Rifts Adventure IC

[Silanon]

A crazy's purpose is action, and excitement - and lingering in the Badger's belly really isn't. Thus, it doesn't take too long for a second person to show up at the vehicle's hatch where Snowfall just exited, just in time to be met by the thundering welcome. "That was loud," Eron complains as he jumps onto the roof himself, one hand covering his left ear just in case more noise follows while the other holds his newly acquired blade. In his grip, it slowly grows to a ridiculously impractical size, certainly not suited for any real combat. But if the fox spirit thunders and screams, the purpose is probably show, not immediate fighting, and maybe the sword looks more impressive that way. Small drips of acid seem to run over its surface, burning into the metal itself; but in a constant struggle against the magical crystal in it, it slowly reforms and reshapes again and again, just to let the acid eat away at it once more. A spectacle for anyone paying attention; Eron doesn't. There was time enough to watch the blade during the trip. Now, his eyes scan the surrounding for magical and human threats, his nose sniffs the air... supernatural senses try to pick up whatever there is to be noticed, outside. Mostly a man on foot, it seems. A strange man, one might say. Not that he should judge anyone, should he? Silvery studs on his forehead proudly gleam in the sunlight. During it all, he's keeping his balance with inhuman ease, standing tall.

"Just one, just one. And it can't be him, so it'll be fine. Doesn't look like he'll fight, even, not at all. Doubt he burned the place, too, or he would've run. Maybe he should've. One never knows." His free hand - now that it doesn't seem like Snowfall would continue the thundering - leaves his ear, and draws a second blade from its sheath, surrounded by new, white, righteous flames. A former blade of a cyber knight, dubbed Shining Mirror; now even more shiny than before.

"Might be best to talk it over, I'd say. You coming, Terra?" He shouts those last words towards the hatch, then makes two speedy steps - and leaps from the Badger's roof, putting in some psionic strength for a telekinetic leap just to impress - and because he can, really. The giant blade shifts and becomes smaller to keep the balance as he lands - then he turns to see if the others wish to follow, impatiently eyeing Snowfall and his helmet. He - Salnesh - is dead. Eron's eyes could spot an ambush with ease. What more is there to see at this point, really? "Come on, come on. Stretch you legs a little, will ya?"

Spoiler: Psionics

For the small cost of 8 isp, Eron can now leap 54 feet wide if I'm not mistaken - so I just gotta do that given the opportunity, right?

Spoiler: Note for WlfSamurai

There's a thing I should mention since you're not familiar with Eron yet. Sometimes, I'll use italic words like he, his, etc. Most of the time, they refer to Eron's archenemy, a tricky demon called Salnesh. We killed him recently and made sure he can't ever return. But - obsessed as Eron is with this particular foe - his thoughts and words will certainly mention him quite often.

 

[Psychie]

Terra nods as she wiggles a finger in her ear. "Damn, Snowfall! A little warning next time? I almost peed myself when that crack of thunder went off right overhead!" She glances over at the Infiltrator and says, "I'll leave this one here on the Badger. Driver, pull up to a distance of 500 feet from the man and come to a stop. We'll walk up from there. You coming along, too, you crazy Kitsune?"

 

[Purr]

"That was loud," Eron complains as he jumps onto the roof himself, one hand covering his left ear...

(ellipsis mine)

Terra nods as she wiggles a finger in her ear. "Damn, Snowfall! A little warning next time? I almost peed myself when that crack of thunder went off right overhead!" She glances over at the Infiltrator and says, "I'll leave this one here on the Badger. Driver, pull up to a distance of 500 feet from the man and come to a stop. We'll walk up from there. You coming along, too, you crazy Kitsune?"

By this time, Snowfall is flat on his back, one leg stuck crookedly in the air while the Rod of Stormy Booms continues to glow majestically, its greater lightning rune crackling. "Sorry, Terminators! Whoops! That was AWESOME!! I had no idea it would be that loud!! Magic is awesome!"

Snowfall jumps up with a spryness unknown to most people who look his current age. His wispy beard and long white hair travel in the breeze as he attempts to run up to the lone figure, only to find out that his own feet... won't move...

