Fantasy Elder Idea (Abandoned)

[Critical.Over]

“aaaaand? What do you think?”



Interacting with: Ocarina ( Spoiled Bread )| Mentioned: N/A | Located: Bismoliyet Harbor Marketplace, Armour Shop
XxXx

Aria’s Antics!

A large smile appeared on Aria’s face upon hearing the word ‘master’ come from Ocarina. “Master? Aha, yes, I suppose I am something of a master.” She gloated with a hand on her chest trying her hardest to seem casual while pulling a pose in the middle of the port. Before Aria could get over herself, Ocarina had already found a store to search for armour and gone off first, Aria followed after a she stopped complimenting her own expertise in her head.

She scurried over to Ocarina, pushing past the natives with a few half-hearted apologies. Upon entering the store Aria was surprised with the sheer vastness of the interior, a lot larger than the cramped and overcrowded stores of Balthora were. Aria was busy scanning the variety of helmets, gauntlets, breastplates as well as swords, axes and shields around the room- they seemed to be all high quality. The problem with that was everything was more likely to be expensive. Despite her frantic obersvations, Aria did manage to catch what she thought was the shopkeeper who had approached them look at her armour while he was talking about rust.

“Rust is a pain, you can try and get rid of it by soaking it in some kind of acid. Though I guess you don’t really wanna be doing that for every armour piece and weapon here.” Aria said still trying to look for something affordable. Upon being nudged she realised it was probably just best to ask the shopkeeper about pricing.

“So what armour sets are in here which cost less than ten pieces of silver?” Aria asked with a hopeful smile, the shopkeeper’s expression became amused.
“Sorry but you’re probably not going to get much more than a pair of gauntlets for ten silver, the lower fifty percent of our sets are around four or five times that price wise.” He said with a slight smirk.

“Yeah, I kind of expected that. Ocarina maybe this isn’t the best place to, wait hold on-“ Aria cut herself off before grabbing Ocarina’s hand, Aria’s gaze set upon something. She led Ocarina over to the a corner of the store with her, the shopkeeper trailing closely behind.

A specific set on a dark mannequin had caught Aria’s eye, it was tucked away behind so many other objectively worse looking sets, Aria suspected that this was the case because the amount of actual metalwork on this specific set was rather minimal. The armour set itself was comprised of a pair of beautiful sabatons, greaves and cuisses to make stunning leg armour. A shiny and prominent breastplate as well as equally prominent shoulderguards, they looked extremely sturdy. The rest of the outfit was comprised of a somewhat thick blue leather and a pair of leather gloves.

“This looks great Ocarina! Thick metal in the right places to save your life while not really being too heavy or restrictive. I think it’s a good pick for you.” Aria’s eyes had lit up, she hadn’t done anything like this in a while and had almost forgotten how satisfying it was to obtain a new set, even if it wasn’t technically her obtaining it. Aria turned directly to face Ocarina, “aaaand? What do you think? Price isn’t a problem, I always keep money in my boots, I can cover some of the cost if you want it.”

“This one costs fourty silver altogether, alternatively you can purchase different parts of it separately if you’d prefer, of course the price will change based on how much you want of it.” The shopkeeper explained, he too now facing Ocarina to hear her decision.

Spoiler: Armour Set

View attachment 578636

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Ocarina Flareweck

Armor Upgrade!

Ocarina was glad that they found a decent-looking armor in this store. She looked at the set that Aria chose for her. It looks simple and practical, which was nice.

"Can I try this, mister?" She asked the shopkeeper, the man quickly gave her approval. With some great effort that took several minutes, she finally managed to wore the set.

It was surprisingly more comfortable than she initially thought, maybe because the leather part was a nice padding that prevent unnecessary friction. She still felt awkward moving with it and the positioning of some plates seems to be a bit off for her liking, but the shopkeeper told her that it can be readjusted easily.

Ocarina tried a lot of random gestures and even dance around to try getting used to the armor but overall, she's happy with it. She threw Aria a quick hug, though she forgot about the breastplate and ended up making quite a loud thud.

"This is wonderful, Aria! Don't worry about the price. I have some money that I bring from my home." She opened her wallet and almost had her eyes popped out. She had much less money than she thought! Seems like she spent lots of her money in the Balthora's dock when they were waiting for their new boat after that battle. She closed her wallet before anyone could take a peek inside.

Ocarina quickly gave the shopkeeper her money. She didn't want to trouble anyone for something that was clearly her own fault, also, she should manage her finace better from now on.

"I feel like a knight now!" Ocarina said to the other girls while doing some exaggerated swinging gestures. "I think I'm finished shopping, but is there anyone here that want to buy something? We still have some time to kill."

Critical.Over explosiveKitten MJ ._. BlossomingRosebud

 

[BlossomingRosebud]

Tanya Aurum | Vian Marketplace | Tagging: Spoiled Bread MJ ._. Critical.Over explosiveKitten

Gotta love a good set of metal

Tanya strode into the weapons and armor shop after them, keeping her pace steady so as not to seem too excited but looking at everything with bright blue eyes wide with obvious wonder anyways. As Ocarina ran ahead and talked to the shopkeeper, Tanya found herself immediately drawn to the first wares she saw. She knew, right then, it really would take a hot minute to take everything in. This was nice. Such variety, too. That had a good finish, this one was quite light despite the thickness--she held up the breastplate, took off the transparent cloth covering it, and knocked on it; well made, indeed--and that sword, oh yes. Annealed steel, the best kind. There was a variety of things in this shop, of course--some were cheaper than others, but still, not bad. It was some solid craftsmanship, and Tanya should know. She had once made herself just about everything here. And if not that, she at least repaired it for people. She never had a shop of her own; mostly, she just did custom work for individual clients, or she sold things to other shops. She knew all the ones in Balthora well...but seeing a new place, full of new items she's never seen before? Now that was exciting.

It was also expensive. She overheard the shopkeep talking about how there was no way their measly five or ten pieces of silver could amount to anything, and she could believe it. It would cost way more than what they were given to get anything of worth around here. They would have to supplement with whatever money they had. Tanya did have a decent sum saved up herself, what with selling her shop's equipment and all, but she did kind of want to hold onto that so she could buy it back. Eventually. But what about this? Were these things even something she wanted? She had a perfectly fine weapon, and armor...well, funny enough, she never actually wore armor before. Most of her experience came from the street fighting ring, and they didn't exactly do armor. Not when you fought with your fists. They did matches with weapons, too, but that was usually a first-strike win, so it didn't really matter. Well, okay, people did get hurt, and she might have gotten stabbed a time or two like that, but it was fine. Really. But this, however, this wasn't a match anymore. She was going to be fighting people for real. So, did she need it?

In lieu of making a decision, she walked over to where Ocarina and Aria were looking at something, and saw Ocarina buy this set of armor. She smiled. "Nice." She nodded in approval. "I think it'll look good on you. Light enough for movement, but good shock absorption on the knees and breast."

Well, at least someone found something. Then Ocarina followed with asking if anyone else wanted something. At that, Tanya shrugged. "Maybe." She scratched her neck in thought. "I...uh...I don't exactly have any armor, but I don't know if I want any or not. I'll probably need it eventually...might be a bit of a learning curve, though."

 

[MJ ._.]

Location: Weapon shop of Bismoliyet Harbor / Direct interaction: Tanya, Bridget / Group interaction: Aria, Ocarina / Mentioned: Bura

Weapons of Vian

“Oh y-yeah! Let’s all go together! That’d be s-super great...” Aria composed herself a bit more before looking over at Ocarina, “ready to see if they have any life-saving armour at a non-life-ending price Ocarina?”

"Yeah, let's do it!" Ocarina exclaimed with enthusiasm. "And I will be in your care, master." She winked at Aria, which she entrusted to choose a suitable armor for her. A large smile appeared on Aria’s face upon hearing the word ‘master’ come from Ocarina. “Master? Aha, yes, I suppose I am something of a master. "She gloated with a hand on her chest trying her hardest to seem casual while pulling a pose in the middle of the port.

"You know? That sounds nice," Tabya affirmed Bita with a sideways smile. "I'd be down for looking around together."

“Ah, riiiight. Shopping. With five pieces of silver? That is some budget shopping you’ll be doing... we. We’ll be doing.” Bridget remarked, correcting herself and cracking a grin. “I might as well tag along.”

Bita laughed at the half elf's nagging about low budget. "We're not going to buy everything we see. Just by looking what there is we can learn more about this area and its people." She answered her.

The orc raised a brow. She paused to look back at Bita with a moment of consideration. But then turned and made her way to the market alone. "She must be a serious woman. Maybe hanging out with young girls sounds silly to her." Bita told herself. She wasn't going to feel disappointed yet. It was heartwarming that four other girls were eager to join together for a little fun. It certainly was going to be a better entertainment than gambling and drinking in reeking room of a ship.

Ocarina pointed at a building with sword and shield sign embedded on its door not far from where they were standing. Ocarina pointed at the building.

"Let's go there first." She merrily walked towards the shop, passing several various stalls on the way.

"Really? The potion lady is the one who suggests weapons first? I'm surprised!" Bita followed the enthusated duo.
As Ocarina opened the store's door, a bell chimed from the corner of the door's frame. A sweet mechanism to indicate incoming customer. The store itself was quite spacious. Various armors and weapons were lined up on the shelves, put on a stand or just laid on the tables. There's one thing in common with all these wares, they were draped in transparent clothes. Bit didn't like it though; she thought that covering items meant they weren't supposed to touch them while she wanted to touch almost everything, leaving her finger print on shiny metal.
Tanya strode into the weapons and armor shop after them. A middle aged man came running from the back of the building, eager to greet his customer. "Welcome to my store! I sell various life-saving equipment or life-ending, for yours truly!"
"This is a wonderful store you have here mister!" Ocarina started with a polite praise. "But why the clothes?"
"Ah, that. Sea breeze. This place is damn wonderful for my business but the rust can ruin everything." The storekeeper took a peek at Aria's armor. Probably wondering how it could be that shiny, or might be guessing how many days it took for her armor to gain its first rust. "So what can I help with you ladies?"

