It took a moment for the people outside to notice the two figures who were hsnging back near the tunnel entrance, their figure almost totally hidden by the shadows. Only when the shorter of the two spoke did everybody noticed the newcomer.

"Did I miss anything?"

As Swift Fox asked this, arms folded across her chest as she casually leaned back against the rock wall, her eyes shifted briefly to the Deathstaff, held in Peacock's grip, before her gaze became completely focused on him.

GM EDIT: here's me, posting as Swift. If any of you wants to answer, I'll give you until tomorrow morning to, otherwise I'll be putting up Peacock's answer by then - here were I am is early evening, for reference.

Welcome to the new thread; I hope you're ready for what's waiting you here! ^_^

Sun Snake nodded to Swift Fox's and Silver Raven's return. "Peacock said something convincing regarding the threat the Deathstaff can alleviate, though Water Hornet did ensure one of us could go with the man. Dusk Rat seems to have something to say regarding why it should be her. Also, I made the mistake of asking Peacock his informed opinion on Valador and the mage's plans. His assessment is not good. I mean not good as in it sounds worse than we might suspect. I hope Peacock might explain why he came to some of his conclusions so firmly, but unfortunately it feels sounds."

For a moment Water Hornet tensed, but then simply nodded at Snake's assessment; he pulled the Korlinium gloves of off his hands, but didn't move otherwise. The young Magnakai waited for Peacock's, and Dusk Rat's, reaction.

Dusk Rat says nothing for the time being, but merely watches to see what Swift Fox and Silver Raven will say or do now that they have returned, or whether Shining Peacock has anything to add.

Shining Peacock raised his eyebrows at Swift Fox showing up, and then said, adressing both her and Sun Snake:

"I would think how I came to my conclusions was obvious, but I will explain my means to reach it if you need me to, Sun Snake. Before that, however, I would like to solve the question of my student and her right to exercize her free will."

He then turned toward Swift Fox and added, dipping his head ever so slightly in aknowledgment of her entrance:

"Water Hornet accepted that I need the Deathstaff for my mission to succeed and willingly gave it to me, Lady Swift Fox, on the condition that I take somebody else along. Dusk Rat volounteered to acompany me, but Sun Snake seems to be under the impression that she would need your authorization."

He didn't put any judgment in his tone, but the way he crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at the last words made it clear that he wasn't in agreement with Sun Snake's opinion in this at all.

"So it is," said suddenly Water Hornet looking into the ground in front of his feet, but then he raised his gaze to meet that of Swift Fox.

Whether he saw in Swift's eyes what he wanted to or not, Hornet eventually turned his head to address Shining Peacock. "I will accept whatever conclusion is reached, just as I said, but I think there's one thing to be considered: just like me handing the Deathstaff over willingly, with all the Valador's scheming it might be...politically prudent if it's not a master and his student going on the mission together."

Swift's gaze flickered briefly towards Sun Snake and back to Peacock again.
Anyone who had known Swift for long enough would notice that there was definitely something different about her.  The constantly wary attitude seemed to have left her completely now, replaced with a calm almost expressionless exterior that made her inner emotions near-impossible to determine.
And for the first time, her hands were not constantly hovering within easy reach of her weapons.

She remained silent at first, her eyes steadily meeting Peacock's as though trying to read his thoughts.
Finally she looked towards Dusk Rat and her gaze softened.
"Well, I never was much of a leader, you know that.  I always believed that everyone else knew their own strengths and weaknesses better than I did, so I was content to allow you all to find your own way rather than have me order you around and probably put you into a bad situation."

Her eyes looked back to Shining Peacock, although she continued speaking to Dusk Rat.
"I only worry that you're being dragged off on a suicide mission.  I used to know someone else who believed that they were invincible, who thought they'd calculated all the risks.  That person is nothing more than a fading dead memory now."

She looked back to Dusk, a hint of a smile on her face.
"If you really believe you can handle this and you want to go of your own free will, then I won't stand in your way.  I still owe you though.  Without you and Frost Ferret, and Laughing Shark, I wouldn't have survived Argazad.  I'd hate to lose you now..."


OOC: Awww.  Feeling all warm and fuzzy now :)

"Not authorisation. Consideration," said Sun Snake quietly to Shining Peacock, and nodding with respect to Swift Fox. If he noticed her change in attitude he did not say anything. But he did not move forwards either to take any control of the conversation, drfiting back a step instead.

Dusk Rat shrugs.

"I'm owed no debts." she says. "And while I'm uncertain as to why you'd worry for my safety when you barely know me, I think I'll be in no great danger. I've the means of flying away and the means to contact Master Shining Peacock if either should prove necessary before it's time to depart Bhanar."

Dusk's reply seemed to provoke a momentary look of puzzlement and perhaps even a hint of something that may have been sadness in Swift's expression before it reverted back to her previous neutral look again.

"Well, if you want to go, then I wish you luck" she replied.
She glanced back towards Shining Peacock for a moment before looking out at the nearby forbidding expanse of the Maakengorge...


OOC: Yep, she doesn't seem to be wishing Peacock luck too for some reason ;)  hehe.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:16, Wed 18 June 2014.

Water Hornet watched the exchange between Swift Fox and Dusk Rat and then turned his head towards Shining Peacock, his look inquiring.

Shining Peacock smiled, clapping his hands togheter.

"wonderful! So now that we have settled that, I think all that remains for me to do is to answer your questions, Sun Snake."

Peacock sat down atop the small bastion separating the group from the Maakengorge, his cloak spread behind him and dangling slightly over the chasm in the breeze, but for the precariety of the position, he seemed comfortable with it as he focused his gaze on the man he'd called his equal and asked:

"So, what parts of my reasoning are clear enough that you do not need more explanations about them, Sun Snake, and what ibnstead is leaving you baffled? If you tell me, it will be easier to help you see how I filledn those particular blanks."

"Assume I have no understanding of your thought process at all," said Sun Snake, "and then perhaps I have one final question."
This message was last edited by the player at 18:50, Thu 19 June 2014.

Water Hornet narrowed his eyes and cleared his throat, but otherwise remained silent, deciding not to interfere this time.

OOC: Hmmm, seems Shining Peacock ignored Hornet's comment about a master and his student travelling together on purpose.

Yup, that would be correct, Hornet. If you want to butt head with Peacockl because of it, feel free to! ^_^

I'll assume you meant "I have NO understanding", Sun Snake, right? If you meant differently, let me know.

Shining Peacock let out a sigh, but then smiled genially and started to explain, in a lecturing tone:

"Alright, so we should start by pointing out the data we have, and go from there. We know five things. Valador was behind the toran disapparition, and planted clues that might imply him, but also that he could easily counter, to try and gain a political advantage over the Order. Secondly, he sold our brethen to the Nadziranim, so that they could be used to create these hybridized abominations."

The Magnakai gestured at the boat containing Fall Lobster's unconscious body, ansd Silver Raven let out a shiver, but the man didn't reacted to that and continued, instead:

"Additionally, he opened a secret path for the Darklanders so they could launch a surprise attack on the Monastery. He also stated his belief that the war with Naar will never be won, and his wish for the Brotherhood of the Crystal Star to become a cultural centre of the world, to guide all the people in Magnamund to an happier life under such a guide. Lastly, and most importantly, he proved his ability to use Magnakai disciplines, something he should not know how to use."

Shining Peacock let his gaze move across his audience, making sure everybody had gotten this, before going on:

"Now, if he merely wanted to remove the Kai Order to give more prominence to the Brotherhood, such a complex scheme would not have any sense. Giving the Nadziranim a chance at a sneak attack would have been more then enough, since those creatures would jump at any chance to strike back at us, and would not ask a compensation for it."

He seemed disgusted as he spoke of the dark sorcerors, but then shrugged and continued, his tone now returning more conversational:

"So, he accepted the creation of the hybrids, and collaborated to it by helping them capture our brethen, for a different purpose. As se have seen, the process the Nadziranim use, while crude, accomplishes a very important thing, and that would be to confer the powers of a Kai on creatures that no longer are even human at all. And thus, Valador having knowledge of the Nexus discipline enlighten us on why he would have allowed such a monstruosity to occur, so that he, too, could learn how to give the powers of our order to people others than a Kai Monk. And he succeeded in that."

Peakock let out a breath at that, before going on, more serious:

"And so, when we take into account his stated goal, we see that he did not let the attack happen because his goal is to destroy us, but rather the opposite, which is also the reason he let us find all those clues, why he hoped we would confront him politically. He wants to absorb the Kai Order within the Brotherhood, andthat would be very easy fro him if we were short on manpower after the attack, with a precaerious political position after he destroyed our accusations in a public court, and most importantly of all, after he proved that the powers of Kai couild now be thaught, as he would put it, to anybody willing to learn them."

The Magnakai eyes narrowed in what might well have been outrage at the idea, but then he shook his head, as if to chase the thought away, and went on with his explanation.

"Of course,all the talk in the world would not stop the Brotherhood from being used as a weapon by King Ulnar once the Kai were absorbed into it. the only reason that does not happen at this time is that we mantained our nominal independence, but the Bortherhood is a sommerlending institution, and so it would not look bad for the King to use it as he wishes the same way it would if he tried to force us Kai to join the army. However, the situation in Toran is unique in Sommerlund, in that the city is the only one not under the command of a Baron. It mantains a small presence of sommerlendiong troops, that is true, but it is the Guild Council, and mostly the Brotherhood itself, which controls the city and actually issue orders to them. Beside, most guilds have private militiaes of their own, and the Brotherhood itself is, of course, more than capable of enforcing its own will if it so wishes."

Shining Peacock steepled his fingers together and then concluded, dead serious:

"And thus, if Valador wants to share the power the Brotherhood with all the nations in the world, he will need to free it from the grasp of Ulnar,n because no self respecting monarch would ever freely give away that much richness to his competitors when he could use it to enrich his own kingdom. And, since Toran already mostly self-administrate, is the economic center of all Northern Magnamund, and will have, once Valador completes his plan, the whole Kai Order under his command, there is only one way in which he will be able to accomplish his final objective. Secession."

The Magnakai let the word hung in the air as he concluded his speech, waiting for any of the others to comment on it.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:48, Thu 19 June 2014.

Indeed I did mean that, and corrected it but obviously not soon enough before you started that monster explanation :)

Sun Snake apparently either agreed with the logic as presented, or simply didn't want to argue with Peacock over it. He instead looked around to the others.

However, the did seems to be a lingering crinkle on his forehead, as if he had thought of something unpleasant.

OOC: Hmm, intriguing plan...  :)


Swift looked back towards Peacock as he started his explanation.
Her arms unfolded from in front of her chest as she hooked her thumbs into her belt and resumed leaning against the rock wall, apart from one moment when Silver Raven reacted to the mention of the Hybrid Kai when she quickly reached for his hand and offered him a reassuring smile.

Looking back to Peacock again, she remained silent throughout his explanation.
When it was done, her gaze flickered briefly towards Sun Snake, then Sun Fox and back to Peacock again before she returned to impassively looking out over the Maakengorge.

If the details of Valador's plan had provoked some thought or emotion within her, she was keeping it well hidden for now...

Water Hornet let out a long breath, the act producing a quiet hiss. He looked at Sun Snake and internally thanked him for making Peacock explain all that.

Seeing no-one reacted, he spoke: "And so, since we cannot, even should not, confront the man openly, the best way now seems to be to remove the man aside from the eyes of any Sommlending. Maybe even coming with a story that would present him as a loyal servant of our homeland." Hornet's voice revealed he was thinking aloud not having reached any decision at that moment yet. "So as not to start any more discord in the kingdom."

Hornet paused as if to process the words he had just said himself. "And if we fail at that, then we doom the Order of the Kai - no amount of explaining would save the Order from disgrace." Hornet looked at others and rested his gaze on the form of Sabre Fox. "Unless everybody was convinced we actually went rogue and were acting contrary to the Order's intentions."

"We should come up with a really good plan for the eventuality of meeting Valador," concluded Hornet, "otherwise all will be lost..." The young Magnakai rubbed his eyes and then covered his face with both hands; he looked to be engrossed in deep thought.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:38, Thu 19 June 2014.

Sun Fox seemed troubled as well by what had been said, and she looked up at Hornet saying, in a tone that seemed more of a plea than an assertion:

"Come on, surely there's another way to go about it? There... there has to be one, right?"

She glanced at the others, her eyes finally focusing on Swift Fox and then widening.

"Swift, you said you found some evidence, didn't you? Something he didn't planted himself, something you think might help us turn the table if we confront him lawfully, with Banedon's help?"

"Valador's challenges need to be sidestepped not dealt with. Just as Peacock has shown many times," said Sun Snake.

"It is true, we have proof that links to Valador. In open court, though, it would not matter. However, if would be enough if presented one on one to key. Wol-Dumar, for example. A reassurance to Banedon."

Sun Snake tapped his lips. "If it was revealed the Darklands tunnel - without any blame assigned near the man....if it were revealed, and a rumour were firmly established that because of it the King was going to put the Kai and Brotherhood directly under the crown...it would spring Valador's trick too soon, in the wrong direction. He might have an excuse to succeed Toran, but the support would not be there. He would not have the order. Any attack on the order could be spun as an attack to stop the Brotherhood doing their duty. Or even be hinted at an attack upon the king himself. If he tries to attack the validity of the Darklands threat as a plot, he treads dangerously close to being seen to cover up that which he has started himself. We need to sidestep his plans, as an order. In appearance if not in fact. Make his own plans be the thing that suddenly puts him in a poor position."

OOC: Hmm, this is where my memory lets me down.  With everything that's happened recently, I've probably forgotten something...


Swift looked back towards Sun Fox at the mention of her name.
For a moment, she didn't reply, seemingly thinking.
"Well, other than the tunnel through to the Darklands, which was likely created by Valador working with Nadziranim, as well as the Crystal Explosives stolen from the Brotherhood that he supplied to the Darklands forces to destroy the Monastery with, there isn't much.  He's done a good job of clearing up after himself."

She glanced towards Frost Ferret.
"The hybrids themselves would likely carry some evidence of his magic, wouldn't they?  Frost Ferret retained the head of one we killed in the Darklands, and we also have the eye of a snake-like creature that Dusk Rat defeated in Toran, possibly one of Valador's initial experiments in combining the magical disciplines and using them to warp living things into monstrous forms.  If we could get these back to Toran and allow Banedon to examine them..."

She frowned slightly, glancing towards Peacock and then back at Sun Fox.
"There was an item that was given to me when we met up again that was crafted by Valador, a green marble that could drain the magical energy from anything it came into contact with.  I didn't know it at the time, but it seems as though Valador loaned it to the rogue Vakeros Haxadrom along with various other items which he has recently been out recovering, perhaps to prevent any link being made between him and Haxadrom's activities.  I don't know if anyone else has anything they took from Haxadrom, other than his sword, but they too may be useful, if only as a means to lure Valador to a particular location, as he can track them and will probably seek to recover or destroy them."

"With everything that's happened so far, I may be forgetting something though".
She looked towards Sun Snake, as if waiting to see if he would add anything, but then she looked back towards Peacock, as if something had just occurred to her.
"I too have something to add" she said to him, "something that Valador said to me in the temple back there.  I didn't mention it before, just as there are many things I never mentioned to anyone before."
Her gaze travelled across the rest of the assembled group before returning to Peacock, meeting his eyes steadily.
"Valador knows about me.  About what I once was.  If he wished to discredit the Kai Order, my very existence may help him with that.  So if it comes down to one of us being condemned as a rogue Kai and a killer, I'm probably the best option, don't you think?"

Water Hornet dropped his hands that had been covering his face, revealing bloodshot eyes, and looked at Sun Fox. For a moment a hint of annoyance could be seen in his look, but it quickly disappeared and he focused on others' words.

"No," Hornet said when Swift finished, "I think Sun Snake is right that we should not try to win at his game - we should not attempt to play it first of all. I mean: I'm not sure what secret you're talking about, but since Valador knows of it, he will be prepared for you assuming the role of a rogue Kai, I'd say. What could catch him off guard would be if the role was assumed by Frost Ferret or Silver Raven...or me." Hornet looked at his two Kai brothers and then at Sun Fox. "But let's go back: I think presenting the...," Hornet had obviously trouble finding the right words, "...our turned brethren and explaining how the infusion with Kai powers works would severely interfere with Valador's plans."

He looked thoughtfully and then suddenly asked: "What evidence...I mean other evidence did you find about his plans?"

"The ones he planted, you mean? The giant snake hidden near the Tor river, the presence of the Vakeros in the forest that only I can testify about, the bounty hunters he hired to hunt us down and then all of whom he had killed, the traces of magic in the monster's head which match what we found near the tunnel, and the Nadziranim comment on having a left-handed mage as an ally. Other than the head, nothing that would hold in court."

Frost Ferret's tone was very matter of fact as he spoke, and Shining Peacock nodded at that, as if he'd expected such a comment.

"Indeed, all those things are clues that point to him, but do not prove anything. And, considering how carefully he disposed of the bounty hunters, and how he is hunting down all traces of his connection to the Vakeros Haxadrom, I do not think he would so sloppily leave all these clues around. No, he left them because he wanted us to bring them up, and so we need assume he will be ready to counter them."

He then turned to Swift Fox and offered her a friendly smile as he added:

"And I would not consider your past a stain, Lady Swift Fox. I told Moon Shadow that helping you turn your talents toward the fight against darkness was one of her greatet accomplishments, and I truly do believe you are a credit to the order. You use your skillset for the light now, and that is a much greater boon for the Order than you taking the fall for the actions of others would be. So please, do not talk like that again, your talent deserve better recognition, and not to be downplayed and reviled in any way."

Rather than being reassured by Peacock's words to her, Swift frowned slightly, looking distinctly uneasy for a moment before her outer calm seemed to reassert itself.

"If I'm careful enough in my dealings with him, he may believe he can turn me to his way of thinking.  He knows my past, and he made an offer to me in the temple."
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she met Peacock's gaze again.
"Speaking of which.  He spoke of like-minded people he could introduce me to.  'Kindred souls' were his exact words if I remember right.  Do you have any idea of what he may have meant by that?"


OOC: Forgot to ask about that before.  This seems like the best time :)

Peacock shook his head.

"None whatsoever. I know not the man at all, after all, and all I said of his plans, I divined from what you all told me of him. In fact, it surprises me he would know of your past, since Banedon would not have told him, and other then him and Lone Wolf, who would not have told him either, there is literally nobody else in the world he could have learned it from."

He seemed intrigued by the puzzle, if his wondering tone was anything to judge his opinions by.

"The man is well traveled, and now possess the ability to cram research and tracking that would take us days and weeks in to mere moment's of whim. If he is seeking to taregt the order, or looking for new volunteers, it is likely he would target those most inconvenienced by the order. I would look to your own past, Peacock, to ensure there is nothing he could use against you." Sun Snake did not say it accusingly, it did simply sound like a neutral warning.

He looked to Swift Fox. "Valador may have planned for your genuine curiosity, or trickery to aid the order. In all ways, he seems to seek our divisions. Allowing us to stand with you, Swift Fox, may be the way to sidestep anything he would do against us."

Swift continued to peer at Shining Peacock, giving no outward hint of her inner thoughts.
"You seem to know.  Perhaps Valador too has his ways of gaining information that others assume to be hidden."
She shrugged lightly, looking away towards the Maakengorge again.
"Of course, perhaps he was simply a witness back then.  A direct assault on the Crystal Spyre would have been difficult to conceal after all."

She looked towards Sun Snake as he spoke and gave a hint of a nod to him as though acknowledging what he said, though she didn't say anything further for now...

Because she's still going to lone wolf it - non-capitalised of course :)

OOC: Maybe...  Maybe not...  Who can tell what lurks in that sneaky foxy mind? ;)

Shining Peacock shook his head.

"There is a substantial difference between connecting you to the event at the Spyre, and learning the full truth of your past. And it is no mistery why I know, I was told by Lone Wolf, same as Moon Shadow was, when the two of us where considered as your potential mentors, once it became clear you had Magnakai potential. I and she are the only ones who can truly appreciate how much you bring to the Order, but she had apparently already took an interest in you before then, so I was happy to let her have you as her pupil, as she wished."

He then smiled softly.

"You should feel honoured, Lady Swift Fox. It is a rare sight for Moon Shadow to fight me over anything at all, that she did for you is remarkable, I feel. I think half the reason I let her win it, as well, was because it was a novel experience for me."

Something in Peacock's words seemed to strike a sour note with Swift, as her gaze moved back to his and hardened noticeably.
But the moment passed quickly as she looked away out over the Maakengorge again.