"Magic is wonderful! Rune weapons are... just terrific!" he excitedly pats his Rod of Stormy Booms, his ever-trusty Tatsu Blaster, even the Fraggle Rock sword with all of its Truthiness, all the while looing down at his own two elderly feet. "Rune weapons are great! Rune... weapons are purposeful! Rune... weapons... are..." Snowfall looks back into the Badger.

"...lonely!"

The fun-loving Kitsune thinks about all of the rune weapons he had ever encountered. They had friends, most of them. Terra's Terminators definitely enjoyed and made use of the quiet but vibrant souls inside each of the living magical items! The three swords they had recovered from the Vampire Intelligence had to have been lonely, especially the poor, poor demon slayer, no doubt ceaselessly taunted by... Salnesh, blast his soul! Well, to be fair, the Terminators did just that. But that was besides the point!!

Snowfall sniffs. All of the other rune weapons got to come out and play, and there the demon-slayer was, all by its lonesome sitting like a forgotten box in a dusty old garage!

"GOOD GRIEF! I can't take it any more!"

Snowfall zips inside of the Badger, finds the sword right where he left it, and snarling, he stabs a finger at it. "You... you... hit me right in my guiltiness, will you?" he says to the sword that hasn't done a thing except sit there and be a sword from the very beginning. "Awfully dirty trick of you, but you're right! It's not fair that the other rune weapons get to go have fun and beat up demons while you sit in here all by your lonesome like the odd child out!" He bows reverently to the sword, spirit to spirit, quietly asking permission to lay hands on a rune weapon. Then, if the blade makes no negative indications, Snowfall snatches up the sword. "Come on, then!! Let's go find out if that guy out there is really a guy or... a god... or..." he gasps at the sword, "...a demon!!"

Running out with his fellow Terminators, his Tatsu Blaster in one aged hand, the no-longer-lonely demon-sword in the other, his Magic Helmet on and activated with his studying eyes on the lone fellow, "C'mon, Terminators! Let's do this! Together!"

 

[WlfSamurai]

Daggon keeps his hands where the group in the transport can see them, trying not to make any sudden movements. If he needed, he could zip away at super-human speed. Or fly away. Either way, if these were raiders or...worse, Daggon would need to stop them.

"What are you doing, idiot," he says to himself under his breath. "This is a huge risk. Come on, come on. No vamps, no vamps, no vamps... HEY THERE! HEY! SORRY TO STOP YOU!" He approaches the group slowly, making sure to keep a healthy distance. The power of his psi-sword tingles at his fingertips, ready to sizzle into his hand at a moment's notice.

"Sorry to stop you! I'm not looking to cause any trouble."

 

[Psychie]

Terra motions for her companions to stop as she looks across at the man. "We don't want any trouble, either, so that's a good thing. We could see the fire and smoke from a distance, and wanted to know if there is anything that we can do to help. What happened here? Are there any survivors or wounded that need aid?"

 

[Silanon]

Eron stops at Terra's motion, though that certainly doesn't mean he holds still in place. Instead, he seems to move constantly, eyes darting around between man and smoke, and anything else in sight. Both swords slash aimlessly through the air, before they finally come to rest on his shoulders. "What she said - came to see if something could be done, but it ain't looking like swords would be of much use. Could heal a little, of course, but you seem just fine. And the farm doesn't look like they meant to leave people alive. But you'd know better, I reckon, coming from there and all. Your farm? Self-grown armor, maybe? Could be, perhaps - these eyes have seen less likely things. He died, you know... but that doesn't help now."

 

[Purr]

Good question! No, I'd say the typical ones on his wrists are hidden, but he has quite a few more. There is at least one on his neck that's pretty visible.

The elderly-seeming Snowfall suddenly gets the biggest, widest smile he can put on that human face as he nudges Terra. In the Atlantean language, loud enough for this fellow to hear him speak it, Snowfall says, "Terra! Look at his neck! Do you see what I see? That's Tattoo-magic or I'm an Anti-Monster-Cyber-Juicer-Pony! From Equestria!"

 

[WlfSamurai]

“Yep,” Daggon says with a sigh. “Atlantean. Sorry, should have introduced myself. Name’s Daggon. I’m a Cyber-Knight looking for the best way to help out around the area. I was passing through these parts and … well … saw this and stopped. This is the third farm I’ve found this week like this. Thought maybe it was vampires, the bastards. But, I found one hell of a footprint. So, I’m guessing not. Best I can tell, there aren’t any survivors. Figured I’d bury the bodies and try to track whatever the hell this thing is. If you’re open to helping, that’d be more than welcome.”

