Shadows of the Setting Sun (Main)

[Rykon]

Sight presented a reflection of both wonder and dread in Sigrdrifa's eyes. Both the awe of his ascension and the anguished anticipation of an ill-fitting task were of no surprise. Her scheming and conniving for delays was still a tantalizing experience, yet the aspect of the nightmare had lasted long enough. Perhaps there's more of a sore spot here than I thought. His arms wrapped snugly around his fellow chosen, welcoming her embrace with a laugh in his chest. "Relax, you can take as long as you need to prepare." The moon blessed warrior combed his fingers through his lover's hair, careful not to disrupt her braids in his effort to banish whatever sense of trepidation that may still haunt her. "I accept your bargain. You will have your proof soon enough anyway, as if you actually needed it. In the meantime, I will savor your other offerings while I wait." He hummed a tone of satisfaction, content to enjoy a closeness that once, like calibration, came for just a short while in a given year. He leaned into their affectionate entanglement, drawing his lips to hers.

 

[WlfSamurai]

Scene 3

You travel through the day, exchanging stories and learning about each other. When it’s well into the evening and night has fallen, you look for a place to camp. Having found a plain of melted snow and sloppy earth at the edge of the last forest you had been trudging through, you decide to stop for the day and make camp.

The air is clear and the wind across the plain is chilled. The evening stars are bright above as Luna makes her way across the sky. To the south, thick clouds obscure the stars. A storm is brewing. But, it will be well into tomorrow before it arrives.

The night passes uneventful. You break camp and set out again, heading east. By noon, the clouds have arrived and distant sounds of thunder foreshadow the storm to come. A light drizzle has started only adding to the muck underfoot.

By supper, you have been enveloped by a downpour. Lightning strikes the plain over and over sending thunder for miles. Wind cuts through you heading north and west. The going is miserable. You pass into a new set of woods. The trees sway and creak above you in the torrent.

The woods make for better shelter against the storm and could even allow for building extra lean-tos, but before you decide to stop for the day, you see and hear a rushing water ahead. At the tree-line, you find a might river, roaring past and swollen with the storm. Through the gloom and rain, you can see fires a mile upriver on the bank. At this distance, and through the rain, it’s tough to see much more than that.

Aaki and Haze keep close. They, like you, are soaked, but alert.

"Do you want to approach?" Haze asks you all eyeing the flickering fires in the distance.

[Perception+Awareness, difficulty 3 if you wish to make out more details]

What do you all do?

Esbilon , Epiphany , Rykon , Sherwood , D. Rex , Random Word , Teh Frixz , jaydude

 

[Random Word]

Sigrdrífa doesn't feel the cold, her clothing refuses to soak through no matter how hard the rain pours, and the driving wind is to her no more than a light breeze. She never fails to return with prize game or plenty of fish when she wanders away from the group, and she quickly has it roasting over a roaring fire in even the most inclement weather.

Her eyes were sharp before she drew her second breath, and now the darkness and the rain melt away before them like fog beneath the noonday sun. Those around this distant campfire may as well be right next to her on a clear bright day for all they can hide.

Spoiler: Mechanics

5m Sensory Acuity Prana to double 9s on Awareness rolls for the scene.

Perception 5 + Awareness 5 + Stunt 2 = 12 dice; 7 hits

 

[Esbilon]

With storm clouds gathering on the horizon, that night in her tent, Zoya prepares for what would otherwise be a miserable day of travel on the morrow. Instead, she sets a small fire, draws symbols of fire on the ground, and sings to the elemental spirits of flame and heat that live throughout Creation, even here in the North.

When four hours of this has passed, a small elemental creature has been conjured into being and before lying down to sleep, she asks it to keep her warm and dry even in the worst of storms.

As a scholar, Zoya has always prided her of her ability to see the world for what it really was. Though, that usually takes a more academic form than making out distant shapes on the riverbank, through the glory of the Unconquered Sun, she can manage that too.

Spoiler: ooc

I'm summoning an Essence 1 fire elemental for the purpose of keeping Zoya nice and warm even when the weather sucks. This may seem frivolous, but I say: If you've got it, flaunt it This would put me down 2 wp, but I regain 1 from successfully casting a spell, and 1 from a good night's sleep. On that note, WlfSamurai , you haven't been awarding rank 2+ stunts, which is generally fine, but it's crucial to our wp economy once we start doing more with it.