"Well someone told him.  And he may not be the only one either.  Not that it matters anyway, not any more" she said quietly before lowering herself into a sitting position at the base of the rock wall she had been leaning against, pulling up the hood of her cloak and closing her eyes, apparently no longer interested in further conversation...

Shining Peacock seemed puzzled at Swift Fox's last comment, but then he shrugged and turned to look toward Sun Snake.

"You said you had something else you wanted to ask of me, Sun Snake?"

Sun Snake seemed concerned when Swift Fox pointed out that her confession earlier should not have been known to Valador. It took him a moment to note Peacock's question was directly to him. It took another moment to recall what the Kai meant.

"Oh, that," said Sun Snake flatly. "It seems facitious now, given the way the talk has turned." Sun Snake seemed about to shrug off the question, then shrugged. "I was merely curious. How did you think all this was going to turn out. If we did not disagree with you. If I had not pushed and pushed to continuously make contact with you, and then press questions to you. What would we be doing now? What would you be doing now? How much of anything would we now right now? Would Dusk Rat be with you or not right now? I just wondered how you thought your plans would go."

Shining Peacock looked surprised at the question, but then shrugged and answered:

"I would be doing just the same, departing to complete my own mission, although I would likely be doing that on my own, and you would have had the good luck of having Dusk Rat quite impressive skills on your side for your own mission, which you would have been goin on as well just the same. If you had wanted to support me from the beginning, you would have told me everything about Valador even sooner, so I fail to see how things could be much different."

He paused, then added, his tone now curious:

"Unless there is something else you have yet to tell me?"

"It's probably not what you meant," Hornet, who had been silent for a moment, joined the conversation again, "but Valador managed to deactivate magic items the High Priest of the Acolytes of Vashna carried on his person." With this, Hornet fished out a ring made from bone and of spiral shape out of his pocket. "Perhaps its some basic magic ability...but I think it might be useful to keep in mind." The young Magnakai nodded towards the Deathstaff at Peacock's back and added: "Although I don't expect you relying too much on magic trinkets instead of Kai skills."

Shining Peacock smiled at Water Hornet's words and answered, amused:

"I never rely on anything at all, and always uses all the tools at my disposal to fight the darkness with. There are several ways I know of to stop, limit or negate the power a magical item grants, although the specifics depend on the type of item, and none of them is ever permanent. I would expect that an experienced crafter and mage like Valador knows some of his own."

Sun Snake seemed to feel consternation at Shining Peacock's answer. "Tell you? No. Ask you? It seems far more questions if I wanted a straight answer." Sun Snake moved away, apparently looking for an area to settle in to. "Just... go," he said, sitting in a manner similar to Swift Fox.


Happy to move on.

Shining Peacock quirked an eyebrow at Sun Snake's words.

"I do think my answers were straight up enough so far. Perhaps you just asked the wrong questions, or did not asked the ones you truly want an answer to."

He shrugged, as if to imply that Sun Snake's choices of questions were not his problem, and turned instead toward Dusk Rat saying her, in a much more soft, almost caring tone:

"If you want to say your goodbyes, or have anything else to do before we go, Dusk rat, now is the time to do so."

The moment Sun Snake showed he was done with the conversation, Water Hornet stepped forward, although he did look apologetically towards Dusk Rat, aware he was cutting in on her.

"So, we have no firm plan how to deal with situation regarding Valador; and we have yet to devise a plan how to retrieve the Sommerswerd and the Grandmaster," stated Hornet giving Sabre Fox and Sun Snake a quick look. He then focused on Shining Peacock, again: "You said you would help us with our mission - will you be able to do it?" Hornet's voice carried not a hint of accusation, it seemed he was plainly trying to collect the facts together. "Because I don't think we can wait for your return - once we can move on to pursuit the Drakkarim, we should make haste." Hornet looked up but could see nothing besides the blackness of the night sky.

"Plans depend upon faculties and knowing what we have. Tomorrow we will know both better. Until then, we're just speaking in circles. And all we know if the resources we won't have."


Feel free to keep interrogating Peacock or discussing plans, just Snake is done with having Peacock around. Not even to do with him, just, you know, there are reasons for Snake to be out of sorts, and reasons to blame Peacock for it :)

Shining Peacock turned to Water Hornet, considering his question before answering:

"Sun Snake has a Seeing Stone, as I do myself. If you are in need of any information or tactical help, you can just call me, and I will provide what I can. I think it will take me five days to be back in this area, and I agree that you cannot wait that long for me, but on the other hand, your own hunt might take longer than y own, in which case I will gladly join in it."

He paused, then added, with a smug smirk:

"I have full confidence that Sun Snake will be able to carry out this mission without trouble, if he has you all to help and if he stops holding back."

That said, he looked toward the chasm, and concluded, his tone a bit more thoughtful:

"As for Valador, his plans must be in disarray right now, given that the Monastery repelled the attack he had planned with such light casualities, thanks to Dusk Rat and Lady Swift Fox taking apart the strike force before it could act. And his plans in Toran also required us to act on his false evidence, while his plans here inged on a man who has been killed. Considered this, I think we should give the priority to our own mission, and worry about Valador once we get back to Sommerlund. With the monastery united under a new, uncontested leadership, and bolstered in morale thanks to our successes, we should then be easily able to take him down. His plan is the more dangerous, but also the least immediate one, so we can afford to take our time before acting against it."

Water Hornet pondered over the words; eventually he nodded slowly.  He looked at the others finding a place to catch some sleep. He moved to the rock's wall where the tunnel opened to the stone terrace they occupied. Leaning against the rock he watched if Dusk Rat, probably waiting whether she would say something.

Dusk Rat glance around at the group.

"I've...nothing to say." she says, a little awkwardly. "We're ready to leave."
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:30, Tue 24 June 2014.

Peacock nodded, then made a vague gesture with his hand, and turned toward Sun Snake.

"Now, we will be going then. As I said, it will take my about five days to come back here, but if you need any sort of help that can be given at a distance, use the Seeing Stone to ask for it. The third day of the five is the one I might be more busy in, though, so I might not answer on that particular day, keep it in mind."

Meanwhile, a giant beast had emerged from one of the caves surrounding the area, and then flew lazily to the rock terrace they were onte, landing softly on the heart wall; it stretched its four wings a bit as it did so, the fur shining in the moonlight, and letting out a cooing sound as Peacock patted its form absentmindedly, instead continuing his speech.

"I am not sure where exactly you have left the Skyrider, but if you want to reach it by foot, then I suggest you take advantage of the night to sleep, as climbing this wall in the middle of the night would be suicidal. If you think the crew would not be spooked by a flock of kraans approaching, though, I have pacified those four, they will carry you without trouble for at least all of tomorrow, before their instincts start to override my commands."

He smilde, then got on top of the zlanbeast with a single, fuild movement, his cloack and hair flapping in the wind in such a way that he struck an heroic figure as he sat himself astride it. The man grinned, his smile almost glinting in the moonlight, and concluded, in a very carefree tone:

"Stay alive, we have yet to finish that discussion on who will become the leader of the Order, and I am looking forward to having such an heated debate with all of you more in dept!"

Then, he gently offered an hand to Dusk Rat, raising her to the top of the saddle with such a graceful gesture he almost made it seem normal, and not like he'd helped her onto a beast taller then she was; Brook he merely lifted with Nexus, adding the animal to the group with care enough that it didn't seemed shocked, and in fact merely wagged in happiness when taking his place next to Dusk Rat.

Shining Peacock raised his hand high in a last gesture of farewell, then, witha a powerful beat of its wings, the Zlanbeast took of, and in less than a minute, it had become a dark figure against the night sky, shorty afterward completely disappearing from sight.

And so it is that Shining Peacock and Dusk Rat leave the game, at least for the next little bit. If you have reactions, I think now would be the time to post them! ^_^

This message was last edited by the player at 15:24, Tue 24 June 2014.

As Peacock and Dusk took off, Swift opened her eyes again, raising her head to watch them fly off.
Her expression remained unreadable until they were out of sight, although she seemed to whisper something quietly that was lost in the wind.

Smoothly she stood up again, looking around the rest of the group, her gaze settling on Sun Fox, as if looking to her for instructions.
"What now?" she asked.  Her voice sounded oddly subdued, with none of the confidence she had shown before.

As she settles herself atop the zlanbeast, Dusk Rat lays an arm comfortably around Brook. At the last moment before the zlanbeast takes off, she raises a hand in a vague and rather awkward gesture of farewell at the group below.

Sun Snake gave a solemn nod to Dusk Rat's departure, though did not give any signs at Shining Peacock's.

Sun Snake looked to Sun Fox. "We have Kraan, the position of the rider is hopefully close enough from here, and the ability to track the Drakkar. We may need to give up one of the Kraan to allow Sabre to fly away form us - I believe the Drakkar wanted Dusk Rat earlier when Sabre mentioned she could control the Kraan. They have their own close. The Kraan of the Acolytes do not have the night sight of the normal variety, part of their domestication perhaps. It may be dangerous leaving right away even on them. But I would certainly use them rather than risk a climb."

Sun Snake seemed to offer the comments as information to make a decision rather than a decision itself. He also looked to Water Hornet, as if to see what else the man may wish to discuss now they were freer to do so with Shining Peacock gone.

Shifting around in his slumber Fox was muttering

"Eugh..... Too many....... Lots of seagulls"

Just letting you know I'm still here! lol just waiting to be woken

Water Hornet had watched the two Kai depart in silence. For a moment he'd been distracted by the appearance of the Zlanbeast - Water Hornet had had to admit the beast had been magnificent in a specific way.

He hadn't reacted to Peacock's words, but when the Magnakai Mentora had given his parting gesture, Water Hornet had placed his right hand across his chest, resting the palm on his heart, and nodded. "May Kai and Ishir watch over you," he muttered almost imperceptibly.

Once Peacock and his student left, Water Hornet slid along the rock wall into a squat and then sat on the ground, crossing his legs. "Yes, using Kraans will be good," he said absently, but after a moment he added with a more focused tone. "So, what is the plan? Regarding the Sommerswerd and the Grandmaster, I mean. Apart from using the night to replenish strength." There was fatigue written all over his face and his posture gave off a sense of defeat.

Sun Fox had seemed lost in thought, but at Water Hornet's words, she shook herself up and said, in a very matter-of-fact tone:

"Is there really anything to plan? Vyctar has twelve soldiers with himself, and here there are eight of us. Even accounting for Dawn Sword's low level of skill, I would think numbers are on our side. I know that I myself have faced worse odds, all three of Sabre Fox, Sun Snake and Silver Raven have actual wartime experience, and I don't think Swift would be easily taken down, either."

She apused, turning toward Sun Snake and asking in, in a curious tone:

"What's your opinion, Snake? Do you think anything more complex than a frontal assault is really required for us to gsucceed?"

"It depends upon what we want to accomplish," said Sun Snake. "If we just wish to retrieve what Vyctar has, we need to be cautious, but together we should succeed. However, we should be very cautious. The man is second only to the Baron in the Hammerlands, he did not get that position easily, I would imagine. And aside from the quirk of his own grief - that in itself perhaps being unusual - the man is an unusual opponent. His empathy towards his foes, or at least respect of them, may allow him to second guess us and our weaknesses far easier than we may like. We will be giving him Sabre Fox, whom he does not need, and the Sommerswerd is something he does not require. He may guess the object of Valador can be used to track him by us, not just by Valador as I said to him. And if there is a chance the experiments of the Nadziran may be useful to the Drakkar, then the link between the two may be greater than feared. Enough he may have their backing earlier if we push him, perhaps. All that to mean - a frontal assault may well throw all our advantages away, and allow him to dictate the battle. We have to know where to strike, and we do not with perfect certainty. Sabre, the Sommerswerd, anything other than the Grandmaster himself can be used against us and discarded. We do not know where his fortress is. And we do not know for certain his full capabilities. He allied himself with us, after all. Who knows what the man is capable of? We may face Nadziran, Cener, or who knows what."

Sun Snake steepled his fingers to his lips. "So at the very least, our plan should be to get close to where we think he is swiftly, but then ensure we feel out everything around him with all of our skills. And then we need to be able to communicate with each other those findings. I should be able to scan the thoughts any of you put in your foreminds to co-ordinate scouting, providing there are no psychics that would take advantage of leaving ourselves in that state. However, I do not know if I can plant thoughts in reverse to let desperate groups know what is going on." Sun Snake sighed. "Peacock is right, I should push myself, But even if I can figure a way to do it, I...I have not studied. Anything I try will likely be very taxing and weak. The mind is a muscle and I have not been trying to flex it."

Sun Snake looked around. "There are other ways to signal, even if we split up. Animals, plants, the wind, sounds. But obviously we lose the ability to communicate complex information with some of those."

Sun Snake was lost in thought a moment longer. "As I say, we need to decide what our goal is. If it is just to attack and gain what Vyctar has, we should probably decide in broad strokes a few ways to do that. Sabre has his idea of challenging Vyctar. I would speak with the man face to face, he may allow me that close even if it puts him on guard. And..if I push myself, I therefore may have ways to assault his mind or rip his plans from it to aid an attack around. The skyrider, if we have ways to disguise its passage, and if the crew consent, is also a powerful means. We should form plans, and assign simple ways to communicate if we act on those basic plans, trusting each other to improvise on that basic cornerstone at the signal."

Sun Snake then looked to the others again, but mostly to Sun Fox. "However, we must think of Valador, and the future. It might be that Vyctar is an unexpected means to counteract Valador. An unseen ally not suspected. And Vyctar has reason to hate Valador. Vyctar might be far more useful to us alive - if we can change his mind, on the outside. If we can take what he has but leave him alive so there is still competition in the Hammerlands for control of the Drakkar."

Sun Snake looked around to see what the others thought of his comments.

Swift looked back up at the sky for a moment then removed her backpack and carried it closer to the group, sitting down on the ground and opening the pack to reveal the two Lorestones she carried in it.

"If we plan on going into a situation that may claim one or more of us, tactical sense would suggest that we split these between our two strongest, the ones less likely to fall and perhaps lose them to the enemy."

She glanced towards Sabre Fox, a momentary look of amused puzzlement crossing her face at his mumbling about seagulls, before she looked back at Sun Fox.
"That would be you and Sabre I believe?"


OOC: Basically suggesting that the two toughest folks carry one of the Lorestones each.  That way even if this goes horribly wrong, we're less likely to lose both of them.

Sun Fox nodded but then added, sounding worried:

"If Sabre is going back to his undercover effort, though, would it be prudent to have him hold anything?"

She seemed uncertain, when Frost ferret spoke up:

"Or you could leave both Lorestones and the Seeing Stone on the Skyrider, with me guarding them. I am the one best suited for that role - anything I can do, Silver Raven can do better. And if you should fail, it is better if somebody other than Peacock knows what's going on and can report it back."

Swift glanced towards Frost Ferret and nodded.
"That would work" she replied.  "One less thing to worry about in this battle can only be a good thing."

Approaching Ferret, she scooped the Lorestones carefully out of the backpack and handed them to him.
"I don't know anything about this Vyctar or his abilities" she said, looking back at Sun Snake.  "But from what you and Sabre said before, he seems to be unusual in some way.  For a Drakkar at least."


OOC: Been a while since we got to have a good catch-up chat :)  Wonder if we can pelt Hornet with any more bombshells?  Maybe I should tell him about Swift's past?  ;)
This message was last edited by the player at 07:37, Fri 27 June 2014.

When Sun Fox had spoken, Water Hornet had raised his head to look intently at her. He'd been clearly poised to say something, but he had waited for Sun Snake's response.

"Indeed..." started Hornet when Sun Snake finished his assessment of the situation, but any further words were cut short as Swift Fox stepped forward. When the girl presented the two Lorestones to the group, Water Hornet stared at the items with an open mouth. He was unable to say a word until Frost Ferret proposed to guard the Lorestones aboard the Skyrider.

"You're taking upon yourself a great responsibility," said Water Hornet to Frost, his tone clear of doubt - instead, his words were filled with respect, "with the Grandmaster...not among us any more, the Lorestones, together with the Book of the Magnakai, become even more crucial for the survival of the Order." He paused. "And reporting of what will happen just as much."

For a moment Hornet's look rested on the Lorestones, as if he was pondering touching the stones, but then he turned to Sun Fox. The fatigue was still visible on his face, but there was now also a hint of determination. "Sun Snake is right, even if we settle for a frontal assault, we need to reconnoitre the area and Vyctar's troops first. And as Swift noted, an open attack would mean casualties on both sides... But there might be a chance of avoiding the bloodshed." Water Hornet gestured to Sun Snake. "What if Sun Snake is right and we might actually use the Drakkarim Colonel as a mean to gain advantage over Valador? How about stealing the Sommerswerd from the Drakkarim and forcing them to believe it was Valador's agent doing that? With Sabre Fox having at least some trust of Drakkarim we could just make this happen."

With that, Hornet looked around and noticed Sabre was still sleeping. After a second's thought, he approached the man and slightly pulled at his cloak. "Wake up, Sabre," he said simply.

Sun Snake nodded regarding Sun Fox carrying one of the Lorestones, and agreed with Sabre Fox not getting the other. "If Vyctar is allied closely with the Nadziran, then we would be giving them one of the very items they attacked the monastery for. And now we know why."

Regarding Vyctar, Sun Snake wondered how to term it. "The man is not how you might expect a Drakkar commander to act. Teaching humanity to a Helghast. Sparing his foes because beating them was the important thing, not killing them. Accepting Rain Feather's offer of an alliance. There is something unusual about him, and thus we should fear that as much as it could be an opportunity. Although grief is a terrible thing, and the loss he suffered from Valador blurred much of that in his mind, sadly. Whether it is effectively gone or not, I do not know."

Sun Snake looked to Water Hornet. "I am not sure stealing the sword could be used as a leverage against Valador. Nor how far we should lie to the man to push him that way. Still, there is a point there. We have lost the most masterful illusionist, but perhaps together we could discover a way to take the Grandmaster and the Sommerswerd from under the man with subterfuge rather than force."

Swift crouched down and looked through her backpack, occasionally glancing up as someone else spoke.
At one point, she pulled out what looked like a clay mug with an intricate series of carved images around it and examined it closely for a few seconds before placing it carefully back in the pack and lifting it onto her shoulders again.

"Well, all I can suggest is that Vyctar hasn't seen me with you, so if you needed someone unknown to him to pose as an agent of Valador, I could perhaps do that.  Although if Rankhar's force has joined up with him by then, he will probably recognise me.  Unless I have some illusory assistance to my disguise of course.  That trick worked well in Argazad."
She offered a smile to Frost Ferret as she said the last part.

Frost Ferret inclined his head in aknowledgemt of Swift Fox's praise, but he didn't commented on it.

Silver Raven, however, looked troubled, and after a moment put an hand on Swift Fox's shoulder and asked, sounding worried:

"You'd be taking a gereat risk if you were to do that - and as you yourself said, there's no guarantee his other men won't have joined him by then, making them pointless. Why must the plan put you in the line of fire, especially when we already will have Sabre Fox hiding among their ranks?"

"Perhaps", replied Swift.  "But if we can look over his group and check that Rankhar's troops haven't met up with him yet, it might be possible.  And if Sabre has any trouble subduing Vyctar, I can use the power of the Five to temporarily shield him or heal him if I'm close enough.  As much as he doesn't seem to like me saving him."
She glanced towards Sabre with a wry grin as she said the last part.

Looking back at Silver Raven, she continued.
"I'm used to taking risks, after all my whole life has been one big risk.  Besides, isn't that how a leader should be?  Taking the greatest risks to shield their team to keep them alive?  Even though most of the team that was assigned to me is no longer with me."
She sighed and glanced in the direction of the sky where Dusk Rat had flown off with Shining Peacock.


OOC: Yep, leaders lead by example, throwing themselves fearlessly into danger for the benefit of their team, right?  ...Right?

"You've mentioned it already before, but could you explain again what loss the Drakkarim colonel suffered from Valador?" said Water Hornet, momentarily distracted from his attempt to wake up Sabre Fox, "couldn't we use that to our advantage? Although it probably won't help us in retrieving what belongs to the Order from Drakkarim." Hornet sighed at the last words.

OOC: Sabre, it's up to you if Hornet was successful in waking you up.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:16, Sun 29 June 2014.