He relaxes his arms a little, still keeping them up, but enough to let some blood flow.

 

[Silanon]

As soon as the word 'cyber-knight' is spoken, Eron's eyes focus solely on the speaker. A piercing gaze, for several breaths - then they seem to light up in excitement. There are those who solely do their best, like Eron himself - and then there are those grander than they sometimes understand themselves. Meeting one here - seemed unlikely, at first. But where would one find one in the wilderness, if not close to danger?

"Would love to help - look at the tracks, at least. But the world's kind of on the line, they said - or at least the world as we know it, right now. With magic, and freedom, and goodness, and all. So maybe this isn't the best kind of moment." He looks over to his companions quizzically for just a second - then shrugs. And turns back to the man called Daggon. "But Sir Cooley never made a difference between big or small trouble, they say. And this blade, by all means, is still his, not mine." Shining Mirror, the deceased hero's blade, leaves Eron's shoulder so he can show it to the man - its point never in the knight's direction. A fine, holy sword surrounded by white flames that has seen the death of many fiends - Salnesh being the last, and likely the mightiest of them all. "Would love to help, if it's on the way", he repeats himself, "or even when it isn't. Stop whatever the cause is. You say it ain't vamps - vamps ain't a problem, for us. We just freed an entire pyramid from their lifeless grasp. But whatever's out there - it might be a challenge. And if it is - who else is gonna stop it, right?"

Once more he looks over to the others - pleading to agree with him, almost. Then he continues to speak. "I'm Eron. No title. Never got one, I'm afraid. With me is Terra Alvana, leader of this little expedition of ours. And Snowfall, wise spirit and messenger of old." He points out the other two, then shrugs. "Or something like that. They'd know best - it's them, after all. Came to fulfill a dragon's wish. Stopped because we saw the smoke. Might be in a position to help - willing, certainly. Anyways, pleasure to meet you, and all that. Would like to see those tracks for myself. If it's a cat, I'm out. Those are sneaky, would just want to delay us. If it isn't - maybe a bit of hunting could be done. Tracked him, before. Might be able to track the creature."

A look over at Terra. "Maybe we shouldn't. Maybe we should. But four and the badger is better than one lonely man. Knight or not."

 

[Psychie]

Another Atlantean? And a Cyber Knight to boot! Excellent news. Terra shoulders her rifle with a smile. "Greetings and well met, kinsman. As Eron has said, I am Terra, a member of Clan Draco Amicus, and a fellow Atlanean. It does sound like we were all a bit too late to help these people, but we can make sure that whatever happened here doesn't happen somewhere else."

She motions for the Badger to come up behind them as she eyes the burning town. "You said you found tracks? Can you show them to us?"

 

[WlfSamurai]

Daggon bows respectfully to Eron and lowers his arms, no longer feeling unsure of the situation. Upon seeing his heroic sword, Daggon’s eyes widen.

“This is an incredible sword, Eron. A fine sword. Looks as though it’s found good home, too.” He smiles at Eron then turns to Terra as she introduces herself. When she does, Daggon’s jaw drops.

“Draco … Amicus …” he repeats. “Wow, never thought I’d meet one of your clan. What a day I’m having. Clan Bagh-Dach, here.” He shakes his head and smiles. “Man, it’s good to see a fellow Atlantean.”

Draco Amicus. Daggon had only heard rumors and only in passing. The clan, as far as he had known most of his life, had been missing for thousands of years. Whispers of them reappearing here and there had been uttered, but even he had waved them off as just stories. And yet, here one stood in front of him. On Earth. With a band of seemingly heroes at her disposal. Truly fascinating.

“Great to meet you all. That giant foot-print is this way. I’ll show you.” If the rest follow, Daggon leads the group to the print.

 

[Purr]

Clan Bagh-Dach, here.” He shakes his head and smiles. “Man, it’s good to see a fellow Atlantean.”

"Clan Bagh-Dach?" the elderly-looking-but-not-acting Japanese Snowfall grins widely at Daggon. "You mean the Champions of Light themselves have entered the fray? Oh, how marvelous!" Then he focuses inwardly.

