Arc 1 - Beast of a Thousand Knives (Completed)

[Kowsauni]

Gloom is the first to arrive at the clearing containing the den. He sees that the fire pit built in front of the den entrance from the previous night is still burning and looks to have been attended to until recently. A small piece of Razorclaw's meat stuck on the end of a stick can be seen in the fire pit as if it was suddenly dropped in there.

As Gloom enters the den, it is completely dark like before, but thanks to his darkvision he can see all the way to the back. What greets him is an eerily familiar sight. Like the bull corpse he had passed on the way over here, the body of Razorclaw has been entirely torn apart. Parts of the Teraxis are strewn about everywhere, though large pieces of his chitinous armor are stacked in one corner of the den. All of this does not seem to match the capabilities of a night's work from two little barbarian girls.

Kuori arrives second in the clearing, just in time to see Gloom re-emerge from the den. Except for the dying fire in the fire pit, the place looks deserted. There also is no sign of the soldiers--nor had there been throughout her lengthy track through the forest.

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From their vantage point hidden in the trees, Ying and Hakka see Gloom arrive into the clearing and head into the den. Once he goes inside, Ying would turn to the fox and whisper, "Is he still with your group? He said something about wanting to tie me up last time we talked. I get a creepy vibe from him. Should we show ourselves?"

Ying and Hakka would then see Kuori enter the clearing as well. Ying would look to Hakka, unsure of what to do.

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As Revenge climbs to the top of the tree, quite impressively in his platemail, he would see the forest canopy stretch out for miles before him. However, in the distance, he could see a thin plume of smoke rising from the trees. He remembers the girls beginning to build a fire the previous night and also recalls the soldiers mentioning seeing smoke rising from their destination. Without a doubt, that must be where the den lies. If Revenge is careful about keeping in the right direction, he should arrive in the clearing in no time.

No sign of the soldiers can be seen. It is as if the forest has swallowed them up.  

[Ryssa Blackblood]

Hakka soon realized her folly in assuming the fox form, as it didn't allow her to speak to answer her friend's clearly uncomfortable question. Still in Ying's arms she shifted back into her hybrid form and whispered, "I don't think we should, Ying...I don't trust any of them...We need to see if we can spot your sister though..."  

[Rain Yupa]

NOW Revenge can make his way there, instead of blindly fumbling his way through the woods.

Plus, hey, might meet his original objective of intercepting some soldiers. That is, assuming, the forest swallowing them up was in a figurative sense.

If the DM would be so kind to allow the plate mailed paladin to climb down without a second check, he will attempt to navigate towards the smoke and do his best to keep his bearings.

Quote:

Nature of 20 to get there. Since I'm still going slower, and not out-right running there (especially if it helps keep my bearings), I am content you going a while before I show up. I prefer realism over convenience!

 

[I Drink Blue Moon]

As Kuori arrives, Gloom props up against the den entrance and says, "You may be one to something Kuori, they stripped that corpse pretty clean." He would pause and say, "I am honestly a little conflicted here, I mean they seem nice enough, but they also broke out of prison and if it was them attacking the animals of Lupa, even if it was for food ..." He trailed off a bit and said, "They're an agricultural town. That livestock is their livelihood. Two work horses and a prize winning bull might be enough to put at least one of those farms out of business. Then they end up on the streets. It was a lot easier hunting them down when we thought it was an intelligent beast, but its not ... their people. Nice people too." He pushes off and adds, "I mean granted, they may have sent us in against Razorclaw in hopes that we would weaken it and it would kill us, but .."  

[PupSage]

Kuori shrugged, "If they trully are nice people then I would like to see them work off the damage that they've done to Lupa. The town would probably take kindly to them, minus the whole fugitive bit. Though Lupa didn't seem like huge Aria fans." She took out her bow and said, "more importantly, what are we going to do about the soldiers. They obviously don't seem keen on helping us out." She looked around, trying to see movement in every direction. Listening for any disturbances. "If I saw better in the dark I would say ambush them in the den."

15+11 =26 perception  

[Kowsauni]

Corsica

As Kuori scans the area, but nothing sticks out to her. However, after a few minutes, some shuffling of foliage can be heard along the forest floor coming towards the clearing. A thin figure then emerges from the underbrush. Her blond hair, brilliant red eyes and simple wooden spear immediately reveal who it is.

