Althea listened whilst staying focused on her blades. Her sharpening stone was small, and she had many, so she put carful detail into each one, a good way to waste time when it isn't short for once. She kept quiet as they chatted, yet absorbed all of it. From what Arcan talked of, he had seen things no mortal man could have lived through mentally. On her travels in and out of inns, she had heard several horror stories about various nations and ethnicities, including the civil war in Skyrim between the Nords and Imperials, along with the Thalmor being rumored of being very prejudice. She hadn't retained the details, but Althea again figured she would eventually find out the whole story by the time this quest with Arcan and Niall ended. When his story of torture trailed off, Althea could imagine his mind filling with thoughts he'd rather not have. She pitied him, but did not hint so. She wouldn't want pity from other people if she were him. Niall waited in the carriage rather differently than her and Arcan, looking comfortable yet Althea's elven eyes had fantastic peripheral and she could see his pupils constantly panning the area around the wagon, ready any second for trouble of any kind. When he spoke of defending his travelling companions with his own life, Althea believed him immediately, for the force in his voice came from his chest. Niall was a moral and brave man. Althea didn't need to go on a quest with the man to know that, simply having a drink with him and she could tell. Althea felt she could either trust these two, or be suspicious of them the entire journey and in return raise their suspicion because of her demeanor, and in the end someone might flip altogether, stabbing a proclaimed "companion" in the back and running off. Althea didn't get this vibe in particular from either of these men, but she couldn't deny they had a history that they could talk about for a good, long time. So, the girl decided to trust them for now, keep her guard up at all times as always, and focus on the quests ahead. She decided she would prove herself in their next battle encounter, so the men she was traveling with knew that to betray her, they'd have one hell of a fight. > slight time skip< Althea had wanted to prove herself honorably, not be ambushed suddenly a few hours after thinking about it. Alas, another small group of people, dressed in the same stolen uniforms, began to surround the carriage. It began slowly, for Althea heard them before they were even close to approaching their vehicle, and quickly, yet silently grabbed her bow and leaped up onto the driver's seat, next to him, without making a sound. The man jumped, but Althea motioned for him to be quiet and showed him her bow. She whispered at the man to stop the carriage, and he did so, slowly and quietly. Althea nodded at him in thanks and turned around, scanning the area for the noises of men approaching. By this time, instinct had alerted her companions of the danger and they, too, prepared for a fight. Althea counted five of them when they got close enough to be seen through the woods. In was dark by then, but that wasn't a problem for Althea. Hunting was plentiful at night, and Althea enjoyed the soft moonlight and her eyes had gotten quite used to it. The first one that came within range, Althea drew an arrow, while still ducked down, and slipped it in the notch of her bow. She located her closest attacker and saw he carried a sword. Without hesitation, Althea sat upright, aimed fast, shot the man in the chest, and was back in cover before the man hit the ground. Althea took the moment, after readying another arrow, to check on her companions. She peeked slowly and carefully over the edge of her cover, to the back of the wagon, wary of other archers. It was when she heard a thunk and then air whooshing when she was glad of her wariness and jerked her head just in time to avoid an arrow that would have missed even if she hadn't moved. Forced to ducked back down, Althea looked for the untalented archer attacking her and found he was a more talented hider. She hoped her companions could hold their own, for she began hearing their sounds of struggle as another poorly aimed arrow stuck to the side wood in the carriage, completely missing her. At this point, the driver had taken the best cover he could. Luckily, Althea had seen where the sneak had ducked after shooting at her, and aimed at where he was, and killed him the second he came up for another attack.
(OOC: So exciting!! ^^ )
Posted: Thu Aug 01, 2013 3:47 am
Arcan Lor
spacerArcan was pleased to hear Nial's assessment on the companionship and felt a calm for the rest of the trip. Until danger stirred the air like the smell of a tanning rack stuck in a room.
