Realistic or Modern Bastard's Tale

[ScalpelsNSaws]

Shaun looked at the woman on his left, the tough looking red head who seemed to be the only other person not cheering the fight. "Scuse me, you got something in your hair there." Shaun said to her in his faux Californean Accent. He Pointed to a finger caught amoungst the hair, before wiping some of the duelist's blood away from his eyes, the only area of his face uncovered. He pulled Jesse out of the ring of people in his way, all egging him on to finish off the still kneeling man. Eventually they reached the edge of the crowd as the noise died down.

"I belive we may have overstayed our welcome here today boss. We should probably get outta here, Shisa got something...interesting" he said in a conspiratorial tone. He began to prep the wagon to roll with the newly added weight.

 

[Lyth]

Saxa was impressed by the abrupt nature of the gathering crowd, the small tavern quickly making space for the two men circling one another. People were eager to see bloodshed and the young scavenger truly couldn’t wrap her head around the thrill in seeing someone cut down. Whether the matter was personal or trivial, it wouldn’t matter once the mob began shouting for blood.
Standing quickly and adjusting the freshly patched canvas backpack she carried on her front, Saxa was careful to sidestep the more aggressive spectators and keep herself from being pressed into anyone.

Quick movements had her standing near the edge of the crowd as each man shouted their grievance, swords were swinging within seconds and Saxa found herself backing up. Movement to her right had the petite woman glancing up for a moment to take in an older man watching the fight, seemingly matching her less than enthusiastic energy.
It was almost refreshing to stand next to someone who wasn’t screaming at the men clashing blades.

The fight was incredibly short, with the aggressor losing three fingers and sending the severed digits into the crowd. Luck gifted Saxa with the man to her right, thankfully taking the brunt of the blood splatter and keeping her mostly out of the fray, though some gore would manage to slip though. Turning to face the man as he moved towards her, Saxa offered an unreadable smile as he pointed to the stray finger caught in her hair. A sigh of mild embarrassment leaving the girl as she quickly brushed the digit away, like one would brush away dead leaves. In her time on the road, blood and gore were far from something she would shy away from.

Opening her mouth to speak, Saxa faltered somewhat over the accent he used, so strangely familiar but lacking something needed to fit. Perhaps a gently misused inflection or years of hardwired paranoia were setting off unnecessary red flags.

“Thank you” Saxa said quickly, pausing to take in the fine mist of blood he now wore. “Red looks good on you” She teased before watching him slip in to pull his friend from the center of the crowd. A wise move, the other man could be the type of sore loser to rush off for reinforcements and really unravel his day.

With the crowd dispersing, Saxa knew it was time to take her leave as well, though just where she might disappear was a mystery. The town wasn’t entirely friendly or safe when the sun set and the overall nature of the Nobility had shown itself to be rotten on several occasions.
She knew it was likely in her best interest to steer clear of the two men who’d left the tavern, though the threat tossed out by the victor was clearly directed at some member of nobility with the title of ‘Lord’.

‘This is a terrible idea’

Self doubt looping, growing louder and louder as she calmly moved on after Shaun and Jesse. Not quite close enough to hear what was said but able to read the overall body language of the exchange. Her mysterious spatter shield was eager to get moving, something she would expect out of people didn’t want any attention. A holster strapped to the thigh of the younger man was another uncommon sight in Superior, this group had interesting permissions and were already ruffling noble feathers.
With nothing to lose in lightly pursuing a lead, she at least had something of an icebreaker, having already interacted with one of the pair. Saxa wasn’t trying to hide as she followed them and the trip to their supplies was surprisingly short.

“You look like someone who might need bullets” Saxa said, her tone warm and even, she wasn’t even sure if she would be acknowledged by Jesse or Shaun. It was entirely likely she was about to be told to make herself scarce or face any number of threats, so she would keep a polite enough distance from the men.

 

[TheAdept]

Jesse figured “something interesting” meant “something not even mercenaries should have,” so when a redhead seemed to be trying to butt in it roused his suspicion.