Corsica begins to speak in Giant as she emerges into view, obviously talking to her sister. "Lelena, droksarr kykayollem; Fyuzi: jinglam kylysak tuana oktumi'n hrent. Shwé blythko kromy, mita drunma--" She stops abruptly once she sees Gloom and Kuori standing in the clearing. She pays particular attention to the goliath's drawn weapon. She would coolly address them in Common. "This is a surprise. Why are you here? Where is my sister?"

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"Olozuza..." Ying would whisper under her breath. It looks like she's fighting every urge in her body to stop herself from running out to greet her sister. She looks at Hakka almost pleadingly, as if to ask permission to reveal herself. Her desire to be with her sister at this apprehensive time is almost too much for her to handle.

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With his slow and steady pace Revenge begins to make progress towards the clearing. The forest is deadly quiet--almost unnaturally so. As he trudges along, he notices a large section of matted down brush heading in the direction he's walking in. Now the paladin was no ranger, but this did indeed seem to indicate a large group of people moving through here recently. Perhaps this was his first sign of the soldiers. If this was true, then they definitely had the ability to move swiftly and in silence through the forest. The Arians had certainly dispatched some people of skill for this mission. It struck Revenge as odd that so much manpower would be invested in the apprehension of two young women armed with sticks.  

[Ryssa Blackblood]

The look no her friend's face was painful, downright heartbreaking, and she knew that she couldn't keep Ying hiding up here even if she tried. Though Hakka had never had a sister herself, she could see that there was a pretty strong connection between the girls. "Ying, let's circle around behind her and drop down onto the trail she just came from...maybe I can get her to come over and talk...I'm not sure what the others are doing here, but I still don't trust them..."  

[PupSage]

Kuori shook her head, "She was supposed to be with you, escaping before the Arian soldiers arrive. But she is gone, you are here, and the soldiers are invisibly trekking through the woods and will probably be here soon." She looked at Corsica, "We know its been you and your sister taking the animals from Lupa. And we know that you are hiding something. But I will make you a deal, I'll stay here and fight the soldiers with you and help you get your sister if you will come to Lupa and work off your debt to them. No cages, no prisons, just honest work to pay them back for what you stole. Survival or not, they depend on those animals to survive." She would add, "You seem like good people in a bad situation."  

[Kowsauni]

Corsica

A look of surprise would flash across Corsica's face and she would shout "What! How? What proof--" But she would quickly fall silent. After thinking for a moment Corsica looks as if she is going to speak again but does not manage to utter any more words. She still looks to be at a loss at the sudden revelations Kuori had thrown at her along with her offer. Corsica would put her hand to her chin and stare at the ground as she thinks. You can almost see the gears turning. After a minute or so she would speak again. "How many? How many soldiers are coming for us?

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As quietly as possible, Ying would place Hakka on her back and instruct her to hold on. "I can't use my camouflaged skin while moving, but I will try to get us behind her. Hold on tight."Ying would then begin to wind her long multi legged body around branches as she climbs from one tree to the next through the canopy. She is amazingly quiet as she does so, though she does have to move slowly. Having the added weight of Hakka on her back also does seem to hamper her movement as well. Still, her skill at moving silently through the trees seems to rival that of master assassins back in Hakka's guild.  

[Ryssa Blackblood]

Hakka nodded, understanding that the girl couldn't hide as well while moving....that was pretty much a given. She leaned in close as they moved and whispered very quietly into the girl's ear, "You need to return to your human form before we enter the clearing...and if it looks like trouble, grab your sister and the three of us run....I'm with you guys, no matter what." Still, the girl's aptitude at stealth was amazing to the fox girl...Corsica seemed even better at it than Hakka!

(Out of curiosity, DM....For the stealth check....was mine even close to hers or maybe a smidge higher or way way lower?)  

[I Drink Blue Moon]

Gloom piped up at the confusion, "The bodies. Duke the bull was stripped just like Razorclaws is now. Not to mention the trail from Duke's pin led straight to you two." He took out his rod and said, "Twenty soldiers. And our paladin is on his way as well." He didn't care about the fox so much, he didn't consider her an ally.  

[Kowsauni]

Corsica

Corsica's eyes would open wider for a moment at Gloom's comment and then her face would darken. "The three of us are not enough to take on twenty... but you said your paladin friend is coming. Hmm..." Corsica becomes lost in thought once more. The cold look of a predator flashes into her eyes as she obviously calculates something in her head. "I don't like doing it, but if I ask my sister to help fight, we might stand a chance. Taking sentient life bothers her greatly, but it's the only way I see us coming out of this. If we run now, we will simply be caught. Our only chance now is to fight."

