Tepidus

[Mkishere]

Tepidus - A tropical island, three fourths the size of Ustulo, the western-most of the four. Diverse vegetation and animals cover the land, giving it an array of colors. Vast beaches line the coast, covered with seashells and a warm breeze. Many fish swim along its coasts and in its rivers. Palm trees make up most of the forests. Large mountains cover the eastern-most side of the island, and almost form a shell as the island is in a crescent shape, opening up to the east. Hot springs dot the mountain's base. Many would wish to visit this island, for simply its warm climates or the scientific knowledge that could be gained from its diverse animals and vegetation.

[Poohbomber]

As the boat approached the island, Lobsang could see the brilliant green of the trees, although the beauty was lost on him as he was thinking of a way to disembark from the ship, as the rowboats that would carry the materials to the coast would be too cramped and questions will most likely be asked. He snuck to one of the life boats, cranked it down and jumped in. He started to row the boat to the island as the bigger boat was sailing to a more distant location on the island. As he looked back he said, "Dang it, I thought they would be heading for this shore. I guess a trek through the forest will be unavoidable." As he was rowing he took a casual look behind him and saw an exotic ship. (The Itzu ship on it's way to the island.) "And who's boat is that? It's too ornate for a human vessel, I guess I may have more riches than I thought I would," he said to himself, and continued rowing.

[KyuubisSlave]

The Itzu ship anchored in the natural harbor and it's crew quickly began unloading supplies into smaller vessels to transport to the islands shore. Kyuu said his good byes to patsu and the crew of the large ship as the last of the supplies were offloaded. He would be left there with a small ship, all the supplies they would need for 3 months and a messenger bird. He stepped up onto his new vessel and motioned for Alorae to join him, she was after all his apprentice.

[Poohbomber]

As Lobsang beached the boat, he saw a larger ship dock, drop off a small boat, and left. He decided to head towards the location. He sprinted off towards that direction and said to himself, "Looks like an Itzu ship, and they normally have riches." Even though it was hot he was barely perspiring. As he was running he took care to keep out of the brush that would make noise, and also made sure to not run on the sand, which would create small clouds as he ran as well as leave tracks.

[Lovelight]

Alorae stepped up onto the new vessel, then turned around and waved farewell to the large ship. "Will the ship be returning soon?" She asked, curiously out of the blue. The woman then stared at the peaceful island, then spacing out for a bit. She then began to start to mess around with fire spells, by snapping her fingers which made a tiny spark which grew larger each time she snapped.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang was close enough to see a small light growing bigger and bigger. "Pah, a magic user," he grunted to himself. As he was getting closer he slowed down and he didn't turn invisible but become background to everything around him, so that the naked eye would just pass over him. He crept closer and he noticed two people, and they were indeed Itzu.

[KyuubisSlave]

((only Kyuu is itzu pooh love's character is human =3))

Their small ship anchored just off of a natural out crop of racks that made and excellent dock. "No they won't be back anytime soon" Kyuu started "They were only here to escort us, we will remain here and observe, if the things re observe prove this Island to be profitable we will send for more people to make a permanent settlement here." He then smiled at her and gestured out the door "so shall we get to setting up camp."

[Poohbomber]

(Oh, okay.)
Lobsang was able to get a clearer look at them and he was surprised to find that it was actually a human and an Itzu. "Well that's different," he said to himself. He snuck over to their boat and looked in on it. He knew this was risky when the two people were near but he then crept in. He touched a squeaky board and it let out a shrill sound that lasted not even a second. He chastised himself for being careless and hid behind one of the stacks of lumber.

[Lovelight]

"I see." Alorae replied. The woman trotted out the door, staring at the view. "I just hope nobody else ruins the base." Then the spellcaster shrugged. "I'll be gathering some firewood." She strolled off into the forest, and began searching for wood. As she was searching, she then spotted a dark gray wolf. "..Some extras would be nice." The spellcaster opened her book, quickly, she spun and pointed her finger upwards, forming a sphere of flame. Alorae pointed at the wolf, and whispered cold words. "Absolve me." The sphere duplicated into 4 large fireballs, soaring towards the wolf.

[Poohbomber]

After nothing happening after a few minutes Lobsang went out and continued rummaging through the crates, making sure to make little noise this time.

