Fantasy Hunter's Moon [IC] [CLOSED]

[K0mori]

"Not a good idea, I'm afraid," Mariette immediately replied."If Cassandra can sense him now, cutting off that connection would be far more dangerous than leaving it. Just because she can feel his presence doesn't mean she can tell who he's with, but him disappearing would be an immediate red flag.

"Unless..." she added, "we produce a decoy aura before we conceal his real one."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

"That is a fair point. If she does sense him now it would be an issue for us, but if she is too far to notice when he disappears, she would be unlikely to find him again. Regardless, I do think it would be concerning for him to be among us when he is so easy to sense," Aleister explained.

"The decoy idea is curious. I'm not certain on the mechanics, but you are the illusionist, not I, so if it is possible then it is likely a better variation to my suggestion. The timing would have to be perfect, though - if we are too slow, he will disappear before reappearing to her, and too quick, she'll notice two of his auras."

 

[Infab]

Valeria listened to Wesley's statements, as well as the rest of the group's remarks and questions afterwards. "Its very likely that these 'Devonshire Twins' are the cause for Oar's Rest, as well as the zombies and skeletons that plagued Porthcrawl. It explains why the creatures were not attacking Wallace's men. The news that they are attempting to corrupt Rosanna is..." she said, her voice trailing off. She had a look of intense sadness on her face for a brief moment, but corrected herself before looking to Camille and Aleister. "Vampires whom successfully sire another vampire through a bite are linked in a...rather mysterious way. From what we in the Order understand, its more like an extra sense, similar to how you supernaturals perceive auras. From what we've had one vampire document on the subject of siring, its like...you can feel them as you feel yourself. You're bound by blood. I imagine the feeling is more accurate and stronger when a pureblood like Cassandra does it."

Valeria then looked back to Wesley. "Can you feel Cassandra's blood coursing through your veins? You two are bound together, now and forever. She will always know where you are, and you will always know where she is. Until one of you dies." After a pause, she looked back to Mariette and Aleister. "I don't know if we can properly hide him from her due to that fact...we can try, of course, but we risk letting Cassandra know where we are. As for Rosanna...we must rescue her from them. Otherwise, we'll have just handed the Duke another weapon to use against us..."

 

[EdwardDewey98]

"Of course we'll rescue her." said Jakob, looking to Valeria. "But can we even trust this worm? For all we know, he could be lying and leading us into a trap." Jakob crossed his arms and looked at the others. "I know he could be saying the truth." He then glared at Wesley for a moment. "And I sure hope he IS saying the truth." He then turned back to the group. "He might have been intimidated into joining her, and romancing her, but what if he is lying? What if he is trying to get us all killed? It'd be the second time those bastards set up a trap for us. Lets not forget the baron's manor back in Tresomin."

 

[Dmaster]

Camille continued to stare at Wesley as Mariette and Aleister discussed ways to conceal him from Cassandra, her hands tightening around her arms with frustration. The incompetence of both the young hunter and Valeria to even entertain bringing him back after what he's done was starting to frustrate her further. With how things were proceeding their situation was looking rather grim, between Rosanna and the liability that was supposed to be working with them now.

"This is ridiculous." the Marquess finally spoke up again. "We are effectively trapped as things are now. With Cassandra being able to locate her 'lover' so easily we'll be unable to make a move on Rosanna during whatever they're doing to her." Camille concluded. "That insane parasite needs to die, otherwise she'll always find a way to trail us. As it stands currently she has no idea that Wesley is aiming to betray her, non? Given his... ineptitude I do not think sending him back and trying to keep the charade up is going to do us any favors." It was clear the huntress was itching to slay the pureblood that had been a thorn in their side since the beginning, yet there was a clear amount of resentment pointed at Wesley forcing them into this position.

When Jakob brought up the possibility of Wesley betraying them she stiffened up slightly, looking between him and Valeria. "Wouldn't be the first time that we've willingly let a traitor back into our ranks. If given the choice between turning into her diseased pet or being eviscerated, I wouldn't have hesitated to go with the latter. Yet that is the past, and the only way he can be useful now is by being bait to draw out Cassandra."

 

[K0mori]

Mariette didn't bother addressing Camille's axe grinding. She instead ruminated on the Senior Inquisitor's message.

