Quest War

[Verilian]

Aello The two men complied with Aello's instructions, both realizing that they did not have time for arguments over who was in charge. The mage moved off to the side with the archer and crouched down, summoning his res and preparing it for the ambush ahead. His power crept out along the ground and through the air, poised for the attack. The archer readied his bow as Aello had, and all three waited as the ground rumbled and the creature approached. The beast erupted from the tree line, stumbling out onto the ledge as it struggled to stop itself before falling over the edge. Aello had been right, though she could not know how much, and the creature was weakened from its chase and the usage of its rending power. Such attacks drained the creature severely, and it was not ready for the ambush they set for it. Arrows rained down on it from both archers, causing the beast to roar in pain and fury. It began to turn, but a gust of wind from behind thanks to Red caused it to stumble forward again, closer to the edge. But the mage wasn't done. Continuing with the plan, a pillar of earth rose from the ground beneath the monster's hind legs, shoving it forward even harder than the wind itself. The beast lurched and scrambled to maintain its balance, but inevitably, it went over the edge. It let out a roar and another rending blast from its toothy maw as it fell, the chaotic waves blasting through the edge of the cliff and catching the archer's leg, causing it to boil and melt away before the effect spread to the rest of his body, reducing him to a oozing puddle of flesh and blood in a matter of seconds. The cliff they were standing on began to fall away as the beast crashed into the trees far below them, and Aello and Red had to run for the tree-line or risk falling to their deaths. The entire cliff, and even some of the trees, fell away as the waves of chaos tore through it and all crashed to the ground far below. Assuming she made it away quick enough, Aello would find herself alive and safe with Red. The missing soldier finally arrived as well, leaving them with just three survivors from the battle. "Well.. that went well," Red muttered as he dusted the dirt from his robes. "..I guess we should go make sure there isn't anything else in the temple now." After an appropriate amount of rest, the surviving three would eventually return to the temple and find it empty. There were no more monsters, and save for a few spiders and rats, the temple was devoid of life. The temple itself was mostly a crumbling ruin, barely intact enough to provide shelter from rain or cold, but there was thing that remained untouched by age and ruin. In the central chamber was a large altar carved from white marble. Embedded in the base of the altar was the obsidian symbol of Rhysol, a black sun. The altar was completely unscathed, and when they touched it for the first time, and only the first time, they each felt a jolt of power course through them, healing their wounds and reenergizing their bodies. The temple was secure, and all they had left to do was wait.. though they could certainly explore the area if they wished. Everyone Else The river was quite peaceful, and Clyde would find his mind at ease by the time he managed to fill the flask with water. At least, he might have, had Gallo not come to bother him. All the peaceful scenery in the world would not help him if he truly wanted to be alone, but Gallo did pose an important question, and one that might surprise the mage. Clyde was indeed in danger, and if he failed to do what he promised, his safety upon return to Ravok could not be guaranteed, though perhaps his newfound status as an apprentice might help protect him somewhat. Of course, there was a more immediate danger, but Clyde was not yet aware of that. Kyra would be the first to spot it. While Iskessah had managed to find the same path that Kyra was looking at from above, the kelvic's eyes would inevitably be drawn to something far more pressing. To the north was a stream running through the mountains, the very stream that Clyde and Gallo were conversing next to. Traveling along the shore of that stream was a large group of... shambling, humanoid creatures. They were heading toward Clyde and Gallo, though Kyra likely could not see them, but more importantly they were heading toward the army. Iskessah would make it back before Kyra did, and Samara was quite pleased to hear that she had found a way down. "Excellent! We will take this path in the morning. Take extra rations tonight, you've earned it." Iskessah was dismissed, and if she was hungry, she would be allowed double the normal amount of food that night in comparison to what she was normally allowed. Meanwhile, Gallo and Clyde would likely notice the danger that was fast approaching them. The creatures that were traveling up the shore of the stream were far from quiet, grunting loudly and often breaking into small fights between themselves. The horde would be upon them in mere chimes, at about the same time that Kyra would arrive back in camp if she hurried, and Clyde and Gallo would find themselves face to face with a group of violent, strange rock-like creatures, who would attack the moment the spotted the duo. It was possible that neither of them had seen such creatures before, but if they had, or if they had heard the stories, they would recognize the creatures as Yukmen. Important OOC Info Concerning Winter : Okay, first I would like to apologize for taking so long in responding to this. I promise it won’t happen again.. I got distracted with Nano, but now my goal is to get all my modded threads wrapped up ASAP, but without sacrificing anything I had planned for them. Now.. concerning the winter season. Barring terrible unforeseen circumstances, your characters should survive this thread. If they don't, or they come out with terrible injuries, you can always edit later.. but that is the case with most threads like this. Anyway, once winter is here, you have two options with your characters. You will have the choice to remain at the basecamp and continue doing missions, or you can leave. Where you go is up to you. Syliras is only a day away from the camp, so if you want, you can travel to Syliras and play there. If you would prefer to go back to Ravok, or anywhere else, just make sure to account for travel time. But once winter is here, you will be free to do as you please. This thread will of course continue to its completion, but I do not want to timelock any of you, so once winter starts, you are free to move on. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

