Against the Night

[Cyril]

"It sounds like you've forgotten that nobody here asked or forced you to do that." The jackal squinted carefully at the feline. "You cannot take your own actions and then attack others because of it. It's nobody's fault except your own that you are tired and cranky." He loomed carefully before the boys were called, piercing gaze upon the tired individual. "I should care to remind you, that if your tired ass makes a mistake in a fight and gets caught by one of these fellows who are... Skilled enough to bypass you, the main thing sticking between your squishy ass and certain death is us. You pop like a bug; remember that, and with all of our hefty folk taking a leave of absence or high tailing it after they've claimed the bounty, looks like I'm the main front line."

He grit his teeth and kept the gaze locked seriously. "I don't think you understand.. You may do reconnaissance, but as a fellow who has implied he's trained as such, it'd be much easier for someone like you to escape. But in the heat of the fight, if you guys decide to mess up.. Well let's just say not all of us can dash out so quick. Remember that, next time you think I'm just being a prick." He broke his gaze as the children approached. Crossing his arms to let everyone else do the talking, already in a mood more bitter than his brandy.

[Xavier Akafur]

[Drake posted in another thread that he may not be able to post until Friday, so I'm gonna go ahead and post again so we can keep things moving :p]


Xavier smiled at the girl briefly, his attention soon shifting pulled towards where Camille and Neshar were speaking. He watched them for a short moment before he heard her ask him what it was that they did. He grinned a little, finding it humorous that she was so eager to join a band of characters such as this without having any idea as to what it was she was joining. He turned back towards her. "Well, I will let you know once I find that out." He replied, failing to stifle a chuckle.

"At present, though, we are investigating disturbances in the area. Primarily the Hound of Lockwise, which you have no doubt heard of. We killed it just yesterday afternoon." He said, brows furrowing slightly. "However it appears there may be some intrigue involved with WHY that monstrosity was here in the first place, so presently we are returning to the battlefield and possibly deeper into the woods." The otter-wolf explained.

"On that note we did, if you heard Camille just now, lose about half of our group once the bounty had been collected so we are significantly weaker. If we get into any fights it is going to get hairy." He looked at her carefully. "If you can't hold your own in a fight you had best stay here. We will be hard pressed to protect ourselves, so don't think we can guard you."He thought a moment then carefully added. "Not that we won't try."


There was a rustle of feathers from behind them and Xavier turned to regard Silverwing, who had finally exited the tavern. "I made sure that man was not dead." She explained shortly, then looked over her shoulder. "Some business came up, however, so I will be absent for a time. I will return as soon as I possibly can, but for now you four-" She paused and looked at Calai. "-five will have to fend for yourselves." Xavier opened his mouth to question her but she held up a hand. "I know, but it is not something I can easily explain and it is urgent." To which the hybrid just eyed her and nodded. "See you when you return, then."

As the giant avian nodded and walked off in the other direction Xavier directed Calai's gaze to the rest of the group. "As I was saying, we have lost a lot of our muscle. Still, if there's treasure to be had we will split the pay evenly among us. Nobody here is technically in charge, we just try not to get in each other's way."

[tangletail]

Neshar looked to Camile with a frown, but didn’t verbally respond. He wasn’t exactly worried about his own neck when it came to his suspicions and paranoia. Life would be much easier if it was just him with a regular rogue’s code. If he screwed up, it’s just him that bites the nail. But no, it couldn’t be that way. And he couldn’t shake off the itch that he was feeling they were all just being lead into doing the work for them.

The feline let out a light sigh, and shook his head as if saying he had nothing else to say for the matter. He’d instead wait until the brief orientation to the delightful group was given to the new girl before he continued on.

“Now if you two are done…” He hummed softly as he crouched down and opened up the map he had found. He spread it across the wood, and used a few rocks to hold the corners down. The map showed a much older era of the area, detailing a road that was long buried or ripped up by the elements, and a castle somewhere in the distance. Likely a ruins by now.

He then laid down the scrolls he had also lifted earlier in the night. He thought about what he had found… but maybe it’d just be better to keep his suspicions down. After all, one person didn’t seem to share the same sort of instincts he had.