[KyuubisSlave]

"And what is it your doing?" Kyuu growled looking down at the would be thief from the top of some of the crates with a shadow snake summon wrapped around his arm . "and your answer better be good"

[Poohbomber]

"Blast," Lobsang said. "Er, termite inspection?" he finished. He didn't wait for the response and he back up into a shadow and nearly disappeared. In this he snuck around the wall he backed into.

[Lovelight]

Alorae returned to Kyuu. "I obtained a large amount of firewood, along with some grass, so use them wisely." She bowed, then put the materials down. "I also brought something "extra".." The woman set down a dead wolf on the sand. "Just in case." Alorae smiled, but then happy grin shifted when she found the stranger. "And who might this be, sir?" She squinted at the man, suddenly suspicious.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang wondered how she saw him and he took off in a mad dash to the forest. He looked back as he ran, and tripped over a rock. He hit the ground hard and was dazed slightly, he tried to get back up but was unable to and fell back down.

[KyuubisSlave]

"It would seem he is a thief, who thinks he can fool us with a simple trick." Kyuu sighed bored "You did good Alorae, Go tie up our little phantom theif and make sure he is very comfortable as I make us a tasty meal from this wolf" Kyuu started to skin the wolf "AWW! you burned all the good parts" he complained poking fun at the girls over use of fire to kill such weak prey but continued preparing it anyways.

[Lovelight]

Alorae sighed. "People always trip in a wild goose chase.." The spellcaster sighed. She nodded at Kyuu, and opened her tome. She flipped to a page, and slammed her palm onto the ground. Glass-like shackles rose up from the soft sand, making an arch curve over his arms and legs.

The woman kneeled down to the man."Mysterious stranger, or Phantom, please do not try to struggle. Honestly, I don't think Sir Kyuu would approve of roasted people.." Alorae shook her head, and sighed. She then stood up and walked over to Kyuu.

[Poohbomber]

"I beg your pardon, but that was not a... simple trick!" yelled Lobsang. "It is one of the more advanced stealth practices and I have no idea how you were able to see through it," he continued.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu scoffed at the criminal "such a trick may work on simple civilians but something of that caliber will never works on someone well versed in magic." He then handed a cooked piece of wolf thigh to his apprentice "Before we go to bed I want you to practice your summoning skills Alorae, you may be talented at magics but you are still learning" He bit into the wolfs heart "once again, good job on finding the food, I'd prefer not to live on nothing but grains for the next 3 months"

[Poohbomber]

"Do you know how wrong you are about my 'trick'?" he asked. "I have used it on other magi before, and I don't mean stealing," he continued. Just keep them busy he thought to himself as he started to stretch his hand towards his spare dagger.

[Lovelight]

Alorae stared in horror as Kyuu feasted onto the wolf's juicy organs and flesh. "Oh god.." She then turned away in disgust. "D-don't do that, Sir! That's disrespectful.." Hiding her eyes, she scurried into her pouch, and found a baby pink handkerchief. Alorae wiped Kyuu's mouth. "Don't eat so fast, you gluttoned pig." She scolded.

The spellcaster stared at the phantom. "Silence, phantom!" She yelled at the man. Then took the handkerchief and tossed it into her pouch. "Jeez, it's our first day and we already have company trouble.."

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang rolled his eyes and then he grasped his dagger. He started to chip away at the glass on the side that is furthest away from the two beings.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu rolled his eyes at his subordinate and swallowed "What! it is the best way to honor the fallen beast" His ears then picked up something chinking on the class shackles that held the prisoner. "what the hell are you doing" he got up and walked over to the phantom

[Poohbomber]

Having finally chipped enough away to break easily he brought up his arm and quickly put the dagger away. He then pulled out his crossbow and aimed. "Oh nothing really, just being a general nuisance. Want to bet how accurate my aim is with one arm?" he asked, "It's pretty good." He was a bit cautious what with the mage. "All that I ask of you is to let me go, I will do anything you want me to, even to be a guard," he said. "And don't bother asking about whether or not I'll stab you in the back, I do have honor, as tarnished it is."