[Aello]

"Hardly," Aello grumbled under her breath as she crept through the line of trees to the temple in silence. The sounds of her companion's steps and the thundering of her own heart being the only two things that seemed to keep her awake, considering the exhaustion that was beginning to seep into her bones. Within a few chimes, they reached the empty temple. Safe and secure. Why would they want us to tame this place? the huntress wondered as she began to look around and stopped alongside the gentle slope of a white marble altar. Touched it in the same moment as the others. "Did you feel that?" Aello whispered, as she retracted her hand and turned to her companions. She thought she could see them nod. But she wasn't sure. At least she wasn't entirely crazy. That was comforting, at least. The huntress took a half step back. "We should make camp," she commented. "While we wait for the others to get here. May be awhile," she said with an uneasy smile as she set herself down near the dark altar. Waiting for the men to do the work. She had made the camp yesterday. And the day before. And the day before that... OOCI think this is where I make my exit until part two. Have fun everybody! And... break a leg?

[Clyde Sullins]

Clyde let out a deep breath, as he filled the flask... He would take his time on the way back... Even if he did get yelled at for taking so long, he did not really care. He had no real motivation to do the job fast. For a moment he was calm, and a grin almost came over his face, only to be broken off as Gallo spoke once more... Petch... Why had he followed him? What the petch was wrong with him? Could he not tell when he wanted to be left be? Clyde was about to yell at him to go back and leave him to himself, when Gallo's question registered in his head... How did he? He stood and rounded on Gallo as a cold stone dropped frigidly into his gut. His face once more placid, as he scrutinized Gallo's face for any sign of... Anything... He took a step closer, bringing his face close to Gallo's. "If I choose to hide things, I do so, on my own reason. Either as you are not ready to know, or I don't think you should know. I should think by now you would know, a blabbermouth mage who has no secrets, winds up either dead, or being used. So are you saying you have no secrets? Nothing you have learned no one else knows or most don't? Really? I wonder which of the categories you will wind up in then." Really, their entire profession, one of magic and arcane manipulations, was one of secrets. Magic existed upon it. How could you be a mage, if everyone know of magic, or could do it? Then mages would be as nothing. Magic was all about learning and expanding ones own skills, while doing ones best to keep the information to yourself, unless divulging it was to your own benefit, or was such general knowledge it was of little worth. "Now who is this man that you spoke to, that threatened me, or warned you of my being in danger? What exactly did they say, or look like?" Clyde could think of one of two people that would most likely fit the bill... And since he doubted it was the nuit, the mans mage servant or student or whatever seemed more likely... Unless Gallo was just full of it, and had met some random man. But he had an inkling what this was about, after all he himself had so recently received a reminder... Gallo had a bit of time to answer, before Rye began a deep growl, pointing