ in the side, causing him to grunt in pain. Separ's hands faded of there orange glow for a moment, before restoring themselves as Separ attacked in retaliation, kneeing the goblin in the face and knocking him to the ground. "I don't suppose you have a plan on how to get out of here, do you?" The amount of enemies was much lower here in this area, but Separ knew they'd be overwhelmed if they stayed here for to long.</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki slowly stood up on somewhat shaky legs, as she watched the battle rage on. Despite how much the skeletons may be doing, those brittle bones were not going to hold out for long. Frowning, she pulled her scythe out from the ground, and was about to try again, when Separ came around. "Why are you here?!" Frantically asking the man, as she was almost certain he should have ran at the first chance he got. Her attention was diverted a little, as she noticed one of her skeletons crumbling. Turning back to Separ, Suki quickly cobbled together a rather simple plan. "I can create a diversion, then we run." Without waiting for a response, she twirled the scythe around, before embedding the blade once more into the ground, with two skeletons clawing their way out of the dirt. "Alright, let's g-" Pulling her scythe out, Suki was about to start running, when her vision went foggy. Falling down to her knees, one hand braced against the ground, the other letting go of the scythe to cover her mouth, as she coughed multiple times. Pulling back her had, with her hazy vision, she noted the crimson color against the porcelain hand. She pushed herself father than she should have. Quivering, she attempted to stand up, only to collapse onto the ground. "...change...of plans.....you run....I'm in no condition....to move..." Panting these words out, she barely managed to push herself up slightly.</s> <\|message\|>Des A horde of goblins and kobolds snuck up and Rose and ambushed her, dealing out 18 damage in total A grouping of 20 goblins/kobolds split off from Carver's hoard and charged Alula and Furnace and Kelvin</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Chaos. It was the only word to describe it. Kelvin slowly backed away when the hordes of enemies came crashing through, the majority of them ignoring their small group. Their seer had been right on this account. The separate voices were creepy on any account, but he couldn't say that the firepower wasn't appreciated. Their paladin managed to get himself buried- Kelvin had hung back with the others, it was suicide to join that mosh pit. Their midget managed to work his way back, from who knows where, and then suddenly the horde of enemies realized where all this magic was coming from. Kelvin went to one knee and brought up the auto crossbow, aiming at chest height and released five rounds from his clip into the crowd, cranking it back up quickly after each shot. As he loosened his belt pouch and began to reload, he called to their littlest warrior. "Oi, kid! Fight 'em back from us! We are going to need some time!" That said, he turned and moved back, taking up a kneeling position just in front of Alula as he finished reloading, before releasing another round of shots into the crowd- and went back to reloading. "Care to see a way out of this for us, your majesty?" Kelvin slid his pack to the side long enough to extract a stick of dynamite, sliding it into a belt pouch. Just in case.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula wasn't looking all that well. Despite not sustaining a single bit of damage from the horde of goblins, she was fading fast. Or something was. She wasn't hovering quite as far off the ground, and several time she actually touched her feet to the ground as if trying to rebalance herself. She didn't speak to Vis, although she occasionally glanced over her shoulder, reaffirming for herself that the half elf hadn't moved or died. And when Alula did speak it was in a strange language, no longer the common tongue. All of her words seemed disjointed and spacey, as she kept watch and made sure no straggling goblins spotted the spot where Vis was recovering. Her glowing was fading as well, no longer as bright and blinding. She could hear someone moving through the trees, and struggled to lift her staff and aim an attack. She never fired however, as she recognized Kelvin. The girl lowered her staff, muttering weakly. "A man who tangles with death and yet never stays."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Once Alula had stopped turning around, Vis disappeared into the forest, giving the Oracle a wide birth so she could not spot him. He felt a bit more steady on his feet but still a bit shaky. He walked and then he started to jog and by the time he reached the edge of the forest he was sprinting, it seemed that magical healing had a delay when it came to pain reduction. Once at the edge of the forest, Vis dropped to a crouch and winced, clutching his side an clamping his eyes shut, 'so much for magic pain reduction.' he thought to himself as he sank out of the tree line and into the outskirts of the town. As he snuck through the town, he heard yells and cheers as raiders celebrated the destruction of the town and the occasional scream of terror. Slowly approaching the area of the bakery, Vis felt his heart sink to his stomach, there was a rising cloud of smoke coming from where he remembered the bakery to be and once he came around to the street where it operated, his hopes were dashed. The building was blackened and charred, and the windows were smashed along with the doors. Vis crept in and went straight to the kitchen and tears stung his eyes as he saw the table flipped over and the hatch wide open, stumbling to the entrance, he hissed down into the basement. "Any one thare?!" He got no reply, so he stuck his head in and illuminated the room with his green eye, he recoiled instantly and hurled not the floor, heaving until his stomach was empty. Every one was dead and the coppery smell of blood was all that came from the room down below. But Vis had to have hope, he climbed down into the space and regretted it as he splashed into a puddle of crimson. He looked around and bathed everything in a green light, they were all dead, butchered and their limbs strewn everywhere. He was about to leave when he heard a meep, he turned to where he thought he heard it and saw the baker woman who had told him of the basement. She was beckoning weakly towards him, Vis quickly went to her side and dropped to his knees and gripped her hand. "I'm thorry," he whined, tears escaping his eyes, "please forgive me-" her weak smile cut him off and she gripped her hand and nodded towards a crate in the corner. "look after-" she rasped, Vis was about to ask what her what he was meant to look after but her eyes had already closed. He clamped his eyes shut and fought back more tears, before rising and approaching the box. Lifting open the lid he was surprised at what was in side</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver was burning. The heat from the inferno was cooking him alive inside his armor, and in a strange place in his mind outside lucid thought, he felt a brief pang of pity for all the roast chickens he had eaten in his life time. A thunderous crack filled his eardrums, and a shockwave pushed into him from behind, bowling him off his feet. Perhaps Kelvin's work, or another display of power from the spellcaster? He hoped for the former as he struggled, unsteadily, to his feet. He was torn for a moment between continuing or returning to try and help the others. The gnome was in the most pressing danger - he carried on his course. He could scarcely see from the blood and smoke in his visor, and so he held it as an act of divine providence (or perhaps profound luck) when he almost literally tripped across a small form laying prone in a pile of rubble. Either this was the gnome or a strangely-proportioned child; either way, they very certainly needed to be removed from this situation. The ground shook nearby, and Carver just made out the silhouette of the Ettin a few meters away. A mighty blow landed, and Carver's armor was rained with chips of wood - apparently, the Ettin hadn't noticed the Paladin, and was preoccupying itself with destroying the village. Carver, with as much stealth as a burning man clad in full plate armor could muster, bent over the gnome. He was agonizingly aware of the fact that his armor was more than hot enough to burn skin at the moment, so he grabbed a nearby curtain that was only burned a little, stamped the fire out of it, and swathed the unconscious gnome in it like the world's largest baby. Then, once more that day, the knight ran. He ran until he could breathe without smoke filling lungs, until the cracking of burned wood faded into the distance. He coughed, still holding the gnome to his chest. His burns ached, hiw wounds bled, and his eyes told him that they wanted to close. He told them to shut up. There were trees here. Carver coughed again, and called out hoarsely: "Alula! Kelvin! Separ! Are you there?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula had noticed as Vis tried to sneak away. The half elf wasn't exactly graceful, crashing through the forest on weak legs. Her magic really only worked its best when the injured person stayed still, like she had requested of Vis. She wasn't sure why Vis wanted to return to the destroyed town, and yet she didn't seem to care. At least, most of Alula didn't care. There was the gentle, frantic, voice in the back of her mind. Begging herself to pursue the man before he got himself hurt again. "We have healed him once. It is his own fault if he returns to the fighting. We can no longer afford to endanger the girl." And then an explosion shook the ground. The force of it, even from so far away, shook Alula. She lost focus for a moment, almost loosing her trance. It took considerable effort to keep herself hovering above the ground, and the light in her eyes continually flickered out. "We are loosing energy. We should not have healed the half-elf. We leave ourselves vulnerable. We should leave before anything dangerous continues." But before the girl could float herself away from the burning town, as well as the new companions she had acquired, something stopped her. A voice. And it said a name. Her name. Her real name. Her eyes flickered for a few moments, like a strobe light, before illuminating again. The paladin was in distress, and he was holding someone of equal distress. She hovered her way over to him, appearing between trees like a ghost. "The girl is unharmed and she is glad to see you are alive." Alula looked around, back towards the town. "The half-elf ran back in, if you are wise you will not follow him. You should sit down, and wait for the commotion in the town to die down."</s> <\|message\|>Des The Ettin watched as the people had raced out of the town, but he was to be tending to his burned and scarred foot to chase after. The rest of the raiders cheered and began looting the rest of the town. As Vis opened the crate, he heard a wimper and saw a small girl sitting inside.</s> <\|message\|>Carver The half-elf was still in the town, with the fire and the Ettin and the raiders. Maybe there were others, too; townsfolk who were still alive but couldn't make it out on their own. Carver set Furnace down gently and turned around. "He's hurt," he murmured to the girl. "He needs... help... I'll be back in a few... minutes." He took a step, then another, then a third. This wasn't so hard. Walking was just step after step, after all. Vis and the others were practically rescued already. He was getting quite close to the town now, he was certain - why, he could see the lights from the fires right in front of his eyes. Now he just had to find the half-elf, and everything would be grand. All these thoughts and more ran through the knight's head as he collapsed to the ground at Alula's feet, about a meter away from where he had placed the gnome. Carver tried to push himself back up as he'd done so many times during the day, but found he hadn't the strength. Failing that, he began to crawl, hand on knee, back towards the village. This was somewhat slower, but slow and steady won the race. The half-elf would be rescued, as sure as sure could be. The darkness closed in on the knight slowly and then immediately. A few feet later, he stopped crawling.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Alula was here, but no one else. She was muttering about something though. Seemed to be running out of floating magic too. This wasn't great. If he was going to die with someone, it should be someone more sane than himself. "We need to get moving further from -" And here came Sir Carver. Praise the Sun.... or not. The lump dropped off the wounded midget and then tried to crawl off back to town. Typical paladins; never there when you needed them. Kelvin rolled the armored figure on his back and unlatched the helmet, hissing at its heat as he slid it off. The other man would need to breath. Kelvin left him and eyed the gnome. Nothing he could do there. "It is dangerous, but we can't afford to carry all of these." Kelvin turned to Alula. "I am going to work on a rough shelter, but don't light any fires. We don't need any attention.... besides, with any luck all the invaders will stick around to loot and be off by morning." With that said, Kelvin went about gathering fallen branches and using the shears to clip some bushes. It was just a puzzle, and he was good at those. First, pick an area with close trees, and then use the larger branches as a frame that supports itself. Next, layer on some of the medium sized ones to obstruct vision more, and use the bushes as a light covering to conceal the constructed nature of it all. Luckily, he already had visualized what he wanted. He stood back to look it over, sighing. What he wouldn't give for a saw. It was basically just two rough walls of foliage facing town, with no roof. It was shelter from prying eyes at least. If it started to rain he could put up his tarp. First though... Kelvin moved to the paladin and grabbed him under his arms. Damn was he heavy. He gritted his teeth and dragged the man tug by tug behind the shelter. He picked up the gnome as well and laid him down carefully next to the knight. "I have half a mind to just leave." Kelvin grumbled and let his bag down off of his shoulder, slumping to the ground and examining his crossbow for damage. "So, madam oracle of the flashy lights, I would suggest you take a nap. It only takes one of us to keep watch."</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula could tell that Vis was approaching far before he entered the clearing. And yet she was confused. He carried an extra burden with him, of which she did not know. Alula growled. Her staff keeping her propped above the ground. She rubbed her forehead weakly. Her powers were already in a weakened state. If she tried to find out what was happening with the half elf before she was given a chance to rest she would be putting Alula in danger. "The half elf returns." She spoke clearly, over her shoulder at Kelvin. And when Vis broke through the trees to the clearing Alula's expression changed, rather rapidly. Her eyes flashed like strobes. Her face changed from rage, to horror, to joy and then back to expressionless. The half elf had a child. She couldn't tell if his actions were selfish or selfless. To save a child and then bring her into the danger. The oracle remained still, letting Vis approach the group. "This miserable world is full of wonders and tragedy, and to none is it more apparent then the children it holds." She looked up and down Vis, his injuries seemed to be contained and fine. Her healing would be able to hold him over for awhile. What she was really worried about was the girl. Her physical injuries were few, she would be able to heal them easily. But the worst was her emotional damage. Alula could feel every grip of sadness, every anxious shake. She felt them and they felt like her own. She felt a loss for words. "The others are resting over there. You should join them."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat held on tighter to Vis when she heard words, afraid. Though she barely knew the man that she was currently clutching on to, she felt safer with him then she felt in the crate and that satisfied her. "I'm noth thired." Said vis looking into the eyes of the floating oracle with a look of wonder. She looked so strange in this elevated form, Vis looked down at the child in his arms, "Her name with Khat." he stressed the 'T' sound, biting into it so that it sounded like a 'T' and not like a 'th'. Khat lifted her head form the half-elf's shoulder and looked up at Alula with wonder, her mouth slightly ajar as she tilted her head up to bask in her aura, "Vis, what is she?" she asked, her eyes turing form awe to scrutiny. Vis stopped to think for a moment, that was a good question and he didn't know how to answer it, "How abouth you athk her?" "What are you?" she asked, holding onto Vis tighter again and anticipating what the strange floating woman might have to say, she sniffled, trying to find a way to distract herself from her sadness.</s> <\|message\|>Alula When Vis informed her that he was not tired she was ready to leave the conversation. She turned away, perhaps to go check on the others. She wasn't particularly good with children. Or really anyone for that matter. It didn't help that she wasn't entirely herself at the moment. She inwardly cringed when she heard the child and Vis whisper back and forth to each other. She wanted to know what she was. She turned back around, looking slightly irritated. "What we are" she spoke in a pointed voice. "Is a being more powerful then you coul-" She suddenly stopped talking, her expression changing again from anger to a look of tranquility and kindness. She drifted slightly closer to Vis and Khat. She touched her feet gently to the ground, soft bursts of light floating through the grass. She crouched down in front of Khat, wanting to make herself on the same level as the child. The powerful and kind voice spoke through Alula. "My dear child, what we are is not so important right now." She smiled softly. "Time will tell. What you need to know right now is that the girl is rather excited to meet you." She slowly stood up, more soft bursts of light erupting as she pushed herself back into the air. "There will be more time for talking once all this...destruction...is over." She moved away from the girl, giving a final smile to Vis and the girl, before her expression changed to one of disinterest again.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace found himself floating in a delicous bowl of warm soup. Birdcalls and muffled screams played on loop in the distance. "hello again. It has been a while has it not?" Furnace recognised the voice well. "It sure has. I've seen so much since last time." "I predicted your freedom did I not?" The hollow voice grinned without mouth or body, yet it's emotions were clear to Furnace. "You did! And I discovered plants. And food, and friends, and fights and-" "Fights. Yes." The voice interupted Furnace sternly. "And now you've gone and broken yourself you fool." ... "I discovered that too. I can just repair it right?""And what if you break yourself too much one day? To an extent you can't be fixed?" ... "I hadn't thought of that. What happens then? Will I remain broken?" "That is something you will have to find out. Remeber you are more similar to these new.. friends of yours than you are to me." "The friends have given me names for me to call them by. Will you give me yours?" ... "Not until you know your own. Little Furnace. For now go do what you do best. You have barely used any of your potential. Nor have you even touched your negative reserves." "What good is the negative energy!? All it does is hurt!""Ask... the Taster of Smiles." "Who is the taster of smiles!?" Furnace cringed trough the second part of the last sentence. A sharp sting in his shoulder informed him he was awake. Covered in sweat and panting from the exhausting pain he crawled out of the cloth he was wrapped in. As he looked around he saw trees and some of his new friends. He had no idea where he was. But judging by the marks on Carvers skin and armor he had been near him. Was he broken? Was he going to stay broken? He crawled over to the damaged paladin and unceremoneously let himself drop next to him, laying on his back with his good arm on Carver. Slowly he let energy flow from his hands and onto the fallen knights burns. Jolts of golden bright danced along fields of blistered skin until layers reattached, senew regrew and colors turned the right shade of bronze pink. Meanwhile Furnace looked to the other side the strange scented man build something impressive. "Hello again. I'm awake and soon I'll help you build.. that.. But first can you help me?" With his head he nodded at his bloody arm. "I need to repair this. But as is the core will not attach properly. I don't want a crooked arm because I fear it won't work as well. Can you hold it while I pump it full of positive energy?"</s> <\|message\|>Carver When Carver came to, he was struck by the sensation of not being on fire. He took a moment to appreciate how fine it was to not be immolated, then sat up quickly, his head swimming. He'd passed out. Weak. Selfish. Failure. Carver shook his head in an attempt to clear his brain of these thoughts. There would be time for self-loathing later, but not after everyone who could be saved had been. The knight examined the structure he'd been hidden behind for a moment. It was well-constructed, though obviously done in a hurry. Carver suspected Kelvin might be behind its creation - he wasn't sure who else could have thrown it together. He felt a pang of gratitude for the man who had risen to the occasion when Carver's strength had failed him. His was a noble example, indeed. He rose, shakily, and brought his gloved hands up to touch his unhelmed face. No burn marks. Alula's handiwork, or maybe Furnace's - once again, those he was meant to be protecting seemed to be protecting him. He'd have to do better. His head pounding, Carver stepped back into the clearing and was struck by two sights. One, Furnace was conscious, and conversing with Kelvin a short distance away; and two, Vis had returned, bringing with him someone new - a child, staring at Alula with rapt wonder. Kelvin and Furnace's efforts required thanks, thanks he would be sure to give them sooner rather than later. However, for the moment Carver was concerned with the health of the others - Alula, who had displayed such uncharacteristic power, and the girl, whose home had obviously just been burned down. "My lady!" he called out to Alula, managing not to wince from his soreness as he sauntered over to her. "Are you unharmed? I must offer my most sincere apologies for collapsing, as I did. It was... unbecoming of a knight, and will not happen again." He gave a warm smile to the girl and dropped down to a crouch to look her in the eyes. "And who's this one? Child, do not fear. No harm will come to you, not now. I am Sir Carver, Knight of the Sun, and I am very pleased to meet you."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki grimaced as she sat up. Alright, it seems she was going to have to drain someone soon. As she thought about this, her eyes had drifted over towards the man who had carried her out of the town. No, best not to take him yet...perhaps she'll find someone soon. Besides, he did not look like he could take a kiss from her and live, even if she wasn't trying to kill him. Muttering softly under her breath, "Saving someone like me was a waste of time.", she glanced back towards the rubble of the town. Her scythe was still back there. Although she could probably summon and assign an undead to bring it to her, not did not seem like the right time to do so. Turning towards Separ, she smiled. "I'm pretty certain that Kelvin and the paladin would keep everyone else safe. After all, you've only just gathered us today. It would be a horrible joke of the divines to kill us all off." Attempting to reassure the man, Suki looked around. Now that they were semi-safe, they would probably have to find the rest. Although running away now, while the paladin wasn't around, wasn't such a bad thought either.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin If she wanted to stay awake, that was her own business. But when he decided it was time to sleep, he wasn't going to be waking for a while. "The half elf returns." Kelvin nodded in thanks. It was good to have a bit of warning, not that he would have put more than two crossbow bolts on anyone who jumped them, right at the moment. That girl was interesting, seeming to have multiple voices speaking for her at any one time. Personally though, if he had to choose one it would be the more dominant one. It seemed accustomed to giving out orders- not a trait he prefered, but the voice was practical and could hold up a conversation. He would have to see if he could draw it out more often for conversation, no offense to the poor girl it was speaking through. The scarred rogue appeared, carrying a child. Not a great development, but she could be useful. Old enough to do basic tasks at least, and to learn. Kelvin left them to talk to the oracle, instead choosing to do some more work on the shelter, until the gnome awoke."I wouldn't mind some practical help, I suppose." Kelvin looked at the crooked arm and grimaced. "It won't feel pretty for me to set it though. I am no doctor, so I will just have to straighten by feel." He paused for a moment, and felt his own arm up and down, looking intent. It was an odd idea. He knelt next to the small man and carefully felt the arm. If the little guy was moving about with it, he must have decent pain tolerance. "Start when I tell you, not before- and please don't light me on fire." On a burst of inspiration, he picked up a stick and offered it to the poor guy, mimicking biting it with his teeth. Kelvin turned back to the arm and felt gently above and below the break, then suddenly tightened his grip, twisting the arm just slightly and bracing his body against any possible thrashing. "Now." Kelvin chose to look away from this particular event. Even as a man who had seen fingers crushed in gears and blown apart bits of partners, some memories were best left uncatalogued in ones brain. Other thoughts were better. Such as about Separ. Kelvin winced. It was really a shame. He hadn't anything against him or that hooded girl, though he didn't trust her looks. Survival was the main thing for now.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace was staring at the sunset as he heard a thud behind him. He saw Alula lie down in the dirt. Confused he looked at the others, most seemed to either pay no mind or looked concerned. He remembered how he had been wrapped in a large blue cloth when he fell asleep. This was no doubt custom. So he chose not to ask questions and act as if he knew this was normal. He threw the cloth over her and rolled her in it. She seemed unhurt, so giving her some positive energy would only wake her. She did claim she wanted rest right? He could help her with that too... He toyed with ideas of experimentation while he glared at his hand where a diminutive black spark danced eagerly. It would help her sleep... But it would probably hurt... Furnace decided against it. At least until he found the taster of smiles. In the end he just dragged the cloth coccoon over to Kelvin. "You seem to have a plan regarding shelter? Where should she be?"</s> <\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin The sound of the arm repairing itself was going to haunt him. Good thing he didn't plan on much rest tonight. It was surprising that the durable gnome was willing to help afterword, but he would take it. Kelvin rocked back on his heels. "Separ hasn't come back yet… give me some time to think." He smiled in a way that he hoped was reassuring. Kelvin sat by himself a bit farther from the others, ignoring the drama of various people working out their social differences. They had a bit bigger issue on hand. That army. It had swept away the town with little trouble, other than the small group they had here, which was more than unfortunate. A show of unnecessary force like that had two possible meanings; this was an intimidation technique, or this was a campaign. Being that the raider's were mostly goblin… it looked closer to a campaign. Which put all of them directly in the path of it. They weren't really far enough from town to be completely safe either. Kelvin was still deep in thought when the gnome carried over a bundle. It was a bit comical to see. "I have been thinking." He motioned for him to put the oracle down, close to where the gnome and Carver had been laying. "I have the gear to put a tiny shelter up, but it won't fit all of us... but besides that, I am not sure we should spend the night here." Kelvin gestured back towards town, the smoke and blood could easily be smelt, and the black clouds made the sunset all the more bloody. "It isn't safe to stay so close. It would only take one enemy wandering about to spot us us." Kelvin lightly tapped his crossbow absentmindedly. "And besides that, they will be moving on eventually. I think we should wait for darkness, take some time to rest, and head for the next town. A force that big will be slower than our group, so with some effort we can warn the next town down the road." If they didn't, then this horde might spread from town to town, eliminating them so fast there were few survivors to spread the warning.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "There are more places like this?" Furnace blurted out in response while he carefully aranged Alula next to their stuff as directed. "And you don't desire this harvesting to happen there as well.." He frowned as he spoke slowly. It was clear he understood on some level. But not why. "So I take it we aren't returning there for the friend collector, that girl and all the wonderfull crafting materials strewn about? Then why even have a harvesting?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ frowned a little bit at the girls words. Sure he really wanted everyone to be fine, but would they? For now all Separ could do was hope that Carver, Kelvin, and all the others had come through. "I really hope they're okay." For a moment Separ and the girl sat in silence for a few minutes before Separ tried to stand up almost falling over in the process. While he had gained a little bit of his energy back, he still would be practically useless in a fight. Remembering he was wearing a backpack he took it off and laid it on the ground and pulled out two tents. Handing one towards the girl he began to ask her "Would you like to stay here for the night? I think I can walk, but it's getting pretty late. What would you prefer to do in this situation? I also have a medical kit in my backpack by the way, so we could always heal ourselves up before dark." Sure Separ did not know the girl very well, but he trusted her. She didn't seem like a bad person after all, especially when she herself practically sacrificed her life when she fell down from over-exerting herself.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver crept through the forest with as much stealth as he was able to muster, which was to say, none at all. Had any goblins been in earshot, they probably could have heard the clanking of his armor from quite a distance away - however, it seemed the sun was smiling on him, and no foes produced themselves. A brief moment later, the knight had another stroke of luck. In another small clearing, Separ and the witch sat in a half-unconscious pile. Carver was immediately gladdened to see Separ well - for a moment, he'd almost despaired for the young man's life. The witch, although, was another matter entirely. Carver had been half of the mind that she was part of the attack in some fashion, but her current condition seemed to belie that. She looked half-dead; pale, sallow, and exhausted. If this was the result of her summoning some magical force to aid in the fight, then perhaps his initial reaction to her had been unfair, whatever she was. "Separ! ... Other lady!" He called out to them as he entered the clearing, in the loudest whisper conceivable. "It's good to see you safe! The others are together, they're nearby. Are you able to walk? I can carry one of you."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis turned away from the clearing and walked towards the burning sun, it's light peaking out from between the gaps in the canopy as he ventured out for a stream or a pond of some sort. The further he got from the camp, he felt an indescribable feeling, it was a mixture of relief and heartache. Soon he had stumbled upon a small pond, fed by 3 trickling streams and hidden by the forest canopy, looking around to ensure he wasn't being followed, he began unbuckling his armor. Once the leather plates dropped off his body, he took off his under clothes and tossed them into a pile next to the bank, so he stood naked by the water. Slowly he slipped in, first sitting down then slowly levering himself into the cool pond using his arms but as he got into the pond, he found that from where the land met the water, it was a vertical sloap downwards for about 3 and a half feet. Vis stood in the water for a moment, to get use to the temperature, before submerged himself completely and opened his eyes, casting a green glow in the dusty water. Small fish swam around, eating the green that grew at the bottom, oblivious to Vis or his light. He emerged from the water and returned to the bank, resting his head on his folded arms and letting the rest of his body float. He decided he'd rest before washing his gear.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ quickly turned to see Carver and smiled at his presence. "Carver, you're alive. I'm glad to see you." Separ put the tents back into his backpack and strapped it on to himself. "I think I can walk, but the girl fell down earlier, so maybe you should carry her. I also have some supplies we could use, including a tent and a medkit." Separ started to walk towards Carver only to stop and stare at the ground. "How..., how many died?" Separ's voice was shaky as he asked, not because he was tired, but rather because he was scared of what the answer would be. Perhaps Carver and maybe only a few others survived? Did the whole town die? Kelvin, the disfigured man, the little gnome, the girl who had healed him, "Phoenix". Just how many were still alive? Were the others injured just as bad as I am? Thought Separ as he slowly walked over to Carver. All Separ could do was silently hope for a good outcome.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Tearing flesh, screams of agony, clanking weapons and clattering teeth. Silence. Hazy blue eyes shot open, cutting the gruesome dreams of the oracle short. She glanced rapidly around the tent she had been placed in, trying to remember what had happened up until this point. Alula attempted to move, but found that everything was burning and aching. It felt like every vein in her body had been set alight. She groaned softly, forcing herself to sit up through the pain. But she found she was still constructed, she had been wrapped in a blanket. That's odd. The girl ungracefully squirmed her way out of the blanket, wincing every time she had to move. But if she didn't get up now she might never move again. Her head hurt. A lot. Voices were talking, softly but still there. They were trying to explain what had happened. Her mind felt fuzzy. She remembered agreeing to join a group of adventurers, and then something had happened. Something bad. The rest was blurs. She rubbed her eyes, wanting to pull down her hat. The voices told her that it was long gone, buried beneath the ruins of the burned town, soon to be found by looters. The cloth that the half-elf Vis had given her lost as well. Tucked up into the rim of her hat for safekeeping. And her staff, that was likely in the field where she collapsed. Collapsed. Somehow she had been broken from her trance. That had never happened before. The paladin. The paladin. She was silently panicking. Why couldn't she remember his name? She had to remember. A calm voice echoed through her head, shoving other voices aside. "Carver. Ser Carver. He was the one." Another grunt as she attempted to stand up, her crippled leg buckling out from under her. With bitter determination Alula got to her feet, leaning all of her weight on her good leg. She looked out of the tent, keeping her eyes cast downward. The sun was setting and she needed to get away.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver put a hand on the man's shoulder. "Do not, my friend. Down that path lies madness. There will come a time to mourn for the fallen and commend their souls to the heavens, but now we must turn our minds to those that may still be saved." The paladin bent down and hoisted the witch none-too gently over his shoulder. "Such as those waiting for us, for example. Kelvin, Alula, the gnome and the half-elf are nearby - I have not seen Rose in some time." Carver turned, and began carrying the witch back to camp.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin "Yeah, a lot more places." Kelvin grimaced and stirred some leaves with his foot. "If the 'harvesting' happens everywhere, there will be no where left to harvest." He turned, laying down. Maybe he would take a rest. Kelvin continued talking, his eyes closed. "They might not be alive anymore. As for the rubble and corpses… they were harvested by someone else. When selfish people want other people's possessions, they take them by force. Harvesting is bad when you take things that other people have, that is why we trade gold for things we want." He opened his eyes to watch Carver move into the woods, noting the elf's absence. That left him alone with the two that needed watched. Luckily, the gnome didn't seem likely to wander, and the oracle was passed out near him. "If you go back, they will harvest you too." His voice had dropped to a low murmur. "Heroism is for the brave." Kelvin had drifted to sleep, propped slightly against the tree with his crossbow in his lap.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was close to lashing out on the gnome. She wouldn't hurt him, or at least not intentionally. Just enough to spook him away from her, so she could sneak off into the trees. She growled, gripping her staff tighter. Her voice was showing that same amount of corruption as before, but far weaker. Her voice lacked confidence but made up for that in anger. "We do not need you to tell us who we are. I know who I am." Alula's luck continued to run out as Carver broke through the treeline, carrying the hooded woman with the punching man behind him. She was hoping he would be able to sense her distress, and pick the gnome off her her, but instead he brought more bad news. More attackers. She didn't have time for this. She couldn't stay. If she did they would have more then just five attackers to deal with. She shook her head when Carver tried to get her up into the tree, his direction would have been disastrous. "No. No no no no." She said, panic and corruption taking over her calm disposition. "I cannot stay and I do not need protection, you do." She shook her head again, looking anxiously up at the sky. The sun was gone and soon the moon would take its place. Without looking at the gathered party Alula moved past them, trying to speed up her limping walk. "I must go." She repeated. She did not fear the enemies in the woods. They should be fearing her. She could see the first rays of moonlight. Her hair was glowing.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver whirled at the sound of the pair's voice. "Friends! Come, quickly. We must make a stand here. Look after the child, half elf. I will draw our foe's attention." Alula stumbled back, staring at the sky. Carver looked at her as she began to stumble away, towards the woods - towards the enemies. As he watched, her hair began to glow again - silver, like the moon. Was she about to enter the same state she'd been in during the battle? That would be catastrophic - there would be no hiding their position from the main body of the foes if she were to begin firing off moonbeams again. She needed to be calmed down before she transformed. The paladin hurried to the girl and spun her around to face him. "My lady," he said, calmy, in spite of the light spreading over her, "If you go into those woods, you will die. You say that we are the ones in need of protection, and this may be so. But I carry my protection with me, and I do not fear. Stay close behind me, and I will protect you. I swear."</s> <\|message\|>Alula She was turned around to face Carver, her glowing hair drifting around her without weight. Her eyes were glowing slightly and her expression was one of restraint. Her entire body trembled, as if something was trying to escape from within her. It was taking all of Alula's strength and resolve to keep herself composed. She seemed to relax for a moment as Carver spoke to her, her glow dying down slightly, but moments later it came back even stronger. Alula trembled again. Even her voice sounded strained. "I do not doubt for a moment that you would be able to protect me." She paused a moment, eyes squeezed shut. "But this is...beyond me..." A shaky exhale, squeezing her eyes shut tighter. "The creatures in the woods cannot kill me, they are too late for that." Alula opened her eyes, brightly glowing and yet still displaying desperation. "You have to trust me. Please." She begged. "I will...return...eventually..." Her voice lacked confidence. "It is only the night. It's who we are. It's part of me." Another violent shake, a curse in a foreign language. "I am dangerous. I don't want to hurt anyone else."</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ walked towards Carver and placed a hand on his armored shoulder. "Carver, if she insists on going then we should not stop her. Let us instead focus on fighting by her side. The enemies are dangerous after all, me and the girl back there almost died and this fight may end with the same outcome or worse. Let's just do what we can alright?" Separ turned towards Alula looking at her directly. "I'll back you up any way I can if you have some sort of plan?" Rushing the enemy felt reckless to Separ, but he knew there wasn't much of a choice. Those scouts would find them eventually if they didn't now, defeating them now would be the best option. Though it would probably also be a good idea to relocate camp afterwards, seeing as sooner or later the other raiders will notice the disappearance of this squad. Separ took a deep breath trying to collect himself as he still felt rather tired from everything that had happened. Taking off his backpack he laid it behind a tree a few meters away from the group. Alright, now I can move a little bit better, but still this is going to be tough. Separ turned towards Carver and walking towards him whispered. "So, are you ready to do this then? I'll be right behind you the whole time."</s> <\|message\|>Des The five scouts started to move in closer to where the crew was positioned. One noticed movement and the scouts started racing to where the movement was spotted. Time until they reach the camp: Five minutes of game time</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver nodded to Separ hesitantly. "I... yes. You are right. We will do what we can. Stay close behind me, Separ. When their mightiest blows fall upon my guard, that is when you must strike. My lady... do what you must, but stay safe, and keep the light displays to a minimum. Everyone else behind me. Our priority is protecting the child." With that, he strode forward and slowly, rhythmically, began to pound the hilt of his sword against his shield. His mind wandered back to another time, when a much younger man by his name had done much the same thing. Sir Greenvale was striding in front of the line of recruits. The man was like a cliff face - huge, imposing, unyielding. He scanned the line with impassive eyes, and at length asked a question. "Does the Paladin fear pain?" As once, the recruits beat their shields and answered. Clang."No!" "Does the Paladin fear disgrace?" Clang. "No!" "Does the Paladin fear death?" Clang. "No!" "What does the Paladin fear?" Clang. "Failure!" The hammering intensified, growing louder with every blow. Carver would not fail. "On me, friends! They draw near!"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Relief washed over Alula, although she did not relax yet. The possibility of her hurting Carver was still too high for her to relax. And yet her expression visibly softened to a smile, she felt much calmer now knowing that Carver wasn't going to follow her. Her words had finally gotten through to someone. She took a trembling step away from Carver, looking into the woods. "If I am lucky I can sneak around the attackers." She looked up at Carver, and then to the moon, shivering again. "I will try and keep my lights down, if only to protect you, but I am not sure if I will be able to control it." Alula gave a final glance over her shoulder to Carver, opening her mouth as if to say more but then deciding against it. She could explain to him later. She angled her entrance in the woods as a way to flank the enemies. All of her movements became clear and deliberate, her limp dissolving into gentle glides. She moved gracefully through the trees, as if she was passing right through them. Alula looked a bit different from her normal, not glowing, self. But she also looked vastly different from earlier during the fight. Earlier she had cracks of light breaking through her skin, as if her inner forces were fighting against their outer shell. But now she looked more at peace and content, a gentle glow encompassing her whole body. She took a deep breath, trying to remain calm as she drifted through the trees. She could hear the rhythmic pounding of Carvers sword against his shield. The sound reminded her of something, a faded memory from her past. She could feel the dread of the memory in her heart, but her mind was blank. She swallowed nervously, moving as quickly as possible. She wasn't going to hurt him. She was going to hurt any of them.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace It was suddenly crowded in the fields. People were yelling at each other, there were even more people coming with lights. Alula had gotten away and his chance to see what it was that pressured her was gone. Weapons were drawn, the approaching people had fire and weapons also. Had they come to harvest more? We didn't want that. Right? Carver started to beat his sword on his shield repeatedly. Furnace didn't know why the rhythm reminded him of the rhythm of hammer and forge. It was comforting, and though he was conflicted over the idea of forging here in the field he was drawn closer. He stood near to Carver and Separ, close enough that they could see him in the tall grass even when Furnace crouched. "This is no place to have a forge, there is too much fuel here, I won't be able to contain the fire." He pulled out his sword. It was slightly bent and dented. The melting had made the blade a little dull and a little shorter. But it could still hurt. "The glowing girl doesn't want to hurt anyone. I want to help her do that. If that means I have to hurt these people in her stead, I think I want to hurt these people. What do you think?" Furnace stared at Separ and Carver on either side of him. "Do you want to hurt these people?"</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin awoke to the ringing of metal on metal, his eyes snapping open. He was disoriented for just a moment. The forge? It had been years since he last had worked metal. Falen had always been an early riser though. He rolled onto his side and found his face two feet from the hooded girl's. "No… what happe-" His face contorted in horror and he rolled the other way, standing upright before realizing where he was. Color slowly returned to his face. This wasn't the inn. He took a deep breath before looking around, spotting the lights moving through the forest towards their small opening in the trees, and more importantly, Carver and Separ squaring up to meet them. At his feet was that woman. However those two had gotten here, it was fortune. First things first. Kelvin quickly repacked his bag, glancing about to make sure there were no misplaced items before slinging it over his shoulders. It took only a moment to fill up the crossbows chamber, loading two more slugs from his belt pouch to bring it back to full clip. Alright. The seer was… He glanced about, not seeing a trace of her, unless the glowing in those trees a bit farther off was her. "Elf, grab the kid, we need to move." Kelvin looked down and knelt, allowing his crossbow to hang off the sling he had made earlier and picked up the black haired beauty, allowing the blanket to fold over her a bit. "Lady, you are heavier than you look. Can't tell if it's you or the dress though." Kelvin grunted to himself and hoisted her a bit higher, adjusting his arms under her legs and shoulder. Truthfully, she wasn't horribly heavy, but he could only go so far like this. "Fair warn'n though. If I need to shoot, I'll be droppin' yeh." Not that she could hear him, but whatever. Kelvin headed diagonally away from where Carver and Separ were making their stand, intending to walk parallel to the Seer and away from both the town and the fight. As long as he and the other guy stuck together, they should be alright. At least, as long as the elf knew how to use that sword. Hopefully Carver was smart enough to realize that he would need a head start if the force in town realized what was happening.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ sighed as he listened to the man's words. This guy was unbelievable, trying to get him to feel guilt over something he had nothing to do with, as well as wanting payment to boot. Without turning around either Separ replied with. "I have never seen a person burn alive, I'll give you that. But what does this have to do with anything? Yes it was your daughter, and I feel sorry for your loss. Nonetheless, we're human too. Just because Carver has a sword doesn't mean he's some unstoppable juggernaut. I'm not invincible either, none of us are. We're only human, well excluding the gnome and the elf, but while I do wish I could have saved the town I know I'd just add to the death pile. I barely escaped with my life, and," motioning towards the cloaked girl who was still fast asleep. "I managed to save her life as well. That's as much as I could muster, so sorry if I'm not Mr. Superhero the fourth. Also don't expect much money out of me, I mean I'll help out, but from what I can tell, you appear to be no good. I just hope the only reason you're acting like this is because you just lost your town and family. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Goodnight." And with that Separ finally entered his tent and fell asleep, exhausted from such a long day of fighting.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat nestled herself between the pillar like roots of the oak tree, looking small among the woody tendrils of the massive plant. She nibbled into the bread, looking as if she were not hungry, however she was starving but her seized up heart wouldn't let her eat, like a lump in her stomach taking up all the space. As the man spoke of his burning daughter, she shrunk further and further into the recess between the roots, until she was as small as she could be, her head between her knees and her arms pulling them towards her chest. She had lost her appetite. To her own frustration, she started to cry, ever so quietly so she could not be heard. Vis turned away from the flickering flame and cast a green light behind him with his cursed eye, his heart stumbled over itself and reached out to the little girl, his green light softening to almost nothing. He moved towards her, taking his time to shove his way past the new guy to express his feelings. Vis crouched at Khat's feet and looked at her before he spoke. "You're muther wouldn'th wanth you crying, you know thath, righth?" he asked her gently, putting a hand on her's. She shook it off harshly and barked in his face. "How would you know?!" She had had enough, bursting into tears she launched herself at Vis and clung to him, thumping his back with her balled up fists as she wept, "I've got no one! No one but a dumb half-elf!" Vis knew her rage was only fueled by her grief but her words still hurt. Soon she grew exhausted and fell asleep, her face tear stained and her long red hair tangled and matted from her thrashing. Vis rested his head on the tree as he sat, the girl sound asleep on his lap. "Whath am I thoo do?" he mumbled to himself.</s> <\|message\|>Carver Carver watched Separ enter his tent. The man was generous in his defense of Carver, but ultimately, misguided. It had not been his responsibility to defend the village, nor Kelvin's, nor Vis's. When Carver put on the armor, he swore an oath - he made the defense of all things good and peaceful his responsibility forevermore. The refugee's words were compelling, however. Truly, the man had lost much, endured much, and he deserved to be heard out at the least. "If you do take responsibility," said the refugee, "I do expect reparations. Safe passage to other towns. The lives of people are not insurable, but I expect at least the compensation for everything I've lost. I'm a merchant who had a pretty penny to his name. I've lost a lot. This would mean paying off a large monetary debt, however long it takes." Without him even realizing it, Carver's upper lip curled into an expression of disgust at the words. "So that's it, then? Money." The paladin rounded on the man, hands clenching into fists. "You speak of money when homes are gutted and pillaged. You speak of money when innocents are slaughtered, women defiled, children burned. You've borne witness to carnage indescribable, and yet you have words for your fortune?!" The knight was shouting now, the full weight of his fury bearing down on the man. "What I failed was beyond sums and figures. The peaceful life that was taken from those villagers was worth more than all the coin you could ever put your hands on. I will live in penance for this failure and for many others, but I will not spend my days recompensing a miser his 'pretty penny.'" Carver turned to walk towards his tent. Almost as an after-thought, he yanked his coinpurse from his side and tossed it over to the man. "There. Ten coins, all the money to my name. Take it, if you value it so greatly. I do not care for its stink." With that, the paladin entered the tent, still bristling with indignation.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Only human, of course, that was likely where their value fell short. Only human. Though, he had to wonder - did the brawler come back out only to argue with him, then go back to bed once more? Was arguing with a supposed refugee so important to him? A supposed refugee who had supposedly lost so much? It was adorable, to say the least. Now, back to business... with Carver. He felt that his delivery was smooth and tactful, yet the paladin seemed to have interpreted his words in such a different way. Taken at face value instead of being contemplated upon. Indeed, these holy knights were valued for their initiative, though Arastoph felt they were too quick to act. As the paladin stood at his full height, raining his anger down upon the merchant, Arastoph held his composure but at least kept his eyes wide with intrigue and leaned back - if not to avoid the spittle from the knight's rage as he flung his coins at his lap. He watched the paladin retreat into his tent, annoyed at how poorly negotiations went this time around. Arastoph sighed aloud, then spoke up in a calm and easy voice, in his attempt to temper the paladin's ire. "Perhaps I should have clarified, Carver... but clarifications or no, I wouldn't have expected you to be so naive as to jump to conclusions so quickly without asking me to explain myself. Money is required if I am to rebuild my life. Money is the only thing that our society cares about. Without it, I'm as dead as I would have been back in Ravenwood." Arastoph paused as the reality of his previous situation sunk in. He really could have died. "I just ask that I receive the resources that would allow me to rebuild. As much as I would love to spend the rest of my days grieving over my parted kin... I will make it a mission to carry on; if just for her." He ended his explanation there, not expecting an answer back from the paladin. He hoped, at least, that the knight would hear what he said and consider it. Sleep on it. Arastoph looked around the camp that had suddenly grown quiet. He never was much of a sleeper. Less so outdoors, and less so among strangers. Especially if one or two of those strangers distrusted him. The most he will be able to do this night is to rest his eyes, and listen to the excited activity of the forest.</s> <\|message\|>Alula The rest of the night was rather eventful for Alula. She had returned to the field where she first departed from the group, only to discover that her allies were nowhere to be found. Not only that, but the space at one point had been occupied by raiders. Likely the same raiders that Alula was able to drive away. Alula had considered this a sign, and was ready to leave with Alula to find a newer and quieter location. But a quiet, anxious, voice in the back of her mind urged her to keep searching for the rest of her friends. Of course Alula knew where they were, it wasn't difficult to locate them. They had not yet fallen asleep, and Alula knew she had to wait until at least the majority of them had gone into their tents. After waiting for awhile she noted that all who remained were the current watch, as well as a few stragglers. It disturbed her that the half elf and girl stayed outside. There was also a new presence, two in fact, but she would leave those to the morning. Alula drifted into the field where they had decided to make camp. She looked up at the moon with a smile. She felt much better, much stronger, now that she had had her time to bask out in the moonlight. All she had needed was some alone time to charge. Her glow as much brighter then before, as if she was her own light in the sky. She looked over at each of the tents. The girl seemed content to rest outside. "Child, you are lucky I was given control this night. But your luck will not continue for long. You will have to tell the others, despite that scaring you." She drifted silently through the field, avoiding the gaze of the watch. With a soft sigh Alula floated gently to the ground, the tall grass seeming to pull towards her. Her light slowly dimmed out before leaving Alula completely to sleep in the grass. And she would remain there until morning.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin nodded wordlessly as the elf came over, taking on the burden of both a small child and the young woman himself. He sighed with relief as she was lifted off of him, though the relief came from the release of responsibility, rather than weight. He kept his eyes closed as they trudged deeper into the darkening forest. Alone. It was really his choice now. Continue with their few companions, and bind his fate to theirs, or maybe give up and let worst roll over him. With the others, he had no choice, as their lives became tied to his decisions. Now however, at least those two girls would survive. He had done his duty. Kelvin remained there peacefully, crossbow ready on his lap, until Carver's nearing calls brought him to wakefulness. I guess my story isn't finished quite yet. ~~~TimeSkip~~~ Setting up camp was a simple task, one that he relished. Proper supplies. It was great fortune that Separ had procured supplies before fleeing the ruins. The tents were fine, if they crammed in, but there wasn't a way to stretch the sleeping rolls between so many people decently. Some would go without. Even so, setting up the tents was quick and automatic for him, so Kelvin took pleasure in working with both Separ and the little Gnome, answering questions freely. Even so, it was late when they had finished the cold camp. No fires tonight. He waved a hand in Carver's direction as the watch order was called. "I'll take the double watch. I don't mind the time to think." Kelvin yawned and held up a hand to forestall an inevitable paladinish protest. "Look at it this way, not only have you been fighting today, but you need to be at your best for tomorrow. Let some of us take the smaller loads so you can focus on bigger challenges." He sat back against a tree- not far from the girl- to watch the slight debate between the newest rescued villager, Carver, and Separ. He personally didn't like the way this conversation was going, mostly because he probably had more valuable stuff than anyone else here, save possibly the paladin's armor. On the other hand, he didn't quite feel like crossing this guy either. The man looked more edgy than that half-elf, so Kelvin chose to keep out of the mess. He retired soon after Separ, sparing a thought for the missing Seer, though not for long. She probably had better protection than they could afford. His last act was to move the strange girl he and Vis had carried into a tent, rolling her onto a sleeping bag. Kelvin then proceeded to choose the tent farthest from hers to sleep in. He wouldn't have been able to live with himself if she had woken up with him still in the tent with her. She had too much fun toying with the heads of men, and it was frustrating. Kelvin pulled his backpack into the tent with him, finding himself sharing with the gnome. Not a bad companion, though he still took care to arrange his things away from the creature. No need for accidents. With that taken care of, the engineer let out a breath and let himself sink into sleep.