“We could always use ammo.” He said leering at her with distrust, but then reconsidered “Wait, where did you get the ammo?” He wondered what kind the redhead had.

 

[Corvid15]

Shisa watched the fight with some amusement, and the resulting aftermath. The girl Shaun was interacting with was an interesting one, and a bubble of jealousy rose up in her. The girl was so.. it just infuriated Shisa. This girl just casually walked up to the cart and the group. Just ignoring her, Rose, and Ethan.

Shisa scanned this girl, much younger than her. A small lass, though she wouldn't still be around if she couldn't pack a punch. A slip of a thing really.

Shisa turned to face the girl, glad she had the bandages and such covering her face. She was dressed in layers to disguise herself, sitting next to 'old crone' Rose. Shisa put on a more slavic accent, something she sometimes slipped into when switching back to common tounge from Bonevarian. She spoke with a bit of a lisp, to add to the disguise.

"Are you looking to trade, дете?" (child)

Shisa was a bit wary of this girl, seemed too nice, too well put together. Was she sent by the coat man? Was she another Noble agent?

"Мила, познаваш ли това дете? Опасна ли е?"(Darling, do you know this child? Is she dangerous?)

Shisa turned to Shaun, as she had been talking to the girl. Maybe they knew eachother.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

"Тя беше в битката, която Джес имаше скъпа, не се смесваше. Беше много тиха, най-вероятно чужденец. Тя не е благородна." (She was at the fight jesse was having dear, she did not blend in. she was very quiet, a foreigner most likely. She's not a Noble.) Shaun replied to Shisa, reasurring her. Both Shaun and Rose winced at what they assumed was a butchery of the Russian accent. It didn't matter, very few people in culrud had heared one...but still.

Shaun turned to the girl and spoke again in English to her "You're clearly not from around here, you aught to be careful who you talk about bullets to." Shaun said, "What do you want for those bullets?" Questioning the woman carefully gesturing for her to whisper the rest of that conversation as a roaming market guard passes.

 

[Lyth]

An unkind reception wasn’t the worst outcome of her approaching the group, unintentionally earning the ire of people she hadn’t known they were traveling with. Although one of the group seemed to immediately understand she was seeking to trade, Saxa wasn’t given much of an opportunity to speak. The group was smart enough to not immediately trust an outsider but weren’t overly subtle in switching tongues to speak about her as though she wasn’t standing directly before them.

Saxa knew she would have no choice but to politely navigate the questions thrown at her by three different members of the group, wondering why it would be so out of place for someone to have bullets to trade, she could be an arms dealer for all they knew. Still Saxa waited for the exchange in the strange language to end before the first man she’d spoken to was pushing towards negotiation.

“I’m looking for a few supplies” Saxa said, maintaining her calm and even tone, there was no use in getting flustered. She turned her attention towards Jesse who seemed surprised she was even carrying ammunition in the first place, a view that was almost wounding if she hadn’t been aware of just how young she looked.

“Exactly the way you think I did” Saxa said with a shrug, leaving Jesse to draw his own conclusions, she wasn’t overly keen on sharing intimate details of her time on land.

Hearing Shaun dare warn her of the dangers of the market was almost nostalgic, she almost wanted to rib him about not needing to protect her again but thought better of causing further discomfort among the group of strangers.
She would further lower her tone to appease Shaun, not wanting to put ego in the way of progress.

“I’m after a water filter and a compass or some variation that involves passage, your gang doesn’t seem to take kindly to the local restrictions” Saxa said, taking a shot at being mostly honest, her risk was still incredibly low compared to braving the wilds on her own. At least this group seemed the least likely to leave her dead in a ditch somewhere.

 

[Corvid15]

"Passage to where, and why?"

This started to seem very suspicious. Passage? That's what she wanted? That was practically like saying "I'm gonna rob you while you sleep." And Shisa knew the benefits of traveling in a group, but a loner isn't just going to ask to travel in a group like this. A drifting grifter was a bit more likely, just robbing people while going from place to place.