off in a different direction, glaring at something. At first Clyde did not know what he had seen... But soon enough the group of Yukmen came into view... "Petch... Yukmen..." Clyde in fact had run into these things before... Several times... He had been attacked just last season by some, along with Rezren... And before that, he had been attacked by a bunch, along with Aello... That was when he had created the fire arrow idea. So as soon as he laid eyes on them, and heard their all to familiar voice, he turned to face them, dropping his staff at his feet, and placing the palms of both his hands on the ground. "Get ready to defend yourself. It's yukmen. Petching monsters. And we don't have time to get back to the group." As Clyde had place his hands on the ground, he began extruding res out of the palms of his hands, flowing it as a liquid directly into the dirt beneath their feet. He sunk it in beneath himself, and then slowly began to spread it out, trying to make a circle of saturated earth which he could easily manipulate. He knew they might look like they were made of solid stone, but they bled all the same as any man, once through the layer of rocky skin, or rock littered skin. And a reimanced spike of earth a good four foot long, being shot through the air into ones chest or head, would kill them the same as any man. Luckily he was getting quite good at doing so. And being as skilled in reimancy as he was did not hurt either. Once he had gotten the ground in a circle around him soaked well enough, he would rise, bringing the palms of his hands straight up parallel to each other till they were up to his chest, using it as a gesture. As he did the motion, a twin trail of rock and earth rose out of the ground a few inches over 4 foot, a twist of his wrist rotating it, and leveling it off and dropping the excess bits that had clung. A few twitches of his fingers sharpened the edge, grinding off a little bit, so that the tip of each of the spikes was jagged and sharp like a stone spear. Then he tilted both of the palms of his hands up, so they were no longer pointing down at the ground, but outward and in front of him. That was another gesture, and as he did the spears of stone rotated from there vertical position, to hold in the air horizontally, their sharp points now pointed at the yukmen he had seen. Once one got close enough, he would make a twin move, thrusting the palms of both of his hands forward like he was pushing at something, and launching the twin spikes at the nearest yukmen, aiming for there chest or head. Now he could aim better than before, changing and enhancing its flight path on their way to their destinations, with more slight twitches of his fingers, looking like he was tapping at the air. All the while he could feel the call of his essence reverberating out of the ground, as the chunk of himself soaked into the earth under his feet thrummed in his ears... Ready to pull up more earth, as he had done the last time he battled yukmen. More of a last ditch close up thing, pulling up a jagged spike directly out of the ground, to pierce through a foe just before it reaching him. Calling up a earthen spike to litter the ground before him if he had to, but preferring to do one or two at a time though... He let out another deep breath, as he could feel his res slowly spreading out... A trickle of it flowing down his legs and over his boots...

[Clandestine Duplais]