Ocarina poked at Aria's shoulder. "Please help me choose one." She shifted her attention for a brief moment to the other girls in her company.

“Rust is a pain, you can try and get rid of it by soaking it in some kind of acid. Though I guess you don’t really wanna be doing that for every armor piece and weapon here.” Aria said still trying to look for something affordable.
“So what armor sets are in here which cost less than ten pieces of silver?” Aria asked with a hopeful smile, the shopkeeper’s expression became amused.
“Sorry but you’re probably not going to get much more than a pair of gauntlets for ten silver, the lower fifty percent of our sets are around four or five times that price wise.” He said with a slight smirk. “Yeah, I kind of expected that. Ocarina maybe this isn’t the best place to, wait hold on-“ Aria cut herself off before grabbing Ocarina’s hand, Aria’s gaze set upon something. She led Ocarina over to the a corner of the store with her, the shopkeeper trailing closely behind.

“This looks great Ocarina! Thick metal in the right places to save your life while not really being too heavy or restrictive. I think it’s a good pick for you.” Aria’s eyes had lit up “aaaand? What do you think? Price isn’t a problem, I always keep money in my boots, I can cover some of the cost if you want it.”
“This one costs forty silver altogether, alternatively you can purchase different parts of it separately if you’d prefer, of course the price will change based on how much you want of it.” The shopkeeper explained, he too now facing Ocarina to hear her decision.

"Can I try this, mister?" She asked the shopkeeper, the man quickly gave her approval. With some great effort that took several minutes, she finally managed to wore the set. She tried a lot of random gestures and even dance around to try getting used to the armor but overall, she's happy with it. She threw Aria a quick hug, though she forgot about the breastplate and ended up making quite a loud thud. Bita didn't hold back her laughter at that.

"This is wonderful, Aria! Don't worry about the price. I have some money that I bring from my home." She opened her wallet and almost had her eyes popped out. She quickly gave the shopkeeper her money. "I feel like a knight now!" She said to the other girls while doing some exaggerated swinging gestures. "Nice." Tanya nodded in approval. "I think it'll look good on you. Light enough for movement, but good shock absorption on the knees and breast."
"I think I'm finished shopping, but is there anyone here that want to buy something? We still have some time to kill." Ocarina asked. "Maybe." Tanya scratched her neck in thought. "I...uh...I don't exactly have any armor, but I don't know if I want any or not. I'll probably need it eventually...might be a bit of a learning curve, though."

"You might want to try a chain mail for start. It's light and easy to move it." Bita suggested. "If you prefer to keep your money for now, you can use mine with studded leather until we're paid for our first mission. You probably can buy something of better quality with your first pay." She offered gladly. A blacksmith was a friend she had to support. After all, only a few girls had Tanya's skills. After that, she turned to the salesman. "Sir, where are your weapons of fair quality that I've hear about? You're worried about them rusting, then none of them is made of stainless steel? What about silver and gold coated steel or enchanted alloys of Vian?" She asked him.
The man smiled knowingly. "Of course I can provide you with them but do you have gold and gems to spend?" He asked her doubtfully. "Not now. But we are a capable company and soon our purses will be fat will gold. I wonder where we have to shop for what we deserve." She answered proudly.
"Hoho! Are you that confident. Well, you need gold coins for stainless steel and gold ingots for silver and gold coated steel. Common enchanted items can be bought by gems but especial items need more work. You have to bring materials and pay the crafter with gold." The shop keeper explained. "I can provide you with almost all of these just if you bring the required payment." He said seriously.
"I'll be buying from you if only you suggest the Light Lotus company to every proper person you know." Bita replied with a sweet smile.
The man scratched his chin and smirked. "Sly, ain't you, mercs? Deal! I'll see what I can do." He answered.
"Thank you very much, sir!" Bita sealed the deal with a brighter smile then looked at others. "My deal here is done. Let's go to potion or herbs shop after this. I need some medicine. I didn't buy enough in Balthora since they're expensive in that dying land. But I'e heard they're cheap here." She suggested.

Senor_Fluffy Critical.Over Spoiled Bread BlossomingRosebud explosiveKitten

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Ocarina Flareweck

Vian's herbs

Their visit to the weaponry shop ended with a nice deal with the storekeeper. Herbs store would be their next destination. As they walked out of the store, Ocarina tapped Bita's shoulder.

"Nice deal there, Bita. I don't really expect the storekeeper or even us to hold the deal, but it's still nice if we can keep spreading our company's name along the way."

After walking for a few minutes, they finally managed to find a herbs store. It was a small tent with bitter but sweet fragrance wafting around it. The storekeeper looks more like a fortune teller than a herbalist. She's an old woman that wore long purple robe and even holding a crystal ball. There's one other customer examining the various herbs and potions lined along one of the shelf.

"I-is this a herb store?" Ocarina was mumbling to herself, but the storekeeper surprisingly picked it up and answered with her hoarse voice, even though she shouldn't be able to hear the mumbling from this distance.

"IT IS a herb store, dearie. Oh no, you DON'T!" Ocarina was a bit scared when the old woman suddenly raised her voice and conjured a lightning bolt from her crytal ball, the bolt stuck the lone customer's hand and made him dropped a bottle of seeds that he almost put inside his pocket. The said person scurried outside while rubbing the hand that was stuck by the lightning.

"Fuckin' parasite want free herbs. Now, come in and take a look around, kiddo."

MJ ._. Critical.Over explosiveKitten BlossomingRosebud

 

[explosiveKitten]

Senor_Fluffy Critical.Over Spoiled Bread BlossomingRosebud

Spoiler: Tweens, man. They suck.

Watching as everyone parted ways, Bridget stood to the side with a neutral expression on her face until she was relatively alone. Only then, did she take off into the city. Now would be a perfect time to slip off. That was the plan.

Unfortunately the plan didn’t quite go that way.

First Bridget wandered off to find someone who could refill her stock of throwing knives. The six she used, three she salvaged, she needed three new ones. So off she went. Finding a blacksmith in this town didn’t take too much effort, especially when you considered that Bridget was simply following everyone else. They did their business fairly quickly, and Bridget managed to get herself a fairly nice discount on her throwing knives. Thank the gods for her pretty face. It certainly had its uses.

Unfortunately, a pretty face can’t get you out of EVERY situation.

While the group wandered off into some herbalist store, she saw the perfect opportunity to slip away.
“I’m not really into all those herbs and spices,” she told them with an airy lilt to her voice, “So I think I’ll just wait for you ladies out here, hm? Don’t take too long now~” and with a last little waggle of her fingers and a charming smile, she watched the girls disappear inside. Once they were out of sight, the smile dropped to a neutral expression as stood there, staring at the door for a moment before glancing in the window to watch the progress.

When a young man threw the door open and stepped outside, she jumped and leaned against the building ultra casually, picking at her nails. When the man looked over at her, she allowed herself to look up and meet his eyes with a smile and a wave. The man only gave her a strange look and continued on his way, waving a smoking hand through the air like he was trying to shake the smoke off.

After another moment or two of waiting and watching the group inside to make sure they were properly distracted before she finally turned and began to walk away, only-
THWAK!
“AH! OW! WHAT IN THE-?!”
A rock beaned Bridget in the temple and sent her reeling. She hissed in pain and reached up to touch the spot, her fingers coming back smeared with red.
Raucous laughter erupted from her left and when she swung her head in that direction, she found a small group of children- boys, probably pre-teens, all well dressed and proper looking. Some of them still had rocks in their hands, while the others all simply laughed and pointed.
One of the other boys cocked an arm back and threw another rock at her, but this time she saw it coming. She narrowed her eyes angrily and expertly snatched the rock out the air and glare threateningly. The boys all noticed immediately and began to take scared steps away from her.

She angrily set her jaw and wound up to throw the rock back at them, and several of the boys ran while a couple stayed behind, calling her bluff. Unfortunately, she knew the kinds of problems she could get into if she started throwing rocks at local children, so with gritted teeth, she let her arm fall to her side and drop the stone. She turned to walk away when one of the boys shouted something at her.
“FREAK!”
Her face turned bright red all the way up to the tips of her half-elf ears as she looked back at the boys over her shoulder, watching them strut away from her. She stood stock still in the middle of the road, watching a couple brats walking away with their chins in the air.

“... Why did I think coming here would be any different?” She mumbled, reaching up to touch her bleeding scalp. It was really starting to gush now, wasn’t it? Why did head wounds have to bleed so damn much? She sighed, then pulled her hood over her head, and bandana over her face as she turned and began to walk away from the herbalist shop.

 

[Senor_Fluffy]

Bura Sharamph| Vian Marketplace | Interacting with: explosiveKitten

All Too Familiar Wounds

Bura had spent a decent bit of time just wandering. Her large physique kept most away from there. Uncertain second glances at her cloaked form. Then she spotted a pair of familiar green eyes. With a hood and bandana over her face it took Bura a moment but she easily recognized the way she carried herself. That was Bridget. Something was off though. Her brows drew inwards when in a ray of sun she saw Bridgets hood glisten a deep color. Blood.

Bura turned her body and made her way through the afternoon crowd. Reaching out and grabbing the seemingly distressed half-elf by the shoulder. "You are bleeding, what happened? Come sit, let me make it stop." The orc insisted in her usual lisp filled voice. Pointing to an alley with a few barrels to sit on across the way.

Up until this point the orc had been unbothered by the ailments of her crew. Especially when they were vomiting and groaning with sea sickness. Yet here it was different. Bura was on guard and aware they didn't belong here. On the ship a sense of her knew she belonged. But this wasn't any land of her kind nor Bridget's. So she knew they had to watch out for each other. Otherwise who would?

