SSJwrestler

Can't we all just get along?

Enzeru held his breath as he awaited Amarths reply, all the while scanning him up and down for tells of what he might say.

Nothing...damn this guys tough

Then, after a few more seconds, Enzeru couldn't take it anymore...he had to breath, his face was turning blue. Opening his mouth wide, releasing the breath he was holding, Enzeru gulped air down the way he had snarfed his food down.

A bit embarassed at what had just happened, Enzeru ran his hand through his hair and laughed softly, daring a glance back up at Amarth.

Would you answer already?

Draconis

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

Amarth

Dang. I take one day off and everyone's at war. Petra, Draconis is right, let's not bicker. Draconis, Petra is right. We're not here to be hardasses. Enzeru, Sack up bitch!

Amarth stood looking Enzeru in the face. He had to think about this decision carefully. Though he knew he owed the emperor much, he also knew he owed his wife even more. "I'm sorry, but I can't go with you. I've paid my debt to the emperor. I stood alone against Abanaku's forces on countless occasions, and now I'm done. I deserve to have my time of peace as much as anyone else. Feel free to stay the night tonight, but tomorrow we must part ways. I am sorry, but good luck on your journey." With that, Amarth bowed to the group and headed to his sleeping quarters. His wife bowed and followed.

Amarth

Shoan let out a deep sigh. "Forget it guys," he solemnly spoke. "He's stubborn as a pig. Once he's made up his mind about something like this, it's made up. We might as well just grab some nice shuteye before we head out in the morning." With that, Shoan pulled some sheets out of a closet and curled up in front of the fireplace, routinely, as though he had done it several times before.

Dixie

Grumble grumble. Whatever.

Petra pulled a bed roll out of her pack and unrolled it in a corner of the cottage. She was surprised by Amarth's response, but it truly made no difference whether he stayed or went. With her belly full of good food, she drifted off to sleep.

__________________
talk is cheap, so i buy every word you said.
scared me half to death, now i'm half dead.

SSJwrestler

A very dissapointed, accepted his defeat for the time being and walked over to the corner of the room and sat on the floor. There, he removed his pistol from his holster and the pouch from his side, laying each on the floor quietly.

Using the dimmed light from the fire, the gunman began to disassemble his gun, wiping each piece down with an cloth. Once he had completed this task, he ran a swab down the barrel and each chamber of the cylinder. Enzeru worked at these tasks for a good hour before reassembling his gun and putting it back in his holster.

Leaning back against the wall, Enzeru began to drift off to sleep, but was awakened seconds later by some unknown force. The gunman stood and walked over to the window, looking over the valley in front of him that was bathed in shadow.

Nothing....

Enzeru walked back to his corner and sat down, but this time did not lean back to go to sleep. He lay awake, with gun in hand, thumbing the trigger, as the feeling that something was closing in on them grew.

Draconis

Xyven propped himself up in the corner of the main room, the one out of the light of the dying fire, a dark shadow cast upon it from the chest of drawers. He looked forward to this, his first peaceful night's sleep in so long, for he knew that with Amarth in the house, no harm would come to his party.

Draconis had already left shortly after dinner, taking solice deep in the woods and meditating. The booming chants could be heard for miles, the black smoke creeping along the forest floor.

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

Dixie

Petra awoke with a start in the depth of the night. The dying embers from the evening's fire cast a hauting glow across the room, leaving the corners black and untouched by the soft orange light. The air felt thick with some all-pervading energy and she knew that few in her party were sleeping peacefully.

Clasping a small pouch in her palm, she wrapped her cloak around her shoulders and slipped silently out of the cottage. Outside, the moon was larger and fuller than she could remember seeing it for a very long time. Small bats flitted about and were caught briefly in its light before disappearing again into the safety of the night. A slight breeze disturbed the trees and made them moan softly to eachother in a steady incantation.
She sniffed the air and, satisfied with her present safety, pulled open the pouch and emptied its contents into her hand. She thumbed through these, removed a thin square of paper and a small case of herbs and spices, replaced the other items, and tied the pouch to her belt. Then, sitting on a large stump a few yards out from the cottage, near the tree line, she rolled the herbs in the paper, licked the edge, and secured it to itself. Replacing the case of herbs, she withdrew a small box of wooden matches and commenced smoking the blend. The smoke had a spicy, sweet flavor that calmed her and she sat back, listening to the sounds of the night around her.
Just to stop you guys from saying anything silly, she's not smoking pot.