“Clyde, I’m bound to you by magic not fully understood by myself, how can you hide something this important?” Gallo thought to himself in reaction to his master’s reaction to the question. “I’ve been open with myself, surely I at least gain the same treatment?” “I do have secrets, but none of them threaten others but myself,”he didn’t feel threatened by the warning up until this point. “From what you say, this sounds like something that concerns me now because I became blindly affiliated with you. I don’t remember much about the man other than he had brilliant blue eyes. Even though he was a stranger I felt unthreatened by his presence, sort of like a draw. It was strange, I don’t remember much about him due to time and I didn’t think to get a good look at him.” Gallo’s stance turned from mild annoyance and optimism to one that was more reserved. “I wish I could tell you more but --" The sound of Clyde’s dog as it growled at a growing noise interrupted him, “sounds like the group is headed this way now.” Rye continued to growl even louder and with more force than before, Clyde moved his head in his dog’s direction before he himself turned to look as well. What he saw was man, though their skin seemed dry, cracked, dehydrated. They made an awful noise that stung the ear and made the soul quake within it’s shell. “Yukmen?” Gallo hollered over the grunts and growls, “what in Rhysol’s good name are those?” Initial panic didn’t quite set in until Clyde adopted a fighting stance. “Danger, defend? Is the world this full of it?” He wondered to himself and skittered away from Clyde some, just to space their meeting out a bit. He moved a hand to his arms and tightened the straps of his gauntlets. All the while his green eyes stared at the group of, “monsters? Petch, what else is new?” Gallo watched as Clyde began to extrude res from his palms and allow himself to sink into the earth below. If Gallo was more confident in his abilities he would do the same, however at his level he decided to fall back on, “my body and soul will guide me through this, thanks to be to Rhysol.” His quick prayer said he took on a fighting stance. He kept moving away from Clyde as he noted the earth had grown soaked in a sort of pool around Clyde, he didn’t know what the mage had planned. He was correct in his thought as he noted Clyde begin to work his magic. He watched in wonder, as he witnessed the first larger earth conjuring, performed by Clyde while he was present. He watched as the spears of earth soon levitated forward with swift speed toward the nearest Yukmen. “I’m safe for now,” Gallo breathed a sigh before he focused on the rest of the group. “I need to distract the rest of them.” Gallo took a few confident steps forward before he was near one of the yukmen. It was only then he recognized that these humanoids were indeed monster. Stone embedded into their body, skin like earth. He began to recite a small prayer, “the Prayer Of Courage. I call to the citizen’s of Ravok. I call to the lake of Ravok. The might stone that builds Ravok, strengthen my heart--” A loud crack cut Gallo’s speech off as his arm instantly began to throb and vibrate as the spiked fists of his gauntlets made contact with one of the Yukmen. “Petch!” He shouted and moved to a defensive stance near the yukmen. It made an incoherent yell and swung it’s club like arm toward Gallo. He prepared for the blow and brought both arms down to block the strike. He buffered the blow, but it still pushed him back some. Not to mention it strained his arms, virgin to the act of actual combat. He retreated and was followed by the same Yukmen, “are they completely made of stone?” He continued to remain quiet as he analyzed the situation some. He could feel his body begin to buzz in response to the shortened prayer. Still his Djed began to flow through his body, “strengthen my heart and allow me to swiftly confront,” his focus directed his flow of djed toward his legs as he began to charge at the Yukmen. His fist flew a bit less directly this time focusing on glancing the earthen shell. One focused earthquake up his arm was enough. He grunted as he began to direct that Djed to his arms and attempted to maintain the momentum. His fist grazed the yukmen’s body and dislodged some of the earthen skin and stone. Something he hadn’t noticed before was the small bit of blood that decorated the shallow, blunt spikes that lined his knuckles. Another dodge and block from the monster made Gallo retreat once more. “No progress yet, terrific." He said sarcastically. He breathed deeply and then froze as the yukmen charged at him. It’s hands out stretched as it lumbered at him and swiped for his chest. Gallo side stepped in time not to be impaled on the deceptively sharp claws. But beneath torn clothing the skin reddened and began to bead with crimson blood. The shallow valleys soon filled with liquid life. [b]“Shyke,” he growled. He drew as much of his energy up to his arm as he soon swung it downward with great force just behind the monster’ s deformed elbow. It cracked and snapped up in a way arms shouldn't be able to bend. Gallo clenched his teeth, not used to the strike of such a hard surface. He made a move back toward Clyde feeling it was in his best interest not to deviate to far from him. “I know we are under attack, but a bit more information other than YUKMAN,” he shouted, “would be greatly appreciated. That bloody thing nearly made me spill my lunch again, and not through my mouth! Perhaps they have a weakness?” Gallo attempted to calm himself by listening to something other than the attackers. His mind soon focused on the stream as it flowed uninterrupted by the fight, staying blindly within the carved path. His eyes lit up as he kept an eye on the yukmen and another on Clyde, "Water! Could water be used to help us? Perhaps cross the stream?" Gallo reached for an explanation as he began to ready himself for another attack.