 

[explosiveKitten]

Senor_Fluffy

Spoiler: Non-humans stick together

The young woman wiped at the blood running down the side of her face with a frustrated sigh, wishing that she had stopped to buy some bandages from.. somewhere. But there wasn’t any time to stop now. She needed to get away from the herbalist place.

But quickly, she realized escape just wasn’t back going to be that easy, because a big hand soon clapped onto her shoulder. Out of instinct, she immediately whirled, smacking the hand off her shoulder and with a quick flick of her wrist, her hidden blade sprung from it’s sheath found it’s place right at the offending clavicle.

Fortunately, Bridget managed to pull back just in time to not impale Bura. Bura? The orc from the ship? Gods, damn it! So much for an easy getaway!
“Oh! Oh, gods almighty, I am- My sincerest apologies, erm, Bura. You startled me.” She pulled the blade away from the orc and clicked it back into hiding. She then pulled her bandana off and clapped a hand to her cheek innocently, “You must excuse me, that is a bit of a reflex reaction... how did you sneak up on me?”

"You are bleeding, what happened? Come sit, let me make it stop." The orc insisted in her usual lisp filled voice. Pointing to an alley with a few barrels to sit on across the way.
“What? No, I’m not bleeding, what makes you think I’m bleeding?” She said in her sweetest voice possible, only to feel a dribble of blood make its way down her cheek, down to her chin to drip off and down to the cobblestone road. Very very visibly so.
“... okay, maybe I am bleeding a little.” She relented, reaching up and wiping the bloody trail away, only to smear it more, “But it’s fine, it’s just.. an old wound that’s reopened. It’s fine, head wounds bleed a lot.” She looked at Bura and cracked a big grin, then grimaced when it made her rock wound move a little.

“... alright fine, let’s... let’s go over there.” She gestured at the aforementioned alley and began to walk over there, and once they were sufficiently away from prying eyes, she hopped up on top of a barrel and pulled her hood off, showing the full wound to Bura once she caught up.

“... Apparently children here in Vian think it’s a fun pass time to throw rocks at unsuspecting half elves.” She said, crossing her arms and starring off to the right, briefly glancing at Bura when she says, “but I suppose you know all about what that’s like, yes?”

 

[Senor_Fluffy]

Bura Sharamph | Vian Marketplace Alleyway | Interacting with explosiveKitten

Inhuman Empathy

Bura took a step back as she was greeted with a dagger to the leather armor across her left shoulder and chest. Looking down at it with golden orbs before looking back at the startled woman. She didn't move as Bridget lowered her defenses and made excuses. The orc just blinked as this clearly wounded woman denied her wound. Was it that embarrassing to her? Adjusting her head scarf to make sure her nose was still covered, she nodded once the elf finally agreed to let her take care of her wound.

Once Bridget sat on one of the barrels and pulled down her hood, Bura wordlessly got to work. Pulling out her leather canteen and cleaning away the clotting blood from her dark hair and the side of her face with the delicate touch of callused digits. Listening to what happened she nodded in understanding. Moving most of Bridget's hair out of the way she undid the bandaged on her own forearm and palm. They were fresh, she had changed them before getting off the ship. Deep discolored scars of chains and restraints disfigured the now revealed arm of the orc. Pressing half of the bandages to the wound, she dug around in her bag for a like vial of a clear liquid.

"This will sting." She removed the bandages for a moment before pouring the liquid onto the wound. A disinfectant which would keep the wound from getting infected for now. Pressing the bandages back on the wound, Bura started wrapping the bandages around so they could be relatively hidden by her hair and a well place bandana on the forehead.

"Mhm." She let out a knowing noise as she was asked such a question and continued to apply pressure to the woman's head. Making sure the bleeding would stop. "Why do you think I cover myself up so much even when it is so bloody hot? People entertain themselves any way they can." The orc shrugged and fixed the half elf's hair so though it was damp, it would cover majority of her bandages and not be overly tangled. The orc looked down at her tan counterpart. Why hadn't she made her way back to the meeting point after being attacked? "Are you alright Bridget?" The orc asked with a tilt of her head, lowering the part of her scarf so that her whole face was visible, tusks and nose piercing and all. It wasn't a pretty mug of a face but it was all she had. Even if it had a few dents and scars.

 

[Critical.Over]

“Now you look maybe a quarter as cool as me”



Interacting with: Ocarina ( Spoiled Bread ), Tanya ( BlossomingRosebud ), Bita ( MJ ._. )| Mentioned: N/A | Located: Bismoliyet Harbor Marketplace- Herb Store
XxXx

Aria’s Antics!

Aria felt a weight off of her chest upon hearing that Ocarina would pay for it. Good, taking this thing off is a pain sometimes she thought with a nervous smile on her face. “You’re welcome Ocarina! Now you look maybe a quarter as cool as me. Yeah, maybe a fifth.” She exclaimed after their hug, taking another look at the armour. A tenth definitely.

Upon hearing Tanya’s words, Aria wanted to jump at the idea of finding a set for her. Problem was, Aria couldn’t really see anything else in the store that she’d even consider wearing. Bita’s advice wasn’t wrong, and chainmail would definitely be good for someone inexperienced with armour, though Aria had never been a fan of it. Aria placed a hand on Tanya’s shoulder and leaned over to whisper in her ear,
“We’ll find something for you another time if you want Tanya, you don’t want to be wearing the same thing as Ocarina, that’s a huge clash, and everything else in here looks a bit,” Aria looked over to the shopkeeper now busy with Bita, “tacky.”

Not really interested in shopping for herself, Aria followed Bita and Ocarina out of the weapon store. It was unlikely anything there she could afford was a substantial upgrade to her gear anyway, so she happily waved goodbye to the shopkeeper, content with herself that she still had it in her to pick out good armour despite only really wearing one set recently.

With a spring in her step and a smile on her face, she skipped over to the herb store with the group of girls. It was a far cry from the sophisticated store they had just been in, though Aria supposed it made more sense for a store with more natural goods than armour. The old woman who owned the place seemed rather defenceless, crime rates in Vian were supposed to be much lower than in Balthora however so Aria concluded it wasn’t that much of a problem. Just about as Aria was going to start looking around, she hears the old woman yell and a bolt of lightning is thrown right across her line of vision. Aria flinches and very quickly looked over to where it was going.

"Fuckin' parasite want free herbs.” The old woman exclaimed as the thief ran off, clutching his hand in pain.
“So there are thieves here. Don’t worry old, uh, wise shopkeep! I won’t let him get away.” Aria proclaimed rushing her way out of the store, knocking over and breaking another seed bottle in the process.

When she got out into the bustling port, her eyes frantically searched through the crowds of people, it didn’t take long to find a man gripping his hand with a look of pain among the hordes however. Aria pushed her way through the crowds, eventually catching up to the almos-shop-lifter. Conjuring a powerful gust of wind beneath her feet, Aria jumped high into the air and tackled the man to the ground. The crowds moved away from her, some of them gasping in shock and confusion. “Villain! I am Aria Abrams, a knight and keeper of the peace, your attempt to rob a seemingly defenceless lady has turned out to be fruitless,” as Aria talked the man was struggling to get her off of him, unfortunately for him he was rather skinny and she’d pinned him to the ground, “you’re coming with me now, fiend!” She said helping him to his feet, not letting go of his forearm. He probably could’ve broken free but there was really no point. She’d just tackle him again. The crowds backed away as Aria dragged the man back over to the herb store.

“Bita! Ocarina! Look, I caught the criminal,” Aria looked at the broken glass and seeds scattered across the floor of the store with irritation in her eyes, “you’d better repay the shopkeeper for damaged property!” Aria said pushing him back into the store, he was clearly somewhat distraught by the whole situation.

 

[BlossomingRosebud]

Tanya Aurum | Vian Marketplace | Tagging: Aria ( Critical.Over ), Bita ( MJ ._. ), Ocarina ( Spoiled Bread ) | Mentions: Bridget ( explosiveKitten )

Because herb stores are lovely places for standoffs

"You might want to try a chain mail for start. It's light and easy to move it."

Tanya nodded noncommittally at Bita's suggestion, eyes drawn again to the various sets of armor on display. Chain mail? Eh, maybe. That was more of a swordsman's armor...strong against piercing, but weak against blunt trauma. She narrowed her eyes in thought at the other items, but that didn't help her problem. Thing was, she could look at all these things and consider how they were made, their advantages and disadvantages, what the style was meant to do, but she just couldn't picture herself in any of them. Actually wearing it, that is.

Bita suggested the herb store, and Ocarina followed soon after. Tanya was just standing there indecisively when Aria placed a hand on her shoulder and whispered. It made her jump just a tiny bit at first, but she listened, and she had to admit Aria had something of a point. "...everything else in here looks a bit...tacky." Yeah, maybe she should wait. Tanya wasn't sure yet what she wanted, anyways, and if she had it her way, she's be making the items in question herself. But that was a bit of a more distant dream at this point. She'll get her forge eventually. For now, she just nodded along, and followed the others to the herb store.

It didn't take but about roughly ten seconds for Tanya to realize she was lost in this place. Looking at the wide and varied display of green and getting bombarded by the million and one smells, she had to laugh at herself. The weapons and armor shop--that was her domain. She knew that stuff forwards and backwards (on a technical level, at least). But herbs? She knew a few things about the stuff that was good for wounds and common sicknesses...her budget growing up did not generally include visits to the doctor...but this? She looked at a sign and squinted at the scribbled handwriting. She looked at the one beside it. Yep, couldn't tell the difference. Too many plants here. Perhaps she should defer to Ocarina, or ask that old lady running the place...

"Oh no, you DON'T!"