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu looked at The thief and pondered for what seemed like an eternity; On one hand he could block the arrow with magic and quickly go for the kill afterwords, on the other he could allow the thief to stay... but how could he trust a thief, someone who lives by betraying and stealing from every one around them... Then he wondered if Alorae has even seen a man die, seen the life drain from their eyes. he had made his decision. "Fine, but one wrong step and your dead." he growled =3

[Poohbomber]

"I have nearly been dead many times," Lobsang said, "and like I said, I do have honor. Now if you could unbind me please. And by the way, the name is Lobsang Ludd."

[KyuubisSlave]

"Kyuu" He replied turning to walk back to the fire, the chains releasing and disintegrating into the ground. " the girl is my apprentice Alorae, And remember one move of betrayal and your dead." He sat by the fire next to Alorae and sighed and thought to him self, I really have to stop being so nice to people.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang flipped upright and said, "Best choice you may have ever made, and nice to meet you, Kyu." His hood had flipped down as he jumped up but he didn't seem to notice. He went over to a nearby rock and unhooked his crossbow to make sure no damage was done to it. He put it on the ground and then removed his quiver and checked it as well. He then removed his knives to polish them.

[Lovelight]

"Very well then, Mr. Phantom." Alorae ignored his name, so she just decided to call him Phantom. She flipped a page on her tome of fiery spells, once again and slammed her palm on the heating, soft grains of sand.

The glass shackles slowly melted into the ground, merging into the sand. "I hope you do not make the wrong moves, Mister Phantom," The spellcaster warned, "or else you'll be burnt kentucky fried chicken.."

[Poohbomber]

"I assure you that it is rare for me to make a wrong move, however I still wish to know how you saw through my stealth," he said not looking up from what he was doing.

[KyuubisSlave]

"I could smell you" Kyuu muttered his nose cringing, "when was the last time you bathed!"

[Poohbomber]

"I wasn't able to bath much on the ship, even in first class," he said as he put his daggers on the ground, he then took out his short-sword and started to polish it. "Their idea is to get a bucket of salt-water and dump it on you as you scrub, I had no part in it at all," he said. "This salty air is doing a number on my weapons," Lobsang muttered to himself.

[Lovelight]

Alorae turned around, facing Lobsand and replied, "Don't underestimate women, Phantom," Her lips etched out the cold words. "there is a reason why crowds call women 'intellegent'."

The woman kneeled down to her pouch, and pulled a clean, golden weaved plate with rose decorations. She then pulled out a knife and cut a part of a leg, then starting eating it by cutting with the knife and stabbing with a fork.

[Poohbomber]

"I don't know about that, but I do know women can be sly buggers, nearly lost half my riches by one, although I was slyer than her, in the end," he said the last bit to himself. After finishing with his short-sword he took out his long-sword and continued with the cleaning.

[Poohbomber]

After finishing the cleaning, he repacked everything and said, "Time for me to go to sleep." And with that he headed off to somewhat secluded area of the camp and put his bag on the ground and used it as a pillow.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu woke with a start, he had a bit of trouble sleeping as he was constantly keeping an eye out for the thief. The man may have said he could be trusted but from Kyuu's experiences the ones that are trusted could end up doing the most harm. After regaining his barrings he looked around Alorae and Lobsang were still asleep. he did a quick check of all of thier inventory to check for stolen items, after a thorough inspection he concluded nothing was amiss and started breakfast.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang woke up with a start, made sure that he was still alive, "I hope that yesterday was just a dream," he said. He then started to search his stuff to make sure they weren't stolen.

[Lovelight]

Alorae sat up. "Huh.." Her golden witch-like hat rested on the side of her. As her dangling side ponytail turned into more like straight, long hair, but messy. She yawned, and stretched her arms out.

"Good morning, Sir Kyuu." The woman crawled to her pouch, and took a certain tool out (I have no idea what it's called.), and started fixing her hair to it's regular position. She then stood up and stretched her arms out, then straightened her dress and equipped the yellow sleeves. Then, Alorae stared at Lobsang, or Phantom as she called him.

What the hell.. I thought such a nuisance would've escaped.. but forget it, Alorae.

[Poohbomber]

During this time Lobsang had pulled out the ticket that he had stolen from the man and threw it behind him, he then pulled out the money and smiled. He then noticed that he was being watched and quickly stuffed it back into his bag. His look of surprise was somewhat covered by his hood.