From standing position, the ancient one then performs a somersault some 10 feet into the air and vanishes into nothingness before returning to a different form - furry, smaller, human-like but with fox-like features. White fur like the purest snow with seven dancing tails behind him! Dressed in a blazing red silken robe, he bows deeply and meaningfully to the Cyber-knight. "Sir Daggon, I am Snowfall, Celestial Messenger of Prince Inari, Tattooed Voyager taught by Clan Aurelous, and proud Kitsune of Pre-Rifts times, at your service and your family's!"

With my zoom optics, I can see a single figure walking about, apparently gathering up bodies and laying them out next to one another. I get the vibe that whatever it is that has happened here is long over, and we're just seeing the aftermath."

Instead of visually following to wherever the tracks might be, instead Snowfall's gentle gaze falls upon the departed. His tone becomes as solemn and as serious as a being's can be. "But... what of the dead?" Snowfall offers. "Were you finished burying them? If not, do you desire help with such a grim task?"

 

[Silanon]

“This is an incredible sword, Eron. A fine sword. Looks as though it’s found good home, too.”

"It had the best home, right before it entered my possession. Sir Duncan Cooley, hero of the people, was its previous wielder, and did more good with it than i could ever accomplish. You might have known him, knight and all - he was one as well, a true hero indeed. Salnesh - a demon - got him before I could intervene; but his sword right here saw the demon's fall, so I hope he found peace. If anyone deserves peace, he's the one..."

Instead of visually following to wherever the tracks might be, instead Snowfall's gentle gaze falls upon the departed. His tone becomes as solemn and as serious as a being's can be. "But... what of the dead?" Snowfall offers. "Were you finished burying them? If not, do you desire help with such a grim task?"

"Could help with that as well, I'm certain. Buried too many already, I reckon; can't let the cats feast on heroes' remains. Which reminds me, Snowfall, of a favor I meant to ask, but didn't. Too excited about swords, and cloaks and all. See, there were more than just me, when we followed him. A whole band of cat-slayers was with me, brave enough to face the darkest darkness. They... well, none of them will make it back again. To be expected, facing him, but still a thing on my mind, every now and then. Now that there's time to think about stuff besides him. I buried the bodies - of course I did - but we were in the middle of nowhere, most of the time, and we couldn't spread the word, or he might have noticed and taken advantage. So... the night when we arrived in the dragon's mansion, I took the time to write a letter. Not much, I'm afraid; mostly their names, and their fates. But I thought it'd be good to let people know. So - you being a messenger, and all - I thought that maybe, once there's time, and once that beast here is stopped, and our goal is accomplished - or maybe earlier, if it's convenient - maybe you could get it back to where the journey started, back then? There was an old sergeant who refused to die - an instructor. He'd still be around, and he'd know the right ways to let their families know. It'd be good, I think. And appreciated. Very much appreciated, that. Not now, of course. First the bodies here. Then the beast, and the world. But maybe after that, there'll be time for it... time to put things right..."

For a moment, Eron's eyes seem to stare at a point far in the distance, southwards. Then he slowly moves up behind Daggon - eager to see the tracks, and stop the dying, and maybe bury the dead if that hasn't happened already.

 

[Purr]

So - you being a messenger, and all - I thought that maybe, once there's time, and once that beast here is stopped, and our goal is accomplished - or maybe earlier, if it's convenient - maybe you could get it back to where the journey started, back then? There was an old sergeant who refused to die - an instructor. He'd still be around, and he'd know the right ways to let their families know. It'd be good, I think. And appreciated. Very much appreciated, that. Not now, of course. First the bodies here. Then the beast, and the world. But maybe after that, there'll be time for it... time to put things right..."

Snowfall almost shouts, "Are you kidding?!" but centuries of being a Celestial Messenger, delivering sometimes to beings in stations far, far greater than his, reminded him of his audience - Eron the Crazy. So instead of asking if Eron was kidding, Snowfall snaps to Japanese-style attention and folds his hands together. "Yes, yes! I'd be delighted!" His words stream out of him in a rush. "I wouldn't even charge for something like that. Of course, I would require the standard details, precisely where and how to know the sergeant instructor for certain, things like that, but, yes! Hai!" Snowfall bows slowly and reverently to Eron at the idea. "It would be an honor!"