__________________
talk is cheap, so i buy every word you said.
scared me half to death, now i'm half dead.

Amarth

Amarth hadn't even started to sleep yet. He stood, dressed, and grabbed his sword, calmly as he would do any day. He left the bedroom and passed by the kitchen to get a riceball on his way outside. Once outside, he saw Shoan and the rest of the party already waiting and anxious. Shoan looked hungrily at Amarth which caused Amarth to grunt, look away, and then grudgingly share his riceball. Between bites, he spoke quietly and concisely.

Amarth - "They are called the Yowai. They are stronger than most human opponents, but still the weakest of the Abanaku Demons. Judging by the sound of things, there should be about 54 headed this way. That's quite a challenging number, even though they are only Yowai. I think it's best to fight them 9 to 1. That should pose no real challenge to any of us here."

Shoan buried his forehead in his hand. He hated it when Amarth talked all serious like this. Besides, what makes him know how strong they all are? Bah, not worth the mental anguish. Shoan knew that if he had confronted him on the issue, Amarth would have proven to be right. He let out a little sight and agreed.

Shoan - "Alright, I can take nine no problem, but are they attacking from the front, the back, or surrounding us?"

Amarth - "Use your senses brother. There are, conveniently, eighteen coming from the southwest, eighteen from the southeast, eighteen from the northwest, and eighteen from here, the northeast. So, to answer your question more concisely, they're surrounding us."

Shoan - "Alright then. I'll go with Petra!"

Amarth brought his hand upside the back of Shoan's head.

Amarth - "We're going together."

Shoan - "Don't hit me!"

Shoan brought a similar attack back up Amarth's head. The two of them then began engaging in a form of non-harmful combat, the soul objective of which was to demoralize and humiliate your enemy. As they continued this way, Petra began to chuckle.

Xyven to Petra - "I understand your laughter. Up till now, I would have never thought Amarth to be the type of guy to allow himself to fight his brother right before combat."

Petra to Xyven - "Heh. We should have expected as much. No matter how the years have changed them, they're still brothers."

Sorry Petra, but I thought the female of the group would be best suited for that quote. Hope ya don't mind ^_^.

Amarth - "I'm not letting you go till you give up."

Shoan - "You know I'm not gonna do that."

Amarth appeared to had taken advantage, but it didn't look like Shoan would budge until both Amarth and Shoan at the same time perked their ears and looked up. Amarth released him and spoke.

Amarth - "They'll be here soon. Take your positions."

I'm leaving what they look like to the next person to post. I was kinda thinking like monsters or something that look like they were maybe once human, that are physically strong, but somewhat stupid.

Draconis

No, she's smoking crack.

Draconis sneared, "Are you telling me that's all we're dealing with? Yowai? They're hardly worth fighting."

Suddenly, a tall, black creature sprung from the treeline, its lanky legs crouched in tightly and enlongated arms outstrecthed, silouhetted against the full moon. It came hurdling down towards Draconis, letting out a piercing scream from its split jaw.

"Hello to you too," quipped Draconis as he started shifting to his demon form. Forcing his claws from his fingertips, he extended his arm, thrusting it through the creature's sternum and heart, grabbing the spine. Then, placing his foot on the creature's collar bone, Draconis ripped the vertebrae from the hole in its chest.

"And that's how you deal with Yowai," said Draconis as he tossed the bloody spine to Enzeru, licking the blood from his hand.

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

SSJwrestler

"Yipes!" Enzeru yelled as he the sidestepped the approaching vertebrate. "What the Hell Draconis?"

Then, looking down the other side of the valley and drawing his pistol, Enzeru said, "Petra and I will take the Yowai to the southeast and meet back up here after, if thats ok with her."

Amarth

"Go!" yelled Amarth. After everyone had split up Shoan spoke up.