As a player I don't mind the Valador against Vyctar plan, but there is the possibility of it backfiring horribly since I don't think we know all the details of Vyctar's stuff yet. So Snake will voice some caution. Plus Snake would still like to get Vyctar onside rather than just lying to the man and using him. As Snake pointed out, he still has some honour himself, it's not just Sabre! :p

"We're talking of trying to fool Vyctar and Valador in to going against each other. That may not be a good idea. Valador can be a lever from afar, one either Sabre or myself can certainly attempt to pull, but not both of us - but Vyctar's plan is to conquer the Darklands. That is not opposed to Valador's initial desires at all. If Vyctar is more involved in the process of the Nadziran, I have already told you Vyctar seems unusual for a Drakkar. He may well ally himslf with Valador, despite the grief Valador indirectly caused him, especially if Valador can easily prove it is we who falsified any dissenstion other than the original actions of Haxadrom. Actions Valador could distance himself from, and put the blame on us too. Grief does strange things, and Vyctar has already become a little more reckless than he was because of it. He may also become more ruthless, even to his own emotions, because of it. Or may well set aside grudges to be reckoned later."

Sun Snake looked to Swift Fox. "There's no point in risking yourself twice in this regard, putting yourself in sight just to attempt an illusion that has many ways to backfire, even if the illusion succeeds. Though it would certainly ease my mind to know you were hidden but close to Sabre Fox should something happen with him."

Sun Snake did not look Silver Raven at that. Instead he addressed the group. "My proposal would be we all move in towards Vyctar, ensuring we are homing in on the man and he has no hidden traps set up we are not aware of. Swift Fox and myself can probably advance most closely in that regard. Sabre will be in their midst. Silver Raven's mental abilities should allow him to tell where myself and Swift Fox are. He should stay near Sun Fox, whose abilities with Nexus and battle magics can strike form afar." Sun Snake looked to Sun Fox. "You also have an affinity to the Sommerswerd. You may be able to influence it or pull it to you if we can find it and pinpoint it for you. I do not know."

"I still say that I should present myself to Vyctar first. A single chance to see what his path is. I would also be a good focus if we do need to attack him, draw his eye until the last moment."

Not leaving out Water Hornet, just letting him weigh in on his own Valador idea, etc.

Haven't forgotten about Fall Lobster either, just doesn't seem the right moment to address stuff about him right now.

Edit: Oops, double post with Hornet. I think the first part about Vyctar/Val;ador still works.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:21, Sun 29 June 2014.

Water Hornet listened carefully to Snake's words and as the Magnakai moved on to the proposal of a plan, Hornet nodded several times.

"I fully agree, Sun Snake," he said eventually, "let us first catch up with the Drakkar and gather intelligence we can. Then we are hopefully better positioned to come up with a final plan." The young Magnakai paused. "Ragarding your idea to approach Vyctar directly...I actually do like it, but this will put you in great danger - you said yourself: if Vyctar has allied himself with Nadziranim or Valador, you'll be walking right into a trap. But I trust your judgement on this matter and besides, we'll see what the situation is like, first."

Shifting around, fox suddenly woke up with a start

"Seagulls!!!! We need to get back to Holmgard!!! The King has been replaced with a Seagul!!!"

Realising he was no longer sleeping and was on his feet with everyone looking at him like he was possessed he grinned sheepishly

"Good morning?" He offered

Sun Snake looked to Water Hornet. "As a wise woman once said, a leader should take risks to shield a member of their team to keep them alive." He gave a small nod to Swift Fox, and then a bemused one to Sabre Fox, as the man started yelling out as if on queue.

"Not morning yet, by any stretch" said Sun Snake lightly, "Peacock has barely left us, and we are discussing the plans for tomorrow onwards."

Again, Water Hornet nodded, concern written over his face.

He was clearly spooked by Sabre's shout, but quickly eased up. The young man then moved to the edge of the platform to look into the Maakengorge; he shivered and turned to look at Kraans that Peacock left for them.

OOC: I assume Kraans that Shining Peacock spoke about are now nearby (possibly coming with the Zlanbeast), right?

Swift jumped slightly at Sabre's shout and stared at him with a faintly bemused look.
Sun Snake's comment drew her attention though, causing her to look at him with a rather confused look.
"I didn't know someone else said that too" she remarked with a hint of a smile.

She looked up at the sky, finding the position of the moon to gauge the approximate time and then settled down against the rock wall of the cliff, pulling off her backpack and sorting through the contents again.
"Is anyone still injured?" she asked, looking around at the group.


OOC: I think it's the same Kraan that Team Swift were using before the two groups met up again.  We stole them from the Acolytes earlier :)

Yep, very same kraans; one of the four is even still carrying Sun Snake's stuff.

They're standing near the entrance of the tunnel you came from.

"No," replied Hornet to Swift Fox, realizing she probably had some medical equipment in her pack, "thanks; just tired I could fell asleep on my feet."

He then addressed Sabre Fox: "Sorry for waking you up, Sabre, but as Sun Snake said: we were discussing the plans and I thought you might want to weigh in...considering what part you want to play." Water Hornet added after a second: "But it seems it's going to be quite simple: tomorrow we track Vyctar and, depending on the situation, then come up with a plan." Maybe it was the tiredness, but Hornet's words carried a hint of apathy.

In reply to Water Hornet (msg # 68):

"Well then simply track me" Fox said in reply. "After all if I can meet with the Drakkar, then it will be simple to follow us"

"As long as you aren't then forced to go off in another direction entirely to prove your loyalty," said Sun Snake. "We will track you, don't worry. But there is still a chance Vyctar might use you to look out for us. Still, there are ways to track you, the Sommerswerd, and the item I gave him. All three can be triangulated if needs be."

Sun Snake looked to Swift Fox. "I appear to be alright, though as Water Hornet says we should all get rest before tomorrow. I can keep a first watch though. Dealing with Peacock has left me too highly strung to sleep right away, I fear."


Basically just saying my totals are ok right now :)

Sun Fox's brows furrowed and she asked, sounding puzzled:

"Sabre Fox, weren't you supposed to help bring the other Drakkarim back to Vyctar to prove your loyalty? Beacuse if so, well... you don't actually have them with you right now, and I don't think the man would let you rejoin without them. And I don't know that we can actually find them in the caves at this point, especially if we have to hurry up in getting the Sommerswerd back."

She paused, looking toward the entrance of the tunnel that led into the maze under the Maakengorge before adding, her tone uncertain:

"Although I guess, if we just go there to confront him head on without relying on your infiltration idea, then it doesn't really matters."

The blonde girl shrugged, clearly thinking she couldn't really do much to help in such a matter.

"Perhaps when we get to the top of here I may be able to sense the minds of the Drakkar, if they are not too far away. But I suspect you would need a Kraan to catch up with them. At least your abilities with Hunting would give you a plausable reason to catch up with them, and you did aid their efforts to escape. Indeed, you can turn the fact they left you against them in Vyctar's eyes if needed."

"Regarding keeping night watch...I think those Kraans will be able to do that for us," commented Water Hornet, "we can fully recover that way and their senses should be more than enough to warn us of any approaching danger, I think." Water Hornet looked at the beasts, before adding: "I should be able to convey the idea to them."

"Well as Snake says, I'm sure we can track them once we are out of the gorge. They couldn't have gone too far"

"I do not mind staying awake. It might be better if you tell the Kraan to alert only me. No sense in tipping off any intruders and having them act rashly. Better they be cautious thinking the are undetected and we have the chance to prepare. Not that anything should come. But the acolytes are broken not gone, and Peacock's control of the Cener is only as certain as his control of and leverage through one woman."

Swift pulled the orange dagger from her backpack and examined it for a moment before putting it back in, then looked up at Sun Snake.
"I can stay on watch too if you like.  I can see better than most in the dark after all" she said.

She glanced towards the tunnel and the Kraan for a moment before looking back at Sun Snake.
"Do you know who Peacock's contact is among the Cenerese?" she asked.  "I only know of the one I fought before when I was masquerading as a Helghast.  If he comes after us, you might be glad of some help, he's far more dangerous than he looks.  He can kill with a single touch, and seems unaffected by wounds that would kill a normal man."


OOC: I don't think Swift ever learned the identity of the Cener woman.  Possible mini-bombshell there? :)

Sun Snake looked to Sabre Fox as if seeking permission from the man on sharing the information.

OOC: Hornet's time to drop bombshells! :D
Seriously, though, Hornet would see no reason not to tell Swift (as a player I'm also not sure why should it be a 'bombshell' for Swift, although now I know fromm your OOC comment it will).

Water Hornet gave a shrug and a nod to Snake's comment about staying on watch. "Very well, but I will tell the creatures to stay alert, too."

Hornet turned to approach the four Kraans, but Swift's question stopped him. "I believe Peacock spoke of his spy as being a woman, since he called the spy 'she'," said the young Magnakai, "and I believe it was the woman in a black cloak who accompanied the Cener leader. And to be honest, she didn't seem very Cener-like, if I can put it that way. She was also carrying a spear capable of shooting bolts of blue fire." Hornet considered something and then added: "The Cener you are talking about - was he just a youth, tips of his fingers riddled with disease, seeming to actually rot? If that is so, the boy's name is Yughash and he was likely chosen for the Ceners' mission for his infiltration skill; which are impressive, I have to give him that."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:04, Tue 01 July 2014.

As some would say, "you know nothing, Water Hornet". :)

The reason this will be a small bombshell, as Swift puts it, is something which happened to the Maakengorge group when Swift and her team where still in the Darklands; she knows OOC because she was following along the Maakengorge's group adventures, but obviously her character doesn't know.

And, since you didn't follow along all those adventures OOC like she did, you have no idea what she's talking about, either.

This will be fun! ^_^

At Snakes' look, Fox merely nodded in return, however he also spoke up

"I never had a chance to ask her......" He said sadly looking at Rain. "The woman with a spear..... I felt like she was family to Rain...... Perhaps even her mother"

Swift's gaze shifted quickly towards Hornet as he spoke.
"That might have been him.  When I first noticed him, he was disguised as one of the Acolytes.  It may have been some disease on his fingers that gave him his killing touch, I couldn't tell."

She shrugged lightly, unbuckling the blue dagger from her belt and placing it into her backpack before replacing it with the orange one.
"He seems difficult to kill, but I don't believe he's immortal.  It wasn't like I was really trying.  And according to Red Dawn, I can kill even the night itself!"

She grinned wryly at that and pulled her backpack onto her shoulders again, standing up and peering around, as if looking for something, even sniffing at the air for a moment.
Sabre Fox's reply to the question of who the Cener woman was seemed to distract her from her search however, as she suddenly turned to stare at him with a surprised look.
"Are you sure?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:44, Tue 01 July 2014.

Sun Snake nodded, both acknowledging Sabre Fox's consent and his assumption. He looked to the rest of the group. "A couple of you were not present when Rain Feather revealed her origin to the original five in Toran, and to Dawn Sword. Rain Feather's grandmother was Aieta Nematah, Wytch of the Kirlundin Isles, one of the greatest villains of Sommerlund. Rain Feather's mother had to flee persecution, but had the magic of Aieta in her blood. Magic she also passed to Masari - Rain Feather's old name."

Sun Snake allowed it to sink in for a moment. "Rain Feather's mother took Rain Feather to the monastery when she was a child, left her in Shining Peacock's safe keeping. Shining Peacock's price was that Rain Feather's mother needed to act as his spy, of course. And the prize he dangled was that - when he ruled the order - then the world order would be shifted enough to accept both Rain Feather and her mother for who they were and the power they had."

Sun Snake looked conflicted. "Once more, Shining Peacock's reasons, methods and objectives are hard to fathom. I do not know if his plans are dark enough or encompassing enough she thinks he can shift things so Rain Feather's mother could return. Certainly, she feels he will rule as a king. Still, that may be the lie he has told her to get her co-operation, or the way she thinks he will enact his plans and is more an indication of her own thoughts. What is clear is that with Rain Feather...gone...Shining Peacock does not have the leverage he once had. If Rain Feather's mother does not also need to consider her daughter, there is more than one way she can find acceptance and power. And if Shining Peacock is seen to fail her so ultimately...I am not sure what loyalty he thinks he will still gain from her if she finds out. He is a master of creating a fog of information, but I am sure she knows enough to threaten his plans. So we must be very careful for his sake, and for Dusk Rat's."

Sun Snake sighed.

Swift looked towards Sun Snake as he explained Rain feather's history.
Some of it she had learned from Rain Feather herself, although the connection with Shining Peacock was new to her.

She looked down at the ground in front of her feet for a moment, her hand disappearing into her tunic as if reaching for some object concealed inside.
A faint shiver passed through her, as though from a sudden chill, and when she spoke up, her voice had gone back to the rather subdued one she had used just after Peacock had left.

"I admit I felt something of a kinship with Rain Feather after she explained her story to us in Toran" she said quietly, looking towards the still form of their fallen friend.
"And if we hadn't had to separate, I would perhaps have plucked up the courage to tell her of my own inner darkness.  Perhaps she could have drawn some small comfort from the fact that she wasn't the only Kai who believed themselves tainted by evil.  I had hoped so, and I resolved to tell her when we next met.  Seems as though that was not meant to be."

She paused, drawing a shaky breath and looking away towards the dark windswept depths of the Maakengorge.
"If Rain Feather's mother needs a reason to trust another of the Kai.  She might perhaps feel that I am one who would understand.  And perhaps Valador sought to make me an ally because he too was seeking what Shining Peacock had, whether he knew of that or not."

A hint of a cold humorless grin crossed her face at that as she continued, her words becoming a low whisper that was almost lost in the wind blowing across the gorge.
"Only a fool could think to tame the last remnant of the Ghost of Anskaven.  In that respect, Valador and Shining Peacock are both fools!"


OOC: Did I mention how much I love being creepy as Swift? ;)  hehe.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:27, Tue 01 July 2014.

Sun Snake sighed again. "I was there, in the mind of one of those soldiers, watching over Rain Feather when she finally confronted her mother. Upon hearing Rain Feather's decision to turn away from any link to the powers they had inheritted, Rain Feather's mother disowned her until she would 'come back to her senses'. Rain Feather's mother is not looking, for the moment, for any redemption nor for someone to speak to her of a way to let the past go."


I forget if Sun Snake should know the mother's name. Too late at night to go searching for it :(

"Its funny" Fox said "when I first met her alone, she offered to parley for the Deathstaff. Perhaps she intended to take it to give to Peacock? After all it would make sense in an Alliance. maybe that is why she did not simply attack me on sight"

"She had no loyalty to those she is working with, and every reason to be loyal to Peacock and therefore the order before. As I said to Peacock, his willingness to keep everyone in the dark meant he did not gain the Deathstafff from her. Think of all we had to scramble to do from then on because of our lack of that simple fact. We could have finished our mission for the Deathstaff there and then with you aiding her escape against the High Priest. I was at the other end of the tunnel, and was pushing the two forces together rather than keeping them apart aswell. I could have delayed her escape with the staff. We could have been focused on the Sommerswerd and the Grandmaster had we known."

"If we encounter her again..... Do you think we should tell her?"

The question may have been vague but it was clear he was referring to Rain

Sun Snake looked uncomfortable. "Possibly best we avoid her all together. Her reaction could put Peacock, Dusk Rat, or ourselves in terrible danger. Rain Feather seemed just as relieved to cut her mother from her life as her mother seemed set to turn her back on Rain Feather. I would not prioritise telling her and making Rain Feather's sacrifice be for naught. Shining Peacock can shoulder the responsibility of telling her once we have finished, I think."

Sun Snake did cast a quick eye to Swift Fox, since his fellow Kai had mentioned reaching out.

Swift nodded slowly.
"Understood" she replied.  "While the idea of Peacock's manipulations coming back to bite him seems like poetic justice to me, I owe Dusk too much to put her at risk with him."

She glanced towards Silver Raven for a moment before looking back at Sun Snake and then around at the others.
"Back there I told Shining Peacock that it didn't matter who told Valador about me.  The reason for that was that I'm done hiding what I am.  I have already seen signs that Kai and Ishir seem to have forgiven my sins, and given me a chance to repent.  The few people in this world I care for have also accepted me for who I am."

She glanced again towards Silver Raven with a hint of a smile.
"If anyone thinks that my own story may be relevant to the situation with Valador, as in perhaps hinting at what he wants with me, then I am prepared to explain it to you."
Her gaze settled on Water Hornet for a second before looking back to Sun Snake.
"However, it's only fair to warn you that you may not like what you hear..."


OOC: If we're heading into the endgame, I suppose I can leave it up to the others whether Swift's backstory remains unknown or not :)

Lol, you thought you'd throw one last bombshell at Water Hornet? :D


Sun Snake looked around to Sun Fox. "You are the highest ranked Kai here, and also Swift Fox's friend. At the very least you should hear this story."

OOC: Well, may as well shock him a little more while we're all sitting around here waiting for morning :)

"Anything to do with Valador, I can honestly say I want to know" his voice determined. "The man has much to answer for....... Plus I don't like him"

Water Hornet listened in silence and then spoke out suddenly: "And did Rain Feather know where her magic abilities came from...? As for her mother - we should also consider that for most Sommlending the story of Aieta Nematah ends with her being cast into the Shadow Gate for her crimes...but we at the Order know she did intervene with the Sommerlund's affairs for one last time afterwards." He looked meaningfully at the others. Then he looked at Swift as if only now registering her words.

"I would've never expected there would be so many secrets even among members of the Order," he said and quickly continued, "I'm not blaming anyone, just saying I probably wanted to see the world too idealistically. Besides what Sun Snake said earlier of not sharing information available to each of us individually, I would appreciate hearing your story simply because I believe this makes the Order stronger; although I perhaps have the least right to ask for such thing. Nevertheless, if you don't mind, I would like to hear you out, but if you think your story shouldn't be disclosed to me, I will completely understand." Water Hornet smiled and nodded as if in reassurance.

OOC: Now I'm a bit worried. :) Despite the hints, Hornet as a character doesn't expect Swift's story to be anything too terrifying.

Double post.

EDIT:

At Sabre Fox's words, Hornet looked with surprise at his fellow Kai.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:38, Wed 02 July 2014.

"She did," said Sun Snake of Rain Feather and her knowledge of her powers. "Peacock convinced her to own and take power from that heritage. Rain Feather finally decided for herself that she wanted a path away from that heritage. Sun Snake lowered his head, and said very quietly. "She should still be alive now to see that path's end."

Sun Snake nodded in respect to Water Hornet regarding making the order stronger through sharing.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:14, Wed 02 July 2014.

Swift shook her head slightly.
"Valador was not involved at the time, except perhaps as a bystander or a witness to the events in the Crystal Spyre, perhaps he was even almost killed in them, I don't remember him, but I wasn't seeing things clearly back then.
But he knows what happened, and I suspect he thought of convincing me to resume the path I rejected, only this time in his service.  I don't know as much about him as you, and perhaps knowing what he may have hoped to gain from me might give some small insight into his plans in the present time."
She looked towards Water Hornet.

"I believed that Shining Peacock was the one who was ultimately responsible for the path Rain Feather found herself on.  The one that led to her doom.  If he had indeed challenged Moon Shadow for control over me and won, he would undoubtedly have set me on a path to either my own destruction or that of many innocents.  Perhaps both.  In Toran, my team encountered a man who spoke of a Kai who razed his village to the ground, and the description of that Kai matched with Shining Peacock's at the time, so I'm sure there are few lengths he would not go to, things that the rest of us might hesitate to even consider, but things that I was considered to be suited to.  In any event, if what he says is true, then I have even more cause to be grateful to Master Moon Shadow for keeping me from him."

She sighed and looked towards Rain Feather's body.
"I only wish I could have saved her...  I never was much good at saving people..."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:38, Wed 02 July 2014.

"You always were better at it than you thought to be, though."

Sun Fox's voice was solemn as she spoke, but then she smiled to her friend and said, her tone turning soft:

"Swift Fox, you have been a Kai for a long time, and in your time as one of us, you have accomplished much and more for the Order. Every mission you undertook, every success you achieved, they saved lives, maybe even thoushands of lives. I don't know what you did, or how much guilty you think to be, but I know that you did a lot, and I know that both Moon Shadow and Master Lone Wolf always spoke highly of you, of your contributions to the Order. They were proud of you being one of us."

She moved closer, watching the shortest girl straight in the eyes and then concluced her speech.

"You have been an hero for a long time now, Swift Fox, and I am not surprised you think Kai and Ishir have forgiven you - they would have been stupid not to. You do not have to share what you did, but if you want to, I will hear it gladly, because I know that you're a better Kai than I will ever be."

And then, in a quick move, she hugged the other girl in a friendly fashion, her move swift but careful, a gesture of consolation and inclusion.

Swift seemed surprised by the hug, but didn't resist it.
"I'd hope I at least saved some.  Each innocent life saved may count as an atonement for one of many whose blood stains my hands even now" she replied softly.

She looked towards Sabre Fox.
"I suppose it would be considered an old war story by some, your speciality I believe?  Did you ever hear the old stories of the Ghost of Anskaven?"