This girl might still be working for the man in the alley, stealing back the sack of stuff along with some extra. Shisa's mind was racing, trying to figure out this girl. She was a bit on edge from the alley encounter still, so she wasn't thinking straight.

"As for the other stuff, I'm not too sure what we have. Also depends what kind of ammo you have. "

Shisa kept her voice low to match the others. She locked eyes with the girl, giving a quizzical look. Though, she couldn't see it, as Shisa's face was covered by bandages. Only Shisa's eyes were uncovered, but she had fashioned it so she could still breathe and talk through the covering.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

There were very few straight shooters around nowadays, few would speak their mind. Let alone be honest in from of an armed group. Shaun chuckled a little, she was right after all, they weren't fans of local weapon restrictions or the people who made them. Shaun shot Jesse a look before regaining eye contact with the woman.

"We can grant you passage through the area, but we gotta make a couple of stops along the way." He offered her, they weren't in desperate need of ammunition but plenty is a blessing.

He wasn't too worried about being backstabbed, mainly because of their numbers, how well armed they were, and that he was somewhat of a good judge of character. "Half the bullets upfront, other half when you leave us."

 

[TheAdept]

Jesse looked at Shaun, then back at the woman.

“Sounds like a deal.” Jesse said “But we should leave the immediate area pretty soon here. He said, grabbing the cart handle and starting to pull it. This woman was no mercenary or Noble, at least Jesse was sure she wasn’t. Who was she?

 

[Lyth]

Saxa could practically smell the distrust coming from the group of travelers and she truly couldn’t blame them, the people around these parts had proven to be downright evil when dealing with strangers. Even the offered safety of the market seemed to make them uncomfortable, further capturing her interest.

“I’ve got some .44 and .308 I’m willing to offer you” Saxa replied quickly once Shisa asked, wanting to get the transaction moving along. She was well aware of just how uneasy everyone seemed with her wanting to join them traveling, the first few days weren’t going to be pleasant or all too comfortable.

Once more the man who’d addressed her at the fight was taking the lead in speaking to her but taking silent cues from the man he’d ushered away from the tavern. She was still trying to figure out the dynamic among the group, though all that was clear was Jesse being in charge.

“Look at you coming through for me again, Red” Saxa said, unable to keep the small joke about the blood still clinging to his mask, aware of the irony in the nickname being handed over by a redhead. “You read my mind” She added at the mention of splitting the payment, glad she wasn’t going to have to argue her way out of risking handing everything over.
Though she hadn’t paid out her entire stash on this trip alone, Saxa knew she needed some kind of insurance policy if the trip went sideways.

--

Only once the group was safely out of town would Saxa hand half of the payment over to whomever she was directed to, grateful for the few items and half promise of safety for the time being.

 

[Mewmewcatfish]

Rose seemed to come back to herself with all the commotion of the fight. She sighed, at the antics of Jesse, shaking her head at the young man's impulsiveness. He had nuts, that was for sure but he was also very reckless. When the new redheaded girl came over she remained quiet, staying low and out of focus as the other's chatted up this new person. With Sisha's new items she was just as suspicious as the other's when it came to the new youth in her mists.

Once the deal was made Rose hoped away from the cart hobbling over slowly to the girl, "Cammo? Did I hear that right. You have Cammo. I knitted my husband Wilbur some camo pants once. He loved those pants. Yep. Yep."

She hobbled over and lifted a withered hand to the girl, putting on a sweet smile, "I'm Rose deary. You can call me Rosie though. I move a bit slower than these bunch, but I know a thing or two about survival, and tea cozies. I weave very nice tea cozies."

She shuffled slightly reaching out to steady her back, as she played her role to a T, "Just because we don't trust you, doesn't mean folk can't be friendly nowadays. Manners may be old fashioned but that's how I like it."