Tanya's eyes shot open and she nearly knocked over a pot of comfrey as the lady sent a bolt of lightning toward the would-be shoplifter. She whirled around to see the guy run out of the store...and Aria run straight after him. She blinked a couple of times, and then turned to Bita, Ocarina, and...heh, just them. Looks like Bridget slipped out when she wasn't looking. "Should...ummm...someone go after her?" she asked the others with a shrug. She didn't doubt that Aria could handle it...whatever it was she was handling. What the heck was she trying, anyways? The guy already left. Done deal. She remembers having to chase off thieves a few times before in her days running the forge, but you kind of just had to scare them and let them leave. Couldn't trust the city guards to deal with it, that was for sure. You just move on and...

It was only a few minutes later when Aria came waltzing back in the store with this guy in tow, announcing that she had caught and now he better pay the shopkeeper back. Tanya stared at them both with jaws slack. Did she...really just do that? Sure, she got the picture that Aria was emphatic about justice, but this...this was bold. Forward. She didn't have to do that...and up until now, Tanya didn't know a single person who would track down a criminal for a shopkeeper she didn't even know. Was it a little reckless? Yes. But dang, that was kind of awesome.

Tanya stood there a moment stunned, and then, a grin made its way onto her face. You know? She just might begin to like these people. She reached onto her back for Ellie, smoothly bringing her hefty axe into her hands and letting it gleam threateningly in the candlelight. "Better do as she says, boy," she taunted the beleaguered man by Aria's feet, stepping just a few paces closer. Did she know how this would pan out? Not at all. But she would absolutely back her teammate up on this one. Because, why not?

 

[MJ ._.]

Location: Herbs and Potions shop of Bismoliyet Harbor / Direct interaction: Ocarina, Bridget / Group interaction: Aria, Tanya

An Armored Angle for a Good Discount!

"Nice deal there, Bita. I don't really expect the storekeeper or even us to hold the deal, but it's still nice if we can keep spreading our company's name along the way." Ocarina said. "Thanks. Actually, after facing these prices and our low budget because losing company's belongings in the first ship, we really need to get busy as soon as possible or we'll end up eating leaves and grass." Bita answered. She was kind of flattered by Ocarina's complement.

Next, she almost followed Ocarina's lead to take them to sort of herbal pharmacy. Oddly, they found a tent instead of a store. There, Bridget lingered before entrance. “I’m not really into all those herbs and spices… So I think I’ll just wait for you ladies out here, hm? Don’t take too long now~” She said with a last little waggle of her fingers and a charming smile, which was suspicious. Bita wondered if she had other work somewhere and didn't want them to tag along or maybe she just didn't want to waste her time on something she didn't need. "As you wish, but you're going to get more bored by standing out." Told her before following Ocarina inside the tent.

"It looks… peculiar." She said in amazement as they entered a large tent with witchcraft theme. She couldn't guess how the crystal orb and purple robs were related to herbs but they were impressive regarding expectations of a magical potion.
"I-is this a herb store?" Ocarina was mumbling to herself, but the storekeeper surprisingly picked it up and answered with her hoarse voice, even though she shouldn't be able to hear the mumbling from this distance. "IT IS a herb store, dearie. Oh no, you DON'T!" The hag in purple startled her by a sudden angry shout. She raised her voice and conjured a lightning bolt from her crystal ball, which struck the only other customer's hand and made him dropped a bottle of seeds that he almost put inside his pocket. The said person scurried outside while rubbing his electrified hand. "Fuckin' parasite want free herbs. Now, come in and take a look around, kiddo." She grunted.

"Should...ummm...someone go after her?" Tanya asked them with a shrug. "Eh? The first thief I saw in Vian. He's going to be part of my memoir… " Bita was saying, wondering if it was so soon the see a crime in the fabled Vian, when was cut by Aria's comment: “So there are thieves here. Don’t worry old, uh, wise shopkeep! I won’t let him get away.” She proclaimed rushing her way out of the store, knocking over and breaking another seed bottle in the process. "Aria! Don't…" Bita called after her but it was too late; she had already gone. "I mean, that guy has already been punished, hasn't he?" She whispered to Ocarina and Tanya, seeking their idea about chasing beaten petty thieves around the harbor. Then, she looked at the witch looking woman with a confident smile. "I guess it's too late to say it's not related to us, right?" She said as approached her while her hand was searching for something in her bag. "Don't worry, she's a good girl. She's going to be right back with that thief to… have him repay for the ruined seeds. Actually, we are members of Light Lotus Company and we've come to refill our provisions with the best quality products." She said confidently as pulled a list out of her bag. "Well, my friend here is an expert in potions and she says you can provide us with the best." She mentioned Ocarina and flattered the old woman. "Hmm… that's true. Your friend has a good nose for perfection. What do you need?" The shopkeeper asked. Bita began reading from her list, ignoring the first line which referred to cure of grey. She doubted if such thing existed, even in Vian. "I need these kinds of potions and salves; blood clotting, blood refilling, antidotes, ant fever, stamina booster, healing booster, burn salve…." It was a long list. "And about potions, may I have them as pills that can be dissolved in water?" She asked. "Yes, surly I can see to that. I'm going to make a box…" The woman answered. "And about the cost?" She asked. "Hmm… A silver coin for each five batch." "How can I make it with 3 silver coins?" "Ah… seriously?! You should have mentioned it sooner." "Oh please, I know you can do it!" Bita urged. Meanwhile, Aria returned, dragging her captive along. "Bita! Ocarina! Look, I caught the criminal,” She announced the obvious cheerfully and looked at the broken glass and seeds scattered across the floor of the store with irritation in her eyes, “you’d better repay the shopkeeper for damages property!” Aria said pushing him back into the store, he was clearly somewhat distraught by the whole situation. "Better do as she says, boy," Tanya taunted the beleaguered man by Aria's feet, stepping just a few paces closer.

Bit looked at the puzzled shopkeeper with a wide smile. "Didn't I tell you? You caaan consider LLC your friends, good lady." She spoke with silver tongue. "Now, would you please consider my request? This is to support my dear, cavalier and beautiful comrades in the battlefield." She asked innocently despite of her glittering eyes. The old woman watched the thieve and Aria for a while. "Good job, young lady." She said the reached her hand out toward Bita. "Give me that list of yours. If I replace the pills with bags of powders, you can have it with 3 silver pieces." She said. Bita handed the list gladly. "Thank you very much. You're a life saver." She said. The old woman took the list and stared at it for a moment. "From Balthora, aren't you? Unfortunately, I don't have a certain cure for the grey. You only can help the patient to fight back by giving them nutrition and health enhancers." She said. Bita blushed on cheeks. "I know… that's… just a reminder… a distant hope." She answered. The old woman nodded and placed a box on her counter then used magic of her orb to call bags of herbs and potions from across her shop and put them in the box. In the end, she closed door of the box and Bita gave her the three coins Janet had given her, and picked the box. "Thanks again." She said as held the box tightly close as if it contained treasure, then looked at her companions. "I'm done. Sorry for keeping you waiting."

Critical.Over Spoiled Bread BlossomingRosebud explosiveKitten

 

[explosiveKitten]

Senor_Fluffy

Spoiler: Scars?

Though Bridget cringed a bit when the disinfectant touched her open wound, she accepted the treatment grudgingly, trying not to look Bura in the eyes as it happened.
She was embarrassed- Normally, she wouldn’t have let something like a rock hit her, but she had been distracted by her own thoughts, and had let children assault her with stones. How foolish could she be?

She did however notice something... Scars. All over Bura’s arms. Not only were they scars, holy gods, those were chains. Manacles? She had heard about the horrible things that happened to orcs in these lands, but... She had never seen actual, physical evidence.
She tried not to stare- that’s rude, after all- but her eyes just couldn’t seem to leave it alone.

“...me? I’m fine.” She waves off the question, reaching up to touch the new bandage and hairdo, “I’m used to this stuff. Though I must admit, this is the first time I’ve had rocks thrown at me. Normally it’s just slurs.”
She chuckled at the thought, then paused, looking at the scars again. She bit her lip, desperately trying not to comment on it.
“I suppose I should have foreseen something like this happening. I just didn’t expect to be called a freak by a bunch of children.”

She looked up at Bura, then pulled her hood back on and gestured off into the thoroughfare once again, “Well, thank you for the patchjob Bura. Shall we make our way to... the... rendezvous?” She had actually forgotten where the hell it wasn’t they were supposed to go when done shopping. She hadn’t thought it would matter.

 

[Senor_Fluffy]

Bura Sharamph |Heading back to the meeting point |Interacting with explosiveKitten

Memories Carved Into Flesh

Bura dried off her hands with her cloak. Her left forearm no longer bandages, years of restraints had left their mark on her. No manacles or rope or chains remained. That the half-elf could see at least. The purpled scars and grooves on her forearms and wrists were the memories that would never leave. Running her hand over the bumpy limb she noticed Bridget staring. The orc seemed to hesitate in thought. She didn't have anymore bandages, she had left behind the dirty ones and had been hoping to restock. She'd have to keep her left arm under her cloak for a while.

Bura listened to the talkative half elf and a slight smile tugged at the edge of her lips. "Good to know the kids even here know the classics." Bura looked over her handiwork. "No point on expecting yourself to change something that has already happened. Waste of time. Waste of energy." Raising a brow as Bridget bit her lip, confusing the orc.

"I was a slave before this. Never seen the scars of a slave before?" Bura spoke with a guarded tone, not certain how this half elf would think of her after knowing. Her golden hues left Bridget and looked back towards the market street. "We probably should head back to the port. It's been a decent bit of time." The orc started to slowly make her way towards the street. Stopping for a moment to look back at half elf expectantly.

 

[explosiveKitten]

Senor_Fluffy

Spoiler: Mmmmm, pie.

Bridget blinked and watched as Bura walked away, turning and looking back at the alley they had been sitting in.
Surely she could come up with an excuse to walk away and disappear, never to be seen again.