OOC: Might make Hornet feel better if I say that it's not particularly terrifying, except to Swift herself maybe, but there's definitely an element of "what kind of Kai would do stuff like that?!" involved :)
Also:  Aww hugs! :D

"I'm not sure I heard the heard the name" Fox said rubbing his chin "but that's about it. During war time, everyone's eyes were on the front lines and stories within kingdoms we're never truly investigated. Even rogue cattle being found dead was considered a Darkland plot without any evidence. It was just the way it was. I dealt with front line issues, and other areas dealt with matters within"

However he raised an eyebrow

"I'm guessing that this Ghost is not a story?" He asked
This message was last edited by the player at 06:36, Thu 03 July 2014.

OOC: Trying to find some good "mood music" for this.  :) Thought something like this might fit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gpg3HJAIsY


Swift nodded and looked away towards the Maakengorge again.
She closed her eyes and leaned back against the rock wall, a rather uncomfortable expression on her face suggesting she was delving into a part of her memory that she was reluctant to examine too closely.

"It was during the so-called 'Gnaag Wars'.  Sommerlund was gripped by fear and chaos, the Darkland armies were advancing relentlessly, Ruanon and the Southern Provinces had fallen and Gnaag himself boasted that he had personally defeated Grand Master Lone Wolf, the saviour of the Freelands.  Thankfully, we now know that wasn't true, and Gnaag's failure and overconfidence eventually brought about his downfall and the destruction of Helgedad."

She opened her eyes again, looking up at the night sky, her gaze seeking out the moon as though drawing some comfort from it.
"During that time though, everyone was concerned only with what was happening at the front lines.  Troops and resources were being drawn from other places and sent to try to halt or even delay the constant siege.
No-one really paid much attention when far to the north of the battle lines, some gruesome murders were reported in the port city of Anskaven.  Local merchants and nobles found murdered and their valuables looted.  The city guard had bigger things to worry about, and put it down to thieves, added a few extra night patrols and left it at that.  It did nothing though, soon after, more murders were reported, and rumours of the killings started to spread, however much they tried to hush it up in concern of adding to the general aura of fear hanging over Sommerlund at the time."

She closed her eyes again for a moment, a slight shiver running through her before she continued.
"For a short time, the killings seemed to stop, and the city guard perhaps thought that the killer had moved on or fled the city for fear of being caught.  Then, several weeks later, during a night when the city was enveloped by a thick fog coming in off the sea, several people and guardsmen were drawn by the sound of screams to an isolated street, where they found the body of a local noble lying dead.  He hadn't just been murdered, he'd been literally torn apart as though he had been set upon by a pack of enraged Doomwolves.  Despite the number of people approaching the scene, no-one saw the killer running from the area.
As you can guess, people started to fear for their lives.  The wealthier citizens employed extra guards to watch over their homes at night, and some even set traps to catch intruders.  None of it worked.  The killings and the thefts continued.  The guards saw no-one enter or leave the houses of the victims, and none of the traps had been sprung.
Anskaven became a city gripped by fear, they believed that this killer must be some sort of malevolent creation of Darklord Gnaag sent to terrorise Sommerlund's cities, some kind of nightmare from the Plane of Darkness.  A ghost capable of entering and leaving a building unseen and without triggering traps."

Swift shook her head slowly.  Her next words seemed almost forced out against her will.
"The rumours weren't even close.  The dreaded Ghost of Anskaven was actually two people.  Mind and Body.  The mind was a man who had mastered some sort of psychic powers unknown to me.  The body, the hand that did the killings...  That was a young girl named Sanna...  Me."

She closed her eyes again, taking a moment to compose herself before continuing.  her gaze remained directed at the ground, as though almost afraid to look the others in the eyes.
"The man who directed me was my father.  Strange, despite the fact I was related to him by blood, I never knew his real name.  I don't believe he ever really loved my mother, or me.  Not true love, perhaps some twisted belief that he did?  I don't know.  Probably my birth was more of an accident than anything else.  But I think he only took an interest in me when he discovered that I had dormant Kai powers within me.  I had already taken to hiding myself away when he was there, and he must have noticed how good I was at it.  He took me away to a place he used as a hideout of sorts, somewhere in Anskaven.  I never found out exactly where it was.  I've never returned there."

Her hands clenched themselves into fists as she continued.
"I already mentioned he had some kind of psychic influence.  For many years it had been clouding my memories, but it's only recently when I can look back on those memories with the understanding that comes with age and basic psychic training from the Kai that I realised what had happened.  He somehow had the ability to take complete control of my body through my mind, like a puppet master pulling my strings.  He coveted the riches of the merchants and nobles of Anskaven and he used me to get them.  My dormant Kai skills awakened in this crude way allowed me to slip unseen past guards, to see hidden traps as clearly as if there were signposts pointing to them...  And to kill.  I think he took particular pleasure in that last part.  He gave me a plain dagger to use, his own skills with the dagger were already formidable, as he owned a magical one that could slay an enemy with a single strike, and some of his own understanding of combat techniques seeped into me through the psychic link between us, awakening my own innate Weaponskill in the process.  So I became his perfect weapon, I was his means of obtaining what he sought, and holding an entire city in a grip of fear."

She shook her head slowly, a single tear running down her cheek where it followed the line of the scar inflicted by the hybrid Kai in the Darklands.
"I don't know what age you lot were when you made your first kill.  Mine was at an age where I barely even knew what a weapon was, let alone how to handle one.  The man I was to kill was untrained with his sword though, a merchant who usually hid behind bodyguards when trouble came looking for him.  But he had locked his bedroom door and had guards downstairs so thought he was safe then."
She raised her right hand, examining the back and then the palm with an almost curious look.  Her voice sounded oddly detached, as though her mind had distanced itself from what she was saying.
"It's a strange thing to see someone murdered horribly at such a young age.  Even worse when it's your own hand that does the deed even though you couldn't think of doing such a thing by yourself.  He lost control of me for a moment as my mind went into shock.  He managed to regain some control of me and directed me to drop off the stolen items and then return to his safe house.  Once I was secured there, he released me.  I threw the dagger away from me, cleaned off the blood as well as I could and cried myself to sleep..."

She took another short pause to compose herself again and continued in a rather numbed tone of voice.
"For a while I tried to resist him.  But I couldn't, not for long.  He could inflict terrible psychic pain on me if I tried to resist.  Once I managed to keep him out for a while, but was unconscious for a whole day afterwards.  This was probably the time when the killings stopped for a while.
Then he came to me again and told me that my mother had been murdered by a man in the city.
It may have been his psychic manipulations at work on me, but at that point, I felt as though I had lost everything.  All thought of resistance vanished, and I felt a rage build up in me the likes of which I had never felt before.
I don't know who the man was, perhaps someone who had wronged my father in some way that he wanted vengeance against, who knows?  But he was the one who was found torn apart in the street that night.  I barely even needed any guidance from him to do that.  We were acting almost as one from then on."

She shivered again, more tears falling.
"After that, it was as though I was truly possessed.  Perhaps the young innocent Sanna truly died that day, replaced by the monster she had always feared.  I no longer resisted him, I barely even needed any direction any more.  Perhaps some part of me even began to take pride in my abilities.  Sometimes extra troops were sent to the city in response to calls for help, once even an Initiate Kai and a Brother of the Crystal Star came to search the city.  But I could avoid the guards easily, and the Kai and the Mage couldn't detect me, as I didn't register as a Dark creature to their searching senses.  And they weren't looking for a fledgeling Kai.  The idea never occurred to them."

She paused and wiped her tattered tunic sleeve across her eyes with a quick rough motion, as though annoyed at allowing her tears release.
"Then one day, when the war against Gnaag was in its final days, he took me away from Anskaven and to another city, a much bigger one.  I never found out exactly what he had planned to do, but he wanted to take something that was in that city and he wanted me to help.  I knew it had to be something important, because he had never gone with me on a job before.  We were working together.  Our target was the large crystal tower in the centre of the city.  The City was Toran, and we were going to infiltrate the Crystal Spyre and steal something from the Brotherhood of the Crystal Star.
But something went wrong.  Something that even he hadn't foreseen.
The guards in the tower knew we were coming, and they were ready for us.  My father tried to fight against capture, using me to help.  The blade he carried could pierce through their magical shields as though they didn't even exist, and he struck down several of them.  Finally, enchanted defences, the ones Valador showed us, were activated, entrapping my father in some sort of waterfall that flowed down from the ceiling, freezing solid around him.
The psychic link between us broke at that point and I fell unconscious."

A hint of a smile crossed Swift's face as she looked up at the moon again.
"You might have expected me to wake up again in chains in a dungeon somewhere.  Or on my way to be thrown into the Shadow Gate for my crimes.
But I wasn't chained.  There were no guards.  I woke up in a comfortable room at the top of the tower, my weapons had been taken away, but I wasn't restrained in any way.
There was a man there with me.  He told me his name was Banedon and questioned me about myself."

A hint of tears appeared in her eyes again.
"I told him about myself.  I had no reason not to after all.  And despite knowing what I was, about what I had done, he...  He was kind to me.  He explained what my father had done to me, and of the powers within me that gave me the abilities I had.  Then, the next day he introduced me to Grand Master Lone Wolf.
And the rest is history as they say.  The Grand Master took me back to the Monastery and gave me a second chance, a new purpose to use my abilities in the service of the Light.  By then I fully understood everything that had happened, and as much as I hated myself for taking part in it, I realised it was a chance to atone for what I had done.  To make some amends for the innocent blood I had spilled."

She reached down to her belt and drew out the Jade Spike, slowly turning the blade around in her hands.
"Before I left Toran, Banedon gave me this.  It was the magical blade my father had used.  My inheritance you might say.  Banedon said that it belonged to me now, that I could be the one to redeem it.  It's only now, thanks to what Silver Raven taught me that I think I understand what he meant.  Back then, this weapon was just a symbol of something I had escaped.  I had survived, and he was finally gone from my life."

She tucked the dagger back into her belt again and glanced quickly towards the others but looked away again.
"The stories of the Ghost of Anskaven gradually became nothing more than rumours exaggerated and clouded by the circumstances of the Gnaag Wars.  Old stories told by old men around tavern firesides.  Some still feared that the nightmare would return one day, but obviously it never did.  The mind was dead and the body had turned to a new path."
She paused and wiped her sleeve across her eyes again.
"So now you know the real me.  I'm no hero, I've killed more innocents than even some Darklanders could lay claim to.  I believe Valador wanted his own deadly little puppet and hoped I would be willing to resume that path under his command."

She looked up at the others again, her eyes quickly darting from person to person, stopping on Sun Fox.
"So, do you still consider me as one of you?"


OOC: Phew...  Ultimate Wall of Text! :)  Not sure I managed to get it anywhere near as emotional as it was when she told it to Silver Raven, but I hope I got it ok :)
This message was last edited by the player at 10:37, Thu 03 July 2014.

"Swift Fox is one of us" Fox spoke up. "Sanna, or rather the person that manipulated your body is not. We all find redemption in our own way"

Fox mulled over the story in his mind as he continued

"Tell me, why would you believe you are not one of us?" He asked

Sun Snake shook his head. "When you spoke before, I had thought your past was one of necessity and a slippery slope leading to redemption. What you have told us instead is of a monster called the Ghost of Anskavan who was never you. Not metaphorically. He was never you. The man managed to use you directly to enact his will until he found the psychological levers to make you want to do his will, control you remotely. The moment he was gone, his actions - the actions of the Ghost - stopped. We would not be standing here now if you were that person aswell. Naar is within all of us, and the ghost's echo is in that part of you we all have. But never doubt for one moment that is not who you are. Never doubt for one moment you are a hero to have made it to where you are from where you had to come from."

Sun Snake saluted to Swift Fox. "Of course you are one of us, you can fight for the victims of evil because you were one for so long. Every innocent is on the hands of the ghost, not you. And Valador has no understanding of that, it seems. We would have defended you before had your sought redemption for past crimes of your own will. For crimes that are not yours, Valador would be a fool to look for leverage. He would seek to accuse a ghost long gone, and in doing so highlight the reason Kai need to to found and brought to the fold of the order. He would weaken his own cause without knowing it. The man might look to use only insinuation, but given the bravery you have shown, if you share the full truth it will only prove the good the order brings. And the  what dark things can happen to those who look to take the gifts of Kai for selfish reasons. Who look to use others as their puppets. Your story does not threaten the order, it is one of the weapons to ensure its defense."

Swift looked up at Sabre spoke.  Her expression seemed a little surprised at first, but quickly assumed her usual neutral look.
"Sanna is me.  It was my name before I was given my Kai Name.  As to the person who once wore that name, she was an innocent child born to an evil man, who lost her innocence and perhaps even her very soul that day.  I don't think I can ever be that person again...  I don't remember how."

She frowned slightly, considering her reply to his other question.
"Taking innocent lives is not something a Kai would do.  Not counting Shining Peacock of course.  Maybe I'm more like him than I thought."
She grinned at that and shook her head.
"Now that's a truly disturbing thought!"

Her grin quickly faded as she looked towards Sun Snake.
"I'm sure there are those in Anskaven who lost family members who might not be so forgiving" she replied.  "It's still something I would rather not bring down on the Order.  Hence why I said to you in there, if the truth about me comes out, then I would rather be publically considered a Rogue Kai than an evil one sheltered by the Order."

She looked out over the Maakengorge again.
"The Ghost is still a part of me.  I had thought that some remnant of my father remained within the weapon I inherited from him.  Since Silver Raven taught me to sense the powers within enchanted items, I was able to sense traces of his memories and emotions within it.  It was as if the weapon itself was encouraging me to use it, to kill, again and again.  It was only after the battle in the temple that I took the risk of examining it closely, and discovered that it was merely a side effect.  Something of a psychic echo."

She reached down and tapped lightly on the hilt of the Jade Spike, sending a momentary flicker of green luminescence through the spiralling jade carvings.
"But the Ghost of Anskaven is still a part of me.  He is in my very blood after all.  But he no longer controls me..."
She looked up at Sun Snake again, a hint of a smile on her face before it faded again.


OOC: Aww, everyone is being so nice.  No-one thinking of rejecting Swift here? :)  hehe.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:24, Thu 03 July 2014.

Water Hornet listened to Swift's words with his brows puckered, although it was a sign of deep concentration rather than distaste. He remained silent for a some time while others spoke, before speaking up himself, eventually.

"The Grandmaster, and Brotherhood's Guildmaster, decided you should get the chance to become a Kai and only five minutes ago I, personally, would never doubt that decision. Now...well, frankly, I have even less reasons to doubt it. You didn't have to tell us of your past - and yet you did. I agree with Sun Snake: this will only make us as a group stronger; and it will perhaps make you stronger, as well, because of your terrible experience."

Water Hornet paused, his thoughts trailing off in several different directions, and he shook his head to regain focus. "And you're nothing like Shining Peacock," at that moment Hornet wondered what Peacock's childhood had been like. "You're Swift Fox, a Kai Lady who I have seen do good, even if I haven't known you very well...before," concluded Water Hornet. He gave Swift a somewhat forced smile and moved closer to the edge of the Maakengorge, although this time he wasn't looking into the chasm, but upwards instead, at the cliff wall.

Lol, aww, everyone has been too nice!

"No," hissed Sun Snake angrily as Swift Fox once again brought up the offer to be made rogue against Valador's claims. "You insult everyone who calls you friend, who cares for you, or who stands with you to devalue yourself like that. And you devalue us all if your offer of sacrifice carries more weight than everyone who councils against it. The order is not stronger abandoning those who were forced in to questionable choices. It does Valador's work for him and ensures our defeat."
This message was last edited by the player at 17:15, Fri 04 July 2014.

"No" Fox said echoing Snake. "The person who was Sanna died on that day you first met Guildmaster Banedon. When you took your new path and took a new name. What you left behind should no longer burdon you"

"Indeed."

Dawn Sword took a step forward, almost glaring at Swift Fox as she spoke.

"If you are guilty, that what that would make me? I too was brought up by one who wanted to use me to kill people, and I helped him along more willingly than you did; if you aren't worthy of being a Kai, I am not, either."

She paused, then the young woman's voice softened as she added:

"You should stop beating yourself for what's not your fault; focus on the future, and how you can change things for the better, ok?"

Meanwhile, Sun Fox had sit down as the discussion continued around her, and was watching her own hands, her long hairs completely hiding her face from view.

Yay, everyone's angry at Swift Fox now!

Angry at her underselling herself, more like. :)

Water Hornet looked somewhat surprised at Sun Snake's and Sabre Fox's reaction. "Well, I don't think Swift considered to truly impose an exile upon herself, didn't you, Swift? Rather pretend to be an outcast from the Order. Because, really, even if the Order publicly denounced you, those seeking to harm Kai would still accuse us of not acting swiftly enough, trying to conceal the evil among our ranks. I think once you were accepted as a Kai, the decision was made the Order would have to deal with your past just as much as you would."  At that Hornet looked at Dawn Sword, as if realising his words applied just as much to her.

OOC: See, Hornet is on Swift's side. Sort of. :)

Swift flinched slightly as the others spoke up.
Her gaze hardened as she looked towards Sun Snake, perhaps biting back a retort about how he had insulted her not that long ago, but the moment passed and she gave a wearied sigh.
"Well, it may not come to that anyway.  Valador has an item that we might need if we ever recover the Deathstaff.  So it may indeed be worth our while going after him.  Until then..."
She shook her head slightly.
"Well, we'll just see what happens."

Moving over to sit next to Sun Fox, she looked at the other Kai with a noticeably concerned look.
"Are you ok?  Was it what I said?" she asked hesitantly.


OOC: Ouch, that's more like it.
Can't expect decades of mental trauma to heal overnight now, and besides, she's putting the Order's welfare before her own, I thought Sun Snake would approve?  ;)  hehe.

Sun Snake looked to Sun Fox too. "Perhaps it is the time for you tell us in more detail the dangers of dealing with Valador," he said as gently as he could to the woman.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:26, Fri 04 July 2014.

Sun Fox raised her head slowly, fixing her gaze on Sun Snake, and everybody could now see how defeated her expression looked, her eyes almost desperate.

"That... that might destroy everything you and your Master have been working for, Sun Snake... do you... do you really want me to?"

She then glanced atSwift Fox for a moment, but then lowered her head in shame immediately and added, hesitant and almost trembling in a truly ncharacteristic display of weakness:

"If... if you truly despise yourself so, Swift Fox, for things you aren't even personally responsible for... you... you'll never be able to watch me in the eye again... none of you will..."

She trailed off, her hesitation giving way to a silence that would almost seemed filled with naked fear, had it been anybody but Sun Fox to show it.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:40, Fri 04 July 2014.

Swift stared at Sun Fox for a moment as if uncertain of how to respond.
Then she reached out tentatively and placed a gentle hand on Sun Fox's shoulder.

"I'm the last person who should be passing judgement on anyone" she replied slowly.
"The Grandmaster gave me a second chance, he took you under his wing, entrusted you with one of the greatest treasures of the Kai Order.  If he believed in you so much, he must have seen the potential for great things within you.  Whatever you have to tell us, know that I will still follow you, to the Plane of Darkness itself if necessary."

Uh-oh... also Shadow, I think you meant Sun Snake in that first sentence?

OOC: Unless Valador just teleported in and sneaked up behind us! (O.o)

Yeah, I meant Sun Snake - sorry, a bit tired here. Still, now it's corrected, and thanks for pointing it out! ^_^

Busyness is evil!

Water Hornet had shifted closer to where Sun Fox was sitting, although he was still further away from her than Swift Fox and Sun Snake. His expression was unreadable, except it was clear the young Magnakai hung on every word Sun Fox was about to say.

In reply to Water Hornet (msg # 118):

"At this stage I believe we should all share our information" Fox said "we are involved in a very dangerous scenario here and if we know everything we can all act accordingly to meet our shared goal"

Sun Fox let out a sarcastic chuckle.

"When I tell you everything, your shared goal will be to lop my head off my shoulders."

She glanced at Swift Fox then and added, her voice almost breaking:

"And you, Swift... following me everywhere, you say... I... i don't think you'll feel like that again when... when you understand how much I failed the ones who followed me before..."

The girl trailed off, looking striken and unable to even muster the strenght to speak for a long moment.

Swift frowned slightly, looking up at the others.
"That's exactly what I thought everyone's reaction would be when I told them about me" she replied.  "You might be surprised.  We've all seen things recently that have made us question ourselves."

"It's not what I've seen, it's what I have done. I..."

Sun Fox drew a long breath; then, her face went expressionless, her body slacking into an almost spineless posture, her eyes garnering a void quality; they could all still see her, but almost couldn't believe she was still there, and that they were looking at anything but a doll in her likeness, rather than a person.

And when she spoke, her voice was hollow, all emotions, tone and inflexions drained from it, making her words heavy and inexorabile, and their truth very hard to negate.

