Torrent505

Anne's small smile widened becoming shark like, "well then they certainly did deserve it and you're better off without them. As for me?" She blinked trying to look confused and giving her best impression of a wide eyed noblewomen, "nope not an ounce of common sense." She knocked on her head with her fist as if that proved something. "I'll just have to make sure you walk any spooooky temple ruins first so you can sniff out the traps for me." She surprised herself with how playful she was being, she hadn't been in this good a mood within the last year; being at the helm of a ship and with Captain London had to do something with it. Maybe as well as the wealth of crew to exchange jabs with; she almost felt normal again.

He just said to leave it alone, basically to deal with the people first. That's mostly cause he doesn't care much for Serafinno though. Breaking it off and pushing it through the front scales to push it out would probably be best, pulling out would catch the arrow head edges and do more damage. Though once it's pulled out nothing will block the blood flow, that's why they have people keep piercing items in the wound on the way to hospitals. But it will have to come out sooner or later :/

Anne raised her brow at the man, sounded like he might have some experience in seeking out ancient treasures. Maybe this whole crew wouldn't be useless. A bit of mischief actually made it to her eyes, "Squeamish of dusty old bones and papery flesh? Hardly. Or are you used to fresh bodies lining your path? If so it certainly makes me wonder where your previous party members met their fates and what brings you to our crew." She grinned a devilish smile, honestly curious how many places this man had plundered, could his experience be equal to hers?

Clarke took back the weapon and grinned, "this antique? Well it does have some illogical sentimental value you me. Perhaps I will make you some proper and fine examples of my work. You are correct as well, though I overheard your name, I am Clarke Volkrieg." He inclined his head with tinkerers so dependent on their hands they really shook in greetings. They hadn't had to go more than twenty feet into the brush to find where the assassin had dragged himself to. Clarke rolled him over and gave a little whistle at the pinkish red foam coming from the man blueing lips and the glazing eyes, "I've never understood that, the ending of ones self... Such a waste." He ruffled through the man's pockets, finding vials and other things but no parchment with orders. "I know none of these things by sight, do with it and him what you will." He returned to the group and first went to Tulla. He had some basic understanding of human health, he checked her pulse and breathing.

Clarke paused for a moment to look about, needing to flip the black shading lenses back off his goggles but he saw no new threats. "Witch Hunter if there were more assassins I think they would have shown their hand by now, they'd have lost the element of surprise we all now stand on guard, the moment of their greatest advantage has passed. We should see to the one we have felled and gleam what knowledge we can pry from his dying lips." He hesitated to think what needed to be addressed, "water mage, Dresden tend to the wounded, magick some water to be pure and sterile and move it through the wounds then purify it again and repeat, if the assassin used poison the most we can do is leech away what hasn't already entered them. Chimera guard them Indicus you too and be tended to, cripple-former cripple leave the arrow, dragons are strong if it didn't kill him already then we'll have time to treat him after the humans. Miss Whisp help treat whatever you can." He turned and head for the bushes as well, the indoctrined mage was ahead of him, full of rage and a voice of malice, "light mage? If he dies too quickly we'll not learn the truths that guide him." Clarke looked back, "Adrass I'm not so skilled with organic work, might you come along to assist us? I fear our ally may be somewhat over zealous." **************** Serafinno's nostrils gave little flares as he struggled to breath, blood in his lungs and throat as well as the arrow's shaft partially obstructing the airway. He was solidly unconscious as his body shut down any unnecessary activity to viciously fight against a double dose of the assassins poison; dragons were known above most creatures for their vitality but even so his system was stressed to the edge.

