Luthien is intrigued.

"And why is it such folly to leave your home when the moons don't shine? Many beings see well, even with only starlight."

He wonders if there's something plaguing the area...

  Inda shakes her head,..i do not know, what  you have in your lands.... But on the darkest nights..  the Night folk walk.... the  spirits roam.. and   the slavers  who  do not fear such, look for prey..out in the sands.. there are beasts who  love the dark.. and come out to hunt..

"What do you mean by nightfolk and spirits? Undead?"

Or something else...

  Inda looked  back towards   Luthien,..Night folk, are those who cannot  walk in the day.... they eat people.. drink blood or  enslave souls....

 she is  quiet for a bit as she looks to the shadows of some of the Dunes,..spirits... they   are those of the dead.. or..perhaps sent  by the demons...that try to kill  people, and take thier souls  as food..or... as the teachigns  say.. take the souls back to  thier  leader...

 Ivy   shivers a bit, Pulling his  cloaks  around him,..we have such creaures  in our lands as well.... they are  harder to 'kill'..but they all have ways to die...

"Indeed they do. Some of the weaker versions of such things can be turned by the power of the Gods. And if the slavers are not afraid of them...well, by the power of the darker Gods, it is possible to command such beings."

Luthien looks pensive.

"Fear not. Should we encounter such a thing, I am prepared for it."

Brie patted Inda on the shoulders as they road.  Not all who seek and love the dark, are bad, she said.  Just like not all sand folk are bad.  There are good and evil in all kinds.

    Moving Up  and  down Dunes  the swaying of the cratures    was much like of a   ship... Ivy    was bent over a Bit,..I used to not like horses... i love horses  now....

 Kree chuckled,..I am not  quite fond of  either....but  we must use  what  we needs, use.

  ..if  we are wise... we  eat and drink whiole  we ride... it is a long  time in the   saddle... that is why the seats is high backed..., but  every hour  we ride  puts us closer  to the Demon's  horns, and  keeps   the  night beasts  from hunting us....

  The Full moon was  well across the  sky. Half of the Second moon's crescent was  rising from where, the Trace Wood, would be....

  Cptain...  we should not  ride to that   we are aimign  for the left most Horn... if all goes well, we   will reach  the  area to camp for the day...

 ..You are, our  guide, little one... Lead  us as you will... the   Full moon's  light did, Light  up more of the  sands to the South west... there  were  Silhouettes  of   creatures  seen on teh horizon, now and them... Humanoid shaped   but   taller and broader of shoulder...leaving out howls through the  night... Large   , multi-legged insects  with  large   curved  tails... and  , now  and  again, Bird Like  creatures  wit long tails, would  Flt  and swoop as they found prey in the sand.

Luthien is well pleased at the wisdom of this young girl.

"I could see you taking a Ranger's path, when you get older. With such knowledge the wilderness as you have now, you could guide people as you will for a profession."

  Inda  looked  back at Luthien,..I only know  of the sands... the sand here.... I know nothing of  the trees and Bush...

 Kree says,..I know very little of the Sands.... Once this task is Over, we  are retruning to   The Voolage to report our  findings...and with  The Sister's  aid... bring home our comrades....  In the end? It  will be your chocie.. but..staying in the Vilage and elarning from my people.. we make you something , you never thought you could be...

In reply to moving off. (msg # 62):

Diana had no problem riding horses, but the swaying of the camels were not particularly to her liking.  On more then one occasion, she had to halt her camel, to get her barings and stabilize her stomach.  It only took a moment, before she was ready to move on.

While she didn't have the night vision of her companions, she could see fairly well with the full moons.  She was amazed by the movement of nature in the sands.

Lucy had ridden camels before, but it had certainly been a while.  It took her a  short period of time to adjust to the swaying of the movement of the camel, but once she did, she had no problem with it.

As she rode, she listened to the sounds of nature, and watched as the natural world played out around them.

She took in the sounds of the insects, and watched the game of hunters and prey play out.

She spied the desert cat, no bigger then a house cat, hunting prey, and watched like someone watching a kindred spirit.  She wished the cat good hunting as she rode by.

She listened for other sounds.  Sound of larger predators.  Those that might pose a threat to the group.

"Funny thing: Nobody said a Ranger had to stick to trees. A ranger suited for the sands would be a very valuable thing to the world. You'd just be adapted to your home environment."

And with a unique service to the world...well, money flows to those who answer a need.

  It  few more  hours  of  swaying on camels.... they could  see a   downward slop , becoming steeper  as they  moved towards  the Demon's Horns.

   Kree Keep  a more  wary  eye now...as  the bottom of the slop  was deep in shadow.

  ..Its  Not  like me , to ever turn  down the shadows? But.. is  it  wise , outn here...at night? Ivy was   wary as  well seeing the DArkness   , contrast the bright  white of the moonlit  sands.

 ... we will, most likely... find   creatures there.... as they hunt  each others....the good  thing is?...alomst any thing we  kill out here.. we can eat..


 ... sooo.. we will have to fight  for   out resting place?

 ..Just so... as they will be fighting for thiers... she pointed   and  another r  group of   shadowy creatures   off to the  south  west....had  we traveled  the  path, straight into the sands... we would not be fighting for our lives.... Most  outlanders   die before thier first day is done...