"When Valador offered to resurrect Grand Master Lone Wolf, he asked for my loyalty and cooperation on that effort in return. And the cooperation he needed was the life of the young Kai who were training under me, and the loyalty he asked for was that I took their life for him myself. And I did as he asked, because bringing back Lone Wolf for me mattered more than them. I betrayed my charges and slew them all, of my own will, to satisfy my selfishness and to make it so that I would never turn against him. For if I did, he would use my guilt to destroy us all."

Silence followed those declarations, making the impact of Sun Fox's declaration as strongly felt as it could be.

"That is an act beyond the betrayal of the Order," said Water Hornet suddenly, his voice dark, "and Kai knows, I, for one, would do exactly the same."

There was a long pause; afterwards, Hornet made a step closer to Sun Fox. "Was it a selfish act? Not to mention all other aspects... Yes, it was. And at the same time, you sacrificed a part of yourself, possibly to live the rest of your life in dishonour, to bring the Grandmaster back to life."

Clearly it was hard for Hornet to continue, so there was another pause. "I'm not defending your decision...but I'm also not the one who could, and would, judge you." Hornet's face was dead-pale by the time he finished and he made a step backwards, again, to put some distance between himself and the others.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 18:33, Sun 06 July 2014.

Swift looked up at Hornet, an unidentifiable look in her eyes for a moment before she looked back at Sun Fox.
"The true irony is that Valador wasn't lying, not directly.  I think he really did possess the power to resurrect...  something.  Though I don't believe it would really have been the Grand Master."

She sighed and looked back at Sun Fox.
"I understand more than you think."
Her gaze flickered briefly towards Sun Snake and then back to Sun Fox again.
"For just a moment back there, I was tempted to accept Valador's offer to me.  Not because I believed in any goodwill he would have claimed to have towards me.  But something he said..."

She broke off and shook her head.
"He's a persuasive one.  Adept at finding weak points and striking at them.  It was no secret how you felt about the Grand Master, if I could have, I would have shielded him from whatever fate overcame him, taken it onto myself.  I spent most of my life seeking my own end after all, it wouldn't have mattered to me, and I would have saved the man who gave me a second chance."

A hint of a smile crossed her face.
"And I can hardly fault you for your emotions, given that mine drove me to cross half of the Darklands and descend to the deepest depths of Argazad."
She glanced briefly up at Silver Raven with a wry grin.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:08, Sun 06 July 2014.

Sun Snake had faded in to the background during Sun Fox's words, and his face had blanched as if her words were not what he had expected.

Sun Snake withdrew his blade, resting it on the ground while staring down just ahead of his feet. He tapped the point on the ground deliberately twice, though whether an affectation of thought or to get people's attention was not clear.

He finally raised his head, but did not look to anyone, just to the middle distance passed the group. "Now you see what Valador is. The danger of allowing him a gap to separate us. To let lies fester or to place a half-told truth. We cannot defeat this alone. The order must be united. We are too powerful but too vulnerable alone. Each and every one of us. We must balance each other and be balanced or we can do such evil in the name of good. This is why Shining Peacock cannot lead as he wants to. He acknowledges no weakness and separates each of us from the other without thoughts, thinking it is for the good of his plans. And yet this is why, unless the man is truly false, he must always be a part of the order aswell. I will fight for his right to be heard as much as I will fight against his voice being the only one heard."

Sun Snake half looked to Sun Fox. "You needed to speak those words. And you need to be present here, now, more than ever. I can feel your defenses raised and you drifting away from us. If you truly are sorry, you need to stop that. What you have done you have done. We serve Kai, and only by having faith in Him and each other can we be sure we are balanced. You have done great evil. The evil was not the determination with which you acted, it was the choice you made to use that determination. A choice you made alone. If you are truly sorry, you do not get the luxury of guilt, of being apart from us any more. Kai clearly can act through you. You need to trust Him, just as we must. He clearly has not abandoned you, and has a plan for you. If His path for you is to atone with your life at some point, it will be His choice and not yours. If His plan is for you to life and serve, you do not get to rebel against it with shame or guilt. It dishonours all those that have fallen. You only get to use those emotions to drive you to excel, as you once did under Lone Wolf."

Sun Snake sighed. "Valador cannot be saved. Vyctar, Vyctar might be. Who knows. But tTomorrow we face the Drakkarim Colonel, and one way or another we will take back what is ours. Then we will return to the order and unite it, as Kai wills, in whatever way He wills it. And then we will once and for all put a stop to Valador's plan."

Sun Snake looked around. "Is there anything else we do not know, before we do this. Any last secret Valador could use against us?"

Swift slowly pulled herself to her feet and looked towards Sun Snake.
She had tensed up slightly when he drew his sword, but seemed to relax again as he spoke.
"I admit I am still a little concerned about Valador's last words to me.  His offer, you might call it.  He spoke of people I might like to meet, kindred souls.  It made me wonder if I was the only one...  The only puppet.  The only deadly ghost out there.  Assuming he wasn't simply speaking of the remaining hybrids, it's a possibility we should be on our guard for at least, tactically speaking."

She reached into a concealed pocket in the inside of her cloak and pulled out a rolled up parchment.
"Before we destroyed the camp in the Darklands that was about to launch an attack on the Monastery, I stole this from their leader's tent, some sort of map apparently.  At the time I didn't manage to get a chance to examine it closely enough to decipher what it was trying to indicate, and until now I'd almost forgotten I still had it.  I'm not sure if it'll be significant or not."
She unrolled the map and peered at the writing on it.


OOC: Actually did just remember I had that with everything that's been going on...
What was it I needed to read it again?

A Map is a work of art, but since it is crafted to be easily deciphered, the cost is only 2 WP, rather than 4. The DC for it is 3.

Sun Snake's words seemed to shatter Sun Fox's composure where the other's acceptance of her actions had not, and she lowered her head, her body slumping in a defeated position as he said, in a broken voice:

"None that... that I know of."

She seemed to pause, then she started to sob even as she forced out:

"I'm s-sorry! I... I have f-failed you all... I've f-failed the G-grand M-Master... I n-never wanted to... b-but... I c-couldn't help it..."

She couldn't go on any further after that, and then hid her face into her hands, crying.

Moving towards her defeated form Fox merely spoke

"Sun Fox" he said simply

At the moment she looked up there was a whoosh of air as he brought his hand round and slapped her hard, his own hand tingling from the contact

"Do you remember what Rain said when we first found them?

"The one who is behind this will regret slaying our brothers and sisters. I know that I am not alone in that thought, either- if I have to, I will batter his mind and leave him an open book for you.  If he does survive that and runs, I will force him to remember those he wronged, and I'll try to make sure that every time he closes his eyes, he will believe that he may see a fox wreathed in flames standing over him... or one with the fiercest, sharpest teeth he's ever seen... or maybe a rearing snake, ready to sink his fangs into his face... or perhaps a simple pair of flashing blue eyes, promising to concentrate a thunderstorm and project it into his mind to unleash its rage.  The Kai will not forget one who killed some of their kind, and sooner or later, he will understand what a mistake that was."

"Well she was right, her own words have come true for the person who made that mistake is regretting it for the rest of her life. That is both your punishment and road to atonement. Had Kai turned his back on you, he would never have allowed you to wield the Sommerswerd after. Remember that. Now pull yourself together!"

His words were short, unlike his usual demeanour, but he clearly had to try and snap her out of it

OOC: Yay, rolled a 9 for reading the map! :)  (Really going to wish I'd kept that roll for when we run into Vyctar again I think!)


Swift continued to peer at the map then closed her eyes for a second.
When she opened them again, her normally pale blue irises were glowing with a faint golden light.
She read the writing over quickly, her lips moving soundlessly as she repeated the words to herself and mentally translated them into her own Sommlending tongue.

Looking up from the map, she blinked a few times, her eyes quickly returning to their normal hue before she turned to look at the others again.
Just in time to see Sabre slap Sun Fox.
She flinched slightly at the impact, her hand instinctively approaching the hilt of the Jade Spike as she stared at Sun Fox as if waiting for her reaction...


OOC: Ouch!  (O.o)

Somehow I missed the slap and only noticed the words. Ouch indeed :(

Water Hornet gave no outward reaction to Sabre's harsh manner to bring Sun Fox back to her true self. In fact, anyone who looked at him would notice he even stopped blinking for that short period of time while Sabre was speaking. Inwardly, Honret felt genuinely sorry for Sun Fox; but his more rational part of the mind knew that that was perhaps necessary. Be it simply by inducing physical pain, or through igniting anger in her, they needed to get Sun Fox into a state in which she could at least fight.

Water Hornet turned to look at Kraans, his hand resting on the hilt of his dagger. Whether he didn't want to embarrass Sun Fox by staring at her, or there was another reason, was unclear. After checking the beasts were still there, the young Magnakai returned his attention to his fellow Kai.

Sun Snake looked uncomfortable. "Rain Feather also taught me the importance of grief," said Sun Snake quietly. "Emotions are not to be feared, just being ruled by them. Whether feeling them too much or running from them, if they dictate your actions."

Sun Snake looked to the rest, as if to bring focus away from Sun Fox. "The key to Vyctar will be his."

Sun Fox seemed even more shocked at Sabre Foxs reaction, putting an hand over her cheek with disbelief etched all over her features, but then she slowly nodded and said, in a whisper:

"I... I deserved a much greater punishment than that... thank you all for... for accepting me..."

She trailed off, then slowly shook her head and got up to her own feet, before looking at the others and saying, her tone hesitant:

"I... I think I'm ok, now. Maybe we... we could postpone the strategy discussion to tomorrow morning, Sun Snake? I could take the first watch, think over what you all said, and be better able to contribute that way... if... if you're willing to trust me with it?"

The girl looked around, clearly unsure if asking that might be too much with what she'd just revealed the group, her eyes lingering over Sun Snake most of all, as if she wanted his approval and didn't liked interrupting his planning session with her own demands.

Unless any of you has objections, I think this would be a good time to let you all sleep and jump to tomorrow morning - on the matter of which, I would also need from you all a selection over your options about recovering as well as any item you're using to help that along.

Sun Snake looked to the group first, but shook his head regarding any personal objections to restarting the discussion to next day. Although he did note both Water Hornet's separation form the group and Swift Fox's map.

"That sounds fine, though I doubt I could sleep. I can leave you in peace, but I will take the first watch with you. There are things on my mind, too."

Swift's hand continued to lurk near the hilt of her dagger as her gaze shifted towards Sabre and glared at him for a second before she seemed to relax and cheer up again suddenly, dropping her hands to her sides, one still clutching the map in a crumpled roll.

"Good idea" she said to Sun Snake, "I'll stay up for first watch too.  I can keep you both company if you like, or I'll just keep an eye on that tunnel."
She offered Snake an oddly cheerful-looking smile as she flattened the crumpled map out again and began rolling it up properly...


OOC: Yay, we're all best friends again! :D

Sun Snake shrugged but nodded.


In metagame terms, Snake is staying awake because I'm at full everything pretty much. You ok to stay awake if things go south?

And yay, all it took was some violence and admissions of murdering people to bring us together as an extended family.

Also, ever get the feeling Swift will be all bouncy and happy in between two broody Kai on opposite ends of the cavern :D

OOC: Not really, my WP is still only a few points above "completely brain-dead" status.  It's only my "hidden reserve of power" that's keeping me going ;)
But, Swift always has her reasons for doing stuff, even if she's the only one who understands...
My OOC side will be kicking myself a lot if I lose out on too much sleep recovery though!

"Well then, now that's settled" fox said his jovial nature returning "I'll get some sleep...... But don't wake me early this time"

Yay, we're all friends! The two not scary never plotting together players can make sure the unstable NPC won't slice Sabre's throat during the night. Woot!

OOC: Can't promise the unstable PC won't.  But I'm sure Sun Snake will stop us both acting on any sudden throat-slicey urges, right? ;)

"I will order the beasts to stay alert, anyway," said Water Hornet, his voice quiet, but still audible for everyone present, "just in case."

 Water Hornet turned around to face Kraans and strode confidently towards them. He knew the beasts would sense his fear and already they were watching him with suspicion. The young Magnakai cleared his mind (which was harder and took him longer than he expected) and invoked his powers. He concentrated his thoughts on the present Kai and reminded himself how they meant family to him - at first, it was realization through conscious ties they shared, belonging to the Order, but he gradually transferred the reality onto the emotional and subconscious level - the hardships of their training they faced together and later the fight against the agents of Evil filled his mind and he let the feeling of belonging to one big family surface.
The next step was a bit trickier, as he established a psychic link with the flying beasts and attempted to include the Kraans as being the part of that family, creating a big , mixed flock. Here, Hornet sent the Kraans another image - that of an unspecified danger emerging from the tunnel and attacking human and Kraan alike. 'Together we can survive,' he thought and showed Kraans Kai tending to the beasts' inflicted wounds with their healing powers.

Hornet spent another moment watching the winged creatures and then moved to his previous position at the rock's wall. "If you'd still prefer to take me the next watch, wake me up when it's time," he said, speaking mainly to Sun Snake and Swift Fox and sat down, trying to make himself as comfortable as possible.

EDIT:

Water Hornet took off his newly acquired chainmail and studied it for a short moment before putting it right beside him. Over it, he placed the rapier and the shield that he had found in the Vashnites' temple, the weapon within his reach. The rest of his equipment was also neatly assembled at his side. Hornet folded his cloak to create at least some sort of pad between his back and the hard rock. The only thing that he did not put aside was his dagger. He held it in his left hand and leaning against the stone wall he closed his eyes.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:08, Tue 08 July 2014.

Dawn Sword looked around, then turned to Sun Snake and said, her tone quite neutral:

"Unless you need something from me, Master, perhaps I should go to sleep as well?"

So, I guess my next question is: do you three want to have a conversation of some sort? Because if not, I can push things forward.

And remember, you can ask for a secret thread if you want one! ^_^

Sun Snake nodded. "That would be a good idea, Dawn Sword."


Sun Snake was happy to leave Sun Fox to herself if she did not wish to speak (and it sounds like she doensn't.

So it's up to Swift Fox to see if she wants to start a conversation :)

OOC: Swift is indeed up to something, but it's up to Sun Snake if he wants to take part (I'm guessing he could probably figure out what she's up to, based on what they discussed earlier) ;)
This message was last edited by the player at 21:23, Tue 08 July 2014.

Oooh.... umm, yeah.... nothing going on nothing to see here to change the subject completely can we get a completely innocent private thread for innocent reasons not leading to party death?

This message was last edited by the GM at 22:57, Tue 08 July 2014.

OOC: *tries hard to look as innocent as possible...*
This message was last edited by the player at 21:57, Tue 08 July 2014.

Sure thing.

Plan Illkai Aterway Ornethay it is!

OOC: Eh, what...?
.
.
.
Oh, you plan to throw flowers into Maakengorge and ride on unicorns...I will meanwhile sleep peacefully.

Shhhh, Water Hornet, only dreams now...

OOC: Yay!  Flowers and unicorns for everyone! :D

Indeed.

If you haven't been notified your death, then you've survived the night, and can now wake up. :)

Swift Fox, Sun Snake, if you haven't got your sleep recover yet, do so now; Frost Ferret and Silver Raven took up the last rotation of the night's watches, so that everybody managed to sleep a bit.


It was with a sort of eerie silence that the group woke up to sunrise over the Maakengorge. From their position in a cave somewhat down the walls of the chasm, the white light of the dawn hit them from above, and for a few brief moments, the Kai could feel themselves as if physically standing on the separing line between the two halves of creation, the conflict that animated Magnamund.

Sunlight was pouring out from the edge above their heads and painting the rocks white, almost empowering to their senses, while the tomb of Vashna, with its lingering sense of dread, was a black abyss under their feet, and the point where the two met was clear, an almost demarcative line where they all were standing.

Then the kraans let out a shierks as they woke from their own slumber, and the spell was broken, remembering the group that, with the new day, ahead of them also laid duties they had to take care of.

I haven't, but I'm worried it's more an oversight given Swift Fox was around...


Sun Snake looked around, to ensure the group was awake and getting ready to go. He also cast his mind around for signs of trouble.

The sun was beginning to rise, shedding a bright glow across the horizon as the blinding edge of the fiery disc rose above the distant peaks, as though it had spent the night sleeping behind them and was now rising up to take its place in the sky once again.
Swift sat on the edge of the Maakengorge, like a child dangling her feet in a cooling river, except there was no water here, just an endless abyss of darkness beneath her.
She seemed unconcerned however, just watching the sunrise.

"It's pretty.  But the light hurts my eyes..."

She glanced to one side at the figure who spoke.  The young girl in the black tattered hooded cloak, her blonde hair matted with dirt and grime.  She was staring at the distant sunrise with wide pale blue eyes.  Cleaner streaks in the dirt on her face showed where tears had fallen, although now she seemed more at peace.

Swift looked back at the sunrise.
"It does that.  Kind of like when you've spent a long long time in a dark room and you step out into the light.  You'll get used to it in time."

A hint of a smile crossed her lips, as she closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth of the sun on her face.
"We'll get used to it in time..."


Swift opened her eyes again.
She had fallen asleep after her watch ended, propped up against the rocky wall near where Silver Raven had been sleeping, using her backpack as a makeshift pillow with the mirrored shield propped up against the wall nearby.
She yawned and stretched herself out, shifting sideways and looking at her reflection in the surface of the shield.
For the first time, she looked much calmer on waking up.  As if her sleep had been undisturbed by the usual nightmares that had haunted her for so many years.

Standing up, she pulled on her backpack and attached the shield to it again, before walking out towards the edge of the Maakengorge, squinting up at the sun as her eyes began to adapt to the early morning light.
Reaching beneath her tunic, she pulled out the small black pyramid-shaped pendant she wore there.  The golden glow within it had faded since she had first found the pendant, but now it seemed to be getting steadily brighter again as though feeding off the sunlight falling on it.
Swift smiled and tucked it back into her tunic again.  She remained in place, looking up at the sky as though enjoying the warmth of the sun on her face...


OOC: Sorry for the delay.  Been a busy week.  Also what was going to be a simple "waking up" post turned into this in my mind.  :)

It was dark..... The air stunk of a death fouler than anything he had ever smelt, and the cries...... The cries of the people screaming in pain all around his was harrowing. Yet Fox pushed on down this corridor, heading wherever it led him. Eventually it came to an open Throne room, and at the end was an orb bathed in purple light on a pedestal. Fox found himself drawn to it and moving across the room a hand quickly touched the surface.

Knowledge seemed to flood his being, with events past, present and future unfolding in his mind. He felt intoxicated by it.

"That is not yours!" A voice bellowed

Spinning round Fox knew the voice..... It was of Naar, king of darkness.

"Now you face me in combat!" The voice declared

And appearing before him was something that made Fox physically scream in terror.

The dark god was no man.....

No beast......

He was......

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
A seagul

---

Waking up with a start, Fox shook his head

"I really can't sleep in this gorge anymore"

Silver Raven, who had already been up as the others awoke, seeing as he'd took the last watch, looked at Sabre Fox for a moment before shaking is head and adding of his own:

"You're not the only one, I think."

Then he moved to where Swift Fox was standing, leaning on the parapet next to her and adding, speaking to the girl:

"On the other one, it seems for some of us the visit here was not all bad, isn't it?"

He glanced at her as he said so, a complicit, amused smile gracing his lips.

Water Hornet opened his eyes and looked around. In his mind, echoes of dreams swirled, but as he reached out to catch at least one of them, they disappeared. Hornet eventually gave up to recall any images from the previous night; he shrugged and got up on his feet.

He realized  with surprise that while his mind didn't get much rest, it seemed the body compensated for that - he felt physically reinvigorated. 'Perhaps because for once I didn't have to fear waking up with my throat slit,' mused Hornet to himself as he cast his gaze over his Kai brothers and sisters.

The shrieks of Kraan caught his attention and after picking up his equipment and weapons (letting go of Venom and returning it to its place on his belt) Hornet went to check on the beasts.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:20, Tue 15 July 2014.

"We'd be one of the last to leave," Sun Snake said of departing. "I cannot sense the Drakkarim nor the Cener now. Only the acolytes, and thye have only not left yet because of the effort to co-ordinate and reach the Kraan roosts. We should be able to splip away before they have mobilised themselves."

Swift looked up at Silver Raven.
"Maybe" she replied with a smile.  "I can start to believe it when I tell myself the Ghost is gone at last.  I think I understand that part of me now."
She looked back out over the Maakengorge, to where the sky was glowing with the dawn sunlight above it.
"I wanted to thank you too.  You were there when I needed someone to help me keep it together.  I doubt I would have lasted this long without that."
She looked around towards Sun Fox for a moment and lowered her voice, looking back at Raven.
"I think Sun Fox needs that now too.  I only hope I can be that same person for her."