"To be quite honest, mademoiselle," Mariette said, her expression soured, "the more I consider the complexity of the task, the less I feel that concealing Wesley's position is worthwhile to us in the slightest. His only value the the inquisition at this point is his ability to spy, and as Jakob said, he may not even feed us truthful information. And even if it's truthful, or even well-intended, it's entirely possible that Cassandra and her ilk were expecting him to reach out to us and unwittingly lead us into another trap. It may be best for everyone involved to simply cut him loose. Still," she grumbled, thinking of Rosanna's suffering, "even if it's a trap, we can't simply sit here and do nothing..."

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Jakob looked to Camille, as she mentioned that Valeria allowed another traitor into the group, obviously referencing Mariette's theatrics back at the manor. He couldn't help but grunt at the huntress. "Can you cut that out? She didn't betray us. Otherwise, you and all of us would be dead already." He then looked back to Valeria. "But ma'am, she is... right... in a way. I think we have to be more cautious. Rosanna's well-being depends on it."

 

[K0mori]

Mariette swiftly interrupted with a shake of her head. "Don't even address it, Constable. Some people cannot see the forest for the trees. Although," she added slyly, "you're very right."

 

[Dmaster]

Camille glared straight through Jakob, remaining stern as ever. "I am certain your city remains safe under your watch, Constable. To so easily forget attempted murder does not give me a great deal of confidence."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister frowned slightly at Camille's continued insistence that Mariette was a traitor, but he felt Jakob's response was too naive on the matter. A spider must spin its web first, and it was not often clear to the flies when it was done until they were already caught in it.

He couldn't help but role his eyes after the Countess responded to Jakob. "Oh, thats rather enough of that I think. If we're done playing the roles of school children, I think we can get back to the matter at hand. Of course Cassandra likely knows that its a possibility that Wesley would seek us out. Whether he is turned traitor or an unwitting dupe hardly matters when the result will be the same - we can be tracked, and we can be ambushed again."

"We only have two options. Either we prevent ourselves from being tacked, and there are a number of ways to this," he said coldly, glancing at Wesley, "or we use it to our advantage. Make Cassandra think we are with him, when we are not. It could aide us in saving Rosanna if Cassandra doesn't know we are approaching whatever den of misery they hide out in while Wesley is kept elsewhere. And most importantly, should he be a traitor, it is not like we would let him return to her in this regard. He'd be strictly under our control."

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Jakob looked at Camille, unamused by her comment. "Could you not? I'm trying to keep things peaceful between everyone, and you insisting on Mariette's guilt doesn't help at all." Jakob was clearly offended by her comments, as he was a proud member of the local police force. "And I'll have you know, madame, that my town is more than safe. If you doubt my abilities as a law man because I make sure to hear both testimonies and versions of events, then I fear there's nothing I can do to change your mind." He looked at Mariette for a moment, then back to Camille. "But the priest is right. Enough of this..." He paused for a second. "...this dumb bullshit. We must take action to save Rose from Cassandra and those necromancers."

 

[Breadman]

"I have to agree with Aleister here." Theodore was becoming annoyed with the party diverting it's attention from matters at hand into squabbling "We can discuss arrogance born stupidity and decision making another time. Preferably when we are not dealing with an enemy that could potentially know our every move." Once again, he looked at Wesley "How large a force is following Cassandra? Any estimates? I doubt that woman is traveling on her lonesome with only two necromancers and a pack of werewolves."

 

[Infab]

Wesley spoke up again, explaining that it was only Cassandra, the Devonshire twins, Sir Tristyn, and Rosanna. He also mentioned that Cassandra had spoken of one 'Maj. Archer' when Rosanna told them that the group had killed Wallace. Wallace's second-in-command in Peltragow. Once he finished, Valeria spoke up again. "...Only the six of you?...It makes sense, considering just what Cassandra can do under the influence of the Romanov blood. And I'm sure the Devonshire twins can raise an undead armor to battle whomever they need to, considering what we fought back south of Oar's Rest, and in Porthcrawl. The dullahan though...that's going to be a problem unless we can find some gold weaponry."

She looked to Aleister after a moment of thought. "...We can follow Wesley back to their hideout, but under a masking spell cast by Mariette. Our auras hidden, we can likely sneak in and rescue Rosanna while Wesley distracts Cassandra. If we have to, we can deal with the twins and the dullahan...hopefully Rose isn't too far gone..." She paused for a moment, before speaking again. "...Wesley, if you decide to turn about and screw us...I'll grant you the most horrendous death I can muster. I promise you that."

 

[joshuadim]

"Tristyn is a formidable opponent, even before he became what he is now." Ethraeil commented. "Even with gold weaponry, it will be a challenge to put him down. As for these Devonshire twins, it seems to me that they are highly proficient at their craft. One powerful necromancer is difficult enough to deal with already, but two complicates things further."

