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Fantasy Hunter's Moon [IC] [CLOSED]

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Sergey returned two chest pounds in mutual respect. "No need for thanks, it was my job to serve and save as many lives as I could." A face of surprise and admiration formed on his face. "I should be thanking you for your service, Scout Sergeant. I'm sure your battles were tough but I'm glad you're still here with us. I am sure you are a extremely valuable asset to this group, makes me feel much more at ease to be here." He paused for a second to collect his thoughts.

"I've traveled close to Talnagrad but I am originally from Krasnodar. I was the oldest of my family as well, I joined under different circumstances however when Krasnodar was practically destroyed and I was orphaned. Those days and Tsavania are long gone for me however," he recounted with a disheartened sigh. He shook his head and looked back up at her, "No time to act like a weakened dog however, let's kill us some fucking wolves tonight. Uuurah."
 
Galina nodded and bowed her head. "I'm sorry to hear that. It's easy to forget that war isn't always about nations fighting but rather the threats we face within our borders. You have my respect."

She then grinned. "Uuuuuuraaahhh."
 
Mariette had done little talking since Jakob went to sleep in the carriage. Rosanna would have been her chosen company, but she was busy speaking with the new human who had somehow found and joined their ranks. She wanted to meet him as well, but suspected that he might be just as closed-minded as most humans. In all likelihood, the others would turn him against her anyway. Instead, she spent most of her time wondering exactly how they would defeat Duke Ashwood when it was clear that the man had so much power. Mariette figured that if the man could add or remove the pureblood blessing at will, then he could also kill by touch using whatever magic was contained in that ancient ring.

Once they reached Islesbury, Mariette was useful to the party once more, paying for the boats they would need to cross into Porthcrawl. Now she was sitting in one, quietly thumbing through the magnificent grimoire she had been given by Undite. She was an expert illusionist, but hiding the entire boat and all of its passengers would still be difficult as most spells had to be cast on a target. It seemed that they were destined to do things the hard way. Sighing, she looked over at Jakob and spoke to him in a hushed voice. "So, Constable... how are you faring?"
 
Jakob spent most of the travel sleeping. It wasn't until they had arrived to Islesbury that he woke up, feeling better physically but mentally drained. While he was still trying to be helpful and doing as ordered by Valeria, the constable wasn't smiling as much as he used to the past few days. He could feel inside him a savage force awakening. Carefree as he usually was, he was now irked by the smallest things such as smells, noises, giving him the slightest headaches. He was trying to do what Thiasis had told him to do in the dream, but so far he felt as though he was losing the battle.

Once in the boat, Jakob simply tried to concentrate. But when Mariette talked to him, his eyes opened as wide as possible and he snapped at her. "What!?" he said, his eyes flashing yellow for a moment, but he quickly gained control over it with a happier thought. "I'm...I'm sorry Countess." he said, with a forced smile. "I...I guess I could be better, h-haha..." He looked down for a moment. "...o-oh Gods, I'll be honest...I'm scared shitless, m'lady. B...but, I gotta keep trying." His breathing was mixed with some faint feral growls. "I...I'll be fine...h-how about you, m'lady? Are y-you okay?"
 
Mariette was quiet for a moment, not quite startled and yet unsettled. It was obvious that Jakob was struggling. The man was infected with lycanthropy, which would be difficult for him and a liability to the inquisition, at least until he could gain full control of it. She thought about how she had halfway wished for this and felt a tinge of remorse; in the long run, she felt that the Constable would learn to enjoy the gifts that come along with the drawbacks, but for now he was suffering. "I'll be better when Wallace is dead," she replied, coolly. "And better still when we've wiped out the filth that's plaguing this land. Then I can go home and distance myself from this lowly game of cat and mouse."
 