Anne smiled at the captain's playfulness with the newly promoted first mate, for a moment she felt like she was 17 again watching the captain chase a bit of whoever caught her fancy that day and that the last decade had just been a dream turned nightmare before waking up. She even joked back to the captain, "he'll be overboard before the day's out if his legs go all wobbly like that every time you give him a command, captain." She laughed like the short light ring of a bell. Then London had go and do something foolish like she always would, mentioning 'him' like that and spoiling the illusion. Anne's eyes went distance and began to tear up for just the briefest second before she squeezed them shut and when they opened again their gaze was cold and empty. "Yes, you were right about Milo captain; I think that makes it only twice I've ever seen you be wrong. I should have listened but I won't make the same mistake again. But believe me travel with him only made my sea legs stronger and my sense of the ocean better, and one day I'll find him and..." Her grasp tightened on a spoke of the helm and the wood strained and groaned threatening to crack. She released the grip on the wheel turning back to London, the darkness gone from her eyes. "What ARE we doing on our first run Ma'am?"

Finn gave warbling cry as the arrow passed through his wing, his flight became a little staggered his body becoming heavier as his air magic faded. Flying with barely any control he ran through a series of branches pulling at his scales, then slammed into the trees trunk. He clung to it with his claws, blurring eyesight seeking out Whisper who seemed to be struggling in something's arms; he made for her again, he would get to his friend, he needed to make up for his mistake earlier today, he wouldn't attack he'd just get to her and protect her. He slammed from tree trunk to tree trunk in short flights. He'd be a good proper dragon and prove he wasn't bad. He landed in front of her and what smelled like their Hunter Friend? He stuck his head out toward Whisper wanting to call out for Adrass to let go and for her to let him help, but he couldn't make a sound, suddenly the back of his neck hurt and something itched under his necks front scales. Whisper faded away into blackness then everything went white. ************ It had taken two shots of his scattergun before Clarke had realized that the ravens he hit weren't falling but absorbing the buckshot or fading away. He cussed fluent Illian curses that would have made seasoned soldiers cringe, the birds were a mix of distraction and hunting tool, fucking magical to boot; animals were the bane of all his existence today. Following the ravens and group he was able to spot the actual assassin readying an arrow, the armored fool was making a move to attack him. Clarke could only assume the man was a shadow mage so he grabbed a metal capsule from a couple on his chest and threw it towards the two. It was obvious though that nothing was going to stop that arrow from flying, however Clarke was quite pleased to see the dragon thud down in its path. The arrow punched through its bristled and for some reason battered scales on it's back but stopped unable to pass through the layer on the otherside, at least the beastie was good for something. The metal cylinder bounced at the assassin and the guards feet, Clarke yelled, "cover your eyes!" as he flicked black lenses down on his goggles. The Flash Grenade went off, brilliant and mimicking light magic; Clarke could see the silhouette of the dragon collapse, well if this party was going to lose a meat shield at least it was one of the nasty critters.

Anne made her way up to the helm, she was grinning and she decided that was good, she didn't grin much anymore but seeing the captain back in action was too good not to smile. She played with the wheel spinning it back and forth a bit again she felt that sluggish random drag of the rudder, she snorted and spit a thick wad of phlegm and saliva on the wheel's brass center; this ship would have to learn that it listened to her now. Navigators plotted the course and the ship would follow it, Anne would settle for nothing less.

Clarke wasn't particularly concerned when the princess screamed about the death of her friend, they were a bit of a distance away so he wasn't most likely in immediate danger and the princess had proven her healing abilities power so she would survive. By no means did he move slowly either; he pushed a small brass button on the cart and a very crude revolver sprang out, one of the first he had ever made usually a hidden last resort. He then readied his scatter gun and rushed himself over to the site of the ambush. (The old crude revolver) He arrived in take in an unkindness of Ravens assaulting the party, he called out to Adrass, "Witch Hunter catch!" And without hesitating to see if the man would respond threw the simple revolver at him, he could most likely grasp its concept. Clarke however had other things to take care off, the first was himself as he put ear plugs in to block out the bard's horrible sounds and to muffle what was coming. He lifted his scatter gun and lit up the area with the bang as he sent a cloud of buck shot into the mass of birds. This was a perfect enemy for his weapon. ******************** When Serafinno heard Whisper's scream he instantly took wing, he sailed up to get a view of what had happened. Seeing the ravens diving to assault the princess he dove to intercept them. He could have unleashed fire all across the swirl of dark birds but his only thought was to protect Whisper and Tulla.