Ethraeil turned his gaze to Valeria for a moment. "Rosanna will pull through. Her will is strong. Stronger than most. It takes more than sorcery to break someone like that."

 

[Infab]

Later that night...

Splendid! He returns! I hope his hunt went well enough. He seemed to skulk around Grimsby for quite a while...perhaps he drained several people? If he didn't...ah well. Perhaps he was having trouble? I can go with him next time and assist. Cassandra straightened up, standing up from the wooden chair she had been lounging on most of the day. Wesley's aura was approaching from the road, passing by a few of the zombies that were wandering around the perimeter of the old stone guard tower. She glanced to Sir Tristyn, whom was still looming in the corner of the room. She motioned with her hand for him to follow, and the knight finally shifted. He tightly gripped the handle of the sword hanging from his hip with his off hand, walking after Cassandra as they departed from the room and descended down the stone steps to the tower's main hall.

On the way down, she slipped a vial of blood out from beneath her cloak and quickly downed it. Yet another dose of the Romanov blood. As the blood quickly moved from mouth to stomach, her eyes widened and a crazed grin appeared on her face. She simply tossed the vial aside, the glass shattering as it collided with the stone wall. As soon as Wesley emerged through the doorway in the main hall below, Cassandra spoke loudly. "My love! You've returned to me! How was your first hunt, darling?" she said, still grinning as she finally reached the bottom step and strolled towards him. Soon enough, Wesley found himself in her embrace.

And that's when she smelled something odd...and rather familiar. ...The Tsavanian.

"Mmnh, sweetheart?" she said, still holding him close. Though it seemed that her grip on him was getting tighter. She was squeezing him. "...I sincerely hope you haven't been...doing things behind my back. Bad things might happen...and I'd hate for you to get hurt." She then gently released him and moved her hands to his face. The expression on her face was now rather blank, but her now blood-red eyes were locked onto his. "Did you meet any of your...former friends in Grimsby? Please tell me, my love. I don't want to do something...rash." Wesley then felt her hands starting to squeeze his head, her fingernails digging deeply into his skin.

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Minutes earlier, at the secondary entrance to the tower...

"Quietly now...watch out for the zombie over there." whispered Valeria, pointing out a nearby shambler as the group moved towards a small grate embedded in the countryside. These sorts of entrances were common in most of the old Age of Darkness era buildings. Escape tunnels for if a position was overrun. This particular one lead into a tunnel that emerged inside the tower's mess hall. Hopefully it'd be a straight shot from there to wherever Cassandra and her lot were holding Rosanna. As the group arrived at the grate, they found it stuck shut. "Jakob, see if you can pry it open. Quickly. The rest of you get ready to move inside."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister was back in his priest habit by the time they had set back out. He had spent some time sewing up the tear in it enough so that it was presentable, and even difficult to notice without inspection, but to his trained eye it was as apparent as a scarlet rose in snow. Once most of this business was concluded, he'd have to get a new habit.

As they advanced up towards the grate in the darkness, he kept one hand on his rosary to void off any wandering zombie that happened to get too near. The group wouldn't have much to worry about in those regards. With Jakob moving in to get the grate open, Aleister waited nearby, eyes on their surroundings.

 

[Dmaster]

Camille stepped quietly, positioned near the front of the group with Jakob and Aleister as they braced themselves around the grate. The huntress wasn't exactly thrilled about another potential trip through tunnels, but counted herself lucky that this did not seem to be a sewer of some kind like the last time. Even if it was, she didn't exactly have a choice to scale up the wall like before.

She stayed quiet, looking to Jakob and Valeria before turning her attention to what lied beyond the grate, hands tightly grip both her rapier and a few of those silver needles.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

"Roger, ma'am." said Jakob, moving over next to the grate. Using his newly acquired strength, he opened the grate without much trouble. He looked down into the darkness ahead, and said "Lets go. I hope there's still time to save Rose." He then climbed into the tunnel, moving ahead of the group. He was able to see in the dark, after all.

 

[Infab]

Once the grate was moved, and Jakob moved inward, the rest of the group followed closely. The tunnel consisted of a ladder which descended several feet down beneath the surface, inside of a rather tight tunnel, before emerging into a wider stone tunnel. There were no lights to speak of, but there were several slots on the wall for torches. Likely the torches themselves had rotted away to nothingness over the hundreds of years since the Age of Darkness. Jakob lead the way, as the group moved through the tunnel quietly.

