Ьȴʊє Ͻ a r a v a n 🚙 🚙 🚙 (new thread!)

Favorite Character Poll Round 10!

Lucien Balthazar Mchale - Vicious hunter of humans and dragons.	27.3%	[ 3 ]
Vasul Calim Shahrad - Crown Prince of Shahrazad and righteous eagle among a flock of vultures.	9.1%	[ 1 ]
Lorelei 'Ellie' Katerini - Knight Errant and Defender of Justice who will kick your butt!	18.2%	[ 2 ]
Inyri Ven - Sharp-minded beauty and budding lady of wares.	18.2%	[ 2 ]
Eriol Epheis - Mysterious man with an eye for the prize.	27.3%	[ 3 ]
Total Votes:			[ 11 ]

This poll closed on November 27, 2014.
No longer accepting new votes.

[Watervoir]

Ѵeȴɩus Kɩɾʈɑ
ɳoble

Even while denied a conclusion to the tale, a wry smile crossed the noble's face. The merchant didn't appear to be aware of Aria's little stunt that had Velius scouring the village for a good quarter of an hour. Velius's focus converged upon Oliver as his eyes roved the man's kind face in search for clues of anything that led up to the incident. He wanted to press the merchant for answers, but too soon the man changed topics. There was no choice but to follow the shuffle of Oliver's hands as the amulet was procured from his pocket.

"Ah, those things. It's for long range magic. You better be careful with how you hold that thing. They're known to be temperamental. I know someone who made one false move and lost all of his hair, both good and bad." A wicked smile spread upon his face. "Ha HA! I jest. Or maybe I'm not. In all honesty my good man, you might want to have that thing looked at. I can offer my assistance with that if you are willing to part with it and let me hold onto it for some time. I am no small novice when it comes to trinkets like these, and I might even waive my usual fees just for you." Velius had no business with magical items. At best, he would pass it onto Medayo to have a look at, but Oliver didn't need to know all of his secrets. It didn't mean that the noble had nothing to gain by inspecting the amulet. A mage's lost toy -- one could learn many things from another's trash.

At Kemun's request, his face fell to a frown. It was all a part of the act. He knew it was inevitable, and that she would request for her knife back at some point or another, so he didn't risk leaving it anywhere on his person where she could see it. "Looks like I've been trying too hard to keep it safe and forgot about how I'd return it to you. It's in my wagon," he told her. Shortly after arriving at the caravan, he had remembered deciding long ago that an afternoon tea with the lady would have been nice. It wasn't difficult to orchestrate the necessary preparations, which namely meant conveniently forgetting the treasure in a top drawer.

"Let's head back first. Hurry along now." Now that everyone was gathered, he started to wave them onward and made his pace quicker than usual by a step. "Parun was knocked out by a donkey shortly after he lit the flare. Halima is tending to him now. And I bet everyone is dying to know where Jon and Aria are, hm?"

His smiling eyes shifted slightly to glance at Whitnee's motions, and as they arrived clearing before the lake that currently sheltered the caravan, he could no longer contain the question. "Nervous habit there, doctor? Had anything to do with your patient, I wonder?"

[anais nighteyed]

x

artwork by Rain, from Midnight Inks Illustrationsxxx

xxxxxxxxＫｅｍｕｎ Ｅｌｄｓｔｒａ

When Kemun asked for the return of her knife, she leaned forward with one hand outstretched, undoubtedly expecting the prompt return of the item. It was evident that the knife was dearly cherished, conveyed in the way she frowned when she learned that Velius did not have it on his person. “I see,” she replied curtly, her voice heavy with disappointment as she retracted her hand. Earlier on she would have questioned his decision to put the object in his wagon, if she had known of it. She’d worried that the townsfolk were planning to loot the caravan, but she supposed it wasn’t worth mentioning now.