Clarke stopped his work with a sigh, he'd rather not use his own materials but the better armed this group was the more protected he'd be so it was more of an investment. "I could make some for your outdated toys, I suppose. If I start the process now I'll have it by the end of the day, my cart has the proper facilities to make it. Though I hardly keep it on hand, I'd offer you some of my own red sand mixture but I don't know if your weapons could take the force." **************** Finn felt he had finally collected enough sticks and with a quick sigh of fire breathe created a little bonfire of the good smelling sticks. The smoke was thick and dark, but did have a spicy cedar smell. Serafinno instantly began to bat at and play with he rising smoke plume.

Annie huffed, "fine, I'll take the last pick in bunks. I don't sleep much anymore anyways." She lifted the dead Tinkerer's cup and drank deeply from it, that bitter flavor putting a smile back on her lips. A twinkle seem to sparkle in her eyes and she chewed on a fingernail. "Truth be told your side might be the only place for me captain, I don't trust any of them." She quietly admitted to her and with a near silent mumble, "don't trust anyone anymore." The moment of self inflection passed and Anne's cocky grin returned, "what can I do for you ma'am?"

Clarke had parked his cart and now stood next to it muttering to himself, he had two hoses leading away from the machine and while it was damaged from the princess's fall on to it the cart still chugged away with shaking pumps and quivering gears. Both hoses used science to mimic magick; one hose released a tight flame and the other gave off powerful magnetic pulses on a minuscule range. Working with a hose in each hand he could adjust and refashion the metal. Soon he'd have his precise life's work back to a shining pristine condition. Serafinno was going back and forth between searching the forest for good smelling sticks to burn and pausing while he dropped them in a pile in front of Tugg so they could both watch the Tinkerer performing his unnatural work.

In the mean time Anne had ascended up to the ship helm, she tested the wheel finding the rudders response odd, it was sluggish in random intervals. Yes this ship certainly had a mind of its own, well plotting and staying on course would certainly be interesting. Well that was enough with the ship. Her eyes refocused on Captain London, she called down to the Captain, "so Cap what happened to the old crew? I liked the old crew, right now this ship look's like a circus. You better shape them up and quick, gods know you fixed me up into a proper sailor over the years but we'll all be dead before a weeks end at sea if this continues." She pulled out a wicked looking dagger, the blade seemed to be a serrated tooth and narcotic looking fleshy hide lined its haft, jutting from the end of the hilt was bone not bleached white but live and broken with its raw center exposed. She twirled it about her finger lazily "if any of them interfere with my duties I'll kill them myself... Oh and Captain a lot has changed in the time since I've been gone, don't call me little anymore." With that Anne spun the knife on the tip of her finger balancing the blades own sharp point on just the finest bit of her fingernail. Then she let it drop and sheathed it in one swift motion, next she hopped over the rail landing close to London, "you look the same by the way, Ma'am. I'll be below claiming my bunk." She turned to head down the stairs under the deck.

Clarke grinned, "Well I am ready to travel," he gestured to the cart, though he sighed when he noticed Tugg busy rubbing up and down against it, "however I would think your party would want to wait for... Dresden?... to return with horses. However Miss Whisp you are welcome to ride with me. Can't have the... voice?... of our little band thrown off by a spooked horse, then we couldn't preform and then we couldn't get paid, right?" Serafinno didn't want Whisper anywhere near the strange smelling moving metal thing and hissed at Clarke.

Anne just meandered past the meeting spot, in her hand was a strange metal cup, she had taken it from a tinkerer she's killed when she had come ashore months ago; she hadn't killed him for the cup but it was a nice benefit it kept cold drink cold and hot drinks hot, so her coffee stayed better longer. She was in a good mood that only struck her when well caffeinated. She rolled her eyes at the crew standing at the spot waiting patiently like good pups, Captain London must be desperate. Then again she had accepted Anne, she hadn't expect her old acquaintance to do that; especially when no other ship would accept her after she had walked out of the ocean into Flotsam Cove. She had no time for the 'crew' she headed for the ship. She walked up to the side of the refurbished galley and ran her hand along it. So this was 'Thread', what a hateful old hag; Anne had seen it with at least two other names before. Each time it went out the ship managed to kill its crew and some fools would drag the nearly destroyed carcass back to Flotsam to sell as scrap, the ship yard would pretty her all up and hand her off to some other desperate Captain... Anne would have never imagined London would own such a wretched thing, she grinned well the Captain seemed happy to keep tacking curse to her name or Anne wouldn't be here either. Her hand snagged a bit on the hull leaving a ragged cut across her palm; this ship didn't like people, it wanted nothing more than to kill another crew and finally be left alone. The two of them were going to get along just fine.