She tapped her cane on the ground and then looked over to Shaun and Shisa, hobbling back over, as she gave them a mischievous wink, clearly enjoying herself as she tried to forget what happened earlier."

 

[Lexico]

CISTERN

Aurora moved backwards holding Mos with her. "Shhh honey," She whispered to him. Her loaded SMG was pointing at the direction of footsteps. She reached a corner. If anyone comes in, they would not see her first. A nice place to start shooting. Her mind was also racing with doubts. Was it her own gang playing tricks with her or Was it some wild animal or was it her hallucination?

After a moment which seemed like a long time, she heard the foot steps again. It should be more than one person. The sound of boots. Most probably Nobility soldiers. Aurora wondered whether they should have vacated this place after Shaun had seen intruders here. She held her breath and waited for the intruders to show up.

Foot steps approached the place and then a nobility soldier entered the place. He was not quite aware of the danger. He would have thought all the gang members would have gone out. And immediately next to him, another soldier entered. She started shooting at them. Mos shivered in fear. Poor guys did not have time to defend themselves. Both fell dead. She waited for some time, waiting for some more soldiers. There was silence on the other side. She took Mos's hand and started running towards the exit.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

Shaun was mildly amused by the face Saxa made when Rose went full croneon her. He took point of the group's procession, leading out of Superior.

After an hour of walking the procession of Survivours stopped at the rundown farm just outside superior, where the group was keeping their horses. Shaun noticed something was off, the door was cracked open slightly so that a solve of darkness in the dying sunlight could be seen as dusk began to weigh in. "Hold up, something's up." Putting his hand up in a military fashion to signal everybody to stop walking.

Saxa had assumed that Shaun was only carrying his knife, which was hanging limply on his belt. She assumed wrong, as he unveiled his shotgun from his coat with a flourish, like a magician unveils a previously hidden item to be missing, slowly racking it to make a smaller than typical amount of noise. He crept up to the large door, hearing nothing inside. He mouthed for Jesse and Rose to go round back and see if they can spot anybody inside form the silo, though the awning on the barn's second floor. He waited a few moments before peeking round himself, he could faintly hear something inside, like mumbling or hushed whispering.

 

[TheAdept]

As soon as Shaun noticed something was wrong, as did Jesse, who drew his handgun. He gestured for Rose to follow and ran around the barns second story via the path he took before from the silo. It meant climbing up the silo then jumping onto the roof. He was skeptical that Rose, in spite of her demonstrations of strength, could make the jump without falling and injuring herself.

 

[KotaKotsu]

Deep in the undergrounds was a rumbling with thunderous booms unknown to those far above ground. The sound of cheering, feet stomping, and screaming in rage, excitement, and total chaos. A dimly lit cavern full of people surrounding a makeshift pit full of sand and doors lay in the center of the onlookers. Chanting begins as steel doors open from the very corner of the pit and a hulking mass of metal and muscle emerges.

"Tear them up, tear them up, tear them up..." Can be heard reverberating through this small chamber, echoing in the iron clad man's mind. He raises his fist in the air as the crowd lets out a deafening roar of excitement. The other doors slowly begin to open.

Without warning, people of all sizes and with many weapons began to charge at this hulking mass of a man. The first victim to charge him was a small female who couldn't have been any older than 15, she was grabbed by their skull and slammed into his chest, completely covering him in viscera from her skull. He swings her lifeless corpse at the next two to approach him before he pounces on them, both fists slamming into their skulls as they are knocked prone by the corpse. The rusty saw blades on his arms are stuck their skulls as they twitch violently, still alive. One decides to stab at him with their spear.

A fatal mistake. The spear blade tinks off of his armor, and the monster man's blade is shot through the brave soldiers jaw, through their skull and the other opponent has a saw blade dislodged into their skull, the demon on the battle field punches it through their frontal lobe, causing the young man's brains to spill out from the now missing top that has been ripped open.