Her gaze wandered to Willa; she was scolding Whitnee for locking her in his wagon, but the pair appeared whole and unharmed, much to Kemun’s relief. This was no place for a woman with child, all the more reason for a quick departure. “It appears so,” she said, in response to Willa’s inquiry about the group’s well-being. Kemun harbored concern for the other woman. Whitnee seemed attentive to Willa’s needs, at least, but she wouldn’t be satisfied until Lenti was far behind them.

Taking the reins in her hands, the merchant nodded absentmindedly as Velius informed them of Parun’s unfortunate encounter with a donkey. She was occupied, making a soothing noise in her throat to comfort her horse. Hruka tossed his head and snorted loudly, shifting restlessly despite her efforts to console him. He was unsettled by the calls coming from the woods, but she couldn’t blame him. Kemun knew they would quit the place soon and was glad for it.

She only wished her knife was within reach. There hadn’t yet been a situation where she had been forced to use it in her own defense, and without the weapon she felt bare and vulnerable. Needless to say, she was irritated with a certain red-eyed individual over the matter. Perhaps being cross with him wasn’t very fair, but this wasn’t a good time for forgetfulness. If they were caught up in some sort of confrontation, she didn’t want to fend off attackers with her bare hands. She contemplated using Velius as a shield.

Kemun blinked when Aria was mentioned, and instinctively her eyes searched for her. “Has something happened to Aria?” she asked, fretting when she saw no sign of the seer. Even as she posed the question, she wasn’t entirely certain if she wanted the answer.

[WanderingMercenary]

Oliver Mendel
You can find me here: On my cart, edge of town
Talking with: Velius, Kemun, Whitnee and Willa

Suddenly Oliver became very nervous holding the amulet. So far it hadn't done anything, except just sit there, brimming with power. But maybe Velius had a point. Maybe he shouldn't hold onto it for very long. He rather liked his hair, and would be devastated if something had happened to it. But your hair might not be the only thing you lose, he thought. What if the mage could sense where this amulet was? All the better to try and get to a safer place.

He flicked the reins, urging his horse on. He looked at the amulet one last time before he put it back in his pocket. He made sure that he was going as fast as Velius, for he had no idea where the man was leading him. As he passed Kemun, he said. "I'm glad to see you're okay. That's a fine horse you have there." And while he didn't say it, he was glad the rest of his new-found friends were safe as well. At least, those that made it out of town.

"A donkey? It's name wouldn't happen to be Chuckles?" he asked. Or was it Chubbles? Chubbly? Chuck? He couldn't remember exactly what Jon had told him, but he was sure once he laid eyes on the creature, it would come back to him.

He looked at Velius as he followed him. He had many questions for the man once they finally found a moments rest. Did he care about those companions that were lost? Well, that wasn't really a fair question to ask, since he had yet to tell the man about Jon's fate. A more apt line of questioning would be about the man's history. And better yet, some history on his new companions. While he never made it a point to get very friendly with his fellow merchants (due to the occasional ploy for money), he would make one of getting to know these people. After all, he wasn't sure how long he would be in their company, and he would hate if it turned out to be poor company.

[Leelee_Mraz]

════════════════════════ Dr. Whitnee Rasset ═════════════════════════

Whittnee had blatantly ignored the rant of the woman once released from the wagon. He praised his horses through the whole ordeal. He was far too accustomed to the craziness that came along with pregnant women. He had grown tired of it a long while ago. It was the voice of the leader that caught his attention though.

"Nervous habit there, doctor? Had anything to do with your patient, I wonder?"

Whitnee merely looked down at his hand wrapped around the engraved small silver key that hung around his neck. Whitnee found himself touching it after times of great stress or other such incidents. He guessed now that he was past the point of noticing. He said nothing in response, simply tucking the key and chain back under his shirt and addressing the second part of his statement. Whittnee raised an eyebrow at the man.