Hearing bolts and arrows, Arcan ducked to keep his head. Then as Arcan looked up slightly he saw that the carriage driver wasn't in his chair. Either he had ran off from the ambush or he had died first; nonetheless Arcan saw Althea in his seat instead. But the moment of investigation was not upon him. Arcan equipped himself to cast Sparks with his right hand and Flames on his left. Then Arcan stood awhile in the carriage on its left side. "Althea, let's how these guys will bow to our might." Then Arcan glanced at Niall, seeing that he had some sort of broadsword. The weapon was long enough, by Arcan's opinion, to reach from the carriage, unless Niall wants to jump out and fight foot-to-foot. Regardless, Arcan started casting lightning first on a few thugs. He casted on those Althea wasn't aiming and some she were just for fun. Then Arcan wanted to cast Flames, but ended up burning the hand that cast the spell. Screaming in pain, Arcan tried shaking it off, but the pain made something inside him grow and it evolved into anger. Arcan tried to cast with his left hand again, but this time he cast Vampiric Drain on a few of the Thugs, in order to regain some health from his Flames mishap. But that wasn't enough, Arcan jumped out of the carriage and started to cast the ambushers on foot. With sparks flying, it gave off enough light to show the fear in some of the men's eyes. The Vampirism in Arcan was enjoying this play. He even decided to stop casting Sparks with his right hand and threw his dagger between the eyes of one of the ambushers, before making Sparks his cast for his right hand again.
Having taken out all known archers, Althea threw the hood of her cloak over her head and swept her long hair under it as she crept to the side of the carriage and dropped onto the ground. She had put her bow away, and now had her dagger out, gripped tight in her left hand behind the folds of her cloak. She heard more load noises of what appeared to be Arcan's destruction magic, considering the flashes of blue light and red flames coming from his hands. Not far from Arcan was Niall, holding his own just find against two attackers. Althea still had an uneasy feeling that this wasn't all the men sent to ambush them. She followed her instincts, and sneaked around the front of the wagon and the horse, and looked around the other side. Three more men had emerged from the trees to their left, two carrying swords, and the third carrying a bow, drawn back in the direction of her companions. They were slowly approaching Arcan and Niall from behind, while the two were in the midst of battle, facing the opposite direction. The girl saw her chance and took it, pulling two of her smaller daggers from her side as well as her large steel dagger from it's sheath and approached the men with a deadly silent step. The archer at the back she took silently, covering his mouth and shoving one of her thinner blades into his skull, which caused blood to drip heavily down her front, then she set him down gently before turning towards the other two. Suddenly, a large, hairy arm grabbed her from behind and wrenched her backwards, trying to drag her off into the woods. The thug didn't get far, before Althea's steel found the softer, unarmored side of his torso. The arm round her neck went limp, and he fell behind her. By this time, the other two bounty hunters had almost reached Niall, about to take him from behind. Being too far away to have the time to run to them and attack, Althea drew her bow and an arrow faster than she had ever done, aimed steady, and killed the man from about twenty yards. He fell at Niall's feet, as the last attacker shortly after. Althea stayed at the ready, her bow taught, panning the trees for more possible lurking attackers. She began circling the carriage again, without a word to the men.
Posted: Fri Aug 02, 2013 3:45 am
At the onset of battle Niall quickly rolled out of the Carriage and began to advance on two of the un-engaged attackers. reaching up with practiced ease while watching there movements he placed his hand on the hilt of his great sword and waited. The first attacker not wanting to waste an opportunity charged and lashed out with a vicious, if clumsy, thrust towards Nialls chest. Hoping to pierce through his armor and his heart. Niall nearly laughed at the mans surprise when he batted the strike aside with the armored forearm of his free hand, leaving the bandit unbalanced and open for a counter strike. Niall unsheathed his sword and held it in a high guard for a moment before bringing its full weight down hard on his first attacker. the man desprately tried to throw himself out of the path of oncoming death but it was in vain, off balance, he felt the blade bite deep and he felt no more.
Nearly bisecting the first man Niall kicked the corpse off of his sword and brought it around in to another low guard stance while facing his second opponent. this one advanced much more cautiously after seeing what had happened to his comrade hefted a great ax and began to exchange blows with Niall. both circling, testing defenses and trying to find a weak spot to exploit and when the moment arrived the both attacked. the sounds of combat, particularly explosinons and bursts of lighting, distracted the man for a split second and Niall capitalized, stepping inside the other mans guard neutralizing the advantage of his large ax and lashed out with the pommel of his sword, stunning the man before hooking his heel around the mans foot. a push from his shoulder sent the last man stumbling to the ground and a quick follow up thrust ended his life. sensing danger behind him Niall spun to face the next threat that attempted to sneak up behind him only to have the man fall dead at his feet with an arrow in him. glancing up he saw three more corpses than there were originally and the remaining two bandits being harried by Arcan with his magic. one seemed to think that this was too much and began to disengage but Niall put a stop to that. unslinging his crossbow he quickly drew back the string and loaded a bolt. sighting down the weapon he let fly and grunted with some satisfaction as the arrow punched right through the mans torso. dropping him.
