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Post by Sylvari Dawnsage on Sept 12, 2023 21:05:18 GMT -5
Sylvari stayed there for a good long while, wrapped in the protective embrace of a stranger, but one who had shown her more kindness than she'd received from her own family. She felt safe. For one glorious moment, Sylvari allowed herself to want peace as much as she fought for everyone else's right to it. And then that moment ended.
The embarrassment of the situation, the shame of burdening a perfect stranger with trauma totally unrelated to her, hit Sylvari all at once, who pulled away from the embrace just as quickly. She couldn't bring herself to even look at Taki. "Um that was weird. Sorry about that. That's not often... part of the process. I wasn't crying because of you; you were great. But I..." What am I saying? How am I possibly making this even MORE awkward than it already is?!
Sylvari took a moment to fix her tousled hair and resettle her expression into one of practiced neutrality before looking back at Taki. "Well, I feel much invigorated, and I never sleep all that well to begin with. Shall I take the first watch?" Sylvari hoped, without much real expectation, that her blush had died down to be barely noticeable, as her pack suddenly seemed very much in need of organization.
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 12, 2023 21:28:58 GMT -5
"There's no need to explain your tears Sylvi, I'm glad I could offer you some comfort in this world. If you'd like to keep watch, that is fine with me." Replied the shaman, who unfurled from her position and crawled into her hammock. Shuna followed her into the tent and slept beneath her while Yukina picked a comfortable perch to rest for the night. Taki fell asleep shortly after, dreaming as deeply as she slept.
Light was already creeping into the tent when Shuna started to pester Taki from her slumber. She'd slept all through the night without a moment's thought to keeping watch... Her dreams had been strange ones, places she'd yet to visit in her waking excursions into the realm of spirits. Perhaps after this adventure she might find time to seek them out again, but there was a lot to be done between now and then. She rolled out of her hammock and greeted the day with an unusual vigor, she hadn't rested to such extent while traveling in quite a long time and it had been as refreshing for the shaman as the hot springs soak the afternoon before. Her memories seemed a bit fuzzy from the day before but she figured that had something to do with having a vampire snack on her before sleeping.
"Good morning to you, Sylvari... I do apologize if you tried to wake me for a watch, I seem to have drifted into a deeper slumber than usual. Anything interesting happen?" She asked, stoking new life into the campfire before setting about making breakfast.
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Post by Sylvari Dawnsage on Sept 12, 2023 22:54:12 GMT -5
Sylvari was more than happy enough to let Taki sleep through the night after that interaction. Truthfully, she had never received that type of protective affection, at least not since her mother died when she was 7. Sylvari's father loved her in his own way, but he was focused on making her a warrior, not tending to her inner needs. Sylvari didn't know how to deal with it.
Moreover, she wasn't lying when she said she rarely slept: less and less, these days. Her mind was always active and thrumming with life in the evening hours, and with the injection of Taki's blood, Sylvari felt positively buzzing with energy. What does this all mean? Surely, Taki wants something in return; it's only fair. But what do I have that would be of value to her?
Sylvari grimaced looking at the contents of her pack. She traveled light, positively bare bones for anyone living, bringing only a tiny cache of rations and a waterskin wherever she went. Besides her arms and armor, the only other thing she had was a small wooden whistle in the shape of a dove that her father carved for her when she was 10, her last keepsake of home. Personal value doesn't translate well between people, but it's the only thing I can give her that won't actively hamper my ability to fight beside her. I hope she accepts it.
[Chaos Touched] She felt the stirring of arcana in Taki, as she drifted back from the lands of dreams, before she even heard her rustling. She looked back to acknowledge her companion and answer her rising question. "Nothing of note." Sylvari clutched the small whistle in her hands as tightly as she dared without threatening to break it. "Um, thank you, for yesterday. It's only right to give you a reward for a service rendered, and this whistle is the only thing I have to give. Sorry for the inadequacy of the offering!" As Sylvari held the carving in cupped, upraised hands, she knelt low to the ground and pressed her forehead against her padded greaves.
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 12, 2023 23:09:50 GMT -5
The shaman smiled solemnly, what kind of life had this girl lived that kindness must have been met with payment. She closed Syl's fingers around the trinket and carefully coaxed her from her position.
"Your intent to return kindness in some way is more than enough for me. You're welcome for yesterday, and your debts are nonexistant. This is a keepsake for you to treasure, to remind you of how far you've come and where that journey started... I wouldn't take such a keepsake on a whim, when it's value to you is clearly great. I did what I felt was right, and did so with both eyes open... no expectations, and even understanding the possibility that I might become afflicted myself if it went wrong. I'd rather help a fellow adventurer in need, than leave them to their own devices as so many in life do. If it is within my grasp to help someone, I will do so, for that is the way that this world has taught me creates the most impactful change."