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ woke up in a cold sweat as he realized he had just had a nightmare. Try as he might though he couldn't seem to remember anything about the dream at all though. All he could remember was that there was a training dummy he had been practicing on, but what had happened after that? Shaking his head Separ got out of bed to scared to fall back asleep for now, especially since they had been chased by the raiders before. Now was not a time to sleep, but a time to retreat and get away from this area. He quickly packed up his sleeping bag putting it into his tent, but waited to take down his tent for now to see how the others had been faring. Taking a glance around at where everyone was Separ quickly found Carver and strode up to him. "Sleep well last night?" He asked happily, unaware that there was now a new member of the team. Separ's stomach grumbled suddenly however. He had not gotten much of a chance to eat yesterday after the raid occurred, and while Separ felt a little bit better after his rest, he was now hungry and also a bit thirsty. "I don't suppose anyone has managed to procure some food before..." Separ paused for a moment trying to find the right words to say, but ultimately came up short. He instead just glanced to the side avoiding direct eye contact, muttering the name of the town that had just been destroyed instead, the town known as "Ravenwood."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis heard the call for food, and staggered to his feet, Khat got up to try and help him but he gestured for her to stay down. He shambled over, exhausted from his on and off sleep and slightly tripping on rocks and roots as he staggered over to the small group. Once among them, he slipped off his pack and opened it up, reveling the stale loaves in the bag. he darted his hand in and broke off a pice for breakfast, "I had inithially boughth enough for our original group, but I'd be glad to share with the new comers form my bread," He broke off a piece from his loaf and presented it to the new comer, the one who had foretold of his turing daughter and in a sharp hiss, he whispered to hm, throwing his voice into the man's ear so only he could here, "You bether noth thake her money, that is her hath and if you do, I'll thake it back and then some." He thrust the bread into the man's hand and staggered off, even more exhausted then before, he returned to Khat and collapsed by her side. "Did you get me any?" "You thtill have the chunk from yestherday, finish thath."</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Arastoph rolled his eyes at the child. Was the thing brain-damaged? Actively walking up to a group of strangers, and then sleeping next to the largest man there? And then this... this thing, this cretin has the audacity to look at him and trying to decipher meaning of his own existence? Labeling him as evil? Nay, evil was subjective. But even amongst subjectivity, mankind was the true evil of the world. He was just now labeled evil by an ignorant little child, when he was the product shaped by mankind's hand. He pointed out the young girl that had come through last night and asked if they were together (an absurd assumption, obviously, as helmets do not associate knights of the same order). This grabbed the attention of the girl, and she too had approached. She had marched towards him, her face angry and her eyes were literally glowing. His hand subtlety moved to touch the grip of his stiletto out of suspicion. "Born into this world, pure and yet hated." She said. Arastoph blinked. The girl continued, "To attune for crimes never committed. A full life never to live." At this moment, Arastoph was slightly disturbed, and very much irritated. He scolded, "if you wouldn't mind, the both of you can keep the preposterous divinations to yourselves." The girl, once appearing angry, looked soft. Then subsequently neutral. Surely there was some damage in this one, much as there was in the child. However, she did something unexpected; she motioned towards the hat resting on Arastoph's shoulders, which was kept from falling with a last-minute modification made of a strip of wool. She showed him a coin purse and nudged. Ah, so already there was a business prospect? Interesting. Unfortunately, there was more than one monkey in the group. Another one, the one with the glowing eye (who Arastoph had assumed had no reason to distrust him, and though he was simply being an ass) approached him with some bread and used a peculiar skill that made his voice sound as though it was right next to his ear. Granted, not expecting the speech impediment present in the half-elf's voice caused the trader to miss most of what he was trying to tell him. But the general message was clear: "don't take the money, or else". Arastoph rolled his eyes. He played out the scenario in his head. This man walks up to a merchant, tells him not to conduct business appropriately as the merchant is wont to do, and threatens the merchant if he does. Arastoph simply laughed to himself softly. He didn't fear a crippled monkey, especially not one so harebrained, and especially not in the presence of the paladin, Carver. While they may have gotten off on the wrong foot, he was sure that Carver wouldn't let anything happen outside of what he deemed moral regardless of who was the victim. He overheard the girl asking the fool for more bread. An entertaining idea entered his head, that selling the piece of bread offered to him to the girl would be the ultimate dismissal of his threats. That and he didn't trust food handed to him by strangers. Especially by a stranger who had threatened him. If poison were the case, giving it to the girl would sure draw him out on his intentions. But in the case of taking these people's money, Arastoph had no qualms. He didn't identify with them. He wasn't one of them. He was a merchant. One who fabricated a life lost. He didn't owe these people anything. Perhaps he'd sell the bread after he dealt with the girl and the hat. 'Conducting business is how I've lived my life, and that isn't going to change because a jumped-up elf got pissy. These people are as much patrons as anyone else.' Despite the warning, Arastoph accepted the whole coin purse into his hand, and began counting the pieces. Not too terrible much, but he was surprised to find this kind of pocket money in a group of vagabonds like this one. He counted up a total of a hundred sixty-five pieces. Not bad. The hat may not be worth that much, but none of these people knew that. They couldn't determine the value of an item like he could. "One hundred and sixty-five pieces?" Arastoph asked, sounding somewhat pleased. "That isn't a bad offer. Though this hat and its craftsmanship does seem rather valuable. I apologize, but I think I could probably fetch a better price someplace else. Perhaps even in the next town over."</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki wanted to laugh as she saw the interaction between the merchant and the rest. Covering her momentary lapse with a light cough, she set her expression to as neutral of an appearance as possible. Despite her efforts, the corners of her mouth still quirked up slightly. This merchant was just like the rest of the merchants she 'played' with. Getting everything as cheaply as possible, before burning the other party for as much gold as possible. It was similar to how she easily received 'gifts' from men for doing just a small 'service'. "She's probably the only one you can try that on." With a bemused tone, she couldn't help but to comment on the merchant's actions.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula twiddled her thumbs anxiously once Arastoph finally took her coin purse. Before the man could acknowledge her money, however, Vis came over. Even with the half-elf attempting to conceal his voice, Alula could hear him. Blame it on her being rather perceptive, or because she is used to hearing whispers in her ears. But Vis had threatened the merchant, much to Alula's dismay. She resisted the urge to glare at the half-elf as he returned over to his tree. In reality the last thing anyone would want to do it threaten a merchant. She tried to keep her expression neutral when the man counted out her money, and said it was more expensive then that. It was obvious that Alula was in distress, however. Hazy eyes widened and her hands began to twitch again. She thought quickly about everything she owned. She needed to keep her staff, it was her only way of moving as well as casting. She bent over, slightly awkwardly because of her crippled leg, and took off her sandals. They had tiny pictures of moons and stars stitched into the canvas. They looked well worn, but maybe they would sweeten the deal. Alula then patted down her sides. She could feel her knife through her robes. She reached into her robes and pulled the knife off of her belt. It was a beautiful dagger, iridescent paint shining in the sun, but she never found herself using it in combat. She knew the knife was important to her, or at least that's what the voices told her, but her hat was more important. She held the sandals and the dagger out to the merchant, trying to keep the desperation out of her eyes. She got the horrible feeling that this might not be enough either. But that was everything she owned. Alula glanced around at her companions. Most of them were broke already.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin Kelvin bolted upright in the tent, looking around hesitantly. Had that been a dream, or reality? He closed his eyes, rehearsing it in his mind a few times so it wouldn't fade so quickly as dreams normally do. It was strange. Kelvin waved aside the tent flap and glanced out to make sure no one was near before turning away and sliding off his glove. There it was. It made no sense to him though. The engineer examined the writing closely, and flexed his grip. It didn't seem to make much difference, so he pulled the glove on and gathered his gear, tying the sleeping roll to his pack. That finished, rolled up the gnome's sleeping gear as well and hauled it out of the tent after him, turning to repack the tent- the most important part of breaking camp was efficiency. That done, he turned and moved to each of the unoccupied tents, rerolling bedding and taking down tents as he went. He put any misplaced possessions in a small pile next to the other piles, one of tents and one of sleeping gear. Of course, while he did this, he could see what was going on in the background. The girl was up and flirting. It was like she lived off of it. Though it was entertaining to see the merchant turn her away, with more success than Kelvin managed. The elf looked like he had been dragged through the underworld and back, and acted like it too. Kelvin grimaced and tossed the last sleeping roll he had been working on onto the pile. It would be a shame to make separ carry all of it, though Kelvin did have one sleeping roll on him. It wasn't until the fool seer held out her sandals and dagger that Kelvin swept in. A slight grin tugged at the corners of his mouth as he did so though. He hadn't worked in the merchant sector for a blacksmith and chemist for nothing. Kelvin put a hand over the sandals and knife, pushing the girls hands back towards her. "Oh, come now, there is no need for that." He offered a smile the merchant. "See, we are a bit busy, and don't have much on us. But we do need our equipment. I see you are a savvy man, so why don't you join our crew?" Kelvin waved his hand at the other companions. "None of us are great bargainers, and it would be nice if we had someone who could manage our funds. You can take care of equipment, and we'll let you handle the trades." Kelvin shrugged. "Besides, say you need funds to get back on your feet? Why not earn it from us. I am sure you can turn over plenty of cash if you stick around." He nodded at the coins in the other man's hand. "Consider that a down payment for your services… Though I am sure that both Carver, the elf, and the seer would be appreciative if you gave her hat back as a sign of good will." Kelvin hoisted his pack a bit. "Anyway, with that put to the side, I was wondering if you would be interested in helping me in a more… lucrative business venture? As you can see, I am a bit of a craftsman..." Kelvin raised an eyebrow and twirled a stick of dynamite.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem Ah, this was good. She offered her fancy knife and even the shoes off her feet for the hat. Clearly this meant a lot to her. He could probably squeeze some more out of her, but he couldn't just get every drip from a cow and expect it to produce more later. Not in a timely fashion at least. There was also the matter of prying eyes, and he had to keep an impression. He would refuse the sandals, but the dagger was a nice touch. It was quite the pretty one too. He could probably sell that off in the next market for a fat coin purse. Just as he was to accept the bargain, another interruption had occurred 'Gods be damned, they really have it out for me.' The man insisted that the trade was unnecessary. Insisted that they had little money and equipment. However, Arastoph's eyes narrowed as soon as the man started setting some honey. Praised him. Buttering him up. In a crowd like this one, where every other person seemed to have it out for him, he was naturally skeptical. Then he followed it up with an offer to join the band of dropouts. He felt tempted to immediately reject the offer. Though being an experienced negotiator, he held his tongue and waited for what else he had to say. The man continued, "None of us are great bargainers, and it would be nice if we had someone who could manage our funds. You can take care of equipment, and we'll let you handle the trades." An interesting prospect, to be sure. Granted, if he were to be this... what, guild? This guild's official fence, then he should be expecting payment. They said they were poor. But at least being their fence would supply them with the money needed to pay him. The idea of working for someone else, though, was uncomfortable. "Besides, say you need funds to get back on your feet? Why not earn it from us. I am sure you can turn over plenty of cash if you stick around. Consider that a down payment for your services... though I am sure that both Carver, the elf, and the seer would be appreciative if you gave her hat back as a sign of good will." Earn it from them was the key phrase. He suggested that he worked for them, and Arastoph did not take orders well. The trader sighed at this idea. Arastoph started, "I do not work for others. I am, however, not opposed to the offer of participating in a business relationship in which we are both separate parties. I can provide my services in exchange for compensation, but I do not take orders. That in mind..." Arastoph shook the coin-purse. "This is a generous down payment. However, you did intrude upon a separate business transaction being made before we've signed our contract and shook on it." That isn't to say he completely disrespected the man. He followed his offer up with another. Apparently the man was an engineer, and showed him his dynamite. His eyes lit up at the sight of it, and he smirked at the engineer. This would make quite the bang in the black market. He'd have to continue his search for contacts before he started introducing them to the market though. Arastoph will agree. On the proper terms, of course. The merchant cleared his throat, ready to set the boundaries of their deal being made. "I will agree upon the following conditions: this arrangement is based upon the mutual understanding that we are two independent and consenting parties, meaning I am under no obligation to follow any order issued by any member of your party. However, failure to uphold my end of the deal, or failure to uphold your end of the deal, will terminate this contract. All major transactions exceeding a twenty-five percent threshold of total monetary savings must consult me with their decision. Income based upon the transaction I, myself, have performed will be divided in a manner where I will receive thirty-five percent of the profit made on behalf of your party, and the rest goes to your party where it will be divided evenly between all members. On top of which, continued services will be maintained by two hundred piece payments monthly. "We both accept that I will be payed one hundred and sixty-five piece down payment prior to services beginning. I am forbidden to perform trades with members within your party that charges them an amount which exceeds a two hundred percent threshold of the actual value of my product or service. In addition, I am also forbidden to receive greater than thirty-five percent of the profit made during trades on behalf of your party. Business and trades on behalf of my party is unrelated to the business of your party and cannot be held accountable by the bindings of this contract. This contract does not bind other potential contracts made with other members of your party and of my party as long as they are made on an individual basis and does not pertain to the welfare of your party. I will also be given protection. Not just from the members of your party, but also from the hazards that could occur whilst traveling." Arastoph took a deep breath, and rolled his eyes. He would have to write that down alter. Much of the deal had a lot pertaining to himself and what he would receive. Of course it did. An arrangement like this has much that can be taken advantage of, and he had no intention of being taken advantage of. Granted, there was enough in their favor that hopefully the engineer would see it as fair. A thirty-five percent cut may seem large, but these people haven't seen what he was capable of just yet. He looked back at the seer girl gave her a sly smile with a twinkle in his eye. "That does mean that the money you give me will go to a different transaction. But given the opportunity offered to me is a fair replacement, the dagger you offer is sufficient. Would you like to continue the trade?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula was pleasantly surprised, and relived, when the merchant refused to take her shoes. At least she got to keep those. She was about to hand over the knife, when Kelvin stepped in. He pushed the knife and shoes back into her hands, and began to speak with the merchant. Everything the man was saying was confusing her. Was Kelvin helping her? All she wanted was her hat back. She bent over, again almost losing her fitting, and put back on her shoes. Once the two were finished speaking Arastoph turned back to her. He asked her if she would be willing to part with the dagger for the hat, not to mention that she had already given up all of her gold for it as well. She didn't really care about the money, she just wanted her hat back. She nodded eagerly, handing him the dagger and in exchange she was given her hat. The little woolen string was a nice touch, it would be much harder to loose now. Tugging her hat down over her eyes, finally content to keep her face away from the sun and the others gaze, she smiled.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace had nodded and stared into the sunrise while his new friends discussed complex theories of trade and commerce. He could barely follow the story but the gist of it seemed Kelvin and Vis testing the new man on the subject. Perhaps they needed to measure his abilities? The new man's words were fast and impressive. His knowledge of movements of gold seemed extensive. It was clear he intended to boast his talent, even when Furnace couldn't really catch on to what exactly the talent was. He would trade for them? Furnace had already learned how that went, but he had not heard anything this complex. This all sounded like a school of magic he'd never heard of. One specialised in reading the movements and fluctuating values of gold? That would be.. Aurumancy? Making this man an Aurumancer. Impressive. "Uhm... Can you explain your spells in a way the uninitiated understand."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis made himself comfortable in the cradle of roots and rested, closing his eyes from the soft rays of the morning sun, a soft light of his own spilling past the shut eyelid of his green eye. He was tired and could not bring himself to eat the bread that he got for himself and instead, shook it in Khat's direction, her hand snatched out instantly and took the bread. She gobbled it down, stuffing it into her mouth and early chewing before swallowing, she didn't realize how hungry she was. Once finished with the chunk of stale bread, she turned to thank Vis but closed her mouth when she noticed him lying there, his chest rising and falling evenly, a sign of sleep. She mentally shrugged, before walking over to where he deposited his bag, among the rest of the group, to break off another piece of bread from their shared loaf. As she did, she looked up at everyone with a level, cool look. They were interesting, that was for sure but she only knew one of their names, the Knight's, Carver. She spun on the spot for a moment, looking at everyone before her eyes fell on a cloaked lady, the one who had not been so maliciously swindled by the merchant for a pointy hat. She shuffled over, nibbling her new piece of bread, as the last one had sated most of her appetite. Khat tugged the woman's cloak gently. "Hello."</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin This guy is as slippery as an oiled dwarf. Kelvin grimaced at both the mental image and the man in front of him as he listed off his conditions. The guy was throwing out numbers and conditions like he had contracts memorized… and he probably did, looking at him. Kelvin repeated the terms in short in his head, trying to think them over. Unfortunately, while he was good at math, economics were not his strong suit. There were some unmentioned holes, but he could use those to his own advantage. The terms looked alright, but no reason not to argue them down if he could. "I don't accept." Kelvin let it roll off his tongue the moment the seer had her hat back. "If you want to trade with us, you will do it fairly, at no more than half again the market price." He scratched his beard, "And only a hundred monthly, unless you want to supply your own food and sleeping gear, and you take twentyfive percent of profit made in trades on the parties behalf, if you also want a fair split of any treasures we find along the way. Otherwise, you are on your own for loot." Kelvin wasn't quite sure they were going to be able to afford another hundred gold a month, but if this guy could keep his word… "I recommend you take that deal." Kelvin waved his hand at the gold and shrugged. "Unless you have a different offer, because I am sure we can find other uses for that gold than stuffing your pockets. It looks to me like you need it more than we do." Kelvin spared a glance at Separ and Carver. Carver to make sure the knight was witnessing what was happening, and Separ because the guy was technically their leader. "I hope this won't take too long, after all, we do have one or two enemies a mile or more that way." Kelvin gestured towards the forest, roughly where they had come from.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace eyes brightened in excitement. "Exotic words? Spontaneously appearing? Sounds like magic! And you know it? Please tell me about it. What kind of energy is it? What's it's purpose? Can I learn it?!" While any other would have picked up on Alula's discomfort and concern immediately Furnace completely failed to notice. His mind immediately swarmed with questions and half answers. Memories of lessons on spell-craft long ago. All magic is energy given shape and purpose. The shape is like a vessel for the energy, an instruction that spends the energy to rewrite the laws of nature to a purpose. The purpose is chosen by the entity who gives shape. Shapes can be learned. The most potent shape, the hardest to master but the most versatile of all shapes, is the word. The voice had refused to teach him how to use words, said it didn't suit him. He had affinity with the natural path, the path of learning to shape energy trough intuition. But that didn't stop Furnace from desiring this knowledge. And suddenly an opportunity stood before him.</s> <\|message\|>Alula Alula leaned back, eyes wide with shock, when Furnace began to ask her questions in his excited tone. He was smiling, which was a bit of a surprise to Alula. He didn't fear her. Everyone she had ever met eventually became scared of her power. Albeit, he didn't know everything about her. Regardless, it was nice to have him excited. She leaned back forwards, smiling herself. "Yes the words are quite different from what you would see in this world. It's not in a common language or elvish or gnomish." She decided to skip around in his questions. "The words themselves, while not of this realm, are not magic. What is magic is how they got there." Alula looked around, making sure they were far enough away from the group that no one would overhear her. Especially Carver and the children. "I am an Oracle, one who gets power from the moon. Much like how Carver finds his strength in the sun. The marking on your forehead is the result of one of my powers." Alula considered explaining further, but decided to stop there. She felt rather dizzy all of a sudden, pulling her hat down over her eyes. "As for you learning it...I would say...it would be rather impossible..."</s> <\|message\|>Furnace Furnace listened intensely to her explanation. While he studied her words he thought of the way he could get a hold of energy from deep inside and send it outwards. He saw a mental image of how he'd move his hands to manipulate the strands and strings that flow trough the ether. The image shifted to Alula plucking strings from the sky, weaving sharp beams of moonlight with grace and ease. Then his imagination shifted to an opposite. Carver making the same movements under the sun, weaving bright lances of sunlight with strength and vigilance. Both receiving their power, flowing down from the heavens in a shower of inspiring patterns. These were energies of a nature strange to Furnace. Like the positive and negative they were two sides of a coin, but that was were the similarities stopped. "I understand. Complex forces don't come as natural to me as the more simple energies like light and dark. Or heat." Furnace looked defeated, yet still curious. He carefully touched his forehead. "What words are there here?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Hmm, I suppose it would be better to have some sort of back-up in case I have to fight. Alright, you can come with me." Separ then looked towards Kelvin, however from Kelvin's expression he realized he wasn't going to get that stick of dynamite. He'd have to make due without it. "Okay, once we rescue the girl, all three of us will meet you at the next town over okay? If we don't show up in a few days after you arrive, something must have went wrong and you don't have to wait for us. With that being said, let's go!" Separ swung his hand forward pointing into the direction of the Ravenwood, the fallen town. A long walk was ahead of them, but with any luck they'd be able to find the girl and escape without detection. *** A few hours of walking had past and now both Separ and Vis were nearing Ravenwood. Separ cautiously moved forward, sneaking towards the town while hiding behind all manner of trees and shrubs. The town of Ravenwood could now be seen, and Separ figured they had at least a mile left til they reached it. As Separ approached closer, he felt more nervous though, as every little noise was thought to be an ambush of some kind. Eventually however, they both finally made it to the outskirts of town without running into any raiders. Here was where things got interesting though. Without the cover of the trees, only the debris of fallen buildings could hide their presence, and with the girl nowhere to be found, it was only a matter of time until Vis and Separ would be spotted. "What now?" Separ asked himself, as he slowly examined his surroundings. The only thing he could make out were some raiders which all seemed to be occupied or to far away to notice him, as well as the one giant ettin. Separ examined his options, but wasn't able to think of anything other than just picking a random direction. So instead he looked towards Vis and shrugged, "I don't suppose you have any bright ideas do you?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula It seemed like a member of their party was in trouble, Alula could feel it. But she also knew that the women had hidden strengths, and was more then capable of taking care of herself. She didn't mention any of this as Separ and Vis made plans to go after her. She wondered if it would really take them days to find Suki. They were likely to run into trouble. Alula peered out from under her hat, as if waiting for the gnomes expression to change. Hrs it'll seemed excited, and inquisitive. She was pleasantly surprised, as well as relieved, when he ceased his questions. It was true, lunar energy was quite complex. She had trained her entire life and even then some to become as proficient as she was. Alula smiled when he asked what was written on his forehead. She moved closer and moved her hat and hair away from her eyes, in an attempt to make herself see better. She studied the markings intensely before leaning back away from Furnace. She covered her mouth, as if suppressing a laugh. If the girls teachers could see her penmanship now they would be appalled. Alula smiled, uncovering her mouth. "These symbols..." She paused, thinking. "There really isn't a good translation..." She paused again. "Hm...you would often see these written to friends going through a hardship, a condolence." She frowned, pulling her hat back down over her eyes. She felt dizzy. "I am not sure what they mean in relationship to you."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Bright Ideas. Vis was never the sharpest sword on the rack, however this time he was wracking his brains to think of a solution. Then it hit him. "Yeth, I haf one idea." Vis turned around and began to rummage through his backpack until he found what he was looking for, the black poncho he took off the dead raider. He pulled it on and ducted it off from most of it's dirt and mortar dust. "I go in drethed as one off them and you'll be my prithner." Vis didn't know whether this was a good idea or not, he rarely had them but it seemed feasible, as long as no one asked him what he was doing with a living prisoner, everything should be alright. Meanwhile back at the tree, Khat was missing, she had gone after Vis and the shirtless man.</s> <\|message\|>Furnace "Intresting" Furnace pondered his forehead calligraphy. "Are these words given by or to me? I wonder what hardships the could be. They aren't future ones are they?"</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ Separ considered the thought for a moment, pretending to be a prisoner, and a raider huh? It was just crazy enough to work, though it was also incredibly dangerous. While Separ would have liked more time to think up and discuss plans, time was of the essence. Finding and saving the girl would not be a simple task by any means. "Alright Vis, we'll go with your plan, let's just hope we can find the girl fast enough so we can get in and slip out though." Separ faced away from Vis and held out both of his hands behind him. "Bind my arms loosely if you have the means too. It should help us really sell it."</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin His expression remained locked during the man's reply. No, he didn't grasp the concept at first, but it didn't catch until the man further expounded the idea. Then it made all the logical sense in the world. He still wanted that two hundred a month lowered- no matter what the man said about what he could make them in profits, that all was dependant on actual trade being performed. Which, while Kelvin was all for employing his services as an engineer, they would need to actually get loot to sell for any large profits. Carver stepped in before he could counter, but the man was right. They needed to move. The little gnome had an impressive grasp of math though. It made Kelvin wonder what else he was capable of, recalling his past experience of having his profession practically guessed by smell in the bar. He waited a bit, considering ways to lower that monthly price, letting the numbers roll through his head like cogs in a wheel. The girl and the gnome had their chances at conversing with the merchant. Kelvin was a bit surprised that the man replied at all, considering the innocence of one and the emotional nature of the other. Men like this weren't usually so patient, even with the venom he used in his wordings. Then Carver planted himself between them. The knight was right in all respects. Kelvin nodded, blinking away the haze of bargaining and numbers. He had a tendency to focus too much on one task, when it came to anything resembling an intellectual challenge. Part of the job. He had turned back to their gear when the seer started speaking. The girl? Kelvin slowly turned about. She was missing alright. He froze. Was she part of the raiding party? He hadn't seen her until Separ had arrived last night- but it would make sense for her to head back if she was. Slip away and rejoin the group, then bring down an avalanche of enemies on their heads. He practically ignored the extra boy who had joined their group. Just another possible survivor, people joining them wasn't as concerning to him as people leaving. Then of course, Separ said his peace. He was your typical hero. Not that it was a bad thing… Kelvin could use more blind optimism in his life. The guy was crazy to ask for dynamite. It wasn't that Kelvin was stingy with his gear, but there was plenty to go wrong with that. All he had on himself was flint and steel anyway- which would take a bit of time to light dynamite with. It wouldn't be much for close combat. Only the gnome had a dependable way to light it up on the fly. He was relieved when the man turned away, and a bit ashamed. Separ and the half-elf left, the little girl going off to pout next to a tree. He spared a glance towards the gnome and seer. She had pulled back the little guys hair and exposed the mark. Kelvin felt a chill go through his spine watching them, flexing his gloved hand unconsciously. That would have to wait for later. "Carver is right." He nodded at the merchant, promising further discussion later in the motion. "We need to be moving, as much as I hate to leave so many team members behind." He didn't feel like alerting the others that, assuming the girl was a traitor, Separ and the elf were going to their deaths. "We can leave behind their packs here, since we don't need the extra gear. When they come back this direction they can pick it up on their way past." He looked about, counting their people. Not so bad… He recounted, and then frowned. Where was the girl. He slowly counted everyone again. Kelvin stared hard at the roots where she had been a moment ago. Various expletives ran through his head in a flash. Kelvin turned sharply to Carver. "The other girl is gone too… I doubt she would have gone anywhere but..." He glanced in the direction of the burned-out town. "I understand if you want to go after her, but let me make a recommendation. Leave behind your armor and take your sword and shield. You will need to travel fast, and if you get bogged down in the fighting you could doom Separ and the elf as well as that girl." He sighed, a sinking feeling in his stomach. It would be simpler if the knight chose to just push on with the party, but that sense of honor would possibly be Carver's undoing. Go after the two girls, or press on to safety with the other innocents in the party. Not a great choice for a paladin to make.</s>
<\|description\|>Kelvin Appearance: Race: Human Class: Engineer Main-Hand Weapon: Repeater Crossbow* Off-Hand Weapon: Toolbelt* Secondary Weapon: Backpack* Armor: Cloth Skills: Explosives Master: Kelvin is extremely skilled in the handling, use, and creation of explosive devices. Given supplies and a bit of time, Kelvin can improvise a wide variety of tricks and distractions using his skills, as well as disarm explosive traps. Tinkerer: Kelvin possesses a lot of experience in tinkering and crafting odd things, and has a decent chance at disarming traps, as well as being more than capable of setting them himself on the fly. Problem Solver: Because of his knowledge, Kelvin is capable of jury rigging and improvising his way through problems (often unconventionally) using both what he has on him, and random local resources. (Can 'observe' and 'search' areas and interact with the environment in advanced ways.) Weaknesses: Combatively Incompatible: Kelvin lacks in the close quarters skills, other than 'run fer y'ur life!'. Half-deaf: Explosions and the like have left Kelvin deaf in one ear, as well as missing a pinkie. Personality: Over confident and domineering when it comes to his specialties, Kelvin represents one of those "Stand back and watch this" types of guys. (But really, if he tells you to stand back, there is likely a reason.) In combat, he tends to hang back and shoot from the back, and isn't afraid to run like the coward he really is. This guy tends towards the eccentric, but generally means well for all involved. Background: Not much to say, his father was a woodcarver and his mother a daughter of a hunter. Kelvin took interest in both crafts growing up, particularly enjoying making puzzle boxes and toying with the spring power found in bows. He dabbled in smithing for a bit, then alchemy, and finally found good mentor in a larger city. Now he is here. Other: Designed for shooting 'slugs' with a fast winding mechanism, making it more like a two step semi-automatic. Their short stature and heavy design make the bolts focus on the impact rather than penetration. As far as accuracy, this weapon's penetration range is maxed at about thirty meters. 4 Torches Rope Cord 10 metal stakes 4 Sticks of Dynamite Bucket Canvas Tarp Stack of paper String 1 Small keg of gunpowder Extra crossbow darts Hammer Screwdrivers (3 sizes) Shears Flint & Steel Chisel Bear Trap Pouch of crossbow darts</s> <\|message\|>Suki Enkou Suki squirmed as the raider tied her arms and wrists, before mentally sighing in resignation as she allowed gravity to take hold of her bound limbs. Though the raider said that he 'may' be willing to let her go, if she spoke, it wasn't as if she could just tell the raider what happened. Besides, that group might prove useful after all, and it would be such a pity if she were to lose them right now. "Unfortunately, I have no clue." Speaking normally, she noticed that, with her being held up be her legs, upside down, it not only dropped her skirt, revealing what was underneath, but along with her chest also being pulled by gravity, pulling them against the front of her dress. Perhaps with this position, she can use it to her advantage. "If you'd let me go, I think I have another way of paying you back. Would you like me~?" She'd never try seducing someone while being in such a disadvantageous position. There were also quite a number of things that could go wrong. However, she still wasn't willing to bring out the undead just yet. So she spoke with her usual sultry tone.</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis nodded and shoved them forwards as a patrol of guards passed by, trying to look as convincing as possible. When he turned left what little color in his skin drained from his face. The girl was suspended upside down and her, 'bits' were exposed. he grabbed the pair by the wrists and hauled them back around the corner, for her sake as well as theirs. He looked around and found a building that didn't look too destroyed and he lead them there, going inside to find it was a book store of some description, "alrighth, hide in here and I'll be righth back, these raiderth don't look thoo welcoming." Vis turned to Separ and leaned in close o his ear, "I hope you inthend on keeping your promise," his eyes flicked to Khat who seemed to be looking around at the books, "I.. I think I mighth care abouth her." He left the building and propped up a wooden plank to obscure the entrance. Vis popped around the corner and kept his eyes off of the woman, he instead acted like he was pissed, "Whath the fuck!" he yelled, waving his arms exaggeratedly, "Cuth 'er down! If tha boss hearth abouth thith, he'll kick yer atheth."</s> <\|message\|>Alula Thins were rather quiet around camp, until they suddenly weren't. Raiders, likely finding them by following the trails of Vis and Separ. She frowned, knowing what would happen if she was around danger. She tried to level her breathing, telling herself there was no need to get hasty and attack. Because Carver was going to protect them. Alula clenched her jaw, eyes glowing brightly from under her hat. She was horribly confused and overwhelmed. Voices screamed from every direction, and she was unable to hear a single command or vision. It was chaos. Not only did her head feel crowded and distant, her body hurt as well. It was a foreign feeling, watching as Carver ran off into the woods, into the danger. Her stomach was twisting into knots, and her chest felt tight. Perhaps her time was almost up. She glanced around camp, trying to keep herself composed. Everyone was in danger, so many possibilities. Alula frowned, muttering to herself. "Everything is foggy, thick and unseeable. Like fog across a lake. Danger lurks but life stays hidden." She shivered. Vis, Separ, and the female child were off and likely to die. They may or may not have found the woman. Carver was off into the woods. This left herself, the merchant, the gnome, and Kelvin remaining. As well as the young boy, but she refused to take responsibility for him. She couldn't. Alula watched as the gnome began to grab gear and then run ahead, following Carvers direction. She would do the same. She first made sure that Kelvin and the merchant were in front of her. She would take up the rear, it was safer that way. She then, despite the voices, turned to the boy. She didn't speak but instead gestured down the path. Hopefully the child would catch up to the gnome. And then began to limp down the path herself. She refused to look back.</s> <\|message\|>Des and Voltus "Well if you think you could be of service then maybe..." Then some random dickhead came strolling in. "What do you mean, this was the boss's idea to capture some survivors. What do you care what I do with her now that we've done what the boss asked?"</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Vis decided that he would be intimidating, after all, bandits admired that. He marched right up to the man who had talked and pushed his forehead onto his, "Maybe if ya cleaned tha waxth ou' of yer ears ya would 'ave 'eard that the guy in charge wanted them to be put in tha town center, by tha tavern." Vis had his hand on his dagger, drawing his rapier would take too long in such close quarters.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ It's pretty obvious you do care about her Vis. Thought Separ as he glanced towards the girl but it was kind of hard to see her in the dim light. "My name's Separ, what's yours?" He whispered, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible. It wasn't exactly the best way to go about things what with there being a whole bunch of raiders outside, but Separ figured he should at least say something every now and then so the girl didn't become bored or anything. Besides, who knows just how long this rescue mission was going to take. It would probably be a good idea to at least get acquainted with each other on a first name basis.</s> <\|message\|>Des @gammaflux @Kimiyosis Daven started to ignore Vis and walked to the girl and cut her down, leaving her wrists and legs tied, "If it's that big of a deal to you then take her yourself." At that the men walked off. The other group of raiders arrived at the broken down tavern and,seeing no sign of Vis, started a patrol group for a possible impostor with a speech impedement and two or more prisoners. As the searched, Night began to fall. Wanderer @Spoopy Scary @Dragonbud @akje As the party reached the halfway point to BitterBourne, night began to fall and the group had to decide whether to stop for the night or keep going. Des walked up to the noisy lady(Alula) and tugged on her robe to get her attention. "Miss, what's going to happen to the sun man?"</s> <\|message\|>Alula The entire walk away from camp Alula was silent. She had nothing to say to anyone. She tugged her hat down over her eyes, but occasionally peaked out from under her hat to watch the sun sink down behind the trees. Night would be coming and she needed to leave. They soon came across a good place to camp, where Alula stopped right in her tracks. She spoke for the first time in several hours. "I do believe this would be a fine place to stop for the night." She spoke with a strange clarity, uncharacteristic of her slow speech. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was starting to glow. "With any luck, the others will catch up with us before the morning." Without explaining herself she tried to make her way towards the woods, hoping the others would take the hint and stay put for the night. She felt bad leaving the child and the gnome with Kelvin, but he was tough enough for the two of them. Unfortunately, she was stopped before she could get away from the others. Someone was tugging on her cloak. The child. She suppressed a growl and tugged her hat down over her eyes. Alula spoke with a strange amount of anger, as well as the corruption echoing in her voice as she spoke to the boy. "Isn't it obvious? The man ran off into the woods to battle an unseeable amount of bandits. He lacked armor and was clearly outnumbered." She grumbled something about stupid children before, again, trying to get away from the group.</s> <\|message\|>Arastoph Xylem It was quite a long and eventful day. Between having had no sleep the previous night, half of the party he had recent acquainted himself with going off to who-knows-where on what was apparent to be a mission to willingly swan dive into the dragon's maws - the merchant had little sympathy for the fools - and then they were suddenly surrounded by bandits, with the foolish knight sacrificing his life so that the others may flee. Foolish, certainly; Arastoph definitely would not have done the same, but he appreciated the act as it allowed him to live another day. However, that extra day comprised him of hiking through rough terrain to get to the next town over while he was sleep deprived. While he still detested the idea of sleeping among strangers, he felt that his body might win out this time around. He had no interest in talking with any of those who were left; he was too exhausted and irritable for him to be so patient with them. The boy, however, still seemed to have plenty of energy left to harass the seer girl as she began to wander off. "However you look at it," he began to explain, "every man and woman is a sinner. Some sin less, some sin more, some are better at hiding it." Arastoph sighed and closed his eyes just as a cool breeze blew by and soothed his hot skin and aching muscles. "Carver is probably dead and will be suffering eternal damnation. We can just hope he's being tortured by two hundred ninety-nine pitchforks instead of three hundred."</s> <\|message\|>Katya "Khat" Khat climbed up a bookshelf and sat on top, looking down at the suddenly shorter man, "My name is Khat," she hissed down, trying to be quiet but still audible, "What of it?" she scanned the man with a scrutinizing eye, he wore little armor and didn't even carry a weapon, 'what kind of adventurer is this guy?' she thought to herself. Standing up, Khat leapt to the other bookshelf, landing with a gentle tap as opposed to a clumsy thud. "Are you Vis' friend?" she asked. Vis bundled up Suki, throwing her roughly over his shoulder, "if ye artheholes find any more prisoners, 'ow about lockin'em up inthead of trying' tha rape'em?" he walked off back in the in the opposite direction he came in, as if he were going to the center of town, however when he was out of sight he looped around the long way, heading back to the bookstore where he had hid Separ and Khat.</s> <\|message\|>Separ Kurel Separ "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to introduce myself is all. So Khat's your name huh? It's rather pretty. And as for Vis, you could say he's my friend. Though, whether or not he thinks the same of me, well that's debatable." I sighed as my thoughts jumped to Vis and the girl. Hopefully they were both okay, but all I could do was hope. I couldn't even see from outside this building, so that would make things a lot more difficult. Please be safe.</s>	<\|message\|>Kelvin It was painful. Men seemed to crash in on all sides, breaking the safety of the clearing and leaving it shattered like sharp glass. Luckily, he was packed. Kelvin snatched up two of the packages the gnome had made in either hand, and booked it. He didn't pause- he wasn't a Paladin. Even so, he could feel stabbing pain in his gut- the jerk of leaving behind an ally. Carver had only his sword, his shield, and the blessing of a god to make it through. Brave man, likely a dead one. Kelvin couldn't take the time to look back, just muttering a small offering for the man. "Go Paladin, a man born of plight to fight through sin. Never fall, listen to the child's call. Go my kin. No amount of steel can hide your heart of tin. Enemies may maul, but a hero stands tall. Come Paladin, dance for heaven's ball." He wasn't quite sure where he knew it from, but it was an appropriate lyric for the situation. Kelvin did little as they slowed. Constant running would leave a man tired. "I didn't know you were a believer, merchant." Kelvin glanced at the man. "Odd." He wasn't really that interested. Kelvin glanced about, beginning to count heads.</s>
<\|description\|>Jack D'oh. Newbie around here, just saw the OOC and Characters tab. Feel free to clean off my reply if need be. Appearance: 5'10", long dirty blonde hair, green eyes. Wears a black vest and a pair of jeans, has a canvas cloth holster on his right hip. Heavy boots, salvaged from an old military base by his father. Most of his equipment is in his home. Weapons: A 9mm pistol (Sig 228), a single shot shotgun made out of a pipe and various miscellaneous parts, a tool kit, and a legged tank that doesn't yet work. Notable traits: Reasonably paranoid, studies human nature when forced to interact. Hermit. Despises thieves and murderers regardless of their excuses. Time spent working on his project has made him fairly strong, so melee combat is a bad idea. Combat pragmatist. Current Situation: Owns a "hangar", really just a piece of long bent aluminum rods jammed in the ground with plastic wrapped over the top. Homesteader. Spends most of his trade goods on materials for his life's work, the quad tank, which still needs completion and is totally worthless until then, even to a raider. Soon he'll have to set out for the three remaining parts, which are too big and rare for the local caravans to have in stock.</s> <\|message\|>Soma (Known as Black Wolf) "Last Touch. An event which destroyed humanity. A will of a God? A punishment for evil deeds? It could be both, although the real answer those who left won't find in this world." - From the Book Of Destruction, writter unknown. Soma was standing on a cliff looking in a distance seeing an endless wasteland before him. Endless desert now covering the whole world where once powerful cities reigned. Last Touched erased it all along side the memory of sinners. Soma was one of the humans who did not departure for Future and now he cries along other android type humans for redemption, for forgivness of his past deeds. Sinners is their name now that perfectly describes this world as a rotten world where only those who sinned can live. Soma was standing leaned on his hover bike, he slowly removed his googles from his head and see clear in a distance. Endless nothingness now ruled, wasteland, deserts and androids is all he know in this ruin of a past world. How can one to find a forgivness in such a place. The thoughts constantly echoed in his mind. He just stared in blank space, trying not to think, but he couldn't block the thoughts. "It's dawn again. Sun's rays are more brighter today." He whispered looking at the sunrise. "It's time to move." He whispered again returning his googles on his face and starting the engine of his bike and drove down the cliff as the wind calmly blew in his face.</s> <\|message\|>Lycetta, Nickname: Lice Lice was busy fixing up her sand-buggy under the makeshift garage of corrugated iron and general scrap. Inside was an array of transportation devices, ranging from sand-buggies, quad-bikes and their only hover-bike (Ghen, their leader, demanded sole access to this gem - and no one complained lest they wanted a new missing limb). Though under shelter, the light of the burning sun directly above pried through the gaps and gauges of the scrap roof made by the beating of many a sandstorm. The rest of the pack were gearing up ready for the next salvage sweep. Just outside the garage through its large, door-less opening, was a large piece of fabric propped up by sticks of metal stuck into the ground; beneath it, her pack were preparing, loading weapons, tweaking the hydraulics of their mechanical limbs, strapping on makeshift armor, loading heavy rucksacks with water and rations for the next few days. The pack only sent out a few men at a time on general scavenge trips, but today there had been word from their crow (a pack boy who sat at the top of a high pylon they had erected at the center of the camp to spot prey) of a caravan making its way across the desert. On trips like this the whole pack was needed, which meant they left absolutely nothing behind - in fear that other scavengers might find something useful to steal. Their normal numbers they left behind would usually have been enough to fend off outsiders, but they could not afford the risk: everything but the walls and tents were coming with them. Lice was lying on top of a plank of wood with crude metal wheels underneath her buggy. She was adjusting the suspension for the ride to come - with such hazardous, ever-changing terrain she could not afford for her vehicle to get stuck in the sand. She noticed a pair of feet stood by her. "Lice," spoke the voice, a mechanical foot lightly kicked her in the side. "We've gotta move, stop tinkering and get to - you've been under that buggy for almost an hour." "Shut up, Quint. You know what happened last time I didn't adjust the hydraulics: you got stranded for three days.", Lice and Quint got on fine enough, but Quint was always complaining she pulled more than her own weight, and Lice complained Quint never pulled his own. "Yeah, yeah, what happened to never bringing that up again?", chuckled Quint. "Anyway, c'mon. It's time to get going. Ghen is out front." Lice slid out from under her vehicle - the sand-buggies weren't the fastest in the pack, the bikes were much faster (especially the hover-bike), but the buggies were always reliable and less likely to get stuck, which is why Lice liked them. "You piggy-backing my left?" "Sure am," replied Quint. "Three's got your right." "Urgh," moaned Lice. "Three can't shoot for hell. But I guess he'll have to do." It was typical for two men to hang on to the sides of the buggies, especially on big hauls: there weren't enough vehicles to go around everyone. Lice stepped outside the garage; she had already suited up in her armor, her shotgun lightly bumped against her leg with each step. She'd managed to strap some small metal sheets across her mechanical arm - save her joints getting shot apart. Ghen stood ferociously on top of an ammunition crate, the pack gathered beneath him dressed in a myriad of armor, clothing and weapons - only the strips of red cloth tied around their arms, heads or necks distinguished them as a unit. "Alright boys!" shouted Ghen. "And girls" whispered Lice. "We've got a big caravan off north ways. Don't know what they're carrying but it looks like a good haul: they've got gunmen supporting them, ten or so." The pack muttered to themselves in self-doubt. "But we've taken on bigger before, and we know these dunes better than anyone else!" "Aye!" cried the rest of the pack. "Bikers follow me, we'll scatter them up. Buggies follow behind, hook the vans and raid every last ounce of scrap you can!". He raised his Kalashnikov above his head with a muscly pump of his arm. The rest of the pack returned the salute, shouting and chanting in excitement and adrenaline. In an organised choas of scrambling feet and shouting, the pack jumped to their vehicles, engines roaring and revving. Ghen glided to the front of them. "WHO ARE WE?" "THE RED SUNS!" "DAMN RIGHT WE ARE! LET'S RIDE!" In a cacophony of screaming and whooping the pack set off. Quint and Three held onto the sides of Lice's buggy, jostling about, but not in discomfort, as they rode out onto the sands. Quint called over over the scream of engines, the packs cries and the wind, "BEEN ON A HAUL THIS BIG BEFORE, THREE?" "NEVER," returned a nervous voice. "YOU'LL BE FINE, JUST SHOOT STRAIGHT AND WE WON'T DIE." "OH"</s> <\|message\|>Kieran Kieran loaded his 50 cal. He looked out into the barren desert, through the dust and sand blowing in the cool breeze. Then a small black dot appeared. It got bigger and bigger until he could make out the shape of a person. He peered through his scope. It was a lone traveler, carrying a large leather knapsack and what looked like three canteens on his waist. Kieran waited and watched the speck grow from his perch on a small cliff. He checked his scope again, and the traveler was closer. It's time. His finger brushed the trigger as he focused on the object. Then he shot. The bullet flew through the air and hit the traveler in the chest. He re-loaded. He shot. He watched the traveler stumble and fall, and then he left his perch and ran toward the person. He took everything, the backpack, the gun and ammunition, (A 9mm pistol and three boxes of ammo.) He then rifled through the brown knapsack. He found some parts and a small black taser. He saw a few more things, but didn't bother to look at them. He dumped the contents of the backpack into his almost empty one. Then he as remembered, a tear rolled down his cheek and he dug a two foot pit in the sand. He stuck his hand into one of the many pockets of his backpack and took out a makeshift cross. He gently lay the travelers body down into the pit and said a small prayer. "May you rest in the heavens forever." He covered the cadaver with sand and stuck the wooden cross into the tan sand. He knelt there until the sun was barely visible behind the horizon. The light cast a orange glow onto the sand and Kieran looked at the now red, glowing sand. He went back to the cliff and took his rifle. He took out his compass and walked north-east until the broken down gas station came into site. It was on a crumbling street in the middle of nowhere. He went into the rusty gas station, overgrown with brown weeds. He crawled in through the back window. He went into the locked "lounge" where he used as a shelter. He took out a gold colored key and slipped it into the keyhole. He had taken advantage of the un-raided gas stations little store. He always had bubblegum to chew and he had framed awkward greeting cards. His moral was boosted every time he stepped into the small lounge and saw the faded white card with a pug on it, two googly eyes stuck to its head, and its pink tongue hanging out of its slobbering mouth. If he looked to the right he saw the framed card with two babies on it in a bath, with bubbles in the back of him. This was his favorite. He locked the door. With no windows, the room was pitch black. He took a match and struck it. With a small flame illuminating the cabinet in front of him, he wrenched open the drawer and picked up the dirty gas lamp. He poured a small amount of gas into the chamber and flicked the switch. The lamp lit up the room and Kieran laid the lamp down onto the cabinet. He Checked the lock and then closed his eyes. Breath in. Breath out. Sleep.</s>	<\|message\|>Jack Jack, the mechanic, was a fairly hefty man, about 5'10", with long dirty blonde hair and green eyes. Jack looked up from his hard work, scanning the horizon for movement. Nothing. There had been nothing happening for days, but still he looked, because caution had been all that had kept him alive through numerous failed raider attacks over the past years. He returned to his work, thankful for the cover of his hangar. A cheaply built thing, made of a pair of large aluminum strips he'd bent into shape and dug deep into the ground, with plastic from an industrial size roll he'd picked up from a trader hung over the top to keep the rain out. The hangar was filled with a small assortment of important things - a small solar panel and battery kept a refrigerator running, and a few plywood walls formed a "bedroom", where he kept sentimental objects and a rope bed. Much of his food and water came from a small plot of "farm" (really, just a series of trash cans, bags, and drums he grew potatoes in) he'd been working on every night before bed, and he made compost with every bit of waste he had and some of the waste he picked up while trading with the caravans that stopped by every few weeks. Two years of trading potatoes for mechanical components, scrap, and engineering textbooks had gotten his biggest project to where it was - a huge set of four vaguely arachnoid legs supported a hip piece with multiple layers of copper and steel circles and gears. The feet at the bottom of the legs had black rubber skirts around them for rudimentary air-cushion type hovering. Two arms were nearby, presumably to go with the legs. All he needed to finish his work were a fairly powerful generator, a computer, and something to serve as a cockpit.</s>