For the spot roll, I'll assume a rank 1 stunt and also spend 4m from my peripheral pool to enhance my roll, netting me 6+2+4 = 12 dice. 9 successes!

 

[Sherwood]

Thanks to her chosen form, the cold and rain didn't much bother Tyree much at all. But, despite how much she may wish to stay in it, there is something to be said about being able to converse with her fellow Exalts, and being a bear kinda puts that on hold, so she shrugs her way back to her human form and looks around. The rain tried to suck the heat from her bones, but Tyree ignored it for now. In the meantime, she looks carefully ahead at the flickering fire, trying to take in any details that might signal a threat to the Circle.

5 successes on her Perception + Awareness roll

 

[Rykon]

Toun attunes his sight to the immaterial realm before making his own mind. His eyes focus upstream, channeling the memory of an eagle's sight to cut through the veil of frigid rain between the Exalted vanguard and the campfires of the unidentified.

[Activating Perceiving the Unseen World in case there's any noteworthy activity that might hint at a necromancer or sorcerer in their midst. No luck this time. 1 success.]

 

[jaydude]

Makuro let out a frustrated breath once the rain hit.

"Eh, can't say I'm really used to this sort of weather, considering I've literally lived in caves for most of my life." he'd say to anyone who took notice of his reaction.

---
"No need. I can scout ahead easily enough." Makuro replied when Haze asked about approaching the nearby fire. Concentrating for but a moment, he shifted into the form of an owl, and took off flying towards the faint flames. Once close enough, he'd orbit around them from above, looking out for any sign of who might have made them.

Spoiler: OOC

Shifting into owl form and approaching the flames. Perception + Awareness is 5 dice, plus 2 from one point stunt, and another from the owl's Wide-Range Vision Merit. Rolling 8 dice in total. 6 successes.

 

[D. Rex]

Scene 3

You travel through the day, exchanging stories and learning about each other. When it’s well into the evening and night has fallen, you look for a place to camp. Having found a plain of melted snow and sloppy earth at the edge of the last forest you had been trudging through, you decide to stop for the day and make camp.

The air is clear and the wind across the plain is chilled. The evening stars are bright above as Luna makes her way across the sky. To the south, thick clouds obscure the stars. A storm is brewing. But, it will be well into tomorrow before it arrives.

The night passes uneventful. You break camp and set out again, heading east. By noon, the clouds have arrived and distant sounds of thunder foreshadow the storm to come. A light drizzle has started only adding to the muck underfoot.

By supper, you have been enveloped by a downpour. Lightning strikes the plain over and over sending thunder for miles. Wind cuts through you heading north and west. The going is miserable. You pass into a new set of woods. The trees sway and creak above you in the torrent.

The woods make for better shelter against the storm and could even allow for building extra lean-tos, but before you decide to stop for the day, you see and hear a rushing water ahead. At the tree-line, you find a might river, roaring past and swollen with the storm. Through the gloom and rain, you can see fires a mile upriver on the bank. At this distance, and through the rain, it’s tough to see much more than that.

Aaki and Haze keep close. They, like you, are soaked, but alert.

"Do you want to approach?" Haze asks you all eyeing the flickering fires in the distance.

[Perception+Awareness, difficulty 3 if you wish to make out more details]

What do you all do?

Esbilon , Epiphany , Rykon , Sherwood , D. Rex , Random Word , Teh Frixz , jaydude

It was hard to believe such a creature as the white furred tyrant lizard would do anything but stand out. But it wasn't the case. Even though the rain had long since melted most of the snow, the rain had also dulled its fur to a wet grey. Between the mud and black stripes to obfuscate its shape and form amongst the trees, and the coming twilight, it blended in surprisingly well. Even though it wasn't a stalking predator, it moved with relative ease between the trees.

"Up, beast." Afureru demanded, and the tyrant lizard raised its head up high. Atop which the exalt climbed up to get a better vantage point.

She was relatively dry underneath the oiled mammoth hide coat and hood, but even still she shielded her eyes from the rain to try and get a better view of fires across the river. She hasn't the eyes of eagle to pinpoint figures that far away. But those lights offered enough information to speak volumes.

She would count them, and judge how far apart they were, and see what sort of pattern they formed. Mapping it out in her minds eyes.