[KyuubisSlave]

"good morning" Kyuu smiled at Alorae, then turned to the thief his face suddenly cold "Sense I aloud you to live you are going to make yourself useful. You will accompany us on any time we go to explore this island, and help out when were doing chores such as setting up camps, finding food, and gathering firewood." he then started to serve the scrambled eggs into three bowls and handed them to his now two companions. "now who wants eggs."

[Poohbomber]

"I'll do that, and I'll do other things while we are out that more fit my skills," he said. He took and walked over to the rock he slept behind, went behind it again, and started to eat.

[Lovelight]

"You shouldn't offer eggs in such a cold voice.." Alorae whispered, then sighed. "Sorry, I don't feel hungry. I'll be getting some 'dinner' in the woods. Please shout my name if something happens." The spellcaster bowed, and headed into the woods.

Poor animals. I wonder if there are any fruit to eat..

[Poohbomber]

"Let me come with you, I don't really want to stay here, I need to be active otherwise I need to find something to do with my hands," he said, following her.

[Lovelight]

"No thank you." Alorae simply pushed him away. "Having such a man that I do not trust following me.." She glared at him. "Please ask Sir Kyuu." She strolled into the forest.

[Poohbomber]

"Very well then," Lobsang said. He then walked over to the rock that he ate and slept behind, and sat down. He took a small ring puzzle out of his bag, one he took from the last boat he was on, and started to try to figure it out.
(Also I have to go do a band event, and it will take me two hours, so just a heads up.)

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu finished his eggs and stood up "Lets go Lobsang. I'm going to explore more of this island and see if I can find anything interesting." He wrote a note for Alorae telling here where they went and when they should be back then strapped on his ninjato and stood waiting for the thief to get ready to leave

[Poohbomber]

"Of course," Lobsang said. He pocketed the rings and got up.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu set off into the forest with a small fire spell to light the way as the forest was dark, "I heard there are some hot springs on this island, so that is where we are heading" he said "We could find some interesting minerals in the spring water"

[huggyboo]

(A/N: Not again Dx)

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang followed Kyuu into the forest. His black cloak and dark leather armor seemed to get even darker at night. He stayed slightly behind Kyuu so that he could still remain hidden in the dark. The way he walked was more like he was stalking and his crouched figure added to it as well.
(Gonna have to continue this tomorrow, I have to go to bed. Sorry for the inconvenience.)

[novapirate]

Li'than woke up dazed. The morning sun was too bright for his tired eyes, and it took a minute for his retinas to adjust. A scan to either side of him revealed that he was floating in shallow water amidst rubble from his wreck. He was lying on a large, tropical beach on one of the islands. He stood up and staggered to the warm, soft sand and collapsed in it, the heat from the granules relaxing him. He was exhausted from the previous night, and promptly blacked for a few minutes.

When he woke up he groaned from how stiff and sore he was. He sat up, the sand clinging to his skin, and groped around for his staff. Luckily, it was still there. Then he tended to his clothing. His armor and his crown were packed away on one of the chests. Hopefully they hade made landfall with the rest of the debris. He scanned through the wood but couldn't pick out the ornate chest among it. Cursing under his breath, he slumped back down to the sand and blacked out again.

By now the sun had rose to it's peak, and Li'than realized that he needed to find shade or else his skin would rebel. Slowly he began dragging larger planks of wood and resting it against one of the trees, taking frequent breaks. After he had a significant piles of wood that he could make a lean-to from he address his second need: water. Drinking the ocean water wouldn't help, and there were no rivers pouring into the ocean around here. He took a nap in the shade of the tree and then, with dusk beginning to fall, walked off into the forest to find some water, his staff strapped across his back.

[Lovelight]

Deep in the forest, Alorae cautiously wandered about. "It's a good thing they have vegetation in this island.. eating such meat all the time is fattening." She dragged a dead-- not burnt or cooked, but just dead wolf onto the soft dirt by the leg.

"What's Phantom and Sir Kyuu doing at this time right now..?" Spellsong muttered to herself. "They're probably out partying without me because there is no women over there."

She carried a small basket, and as she lifted the cover up, Alorae peeked inside. "What? I obtained this much already?" The woman gritted her teeth in pride and superior.