[Iskessah]

Iskessah intended to take full advantage of her extra rations. All that hiking had been hungry work, and so when the warning came that the camp was under attack, she was understandably annoyed. She was only halfway through her first helping when the warning came through the came that a hoard of Yukmen were almost upon them. Hunger warred with sense, and finally she stuffed as much meat into her mouth as she could before dashing into the woods. She did not go diretly toward the high-pitched noises of the attackers; she was in no position to defend against unknown monsters. But if the camp were overrun, she would be stranded in the middle of nowhere, so she had to fight the Yukmen somhow. She just hoped she could do so without anyone noticing. As soon as she was out of sight of the came, she disrobed and immediately began the shift into her snake form. She might have been stronger as a Dhani, but these Ravokians might assume that an unfamiliar snake monster was an equal threat to the things attacking them now. However, if she came at the hoard from the side and avoided the bulk of the fighting, as a snake she might be able to go unnoticed altogether. Hoping she would be able to find her clothes later, she set off toward the strong scent of earth that seemed to emmenate from the hoard. It was a relief, being in a form that could sense heat; it was so much more reliable than depending on her eyes alone. Keeping low to the ground, she slithered as quietly and quickly as she could. Now she just needed the opportunity to strike. She had been stepped on recently enough that she was wary of getting too close, but she had to risk it in order to get close enough to do anything. Hoping most of the horde would pass her by rather than descending upon her all at once, she slithered into range and then struck with lightning quickness. The heat of the Yukman was warmer in places not covered by rock, and she aimed for one of these. He fangs sank into the flesh, and she felt potent venom draining into her victim. The thought occurred to her that if she survived the battle, she should try making a meal of one of these things. It might almost make up for the lost opportunity of extra rations. As her poison began corroding the Yukman's internal organs (assuming it had any), Iskessah focused on the rest of the horde. She could hear fighting going on not too far away as others engaged the Yukmen, but they were a bit too far away to help her if she got into trouble. And it looked like she might be in trouble, as a couple of the Yukmen shambled toward her. She coiled into a defensive posture, rattling her tail instinctively. As soon as one of the creatures came in range, she struck again. This one also went down, but more were coming, and she was running out of poison. She stuck until her poison sacs were empty, and then she swung her rattled tail, not even trying to kill then anymore, just trying to keep them off her. She wanted to flee, but if she stopped swinging long enough to escape, they would be upon her. Her only hope was to keep them at bay until the other fighters had defeated the rest of the hoard.

[Kyra]

Kyra raced back to the camp as fast as her legs would carry her. The sight of the strange creatures on the road was enough to send strong chills up the back of her neck. She hadn't ever seen anything like them before, but even so they didn't look at all friendly, barely even human. She hadn't noticed that Clyde and Gallo were standing in their path, and had assumed that the camp as a whole were still waiting for her and the other scout to return.

Once she made it back, she quickly found Samara. The kelvic had been surprised to find out that not only had the other scout returned sooner, but had also found the same path as she had. Though she had little time to dwell on it and explained to Samara of her other findings, being sure to describe as much as she could. It was then that Kyra realized just how dangerous the situation had become and that there were people missing from the camp.

The young kelvic readied her bow, already slipping an arrow in place and headed off with the rest of the camp to fight. She was better at ranged combat with her bow and so instead of following behind the swordsmen and mages, Kyra slipped off into the forest to find a good place to take aim. She stayed close to the others, well enough that she could still see them and the beastly men they raced towards.

Once she was closer, and lightly able to give off clean shots, she stood firm and raised her bow. But there was a problem, there were soldiers mixed in with the hoard, and too much movement for a good shot. Kyra uttered a lot growl and looked around for a better spot. She realized then that she would have a much better angle from high in a tree. She moved, not taking more time to think and slipped her bow over her shoulder and raced towards the closest tall tree.

She slammed against the tree as she started to climb up, clawing and kicking her limbs to propel her upward onto the lowest branch. With her feet turned outward for balance she moved against the tree again and maneuvered herself up to the next branch, continuing this until she was height enough. Kyra slipped her slender form around the tree side, balancing her weight between two thick branches on either side of her shoulders.

From here she could see much clearer and was able to spot off the few people in the group that she had noticed for more than a tick. She then returned the arrow to her bow and raised it again, aiming at the creatures below. Kyra fired quickly, the arrow souring at an angle, yet disappearing somewhere in the dust without striking any targets. A low growl rumbled in her throat as she reached for another arrow and pressed it into the bow.