There was always a method to how groups made camp. Some preferred bonfires. Some preferred many small ones. And they made their fires many different ways. This rain would make it all the more obvious, as how they kept the fires dry would tell all the more about them. Different shelters gave off different patterns of light. Not to mention barbarians made their camps more loosely than the more organized legions of the realm or the more communal ring peaceful nomads and caravans preferred. Raiding parties and armies might attempt to dim their fires to keep them seen from long distances.

But it was more than pattern that could be told. Numbers and intent. Many fires could indicate many people, or have been lit to make them seem larger force than they actually were. But the work required in this rain made the latter unlikely. And they would likely be packing as many people around a campfire as possible. And she would count each fire and estimate how many each fire might have around it.

So what secrets did these fires tell?

Spoiler: Roll

Per+war 7
Stunt 2
Excellency 3

12 dice

successes: 7

 

[WlfSamurai]

The rain, low-light of the evening, and distance would make seeing any details impossible for mere mortals. Even in the light of a clear day, seeing details at nearly a mile out would be difficult. But, for many of you, you are able to gather far more information even in these conditions.

You all can see the opposite shore of this River is also about a mile east. Toun, even you can make out the shape of a bridge stretching into the darkness over the river. The camp in question sits where the bridge connects to this side of the river. You all also see and hear the river churning and rushing like rapids. Angry, almost.

Sigrdrífa and Tyree, you take it all in and more. The camp is not very large, 20-30 people or less. It’s a grouping of shanty hovels and lean-tos. Hasty sharpened wooden stakes have been driven into the ground—loosely spaced—in a circle around the camp. There is a bridge the stretches from one end of the river to the opposite side made of well-hewn and shaped stone. The camp is right at the edge of the bridge on this side of the river.

Zoya, you see all that and you can tell the bridge is clearly a first age wonder that has lasted despite the rest of the wild growing up and around it. There are still worn shapes and decorative flourishes carved into the stone. You can make out dark spots on parts of the bridge. Blood. There must have been a battle at some point on the bridge.

All three of you can also see two guards on watch moving through the woods to your northwest, not straying too far from camp, but keeping an eye into the western wood. Their furs, leathers, and weapons—axes, bows, and spears—tell you icewalkers most likely. You’re too far and too shrouded for them to have seen any of you.

Makuro, high above, you can see even more. The bridge is wide enough for 15 or so people to walk abreast. On the opposite side of the bridge, there are bodies—dead from battle. Icewalkers to be sure. You can’t tell how they were killed from here. You see the camp and it’s fires. The two guards walking the woods. You see several knots of icewalkers gathered around the fires speaking in hushed tones.

Afureru, from a different perspective, you see other details. There are five camp fires seemingly randomly laid out in the camp guttering against the rain. Their locations are not well thought out. Hastily put down. There is little organization to the shanty hovels made mostly of leathers, furs, and sticks. The sharpened stakes will be little help in a real fight. No weapon racks for ease of arming or mounts to ride to war. This is clearly not a military or battle camp.

To you, the two moving through the woods could be considered warriors, but they don’t appear to be anything special in the way they are moving and holding their spears.

Esbilon , Epiphany , Rykon , Sherwood , D. Rex , Random Word , Teh Frixz , jaydude

 

[D. Rex]

"Guards." Afureru said regarding the warriors in the woods. "Just keeping check in the perimeter. But the camp itself..."

She squinted her eyes to give another look at it. "They do not seem to be a war party. Its too sloppy of a setup and it doesn't show signs they are prepared for, or even capable of, a real battle."


She looks over the stakes again,"But bless their little hearts they tried."


"They are of no threat to us. My cavalry and archers would rip them apart before they could even flee their tiny yurts. They don't even seem to have the foresight to have scouts across the river else they would have already noticed my army by now."

 

[jaydude]

Makur-owl decided not to rejoin the others right away. Instead he flew over the corpses on the far side of the river, taking a rough count of how many there were. Once he had that, he flew back towards the camp, before looking for somewhere to perch that would be both out of the way, yet close enough for him to overhear any conversations taking place.

Spoiler: OOC

Rolling Perception + Awareness to listen in on the camp. Five base dice, plus claiming another one-point stunt. Owl's Keen Hearing Merit gives me double nines here. 5 successes.