They walked for a few minutes, making a few turns before eventually arriving at a dead end. Or what appeared to be one. Valeria stepped up, running her hands across the walls till she found an iron loop hanging from one of the bricks. She tugged on it, and the wall began to shift. "There we are." she whispered, as the wall swung outward into a barely lit room. There were candles scattered about the mess hall that they stepped out into. There were tables scattered about, some overturned while others were broken or rotted away. There were also a few ale barrels, likely devoid of the contents. There were two zombies in the room as well, one simply standing in the middle of the room while the other was slouched against the archway leading out of the hall.

Valeria dispatched the closer one relatively quickly and quietly, beheading the creature with a swing of her backsword. The other was left to one of the other members of the group. "The barracks should be down the right hall, if Wesley's directions are correct. Left hall leads to the armory. Tread quietly and carefully."

 

[KRIY]

Wesley can feel Cassandra's nails digging into his skin and the pressure being applied to his head, if he was still human, his head would have already been crushed. her blood-red eyes staring daggers into his, Wesley calmed himself down and remembered what he had say to Cassandra.

"Cassandra, please! I would never do that to you! I was just in Grimsby when I noticed a delicate snack for me to feast on, It was that Tsavainan from the Inquiry, she was all alone and she must've separated from the group after Oar's Rest. I managed to corner her into a secluded alleyway. She was begging me to spare her life, to which I found that Tsavanian blood has a little bit of a kick to it." Wesley then placed a hand on Cassandra's right cheek and started caressing it with his thumb. "There's nothing to be worried about my dear. I just had a snack to take care of, after I was done with my meal, I dumped her body in the middle of a forest where the wolves would appreciate the free food."

 

[Infab]

The squeezing stopped, but Cassandra continue to glare at Wesley. Calm yourself, Cassie...perhaps you're just jumping to conclusions. The boy knows what you could do to him if you wanted, he has no reason to lie to you. Eventually, she spoke. "...Yes, Tsavanian blood does have some kick to it. Its the werebeasts, you see." she said, slowly removing her hands from the sides of his head. Her eyes began to shift back to their original color, and soon enough she gave him a warm, genuine smile. "I'm...I'm glad your hunt went so well, love. I'm really sorry about getting so upset..." she said softly, before stepping back from him. "...Go rest. I'll be back soon. I just...I just need some air." She then looked back to Tristyn, and simply pointed at the floor. The signal for the Dullahan to stay put. She then gave Wesley one last look, before stepping past him and out the door into the night.

 

[K0mori]

Mariette followed along behind the others, eyes nearly closed as she whispered one incantation after another. Not only was she concealing the party's auras, she was also tracking the enemy's and trying to discern possible dangers ahead. Cassandra had just stepped out, and a thought crossed her mind. Confident the illusion would hold even if she didn't tend to it for several minutes, Mariette spoke up, rather quietly.

"The grate... did we cover our tracks? I don't think so..."

 

[Infab]

Valeria froze, and glanced back to Mariette. She thought for a moment. "...I think we'll be fine. Cassandra doesn't know we're here, and likely forgot about the secondary entrance. As long as we get Rose and get out quickly, I think we'll be fine...just keep a lookout for the twins and the other dullahan." she finally said, before moving over towards the other zombie. Another swing, and another beheading. Now, to the barracks. Valeria motioned for the group to follow, moving down the right hallway as quietly as possible. Her boots made a soft clack noise every time she stepped, as most of the building was made of stone. Thankfully, it wasn't loud enough to carry.

A few minutes of skulking through the corridors, they reached the barracks. A quick peek in, and they found that there were two people inside the large room. Rosanna, chained to a floor, and another woman in a rather revealing purple dyed outfit. "That must be one of the twins. Mariette...think you can swoop in and take her out?" said Valeria, glancing back to the pureblood. Her blinding speed would prove valuable in eliminating the woman.

 

[joshuadim]

It couldn't be that easy... could it? Ethraeil thought to himself as he took a quick peek into the room. He saw that Rosanna was still in chains, at the mercy of her captors. One of whom appeared to be in the room. "It could be a trap." Ethraeil whispered bluntly before trying to see if he could find anything off in the area in regards to auras.

 

[Infab]

Valeria glanced over to Ethraeil. "...good point. I'm not particularly trained in the use of the dark arts...so would you or Mariette like to investigate to see if they actually did booby trap the room?" she said, before looking back into the room. "...I don't see any markings from here. Didn't Wesley say they were witches?"