<\|description\|>Avery Penn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Belle Race: Cait-Si Avatar: Beast: Name: Pina Appearance:</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Fine then! I'll just go! I've got someone who would probably answer me, anyways!" James shouts, turning on his heal and walking to his own room. Upon entering, he closed his door and grabbed his NervGear, swinging it onto his head as he laid down on his bed. He lets out a very frustrated and annoyed breath as he enters the world of Fairy Tale Online again. Upon entering the world, Sif was greeted with a notification. An item from Belle, it appeared. He clicks on the item, and accepts the delivery, before he begins to climb onto the roof of the building that he was sitting under. He needed to sit and relax, and then maybe try killing something by himself.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle quickly began making her way out of the town, away from the beginner's field she had been training Sif and out into the wider world, outside of the Cait-Si realm you were met with large fields that eventually gave way to mountains if you were heading towards the center of the world. To the south was Sylph zone and a forest, though the Cait-Si had an alliance going with the Sylph at the moment so she would be fairly safe if she crossed into their territory. To the north was the Pooka. Both routes contained heavy forest and both routes would provide her with something she could hit to vent her anger.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif lays on the roof, and smiles as he sees that the item he received was a rod. "I can go fishing now!" Sif says, a smile on his face. He opens up the menus, and then scrolls through until he finds the message system. He finds Belle's name, and then begins to write a message to send to her. " To Belle, Thank you for the rod! Something happened which kinda made me upset, however it has definitely cheered me up! (yes, I found out how to make kawaii kitten faces). I'll be sure to go fishing soon with the rod! Thank you again! From Sif " He smiles, and begins to slide off of the roof, landing on the ground. He begins to jog to one of the paths that lead out of the town, wanting to find a nice area to fish.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A notification popped up on Belle's screen just as she took down the last of a small group of boars. It was from Sif, which immediately concerned her since shed seen him log off not an hour or so ago. She opened it and it made her smile slightly, she was glad to see she'd been able to cheer him up, though she wondered what had made him upset in the first place. She kind of saw Sif as a little kid so now all she could imagine was him spitting the dummy because he couldn't have any desert without finishing his vegetables. Smiling she eventually slipped down to the ground as she replied. 'I'm glad you liked it. Make sure to stay close to the town and don't go past that beginning field to the west I showed you earlier, the field to the east of the city has stronger monsters.' Either way she could keep an eye on his health bar since they were still in a party anyway. On her shoulder Pina suddenly let out an alarming cry and Belle turned quickly and her eyes widened at the Ursa Minor, which was a small version of an Ursa Major, which was a celestial bear rearing up to attack her.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif receives her warning about the field, and he smiles, nodding at it. He didn't send a reply, but he acknowledges it. Up ahead, he sees a nice looking body of water, and he quickly migrates there, sitting on the edge as he takes out his rod. He didn't know how to fish, but he figured all he had to do was swing and wait. So, that is what he did. He reeled back, and then swung out, watching the end arc into the water. Now was the waiting game. In the time it took to wait, Sif relaxed, and began to think of the day, both in real life and in his little fantasy adventure. Today, after boring tests of varying types, he had went on a game he had never went on -he decided not to count the five minutes of character creation he did when he first got the MMO- and he had met someone on the game. All of these feelings, the feeling of a rod in his hands, the feeling of the air and the smell of the water, it was just so real. He closed his eyes, and began to think of Belle, and what she may be doing.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Pina cried loudly as he circled around the fight going on between Belle and the monster. She'd heard that very rarely Ursa Minors would spawn out in these woods but honestly she hadn't expected to run into one of these out here, and she was willing to admit she wasn't prepared for it. If it had been a Major, which luckily didn't spawn around this area she would be dead. But thanks to her high acrobatic skill she was managing to stay even with it. Her health was down around half, so was the Minors. Pina gave another cry and flew in and fluttered healing dust at her, bringing her health up a little. Drawing her bow back she let another arrow fly, which found its mark and made the Minor roar out loudly. Despite all this though Belle was loving it. She felt alive and it reminded her of why she'd joined the raiding parities earlier on in her game play. Maybe she wasn't ready to rejoin yet, but she would definitely consider taking on some tougher quests or maybe joining a guild again. Something to remind her of why she really enjoyed playing this game.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif opens his eyes, and stares out at the water. "This is nice and calm. I like this life." Sif says, smiling to himself. He then notices something strange. Belle's health bar, which he could see because of the party, appeared to be fluctuating. "She may just be fighting monsters. No big deal. She'll handle it." He says to himself. But then, her health goes down to roughly halfway, and he begins to get concerned. He opens up the messaging system, and begins to type a message. "Belle, you seem to be taking a lot of damage. Is everything okay over there? Sif" Standing up and reeling back in his rod, he searches to find out where Belle was. He felt like he wanted to follow her around, anyways. She was an amazing person, he had to admit. After finding out where she was using the menus, Sif attempts to jog toward where she was, only to figure out he didn't know where it was from where he was. He began to search for a map, instead.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small noise indicating that she had a message could be heard as Belle moved to hide behind a tree, the Ursa Minor swiping at it, its sheer size and strength breaking the thing in two with one swipe. "Don't really have time to answer you now Sif, sorry." The girl muttered to herself as she quickly turned and shot another arrow at it. The Minor was down to about a quarter health, she was down to about one fifth, Pina healing her once more and bringing her back up to one quarter. If it hadn't been for her amour she may be dead by now. As it was her weapons just weren't doing enough damage, Ursas as a rule were slow but they had very strong physical defence and attack strength. The one thing they were weak against was- she once again leapt out of the way, the Minor's attack missing, barely. They were slow, but big. "Magic!" She reminded herself, turning Belle ran a short distance to put some space between her and the bear as she began the incantation. Magic was one of the big things about Fairy Tale, it was so in depth and powerful it could really turn the tide of most battles. That was also why it was so difficult to learn.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Now Sif was really concerned. He had found a map, and was jogging his way in the direction of the forest. Sif was scared for her, and wanted to see what was damaging her so badly. What would I do if she died forever? I may not find someone else to help me. Sif thought to himself, before quivering a little. It was quenched as he entered the forest. Belle would probably scowl him for entering such an area, however he wanted to help if she was being attacked. Upon walking the path, he sees something big in the distance, along with what looked to be a Cait-Si. As Sif moves closer to the two figures, he freezes. "Woah," He says, seeing the Ursa Minor. Something that big froze him from fear, making him quiver again as he stared. He then figured that he should probably be retreating, and began slowly backing away, quivering.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn She wasn't as far away from it as she would like, but she was far away enough that this should work. She drew her bow back however before releasing it she began speaking in a strange language, words floated around her, some glowing strongly and lining up with others. The Ursa Minor was getting closer, which wasn't difficult given its size, its back reaching the tops of the trees. It was probably just out of attacking distance when Belle finally finished her spell, struggling with the last few words before she let the arrow fly. Since the bear was so close it found its mark on one of the stars on the bear's forehead, lightning burst from the arrow, sparking all around the bear as more struck down from. The Ursa Minor cried out before it eventually fell to the ground, exploding in a poof of code and blue sparkly things. Belle sank to the ground, Pina gave a small cry as he flew in, healing her minorly again before resting on her shoulder and, surprisingly, she began laughing. That was probably the most fun she'd had in ages, even though that Minor wasn't even close to a dungeon boss it had still been really fun.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif watches in a mix of awe and fear as Belle casts what looks to be a spell at the bear, and gasps as the bear cries out and falls over, dying. Even though the Ursa Minor had been taken out, Sif was still worried about Belle, who had appeared to have taken major damage. With hesitation in case something more powerful is waiting in the forest just to kill him as he runs over to assist his friend. "Belle!" Sif says, sliding to his knees beside her and pushing himself onto her, grabbing her and wrapping his arms around her. He rests the top of his head under her chin as his arms cuddle her. "Are you okay? Why did you ask for any help? Jesus, Belle." Sif says, keeping his head nuzzled against her, cat ears twitching slightly as his tail droops.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Hu?" She looked up in surprise when she heard her name called and the girl frowned slightly when she saw who was running towards her. "Sif?" She asked curiously as he began cuddling up to her. "What… what are you doing here?" She asked, sounding confused at first but getting more confident as she realised he'd come out into a very dangerous zone. "I didn't ask for help because I didn't need any, not to mention there was no one online who was close enough to help me." She informed him sternly as she rose to her feet, pulling him with her. "Trust me that thing would have eaten you for lunch." She smiled, trying to reassure him. "Plus even if I had died I wouldn't have lost too much and I would have respawned in the town. It's not a big deal. Pina dying would have been more devastating than if anything had happened to me" Belle dismissed as she looked around, her tail flicking and her eats twitching as her eyes darted around. On her shoulder Pina let out a cry as its name was mentioned. "Come on, we should get back to the safe zone." She decided as she began walking back towards the town.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif cuddles Belle, smiling, happy to find that she was okay. "If I was close enough, I would have come to help, despite you saying you wouldn't need any." He says. "And I was afraid of you dying." He says, shrugging. "Emotions, I guess." Sif says as they begin to walk to the town. A tear streamed down his cheek, as if he had been upset that Belle had almost died. He wraps arm across her back, cuddling closer as they walked to the town. "I'm sure that thing wouldn't have eaten me. You'd have been there to protect me, unofficial mentor." He gives a chuckle.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Don't think of it as dying." Belle tried to explain. "Because you come back to life… if it helps, think of it more as a reset or something like that." Anything that may be able to help him. As he cuddled her, she was reminded of her question and decided it was now or never. "Sif… I have to ask you something… if this game is so distressing to you… why on earth did you want to play it in the first place? I could understand maybe being curious about it but wouldn't you have figured out when you fought your first monster and you broke down crying that maybe… there are better games out there for you?" No she didn't feel good saying about it, but it was true. She could understand curiosity, but surely he could see that this game was not a good match for him. She'd never seen anyone have a reaction this bad to the game because they never stuck around long because they realised this was a bad match for them. He didn't make a lot of sense to her.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif continues to cuddle Belle, but the question catches him off guard. Why had I come back? He asks himself, thinking. I was indeed scared by that wolf, especially when I was injured, but... Why? James' eyes look down to the ground as he tries to think of something. Was it the game, the complete-package feeling of... Feelings, or was it just the adrenaline, and the rush he felt during both the fights on the wolves as well as the rush to find his friend. As he looked back up, and at Belle's face, he found another reason. One that basically just enveloped all of the rest, one that was always there during what he had encountered in this universe. "You." Sif says, quietly. "You. You're the reason I came back. You've been there for me throughout this game, you've been here to help me, and..." His face turns red as he looks away from her. "And, you're generally gorgeous."</s>	<\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle practically stopped in her tracks, her body tensing as her ears and tail stuck for a moment before she took a few sharp steps away from him, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Now she felt like an idiot. It had been so obvious but she'd just missed it completely, too drawn in by the innocent exterior. But all the cuddling… that questions about game sex. "Creep." She stated loudly before she brought up her menu and quickly logged out. They were within the town boundaries by now, so she didn't have to worry about her avatar being attacked at least. Avery bolted upright in her bed, ripping the NervGear off her head and pulling her knees up to her chest, shuddering slightly as she picked up the gear and placed it away in her draw. She'd heard of creeps like that before from other players, people who only played to get some kind of sick sexual satisfaction because they were probably too creepy to foster a relationship in real life. But she hadn't thought it would happen to her. For a while the girl contemplated reporting him, but it was late so she decided to just sleep it off and think about it clearly in the morning.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Gaming and eating. Maybe teasing people. Anything but doing another test. Tests were the bane of James' life, and he hated them all, through thankfully they were over. At least, for now. As he roamed the hallway of which his, he caught a glance of Avery disappearing into her room. He chuckles as he walks past. "Have a boring Summer!" He calls out as he passes her door, disappearing into his room soon afterwards. It was time to play some Fairy Tale Online. He was still technically a noob on it, being a low level, however he was willing to learn, particularly with the 'find your mentor' option from in game. James searched through his drawers for the head gear, finding it where he had left it last time he had played, which was months back. He smiles as he rubs a bit of dust off of it, the only dust that was there, thankfully, and he lays on his bed, slipping the head gear on before he was swallowed into the game. Well, more like swallowed into an update screen. Thankfully, it passed within seconds, and he was put on a loading screen as the game attempted to source his character. James had already made a Cait-Si, however he did not know how to use the race properly. He watched as the screen began to load, and he got fully calibrated and pushed into the new reality, the new world. He loved the feeling every time that happened. Spawning into a random town, he decided to find the help center of the town. The help center wasn't much of a help center, but when he walked in he saw an empty booth which he quickly trotted into before anyone else could. James' ears twitched as he looked at the options he could ask for, until he found the 'find your mentor' option. He quickly red the description. "Find your mentor, the ability to, as it says, find your mentor! Your mentor will be randomly selected from experienced players. It automatically selects one from your race, so you have both a friend and a mentor. Select this option, and a message will immediately be sent to a player to meet you in your current location. The mentor has the option to decline, and if he or she accepts, you will be bound for the rest of your playtime! The mentor will have a three day trial period to tell if you are going to be a good mentee, and he or she can remove you within that three day period if they do not feel like you are not for them! Remember: Be nice!" James presses the option, and then clicks 'confirm' within a moment, another message appears. "Thank you for using the mentor program. A message has been sent to... Belle!" "To Belle, You have been selected as the mentor for Sif. He has used the mentor option to select a mentor for him, and you have been selected by the program to be his mentor. If you would like information on mentoring, please visit your nearest help center. Sif's current location is Lemea Town. Remember: Be nice to your mentee! Best of luck, Lemea Town Help Center"</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "To Belle, You have been selected as the mentor for Sif. He has used the mentor option to select a mentor for him, and you have been selected by the program to be his mentor. If you would like information on mentoring, please visit your nearest help center. Sif's current location is Lemea Town. Remember: Be nice to your mentee! Best of luck, Lemea Town Help Center" Belle looked at the notification and sighed softly. She'd read about the new 'mentor program' whilst the updates had been loading. Personally it wasn't something she liked the sound of. Not yet. It was still a beta experience in her opinion and the idea of 'being bound to another player forever' was something she could see causing a lot of outrage amongst players. It wouldn't last. She was happy to help someone, but this was just a little over the top. She hadn't had any help when she'd started all the way back when it had been first released. She kind of thought it was really lazy on the part of new players, especially considering this wasn't a levelled game, they got rid of that function very early into the project to avoid players becoming too powerful. Everything here was skill based. It was about as equal field as a MMORPG was ever going to get in her mind. Sighing she decided to ignore the message for now. She was going to decline, but she could at least explain herself in person. "Looks like we're heading back early." She said, glancing at the small blue creature on her shoulder, who made a small noise in reply, causing Belle to smile. Pulling out a teleportation crystal she appeared at the Lemae Town Square within seconds. It would have taken too long to travel from the woods she'd been in. Now the only challenge was finding this guy. He was the Cait-Si beginner village, rather than the main city so that made things a little bit easier. He had been near the help center just a few moments ago so maybe he was still there. She took off at a quick run, glancing at any character she passed as the small feathered dragon flew high above her. As she arrived at the information center Belle stopped, looking around for this 'Sif' guy. She had no idea what he looked like but he would have a player identification above his head if you were looking for it. The small dragon glided down to rest comfortably on her shoulder. Turning Belle smiled again, running her hands through the creature's feathers, momentarily forgetting herself in how real and soft an artificial creature felt. It still amazed her sometimes, just how real this all felt and how easily she was able to forget about her real life when she was here.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn After waiting at the booth for a few moments, Sif walks outside, back out into the small town, and he begins to look around. Oh, it feels so real, it looks so real, it smells so real! Everything is so real! He thinks to himself, as he walks around. Not too soon, he spots someone running around. Upon closer inspection, the person appears to have the identification 'Belle'. That's her! Sif begins to walk over to her. As he walked, Sif looks around at everything, still mesmerized by how amazing it was. There had definitely been some major updates, and he had only played the game once before, for not that long. Now, it appeared he was going to have to spend much longer on the game. Even the blue creature on Belle's shoulder looked real! Sif stops in front of Belle, certainly a bit shorter than him, as if his size told everyone, Hey, I'm new! He looked shyly toward the creature on Belle's shoulder, and then looked back to her face. "Hi. I'm Sif." He says, his voice suddenly shy.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Pina looked up suddenly from Belle's shoulder and her eyes turned to follow his gaze until they fell upon the boy approaching them. She realised, before he got close who he was, his player ID betraying him. However formal introductions were still always a nice touch. "I'm Belle." She said, her voice gentle as if anything too sudden may startle him. "This is my friend Pina and you're the one who the system paired me up with for the mentoring program aren't you?" A rhetorical question really, they both knew that. "Look… don't take this the wrong way or anything, but I think the idea of permanently being paired up with someone is… stupid. So I have to reject the invitation to be your mentor." She informed him, trying to be as delicate about it as possible. "But I'd be happy to form a party with you and be your mentor unofficially." She offered, feeling maybe a little bad for the kid. She remembered what it was like to be new, it was a big scary world out here. Sometimes the people were a bigger danger than the monsters. Who knew, maybe this would be good for her, she'd gotten Pina later than she was supposed to, so it wouldn't hurt to get some safe practice with him on lower level quests and monsters.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn It was a disappointment for the mentor request to be declined, and Sif couldn't help but let out a tiny breath of sadness as it was, his face turning sad for a moment. However, when Belle said they could form a party, and she could mentor him unofficially, he smiles again. "Y-Yes," He says, his voice sounding a little broken. He swallows his sadness. "But, I sort of don't know what I'm doing. Some people are new..." He pauses. "But, I'm really new. Like, really new." Sif was shy in his Fairy Tale persona. He couldn't help it, it was just his style, much different than his real personality. "I barely even know what that is," He says, pointing to a phoenix that was sitting on another Cait-Si's shoulder, who was walking into the help center. He turns back and shrugs innocently.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle shrugged slightly. "Everyone was new at some point." She assured him as she glanced over at the phoenix and smiled slightly. "Though some of us decided to read the manual before jumping right in. Either way there's nowhere for you to go from here but up." She brought up her menu by using a small flick of the hand downwards and tapped into a few screens before a small noise could be heard and Sif would see a small notification icon on his screen. "I've invited you to join my party." She explained, hoping she didn't have to explain the term 'party' to him. There was being new at this game in particular, which did take a lot of time to master since it's one of the first fully immersive games of its kind. And there was being new at MMORPGs all together. If he was the latter she really had her work cut out for her. "Just do what I did to bring your menu up, and follow the little 'notification icon' to the invitation screen. This way we can keep track of where the other is, see each other's health bars, things like that. What class are you?" She asked absently as she began scrolling through more screens quickly.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Slowly, Sif follows through, flicking his hand downwards and going through the menus until he found the notification, which he accepted. He almost hovered his finger over decline by accident, but corrected himself. Finally, he looks up at her again. "The same as you, I think. A Cait-Si!" He says, his voice having turned adorable. He flicks his tail behind him happy as he stares at her. "I thought you'd know, being an experienced player. And with my cat ears and my tail!" He begins to explore the menus, looking through them. Sif was in awe at the functionality and the options that he could select to tweak. "And, by the way, I did read the manual. The first few pages, anyways. I wasn't about to read through the entire thing. That'd take a while." He says, an innocent look on his face as he scrolls through more options, like a child exploring a new toy.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle opened her mouth as if to say something but eventually closed it, pressing her hand to her forehead. "No that's not what I… what weapons speciality did you pick? Cait-Si is your race, that's something you can't change unless you deleted this entire account and started over. But your class is the type of weapons you're proficient with, you get to pick one when you were making a profile for the game but it can be altered if you simply starting using another weapons class enough. Like, for example I'm an archer class, with a light weapon sub class." She turned slightly, displaying the bow on her back to him and the small dagger at her hip. "I was asking to see if I had anything worth giving you. Here," she clicked a final option and four notifications suddenly appeared on Sif's menu, informing him he'd recived some items including new amour, gloves, boots and a belt. "There's some better gear that will give you an advantage over other people with your experience." She was still waiting to see what class he was though before giving him any of her weapons. If she had any he was compatible with that was. Usually unless she could use them herself she sold them for gold.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Oh! That's what you're talking about!" Sif chuckles, his face turning slightly red in embarrassment. "In that case, I'm a light weapon class!" He says, remembering the class he selected a long time ago. He takes a glance at her bow before he flicks his hand again, returning to his notifications to accept the items. "Belle, because you're giving me armour, and you're a girl, does that mean that I'm going to get female armour?" He asks, laughing shyly. Sif could see himself walking around in female armour. That would be very embarrassing, unless there was some way to do a gender change. He wasn't about to do that, though. His face turns even more red as he imagines this.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle shook her head slightly, laughing lightly at the question. "There is some gender specific amour… yes; most of it is interchangeable though. If I wore it, then yes it would have a girl's design. But to keep the item count lower and make trading easier they made most amour able to have a boy's or a girl's appearance. It does the same thing just looks different. Don't worry it'll look manly on you." She assured him as she scrolled through her weapons. Most of her 'light' stuff was daggers of varying effects. She didn't have much in the way of rapiers or something like that. "I have… this." She eventually said uncertainly as she sent the item over. It was classified as a light sword, but she'd never used it before personally. "I can't say much about it though; I've never used it myself. Okay, you get all that stuff equipped and we'll head out into the nearby field, it's still in Cait-Si territory so we'll be safe there... you do know about the territories and rules surrounding them?" She was certain that was in the manual, but she wasn't sure where. Either way it wouldn't hurt to remind him. "The land is divided up into territories, some belonging to certain races, some neutral. In a territory owned by your own race you're allowed to attack those from other races but they can't attack you back. So if you got caught in enemy territory then you're virtually helpless if one of them decided to attack you. Neutral is more free for all. It's the primary goal of the game right now, seeing as they didn't put in a 'final boss' because then the game would be over and then what? No it's just a constant territory war."</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif almost answered Belle no to the question, however such an action was prevented by her starting to explain. "So, you can't even attack back?" He asks, equipping his armour. Indeed, it did look manly. Manlyish, as he himself did not look that manly. "Belle, what happens if you attack back?" He asks, suddenly looking a bit frightened. If he had a mirror, he would say he is adorable and cute when he looks frightened. Sif remembers that he had been offered another item by Belle, and he quickly opens his notifications for the third time and he accepts the item. "Well, even if it isn't good, it looks good. Does that count for anything?" He asks, chuckling to himself as he idly admires the blade. It was quite shiny, and it looked to be sharp, but that may not mean anything in this world. Sif didn't even know what the Cait-Si had as abilities. He just picked them because of the cat ears and the tail.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Nothing." She answered simply. "I mean you can attack back all you like but they'll take no damage. Don't worry though you'll never have to go into an enemy territory to get somewhere, there are certain Neutral Roads that are unclaimable, also every race's main city, their starter town and the world capital at the center of the map are all cemented territories as well, otherwise the game runs the risk of an entire race having no safe zones, which would suck." She turned slightly once Sif had equipped all his new gear and began leading the way towards the field. "The only time you would is if you decided to join a raid party aiming to take more territory." The girl explained as they walked. "Also, unfortunately style does not grant any battle extras." She said with a small laugh. "Though you can see the benefits of any item in your inventory by clicking on it, the better the gear the better the benefits. Most of that gear I gave you has extra health and defence benefits, because that's how I like to play but once you get the hang of fighting we'll take you on a few quests, you can earn some gold and buy things with the benefits you'd like." She informed him.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Have you been on any raiding parties?" Sif asks, following her. He was a bit disappointed that they didn't grant any benefits. However, maybe there were fashion contests. Something I would never take part in out of game, he thinks to himself as he strolls alongside his unofficial mentor. "So, what else is there to do, other than quests?" He was a bit embarrassed at having to ask so many questions, however he felt he needed to so he could learn the world around him. Sif begins to wonder what time it was outside of game. How long had he spent in-game? He didn't know, but he didn't mind if he missed dinner because he was hanging around with Belle. She was probably from a different time zone, so he would just go and grab dinner whenever she left.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "A couple of times after I'd been playing for about a year." Belle answered, thinking about it. "Even though I'm not that aggressive of a player now I did have a faze where I wanted to fight, a lot, back before I decided to take the defensive path and go solo. I died. A lot during that year. It didn't seem worth it after a while, I was too passive. Besides there's quests… you can join the raiding parties, the risks are high, but so are the rewards if you're good enough. But if fighting really isn't your thin you can join a guild, act as a support, maybe just take up a trade like tailor or blacksmith." "But in saying that you don't even really need to do anything if you don't want to. They have other skills that don't translate to battle like fishing, though the best fishing spots are all in Undine Territory since they like to control the large water sources since they can breathe underwater. Each Race has its own unique talents, Cait-Si are beast-tamers. We're the only ones who can go out and have the option to make a monster our companion rather than kill it. But all the best ones are quest rewards."</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Beast-tamers. Well, it doesn't actually seem like some of them look like beasts or monsters," Sif says, giving a nod to the creature on her shoulder. It looked so beautiful. "If that thing is a monster, I'd like to see what normal everyday pets look like." He gives off a small chuckle, staring at the creature. "Fishing spots are all in Undine Territory? Damn, I could really use a fish," He smiles, but gives kitty eyes to Belle, sadly. Sif was, once again, stunned by how beautiful everything looked and how everything felt. The creature on Belle's shoulder looked stunningly real, he just wanted to touch it, see if it felt real. His ears twitch shyly, tail fluttering slowly up and down behind him.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn As attention was brought to it the small creature on Belle's shoulder perked up and stretched out its wings, roaring in attempt to look more intimidating. However it's 'roar' sounded more like a small cry and was more cute than it was anything else. "Pina is most certainly not a beast." Belle replied, her tail and ears sticking up for a moment in her huff before they returned to a more relaxed state. "He's a Feathered Lidra and I got him about a year and a half into my game play from a limited time event and, frankly, he's adorable." She smiled at that and turned to the dragon, the two gently pressing their heads together. "And, like I said, all the good fishing spots are in Undine territory, that doesn't mean there aren't others in neutral and all territories will have some source of water, water pretty much always means fish here. You'll have to get a rod before you attempt to go fishing though and the only way you're going to get one of those is if you save up some money and buy one. Right now the best way for you to make money is to fight some monsters." They'd made it to the field and she was doing a quick scan, low level monsters always spawned around here, it wouldn't be too hard. "Alrighty." Belle said as she walked back towards Sif and gave him a non too gentle push towards what looked like a wolf. "Go get it." She instructed simply. If worse came to worse she could always jump in, these were one of the lowest difficulty monsters they were going to find.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif smiles at the pair. Pina and Belle were definitely an adorable couple. However, his opinion about Belle being adorable and sweet changed when they arrived at the field. A wolf? Won't that thing rip me to shreds? He asks himself. Sif begins to give kitten eyes to Belle again, for a moment, before turning back to the wolf. Slowly, he approaches the creature, sword in hand, shaking slightly. Get a grip, get a grip, come on, Sif. He walks even closer to the creature, and it notices him. Sif immediately starts to swing his sword down and slice at the wolf, which attempts to attack him. The armour took the hit, and he swings faster, quickly managing to kill it. He turns back to Belle, shaking. The combat felt so real, it felt so real that it was scary.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn When the boy looked at her with pleading eyes Belle only made a small gesture, encouraging him to go forward. "It can't really hurt you." She assured him, since a lot of new players often feared that being attacked would actually hurt, but the game had a pain absorber so even if he got an arm cut off in game he wouldn't feel a thing. Even so she did draw out her bow once he'd turned away to make sure she could cover him in case it proved too much. Whilst his technique could certainly use some work he seemed to get a decent enough grasp on it. She put her bow away once she was sure he was going to win. Once the wolf was defeated and he turned to her the girl gave him a reassuring smile as she walked over. "See? Easy. You did great." She assured him, wrapping her arm around his shoulders and giving him a brief squeeze. "Here's a little trick though, if you have the time, when you're preparing to strike, hold your attack for just a moment." She drew out her dagger to demonstrate, holding it neutrally at first but then moving into a motion where she could attack from but pausing once it was about to come forward. "Then your weapon will glow a little and you'll hear this small noise and then like a ting, and the tip of your weapon will gleam, you'll feel it too, so eventually you can do it all by feel rather than waiting for the external indicators. Once that happens you can move into the attack and you'll activate a 'weapon's skill' which will make your attack stronger as well as auto locking on monsters." She explained as she finished off her move. "Ready for another round?" She challenged, pointing over at another wolf.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif smiles, his face turning red as he is squeezed. The gesture was very warm, and it was certainly welcomed by him. "Y-Yes, it was alright," he says, smiling at her, before he watches her example of weapon skills. It seemed easy enough, though if he was stood there for a second to long, the wolf could pounce on him or something. The second of not attacking would also leave him vulnerable to an attack. He followed her finger to another wolf, before he nods. "Yes, I am. Teach me your ways, master," he chuckles as he approaches the wolf. The wolf barked and growled at him as he neared it, which came about as a bit frightening to Sif. He started to quiver again. If fear was a status infliction, then it had reached a high. It barked louder as he swung his sword, once, then twice, and then he held his sword, waiting for the weapon skill to come up. Unfortunately, what he had thought earlier was right. Waiting had left him open, and the wolf pounces onto him, biting into his left shoulder. He shouts as if he is in pain, but in reality he is not. It is just the reflex of being in pain.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Once again as Sif moved off to fight another wolf Belle drew her bow. The kid seemed jumpy enough as it was, she'd really hate it if he would die because he seemed like the kind of guy who's confidence would be shot by that kind of thing. This was probably his first game of this kind, which was fair enough because other than some really lame little game the NervGear didn't have anything even remotely close to this. She watched him again, it seemed like it was going to take a while for him to get the hang of this fighting thing. He didn't that aggressive nature in him from the looks of things. Sif's cry of pain brought her out of her own thoughts and she quickly drew her bow and fired, the blow not only knocking the wolf off Sif but also killing it. Belle quickly jogged over to him and offered a hand to help him up. "Are you alright?" She asked worriedly. A quick check of his health bar showed he hadn't taken too much damage due to his gear. "Pina?" She asked regardless and the creature let out another soft cry before it flapped its wings in Sif's direction, coating him in a blue, sparkly powder that vanished quickly enough but also restored his health. "Thank you." Belle said, giving the dragon an affectionate scratch.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif blinks as the wolf is shot off of him, and the face of Belle appears. He takes her hand, and pulls himself to his feet, shaking. He wipes a few tears with a shaky hand. He may have not felt any pain, but his character certainly did. The pain had affected his character's emotions, making him cry silently, but he imagined that if he had really felt the pain it would have been quite sore. "I-I'm..." Sif whispers, taking a breath. "I'm fine... I'm okay, I'm okay." He whimpers as he wipes away a few more. The blue powder had certainly done something in the way of healing, but it was still terrifying to be bitten by a wolf, even in a game. The powder did nothing to cure his shaking the same way it had restored some health.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Aww…" Belle couldn't help herself. She'd never really seen someone react so badly to being attacked by an enemy. It was just a game after all and, whilst it was scary at first once most people realised nothing hurt that fear turned into a kind f adrenaline rush. "Come here." She took hold of Sif and gently lowered him to the ground; sitting behind him she wrapped her arms around him and just held him gently, like someone would with their child or maybe younger sibling if something had happened to upset them. "It's gonna be okay." She assured him, taking a gentle tone in her voice. Right now she was wondering if maybe this wasn't the kind of game for him. It was pretty she could see where the concept of it would attract people who maybe weren't usually gamers but if the basic level monsters scared him so much maybe this wasn't the best idea for him, since fighting was a really integral part of the game. She wouldn't tell him that right now though, maybe later once he'd calmed down a little. Right now the only important thing was to at least try and make sure he wouldn't be traumatised by this even later.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif sniffs as he sobs silently, tears spilling down his eyes as he cuddled against Belle. His young character was scared at the attack of the wolf. He felt like he was being cuddled by an older sibling that was trying to comfort him. Sif wondered if there were actual families and relationships in the game. It certainly would be interesting to see a family running around. For now, he was more interested in trying to get his tears away, which was slightly easier with the sympathy coming from Belle. Belle's gentle voice began to calm Sif down a little, and he took deep breaths as he wiped away some of the last of his tears. His tail rubs itself against Belle's side as he nestles his head under her chin. If he was going to get this kind of sympathy from Belle all the time, he knew the player he was going to hang around with the most.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Once Sif seemed to have calmed down a little Belle sighed deeply and slowly separated herself from him, once again offering a hand to help him to his feet. "I think we'll call it quits for the day." She eventually said, trying to be as delicate about it as possible. Who knew, maybe this was just a little kid playing; it could be scary for him. "We'll head back into town, log out and think of a new plan next time you're on okay?" She began leading him back towards the safe zone of the town. The girl was under the assumption he knew the conditions about logging out. Whilst technically you could log out at any time unless you did so in a safe zone your avatar would remain where it was and would be vulnerable to attack. Only in the safe zones, which were usually towns and cities, where monsters couldn't spawn, could you log out fully and your avatar remain safe. Belle figured that it'd probably be really sad for Sif if he logged in to a death notification and all his stuff was gone. As it was it was around dinner time for her anyway and she she was getting hungry.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif nods as he takes her hand and rises to his feet, shakily. "R-Right. Yes." He says quietly. At the very least, he knew to log out in a town. It was one of the main highlights in the manual, one of the only areas he had read, as it was quite important. As they walk, he shyly, gently grabs her arm, walking with her, now completely silent. Maybe it would be alright to log out. His real self needed dinner anyways. Sif decided to ask something while they walked, just to fill in the time. He had been quite silent for a few minutes, apart from the occasional whimper. "Belle," He begins, silently. "Is it possible for there to be families in this game? Like, creating a family, or is there a feature which allows characters to decide upon their relation?" Sif asks as they walk.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Um…" She had to think about that one. "You can't… have kids, if that's what you're asking, they didn't put like a… mature rating on it I suppose? Since anyone any age could play this and they obviously didn't want to open themselves up to lawsuits because… stuff." Really she still had no idea how old this kid was and it was considered really rude to ask about people's real lives so that wasn't something she could do either. "You can get married, if you wanted, the only real perks you get from that though is a shared inventory." It wasn't something a lot of people did, that she knew of, especially strangers. Maybe if a couple were really into gaming they might get married. "But you gotta remember this game is still centred around battle and quests and exploration and junk and while they did make an effort to give a very wide range of experiences and offer options other than those they're still not the focus of the game. You'd be better off waiting for like a Sims to be released or something if you just wanted to play house."</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Right. I was just wondering." Sif smiles through his tear-stained face. "Just a question to fill the time." He was still holding onto her arm lightly, letting her guide him the right way to go. "I'm guessing there are marriage gifts, too." He says, before letting out a breath. "It would be amazing if they updated this so people could actually play house, and stuff. It would attract a lot more players, definitely." He says, his voice quiet. "How far is the town, Belle?" Sif asks, looking up at her face. He could not help but notice how cute she was. Sif's cheeks turn slightly red.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle shrugged slightly. Sure, adding something like that… would maybe attract more characters, but at the same time she felt like it would be drawing a lot away from what was supposed to be the aim of the game. You weren't supposed to get comfortable because at any time someone could come along and take over your land. Heck you couldn't even buy houses in the game because of that factor. She figured if they wanted to attract people who wanted to play house they'd develop a separate game for it. Maybe they were. Or they'd open up a different server where the objectives were different. But really she had no idea and this was why she wasn't a game designer. Either way she didn't want to disagree with him too much. "Just up ahead." She did answer, there was a small hill in front of them and then the town would be visible. This was a really small part of the world after all, compared to the world as a whole. She'd never explored the whole thing yet, but she'd heard from people that it was massive and took a really long time to cross from one side to another using conventional travel.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif's face turns to slight happiness as they near the town. He wondered where he would log out. Maybe he'd just sit on someone's lap and log out with his eyes closed, making it look like they just had a kitten fall asleep on their lap. The thought of that was adorable. He wondered if he could do that with Belle. Then again, it would probably be incredibly awkward, for him, especially since they had met this day. Belle was very sweet, though, and she had helped him out. Pina was adorable, too. As they entered the town, Sif smiles at Belle as he lets go of her arm. If she had friends here, it would be a good move, so that any of them would not see her with a younger person clinging to them and wonder if they were siblings. "So, where should I log out?" He asks her, looking at her shyly but happily. His sadness and fear was now over that they had entered the town.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Where ever you like." She dismissed quickly. "When you log back in you'll be in pretty much the same spot, so it doesn't matter too much." Now that they were back in the town she seemed somewhat distracted, mostly because she was. She had a few things she needed to finish up before she logged out and realised very quickly that this new development was going to affect her game play very significantly. The kid couldn't take a hit without breaking down and that was just… really inconvenient for her. It made her glad she hadn't agreed to be his mentor. She would have never been able to go on a quest again with him there. Well… she would, but he would slow her down and would probably die fairly early in. She was still sympathetic to him, as much as she was able. He did remind her of a younger sibling she needed to take care of but at the same time she didn't come here to babysit kids. She came here to get away from the stresses of real life and it would be difficult to do that if she was constantly worrying about someone who really probably shouldn't be playing this game. She had a lot of things to think over.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Well... Thank you, Belle." Sif says. He stares at her for a few seconds, before grabbing her and pulling her into a tight hug. "Thank you. I-I hope I'll see you again." He says, squeezing her even tight, before eventually letting go. He walks over to a nearby building, and sits down, curling into a ball before he begins to log off, closing his eyes so it would seem like his character was sleeping. The last thing he saw was Belle before his vision faded to black, and he was brought back into the senses of the real world. Immediately upon removing the head gear, James wishes he had a cat tail and cat ears. They were just amazing. He places the head gear on his desk, before he picks up his keys. He was starving, and was planning to get a quick dinner down at the on-campus cafe. Nowhere fancy, but he didn't feel like going out far to eat. He guessed that a few of his friends would be there, too, so he exited his room, locking it and walking down the corridor. As he passes Avery's room, he decides to call out, "Hope you don't choke on your dinner! Oh wait, yes I do!" James smirks as he walks.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn She turned to him, smiling gently though she was caught off guard by the sudden hug. It took her a few moments but she eventually reciprocated it. She watched him as he moved over to a bench before logging out, thinking it was a very odd way to do so. His avatar vanished and she let out a small sigh as she began making her way through the town. She had a bit of useless gear she wanted to sell off and was hoping to upgrade some of her existing, though due to the interruption she doubted she'd have the cash for it just yet. Belle paused as she passed a general goods store, nibbling at her lip as her tail flicked back and forth as she pondered the purchase before eventually groaning and walking over. Once the item was in her inventory she immediately sent it over to Sif for retrieval once he logged back in. Maybe it'd keep him out of trouble if he came back whilst she was gone. Finding herself very short of the necessary funds she decided it was enough for today and logged out, removing the NervGear she placed it delicately on her bedside table before leaving her room. She was really in the mood for pizza.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn James finds that his friends were at the cafe. He bought himself a slice of pizza and some pepsi before he walked to his friends and sat down. The four of them began to talk loudly among themselves about how bad the tests were, and then they moved onto speaking about gaming. Chet, Sophia and Michael all had something to say, and James also had something to say. Once they were done, they listened as it was James' turn to say something. "Oh, well, I started playing Fairy Tale Online, that game I only played for five minutes and then left. I only just realized how real it is. Like, woah. I met this girl, her name was Belle, and she began to teach me about the game. There was this mentor option, and she said she didn't want to be my mentor officially, but could be it unofficially." James says. Sophia chuckles. "You had to have someone show you around the game?" "Well, yes. It's giant. It's literally a fantasy world. And even I have to say that Belle was really sweet to my character." James explains as he eats his pizza.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Avery walked into the on-campus café but paused when she saw who was there and found herself retreating a step just out of habit. She still wasn't sure exactly what it was, but her and James had just never gotten along. He was just always so unnecessarily mean to her. In the end she decided that she'd just order something to go. Walking over she made her order and sat as close to the counter as possible, hoping to avoid and kind of confrontation or attention. Unlike in her online persona Avery was not a very confident person, if anything she was more like Sif than Belle. But that was because she wasn't powerful here, in Fairy Tale she could just beat the crap out of someone who made her mad and if they attacked back they couldn't really hurt her. She wouldn't feel pain and her bones wouldn't break. Sometimes she wished she could just live in Fairy Tale. She wouldn't even miss this world that much, not really. She wouldn't miss the tests or the responsibilities. Most of the people she really considered her friends were online. She certainly wouldn't miss certain people of this world.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Come on, how is she sweet? Did she bang you or something?" Chet asks with a grin. They all laugh. "No, no. Apparently you can't do mature stuff on that game. Well, my character is meant to be all shy and stuff. He cried when a wolf attacked him, and she just cuddled him. Belle also has this dragon-thing pet that can heal. It's adorable, just like she is!" James laughs. "Everyone in my race has cat ears and stuff, too." Hearing this, Sophia can't help but make a small joke by making a purring sound, like a cat. The group can't hold back their chuckles and laughs. James continues on, speaking about Belle and Sif.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Avery shook her head stubbornly at James and his group being loud so she pulled out a pair of headphones and slipped them on, turning the volume up loud enough to drown out their chitter chatter. Her pizza was eventually called and she quickly got up, thanking the man before she took her dinner and quickly made her way back towards her room. As she ate she logged onto her computer, checking up on some new Fairy Tale announcements. She enjoyed reading through about quests she should consider trying. At the moment she had free time, it was in her nature to study things she was interested in because she liked to succeed. She pondered it for a moment before she decided to post a question, asking for advise on her new situation regarding Sif without using any names as well as giving the new mentor system a poor, strongly worded review.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn The friends continued to talk, mainly about gaming stuff but soon Michael and James learned that Chet and Sophia had actually started to date. They made jokes, but eventually, James and his friends all got up, and walked away to their individual rooms. As usual, he decided to advertise his presence to Avery as he passed her room. However, he did it in a separate way than usual. He knocked on her door, alone as his friends had gone away to their rooms. "Hey, Avery! You're a girly girl! Do you know any forums for Fairy Tale online?" He asks through her door, loudly so she could hear.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn The knock startled her for a moment and she turned sharply as she heard James' voice from the other side. The girl groaned in anticipation and covered her head with a pillow as she waited for whatever insult was about to come her way. However what she heard next made her gasp and she flew out of her seat so fast it fell over on her way to the door. She opened it, the glare on her face full of hatred as she stared up at the blue eyes and blonde hair she'd grown to loath so much. "None I would want to see your face on." She said, realising that made little sense but this was the person she disliked most in this world the idea of having to deal with him in the one place she used to escape from here made her blood boil. "And if I ever see you sorry face on my game you had better watch out buddy because you will be sorry." Without another word she slammed the door in his face, turning and marching angrily back into her room. She grabbed her NervGear, roughly throwing it onto her head. She didn't care if she was supposed to go to sleep right now. She needed to kill something.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Fine then! I'll just go! I've got someone who would probably answer me, anyways!" James shouts, turning on his heal and walking to his own room. Upon entering, he closed his door and grabbed his NervGear, swinging it onto his head as he laid down on his bed. He lets out a very frustrated and annoyed breath as he enters the world of Fairy Tale Online again. Upon entering the world, Sif was greeted with a notification. An item from Belle, it appeared. He clicks on the item, and accepts the delivery, before he begins to climb onto the roof of the building that he was sitting under. He needed to sit and relax, and then maybe try killing something by himself.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle quickly began making her way out of the town, away from the beginner's field she had been training Sif and out into the wider world, outside of the Cait-Si realm you were met with large fields that eventually gave way to mountains if you were heading towards the center of the world. To the south was Sylph zone and a forest, though the Cait-Si had an alliance going with the Sylph at the moment so she would be fairly safe if she crossed into their territory. To the north was the Pooka. Both routes contained heavy forest and both routes would provide her with something she could hit to vent her anger.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif lays on the roof, and smiles as he sees that the item he received was a rod. "I can go fishing now!" Sif says, a smile on his face. He opens up the menus, and then scrolls through until he finds the message system. He finds Belle's name, and then begins to write a message to send to her. " To Belle, Thank you for the rod! Something happened which kinda made me upset, however it has definitely cheered me up! (yes, I found out how to make kawaii kitten faces). I'll be sure to go fishing soon with the rod! Thank you again! From Sif " He smiles, and begins to slide off of the roof, landing on the ground. He begins to jog to one of the paths that lead out of the town, wanting to find a nice area to fish.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif lays on the roof, and smiles as he sees that the item he received was a rod. "I can go fishing now!" Sif says, a smile on his face. He opens up the menus, and then scrolls through until he finds the message system. He finds Belle's name, and then begins to write a message to send to her. " To Belle, Thank you for the rod! Something happened which kinda made me upset, however it has definitely cheered me up! (yes, I found out how to make kawaii kitten faces). I'll be sure to go fishing soon with the rod! Thank you again! From Sif " He smiles, and begins to slide off of the roof, landing on the ground. He begins to jog to one of the paths that lead out of the town, wanting to find a nice area to fish.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A notification popped up on Belle's screen just as she took down the last of a small group of boars. It was from Sif, which immediately concerned her since shed seen him log off not an hour or so ago. She opened it and it made her smile slightly, she was glad to see she'd been able to cheer him up, though she wondered what had made him upset in the first place. She kind of saw Sif as a little kid so now all she could imagine was him spitting the dummy because he couldn't have any desert without finishing his vegetables. Smiling she eventually slipped down to the ground as she replied. 'I'm glad you liked it. Make sure to stay close to the town and don't go past that beginning field to the west I showed you earlier, the field to the east of the city has stronger monsters.' Either way she could keep an eye on his health bar since they were still in a party anyway. On her shoulder Pina suddenly let out an alarming cry and Belle turned quickly and her eyes widened at the Ursa Minor, which was a small version of an Ursa Major, which was a celestial bear rearing up to attack her.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif receives her warning about the field, and he smiles, nodding at it. He didn't send a reply, but he acknowledges it. Up ahead, he sees a nice looking body of water, and he quickly migrates there, sitting on the edge as he takes out his rod. He didn't know how to fish, but he figured all he had to do was swing and wait. So, that is what he did. He reeled back, and then swung out, watching the end arc into the water. Now was the waiting game. In the time it took to wait, Sif relaxed, and began to think of the day, both in real life and in his little fantasy adventure. Today, after boring tests of varying types, he had went on a game he had never went on -he decided not to count the five minutes of character creation he did when he first got the MMO- and he had met someone on the game. All of these feelings, the feeling of a rod in his hands, the feeling of the air and the smell of the water, it was just so real. He closed his eyes, and began to think of Belle, and what she may be doing.