 

[Sherwood]

Tyree lets out a chuckle. "Your archers and other soldiers would not be needed if I were to make a move against that small campsite. Unless there is some secret Exalt hiding in there, even skilled soldiers would fall to my blade. But that is only assuming that they are the Vashni; the tribe that I have sworn to eliminate. These seem to be less skillful warriors, but more like . . . they guard women and children. Perhaps we should approach and learn more? See what they do when we hail the camp."

 

[Rykon]

"If they are such a nonthreatening and disordered bunch there shouldn't be a problem if we have a little chat with them. Might as well see what they can tell us of Marama's Fell, if anything." Toun shrugged and began to walk towards the camp at a leisurely pace. A spectacular entrance was likely to burn more essence than it was worth and provoke retaliation for his trouble.

 

[D. Rex]

Tyree lets out a chuckle. "Your archers and other soldiers would not be needed if I were to make a move against that small campsite. Unless there is some secret Exalt hiding in there, even skilled soldiers would fall to my blade. But that is only assuming that they are the Vashni; the tribe that I have sworn to eliminate. These seem to be less skillful warriors, but more like . . . they guard women and children. Perhaps we should approach and learn more? See what they do when we hail the camp."

"Tch, I would not need them either. I cold enough them rightly alone. But I was making a point that they aren't very prepared or expecting an attack. You don't just let armies sneak up on you."



Following Tyree's suggestion. And Tuon's example, she also began to make her way towards the bridge and the camp.


However... Afureru needed no essence to make an entrance. After all, she was riding a tyrant lizard. If that didn't catch awe, then not much else would.

 

[jaydude]

After listening to what he could, the Changing Moon would spread his wings and take off, flying back to where the others were approaching. The campers would no doubt hear Afureru's beast long before they saw the rest of Makuro's group, and Makuro would much rather approach with them, rather than arrive after.

---

"There are corpses on the other side of the bridge. Dressed like icewalkers." he said to the others once he had shifted back into his human form. "Those in the camp are dressed like icewalkers as well. I wasn't able to make out individual tribes though."

 

[Random Word]

"What idiot leaves corpses unburned and without rites?" demands Sigrdrífa angrily. "Do they want hungry-" her jaw snaps shut suddenly. Depending on how crazy this tribe was, they may actually want hungry ghosts. If you're in enemy territory and leaving in a hurry, the unquiet dead can be a terrifying weapon. To do that to your own warriors, though? That reeks of desperation or madness. She hoped it was desperation. That was easier to fix. Either way she would burn these people and see them sent into the care of their Totem. Let them try to stop her if they dared.

She sets off with determination to right this wrong.

 

[Sherwood]

Tyree falls into step with the others on their way over to the camp, ready to do some serious damage to these people if they were from the same Icewalker tribe that had kidnapped her as a child. If they were not from the Vashni tribe and were in need of help, then she would be willing to listen to their plight and see what can be done to help them.

 

[WlfSamurai]

Makuro, when you listen, even through the rain and random thunder, you hear several things down in the camp below. One woman sings to herself. At first, it's a hum. But, soon it turns to a lullaby of hunters and warnings for small children. You hear a few voices among several people around one of the fires: "Cursed, we are." "Shush. No one asked you." "I say we do them a mercy, slit their throats, and leave. We can't protect them. We can't do anything for them." "We can keep them company." "That'll never be enough." "Both of you quiet. That's enough." "Just saying what little we have—"

Once Makuro returns, you all head for the camp. It would be a casual approach if not for Afureru's tyrant lizard. The sound of a creature crashing and stomping through the woods is warning enough. Before you all can get close, the two guards start yelling to each other and the camp. Based on their voices, one is a man and the other is a woman.

"What is that?!" yells the woman.

"I have no idea!" the man yells back. "Everyone! To arms! Fall back to the camp! To arms!"

Both guards dash through the woods to the camp that is now a flurry of activity. By the end of it, ten or so men and women form a ring around the camp just behind the sharpened stakes holding make-shift and shabby weapons. They all hold still, eyes and heads darting back and forth looking for any movement in the dark wood.

Esbilon , Epiphany , Rykon , Sherwood , D. Rex , Random Word , Teh Frixz , jaydude

 

[jaydude]

Makuro looked at Afureru and her mount and shrugged, as if to say that such reactions were only to be expected when they had a creature like that within their ranks. He then walked on ahead, raising both hands when he caught sight of the tribesmen, in order to show them that he was unarmed. Of course, he was wearing the Hundred Rings as a bracelet beneath the sleeve of his buff jacket, but he highly doubted that it would be recognized as a weapon.