It appeared that she wasn't as close as she needed to be, as her range wasn't strong enough to follow far enough to make impact. Kyra started to turn away and hurry to another tree when she saw something interesting. A snake like creature was also fighting off the creatures that her camp had just raced to attack. It was a surprise to be sure, and the curious kelvic wasn't sure what to make of it. Still, for the moment, the snake-like being was fighting off the fiends, and she saw an opportunity to thin the hoard more effectively.

Twisting her hips, Kyra adjusted the angle of her body and raised her bow to aim at the rock-like man that were closest to her range. Taking a deep breath, she released the arrow and watched as it soured true, striking into the back of the neck of one of the creatures that the snake-being hadn't flatten yet. There was no time to celebrate however, and she quickly reached for another arrow and slipped it into her bow and fired on her next target.

[Verilian]

Clyde and Gallo were the first to engage the Yukmen, and while Clyde's attacks were effective and Gallo seemed to be at least keeping himself alive, neither of them had a chance to stem the tide of the horde as more and more Yukmen continued to appear. Many got past them, taking other routes or just going right around them as they headed for the camp itself. Clyde and Gallo were not what had attracted the creatures, it was the smoke of fires and the sound of a multitude of people that drew the Yukmen. For all his preparation, Clyde would quickly exhaust his resources if he remained to fight in one place. The mage would have to fall back, and Gallo with him. The more they fought, the more Yukmen they attracted, though it was still a handful in comparison to the horde that ignored them. Their best chance was to retreat and join Samara and the rest of the force. Numbers would be their only chance, not solo heroics, unless they simply wanted to get killed. Iskessah found herself drawing too much attention as well, and soon enough she ran out of poison, and had to resort to dry biting and smashing with her tail. If it weren't for the arrows that seemingly appeared out of nowhere to aid her, the dhani would have found herself quickly overrun. As for Kyra, she was safe in her tree, but would soon run out of targets as she and the large snake finished off the group of stragglers, the main horde having made contact with the Ravokian force and entering all out combat. It did, however, present both of them an opportunity to attack from the rear if they chose to do so. Samara led the charge into the monsters, having faced the creatures before. She was deadly with her kris, which was covered in a potent poison, and she was accompanied by a trio of experienced soldiers. The four of them cut the initial path through the horde, and the rest of the force followed suit. Those who had Ebonstryfe training fared better than most, but almost everyone who signed up for the mission had at least some experience in combat, and though many died, it looked like they would prevail overall. Clyde and Gallo, if they chose to run, would not be pursued, and would also find themselves with an opportunity to flank the horde if they so chose. Many of the monsters on the edge of the fight were squabbling with themselves, eager to kill but unable to get to anything but each other. They were distracted, and made perfect targets. Even with all their advantages, however, the horde still outnumbered the Ravokians three to one, and the fight was certainly going to be a close one.

[Iskessah]

Iskessah was sure she was going to die. Her attacks were filled with desperation, and at every blow from the Yukmen, she felt the next might be her last. When they stopped coming at her, she scanned outward in all directions, convinced more would be upon her any moment to finish her off. The nearest heat signature was some distance off, and appeared to be up a tree, and was probably not an enemy. The bulk of the horde was even farther away. and seemed to be moving generally away from Iskessah. The Dhani spent several chimes just catching her breath and thanking Siku that she had made it out of this alive. She slowly uncoiled herself, hissing in pain at the bruised which covered almost all of her. The muscles in her tail and neck were sore from the uncountable rapid strikes she'd put them through. She wanted nothing more than to rest. She inched her way back in the direction of camp, staying alert for any stray Yukmen and keeping away from the main battle that she could now hear going on. It occurred to her that, to the casual observer, it would seem that she had abandoned the fight, as no one had witnessed her fighting in a for they would recognize as hers. Since she would be unwilling to reveal herself as the mysterious snake combatant, it seemed almost inevitable that she would be reprimanded, her earlier success at finding a path all but forgotten. She gave a long, quiet sigh and resigned herself to the inevitable. She supposed in theory she could shift back and make an appearance at the main battle, but after that near-death experience, she just didn't have it in her to fight again so soon. And it wasn't like there was anyone here she particularly wanted to defend. If a few of Rhysol's precious 'stryfe went to meet him a little sooner than expected, that was nothing to her. No, it would be best for Iskessah to find somewhere sheltered to hide until the fighting stopped. After some time carefully skirting the majority of the fighting, Iskessah found a small outcropping of rock that she found she could slither under and fit quite nicely. It was unlikely anything deadly could follow her in here, and if it did, she would likely only have to fight off one at a time. Iskessah settled in and listened to the sounds of the battle, waiting for it to be safe to emerge.