Althea had gone into one of her moods, and her hair fell in her face as she crept around the wagon, aiming her bow at every noise. She wanted to be sure that wasn't just a decoy ambush, as unlikely as it seemed, considering the idiots that were sent after them. Althea wasn't a warrior, simply an expert at archery, and she had taken down many "training" attackers alone, while her companions dropped the numbers to zero. She was on the edge of the forest now, still scanning the area and keeping her muscles rigid and ready for anything. She turned to continue her sweep, and almost put an arrow through Arcan's chest before she realized it was him. Althea blinked a couple of times and shook her head slightly, trying to shake of murderous feeling within her. She lowered her bow immediately and told Arcan solemnly: "My apologies for pointing my arrow at you. The area is clear. I think that was the whole crew that was sent. We need to keep moving."Without waiting for a reply, Althea grabbed the side of the carriage and hopped in, heading towards the driver, whom was still cowering in terror. "Good man, you can come out now. The enemies have been.. taken care of. You are safe, as I promised." The man raised his head and looked at her with a look of such gratitude that made Althea realize how hard it was for regular people to survive in a world like this. As the man sat up in the driver's seat once more, Althea heard an odd growling sound from the man's stomach. She smiled inwardly at the fact that she could help this man immensely. She jumped off the carriage and went to her mare. A smart horse, she had taken the best cover she could, and had lied down nest to the wagon. Smiling in admiration of her pet, she took hold of her bridle and guided her upright, petting her to calm her. Then she dug through the belongings the mare carried, and stuffed some bread, cheese, and a few slices of cooked, yet chilled, venison. She noticed a fire had started on a small bunch of sticks next to where Arcan had been fighting, and ran to it before it got to small to be of use. She reheated the meat, and warmed the bread before stamping out the fire. Wrapping the food neatly in a cloth and tying it, Althea took it to the starved, terrified carriage driver and sat next to him as he ate, smiling for some reason. The group salvaged what they could from their attackers, then continued on the path. As Althea sat next to the driver, once again sharpening her knives, she thought. She felt a good quality in a person was one that thought more than spoke, that way, when they do speak, what they say will be something worth listening to. Thinking about this, she had a pang of homesickness. She missed her father terribly. She decided that once they stopped in the next town, she'd hire a courier to send him a letter. Althea continued thinking, and had realized after examining a road map of Skyrim, that they were nearly halfway there. That led her to dwell on Drelfa, as well as this Maven Black-Briar. She had gathered as much information about the two as she could, and quickly decided to send mail to Maven as well as her father. However, she had things to take care of, and probably people to kill to do it. Her own personal morale wouldn't allow her to just let an innocent person be killed under false accusation.
Posted: Sat Aug 03, 2013 4:01 am
Arcan Lor
spacerSeeing Althea aim at him, made Arcan stop his attack. Unbeknownst to Arcan, he went through his last stage of being a vampire (not the Volkihar type of vampire) of getting a black coloration around his irises, which turned a glowing orange and Arcan's skin became pale. As a response Arcan's vampiric instincts came in and made him run to one of the nearest corpses. Not caring what Niall and Althea would think of him, Arcan (with his back to Althea and Niall) began cupping the blood of a corpse in his hands and started to drink from his hands. Murmuring to himself, "I am not bad, I am just different." Then to try and make himself less obvious, Arcan went to loot the corpse he fed off of to make it look like he listened to Althea. Then Arcan looked at his hands. Speaking allowed, "Well you look at that. Just about a hundred septims total and possibly more if we sell this guys clothes and armor. Maybe we should pick out some artifacts of clothing to use as disguises if we can." Arcan then walked over to the man he threw his dagger at and pulled the dagger out, sheathed it and then continued to his companions. After that Arcan got onto the carriage holding out twenty septims to the carriage driver with his bloodied hands. "Sorry for the mess, friend. I suppose an extra twenty septims on top of our ride would help ease you down and get your mare some food in the city." Then Arcan sat down on the left side of the carriage, pulling out a piece of cloth and wiping the blood off his face. Then Arcan looked to Althea expecting a weird response to the blood on Arcan face. "Oh this? It's part of a fetish of mine. No need to worry."