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Pina cried loudly as he circled around the fight going on between Belle and the monster. She'd heard that very rarely Ursa Minors would spawn out in these woods but honestly she hadn't expected to run into one of these out here, and she was willing to admit she wasn't prepared for it. If it had been a Major, which luckily didn't spawn around this area she would be dead. But thanks to her high acrobatic skill she was managing to stay even with it. Her health was down around half, so was the Minors. Pina gave another cry and flew in and fluttered healing dust at her, bringing her health up a little. Drawing her bow back she let another arrow fly, which found its mark and made the Minor roar out loudly. Despite all this though Belle was loving it. She felt alive and it reminded her of why she'd joined the raiding parities earlier on in her game play. Maybe she wasn't ready to rejoin yet, but she would definitely consider taking on some tougher quests or maybe joining a guild again. Something to remind her of why she really enjoyed playing this game.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif opens his eyes, and stares out at the water. "This is nice and calm. I like this life." Sif says, smiling to himself. He then notices something strange. Belle's health bar, which he could see because of the party, appeared to be fluctuating. "She may just be fighting monsters. No big deal. She'll handle it." He says to himself. But then, her health goes down to roughly halfway, and he begins to get concerned. He opens up the messaging system, and begins to type a message. "Belle, you seem to be taking a lot of damage. Is everything okay over there? Sif" Standing up and reeling back in his rod, he searches to find out where Belle was. He felt like he wanted to follow her around, anyways. She was an amazing person, he had to admit. After finding out where she was using the menus, Sif attempts to jog toward where she was, only to figure out he didn't know where it was from where he was. He began to search for a map, instead.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small noise indicating that she had a message could be heard as Belle moved to hide behind a tree, the Ursa Minor swiping at it, its sheer size and strength breaking the thing in two with one swipe. "Don't really have time to answer you now Sif, sorry." The girl muttered to herself as she quickly turned and shot another arrow at it. The Minor was down to about a quarter health, she was down to about one fifth, Pina healing her once more and bringing her back up to one quarter. If it hadn't been for her amour she may be dead by now. As it was her weapons just weren't doing enough damage, Ursas as a rule were slow but they had very strong physical defence and attack strength. The one thing they were weak against was- she once again leapt out of the way, the Minor's attack missing, barely. They were slow, but big. "Magic!" She reminded herself, turning Belle ran a short distance to put some space between her and the bear as she began the incantation. Magic was one of the big things about Fairy Tale, it was so in depth and powerful it could really turn the tide of most battles. That was also why it was so difficult to learn.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Now Sif was really concerned. He had found a map, and was jogging his way in the direction of the forest. Sif was scared for her, and wanted to see what was damaging her so badly. What would I do if she died forever? I may not find someone else to help me. Sif thought to himself, before quivering a little. It was quenched as he entered the forest. Belle would probably scowl him for entering such an area, however he wanted to help if she was being attacked. Upon walking the path, he sees something big in the distance, along with what looked to be a Cait-Si. As Sif moves closer to the two figures, he freezes. "Woah," He says, seeing the Ursa Minor. Something that big froze him from fear, making him quiver again as he stared. He then figured that he should probably be retreating, and began slowly backing away, quivering.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn She wasn't as far away from it as she would like, but she was far away enough that this should work. She drew her bow back however before releasing it she began speaking in a strange language, words floated around her, some glowing strongly and lining up with others. The Ursa Minor was getting closer, which wasn't difficult given its size, its back reaching the tops of the trees. It was probably just out of attacking distance when Belle finally finished her spell, struggling with the last few words before she let the arrow fly. Since the bear was so close it found its mark on one of the stars on the bear's forehead, lightning burst from the arrow, sparking all around the bear as more struck down from. The Ursa Minor cried out before it eventually fell to the ground, exploding in a poof of code and blue sparkly things. Belle sank to the ground, Pina gave a small cry as he flew in, healing her minorly again before resting on her shoulder and, surprisingly, she began laughing. That was probably the most fun she'd had in ages, even though that Minor wasn't even close to a dungeon boss it had still been really fun.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif watches in a mix of awe and fear as Belle casts what looks to be a spell at the bear, and gasps as the bear cries out and falls over, dying. Even though the Ursa Minor had been taken out, Sif was still worried about Belle, who had appeared to have taken major damage. With hesitation in case something more powerful is waiting in the forest just to kill him as he runs over to assist his friend. "Belle!" Sif says, sliding to his knees beside her and pushing himself onto her, grabbing her and wrapping his arms around her. He rests the top of his head under her chin as his arms cuddle her. "Are you okay? Why did you ask for any help? Jesus, Belle." Sif says, keeping his head nuzzled against her, cat ears twitching slightly as his tail droops.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Hu?" She looked up in surprise when she heard her name called and the girl frowned slightly when she saw who was running towards her. "Sif?" She asked curiously as he began cuddling up to her. "What… what are you doing here?" She asked, sounding confused at first but getting more confident as she realised he'd come out into a very dangerous zone. "I didn't ask for help because I didn't need any, not to mention there was no one online who was close enough to help me." She informed him sternly as she rose to her feet, pulling him with her. "Trust me that thing would have eaten you for lunch." She smiled, trying to reassure him. "Plus even if I had died I wouldn't have lost too much and I would have respawned in the town. It's not a big deal. Pina dying would have been more devastating than if anything had happened to me" Belle dismissed as she looked around, her tail flicking and her eats twitching as her eyes darted around. On her shoulder Pina let out a cry as its name was mentioned. "Come on, we should get back to the safe zone." She decided as she began walking back towards the town.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif cuddles Belle, smiling, happy to find that she was okay. "If I was close enough, I would have come to help, despite you saying you wouldn't need any." He says. "And I was afraid of you dying." He says, shrugging. "Emotions, I guess." Sif says as they begin to walk to the town. A tear streamed down his cheek, as if he had been upset that Belle had almost died. He wraps arm across her back, cuddling closer as they walked to the town. "I'm sure that thing wouldn't have eaten me. You'd have been there to protect me, unofficial mentor." He gives a chuckle.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn "Don't think of it as dying." Belle tried to explain. "Because you come back to life… if it helps, think of it more as a reset or something like that." Anything that may be able to help him. As he cuddled her, she was reminded of her question and decided it was now or never. "Sif… I have to ask you something… if this game is so distressing to you… why on earth did you want to play it in the first place? I could understand maybe being curious about it but wouldn't you have figured out when you fought your first monster and you broke down crying that maybe… there are better games out there for you?" No she didn't feel good saying about it, but it was true. She could understand curiosity, but surely he could see that this game was not a good match for him. She'd never seen anyone have a reaction this bad to the game because they never stuck around long because they realised this was a bad match for them. He didn't make a lot of sense to her.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif continues to cuddle Belle, but the question catches him off guard. Why had I come back? He asks himself, thinking. I was indeed scared by that wolf, especially when I was injured, but... Why? James' eyes look down to the ground as he tries to think of something. Was it the game, the complete-package feeling of... Feelings, or was it just the adrenaline, and the rush he felt during both the fights on the wolves as well as the rush to find his friend. As he looked back up, and at Belle's face, he found another reason. One that basically just enveloped all of the rest, one that was always there during what he had encountered in this universe. "You." Sif says, quietly. "You. You're the reason I came back. You've been there for me throughout this game, you've been here to help me, and..." His face turns red as he looks away from her. "And, you're generally gorgeous."</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Belle practically stopped in her tracks, her body tensing as her ears and tail stuck for a moment before she took a few sharp steps away from him, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Now she felt like an idiot. It had been so obvious but she'd just missed it completely, too drawn in by the innocent exterior. But all the cuddling… that questions about game sex. "Creep." She stated loudly before she brought up her menu and quickly logged out. They were within the town boundaries by now, so she didn't have to worry about her avatar being attacked at least. Avery bolted upright in her bed, ripping the NervGear off her head and pulling her knees up to her chest, shuddering slightly as she picked up the gear and placed it away in her draw. She'd heard of creeps like that before from other players, people who only played to get some kind of sick sexual satisfaction because they were probably too creepy to foster a relationship in real life. But she hadn't thought it would happen to her. For a while the girl contemplated reporting him, but it was late so she decided to just sleep it off and think about it clearly in the morning.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif's jaw drops open as Belle leaves. "C-Creep?" He asks himself. He lowers his head, sighing, and begins to type a message to her, his heart broken, feeling like liquid-sadness was being poured into the cracks. To Belle I'm sorry. I did not mean to look like a creep. I really meant it. I like you, Belle. You've escorted me through everything, and shown me yourself. I just, felt... I'm sorry. I shouldn't even try. You hate me. I can't solve that. From Sif Tears in his eyes, he pawed at the 'send' button, and then slowly, shakily reached for the logout button. He closes his eyes and then takes off his NervGear, laying it on his bedside table before he begins to sleep off the tears. Though loud whimpers still came from him.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn The day was deeply overcast, perfect weather to stay inside and play video games. However Avery just wasn't in the mood for it today, not after the events of last night. She felt so violated, relieved that things hadn't gotten to point where something really bad had happened but it didn't stop the betrayed feelings welling up inside her. She grabbed a bag and an umbrella and made her way outside onto the campus in search of something she could do to take her mind off what had happened. It was late in the afternoon, however before she left her apartment. Outside it was pouring down rain and she was glad she'd brought her rain coat and umbrella. Stepping out into the empty campus it was amazing how soothing the rain was as it pattered against the plastic of the umbrella and over the ground, it made her smile slightly. She was about ten minutes away from the dorms when she saw a figure up ahead taking shelter from the rain in a small archway. Apparently they had left before the rain had set in and hadn't through to bring something to keep it off them. Avery pondered this as she made her way towards them.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Damn it." James had been mourning over the loss of his only friend on Fairy Tale Online. His friends were at the Cafe, and where he would normally talk to them in the morning he left them to their selves. He needed something big, something to just flash at him and make him forget what had happened, at least temporarily. James, instead of taking his morning toast to a table and eating it with friends, took a walk while he ate. As James strolled slowly through the campus, he tried to think of things he could do instead of Fairy Tale Online, though it was hard. He had other games, but Fairy Tale just seemed to be the most appealing to him at that time. He could join a club, but he'd end up skipping so many sessions he would just get kicked out. He could get into photography. He liked photography. On the other hand, maybe Fairy Tale Online had cameras, or a screenshot option... God knows how long later, James sighed explosively. "I can't think of anything!" He shouts, holding his head, causing a few people to take glances at him before they walked off. He watched them as they went, ignoring the sudden feeling of an impact upon his shoulder. And then another. At first, James thought that a pigeon of some sort had decided it's lunch had to go, but upon further impacts, combined with a feeling of wetness, he discovered that it was rain that was already beginning to pour upon his shoulders. Spinning on his heels, he quickly moves toward the nearest shelter, which appeared to be an archway of sorts. He didn't care what it was, as long as he was safe from the drops of liquid that poured from the sky. James was definitely not up for having to sit in his dorm to dry clothes. The rain did not seem to be ending any time soon, though. "Come on! I'll do anything!" He shouts at the rain, as if it will say, "Pay me and I will stop." In the distance, he sees a lonely figure moving toward him. Squinting his eyes, as the figure got closer, he recognized her. Oh, not her! She can't see me cowering from the rain like this! He turns away, so it was his back facing her instead of his front.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Despite the back turned to her as Avery approached she was easily able to recognise James and she sighed internally. She'd seen him walking away from her after a slung insult too many times to now know what he looked like from behind. Which was a sad fact. Internally she was debating the best course of action. Most of her wanted to ignore him, so she raised her head, holding it high and staring straight ahead as she walked right past him, however as she re-entered the rain her footsteps slowed until they eventually came to a stop and she sighed internally again. Turning very slightly the girl cast a look over her shoulder to look at him. He looked miserable. She knew this should cause her some sort of happiness, schedenfreude if her German class was to be believed, which essentially translated to 'taking pleasure in the suffering of others'. But all she felt was sympathy. Hell it would take a lot for James to avoid hurling an insult at her. Sighing once more, externally this time she turned and walked back towards him and stood before the boy, holding her umbrella out to him as she stared at the ground. "Take it." She insisted. The rain had been forecast to last all day, so he'd either be stuck here all day or he'd get soaked going home and whilst she understood some people enjoyed that kind of thing personally she hated the rain getting on her. "Go on, I've got a raincoat on anyway." Avery continued, not really knowing if he'd take the offering or not. They'd never really been in a situation like this before and she wondered how proud he was. Worst case she could always just leave the umbrella and walk away, hoping he'd have the decency to take it and not leave it there for someone to steal.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn A lot of things were on the boy's mind, things he expected to happen. James turns away again as she walks past, not wanting to meet eye contact, ashamed that he was having to hide under an archway from the rain. He had expected her to walk past, he had expected her to not bother trying to help him, he expected her to take pleasure in the fact he was cowering from rain, he expected her to hand him her umbrella. W-Wait... She's handing me her umbrella? Her words confirmed this, so he turns, and stares right at her as if she was crazy. Slowly, carefully, gently in case this was some sort of fluke, some sort of prank. If she were to yank the umbrella back and pull him into the rain, James would be whining like a dying cat. Slowly, he grasps the umbrella, and moves it over his head. James was lost for words. Someone he had abused for such a long time, someone he knew hated him... Actually offered him an umbrella to help him out? He struggles to find words, and struggles even more to say them. "T-Thank... You..." He says. "I-I'll be sure to... Leave this... At your dorm..." Not a split second after he says this, he turns tail and begins to walk back to the dorms, shaking a little. Like a child against a wolf, he was afraid of the rain, even with an umbrella. Arriving back at the dorms, James quickly drops off the umbrella at Avery's dorm along with a note that simply said, "Avery, thanks for letting me use your umbrella, James." The note was hell to write, as he had never said anything complimentary to Avery (unless it was intended as a mean joke), however he managed. Walking back into his own dorm, he closes the door, and gets dressed for dinner.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small look crossed the girl's face as he thanked her ad then turned tail and ran. A look that was a mixture of curiosity, amusement and confusion. That small, hesitant and almost timid thankyou was not a side of James she had ever seen before. Then again the only side of him she could really say she'd seen before was insulting ass hat. So it felt fairly easy to say that unless he'd insulted her it would have been a side of him she'd never seen before. She still had a few things she wanted to do, so whilst he ran back to the dorms she continued into town. Thinking about it she could have sworn maybe she'd seen this small look of fear on his face, but thinking it over again she shook her head slightly and realised she was being stupid. And she wasting her time thinking about James. In town Avery picked up a few books, figuring she had to find something else to amuse herself with now that she wasn't comfortable going back to Fairy Tale yet and some things for dinner. A fantasy movie completed her 'staying home' night and she began making her way home. Over the course of her trip the rain had lightened up significantly, now it was only light patters. You could walk through it without getting saturated by now and she assumed it would only get lighter and eventually stop as night rolled around. It was about six by the time she arrived home, glad to see her umbrella had made its way back to her, slightly surprised to see a thank you note from James accompanying it. Sighing she pulled out her notebook and a pen, scribbling down a Fairy Tale forum address on it and sliding it under the boy's door. There was no point keeping it to herself now since she had no clue when she'd be going back. Heading back into her room the girl let herself in, closing the door behind her before she began putting her things away.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Right, it's time to get some dinner." The boy says to himself. Looking at his phone, he begins a back and forth text conversation with Sophia, working out that only she was at the Cafe. James had missed lunch, and was starving, so he figured he may as well join his lonely friend. Turning to the door, he only now sees that a note had been slid under. A quick read of the address written on the paper, and James nods respectively, remembering that he had asked for the forum a while back. He scribbles down a note saying simply two words; "Thank you," before he begins to walk out of his dorm, locking it on his way out. As he passes Avery's room, he slides the note under the door. Arriving at the Cafe, James nodded to Sophia before he bought himself a chicken panini and some chips. He takes a seat, and they begin conversing, James purposefully avoiding starting a conversation about having to receive help from Avery because of the rain. Sophia already knew about James' dislike of the rain, so she did not bring up up (even though she thought it was funny).</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Avery made herself a fairly simple dinner, instant chicken noodle soup since it was perfect weather for it. The bowl in hand she snuggled up on her bed and put the movie into her computer. It was a comfortable night, nights she figured would probably have been better spent in company. It didn't help that all her friends were across the ocean. She'd struggled making friends here, but it made sense, solo player online, solo in real life. For all James' rudeness he at least had friends, which would sometimes lead her to wonder if it had been, in fact, her who was the problem. Then she realised she was thinking about James again and the girl made a face as she finished off her soup and retrieved the ice cream. It was relatively early, about ten at night when she finally decided to turn in for the night. Tomorrow was looming and she had to figure out what she was going to do to amuse herself. Fairy Tale loomed and she figured she could just go off on her own, Sif was still a low level player with no skill. He had no chance of following her if she went out into the neutral zones with even moderately difficult monsters.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Eventually, James decided he shout turn in for the night. He said goodbye to Sophia, and went to his room to sleep. By that time, the Cafe was completely empty, as nobody was going to be eating dinner at midnight. As soon as he enters his room and changes to his pajamas, he thinks of something. Maybe... Will she... Nah. Worth a try, though. He grabs another piece of paper to write a note on, and begins to write. "Avery, I feel kinda... Funny writing this, but you gave me the address to the Fairy Tail Online forum. That means you must be a player, right? Maybe, if you are, we could meet up or something. I'm a bit of a newbie at the game, but I know the basics. Hah. - James" James walks out into the hallways, and slides the note under the door, before walking to his room and jumping into bed. It feels like all he did was blink when he woke up, however the blink appeared to have cured the tiredness of the night before. The rain had appeared to have stopped (thankfully), though James wondered if it was going to start again. Shrugging it off, he grabs his NervGear and slips it on, not even moving from his bed; the advantages of a bedside table. He logs in.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn The blaring of her alarm woke her up and Avery groaned in annoyance. She hated that she was so responsible. In an attempt to keep a regular and healthy sleep schedule she made sure to wake up fairly early each day. It was only seven in the morning, but to a lot of people apparently that was early. Outside the sun was shining, the perfect day to go outside and do something not game related. However the virtual world was calling her. She was sure there was some addictive element to the NervGear, there had to be. Still she should at least get some breakfast before she ate. She was sure she had some toaster waffles stashed somewhere. The notes at her door caught her attention and she moved over to them. Apparently this was a thing they did now. However it did make her giggle slightly. So the forum address told him she was a player but the threat to smite him from the other day if she ever met him in world was nothing. Now she was presented with an interesting dilemma. Honestly she was still very suspicious of James, this could very easily be a ploy to kill her and take all her things online. Sure she was strong but outnumbered no one stood a chance. Eventually she decided to give it some time to think it over and simply decided she'd reply later as she pulled her gear out and slipped it on, logging in and appearing on the hill near Cait-Si starter town. Turning quickly the girl took off into the forest where she figured she stood less chance of running into Sif again.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Okay, it shouldn't be that hard, Sif thought to himself. Someone had came up to him and asked him if he could go and get some wolf hide while he went to fetch some petals of a flower, and he offered a little bit of money as a reward. Sif's first quest. Fortunately, he knew where wolves were because of Belle, so he began to jog there at a light pace. He saw Belle suddenly appear online; the party had never been disbanded. He sighed sadly, and continued to walk, wondering if she had gotten his message. Sif arrived at the fields in record time, and immediately came across a wolf, sitting down, facing away. This was a perfect opportunity, so he approached it from behind, and pulled his weapon out as if he was going to strike, but waiting for the weapon skill to activate. He felt the rush of power, and then struck the wolf, which howled out in pain. However, it appeared this was not going to be as easy as it appeared. More wolves rushed over, and Sif immediately discovered he had run into a pack. He quickly tried to dish out as much damage as possible in the least amount of time, but was taking a lot of damage quickly from the wolves.</s>
<\|description\|>James Arrowthorn Age: 19 Appearance: In-Game Screen Name: Sif Race: Cait Si Avatar:</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Despite the back turned to her as Avery approached she was easily able to recognise James and she sighed internally. She'd seen him walking away from her after a slung insult too many times to now know what he looked like from behind. Which was a sad fact. Internally she was debating the best course of action. Most of her wanted to ignore him, so she raised her head, holding it high and staring straight ahead as she walked right past him, however as she re-entered the rain her footsteps slowed until they eventually came to a stop and she sighed internally again. Turning very slightly the girl cast a look over her shoulder to look at him. He looked miserable. She knew this should cause her some sort of happiness, schedenfreude if her German class was to be believed, which essentially translated to 'taking pleasure in the suffering of others'. But all she felt was sympathy. Hell it would take a lot for James to avoid hurling an insult at her. Sighing once more, externally this time she turned and walked back towards him and stood before the boy, holding her umbrella out to him as she stared at the ground. "Take it." She insisted. The rain had been forecast to last all day, so he'd either be stuck here all day or he'd get soaked going home and whilst she understood some people enjoyed that kind of thing personally she hated the rain getting on her. "Go on, I've got a raincoat on anyway." Avery continued, not really knowing if he'd take the offering or not. They'd never really been in a situation like this before and she wondered how proud he was. Worst case she could always just leave the umbrella and walk away, hoping he'd have the decency to take it and not leave it there for someone to steal.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn A lot of things were on the boy's mind, things he expected to happen. James turns away again as she walks past, not wanting to meet eye contact, ashamed that he was having to hide under an archway from the rain. He had expected her to walk past, he had expected her to not bother trying to help him, he expected her to take pleasure in the fact he was cowering from rain, he expected her to hand him her umbrella. W-Wait... She's handing me her umbrella? Her words confirmed this, so he turns, and stares right at her as if she was crazy. Slowly, carefully, gently in case this was some sort of fluke, some sort of prank. If she were to yank the umbrella back and pull him into the rain, James would be whining like a dying cat. Slowly, he grasps the umbrella, and moves it over his head. James was lost for words. Someone he had abused for such a long time, someone he knew hated him... Actually offered him an umbrella to help him out? He struggles to find words, and struggles even more to say them. "T-Thank... You..." He says. "I-I'll be sure to... Leave this... At your dorm..." Not a split second after he says this, he turns tail and begins to walk back to the dorms, shaking a little. Like a child against a wolf, he was afraid of the rain, even with an umbrella. Arriving back at the dorms, James quickly drops off the umbrella at Avery's dorm along with a note that simply said, "Avery, thanks for letting me use your umbrella, James." The note was hell to write, as he had never said anything complimentary to Avery (unless it was intended as a mean joke), however he managed. Walking back into his own dorm, he closes the door, and gets dressed for dinner.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small look crossed the girl's face as he thanked her ad then turned tail and ran. A look that was a mixture of curiosity, amusement and confusion. That small, hesitant and almost timid thankyou was not a side of James she had ever seen before. Then again the only side of him she could really say she'd seen before was insulting ass hat. So it felt fairly easy to say that unless he'd insulted her it would have been a side of him she'd never seen before. She still had a few things she wanted to do, so whilst he ran back to the dorms she continued into town. Thinking about it she could have sworn maybe she'd seen this small look of fear on his face, but thinking it over again she shook her head slightly and realised she was being stupid. And she wasting her time thinking about James. In town Avery picked up a few books, figuring she had to find something else to amuse herself with now that she wasn't comfortable going back to Fairy Tale yet and some things for dinner. A fantasy movie completed her 'staying home' night and she began making her way home. Over the course of her trip the rain had lightened up significantly, now it was only light patters. You could walk through it without getting saturated by now and she assumed it would only get lighter and eventually stop as night rolled around. It was about six by the time she arrived home, glad to see her umbrella had made its way back to her, slightly surprised to see a thank you note from James accompanying it. Sighing she pulled out her notebook and a pen, scribbling down a Fairy Tale forum address on it and sliding it under the boy's door. There was no point keeping it to herself now since she had no clue when she'd be going back. Heading back into her room the girl let herself in, closing the door behind her before she began putting her things away.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn "Right, it's time to get some dinner." The boy says to himself. Looking at his phone, he begins a back and forth text conversation with Sophia, working out that only she was at the Cafe. James had missed lunch, and was starving, so he figured he may as well join his lonely friend. Turning to the door, he only now sees that a note had been slid under. A quick read of the address written on the paper, and James nods respectively, remembering that he had asked for the forum a while back. He scribbles down a note saying simply two words; "Thank you," before he begins to walk out of his dorm, locking it on his way out. As he passes Avery's room, he slides the note under the door. Arriving at the Cafe, James nodded to Sophia before he bought himself a chicken panini and some chips. He takes a seat, and they begin conversing, James purposefully avoiding starting a conversation about having to receive help from Avery because of the rain. Sophia already knew about James' dislike of the rain, so she did not bring up up (even though she thought it was funny).</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn Avery made herself a fairly simple dinner, instant chicken noodle soup since it was perfect weather for it. The bowl in hand she snuggled up on her bed and put the movie into her computer. It was a comfortable night, nights she figured would probably have been better spent in company. It didn't help that all her friends were across the ocean. She'd struggled making friends here, but it made sense, solo player online, solo in real life. For all James' rudeness he at least had friends, which would sometimes lead her to wonder if it had been, in fact, her who was the problem. Then she realised she was thinking about James again and the girl made a face as she finished off her soup and retrieved the ice cream. It was relatively early, about ten at night when she finally decided to turn in for the night. Tomorrow was looming and she had to figure out what she was going to do to amuse herself. Fairy Tale loomed and she figured she could just go off on her own, Sif was still a low level player with no skill. He had no chance of following her if she went out into the neutral zones with even moderately difficult monsters.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Eventually, James decided he shout turn in for the night. He said goodbye to Sophia, and went to his room to sleep. By that time, the Cafe was completely empty, as nobody was going to be eating dinner at midnight. As soon as he enters his room and changes to his pajamas, he thinks of something. Maybe... Will she... Nah. Worth a try, though. He grabs another piece of paper to write a note on, and begins to write. "Avery, I feel kinda... Funny writing this, but you gave me the address to the Fairy Tail Online forum. That means you must be a player, right? Maybe, if you are, we could meet up or something. I'm a bit of a newbie at the game, but I know the basics. Hah. - James" James walks out into the hallways, and slides the note under the door, before walking to his room and jumping into bed. It feels like all he did was blink when he woke up, however the blink appeared to have cured the tiredness of the night before. The rain had appeared to have stopped (thankfully), though James wondered if it was going to start again. Shrugging it off, he grabs his NervGear and slips it on, not even moving from his bed; the advantages of a bedside table. He logs in.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn The blaring of her alarm woke her up and Avery groaned in annoyance. She hated that she was so responsible. In an attempt to keep a regular and healthy sleep schedule she made sure to wake up fairly early each day. It was only seven in the morning, but to a lot of people apparently that was early. Outside the sun was shining, the perfect day to go outside and do something not game related. However the virtual world was calling her. She was sure there was some addictive element to the NervGear, there had to be. Still she should at least get some breakfast before she ate. She was sure she had some toaster waffles stashed somewhere. The notes at her door caught her attention and she moved over to them. Apparently this was a thing they did now. However it did make her giggle slightly. So the forum address told him she was a player but the threat to smite him from the other day if she ever met him in world was nothing. Now she was presented with an interesting dilemma. Honestly she was still very suspicious of James, this could very easily be a ploy to kill her and take all her things online. Sure she was strong but outnumbered no one stood a chance. Eventually she decided to give it some time to think it over and simply decided she'd reply later as she pulled her gear out and slipped it on, logging in and appearing on the hill near Cait-Si starter town. Turning quickly the girl took off into the forest where she figured she stood less chance of running into Sif again.</s> <\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Okay, it shouldn't be that hard, Sif thought to himself. Someone had came up to him and asked him if he could go and get some wolf hide while he went to fetch some petals of a flower, and he offered a little bit of money as a reward. Sif's first quest. Fortunately, he knew where wolves were because of Belle, so he began to jog there at a light pace. He saw Belle suddenly appear online; the party had never been disbanded. He sighed sadly, and continued to walk, wondering if she had gotten his message. Sif arrived at the fields in record time, and immediately came across a wolf, sitting down, facing away. This was a perfect opportunity, so he approached it from behind, and pulled his weapon out as if he was going to strike, but waiting for the weapon skill to activate. He felt the rush of power, and then struck the wolf, which howled out in pain. However, it appeared this was not going to be as easy as it appeared. More wolves rushed over, and Sif immediately discovered he had run into a pack. He quickly tried to dish out as much damage as possible in the least amount of time, but was taking a lot of damage quickly from the wolves.</s> <\|message\|>Avery Penn A small pinging noise caught Belle's attention and she could see Sif's health going down rapidly and it dawned on her that she'd never disbanded the party in her anger and haste last night. Her first reaction was to simply disband the party, however her hand hesitated and eventually letting it drop. Pina looked at her, cooing softly and causing Belle to growl in annoyance. "Gah I hate myself!" She said angrily as she pulled out a small blue crystal and threw it to the ground, blue light exploding around her before she appeared in the beginner's field next to Sif. Pina spread his wings and took to the air, quickly healing Sif as Belle stood there as she began muttering strange words softly, circles of floating words began circling her, some glowing powerfully as others faded away. The glowing words began lining up. The wolves weren't taking this lying down; however, after the initial shock of Belle's appearance they sprung to attack her, the A.I evaluating her as a bigger threat. However Belle didn't move to defend or retreat, rather focusing on the spell until flames suddenly burst from the circle of words, engulfing the wolves as they began bursting into non-existence whilst leaving Sif unharmed. Pina circled around and landed on her shoulder, Belle letting out a small breath as she turned to Sif with narrowed eyes.</s>	<\|message\|>James Arrowthorn Sif had been continuing to engage the wolves in close up combat, swinging at them, though he now felt quite weak. It was a surprise when Belle appeared, words floating around her, Pina healing Sif just enough for him to continue holding the few that still had him as their target away from himself. She looks mad, Sif thinks to himself as he takes a glance at Belle. I shouldn't have said what I said yesterday. Suddenly, Sif flinched as the flames burst from the words, holding his hands up instinctively as the flames gushed to the wolves. He relaxed, a little, when it became apparent that the flames were not targeting him, but a new threat appeared; the narrowed eyes of who was his friend, though it was unlikely that she shared the same friend opinion of him. "L-Listen, I'll leave. You didn't need to help me. It's clear I'm disliked now, and..." Sif closed his eyes, sighing. He flicked his hand, brought up the party menu, and opened his eyes to find out where the leave party option was, which he pressed. If she didn't like him, there was no point of him being with her. "There. You don't need to see me again." He whispers sadly.</s>
<\|description\|>Aubrey "Shut up, I'm not that short!" Gender: Male Age: 16 Sexuality: Bisexual Personality: Aubrey is very thoughtful, kind, and passionate, though he has a short fuse. He enjoys the company of others and isn't very particular about who he talks to. Although he seems a little bit shy at times he has a wicked attitude when he is upset. He is immensely stubborn and hot-headed and often makes snap decisions based solely on emotion. The best way to set him off is to tease him for his small size or girly name. Appearance: Considerably small for his age, not only in height but build as well. His brown hair is short and curly, almost always hidden by his favorite snow cap. His vivid blue eyes stand out against his pale skin. Small, almost unnoticeable scars crisscross his arms and shoulders, though he doesn't say what they're from. Weapon of Choice: A small curved dagger with a simple but pleasing design. Other: Absolutely adores cats. Cannot shoot worth a crap. Really good with maps. Does not currently remember his last name. Revealed History: + Been on board the Leviathan about four months. Stats: Strength: 4 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 5 Social: 5 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 3</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter had gotten most of her errands done and was now walking aimlessly through the city, stopping at little shops every now and then for clothes or books. It'd been what, almost an hour since being in Ballard? Someone had probably already kicked up a ruckus. That meant she had a limited amount of time to herself before – Guess my time's up. Just as she'd turned the corner, she came upon three dead bodies. Winter sighed and looked up to the sky for patience. Setting down her bags away from the pooling blood, she walked over and kneeled over the bodies to inspect them. From the long, clean slashes, this was Levi's work. The blood was still fresh and had yet to clot, so the girl was probably still in the area. Winter sighed, getting slightly annoyed. Really, to kill in such a flashy way and then just leave the bodies for anyone to stumble upon? She shook her head at such sloppy work. Her ears perked up when she heard voices reverberating off of the alley walls. People were coming. Straightening up, Winter stepped away from the bodies and backed herself up against the wall where she'd left her bags. She tore at the seam of her dress and pushed her sleeve off her shoulder a bit and then reached down to get the water bottle she'd had in her bag. Opening it, Winter dabbed some onto her fingers and smeared it across her face. She closed her eyes and got into her character. Two patrol officers rounded the corner to find a shivering, fragile girl, staring wide-eyed at the dead bodies. Their voices halted immediately when they saw everything. Winter's head snapped up to look at them and she flinched away, her hands coming up to clutch at her chest, her knuckles white. "I –" her voice broke and she just continued to stare at them. The two men glanced at each other, and one of them came forward, approaching Winter like she was a wild animal. "Hey," he said in a gentle voice. "You're ok, we're not gonna hurt you. Can you tell us what happened?" His hand reached out to her, but he seemed to think better of it and pulled back. Winter pulled her native accent around her voice, thickening it until her words were a broken, stilted version of what they usually were. "There was… men, and they try to…" She bit back a sob and pointed down the opposite alley. "A man come, he defend me, but one ran away. They chase down there." The two officers straightened immediately at hearing that there was still an altercation going on. "Stay here, ok," the officer commanded her, "we'll come back to get you." With that, the two took off, weapons drawn. Without an audience, Winter dropped her act and straightened up. At least now she didn't have to do cleanup work. She tidied herself up and wiped the water from her face. Walking over to the bodies again, Winter picked up their weapons, cleaning them on their shirts and tucked them neatly in her bag. Now she just had to deal with Levi. She looked around, spying an art store and remembered the young girl's drawings. That was a likely place to look then. And sure enough, when Winter walked through the door, there she was. "Levi," she said, voice stern. When she had the girl's attention, she raised her hand and curled her finger in a 'come here' motion.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he heard the familiar voice of the twins nearby and as a result Angelo soon went to the end of the bar waiting on them to do what they did best and cause a commotion and as if on cue Sakuya gave anyone man enough an open pass to come over to them and give them the tour around town. even the guys that he beat up earlier got up at the thought of taking them out however this time "shut up!" when he said that everyone didn't question it or tried to argue about it as they all shut up and Angelo looked at them "why is it wherever you go theirs going to be nothing but white noise crowding the place" Angelo said to Sakuya knowing how Angelo felt about peace and quiet rather then the eruption of noise the both of them make wherever they go. Angelo felt like peace and quiet could let him think and relax anywhere but such noise just pissed him off...</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Oh yeah, it would be good for one of them, you're right." Aubrey took the offered cup from the coffee lady. It was in a little white ceramic mug. The top of the coffee was covered in some kind of foamy stuff, something he had never seen before. He stuck his pinky finger in it and tasted it. Wow, it was sweet alright. He brought the little cup to his lips and sipped it carefully, making sure it wasn't too hot. He nodded his head. "Yeah, you're right. It's really nice here." He was going to add something about it being too nice, that he was starting to twitch from being in such a calm, laid-back atmosphere. But he didn't, and instead just finished his coffee in a few more greedy mouthfuls. Even Levi seemed to have gotten bored with it. Aubrey returned her wave as she left. When Jax asked if he wanted to go after the others with her, his whole face smiled. "I thought you'd never ask! I can't stay still this long, it's making me crazy." He passed his mug back to the counter-lady and thanked her. The lady waited for Jax to hand in her cup, and then Aubrey led his friend back out of the little cafe. Once more, the little bell jingled softly. For some reason, he really liked that bell. "Okay, do you know which way the were going?" He asked, turning to look at Jax. "Taran said something about some fancy place..." He looked up, peering through the smog. In the distance, he could barely see the top of a large building. It's baby blue walls stood out amounts the rest of the rusty, brownish buildings. "That looks promising. Let's head that way." The streets were not particularly crowded anymore. The sun had long since disappeared, and a sickly yellow glow was cast by the old lights lining the streets. The city was definitely worse at night. They walked for a few minutes through the shady place, only passing a few people here and there. "I wonder where everyone went." He said, partly to himself, turning to walk backwards for a second so he could look back to see how far they'd gone. "You'd think that-" Aubrey was cut off when felt a hand grasp the back of his neck. Immediately, he struck back with his elbow, but he missed his assailant, his arm grazing harmlessly across their side. The person pulled Aubrey against them, wrapping a think arm around his neck as the boy squirmed. Based on the strength of the person, Aubrey identified them as male. It felt like the world was moving in slow motion, but the whole exchange happened in about two seconds. He stopped squirming when he felt a blade agaisnt the skin of his neck. He froze, his hands still gripping the arm that was around his neck. "Little girls shouldn't be out at this hour." Someone said. From the shadows of the ally next to them another man appeared, addressing Jax. Aubrey would have kicked him for referring to him as a girl had the circumstances been different. "Now, we don't want any trouble." The man said, "But see, we're sort of running low on cash. I'll make you a deal; hand over your wallets, and we won't hurt your little friend. Unless, of course, you have other services to offer..." The sly way he said it made Aubrey's blood boil, and he gave Jax a look that said 'You better kick his ass'.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax had finished her coffee a little bit before Aubrey and was unnoticeably admiring the somewhat cute way he drank his sugar filled coffee. The internal struggle between the boyish her and the girlish was relentless. She wanted to like Aubrey but felt it was too girly to feel the way she did, all warm and fuzzy inside. Rolling her shoulders a bit she shook it off, waving her hand a little to Levi as she left. "Sweet, let's go" Once he returned his white mug to the woman across the counter she returned hers, smiling mischievously as they headed out. "Yes, I'm pretty sure they were going looting. That building there has got to be our ticket to them, hopefully we're not too late" Once the sun had begun to go down the streets got darker, their were few lights lighting their way and the pollution didn't help their sight either. Aubrey had started to walk backwards for reasons she didn't know and spoke, "you think that-" His words were cut off when a large hand grabbed the back of his neck. Jax's eyes grew wide at the sight of the man behind Aubrey. She hadn't even noticed him creep out of the darkness and grab her crew mate. Now her eyes were narrowed and her hands balled into tight fists. "Bastard" Jax muttered under her breath. The man put a knife to her friend's neck and her own blood boiled as they spoke to her like a child, a girlish child who couldn't fend for herself. Desperate or not they had no right to do such things. Other services? What freaking creeps. Jax cracked her neck and spoke calmly but with a hint of anger and sadism. "Pardon me, I am not a little girl, and that is my friend you have there" She removed the wrench from her back and spun it over her head in one hand, a smirk forming on her face. "Now, if you do not release him I will have to bash both of your skulls in. Find cash and other services elsewhere, will you?" Now trembling with rage, she didn't give them time to reply, no one touched her friends, especially not the boy she liked, and that was final. The pirate girl dashed forward and slammed one end of her wrench into the man's stomach, the one who wasn't holding Aubrey. As he was falling backwards she threw the thing at his head and blood could be seen spewing out of his bashed forehead and broken nose. "No one threatens my friends and gets away with it!!!" Jax than turned with ease and moved behind the other man, rapidly pulling out her flintlock, spinning it and placing it too the man's head. "Now, you will release him or I will have to dislocate your brain, do we have an understanding?"</s>	<\|message\|>Aubrey As soon as Jax moved, the man tightened his grip on Aubrey's throat. Aubrey winced as his air supply was cut off and he felt a trickle of warmth run from where the knife was pressed to the soft skin on his neck. He struggled to turn his head towards the man's elbow, knowing if he could wriggle into the softer flesh he would be able to breath. The man's grip was too strong, and in those vital moments with no oxygen Aubrey's muscles felt useless. Instead of trying to free himself, he managed to bite down on the man's wrist. Simultaneously, he kicked one heel up in between the man's legs and felt a rush of satisfaction when his attacker groaned. Aubrey's feet left the ground as the man lifted him, taking away any leverage the boy had. But then Jax whipped around and slung out a pistol, aiming it at the back of the man's head. He froze, but kept his hold on Aubrey. He stood there for a second, looking at his comrade laying bloodied on the ground, as if contemplating his options. Aubrey's kicks had gotten weak, until he was just hardly moving. He heard Jax speak in a threatening tone, but the words were lost. "Who are you kidding, girly." The man sneered. A confident smirk played across his face as he spoke, as if the sight of his buddy on the ground had no effect on him. "You wouldn't have it in you to actually kill someone, would you?"</s>
<\|description\|>Aubrey "Shut up, I'm not that short!" Gender: Male Age: 16 Sexuality: Bisexual Personality: Aubrey is very thoughtful, kind, and passionate, though he has a short fuse. He enjoys the company of others and isn't very particular about who he talks to. Although he seems a little bit shy at times he has a wicked attitude when he is upset. He is immensely stubborn and hot-headed and often makes snap decisions based solely on emotion. The best way to set him off is to tease him for his small size or girly name. Appearance: Considerably small for his age, not only in height but build as well. His brown hair is short and curly, almost always hidden by his favorite snow cap. His vivid blue eyes stand out against his pale skin. Small, almost unnoticeable scars crisscross his arms and shoulders, though he doesn't say what they're from. Weapon of Choice: A small curved dagger with a simple but pleasing design. Other: Absolutely adores cats. Cannot shoot worth a crap. Really good with maps. Does not currently remember his last name. Revealed History: + Been on board the Leviathan about four months. Stats: Strength: 4 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 5 Social: 5 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 3</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey sighed. "I was afraid you were gonna say that." He looked skeptically at the rusted old fire escape. The ladder wasn't let all the way down, so it dangled a few inches out of his reach. He jumped for it and the metal squeaked in protest as he pulled himself up. Although he would never admit it, his small size did seem to have a positive impact on his agility. He pulled himself up easily, though the motion made him grimace from the pain that shot through his neck. Man, he was gonna have some wicked bruising. He scrambled up and to the window, being careful to try and keep quiet. From his new height advantage, he could now see a group of people running with swords drawn towards them. "Watch out, they're almost on us." He hissed down to Jax, before slipping in through the window. He dropped to the floor and froze for a second while he got his bearings. The room was dark. Something smelled of mildew, and they dust in the room made his eyes water. He moved away from the window so that Jax could follow him in. The fact that he couldn't see the mysterious woman made him edgy. "Kara?" He called out softly, his voice hardly above a whisper.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax "It will be alright" A friendly smile spread across her face, "I promise" And she meant it too. Jax kept watch as her crew mate attempted to climb the old ladder that appeared to be covered in rust and not very safe for use. Luckily he succeeded on his first attempt and climbed quickly up to the top. Jax waited patiently, although a bit jittery from the fact that she could be arrested, she stood there and waited, gun drawn as if she would fight the cops to protect Aubrey and herself. Come on Aubrey, are you there yet?? When she turned her head and glanced up he was in fact at the top, she was too on edge to have noticed. He spoke in a whisper down to her, "Watch out they're almost on us." Subtly she nodded and moved toward the ladder, holstering her gun and reaching up to grab the last rung. She was just too short, a bit taller than Aubrey but not tall enough, only her finger tips touched the rusted metal. "Alright" Jax growled and lept up, gripping the first rung and moving up the ladder with ease. It's not like her hands weren't dirty enough already without rust stains on them. The pirate could see the men from the top of the fire escape and bit her lip, scurrying into the window, nearly landing on Aubrey. Fortunately the dark was no match for her eye piece which helped her see in the dark and see the contents of the room. It was nothing special, not much worth stealing here, but she could clearly see Kara across the way and would quickly pull her gun on her if she tried anything stupid. "Don't worry Brey, I see her. Don't move lady, tell us what you want from us" Hopefully this woman knew better than to test her, considering Jax had just blown the brains out of some guy's head, she was not one to be trifled with.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene "Alright then," Said Taran, turning to head up the stairs into the upper rooms. "Catch you on the flip side, please /try/ to stay out of trouble." With that, he quietly ran up the stairs and started trying various doors. The first few he tried were very much like the one that he and Prince came it. Dusty, dark and full of useless crap. On about the sixth door, he finally hit the jackpot. The door lead into a room that was huge, bigger than most of the common rooms on the Leviathan. There was a great chandler that hung over a bed that could have easily fit seven or eight people. There were more pillows than Taran could count and sitting right on the far corner, was a jewelry stand that was the size of a small tree. Diamond necklaces hung from it like lights on a christmas tree, rubies and emeralds like bulbs. It was quite pretty and Taran wasted no time in removing the jewels and finding them new home in his pockets. Just as his pockets were starting to fill heavy, he heard a cough. "Charlie, is that you?" Taran felt his blood run cold as he turned to see a figure on the darken room shift on the bed. "Charlie dear, come help mummy, she could use a nice cup of tea," Suddenly the lights flicked on and there laid the oldest woman that Taran had ever seen. She was skinny and frail, what little hair was left on her head was white and stood up like cotton candy. "Are you Charlie? You know I don't see too good these day," She motioned for Taran to come to the bed, the woman had a hypnotic nature about her that beaconed Taran forward. The jewels clicked criminally in his pocket as he approached the bed. Soon he found his hand in the woman's much larger, wrinkled one. "No...you aren't my Charlie," She said finally. My Charlie is such a good boy. He bought me this house you know. With the money they gave him for coming to clean up the streets. Always looking after his mother, he is such a good boy," She let out a little laugh, staring off into the distance. "Nothing like his younger brother. Not that I knew that when they were younger, thick as thieves, they used to call them the Lennoxs Brothers. But, I know that my Charlie will turn his brother around in the end. My Charlie is such a good boy. Bought me this house you know. I says to him when he got it, I says, you are going to keep me locked up in that tower. Just like a princess. He is such a good boy," Taran sat on the bed, the woman's grip getting tighter every second. Finally, she spoke again"Ah, Charlie, why don't you help mother get some tea,"Taran nearly jumped, thinking that someone else had entered the room, but he saw no one. Finally it clicked. This woman, was crazy. She made to get up, still holding on to Taran with a iron grip. "A nice cup of chamomile I think, with..with maybe a dash of rum. But don't tell your father," She lead him down the stairs and into a kitchen. She sat down at the table expectantly. Finally Taran was able to come out of the shock he had just been put in at being kidnapped by an old woman. "Ah, okay Mom," he said loudly, hoping to get Prince's attention."I'll just put the kettle on!" "Ah, yes there is my sweet boy, what is your name again? I don't remember you," Kara Saun had gotten the grate out of the wall by the time the other two had reached the bed room. "Well, clearly you are not from around here. See, here, when someone does you a favor, you say, 'thank you'. But I suppose that is what I want. Who are you and where did you come from. Clearly you aren't traders or military, so what are you doing with a ship? Nobody who is travling has a body count as high as your groups. She paused. "But that is talk for another time. We have to move, they'll be sweeping this building soon and I don't want to be here when they do. So, lets just start with names, you already know mine, what are yours?" Even as she spoke there were dogs barking and men enterning the downstairs rooms. People where yelling and babies crying. "Ah, you know what, names can wait. Hurry! And close the gate behind you," With that she climbed into the vent, disappearing from sight.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's eyes narrowed at the third, unfamiliar voice she heard from within the room. This woman was too curious. Though she'd manage to tone down most of her habits since her time aboard the Leviathan, she still had a considerable distrust of strangers – especially when they were interested in what you were doing. When she heard the woman climb into the vent, Winter slinked along the side of the building and dropped silently through the window and into the room. She made no sound as she straightened up, raising both her hands. Then she swatted Jax and Aubrey on the backs of their heads. She brushed past them, walking towards the vent. Picking the grate, she slammed it back onto the vent, jamming her stolen dagger in the side to make sure it stayed closed. Winter turned back to face her two young crew mates, her eyes sharp and icy. "Roof. Now." Her voice was hushed and even, but promised all sorts of things if they didn't get their butts into gear.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince quietly moved downstairs, searching every cupboard and drawers that he could see but still, no luck. "If I was a pile of endless treasure, where would I be?" He whispered, moving towards the kitchen. He spotted a door that led to the basement from the kitchen and you could see his eyes sparkling from excitement. He opened the door, excitedly going down the steep stairs. He turned on the lights, though it was still somewhat dim, his eyes widened at the scene in front of him. The whole room was filled with boxes and boxes of weapons and ammo and it reeked, like something had been left to rot for weeks. He hurriedly ran up the stairs but stopped when he heard Taran call out. He opened a small crack with the door, peeking through it. In front of him was an old lady who had her back towards him and Taran with her. He slowly opened the door, making sure the woman wasn't looking as he slowly made his way out of the basement. He looked towards Taran, signalling that this house wasn't normal. As, he was about to make his way out of the kitchen, he heard multiple footsteps entering through the front door. His palms became sweaty as he scanned the room for anything they could use to escape. The old lady didn't look like she was going to let go of Taran anytime soon, so he had to buy them enough time for Taran to escape and Prince catching up after. He went to the living room, using various furniture to sneak back upstairs. He took a deep breath, slamming the door closest to him and creating as much noise as possible. "There's someone upstairs! Hurry!" He heard someone yell. Now he had just hoped that Taran would be able to escape before he got caught too.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he left the bar pissed that he had to fight all those men for no good reason. Honestly Angelo is going to make sure Sakuya pays for this later, Right now Angelo decided to simply get walking and just clear his head before someone else tries to start a fight from him. Right now Angelo ended up in a sort of market place for supplies and while Angelo was low on money (thanks a lot sakuya!) he would be able to buy something. Maybe just a few sweets just to pass the time between trips. Right now Angelo was looking around making sure to keep track of how much time he had till he had to go back to the ship....</s>	<\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey could hear the group of police in the rooms below them. A few shouts of concern could be heard from the building's residents. The sound of a dog barking angrily raised goose bumps on his skin. He didn't trust dogs. He was definitely a cat person. "Yeah yeah, okay thanks." He muttered, his anxiety clear by the way his eyes kept checking the door to the room, sure it would be broken down any second. "Can we do this later? I really don't want to go to jail again." Kara Saun disappeared into the vent. Before Aubrey could move to crawl in after her, he felt something hit the back of his head. He squeaked in alarm, ducking and reaching for his dagger. Then his eyes rested a freighting sight indeed. Winter moved across the room with purpose, picking up the cover for the vent and putting in back, jamming it into place with an old dagger. Well, so much for Kara Saun. Winter turned to look at them, and he thought she might be able to kill him with that glare. "Roof. Now." She commanded. "Oh, um, nice to see you, Winter." He said with a nervous smile. "What brings you to this side of town?" Her eyes told him she wasn't in the mood for his smart-ass jokes, so he quickly looked away. "Ah, right, the roof sounds like an awesome place. Okay, c'mon, Jax." Without wasting any more time, he swung himself out the window. He moved quickly to reduce the chances of being spotted. Finding footing on a pipe that ran up to the roof alongside the window, he pulled himself up and covered the few feet to the rooftop. The gash on his neck burned like fire as he heaved himself up over the edge, immediately crouching down and moving away from the edge to stay out of sight.</s>