Spoiler: Breaking the Fourth Wall

Snowfall turns with the back of his hand on the side of his mouth as if expressing something in a confidence. "Silanon! Just be sure to remind my Player, Dann, would ya? He's... you know... the kind that gets eeeasily distraaaacteeed and forgets stuff!"

"I think he looks kinda like this!! You can tell him I said that, Silanon!"

Dann here: "Ha ha!"

 

[Silanon]

"Good, good. That's good. A relief, I'd say. I'll give you the letter later, then. It'd be inconvenient, just now - it's in that new pocket dimension, you see? Figured it wouldn't rain in there, ever. Or they would've sold it as a nigh-endless waterskin." A short pause of quiet pondering. "There's more there, too. The things I pondered, I mean. See, there's a saying amongst my kind. Or amongst many I met thus far, anyway. More like a riddle. Might not be the right time for that..." Another short pause, then he recites the words regardless:

'Eight truths there are - they're revealed, one by one. Know them all - and the threat will be gone.'

"We never agreed what the threat was; or the truths. We figured it differs, from one to another. Some thought there was a ninth truth as well, one that's the same for all of us. Something like:

'The ninth truth waits for us to see, for we will reveal the world's destiny.'

So they spread the word, and helped me figure out my first one, and all that; one's gotta get there at some point, right? Always thought they were bonkers. But I also thought he couldn't be stopped for a while, so there's that. Before I met you - I was at four. Halfway there, more or less, whatever that means. But things don't add up, the way they should. See, your flute, when we faced him - it should have killed us all, back then, even though you stopped. But I don't know, I do feel pretty alive. And you don't look half-dead either, as far as I can tell. So maybe... maybe I missed the point. Maybe it wasn't the music, interfering with the pouch. Maybe it was the interference itself, no matter the kind - and moving on despite all that. I dunno. It doesn't quite make sense, just yet. But he, the darkest darkness, died - so something must've gone according to plan."

He shrugs. "Sorry. It doesn't really matter, right now. Unless you feel like playing that flute and dooming us all. Just wondering aloud. Never had much time to ponder, before. So... the tracks... giant, you said?" He seems to have no problem to jump back to the task at hand, and addresses Daggon. "Giant like an oversized human, or only oversized, no matter how the thing might look like?"

 

[WlfSamurai]

Dumbfounded at the flurry of activity, Daggon stares. "Uhh... yeah!" He says. "Okay, wait. Let's back up. First, let me say, it's an honor, Snowfall, Celestial Messenger." Daggon bows his head. "My luck seems to keep growing. Uh, second, no, I wasn't finished burying the dead. And there are more than a few, unfortunately. It was grim work, but the least that can be done at this point."

He turns to face Eron. "No, I didn't know Sir Duncan Cooley. I had heard of him, but never met him. I'm sorry to hear he's passed. That is a loss for the universe. I'm sure your actions have given him the peace he deserves."

Daggon takes a moment of silence to send what thought he has for the fallen knight out to the universe. Perhaps it was an empty gesture, or perhaps it would mean something in the end. Either way, when finished, he sighs.

"Well, I'll show you the tracks and then maybe we finish burying the dead?"

 

[Purr]

In reply, Snowfall sniffs the air and curiously looks up to Terra to see what her response is to Daggon's offer.

"Miss Terra? Do we bury the dead now and give what killed them more time or do we go after the threat?" As if in addition to his own question, the Kitsune looks to the Cyber-knight.

"Wait... Sir Daggon? About how long ago would you say this battle took place?"

 

[Psychie]

Terra looks at the burning buildings, then back to the others. "Damn. I am thinking that the events of this day were not too long ago, or else the fires would have burned down further than they have already. Lets see these tracks, Sir Daggon, and then we can lay these people to a proper rest." She looks over at Eron and Snowfall. "Do you think that this has anything to do with our journey south?"

 

[Silanon]

Daggon's words, and gestures, are appreciated - the Crazy's expression says that much. In response to Terra's words, Eron simply shrugs, at first. "Could be, of course. Could certainly be. Maybe not directly, not necessarily; thought the thing we're searching would be locked away until it's time. But who knows, maybe it's out here already... or not. Could be something else entirely, lured here by schemes and plans. By his plans even, possibly, he possessed foresight. We'll see. Once we find the creature, at the very least. If it's designed to take us on, then likely, it's here for that very reason. If not - well, it'll still be one evil less in this world. I mean, technically, few should know that we're on our way. And even fewer who'd want to stop us."