Jakob was slowly, but surely, relaxing as the Countess's words were soothing in a way. He cleared his throat before speaking again, with a genuine smile this time. "T-True...I want to kill that rat-faced bastard myself." He paused for a moment, taking a deep but painful breath. "I...I hope once you get back, m'lady, you'll be happy with your new powers...o...once this is done, w-we should all get a picture together, you know?" he said, looking to everyone else in the boat. "A...A picture to remember this...as difficult and harsh as it was, but we'll...save the world! H-Haha..."
 
Valeria glanced back towards Jakob for a moment, before returning to gazing out ahead of the boat as she rowed. "...Yeah. A photograph would be nice." she responded. Awww. Sensing a little sadness there, Witlock. Are you going to tear up on me? Valeria gritted her teeth. Do you ever shut up? I can speak whenever I wish, insect. She remained quiet after replying to Jakob's statement, only changing her focus from the waters ahead to either check her compass or check on Jakob's status. She was worried that he might shift while they were still out here in the water. If he did, they'd be swimming. But at the moment, he seemed to be containing himself.
 
"I don't have many photos of myself," Mariette remarked, idly. "I don't age, and so every portrait would look like every other... unless I'm making an entire gallery dedicated to my haircuts and wardrobes through the years, I don't really see the point. But of course, a picture with people I don't expect to, well, endure like I do- that seems rather worthwhile. And as for my 'powers,' as you call it, I don't quite think in that frame of mind. Rather than power, I merely see freedom to enjoy life as it is meant to be enjoyed, in the sunlight, and in public. Although, I do know that others will mainly see it as simply power; everyone is obsessed with power. That's why some of the inquisitors simply cannot believe that I am working in favor of common decency. My transformation has tipped the balances, given too much to an inhuman being, and that makes them feel threatened."

As she spoke, there was a lack of pride or insult to her tone. In fact, it seemed as if she were sympathizing with the humans rather than chastising them. "Do visit La Cygne someday, Monsieur Jakob. You and your family will be welcomed with open arms. That goes for the rest of you, too... provided you come in peace, naturally."
 
Several hours past, as the group rowed across the bay in the direction of Porthcrawl. Occasionally, they would hear the sound of faint singing in the distance. And every time, Valeria's head would snap around to them. "Don't go towards the singing. Sirens. They'll lure you in, then attack." she said, when one finally spoke up about it. They pressed on, ignoring the distant singing (as lovely as it was), before eventually it faded. Soon enough, Porthcrawl came into view.

The city was far larger than Airedale had been, surrounded by thick, tall stone walls. Virtually a fortress of a city, sitting on an island unto itself with numerous docks jutting out to the south. And, as expected, floating several hundred meters away from the city in the bay was the ironclad. The ANV Morning Star was lit up, just as the city itself was, with a few smaller boats floating around it. As there were no patrol boats heading towards them, they were fine to proceed towards the city. Valeria turned a bit, and leaned back towards the others in her boat. "We're gonna move in close to the wall. From there, we either find a drainage pipe and sneak into the sewer system, or we head for the docks and climb up. We risk being spotted if we go that route, however." she whispered, glancing towards the ironclad a few times.

She then looked to Mariette. "You and Aleister could climb the wall and take out any sharpshooters. Just try and keep things as quiet as possible." she said, motioning towards where one of the observation towers were on the wall. They continued rowing, lowering themselves in the boat a bit and slowly moving the oars back and forth. Once they were close enough, Valeria signaled to Mariette, before pointing to Aleister in the other boat and motioning up the wall.

-------

"Alright, Wesley! Rise and shine! Time to go!" said Cassandra, reaching down and gently nudging Wesley. His conversion was complete, and darkness was upon them once again. As she squatted next to him, she reached beneath her cloak and fumbled about. "Let's see...ah! Found one." she said with a smile, as she soon drew a vial of blood out. She then uncorked it and offered it to Wesley. "Drink this. Don't worry, it's not Romanov blood! The blood of an ordinary lamb. I'll let you choose when you want to drink human blood." She smiled warmly as she held it out. As the transformation was now finished, Wesley did indeed feel rather thirsty. His eyes were now a piercing red, and his fangs had come in fully. Razor sharp!
 