Blackberries, strawberries, ripe apples, and many other exotic fruit filled the basket like a full house. "Men are probably not attracted to fruit." The spellcaster sighed, then picked a grape out of a bush, then tossed it into her mouth.

A warning growl echoed into her ears behind her. The woman hummed a tune, then kneeled to lay down her basket. "You shouldn't interrupt such a lovely time, sir Wolf.."

Alorae spun around and sighted a gray wolf. A crimson color was painted onto the wolves eyes, and its fangs bared in the golden sun.

"Oh? I should use that summon I learned just recently.. hopefully it'll work.." Alorae reached into her ingredients pouch and pulled out ashes. She printed a sign with her index finger, then it glowed crimson, then morphed into a phoenix.

(I don't want to post the rest, as it will probably fill up the whole page.)

[Poohbomber]

After following Kyuu for a while in the forest, Lobsang decided to sneak away. So he did. He saw a light flare off somewhere to his right and decided to go check it out, besides, it may be something of some value and slunk off through the forest in that direction. I don't think Kyuu will miss me too much, he though to himself. As he entered the area of the forest that was not lit up by the light, he once again seemed to become the background of the foliage around him while also blending slightly with everything around him. As he passed a wolf searching for food it looked in his direction cocked it's head and continued on.

[novapirate]

Li'than's staff broke the darkness with an illumination spell, the orb weakly providing light for its master. The Itzu cursed under his breath as he stumbled over a root. His staff was powered by the sun, and this late at night meant it was all but worthless. The wolves that frequently prowled the jungle frightened him the most. Their pack mentality meant that he could be surrounded and attacked with no magical support. Now that he thought about it, coming into the jungle at all was foolish. He had found water, luckily, but hadn't found a way back. He was lost. As he grumbled he heard the whispers of feet on the ground. He silently willed his staff to shed more light before charging at where he had heard the noise, running into another person dead on.

[OoC; I don't care which of you responds to this, but someone please do.]

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang was bumped into by another Itzu. It didn't seem to notice him yet, and he quickly backed behind another tree. He was panting slightly by the surprise. I will not be taken advantage of again, he thought to himself.

[novapirate]

[OoC: Woah. That's a little PP.]

"Awesome. I run into a person in the middle of the forest, and it turns out to be some creep who thinks that by hiding behind trees I won't notice him. I'm an Itzu for the gods' sake. We're forest people, you know." Li'than sighed and raised his staff. A bead of light fired off towards the tree where Lobsang was hiding, although slower than he would have liked. It popped as it reached it's target, making a loud popping noise and bathing the area in bright light. Unfortunately it wasn't bright enough to blind people as it was intended to, but the spell did usually work to surprise foes.

[Poohbomber]

The pop did startle him, but it did nothing to his vision at all. He drew both daggers and quickly stabbed them into the tree, and jumped up. As he did this he switched his backup daggers from their sheath and slotted them into the primary ones, he then drew his short and long sword and leaped behind the Itzu, pinned him, and covered it's mouth. "Now, before you think about casting a spell, think about this, will you be able to prevent me from slitting your throat before I actually succumb to it's effects?" Lobsang asked, "Just nod and we'll get along just fine."

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu hearing the loud noise and not being far off decided to investigate, after all Lobsang sneaked off and that couldn't be a good thing right? after trekking through the forest he came across the thief holding a knife toward a fellow Itzu, he silently hoped this Itzu wasn't one of the idiots that hated him for what his parents did and stepped out "what the hell do you think your doing Lobsang! We get halfway to the hot springs and you ditch me then attack an Itzu!"

[Mkishere]

((Just go ahead and post it Love.))

[Lovelight]

((Fiiine. Dx))

The fiery phoenix soared in the air, building up heat in the forest. "Ka'Kali!" The wolf showed no sign of fear. Behind it in the darkness, glowing crimson eyes ominously sighted Spellsong and the bird.

Company? Seriously? I mean, I know wolves like to eat, but are 500 wolves gonna feast on me all at once? Well, anyway.. I wouldn't want to do such a battle in a lovely forest..

Spellsong fleed from the battle, and the bird followed. The crimson eyes then jumped out, revealing many wolves in the forest. Up ahead, Alorae spotted Kyuu. She then stopped by him, "Run, fast. Don't look back." The spellcaster sprinted off.