A howl escapes from three other people who leap onto the berserker's back, while they stab into him all at once. The three grin wildly as they see the hulking beast of a man bleed. An older woman with a butterfly knife, an athletic young man in his early twenties holding rusty rapier, and a small boy who was shaking with dagger in his hand.

The giant stopped moving.

"Haha! How do you like tha-" the young man's voice was silenced when he was grabbed by his skull and his head was crushed without hesitation. The young boy screamed and swallowed one of the eyeballs of the athletic young man before the hulking beast lifted his leg up to crush the child beneath his heel.

The old woman pushes the young boy out of way, landing on her stomach and the weight of the massive man comes crushing down on her spine with a sickening crack that echoes louder than the cheers of the crowd. The only thing louder was the screams and crying coming from the woman as she implored the boy to run.

"FINISH HER! FINISH HER! FINISH HER!" Was being chanted all around the stands of the arena. The gladiator rips out the rapier from his torso and shoves it through the woman's shoulder, knowing her screams would fuel the crowd's cheers. She tried biting her tongue to not give him the satisfaction, but blood pooling out of her mouth showed that she was nearly biting off her own tongue.

The boy sat in the corner of the door he had emerged from as he watched from a distance, shaking like a leaf, wondering if he would be spared, but knew his fate. The young man began to soil himself in fear, not knowing what else to do...

The butterfly knife was the next to be ripped out of his body and shoved into the woman's left cheek, and ripped upward to open her face so that her screams could be heard still. This, was successful as she started to cry and her tongue was half bitten off. A mangled garble of noise was replaced by whimpering while the crowd roared, drowning out the sad sound of the now weakened elder warrior.

He tosses the broken woman to the side as he stomps over to the boy. The boy tries to run away, but is grabbed by the back of his shirt and dragged kicking and screaming to the broken woman. The child is let go only to be grabbed by his ankle and slammed hard against the woman, both of them screaming in agony and anguish as they're both beaten to death with each other.

The only thing that echoed through this monster's mind, was how much the crowd was cheering this display on.

 

[Lyth]

A new form of comfort would arrive in the form of an older woman smoothing over the clear discomfort, Saxa was grateful to see someone who had survived for so long among the group. Only those who were exceptionally good at surviving would make it far on land, even at sea there was a great deal more safety offered, the elders were seen as the most capable survivors.
Saxa wouldn’t be diving into her train of thought, rather offering Rose a smile and a few words of gratitude over at least asking the others to be polite. The petite redhead would offer her courtesy in return, knowing better than to test the limits of her new traveling companions.

The quiet way she composed herself around the group was having its desired effect, she didn’t want to be perceived as a threat and she truly wasn’t. Only wishing to get herself far enough West to reach the coast and find something seafaring. Home was still incredibly far and moving South by land was entirely impossible without knowing the land.
With only two excursions under her belt before the most recent mission fell apart, Saxa felt like a novice scavenger at best, unable to drag together enough supplies to even pick up a compass just yet.

Glancing up at Shaun, who seemed to be trying to decipher her reactions, Saxa lifted an eyebrow in mock question before the group continued on, leaving her little to do outside of walk and attempt to put together just where they were going. Having a group was proving beneficial, she wasn’t jumping out of her skin while traveling for the first time in weeks.
Despite the training she’d endured, losing her team and running constantly had taken an interesting tone on the girl. Saxa was aware of just how fragile she’d been feeling but wouldn’t dare voice her gratitude over having someone to travel with, lest she completely alienate herself.

An uneventful trip awaited them, the normal boring slog of travel settling in until the group arrived to some strange structures and sounds, where her new companions didn't hesitate to make the threat known. Something was setting the group on edge and Saxa wasn't about to get herself killed for being unprepared

Saxa drew her bow and loosely nocked an arrow as the group quickly armed themselves, nearly overwhelming her with nostalgia when they quickly split off into effective teams with little communication.
The group would split off quite suddenly into an area she didn’t know, meaning she would keep her back to the wall and follow whomever Rose hadn’t, ready to plant an arrow into the throat of anyone who attacked them.