She looked around at Sun Snake as he spoke up.
"That map I read last night had some intriguing information on it.  I think I know where we can find this Deathlord and the other Nadziranim now.  But probably best to track down the Sommerswerd first."

"I agree" Fox said now on his feet "we need the Sommerswerd before we can start going after anyone else...... So how do we track the Drakkar?"

Water Hornet nodded in support of Sabre Fox's words and looked at Sun Snake. "Exactly," he said, "although we should probably reach the Skyrider first." He shot a glance toward Swift Fox and then Frost Ferret. "Or do we part right here...?"

OOC: We have to leave the Lorestones on the Skyrider, right?

That was the idea, yes. Of course, if you want to carry them along when you chase after Vyctar and his men, you can do that as well; I am most certainly not going to stop you from doing whatever you want.

I will merely make sure the consequences make sense. :D

Sun Fox, who was still completing her morning stretching routine, paused halfway through to comment, in a more matter of fact tone:

"I thought we were going to just use the Skyrider to find the enemy kraans, then track them to their destination? Isn't that the fastest way to find Vyctar?"

Sun Snake raised his eyebrow at Swift Fox's comment. "That may be something we need to act on the moment the order is together. Possible the knowledge of that might be useful when dealing with Vyctar too."

Sun Snake then looked to the group, biasing towards Sabre Fox. "Well the rst of us need to get to the Skyrider first, then move towards the Drakkarim. However, Sabre, if you plan on rejoining the Drakkarim you cannot risk being seen with us. You need to take one of the Kraan and make your own way, tracking as best you can. Although I would not look to find the Drakkar that just left. I would aim passed them and make all haste for Vyctar himself. The globe I gave you will be drawn to both the strongest magical source - the Sommerswerd - and the globe I gave Vyctar. If they are together, then there will be no tricks. If they are separated, you will need to make a decision then."

Sun Snake briefly looked to sun Fox. "If is the same tactic I was planning with my own globe. If we make straight for Vyctar ourselves, and also triangulate on Sabre's progress, we will have a good idea of the stread of our enemies. In aiming for Vyctar we may well catch up with and find theose who departed earlier. Without Dusk Rat, I am not sure how we can track the Kraan with any certainty."

Sun Snake looked to Water Hornet to see if the man's talent with the Kraan the previous night was augmented with any abilities at further detection.


Sun Snake seemed to use the question towards Water Hornet as an excuse to get closer to Sabre Fox however, and whisper somehting quietly to the man - so quietly hopefully only Sabre's augmented hearing might pick it up.

It took Hornet a moment to respond, as if he wasn't sure what Sun Snake had meant. "I wouldn't be able to track Kraan once they flew away," he said shaking his head, "maybe I could guess the route they would take based on the information where they were headed...but really, that wouldn't be much more than a general direction."

OOC: Hornet might be able to deduce some information based on the knowledge about Kraan behaviour/physiology/habits, but nothing more specific (no real tracking of flying beasts).

Sun Fox raised an eyebrow when Sun Snake moved close to Sabre fox, then reddened suddenly and lowered her head, but said nothing.

"I do need to find the Drakkar that left" Fox replied "it was part of my test to Vyctar in order to bring them back. But I suppose at least on the Kraan if they escaped the caves, I should be able to see them with my enhanced sight. I think I should look first before Move"

Fox then raised an eyebrow at Snake

Hornet noticed Sun Fox's reaction when Sun Snake whispered something to Sabre Fox, and it made him turn away. But it wasn't out of consideration for the girl, instead the young Magnakai look into the tunnel, which they had emerged from previous evening, clearly deep in thought.


After a moment, Hornet turned back, resting his look on the flying beasts nearby and then raising his eyes up to the morning light.

"And yet is worth a try," he said suddenly, following on his previous words. "If the Drakkarim escaped on Kraan, just like we are going to do, we may attempt to follow them. If we can assess roughly their direction, their physical condition and so on, I think I might just guess how the beast would carry them." The fatigue and apathy that could've been seen the previous evening in Hornet's eyes was replaced with determination. "Anything is going to be better than flying blindly, right?"

OOC: After shortly consulting with the GM: Scratch what I said before, no time to hold back - so let's give it a shot. What could go possibly wrong...? ;)

If Swift had noticed the silent exchange between Sun Snake and Sabre Fox and its effect on Sun Fox, she didn't speak up about it.  Although she did direct a rather icy glare towards the other two for a moment.

"Good idea.  The longer we wait, the more of a head start they get" she replied to Water Hornet.


OOC: Ready to move out :)
This message was last edited by the player at 17:07, Thu 17 July 2014.

Silver Raven nodded.

"Shall we move, then?"

He glanced at the sheer wall, then at the kraans, and added, his tone neutral:

"Also, will the kraans be able to carry all eight of us?"

Sun Snake continued speaking quietly to Sabre Fox.

"Two men - and women - per Kraan; that's something the beasts will manage," replied Water Hornet to Silver Raven's question, "although it will slow them down." Hornet shot a glance at the winged creatures. "The Darklords surely knew how to breed beasts for war," he muttered under his breath.

Hornet looked at Sun Snake and Sabre Fox. "Let's leave this foul place, shall we? Once we're up, we'll see what we can do about locating the Drakkarim; but any little piece of info we can put together about their group will help. Mainly: were those Drakkarim back there at the tent the whole group? And do you have any idea where, at least approximately, they will be heading?"
This message was last edited by the player at 23:07, Thu 17 July 2014.

Fox was very interested in what he was hearing

Swift moved towards the edge of the Maakengorge again and peered up at the sky.
She seemed to be sniffing the air, then she narrowed her eyes and squinted at a cloud formation high overhead.
Moving away from the edge again she looked back at Hornet.

"I may be able to help with tracking them.  Unless they have a Kraan for each of their men, it's likely they may be slowed down as well.  Even if only one of them is slowed, I doubt the others will leave them behind, since they might assume the possibility of Acolytes pursuing them on Kraan.  I'm sure the Skyrider could catch up to them easily, but it would be much harder to conceal."
She stared thoughtfully at the sky again for a second, then shook her head.
"Well, better get out of here first.  We can plan on the move."

She looked towards Sabre Fox and Sun Snake, then glanced briefly at Sun Fox and looked back at the other two with a noticeably irritated frown on her face.
"You two have something to share with everyone?  Or can we move out now?" she snapped.


OOC: Not nice to whisper things about people! ;)

Sun Snake nodded at whatever Sabre Fox had replied.

Sun Snake briefly looked around to Swift Fox. "I have an idea on reaching out to Vyctar, or if it goes wrong weakening the man if we must fight him. However, I think I need something...private...from Sabre...to ensure it has a chance to work." Sun Snake looked to Sabre Fox with an eyebrow raised, as if to see if the man wanted to share what had been asked for.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:49, Fri 18 July 2014.

"Aye," nodded Hornet in response to Swift's words to him and moved towards the Kraan. He stopped when Sun Snake spoke and looked at Sabre Fox.

"Well" Fox said "Here goes nothing"

He then drew Vigilance and brought it to his face to stare at the steel

Sun Snake bowed his head for a moment as if in thought. "Thank you," he said quietly, though this time the words carried. Clearly he had been affected by something Sabre Fox had said or done.

Swift glanced between Sun Snake and Sabre Fox.
The irritated frown had vanished from her face, replaced by a faint hint of curiosity as she eyed Sabre's sword closely...


OOC: Hmm, intriguing... :)

"For what?" Fox asked as he sheathed Vigilance once again "usually I know what I'm given credit for" he smiled

"For being a god man," Sun Snake replied.

He then looked around to the others, especially Water Hornet. "So, are we ready to track these Kraan and get back to the Skyrider?"

Swift continued to stare at Sabre's sword for a moment then looked up as Sun Snake spoke.
"I'm ready" she replied, adjusting her backpack and looking towards the way out...


OOC: Yay!  Let's go! :D
This message was last edited by the player at 13:27, Tue 22 July 2014.

Water Hornet thought of the episode back in the temple when Sabre had lent him his sword.

"Yes," he echoed Swift's words, "as soon as we're out of the chasm, we'll see what can be done." Hornet moved towards the group of Kraan, clearly busy with his own thoughts, when he turned his head back and added: "And as I said: any piece of information on the Drakkarim group and their possible intended destination would help."

Hornet stopped several steps away from the winged beasts and studied them for a moment.  Eventually, he turned back to the group and asked: "Seems like it's two Kai per Kraan. Who's riding with me?" He wacthed the others and his look rested on Frost Ferret.

Frost Ferret shrugged, apparently uncaring over who he should share a mount with, while Silver Raven moved to Swift Fox and spoke to her in a low tone.
Sun Fox seemed lost in thought, but Dawn Sword moved next to Sun Snake and asked him, her tone uncertain:

"Should I fly with you, Master?"

"That's me" Fox said nodding with a smile

Noticing Sun Fox looking lost in thought he moved to her

"It's time to go...... I'll take Rain Feather to the Skystrider"

Sun Snake looked around. "We should pair up those who have experience with riding and those who don't, as best we can."

Sun Snake noted Swift Fox and Silver Raven already seemed paired up. "I should ride with Water Hornet. Once we are clear, I can perhaps feel the pull of the Sommerswerd and the other magnet and allow him to start his calculations as soon as possible."

Sun Snake pointed to Sun Fox. "Dawn Sword, thank you for the offer, but perhaps Sun Fox could use your help more. I presume you have rode these creatures more than the rest of us."

Swift seemed about to reply to whatever Silver Raven had said to her, but then paused and glanced towards Sun Snake for a moment.
Looking back at Silver Raven, she whispered something back to him.



OOC: Well if you lot can whisper amongst yourselves, so can I! ;)

Water Hornet looked with surprise at Sun Snake, but then nodded hesitantly.

"Just to be clear: how do we do it tactically? I mean: we have to reach the Skyrider, first, don't we?" He gave a cursory glance towards Swift Fox and Frost Ferret.

"We will go to the Skyrider no matter what, but but if you can gain intuition on the Kraan's path, now would be the time to do it. If Sabre Fox wants to infiltrate, he needs to beat us there, and he will be diverting to come with us, and then will be betraying where he came from if he comes from the same direction we do. Unless he makes it seem as if he is running ahead of us to warn the Drakkarim."

"I might try that," agreed Water Hornet, "but if we won't be moving after the group, this initial estimation won't be very precise." He thought for a minute and then added: "But I'm not saying we shouldn't try that..."
"Anyway, let's move," he said gesturing towards the sky above, "we need to get up there in any case."
This message was last edited by the player at 08:21, Wed 23 July 2014.

The group moved to the kraans, with Silver Raven whispering something to Swift Fox as he helped her mount.
Dawn Sword, meanwhile, seemed surprised by Sun Snake's words, but then she nodded and moved for Sun Fox, quickly beginning to explain her how to mount the kraan and direct it, clearly already having great experioence in the matter.

So, if I gather it right, everybody is going to move toward the Skyrider for now?

Fox moved back to fetch Rain Feather, being careful to cradle her so he would not loose her during the flight before heading to a Kraan

Even if it's just to drop of Rain and check in with the Monastary it's worth going back

OOC: I think making our way to the Skyrider first is the best option. Although I'm not sure if Snake didn't want Water Hornet to "track" Drakkarim on Kraan immediately (which, by the way, from IC point of view isn't that easy/straightforward).

We can't get through to the monastery, it's Banedon we will be trying to gte a hold of.

And yes, head to the Skyrider, but given this is the point of origin of the Drakkar Kraan, it might be an idea to start triangulating their coure here rather than wait until we've gone off course.

Also, who has Fall Lobster? Is that Frost Ferret/Sabre Fox?
This message was last edited by the player at 17:12, Wed 23 July 2014.

The place where you are now is NOT the starting point of the drakkar kraans, they landed in (and will depart/have departed from) a completely different place, and you have no idea whatsoever where that would be, other than Sabre Fox knowing how to reach it from the caves - which needs him to start from the pool to properly get his bearings and not get lost.

I supposed you wanted to look for the landing place of the drakkar kraans from the sky, and then would track them, but if you are planning something different, then I will need to change the options you have at your disposal.

Fall Lobster is still trapped in the boat by the roots, but he's not anchored to the ground, so a kraan might be able to carry it in their claws. You can pick which one you want to carry it at your leisure.

For Fall Lobster, I guess Water HOrnet/Sun Snake's KRaan can take the boat then, as Hornet can sense and control anything happening ot the Kraan, and Snake can keep a closer eye on on the man.


I presumed it would be easier to use roughly where we left as a start point for tracking, rather than where the Skyrider was. If they are equally bad then it doens't matter.

Tracking from the sky is fine.

That's good, then. :)

OOC: Yeah, I agree it makes sense if Hornet/Snake's Kraan carries Fall Lobster.
Forward and up, to the Skyrider, then? :)

OOC: Yay! :D

Once the group was in good order and mounted on the kraans, they took flight easily enough. the kraan which Sun Snake and Water Hornet had mounted, heavy with the weight of Fall Lobster's boat, trailed behind the rest, which led to the others flying a bit aimlessly, as they waited for the one bringing up the rear to push them in the proper directions.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:33, Thu 24 July 2014.

Sun Snake closed his eyes, apparently heedless of the others for the moment. He did not even comment to Water Hornet what he was doing, though clearly he was trying to find out something with his mind.

Sun Snake opened his eyes, and tapped Water Hornet on the shoulder. "That way to the Skyrider," he yelled. "Anything else is jut as easy to wait to get back there, I think. But I can feel the pull of Vyctar and the Sommerswerd. Faint, but I do have it. There is hope."

Water Hornet  was enjoying the flight; except for an occasional worried look towards the beast that was carrying them, he had a faint smile on his face.

He nodded to Sun Snake silently, not wanting to even try make himself heard over the wind, and patted Sun Snake on the shoulder once in confirmation. He gestured towards the others flying ahead and gave an unarticulate shout to catch their attention. This was followed by him raising two fingers and pointing to the left wing of his and Sun Snake's kraan, then doing the same with only one raised finger and pointing to the right wing; finally, he brushed his hand over the beast's back. Hornet wanted to indicate they should take up a more strict formation and he immediately sent a psychic command to other three beasts. Yet he tried to make it as steady as possible not to startle others' kraan in case the riders would try to give them opposing orders. It was like pulling reigns of a horse, starting with slight force and progressively tugging at them more and more.

Just like with caravans on the ground (like ones crossing great deserts of Vassagonia), Hornet wanted all of them to adjust their speed to the slowest moving member.

OOC: Don't know if others will get Hornet's idea, but he wants to have two kraan on the right and one on the left in relation to his/Snake's kraan.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:42, Thu 24 July 2014.

Fox scanned the surrounding area with his eyes quickly as they took flight

"I probabally can't see Vyctar from here, but I can most likely find the other Drakkar I think"

Using Telescopic Vision to look for the Drakkar and Vyctar from the air.

The group's flight was relatively slow going, with Water hornet's kraan taking point, but nothing happened to disrupt it, the air just as silent and void of life as the desolation around the Maakengorge was.

Eventually, though, the group finally found the Skyrider, the boat floating above the ground, secured only by means of several anchors that were almost invisible from such a distance.



Everybody, please do roll for luck.

OOC: Rolled a 5...  *hides*

Rolled a 5 but this could change it

"Everyone" Fox said with urgency "I think the dwarves may have mistaken us for the enemy and are preparing to open fire. We need to signal them immediately!"

OOC: Luck roll: 4.

Upon Sabre's call, fear stung at Hornet's heart as an image of Bor rifles, aiming at their group, appeared in front of Hornet's mind eye.

"Cloaks!" he shouted in response, using one hand to keep hold of the Kraan and the other to unclasp his cloak and let it flap in the air as he tried to raise it above his head.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:00, Fri 25 July 2014.

Hi! So, we have three out of the four luck rolls. Each plan you attempt which requires luck alone to work (like Hornet's suggestion to use your cloaks to signal the ship, which is far enough away at this point that seeing the colours would be unlikely to work too well) will suceed or fail upon the sum result of the rolls you made, so we will need to wait a couple day for Snake's post to have a definitive answer.

However, if you want to try some method of stopping the ship from attacking that doesn't rely on luck, this is the time to brainstorm it - once Sun Snake posts, things will proceed, for better or worse, so make use of the timeyou do have.

At Sabhre Fox's words, Silver Raven's eyes narrowed, then he closed them, seemeing lost in concentration for a moment before he added, opening his eyes:

"They've mistaken us for enemies, and I don't think they'll let themselves be scared - it seems that defending the ship is priority to them. We need to find a way to let them know that we're us, and we need to do so quickly - they won't wait for us to be fully visible before attacking."

Fox did not draw his cloak in the air, but rather the blue steel blade he had. He tried to reflect it in the light of the sun to signal the ship

"I might get thier attention with this! At the very least this is a Vakeros blade and theyay recognise that as an ally"

He then looked to Snake

"Can you not signal them telepathically?"
This message was last edited by the player at 10:07, Sun 27 July 2014.

"Hope you know a good shielding spell if this doesn't work" Swift said to Silver Raven as she reached back and unhooked the mirrored shield from her back, slipping it quickly onto her left arm.

Squinting up at the sun, she tried to angle the reflective surface to flash a light towards the ship, hoping that they would hesitate at seeing their apparent enemies trying to signal to them...
This message was last edited by the player at 10:46, Sun 27 July 2014.

Silver Raven shook his head at Sabre fox's question and answered:

"My Divination isn't that advanced yet - I've just recently managed to master it, I'm just a beginner."

Then he turned to Swift Fox and added, sounding worried:

"And I haven't learned any true defensive spells, either; I can try to smipe incoming attacks with Lgithning Hand, but if there are too many, that wouldn't suffice."

Water Hornet abandoned his futile attempt of signalling the Skyrider's crew with his Kai cloak and instead focused on guiding the Kraan.

He ordered the beasts to stop, sending them warning of the object ahead, but knowing they would hardly stop on the spot, he also pulled the whole group of Kraan upwards to reduce speed by gaining altitude. Faintly, some half-forgotten knowledge surfaced in his mind - possibly a story told by a former Vassagonian Itikar rider - speaking of always trying to gain height over your opponent in an aerial duel (especially, provided one had surplus of speed).

With his gaze locked on the Skyrider and mindful of Sabre's words, Hornet was frantically thinking of a way to avoid a fratricidal accident.

OOC: Basically, telling Kraan to stop, but added some fluff, so the manoeuvre makes sense. Plus, if the dwarves wanted to use cannons, this might get us beyond their elevation angle.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:26, Mon 28 July 2014.

Swift held on tighter as the Kraan she was on suddenly pulled up and began to slow down.
She stared at the distant ship for a moment, stopping her attempts to signal to them with the mirrored shield and glanced down at the ground far below.

"Maybe we should land.  Let them see we're not moving in closer or trying to attack.  Signal to them from a safe distance and hope they send someone to find out who we are" she said.


OOC: That's what I'd do anyway :)
This message was last edited by the player at 10:04, Tue 29 July 2014.

I'd vote for Swift Fox's going down to be visibly landing rather than up, but I'll leave you guys to fight about that.


"Frost Ferret! Silver Raven! A Blue Snake!" Sun Snake gestured expandively in the air, hoping one of the two magic users possessed the ability to create images just as Shining Peacock could.

Don't recall if Sun Snake has seen either do illusions, I want to say Frost Ferret can for some reason.

That would be because Frost Ferret can, in fact, actually craft illusions. He has proved it countless times in the past, and without that ability, Swift and her team never would have made it through Argazad alive... or at least, they'd have had a lot more to fight throught to make it. :)

Frost Ferret nodded at Sun Snake's command and waved his hands in the air; immediately a gigantic serpent, of an electric blue that stod striking against the clear sky of the morning, surged from his kraan and moved in front of the group, making sort of a curtain before letting its spires coil into what, the group understood immediately, was a message for the Skyrider's crew:

KAI LORDS HERE
WE ARE FRIENDS

No reaction could be seen from the ship, but no attack was forthcoming either; it was not clear if the combination of Sun Snake's stratagem (as put into practice by Frost Ferret) with Water Hornet's sudden stop of the kraan's flight would be enough to placate the Skyrider's crew, but at the very least, it had brought them time.

"It's partially worked!" yelled Sun Snake, "The leaders understand, but the full crew are wary. We need to land and meet with them on the ground!"

"I agree" Fox said observing "There seem to be two camps. Perhaps we could offer to send one of us over first as a sign of good faith?"

"Yes, we should land so I can walk over there," yelled Sun Snake. "Its likely the senior crew may have persuaded the rest by then anyway."