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Ethraeil remained as a motionless, inanimate piles of bones in the rowboat he was assigned to as was requested by Valeria. It was to keep a low profile after all, but Ethraeil was somewhat annoyed that he was relegated to this state for the second time in such a short period of time. Nonetheless, he stayed deathly silent as he maintained his incognito status and kept himself relegated inside his own skull. From an onlookers from the outside, it looked like that he was just a regular pile of bones, as regular as they can be in this situation anyway.
 
Jakob couldn't help but to smile at the predicament they found themselves in. "So...i-its either walking through SHIT WATER...or getting SHOT in the face..." he said, gazing upon the sewer grate about fourty yards from them. His enhanced smell gave him a clear picture of what that sewer was like, and he made sure to tell everyone in the group with his expressions. He was gagging. "Oh Gyasis... that smells foul... oh gods." He continued to gag for a bit, before looking to the others. "U-Unless you want me to piggy back ride you in the sewers, we should sneak past the guards at the dock."
 
The Marquess held no interest for the two Tsavanians droning on about their war and pride for their land, quite confident the two could go on for hours on the subject. Out of respect she allowed them to discuss that topic without incident, an interruption from her would garner proper retaliation. It's not that she detested war or felt no remorse for the losses both country's faced, rather such events of the past are better off left there. There was nothing much to be gained from the discussion of an awful sitiuation both parties went through - it was far better to look to the future.

As the plan was told by Valeria, Camille already began drawing several quills to hold in each hand, her preference rather clear. "I have had enough muck for one week, perhaps all month. I would prefer to be shot, truthfully." she relents with a shake of her head. "Moving quickly and quietly is a skill I have practiced. Ducking through blindspots in urban areas or perhaps even a climb are nothing new to me. I got the namesake Raven for a reason, after all." Onlookers responsible for coining such a title to the huntress were the initial few privy to observing Camille's expert use of manuevering across the rooftops of Escarian towns and cities. Striking with daggers from above only to quickly close the distance or make an attack on slowed vampires, it was quite similar to those macabre birds of prey.
 
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Wesley opened his eyes and saw that he was now in a white room. filled with nothing but a pot of red roses in one of the corner of the room. The light of the room started to shine brighter and brighter until a blurry figure materialized and seem to offer her hand to Wesley. and with that. Wesley woke up
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Wesley woke up the voice of Cassandra's voice and her nudging. Wesley still seemed out of it.

"Hnghh.. just a few more minutes Mother..." he mumbled.

"Wait.. I'm not in Reldino. so that means.."

Wesley immediately opened his eyes and saw Cassandra digging through her coat and pulling a vial of blood that had been offered to him. he groggily takes the vial of blood and sits up from his bed. he played with the vial for a bit before his new hunger took a hold of him.

"Well. there's a first time for everything" he downs the vial. a bit too fast as a little trail of lamb blood trails down from his lip. he stops for a bit to taste the flavor of his meal.

"Its.. not as bad than I thought it would be."

Wesley finished up the vial and handed it back to Cassandra. who returned it back into her coat.
 
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Erwin had remained quiet for mostt of the travel and the approach to Porthcrawl. Mostly he had been wresting with the state of Jakob, as it was obvious from his demeanor and newly acquired attentativeness of senses that lycanthropy had taken hold. He knew what it implied, but kept it to himself as he focused on the task at hand.

Clad in a Atracan cavalry uniform he had looted off one of the Colonels men, his old baldric and bandolier hung on him. The general state of the uniform was sorry, but he had exchanged his old one for it since it was effectively in tatters by this point. The high collar was also missing, but he had taken Sazaks advice and slowly embraced his scarred face. Concealing it was no longer his concern.