 

[Sherwood]

Daggon leads the group into the midst of the burning farm, and you can see how he has been busy lining up the bodies of the fallen farmers in a row, trying to do something for them. The first thing that you can see are the tracks. They are from a huge creature. From the stride, you would estimate that it is at least one hundred feet tall, perhaps even bigger than that, and from the way the tracks are sunk into the soil, you'd have to guess that it is at least twenty tons, maybe more in weight. Definitely not some sort of mecha.

The next thing that you spot is the bodies. Many of the farmers here have huge hunks bitten out of them by a giant mouth, still others look like they are all slimy, as if they were sucked whole into a huge mouth and spit back out.

For those with the skill, please give me a set of rolls for:
Tracking
Demon and Monster Lore
Faerie and Creatures of Magic Lore
and Dimensional Lore

 

[Sherwood]

Looking over the tracks and the condition of the fallen, a hint of the culprit's identity is starting to come to light, and if you are right, it means that the world is in for a very scary time.

Terra and Daggon have heard stories of what you suspect has done this, and during his dimensional travels, Snowfall has actually been to the home of these things, so you all have an idea of what this might be. But out of all of you, it is only Eron (with is fantabulous roll) that has actually fought one of these monsters along side Sir Cooley, and let me tell you, it was a close fight even for the band of Cyber Knights that you were traveling with.

The creature is known as an Aishwarra, and it is a monster in every sense of the word. An adult female can grow to be as large as 150 feet tall and upwards of 25 tons, with the males being a little smaller in stature. They are extremely tough, Mega Damage creatures, and are quite cunning and vicious, but that is not what makes them so very dangerous.

Similar to a Psy Stalker, they feed off of magic and magical beings, the higher PPE count the better.

The Aishwarra (pronounced eye-shwahr-rah) is a deadly creature from the world of the Grackle Tooth D-Bees (although, on their world, the Grackle Tooth are known as the Jin-Ro). On that planet, the Aishwarra are considered to be demons of destruction and a plague to all life. They are not true demons - supernatural beings - but horrible monsters that eat people and destroy villages and towns. Aishwarra are nomadic, giant creatures who devour virtually everything in their path. Even worse, the monsters damage their environment by permanently draining their surroundings of ambient magical energy (P.P.E.). These dinosaur-sized predators are constantly on the hunt for food and entire communities have been wiped out by Aishwarra on a rampage. These monsters have no natural predators and indiscriminately kill just about anyone or anything who oppose them or gets in their way. However, some victims are not killed outright. These are the unlucky ones. Those whom the female Aishwarra does not kill at once are stored in feeding sacks located under the creature's abdomen. Soon the slow, painful process of their P.P.E. and life energies being drained away will begin. The victims' P.P.E., indeed, their very life force, is used to nurture the female's unborn young. The monster swallows practitioners of magic, shamans, and other gifted people whole, and stores them, alive, inside their body, so that the horror may procreate. It needs the P.P.E. batteries of living sorcerers and creatures of magic to spawn young. This also enables the great beasts' numbers to grow quickly and take over. Once gorged on sufficient magical energy (P.P.E.), the Aishwarra spawn, creating eggs that are batteries of magic.

Before these eggs hatch into young Aishwarra, they can be used by practitioners of magic for powering magic spells, rituals, wards, circles, or virtually any other type of mystical enchantment. The eggs can also be tapped into by P.P.E. vampires such as Psi-Stalkers to feed upon.
Some of the P.P.E. used for these purposes ultimately returns to the ambient environment (anywhere around 10% to 30%, depending upon the type of magic employed). However, the P.P.E. from the eggs that hatch is lost forever. Thus, like any natural resource that is exploited without being replenished, the world's level of ambient P.P.E. diminishes over time.

The Aishwarra are not smart creatures. With the equivalent of low animal intelligence, Aishwarra are driven by instinct, hunger and the need to procreate. That's it. They kill, eat, spawn and repeat. As dumb animals, they take on fights they cannot win, and often fight to the death. They don't adapt to new environments so much as they bulldoze their way through them. That means the same animal repeatedly falls for the same trap, tricks, or tactics. It is very seldom that a Aishwarra can learn from experience. Immensely formidable and dangerous, the dumb brutes are more like weapons of mass destruction to be unleashed than intelligent agents able to adapt to their environment and hunt and choose their targets.