“ By my patient, I surely do not hope you mean her. “ He nodded his head toward Willa. “ She has not been my patient since far earlier in the day. I am afraid that she needs far more than my help.” He said not really minding that he was less than three feet away from the the woman, who was obviously stuck in processing what he was currently saying about her. “ I was merely pursuing her for information. The medical care was secondary.” He said looking around at the other wagons with a smile and giving a cordial nod to Kemun and Oliver. He went inside his wagon for a moment and came back with apples for his horses. Gilda nearly knocked him over to get the treat. Faratees took the apple like the gentlemen he was. Whitnee approached Kemun and handed her an apple. “ For your horse. Unless you want it. “ He said giving her a slight smile and then walking back over to his wagon, quite unsure what to do with himself. .

[Watervoir]

Ѵeȴɩus Kɩɾʈɑ
ɳoble

"For information," Velius echoed Whitnee, his mind perusing the thought briefly before discarding it completely. "Why do you ask? Does it belong to you? The donkey's run off into the forest. Perhaps you'd like it back?" It was all jokes; the animal couldn't have been Oliver's as it was only this afternoon that he began travelling with the caravan.

Blind he acted to Kemun's discomfort as, until the latest uproar, too defined for comfort, choed through the forest. It was a cross between a screech and a roar, a cry unlike any other Velius had ever heard in his life. The very temperature of the air seemed to drop a few degrees. A small shiver ran up the noble's spine, and a voice told him that another challenge was on its way and that he had best be prepared. Velius's face broke into a sharp grin. "Something's coming."

There was no time to waste. He had no desire to be the one throwing orders around, but he had already made a considerable number of them that day and they would be toast if they caravan couldn't get itself together quickly. "Latch a spare wagon to yours if you can. Focus on the ones that are blue." Should they do so, the others would discover that something about those blue ones in particular made them travel as light as the wind, and the answer to how this was so eluded the noble even to that day.

Waving the other's towards the rest of the wagons, he jogged to his own to retrieve the woman's knife from his stash, having decided that her survival was more important, not to mention necessary, for him to see her later. "Aria is with Jon. Or is it Jon is with Aria?" As he pressed the scabbard of her treasured blade in Kemun's hands, a finger of his free hand went up to his chin as he paused in thought. "They left through a backdoor of the Green Willow. Aria told me to not look for her and I suppose that as a gentleman, I ought to respect a woman's wishes, no?" It was rather obvious that he was not telling the full story, and that he was making no real effort to.

His wagons had already been set up. Caden's first, followed by Velius's own. Medayo's wagon had its own pair of horses pulling it, but with no hands to guide them, the noble had to make do with tethering the horses to his own wagon. It was a considerable amount of agility sacrificed for some corpses in closets, but it would be worth it in the end.

Once everything was set, he got onto the head of his set of wagons and gathered up the reins. "Give a shout if you happen to see anyone of note." He himself would be on the lookout for Medayo, of course.

"...Come back..."

Curious at the noise, Velius checked around the corner of his wagon. "Now, I advise that no one look back. Move!" His smile warped into a wry one. It was no small task to muster the will to do it, but eventually he managed to flick up his reins and spur his horses forward.

[Dayum We Roll Hard]

___________________________________________________________
_____________________________
_______


It came as a whisper, yet one that reached the ears of all in the clearing before the lake.

"...Come back..."

Behind them and at the opposite end of the clearing, the shadows on the forest floor grew darker. The voices continued their begging, with a urgency of a thousand sorrows. It was the din of forest as its trees were felled, the cry of a hungry and dying child under the darkness of the night, a pig's grunts as it was shuffled to a slaughterhouse.

"...Don't... leave... us... Please..."

One by one, silhouettes expanded out of the umbrage, and their only defining feature was the way in which they absorbed all of the sun's light to become as black as ink. The shapes stood in their dark corners. There were about a dozen of them. Watching.

"...Please..."

The shadows started to creep forward, ever so slowly, and towards the blue caravan.

"...Come... play..."