He looked to Calai with a warm smile and gave her a wave then chirped, “I’m Neshar”, before looking back down to the rest of the group.

“I’m gonna go ahead and brief. We’re not the only ones looking for… well whatever it is. There is a secondary, and larger faction.” The feline hummed. He then frowned as he bit back a few details. “These guys are organized. Matching robes, clear and defined duties, loyalty, and officers. Given the association of the three that Camile and I have seen…” Possibly hostile. But they did do some of our work for us. Ergo the map, and these…”

He pointed to the scrolls and opened a few of them. “They’ve been researching monsters in the area. Trust me… they won’t be too pleased with the fact that I stole these from them.”

“Then as for the validity of the map… I’ve confirmed it” The feline then pulled two carved stones from his bag and placed them down. Two stones often used for roads, it looks like the feline had spent a good portion of the night digging these up from two locations, as they are partially wet and covered in deep fertile soil.

[Drakeyboy]

Drake was sitting back simply listening the whole time. Well he didn't want to say anything about hus suspicions last night but well it seemed like they were right. He listened to Neshar's information not particularly interested in the new recruit then simply picked up some of the scrolls for the creature research and started looking through them. He was a academic by nature so any useful knowledge that he can easily gain was great. Also considering how different and dangerous the creatures are it would be good to get some knowledge.

[Goblin Cat 😸]

 “Well, well, well, what do we have here?” A familiar voice called out among the gathering. It wasn't really all that hard to find the group of misfits again, given their current location – outside, not too far from the tavern, which was where the bully had been heading when he'd run into them once more. The sight was almost as silly as the small fire pit they'd formed in front of the bounty board their first time he'd come across them, only now instead of a fire, there was that odd man from battle, a thief more than likely from the gear, hunched over a some paper. They all seemed busy chattering about something...

 
The bully clasped his hands together with an oddly manic expression. Perhaps this was luck's way of pointing him in some sort of direction as opposed to his usual wandering. After all, it was luck that had caused him to recognize, at the very least the hybrid, Xavier. It was hard not to with the man's bright clothing. “Just as quaint as I remember, too, that's good.” The bully nodded to himself, crossing his arms to get a better look at everyone, and maybe to sneak a glance at the paper below. They were surely getting into something again. Maybe a treasure hunt, judging by the map they were inspecting. “Was the hound not enough to satiate?” he chuckled, honestly curious. It appeared than in the small amount of time, the canine had taken the time to at least clean and bandage himself up as cloth had been wrapped around the bite he'd received from one of the hounds on the section between his shoulder and neck and the area on his arm where he'd grabbed the hound's tongue. That didn't keep him from looking at the very least playfully imposing.

[Cyril]

The jackal turned his focus to the returning member of their party. He ran his eyes from his head to toe, crossing his arms a bit. Still ill tempered as ever, he kept quiet until the second question was asked. "Turns out, we probably screwed the pooch, rather than just killed it." He nodded his head at the approaching member's wounds, face showing his evident cranky mood. "Remove the cloth. We're going to have to get you healed up if you intend to fight with us, because you're going to be getting rather well acquainted with some folk who may stab rather than slobber."


With a glance over Neshar's map, and then a grunt. "In the court, when older things are found, only the ambitious decide to toil away." He scoffed, "Looks like we may have done a bit more damage than good. Don't know what they want, but it'd probably be safer to behead them before we find out."

Now more awake, Camille was definitely feeling the headstrong part of himself. He really wanted a piece of what he was forced to back down from, and was most certainly feeling extremely impatient. Kicking up dust, he was tiring of small chat; whether or not it was his strong point. His gaze looked to the party. His gaze falling upon the new member Calai, he didn't say much before looking back to the documents evidence Neshar had taken. The prospect of another healer was something that made him feel threatened.. But then again, nobody likes being outclassed.

[Xavier Akafur]

The fawn backed away from the group slowly, shaking her head a little. It was clear that the notion of taking on monsters of that caliber with this ragtag bunch did not sit well with her. "I.. uh... maybe next time." She replied, smiling apologetically before turning on her heel and walking quickly away in the other direction. Xavier just shook his head a little and moved to rejoin the others, looking over Neshar's shoulder.