 

[Mewmewcatfish]

Rose smiled up at the young woman, sensing that the young girl possibly had quite the story to tell. Like Shisa she could sense that this one was a survivor. She nodded quietly at the lady's kind words deciding to walk alongside her slowly as they headed away from Superior. She like the rest of the group didn't trust her, but at her age she didn't trust anyone. She had grown to learn that being optimistic saved your skin more times then one would assume. As they traveled she kept up her crone act, her back growing slightly sore in her hunched position. When Shaun and Jesse noted something wrong she stopped her hands moving to her axes beneath her robes. She trundled forward, her eyes watchful as she waited to see what Shaun would suggest.

When he motioned for her to follow Jesse she nodded, giving Shisa a look to the cart before her movements quickened towards the Barn. She followed the young man up to the second story, noting his look towards the roof and Silo before he looked at her. She saw that he was thinking of jumping off and she stood to her full height, her voice changing back to its hefty tone even as she whispered, "Give me that look of pity again kid, and I will carve it into your face. I can make it. If I don't then I deserve what I get."

She smiled wickedly at him, clearly not kidding. She pulled out an axe, rolling it in her hand as she waited for him to make a move, her expression hardening like an angry old goat.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

Shaun proceeded to step back and to the side of the doors, pushing the center of one with the end of his shotgun to make it open inwards into the barn to allow the fleeting daylight to enter. He waited another few moments, until whatever inside let their guard down before peeking again. The horses were still tied up and alive, so it wasn't a dangerous animal in there. He could see something moving around, as if it was trying to stay hidden in one of the paddocks.

Shaun slowly entered. He raised his shotgun and calmly spoke, hoping he wouldn't get shot. "I can see you, come outta there before I run out of patience and send you to God." The figures seemed to stiffen a little, before slowly walking out into the dusk's glow. It was Aurora and Mos...

"Jesse! Rose! Dont Jump!" Shaun called out to them, if they hadn't already. "It's all good!" He turned to the couple and looked concerned, "What are you doing here? Why aren't you at the Cistern?" Whatever reason they had it meant trouble in some form.

 

[KotaKotsu]

"HAWK, HAWK, HAWK!" The cheering reigned, ringing the name of the champion of the arena. One might ask by what costs, but Hawk did not care. He only cared about the dagger still stuck in his left bicep. He rips out the blade with little effort before staring at the mangled corpses in front of him that once screamed.

Hawk uses the dagger to cleave into the leg of the young boy that was broken and crushed from being gripped without restraint. Cutting through the stringy young flesh, he was painted with the glory of his kill, making his mouth water. He rips off the leg from the middle of the thigh and bites into it like a drumstick. Feeling the bones crunch against his teeth along with the flesh to soften the sharp edges was almost euphoric and fueled his bloodlust.

The crowd letting out another roar of delight at this spectacle before the exit opened, and Hawk, swallowing his food, walked toward the open large metal door, carrying the leg and dagger in his hands, left.
________________________________________________

Hawk upon returning to his quarters, a stone room with no bed, sat down and began to rifle through his satchel. He produced a tin that held a soft mud that he had been taught to make in order to seal his wounds and peel out later. He took another bite out of the leg and remembered the cheers of the people watching him fight. As Hawk was lost in glory, his room door opens and in comes a familiar face of a doctor that Hawk doesn't register as a meal.

"It's time for your medicine and dinner."

 

[Corvid15]

Shisa stayed by the cart with Saxa, scanning the fields. Something was off, something didn't feel completely right here. She couldn't hear any sounds of distress from the horses, so that could be a good or bad sign.

Shisa heard the all clear, that it was just Aurora and Mos. Seriously? But if they were here, something must have happened back at the Cistern.