It was tough, but a scene she knew all too well. Help out a little when someone was in need and they felt some debt was owed... but Taki didn't find that way of thinking to be healthy. Instead, she kept debts strictly in the realm of trade and service agreements made up front. Helping was neither a service or an agreement to her mind, so she expected nothing for her efforts. She could only imagine how often Sylvari had been shunned by people she cared for, or treated as a monster no matter how helpful she may have been. If there was one thing about the world Taki wanted to change most, it was people's inability to see through prejudice and let people's actions dictate their worth.
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Post by Sylvari Dawnsage on Sept 13, 2023 0:01:20 GMT -5
Sylvari kept clutched the small carved whistle in her iron grip as she contemplated Taki's words. For so long, she had done for others what she would not expect for herself. Even in her tribe, she had labored while refusing payment in return. Had she wanted to receive affection and companionship for her efforts? And even more so, after her change, she felt a debt she needed to repay the world, as if to justify her continued existence. Sylvari still felt that she was capable of great evil if she became a slave to her desires, but her extreme asceticism and closed-off persona hurt her as much as it spared her.
And here, in the midst of this maelstrom of swirling ideals, was this woman, this impossible, incomprehensible woman, who would give herself to a monster, comfort it, and ask nothing in return. Sylvari had come far enough in her travels to know that her narrow view of right and wrong she cultivated growing up was insufficient to tackle this much larger world that she was thrust into. She didn't know what was right in this situation; all she knew was that she wanted to emulate Taki - to save someone as Taki had saved her.
Rather than verbalize her myriad thoughts on the matter, Sylvari simply smiled, genuinely and freely at her new friend. "I want to do that too. Let's start today, by ridding these lands of this creature." Sylvari hesitated only slightly before walking over and placing a hand on her companion's shoulder. "Thank you, Taki."
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 13, 2023 0:29:17 GMT -5
"You're quite welcome, Sylvari. Let's not rush into this hunt... while there's good chance our quarry is something fairly mundane, there is one creature that lives in this area we will have to be wary of. If you're familiar with the creatures of this world, it's most commonly called a Remorhaz and it's a very nasty predator. Any holes, tunnels or peculiar rock formations much bigger than you or I will require extra caution. It's quite resistant to cold according to several books but dislikes heat or fire of any kind. It is especially dangerous to stand near it's head as it is capable of swallowing things whole. Be on your toes, and don't stray too far away."
Taki checked her pack, and while she still had a calm and kind demeanor, there was a seriousness to her now. Much like any hunter, her focus became the task at hand and finding out what was causing travelers to go missing as they moved through the area. When she finished packing up camp, she signaled to her companions, who went scouting ahead of the pair of adventurers. Each time one or the other would spot upturned earth or signs of struggle, they would signal to Taki and wait patiently for it to be inspected. Progress would be slow going, but the search thorough and patiently methodical.
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Post by Sylvari Dawnsage on Sept 13, 2023 9:52:09 GMT -5
Given Sylvari's light load of equipment, much of her time that morning was spent watching Taki pack up her camp and marveling at the interactions between her and her companions. There was a camaraderie about them that went beyond the ken of normal beasts, a closeness more befitting of a family than of a pet and owner. When Taki signaled that she was ready to go, Sylvari gave a curt nod, her weapon unslung and her veil redrawn, in case they met any travelers on the road.
Sylvari felt a small pang of jealousy as Taki's companions heeded her command and began scouting the lay of the land before them. How many wounds, how many more people could I have saved with such an early warning system? Sylvari quickly pushed such envious thoughts away, however, due to their impracticality. Any creature that traveled with her was subject to being a post-battle snack if things went south, and she didn't wish to bring that on bonded beasts any more than other people. Additionally, animals simply didn't like her, sensing the strange energies in her since the change. Special familiars, like Taki's friends, were noted exceptions, but Sylvari still maintained her distance to guard against their discomfort.
So, Sylvari simply enjoyed this change of pace, while remaining alert for any dangers that might present themselves, watching the fliers for any indication of combat.
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 13, 2023 16:10:57 GMT -5
As the group moved about, Taki kept her senses focused on the surrounding area. While it took time, they were making steady progress through the area's many pits and holes. Most were short tunnels or cracks in the rock, but as they moved deeper, the holes started becoming more frequent, uniform, and interlacing with one another below ground. The shaman held her hand up and watched the area, not wanting to move deeper just yet. She looked up, scanning the sky for Yukina. On the other side of a field of holes and boulders, she was circling something intently.