>OOC: I have been PM'ing TheDamned about ideas after we complete our individual quests. My idea was that our group takes the Dragonborn's place in the Dawnguard quest line. What does everyone here think? I assume that Niall is a werewolf because he is part of the circle in the Companions, if so, then that can add to the Dawnguard idea as well, possibly improving the story. <
Niall watched over the group as they went about checking over the corpses for useful items and coin and though he noticed what Arcan was doing over by one of the dead bodies he did not say anything his keen ears picking up the ex Thalmor muttering "I am not bad I am just different" Niall knew that he would be considered a cannibal if word of his unique ability got out. dispite the fact that he had never fed on the bodies of men elf or ork and limited himself to wild game, others did not have either his or the companions self control and thus the rumors persisted.
walking over to his own corpses he quickly and efficiently went over the mans belongings pocketing the coin and in the case of one man a rough cut amethyst, gems always fetched a good price in town. with the more grisly work done he muttered a prayer to the nine and made his way back to the carriage. pausing for a moment when he caught the smell of ash, fear and blood on the wind. turning his head and staring in the direction the scent was coming from. heard a low rumbling he shook his head when he realized that he had been growling. looking over to his two companions he said. " Somthing is not right in that direction. we need to move."
"The White Wolf of Jorrvaskr"
((OOC: Im all for it and Niall already has an In with the Dawnguard,))
Posted: Sat Aug 03, 2013 8:28 am
Arcan Lor
spacerArcan, listening to Niall. "Come on then." Arcan reached out to Niall awhile looking back at the Carriage Driver. "Dear sir. If you see something behind us, continue to follow Althea and don't look back." Then, impatiently, Arcan grabbed Niall's arm and pulled him up onto the carriage. Tuggingly ,"Gosh you are one heavy, pup."
Then the Carriage driver started to follow Althea's lead. Arcan then casted Highborn to receive the remainder of his magicka points. Then he equiped Vampiric Drain to his right hand and Sparks to left. Thus, he then stood in the carriage keeping an eye out. "Niall, Althea, I got an idea. Niall could jump on your mare and Althea can jump onto the carriage and shoot arrows awhile I cast spells. Therefore, if this creature gets near, Niall can ride your mare to the side of the creature and strike with his sword. What do you think?"
>OOC: I have been PM'ing TheDamned about ideas after we complete our individual quests. My idea was that our group takes the Dragonborn's place in the Dawnguard quest line. What does everyone here think? I assume that Niall is a werewolf because he is part of the circle in the Companions, if so, then that can add to the Dawnguard idea as well, possibly improving the story. <
{OOC: Sound's good to me. I'll have to research the Dawguard DLC quest first, then we can continue on. But, first, what exactly is the creature/thing we're about to fight?? Not quite on the level. Sorry, home life had been overly hectic.}
the idea I had was going to be that we find a wrecked stronghold of the Vigilants of Stendarr. these are guys who have been fighting vamps but got wiped out when the Volkihar vampires came to town.
and no problem take your time in a reply. you have waited for us so its only fair that we wait for you
Posted: Sun Aug 04, 2013 3:47 pm
Blaise Simpson
Damned_Philosophy
Emrys Jacob Sylvestris
>OOC: I have been PM'ing TheDamned about ideas after we complete our individual quests. My idea was that our group takes the Dragonborn's place in the Dawnguard quest line. What does everyone here think? I assume that Niall is a werewolf because he is part of the circle in the Companions, if so, then that can add to the Dawnguard idea as well, possibly improving the story. <
{OOC: Sound's good to me. I'll have to research the Dawguard DLC quest first, then we can continue on. But, first, what exactly is the creature/thing we're about to fight?? Not quite on the level. Sorry, home life had been overly hectic.}
the idea I had was going to be that we find a wrecked stronghold of the Vigilants of Stendarr. these are guys who have been fighting vamps but got wiped out when the Volkihar vampires came to town.
and no problem take your time in a reply. you have waited for us so its only fair that we wait for you
{OOC: Thanks, I appreciate it. And as for that questline, as long as you guys can lead me through it. I'll post when I can!! TheDamned}
Althea kept quiet and mostly to herself as the group gathered what they could from the attackers' pockets. Then, as they set of again, she dug in her pack and puller her map out to help the driver. When Niall's head turned, Althea could feel him sensing something. And from his demeanor for that one short moment, Althea saw pure instinct within him. She decided to herself that he'd be a good wild man. Although, she was glad he wasn't, for his instincts made her ears perk to the faint yet insistent sounds of chaos in the distance. She didn't argue on bit with Niall when he suggested they move with urgency. The driver picked up on the situation quickly, and sped his horse up to a trot. As Arcan began throwing out ideas for a plan of counter if they were to be attacked, Althea listened intently. Especially the part about Myrna, and Niall riding her like a warhorse. Althea sat quietly for a moment, thinking. Niall didn't speak, seeming to be waiting for her response first. Althea turned to Arcan, "My mare wasn't trained for extreme battle. If the force is something she has never seen before, she will become terrified and completely beyond control. Especially while her rider is swinging around an enormous sword. "However, she is fast. If I unload her of the rest of her cargo and ride her myself, I could come in to the enemy from the rear, without them noticing." Again, Althea got that odd feeling she got when she said many words at once. She still wasn't quite used to being around or talking to anyone but her own father.