A screech from above made Shisa look up, Morrigan flying talons out over Saxa's head. Morrigan landed obediently on Shisa's arm, nuzzling her cheek. The red tailed hawk normally stuck to Shisa's tent, she wouldn't have left for no reason.

"What happened, what is it?"

Shisa held Morrigan at eye level, asking the bird. Faint smell of iron. Blood. Maybe it was more soldiers. Shisa called out the Jesse.

"Base may be compromised, probably more soldiers."

 

[Lexico]

Aurora was relieved to know the party had come home. She was hiding in the barn with Mos. She had spent most of the time along the window to watch any threats. But she had slipped out of tiredness when Shaun had entered. Anyway she was glad and felt secured now. She explained quickly how two nobility soldiers came to cistern armed and ready to attack and how she killed them. "I have watched for hours now. There seems to be no one else. I am sure those two came alone. How they came there is a mystery. Maybe it was accidental or maybe the place is compromised." She looked at them. Mos too was equally happy to see the gang. He smiled at Shaun. "Do you think more people will come?" She asked.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

"If it was just two, odds are they didn't know we were based down there. We don't know which noble they were with neither, they might be looking for the guys we killed or different ones completely." Shaun told the young woman, Jesse appearing in the barn doorway behind him. He looked surprised to see them, but let Shaun continue talking. "We best get back in case more showed up. Most of our gear is kept down there. If we hurry we might be able to catch up to them."

Jesse then spoke, addressing Aurora and Mos. "Aurora, stay here with Mos until we get back with an all clear, Shisa stay with them to keep them safe and let Ethan know what's happening when he gets here to meet up with us." Shaun looked over at Saxa and Rose. They seemed ready to go and see what happened to the group's gear, albeit Rose moreso than their newer recruit.

"Lets go make sure we haven't been robbed." Jesse said, turning on his heel and leading his 3 companions back home.

 

[Corvid15]

Shisa nodded, picking up the sack she had been given earlier. She wasn't about to let it out of her sight, especially since there might be hostiles in the Cistern. She walked off towards the barn, waving at the group as they left.

Shisa entered the barn, Morrigan flying off into a corner of the barn. Shisa still wasn't too fond of Aurora, she had broken her ribs after all. And she didn't want to face her after everything. But they didn't have to talk about that. Shisa turned to the pair.

"Are either of you injured?"

Neither of them looked injured at first glance, but it was better safe than sorry.

"Come up here."

Shisa climbed up to the hayloft, beckoning the others to follow. It would be a good vantage point. Much easier to hide, and no one would notice them easily. It would also allow her to scout from above. Aurora and Mos could rest for a while, while she watched from the old hay door up in the loft.

"You two can rest, I can keep an eye out."

Shisa hid herself, peering out of the old hay door up in the loft. She sat there, watching for anyone or anything that might pose a threat.

 

[Obsidian]

After Jesse suggested they all grab a few things each to trade for anything they needed, Ethan did so, climbing up onto the back of the wagon and examining what they had to trade. Among the collection of antiques was a group of small trinkets; soft toys, silver frames, personal accessories. Ethan gathered these up, for they were relatively small and easy to carry, and proceeded out into the markets to find something he could make use of.

There was so much to choose from. From food and water, to clothes and shoes, to weapons like swords and daggers, toiletries and even perfumes of sorts, decorative trinkets, resources such as metals and wood, and this went on and on for some time. Of course, Ethan wanted things that he could not easily steal or make for himself, something hard to find, components to tools and mechanisms that cannot be salvaged anymore and can only be traded. Ethan would find such a trader, one of semi-rare and valuable pieces of technology, though it all came in pieces. Offering the Old World trinkets, the trader would be intrigued.

"These aren't what you would ever find just lying somewhere in the wastes." The trader croaked, a cunning look in her eye, examining the pieces Ethan offered, "And in good condition as well. Not something that just any waster would be able to get their hands on."

"I didn't steal it, if that is what you are implying." Ethan spoke back somewhat defensively, "They were a reward for a job done."