As Jakob mentioned the smell of the sewers, Erwin turned around and handed him a bandana. "This'll put your mind at ease. Or at least let you think of something else." He said. The bandana was soaked in coffee, and smelt strongly of it. Erwin donned a similar rag over his face, covering his mouth and nose. With the new facemask and his overall missmatched attire, he certainly looked the part of a highwayman.

"It'll cover the stench of the sewage, and whatever rotten filth we might find beyond those walls." He continued in a serious tone, hinting to the undead plague that had earned the city its quarantine.
 
Once they had rowed up to the mossy and slick walls of the city, Aleister glanced around carefully to see what the plan was. It seemed like there were some sewers to go through - something he adamantly would not do - and that there were the docks not too far away that could be scaled. Not the most promising area for entry, but not a terrible one either. Far better than the disgusting and rancid sewers.

However, he noticed Valeria giving him a small signal at the wall, and he realized that she wanted him and Mariette to climb it. He looked back at the walls and sized them up. It really didn't seem like it would be all that difficult to climb them despite some of the grime on the lower portions of the stone and brick. He was already wearing his black robes so he wouldn't stand out much in the dark or low-light of lanterns as he climbed up.

Waiting for Mariette, when she was ready, he reached out to the walls and gripped it firmly before getting a good footing and climbing up just a little.
 
Sergey looked back over to the other back as Valeria gave out instructions and routes of entry. It was either risk detection, or risk disease through the sewers. Granted if they stepped carefully, it shouldn't be too bad. He doubts this entire group without uniforms can make it across the docks without being stopped at least once. As he watched one of the vampires take flight up the walls, he whispered across the water to the other boat,

"Witlock, we should take the sewers. It'll be disgusting but far better than getting gunned down on the docks. Also the smell will help mask us from any of Wallace's men."
 
Mariette grinned mischievously as she sized up the wall. Being a vampire meant she could easily scale walls which humans couldn't, but it was an ability she rarely had to display. Now, as a pureblood, it would be a breeze, as well as a benign opportunity to show off.

She put out her foot, pressing the tip of her boot against the wall, and then in a matter which seemed to defy gravity, lifted her whole body weight and brought herself to the bricks without pushing off from the boat. Using her fingertips to balance as she scaled effortlessly, the only sound was the hollow tapping of her boots against the crumbling brick and the eerie scitter of her claws across the stone.

She stopped near the top of the wall and watched the auras of the men on watch in the tower. Poised on her toes, she pulled out her grimoire and prepared a spell as Aleister caught up from behind. As he looked up, he thought for a moment that she was mouthing words at him. As it turned out, he was the target of her spell.

Sight by my eyes... Glimpse the obscured...

Unable to object, Aleister was relieved to find that Mariette hadn't hexed him, but had used her illusion spell to communicate the enemy's exact numbers and position.
 
Aleister watched momentarily as Mariette scaled the wall far faster than he, the woman nearly floating off the boat as she touched the wall and scaled it as easily as a spider. He didn't wish to go too fast to draw attention, but after a moment of consideration, he realized his night-vision was likely clouding his judgement. Just because he could see well didn't mean the others could too. Without much more hesitation, he climbed the wall a little faster.

Up ahead he saw Mariette glance back down at him. At first he thought she was whispering something to him, but it was quickly apparent that she was instead speaking a spell. His brow furrowed as he tensed ever so slightly. What spell was she casting on him? He was confident his amulets would protect him if she tried anything ridiculous, but he couldn't fathom why she would do something now of all time and places. His query was answered only a few moments later as he was able to sense the auras of all of the guards along the wall and tower nearby. There weren't too many of them, though enough to make this a little tricky.