<\|description\|>Aubrey "Shut up, I'm not that short!" Gender: Male Age: 16 Sexuality: Bisexual Personality: Aubrey is very thoughtful, kind, and passionate, though he has a short fuse. He enjoys the company of others and isn't very particular about who he talks to. Although he seems a little bit shy at times he has a wicked attitude when he is upset. He is immensely stubborn and hot-headed and often makes snap decisions based solely on emotion. The best way to set him off is to tease him for his small size or girly name. Appearance: Considerably small for his age, not only in height but build as well. His brown hair is short and curly, almost always hidden by his favorite snow cap. His vivid blue eyes stand out against his pale skin. Small, almost unnoticeable scars crisscross his arms and shoulders, though he doesn't say what they're from. Weapon of Choice: A small curved dagger with a simple but pleasing design. Other: Absolutely adores cats. Cannot shoot worth a crap. Really good with maps. Does not currently remember his last name. Revealed History: + Been on board the Leviathan about four months. Stats: Strength: 4 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 5 Social: 5 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 3</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] "WAAAHHH!" Prince screamed running around the house like an idiot, using every furniture he could get his hands on as a shield from the flying bullets being shot at him. "Why can't we all just be friends?!" He yelled, ducking behind the couch. He scanned his surroundings for an open window but they were all blocked by the people currently shooting at him. "Guess some people aren't meant to be friends," He sighed, taking out his bow and arrow, jumping out from behind the couch and shooting the man on the shoulder before making a break for it out the front door. He pushed everyone on the streets out of the way, yelling sorry down the streets as more guards chased after him. He hastily climbed up to the roofs in an attempt to lessen the shots being fired at him. He looked below him after the shots stopped and laughed to himself. "Ha! No one can outrun the great Pri-OH SHIT!" He yelled, not noticing the last building in front of him which led to a very high fall but it was too late, he jumped, hoping he would land on something soft. "Watch out!" He yelled as he was about to land, he closed his eyes, knowing that he was about to fall to his death. After a few minutes he opened his eyes, "A-Am...Am I dead?" He asked. He heard screams around him, people on the streets staring at him in fear. "Murderer!" They yelled. Prince raised an eyebrow in confusion, until he realized that there was someone underneath him, blood pooling from the man's head. "Wow, okay, that's insulting," He said. "I'm not THAT heavy." He looked up, noticing Taran and a few more members of the Leviathan. "Oh, hey guys!" He waved, laughing. "Glad to see you're all still in one pie--OH MY GOD HE'S DEAD. WHAT. WHAT. I DIDN'T MEAN TO." Just then he heard multiple footsteps running down the street, he looked towards the sound, realizing the amount of guards that were running after them. "Run! Every man for himself!" He yelled, running down the street faster than a cheetah.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's eyes narrowed at Jax as she just made even more of a scene with her laughter. But then Taran was almost barreling into her, there was some mad man swinging his pistol around, and Prince squashed him to his death. Really, how had Winter ever gotten involved with this group in the first place? But she only had a moment to contemplate her questionable life choices, and then it was back into action. "Split up, get to the ship!" Winter shouted at the others. She was about to take off on her own when she suddenly remembered the supplies she'd stashed in the city. Shutting her eyes, she sighed and cursed in her head. Winter turned to the edge of the building and ran, jumping down the outside of the fire escape. Latching onto the railing, she swung herself and landed onto the level below her, the metal rattling. Several officers were rushing up the steps with their weapons in hand. The first one had his pistol pointed at Winter before he was even on the same level as her, but she knew it only had room in it for one shot. He'd want to save it for until he was sure it would hit its mark. Winter crossed the distance to him and kicked his hand away, though he kept his grip strong and didn't release his gun. He pushed himself up the final steps to finally be at the same level as Winter and threw a punch with his other hand, but she grabbed it and turned, using his momentum to throw him over her back. He landed with a rattling crash, but managed to roll out of it, turning to point his pistol at her again. She moved like water, lashing out and disarming him. In the next moment she had the gun pointed at his head. His eyes widened at this turn of events and Winter pulled the hammer back with a smirk. In actuality, she'd aimed the barrel just to the side of his head, but in the split second he'd had to react, he didn't have much opportunity to register anything aside from the fact he was on the wrong side of a pistol. Winter pulled the trigger and the lead ball whizzed past his head, a crack ripping through the night air. The officer threw himself to the side out of reflex – right over the fire escape's railing. He fell with a shout and a loud thud when he hit the ground. At least the groaning told her he was still alive. So much for her non-violence streak. The next officer was almost on her then, rage in his eyes. Winter just threw a wink at him, stuffing the pistol under her belt. Before he could reach her, she was balancing on the railing and launching herself off to the other alley wall. She grabbed onto a pipe and pushed off to land on the ground in a crouch. Most of the officers had chased after their chief's murderer (Prince) so there were only three left in the alley – though Winter could hear footsteps rushing in their direction. The others could handle the remaining two on their own, she figured. Served them right if they had stress to deal with. Plus, they seemed like they hadn't quite had their fill of adventure yet in this grimy, polluted town. And so Winter took off at a sprint, running back into the shopping district where she'd left her bags. When she reached the crowds she pulled out the pistol again, holding it above her head and shouting at people to move. Most tended to stay out of the way when they saw an angry person shouting and waving a gun around. It was more conspicuous than she typically liked, but Winter figured any subtlety had well been chucked out the window long ago. She made quick work retrieving her bags and then looked around, trying to think of some way to get back to the ship when she stood out like a beacon and was weighed down with these bags. Her answer came when she saw a young man, around her age, getting off an old motorcycle, covered in dirt and grease. He was still trying to undo the strap on his helmet when Winter walked towards him, raising her gun. "Get off the bike," she commanded, empty pistol aimed at the poor man's head. "Leave the key." He raised his shaking hands and did as he was told. Still keeping the pistol pointed at him, she marched forward and straddled the motorcycle. She threw the pistol at him then and he flinched, falling back. Winter turned the key in the ignition and felt the bike rumble to life, angry black smoke sputtering out. It'd been a while since she'd driven one of these things, but Winter was fairly certain there was some saying about never forgetting how to ride a bike. She wondered if that applied here. And then she was speeding off towards the dock, leaving the city behind her. That mechanic better have finished fixing the ship. They were out of time.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince turned a sharp corner down an alleyway, taking out his bow and arrow. "I didn't want to use this but it looks like I have no choice," he said, stopping and shooting at the guards. After taking out a few of them he climbed up to one of the house windows and entered the house. Much to his surprise, a woman and her two children were there. "Oh, hey!" He greeted. "Sorry but I'm going to have to use this place for a minute," he said, using the window as a cover while bullets were being shot at him. He left the room running to the room across the hallway and jumped through the window, rolling over once he hit the ground to cover his fall. He put away his bow, deciding to save them in case he gets stuck in a tight spot. He ran through a series of alleyways, eventually losing the guards. He slid down to the floor, desperately trying to catch his breath. [KAI] Kai sighed, trying to squish through the amount of people that were on the streets. Apparently there was a huge commotion going on and he had no doubt in his mind that it had something to do with the crew of the Leviathan. Everywhere they went, they caused a huge scene with their antics, especially Prince. Not that he could blame him though, with Prince's attitude, he's always itching to start something after being cooped up inside the Leviathan without any action for too long. "Out of the way!" He heard someone yell. Trying to find where the voice come from, he was cut off when a couple of guards ran past him, pushing him to the ground. He sighed in annoyance, pulling himself up and dusting off his clothes. After looking around the marketplace, he decided to head back, spending more than enough time wandering the streets. Checking his watch, he didn't have enough time to go through the crowd, deciding to take a detour through the alleyways instead. After a few minutes of navigating through the alleyways, he almost sighed in relief after seeing Prince. He knew Prince could handle himself, but he couldn't help but worry. He walked up to Prince and took out a small pouch that contained water in his pocket. Prince looked up, a grin forming on his lips. "Kai!" he greeted, taking the pouch from him and chugging down the water, leaving it empty. "What kind of trouble did you get in this time?" He asked, rolling his eyes playfully. Prince chuckled, getting up and petting him on the head. "Nothing you need to worry about," Prince said. "Let's get out of here," Prince said, pushing Kai forward. "Before the ship leaves without us." Kai sighed, "Well if you didn't get into so much trouble all the time, you wouldn't have to worry about the ship leaving you behind." Prince snorted, sticking his tongue out. "Okay there, smarty-pants" Prince teased, scanning his surroundings. "Need me to cover you?" Kai asked, earning a nod from Prince. With a disapproving head shake from Kai, they headed back to the ship together.</s>	<\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey heard the sound of gunfire, and turned to see Karan tearing towards them. He didn't slow down after a near collision with Winter, and instead just yelled at them, "Running is good!" Before taking off again. "Wha-" Aubrey flinched as a bullet whizzed past in pursuit of Taran. "What about Pri-" The crewmate in question made a grand appearance as he came falling off of another rooftop and crushed the man after Taran. Well, shit, that was interesting. Winter shouted at them to split up as a large group of very upset guardsmen entered the scene, then flung herself off the side of the building as if she had been trained her whole life for this moment. She took the fire escape and caused a commotion, cutting off that route of escape. Aubrey flashed Jax a smile; this was gonna be fun. He turned and headed for the opposite side of the building as Winter. Luckily, there was a fire escape on that side as well. Not so lucky, the guard had already thought of that. Aubrey jumped down onto the first platform, landing lightly between two of the guys charging up the old steps. "Hi! Nice evening, isn't it?" One of the men lunged for him, but Aubrey twisted out of the way and the man collided with the other, sending both of them tumbling down the steps. "Ah, watch your step!" Aubrey hopped over them before they untangled themselves. So long as nobody got a hold of him, he was fine. He was quick and agile, but easily overpowered if anybody managed to catch him. He skipped the last few steps and vaulted over the railing onto the ground, bypassing a third guard. This one, however, wielded a gun. The man quickly jumped the rail after the boy, landing with a heavy thud. "C'mon kid, come quietly and nobody else has to get hurt!" "Oh, convincing argument, but I better not." Aubrey saw the man's brow twitch in annoyance. He raised his pistol, but Aubrey was already rushing around the next corner into an ally. Running was definitely something he was good at. He changed direction when he spotted another group of men, backtracking a few paces before he found a door exiting into the dark ally. He tried the nob, and to his surprise it was actually unlocked. He opened the door and slipped inside.... the coffee shop? Oh wow, small world. "Oh, hey, I know you." Aubrey was short of breath. Winston was still there. "So, like, some stuff happened, and we should probably skedaddle." The people in the cafe stared at the boy in shock. He probably was a sight, all banged up with that wild-ass grin on his face. He didn't waste time, and quickly headed out the opposite door and back onto the street. Now he knew where he was, even if it was black as sin outside. He turned on his heel and started down the street, covering ground quickly as he put distance between himself and the commotion as he worked his way back to the ship.</s>
<\|description\|>Aubrey "Shut up, I'm not that short!" Gender: Male Age: 16 Sexuality: Bisexual Personality: Aubrey is very thoughtful, kind, and passionate, though he has a short fuse. He enjoys the company of others and isn't very particular about who he talks to. Although he seems a little bit shy at times he has a wicked attitude when he is upset. He is immensely stubborn and hot-headed and often makes snap decisions based solely on emotion. The best way to set him off is to tease him for his small size or girly name. Appearance: Considerably small for his age, not only in height but build as well. His brown hair is short and curly, almost always hidden by his favorite snow cap. His vivid blue eyes stand out against his pale skin. Small, almost unnoticeable scars crisscross his arms and shoulders, though he doesn't say what they're from. Weapon of Choice: A small curved dagger with a simple but pleasing design. Other: Absolutely adores cats. Cannot shoot worth a crap. Really good with maps. Does not currently remember his last name. Revealed History: + Been on board the Leviathan about four months. Stats: Strength: 4 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 5 Social: 5 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 3</s> <\|message\|>Prince [KAI & PRINCE] "Wow, that smells good," Kai said, smelling the dinner that Winter cooked all the way up to him and Prince's joint room. After they got back on the ship they headed straight to their room, in which Kai started fixing up Prince's leg from the small battle in Ballard. He wasn't a professional but he knew his way around the mechanics after fixing Prince's mechanical body parts multiple times. Prince whistled as he was sharpening a new set of arrows after wasting some away from the fight in Ballard. "Yeah," Prince agreed, putting away his arrows. He yawned, stretching his arms above his head. "Are you coming to dinner?" Kai asked. From the small time he's been part of the crew, Prince had never once joined them for dinner and instead ate during the next town they docked in or by himself which is why he kept such an insane amount of food in the room. "Nah," Prince shrugged, taking his leg as Kai passed it to him and attached it back on. "I'll pass," Prince said, waving his hand to shoo Kai away. "Alright, I'll see you later then," Kai said, getting up from his seat and leaving the room. Kai walked over to the galley, following the scent of dinner, he entered seeing Winter putting down the food on the table. ""Hey Winter," he greeted, taking a seat on one of the chairs surrounding the table. "It smells good."</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Waiting while Winter cooked was torture. The smell made his stomach growl and his mouth water. She had shooed him and the rest of the hungry crew out of the galley. He did as he was told and cleaned up around the forming scab on his neck. He winced occasionally when he pressed to hard, but once it was clean he felt better. Although it realistically didn't take that long for Winter to finish, Aubrey was convinced he would starve. The day's adventures had left him wiped out. He waited with Jax, as patiently as he could. He stuck his head through the doorway, making sure he was allowed back in. Winter was just setting bowls of stew out on the table. "Oh my gosh that looks so good." He said, moving inside. A moment later Kai came in. Now that he thought about it, Aubrey realized he hadn't seen him all day. He slid into the seat next to Kai, saving the other one next to him for Jax. "Hey, Kai." He greeted him, smiling warmly. When he sat down, Aubrey pulled his hat off like he usually did, stuffing it in a pocket once more. "How's life?"</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran was munching on a biscuit that he managed to swipe from Winter's cupboard. However, when it mixed with the smell of food, it seemed to simply be making him even more hungry than if he had chosen to skip the ...four...that he had already. He pulled in one of the chairs from the other table and sat down next to Aubrey, he smirked at the boy, raising a finger to press it lighting into the cut on the boy's neck."Looks like breaking into a house was a little bit safer than going to get some coffee, who'd thunk it," a few crumbs fell from his mouth onto his lap. He brushed them off promptly onto the floor. "Winterrrr," he called out, watching the soup fill the bowl. "I'm so hungry, I could die, you look even more lovely than usually because you are feeding me. And I want you to know that I love and appreciate everything that you do. I also like the fact that you could poison me, but you are kind and choose not too. I don't think I say that enough," His voice was neutral and he fought to keep a straight face, but there was a slight glint to his eye when he spoke.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax despised being shooed out of the kitchen when she was hungry. She hadn't eaten all day and just wanted to raid the Winter's food cupboard. However, Winter was having none of it and urged her and Aubrey out of the kitchen. After which they both waited outside of the kitchen desperately for her to let them back in for dinner. Jax watched as Aubrey cleaned his wound, it looked rather painful and she felt guilty for letting him get hurt. I'm sorry Aubrey, she wanted to say but didn't. Once the smell was wafting from the kitchen they knew that it was time to eat and hurried back into the galley. "Finally! It seemed like it took forever, my stomach was singing the song of its people to me for like hours" Jax joked around and went to sit next to Aubrey who had saved a seat beside him when Taran sat down next in a chair next to them. Jax folded her arms across her chest and smacked him on the back of the head as Winter would. "What do you think you're doing? Don't poke at Aubrey!" She fumed After which she sat beside Aubrey, glancing at Taran with a threatening glare. "Winter! Oh thank goodness, I can't wait to eat!" She was setting the table and the somewhat suspicious, probably poisoned soup looked delicious. She'd suffer it, she was that hungry and it wasn't like she hadn't had the experience before. Chills went down her spine thinking about it, silently she prayed to the God of the Air and Sky that Winter wouldn't choose now to poison them all for causing trouble.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter was leaning against the counter, a hand resting on her hip as she watched the crew start to stream in. She gave a smile to Kai and Aubrey as they came in, gushing over the food. She took a moment to eye Aubrey's cut. He'd done a good enough job of cleaning it up, though Winter figured she should still have a look at it. She turned around to wash her hands and heard Taran make his usual ruckus. She didn't turn to look at him as he attempted to shower her with flattery, but if one were to see her face, they would see an amused smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Oh Taran," she said in a teasing voice, "you really do think too highly of me." Winter dried her hands and walked over to another cabinet where a few small jars sat, filled with various colored liquids, along with a needle, some thread, and several rolls of gauze. She kept these little stores all around the ship – it was always best to be prepared with this bunch. Winter picked out a small jar of translucent green liquid, gauze, and medical tape, along with a clean scrap of cloth. Turning back, she walked over so she stood next to Aubrey, opposite of Jax and Taran. "Hold still," she murmured as she to inspect his neck. It was directed just as much to the young boy as it was to Taran and Jax. Winter brought up her hand and gently lifted Aubrey's chin, turning it a bit towards her. Placing the gauze and tape on the table, she took the cloth and dabbed it on his skin, absorbing any leftover water, along with a few drops of blood. Without looking, Winter tossed the cloth onto another area of the counter, well away from the pot. Then she uncorked the bottle and a sharp, minty smell filled the air, mingling with the aroma of the stew. Dipping her finger into the jar, she delicately smeared the liquid across the gash at his neck, as well as on the surrounding skin. Winter put the stopper back on the bottle and placed it on the table, picking up the gauze and tape. She made quick work of covering the wound and then placed her clean hand lightly on top of his head, almost as if to pat him, and gave him a small smile. Then she picked up the jar from the table and put all her supplies away, washing her hands in the sink. "Let me know if it starts bleeding again, alright?" she told Aubrey over her shoulder. With that done, Winter turned back around to lean against the counter again. Kai, Aubrey, Jax, and Taran. Prince and the captain usually never ate with them, Angelo only came down from his roost if she served pork and garlic bread, and if Levi were eating with them, then she'd be here by now. That just left Winston and the twins. Something told her Winston wouldn't be at dinner tonight, but Rin and Sakuya were something of a toss-up. She supposed they could just join in when they got there, then. Winter pushed off from the counter and took a seat at the table. Picking up the mug she'd placed by her bowl when she'd been setting up, she raised it, a playful glint in her eyes. "To another close call, then," she said in a mock toast. She brought the cup to her lips and took a sip, signaling it was officially dinner time.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [KAI] "Hey, Aubrey," Kai greeted, a smile forming on his lips. While Aubrey was only a year older, he admired him. Only a year older and he can fight with the rest of the crew, unlike Kai who doesn't like the thought of fighting. He'll fight if he had too, but he just forces Prince to do his fighting for him, also because Prince just goes around looking for trouble so anything works for him. "I'm doing good, you?" He watched as the others entered the room, smiling at them as a way to greet them. Everyone took their place around the table and Winter patched up the wound on Aubrey's neck from earlier. No matter how long he's stayed on the ship, he could never get used to all the blood and wounds that showed up on a daily basis. At uncomfortable times like these, he wished Prince was here. "To another close call, then," Winter said, raising her cup in the form of a toast. He smiled, lifting up his cup too and taking a sip from it.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he relaxed in the crows next and looked up in the sky above him watching the clouds roll by. They were already off and avoiding the storm Angelo called to the captain earlier so now all he needed to do was to keep an eye out for enemy ships. which Angelo could do easily by just looking in all directions every once in a while. Between that time he could just relax and enjoy the quiet by himself</s>	<\|message\|>Aubrey "Not too bad." Aubrey replied to Kai, "But I got a lil - ow, Taran, stop it, that hurts!" He swatted away Taran's hand, who at some point had drug over another chair so he could be close enough to bother him. Winter took his attention away from Taran, when she tilted up his chin, telling hims to keep still. He did as she asked, careful not to wiggle as she dabbed gently at his neck. She spread that minty stuff he liked on it, the kind that feels all cool and tingly. She taped the bandage to his neck, and placed a hand on his head before she moved away. Aubrey smiled and thanked her. She was one of few people he actually liked to pat him on the head like that. For some reason it didn't feel like she was teasing him – like Prince did – but it was more like an act of affection. "Okay, I will." Winter took her seat and raised her glass in a toast, giving them the okay to eat. That was one of the simple things Aubrey liked about these pirates – they ate together like family. Well, most of them, anyway. It gave them all a chance to be together before everyone got busy with their own tasks. Aubrey took a swig of his drink and then pulled his bowl of stew closer. He took a bite of it, relishing the rich flavors. "You're amazing, Winter." He said, taking a few more large bites in rapid succession.</s>
<\|description\|>Prince Gender: Male Age: 19 Sexuality: He says every body is beautiful, therefore to him gender isn't an issue. Appearance: Due to an accident when he was younger, he lost both his left arm and right leg. His late father, being an inventor, created his a mechanical arm and leg which he takes good care of. Personality Prince is known as a friendly man, almost big brother-like to the younger crew in the Leviathan. He often teases the people he's close to, sometimes showing his sadistic nature whilst cracking the most horrible puns in the worst of situations, but when put in the position that requires fighting, people say it's like something inside him clicks and he becomes a ruthless killer until the task is done. He's been using an alias, 'Prince', as his name ever since he got involved with the crew of the Leviathan, preventing anyone from knowing his real name due to his background. Weapon of Choice: Other: Unlike others, Prince prefers to fight in the shadows. He uses the shadows to blend into his surroundings and attacking the enemy from behind instead of facing them head on. In cases where he has to fight, he uses his skills in martial arts for close combat and relies on his bow and arrow to support his teammates from afar. Stats: Strength: 8 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 4 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 5</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter had gotten most of her errands done and was now walking aimlessly through the city, stopping at little shops every now and then for clothes or books. It'd been what, almost an hour since being in Ballard? Someone had probably already kicked up a ruckus. That meant she had a limited amount of time to herself before – Guess my time's up. Just as she'd turned the corner, she came upon three dead bodies. Winter sighed and looked up to the sky for patience. Setting down her bags away from the pooling blood, she walked over and kneeled over the bodies to inspect them. From the long, clean slashes, this was Levi's work. The blood was still fresh and had yet to clot, so the girl was probably still in the area. Winter sighed, getting slightly annoyed. Really, to kill in such a flashy way and then just leave the bodies for anyone to stumble upon? She shook her head at such sloppy work. Her ears perked up when she heard voices reverberating off of the alley walls. People were coming. Straightening up, Winter stepped away from the bodies and backed herself up against the wall where she'd left her bags. She tore at the seam of her dress and pushed her sleeve off her shoulder a bit and then reached down to get the water bottle she'd had in her bag. Opening it, Winter dabbed some onto her fingers and smeared it across her face. She closed her eyes and got into her character. Two patrol officers rounded the corner to find a shivering, fragile girl, staring wide-eyed at the dead bodies. Their voices halted immediately when they saw everything. Winter's head snapped up to look at them and she flinched away, her hands coming up to clutch at her chest, her knuckles white. "I –" her voice broke and she just continued to stare at them. The two men glanced at each other, and one of them came forward, approaching Winter like she was a wild animal. "Hey," he said in a gentle voice. "You're ok, we're not gonna hurt you. Can you tell us what happened?" His hand reached out to her, but he seemed to think better of it and pulled back. Winter pulled her native accent around her voice, thickening it until her words were a broken, stilted version of what they usually were. "There was… men, and they try to…" She bit back a sob and pointed down the opposite alley. "A man come, he defend me, but one ran away. They chase down there." The two officers straightened immediately at hearing that there was still an altercation going on. "Stay here, ok," the officer commanded her, "we'll come back to get you." With that, the two took off, weapons drawn. Without an audience, Winter dropped her act and straightened up. At least now she didn't have to do cleanup work. She tidied herself up and wiped the water from her face. Walking over to the bodies again, Winter picked up their weapons, cleaning them on their shirts and tucked them neatly in her bag. Now she just had to deal with Levi. She looked around, spying an art store and remembered the young girl's drawings. That was a likely place to look then. And sure enough, when Winter walked through the door, there she was. "Levi," she said, voice stern. When she had the girl's attention, she raised her hand and curled her finger in a 'come here' motion.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he heard the familiar voice of the twins nearby and as a result Angelo soon went to the end of the bar waiting on them to do what they did best and cause a commotion and as if on cue Sakuya gave anyone man enough an open pass to come over to them and give them the tour around town. even the guys that he beat up earlier got up at the thought of taking them out however this time "shut up!" when he said that everyone didn't question it or tried to argue about it as they all shut up and Angelo looked at them "why is it wherever you go theirs going to be nothing but white noise crowding the place" Angelo said to Sakuya knowing how Angelo felt about peace and quiet rather then the eruption of noise the both of them make wherever they go. Angelo felt like peace and quiet could let him think and relax anywhere but such noise just pissed him off...</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Oh yeah, it would be good for one of them, you're right." Aubrey took the offered cup from the coffee lady. It was in a little white ceramic mug. The top of the coffee was covered in some kind of foamy stuff, something he had never seen before. He stuck his pinky finger in it and tasted it. Wow, it was sweet alright. He brought the little cup to his lips and sipped it carefully, making sure it wasn't too hot. He nodded his head. "Yeah, you're right. It's really nice here." He was going to add something about it being too nice, that he was starting to twitch from being in such a calm, laid-back atmosphere. But he didn't, and instead just finished his coffee in a few more greedy mouthfuls. Even Levi seemed to have gotten bored with it. Aubrey returned her wave as she left. When Jax asked if he wanted to go after the others with her, his whole face smiled. "I thought you'd never ask! I can't stay still this long, it's making me crazy." He passed his mug back to the counter-lady and thanked her. The lady waited for Jax to hand in her cup, and then Aubrey led his friend back out of the little cafe. Once more, the little bell jingled softly. For some reason, he really liked that bell. "Okay, do you know which way the were going?" He asked, turning to look at Jax. "Taran said something about some fancy place..." He looked up, peering through the smog. In the distance, he could barely see the top of a large building. It's baby blue walls stood out amounts the rest of the rusty, brownish buildings. "That looks promising. Let's head that way." The streets were not particularly crowded anymore. The sun had long since disappeared, and a sickly yellow glow was cast by the old lights lining the streets. The city was definitely worse at night. They walked for a few minutes through the shady place, only passing a few people here and there. "I wonder where everyone went." He said, partly to himself, turning to walk backwards for a second so he could look back to see how far they'd gone. "You'd think that-" Aubrey was cut off when felt a hand grasp the back of his neck. Immediately, he struck back with his elbow, but he missed his assailant, his arm grazing harmlessly across their side. The person pulled Aubrey against them, wrapping a think arm around his neck as the boy squirmed. Based on the strength of the person, Aubrey identified them as male. It felt like the world was moving in slow motion, but the whole exchange happened in about two seconds. He stopped squirming when he felt a blade agaisnt the skin of his neck. He froze, his hands still gripping the arm that was around his neck. "Little girls shouldn't be out at this hour." Someone said. From the shadows of the ally next to them another man appeared, addressing Jax. Aubrey would have kicked him for referring to him as a girl had the circumstances been different. "Now, we don't want any trouble." The man said, "But see, we're sort of running low on cash. I'll make you a deal; hand over your wallets, and we won't hurt your little friend. Unless, of course, you have other services to offer..." The sly way he said it made Aubrey's blood boil, and he gave Jax a look that said 'You better kick his ass'.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax had finished her coffee a little bit before Aubrey and was unnoticeably admiring the somewhat cute way he drank his sugar filled coffee. The internal struggle between the boyish her and the girlish was relentless. She wanted to like Aubrey but felt it was too girly to feel the way she did, all warm and fuzzy inside. Rolling her shoulders a bit she shook it off, waving her hand a little to Levi as she left. "Sweet, let's go" Once he returned his white mug to the woman across the counter she returned hers, smiling mischievously as they headed out. "Yes, I'm pretty sure they were going looting. That building there has got to be our ticket to them, hopefully we're not too late" Once the sun had begun to go down the streets got darker, their were few lights lighting their way and the pollution didn't help their sight either. Aubrey had started to walk backwards for reasons she didn't know and spoke, "you think that-" His words were cut off when a large hand grabbed the back of his neck. Jax's eyes grew wide at the sight of the man behind Aubrey. She hadn't even noticed him creep out of the darkness and grab her crew mate. Now her eyes were narrowed and her hands balled into tight fists. "Bastard" Jax muttered under her breath. The man put a knife to her friend's neck and her own blood boiled as they spoke to her like a child, a girlish child who couldn't fend for herself. Desperate or not they had no right to do such things. Other services? What freaking creeps. Jax cracked her neck and spoke calmly but with a hint of anger and sadism. "Pardon me, I am not a little girl, and that is my friend you have there" She removed the wrench from her back and spun it over her head in one hand, a smirk forming on her face. "Now, if you do not release him I will have to bash both of your skulls in. Find cash and other services elsewhere, will you?" Now trembling with rage, she didn't give them time to reply, no one touched her friends, especially not the boy she liked, and that was final. The pirate girl dashed forward and slammed one end of her wrench into the man's stomach, the one who wasn't holding Aubrey. As he was falling backwards she threw the thing at his head and blood could be seen spewing out of his bashed forehead and broken nose. "No one threatens my friends and gets away with it!!!" Jax than turned with ease and moved behind the other man, rapidly pulling out her flintlock, spinning it and placing it too the man's head. "Now, you will release him or I will have to dislocate your brain, do we have an understanding?"</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey As soon as Jax moved, the man tightened his grip on Aubrey's throat. Aubrey winced as his air supply was cut off and he felt a trickle of warmth run from where the knife was pressed to the soft skin on his neck. He struggled to turn his head towards the man's elbow, knowing if he could wriggle into the softer flesh he would be able to breath. The man's grip was too strong, and in those vital moments with no oxygen Aubrey's muscles felt useless. Instead of trying to free himself, he managed to bite down on the man's wrist. Simultaneously, he kicked one heel up in between the man's legs and felt a rush of satisfaction when his attacker groaned. Aubrey's feet left the ground as the man lifted him, taking away any leverage the boy had. But then Jax whipped around and slung out a pistol, aiming it at the back of the man's head. He froze, but kept his hold on Aubrey. He stood there for a second, looking at his comrade laying bloodied on the ground, as if contemplating his options. Aubrey's kicks had gotten weak, until he was just hardly moving. He heard Jax speak in a threatening tone, but the words were lost. "Who are you kidding, girly." The man sneered. A confident smirk played across his face as he spoke, as if the sight of his buddy on the ground had no effect on him. "You wouldn't have it in you to actually kill someone, would you?"</s>	<\|message\|>Prince "Jeez, Taran," Prince grinned. "Wouldn't hurt to do a good deed once in a while," He paused, placing a finger on his chin. "Now that I think about that sounded a bit weird knowing we're pirates." He shook his head, chuckling, "It was thanks to kids like those who helped me when my arm and leg got blew off," He said, reminiscing about his past. "I promised myself and father that no matter how things got bad, I would always help those kids. Sure, if they had bad intentions it'll bit me in the ass later, but I'd rather live knowing I did something than nothing at all." Prince grinned scratching the back of his head. "I guess father taught me how to be a pushover in the end, huh?" "Besides, even if people did try to come after us later, doesn't that just make things more interesting?" Prince laughed. He looked towards the direction Taran pointed, a sly smile forming on his lips. "C'mon Taran, wouldn't be any fun if we didn't get at least a little action today, where's your sense of adventure?" He asked, grinning from ear to ear. He ran towards the building and using an alleyway as a cover so people wouldn't see him and scaling up to the roof. "I forgot to tell you, I like the thrill of getting caught," He smirked, winking at Taran before entering the building through a window.</s>
<\|description\|>Prince Gender: Male Age: 19 Sexuality: He says every body is beautiful, therefore to him gender isn't an issue. Appearance: Due to an accident when he was younger, he lost both his left arm and right leg. His late father, being an inventor, created his a mechanical arm and leg which he takes good care of. Personality Prince is known as a friendly man, almost big brother-like to the younger crew in the Leviathan. He often teases the people he's close to, sometimes showing his sadistic nature whilst cracking the most horrible puns in the worst of situations, but when put in the position that requires fighting, people say it's like something inside him clicks and he becomes a ruthless killer until the task is done. He's been using an alias, 'Prince', as his name ever since he got involved with the crew of the Leviathan, preventing anyone from knowing his real name due to his background. Weapon of Choice: Other: Unlike others, Prince prefers to fight in the shadows. He uses the shadows to blend into his surroundings and attacking the enemy from behind instead of facing them head on. In cases where he has to fight, he uses his skills in martial arts for close combat and relies on his bow and arrow to support his teammates from afar. Stats: Strength: 8 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 4 Crafting: 3 Fighting: 5</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran froze as he heard boots hitting the stairs, yet the woman's grip was still like iron. He was trying to pry his arm away, not more similar to a fox trying to chew his own leg off. "M'am, please, let go!"he said, almost whining at this point, his voice kept at a low whisper. He saw Prince right behind the woman's head and was shaking his head for the other to bail and he would follow after. "Mom?"came a voice from downstairs. "Mom, where are you?" It must have been Charlie, and he didn't sound like he was alone in the slightest. "I'm here dear, me and one of your little friends was just sitting down for a nice cup of tea," She called cheerfully. "Shall we pour you a cup as well?" The voices were getting closer, finally he was able to yank his arm away from the woman's hold, leaving half his arm hair behind. "Charlie, your friend isn't very kind, but he is sure cute with that long blond hair of his and those dark brown eyes," 'At least she won't be able to give a good description of me to any one,' thought Taran bitterly, taking off towards the stairs and back to the room and the window that he had once come from. "Mother, where did they go?" came the voice again, but at least it was getting quieter now, instead of louder. Taran couldn't make out the woman's response. He soon hit the room and was crossing for the window when his thoughts finally shifted back to Prince. He paused, debating he should go back for the boy. But he had no idea where Prince was. Heck, for all he knew the boy was already out booking it back to the ship. His hesitation cost him and soon the door to the room was tossed open, and there stood Charlie in all his glory, gun drawn and ready to shoot. " Think you can mess with my mother?" The man's voice was heavy with emotion. "Think you can steal from a little old woman? Well, not tonight you son of a business man. I ran out of fucks to give. I ain't taking prisoners, not tonight. Oh no, not tonight," Taran didn't think twice, he heard the click of the gun, but he was already out the window and scurrying to the next roof. Prince was just going to have to take care of himself. He heard several bullets strike the stone where his foot was only moments before. He flew across the roof tops, but the man wasn't so far behind. He was so focused on what was behind him that he almost crashing right into Winter. It took him a few moments to recognize the trio. "Run! Run! Run! Running is good! He yelled, not so much as paused to properly talk as another bullet whizzed past his head. "You son of a- I knew, I knew this was a part of Jac-.., you...I'll kill you, I swear it!"Awh, dear old Charlie had such a way with words. Kara Saun was less than two feet into the vent when she heard it slam shut. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she had been locked in. Oh well, their loss anyway. Perhaps their little ship was going to have a great need for new crew after tonight away way. She crawled through the vent downward for a little wise longer, soon the sounds of fighting started to fade. Eventually, she hit the sewer and less than a moment later, she stood outside the Leviathan. Clearly, most of the crew wasn't back yet. She spotted a few shadows in the windows, but for the most part it seemed empty. So, of course, she invited herself on board. Most ships were built similar, she soon found the kitchen, helped herself to some cookies and a cup of tea, before finding a hole to bunker down in. The crew was adding her, like it or not. Besides, she did just track the blood of those men into her home, there was no going back. She just hoped that they could get the hunk of junk in the air before the police got here to shut it down.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] "WAAAHHH!" Prince screamed running around the house like an idiot, using every furniture he could get his hands on as a shield from the flying bullets being shot at him. "Why can't we all just be friends?!" He yelled, ducking behind the couch. He scanned his surroundings for an open window but they were all blocked by the people currently shooting at him. "Guess some people aren't meant to be friends," He sighed, taking out his bow and arrow, jumping out from behind the couch and shooting the man on the shoulder before making a break for it out the front door. He pushed everyone on the streets out of the way, yelling sorry down the streets as more guards chased after him. He hastily climbed up to the roofs in an attempt to lessen the shots being fired at him. He looked below him after the shots stopped and laughed to himself. "Ha! No one can outrun the great Pri-OH SHIT!" He yelled, not noticing the last building in front of him which led to a very high fall but it was too late, he jumped, hoping he would land on something soft. "Watch out!" He yelled as he was about to land, he closed his eyes, knowing that he was about to fall to his death. After a few minutes he opened his eyes, "A-Am...Am I dead?" He asked. He heard screams around him, people on the streets staring at him in fear. "Murderer!" They yelled. Prince raised an eyebrow in confusion, until he realized that there was someone underneath him, blood pooling from the man's head. "Wow, okay, that's insulting," He said. "I'm not THAT heavy." He looked up, noticing Taran and a few more members of the Leviathan. "Oh, hey guys!" He waved, laughing. "Glad to see you're all still in one pie--OH MY GOD HE'S DEAD. WHAT. WHAT. I DIDN'T MEAN TO." Just then he heard multiple footsteps running down the street, he looked towards the sound, realizing the amount of guards that were running after them. "Run! Every man for himself!" He yelled, running down the street faster than a cheetah.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's eyes narrowed at Jax as she just made even more of a scene with her laughter. But then Taran was almost barreling into her, there was some mad man swinging his pistol around, and Prince squashed him to his death. Really, how had Winter ever gotten involved with this group in the first place? But she only had a moment to contemplate her questionable life choices, and then it was back into action. "Split up, get to the ship!" Winter shouted at the others. She was about to take off on her own when she suddenly remembered the supplies she'd stashed in the city. Shutting her eyes, she sighed and cursed in her head. Winter turned to the edge of the building and ran, jumping down the outside of the fire escape. Latching onto the railing, she swung herself and landed onto the level below her, the metal rattling. Several officers were rushing up the steps with their weapons in hand. The first one had his pistol pointed at Winter before he was even on the same level as her, but she knew it only had room in it for one shot. He'd want to save it for until he was sure it would hit its mark. Winter crossed the distance to him and kicked his hand away, though he kept his grip strong and didn't release his gun. He pushed himself up the final steps to finally be at the same level as Winter and threw a punch with his other hand, but she grabbed it and turned, using his momentum to throw him over her back. He landed with a rattling crash, but managed to roll out of it, turning to point his pistol at her again. She moved like water, lashing out and disarming him. In the next moment she had the gun pointed at his head. His eyes widened at this turn of events and Winter pulled the hammer back with a smirk. In actuality, she'd aimed the barrel just to the side of his head, but in the split second he'd had to react, he didn't have much opportunity to register anything aside from the fact he was on the wrong side of a pistol. Winter pulled the trigger and the lead ball whizzed past his head, a crack ripping through the night air. The officer threw himself to the side out of reflex – right over the fire escape's railing. He fell with a shout and a loud thud when he hit the ground. At least the groaning told her he was still alive. So much for her non-violence streak. The next officer was almost on her then, rage in his eyes. Winter just threw a wink at him, stuffing the pistol under her belt. Before he could reach her, she was balancing on the railing and launching herself off to the other alley wall. She grabbed onto a pipe and pushed off to land on the ground in a crouch. Most of the officers had chased after their chief's murderer (Prince) so there were only three left in the alley – though Winter could hear footsteps rushing in their direction. The others could handle the remaining two on their own, she figured. Served them right if they had stress to deal with. Plus, they seemed like they hadn't quite had their fill of adventure yet in this grimy, polluted town. And so Winter took off at a sprint, running back into the shopping district where she'd left her bags. When she reached the crowds she pulled out the pistol again, holding it above her head and shouting at people to move. Most tended to stay out of the way when they saw an angry person shouting and waving a gun around. It was more conspicuous than she typically liked, but Winter figured any subtlety had well been chucked out the window long ago. She made quick work retrieving her bags and then looked around, trying to think of some way to get back to the ship when she stood out like a beacon and was weighed down with these bags. Her answer came when she saw a young man, around her age, getting off an old motorcycle, covered in dirt and grease. He was still trying to undo the strap on his helmet when Winter walked towards him, raising her gun. "Get off the bike," she commanded, empty pistol aimed at the poor man's head. "Leave the key." He raised his shaking hands and did as he was told. Still keeping the pistol pointed at him, she marched forward and straddled the motorcycle. She threw the pistol at him then and he flinched, falling back. Winter turned the key in the ignition and felt the bike rumble to life, angry black smoke sputtering out. It'd been a while since she'd driven one of these things, but Winter was fairly certain there was some saying about never forgetting how to ride a bike. She wondered if that applied here. And then she was speeding off towards the dock, leaving the city behind her. That mechanic better have finished fixing the ship. They were out of time.</s>	<\|message\|>Prince Prince turned a sharp corner down an alleyway, taking out his bow and arrow. "I didn't want to use this but it looks like I have no choice," he said, stopping and shooting at the guards. After taking out a few of them he climbed up to one of the house windows and entered the house. Much to his surprise, a woman and her two children were there. "Oh, hey!" He greeted. "Sorry but I'm going to have to use this place for a minute," he said, using the window as a cover while bullets were being shot at him. He left the room running to the room across the hallway and jumped through the window, rolling over once he hit the ground to cover his fall. He put away his bow, deciding to save them in case he gets stuck in a tight spot. He ran through a series of alleyways, eventually losing the guards. He slid down to the floor, desperately trying to catch his breath. [KAI] Kai sighed, trying to squish through the amount of people that were on the streets. Apparently there was a huge commotion going on and he had no doubt in his mind that it had something to do with the crew of the Leviathan. Everywhere they went, they caused a huge scene with their antics, especially Prince. Not that he could blame him though, with Prince's attitude, he's always itching to start something after being cooped up inside the Leviathan without any action for too long. "Out of the way!" He heard someone yell. Trying to find where the voice come from, he was cut off when a couple of guards ran past him, pushing him to the ground. He sighed in annoyance, pulling himself up and dusting off his clothes. After looking around the marketplace, he decided to head back, spending more than enough time wandering the streets. Checking his watch, he didn't have enough time to go through the crowd, deciding to take a detour through the alleyways instead. After a few minutes of navigating through the alleyways, he almost sighed in relief after seeing Prince. He knew Prince could handle himself, but he couldn't help but worry. He walked up to Prince and took out a small pouch that contained water in his pocket. Prince looked up, a grin forming on his lips. "Kai!" he greeted, taking the pouch from him and chugging down the water, leaving it empty. "What kind of trouble did you get in this time?" He asked, rolling his eyes playfully. Prince chuckled, getting up and petting him on the head. "Nothing you need to worry about," Prince said. "Let's get out of here," Prince said, pushing Kai forward. "Before the ship leaves without us." Kai sighed, "Well if you didn't get into so much trouble all the time, you wouldn't have to worry about the ship leaving you behind." Prince snorted, sticking his tongue out. "Okay there, smarty-pants" Prince teased, scanning his surroundings. "Need me to cover you?" Kai asked, earning a nod from Prince. With a disapproving head shake from Kai, they headed back to the ship together.</s>