[anais nighteyed]

x

artwork by Rain, from Midnight Inks Illustrationsxxx

xxxxxxxxＫｅｍｕｎ Ｅｌｄｓｔｒａ

Oliver spoke to her as his wagon passed hers, offering kind words, and she smiled wearily at him. “Thank you,” she replied, “Likewise.” Kemun nodded at his horse, swelling with pride at the compliment he’d given hers. Whether Hruka had registered the praise remained to be seen. She could plainly see that there was some element to the forest that set him on edge. Though the day had proven difficult to weather, she was happy to have made it through unscathed. Still, she knew she couldn’t rest. They weren’t quite out of the woods yet, figuratively speaking.

“The poor beast might find its way to the caravan again,” she said, trying to put forth a bit of optimism. She reached up to rub her temple with her fingers, hoping this spooked donkey wasn’t the same one Jon had asked them to care for. Another worry, another burden to bear. She accepted the apple presented to her by Whitnee, thanking him accordingly for the gift. Fresh fruit was a small luxury on the road, and she decided to share it with her horse whenever her appetite returned. She placed it in her pocket for safekeeping.

Her mind was drifting like a feather on the wind when another call sounded from within the shelter of the trees. Kemun cringed. Was it merely the workings of her imagination, or was there a sudden chill in the air? She threw a glance at Velius, and she was somewhat disturbed by the grin he wore. Did he always react as such when faced with an unknown threat? He was a strange man, without a doubt. But she understood the direness of their situation, and at the noble’s urging she hopped off her wagon’s seat. She set to work the moment her feet met the ground, latching several of the caravan’s wagons to her own.

“I don’t know how you’re going to fare with these, my friend,” she remarked, directing this comment to her horse. Setting her hands on her hips, she shook her head, clearly skeptical. Hruka was strong, but that had its limits, as did all things. Kemun turned to Velius, startled by his mention of the seer. She fixed him with an expectant look, waiting for further explanation as she took the knife from him. She had no time for riddles, cryptic statements, or anything of the like. “You have my appreciation,” the merchant told him, her head inclined respectfully.

Kemun took in the news of Aria and Jon. “I see,” she said, occupying herself with her knife. Her eyes were downcast as she fastened the sheath in her belt. “I am relieved to hear that, I won’t deny it. Last I saw of him, he was running back into the tavern. I thought him dead.” Now there was all the more reason to keep his lute. She assumed he would want to have his instrument back, should she ever come across him again. With that, she went and climbed back into the front of her wagon, taking the reins in her hands.

The merchant was ready to depart, but something still nagged at her. She turned in her seat, looking back, her brow crinkling with concern. “Willa?” she called, grasping for the woman’s attention. It seemed she had no attachment to Whitnee after all, and for a while Kemun had been under the impression that the two were husband and wife. She wasn’t sure why she wanted to go out of her way to ensure the other woman was looked after. Perhaps it was because Kemun knew that if her life had gone the way she’d planned it to, she’d have a child of her own. When she looked at Willa, she saw a path she could no longer take. “Danger is drawing near, I suspect. This is no time to be milling about. Go into my wagon and bolt the door behind you; don’t come out until it’s safe.”

Her neck prickled at the imploring whispers rising from the forest. The temptation to look back was resisted, though the plaintive voices that begged and pleaded tugged at her. She was certain that if she saw whatever was at their heels, it would shave another year off her life. She murmured instead, uttering soft prayers as she wished her pipe wasn’t broken. When she trusted Willa had complied with her request, Kemun gave the reins a sharp snap. Hruka surged forward, and she was surprised to find that he was utterly unburdened by the wagons trailing behind him, almost as if they weighed nothing at all.

[azora natashi]

☤ ☤ ☤ Ӎ ε d ɑ у σ ☤ ☤ ☤

☬ The boy regained consciousness behind Medayo and she resisted the urge to see if his behaviour was as animalistic as his looks were. One haze fuzzed past her to what she assumed must be the winged specimen that had awakened and she waited for another to take her offer. One seemed to, floating closer to her and there was a distinct axe shape next to it. If she recalled, the mysterious doll she had received in the market had an axe. A woman she had presumed, with blonde hair tied in a single plait.