He climbed further up and stopped near her. "I may be able to cast a spell to put some of them to sleep if you can perhaps blind the others while we advance and take them out," he suggested in a whisper. Hopefully she was in a more agreeable mood compared to the other day. It seemed that she had taken his words far too harshly back at the campsite, or perhaps he had simply conveyed his words not too well. It was difficult to say in retrospect. He could hardly trust her too much anymore given everything which had transpired now, though hopefully it couldn't get any harsher. If the woman wished to berate and spar with him, he wouldn't step down, but such things were utterly tiring and counter productive.
 
Valeria watched the two vampires scale the wall, before looking to the others in the boats. "If you feel you can scale the wall as well, Camille, go right ahead. Just...be careful, alright?" she asked, a faint hint of worry in her voice. Unusual. She then looked to the others. "We can split up. Those that feel fine with traveling undetected through the sewers may do so. The others may attempt to move through the docks. We'll meet up on the other side of this wall. Understood?" she said, looking to each of them. "I'll be moving through the sewers." She then moved the boat closer to a thin walkway next to the wall which stretched all the way over to the drainage pipe and grate. Once close enough, she slowly and quietly climbed out of the boat onto the walkway.

Rosanna did the same, moving the boat over to the walkway so those that wished to move through the sewers could get off.

---------

There were around twelve soldiers nearby on the top of the wall. Three immediately close to where the two vampires were perched. Easy enough to take out, as they were simply standing near one another, talking and smoking cigarettes. To the right, on one of the large towers in the wall, a large cannon sat with a hand full of soldiers around it. The cannon looked decent enough to take out the ironclad out in the bay in a few shots, should things get down to that, and there were several more cannons like it across the wall.

These seemed to be ordinary humans. Quite unlike the werewolves back in the swamp. It seemed Wallace employed the unchanged as well into his army. Most were armed with simple Layfield single-shot trapdoor rifles, though one or two were armed with the tool of a sharpshooter: the Hartford rifle, full length and fitted with a scope. Easy to deal with as long as you didn't get hit with the powerful .45-70 cartridges that each weapon used. It was likely they were using silver bullets as well, so even more reason to avoid getting shot.
 
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Sergey hopped out his boat as well, staying low. Now that everyone had their routes he opted for the sewers, much less chance at detection, and better chance to escape than being caught out in the open. The vampires already had a jump start, hopefully they'll take out the sentries and make things easier for the group, he had faith in them. He realized he couldn't use any firearms as that would give them away and instead opted for his knife. He then pulled his shirt up over his nose and muttered,

"Orders Senior Inquisitor?"
 
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Erwin got out of the boat and began moving along the wall towards the sewer entrance. Like Sergey, Erwin had decided that guns would make to much noise, so he too would use his own knife. He still had his own revolver with ammo to boot, as well as the semi automatic pistol they had acquired at the skirmish earlier. He had not brought his long rifle, figuring it would be to cumbersome to lug around whilst serving very limited roles. If anything were to happen, he could always liberate one from the guards.

As Sergey called on orders from Valeria, he looked back from his position next to the drainage tunnel. He already knew what the plan was.
 
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Mariette looked on Aleister fiercely, but answered him in a calm and measured tone, highly focused on the task at hand. She whispered, "if I hex them all at once, they'll panic without a doubt. We will have to move as quickly as we can manage and kill them off before they can alert others with their screams... or any other actions they might take. Prepare yourself." Once again, she prepared a spell, working at a slow pace in order to ensure the curse would only manifest at the moment Aleister's spell was ready. Since the two were so close, the priest could hear the witch's near-silent incantations, disturbing as they were.

Senses derelict, eyes severed from the form, beset by sights unseen, unholy shadows, blights upon the mind...
 
"Indeed," Aleister replied back simply. "I'll put the ones nearest the cannon to sleep, that seems to be the largest concentration."

Unlike Mariette's casting by incantation, Aleister simply focused his mind to psychically reach for that divine pool of sorcery that always seemed to float around in some unseen but not distant place. It was not unlike imagining what he wanted to do in his head. His gaze settled on the several artillerymen and guards by the cannon on the tower to the right. They were the most distant group at the moment, so when they dropped it would leave only the nearer ones to deal with. Ideally Mariette could keep the nearest and any others unaware long enough for them to spring their attack and take them out without a sound.