<\|description\|>Taran Greene Gender: Male Age: 19 Sexuality: Bisexual Appearance: Taran has red-brown hair that always looks messy. Slightly freckled and easily tanned. He stands a short 5'11" with an athletic build. He is equipped with a pair of hazel eyes. Personality: Taran has a hard time taking anything seriously. What he lacks in formal training, he makes up for in spirt and charisma (or so he thinks, it is probably up for debate). Taran spent the majority of his youth with a group of performers, acrobats of a sort. He did not join because he has a hatred of authority, more like bad impulse control and it seeming like a good idea at the time. That being said, he will typically stay loyal to a cause until finding reason not to. However, once something becomes unworthy in his eyes (a cause, a person, an idea) he'll hate it, typically with uncalled for passion, and very little will be able to reverse that particular judgement. Although he is not the best fighter, he strives to become one and will often pester others to train him. Weapon of choice: His body. Seriously, while he cannot fight very well, he is fairly difficult to catch due to his acro training. Also, his inability to differentiate between doors and windows. Other: He is fairly musically inclined. Particularly with the violin and piano. However, he only plays for pay and as a last minute gift for someone because he didn't forget. Stats Strength: 6 Dexterity: 7 Intelligence: 4 Social: 5 Crafting: 2 Fighting: 2</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Winter and Taran probably would have had a better time of avoiding each other if they hadn't tried to avoid each other in the same way. His arms still ached from the half hour in which he hid under one of the tables while Winter cooked breakfast. Usually, he'd send one of the others in to do a look out before he would enter the kitchen, before denying that that was what he was doing. But, on that morning, Taran thought he was up early enough that he wouldn't risk seeing the girl. He was wrong. When he dared enter the hallway, he'd usually end up climbing something because he thought it was Winter coming around the corner, usually it wasn't. He spent the last thirty-two hours kicking himself. Why did he feel the urge to give her that stupid necklace? No only was it the most valuable piece of jewelry that he took that night, but it made things weird. He glanced over at Winter, who was almost pointedly not looking at him. It was dumb, and he wondered if the problem could be fixed by simply asking for it back? Or would that make it worse? 'She isn't that great anyway' he thought to himself ' With her face, and her hair that always smells nice and her eyes that --' he thought was cut off as she spoke and he promptly looked at the Captain, his face flushing slightly having zero idea about what the conversation had been about up til this point. He'd just have to ask Aubrey before they got there... The sound of a meeting was what drew her. After watching the 'Pirates' she decided that she should probably make herself known, help where she could, and hopefully keep them from killing her. Both straight out and by their own incompetence. Kara Saun situated herself in a vent with a clear line of sight towards the man who must have been the captain. If she was being fair, he didn't look nearly old enough, but...on the other hand, this Peter Pan man seemed to have a whole ship of lost little children.</s> <\|message\|>Shiyami Eiji Shiyami Shiyami couldn't help but to mentally sigh as he stared out the triple-layered tempered glass in the captain's quarters. He glanced down at the table in front of him, with multiple papers scattered everywhere on it. There were written reports of all variety mixed in with what appeared to be multiple blueprints of different ships of the government fleet. The first and foremost on was the blueprint of the warship Sovereign, the one he was residing in. Towards the corner of the desk however, was a small, weathered envelope, containing two parchments. One was a rather childish drawing, of three people. The other, was a more well-done drawing, of the same three people. Looking at it, Shiyami couldn't help but to smile faintly. "I wonder what those two little rascals are up to?" Muttering these words to himself, he was reaching over to pick up the envelope, when a knock at his door interrupted him. Quickly pocketing it, she called out, "Enter." A soldier came in, clicked his heels, and saluted. "The first mate requests your presence on the bridge, sir!". Shiyami sighed aloud this time, before rubbing the back of his neck tiredly. "There's no need to call me sir." un-energetically speaking these words that sounds like they have been spoken once to often, Shiyami stood up, before walking towards the bridge. Walking down the corridor, Shiyami kept his eyes shifting, making sure to keep every detail memorized. However, no matter how times he seen it, he still felt amazed that this metal behemoth of an airship actually flew. Thing should be heavy as hell. When he arrived, the crew onboard all saluted, with the commander calling out, "Officer on deck!". "At ease that shit..." Annoyed, Shiyami muttered the usual lines, with the response of, "I see you still dislike formalities." coming from the right. Glancing over, his eyes stopping at his observer, the merc shrugged. "Formalities are a tool to be used only when required." Tossing back his words, he walked up, before looking at the map, before checking the ship's status report. "Alright, we need to refuel and resupply the Sovereign. Take us to The Crumbling Keep." Calling out his order, the Sovereign started to move, slowly getting up to speed.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he hung out in the corner listening to the captain explain the plan of their next raid and when he said that their was no point in being sneaky Angelo had to point out something. "for future reference its not that im not sneaky its that my way usually leaves a trail of bodies" Angelo explained to the captain since Angelo used claws Angelo usual way of killing while unseen meant to literally tear out someone's throat. it was easy with the sharpness of his claws and the fact that when he did they couldn't scream and died in a matter of seconds but because of that method their was a lot of blood and bodies and by the time Angelo gets halfway inside somewhere the alarm sounds. "as far as im concerned to what you feel is right captain ill kill either way" Angelo said simply glad he had already taken a shower before coming here, his claws usually end up smelling for hours if he doesn't shower before putting them on...</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston looked along the various charts that they have laid out. His eyes followed the charts. He remained silent since they left the docks, but his silence was broken by his plan. "We can't do a full scale assault, but we can't do a stealth mission with everyone. There are a few... ruffians among us," he said, his eyes shifting to Angelo "but I digress. Winter, Prince, Taran, and I to sneak in, and check to see if they have any super secret tide-turning weapon. We disable that, and everyone else enters. They're going to see our huge ass mothafuckin' ship a mile off, so we need a large scale fight to happen while we sneak in." Winston had said the description of the ship jokingly, but in a poor impression of the captain. "But it will most likely damage the ship. If we don't want to damage our huge ass mothafuckin' ship, we need to park out on a nearby island, and then drift on boats onto the other island. Which is pretty dangerous, if you ask me." He said, still carrying the joke with him.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Captain, what exactly are we after?" Dexter's eyes rested on Winter for a moment. He tuned Jax out, who seemed to be having some sort of ecliptic seizure, or perhaps was just laughing at something. He wasn't sure what was so funny. He pulled out a blueprint that was covered by some other papers and laid it on top. One finger tapped the paper as he spoke, his mind seemingly elsewhere. "This single creation, one that is about the size of small bookshelf, has more firepower then our ship." He paused again, letting his words sink it. He could tell some of his crew were preoccupied with something else, but he was not curious in the least. Perhaps at a different time, he would have looked more into it and discovered what the issue was, but at the moment he was simply to focused on the task at hand to care. "I don't know if we will be able to use these things." He said, "Our understanding of the technologies used are just not enough. However, we cannot allow something with this much power to be used to the military's advantage. Should they get these things up and running, and find a way to reproduce them, we wouldn't have a chance. If nothing else, we need to destroy them." Winston spoke up, and the corner of Dexter's mouth twitched when he repeated the phrase 'huge ass mothafunkin' ship' several times. Ah, that's what was so funny. "Yes, actually, that's exactly what I was thinking, Winston. Thank you. We have three paddle boats that are currently functional. Each one can hold about four people, plus perhaps an Aubrey." Aubrey crossed his arms and snorted in distaste, not appreciating the captain's dry sense of humor. Dexter continued, "So, Winston, Winter, Prince and Taran will take one and be our stealth team. Everyone else will create a diversion. Any more questions?"</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She couldn't stop laughing hearing Winston say the words over and over several times. Were they trying to make her pass out from lack of Oxygen? Maybe so. "Ahhaha, hahhh" Jax wiped tears from her eyes and giggled a little bit, trying to shake off the laughing fit. Unfortunately, due to her loud, obnoxious laughter, she hadn't heard most of what the others had said, except when the captain said something about Aubrey. Her gazed turned to Aubrey who crossed his arms and pouted a little. She felt bad for him always being made fun of for his size and wanted to speak up but knew better to speak against the captain, that was treachery. "Anymore questions?" The captain asked. Jax turned her head to look at the captain. "Cap'n what do you mean by diversion? I thought I heard Winny say something about entering after the stealth team... or did you want us to create a diversion after they entered? Or before" Jax scratched her head in confusion, trying to make sense of the few things that she had heard and the things the captain had said. "I don't get it..."</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE & KAI] Prince sighed as he saw the plans layed out around the table. He wasn't really one for plans but he had to listen to the captain. He listened intently, nudging Kai beside him who was in his own world. 'Stealth team?' He thought, silently chuckling to himself. 'Right.' He was surprised they put him in stealth, considering the amount of trouble he causes on a daily basis. "Large machines, high security and possibly getting killed?" Prince asked. "Sounds like my kind of place," he grinned. Kai huffed, rolling his eyes. "You better not get yourself killed," he said, crossing his arms. Kai grinned, wrapping an arm around Kai. "Of course I won't," Prince grinned.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's attention was drawn to Winston as he started fleshing out a plan to get in and get out with as few complications as possible. It seemed plausible… but a childish part of her begged for an alternative where she could more actively avoid Taran. (She also wanted to raise an eyebrow at the implication there was anything discreet about Prince or Taran, but she supposed everything was relative when it came to this crew.) Winter quashed that part immediately, frustration growing. This was ridiculous. All he'd done was give her a stolen necklace. She shouldn't have been avoiding him or getting so worked up about a silly trinket when it probably didn't even mean anything. Besides, it was Taran. Taran who was never serious about anything and was likely trying to bribe her so she wouldn't poison his next meal. Against her better judgement, she risked a glance over at the crew mate in question. It was the way he'd looked at her when he'd done it though. How his hand had lingered on hers for just a moment too long… Winter was absolutely not blushing. She didn't blush. She snapped her eyes over to Jax when the girl spoke. Thankful for something else to think about, Winter contemplated what she said. "Diversions tend to work best when done before the criminal act," she said. She was relieved to find her voice steady when she talked. "The four of us will go in, and the rest will stay out, doing what they do best." The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up as she looked at Jax. The young mechanic (and a good portion of the crew) would certainly enjoy the chance to wreak some havoc. "If I'm understanding correctly?" She directed this at the captain, silently asking for clarification.</s>	<\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran felt his cheeks flush red. Alone...in a small boat...with Winter? The very person he had spent all day and night trying to avoid? Granted Prince and Winston would be there as well, but still. He was debating asking what level of injured would excused one from the mission. Was a broken leg enough? Or would one still be expected to perform? He heard Winter speak and he half expected Winter to disagree with the two of them being on the same team, but it never came. Perhaps he was getting too worked up, maybe she just thought of the neckless as a gift from a friend...which they were...right? Or maybe she didn't mind him...maybe she wanted them to be...in the boat...together...with Prince and Winston. Despite the flaw in his logic, the thought did make him perk up slightly. "Alright, fine, drop me into certain death guys, what is it? Tuesday already?" Said Taran, finally having processed enough of the conversation to have something to say about it. "But, in all serouseness Cap'in, you can count on me and Prince to save the day, amIright? Up top!" He held out his hand to the captain, expecting a high five with a grin on his face. When all he got was a glare, he kept the grin going "Well, that is alright, self five it is," He brought his hands together in front of his face creating a loud clapping sound. Taran then brought his hands down to his lap, looking very pleased with himself.</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran froze as he heard boots hitting the stairs, yet the woman's grip was still like iron. He was trying to pry his arm away, not more similar to a fox trying to chew his own leg off. "M'am, please, let go!"he said, almost whining at this point, his voice kept at a low whisper. He saw Prince right behind the woman's head and was shaking his head for the other to bail and he would follow after. "Mom?"came a voice from downstairs. "Mom, where are you?" It must have been Charlie, and he didn't sound like he was alone in the slightest. "I'm here dear, me and one of your little friends was just sitting down for a nice cup of tea," She called cheerfully. "Shall we pour you a cup as well?" The voices were getting closer, finally he was able to yank his arm away from the woman's hold, leaving half his arm hair behind. "Charlie, your friend isn't very kind, but he is sure cute with that long blond hair of his and those dark brown eyes," 'At least she won't be able to give a good description of me to any one,' thought Taran bitterly, taking off towards the stairs and back to the room and the window that he had once come from. "Mother, where did they go?" came the voice again, but at least it was getting quieter now, instead of louder. Taran couldn't make out the woman's response. He soon hit the room and was crossing for the window when his thoughts finally shifted back to Prince. He paused, debating he should go back for the boy. But he had no idea where Prince was. Heck, for all he knew the boy was already out booking it back to the ship. His hesitation cost him and soon the door to the room was tossed open, and there stood Charlie in all his glory, gun drawn and ready to shoot. " Think you can mess with my mother?" The man's voice was heavy with emotion. "Think you can steal from a little old woman? Well, not tonight you son of a business man. I ran out of fucks to give. I ain't taking prisoners, not tonight. Oh no, not tonight," Taran didn't think twice, he heard the click of the gun, but he was already out the window and scurrying to the next roof. Prince was just going to have to take care of himself. He heard several bullets strike the stone where his foot was only moments before. He flew across the roof tops, but the man wasn't so far behind. He was so focused on what was behind him that he almost crashing right into Winter. It took him a few moments to recognize the trio. "Run! Run! Run! Running is good! He yelled, not so much as paused to properly talk as another bullet whizzed past his head. "You son of a- I knew, I knew this was a part of Jac-.., you...I'll kill you, I swear it!"Awh, dear old Charlie had such a way with words. Kara Saun was less than two feet into the vent when she heard it slam shut. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she had been locked in. Oh well, their loss anyway. Perhaps their little ship was going to have a great need for new crew after tonight away way. She crawled through the vent downward for a little wise longer, soon the sounds of fighting started to fade. Eventually, she hit the sewer and less than a moment later, she stood outside the Leviathan. Clearly, most of the crew wasn't back yet. She spotted a few shadows in the windows, but for the most part it seemed empty. So, of course, she invited herself on board. Most ships were built similar, she soon found the kitchen, helped herself to some cookies and a cup of tea, before finding a hole to bunker down in. The crew was adding her, like it or not. Besides, she did just track the blood of those men into her home, there was no going back. She just hoped that they could get the hunk of junk in the air before the police got here to shut it down.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] "WAAAHHH!" Prince screamed running around the house like an idiot, using every furniture he could get his hands on as a shield from the flying bullets being shot at him. "Why can't we all just be friends?!" He yelled, ducking behind the couch. He scanned his surroundings for an open window but they were all blocked by the people currently shooting at him. "Guess some people aren't meant to be friends," He sighed, taking out his bow and arrow, jumping out from behind the couch and shooting the man on the shoulder before making a break for it out the front door. He pushed everyone on the streets out of the way, yelling sorry down the streets as more guards chased after him. He hastily climbed up to the roofs in an attempt to lessen the shots being fired at him. He looked below him after the shots stopped and laughed to himself. "Ha! No one can outrun the great Pri-OH SHIT!" He yelled, not noticing the last building in front of him which led to a very high fall but it was too late, he jumped, hoping he would land on something soft. "Watch out!" He yelled as he was about to land, he closed his eyes, knowing that he was about to fall to his death. After a few minutes he opened his eyes, "A-Am...Am I dead?" He asked. He heard screams around him, people on the streets staring at him in fear. "Murderer!" They yelled. Prince raised an eyebrow in confusion, until he realized that there was someone underneath him, blood pooling from the man's head. "Wow, okay, that's insulting," He said. "I'm not THAT heavy." He looked up, noticing Taran and a few more members of the Leviathan. "Oh, hey guys!" He waved, laughing. "Glad to see you're all still in one pie--OH MY GOD HE'S DEAD. WHAT. WHAT. I DIDN'T MEAN TO." Just then he heard multiple footsteps running down the street, he looked towards the sound, realizing the amount of guards that were running after them. "Run! Every man for himself!" He yelled, running down the street faster than a cheetah.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter's eyes narrowed at Jax as she just made even more of a scene with her laughter. But then Taran was almost barreling into her, there was some mad man swinging his pistol around, and Prince squashed him to his death. Really, how had Winter ever gotten involved with this group in the first place? But she only had a moment to contemplate her questionable life choices, and then it was back into action. "Split up, get to the ship!" Winter shouted at the others. She was about to take off on her own when she suddenly remembered the supplies she'd stashed in the city. Shutting her eyes, she sighed and cursed in her head. Winter turned to the edge of the building and ran, jumping down the outside of the fire escape. Latching onto the railing, she swung herself and landed onto the level below her, the metal rattling. Several officers were rushing up the steps with their weapons in hand. The first one had his pistol pointed at Winter before he was even on the same level as her, but she knew it only had room in it for one shot. He'd want to save it for until he was sure it would hit its mark. Winter crossed the distance to him and kicked his hand away, though he kept his grip strong and didn't release his gun. He pushed himself up the final steps to finally be at the same level as Winter and threw a punch with his other hand, but she grabbed it and turned, using his momentum to throw him over her back. He landed with a rattling crash, but managed to roll out of it, turning to point his pistol at her again. She moved like water, lashing out and disarming him. In the next moment she had the gun pointed at his head. His eyes widened at this turn of events and Winter pulled the hammer back with a smirk. In actuality, she'd aimed the barrel just to the side of his head, but in the split second he'd had to react, he didn't have much opportunity to register anything aside from the fact he was on the wrong side of a pistol. Winter pulled the trigger and the lead ball whizzed past his head, a crack ripping through the night air. The officer threw himself to the side out of reflex – right over the fire escape's railing. He fell with a shout and a loud thud when he hit the ground. At least the groaning told her he was still alive. So much for her non-violence streak. The next officer was almost on her then, rage in his eyes. Winter just threw a wink at him, stuffing the pistol under her belt. Before he could reach her, she was balancing on the railing and launching herself off to the other alley wall. She grabbed onto a pipe and pushed off to land on the ground in a crouch. Most of the officers had chased after their chief's murderer (Prince) so there were only three left in the alley – though Winter could hear footsteps rushing in their direction. The others could handle the remaining two on their own, she figured. Served them right if they had stress to deal with. Plus, they seemed like they hadn't quite had their fill of adventure yet in this grimy, polluted town. And so Winter took off at a sprint, running back into the shopping district where she'd left her bags. When she reached the crowds she pulled out the pistol again, holding it above her head and shouting at people to move. Most tended to stay out of the way when they saw an angry person shouting and waving a gun around. It was more conspicuous than she typically liked, but Winter figured any subtlety had well been chucked out the window long ago. She made quick work retrieving her bags and then looked around, trying to think of some way to get back to the ship when she stood out like a beacon and was weighed down with these bags. Her answer came when she saw a young man, around her age, getting off an old motorcycle, covered in dirt and grease. He was still trying to undo the strap on his helmet when Winter walked towards him, raising her gun. "Get off the bike," she commanded, empty pistol aimed at the poor man's head. "Leave the key." He raised his shaking hands and did as he was told. Still keeping the pistol pointed at him, she marched forward and straddled the motorcycle. She threw the pistol at him then and he flinched, falling back. Winter turned the key in the ignition and felt the bike rumble to life, angry black smoke sputtering out. It'd been a while since she'd driven one of these things, but Winter was fairly certain there was some saying about never forgetting how to ride a bike. She wondered if that applied here. And then she was speeding off towards the dock, leaving the city behind her. That mechanic better have finished fixing the ship. They were out of time.</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey heard the sound of gunfire, and turned to see Karan tearing towards them. He didn't slow down after a near collision with Winter, and instead just yelled at them, "Running is good!" Before taking off again. "Wha-" Aubrey flinched as a bullet whizzed past in pursuit of Taran. "What about Pri-" The crewmate in question made a grand appearance as he came falling off of another rooftop and crushed the man after Taran. Well, shit, that was interesting. Winter shouted at them to split up as a large group of very upset guardsmen entered the scene, then flung herself off the side of the building as if she had been trained her whole life for this moment. She took the fire escape and caused a commotion, cutting off that route of escape. Aubrey flashed Jax a smile; this was gonna be fun. He turned and headed for the opposite side of the building as Winter. Luckily, there was a fire escape on that side as well. Not so lucky, the guard had already thought of that. Aubrey jumped down onto the first platform, landing lightly between two of the guys charging up the old steps. "Hi! Nice evening, isn't it?" One of the men lunged for him, but Aubrey twisted out of the way and the man collided with the other, sending both of them tumbling down the steps. "Ah, watch your step!" Aubrey hopped over them before they untangled themselves. So long as nobody got a hold of him, he was fine. He was quick and agile, but easily overpowered if anybody managed to catch him. He skipped the last few steps and vaulted over the railing onto the ground, bypassing a third guard. This one, however, wielded a gun. The man quickly jumped the rail after the boy, landing with a heavy thud. "C'mon kid, come quietly and nobody else has to get hurt!" "Oh, convincing argument, but I better not." Aubrey saw the man's brow twitch in annoyance. He raised his pistol, but Aubrey was already rushing around the next corner into an ally. Running was definitely something he was good at. He changed direction when he spotted another group of men, backtracking a few paces before he found a door exiting into the dark ally. He tried the nob, and to his surprise it was actually unlocked. He opened the door and slipped inside.... the coffee shop? Oh wow, small world. "Oh, hey, I know you." Aubrey was short of breath. Winston was still there. "So, like, some stuff happened, and we should probably skedaddle." The people in the cafe stared at the boy in shock. He probably was a sight, all banged up with that wild-ass grin on his face. He didn't waste time, and quickly headed out the opposite door and back onto the street. Now he knew where he was, even if it was black as sin outside. He turned on his heel and started down the street, covering ground quickly as he put distance between himself and the commotion as he worked his way back to the ship.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax "Running is good!" Through all the commotion that's all she caught on to besides the fact that Winter had said to split up afterwards. Jax smirked, everyone was around, at least the younger members, all could handle themselves and all were hopefully headed toward the ship. Jax felt feverish knowing that if she was caught she'd be thrown in prison, she hated prison. But at the same time the adrenaline was pumping through her like crazy. Aubrey smiled at her and she smiled back, they would have to go separate ways and meet back at the ship. She didn't want to leave him but it was important to split up, it'd be easier to get home that way. "Looks like I'm up" Jax snickered, the others had already gone their own ways and now it was her town. She bolted off the edge of the building, jumping across to the other side, there were men up there, waiting for her arrival. With a pouty expression she stared at them as they surrounded her. "Aww, you guys wouldn't attack an innocent little mechanic girl would you?" She asked as she gave the man in front of her a perfect puppy dog face. "We would if that girl happened to be a murderer, you've got blood on your face girly." One said. Curses, still? "Alright, no use trying to talk my way out of this, I'm kind of in a hurry." Jax removed her wrench from her back and held it by one end, spinning around like an out of control top, taking out the men with ease, each flew back, some falling off the building. "Weeee!!!" Once she was done spinning, the world seemed to keep going. "Whoa" This pirate had to move, and fast, more men were close behind, it was like every man in the whole city was after the crew now. Her head was still spinning but she kept moving, across to another roof top, since men were following her she had no choice but to climb down. Or y'kno, jump down. Like a trained assassin(which she isn't), she jumped across to a pole jutting out from the front of the building, swung on it and landed on another wooden piece sticking out below. Once more she jumped and landed on a cart on the ground. "Alright! keep moving!" With that she launched herself forward, rolling across the ground, popping up and running like there was a fire trying to engulf her from behind. Aubrey, Winter, Taran, Prince... I hope they're all okay. No time for that. Through the dark and pollution she could see some familiar surroundings, she was nearing the coffee shop, but she wouldn't stop there, there was probably no one left there anyway. In her mind everyone had already made it too the ship and was waiting to cast off. Once to the docks she knelt down, breathing heavily. "Am I the first one or what?"</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter The bike skidded to a halt when she reached the dock and Winter killed the engine. She got off, and marched towards the ship to find Jax already there, and Taran not far behind her. "Jax," she called. "Tell the mechanic his job is done. Take over wherever he left off." She stuck her hand in her bag then and fished around, never breaking her stride. When she pulled it out, she brought with it a pair of fine leather work gloves. Tossing them over to Jax, she added, "Break these in, too." There wasn't much time for any further signs of affection, though. Winter made her way onto the ship, tossing her things in a corner where they wouldn't get in the way. Her mind spun with things to do – Prince and Aubrey could handle themselves well enough to make it to the ship, but Winston, the twins, and Angelo weren't exactly aware of the situation. Hopefully they'd see the commotion and figure it out. But Winter had to do something else before she could worry about any of that. She came to a stop in front of the door to the captain's quarters. Giving a breath, she steadied herself and knocked. Winter waited respectfully with her hands behind her back for the captain to open the door so she could let him know the situation. (Though odds were he knew the crew well enough to have some idea.)</s> <\|message\|>Dexter Kennedy Dexter spent the whole time at Ballard on the ship. He had no desire to go explore this mess of a city. His thoughts were elsewhere. The desk in front of him was laid out with an abundance of colorful charts and graphs. Lines and notes were drawn in small, neat handwriting across them from a charcoal pencil the captain had borrowed from Levi's stash. Blueprints accompanied the other papers; crude drawings of machinery he was familiarizing himself with. Weapons, security, evey nick and cranny that could be used as a hiding place or shelter from enemy fire... Dexter plotted it all out, committing it to memory. This next job was an important one, and he couldn't allow himself or his crew to mess it up. He checked the watch on his wrist. It had been about five hours now, and he was sure that any minute now at least a few of his comrades would come running aboard, apologizing profusely for the trouble they were about to bring him. Sure enough, he heard a soft knock on the door. Never a good sign. With a sigh he slid his chair back and stood up. He moved across the room, his heavy boots making soft thuds on the ships floor as he walked to the door. He opened it, and his steely gaze rested on Winter, who stood patiently with her hands behind her back. "I'm assuming you're going to inform me we should depart soon." He said, raising one eyebrow in question, "Do we need to stop by any prisons on our way, or did they all manage to avoid arrest this time?"</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston had been in the cafe for a long time. Every time his cup ran out, he would just order another one. Each cup had been worse than the last. Probably because Winston drank too much coffee. It was quite boring. Winston didn't really mind, though. He was used to doing nothing. Winston saw Aubrey charging in. All scuffed up and out of breath. Without any notice, Aubrey had told Winston to get to the ship in standard Aubrey manner; joking. Without much further thought, Winston grabbed his bag of things that he bought from earlier and ran out the door. Once he ran outside, he ran to the ship. It was quite a sight. Outside seemed to be a lot panicked. Lots of whispers though the street goers. When Winston got to the docks, he saw that the ship was still there. It seemed to be intact, too. He walked aboard the ship and walked to his quarters. His was different than everybody else's. His was barren. All that was in his medium sized room was an old sleeping bag in a crate that was about seven feet long and three feet wide, his axe beside the crate, a mortar and pestle in the center of the room with a metal cup beside it and a single ceramic cup filled with dirt which had a layer of ash on it. Winston opened his bag and took out the oil from his bag. He poured the oil into the metal cup. Then, he pulled out the petals from the small bag. He grabbed the mortar and pestle from the floor and put the petals in. He crushed the petals into a fine powder, then he poured the petal powder into the cup. He put the mortar and pestle down, and sat against the wall, waiting.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter kept her face blank as she looked up at the captain. He was a tall, imposing man who was even better than her at keeping a pokerface. Under it though, he was a good, reliable sort who was more forgiving and compassionate than he seemed. After all, he'd even agreed to take Winter in, once upon a time. She owed him more than she should be comfortable with, but the captain was one of the few people in the world she wholeheartedly trusted. "No one's in jail that I know of, but it's hard to keep track of them all when they're scattered throughout the city," she answered. And when they're hellbent on wreaking havoc wherever they go, she added to herself. "Jax, Winston and Taran are on the ship, and I sent Levi back here several hours ago." She'd seen Winston rumbling around on the ship on her way to the captain's room. "Kai was on the ship earlier, but it's possible he headed out to explore the town. Prince and Aubrey know to come back, but last I saw they were on the run from the local law enforcement. Rin, Sakuya, and Angelo are unaccounted for." Winter recited the statuses of her crew mates, barely batting an eyelash. "We should also expect the police to find this ship at any moment. On the up side, the crew had a blast, though that means we can never dock in Ballard again." The corner of her mouth quirked up in what could almost be called an amused smile. But it was gone as soon as it appeared and she looked back up to the captain, all business again. "Orders?"</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Sweet, not only will I be steam-fried, I'll also be shredded into bite-size pieces." Aubrey took a moment to gather his nerves. He placed his forehead on the floor of the vent, and inhaled deeply. One, two, three. He picked his head back up and slipped the end of the wrench on the bolt in the center of the fan. No time to waste. "Here goes.... a lot of things, really." He turned the wrench carefully and quickly, making sure he kept a solid grip one it. He turned it in a full circle, and immediately the fan whirred to life. He retracted his hand, yanking back the wrench before he got caught by the metal blades. "Success!" He announced, the relief evident in his voice. "I'll just put this back on..." He pushed the grate for the fan back into place and secured the bolts. It was much easier to put together them to take apart. "Coming out!" Aubrey quickly wiggled backwards through the vent. Once again, getting past the bend proved difficult, but he managed. He slid out of the vent and flopped onto the floor, covered in sweat and the wrench clenched in one hand. "Taa-daa, Aubrey to the rescue." He sighed, grateful to be out of the vent.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax waiting patiently, holding tightly onto the valve while she waited. The noise inside the vent told her how he was fairing and it sounded well. When the fan kicked on she didn't hear screaming but instead, "Success!", from Aubrey. Jax wanted to put her fist up as a victory thing, but she decided against putting her crew mate's life in danger. More waiting as Aubrey wriggled his way out of the burning hot shaft and out onto the floor. Oh man did she want to pull him up and hug him, not the first time she wanted to hug Aubrey. But of course she didn't. "You did it!!" Jax released the valve and ran over to grab Aubrey and carry him over her shoulder and out of the engine room. With a joyous smile she placed him down in front of her and laughed. "Man, I couldn't have done it better myself, with the other repairs from the other mechanics the ship should be working just fine now. We got lucky 'cuz that was the easy stuff, glad you got out safe, might want to go bathe or something, I should too, I feel all gross" She shrugged, it wasn't anything knew, a pirate's life for them. "In any case, I'm starving and need to eat, let's go swipe a snack from the kitchen, yes?" Before he could answer she grinned mischievously and bolted through the ship toward the kitchen yelling behind her, "Race ya!"</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter raised an eyebrow at the captain's command, the beginnings of a sly smile appearing on her face. "Aye, Captain," she said in a voice that promised nothing. Turning away, she walked back to where she'd tossed her bags when she first got on the ship and walked into the galley to find Taran trying to sneak a treat from her cabinet. Winter placed her bags up on the counter and began the process of putting away the various food and medical supplies she'd picked up. She remembered the extra weapons too, and figured she'd have to go down to the armory after to deal with those. Winter moved about the galley in her smooth, controlled way, putting away her various ingredients and medicines. She reached up to give Taran a light swat on the back of his head, never faltering. Then Jax and Aubrey were all but stampeding into the galley, clearly having the same idea as their older crew mate. Winter just shot them a look and continued. She stilled when she saw how dark blood was crusted all over Aubrey's neck, flaking whenever he moved. Some parts were even still wet, though it looked like the bleeding had stopped at least. Grabbing a cloth from the sink, she wet it and tossed it over to Aubrey. "Start cleaning that," she said to him, gesturing to her own neck. "I'll patch you up when I'm done with this." With that she continued with her duties. --- After everything was put away, and Winter'd done the rounds of making sure no one else needed medical care, she'd shooed everyone out of the galley and started on dinner. Tonight was a pot of rich stew, teeming with herbs and spices, along with chunks of vegetables and meat she'd picked up in Ballard. It was a hearty dinner after another close brush with the law – but more importantly, the layered flavors and texture would hide any hint of poison. Not that Winter'd put anything in anyone's bowls this time around. But it was good practice to keep any guilty parties guessing. She found the paranoia and anticipation to be almost as effective as actually following through with the threat. Not to mention it was cleaner. Wiping her hands on a cloth, Winter finished setting all the steaming bowls on the table. Dinner was officially ready. She didn't call out or announce anything – the smell was enough of a dinner bell. Plus, meals were the one time of day when she didn't have to go hunting for anyone. They knew it was either come to the galley or don't eat.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [KAI & PRINCE] "Wow, that smells good," Kai said, smelling the dinner that Winter cooked all the way up to him and Prince's joint room. After they got back on the ship they headed straight to their room, in which Kai started fixing up Prince's leg from the small battle in Ballard. He wasn't a professional but he knew his way around the mechanics after fixing Prince's mechanical body parts multiple times. Prince whistled as he was sharpening a new set of arrows after wasting some away from the fight in Ballard. "Yeah," Prince agreed, putting away his arrows. He yawned, stretching his arms above his head. "Are you coming to dinner?" Kai asked. From the small time he's been part of the crew, Prince had never once joined them for dinner and instead ate during the next town they docked in or by himself which is why he kept such an insane amount of food in the room. "Nah," Prince shrugged, taking his leg as Kai passed it to him and attached it back on. "I'll pass," Prince said, waving his hand to shoo Kai away. "Alright, I'll see you later then," Kai said, getting up from his seat and leaving the room. Kai walked over to the galley, following the scent of dinner, he entered seeing Winter putting down the food on the table. ""Hey Winter," he greeted, taking a seat on one of the chairs surrounding the table. "It smells good."</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Waiting while Winter cooked was torture. The smell made his stomach growl and his mouth water. She had shooed him and the rest of the hungry crew out of the galley. He did as he was told and cleaned up around the forming scab on his neck. He winced occasionally when he pressed to hard, but once it was clean he felt better. Although it realistically didn't take that long for Winter to finish, Aubrey was convinced he would starve. The day's adventures had left him wiped out. He waited with Jax, as patiently as he could. He stuck his head through the doorway, making sure he was allowed back in. Winter was just setting bowls of stew out on the table. "Oh my gosh that looks so good." He said, moving inside. A moment later Kai came in. Now that he thought about it, Aubrey realized he hadn't seen him all day. He slid into the seat next to Kai, saving the other one next to him for Jax. "Hey, Kai." He greeted him, smiling warmly. When he sat down, Aubrey pulled his hat off like he usually did, stuffing it in a pocket once more. "How's life?"</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran was munching on a biscuit that he managed to swipe from Winter's cupboard. However, when it mixed with the smell of food, it seemed to simply be making him even more hungry than if he had chosen to skip the ...four...that he had already. He pulled in one of the chairs from the other table and sat down next to Aubrey, he smirked at the boy, raising a finger to press it lighting into the cut on the boy's neck."Looks like breaking into a house was a little bit safer than going to get some coffee, who'd thunk it," a few crumbs fell from his mouth onto his lap. He brushed them off promptly onto the floor. "Winterrrr," he called out, watching the soup fill the bowl. "I'm so hungry, I could die, you look even more lovely than usually because you are feeding me. And I want you to know that I love and appreciate everything that you do. I also like the fact that you could poison me, but you are kind and choose not too. I don't think I say that enough," His voice was neutral and he fought to keep a straight face, but there was a slight glint to his eye when he spoke.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax despised being shooed out of the kitchen when she was hungry. She hadn't eaten all day and just wanted to raid the Winter's food cupboard. However, Winter was having none of it and urged her and Aubrey out of the kitchen. After which they both waited outside of the kitchen desperately for her to let them back in for dinner. Jax watched as Aubrey cleaned his wound, it looked rather painful and she felt guilty for letting him get hurt. I'm sorry Aubrey, she wanted to say but didn't. Once the smell was wafting from the kitchen they knew that it was time to eat and hurried back into the galley. "Finally! It seemed like it took forever, my stomach was singing the song of its people to me for like hours" Jax joked around and went to sit next to Aubrey who had saved a seat beside him when Taran sat down next in a chair next to them. Jax folded her arms across her chest and smacked him on the back of the head as Winter would. "What do you think you're doing? Don't poke at Aubrey!" She fumed After which she sat beside Aubrey, glancing at Taran with a threatening glare. "Winter! Oh thank goodness, I can't wait to eat!" She was setting the table and the somewhat suspicious, probably poisoned soup looked delicious. She'd suffer it, she was that hungry and it wasn't like she hadn't had the experience before. Chills went down her spine thinking about it, silently she prayed to the God of the Air and Sky that Winter wouldn't choose now to poison them all for causing trouble.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter was leaning against the counter, a hand resting on her hip as she watched the crew start to stream in. She gave a smile to Kai and Aubrey as they came in, gushing over the food. She took a moment to eye Aubrey's cut. He'd done a good enough job of cleaning it up, though Winter figured she should still have a look at it. She turned around to wash her hands and heard Taran make his usual ruckus. She didn't turn to look at him as he attempted to shower her with flattery, but if one were to see her face, they would see an amused smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Oh Taran," she said in a teasing voice, "you really do think too highly of me." Winter dried her hands and walked over to another cabinet where a few small jars sat, filled with various colored liquids, along with a needle, some thread, and several rolls of gauze. She kept these little stores all around the ship – it was always best to be prepared with this bunch. Winter picked out a small jar of translucent green liquid, gauze, and medical tape, along with a clean scrap of cloth. Turning back, she walked over so she stood next to Aubrey, opposite of Jax and Taran. "Hold still," she murmured as she to inspect his neck. It was directed just as much to the young boy as it was to Taran and Jax. Winter brought up her hand and gently lifted Aubrey's chin, turning it a bit towards her. Placing the gauze and tape on the table, she took the cloth and dabbed it on his skin, absorbing any leftover water, along with a few drops of blood. Without looking, Winter tossed the cloth onto another area of the counter, well away from the pot. Then she uncorked the bottle and a sharp, minty smell filled the air, mingling with the aroma of the stew. Dipping her finger into the jar, she delicately smeared the liquid across the gash at his neck, as well as on the surrounding skin. Winter put the stopper back on the bottle and placed it on the table, picking up the gauze and tape. She made quick work of covering the wound and then placed her clean hand lightly on top of his head, almost as if to pat him, and gave him a small smile. Then she picked up the jar from the table and put all her supplies away, washing her hands in the sink. "Let me know if it starts bleeding again, alright?" she told Aubrey over her shoulder. With that done, Winter turned back around to lean against the counter again. Kai, Aubrey, Jax, and Taran. Prince and the captain usually never ate with them, Angelo only came down from his roost if she served pork and garlic bread, and if Levi were eating with them, then she'd be here by now. That just left Winston and the twins. Something told her Winston wouldn't be at dinner tonight, but Rin and Sakuya were something of a toss-up. She supposed they could just join in when they got there, then. Winter pushed off from the counter and took a seat at the table. Picking up the mug she'd placed by her bowl when she'd been setting up, she raised it, a playful glint in her eyes. "To another close call, then," she said in a mock toast. She brought the cup to her lips and took a sip, signaling it was officially dinner time.</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he hung out in the corner listening to the captain explain the plan of their next raid and when he said that their was no point in being sneaky Angelo had to point out something. "for future reference its not that im not sneaky its that my way usually leaves a trail of bodies" Angelo explained to the captain since Angelo used claws Angelo usual way of killing while unseen meant to literally tear out someone's throat. it was easy with the sharpness of his claws and the fact that when he did they couldn't scream and died in a matter of seconds but because of that method their was a lot of blood and bodies and by the time Angelo gets halfway inside somewhere the alarm sounds. "as far as im concerned to what you feel is right captain ill kill either way" Angelo said simply glad he had already taken a shower before coming here, his claws usually end up smelling for hours if he doesn't shower before putting them on...</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston looked along the various charts that they have laid out. His eyes followed the charts. He remained silent since they left the docks, but his silence was broken by his plan. "We can't do a full scale assault, but we can't do a stealth mission with everyone. There are a few... ruffians among us," he said, his eyes shifting to Angelo "but I digress. Winter, Prince, Taran, and I to sneak in, and check to see if they have any super secret tide-turning weapon. We disable that, and everyone else enters. They're going to see our huge ass mothafuckin' ship a mile off, so we need a large scale fight to happen while we sneak in." Winston had said the description of the ship jokingly, but in a poor impression of the captain. "But it will most likely damage the ship. If we don't want to damage our huge ass mothafuckin' ship, we need to park out on a nearby island, and then drift on boats onto the other island. Which is pretty dangerous, if you ask me." He said, still carrying the joke with him.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Captain, what exactly are we after?" Dexter's eyes rested on Winter for a moment. He tuned Jax out, who seemed to be having some sort of ecliptic seizure, or perhaps was just laughing at something. He wasn't sure what was so funny. He pulled out a blueprint that was covered by some other papers and laid it on top. One finger tapped the paper as he spoke, his mind seemingly elsewhere. "This single creation, one that is about the size of small bookshelf, has more firepower then our ship." He paused again, letting his words sink it. He could tell some of his crew were preoccupied with something else, but he was not curious in the least. Perhaps at a different time, he would have looked more into it and discovered what the issue was, but at the moment he was simply to focused on the task at hand to care. "I don't know if we will be able to use these things." He said, "Our understanding of the technologies used are just not enough. However, we cannot allow something with this much power to be used to the military's advantage. Should they get these things up and running, and find a way to reproduce them, we wouldn't have a chance. If nothing else, we need to destroy them." Winston spoke up, and the corner of Dexter's mouth twitched when he repeated the phrase 'huge ass mothafunkin' ship' several times. Ah, that's what was so funny. "Yes, actually, that's exactly what I was thinking, Winston. Thank you. We have three paddle boats that are currently functional. Each one can hold about four people, plus perhaps an Aubrey." Aubrey crossed his arms and snorted in distaste, not appreciating the captain's dry sense of humor. Dexter continued, "So, Winston, Winter, Prince and Taran will take one and be our stealth team. Everyone else will create a diversion. Any more questions?"</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She couldn't stop laughing hearing Winston say the words over and over several times. Were they trying to make her pass out from lack of Oxygen? Maybe so. "Ahhaha, hahhh" Jax wiped tears from her eyes and giggled a little bit, trying to shake off the laughing fit. Unfortunately, due to her loud, obnoxious laughter, she hadn't heard most of what the others had said, except when the captain said something about Aubrey. Her gazed turned to Aubrey who crossed his arms and pouted a little. She felt bad for him always being made fun of for his size and wanted to speak up but knew better to speak against the captain, that was treachery. "Anymore questions?" The captain asked. Jax turned her head to look at the captain. "Cap'n what do you mean by diversion? I thought I heard Winny say something about entering after the stealth team... or did you want us to create a diversion after they entered? Or before" Jax scratched her head in confusion, trying to make sense of the few things that she had heard and the things the captain had said. "I don't get it..."</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE & KAI] Prince sighed as he saw the plans layed out around the table. He wasn't really one for plans but he had to listen to the captain. He listened intently, nudging Kai beside him who was in his own world. 'Stealth team?' He thought, silently chuckling to himself. 'Right.' He was surprised they put him in stealth, considering the amount of trouble he causes on a daily basis. "Large machines, high security and possibly getting killed?" Prince asked. "Sounds like my kind of place," he grinned. Kai huffed, rolling his eyes. "You better not get yourself killed," he said, crossing his arms. Kai grinned, wrapping an arm around Kai. "Of course I won't," Prince grinned.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's attention was drawn to Winston as he started fleshing out a plan to get in and get out with as few complications as possible. It seemed plausible… but a childish part of her begged for an alternative where she could more actively avoid Taran. (She also wanted to raise an eyebrow at the implication there was anything discreet about Prince or Taran, but she supposed everything was relative when it came to this crew.) Winter quashed that part immediately, frustration growing. This was ridiculous. All he'd done was give her a stolen necklace. She shouldn't have been avoiding him or getting so worked up about a silly trinket when it probably didn't even mean anything. Besides, it was Taran. Taran who was never serious about anything and was likely trying to bribe her so she wouldn't poison his next meal. Against her better judgement, she risked a glance over at the crew mate in question. It was the way he'd looked at her when he'd done it though. How his hand had lingered on hers for just a moment too long… Winter was absolutely not blushing. She didn't blush. She snapped her eyes over to Jax when the girl spoke. Thankful for something else to think about, Winter contemplated what she said. "Diversions tend to work best when done before the criminal act," she said. She was relieved to find her voice steady when she talked. "The four of us will go in, and the rest will stay out, doing what they do best." The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up as she looked at Jax. The young mechanic (and a good portion of the crew) would certainly enjoy the chance to wreak some havoc. "If I'm understanding correctly?" She directed this at the captain, silently asking for clarification.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran felt his cheeks flush red. Alone...in a small boat...with Winter? The very person he had spent all day and night trying to avoid? Granted Prince and Winston would be there as well, but still. He was debating asking what level of injured would excused one from the mission. Was a broken leg enough? Or would one still be expected to perform? He heard Winter speak and he half expected Winter to disagree with the two of them being on the same team, but it never came. Perhaps he was getting too worked up, maybe she just thought of the neckless as a gift from a friend...which they were...right? Or maybe she didn't mind him...maybe she wanted them to be...in the boat...together...with Prince and Winston. Despite the flaw in his logic, the thought did make him perk up slightly. "Alright, fine, drop me into certain death guys, what is it? Tuesday already?" Said Taran, finally having processed enough of the conversation to have something to say about it. "But, in all serouseness Cap'in, you can count on me and Prince to save the day, amIright? Up top!" He held out his hand to the captain, expecting a high five with a grin on his face. When all he got was a glare, he kept the grin going "Well, that is alright, self five it is," He brought his hands together in front of his face creating a loud clapping sound. Taran then brought his hands down to his lap, looking very pleased with himself.</s> <\|message\|>Dexter Kennedy Dexter sighed. For whatever reason, explaining this whole ordeal to them seemed to be way too much work. "The diversion team will move in at the same time as the stealth group. Although it would be nice if we could send the stealth team in to... disable the security, I highly doubt that would be successful. If we draw the attention to one side of the building we're after, say here-" his finger tapped a spot on the map, '-then the guards will be forced to gather there, making it easier for the smaller team to get inside." "Once you're in, you will need to be quick. Find wherever they keep all the equipment. If you can't take it with you, break it. There are going to be several scientists and mechanics there, and some of them may be actively working. A large majority of these people are working for the government against their own free will. As much as I would like to get all of them out of there, it's simply too much of an added risk. However, try to avoid getting them killed, if you can." Taran seemed excited about something, and held up his hand for a high-five. Dexter simply looked at him, then the boy clapped his hands together and sat back down, looking accomplished. "Okay, then. If there are no more questions, you're free to go." He checked the watch on his wrist. "You have about two and a half hours."</s> <\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji [h2]Rin/Sakuya[h2] The twins, although a little late, had managed to catch most of the debriefing. Why? Because they ahve been standing behind the closed door the whole time, needing to listen to the next plans, but also afraid of what Winter would do to them if they were to show up in her line of sight. "Looks like we're causing some mayhem, and with permission too!" Sakuya gleefully whispered to her sister, who nodded back, a small smile on her face as well. "Although I'd really love to find out what that 'bookshelf sized weapon' looks like." Rin muttered softly to herself, with Sakuya only paling at the thought of entering the room at this moment.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter nodded to the captain when he dismissed them. Casting one last glance around the room, (she was most definitely not looking at Taran… it was just a general sweep of everyone – no one in particular) she turned away and headed to the door. She opened it to find two twins pressed up against it, clearly eavesdropping. Ah. This was why they weren't at the briefing. The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up into a smirk as she looked at them. It seemed they were still paranoid about seeing the consequences of their little scene in Ballard. Good, she thought as she floated past them. Let them worry a little more. Winter began walking down the hall towards her room. Two and a half hours was more than enough time to change and get everything ready for the mission, but she figured she may as well start now. If she holed herself up in her room for the entirety of that time, she wouldn't have to face… anyone else. The shakiness of her own reasoning made her uncomfortable, but she couldn't really bring herself to care at the moment. She began listing supplies off in her head as she walked, thinking of what she'd need. Her mind drifted to her weapons cabinet, holding all sorts of daggers and knives, wires, poisons… and her two sickle blades. It had been a very long time since she'd brought those out. And she still had no intention to. Winter knew she had a good thing going here, with this odd little crew. And the captain knew about her… situation. He wouldn't throw her into a situation where she'd have to get too violent. Winter scrunched her eyebrows together as she thought back to what she'd done in Ballard. Fighting that guard has been easy. Familiar. Satisfying. When she'd pointed that gun at his head, all she'd wanted to do was pull the trigger and blow him away. It would've been cleaner than leaving him alive. She'd felt hints of long-buried anger creeping to the surface and for a split second, all she'd wanted to do was make him hurt. But then it was gone and she was back. No. That was done and passed. She'd go to her room, get herself ready, they'd go in and either take or break this super-weapon, get out, and then all she'd have to worry about would be… Taran. Oh god. Winter still had to deal with Taran.</s>