"I am a man of logic and science, miss... I haven't gotten your name yet..." He looked around, "I haven't gotten most of your names, overheard Dresden and Indicus." Clarke pointed after the water Mage and at the armored fellow, he actually sounded angry "none of you are very polite are you? I'm Clarke everyone and I'm sure it will be 'good' to be working with all of you." He calmed down again after the little rant was out of his system, it frustrated him not to know things. He looked back the former cripple, letting out a deep breathe, "sorry, as I was saying I am a man of science and logic, ghosts do not exist. Even magic can be measured, quantified, sensed and controlled, there is a science behind it-" he gestured at his cart, "we Tinkerers have even found way to mimic Mage magic in carefully controlled devices to put in the hands of the common folk. But a soul has never had any evidence of existence, so again are no such things are ghosts. The forest has some nasty beasties in it and possibly gasses that cause hallucinations, that's all. Like I've said I know other black market traders that have traveled the paths fine, a few may have seen things or lost a guard or two but what other safer choice do we have? Heck I'll even make us breathing masks before we enter." *********** Finn leaned contentedly into the petting giving rumblings like a cat purring. Despite everything that had happened he had to admit he was enjoying the fact he could spend all his time with Whisper, in the castle he would always eventually be shoo'ed away when she was with others, he was taking a real liking to all these other humans... Well most of them.

As for the question about Mage magic versus the supernatural, they are different in this world. There are a couple of types of magic. Mage magic comes from the gods themselves, but there are other types of magics that are even more unique that are passed down through the two ancient races that once battled the gods, they are known as the Malevians and the Valorans (this worlds versions of devils and angels). They tend to curse humans with double edged magic or give magic through tricks binding service or dark twisted deals. Supernatural magic or spiritual magic is even less proven as existing, ghosts are said to be completely unaffected by Mage magic or physical blows. Their magic cannot be sensed or measured in anyway, so on many levels it is uncertain if such things actually exist. There is never any evidence other than word of mouth and trusting ones own senses.

The Forest of Ashcreek is known in Illia as a dark and forbidding place, few dare to risk it's old paths and attempt passing through it. Truthfully many travelers have gone missing in it's overgrown boundaries over the last four hundred years. All types of myths circulate about the forest but the most prevalent are stories about an ancient abandoned town which the forest is named for; the town of Ashcreek said to be at the heart of the woods. Most of the myths about the town revolve around the birth of a monster in the town and it's slow descent into ruin. The monster is said to still roam the forest and to devour any that it meets. The other most common myths are of the ghosts in the forest. Those that have dared to travel the forest claim the most likely ghost to meet is that of a little girl, some say she leads lost parties out of the forest while others say she steals away one or two people from the group, leading them astray to meet their fate with the monster of Ashcreek,

Clarke scowled at Adrass, "so you're here to kill the darker mages that she attracts yet you scold the other members of her guard for putting her in needless danger? I've always heard Witch Hunters were hypocritical. Well I'm sorry to disappoint you but the path I wish to take is the one that will attract the least amount of attention. We should sail down the coast to Mirrors Point, then head up to the capital. They wouldn't expect us to come up from the southern most point. To get a ship we should head to Coppershine Harbor, the costumes, parties and drunks their should give 'traveling musicians' excellent cover and if not I have connections with the one running things there... Through my less than legal weapons dealings, he can get us a ship with no questions asked." He let out a heavy sigh, "those are probably the easy parts though, if the Iron Maiden and her mercenaries are on your tail we need to lose them and the best way to do that is to go through Ashcreek Forest. All of Illia is too afraid of those woods to follow us and worst we would probably need to worry about are whatever nasty creatures occasionally eat those using the path, but I know of people who have travelled through the woods without any problem at all."