Posted: Tue Aug 06, 2013 9:18 pm
A glow pierced the darkness in the middle of a forest in the southern part of the Rift, as Drelfa Trafalgar rubbed her fingers together and set out a couple tiny sparks into her small pile of tinder, then added larger sticks to it. She had been on the road for almost two weeks since she left Whiterun, and hadn't yet entered Riften yet. As she lingered on the southern outskirts of Skyrim in a forest using a cave for shelter, she worried, as she often did. About people who weren't even in her life anymore, people that had even betrayed her; but especially the one person that even bothered having anything to do with Drelfa and still, was almost killed by the people hunting her. Drelfa hated herself for that-- and stopped herself before she began losing her self control over it. To distract herself and keep her practice up, Drelfa focused herself on the newest illusion spell she had learned, one that blended one's body into the shadows. She had found it a month before, and was still practicing it, determined to master it. The woods were perfect, for deer and rabbits all had good senses. Whilst invisible, she had to be able to control her body perfectly so as not to make a sound while sneaking into the city of Riften.
After being dragged in to the carriage by Arcan with some difficulty, Niall half listened to his comrades discuss strategy to investigate the fell feeling that he had gotten from the north while continuing to keep vigil. Arcan's suggestion of Niall acting as an outrider on Althea's horse, while he and Althea stayed with the carriage and used there ranged weaponry and magic had merit but the plan was complicated by Althea admitting that the horse was not combat trained. A whisper in the woods caught Niall's senses and snapped him back to reality. " Keep the carriage on the road. " Niall said to the driver." As Ser Arcan says, should things turn sour any more than they are now. do not risk yourself." the driver nodded and snapped the rains, leading the horses in to a brisk gallop. turning back to his comrades he crouched down and began to unstrap his two greatswords, which were followed quickly by the majority of his travel kit and accessories. " I'll keep watch from the forest. keep with the carriage and keep safe. oh and don't shoot any wolves that you may see." reaching up he undid the heavy leather buckle that held closed his travelers cloak before standing and leaping out of the carriage with a whoop.
clattering to the ground with a practiced roll, Niall sprang to his feet without losing any momentum and began to run and while he ran he began to change. armor melting in to his hide as muscle was added. and fur sprang forth from his skin, bones cracked and teeth grew in to fangs, razor sharp claws replaced nails and soon a long, deep and resonating howl burst forth from Nialls throat. The hunt was on and he was the hunter.
turning he began to run after the carriage quickly catching up where he kept pace beside it, trusting his instincts to keep him out of sight but present if needed and all too soon he was. out of the black of the woods figures began to emerge, five in number, shifting and winding through the trees with glowing red eyes that could be seen even from this distance. they smelled of death and anticipation, they saw the carriage as pray... but Niall could also see allies, brothers who had answered his call.
Three great wolves bounded out of the dark and fell in to formation with Niall. with a grunt the pack descended on there first unsuspecting target, two wolves throwing themselves at the creature knocking it to the ground and pinning it while the third leaped on its chest and tore out its throat. the creature struggled as its lifeblood was split, but its struggles were in vain.
Niall himself claimed the second kill, leaping himself and plucking another creature out of the air as it bounded between trees before snapping its neck with a savage shake. bringing the dead thing to his face he sniffed it, recognizing the scent he growled before hurdling the corpse away where it burst through a young tree. Vampire...Volkihar were two words that ran through his mind leaving his fury to smolder. They would hurt my friends then they will die. taking one last look at the corpse of the vampire Niall was almost ready to rejoin his brothers when he stopped and stared. around the vampires neck lay a defaced amulet to Stendarr, in particular a one of the modified amulets carried by the Vigilants of Stendarr the local branch of monster hunters. a stronghold of theirs lay in these forests and mountains to the north. howling once more he tore off the amulet and carefully wrapped in his paw before running to rejoin his comrades hoping to take another vampire and make it pray before they knew what was happening to them.
"The White Wolf of Jorrvaskr"
((OOC: three baddies inbound on the carriage. plus a plot hook for later.))