Water Hornet find it somewhat difficult to turn away from the illusion, but eventually he nodded to Snake and Sabre's words. Then he realized the gesture was hard to notice and shouted: "Aye, let us land!" He turned his attention to the Kraan. "Time for some rest, my friends," he whispered and commanded the beasts to start descending slowly.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 19:25, Tue 29 July 2014.

Obeying to Water Hornet's command, the kraans descended to the ground in a slow, spiraling flight, while the great blue snake above them changed position, it's tail ponting to the spot where the group had just landed while it's coils spelled out a new message, "PARLAY".

After a few moment, the group could see some forms being lowered from the ship, and then starting to move in the group's direction, but it was hard to tell more from the distance, specially now that the group no longer had the advantage of looking at things from the sky anymore.

Swift blinked in surprise at the illusion of the blue snake above them but quickly returned her attention to the ship ahead.

As the Kraan descended, she slung the reflective shield onto her back again and instead rested her hand lightly on the hilt of the orange dagger, though she made no move to draw it yet, simply watching what was happening with a cautious look...

"The dwarves are coming well armed" Fox said suddenly "Bor muskets, nets and melee weapons. They seem rather untrusting of us it seems" Fox smirked

"Good, or else after all we've seen we may have come back to s trap or a ruin. I think those they originally took to the Maakengorge should go meet them to explain the situation."

He looked to the others. "The rest of you stay here until we can sort this out. Four of the younger crew are in that group that meets with us. They are still twitchy, and any could signal the ship. Let's not provoke them with unfamiliar faces."

Sun Snake looked for Dawn Sword, nodding for her to come with them. "Sabre. You should bring Rain Feather too," he said solemnly.


Is the Skyrider where they said it would be, or moored elsewhere?
This message was last edited by the player at 07:08, Wed 30 July 2014.

Water Hornet nodded: "I will look after the Kraan; try to keep them calm." Before moving, though, he paused and added: "Valador might've visited the ship and talked to the crew...so just be careful."

He then turned to the beasts and assessed their position. The young Magnakai frowned as his look rested on the boat with Fall Lobster and Hornet moved to the side, luring Kraan after him with psychic command, to lead them some distance away from the subdued hybrid.

OOC: What is the terrain around like? I imagine it's hilly land around, so our group wouldn't be readily visible from the ground (but also meaning anyone could rather easily approach our position undetected); hm?

Nodding in response to Snakes request, Fox carefully picked up Rain Feather before getting ready to move

"Let's hurry up and make sure she is comfortable on the ship"

Sun Snake nodded, though did look backwards towards the Maakengorge. "I wonder if she would be better rested in the place she found her way, a beacon in the darkness against Vashna, rather than in the building where she was isolated from herself. Would any evil dare walk that purified area back there to disturb her?"

He said this sadly and quietly, and then sighed and looked towards the waiting dwarves.

"I would hope Valador would not walk amongst those faithful to Banedon so casually. However, I think caution against that is very well advised."
This message was last edited by the player at 17:22, Wed 30 July 2014.

Water Hornet turned his head away from the winged beasts and looked at Sabre and Snake, as they spoke of Rain Feather. He wondered about the words and then his thoughts shifted to what would his own choice have been. He had thought about death before on more than one occasion and it actually placated him, that his opinion hadn't changed. Even with the death closer than ever before, he knew he would have wanted to be buried in the Order's burial grounds.

Fortunately, Snake's last remark pulled his attention in different direction again and eventually Hornet returned to checking the Kraan - not that he expected any ill befell their winged mounts, but he was accustomed to checking horses when a journey allowed it, so it seemed natural to do the same with Kraan. Except with horses one didn't have to worry about the sharp beaks and claws (although a horse could bite or kick an unwary rider with a similar effect).
This message was last edited by the player at 21:15, Wed 30 July 2014.

Swift glanced briefly towards Sabre Fox and Sun Snake.  A look of sadness showed on her face at their discussion.
She looked towards Rain Feather for a moment then seemed to return her attention to the approaching figures from the Skyrider.

She didn't seem to be concentrating on them as intensely as before though, as if some lingering thought was on her mind.
Hints of an unidentifiable emotion flickered in her eyes...


OOC: Just waiting to see how this situation resolves itself :)
(Also the current topic of conversation provoked a rather sad/disturbing thought in her mind...)

"This is the Guildmasters own crew" Fox said regarding the approaching dwarves. "Short of mind control, which I accept could be the case, then they should be loyal to thier Captain"

He took a look at the group before speaking again

"Let's go Snake"

When the group of three Kai came within sight of the six dwarves, four bor muskets were immediately pointed toward them, the the dwarves holding them leveling suspicious glances to the group, and made even more intimidating by the armour they were wearing.

The leader, however, moved forward with confidence, and a small smile appeared on his face as he nodded in greetings to the group, all of whom recognized him as Groumor, the Skyrider's first mate.

"Lord Snake, Kai Lord, Kai Lady."

He seemed about to add something, bbut then his eyes moved over the dead form of Rain Feather's body, and his expression grew somber as he continued, his tone more serious:

"I am grieved to learn that not all of you made it out safely; you have my condolences."

Groumor paused, then added, his voice carrying an hint of apology for any perceived rudeness in his question:

"I trust your comrade's death was not in vain, and that, at least, your mission's objectives were successfully achieved, if at such great cost?"

"It depends on your interpretation......" Fox began. "......and thank you" he added

He looked back towards the others

"We have not completed out objectives yet, but came here to utilise your airship to achieve them"

"That's not true," said Sun Snake of Sabre Fox's last statement. "We have achieved most of what we set out to do. Unfortunately there have been many new things discovered."

Lol, Snake is maybe a little touchy on the subject of the mission not going well, who knows :D

Sun Snake looked speculatively around. "I'm glad you are being cautious, as it means we were able to find you where we agreed to meet. However I am surprised at the welcome. Has something happened we should be made aware of?"

Sun Snake went back to his previous comments, looking solemnly to Rain Feather for a moment first. "Our loss is greater than you know, but something has been achieved." Sun Snake paused. "We discovered the fate of our Grandmaster. He died to prevent a powerful weapon of evil falling in to the hands of the Acolytes or Cener. He bought us the time to follow in his footsteps and finish the task. However, both his... both he and the Sommerswerd are in the possession of a Drakkar Colonel who is moving towards the Hammerlands as we speak. We need to move quickly to intercept him, and so we need to quickly resolve this stand off. Please, tell us what you need. For my part I can read sense your minds and know you are not false. Tell me what you require in return."

Sun Snake gestured backwards. "Rain Feather was instrumental in seeing the plans of the High Priest of the Acolytes were thrwarted. However, it cost her life even as the High Priest himself has fallen. Sadly, there was too much collateral damage though. The acolytes are scattered but more likely still set upon their path rather than turned. The evil of Vashna will poison a new generation born of this last one." Sun Snake sighed "We would like to see Rain Feather set in safety aboard the Skyrider for her final voyage home."

Sun Snake getsured backwards. "Our other mission - to find Sun Fox - was also successful. Swift Fox too found the missing Kai she sought. She managed to find us, although she too has lost as well as gained. However, those tales bring a fresh mission once the Colonel is secured. One I would rather not speak of right here."

Following Sun Snake's speech, the dwarves, while still looking cautious, seemed to be much more at ease. Groumor, on the other hand, merely nodded before answering gravely:

"I understand, and I am sad to hear that Lone Wolf is dead. He was a good man."

The dwarf paused, then continued, in a more practical tone:

"I agre that these matters would better be discussed on the ship, so let's make to it with haste. As for our reaction, I hope you can excuse us - we just saw a group of kraans moving toward us in close battle formation, and were worried your mission had caused enemies to retaliate and attack us."

He paused, then asked, now sounding uncertain:

"That's not what happened, right? You were the one controlling the kraans?"
This message had punctuation tweaked by the GM at 18:27, Thu 31 July 2014.

"Yes your correct" Fox said speaking up "it was a quick way to get to you. Infact I am going to use one upon my return,but do not be worried, they are docile to our abilities"

Sun Snake gave a small bow to Grumour's words on Lone Wolf.

"A rearguard of the Drakkar left before us on their own Kraan, however. I take it you saw no signs of them?" asked Sun Snake, relieved the dwarf seemed to be relaxed.

Sun Snake turned around and gestured for the others, quickly checking with the dwarf. "If I may?"

Sun Snake looked to the Kraan. "Will the Kraan be an issue near the Skyrider? Water Hornet is controlling them, if you need him to keep them distant I am sure that will be possible. But we will most likely need them against the Drakkar."

Sun Snake also looked back thinking of something else. "We also captured a singular prisoner. And a very dangerous one, with power almost equal to a Kai Master, and as threatening unarmed as a Kai Lord with his best weapon. The creature was once a man, and I hope we can undo what has been done to him. If there is anything left of him inside."

Sun Snake looked to the younger dwarves. "I have not directly served with you, but I already respect your caution. Please do not relax it in regards to this prisoner. He is dangerous, so dangerous I fear if he frees himself I cannot in good conscience tell you to take him alive once more. And I do not wish him dead if there is a chance he could be saved." Sun Snake looked to Gromour again. "Is there a place about the Skyrider suitable to imprison him securely?"

Groumor shrugged.

"We have gallows, although they've almost never been used since Captain Banedon aquired command of the ship. If you trust your restraints will be enough to hold this prisoner, we'll surely be willing to carry it for you, Lord Snake... although, I admit I would feel safer if one of you was standing guard alongside my men, just in case."

The other dwarves nodded at that; any trace of worry seemed to have left them now, and they were merely looking professional, as if the idea of having a specific duty to carry on, instead of a vague need to stand on guard against any possible tricks, was easier to deal with for them.

That seemed to help the older dwarv in the group to relax as well, for he turned to Groumor and added, in a pratical tone:

"Groumor, I think we should have the... beasts... the Kai Lords acquired follow us from some distance away; most of the men would not be at ease with them being close."

Groumor seemed to consider the suggestion, then nodded.

"Yes, that sounds eminently sensible."

He then turned toward Sun Snake and added, his tone carrying an hint of apology:

"I hope you can understand my crew's concern, Lord Snake?"

Sun Snake nodded in thanks to Groumor, and also seemed to accept the comment on the Kraan.

"Indeed,one of the reasons for keeping the Kraan was to protect the Skyrider from the Drakkar's own creature or take that sky battle away from here. I worry that they creatures might attract attention if they are too far, but a respectful distance should not be a problem."


"Groumor... when we saw you were startled by our presence, I did attempt to push the image of my own blue threading on my tunic to you all. Something else peculiar to me, to back up the symbol of my Master. I am not sure if I was successful?"

Sun Snake did not actually sound too hopeful that it had worked, yet there was still some faint hope in his voice as he asked the question.

"We could assist you in the guard duty. Forrest Ferret created the illusion to show you it was us, and with him on guard he could keep the prisoner distracted indefinitely" Fox said

Fox then looked to Rain Feather.

"And keep her secure and comfortable. The end was not pleasant and I do not see why we should not make her journey home as comfortable as possible"

Groumor seemed puzzled at Sun snake's request, then shook his head.

"I didn't felt anything, Lord Snake - but then, I was dearly occupied with planning how to defend the ship from a possible Drakkar attack. Perhaps your message was overwhelmed by my mind's own busy thoughts? I'm not really proficent in these things, even if I've heard some of how they work in my years in Toran, so I couldn't tell you why it didn't worked."

Then he turned to Sabre Fox and nodded to him before saying:

"We can put the girl into one of the guest rooms if you wish it, Kai Lord - and of course, I'm glad to hear you'll be helping us with guarding this prisoner"

He then paused, turning to look at the group witgh the kraans in the distance before adding:

"Speaking of which, maybe you want to let your companions know they can approach? That way we can move to the Skyrider and continue the conversation up there - I don't like the feeling the air has in this place, and the sooner we can leave, the better."

Sun Snake nodded, and excused himself to walk back to the others.

"Crisis averted, we can go aboard" said Sun Snake with the ghost of a smile. He turned to Water Hornet. "The crew are understandably nervous regarding the Kraan. Especially those who served in the war. Is it possible to keep them docile and with us at a distance?"

Fox nodded in reply to the dwarves answers and smiled

"The air here is stagnant with death and evil" he said sadly "I for one will not miss the place one bit"

Water Hornet, who had watched the discussion with a hint of slight worry, relaxed and nodded: "These Kraan are not as vicious as their cousins from the Darklands - the Acolytes of Vashna obviously were successful with their breeding attempts. So I think it will be possible. We should just probably think of feeding them at some point. But that depends how long we will stay aboard the ship."

OOC: Am I correct in my assumption (that with AC Hornet will be able to keep Kraan around, but not too close to the Skyrider)? If so, then I'm ready to go.

Swift had been staring at the discussion with a rather blank unseeing look, as if her mind was elsewhere.
As Sun Snake approached and spoke to the group, she seemed to snap out of it and looked towards him.
"Well, let's go then" she replied and began to move towards the distant group.  Though she still looked as if something was on her mind...


OOC: All aboard the magical flying boat of magicalness! :)

Your assumptions are correct, Hornet. :)

Once the matter of how to handle the kraans was settled, the group wasted no time in boarding the Skyrider. When he saw the conditions of Falln Lobster, Groumor raised an eyebow in surprise and then commented:

"Well, those seems some pretty strong bindings. I don't think we could drag even a smallboat like that in the gallows, though - the only chance is to put it in the storage area. However, lord Snake, if you think that would not be too risky, maybe we could just tie it along the safety boats? It'd be much easier to cart it around that way."

Once that matter is settled, the only other thing to decide is your accomdations; except for Banedon's cabin (which you're not getting access to) and the crew's quarters and bunk areas (which are not comfortable for a human's height), the Skyrider has eight rooms for passengers. You are nine in total - Sun Snake, Swift Fox, Sabre Fox, Water Hornet, Silver Raven, Sun Fox, Frost Ferret, Dawn Blade, and the corpse of Rain Feather - so you will need to decide where, exactly, Rain's body is going (the storage area is an option, or you could ask to put it in the ship's safe, or maybe some closet) or if you want to leave it one of the beds (which would require one of you to sleep somewhere else, although the floorn of your own cabin is a possibility).

Also, there are four cabins per side of the ship, so let me know if you're sleeping on the left or the right. To make it simples, here's a general idea of how the structure is built:

-   I ^ I    -
1   I S I    2
-   I T I    -
3   I O I    4
-   I R I    -
<   I A I    >
-   I G I    -
5   I E I    6
-   I   I    -
7   I   I    8
-   I   I    -

The arrows are the pouints where there is a stair leading above to the deck - which means that cabins 1,2,7 and 8 are further from the exits while the others are closer to it.

On your last voyage, for reference, Sun Snake had cabin 3, Sabre Fox 5, Dawn Sword 4 and Rain Feather 6. Not sure if that'd be useful, but I thought it was appropriate information to give you.

Let me know your decisions! And if you have suggestions on where to stash the NPC (and a good reason to belive they would follow that suggestion), feel free to share those, as well. :)


This message was last edited by the GM at 14:18, Fri 01 Aug 2014.

Once they were aboard the ship, Fox began to head for the cabins

"I will leave the security arrangements of the prisoner to you Snake" Fox said "I will ensure Rain Feather is comfy" he said indicating her cabin.

He then looked to Silver Raven

"However Raven, we previously captured one of the Tiger soldier's staff weapons. Perhaps now we know it's function you could examine and see how it works. It could prove useful"

As he walked he looked to Sun Fox

"If you wish, you may join us" Fox offered

Fox will take Rain's previous cabin and won't mind staying on the floor in this instance after he slept well previously. If Sun Fox joins that's up to her

Sun Fox seemed puzzled at Sabre Fox's words.

"What do you mean?"

Sharing in Sun Fox's puzzlement here, Sabre Fox.

Also, Sun Snake, if you remember, when you were controlling the White Tiger, you accidentally made the staff it was wielding self-destruct - almost killing the team, if I remember right. Which would imply that no, you have not the faintest idea how Sejanoz's energy staves work. :)

To everybody, I shall also remember that it's still very early in the morning, so if you want to have a little bit of in-character chatting (or make posrts of your characters musing on their own), feel free to.

Sun Snake nodded, but instead turned to Frost Ferret and Swift Fox. "I should go and try to do what I attempted last night, and make contact," he said. "The bindings may be secure, but the one who controlled them has gone, and our prisoner has had some time to test them. I would advise keeping him close where he has little exits and is in sight. Still, I trust your judgement on the matter."

Sun Snake then turned to Gromour. "Is there somewhere private we could go? I believe I can make contact with the Guildmaster, infact I managed it before. And there are things he should know - beyond the terrible news I have already shared with him - that may be best told unfiltered to him first before being shared with your crew. You will be able to hear what I say to him aswell, so you can understand some of what we face now our mission to the Maakengorge is finished."

Sun Snake briefly looked to Dawn Sword, as if thinking on something. "Dawn Sword, if you do not mind staying available for when I return. There is something I need to ask you, and a simpler thing I need to ask of you."

Sun Snake is happy to go back to his own cabin unless someone else wants access to it.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:01, Fri 01 Aug 2014.

Swift had made no move to go for any of the cabins, merely standing around on deck, still looking deep in thought and slightly anxious about something.

As Sun Snake spoke up, she seemed to rouse herself and looked towards him.  Her expression suggested she was about to speak up, perhaps to ask him to relay a message to Banedon?
However, she seemed to think better of it and looked away again, moving towards the front of the ship and leaning on the rail, peering out over the landscape beneath them with a troubled expression.

Drawing the Jade Spike from her belt, she examined the spiralling jade design on the hilt, frowning slightly in concentration as though trying to unravel some kind of puzzle that only she could see...


OOC: I don't think Swift is too fussed about which cabin to take.  She'd probably be quite happy to sleep on the deck :)

"To say all the things you never had a chance to tell her" fox said solemnly "it may be the last time I can, and I don't intend to waste it"

Raven should definitely have a look at the staff then! Snake isn't trustworthy ;)

Water Hornet had introduced himself to the first mate and present crew members upon boarding the Skyrider. Although it had been merely a simple 'Water Hornet, Magnakai Sentinel' accompanied with a bow, it had been done with all politeness the situation required.

Once aboard, Water Hornet looked around and spent a moment to take in the beauty of the flying ship. But the moment of lingering also meant that he felt a little lost afterwards as all the others seemed to find the purpose and start moving after their duties. The dwarven crew came to his help unwittingly as they explained where to find the cabins they were allowed to take for themselves.

"I will be right back," said Water Hornet, more to himself than to others around, and descended below deck. He was slightly surprised that finding one of the back cabins he wanted to occupy gave him no trouble. Once inside, Hornet took off his backpack and his cloak and sat on the simple bed.  After a moment of silence, Hornet smiled to himself and shook his head. The smile vanished as he grabbed his cloak and checked his weapons and then set out back onto the deck, leaving the backpack in the cabin.

OOC: Taking cabin nr. 8 if no-one objects.

Once under the clear sky again, Hornet mirrored Swift Fox's actions, but he chose to position himself at the stern of the ship. He spared four Kraan a glance, and then his look was drawn to the horizon and the Maakengorge itself.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:43, Fri 01 Aug 2014.

Silver Raven moved closer to Swift Fox, staring at the chasm alongside her, but said nothing, while Frost Ferret seemed to take charge of helping the dwarves with carrying the imprisoned form of Lobster below deck, as per Sun Snake's orders.

Sun Fox, instead, seemed to consider Sabre Fox's words, before shaking her head and answering, her tone sad:

"I... I think I will do that later on; I need to get to grips with... with what I would actually want to tell her. I will ask you to let me have a moment alone with her later; meanwhile, you can use this time on your own with her for saying your own goodbyes yourself."

Groumor, meanwhile, nodded to Sun Snake and said, in a serious tone:

"If you have the means, than contacting the Captain is most certainly something we need to do. If you want to come to the map room, we can do that there - I will make sure we are not disturbed."

"Thank you Groumor, that sounds acceptable," said Sun Snake, clearly now preoccupied with what he would say to the man.

Swift had closed her eyes and was apparently still concentrating intently on the weapon in her hands.  Her hair and the red scarf were the only things about her that were moving, stirring in the breeze that blew across the deck of the flying ship.
She didn't react to Silver Raven's approach at first, but after a moment she spoke up as if continuing a conversation they'd been having, or perhaps one she'd been having with herself.

"I think I will go back some day, if I survive all of this.  Back to Anskaven.  I can't help but think that maybe..."
She paused for a moment before continuing.
"Maybe just a faint hope.  Too much to hope for really.  But I'm sure he lied to me when he said she was killed, the more I think about it, the more I'm convinced."