But no, she pulled her hood as far forward as she could and walked back out into the sun. She took up the same pace as Bura as they walked and kept quiet while they did.

“... Actually, I haven’t seen scars like that before... but I have heard stories.” She mumbled lowly, trying to be discreet about the discussion, “Horrible, horrible things. I figured you wouldn’t want me to point them out or offer some form of pity. Most people are rather private about those kinds of things.”

She reached a hand up and started to chew on her thumbnail thoughtfully, before suddenly seeming to realize that she was doing it and moving her hand under her cloak. “I was trying not to stare, I hope I didn’t offend.” She added as an afterthought.

She’s walked beside Bura quietly for a while, before looking up again with a sweet smile, “I’ll have to come up with some way to repay you for this... Do you like pie?”

 

[Senor_Fluffy]

Bura Sharamph | Heading back to meeting point | Interacting with explosiveKitten

That Will Do

Bura looked over Bridget's expression for a moment. Seeming to decide on her intentions before focusing on what was in front of her. A relaxed lumber to the orcs walk as she made her way through the crowd. Keeping her voice relatively low, making sure her nose and tusks were covered by her head scarf.

"I can guarantee you don't know the half of it if all you have heard are tales to scare children." The orc paused, "I am private about it. It is as hard to hide as my tusks and ears. But figured gonna be fighting by your side so you'll find out eventually."

Bura shook her head, "No, no offense taken." She took a deep breath as she passed through a clearing in the crowd. Weaving through the streets from where she once she had come. Allowing the silence to stand between the two of them.

At the mention of pie, Bura looked over at Bridget. You could see in her golden eyes she was smiling. "I do. I like pie. Pie will do as repayment." There are a simplistic almost childlike innocence to her words. An easy to please mindset hidden behind a hardened exterior.

 

[explosiveKitten]

Senor_Fluffy

Spoiler: Unleashed the baking beast.

“Or I could make some jam. I’ve been meaning to try that out. It sounds pretty simple, put fruit in a pot with sugar and let it simmer for hours.” She was about to go off on a tangent when Bura spoke up and Bridget immediately perked up at the thought.

“Oh! Okay! It’s been SO LONG since I last made a pie, of course I’ll need a kitchen, and all the ingredients proper...” she started to rub her chin thoughtfully, her eyebrows pinched together as she did so, “I’ll need flour, eggs, butter, a little salt, some milk... plus the stuff for the filling-“

The half-elf suddenly spun around and began walking backwards in front of Bura, gesturing around and counting on her fingers, “What kind of pie are we talking about here? Cause I can make quite a few reliably, like the classic apple, cherry, peach, blueberry, I’ve even mixed a couple together, the blueberry-cherry mixture when over really well. But there’s a whole bunch of other ones I’ve been just dying to experiment with. You ever heard of rhubarb? You mix that with strawberries and- MMM. Amazing. Oh!”

She did another quick spin and fell back into step with Bura, “I wonder if this place that we’re going has kitchen... where are we going, by the way?”

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Ocarina Flareweck​

10 More Minutes

Ocarina was happy that things gone smooth for them. They only had maybe ten or so more minutes before its time for them to be back at their randezvouz point. She suggested returning now since they might took longer time to go back, the market seems to be even more crowded than before.

As they trudging slowly through the sea of people, Ocarina decided to poke Bita's shoulder again to draw her attention. That list in the herbs shop had been bugging her mind.

"B-bita, you're searching for the grey cure? Is... Is there anyone close to you infected with it?"

MJ ._.

 

[BlossomingRosebud]

Tanya Aurum | Vian Marketplace | Tagging: Aria ( Critical.Over ), Bita ( MJ ._. ), Ocarina ( Spoiled Bread )

Well, that was fun...

"Didn't I tell you? You can consider LLC your friends, good lady."

Somewhere behind her, Tanya could hear the distinctive voice of Bita conducting PR for the Light Lotus Company with smooth enthusiasm, to which effect Tanya bit her lip to keep from just laughing right then and there. Oh boy. She was pretty sure a scene like this wasn't what Ramirov had in mind when he told them to "maintain manners" and keep honor to the company name and whatever, but did she mind? Not at all. She had a feeling she was going to like these guys. She could respect someone who took things into their own hands.

Meanwhile, the criminal-not-criminal was frozen in place, nearly slumped to the ground with eyes wide in surprise and fright as he found himself caught in between Aria, Tanya, and their weapons. Tanya could hear Bita and Ocarina completing their transaction--apparently, the shopkeep was impressed enough into giving them a good deal. Tanya was glad they took care of that--again, herbs were not her forte, but she knew that could be important, and if, say, Ocarina could use that to fix a wound as well she could cure seasickness, they would be set. Anyhow, with that done, there would be only the matter of this guy.

"I-I didn't actually t-take anything, I promise!" the man stammered rapidly, eyes flitting between them.

"Ya wanna bet on that?" Tanya droned evenly, looking down on the guy as if he were a rookie hoping to waltz his way into the street fighter crowd. She said no more words, letting instead her axe and Aria's sword do the talking. The man gulped. She almost felt bad for him. Sure, he probably ran off before he actually did take anything, but it wasn't like she was going to let this go because of that. If Aria wanted the man to pay, he was gonna pay. Simple as that. That, and it could at least cover the cost of that seed bottle Aria broke.

"F-fine!" The man broke and made a lopsided run for the counter, brushing past them and frantically feeling out the coins in his coat pockets, He shoveled them out like rain, leaving a disjointed mess of coins clattering on the counter. He didn't even take the time to count it out before he made a beeline to the door. "Just leave me alone!"

He ran out, and they let him. In lieu of words, Tanya just shrugged at Aria, who seemed satisfied enough with the result. She turned around to face the others, who were calm enough except for the shopkeeper lady, who had backed away from the counter a few paces and stared back with eyes wide, as if wondering if she should question this. In the end, she didn't. "Well, I...thank you?" She stared bewildered at the coins.

Tanya smiled, and this time, she laughed out loud. "Well, that's probably the easiest opponent we're ever going to get in this place!" she said to no one in particular. She took a deep breath of the shop's pungent scent. Yep, still better than Balthora air. She watched as Ocarina and Bita turned and left, talking to each other about the grey or something, apparently done with what they had to do here. So, she supposed she was done, too. She turned back to the lady. "Have a nice day!" she called before exiting the store-tent herself, Aria just ahead of her.

As she left, she had to smile again, just more thoughtfully this time. She didn't really realize it, until just now. She hadn't wished anyone a 'good day' in ages.

 

[MJ ._.]

Location: Streets of Bismoliyet Harbor / Direct interaction: Ocarina / Group interaction: Aria, Tanya

Hey, A Bookstore!

"I-I didn't actually t-take anything, I promise!" the thief that the young knight had captured stammered rapidly, eyes flitting between wild girls of LLC. "Ya wanna bet on that?" Tanya droned evenly, looking down on the guy as if he were a rookie hoping to waltz his way into the street fighter crowd. "F-fine!" The man broke and made a lopsided run for the counter, brushing past them and frantically feeling out the coins in his coat pockets, He shoveled them out like rain, leaving a disjointed mess of coins clattering on the counter. He didn't even take the time to count it out before he made a beeline to the door. "Just leave me alone!" He said and ran out, as they watched him with various stares. In lieu of words, Tanya just shrugged at Aria, who seemed satisfied enough with the result. It was hard to Bita to hold her laughter back but she managed it and wore a poker face at the whole event. "Well, I...thank you?" The witch in purple stared bewildered at the coins. "Oh, please… there is no need to. You can always rely on us if someone feels like bothering you. Well, our job is done here. Thank you fine lady and see you later." Bita replied with a businessman's smile and tucked the box of medicines under her arm. Tanya laughed out loud. "Well, that's probably the easiest opponent we're ever going to get in this place!" she said and turned back to the lady. "Have a nice day!" she called before exiting the store-tent herself, Aria just ahead of her.

"Hey, where is Bridget?" Bita sked as soon as they were out of the tent. "I guess she has gotten bored and has went to the inn ahead. Well, I had warned her about that…" She didn't take the matter seriously and followed the rest into the street. As they were trudging slowly through the sea of people, Ocarina poked Bita's shoulder to draw her attention. Bita looked at her over her shoulder and met her worried eyes. "What's wrong?" She asked. "B-bita, you're searching for the grey cure? Is... Is there anyone close to you infected with it?" Ocarina replied. "Hmm…" Bita thought and stared forward before answering. Wasn't it enough that the whole Balthora was falling? "I'm not sure… I hope not. My older brother who was supposed to inherit the title of lord after my father has been captured by King of Barthora as hostage years ago. I've heard the holdfast that he had been imprisoned in was quarantined for grey. If that's true then probably he has already lost his life." She explained blankly then looked at Ocarina again. "But I don't want the cure for one person. The grey is threatening Kallin. Although we don't have a kingdom but the nation still lives and I wish to find a way to stop or cure that disease before it engulfs my people." She added. There was a bookshop on their way that took her attention. "Oh, I was about to forget; I need a map. You girls would better go to the inn before it's too late. I'll try to hurry and join you soon." She said as ran toward the bookshop and disappeared behind its door.