He closed his eyes briefly as he willed the sorcery he accessed towards the unsuspecting targets, himself becoming the proverbial Sandman. The magic was intended to cause severe drowsiness instead of simply causing the men to go unconscious immediately. If it came on fast instead of instantly, the men would be forced in the few seconds of consciousness they had left to brace themselves as they fell towards the ground rather than drop like sacks of flour. That would prevent any weapon misfires from them outright dropping their weapons, but they wouldn't be awake to realize what was happening for longer than a couple seconds. Long enough for instinct to make them go down softly but not say a word.

"Sleep tight," he muttered, casting a quick sideways glance at Mariette to let her know it was time to cast as the effects of the magic finally reached his targets. Once Mariette had sent her spell off, he was poised to leap over the wall and charge the nearest guards with her. His claws were already visible and ready to tear out throats.
 
Casting by incantation was rather like stabbing with a knife one has just spent hours hammering and grinding into the most perfect, lethal form. It was not a gentle interaction with that pool of sorcery Aleister was familiar with. It was a rude awakening, a priming of the pump, full of evil intent. One would need to focus unerringly on the purpose of the hex, as too little conviction would cause the flowing river to dry into a trickle, turning a hellish intention into nothing but a benign annoyance to the target. Too much, however, would turn the river into a raging flood and drown the caster as well, causing the much-dreaded "backfire" black magic casters were known for. Simple spells were easy to teach and learn, but more complex curses required exponentially greater skill; it was a combination of the caster's ability to concentrate to the exact level needed for the task, their arcane knowledge of the specific runes and incantations needed, and the quality of the materials at hand.

A mere moment after Aleister spoke aloud, Mariette's eyes shut only for a moment before snapping back open in fiery red, a devilish grin baring her fully-extended fangs. "Now," she ordered, and the two launched themselves over the edge. While Aleister took the nearest guards, Mariette rushed ahead, as her superior closing speed obligated her to take the targets further away. There was no telling how many of them had succumbed to either spell until they came face-to-face with their foes, but Mariette was prepared with her silver dagger to cut them down one by one.
 
At the Senior Inquisitor's suggestion Camille looked up at the wall while the rest of the group began to disperse. While it meant that she would be working in tandem with the vampires, staying out of sight-lines of enemy troops and the stench of the sewers was paramount to the Marquess at this moment. With a sigh to ready herself she began to holster all of her quills, pacing about the length of the wall as she found a serviceable path up the immense stone barricade. To climb so highly without any form of planning would be foolish, and she stopped in place and rolled her wrists about once she seemed to find the start of something that could be scaled. It was fortunate that this wall was so old and built near the water, as loosened bricks had more than enough purchase for her to start making her way up to the top.

There was a certain grace to the huntress' movements as she dexterously climbed the wall before her, movements both calculated and done rather quickly so as not to tire her arms out anymore than they needed to be. Eyes up, never down. The closer you are to your destination the sooner you will be safe, height from the ground does not matter. The climb itself was not entirely simple, while some bricks were within arm's reach several required leaps from her precarious footing to advance further upward. While she was surprisingly quick with her efforts, Camille's climb proved to be quite methodical both in the name of stealth as well as personal safety, meaning that Aleister and Mariette would not see her until after their spells had been woven.

In time she made her way to the very top, the huntress quickly flipping onto the stone railing of the extremely tall wall, crouched low and hands planted for that much more balance atop such a perch. Panting quietly, she looked to the vampires as she quietly drew her quills, advancing just behind them as they were dealing with the armed guards. Any stragglers raising alarm would get her to intervene, but for now Camille was content with watching them dispatch the group and following behind as quietly as she could manage.
 
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