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.