Critical.Over Spoiled Bread BlossomingRosebud explosiveKitten

 

[Literary Revenant]

-----------

Shopping for Undies, So much fun!​

Janet was both stunned and flattered by Kannah's quick kiss on the cheek. She wasn't expecting it, not that it was unwelcome but it was more than what Janet expected in such a short time. The young elf, who was technically older than Janet, was ecstatic about being in Vian clearly so Janet smiled warmly as she watched Kannah run off. It was so strange, Janet actually felt her face growing hot with embarassment, she was blushing! Ramirov tapped her shoulder, an annoying smirk on his face. "I'm going to find some tea." He muttered, running off into the market, 'That girl' skimpering up beside him. Janet had lost count of how many recruits had gotten their money, most of them dispersed to all corners of the market, but a few stuck around for a while. Still shocked, she allowed her thoughts to straighten out, the world turning into a big blur. It was quite peaceful, birds were chirping. The breeze was warm and welcome. The chatter from these markets were much more relaxing than the haggling arguments over whatever fresh food there was in Vian. In fact, she watched a young boy run up to a fruit stand and grab a whole basket of exotic looking fruit for a few coppers. Coppers! A handful of copper coins would get you the scraps from the bakery, the old fruit in a dirty stall, or if you were lucky, two seconds of alone time with a girl at the brothels. Very lucky...

Janet's eyes drifted to a clothing shop, and due to her need of new clothes Janet felt an obligation to fulfill that need. Not that her current threads were in poor shape, but Vian fashion had to be indulged. The other girls were doing shopping of their own, so maybe Janet could clear her head with the alone time. When Janet walked into the building, the door made a loud ringing sound startling Janet, causing her to draw her sword pointing it behind her. There was no one, just an odd little bell thing by the door. This had to be what those noble shops had in their stores to welcome customers. Bells had been outlawed after the old king thought they were annoying. I guess they weren't illegal here but when Janet saw rather nervous girl manning the front desk her face immediately flushed. "Ma'am are you alright?" Janet, fumbling to put her sword in it's scabbard, forced an embarrassed smile.

"I'm sorry! We're fresh off the ship and I haven't been here long." Janet answered quickly. "Oh! newcomers! Welcome to Lean's Outfitters! We have fresh Vian fashions, even some designs inspired by Voralian tailors!" Forgetting the previous embarrassment, Janet perked up at the sound of "Voralian", thinking maybe it would be a nice idea to get something for Kannah and herself. "Even small clothes?" Janet asked, the awful chafing in the leather pants a constant annoyance she wanted to fix. "Of course! Except here in Vian, we just like to call them Bras and Panties. Let me show you around!" The girl said happily. The following half hour or so was filled with Janet becoming the kid in a candy store with clothing. She had spent a fair amount of her money on underwear, some to have for comfort and a few... racy items that Kannah may find attractive, if she looked that is. Janet grabbed a couple extras for later and was entranced by the Voralian inspired clothing. The keeper had said it was just shipped in from Anavel, whatever that is. Janet bought it for later use, and then went to the privacy of a changing room to solve some previously mentioned problems.

Unsettling Reminders, The Changers survived?​

Ramirov was rather excited to restock on teas. The Bismoliyet port had grown much since he last saw it, it was more of a town now than a port, likely growing when newcomers chose to settle in the beautiful landscapes over dealing with the hassle of settling in the inlands. There was a small tea stall if he remembered correctly, one ran by a Fraizyurnii like himself. He always had the best tea, and never tried to upcharge him. This vendor may also serve as a good means of information, see if anything new has happened. As Ramirov walked the markets he was joined by Vivian, who was rather grumpy about a certain Captain not being grateful about something regarding her laundry. Ramirov stopped her after laundry.

When they noticed the girls running off to do shopping, Vivian practically begged for him to join them but he felt no need to get anything so he encouraged Vivian to go off instead, which she did reluctantly. With a smile he continued his walk, stopping for short bows to the Wuldite locals and brief chatter with a few armor vendors. In a corner of the market not heavily traveled, where the buildings took a more Balthoran appearance; the old town if you will, Ramirov found an older man whose grey hair still peppered with the dark black of his youth sitting with a hood covering his face. He snored loudly, so Ramirov gave him a super tiny jolt of Arcane. Juuust enough to wake him up. "Errgakah!" He shouted in a heavy accent similar to Ramirov's. "What in the 4 Devils in wrong with..." the man took his hood, looking at Ramirov and immediately recognizing him. "You?"

"Eshto, Govariish Izdyevis Ahdna." (Hello old friend, It seems Ahdna's Light has treated you well.) Ramirov said in his native tongue, an unusual practice and his accent had a slight Balthoran hint. The man stuttered for a bit.

"R-R-Ramirov!" He said in amazement. "Jot-"

"Sii Nye Va Danen, Brejen." (We both know that is not my name anymore, Brejen [Bray Ehn]) Ramirov interrupted.

"Trei!" (Right!) Brejen answered. "Ya Des Ruus Hinvyet?" (What brings you back after many moons?)

"Iya Nyavyets Kadavod. Iya Breyesvich Wod Janet Ravenna, Kinviir." (Certain circumstances bring me back. I am working by blade with Captain Janet Ravenna, a Blooddebt.) Brejen's face flooded with worry and anger.

"Svenha Bor!" (Slaying Heads!) "Ya Des Leyon Tsvazlek." (You are born better than work for the Low Ambitioned.)Brejen spat.

"Ahd Svitzlo Leyon Tsvazlek, Isnt that right old friend?" (Time Makes Better Decisions for the Low Ambitioned, rest in English.) Ramirov said, switching to the common tongue. "We all change, and it is up to us to make that a better change."

"Perhaps you are right." Brejen answered in amazing Common. "I assume you aren't here just for tea."

"Your assumption is correct. What can you share?" Ramirov asked.

"Well, theres been a lot that's happened since you left, come. Theres things shared better in privacy." 'His grammar needs work. Brejen stood up, brushing off his cloak, inviting Ramirov into his small shop. Brejen placed an old iron pot over a fire as Ramirov stepped in. It was a single room, filled with glass jars that had varying amounts of tea. While it appeared somewhat gloomy, the room sang with the smells of a thousand teas. Dark tea, light tea, green tea, even a rare blue tea from the Voral forest. Ramirov could spend a year in her and not have the same tea twice. Not one tea overpowered the other, Brejen must have specially made the jars to preserve flavor while also preventing aging. Aged teas smelled weaker, and would quickly disappear in the palate. Brejen pulled out a chair, allowing Ramirov to sit beside the fire before grabbing a chair for himself.

"After you left, Fraizyurne changed. As more of the Otherlanders arrived every few months, there was a great battle between the... Bal... Balthonoa..."

"Balthorans?" Ramirov asked.

"Yes the Balthorananens. They waged a strange war against the Vanadro, the Changers. In turn the Vanadro were forced to retreat into the High North, into our lands. Many Fraizyurne clans were dislocated from their ancestral homes... Ramiir among them." Brejen started to explain.

"What?!" Ramirov bellowed. "Ramiir had been given the Great Gift of Daraneliir, surely after my... defeat, the successor should have inherited my power."

"About that... Pol had succumbed to a new and unusual magic. I find it hard to call it magic at all, it was so still. Inactive. Hell the best way I can describe it is Grey." That word, Grey. It sat like nausea in his stomach, unsettling and hard to handle. If Ardanor had gotten to Vian, gotten to Fraizyurne, that may explain some unexpected events. Before Ramirov could inquire further, there was shouting and screaming coming from the plaza. Not wasting any time, he ran through the door following the sound of anarchy. Maybe Janet would already be there.

It's a wonder how beautiful a land could be when corrupt hands never touched it. The tune of shoppers unbound by the grey made this world seem so alien. The Wuldite Vrahi, assuming they were the ones with dark skin and black hair, appeared peaceful in nature. Now it made sense why so many in Balthora were ready to abandon their homes in favor of a land that won't kill them if the weren't well off. It allowed a certain freedom, and watching the locals enjoying a simple day at the market just made it all so right.

Not for long sadly.

A man ran into the marketplace screaming. His skin pale and drenched in sweat, his clothes covered in tears and bloodstains, and a large open cut across his face that spilled blood with each step. His facial features denoted him as a Balthoran, mainly the thick beard and bright red hair. As he stumbled into the marketplace, he tripped on a fallen branch falling hard onto the cobblestone road. The fall didnt faze him but a sickening crack told that something had broken. Using the branch as a cane, ironically some might add, he hobbled to the center of the plaza where Janet happened to be standing.

"Vanadro! Vanadro! Run you fools! They come! Vanadro!" He yelled, catching the attention of everyone nearby. He grabbed Janet's shoulder, his eyes wide and desperate. "You! You're Balthoran, please you have to help us!" Before Janet could figure out why the man was screaming like a lunatic, an odd knife-like glaive flew through the air lopping the man's head off with ease. Reacting by instinct, Janet took cover by a stall, crouching to make herself less visible. A nearby woman screamed and within seconds the marketplace was flooded in chaos. Local guards dressed in cheap leather armor, armed with piles ran to the main square and held their weapons in all directions forming an... ugly circle. These guards, many were old men in their 60s long past their prime, a few were boys bare 16 but the one who stood out was a girl. She was maybe 15 or 16, not full grown, but she still carried this pike that was almost twice her height in an effort to defend their small port town.

These 'guards' were less than sufficient. More fitting to act as a militia... wait. A man wearing old metal armor, came charging out of one of the shops followed by two men in similar armor. He appeared the same age as Ramirov, but nowhere near as handsome. Too many scars on his face, and it appeared that he never groomed his hair at all. He atleast looked like a guard, having the right demeanor and well... armor of a guardsman. Without any hesitation, he put on a simple helmet, stepping in front of the ragtag group.

"On your feet men! Stand in a line, pikes forward and stick the pointy end into those shapeshifting monsters! We can't let them get past us!" he shouted, his voice raspy and tired. The group formed a somewhat straight line, the older men in front, with the younger and shorter guards, girl included, standing just behind them. Drawing a sword and shield, the guard 'captain' as Janet would refer to him as, stood his ground ready for... whatever the hell was coming. 'Did he say... shapeshifting?' They didn't have to wait long at all, a group of several dozen men and women dressed in very little clothing came charging forward from the path leading out of the port. Was this a 'Vanadro'? They were of mixed appearance, some having the tan skin of the Wuldites, others were fair skinned like the Balthorans. All were wild, appearing like they resembled ferocious beasts that at this point were long extinct in Balthora. They were large, taller than most Balthorans, certainly taller than Ramirov and he's tall! All were well built, even the women among them. Some wore animal pelts, others had light cloth vestments, but all had adorned themselves with warpaint.