"Wait here, and do yell if you see something wiggling out of a hole... I'll check it out and be back in a moment." Taki warned, slipping away silently and doing her best to minimize the vibrations of her movement. It took a few minutes to clear the distance, but it was worth the journey. She carefully scaled a boulder to survey the scene, finding a small overturned wagon, smashed crates and a broken harness. There were signs that something had dragged the poor souls underground some time within the last day. They were getting close, and would have to bring back anything that could identify the merchants who were attacked after it was safe. She started to climb down from the rocks, but froze, clinging to the face of the boulder. She felt an odd vibration approaching from below... then it stopped. She looked around, knowing Yukina was overhead searching the area herself but saw nothing. Unbeknownst to the shaman or her companion, the creature had slipped into a deeper tunnel and made it's way around carefully. Not far from Sylvari, a pair of whip like antennae came wriggling out of a large hole...
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Post by Sylvari Dawnsage on Sept 13, 2023 17:05:25 GMT -5
Sylvari tapped her foot in impatience as Taki scouted ahead. She had never heard of this 'remorhaz' creature that her companion guessed was the scourge of the area, but Taki seemed to have a pretty decent handle on the natural world, so Sylvari was careful to inspect all the boulders that looked conspicuous. I'm not sure what a 'conspicuous boulder' is though... Guess I'll just have to watch them all.
As Sylvari awaited her partner with a bored expression, she was unaware her idle motion was luring something toward her. Something big. In retrospect, it was only the huge body of the creature shaking the ground in the slightest bit in its upward lunge that gave Sylvari any indication to dodge. With superhuman reflexes and grace, Sylvari performed an acrobatic backflip and landed on her feet, [Knight, Stalwart Armor] unencumbered by her armor. Her stance was low to the ground and her weapon already unslung as she looked up to view her foe.
Its long, snake-like body was still halfway in the tunnel it had emerged from, but even the exposed portion was easily 10 feet in length. The creature sported more than a dozen pairs of grasping arms on its underside and flared out hooded wings from its neck as it chittered in anger at Sylvari. She was pretty sure she knew what a Remorhaz was now.
The beast lunged forward, lightning quick, in a bid to swallow Sylvari whole in its gaping jaws that could fit a horse. Acting on instinct, she dropped her weapon and braced herself for the impact, catching its lower jaw with her outstretched left foot while she held the upper half with both arms, [Knight, Immovable Bastion] stopping dead the beast's forward momentum. From where she held the thrashing creature in place, Sylvari was face to face with razor sharp fangs, nearly a quarter her height, gleaming so she could almost make out her reflection.
Even with her unnatural resilience, Sylvari could feel her strength waning before this giant foe. "Uh, Taki? Little help?!"
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 13, 2023 19:20:13 GMT -5
Taki whirled about, dropping to the ground at the sound of Syl's voice. A thrashing carapace like some horrid centipede had popped up out of the ground behind her and pinned the vampiress in it's maw. Taki's eyes flared with a misty blue light as her Spirit Guardians coalesced at her side. With an arcane gesture from her hands, she called forth a great beam from the sky. The beam swept over the area, honing in on the creature before burning with a brilliant, fiery intensity. A loud shriek could be heard for quite a distance as the flaming attack scorched the creature's body.
It whipped about, releasing it's hold on the lass somewhere along the way before retreating into the burrow it had appeared from. Taki went sprinting across the battlefield, companions following closely as she cleared the distance. She sensed the skittering beast coming up from below again, waving a hand to signal her companions to scatter their formation. Just as they were peeling away, the Remorhaz burst forth from below once again, flinging the full length of it's body from the burrow and trying to restrain the shaman. She jumped clear of it's encircling carapace, noting the severe burns across it's midsection and the putrid stink of it's roasted flesh... It hissed and reared up, hood flaring as it prepared to attack Taki once again.
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Post by Sylvari Dawnsage on Sept 13, 2023 20:19:12 GMT -5
Too far. Damn, I need to be faster. Well, if Taki already knows, there's no need to hold back. Sylvari tensed her legs like coils waiting to be sprung, as she reached down into the covered cage where she kept the beast restrained within herself and gave it the slightest hint of freedom. Immediately, she could feel the primal energy, the POWER. She wouldn't leave Taki alone to fight this creature, even where she stood dozens of feet away. A sinister otherworldly smile graced Sylvari's face as she moved.
[Knight, Rushing Charge] Faster than a person should be able to run, Sylvari was there, and she wasn't content to simply stop in front of her foe. No, she used her speed to aid her strike, shoulder crashing into the remorhaz with all the force of a siege projectile and actually causing the beast to stumble.
Being now in the fray, Sylvari dropped her mind into that state of hyperawareness as the training of her people kicked in, allowing her to become a conduit for tactics.
The observer considered the weapons and abilities available to each available unit. With that one's fire attack proving very effective, this one would need to act as Shield for her Bow.