Corisca would look back up from where she had been focusing her gaze at the ground and locks eyes with Kuori. The predatory glint still remains in her eyes. Contrary to the situation, she seems to be getting excited at the prospect of battle. "I don't understand why you would help us, knowing nothing of the situation, but I cannot afford to be choosy at this time. The taking of the cattle was a necessary evil and the lesser of two. But if it means you will help us, we will pay back the damage we caused."

Corsica would smile and extend the hand (the one that isn't tightly gripping her spear) towards Kuori for a handshake. "Then, do we have a deal?"

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Once Ying and Hakka have stealthily maneuvered behind Corsica in the trees, Ying would shift back to her human form. Her long centipede body would shrink upwards as her legs reform. She has almost forgotten that Hakka is still clinging to her back and quickly moves her to a nearby branch before she fully resumes her normal size. She whispers, "I'm returning to my sister now, ok?"

Ying would jump out of the tree noisily. Apparently she is not as stealthy in her human form. Her sister is still a dozen yards or so away, so she would walk up to her and see her extending her arm for a handshake. Ying would then softly speak her sister's name, as if too shy to disturb what was going on. "Corsica...."  

[Ryssa Blackblood]

Hakka gratefully shifted onto the branch as the girl changed back and then the fox girl lowered herself down as much as she could ebfore softly dropping to the ground. Her features shifted a bit as she resumed her fully human form, and Hakka followed her friend out of the brush and into the clearing. She would remain by the edge of the open space, however, and nod in greeting at Corsica once the girl would turn to acknowledge Ying. The older girl seemed set on staying and fighting, from what was able to be overheard, so Hakka would fight. one hand slid into her pouch, grasping her shuriken in anticipation of the imminent bloodbath.  

[PupSage]

Kuori wrapped her giant hand around Corsica's. "I'm helping because I can tell the difference between an act of malevolence and an act of survival. We all do bad things to survive, but Nathaniel seems like the type to kick puppies for fun."
 

[Kowsauni]

Ying and Corsica

Cosrica would return Kuori's handshake and, despite the Corsica's much smaller size, the goliath would notice an amazing amount of strength her grasp. "Then let us be sisters in battle! My sister and I watched in secret your battle against Razorclaw, just in case you needed our help. But I could tell from the very moment I first met you and the others, you were warriors to be reckoned with!"

Corsica seems like she's getting pumped, but her face suddenly becomes solemn as she turns towards her sister. She walks over to her and places her hand on her sister's shoulder. They lock eyes and Corsica speaks calmly to her younger sister in Giant. "Lelena, keme, ava... mrozi: karymaki zamemd, kapoki. Wysham kydarozi okesazi." Ying's eyes would fall to the ground and she would meekly reply "Oranna." A sadness seemed to overcome the younger sister. Corisca would hug her tight and speak apologetically. "Béjosharr ishorifkizi zjidabren."

Still tightly embracing her sister, Corsica would turn her head to address the adventures. "It's ironic. The women from our tribe are not allowed to become warriors... but I was born with a fighting spirit, and I was working on channeling that energy into becoming a merchant. My sister with her open heart was learning how to commune with the spirits from our shaman. No doubt she would have made a very fine wife for some chieftain... but that was all taken away from us."

Corsica paused for a moment as her face began to fill with anger. A level of malevolence entered her voice. "They attacked our merchant caravan as we headed towards a city to trade. I don't know why, but they wanted us. They killed all the warriors and all those who did not flee. It seemed they did not want anyone to see that we were kidnapped. From there, they took us far away, back to their kingdom to a place under a mountain. We were placed with others who shared stories similar to our own. And then... we..."

Corsica paused once more, her face a mixture of anger and disgust as she recalls the memories of that dark place. "I... I-I don't really know what was done to us. I don't understand magic, but I know our bodies were subjected to experiments using it. The pain was always excruciating and the experience horrifying. I don't know how else to really explain it. We saw several others go mad over the experiments, but it did not matter... We were nothing more than test subjects to them."

Cosrica stops talking. In spite of her proud nature she suddenly seems to become shy like her sister. For a moment it looks as if she's done speaking but then she would hesitantly continue on. "My sister and I, we... we are... we are not human any more. You will see soon enough when we fight. Our bodies will... transform into that of monsters. Do not be afraid--our minds will remain intact.

These people... they took away our lives and made us into weapons for own use. We had to escape before they wielded us to their own dark purposes. There was one among us known as the Shadow Wolf and, through her leadership, we were able to make a break from our prison with several others. Once free, we scattered to try and make it hard for them to find us. That is how we came to this forest. We made a deal with the denizens to allow us to stay."