The soul swirled into the liquid and she picked through the almost corpses before finding the one she was looking for and poured the soulful drink. Should it come that be known that this was in fact the wrong body Medayo could also rip the soul out again.

A loud whistle made all those next to the house turn to the sky and see the green strike of light fly across it. She stood there a moment, then forced the tanned boy to take the small girl's body and throw it onto Jafar. The rest followed, lifting their bodies as she quickly took all her vials and liquids and stuffs them into her bag before taking the horse's reins. She made to get onto, swinging behind the girl's body and holding it to her with one hand. Not that she cared for it, but she didn't want it to drop and risk having one of them go back for it.

Rachelle raced forward through the forest, motioning to them with his limited communication skills to follow and everyone rushed forward at once. The canopy blocked the sight of the flare from view but the winged boy darted sure-footedly between the trees in front of them. He leaped away so quickly his form disappeared and they had no choice but to continue into the direction he had followed.

The Blue Caravan seemed to come meet them when they reached the main road, horses and wagons and people already moving. ☬

[Leelee_Mraz]

Willa Odette Wilafax

"I am not fat!"

" Oh that?.......is just....a...watermelon I stole..."

Willa took a couple of deep breaths and attempted to rub the pink out of her slightly embarrassed cheeks. She really needed to learn to better manage her temper, at least until she learned to know these people a bit better. Willa fiddled with her hair and began to look around and her new surroundings. She had never seen so many wagons in one place. Her eyes were wide, like a child exploring a new home. She almost forgot to listen as Kemun came up and addressed her.

“Danger?” She responded softly. Then she nodded to her request. “ Okay. “ She appreciated being asked to do things instead of dragged about. Willa decided at that moment that she rather liked the female merchant. Willa smiled at her and walked to the door of her wagon and pulled it open. Willa entered the wagon and looked around. She remembered her instructions and turned and locked the door. When it was safe? How was she supposed to know that it was safe. Willa walked deeper into the wagon and set herself down on a small pallet in the corner. She leaned back on the wall behind her and set her hands on her growing front, jumping a little as the wagon was set to motion.

Willa rested her head on the wall and a yawn escaped her lips. Then a smell caught her nose and made her mouth water. She didn’t know what it was, but she wanted it. She got on all fours and crawled off the pallet and toward the scent. Gosh. She was starving. It was funny how the smell of food could remind you so quickly. Willa began to crawl around the wagon like a dog sniffing out a deer, until she came upon a bundle, which she quickly unbundled to reveal a selection of food products. Willa’s mouth began to water. She bit her lip and looked toward the door and then back down at the food. She probably shouldn’t eat the woman’s food without asking. But she was so hungry. Willa’s eyes danced over the food items like it was new found buried treasure. Willa reached forward and grabbed a large chunk of cheese. She looked at it and bite her lower lip. She would have to pay her back somehow, but she needed this food. Willa reached out and grabbed a couple of pieces of dried meat and some bread and then rolled the the bundle back the way she had found it and returned to the pallet with her spoils.

Willa was just sinking her teeth into the cheese when a strange sound drifted to her from outside.


"...Come back..."

Willa’s eyes bulged and chills went up her back. She nervously chewed the cheese and scooted herself tighter into the corner of the wagon. What was going on out there. She frowned suddenly very happy to be shut up inside the wagon.

"You put that hand on my belly.....you are not getting it back."