So Clarke is going to suggest a path to the group and you guys should all have an idea of just what he is purposing. He wants to to get the party to the southern most city on the map by sailing down the coast. The port he wants to travel to is Coppershine Harbor, the city on the right side of the map near Ashcreek Forest. The path he wants to travel is through Ashcreek Forest. So here what you need to know about those places. Coppershine is a place run by a crime lord with the nobles there already eating out of the palm of his hand. He supposedly manages this with a very strong drug trade. The crime lord is a Mage himself and rather paranoid so hunters and assassins are not usually tolerated unless they are on his pay roll and even then they are usually under heavy surveillance. The city is known for gambling and wild parties, think of it as a constant combination of New Orleans on Mardi Gras and Las Vegas. There are wild parties and parades every night and fortunes are won and lost everyday. Ashcreek Forest is know as a haunted place, it's paths are considered cursed the only Illians foolish enough to tread it's roads are outlaws and those too stupid to regard the centuries of disappearances in its woods. There are all sorts of legends of the monsters in the shadows of its branches.

"What business?" Clarke asked keeping his hands raised, "It is literally my business, I'm a Tinkerer I fix or improve things and considering I was able to ascertain the true identity of 'Miss Whisp' there in moments then confirm it and begin to isolate from the public her within an hour, I think if this party isn't broken it certainly NEEDS improvement. Truly all I would have needed is a grove of trees and an ambush here would have been ideal." He slowly began to lower his hands, he didn't believe keeping them raised any longer would serve any purpose other than to betray the concept that he was a threat. "My stake in this is simple, it's my potential profit from saving a princess and a king. The rewards and gratitude of two kingdoms, need it be anything more? Yes, it is a base and selfish motivation but also a logical and honest one. Can any of you say you are hired guards for anything different?" His eyes focused on the Hunter in interest, "You seem quite protective of a mage princess and a band of undesirables for a Witch Hunter, what is your stake in this?" It came out sounding harsh and insulting but Clarke didn't mean it in that way, he was genuinely curious.

Finn stopped growling and backed away from Clarke, he quickly turned and licked Whisper's face then gave a snort and practically pranced away with his head held. His way of saying "you talked to me, fights over and I win!" ******************** Sarah ran her hand over the bolt again, "Helena..." Maybe this woman wasn't bad. She sighed "...Okay, he had three fingers on his hand and told me that the woman to look out for wore Hunters clothes like him. That's all I know really."

@@Dji, Sarah looked down at the bolt uncertainly as she started to get ahold of herself, she had thought for a moment maybe the woman might hurt her and was bad and after her new friend. But now she was giving Sarah a gift? She looked down at the bolt and ran her fingers over the carver letters, "It will stop bad things from happening to me?" she was a bit confused, "Is it a good luck charm? What does it mean? I-I can't read." she blushed at that, she hated that some children in the town learned to read from their parents and she couldn't.

@, Clarke had just let go of the princess's hand and had been expecting her to respond badly when the approaching witch hunter yelled about releasing the girl. For a moment Clarke looked about confused no one was holding the princess... He turned to look at the witch hunter only to realize the man was pointing a pistol at him, and he thought, 'that's right I was the one holding her hand, silly me.' He flung his hands straight up, "Don't shoot me, she's just about to hire me!" His heart started to race even faster as the dragons rumbling growl sounded right next to his ear, he wondered if this job might even be worth the wealth because the probablity was high that this group would be the death of him. Serafinno had become rather engrossed in the cloud shaping over his belly as he laid on the rock, however Adrass's yell had startled him and he rolled over in an instant perched on the boulder taking in the scene. Apparently the strange man, Clarke, had done something wrong again and was no standing off with Adrass; Finn stretched his neck out and growled in the mans ear. But he wouldn't do anything without Whisper's say so this time.