<\|description\|>Winter Gender: Female Age: 22 Sexuality: Pansexual Appearance: Personality: Winter is as cool and collected as the season she was named for. Elegant, sharp, and unforgiving, her icy exterior hides a wicked rage, festering just below the surface. This side of her hardly ever makes itself known, however, since joining the Leviathan. Winter typically puts up a calm, more nurturing front, and can even be playful or teasing to those she grows more comfortable around. Weapon of Choice: It should be noted that while this is her weapon of choice, Winter is proficient with a wide variety of weapons, especially blades and poisons, plus good old hand-to-hand. Other: Winter is an exceptionally deadly and ruthless fighter – all control, creativity, and measured fury. While on the Leviathan though, she does a good job of keeping this hidden. Instead of fighting, Winter serves as what she likes to call "ship baby-sitter." She does much of the cooking, patches her crew mates up, and overall acts as a grounding presence and voice of reason. Stats: Strength: 3 Dexterity: 6 Intelligence: 6 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 (high bio/chem, low mechanical) Fighting: 6 Revealed History:* Almost a year ago, the Leviathan picked up a bruised and bloodied Winter in a country called Waylox Winter's Theme</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter nodded to the captain when he dismissed them. Casting one last glance around the room, (she was most definitely not looking at Taran… it was just a general sweep of everyone – no one in particular) she turned away and headed to the door. She opened it to find two twins pressed up against it, clearly eavesdropping. Ah. This was why they weren't at the briefing. The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up into a smirk as she looked at them. It seemed they were still paranoid about seeing the consequences of their little scene in Ballard. Good, she thought as she floated past them. Let them worry a little more. Winter began walking down the hall towards her room. Two and a half hours was more than enough time to change and get everything ready for the mission, but she figured she may as well start now. If she holed herself up in her room for the entirety of that time, she wouldn't have to face… anyone else. The shakiness of her own reasoning made her uncomfortable, but she couldn't really bring herself to care at the moment. She began listing supplies off in her head as she walked, thinking of what she'd need. Her mind drifted to her weapons cabinet, holding all sorts of daggers and knives, wires, poisons… and her two sickle blades. It had been a very long time since she'd brought those out. And she still had no intention to. Winter knew she had a good thing going here, with this odd little crew. And the captain knew about her… situation. He wouldn't throw her into a situation where she'd have to get too violent. Winter scrunched her eyebrows together as she thought back to what she'd done in Ballard. Fighting that guard has been easy. Familiar. Satisfying. When she'd pointed that gun at his head, all she'd wanted to do was pull the trigger and blow him away. It would've been cleaner than leaving him alive. She'd felt hints of long-buried anger creeping to the surface and for a split second, all she'd wanted to do was make him hurt. But then it was gone and she was back. No. That was done and passed. She'd go to her room, get herself ready, they'd go in and either take or break this super-weapon, get out, and then all she'd have to worry about would be… Taran. Oh god. Winter still had to deal with Taran.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax After Jax had asked her questions and Winter had answered, the younger of the two girls smiled at Winter in a sort of 'thank-you'. With that the captain began to speak once more, explaining the plan and giving her even more clarity. When he mentioned trying not to get killed she thought of Prince and Taran and how they always had a knack for getting themselves into trouble. Even if it was Jax who was primarily responsible for the officer's brother and the chase in Ballard, it wasn't all her fault, it was the man's fault for attacking Aubrey. Taran spoke and she couldn't help but laugh a little more at how he high-fived himself. He certainly was something else, if him and Winter ever stopped giving each other weird glances maybe they could be a good couple. Who was she to talk, she was awkward around Aubrey all the damn time. There were no more questions and the crew was dismissed. People began to leave, Jax looked toward Aubrey and decided to ask him to help her prepare. After all she still had to decide who would carry her spectacular hand cannon, maybe Aubrey could help her decide. "Hey Aubrey" She nudged him with her elbow. "Want to come prep with me, er I mean" Yea that didn't sound dirty or anything. Shrugging it off she tried again, "do you want to come help me prepare for battle? I need to grab my gun and Hand Cannon from my spot in the sleeping quarters. I also need to grab a some food since I missed breakfast, wanna come?" Her eyes were shining as she asked him, she was really hoping he would say yes.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey After the captain dismissed them, Aubrey leaned back in his chair with a sigh. For some reason, he had a gnawing feeling in his stomach, like something bad was going to happen. He played with the string on his hat, twisting it between his fingers thoughtfully until Jax broke his trance. She nudged him with her elbow and leaned over to speak to him. His mind took a moment to creep back into the real world again. He was glad she repeated herself, because her first attempt had fallen on deaf ears. "Sorry, I was distracted. Gun, cannon, food... Yeah, I'll come." He stood up and stretched his arms over his head, trying to push away his rising sense of unease. He waited for Jax to stand up, then walked with her to the sleeping quarters. He knew the way well enough that he could walk without giving direction much thought. Despite all of his unfortunate... quirks, he did have a very good memory when it came to things like that. He wasn't sure what this feeling was, but he needed to get his mind off of it. "Oh, did you decide who you wanna give the cannon to?" He asked.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Out of everyone, Taran probably had the least to do to get ready for the raid. Or the smash and destroy. He usually didn't carry many, if any weapons. lately he had taken to carrying a small knife, if only for the false sense of security that it gave him. He wasn't trained with a sword, so bringing one would be equivalent to giving him a club to swing around. A gun, or really, any instrument that shot would be useless. People would be wise to be more afraid if they were the thing standing next to his target, rather the the thing he was aiming for. It was also highly likely that anyone with a any sort of fighting talent would be able to disarm any weapon he did have and use it against him and who ever he was with. So, in reality, it was better for everyone that he simply walk into danger completely unarmed. "I should...probably get...more serious about fighting," he said quietly to himself leaving the meeting. He saw a couple of his shipmates split off. He felt a smile stretch across his face as he saw Jax leading Aubrey off, mentioning something about a cannon. Then he saw Winter. Or rather, Winter's back. Without real rhyme or reason, he followed her, slightly behind and occasionally jumping behind things whenever it seemed like she was going to turn around. It was stranger, yesterday he really couldn't have cared less about her, but today he was finding that he never got tired of looking at her. Once she entered her own room, he finally started heading off to his own. There wasn't much for him to grab, however, he take time to grab his lock picking set. Not that he was particularly good at it yet, but he found the process...soothing? He'd been practicing and could unlock most of the doors on the ship by this point. Granted, it could take up to an hour, but as long as no one caught him in the act, every door was his oyster. Sooner than he would have liked, he was done and ready to go, but the drop was still an hour off. There wasn't really any place he felt like being. So he took a nap.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo left the room after the captain said they had an hour or two to get ready for the plan. Honestly it was better that Angelo was going to be in the distraction team rather then the stealth team since he would probably do more good killing people on the front lines. Once Angelo left he washed his hands and then he went to his nest and checked on his gauntlets and he started to polish them and apply a clear coat so that the blood doesn't end up rusting the claws. This would take him a while since Angelo needed to apply 2 coats of the stuff for an effective seal against blood rust knowing he wont be needing his rifle for this but he will take it anyway in case their is a high value target that needs to be killed...</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Time: 1400 hours Location: West of Nowhere and Two Clicks south of Despair Weather: Choppy waves in deeper waters. Winds coming in from the South. Storm coming in around 2200. Take off after 2130 is not advised. "You know," said Taran, looking down the twenty or so feet between the ship and the water. "Of all the skills that I thought I'd need to be a pirate 'swimming' and 'ability to not get sea sick' were never very high on the list until right about now," His feet hung over the side of the hall and where dangling in the open air. "Is that just a me feeling or is that a general consensus?" All of Team Stealth (Code Name: Winter and the Boys) and a few member of Team Distraction (Code Name: Tyrannosaurus Rex Wizard With a Lazer Eye) were situated around the paddle boats that were key in to drop as soon as the ship dropped down another ten feet. The boats were an older model. More keyed into water than air travel. However, they were created to be escape pods, so they did have a rudimentary gliding mechanism that would do in a pinch.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Aubrey had agreed to go with her and once again she was tempted to take his hand and lead the way, but she fought the urge. "I think I might give it to Angelo, but then again he might have a hard time wielding it with his gauntlets" Jax led the way to her small space in the sleeping quarters. She didn't mind that it was such a small area, in fact she was glad she had somewhere to stay at all, it had been her space since she had joined the crew two years ago and she loved it. Once they were to her little living corner she knelt down to pick up her flintlock and holster it at her thigh. "Oo I just decided to add a strap to this thing so it will be easier to carry" She was speaking about the Hand Cannon that she was so proud of. It took her only a moment and a thick strip of leather to attach to both ends of the weapon. That way she could carry it over her shoulder with not as much difficulty. With a bit of a struggle she placed the strap over one shoulder and grinned. "Alright, that's too things taken care of. Thanks for joining me, Brey" After she spoke she nodded to herself and continued on to the kitchen to snag some food. "Or..." She thought out loud, still on the subject of the large weapon. "I guess I could try to use it, but even now it's a bit difficult for me to carry it, it's heavier than my wrench which is a surprise. Hey Brey, you sure there's nothing you want to go grab? No weapons or anything? I can try to fix up an old gun and make it like new so you can have it... maybe?" It was exciting, this big, important mission they were going on, she just wished Brey would fight better so she wouldn't have to worry so much. Jax didn't wait for him to answer, he could speak while he was following her to the kitchen, she was starving. The young mechanic peered into the galley to see if Winter was there, fortunately she wasn't in sight and Jax scurried in heading straight toward the snack cabinet. There were some crackers in there and fresh cheese from Ballard and it was all Jax's, and Aubrey's too if he wanted some. "Sweet! The treasure is mine" She truly was a pirate at heart. The crackers and cheese went well together, Jax hadn't even sat down to eat she was too excited about her findings. "Want some Brey?"</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston had been preparing his gear for the mission. He always packed light. He didn't care so much for armour. He didn't need it. All he brought with him was his old axe, his regular clothing, and a small vial of black powder. He kept it in one of the pockets in his pants. He looked around his room; it was still barren. Barren wouldn't really be the best word, though. It seemed like the room was waiting for something, or someone to come. It had been so long that it was safe to say that nobody was coming to fill what the room was missing. Winston had left his room, looking back to the two smoldering joss sticks. They were almost burnt out. Winston had a rather forlorn look in his eyes. He closed them, clenching his fists. He closed and locked his room, walking out to the deck. When he got out there, most of the crew were waiting for them to get close enough to the island so they could push off and go to the main island on their boats. Winston leaned against a nearby wall. He didn't speak. It was unlike him to not speak to others, but Winston was feeling alone.</s>	<\|message\|>Winter Winter, along with some of her crew mates, was waiting at the paddle boats, ready for the mission to start. She took a quick headcount, finding a few missing. Where were Jax and Aubrey? She had a niggling feeling they were off doing something they knew would get them in trouble, but she just let them be. Those two were always late, and they'd get there when they got there. She raised an eyebrow at Taran as he prattled on, and resisted rolling her eyes. She couldn't stop the fond smirk tugging at the corners of her lips though. Teach Levi to dispose of a body, and Taran to swim, she listed off in her mind. Really, was her work ever done? In the hours since being forced to see Taran again, it'd been easier to ignore the… thing he'd done. Winter still felt too aware of him, too careful to gauge the distance between them so she wasn't ever too close, but she'd managed to fall back into the routine she'd worked out since coming aboard the Leviathan. Winston made his way over to the group, and Winter gave him a glance before looking back out to the water. He seemed pensive today. Curiosity pricked at her, but if he had something he needed to say, he'd say it. Winter and Winston had something of an understanding… they both knew the value of privacy. So, Winter just continued to lean against the railing by the small boats, watching the waves and waiting.</s>
<\|description\|>Sakuya Eiji Rin's Voice(and theme) Sakuya's Voice(ignore the story going on >.>) Appearance: Asides from her dress, she wears a black cloak with a hood to hide her appearance. Nicknames/Titles:Bladedancer, Quicksilver Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Energetic and loves to tease, just about everyone would get along with her. However, just because everyone would like to talk to her, doesn't mean she's easy to be around. Whether you are male or female, she enjoys being flirtatious and teasing them. However, there are moments when she finds something(or someone) who deserves the label adorable. It's easy to tell when she thinks so, because, without a thought of personal space nor proper time and place, she will attempt to hug it. In battle, she is someone who you do not want to be anywhere nearby. Almost seemingly dancing with the blade, with bullets firing out sporadically. One thing to note that, while she enjoys teasing others, even sexually sometimes, she is rather innocent and vulnerable to being teased. Weapon of Choice: The gunblade, a well-balanced weapon(weight wise here). It's capable of loading and firing five paper cartridge rounds before needing to reload. The rifle's range is rather mediocre however, due to the inability to 'aim down iron sights'. She does have a back-up weapon, namely several throwing knives strapped to her thigh. Other: Appearance: She does wear a black trenchcoat over her clothing, almost consistently. Name: Eiji Nicknames/Titles:Bulletstorm, Walking Armory Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Rin is more calmer of the twins, although she would still be counted as more active amongst the family. Loves to eat anything sweet, and her usually passive and blank appearance would change to something that can only be called moe extremely cute, especially if you feed her the cake. Although at first she may seem unemotional, once you get to know her, you would start to understand the slight differences in expressions. She enjoys being doted on, fed anything sugary, using someone as a lap pillow, and even being used as a hug pillow. Something that she might have picked up from her brother, would be the need for efficiency, at least in battle. That, and collecting guns. Her love knowledge of guns is high enough that she can start deducing the type of weapon used(rifle, shotty, pistol, hand cannon, ship cannon). Within battle, it really depends on how close her target is, and what her objective is. It can range from the usual aim and snipe methods, to the ridiculous yet more well known method of literally unleashing death everywhere, with bullets flying every which way. Weapon of Choice:She technically doesn't have a favourite weapon. Ask her to open the jacket, and you will probably hit the floor with your jaw, as the sheer number of different guns can be seen. Sakuya labels her as a walking armory. Bypassing the need to reload every shot, Rin is know for dual wielding, and firing the guns one at a time, before immediately switching. Think of it as a salvo. However, reloading all those firearms is annoying as hell, trying to make all the paper cartridges by hands. Pistols and short barrel firearms can be haters anywhere, rifle sized firearms have to be carried at the back, limiting their numbers. She technically can carry guns on the outside of her cloak as well, but that is in plain sight. The only weapon that she actually HAS to carry outside, is a hand cannon. Other: If you ever try to carry her coat, you'll find that it is heavy. The reason by the 'why' is easily answered if you felt the coat. There are metal plates seen into it, as well as plenty of places to holster guns all over the inside, and some on the outside as well. However, when worn, the coat doesn't show any noticeable bulges. Despite how the twins behave, Rin is actually the older twin.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene "I see that you are busy doing...male bonding, so I'll just..leave you to it," Taran had a slight grin on his face, watching 'Prince' force Audrey into a headlock. "Although I am quite tempted wait and see who still has all of their body parts once Auds breaks free." He took a step back, making to leave and nearly bumping into Levi, his overly observant nature having totally noticed the quite girl who walked with him out of the ship. "Ack- Sorry, didn't...notice you... Maybe while you are here you should think of investing in a bell--" He glanced up at the new voice who joined the quickly forming group just outside of the ship. "Well, there is trouble," He said to the approaching girl. "Awh, Win, you should know by now that my ability to not kick up a fuss is about the same as my ability to read. I can't," Or won't was far more like it on both fronts. "Now, Levi, unless your sign has something to do with licking the all the spoons of the city and seducing the attractive married population, I'm busy,"</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo woke up as they docked in a port. Angelo was getting up and noticed that everyone had left considering that they had some time on their hands he didn't blame them so Angelo changed and made sure to bring his gauntlets with him just in case. Right now Angelo wanted to get a drink and something to eat so he left the ship and started walking towards the nearest bar. Angelo looked back seeing the pride and joy of their crew and Angelo couldn't help but feel proud knowing the many battles and escapes it help them get through. Angelo sighed a little as he kept walking and soon he found a bar nearby and he told the bar keep to get him some food and cheap ale. As he left Angelo looked around the bar to see if anyone was of interest to him in the hole they call a home. The smog and fumes may as well make this place a den of thieves but then Again that's more or less what Angelo and his crew does, but at least they do good with the money they make. Angelo soon got his food and started eating but as bad luck would have it some ruff necks came in and started to disturb the calm atmosphere by yelling and cheering about something stupid and Angelo just wanted some peace and quiet hey shut up! Angelo yelled out and they quiet down almost immediately see the thing was that they were large people with muscles only earned with hard work everyday so one of them came over you got a problem with us punk? he said but Angelo was ignoring him as he ate his lunch and drank his ale and soon the man got annoyed and had the nerve to grab Angelo food and throw it on the ground I said you got a problem with us?! Angelo sighed but he guessed he brought it on himself knowing they wouldn't be civil about it so he turned around and counted one, two, three then Angelo nodded thinking he would be fine and told the bar keep 2 minutes if I take them down that fast then they pay for my meal he looked shocked but nodded and the men just laughed you really think you can take us down that- Angelo got him gasping for air when he threw a hard punch to his chest hearing the cracking of bones. the other men looked shocked but then took up a stance but Angelo wasn't going to go easy on them, he did say two minutes after all. Angelo then ran over to one of the men who was about to use a chair and hit Angelo with it but instead Angelo dodged and gave him a nasty uppercut to his chin sending him flying to one of the tables effectively breaking it. Then the last one Angelo charged at he swept his legs making him start to fall and as he was Angelo jumped and stuck his elbow out and when he fell Angelo fell and landed his elbow right on his chest making another loud crack in the room. He was officially the winner in that's, 1 minute and 43 seconds Angelo sighed a little need to get faster, that took to long Angelo said softly as he walked back and went back to eating his new lunch which was now on the losers tab...</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey --Aubrey He noticed Taran first. He walked up, with Levi trailing along silently beside him. As Taran started to say something, Aubrey was distracted when somebody's arms snaked around his shoulders and put him in a head lock. "Watcha doin' there, kid?" Prince's familiar voice said in his ear. Aubrey played it off like he wasn't surprised by the sneak attract, but for a moment a look of panic crossed his face until he identified that he wasn't in any danger. His flight instincts were strong, especially since he had grow accustomed to always being on alert. "Lemme go, you prick!" He grumbled, though there was a playful tone in his voice that made it clear he wasn't angry, just perhaps a little annoyed. He wriggled in Prince's grip, trying to loosen the hold. Levi stood and seemed to observe the scene, and though she didn't say anything (like usual) he felt like she was thinking something he should be embarrassed about. She wrote something down on her sketch pad and held it up, but the only word Aubrey recognized was 'coffee'. He could have figured it out, but her pretty handwriting was hard to decipher while he was struggling with Prince. Taran said something snarky about 'male bonding' and Audrey suddenly became very self-conscious. He stomped on Price's foot, then leaned back into him, setting them both off balance and allowing him to wriggle free from his grasp. He pulled his hat down further onto his head and puffed his cheeks, making a pouting expression as he stepped away and put a little distance between them. Winter walked up next, warning them not to get into trouble. "Make a fuss? Us? Never." Aubrey teased, "Who gets in trouble getting coffee?"</s> <\|message\|>Viola Gordon "Ach! Stop!" The annoyance dripping off Viola's voice changed to laughter as a fluffy tail tickled her shoulder, then her neck, and then her cheek. "Rufus, what is it?" Her eyes fluttered open and the girl rubbed out the gunk that had accumulated in the corners of her eyes during the long nap she'd had to make up for last night. Pleased that she was awake, the squirrel let out a squeaky chitter and leapt down to perch on Viola's shoulder when she sat up. Only then did the still-sleepy woman realize that the Leviathan had stopped and the air smelled like a mixture of soot and old socks. After a quick glance at Rufus, she decided that he agreed with her extremely accurate conclusion. She coughed softly and stood up, looking out at the city of Ballard. It wasn't the best place to stop, but it was an excellent opportunity to stock up on some supplies--especially fresh food! And maybe some suspicious herbal concoctions, but that was a different story. Viola stretched, walked down and stepped off the ship. It felt kind of good to be on land again, although the location wasn't exactly perfect. A few crew members were horsing around as usual, but she didn't comment. She was busy mentally planning what to look for first and whether to take her syringe gun. The latter, she decided, was a no. That was just asking for trouble. Her dagger though? That was good common sense.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince turned his head, realizing a few members of the Leviathan make their way towards them. "Hey, guys!" He greeted, ignoring the 'Lemme go, you prick!' that came out of Audrey. 'What a cutie," he thought, grinning from ear to ear. Prince's eyes widened, as he felt Audrey stomp on his foot and lean back, causing him to lose his balance and fall on his butt. "Ow," He whined, rubbing his lower back. He watched as Audrey stepped away from him, a pout on his face. "It's okay, shorty," Prince said, getting up and petting Audrey on the head. "You're still cute," He teased, knowing how much Audrey hated to be called short. He hasn't known Audrey for long, but he's always had a soft spot for the younger one's that joined the crew of the Leviathan. He never knew why they decided to join but he decided not to ask. Everyone has their own secrets, after all. "You'll remember not to kick up a fuss while we're here, yes?" He heard Winter say. A pout formed on his face, she was always warning them about not getting into trouble. "You're no fun, Winter," He said, walking over and pinching her left cheek. "What's the point of being a pirate, if we don't cause a little trouble here and there?" He asked, shaking his head. Winter always acted like such a mom, not that he was complaining but he knew she liked causing trouble just as much as anyone else did on the ship, she just doesn't admit it. He laughed at Taran's words, "C'mon now, Taran. No need to corrupt Levi, with your questionable way of living," He teased, wrapping an arm around Levi.</s>	<\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji Sakuya smiled as she leaned on the railing. Finally, a new city! It was about time there were new people to be mischievous around! "Come on Rin!", she had called out. However, she did not receive any response. Frowning slightly, she entered through the door, only to notice her twin calmly napping, holding what appeared to be a rather thick staff wrapped in gauze or the like. Sighing, she lightly tapped on the other girl's head, muttering "Come on sleepyhead, time to go for a walk." Although it might have taken quite a bit, the other girl finally opened her eyes, albeit only slightly. Yawning, she stretched out her arms, before settling down in her seat. Blinking any remaining sleepiness from her eyes, Rin tilted her head as she looked at Sakuya. "Where to?" Short and simple, as expected. "Of course! We're going to go around explore the city!" With such a cheerful answer, Sakuya immediately turned around and ran outside, without bothering to look over her shoulder. Why would she need to anyways? She knew that her sister would definitely follow her, despite preferring to sleep. Hoping onto the railing, before leaping off, landing on the dock with a roll, she pondered for a moment. Where should one go about exploring a new city? Luckily for her, she did not need to think for long, as the quiet grumbling of a stomach beside her gave her the answer. "I'm guessing we go find a place to eat first." Laughing slightly at the slight blush that spread over Rin's face, Sakuya started making her way towards the bar. Along the way, she glanced over at Rin, or more specifically, the 'staff' held in her hands. "Should you really be bringing that with you?".....a shrug for an answer. Sighing, Sakuya herself gave a shrug, before adding, "Well, if push comes to shove, it's an over-sized walking stick."</s>
<\|description\|>Sakuya Eiji Rin's Voice(and theme) Sakuya's Voice(ignore the story going on >.>) Appearance: Asides from her dress, she wears a black cloak with a hood to hide her appearance. Nicknames/Titles:Bladedancer, Quicksilver Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Energetic and loves to tease, just about everyone would get along with her. However, just because everyone would like to talk to her, doesn't mean she's easy to be around. Whether you are male or female, she enjoys being flirtatious and teasing them. However, there are moments when she finds something(or someone) who deserves the label adorable. It's easy to tell when she thinks so, because, without a thought of personal space nor proper time and place, she will attempt to hug it. In battle, she is someone who you do not want to be anywhere nearby. Almost seemingly dancing with the blade, with bullets firing out sporadically. One thing to note that, while she enjoys teasing others, even sexually sometimes, she is rather innocent and vulnerable to being teased. Weapon of Choice: The gunblade, a well-balanced weapon(weight wise here). It's capable of loading and firing five paper cartridge rounds before needing to reload. The rifle's range is rather mediocre however, due to the inability to 'aim down iron sights'. She does have a back-up weapon, namely several throwing knives strapped to her thigh. Other: Appearance: She does wear a black trenchcoat over her clothing, almost consistently. Name: Eiji Nicknames/Titles:Bulletstorm, Walking Armory Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Rin is more calmer of the twins, although she would still be counted as more active amongst the family. Loves to eat anything sweet, and her usually passive and blank appearance would change to something that can only be called moe extremely cute, especially if you feed her the cake. Although at first she may seem unemotional, once you get to know her, you would start to understand the slight differences in expressions. She enjoys being doted on, fed anything sugary, using someone as a lap pillow, and even being used as a hug pillow. Something that she might have picked up from her brother, would be the need for efficiency, at least in battle. That, and collecting guns. Her love knowledge of guns is high enough that she can start deducing the type of weapon used(rifle, shotty, pistol, hand cannon, ship cannon). Within battle, it really depends on how close her target is, and what her objective is. It can range from the usual aim and snipe methods, to the ridiculous yet more well known method of literally unleashing death everywhere, with bullets flying every which way. Weapon of Choice:She technically doesn't have a favourite weapon. Ask her to open the jacket, and you will probably hit the floor with your jaw, as the sheer number of different guns can be seen. Sakuya labels her as a walking armory. Bypassing the need to reload every shot, Rin is know for dual wielding, and firing the guns one at a time, before immediately switching. Think of it as a salvo. However, reloading all those firearms is annoying as hell, trying to make all the paper cartridges by hands. Pistols and short barrel firearms can be haters anywhere, rifle sized firearms have to be carried at the back, limiting their numbers. She technically can carry guns on the outside of her cloak as well, but that is in plain sight. The only weapon that she actually HAS to carry outside, is a hand cannon. Other: If you ever try to carry her coat, you'll find that it is heavy. The reason by the 'why' is easily answered if you felt the coat. There are metal plates seen into it, as well as plenty of places to holster guns all over the inside, and some on the outside as well. However, when worn, the coat doesn't show any noticeable bulges. Despite how the twins behave, Rin is actually the older twin.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth ~JAX~ The young pirate was surprised by the small squirrel climbing up onto her shoulder and squeaking rapidly in her ear. "Hey, hey little guy calm down. Who do ya think you are? The captain. No way" She picked up the little guy by his scruff and placed him gently down. "Scat little man, don't make me show you my wrath..." Nngh, damn it don't be an asshole. "Fine, I'm sorry. Now get going" A huge grin formed on her face when Aubrey acknowledged her. "I built a cannon, like those on the Leviathan, but it can be held like this..." She showed him the way it would be held, similar to that of a rocket launcher. "I imagine it would have quite a kick to it but boy would it be worth it" She was always excited to talk about her work, especially when someone actually showed an interest. When they arrived in the coffee shop she pulled a handful of coins from her pocket and placed them on the counter. "I'll take it black, with a smidge of milk and sugar." The girl loved her coffee that way, dark and almost without sweetener. "Go ahead and order whatever you like Aubrey, I'll cover you" Not like she needed too, they all had some spending money, but she liked to be nice once and a while. Jax saw Winston waiting for his coffee, sitting with Levi and she nodded in their direction, seems like everyone was in the mood for coffee today. But this wasn't good enough for her, she'd have to go join Prince and Taran in their joyous trouble spree. "So anyway, I'm not sure if it will correctly fit cannon ammo, and it ought to be extremely heavy, not many will be able to wield it but it shouldn't be heavier than this" She took the wrench from her back and held it in both hands. "Ohh yes, can you hold this thing?" Jax held out the the wrench to Aubrey. While she was holding the wrench out she noticed Levi's lips moving ever so slightly and felt a little jealous. "Say Levi. how come you won't talk to anyone but Winston?"</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince stared wide-eyed at Taran and grinned. " I thought you'd never ask," Prince said, taking Taran's hand and pulling himself up. He shrugged and shook his head, "Sucks that everyone left," he paused. "You think that since they're pirates they'd have a little more fun." He sighed, scratching the back of his head. "So, what's your plan?" Prince asked, scanning the city. He was a relatively messy person but even this was just too much for him. You can barely see the details that were plastered on the buildings. "I don't think anyone knows how glad I am for not wearing white in this city," he said, scrunching his nose in disgust. He's been to a lot of dirty cities but this one takes the cake, even he felt like scrubbing down the whole city until it was spotless. "I have no idea how these people can stand living here."</s> <\|message\|>Viola Gordon Rufus squirmed and chattered before being placed on the ground, at which point he promptly scampered back to Viola, who chuckled, knelt and scooped up the irritated little fluffball. He crawled up her arm, onto her shoulder and then grabbed one of her dreads to pull himself up onto the top of her head. This was a relatively uncommon position for him to take, but she certainly didn't mind. Now that she was ready to go, she headed off into the thick of this horrible hellhole of a city. She passed a dead cat and looked away, pinching her nose and trying not to get sad. "You feeling ill yet, Rufus?" There was no response. He must have fallen asleep on her head. Viola entered a small produce shop and started to pile some things into a bag, ticking things off as she went. She was the last person anyone would think is a pirate.</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands "How's life?" Winston said. "Life's treating me good, I guess. Honestly, still terrified that I'm hundreds of feet in the air and if the ground under me crumbles, I'll fall for a terrifying amount of time. But that's probably 'cause I'm just an old man." Winston had a light laugh at the end. He looked to Levi. She seemed to have a forlorn look to her. Winston closed his eyes for a few moments and took a deep breath. The woman who worked behind the counter walked out and gave Winston a small cup of coffee. "You know... If you have anything you need to tell me, I will gladly listen." His voice was quiet and collected. He took his cup of coffee and pulled his bandage mask down. He only pulled one of the lengths down. He made sure to hide his mouth with his free hand. Winston saw Jax and Aubrey enter. "Oh, hello!" He said, waving to the two. He, without thinking too much of it, took a large swig from the cup. "Ah! Futhath hawt!" He loudly said, panicking slightly.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene " They are probably born,raised and die here, it really is no different than anywhere else. I bet a bunch would leave given the choice, but there is no choice, so they stay," Taran looked around at the surrounding building. "What do you think, should we go and try to find us some local fun? Or should we try and hunt down one of the Isisorisntit Houses? There are tons here,"Isisorisntit House, places where the fairly well off lived when they didn't, or couldn't, afford hired muscle to guard their extravagant abodes. They would then, instead, buy out entire city blocks and gut the inside and turn them into mansions disguised as low-income housing. They were not particularly well know, Taran only knowing of their existence because of a party that he had once performed at. The inside had peacocks and golden fountains everywhere, while the outside was missing tiles on the roof and a few windows had boards on them. Making plans was something that Taran didn't do, and when he did, he rarely followed it through till the end. Like, how he ended up on the ship. He was going down to the store to get some milk before a street performance. One thing lead to another and now here he was. "Mind where you put your hands," he said to a little boy who had gotten a little too close to Prince. The boy gave him a disgusted look before taking off back into the crowd. "So, what'll it be? Breaking and entering? Or...other?</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Seeing that everyone was going their own ways, searching for entertainment in the city, Winter just resigned herself to having a mess to clean up afterwards and left to make the most of her (no doubt limited) time of peace. She had errands to run, hobbies to indulge, and maybe some light shopping to do. When one of the crew inevitably drew unwanted attention or got in trouble, she'd be there in her odd Winter way. She might not be able to clean up the situation per say, but she could at least keep the collateral damage to a minimum.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey smiled. "A cannon, huh? Awesome." When he opened the door to the shop, a little bell above the door jingled pleasantly. The joint seemed almost out of place; it was clean and cozy, much different then the mess of a city that was going on outside. He followed Jax to the counter, noticing Levi and Winston and returning Winton's wave cheerfully. The whole atmosphere felt almost too good to be true. He suddenly got a little butterfly in his stomach. How long, realistically, could the pirates stay out of trouble. Jax offered to pay for him, and he shrugged and accepted politely. "Erm..." He turned to the woman at the counter, who was looking at him expecting. "Ah, anything with lots of sugar." He said. The woman smiled and nodded her head in acknowledgment, going off to get their drinks. "Hmm?" He turned his attention back to Jax when she asked him to hold her wrench. What could she possibly use that thing for? He took it from her, and a look of surprise immediately crossed his face. "Holy cow, it's heavy! You carry this around all the time?" He asked in awe. He then noticed her looking over at Levi with a slightly annoyed expression. His eyes darted in between the two girls, wondering what he had missed, but not willing to ask.</s>	<\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji As the two sisters made their way through the city, they had consistently received odd looks, mainly at their clothing. The average bystander would only see two cloaked figures, with one carrying a rather large staff wrapped in something like paper. However, the odd looks decreased, the closer they reached their destination. Sakuya smiled as she looked at the rather rustic appearance of the bar, almost anticipating some sort of chaos to occur. Rin on the other hand, had a harder to read expression, but seemingly displeased with the location. This bar was located in the ore shadier ends of the city, with quite a few troublemakers inside. Every city had a place like this, where the troublemakers congregate. Brushing open the doors, Sakuya strolled in, seemingly uncaring about the multitude of curious and cautious onlookers. Sitting herself casually in an empty seat at the counter, she dropped her hood before smiling at the bartender. "Can I have the specialty drink~?" Speaking in a tater flirtatious tone, with a graceful wave of her hand to accent her behavior. Rin only mentally sighed, before following her sister's footsteps, sitting down inconspicuously beside her. Well, as inconspicuous as someone wearing a trenchcoat and a large staff could be. Of course, it didn't take long, before someone made their move. It wasn't often that a female would ever come into a bar like this, where you could almost taste the damn testosterone in the air. A rather well-built yet greasy man came up and sat beside the two. "What a surprise! You two fine ladies don't look to be from around here." Such a cheesy icebreaker, at least from Rin's perspective. However, Sakuya only giggled softly, before responding, "Of course! We're new around here. We wouldn't mind for someone to show us around~" with the same flirtatious tone, before suddenly whispering in a rather sultry voice, "Although we wouldn't mind someone strong to lead us around~". This was definitely the spark that started the small chaos, as many of the other men started trying to move, while restricting each other from getting to the sisters first. Witnessing such an odd but somewhat familiar scene, Rin sighed, her lamentations lost in the depths of her drink.</s>
<\|description\|>Sakuya Eiji Rin's Voice(and theme) Sakuya's Voice(ignore the story going on >.>) Appearance: Asides from her dress, she wears a black cloak with a hood to hide her appearance. Nicknames/Titles:Bladedancer, Quicksilver Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Energetic and loves to tease, just about everyone would get along with her. However, just because everyone would like to talk to her, doesn't mean she's easy to be around. Whether you are male or female, she enjoys being flirtatious and teasing them. However, there are moments when she finds something(or someone) who deserves the label adorable. It's easy to tell when she thinks so, because, without a thought of personal space nor proper time and place, she will attempt to hug it. In battle, she is someone who you do not want to be anywhere nearby. Almost seemingly dancing with the blade, with bullets firing out sporadically. One thing to note that, while she enjoys teasing others, even sexually sometimes, she is rather innocent and vulnerable to being teased. Weapon of Choice: The gunblade, a well-balanced weapon(weight wise here). It's capable of loading and firing five paper cartridge rounds before needing to reload. The rifle's range is rather mediocre however, due to the inability to 'aim down iron sights'. She does have a back-up weapon, namely several throwing knives strapped to her thigh. Other: Appearance: She does wear a black trenchcoat over her clothing, almost consistently. Name: Eiji Nicknames/Titles:Bulletstorm, Walking Armory Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Rin is more calmer of the twins, although she would still be counted as more active amongst the family. Loves to eat anything sweet, and her usually passive and blank appearance would change to something that can only be called moe extremely cute, especially if you feed her the cake. Although at first she may seem unemotional, once you get to know her, you would start to understand the slight differences in expressions. She enjoys being doted on, fed anything sugary, using someone as a lap pillow, and even being used as a hug pillow. Something that she might have picked up from her brother, would be the need for efficiency, at least in battle. That, and collecting guns. Her love knowledge of guns is high enough that she can start deducing the type of weapon used(rifle, shotty, pistol, hand cannon, ship cannon). Within battle, it really depends on how close her target is, and what her objective is. It can range from the usual aim and snipe methods, to the ridiculous yet more well known method of literally unleashing death everywhere, with bullets flying every which way. Weapon of Choice:She technically doesn't have a favourite weapon. Ask her to open the jacket, and you will probably hit the floor with your jaw, as the sheer number of different guns can be seen. Sakuya labels her as a walking armory. Bypassing the need to reload every shot, Rin is know for dual wielding, and firing the guns one at a time, before immediately switching. Think of it as a salvo. However, reloading all those firearms is annoying as hell, trying to make all the paper cartridges by hands. Pistols and short barrel firearms can be haters anywhere, rifle sized firearms have to be carried at the back, limiting their numbers. She technically can carry guns on the outside of her cloak as well, but that is in plain sight. The only weapon that she actually HAS to carry outside, is a hand cannon. Other: If you ever try to carry her coat, you'll find that it is heavy. The reason by the 'why' is easily answered if you felt the coat. There are metal plates seen into it, as well as plenty of places to holster guns all over the inside, and some on the outside as well. However, when worn, the coat doesn't show any noticeable bulges. Despite how the twins behave, Rin is actually the older twin.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey heard the explosion from the gun echo off all the metal surfaces in the city. He felt a spray of liquid across the side of his face, and instantly the grip around his throat loosened. Aubrey fell to the ground, the dead man crumpling beside him and somehow managing not to crush the boy. Aubrey clawed at his own chest, greedily taking in gulps of air between fits of violet coughing. The air seemed to burn as it filled his lungs. He never thought he would miss the stench of that city, but he was very thankful for it now. As his senses came back to him, he was aware of Jax kneeling by his side. He sat up slowly, his head still spinning. He focused on her concerned face and forced a smile. "Never better." He croaked. He reached up and touched his neck carefully, feeling for the spot where the knife had broken the skin. It was bleeding, but had missed everything important. He got to his feet with her help. "Don't feel bad." He said, his voice still raspy, bracing against her for a moment until his head cleared. "I should have been paying more attention." He glanced over to where their attackers lay on the ground. Of course, the big guy that had been holding him was dead. But the other seemed to be squirming, as if he were just on the verge of consciousness. A chill ran down Aubrey's spine as he thought of the bullet going through the man's head. He reached up and wiped the side of his face where he had been sprayed with the man's blood with his sleeve. "A-anyway." He said, his voice abnormally shaky. Although he was never happy about seeing people killed, for some reason his stomach churned at the sight of the man laying there, face down... "Ah, yeah, let's get outta here before someone sees."</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax The guilt that she felt was unbearable. There was blood covering one side of Aubrey's face and it was dreadful. She wanted to use her thumb and spit as a cat tongue to clean the blood off but knew it was weird and would not work. "I'm sorry, man I screwed up." Her body trembled a little at the thought of killing, why now did she feel guilty, was it because Aubrey seemed to disapprove of what she had done? What the hell did I just do?? With a shaky breath she replaced her gun into it's sheath in her workmen's belt with all her tools. It was leather and simple with a few attachments to hang her tools off of and a holster for her gun. It was her favorite thing besides her wrench and gun. Jax spoke as she moved to pick up her weapon, being sure Brey was strong enough to stand on his own, and putting her wrench back in it's place against her back. She adjusted her hat a bit and wiped some of the blood spray off of her face. "I'm glad you're okay, y'know for the most part. I couldn't stand seeing those assholes mess with us like that, I mean you especially. So I had to do something. Even if it meant taking extreme actions. Pirates do what pirates got to do. Never forget that" Sometimes she forgot Aubrey was her same age, even though she had feelings for him she also kind of saw him as a brother who she had to take care of, and that was weird. "You're right though. We should get out of here. Before he gets up..." She looked at the man who was now writhing on the ground clutching his nose in pain, blood was already pooling under him from the wound. In her mind, he deserved it just like what his friend got. "Or before the authorities come and throw us in jail." The thought of being locked up intimidated her. No weapons, no proper tools, nothing to do, no protection. As strong and confident as she was she hated the thought of being imprisoned and someone crazy getting to her. As she was thinking a cold gust of wind made her shiver, damn, no coat still. "Come on Aubrey" Before she could grab his hand her own hand balled into a fist to punch his shoulder. "Let's go" It was a close call, she had almost shown affection to him. She hurried through the night, hoping Aubrey was well enough to follow close behind. They needed to find Winter at the least, wherever she was, was the safest, even if it meant not causing trouble. "Any ideas where Winter might be? With Levi or something? Right? Where did Levi go again?"</s> <\|message\|>Kara Saun Elowy "Too late, somebody has already seen," said a voice, dropping lightly down from an alcove above the ally way. Kara Saun landed a few feet in front of Aubrey and glanced over at the bodies of the rapidly cooling men. "But it is alright, I won't tell, so no need to shoot me. You did the world a favor taking them out," She went over and examined the bodies, lifting one of the arms up and sliding off a watch. "You weren't the first that these lot had taken into the shadows, but you are the first ones to come back," "However, unlucky for you, this one," she said, kicking one of the bodies. "Just happens to be the chief of polices baby brother and that shot you just fired will attract some attention. It would be wise to clear the area sooner rather than later and I just happen to know a short cut," She had moved on to the next body, yanking his coat back and reliving him of his wallet. Already there were voices calling from just beyond the breaks in the walls. "It would be wise to follow me. Unless, of course, you two love birds would rather spend the...rest of your lives in jail together," she said, finally leaving the bodies be and scrambling up to the fire escape and into a nearby window. "By the way, my name is Kara Saun. And I find you two to be /very/ interesting,"</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter raised an eyebrow at the younger girl. "You've got something on your dress," she said dryly, looking at the blood spatters on Levi's clothes. Reaching into her bag she pulled out a new coat she'd spent a good chunk of time haggling for from her shopping bag and handed it to the young girl to cover up. She then made a point of glancing around the store, eyeing all the people in it to communicate they shouldn't talk where there were so many ears. Turning on her heel, Winter walked out the door, expecting Levi to follow. She lead her down the alley, past the corpses, and across another block. When they were a safe distance from the scene, and in a deserted area, she turned to finally face Levi. "Tell me, Levi," she said, voice calm and icy, "What exactly were you going to do when those officers arrived to find three mutilated corpses on the alley floor, and found you in the art store covered in blood? Kill them too? Bring the whole town down on us? And then what? Run back to the Leviathan which is landlocked until further notice?" Throughout the lecture, Winter's voice had remained steady and unwavering, carrying the same coldness that seemed to chill the air. But she sighed then and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she was still stern but a bit of warmth began to leak into her voice again. "You have to be smarter. I'm not lecturing you on the right or wrong of killing, but you have to know how to cover your tracks, or you're just making a mess. I'll teach you how to get rid of a body, ok? But until then you have to get in the habit of at least hiding them." And then Winter plucked Levi's sword away from her. "This is confiscated until you can learn to use your head before flashing it about," she said, slipping it into her bag. Her lecture mode was back. "Go back to the ship and wait there until it's time to leave. I hear you did anything else, you'll find your food tasting a little more unpleasant." With that, Winter turned again and walked back into the city. She was making good time back in the shopping district, weaving between the vendors. Her bags were weighed down with weapons, but she paid them no mind. At least, until she heard a gun shot ring out in the night. People around her jumped and panicked, wondering at the sound. Winter just closed her eyes and dropped her head into her palm.</s>	<\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji "Ara, ara, so unsocial." Muttering these words to herself, as she stood back up from being thrown into her sister, she started walking towards the door. However, before she could leave, the bartender had called out to her, requesting payment for damages. "T-that....might be a problem.....so.....good night~!" Ending her sentence with a flourish and a wave, she quickly ran out. However, before the bartender could chase her, a heavy blunt object hit him across the head, knocking him out. Behind him stood Rin, holding her 'staff'. She then turned around and hurried after her twin. Outside, Sakuya laughed softly to herself, before stretching. "Ah, that was fun to watch." After several minutes of running, she realized she had forgotten her cloak, and decided to take a shortcut back to the bar. Making a dash through the alleyways, she ended up running into something. Flailing, Sakuya stumbled back, before looking at her obstruction. It seems that after the group of five had escaped the bar, they had ended up hiding here. "Hey look, it's the girl." "Hehe, you know you shouldn't be wandering around alone." Back and forth the men spiked, as they blocked Sakuya's path forward and her retreat. Each one had a lecherous expression on their faces as they reached out for her. However, their hands froze, as two pronounced clicks could be heard. Slowly the men turned, only to notice Rin ha snuck up behind them and now had two guns cocked and ready. "Now look here missy, we don't want you to hurt yourself with that thing. Just gently put it dow-" "Little girls shouldn't be going around waving dangerous toys like th-" Any and all words from two of the men were immediately interrupted as she shot both through the head. The other three men immediately dropped the tough guy attitude and started running. Sakuya had immediately gave chase, slicing through the leg of one, before shooting the other two through the heart. "We need to leave." Rin warned her sister, who could only nod in agreement. The two quickly fled the scene, with Rin handing over the cloak that Sakuya left behind at the bar.</s>
<\|description\|>Sakuya Eiji Rin's Voice(and theme) Sakuya's Voice(ignore the story going on >.>) Appearance: Asides from her dress, she wears a black cloak with a hood to hide her appearance. Nicknames/Titles:Bladedancer, Quicksilver Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Energetic and loves to tease, just about everyone would get along with her. However, just because everyone would like to talk to her, doesn't mean she's easy to be around. Whether you are male or female, she enjoys being flirtatious and teasing them. However, there are moments when she finds something(or someone) who deserves the label adorable. It's easy to tell when she thinks so, because, without a thought of personal space nor proper time and place, she will attempt to hug it. In battle, she is someone who you do not want to be anywhere nearby. Almost seemingly dancing with the blade, with bullets firing out sporadically. One thing to note that, while she enjoys teasing others, even sexually sometimes, she is rather innocent and vulnerable to being teased. Weapon of Choice: The gunblade, a well-balanced weapon(weight wise here). It's capable of loading and firing five paper cartridge rounds before needing to reload. The rifle's range is rather mediocre however, due to the inability to 'aim down iron sights'. She does have a back-up weapon, namely several throwing knives strapped to her thigh. Other: Appearance: She does wear a black trenchcoat over her clothing, almost consistently. Name: Eiji Nicknames/Titles:Bulletstorm, Walking Armory Gender: Female Age: 17 Sexuality: Bi Personality: Rin is more calmer of the twins, although she would still be counted as more active amongst the family. Loves to eat anything sweet, and her usually passive and blank appearance would change to something that can only be called moe extremely cute, especially if you feed her the cake. Although at first she may seem unemotional, once you get to know her, you would start to understand the slight differences in expressions. She enjoys being doted on, fed anything sugary, using someone as a lap pillow, and even being used as a hug pillow. Something that she might have picked up from her brother, would be the need for efficiency, at least in battle. That, and collecting guns. Her love knowledge of guns is high enough that she can start deducing the type of weapon used(rifle, shotty, pistol, hand cannon, ship cannon). Within battle, it really depends on how close her target is, and what her objective is. It can range from the usual aim and snipe methods, to the ridiculous yet more well known method of literally unleashing death everywhere, with bullets flying every which way. Weapon of Choice:She technically doesn't have a favourite weapon. Ask her to open the jacket, and you will probably hit the floor with your jaw, as the sheer number of different guns can be seen. Sakuya labels her as a walking armory. Bypassing the need to reload every shot, Rin is know for dual wielding, and firing the guns one at a time, before immediately switching. Think of it as a salvo. However, reloading all those firearms is annoying as hell, trying to make all the paper cartridges by hands. Pistols and short barrel firearms can be haters anywhere, rifle sized firearms have to be carried at the back, limiting their numbers. She technically can carry guns on the outside of her cloak as well, but that is in plain sight. The only weapon that she actually HAS to carry outside, is a hand cannon. Other: If you ever try to carry her coat, you'll find that it is heavy. The reason by the 'why' is easily answered if you felt the coat. There are metal plates seen into it, as well as plenty of places to holster guns all over the inside, and some on the outside as well. However, when worn, the coat doesn't show any noticeable bulges. Despite how the twins behave, Rin is actually the older twin.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he hung out in the corner listening to the captain explain the plan of their next raid and when he said that their was no point in being sneaky Angelo had to point out something. "for future reference its not that im not sneaky its that my way usually leaves a trail of bodies" Angelo explained to the captain since Angelo used claws Angelo usual way of killing while unseen meant to literally tear out someone's throat. it was easy with the sharpness of his claws and the fact that when he did they couldn't scream and died in a matter of seconds but because of that method their was a lot of blood and bodies and by the time Angelo gets halfway inside somewhere the alarm sounds. "as far as im concerned to what you feel is right captain ill kill either way" Angelo said simply glad he had already taken a shower before coming here, his claws usually end up smelling for hours if he doesn't shower before putting them on...</s> <\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston looked along the various charts that they have laid out. His eyes followed the charts. He remained silent since they left the docks, but his silence was broken by his plan. "We can't do a full scale assault, but we can't do a stealth mission with everyone. There are a few... ruffians among us," he said, his eyes shifting to Angelo "but I digress. Winter, Prince, Taran, and I to sneak in, and check to see if they have any super secret tide-turning weapon. We disable that, and everyone else enters. They're going to see our huge ass mothafuckin' ship a mile off, so we need a large scale fight to happen while we sneak in." Winston had said the description of the ship jokingly, but in a poor impression of the captain. "But it will most likely damage the ship. If we don't want to damage our huge ass mothafuckin' ship, we need to park out on a nearby island, and then drift on boats onto the other island. Which is pretty dangerous, if you ask me." He said, still carrying the joke with him.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Captain, what exactly are we after?" Dexter's eyes rested on Winter for a moment. He tuned Jax out, who seemed to be having some sort of ecliptic seizure, or perhaps was just laughing at something. He wasn't sure what was so funny. He pulled out a blueprint that was covered by some other papers and laid it on top. One finger tapped the paper as he spoke, his mind seemingly elsewhere. "This single creation, one that is about the size of small bookshelf, has more firepower then our ship." He paused again, letting his words sink it. He could tell some of his crew were preoccupied with something else, but he was not curious in the least. Perhaps at a different time, he would have looked more into it and discovered what the issue was, but at the moment he was simply to focused on the task at hand to care. "I don't know if we will be able to use these things." He said, "Our understanding of the technologies used are just not enough. However, we cannot allow something with this much power to be used to the military's advantage. Should they get these things up and running, and find a way to reproduce them, we wouldn't have a chance. If nothing else, we need to destroy them." Winston spoke up, and the corner of Dexter's mouth twitched when he repeated the phrase 'huge ass mothafunkin' ship' several times. Ah, that's what was so funny. "Yes, actually, that's exactly what I was thinking, Winston. Thank you. We have three paddle boats that are currently functional. Each one can hold about four people, plus perhaps an Aubrey." Aubrey crossed his arms and snorted in distaste, not appreciating the captain's dry sense of humor. Dexter continued, "So, Winston, Winter, Prince and Taran will take one and be our stealth team. Everyone else will create a diversion. Any more questions?"</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She couldn't stop laughing hearing Winston say the words over and over several times. Were they trying to make her pass out from lack of Oxygen? Maybe so. "Ahhaha, hahhh" Jax wiped tears from her eyes and giggled a little bit, trying to shake off the laughing fit. Unfortunately, due to her loud, obnoxious laughter, she hadn't heard most of what the others had said, except when the captain said something about Aubrey. Her gazed turned to Aubrey who crossed his arms and pouted a little. She felt bad for him always being made fun of for his size and wanted to speak up but knew better to speak against the captain, that was treachery. "Anymore questions?" The captain asked. Jax turned her head to look at the captain. "Cap'n what do you mean by diversion? I thought I heard Winny say something about entering after the stealth team... or did you want us to create a diversion after they entered? Or before" Jax scratched her head in confusion, trying to make sense of the few things that she had heard and the things the captain had said. "I don't get it..."</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE & KAI] Prince sighed as he saw the plans layed out around the table. He wasn't really one for plans but he had to listen to the captain. He listened intently, nudging Kai beside him who was in his own world. 'Stealth team?' He thought, silently chuckling to himself. 'Right.' He was surprised they put him in stealth, considering the amount of trouble he causes on a daily basis. "Large machines, high security and possibly getting killed?" Prince asked. "Sounds like my kind of place," he grinned. Kai huffed, rolling his eyes. "You better not get yourself killed," he said, crossing his arms. Kai grinned, wrapping an arm around Kai. "Of course I won't," Prince grinned.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter's attention was drawn to Winston as he started fleshing out a plan to get in and get out with as few complications as possible. It seemed plausible… but a childish part of her begged for an alternative where she could more actively avoid Taran. (She also wanted to raise an eyebrow at the implication there was anything discreet about Prince or Taran, but she supposed everything was relative when it came to this crew.) Winter quashed that part immediately, frustration growing. This was ridiculous. All he'd done was give her a stolen necklace. She shouldn't have been avoiding him or getting so worked up about a silly trinket when it probably didn't even mean anything. Besides, it was Taran. Taran who was never serious about anything and was likely trying to bribe her so she wouldn't poison his next meal. Against her better judgement, she risked a glance over at the crew mate in question. It was the way he'd looked at her when he'd done it though. How his hand had lingered on hers for just a moment too long… Winter was absolutely not blushing. She didn't blush. She snapped her eyes over to Jax when the girl spoke. Thankful for something else to think about, Winter contemplated what she said. "Diversions tend to work best when done before the criminal act," she said. She was relieved to find her voice steady when she talked. "The four of us will go in, and the rest will stay out, doing what they do best." The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up as she looked at Jax. The young mechanic (and a good portion of the crew) would certainly enjoy the chance to wreak some havoc. "If I'm understanding correctly?" She directed this at the captain, silently asking for clarification.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Taran felt his cheeks flush red. Alone...in a small boat...with Winter? The very person he had spent all day and night trying to avoid? Granted Prince and Winston would be there as well, but still. He was debating asking what level of injured would excused one from the mission. Was a broken leg enough? Or would one still be expected to perform? He heard Winter speak and he half expected Winter to disagree with the two of them being on the same team, but it never came. Perhaps he was getting too worked up, maybe she just thought of the neckless as a gift from a friend...which they were...right? Or maybe she didn't mind him...maybe she wanted them to be...in the boat...together...with Prince and Winston. Despite the flaw in his logic, the thought did make him perk up slightly. "Alright, fine, drop me into certain death guys, what is it? Tuesday already?" Said Taran, finally having processed enough of the conversation to have something to say about it. "But, in all serouseness Cap'in, you can count on me and Prince to save the day, amIright? Up top!" He held out his hand to the captain, expecting a high five with a grin on his face. When all he got was a glare, he kept the grin going "Well, that is alright, self five it is," He brought his hands together in front of his face creating a loud clapping sound. Taran then brought his hands down to his lap, looking very pleased with himself.</s> <\|message\|>Dexter Kennedy Dexter sighed. For whatever reason, explaining this whole ordeal to them seemed to be way too much work. "The diversion team will move in at the same time as the stealth group. Although it would be nice if we could send the stealth team in to... disable the security, I highly doubt that would be successful. If we draw the attention to one side of the building we're after, say here-" his finger tapped a spot on the map, '-then the guards will be forced to gather there, making it easier for the smaller team to get inside." "Once you're in, you will need to be quick. Find wherever they keep all the equipment. If you can't take it with you, break it. There are going to be several scientists and mechanics there, and some of them may be actively working. A large majority of these people are working for the government against their own free will. As much as I would like to get all of them out of there, it's simply too much of an added risk. However, try to avoid getting them killed, if you can." Taran seemed excited about something, and held up his hand for a high-five. Dexter simply looked at him, then the boy clapped his hands together and sat back down, looking accomplished. "Okay, then. If there are no more questions, you're free to go." He checked the watch on his wrist. "You have about two and a half hours."</s>	<\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji [h2]Rin/Sakuya[h2] The twins, although a little late, had managed to catch most of the debriefing. Why? Because they ahve been standing behind the closed door the whole time, needing to listen to the next plans, but also afraid of what Winter would do to them if they were to show up in her line of sight. "Looks like we're causing some mayhem, and with permission too!" Sakuya gleefully whispered to her sister, who nodded back, a small smile on her face as well. "Although I'd really love to find out what that 'bookshelf sized weapon' looks like." Rin muttered softly to herself, with Sakuya only paling at the thought of entering the room at this moment.</s>