[artfreek]

~~~~Nesa Comec~~~~


Nesa grimaced slightly at the thought of her body being slung over a horse, but she was sure that was the least of her problems. She was probably in bad shape any way and one horse ride couldn't make it much worse. Her spirits were lifted slightly by Phedre antics. It was an odd thing to picture Caden dancing around even without a veil on.

Nesa heard a slight whistle that was followed by a green light in the sky. Could that be the caravan? A whir of energy went through Nesa. They would be back to normal soon and back with the caravan. Rachelle lifted Nesa's body onto the horse. He was gentle about it or as gentle as one can be when slinging someone onto a horse. She smiled slightly at him, however her smiled fell slightly as Medayo saddled up behind her. She truly hoped the women wouldn't let her fall off.

She hesitated, wondering if she should stay near her body, but she wouldn't be able to do much good. Rachelle was already moving. She took second, looking at her body and praying that she wouldn't fall off, then raced off towards the winged boy. He was quick, and it took Nesa a second to catch up to him, but the good thing about this spirit form was that she didn't haven't to worry about loosing her breath, or tripping over roots.

She smiled at him as she caught up to him and she thought she saw him smile back. They dodged around the trees, racing each other. When they were both back in their body's Nesa wanted to race him in the air. She couldn't wait to have her wind again.

[Watervoir]

xxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxx
xxxxCaden AlinarixxxxGuard
______________________________________________________________


Caden threw his head back and laughed. "You can tell him that he can try and that next time he has some ape and horse monsters running after his tail that I'll be there to save him." He resolved to make sure to keep the memory of the mutants running after Medayo and Jafar locked in his memory. "Dancing. Well, I have been told that I'm light on my feet. And you can keep it. It looked better on you anyway." Actually, he imagined that certain nobles, if not Velius, would have a keen interest in the treasure, so although Caden didn't need such a treasure for himself, it wasn't exactly like he could derive any benefit from it at all.

The moment he saw Phedre's spirit drain into the bottle, he moved towards the bodies, hoping to waste no more time dwaddling. The forest was growing tense. The past three days without his sixth sense had opened up his other senses to his surroundings. For now, the bird's chirps were slowly dying down. Insects were scuttling under rocks. These observations made it all the more clear that time was of the essence.

It was then too that the signal flare winded into the sky, shortlived yet hard to miss, especially with the noise it made and the fact that it was one of his own flares. As he hefted his own body over his shoulder, he found comfort in the idea that Medayo and Velius alone had the knowledge of the flares' existence, and thus the latter was likely still safe. There were other alternatives, but he spared them no thought. The group was moving. They were being efficient, and that was was the way he liked it.

He grinned and moved in alongside Phedre as they made after Medayo and Rachelle's lead. "Don't think I missed the way your eyes sparkled when I threw that dagger. You had your doubts and I totally snuffed them out..." His voice trailed off as they entered the main road. There was the blue caravan, making their way on the path out of Lenti.

"Hey guys, you're missing some people here...!" he started, although sure he was that no one would hear him. And they he saw them, following after the caravan. A dozen and a half of them, bipedal but the colour of shadows, as if they were built from the shade itself. Under the canopy of a trees to either sides of the road, more shadow creatures were growing. First they were no more than a glob of darkness, but then they started to take shape, growing arms and a runner's body, and in the two spaces where their eyes should have been shone blue light instead.

The caravan began passing by. Passing the ghosts and whoever few that could be seen or were solid. The wagons moved in a line, more or less, but it was clear that the caravan was in a hurry. And there was Velius, at the head of it. Good. Caden wondered at how odd the caravan members might find his body floating around limp, had they not been distracted by the chase.

"Climb on!" he thought he heard a voice cry.

Caden grabbed hold of one of the last carts and stepped into its exposed top. It was home to a pile of soft hay, into which he tossed his limp body. He even managed to half bury himself in the hay, afraid he was that he might lose his body in the speed of the caravan, when one of the creatures caught up with his cart. Caden's knife was at the ready, and in his invisible form, it was easy to catch the creature and slice at its head. The entire creature evaporated with an ear piercing hiss.