[Kyra]

Kyra fired another arrow into a Yukmen, her arrow darting through the air and stabbing into it's throat, before sending it tumbling backwards. It was a good shot for her and one that she wouldn't have made often given her position in the tree. She pinched another arrow and slipped it into her bow and fired again. This arrow somehow diving down and past one Yukmen to strike another in the shoulder. She felt a bit relieved once the stragglers had been defeated, but she could still spot the multiple numbers clashing with the Ebonstryfe far ahead. She couldn't help them much from where she was, and knew that she would have to find a closer spot to take aim, or take to the ground and fight along side them.

There was also the mysterious snake-like being that she had saw fighting off the Yukmen. The kelvic didn't know what it was, but one thing she did realize was that it was dangerous. She watched it for the moment, not wanting to make any sounds or movements to attract whatever it was to her direction. The creature was unlike anything that she had ever seen, and she found herself peering at it from above through none blinking eyes.

Finally the creature decided to move in the direction of where the Ebonstryfe had made camp. Kyra knew that this couldn't be a good thing. The army was already busy fighting viscous rock-like humanoids and were getting wounded. The last thing that they needed to worry about was a giant snake-like being waiting for them when they made it back to camp. The Ebonstryfe weren't people that the kelvic cared a lot for, and the only one in the group that she knew was Clyde, still she decided to see this through, even if just for her own curiosity.

Kyra slowly climbed down from the tree, trying her best to make as little noise as possible. Once she was on the ground again, she moved against the tree and watched the snake moving away. The kelvic carefully moved through the brush, attempting to stay out of the beings sight and to step lightly over fallen twigs and leaves to keep herself from being heard. She followed for paces more, the sounds of the battle growing louder as she drew closer to it.

She kept her eyes on the thing that she pursued, watching as it navigated back to towards the camp and slithering into a hole under a outcropping of rock. Kyra paused then, staring at the opening in the rock curiously. It was a good place to hide, and upon return to camp it wasn't likely that anyone would even notice walking pass it. It was hard to say what the creature was up to, or what it was, but Kyra wanted to know. Crouching down, the girl slipped another arrow into her bow and slowly moved closer.

[Verilian]

Iskessah was the smart one. The fighting on the battlefield was intense, and more than one of the company lost their life that day. Samara herself was injured, though not fatally. One particular Yukman, after watching his fellows cut down by the strange bladed weapons their victims were using, picked up a sword from a fallen soldier and approached the woman who seemed to be the leader of the group. She was busy fighting another Yukman, and didn't notice the one with the sword until it was too late. His swing was clumsy, but would have cut her in half if she hadn't noticed at the last moment. Even so, she was unable to completely avoid injury, and took a nasty cut to the ribs before taking the Yukman down. Meanwhile, Clyde and Gallo's position was overrun. The mage and his apprentice had no choice but to abandon their position, though even fleeing was not a guarantee of survival. There were so many, it was impossible to make a full retreat, as many of the Yukman had already gotten behind them. But to just stand and fight was certain death. Iskessah was safe in her hole, no Yukman would find her for sure. They weren't looking for snakes hidden in holes when there was an entire army to fight. But she was not safe from discovery, never had been in fact. Kyra was curious as a cat, and simply could not let the matter lie. She wanted to know just what exactly the mysterious giant snake being was, and what it was trying to do. They say curiosity killed the cat, and hopefully that would not be true in this cat's case, but nonetheless she approached the hole, weapon ready. No Yukman would come upon them, not yet anyway, though she could hear the fighting raging just on the other side of the trees. She would have to keep her guard up, just in case. OOCI figure I'll let you two have a little chat before I progress the main fight any further.