It would make some twisted sense for the Coalition to try and use the Aishwarra to their own ends, since its primary source of food is the hated beings of high PPE, and if there are more of these things running around out here, it will be a true disaster for any DBee or practitioners of magic, and it will not end there. These things will continue to hunt and kill to try and harvest the PPE of any living thing that they come across.

The fight that Eron remembers was brutal, and several brave knights fell to the strength of the thing before it was felled by the efforts of the party. If this particular Aishwarra is a female, it will continue to hunt in order to feed its incubating young, and then it will release upwards of three dozen of the magical vampires at once!

Your only bit of good news is that you have a clear set of tracks that you can follow.

 

[WlfSamurai]

Daggon stands, eyes wide. "No," he says. "Can't be. Is it... an Aishwarra?" He looks at the group for a rejection of his realization, hoping beyond hope he's wrong. He's never seen one, only heard of them. He's read about them, however, and they make the Coalition look hear-warming and accepting by comparison.

 

[Silanon]

It's rare that no words come to mind, for the Crazy. This, at first, is one of the occasions. He stares at the victims, the destruction, the tracks - and then, when Daggon shares what can only be the truth - Eron nods. Slowly, hesitantly, like the acknowledgement of the creature's existence might already doom this world.

"Yes, it is. No doubt about it. Fought one before, you know, months ago." For just a moment, his head turns southwards, eyes fixated on the distant horizon. "I've rarely seen holy cyber-knights not up to their task. Several times, it was against him, of course. Against Salnesh, the darkest darkness. The other time - was against a creature just like this one. Sir Cooley - made the difference, back then. Without him, we all would've been dead, no question. And even with him, we lost many good men, that day. Diran, Jorde - cat-slayers, both. Good men, and not the only ones who perished, that day."

For a moment, it seems like all strength has left the Crazy. He is dead - but there's always more death and carnage...

"Didn't know what to expect, of the coalition. But this... ain't it, not at all. Thought they'd come up with something clever, maybe. But this..." He shrugs. And finds no clever words, himself. "... is an Aishwarra, I reckon. Maybe more, by now. Who knows how long it's been at it... didn't quite know what we came for, Sir Daggon. Had a hint, but no specifics. This badger will follow those tracks, I'm sure. Or this Crazy will follow them on his own. There's no choice. Now that we have a track, we can't let it slip away. It might cost us the world we live in, you know? It'd be good to have a knight with us. Needed an entire group, back then, but one will have to do, in a pinch."

He turns towards the others. "Tell me we're killing that thing. It has to die. Just look at these..." He points out the dead. "And these were the lucky ones."

 

[Silanon]

Following those words, Eron tilts his head back, sucks in air through his nostrils as if trying to pick up a scent - but really mostly sends out a part of his mind, trying to find what stomped through this place earlier. It's different from before, way different. Before, it was always him, Salnesh, the only fiend worth tracking. Now - it's tons of flesh, wandering around, ready to spread death and chaos. One would think that'd be easy - but really, it's not. With him, it was easy, Eron knew him well, after all. As well as one could ever know such a deceiver. This creature, on the other hand - is unfamiliar. Known only by its trail, and past memories of its kind. Still worth a try. The implants, the pouch - they grant him opportunities. Maybe not now - or maybe right this instant. Only one way to find out, right?

Lemme try a psionic seeking. If successful, it has a range of 7 miles, base chance without modifiers is 75%. It should tell me if the beast's nearby at least... come on, dice!

 

[Psychie]

He turns towards the others. "Tell me we're killing that thing. It has to die. Just look at these..." He points out the dead. "And these were the lucky ones."

Terra doesn't hesitate when she says, "Yes, this monster must die, and the sooner the better. I just hope that we are going to be enough to kill it, because I don't think we'll have time to get any reinforcements. Daggon, I don't know what plans for the future you have, but I would consider it to be an honor if you would join us in hunting this Aishwarra down. Eron, you have the most experience with dealing with these things. What can you tell us about it that we will need to know?"