His ears perked when Mort strode up, the hybrid smiling to himself. "Welcome back." he said, looking up from the map and scrolls laid out before them. The bully was not unwelcome in his eyes, certainly they would have fared far worse in their fight with the Hound had he not been there. Plus, as far as Xavier was concerned, he was one of the more straightforward of their little band, a trait that was greatly appreciated. As Camille moved over to inspect his injuries the hybrid also walked over and dipped a shallow bow. "As our friend has said, there's a good chance that there are other powers at play here." Then with a wry smirk he added, "No doubt there will be treasure involved, and our agreement still stands that we split the monetary value of anything equally among all who... participate." He seemed to search for that last word, not sure how to describe their actions using a single verb.

"To bring you up to speed." He looked at Neshar and Camille as well, as he said this. "I actually came here to investigate rumors of heavy magical disturbances in this region, and my search eventually led me here. The most likely reason for such disturbances is the presence of a powerful magical artifact. Something that, in the wrong hands, could cause a considerable amount of harm." The mage paused a moment and cleared his throat, gauging their reactions. "To be clear, none of us can possess this item either. I intend to recover it and put it into a vault of sorts, if it is as dangerous as I suspect. Anything else we find is fair game."

[Drakeyboy]

Drake already knew this song and dance so he simply continued reading the scrolls.

(P.S. if i could have some context of what exactly is in the scrolls besides research on monsters. Like it could be biological or magical and it could be vague or very in depth. It'll help me with my next post massively.)

[Goblin Cat 😸]

 The bully stepped toward the jackal, unwrapping his wounds as instructed. His ears flicked idly, following conversation as he did so, eyes focusing on whoever was speaking at the time. He gave a nod to acknowledge Xavier's greeting. Once the cloth was removed he held out his arm, assuming it was going to be the first thing dealt with. There was a spiral burn and tracking down it along the open areas a slick, black... Mass... Something that seemed almost alive as much as it was hard. Now that the cloth was exposing it, the thing quivered and disappeared into the wounds themselves. Upon closer inspection, it would become more obvious that the black had been his blood, a few of the dark droplets remaining in place where appropriate.

 
“Seems about right.” He commented casually, as if he had experience in such things, “Nothing can be as easy as burying the axe in that thing and calling it a day.” He gave a small chuff and scratched his chin with his free hand. “Maybe your relic was put here for some reason or another... Assuming it wasn't just randomly uncovered, but to be honest, it's not often things happen by accident.” His last statement seemed like an assumption made from experience rather than anything else. The canine's tail swayed a bit, still clearly interested in the discussion, hardly effected by the deer's leave.


 

[tangletail]

Neshar looked up to the newcomer, and blinked when he saw a familiar face. It looked like the group’s big guy had returned. A bit odd to him though… he hadn’t seen him since the fight with that hound. And here he was returning out of no where. Neshar… wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about this… but what ever reduced the chances of becoming a smear on the wall.
 
 His gaze then turned to Xavier… who was going through a song that he had guessed the lyrics to some time ago. Only now it’s an official statement. The thief flattened his lips together as he watched him. A look of wonder was in his eyes as he contemplated speaking out his intentions, and reasons for being here. But… perhaps it was for the best that he didn’t say anything. It’d just have to be a secret he’d hold onto for just a little while longer. Unless he was asked... then simply by his own moral code he would be required to give them the details.
 
The feline then turned his gaze to Drake. He had a bit of sympathy in his heart for him. He wasn’t entirely sure if the male could fight very well against anything with magic. He knew the guy was an impressive swordsman from what he’d just seen, but other than that… was he mundane? Neshar secretly wished he had found those enchanted items that the last adventuring party had died, if only to give something to him to give him an edge.
 
 “As much as I love hearing and speaking true intentions. If you want to find that relic, I think we need to get moving. We’re burning time I’m not even sure that we have.”

[Cyril]

The jackal shook his head and chuckled as the new member quickly ran away. "Less competition," he grinned smugly while wrapping the cloak around Mort's arm. "If she was that afraid just by words, I'm glad she's gone." His beads took the normal glow, although slightly dimmer than when he had healed Xavier. "It'll sting." He said while looking up to Mort and squeezing the cloak firmly around the arm.. Pouring what he could from his beads, he used his magic to reconstruct and aid Mort's body in healing. The melting was reversed, although the jackals beads had grown slightly darker.