"Forgive us for any surprise. Our company is somewhat...unusual." he said in Skytongue. "To what tribe do you belong, if I may ask?"

He was perfectly calm, confident that, even unarmed, he could handle himself against these people.

 

[Teh Frixz]

Aeliana, The Evervictor


The day went by in a flash, from cupping the cheeks and wrists being locked to corpses and freezing temperatures. The cold was descending on her and finally she was starting to feel it. Taking the thoughts of discomfort and locking them away in a place deep in her mind, the hurt and pain of the chilling air seemed to vanish.


Wandering up in a half daze, she catches the tail end of a foreign language, staring quizzically at the situation unfolding.

 

[WlfSamurai]

As you all emerge from the woods, the icewalkers shift their rag-tag formation to face you. The shock of seeing a tyrant lizard with you is apparent in all their faces. They have a hard time peeling their focus away from it and its rider as you speak, Makuro. They keep their spears up and ready, rain dripping from the tips. Their furs are drenched and cling to their forms. Though they are all clearly not the tribe's main warriors, life in the North has built them into a rugged bunch.

Up this close, you all hear weeping and murmuring coming from the camp. Muted painful moans. Tired, hungry, and sick faces peer out from the hovels and from under skins and furs.

A woman in the middle of guards seems to ignore your question Makuro. "Who are you?!" she demands in skytongue. She has the look of cold steel in her eyes and several scars on her face to add to the effect. Her hair is wild, yet braided in sections. She's seen many winters, but if you had to guess, sometime in her life she's wrestled a large animal and won.

The others around her shift their posture ever so slightly, just enough for you to know she's currently in charge.

Esbilon , Epiphany , Rykon , Sherwood , D. Rex , Random Word , Teh Frixz , jaydude

 

[Rykon]

"We're a scouting party on our way to investigate the shadowland nearby. We came to ask if you know what we can expect and then we can be on our way." Toun said bluntly, hoping to hasten the conversation to its end. Rather than speak in placating or gentle tones, he spoke with a commanding posture. Obviously, these people weren't going to stand down when facing an unstoppable killing machine, much less the Tyrant Lizard. "So, do you know what's going on down there? Or... perhaps we could ask instead what you all intend to do with all those unburned corpses so close to Marama's Fell?"

[I'll point out Toun's ability to see the immaterial lasts for the scene.]

 

[WlfSamurai]

The scarred woman scoffs. "Intend? We intend to die here in peace. Those among our sick won't last another night. Only a matter of time before the rest of us are infected too." She inclines her head. "That's right! We're plagued! So keep your distance for whatever it is you intend!

"As for the shadowland, you still have a ways to go. But, you best find a different route! You'll not cross this bridge! The river is angry! It washes away any who cross! We can't GET to our dead." She grits her teeth, the pain of their fallen still stinging. Her hand thrusts out, pointing to the other side of the river. "We can't GET there to set them to rights. Besides, the plague-walkers are on the other side. Waiting, I'm sure. They'll lay you low like they did to us. Now leave us to die in peace. We have nothing to give you, you hear? Nothing left for you!"

[Edit: Also, dematerialized sight still going noted.]

Esbilon , Epiphany , Rykon , Sherwood , D. Rex , Random Word , Teh Frixz , jaydude

 

[WlfSamurai]

[By the way, I should mention: they’re all still scared shItless of the tyrant lizard. Somehow, the lead scarred woman is keeping her shit together long enough to say all this. But even she is barely standing her ground.

Afureru, I assumed you left your army in the woods a mile south where you were before you approached. Just FYI.]

 

[jaydude]

Makuro could have bypassed the group and the bridge with his owl form, but he had four companions without shapeshifting abilities to worry about, not to mention a fur-covered lizard and around a wing's worth of mortal warriors. Unless they could find another route across this river nearby, crossing this bridge was their only option.

"What now? They seem pretty adamant about not letting us come near them." he said nonchalantly to his fellow Celestials, wondering if any of them would want to try and help these people (his money would be on Zoya, if he actually had any). "As for the bridge...might we be dealing with a temperamental river god here, refusing to let people past?"