Caden's mind was racing at a mile a minute. The villager rumours had it that there were beasts in the forest, but he hadn't expected anything like this. Yet he could think of one person who might have been able to shed some light on the situation. "Rachelle!" Caden's eyes scoured the skies and the trees rushing past them, but the winged boy was nowhere to be found.

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x x

[edited]

[Watervoir]

Ѵeȴɩus Kɩɾʈɑ
ɳoble



The caravan was making good speed. But then again, so were the monsters.

Whatever magic that made these beings exist was like nothing the noble had ever seen before. Velius wasn't sure how Agamemno did it, but if they weren't on opposite sides, Velius would have liked to have tea with the man and find out. He checked back again, and again the shadow creatures were looking right back at him. The creatures had ceased their begging and pleading by now, and the noble assumed that they must have been too busy chasing them down.

And then overhead, something flew past. Velius only managed to discern a large pair of wings, and his eyes whipped back to the sight of Medayo, Nesa, some other people, and a limp form of Caden, unconscious and floating. It wasn't entirely clear to the noble what was going on, but in the split second that he made eye contact with Medayo, he gestured with a c**k of his head that they should board.

He was in the process of focusing his attention back on steering when something black and formless collided with his left periphery. Velius grabbed at the nearest thing for support, which happened to be the reins, and in turn spurred a whine from the horses and an increase of speed. Both he and the creature was thrown back against the seat. Something slapped itself against his face and he reached to pull it off. But the abomination was changing. What was once a wisp of shadow gradually lengthened and grew in the shape of forearms, hands and fingers, which Velius was now holding and wrestling against. For a shadow, it had a considerable amount of upper body strength.

From under the pair of bluish white orbs, where creature's mouth should have been, tendrils of gaseous shadow began dripping downward towards Velius's exposed neck.

[NlETZSCHE]

≼≽≼Yggdrasil "Draaz" Søren Freud≽≼≽
(Igg-Druh-S-ill "Droz" Sh-roun Frew-oid)
≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽≼≽

╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
♦Extrovert♠ Cryptic♥ Dangerous♣
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════╝
Shady Priest
╚══════════════════════════╝

≼≽≼Far too risky To feed you with bare arms.≽≼≽

≼≽≼Wait your turn, you're greedy I hear you.≽≼≽

═════════════════ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═══════════════

After Rachelle was returned to his body, all Draaz could do was dream about the instant that he was returned into his shell of a body. He shook the thoughts away as Phedre grabbed his attention. It was then that he realized he really must be more careful. Although, once he was no longer a ghost, it would be much easier to control the very impulses that he was sure were causing much suspicion. After all, he was supposed to be a priest. Of course, now he was acting like a war genius, or whatever. Back in the cave, he had acted as defenseless as a small animal. He was certain they'd catch on, if he kept this up.

"Well, I...I'm just acting on pure instinct. Besides, it helps that nothing can hurt me like this. Of course, when I have the ability to die...I can't imagine I'll be so helpful...if at all." he gently shrugged. "And the creatures...must have had souls, once. Only living things have them....according to the artem. Though, those poor creatures had some tortured souls, I can say, at least, that I am certain that they even had souls." he let out a sigh.

He watched Phedre carry his body, and sighed. There it was. The Artem was neatly tucked out of one of the bags strapped to his body. He couldn't touch it, or move his fingers over the studded hard cover, but at least he could see the corner of it. He knew it was there, and that was quite the relief. Though, he was awfully excited to have ALL of his senses back. As they traveled, he simply kept himself patient by reminding himself that it wouldn't be much longer. Though it didn't do much to curb the desire to hurry up.

He did as the others told him, telling Medayo to liquefy Phedre and the like. For the most part he was silent, until they reached the caravan. It wasn't quite home to him, yet, but it was close enough. All of his gold and precious items were still hauled up in that young man's wagon. Also, he'd been invited to stay in said wagon, for a while. It was...close enough.

"OI! Finally!" He sighed, running towards the traveling wagons, along with the rest of his group. "Feels like hell is finally over..." He smirked.