Thus, assured of the respective roles, [Knight, Challenging Mark] the Shield bellowed at the creature, an echoing cry that marked it as her quarry. The beast responded to the call with fury, and the Shield was sure it would respond to the challenge she issued alone; the Bow could act unimpeded, now. The Shield got into a low defensive stance and prepared for a war of attrition.
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 13, 2023 20:33:04 GMT -5
As the creature tore it's attention away from the shaman and towards Sylvari, a devious smile crossed her features. If it couldn't resist her taunting cry, then it also wasn't watching what the shaman would be doing. Her companions struck first, Shuna growing to the size of a mount before launching herself at the Remorhaz and slamming into it's side. Her claws raked through the leathery hood, shredding it with ease. Yukina dove from above, talons out as she slammed into the creature as she would a rodent in the field.
Taki strode forward, Guardians flanking her as she through her arms out and her head back. Her form gave way to a roiling mass of deep green scales, her arms and neck stretching and thickening to the width of a man topped with vicious serpentine heads and gleaming red eyes. Hydra-Taki slithered forward, each head fixing it's gaze on the scorched carapace of the horror. All five heads took in a heavy breath, then opened wide to reveal a roiling, orange yellow glow. Five large blasts of flame punched into the open hole in the creature, scorching out it's gooey insides and leaving little more than a burnt shell behind. With a satisfied grunt, the shaman and her familiar returned to normal.
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Post by Sylvari Dawnsage on Sept 14, 2023 0:48:59 GMT -5
The Bow had been marvelously effective in her attack, able to capitalize on the Shield's holding of the enemy's attention to unleash a devastating combo attack which defeated the creature. The Shield-Sylvari lowered the mindset as a wave of fatigue rolled over her. It was always as thus; no power came without cost, but the tactic mindset had saved Sylvari more times than she could count, so she was happy to keep it in her employ. She did observe that it seemed harder to grasp and hold now than it was before her change. She had theorized that because the technique was so full of a warrior's vitality, her undead nature made it hard for her to grasp, likely only able to access it due to prior mastery.
In any case, Sylvari shook off the feelings of lethargy and looked at Taki who... was just shrinking back to her normal size. Sylvari tried to piece her memory together to figure out what happened, but the tactic mindset made things beyond the necessities of combat hazy. Whatever the druid had done, she roasted the creature up lightning quick. Sylvari adopted a quirky smile as she made her way over to her friend. "Remind me to volunteer your services at the celebration barbeque. This thing certainly deserves at least a little party to commemorate the end of its reign."
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 14, 2023 1:49:00 GMT -5
"Hehehehe that would probably frighten more people than it would impress doing so with such a method... but I'm sure I could come up with other ways of getting a fire going if need be. You did well in keeping it's attention, thank you for all your help. Let's harvest some not so toasted bits to take back to the village." Taki replied as she inspected the ruin that remained of the Remorhaz. Most of it's midsection was little more than ash and charred marks on the rock... but the head still had some intact parts of the exoskeleton, same with the tail... though it's innards were little more than a smelly goop oozing out of any place it could. With practiced ease, the shaman wrenched a few choice bits of the creature's mandible free, using some scraps of cloth to clean the bits as best she could.
"That should be more than enough proof for the villagers' minds to be put to ease, and hopefully win you a bit of good reputation for the area. I know it's far from here, but if you're ever in need of a place to stay for a while, rest up and get away from life for a spell, stop by my home in the Crescent Isles. You'll be treated to a good meal, peaceful scenery and a distinct lack of social pressures or norms. I hope this adventure has been a pleasant experience for you, and helped you in some way." Taki said, handing over the harvested parts to add to her proof to bring back.
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Post by Sylvari Dawnsage on Sept 14, 2023 9:41:31 GMT -5
A frown emerged on Sylvari's face at Taki's implication that she would not claim any portion of the victory they had won together, further exacerbated by a pang of homesickness at the mention of her homeland. This was a joint victory; I can't take the credit for this hunt. If anything, it was mostly Taki, between her companions scouting the thing, her knowledge of what to look for, and her killing blow. It's not right for me alone to report to the villagers.
Sylvari set her expression to one of grim determination. "Won't you come with me to the village? We both played our part in the downfall of this creature, and you deserve to have the townsfolk's acknowledgement. At the very least, it would be a good opportunity to introduce your companions to the villagers to show they mean to threat."
Sylvari tried to emphasize her logic, partially in a bid to hide the other reason for her request. A fragment of Sylvari's mind was preoccupied with the prospect of parting with a friend so soon after meeting, and her heart broke at the thought. "I know you're likely busy, with your own maters to attend to, but surely one extra night to celebrate isn't all that bad?"
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