Shoan - "Why wouldn't you let me go with Petra?"

Amarth - "I didn't trust the rest of them not to get in my way."

Shoan smiled a little at this. He enjoyed the brief feeling that he was special to his big brother. He had fought together with him many times, and they were both very good, and so they were able to bond with fighting in a way that normal brothers may have never found possible.

Soon their eighteen came charging in unison from the woods.

Amarth - "A dual maboroshi then?"

Shoan - "Sure."

Wind came rushing from their two bodies and energy poured from within them with an awesome intensity. Soon, multiple figures of their bodies came flying out with blurring speed. Hundreds of Shoans and Amarths poured through the confused enemy force, glints of a blade and a spray of blood was all that let the Yowai know they had been touched at all. The two brothers moved with amazing grace and fluid motion, and when they were done, they stood behind the force, every member of which had both arms sliced to the bone. Amarth and Shoan turned and faced them, blue energy still pouring from their eyes after that last attack. "Run," Shoan spoke simply. The Yowai ran howling in pain and fear back into the woods, arms dangling at their side.

Shoan grunted and started his walk back to the house. Amarth sighed at him and followed. Shoan hated letting those demons live, but he knew it would upset Amarth to kill them and so he put up with it.

Draconis

Meanwhile, Xyven and Draconis headed northwest, cloaked in the black smoke from Draconis's demon form. Then, they saw them, just up ahead. The Yowai were darting tree to tree.

Draconis - "Hold your place for a second. I'll take care of giving you some suitable working conditions...[chanting] Seum nadrovsgen telaiu nadraesov."

With that, the black smoke reached out like arms and enveloped the Yowai. They were frozen with fear. Without a sound, Xyven leapt through the trees, ripping 10 of the Yowai's throats assunder, slicing back until the white of their backbone showed in the center of the gaping slash.

Draconis - "Very nice, but leave a few for me."

Jumping high into the air, Draconis drew all of the darkness into the palm of his hand. He crashed down upon one of the Yowai's heads, his arm locked straight out, forcing its head into its body and splitting the torso half way down through the middle. Turning to the closest three of the remaining six, he leapt from the dead Yowai's shoulders, sinking his teeth into first one's throat and, using the force from the jump, flipped himself over the Yowai. Flying through the air, Draconis landed his foot into the gut of the second Yowai, driving it to the ground and forcing its abdomen to rupture. Pivoting in the pool of organs, Draconis landed a roundhouse kick solidly on the third's head, rendering it from his body. Two of the remaining three charged, the other fleeing to the east.
Where do you think you're going?
Draconis rushed through the two charging Yowai, toward the fleeing one. Just as the pair turned to chase, their torsos slowly slid from the lower half of their bodies. Through the woods, Xyven and Draconis chased the lone fleeing Yowai towards the northeastern corner.

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

SSJwrestler

Enzeru sprinted down the southeast side of the hill to the approaching Yowai, Petra a few steps behind him. The forest cloaked in the shadows of the night except for where the moon lay its lighting touch. Upon entering a slight clearing, Enzeru came to an adrupt stop.

They'll be here

Next, Enzeru unloaded one of the black cased bullets from his revolver and replaced it with a red cased shell.

This should help us out

As Enzeru finished loading the shell into his gun and bringing it around so it was next in line to fire, a rustle of leaves in the tree in front of him caught his attention. Without delay, Enzeru cocked his pistol and fired. A bright flash of red illuminated the night sky and the clearing, revealing the faces of the monstrous Yowai.

Click, click, click, click

Enzeru had fired four times, dropping the closest monsters, before the light has dissapeared and the forest was once again tucked underthe blanket of night. The gunman retreated a few steps back to reload, allowing Petra to try her hand at the Yowai.

As Enzeru cracked open his revolver, letting the empty casings fall with a slight thump to the ground, he replaced the fallen casings with five black cased shells and spoke, "Petra hold them off here while I circle around to the other side of the clearing."

As soon as Petra nodded her acknowledgment, Enzeru took off into the darkness.

Dixie

Impressed by Enzeru's expert command of the strange weapon she was not familiar with, Petra hesitated a moment in admiration before turning to the approaching demons.