He looked at the pretty lady, and grinned, "Thanks. I suppose we should talk about prices soon." he chuckled, but his glee didn't last long.

Before he knew it, creatures of darkness were on their tail, and Rachelle had gone missing from the fresh blue sky.

"........Of course...." he remarked rolling his eyes, and crossing his arms.

Ever since he'd "joined" this caravan, he'd regretted it. This caravan seemed cursed.

He looked around, at the chaos that quickly began to grip the caravan. The dark shadowy beasts were ruthless and cut throat indeed. A few poor insignificant humans were crushed under their cruel might. It was gruesome, but he couldn't help but think that it was for the best. The caravan did always appear to be a bit crowded.

Perhaps it was just laziness, but he gathered that there wasn't much he could do anyway.


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≼≽≼How can I protect myself from you?≽≼≽

≼≽≼Trust is for fools!≽≼≽

[azora natashi]

XXXXXXXXXXXX❀ R є s υ ι a ❀

Resuia cast a glare at the girl, no strength left to make it as withering or cold as she had wanted. She wasn't going to talk about her mother. With anyone. Ever. The recently forgotten rage boiled to the surface and for some time all she could hear was the thumping of her heat and the rush of blood in her ears. Even so they made it to the alley and she found her cloak, still as itchy as before. Her emotions subsided some and then she was handed half a broken broom. She tested it in her hand, it was heavy and long and uncomfortable against her still soft flesh that was accustomed to holding no more than an airy fan.

"Yes we are. We better hurry I guess there's no telling what that flare means but whatever it is, it's the Blue Caravan." She remembered very well the tavern turned to dust and the walled city smoldering in the distance. No doubt something fiery had happened and it was probably their fault and more than likely they would be running the heck out of here within the day.

"Swing it? At people?" She whispered incredulously. She was not a soldier, not by a long shot. But she supposed if it kept apes from kidnapping her she would do it. "Fine then...... the pointy end right?" Because she was hoping she would have to grab onto that splintering mess and risk giving herself a splinter.

"Let's hurry and go before they leave us and I regret taking you with me." She said like she bad been the one to do all the work this entire time. She quirked her head to the entrance of the alley, peering out into the empty street before bolting towards the Caravan. Somehow they made it, as it was starting it's departure and Resuia sighed in relief at the safe feeling the blue wagons seemed to give off. And then shadow things started to speak and she was swinging her pointy stick wildly before it flung out of her grip and she scrambled onto a cart as quickly as she can, hiding in the corner with the cloak over her head and the door wide open.

"Your stick didn't work!"

[WanderingMercenary]

Oliver Mendel
You can find me here: On my cart, road out of town
Talking with: The Blue Caravan

"Well, no, it's not mine, per se, but I think it belonged to Jon." he said. "He entrusted his pet to me." He had never owned or taken care of a donkey before. He imagined that it wouldn't be any different from taking care of a horse, but with a temper. Jon had warned him about the creatures teeth. He would have to make sure to watch his hands while feeding him.

"Jon's with Aria? You mean he survived?" he asked, raising his voice. He cleared his throat, lowering his voice. "It is usually wise to heed the words and wishes of a woman. That is, if you are not hopelessly in love, or so go the stories."

Oliver tensed when he heard the soft whispers. He almost looked to behind him to investigate, but he heard Velius's warning. He watched for a moment as he hoped onto his wagon and hurried off. Oliver snapped to his senses, and cracked the reins, setting his own wagon in motion. He set himself so he trailed behind Velius. It was then that he decided to look around, see what had whispered at them. He could see dark shapes following them, some on the road, some in the forest. His brow furrowed in thought and worry. Had the mage sent these creatures after them, or were they denizens of the forest?

He watched with alarm as one shadow leapt at the cart in front of him. He couldn't see where it went, but above the hustle of moving carts, he could hear the sounds of a struggle. He slapped the reins again, pushing his horse to move faster. He came up beside Velius's wagon, and saw that he was struggling with one of the shadows. "Hey! Over here!" he shouted at the creature. He groped around on the bench, looking for something to throw at the creature. He found his knife, and threw it. As it left his hand, he realized it might not have been the best thing to throw. He watched as it flew through the air, and lodged itself in the shadow creature. He wasn't sure it did any harm, but he hoped that it would prove an ample distraction.