He heard Xavier's speech, and kept his eyes on Mort's wound as he removed his cloak and let it return to his back. He looked over the other, tending to another major wound before he leaned back and crossed his arms quietly. Running low on juice, he looked to the other rather bleakly. "That should be enough. Until we can end another life." He chuckled, looking back at him, as Neshar acknowledged their lack of time. His eyes were rather blank, and the jackal stretched slightly. "Let's go."

[Eden-H]

It should have taken far longer to find the strange little group Nemael and Silverwing had been running around with. They should have departed from the village or found a new bounty of interest or, more likely than not, fallen apart and disbanded. Yet both of his companions reassured him they would be there for a time yet, caring not to explain why they were aware of this fact and that he should move swiftly before they did actually take their leave. Indeed, even though they had their own matters of contention to deal with, both felt a well of guilt for disappearing under such circumstances when the party was already beginning to dwindle. Although Silverwing chose to loosely espouse on this matter, mentioning that certain members were 'foolhardy and stubborn' and would not know when to simply cease their senseless actions.


Thus Dragonhawk was cursing under his breath as he approached the... unique gathering of opportunists, the lights that were lit within his eye sockets flickering as he looked from one person to the next. Several he recognized and had even been graciously given the names of. However, his gaze lingered on Mort and Xavier in particular, immediately recalling them from the initial gathering that he had briefly participated in. Amazing these two still remained, let alone the robed jackal and fox-raccoon hybrid. Almost everyone who had been there at the beginning were hovering around some documents, two previous members replaced by a different couple.


He hoped they had survived the incident with the Hound of Lockwise and were not missing from being... Dragonhawk shook his head and closed what distance remained, coming towards Xavier from an odd angle. As he approached, he idly checked the straps that kept his crossbow and sword/whip firmly attached to his body, a nervous tic he seemed incapable of disposing of. "They send their regrets," he murmured. Further clarification as to whom he meant was not provided, his gaze finally coming to rest on the flamboyant hybrid as he spoke. Although his attention was, in reality, evenly divided between those gathered here. The lack of information he had been given by his 'siblings' and a waning trust marred any other possibility.

[Xavier Akafur]

Xavier dipped his head in agreement with Camille, figuring they had spent more than enough time lingering around the town, and that by now everyone should be fully awake and ready to face the tasks ahead. They were briefly delayed, however, only a few paces later by yet another arrival. One most may not recall or even have seen, but Xavier knew the strange creature as it approached. Indeed, it would be hard to forget. The man's name escaped him though, and he briefly wondered if it was ever said aloud.


"Another of Nemael's company joins us." He greeted, politely dipping his head yet again. He motioned for the tall, skull-faced being to follow along, resuming their trek towards the forest. The explorer was eager to be off, nature and habit of the otter-wolf being to never linger too long in one place. When the man spoke of regrets the hybrid simply smiled. Well, at least they would have another body, and just by appearances this one would be handy in a fight. "No regrets required." The mage replied evenly. Both the shift-user and Silverwing seemed to have thought they were obligated to stay with the group, but truth be told no one here besides the hybrid himself, and for personal reasons even in his own case, had any further need to stay and see this through. Xavier supposed that spoke highly of their moral constitution.

"I am Xavier, if we were not introduced." He continued, motioning to the rest of the party in turn with hand gestures and nods. "Drake, Neshar, Mort, and Camille." He named each individual in turn. The male's expression shifted slightly as he watched the pattern in which they were walking, carefully inspecting each of his companions. "Actually... If what Neshar says is true, we could have a considerable battle on our hands when we reach our destination... possibly before." He addressed the group as a whole. They had begun walking out of the outer building of the town by this point, the treeline of the forest slowly nearing in front of them. "Perhaps we should have a bit more comprehensive battle plan? If we are not careful things could go very badly very quickly, especially if we are not working in unison." From what the feline had said they would be sorely outnumbered by this mysterious group. Xavier almost paused to wait for suggestions, but then remembered that out f the bunch, he was the one who possessed a majority of the experience fighting with a group of this caliber. "Camille, can you heal in battle?" He inquired after a moment's consideration. He did not recall seeing the man's impressive healing abilities used often during their first fight.