Her bow already in hand, she drew 3 arrows from her quiver and laid them against it. Then, raising the straining bow to eye level, she let lose the 3 arrows and they sank with a satisfying thud into the thick, heaving chest of an approaching Yowai. Four more clambered toward her, close on the heels of the first. Drawing her sword from its place at her hip, she faced the monstrosities and growled deep in her throat. Then, with a terrifying battle cry, she lunged forward, using the rocks and trees around her as springboards for her agile energy.

Feeling the gentle weight of the sword and aligning herself perfectly with it, she spun quickly and the disembodied head of the first Yowai dropped to the ground with a crack. Dropping quickly to avoid a blow from the next demon, she regripped her blade and brought it up forcefully into the ribs of the threatening beast. It stumbled and fell against her and she removed her sword from its flesh and let it fall forward in a heap.

The remaining two Yowai were running off in the direction from which they had come and were now barely visible through the trees. Petra pulled an arrow from her quiver, placed it to her bow, took aim, and watched the demon closest to her drop. She watched for any signs of the other, but it had gone. She stood motionless for a long time, listening to the woods around her, before hurrying off in the direction Enzeru had gone.

__________________
talk is cheap, so i buy every word you said.
scared me half to death, now i'm half dead.

SSJwrestler

click

The crack of a single shot from Enzeru's revolver echoed through the valley, as the last escaping Yowai drop dead at Enzeru's feet.

Well, that was easy enough. Good job Petra.

Amarth

Dixie

__________________
talk is cheap, so i buy every word you said.
scared me half to death, now i'm half dead.

SSJwrestler

Petra quickly found Enzeru as he was making his back to Amarth's cottage and the rest of the party. The smell of demon blood was present on the scout's broadsword, meaning she had taken care of the remaining Yowai.

Upon returning to the cottage, Enzeru was greeted with the sight of the rest of the party sitting on the front porch.

"Southeastern Yowai group taken care of...but I guess we took last huh?" said Enzeru, running his hand through his hair. "Sorry to keep you all waiting."

The gunman walked to the porch and took a seat on its edge. A moment of akward silence followed, and noone was about to break it. Enzeru had a serious look on his face for the first time during the party's journey.

Then, turning to look at Amarth, Enzeru spoke. "You see the evil we are going to be facing, Amarth, and you know better than anyone the depths of their evil. As we venture on, Abanaku's forces will only grow stronger. We need your help. So I'm pleading, please join our ranks and share your wisdom and strength."

SSJwrestler

Amarth

"I've told you, no. Now, day is breaking, you should be on your way."

The party was disheartened by this news. They gathered up their belongings and went on their way. Nobody could really blame him. Nobody wants to get caught up in something like this, but a few of the party members were still bitter. Amarth watched them walk away with a slight twinge of regret in his heart. He did not like the idea of Shoan traveling into the depths of Abanaku's forces. He watched his brother and his company walk away with a heavy heart. He felt soft arms wrapping around his waist and a fragile figure pressing against him.

Ten - "You're worried about him aren't you?"

Amarth - "Of course."

Ten - "Go with him."

Amarth - "I couldn't! What about you? What if the Yowai come back?"

Ten - "It's you they're after. I'll probably be safer with you gone. Besides, I can't be so selfish as to keep you here with me when your country needs you. Especially when your brother also needs you. You're going with him and I won't take no for an answer, just... come back to me."

Amarth turned in her arms and wrapped her in his own. They exchanged a passionate and lingering embrace that neither of them really wanted to break, but eventually, they forced themselves apart. Amarth ran and grabbed his travelling kit, and when he was on the way out of the door he heard his wife calling. When he turned to look at her, she was dragging what could have been a small horse wrapped in a blanket behind her. "Wait. Take this food with you, I don't think it'll last you too long, but I would like to help in some way." Amarth smiled and grabbed the makeshift bag, tossing it effortlessly over his shoulder. He gave her one last kiss and was out the door chasing after the party. They weren't even out of the valley before he caught up to them.

Shoan - "I had a feeling you might come."

Amarth - "I'm only here to make sure you don't do anything stupid."