A giant man led them, having arms larger than some men's thighs, and a chest with muscles so defined they rivaled the Gods. The statues of them atleast. His chest was a bush, thick dark hair covering it. A beard for the chest! He had painted some weird animalistic war paint, and looked ready to kill. He carried an axe the size of a child, his face chiseled into a permanent scowl. They stopped about twenty paces away from the militia, grunting and bellowing like animals, stomping their weapons in rhythm. As the man rose his hand, they all stopped instantly. Whoever that giant was... He held power, and not a magical sort. This was the power of respect, obedience. Glancing at the woefully inadequate militia, Janet saw the men trembling like leaves in a storm.

"Stay strong, men! It's a ploy to get in your head!" the guard captain yelled, breaking the silence. The giant brute smirked, pointed at the militia, saying some odd word.

"Kolash."

Instantly the group charged, howling like wolves, bellowing like apes, roaring like lions. Their thundering boots landing heavy and fast, a drum of war. 'Oh shit!' Janet said to herself. The Vanadro closed the distance in seconds, seconds that felt like minutes. The first blow was dealt by the militia, thrusting their pikes into the charging mass of barbarians. Some fell quickly, but were replaced in an instant by the ones behind. The guard captain slew many with swift blows of his sword, it was almost an art form watching him work. His motions so smooth and practiced that he didn't even need to think before fighting. The 'Metal heads' beside him were just as skilled, holding their own against these odd enemies. However, the militia were not faring nearly as well. A few of the men had axes sunk deep into their chests, one of the younger boys was literally ripped apart as 3 or 4 of those brutes used their hands, enhanced with what appeared to be curved claws to disembowel the poor soul. The market was red with blood.

In the heat of battle, the militia stood bravely. Well as brave as one could when a seemingly indomitable foe was certainly about to violently murder them. The girl among them had dropped her weapon, falling to her knees with her hands on her head. It looked like she was crying, but Janet couldn't hear from the sound of yelling and dying. She saw the big brute slowly approaching from the rear, eyes set on the easy prey. Noticing this, the girl rolled out of the main clash, crawling towards the center of town. The brute grabbed a strange knife from it's scabbard, throwing it with expert aim at the child, hitting her behind the knee. As the girl screamed in agony, a few of the barbarians grabbed her and began to drag her out of the town. Janet could wait no more. It didn't even take a second, Janet grabbed her boot knife, and buried it into the skull of one of the barbarians holding the girl. Anticipating a counter, Janet grabbed her sword and drew it with a broad slashing motion as the other barbarian came charging. The man roared as he charged, then missed Janet entirely, and them fell to his knees as his head fell from his shoulders. Janet's brown eyes bright with the rage of unimaginable proportions, stood in front of the young girl, a wall of steel and amazing features. As another barbarian, a woman this time, came running to attack Janet, a bolt of flame flew through the air with a loud whoosh burning straight through the woman's chest hitting her heart.

Quickly turning behind her, Janet smiled to see Ramirov there, surrounding himself in a circle of fire. His eyes shone with a reddish orange hew, dimming slightly to allow him a gesture of 'I got your back'. "Ramirov! Get the others! We need them now!" With a quick nod, Ramirov charged in the direction where he last saw the girls, hoping to find a few others along the way. "Shit... Some welcoming party!"

-----------

Location: Bismoliyet Marketplace
Tagged:@The_Omega_Effect Spoiled Bread Critical.Over BlossomingRosebud Quados Senor_Fluffy explosiveKitten MJ ._. AshenLily
Temperature: Still warm
Janet's Status: Pretty pissed.
Ramirov's Status: Exceptionally Furious.

Spoiler: Guard 'Captain' Guy

Spoiler: Barbarian/Shapeshifter Leader guy

Spoiler: Janet's pose in battle. Hush it's the closest thing I could find that looked like what I wanted!

Spoiler: A very fiery Ramirov

 

[The_Omega_Effect]

fite time! >: D

Being the only person in the little rendezvous point that they had set for themselves after they were done resupplying did not help in making the wait any more bearable to Kyros who was just itching for literally anything fun to do. He had taken a few sips of the borderline toxic moonshine-like drink that he bought minutes ago as alcohol was usually what he used against every single one of his problems. But a while later, there appeared to be a bit of commotion coming from the marketplace that took his interest. Chances were, it had something to do with one of his crew mates. He saw a man with a gaping chest wound make his best attempt at running away from whatever he was being attacked by until he fell down near Janet. The man's head being chopped off in such a fashion, though horrific, was somewhat humerous to Kyros due to its suddenness.

Trouble was on its way which prompted Kyros to put away his moonshine and prepare himself to draw his sword. Due to him having to carry a backpack and knowing for sure that under all this chaos it might be stolen, he was not going to be as agile as he could be. But he could still outmaneuver his opponents provided he predicted their movements and killed them before they reacted to his. Hearing footsteps behind him, he stepped out of the way of the guards, moving to the sidelines to both stay out of focus and get a better look on what was going on. Having guards who were this poorly equipped and trained meant that all the good ones must've died. This pretty much equated to there being lots of work for the "Light Lotus Company". So far, enduring that boring sea voyage would finally begin paying off.

The massive barbarian looking guy with an axe was definitely someone that Kyros had to avoid for the time being. There was no way he could get close or do anything to him without getting his entire body smashed into a pool of blood. He hoped that Quados or some of the other, heavier fighters on their side could engage him and give an opening that he, Janet or Ramirov could use to put him down. But for now, they had to kill the small band of savages that followed the guy. The clash lead to an immense amount of chaos, with those "shapeshifters" swarming every single one of the guards. Kyros unsheathed his short sword, focusing his initial efforts on killing any of the savages that got through due to the disorganization of the militia and making sure that no large group of them collected up at the rear end of the defensive line they had so as to prevent a flank from completely overwhelming them. The old knight guy was correct, if the line fell, everyone would simply resort to panic which would render this battle unwinnable and bring upon an end to Kyros' time with the company as he'd just abandon them to die there if they were foolish enough to fight a lost cause.

Kyros finally joined the fight after waiting in the sidelines for so long. The wild male slashed at him with an animalistic ferocity and a clawed hand. Dodging the slashes by stepping back and away from them, Kyros analyzed his opponent only to find out that there wasn't a semblance of logic or a tactic in its head. Only wild fury. Stepping to the side, he slashed at the wrist that was coming towards him, sending it flying away. The creature only seemed to get more agitated upon losing a hand which lead to it striking with an even more telegraphed swing with all of its might. Kyros ducked under it as he cut at the knee and getting behind the now immobilized beast. He grabbed the head of what was formerly a human by its hair and pulled it towards him, continuing on to slit its throat open and kicking it down on the floor to add to the bloody mess that was formerly the market. Over time, it seemed that Ramirov had joined the fight as well, with him leaving to get the rest of their merry band into this mess.

Kyros ran up to one of of the guards struggling against a "Vandaro" as the creature had both its claws on the pike's handle, slowly overpowering the man. The half-elf plunged his sword into its skull with a big overhead strike that left the sword stuck. He had no time to pull it out however, as he was charged by another one of the monsters, this time with the creature lunging at him. He couldn't step away in time as the tips of the creatures claw scratched his chest, with Kyros damning the shit he had to carry under his breath as he growled in pain. He couldn't waste a second though. Grabbing the knife he had in his boot, Kyros went straight for the creature in order to make sure he could kill it before it had time to recover from the jump. Thankfully, he was able to plunge his dagger deep into the female Vandaro's eye before she could rip him to shreds. He recovered the dagger and then his short sword as he went on to assist the three knights by stopping the beasts that could potentially strike at their blind spots and trying to save whatever "normal" guard he could in the meantime.

 

[MJ ._.]

Location: Bloody Plaza of Bismoliyet Harbor / Direct interaction: none/ Mentioned: Kyros, Ramirov

First Fight and no Contracts

Bita had failed to resist the urge to buy some books about languages, culture and geography of Vian. Originally, she had come to the bookstore to buy a map but had ended up buying a sack full of maps and books in addition to a notebook to use as her journal. Considering that the luggage she had brought from Balthora was relatively heavy, adding a box of medicine and the new sack was going to slow her down. She was supposed to meet the captain in plaza, so taking everything there wouldn't be a problem, but she wasn't sure where they were heading to after that. If the place that captain had considered for them was faraway, she was going to be sore by the time they reached their destination. Anyhow, she paid for books from her savings and was about to move out of the store when she heard the commotion. She left her luggage and stepped out to see panicked people running in the street. "Vandaro… in the plaza… they're making rivers of blood!" She heard a guy telling his friend before they both went into that friend's shop and locked the door. Feeling confused, she went back into the shop and to the pal shopkeeper. "What's about this Vandaro and blood?" She asked the scared girl. "They can turn to beats and… oh, they probably have come to kill all humans! They hate expansion of this city. You should stay put… we have to lock the door or bar it…" The girl answered while getting ready to close the shop. "But my companions might be at plaza. I'm going there." Bita said and pointed at her luggage. "Please take care of those until I'm back." She requested. "Don't be silly! Just an armor can't keep you safe from beats." The girl snapped in fear. In response, Bita smiled confidently and held her lotus badge up. "We're a company of formidable fighters; there's nothing to worry about. You may want to ask help from Light Lotus Company next time that trouble comes." She said with a wink and left the baffled shopkeeper alone.