"I don't think we were going to get to our destination uncontested. Well. Let us see what the darkness may bring, then."

If the Darkness comes, they will fight it off. Whether it's darkened souls or darkened monsters.

Brie pressed gently upon Inda's shoulder. Being an Arrow means much more than just a namesake, its an experience and a life like no other.  You'll see things and go places that you would never experience staying here in the sands, and with these miscreants that enslave you.

She looked among the troupe and smiled.  We are a whole other type of family that you'd never expect to have.

She paused and looked up with Ivy sounded out his concerns.  She looked at the shadowed area and held on a bit tighter at what could live there.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:34, Sat 17 Feb 2018.

  as they rode, nearer the  darkness  in the  'valley' of the  bigger dunes... The CAmels   seemed to want to stop...

  Inda gave   Brie a little  smile,  but  spoke up when the camels stopped,..this si where  most out landers  will send us  in to Look around..should I go?

 ..Nay, Little one... I am a bit tired for  riding these  beasts. And  If  we send you  down, you will just have to come back up and tell us , what is down there.

 Ivy  Had   slipped off his   as well,  having his Bow  ready,

 ..none of the others  have  ever  did this  before....

 ..How  many of them made it to the demon's horns?

 ..only those you seek....

 ..then... you know why we are going to check it ourselves.... Give the reins  to  Shadowmist and Inda.... the rest of  Us, got  down and Look about..It may sound Harsh... but  there is  something in there, that  is not an Arrow...kill it.. we will need the cover  for  the  coming sun..

"Understood. it's unlikely I'll find people that need to be spared in there...or people at all, really.

But anything could happen...

Brie got off the camel and gave Inda a pat on the shoulder.

She looks over her shoulder at Luthien.  "I bet your evil detector is going off big time."

She checks and readies her weapons as she takes a deep breath.

Riku makes motion that she'll stay behind too.

"It'll go off more once I'm closer. Gotta be within 60 feet."

His power does have limits.

   The Arrows  Spread Out,  Kree and  Ivy have thier  Bows  Nocked an up... they Move closer to the  darkness , Kree   draws  back his Bow,

 ... We have  need of this place  for  Camp.... If you  are peopel, Move off now.. yhou may return tomorrow night....elsewise.. we will...indeed.. kill for this spot...

 in a Very odd..almost..and frightening event.. two large  Desert Cats... Sannd colored..  and  almost as big as the Camels they ride... charge out, no sound  but the  baws   digging up the sand..

 A call comes But,..Talk to these first, Outlander...maybe   you won't need the place ...after...

Luthien actually has an interesting idea here...

Rather than simply slicing the tiger like creature with a sword...he's going to make a point.

And he's going to attempt to grapple one of these several hundred pound kitties, lift it off the ground over his head, and just plan THROW it right back at its master. If it lands on his head, so much the better.

"It looks better on you. Also, I recommend yielding."

However, he just stops it dead in its tracks. He didn't quite have the right angle to throw it. Bad grip, maybe.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:35, Sun 18 Feb 2018.

As Luthien charges  the  beastie of the right Ivy and the others  attack the beastie on the Left... there is a cackling  laugh the  whole of the time, Comign from the   darkness..

In reply to sands (msg # 75):

There was a reason Lucy hated travelling in the desert. First was the camels.  It had been a long time since she had rode one, but she rapidly remembered why she hated  them.

Second was the damned Camels.

When they came to a halt, She drew her blade.

When the cats came charging at them, she felt an almost kinship with the animals.

She stepped forward, and let loose and growl, and a snarl, trying to communicate with them in their own language.

She wasn't sure it would work, it was something she hadn't done in a very long time.  In fact, the last time she had done something like that it was with a mountain lion, some six years ago.

But she had to try.

So, she stood her ground, and growled, hissed, and growled some more at the on charging cats.

She hoped that she could at least get through to them, and maybe get their attention.

Diana was just plain not fond of traveling via camel.  It was like travelling via the ocean, swaying back and forth.  Fortunately she didn't get sea sick.

Then the halt came, she was relieved, but also on alert.

She had her bow up, and notched.

When the two cats charged she drew back her bow, targeting the one attacking Luthien.

She fired one arrow, and then a second.

  Like a well piled  machine the   Arrows   fired thier weapons..  Diana's  Arrow   Hit  the   Cat  was Luthien fought it... his  last Hit, seemed to end it, just as both of her  shaft's struck the  beast...

   Lucy tried to 'talk to the Cat  but it seemed to have none of it   as it Bore  Down on her.

  Three shafts slammed into the  cat from  Ivy , Brie, and Kree

 Poor Orlin didn't even get to swing his staff.

  Inda  watched   in fascination  as the Arrow s dealt   with the  attack.

 ..alright.... yu had your chance.... we need this place for  shelter, we wil use it, for  but a Day.... You  may either Come out and  talk of this, or  you may leave....but if  we must come  down there after you?.. you will fare no better then your cats...

  slowly.. stepping out for the darkness , into the fading moonlight, was a  One armed   drow with a Hand crossbow, cocked and ready in his hand. his armor looked like a mix match of  the lands... sand  folk leather..  Empire chain...