<\|description\|>Winston Hollands Gender: Male Age: 34 Appearance: Winston is a large man. He's 6'5" and has an athletic build. He always wears his bandage mask. Sexuality: Heterosexual Personality: Winston is quiet. This doesn't mean he doesn't speak, though. He speaks often. He's just not willing to tell people what his opinions are. He never takes off his mask. He even punched another crew member for repeatedly asking if they can see what's under it. Winston is tough. He recklessly charges from objective to objective, attacking those in the way. He's also more seasoned than the rest of the pirates. He teaches the other pirates on the fundamentals of combat, if they want the knowledge that he has. He knows the navy's general strategies. At some points, Winston seems to have a strange look in his eyes. They just seem angry and frustrated. Thought, this look seems to go away quickly. Weapon of Choice: Winston's weapon of choice is a large, heavy axe. Other: Winston always carries a small letter and a locket with him. Winston punched the same crew member after they asked to see the contents of both. Strength: 8(.1) Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 Fighting: 8 Revealed History: =Nothing yet.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Jax despised being shooed out of the kitchen when she was hungry. She hadn't eaten all day and just wanted to raid the Winter's food cupboard. However, Winter was having none of it and urged her and Aubrey out of the kitchen. After which they both waited outside of the kitchen desperately for her to let them back in for dinner. Jax watched as Aubrey cleaned his wound, it looked rather painful and she felt guilty for letting him get hurt. I'm sorry Aubrey, she wanted to say but didn't. Once the smell was wafting from the kitchen they knew that it was time to eat and hurried back into the galley. "Finally! It seemed like it took forever, my stomach was singing the song of its people to me for like hours" Jax joked around and went to sit next to Aubrey who had saved a seat beside him when Taran sat down next in a chair next to them. Jax folded her arms across her chest and smacked him on the back of the head as Winter would. "What do you think you're doing? Don't poke at Aubrey!" She fumed After which she sat beside Aubrey, glancing at Taran with a threatening glare. "Winter! Oh thank goodness, I can't wait to eat!" She was setting the table and the somewhat suspicious, probably poisoned soup looked delicious. She'd suffer it, she was that hungry and it wasn't like she hadn't had the experience before. Chills went down her spine thinking about it, silently she prayed to the God of the Air and Sky that Winter wouldn't choose now to poison them all for causing trouble.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter was leaning against the counter, a hand resting on her hip as she watched the crew start to stream in. She gave a smile to Kai and Aubrey as they came in, gushing over the food. She took a moment to eye Aubrey's cut. He'd done a good enough job of cleaning it up, though Winter figured she should still have a look at it. She turned around to wash her hands and heard Taran make his usual ruckus. She didn't turn to look at him as he attempted to shower her with flattery, but if one were to see her face, they would see an amused smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Oh Taran," she said in a teasing voice, "you really do think too highly of me." Winter dried her hands and walked over to another cabinet where a few small jars sat, filled with various colored liquids, along with a needle, some thread, and several rolls of gauze. She kept these little stores all around the ship – it was always best to be prepared with this bunch. Winter picked out a small jar of translucent green liquid, gauze, and medical tape, along with a clean scrap of cloth. Turning back, she walked over so she stood next to Aubrey, opposite of Jax and Taran. "Hold still," she murmured as she to inspect his neck. It was directed just as much to the young boy as it was to Taran and Jax. Winter brought up her hand and gently lifted Aubrey's chin, turning it a bit towards her. Placing the gauze and tape on the table, she took the cloth and dabbed it on his skin, absorbing any leftover water, along with a few drops of blood. Without looking, Winter tossed the cloth onto another area of the counter, well away from the pot. Then she uncorked the bottle and a sharp, minty smell filled the air, mingling with the aroma of the stew. Dipping her finger into the jar, she delicately smeared the liquid across the gash at his neck, as well as on the surrounding skin. Winter put the stopper back on the bottle and placed it on the table, picking up the gauze and tape. She made quick work of covering the wound and then placed her clean hand lightly on top of his head, almost as if to pat him, and gave him a small smile. Then she picked up the jar from the table and put all her supplies away, washing her hands in the sink. "Let me know if it starts bleeding again, alright?" she told Aubrey over her shoulder. With that done, Winter turned back around to lean against the counter again. Kai, Aubrey, Jax, and Taran. Prince and the captain usually never ate with them, Angelo only came down from his roost if she served pork and garlic bread, and if Levi were eating with them, then she'd be here by now. That just left Winston and the twins. Something told her Winston wouldn't be at dinner tonight, but Rin and Sakuya were something of a toss-up. She supposed they could just join in when they got there, then. Winter pushed off from the counter and took a seat at the table. Picking up the mug she'd placed by her bowl when she'd been setting up, she raised it, a playful glint in her eyes. "To another close call, then," she said in a mock toast. She brought the cup to her lips and took a sip, signaling it was officially dinner time.</s> <\|message\|>Prince [KAI] "Hey, Aubrey," Kai greeted, a smile forming on his lips. While Aubrey was only a year older, he admired him. Only a year older and he can fight with the rest of the crew, unlike Kai who doesn't like the thought of fighting. He'll fight if he had too, but he just forces Prince to do his fighting for him, also because Prince just goes around looking for trouble so anything works for him. "I'm doing good, you?" He watched as the others entered the room, smiling at them as a way to greet them. Everyone took their place around the table and Winter patched up the wound on Aubrey's neck from earlier. No matter how long he's stayed on the ship, he could never get used to all the blood and wounds that showed up on a daily basis. At uncomfortable times like these, he wished Prince was here. "To another close call, then," Winter said, raising her cup in the form of a toast. He smiled, lifting up his cup too and taking a sip from it.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he relaxed in the crows next and looked up in the sky above him watching the clouds roll by. They were already off and avoiding the storm Angelo called to the captain earlier so now all he needed to do was to keep an eye out for enemy ships. which Angelo could do easily by just looking in all directions every once in a while. Between that time he could just relax and enjoy the quiet by himself</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey "Not too bad." Aubrey replied to Kai, "But I got a lil - ow, Taran, stop it, that hurts!" He swatted away Taran's hand, who at some point had drug over another chair so he could be close enough to bother him. Winter took his attention away from Taran, when she tilted up his chin, telling hims to keep still. He did as she asked, careful not to wiggle as she dabbed gently at his neck. She spread that minty stuff he liked on it, the kind that feels all cool and tingly. She taped the bandage to his neck, and placed a hand on his head before she moved away. Aubrey smiled and thanked her. She was one of few people he actually liked to pat him on the head like that. For some reason it didn't feel like she was teasing him – like Prince did – but it was more like an act of affection. "Okay, I will." Winter took her seat and raised her glass in a toast, giving them the okay to eat. That was one of the simple things Aubrey liked about these pirates – they ate together like family. Well, most of them, anyway. It gave them all a chance to be together before everyone got busy with their own tasks. Aubrey took a swig of his drink and then pulled his bowl of stew closer. He took a bite of it, relishing the rich flavors. "You're amazing, Winter." He said, taking a few more large bites in rapid succession.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She watched with interest as Winter tended to Aubrey's wound on his neck. It was sweet the way she treated them like crazy children who needed a good mother. And she was a good mother, firm but she could be kind and gentle when she needed to be. Jax often got jealous when she attended to the others like Prince and Levi but not her. However, she had just gotten amazing and comfy new gloves from 'mother' and couldn't be happier. Thinking about them, Jax cast her gaze down at her lap where her hands were rested. The gloves were all soft all the inside and made a sound when she clenched her hands into fists. "Cool" She thought out loud. Jax reached out and took her bowl in both hands, knocking back a drink of it as if it were a cup of water. It left her with a soup moustache but it felt good and warm on her upper lip. Holy crap this is delicious., "Winter you've almost out done yourself" Jax said smiling over to Winter who had just toasted to their close call. Jax nodded, reaching for her cup and raising it than taking a swig from it too wash down the rich, flavorful soup. It was amazing. Licking her upper lip clean she continued to drink her soup, chewing slowly on the chunks that were in it to enjoy the flavors. There was nothing better than Winter's cooking, especially not the plain old kitchen snacks she was going for before. Thanks momma.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene "Does it hurt more when I do thi-" He was cut off from poking the injury harder by Winter intervening and mending the wound. She looked...like something else when she healed, or when she did anything really that required focus. Her eyes just seemed to light up and she looked...serious, but at ease, like she was letting her guard down. It made her look...really, really, pretty. He found himself just staring at her, not hearing any of the conversation that was going on around him. He found himself trying to see what was suddenly so different about her. At first he thought it must have been make-up, but no, that was the same. Maybe she changed hair? He couldn't tell. Suddenly Taran felt a little less hungry, but he couldn't explain why. He glanced over at Winter again, half tempted to just leave the room, but figuring he should probably eat some of the soup. Taran shook his head and berated himself for being silly. Here he was getting all worked up for no particular reason. He was able to will himself back to normal after a few seconds while Winter finished healing Aubrey. Soon, Taran was giving Winter a thumbs up as he chowed down on the soup. He paused only to do a half hearted cheers and slightly choking when he tried to drink with a mouth full of food. After a few minutes, his bowl was empty. "Well,"he said, standing and grabbing his bowl to rinse it out. "I guess I better go give Prince his share of the treasure, although why he should get any of the jewels is beyond me. He got an ashtray, I find that to be more than equal. But whatever," He rinsed out his bowl and set it on the counter to dry. "Most of it is old lady crap anyway, only worth it's weight in gold, but there was this one," His eyes flicked over Winter and he felt himself reaching into his pocket and pull out the one necklace that he deemed 'decent'. He held it in his hand, showing it for a second before walking over to Winter. "Um, you should...have it," he said, holding out it out to her. He took her hand and set the neckless in it, he held onto her hand for another second after. "Yeah, well," he said suddenly, flushing a little red. " AH, we are out of milk. I'm going to the store...I'll be back later...with..eggs. Yeah," Then he fled the room, vaguely heading towards Prince's. Clearly he had forgotten that they were on a flying ship and could not, in fact, go buy milk, or eggs.</s>	<\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston had waited long enough. He stood and walked to the metal cup and bag, carelessly left on the floor. His hand reached into the bag and pulled out a bundle of stalks, dry, thick, and hollow. He pushed them into the metal cup. The ends of the stalks extruded from the top by two inches. The oil was almost at the top. Winston waited 30 seconds and pulled the stalks out. Winston moved them in a circle as he removed them, leaving a dripping spiral in the cup. Much of the oil was still there. Winston went back to the bag and pulled out the jar of dust. He opened the small jar, dipping the oil-covered tip of each stalk into the dark powder. Once he had all of them, he put two sticks into the cup filled with dirt. Winston took a well used piece of flint from his pocket and pulled out a small key of steel from the other. He scraped the flint with the steel above the stalks, the sparks falling on the powder and making a quiet bang. A line of a dull pink smoke constantly drifted into the air. A soft scent was emitted by the stalks, changing the room's scent of nothing to a very slight flowery smell. Winston put his hands together and put them near his head. He was silent for a moment. He dropped his hands, and pushed him self up. From there, he walked to the door, opened it, went out to the hall, and locked his door. He went to the mess-hall. Once he got there, he instantly was bumped into by a fleeing Taran. Winston saw almost everyone there, all eating. He walked over to an empty seat, and sat there. He began to eat his meal, not speaking to anyone, and covering his mouth with his empty hand.</s>
<\|description\|>Winston Hollands Gender: Male Age: 34 Appearance: Winston is a large man. He's 6'5" and has an athletic build. He always wears his bandage mask. Sexuality: Heterosexual Personality: Winston is quiet. This doesn't mean he doesn't speak, though. He speaks often. He's just not willing to tell people what his opinions are. He never takes off his mask. He even punched another crew member for repeatedly asking if they can see what's under it. Winston is tough. He recklessly charges from objective to objective, attacking those in the way. He's also more seasoned than the rest of the pirates. He teaches the other pirates on the fundamentals of combat, if they want the knowledge that he has. He knows the navy's general strategies. At some points, Winston seems to have a strange look in his eyes. They just seem angry and frustrated. Thought, this look seems to go away quickly. Weapon of Choice: Winston's weapon of choice is a large, heavy axe. Other: Winston always carries a small letter and a locket with him. Winston punched the same crew member after they asked to see the contents of both. Strength: 8(.1) Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 Fighting: 8 Revealed History: =Nothing yet.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter was content as she ate, listening to the sounds of her crew. Meals were the one time no one was rambling on, and yet they still managed to cause a ruckus with all their slurping and munching. Winter just smiled to herself. Taran finished his meal earlier than usual and started running his mouth about something or other. Winter didn't pay it any mind though. At least Taran was cleaning up after himself this time. Then he turned back to the group and she saw him pull out a necklace. It was a delicate thing with a silver chain meant to look like tree branches and bronze flowers set in different intervals. It was beautiful. But then Taran walked over to Winter's side and picked up her hand to gently curl her fingers around it. The cold bite of the metal was a hard contrast with the warmth of his hand, seeping into her own. She was frozen as Taran shifted his weight, clearly awkward. He made some poor excuse to leave and fled the room. Winter's mind was blank save for a long string of curses in every language she knew. She jumped when the sounds of Winston enter the room and her mind snapped back to reality. Which meant she was thinking again. Winter felt her skin begin to heat and suddenly all she wanted was to get away. "Clean up when you're done," she told the others in clipped tones. At the same time she pushed herself up, her chair scraping along the floor. Winter walked quickly out the door, not looking at anyone. She didn't slow her pace until she reached her room, the door slamming shut behind her. The entire time, the necklace she'd thought was beautiful only a few moments before lay heavy in her hand.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey It had been roughly 32 hours since the Leviathan had departed from Ballard. It was a relief to have that place behind them. Dexter hoped they wouldn't have to dock there again, because the whole place made him twitch. He liked things neat, clean, orderly... and Ballard was the exact opposite of all those things. Although that kind of place was common, he was very careful to stay on the ship when they visited those types of places. Now he sat around the mapping table with his crew. It was a little before noon, after the crew had cleaned up from breakfast and everyone gathered in the navigation room, where most of their plans were discussed. The sat around the circular table, everyone facing inwards to make it easier to converse. Dexter spread his charts in front of his crew, letting them examine them on their own. The crew looked well-fed, and some of them had even taken the time to bathe. With the exception of Aubrey, who Dexter noticed was wearing a bandage on his neck, everyone appeared to be in good health. When everyone had taken their seat, Dexter spoke. "In about three hours, we will be arriving at the location of our next raid." He said, "It's a remote island, and I only heard of it through a special connection. Gathering info on it has proven difficult, so there is a lot we might not have on the place." He gestured to the papers on the table. "This is everything I have. Although the name of the place isn't officially documented, it had been referred to as The Crumbling Keep." Aubrey opened his mouth like he was about to speak, but Dexter cut him off by raising a hand. "No, Aubrey, I don't know why they call it that." The boy pouted and sat back, and Dexter continued. "We can expect high security. This place is meant to hold some very advanced... inventions. Large, robotic weapons are housed there, though it's hard to say if they are just being stored or if they are active and being put to use. Either way, this is going to be a tough one. We will not only be worrying about the possibility of these machines coming after us, but there is also a large amount of human guards. Ideally, we would get in without being noticed, take a few things, and then get out. However, you have all proven over and over that you are not good at keeping things low-key. That, and the added problem of that we have a huge ass mothafuckin' ship trying to sneak up on a small island, there is about a 90% chance of a confrontation." He paused to scan the faces of his comrades, judging their reactions thus far.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax She had spent the last day or so working on enhancing her eye piece so it could read heat signatures. But for some reason she just couldn't get it to work and it was terribly frustrating. However, she refused to give up and kept trying. Jax took a deep breath, her hat was off, her hair a mess and her arms and face covered in sweat and grime from working on different things. "I need to bathe. badly, I smell like a military dog" Te pirate took off toward the lavatory and stripped, setting her nice gloves aside carefully to get in the tub she had filled prior to removing all her clothes. It wasn't necessarily warm water, but it wasn't freezing either, she and a few other mechanics on the ship had designed a system to make it so the water wasn't icy cold when you had to wash off. Once she was finished, dried off and put her clothes back on, she was notified that the captain had called a meeting... and she was late for it. Crap, why me? Not only had she missed breakfast that morning, but she wasted time bathing and now had to go face the captain, after being late for the meeting. Jax ran to where she knew everyone would be and crept in and took her place beside Aubrey who she smiled at and started to listen to what the captain had to say. Curiously she examined the charts and maps the captain had laid out on the table, what the heck were the charts for? Then he mentioned their raid in about 3 hours in a place called The Crumbling Keep and she knew it would be the perfect place to test her Hand Cannon. She also couldn't wait to take a lot at the "advanced" machinery that the place supposedly held. Once he was finished, Jax broke out into laughter over the fact that he had said huge as mothafuckin' ship, that didn't seem like something her captain would say, it didn't match his usual tone or expressions at all.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter was completely focused on the captain's explanation. Or at least, that's how she looked on the outside. In reality she was trying very hard to look anywhere but at Taran. She'd holed herself up in her room for the remainder of the previous evening, only leaving this morning to make the crew breakfast. As soon as that was done, she left the food in the kitchen for the others to find, instead of waiting for them to arrive as she normally would. It was cowardly but Winter honestly had no idea what to do with this situation. Taran… he… Winter tightened her fists behind her back, nails nearly cutting into her palms. The necklace was hidden in her desk drawer, and her mind kept on wandering back to it. The captain stopped talking and it took a moment for Winter's attention to snap back to reality. The raid. Weapons. High security. She contemplated the situation as all of his words finally registered. "Captain," she started, "what exactly are we after?" It must've been something of exceptional value for him to risk such security.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Winter and Taran probably would have had a better time of avoiding each other if they hadn't tried to avoid each other in the same way. His arms still ached from the half hour in which he hid under one of the tables while Winter cooked breakfast. Usually, he'd send one of the others in to do a look out before he would enter the kitchen, before denying that that was what he was doing. But, on that morning, Taran thought he was up early enough that he wouldn't risk seeing the girl. He was wrong. When he dared enter the hallway, he'd usually end up climbing something because he thought it was Winter coming around the corner, usually it wasn't. He spent the last thirty-two hours kicking himself. Why did he feel the urge to give her that stupid necklace? No only was it the most valuable piece of jewelry that he took that night, but it made things weird. He glanced over at Winter, who was almost pointedly not looking at him. It was dumb, and he wondered if the problem could be fixed by simply asking for it back? Or would that make it worse? 'She isn't that great anyway' he thought to himself ' With her face, and her hair that always smells nice and her eyes that --' he thought was cut off as she spoke and he promptly looked at the Captain, his face flushing slightly having zero idea about what the conversation had been about up til this point. He'd just have to ask Aubrey before they got there... The sound of a meeting was what drew her. After watching the 'Pirates' she decided that she should probably make herself known, help where she could, and hopefully keep them from killing her. Both straight out and by their own incompetence. Kara Saun situated herself in a vent with a clear line of sight towards the man who must have been the captain. If she was being fair, he didn't look nearly old enough, but...on the other hand, this Peter Pan man seemed to have a whole ship of lost little children.</s> <\|message\|>Shiyami Eiji Shiyami Shiyami couldn't help but to mentally sigh as he stared out the triple-layered tempered glass in the captain's quarters. He glanced down at the table in front of him, with multiple papers scattered everywhere on it. There were written reports of all variety mixed in with what appeared to be multiple blueprints of different ships of the government fleet. The first and foremost on was the blueprint of the warship Sovereign, the one he was residing in. Towards the corner of the desk however, was a small, weathered envelope, containing two parchments. One was a rather childish drawing, of three people. The other, was a more well-done drawing, of the same three people. Looking at it, Shiyami couldn't help but to smile faintly. "I wonder what those two little rascals are up to?" Muttering these words to himself, he was reaching over to pick up the envelope, when a knock at his door interrupted him. Quickly pocketing it, she called out, "Enter." A soldier came in, clicked his heels, and saluted. "The first mate requests your presence on the bridge, sir!". Shiyami sighed aloud this time, before rubbing the back of his neck tiredly. "There's no need to call me sir." un-energetically speaking these words that sounds like they have been spoken once to often, Shiyami stood up, before walking towards the bridge. Walking down the corridor, Shiyami kept his eyes shifting, making sure to keep every detail memorized. However, no matter how times he seen it, he still felt amazed that this metal behemoth of an airship actually flew. Thing should be heavy as hell. When he arrived, the crew onboard all saluted, with the commander calling out, "Officer on deck!". "At ease that shit..." Annoyed, Shiyami muttered the usual lines, with the response of, "I see you still dislike formalities." coming from the right. Glancing over, his eyes stopping at his observer, the merc shrugged. "Formalities are a tool to be used only when required." Tossing back his words, he walked up, before looking at the map, before checking the ship's status report. "Alright, we need to refuel and resupply the Sovereign. Take us to The Crumbling Keep." Calling out his order, the Sovereign started to move, slowly getting up to speed.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo sighed as he hung out in the corner listening to the captain explain the plan of their next raid and when he said that their was no point in being sneaky Angelo had to point out something. "for future reference its not that im not sneaky its that my way usually leaves a trail of bodies" Angelo explained to the captain since Angelo used claws Angelo usual way of killing while unseen meant to literally tear out someone's throat. it was easy with the sharpness of his claws and the fact that when he did they couldn't scream and died in a matter of seconds but because of that method their was a lot of blood and bodies and by the time Angelo gets halfway inside somewhere the alarm sounds. "as far as im concerned to what you feel is right captain ill kill either way" Angelo said simply glad he had already taken a shower before coming here, his claws usually end up smelling for hours if he doesn't shower before putting them on...</s>	<\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston looked along the various charts that they have laid out. His eyes followed the charts. He remained silent since they left the docks, but his silence was broken by his plan. "We can't do a full scale assault, but we can't do a stealth mission with everyone. There are a few... ruffians among us," he said, his eyes shifting to Angelo "but I digress. Winter, Prince, Taran, and I to sneak in, and check to see if they have any super secret tide-turning weapon. We disable that, and everyone else enters. They're going to see our huge ass mothafuckin' ship a mile off, so we need a large scale fight to happen while we sneak in." Winston had said the description of the ship jokingly, but in a poor impression of the captain. "But it will most likely damage the ship. If we don't want to damage our huge ass mothafuckin' ship, we need to park out on a nearby island, and then drift on boats onto the other island. Which is pretty dangerous, if you ask me." He said, still carrying the joke with him.</s>
<\|description\|>Winston Hollands Gender: Male Age: 34 Appearance: Winston is a large man. He's 6'5" and has an athletic build. He always wears his bandage mask. Sexuality: Heterosexual Personality: Winston is quiet. This doesn't mean he doesn't speak, though. He speaks often. He's just not willing to tell people what his opinions are. He never takes off his mask. He even punched another crew member for repeatedly asking if they can see what's under it. Winston is tough. He recklessly charges from objective to objective, attacking those in the way. He's also more seasoned than the rest of the pirates. He teaches the other pirates on the fundamentals of combat, if they want the knowledge that he has. He knows the navy's general strategies. At some points, Winston seems to have a strange look in his eyes. They just seem angry and frustrated. Thought, this look seems to go away quickly. Weapon of Choice: Winston's weapon of choice is a large, heavy axe. Other: Winston always carries a small letter and a locket with him. Winston punched the same crew member after they asked to see the contents of both. Strength: 8(.1) Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 4 Social: 3 Crafting: 5 Fighting: 8 Revealed History: =Nothing yet.</s> <\|message\|>Sakuya Eiji [h2]Rin/Sakuya[h2] The twins, although a little late, had managed to catch most of the debriefing. Why? Because they ahve been standing behind the closed door the whole time, needing to listen to the next plans, but also afraid of what Winter would do to them if they were to show up in her line of sight. "Looks like we're causing some mayhem, and with permission too!" Sakuya gleefully whispered to her sister, who nodded back, a small smile on her face as well. "Although I'd really love to find out what that 'bookshelf sized weapon' looks like." Rin muttered softly to herself, with Sakuya only paling at the thought of entering the room at this moment.</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter Winter nodded to the captain when he dismissed them. Casting one last glance around the room, (she was most definitely not looking at Taran… it was just a general sweep of everyone – no one in particular) she turned away and headed to the door. She opened it to find two twins pressed up against it, clearly eavesdropping. Ah. This was why they weren't at the briefing. The corner of Winter's mouth quirked up into a smirk as she looked at them. It seemed they were still paranoid about seeing the consequences of their little scene in Ballard. Good, she thought as she floated past them. Let them worry a little more. Winter began walking down the hall towards her room. Two and a half hours was more than enough time to change and get everything ready for the mission, but she figured she may as well start now. If she holed herself up in her room for the entirety of that time, she wouldn't have to face… anyone else. The shakiness of her own reasoning made her uncomfortable, but she couldn't really bring herself to care at the moment. She began listing supplies off in her head as she walked, thinking of what she'd need. Her mind drifted to her weapons cabinet, holding all sorts of daggers and knives, wires, poisons… and her two sickle blades. It had been a very long time since she'd brought those out. And she still had no intention to. Winter knew she had a good thing going here, with this odd little crew. And the captain knew about her… situation. He wouldn't throw her into a situation where she'd have to get too violent. Winter scrunched her eyebrows together as she thought back to what she'd done in Ballard. Fighting that guard has been easy. Familiar. Satisfying. When she'd pointed that gun at his head, all she'd wanted to do was pull the trigger and blow him away. It would've been cleaner than leaving him alive. She'd felt hints of long-buried anger creeping to the surface and for a split second, all she'd wanted to do was make him hurt. But then it was gone and she was back. No. That was done and passed. She'd go to her room, get herself ready, they'd go in and either take or break this super-weapon, get out, and then all she'd have to worry about would be… Taran. Oh god. Winter still had to deal with Taran.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax After Jax had asked her questions and Winter had answered, the younger of the two girls smiled at Winter in a sort of 'thank-you'. With that the captain began to speak once more, explaining the plan and giving her even more clarity. When he mentioned trying not to get killed she thought of Prince and Taran and how they always had a knack for getting themselves into trouble. Even if it was Jax who was primarily responsible for the officer's brother and the chase in Ballard, it wasn't all her fault, it was the man's fault for attacking Aubrey. Taran spoke and she couldn't help but laugh a little more at how he high-fived himself. He certainly was something else, if him and Winter ever stopped giving each other weird glances maybe they could be a good couple. Who was she to talk, she was awkward around Aubrey all the damn time. There were no more questions and the crew was dismissed. People began to leave, Jax looked toward Aubrey and decided to ask him to help her prepare. After all she still had to decide who would carry her spectacular hand cannon, maybe Aubrey could help her decide. "Hey Aubrey" She nudged him with her elbow. "Want to come prep with me, er I mean" Yea that didn't sound dirty or anything. Shrugging it off she tried again, "do you want to come help me prepare for battle? I need to grab my gun and Hand Cannon from my spot in the sleeping quarters. I also need to grab a some food since I missed breakfast, wanna come?" Her eyes were shining as she asked him, she was really hoping he would say yes.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey After the captain dismissed them, Aubrey leaned back in his chair with a sigh. For some reason, he had a gnawing feeling in his stomach, like something bad was going to happen. He played with the string on his hat, twisting it between his fingers thoughtfully until Jax broke his trance. She nudged him with her elbow and leaned over to speak to him. His mind took a moment to creep back into the real world again. He was glad she repeated herself, because her first attempt had fallen on deaf ears. "Sorry, I was distracted. Gun, cannon, food... Yeah, I'll come." He stood up and stretched his arms over his head, trying to push away his rising sense of unease. He waited for Jax to stand up, then walked with her to the sleeping quarters. He knew the way well enough that he could walk without giving direction much thought. Despite all of his unfortunate... quirks, he did have a very good memory when it came to things like that. He wasn't sure what this feeling was, but he needed to get his mind off of it. "Oh, did you decide who you wanna give the cannon to?" He asked.</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Out of everyone, Taran probably had the least to do to get ready for the raid. Or the smash and destroy. He usually didn't carry many, if any weapons. lately he had taken to carrying a small knife, if only for the false sense of security that it gave him. He wasn't trained with a sword, so bringing one would be equivalent to giving him a club to swing around. A gun, or really, any instrument that shot would be useless. People would be wise to be more afraid if they were the thing standing next to his target, rather the the thing he was aiming for. It was also highly likely that anyone with a any sort of fighting talent would be able to disarm any weapon he did have and use it against him and who ever he was with. So, in reality, it was better for everyone that he simply walk into danger completely unarmed. "I should...probably get...more serious about fighting," he said quietly to himself leaving the meeting. He saw a couple of his shipmates split off. He felt a smile stretch across his face as he saw Jax leading Aubrey off, mentioning something about a cannon. Then he saw Winter. Or rather, Winter's back. Without real rhyme or reason, he followed her, slightly behind and occasionally jumping behind things whenever it seemed like she was going to turn around. It was stranger, yesterday he really couldn't have cared less about her, but today he was finding that he never got tired of looking at her. Once she entered her own room, he finally started heading off to his own. There wasn't much for him to grab, however, he take time to grab his lock picking set. Not that he was particularly good at it yet, but he found the process...soothing? He'd been practicing and could unlock most of the doors on the ship by this point. Granted, it could take up to an hour, but as long as no one caught him in the act, every door was his oyster. Sooner than he would have liked, he was done and ready to go, but the drop was still an hour off. There wasn't really any place he felt like being. So he took a nap.</s> <\|message\|>Angelo Ortega (but everyone just calls him Angel) Angelo left the room after the captain said they had an hour or two to get ready for the plan. Honestly it was better that Angelo was going to be in the distraction team rather then the stealth team since he would probably do more good killing people on the front lines. Once Angelo left he washed his hands and then he went to his nest and checked on his gauntlets and he started to polish them and apply a clear coat so that the blood doesn't end up rusting the claws. This would take him a while since Angelo needed to apply 2 coats of the stuff for an effective seal against blood rust knowing he wont be needing his rifle for this but he will take it anyway in case their is a high value target that needs to be killed...</s> <\|message\|>Taran Greene Time: 1400 hours Location: West of Nowhere and Two Clicks south of Despair Weather: Choppy waves in deeper waters. Winds coming in from the South. Storm coming in around 2200. Take off after 2130 is not advised. "You know," said Taran, looking down the twenty or so feet between the ship and the water. "Of all the skills that I thought I'd need to be a pirate 'swimming' and 'ability to not get sea sick' were never very high on the list until right about now," His feet hung over the side of the hall and where dangling in the open air. "Is that just a me feeling or is that a general consensus?" All of Team Stealth (Code Name: Winter and the Boys) and a few member of Team Distraction (Code Name: Tyrannosaurus Rex Wizard With a Lazer Eye) were situated around the paddle boats that were key in to drop as soon as the ship dropped down another ten feet. The boats were an older model. More keyed into water than air travel. However, they were created to be escape pods, so they did have a rudimentary gliding mechanism that would do in a pinch.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax Aubrey had agreed to go with her and once again she was tempted to take his hand and lead the way, but she fought the urge. "I think I might give it to Angelo, but then again he might have a hard time wielding it with his gauntlets" Jax led the way to her small space in the sleeping quarters. She didn't mind that it was such a small area, in fact she was glad she had somewhere to stay at all, it had been her space since she had joined the crew two years ago and she loved it. Once they were to her little living corner she knelt down to pick up her flintlock and holster it at her thigh. "Oo I just decided to add a strap to this thing so it will be easier to carry" She was speaking about the Hand Cannon that she was so proud of. It took her only a moment and a thick strip of leather to attach to both ends of the weapon. That way she could carry it over her shoulder with not as much difficulty. With a bit of a struggle she placed the strap over one shoulder and grinned. "Alright, that's too things taken care of. Thanks for joining me, Brey" After she spoke she nodded to herself and continued on to the kitchen to snag some food. "Or..." She thought out loud, still on the subject of the large weapon. "I guess I could try to use it, but even now it's a bit difficult for me to carry it, it's heavier than my wrench which is a surprise. Hey Brey, you sure there's nothing you want to go grab? No weapons or anything? I can try to fix up an old gun and make it like new so you can have it... maybe?" It was exciting, this big, important mission they were going on, she just wished Brey would fight better so she wouldn't have to worry so much. Jax didn't wait for him to answer, he could speak while he was following her to the kitchen, she was starving. The young mechanic peered into the galley to see if Winter was there, fortunately she wasn't in sight and Jax scurried in heading straight toward the snack cabinet. There were some crackers in there and fresh cheese from Ballard and it was all Jax's, and Aubrey's too if he wanted some. "Sweet! The treasure is mine" She truly was a pirate at heart. The crackers and cheese went well together, Jax hadn't even sat down to eat she was too excited about her findings. "Want some Brey?"</s>	<\|message\|>Winston Hollands Winston had been preparing his gear for the mission. He always packed light. He didn't care so much for armour. He didn't need it. All he brought with him was his old axe, his regular clothing, and a small vial of black powder. He kept it in one of the pockets in his pants. He looked around his room; it was still barren. Barren wouldn't really be the best word, though. It seemed like the room was waiting for something, or someone to come. It had been so long that it was safe to say that nobody was coming to fill what the room was missing. Winston had left his room, looking back to the two smoldering joss sticks. They were almost burnt out. Winston had a rather forlorn look in his eyes. He closed them, clenching his fists. He closed and locked his room, walking out to the deck. When he got out there, most of the crew were waiting for them to get close enough to the island so they could push off and go to the main island on their boats. Winston leaned against a nearby wall. He didn't speak. It was unlike him to not speak to others, but Winston was feeling alone.</s>
<\|description\|>Dexter Kennedy The Captain Gender: Male Age: 28 Sexuality: Off Limits .3. Appearance: Dexter is tall with an athletic build. His light skin is riddled abstract tattoos, all down his back, neck, and arms. His intense steely-blue gave often intimidates the younger crew members. Personality: "Distant" would be a good word to sum him up. Dexter, although he adages his crew, has a hard time showing it. His serious expression rarely breaks, and even when it does it's only with a subtle, sly smile that is easy to misinterpret. The Leviathan and crew are his pride and joy, all that he claims to live for. He let's his shipmates do as they please, and normally lets the do all the robbing, plundering and fighting themselves. Although rare, he will occasionally talk to the members of his crew when they are having difficulties dealing with emotion, which is kind of odd seeing as it appears he has virtually none of his own. However cold and prickly he may seem from the outside, his desire is to make a positive change in the world; so, therefore, there must be a kind person in there, even if he hides it well. Weapon of Choice: For the most part? Whatever is handy. He keeps both a simple knife and flintlock pistol on his person, though he can easily adapt to any weapon he needs to "borrow". Other: N/A Revealed History: N/A Stats: Strength: 6 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 7 Social: 4 Crafting: 2 Fighting: 5</s> <\|message\|>Prince [PRINCE] Prince turned a sharp corner down an alleyway, taking out his bow and arrow. "I didn't want to use this but it looks like I have no choice," he said, stopping and shooting at the guards. After taking out a few of them he climbed up to one of the house windows and entered the house. Much to his surprise, a woman and her two children were there. "Oh, hey!" He greeted. "Sorry but I'm going to have to use this place for a minute," he said, using the window as a cover while bullets were being shot at him. He left the room running to the room across the hallway and jumped through the window, rolling over once he hit the ground to cover his fall. He put away his bow, deciding to save them in case he gets stuck in a tight spot. He ran through a series of alleyways, eventually losing the guards. He slid down to the floor, desperately trying to catch his breath. [KAI] Kai sighed, trying to squish through the amount of people that were on the streets. Apparently there was a huge commotion going on and he had no doubt in his mind that it had something to do with the crew of the Leviathan. Everywhere they went, they caused a huge scene with their antics, especially Prince. Not that he could blame him though, with Prince's attitude, he's always itching to start something after being cooped up inside the Leviathan without any action for too long. "Out of the way!" He heard someone yell. Trying to find where the voice come from, he was cut off when a couple of guards ran past him, pushing him to the ground. He sighed in annoyance, pulling himself up and dusting off his clothes. After looking around the marketplace, he decided to head back, spending more than enough time wandering the streets. Checking his watch, he didn't have enough time to go through the crowd, deciding to take a detour through the alleyways instead. After a few minutes of navigating through the alleyways, he almost sighed in relief after seeing Prince. He knew Prince could handle himself, but he couldn't help but worry. He walked up to Prince and took out a small pouch that contained water in his pocket. Prince looked up, a grin forming on his lips. "Kai!" he greeted, taking the pouch from him and chugging down the water, leaving it empty. "What kind of trouble did you get in this time?" He asked, rolling his eyes playfully. Prince chuckled, getting up and petting him on the head. "Nothing you need to worry about," Prince said. "Let's get out of here," Prince said, pushing Kai forward. "Before the ship leaves without us." Kai sighed, "Well if you didn't get into so much trouble all the time, you wouldn't have to worry about the ship leaving you behind." Prince snorted, sticking his tongue out. "Okay there, smarty-pants" Prince teased, scanning his surroundings. "Need me to cover you?" Kai asked, earning a nod from Prince. With a disapproving head shake from Kai, they headed back to the ship together.</s> <\|message\|>Aubrey Aubrey heard the sound of gunfire, and turned to see Karan tearing towards them. He didn't slow down after a near collision with Winter, and instead just yelled at them, "Running is good!" Before taking off again. "Wha-" Aubrey flinched as a bullet whizzed past in pursuit of Taran. "What about Pri-" The crewmate in question made a grand appearance as he came falling off of another rooftop and crushed the man after Taran. Well, shit, that was interesting. Winter shouted at them to split up as a large group of very upset guardsmen entered the scene, then flung herself off the side of the building as if she had been trained her whole life for this moment. She took the fire escape and caused a commotion, cutting off that route of escape. Aubrey flashed Jax a smile; this was gonna be fun. He turned and headed for the opposite side of the building as Winter. Luckily, there was a fire escape on that side as well. Not so lucky, the guard had already thought of that. Aubrey jumped down onto the first platform, landing lightly between two of the guys charging up the old steps. "Hi! Nice evening, isn't it?" One of the men lunged for him, but Aubrey twisted out of the way and the man collided with the other, sending both of them tumbling down the steps. "Ah, watch your step!" Aubrey hopped over them before they untangled themselves. So long as nobody got a hold of him, he was fine. He was quick and agile, but easily overpowered if anybody managed to catch him. He skipped the last few steps and vaulted over the railing onto the ground, bypassing a third guard. This one, however, wielded a gun. The man quickly jumped the rail after the boy, landing with a heavy thud. "C'mon kid, come quietly and nobody else has to get hurt!" "Oh, convincing argument, but I better not." Aubrey saw the man's brow twitch in annoyance. He raised his pistol, but Aubrey was already rushing around the next corner into an ally. Running was definitely something he was good at. He changed direction when he spotted another group of men, backtracking a few paces before he found a door exiting into the dark ally. He tried the nob, and to his surprise it was actually unlocked. He opened the door and slipped inside.... the coffee shop? Oh wow, small world. "Oh, hey, I know you." Aubrey was short of breath. Winston was still there. "So, like, some stuff happened, and we should probably skedaddle." The people in the cafe stared at the boy in shock. He probably was a sight, all banged up with that wild-ass grin on his face. He didn't waste time, and quickly headed out the opposite door and back onto the street. Now he knew where he was, even if it was black as sin outside. He turned on his heel and started down the street, covering ground quickly as he put distance between himself and the commotion as he worked his way back to the ship.</s> <\|message\|>Jax Morinth Jax "Running is good!" Through all the commotion that's all she caught on to besides the fact that Winter had said to split up afterwards. Jax smirked, everyone was around, at least the younger members, all could handle themselves and all were hopefully headed toward the ship. Jax felt feverish knowing that if she was caught she'd be thrown in prison, she hated prison. But at the same time the adrenaline was pumping through her like crazy. Aubrey smiled at her and she smiled back, they would have to go separate ways and meet back at the ship. She didn't want to leave him but it was important to split up, it'd be easier to get home that way. "Looks like I'm up" Jax snickered, the others had already gone their own ways and now it was her town. She bolted off the edge of the building, jumping across to the other side, there were men up there, waiting for her arrival. With a pouty expression she stared at them as they surrounded her. "Aww, you guys wouldn't attack an innocent little mechanic girl would you?" She asked as she gave the man in front of her a perfect puppy dog face. "We would if that girl happened to be a murderer, you've got blood on your face girly." One said. Curses, still? "Alright, no use trying to talk my way out of this, I'm kind of in a hurry." Jax removed her wrench from her back and held it by one end, spinning around like an out of control top, taking out the men with ease, each flew back, some falling off the building. "Weeee!!!" Once she was done spinning, the world seemed to keep going. "Whoa" This pirate had to move, and fast, more men were close behind, it was like every man in the whole city was after the crew now. Her head was still spinning but she kept moving, across to another roof top, since men were following her she had no choice but to climb down. Or y'kno, jump down. Like a trained assassin(which she isn't), she jumped across to a pole jutting out from the front of the building, swung on it and landed on another wooden piece sticking out below. Once more she jumped and landed on a cart on the ground. "Alright! keep moving!" With that she launched herself forward, rolling across the ground, popping up and running like there was a fire trying to engulf her from behind. Aubrey, Winter, Taran, Prince... I hope they're all okay. No time for that. Through the dark and pollution she could see some familiar surroundings, she was nearing the coffee shop, but she wouldn't stop there, there was probably no one left there anyway. In her mind everyone had already made it too the ship and was waiting to cast off. Once to the docks she knelt down, breathing heavily. "Am I the first one or what?"</s> <\|message\|>Winter Winter The bike skidded to a halt when she reached the dock and Winter killed the engine. She got off, and marched towards the ship to find Jax already there, and Taran not far behind her. "Jax," she called. "Tell the mechanic his job is done. Take over wherever he left off." She stuck her hand in her bag then and fished around, never breaking her stride. When she pulled it out, she brought with it a pair of fine leather work gloves. Tossing them over to Jax, she added, "Break these in, too." There wasn't much time for any further signs of affection, though. Winter made her way onto the ship, tossing her things in a corner where they wouldn't get in the way. Her mind spun with things to do – Prince and Aubrey could handle themselves well enough to make it to the ship, but Winston, the twins, and Angelo weren't exactly aware of the situation. Hopefully they'd see the commotion and figure it out. But Winter had to do something else before she could worry about any of that. She came to a stop in front of the door to the captain's quarters. Giving a breath, she steadied herself and knocked. Winter waited respectfully with her hands behind her back for the captain to open the door so she could let him know the situation. (Though odds were he knew the crew well enough to have some idea.)</s>	<\|message\|>Dexter Kennedy Dexter spent the whole time at Ballard on the ship. He had no desire to go explore this mess of a city. His thoughts were elsewhere. The desk in front of him was laid out with an abundance of colorful charts and graphs. Lines and notes were drawn in small, neat handwriting across them from a charcoal pencil the captain had borrowed from Levi's stash. Blueprints accompanied the other papers; crude drawings of machinery he was familiarizing himself with. Weapons, security, evey nick and cranny that could be used as a hiding place or shelter from enemy fire... Dexter plotted it all out, committing it to memory. This next job was an important one, and he couldn't allow himself or his crew to mess it up. He checked the watch on his wrist. It had been about five hours now, and he was sure that any minute now at least a few of his comrades would come running aboard, apologizing profusely for the trouble they were about to bring him. Sure enough, he heard a soft knock on the door. Never a good sign. With a sigh he slid his chair back and stood up. He moved across the room, his heavy boots making soft thuds on the ships floor as he walked to the door. He opened it, and his steely gaze rested on Winter, who stood patiently with her hands behind her back. "I'm assuming you're going to inform me we should depart soon." He said, raising one eyebrow in question, "Do we need to stop by any prisons on our way, or did they all manage to avoid arrest this time?"</s>