Formidable fighters? Such a joke! If they are involved, we might have already had our asses kicked like last time on the ship. Bita thought while running as fast as her armor allowed her to move against the river of crowd flowing in opposite direction. As soon as arriving at the plaza, she realized that the guy she had overheard before had been exaggerating about a river of blood; in fact, the plaza was almost a pool of blood. For a moment, she was shocked by witnessing human-beasts slaughtering city guards. She wondered if she had to draw her sword and join the battle. It would be her choice if they hadn't been told to stay out of trouble. Then, she noticed a few advancing people killing off berserks. Two of fighting men looked quite familiar; Ramirov and Kyros. "So we're really involved." She told herself then strapped her shield to her left hand and held her naked sword in her right hand firmly, before dashing into the mayhem.

The moment her foot reached the bloody ground, something huge and hairy attacked Bita with long sharp claws. She held her shield up and took the hit which was a strong one. The beats tried hacking on her shield several times until realized that it won't budge. When he was done and was trying to loop her to attack from behind, she used the power stored in her shield and hit the opponent's side with it. The impact could be crushing if she hadn't trained her body before, but the mad beast was thrown away and landed several yards farther from plaza, hitting a wall and falling on the ground unconscious. Now that it wasn't moving, she could see that he was a bear that was turning to a man.

"This was only the first. How many are they?" Bita asked no one in particular as her eyes wandered the field. In the center of the fight, she saw Kyros trying to back up a couple of city-guards. His chest was wet with blood and seemed that it came from a fresh wound that she couldn't see well. "I hope that's not serious." She wished as tried to make her way toward him, since something like a large wolf was blocking her path. If Kyros was going to fall, their company would turn to a hen party sooner or later.

The wolf was more agile than her previous opponent. He kept changing his direction and tried to attack from above or beneath her shield. She had to use her sword against him but with a normal blade she was only scratching his pelt. This game went on for a while until the beast was covered with bloody gashes and she was getting tired from parrying him.

 

[BlossomingRosebud]

Tanya Aurum | Bismoliyet Marketplace | Tagging: anyone in the battle | Mentions: Janet, Bita, Kyros

Calm can be deceptive

Tanya, for the brief, precious, fleeting moment, was happy.

It was a bit of a strange sensation for her, not considering herself to be sentimental in the slightest, or easily taken in by the small things, but the bare truth was that she actually liked this place, and she couldn't deny that she was okay with that. It was okay for her to like it. It was okay to enjoy the clear air, and the blue sky, and the random stores, and the people by her side who just might turn out to be not half bad as human (or elf or orc) beings. She sort of had hope for once, and even if this did turn out badly, she had no doubts that she would be able to strike out and make a life for herself on her own again, an idea made better by the fact that she was in Vian, and Vian was different. She didn't have to fear the grey this time. The sickness that took her parents and home and everything else she knew was gone, that accursed Ardanor gone with it.

She strolled out of the herb store with no particular destination in mind. Ocarina and Bita were up ahead talking to each other, Aria seemed to be looking around intently, and Tanya was looking to the sky and the trees beyond. She wondered where their next destination would be, or their next assignment, rather. Their first assignment? It already felt like so much had happened, even if they hadn't actually been, well, paid for anything yet. Actual mercenary work. But she was ready--ready to make a name for herself, to go out and solve problems instead of just watching them for a change. Ready to win, next time around.

She watched as Bita ran off into the bookstore for a map, her heart feeling the stab of longing for just a second there. Books. That's what she needed! Only, she didn't need it. She liked to read--sue her. She stopped for a moment, wanting so much to roll in there and buy something, or a lot of somethings, but her better sense kicked in and told her not to. She only had so much money; she ought to spend it on something useful. Besides, if she accumulated luggage, where would she put it? They didn't have a place to stay. She almost brought a carpetbag into battle once; she didn't need to make that mistake again. It'd be better to travel light for now, because she knew herself. If she went in, she was going to walk out with ten volumes, and she didn't need that right now. So she kept walking on ahead, taking in the sound of the dull marketplace clamor and looking with no end in mind. She saw some stands with food; that might be a fair place to start if nothing else.

Then, it happened.

She heard it first. Screams and cries sounded in the distance, followed by people running past her, away from the clamor. In an instant, Tanya's heart froze. Her axe was already in her hands when Ramirov came running, telling them what was going on. An attack? Changers? She didn't know what that was, but it didn't matter; she was already running--naturally, in the opposite direction from everyone else.

"I'm on my way!" she shouted back to Ramirov as she ran. Damn, sure would've been nice if they were all still together in one place. But she wasn't waiting for the full breadth of backup, nor did she have time to think about this properly. She wasn't expecting an attack. Calm can be deceptive, sometimes. But she knew she had to do something.

The clattering hell of war

It was pure chaos. Beleaguered militiamen in inadequate armor and bare-skinned men and women in war paint filled the clearing, accompanied by cries of pain and pools of blood. (She saw a man in paint fighting Janet--they must be the ones they were fighting). They were obviously out for blood. But why? Keep it together, Tanya. Level head--keep a level head.

She charged. Running towards where her leader stood, she came across a man in red paint straightaway. She didn't get him time to react to her presence. With a blow of deadly accuracy, she buried her axe in his chest and stumbled forward with her own momentum. He fell. Blood spurt onto her hands. Tanya instantly felt sick to the stomach, but she shoved the feeling down as best she could. The second. This was only the second time, and she was late to the party the first time. She wasn't trying so hard to kill the first time, either, just make it through to the docks. But yet, she was painfully aware, that despite all her experience fighting, this was only the second time in her life she's been in a war.

She saw someone running for her out of the corner of her eye, and in as quick a motion as she could manage, she reached for her shotgun, leveled, and fired. It was still coming. Reload. Fire again. She kept looking only long enough to see that she had got it in the head before yanking her axe out of the fallen man, picking herself back up, and running again.

Where was everybody? She needed to assess the situation. There was Kyros; she could see Bita now; she saw a man (a creature?) running near her allies and she started running for him when she felt another presence--someone behind her. She whirled around.

The woman was tall, at least a head more than she was, with no weapon and bright war paint accenting the stern features of her face. Tanya brought her axe around and swung, her eyes widening when the woman dodged it with ease. That wasn't good. The woman swung with rage and Tanya jumped back. A plan. She needed to figure out something. How were these people managing without a weapon; they were only...

It only took an instant before she knew. Oh, she knew hard. She tried to bring her axe forward for a bludgeoning attack, but her stance was far, far too wide. The woman lunged, but not for a swipe. No, she was going on top of her. In mere seconds Tanya's back hit the hard bloody dirt of the ground, the woman's hands like a vice grip just below either of her shoulders. Her face was in hers, snarling--not, not a face. It was morphing. She should have seen it coming, but Tanya's heart rose to her throat in terror anyways as the teeth turned to fangs, the eyes went narrow, and the skin changed into golden spotted fur. A leopard. Tanya stared at the face of a leopard as the hands on her arms grew claws and dug into her skin, tearing through her jacket that did nothing to stop it. Pain shot through her shoulders, but her eyes were on the bared teeth, the ones that let out a feral roar and shot for her throat...

Tanya kneed her in the gut and simultaneously made a desperate attempt to move. Calm. Calm. She needing to stay steady, and not die. She'd been here before. He was a champion in the Scorpion ring, just for strength alone. He beat his opponents to the ground every time, and all the bets were on him. He was on top of her. She knew she wasn't quick enough to beat him by being sly. She had to beat him at strength. It was the only game she had.

Her jab in the gut interrupted the woman, and she took the moment to heave her strength and roll her over. They landed on their sides. Dirt and blood splattered everywhere. Let go. Why won't she let go? She kicked the leopard again, knocking her backwards, but dragging Tanya down with her. Only they were flipped. Tanya was on the upside; the leopard was on the dirt; the leopard had all the grip strength, but Tanya didn't care. Feeling the claws drag, she punched the woman-leopard in the throat with whatever freedom her forearm had, and she let go of it. But Tanya didn't draw back fast enough. The fangs clamped around her wrist. For the first time, Tanya shouted with the pain. At least it wasn't her throat. She wrestled it back, then realized something. That feral move was this woman's mistake.

She used the distraction to yank her other arm free, the claw marks scoring it. She grabbed her axe on the ground, and swung it with one arm. The teeth on her wrist released. She pulled back and clammered her way back upright, looking down to see the axe buried halfway through the leopard's neck, which now looked almost like a human's again. She grabbed her axe with her good right hand. The left one was definitely broken; she's lucky she didn't lose it. Tanya's head rang, but she looked up again, and tried not to think about it. With trembling chest, she ran back into the fray.

 

[explosiveKitten]

Spoiler: CAT FIIIIGHT!

Bridget continued to ramble about pie flavors for ages, and she could keep going as long as Bura would let her, but the sudden eruption of screaming and wailing caught her attention. She blinked briefly, before glancing in Bura’s direction.

“I wonder what that is... Is that where we’re going?” She asked, pointing in the direction of the screaming, leaving the question in the air as she jogged off in that direction.

The chaos that she found made her heart race. Big burly men and women all working in league with... animals? Leopards and bears and hawks and oh MY GODS THAT’S A BOBCAT!

The half elf, in her distraction didn’t even notice the woman turn into a bobcat and charge towards her until it was already leaping into her face.
“AAHHH!” The young woman squealed and fell backwards, only barely managing to keep the claws and teeth from ripping out her eyeballs.
“AAAHH! OH, MY GODS! AH! DEAR SWEET ELANA, AaaAAAAaAh!” She planted her feet against it’s fuzzy belly and ejected it off, before rapidly hopping back to her feet and jumping away. Before the cat could recoil from the toss, Bridget threw one of her precious throwing knives at it and cut it down.

She glanced back and took a moment to catch her breath before turning quickly to look for something to climb. Her eyes fell on a tree nearby, and in a flash, she rushed over and started to scurry upwards, hiding up amongst the emerald boughs.