Shoan - "So Ten made you come?"

He snickered a little as he spoke. Amarth simply hung his head a bit and walked on.

Dixie

Petra just wants a boy toy is all.

Petra felt relieved and appreciative when she turned to see Amarth joining their group for good. Restraining a smile, she caught his eye and nodded respectfully.

__________________
talk is cheap, so i buy every word you said.
scared me half to death, now i'm half dead.

SSJwrestler

Knew he was a good choice to put on the list...

Enzeru grinned brightly as the group made their way through the high peaks of the mountain trail. The sun shone brightly as it made its way over the eastern horizon, and cast its warmth onto the party's faces.

"So, Amarth.." Enzeru asked "where should we head? Abanaku's base?"

Amarth

Amarth nodded and looked immediately away. He only wished to anticipate the perils ahead. It had been a while since he was on the road, and the memories and instincts that he had once relied on to survive came pouring back to him.

Shoan on the other hand was desparately trying to position himself in Petra's line of sight. Once he had finally caught her vision, he mustered all of the energy he could and put it into trying to make himself look as handsome as he could. He flashed her the most attractive and flattering smile he could put together and gave her a nod. He waited to judge her reaction before walking over to talk to her.

SSJwrestler

Draconis

Don't just apologize for the miscalculation. Fix it.

"That was just the fight that I needed. It was such a rush when I found a pack of them running for their lives to the northeast. I only wish there had been more after I took out the Yowai coming from the southwest," exclaimed Draconis. Flickers of red could still be seen in his eyes as he talked of the Yowai.

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

Amarth

Amarth is married... and I don't feel like fixing my miscalculation so there. :-P

Amarth's ears perked up at what Draconis had said. "Draconis, those you found running northeast, Shoan and I had spared them. Didn't you notice this? They were all wounded."

Draconis

"I didn't really give them a chance to show me anything," sneered Draconis, "What good does it do to spare them anyway?"

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

SSJwrestler

Amarth

Your posts aren't important enough to read Mojo Jojo. Also, I suggest we take a moment after this drama to have a dialogue about the exact route we will be taking.

"You. You have to stop this killing demon. The way you treat your adversaries is your business, but when you come after mine you're making it my business. Never do anything like that again."

Though Amarth spoke calmly, his eyes seemed to be backlit by an intense blue light. He had his teeth clenched and was gripping his sword tightly. He hated to see anyone, even the servants of Abunaku, dead. It was such a waste, such a terrible tragedy.

Draconis

Draconis - "How noble, sparing your enemies. That is, if you consider it noble to be weak."

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

Amarth

"I consider it weak to kill. How much easier is it to kill your enemy that to change him? It is true strength to be able to show your enemy the err of his ways and give him a chance to correct it. If you just go around killing all the time, you'll only breed hatred and voilence."

Shoan had heard this speech a million times before and was mostly bored of it. He inched his way over to Petra and smiled at her again before saying, "He gets like this all the time, there's no need to worry. Honestly, I feel much safer now with Amarth to cancel out Draconis."

Draconis

Draconis had overheard Shoan.
"You'll need more than a house cat to rival me. [to Amarth] That is what you are after all, toying with your prey rather than providing it swift and utter desimation. Change an enemy. They are your enemy not because they will not change but because man is incapable of changing his heart. An enemy is not some transcendental idea; it's an obstacle that must be destroyed, nothing more. If someone tells you they've been changed, they're merely lying through their teeth."

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

Dixie

You guys make me laugh. Hmm. I dare say Petra isn't interested in Draconis, no offense, and Xyven has no personality for obvious reasons... I'll let you two (Shoan and Enzeru) decide/compete for the honor if you like.

Petra listened half-heartedly to the tiff between Amarth and Draconis, feeling in her heart that it made no difference what either said, neither would change their opinion.

What a waste of breath.

Turning her attention to Shoan, who was suddenly acting ridiculous for no apparent reason, Petra smiled as warmly as she could and nodded as he spoke. Her mind was wandering and she found herself unable to focus on what Shoan was chattering on about.