She opened her eyes again and glanced up at Silver Raven.
"What the others said before when we landed and went to meet with the crew, it got me thinking about things.  Things I suppose I always pushed to the back of my mind and ignored before.  The only thing I've really decided is that I want to know for sure what happened back then."
She indicated the Jade Spike as she continued, looking back at the weapon.
"This was my father's favourite weapon, the ultimate weapon he thought of it.  The lingering echo he left within it told me that.  If he killed her, it would have been with this.  And if I can master that ability of reading those memories, I can try to discover who his last victims were.  And I also want to know who crafted this thing and why."

She cupped her hands over the dagger and closed her eyes again.
"Like I said before, I never could stand the touch of another mind on mine after that.  Even just the idea of opening myself up to someone or something else was a terrifying thought.  But now...  Maybe now...  Like Sun Snake said before.  That may have been what I was missing then.  I think I understand how this works now.  And it should be easier with this, it was designed to hold the memories of its wielders after all..."
With that, she frowned slightly in concentration again, trying to open her mind and establish a psychic link to the weapon in her hands...


OOC: Doing psychic experiments with lethal haunted magical weaponry is perfectly safe, right? :)
This message was last edited by the player at 21:35, Sat 02 Aug 2014.

Silver Raven nodded, putting his hands over Swift Fox's as he said, in a soft tone:

"Just focus; I'll try and help you out."
While Swift Fox was lost in her own experiment, Groumor simply nodded to Sun Snake, gesturing for him to follow as he directed himself toward one of the rooms on the forecastle.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:09, Sun 03 Aug 2014.

Aww, everyone's going to do sad introspective stuff while Snake plots your...umm...reports to Banedon...

Swift's eyes flicked open again as Silver Raven brought her back.
She leaned against the rail, gasping for air like someone dragged up from an ocean.  her hands trembled and tightened their grip on the dagger to prevent it falling.

Recovering from the experience, she looked up at Silver Raven with a hint of a smile on her face despite the weariness that was still there.
"Did you see too?  She wasn't there.  She wasn't one of his victims."
She looked back at the Jade Spike, running her fingers over the carvings with a soft touch.


Returning it to her belt, she looked up at Silver Raven again.
"I need to go back further.  I think it was crafted a long time ago, back in the days of Agarash.  This is no whimsical enchantment, I think this was made with a definite purpose in mind, and I want to know what that was."

She glanced back along the deck of the ship, spotting Water Hornet near the stern and catching a glimpse of some of the others as they descended to the cabins.
"Still, we have more important things to think about right now.  I wonder if the equipment the others have can be improved much in the time we have now.  We'll need every advantage we can get if it turns out that this 'Vyctar' can't be reasoned with."

Pulling off her backpack, she dropped it to the deck beside her and pulled out an object, some sort of torq made from platinum and studded with opal gemstones, lots of them.
"I found this among the High Priest's items.  Seems like something he would have liked, and probably made regular use of.  But it seems a little impractical, and definitely not something I'd like to use myself.  Also, the enchantment on it does seem like something I'd rather didn't exist in Magnamund.  I've had enough experience of that for one lifetime!"
She poked and prodded at some of the opals.
"Do you think we could make use of the materials to enhance the equipment the others are using?  Also, perhaps the crew might have something..."


OOC: Anyone fancy some upgrades? :)
This message was last edited by the player at 13:20, Sun 03 Aug 2014.

I'm sure you will find somebody who's interested. :)

Silver Raven's eyebrow raised at the sight of the item, then narrowed as he put his fingers over it, and he commented, in a very dark tone:

"I can see what you're talking about. Yeah, better to dismantle this thing sooner than later, and I would suggest not speaking of its effects at all - who knows if some might be tempted..."

He paused, then shook his head and added, more relaxed:

"As for using it for material, that sounds good. We could have plenty of uses for these opals; I think some agility-enhancing pieces of armour would be useful, and maybe see if any of the weapons we have aboard have uncontrollable effects we can enhance. And really, we wouldn't be able to call ourselves Kai if we couldn't make use of the platinum, would we? It's just amatter of deciding who'd benefit most from it... and I think I have some ideas."

He grinned, his eyes alight with passion as he discussed the possibilities of what they could do.

As long as you don't break my shiny sword, any upgrade would be welcome! Come find Snake later :D

Swift grinned slightly at Raven's response to her suggestion.
"What did you have in mind?" she asked.

Reaching back into her quiver, she drew out a strange looking arrow.
It had a golden cylinder studded with four diamonds where a normal arrow would have a point, making it look more like a short sceptre than an arrow.
"I don't know if we can use this too.  Hard to tell how useful it would be in battle, though the idea of shooting someone to help them seems like a novel one.  Maybe it was crafted by someone with an odd sense of humour."
She smirked at that, looking the arrow over.

"I might see if the crew have anything we can use too" she added, looking around for any of the dwarves nearby...


OOC: Since Groumor has gone off with Sun Snake, does it look like he left anyone in charge up on deck?

During the various talking a that had gone on, Fox had excused himself after Sun Fox's words to Rain Feathers cabin. Once he had made her comfortable on her bed, he had left her to go fetch something of importance. Once he had it, he quickly made his way to the deck. He then headed to Raven and Swift who appeared to be talking

"You may want to look at this" he said handing him a laser staff "we have seen it's power first hand and it could be rather useful in the coming days"

Silver Raven smiled at Swift Fox's words.

"I was thinking we could make something to make Sun Snake's powers stronger from the platinum, if needed. Or enhance everybody's psychic defenses."

He then turned the weird arrow in his hands and mused, his tone thoughtful:

"Well, it is unusual, but, I can see the kind of thinking that went into this thing. In the Gnaag Wars, we were always losing people due to all the undeads the Darklords fielded - being bale to keep the healer away from the frontline, able to deliver cures from a longbow's range, would have helped a lot. This is a thing made for war - I'm not surprised you would not immediately see the usefulness, Swift, it's just not your sort of thing."

The man smiled at her, then was distracted when Sabre Fox brought the staff to the two of them. He took it from the Magnakai's hands before his eyes narrowed, and he passed it to Swift Fox so that she could check it over herself before turning to Sabre Fox and asking, his tone serious:

"What makes you think something like that could ever be useful for us? I really can't see how."

Swift's eyes narrowed as she peered at the staff, concentrating intently on it for a moment.
Her eyes widened suddenly as if she had noticed something disturbing about it and she placed it carefully onto the deck as if wary of it suddenly exploding at any moment.

"This is a weapon clearly meant to be used by easily expendable troops" she said, looking up at Sabre.
"It feeds on life force and can drain the life of its wielder to inflict extremely high damage on its target, or else by draining a large quantity of energy it can be made to explode killing everything around it.  Including the wielder and any of their allies in the blast radius.  A very dangerous weapon, for the user as well as their victims."


OOC: Might be handy if one of us felt particularly suicidal and wanted to take all of the Drakkarim down with them :)  hehe.

Oh, I forgot Sun Snake knew that much. Yeah, EP for shots, but I think the EP loss might have been permanent?

Sun Snake might have accidentally triggered that second mode earlier...

Edit: And by accidentally I mean he had no idea which mode did what and so had a 50/50 chance to tell the soldier to activate one of the modes :)
This message was last edited by the player at 10:39, Mon 04 Aug 2014.

OOC: Should I post up the stats for it, assuming Swift's explanation would have "revealed" them?

"Because I have seen how powerful it is" Fox replied to Raven "However, I was unaware of its ....... Drawbacks"

He mused to himself for a moment

"It makes sense. The Tiger soldiers looked dead and were essentially enslaved to the Ceners. It's no doubt that they are expendable. Simply they kill thier targets or detonate to take them with them...... Very chilling"

I'd be interested in the stats :)

You can post the stats if you want, Swift Fox. :)

Silver Raven shrugged.

"Powerful or not, it's not something we can make any use of. It might be worth studying, to see if we can replicate the effect without the drawback, but that's not something done in a day."

Swift poked tentatively at the staff once more before shifting backwards slightly away from it.
"Maybe it could be made to drain something other than the life force of its wielder, perhaps taking its energy from another source.  But right now, I'd say it's too dangerous to use."

She stared at the item for a moment with a thoughtful expression as if something had just occurred to her, but then glanced briefly at Raven and looked away from the object again, standing up and pulling her backpack on.
"Did you see where Groumor went to?  I wondered if he has anything we can use on the Skyrider?"
She picked up the strange looking arrow Raven had been examining earlier and peered curiously at the tip before returning it to her quiver again.


OOC: Stats are:
Can reduce your max END to inflict damage to a target equal to 6 times the amount of max END you spent.  (So very powerful, but you shrivel up and weaken a little more with each attack!)
Or you can reduce your max END by 20 to charge up the staff and make it explode, doing 500 damage to everything within a 100m radius.  Ouch.

END losses are permanent as far as I know, since they impact your Max END.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:20, Mon 04 Aug 2014.

Yeah, Sun Snake knew there were two modes, one that took a set drain and one that was a drain multiplier, so he assumed the set drain was an explosive blast... which technically it was...

Just... it did the job too well and we would all have taken 500EP damage or something ridiculous has Sun Fox not acted quickly :p

Edit: Double posted, yeah, kinda scary weapon, right? And I only knew part of it from OOC perspective of chosing an attack mode :)
This message was last edited by the player at 20:44, Mon 04 Aug 2014.

And just think, I gave you this one just at the beginning of thread III... puts things into a certain perspective, doesn't it? :)

Swift Fox, Groumor is plotting your course in the map room with Snake at this time.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:55, Mon 04 Aug 2014.

Water Hornet had been watching the land below in silence. He had spared Swift Fox and Silver Raven a glance but otherwise had seemed to be lost in his own thoughts.

When Sabre Fox joined Swift and Raven at the bow, Hornet moved towards the group after a little while.

"The White Tigers were not so much enslaved to the Ceners as they were...given to them," followed Hornet on Sabre's words, "they originate from Bhanar and travelled with the Ceners upon the command of the Bhanarian autarch - Sejanoz. At least, that's my guess. But you're right: they seem to lack their own will or even soul, so they wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice themselves if necessary." Hornet supressed a shake as he recalled his encounter with one of the soldiers.

OOC: Wow, the stats are indeed scary. Maybe we should've tried to get control of one of the White Tigers in case we need to send him into a Drakkarim camp...or, you know, introduce him to Valador ;)
This message was last edited by the player at 21:11, Mon 04 Aug 2014.

Sun Snake did....then he played around with the staff weapon... now we need a new White Tiger slave.

OOC: LOL, maybe a dwarf would do...or Frost Ferret would be willing to sacrifice for the team. ;) Speaking of which...how susceptible to psychic manipulation can Fall Lobster be...? O:-)

Let's find out!

Swift glanced towards where Sun Snake and Groumor had gone.  Clearly she was debating within herself whether or not to follow them, but eventually she shook her head and sat back down on the deck.

Pausing to remove her backpack and the mirrored shield and place them both beside her, she pulled off the damaged red hide vest she was wearing and examined the numerous places where it had been torn and scarred by various attacks over the course of its journey so far.
A frown of concentration appeared on her face as she glanced briefly towards Silver Raven and looked back at the largest tear on the vest.  She took the torn edges and pressed them together, holding them there, apparently trying to mimic something she had seen Raven do on several occasions before...


OOC: Decided against sneaking after Sun Snake (mostly because he can detect her with Divination anyway, hehe).

Actually, you might find yourself pleasantly surprised by Shadow's next post...

With a smile, Silver Raven sat dowen next to Swift Fox, and then said, gently taking the jacket from her hand:

"You need to focus a bit to make that one work; crafting without tool requires you to access your Kai powers, like you would for healing, and just like healing, it needs precision and careful application. Look carefully."

Then, he moved his right hand to grip the jacket in a very peculiar manner, his hand seeming to go almost rigid, like a clamp; then he distended his left hand, keeping all the fingers touching each other, and used it to push the red leather toward the cut part from beneath, in such a way that the edges of the tear were close. He seemed to measure things with his eyes for a moment, then used the thumb of his left finger to struck down, in a match-like motion but a relatively soft one - and that called a metallic sound from the leather, almost as if it had been struck by an hammer over an anvil. The reaction was also the same, with the rigid leather softening a bit - just enough so that the two edges of the tear, who had before being too ragged to be properly fit together, now matched each other perfectly."

Silver Raven looked uop from his work, an impish smile on his face even as one lock of his long platinum hairs had fallen on his face, before saying to Swoft Fox, in a teasing manner:

"And an important thing to remember: you can do this without tools, but to do it without material is a different trick alotgether, Can you tell how that one goes?"
There was an hint of a challenge, if a teasing and friendly one, in the young man's voice - he clearly wanted to see  how good Swift fox had become at this."
Before Swift Fox could answer, though, Groumor suddenly appeared next to the group, and bowed to Swift Fox before saying, his tone respectful:

"Lady Fox, Captain Banedon and Lord Snake would like you to join them in the discussion they're currently having, if you could spare a few moments for it."
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 20:11, Tue 05 Aug 2014.

"And what am I?" Fox asked "Chopped Giak? Looks like you and I will have to enjoy each other's company Raven" Fox smirked

Swift watched Silver Raven's demonstration carefully, her eyes wide like a child seeing something fascinating, unable to look away.
At Raven's tone, a hint of an equally playful smirk crossed her own face and she reached out for the jacket, clearly about to respond when Groumor appeared with his message.

She blinked and looked up at him, as if something about his request seemed confusing to her, or else just very unexpected.
"Might be something about Valador" she said, looking back at Silver Raven and Sabre Fox.
She focused her gaze on Raven again, a ghost of her grin appearing again.
"I'll be right back" she said.  "I'll leave the Torq with you.  If there's anyone on Magnamund I know I can trust with such an object..."
She winked at him, leaving the sentence unfinished and quickly stood up, pulling the jacket back on again and picking up the backpack and the mirrored shield before following the dwarf.

Once out of earshot of the others, she looked towards Groumor.
"I'm curious, did Sun Snake tell you anything about Valador after we returned to you?" she asked him in a low voice.


OOC: Following Groumor for now.  And also taking the opportunity to check something that Swift is a little uncertain of for now ;)

Groumor did't seemed bothered by Sabre Fox's comment on his lack of importance - indeed, he didn't even reacted to it - and merely moved to escort Swift Fox to the map room once she was ready to follow.

When the girl herself asked him her question, though, the dwarf seemed to consider for a moment before answering:

"Lord Snake said many things about Valador, but he was speaking with the Captain, not with me - I was merely to be a witness to the discussion. I have gathered enough to know that he's acting untowardly and we should watch out for possible interference on his part, but I'm not a Sommerlending, so your politics are not really something I concern myself with. If my input in the matter was needed anyway, I can trust that Captain Banedon would ask for it; as things stand, the crew and their wellbeing is what I'm concerned with, and all that I can do to assure that is to be alert for any possible intrusions on Valador's part, nothing more."

That said, the first mate opened the door to the map room, beckoning the girl to enter.

Silver Raven, meanwhile, had turned toward Sabre Fox with a raised eyebrow s he asked, sounding curious:

"Swift Fox was the leader of the mission which rescued me, and Sun Snake of the one you were into. I could see Sun Fox also being needed, for her position as the Grand Master's disciple. But, why would you think they'd have the same need of you as they did of her? Anything you could provide, Sun Snake likely could as well, and with more authority beside; I can see the reasoning for calling Swift Fox, but I can't see why you would expect to be summoned as well."

There was an inquisitive tone to Raven's question, as if he was really curious about Sabre Fox's thought processes and why he would feel slighted art not being summoned alongside Swift Fox.

Yay, distention in the ranks! :D

OOC: Hmm?  Where?  Just a perfectly innocent question with no ulterior motives at all :)  hehe.


Swift peered back at the dwarf for a moment as if considering his answer.
"Politics", she mused quietly to herself, a hint of a dark look on her face.
Then she shrugged lightly and smiled back at Groumor.
"Thank you" she said with a slight bow as she turned towards the cabin door.

Sun Snake emerged back on the deck of the ship, looking around to see what was happening. He noted Sabre Fox had returned and headed to the man speculatively.

"Sabre, what are your plans for joining the Drakkar? Is there anything you need? Now might be a good time to test the magnet, before you go."

Water Hornet listened in silence. He narrowed his eyes boring with his gaze into the dwarf when he mentioned the Guildmaster's name, but nothing more was said and whatever questions Hornet had they remained unanswered.

Likewise, Raven's comments accompanying his question to Sabre Fox clearly caught Hornet's interest - and again: a distraction in the form of Sun Snake appeared, as if to prevent the young Magnakai from learning any more information about the recent events involving his fellow Kai.

OOC: Nothing suspicious going on here at all :)
This message was last edited by the player at 22:53, Tue 05 Aug 2014.

"Because there are too many secrets between fellow Kai" Fox said, his tone annoyed uncharacteristically. "Secrets are what have put us in this situation with plots behind closed doors, could have led to us handing a weapon to madman and has already killed one of us"

He took a deep breath before continuing

"I'm sorry" he began "But secrets are killing this order. It leads to dissection and plotting against one another when that should be the last thing on our minds. We are all brothers and sisters in arms, and not ones waiting to put a dagger between our shoulder blades."

At this point Fox saw Snake approach from the cabin

"I'm ready to go. All I need is pointing in the direction of the Drakkar and I will do the rest. How you want to test the magnet is up to you"

No argument from Sun Snake, he's been fighting people keeping secrets this whole time.

"That's the point, you probably best get a feel for the magnet yourself while I am here to advise you on its use. It will help guide you to the Sommerswerd and Vyctar just as much as it will let us track you."

Sun Snake looked around to find Water Hornet. "Have you already tried to track the Kraan? I can help as best as a can."

Sun Snake looked to the group in general. "I managed to contact Banedon. His only warning was that we should guard the knowledge of the evidence against Valador from the man. He may well attack us immediately if he suspects it exists. So not only do we need to keep Fall Lobster alive, we need to keep him hidden."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:52, Wed 06 Aug 2014.

Sabre Fox's words were accompanied by an almost imperceptible nod from Water Hornet. And then another, clearly noticeable, one.

Sun Snake's question seemed to snatch him out of whatever thinking he was lost in. "No," replied Water Hornet, but the question obviously stirred him up into action. He moved to the railing of the flying ship and took in the vast expanse of the wasteland stretching to the hoizon.

"Every detail you tell me about the Drakkarim could help," said Hornet, referring to the Snake's offer of help, but he also looked at Sabre Fox, "most importantly: any general direction they would fly in? Also, were those ten I saw the whole group or you think they'd be joined by more men? Would they be carrying anything that could burden the beasts...?"

Giving others a moment to answer the questions, and possibly come up with more information, Water Hornet looked around the deck. OOC: I'll assume there's at least someone of the dwarven crew nearby. Otherwise, ignore the following: "I will call one of the Kraan to come closer - let that not unsettle you, good dwarves," he called to the crew on deck and beckoned one of the Kraan flying behind the Skyrider to draw level with him, although still keeping a respectful distance from the flying ship.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:25, Wed 06 Aug 2014.

Sun Snake moved to where Water Hornet was, putting his hand on the man's shoulder even as he closed his eyes. "Similarly, if you can lower any mental shielding, I can use your own senses afterwards to steer my own senses of tracking, and give you even better guidance."

Kai feedback loop for the win!

"The Drakkar should only be the ten that left, unless Sabre knows any different to another force that would meet them at the edge. The five we came with as armoured as nornal, I do not know how well the other five re-equipped themselves after their capture. Their leader has the echoes of logic of Vyctar. They were paranoiad about Dusk Rat's abilities with the Kraan, Sabre Fox can perhaps share exactly what he said to Rankhar that made the man nervous. However, since we will not have been visiblely in pursuit, the man may well have favoured speed over trickery in their direction. The last I knew Vyctar would have been heading for the Hammerlands."

"And how exactly do I 'get a feel' for it?" fox asked raising an eyebrow "Really Snake, I need more to go on than that"

Sun Snake briefly looked around. "Hold the magnet in the palm of your hand and allow it to move freely. It should move towards the strongest magical force. Once is does, there is a way to shield the movement with your other hand to allow the magnet to then roll towards the next strongest force. "

The closest dwarves seeemd surprised by Water Hornet's comment, but they nodded and passed word along to the other members of the crew of his intention; even so, there was no missing the way glances they all threw in the direction of the Magnakai and the kraan as the latter moved to flew closer to the ship.

Let's just scare out comrades :D

OOC: Fear is good.  It helps you stay focused ;)  (Just keeping myself in-character!)
This message was last edited by the player at 22:13, Wed 06 Aug 2014.

Fear is very good indeed. It keeps people alive! ^_^