"Of course." She said, somewhat mockingly, "I certainly didn't say anything about stealing, young man. But I am interested in what you have. What did you want in return?"

Ethan picked out a few component parts, and the deal was struck. "Perhaps there is something else we could discuss." The old trader said, giving Ethan a meaningful look while holding up one of the Old World artefacts, "Things such as these can be quite valuable to the right people. And I happen to know the right people. Should you... 'be rewarded' with such things again, find me again. I have more to trade than what you see here, and I may even have something more... specific in mind at times."

So, she's someone who trades in stolen items? Given Ethan isn't much of a thief, he simply gathers up his part of the bargain and stuff them into his backpack, before looking at the old trader distrustfully. "I'll think about it." He says, before turning and walking away. And the day's trading proved to eat up more time than he expected, for when he returned to the wagon to join the others, he would find it to be gone. After a few moments enquiring with the traders in the immediate victinity, he would be told that the others had already left.

They forgot him. They left and forgot him, just like that. "Those fucking Bastards!" Ethan growled to himself, now having little choice but to head back on his own, more than a little irritated by his supposed companions.

~~~

When Ethan found himself back at the Cistern, he would be surprised to find two bodies on the Cistern's floor in pools of blood, with none of the gang anywhere in sight. After calling out, none would appear. Despite the signs of battle, there was not enough to suggest that the whole gang had been overpowered and taken away, and it would be hard to believe that the nobles would have just left all the stuff here without someone to guard it. Likely Aurora and Mos got spooked by these two nobles appearing, killed them, and then ran away. At least no other nobles showed up, otherwise everything they've worked for up until now would be all gone.

Ethan went about scavenging what he could from the corpses, while keeping an ear out for any further incursions. So much for Shaun's assertions that nobles could never find the Cistern. Now they did. And if they could find it once, they could find it again. With that happy thought in mind, Ethan grabbed his sniper rifle before taking up a position in the shadows, where he could sniper any further intruders.

 

[Lyth]

The situation quickly de-escalated as the two people in the barn were identified as part of the group Saxa had just joined. A larger than expected group from the amount of names being thrown around while the others tried to piece together just what the arrival of noble soldiers could mean.
Regardless of motives, Saxa was almost certain someone would come looking for the dead noble men. In her own experience dealing with these patrols, they rarely took lightly to missing scouts and often came looking in force.

Saxa would lower her bow and follow Shisa to join the others and find out just what might be happening, soon learning she was on deck to join Jesse in checking their gear. She was certainly curious about Rose now, having seen two interesting sides to the impressively agile older woman. The group had already down a great deal of readiness that gave the lost traveler new hope in making it across the hostile country, though she still wasn't sure anyone would be eager to actually venture out into the ocean.

Movement had Saxa looking up at the beautiful bird Shisa had summoned earlier, drawing a pang of envy from Saxa, the animal companionship was something she'd never experienced, pets were an incredible luxury on the rig and only existed in cases of her fellow scavengers bringing them home. Having a working animal like a bird to aid in spotting things was a type of silly fantasy for a group that only knew seabirds. A gull wouldn't make the most reliable sight hawk, though one would always be able to find something floating on the water when watching their flight patterns.

Pulling herself back to reality, Saxa quietly listened to the group discuss just what the two nobles could have meant, a compromised space so soon into the journey wasn't going to be dragging morale up among the group. She hoped they would at least have a plan of action with their combined experience and knowledge of the area.

“Someone’s going to notice when they don’t come back” Saxa said, more to herself than the others, they would hopefully be seasoned enough to understand the pattern of scouting and patrolling. The nobles were at least predictable in their reactions to a break in routine, though the whole group seemed to fly into a frenzy over any perceived slight. Each time she'd faced off with the Nobles, backup had always arrived, like an endless wave of men sent out to overwhelm their foes into battle exhaustion.

Keeping her bow ready, the redhead would follow where she was directed, aware she wouldn’t have much of a choice if she wanted to earn her place.