__________________
talk is cheap, so i buy every word you said.
scared me half to death, now i'm half dead.

Draconis

No offense taken. Weight off of my shoulders, not having to deal with feigning sexual interest in someone over the internet. I'd sooner feign emotional interest in some girl in the flesh.

This guy's going to be a thorn in my side this whole fucking time.

Draconis - "Hey, Xyven. You never did drink any of this. [tossing the liquor jug to Xyven]."

Xyven uncaps the jug and takes a swig. He is appears unphased by the fiery liquid.

Xyven - "It's good." Fucking hell, that burns. "Real good."

Draconis - "That's what I like to hear...[to Amarth] I'm guessing you'd prefer some warm milk or perhaps a couple platters of rice covered in animal fat, what with your appetite."

__________________
STEVE MCKENNA!

SSJwrestler

About this time Enzeru came bounding out of a nearby bush carrying an armful of different berries and some apples.

"Hey guys, I brought back some..." Enzeru halted his words as he looked on at the group. Draconis and Amarth were locked in an intense battle of wills, Shoan was flexing anytime he mad eye contact with Petra and Xyven seemed to be burning alive on the inside.

"Uh, what'd I miss? I was hungry so I went and got us some fruit for breakfast. It's not much, but we should be eating light anyways."

"So..." Enzeru said looking around at the group "who wants some?"

Dixie

No one said you had to feign interest in me personally, dear. After all, we aren't living through our characters, that would just be silly.

Petra, snatching up the opportunity to remove herself from Shoan's somewhat awkward attentions, sidled up to Enzeru and surveryed his offerings. Picking out the best looking apple she could find in the bunch, Petra thanked him and dropped back from the group to enjoy it alone. She hadn't realized how hungry she was.

As she munched gratefully on the fruit, Petra let her feet wander from the path the group was taking and explored the woods around them, keeping the voices of her companions distinctly audible as she strolled lazily through the brush. The sun was warm and inviting on her face and, clearing her mind, she listened intently to the ceaseless banter of her company intermingled with the distant cries of some great bird of prey, the whirrings of a thousand leaves in the breeze, and the clatter of millions of tiny insects below her feet.

__________________
talk is cheap, so i buy every word you said.
scared me half to death, now i'm half dead.

Amarth

Shoan got burned >.< Will you be living through your character when you get sexed up?

Amarth gave Draconis an intense look, the type of look that usually made people cringe a little when he gave it to them. It was... violating. That is the only real word for it. It is like he is looking right through you, straight into your heart and what you are trying to hide in its depths. Amarth decided he wasn't getting anywhere with Draconis for now and turned to Enzeru with a smile.

"Yes, that sounds nice Enzeru. Thank you."

He grabbed a few berries from the pile and sat himself down on the trail to enjoy them. Shoan recognized that Petra had rejected him. No worries. No maiden can resist my charm for too long, but knowing when to lay off is just as important sometimes. He grabbed more than his share of fruit and sat next to Amarth. Amarth nudged him with the hilt of his sword and pointed back at the pile with a stern look. Shoan returned what wasn't his share with a "humph" and sat back down.

Dixie

__________________
talk is cheap, so i buy every word you said.
scared me half to death, now i'm half dead.

SSJwrestler

"Here!" cried Enzeru as he tossed an apple to both Draconis and Xyven. He then sat down next to a tree, not bothering to see if the apples he had thrown were caught.

The gunman down the remaining berries in his hand in one gulp, then removed a few instruments from the pouch on his belt and began to fiddle with them. Taking a thick piece of black paper in his hand, Enzeru carefully, but tightly, wrapped it around a small wad containing a few grains of black powder. He then seated this casing with a small flint and pushed a lead roundball in half way at its head.

Enzeru then placed his free hand back into his pouch and pulled out a small tin of wax. Taking a bit on his finger, he spread the substance all over the casing, insuring it would stay together. He then laid the casing on a sunbathed rock to dry and repeated the process for five more casings.

As the last casing was finishing drying, Enzeru looked up to see the party more than a hundred yards up the trail. In a frenzy, the gunman grabbed up all of his materials and his casings and sprinted down the trail, throwing everything in his pouch as he ran.

"Wait up, guys!" He yelled.