[tangletail]

The thief stared at the new arrival in confusion. A completely random soul whom just showed up well out of place. He was about to say something… his jaw was already open, and his hand was up pointing to the male. But he was sileneced immediately when Xavier explained who he was. His hand then dropped, lips pursing. “… Are we going to see his entire family next?” The thief commented, dropping his hands to his hips.
But soon, the group was off. And so was he. He took a position in the front. His ears were raised up a bit more than usual. Though they didn’t move often, they seemed to twitch and swivel to the location of an animal before it actually rustled in the grass. Even when he walked so casually, it seemed more like a predators careful prowl than a casual gate. Maybe this is just the nature of a thief? After all, the experienced ones tend to have some sort of uncanny ability to dodge surprise attacks.
Neshar shook his head to Xavier, “No no. That’s not my biggest concern. My biggest concern is them letting us do the hard work for them.” The rogue explained. He then plucked up a stick as he followed the group. He flicked the stick pretty hard, like he was trying to break it. “Let’s say if they attacked us now. They risk getting whipped out, and we are left unopposed and with more time. We rest, recover, and return later.”

He then scored his claws along the stick a few times, “Now lets say we go inside what ever fortress this thing is in. And there is crap waiting for us inside. We fight, we bleed, get injured, loose energy… or what have you. I’m not sure if Camile can fix everything.” He then raised up a weakened stick after balancing a coin on top.

“We get the relic, but we’ve been beaten to the dirt at that point. They come in… and…” he flicked the stick once more. The stick breaks in half, dropping the coin into a waiting hand. “That will be the biggest problem we’ll have. Of course it doesn’t rule out the chance of being attacked before we get there.”

He tossed the stick to the side and repocketed the coin.

“Soooo~, there are a few ways to handle that.” The feline hummed softly. His eyes flickering through the trees in a searching thought.

“The first one is to split up. One group searches and destroys. The other just collects the objective. We’re not exactly large enough to do that. Of course… you could assassinate leaders… if you can find them. I’d suspect that’d just be a death wish.  I’m no assassin, and I’m not sure if anyone here is.”

“The second option off the top of my head is to let it happen. But you try to rest inside the area after bunkering down. I can disable and reactivate any traps I happen to find. And it’s harder for larger forces to siege a tight space like that.”

“The third option… is something I won’t openly say, because we are probably being watched. But it requires a degree of trust.”

[Goblin Cat 😸]

 Although Mort did not flinch at the pain, he did visibly grimace, and even then it seemed a bit stifled, or rather something that was bothering him only out of inconvenience. When it was clear the procedure was through, he recoiled his arm, then flexed as if giving it a test of functionality. “Thanks.” Again his ears seemed to flick at each speaker, and his eyes lingered on their new party member curiously. That same member had been with Nemael before all of this had begun, and so the bully refrained from comment figuring that the others had taken their leave elsewhere.

 
When the others moved, so did he, feeling that Xavier's words were those worth noting, “I agree that we should coordinate. If there's anything I've missed beyond 'we're retrieving a relic,' I'd like to know. I may be part of the brawn, but I do believe in utilizing the brain as well.”

 
Of course when the thief spoke up again, Mort's brows furrowed ever so slightly. Probably because the idea of getting killed had never actually crossed his mind with his abilities. There was something about the way that the other carried himself that made him feel irritated... Offended, even. As if the feline were withholding information from the group for the hell of it and not because they were possibly being watched. The canine's pupils pinned as they came to rest on the thief, expression flat. He bit his tongue, not having been a fan of the man since he'd entered the their first battle under the guise of a slave. He wasn't exactly a fan of thieves, even if they were useful, and it showed in his body language – not just with his tightened jaw and hateful stare, but the way his tail thwipped back and forth again, like that of an irritated cat.

 
The bully shook his head, snapping himself out of the irrational irritation that was gripping him. Perhaps the others' input would overrun the know-it-all thief's. At least he could hope; his eyes came to rest on the skull faced member once more, somewhat expectantly, still wearing his sour expression, even if it was not meant for anyone but Neshar.