[screwbaII]

(Because Love and Kyuu wanted me to I made a second character for here. Basically my person has been here a year or two because I don't feel like rping by myself to get here XD Also I hope that my entrance rping is acceptable? I assumed Kyuu would also be running after Love and what better way to befriend people then save them from a pack of murderous wolves :D)

Artemis heard crashing about in the forest nearby and the howl of wolves. It didn't sound like a normal wolf hunt and as a result she began to sprint in the direction, along a well known path of hers. As she got closer to the noises, she heard voices.

Other People! She thought.

Feeling obliged to help them she sprinted ahead of the noise, knowing the forest paths well enough to be able to get in front faster and get in position. Swinging up into a tree she took aim as the people appeared into her vision, the wolves gaining on them. Taking aim and taking her time she shot an arrow at the wolf at the front of the pack, hitting it square between the eyes and killing it instantly. It dropped instantly, tripping up some of the others behind it ending in a wolf pile. Some of the others kept chasing, but after the alpha wolf went down they were beginning to disarray. She shot a few arrows ahead of the wolves to confuse them, resulting in them stopping their pursuit and heading back the way they had come into the forest.

[Poohbomber]

"He attacked me first!" shouted Lobsang, still pinning the Itzu. "All I was doing was going off to investigate a strange light, and he bumped into me and then cast a spell at me!" he continued.

[KyuubisSlave]

"Yea, yea. Well fun's over!" Kyuu shouted grabbing the thief's and other Itzu's collar and sprinting after Alorae. As he ran through the forest an arrow blew by his face and hit the lead wolf in the face, he kept running but started scanning the trees for rescuer. A few more arrows were fired drawing Kyuu's attention to a tree. he stopped, dropping the two he was dragging and yelled up at the tree "Oy! whoevers up there thank you!"

[Poohbomber]

"My daggers!" Lobsang yelled. He broke free of the Itzu's hold and sprinted back to the area where he had pinned the mage. "I really should just leave them, I doubt they'd be able to find me," he said to himself as he made his way through the forest.
(I'm getting kinda tired of people being able to see through his stealth. What I was trying to describe is that when he stealths he is hard to notice. Like if you see something out of the corner of your eye and you think it's one thing, but when you look directly at it it's something completely different. That's what his stealth is like. So please stop having your people see through it. Okay?)

[Lovelight]

((You may want to bold that last part, Pooh. xD))

Alorae skidded with a stop. "Cowardly cowards!" She sighed, "Tch, didn't even get to test Kali's strength. The phoenix screeched in dismay, "Ka'Kali, come back!" Alorae commanded to the fiery bird. As the phoenix dissolved into ashes, Spellsong put the ashes into her ingredients pouch. "Huh, who helped us?" The woman looked up into the trees and spotted--an archer!

Wait, can we really trust this woman? Well, she did save us from a pack of wolves, but.. whatever.

"Greetings, fellow archer." Alorae took off her golden hat, and bowed. "My name is Alorae Spellsong. I appreciate the fact that you helped us, I hope we can help you with our services." She said.

[Poohbomber]

Finally reaching the spot where the fight happened, he started to search for the tree. It didn't take long and when he did, he pulled out the daggers and put them into the reserve sheathes on his back. He started off towards the area where Kyuu was heading then thought better of it and headed off into the forest to search for a spot to set up a camp site.

[screwbaII]

Artemis looked down at them from her tree, and seeing that they were addressing and introducing themselves to her she swung down from the tree so she could meet them properly. It had be a while since she had had contact with anyone else so she was feeling quite awkward.

Putting her bow away onto her back stylishly she bowed her head at the man and woman. "I accept your gratitude Alorae Spellsong, and man I do not yet know the name of" she said, her voice was very quiet and it felt weird for her to hear it for herself after having not used it much over the past many years. Especially since being by herself. "My name is Artemis and I am a Fletcher of Sutilas" she introduced herself, then added (rather slowly as if she needed to think about her sentence structure), "there is no need for repayment as there is no debt. I am sure you two could very well have handled simple wolves yourselves, I just wanted to provide some assistance as a friendly gesture". Artemis could hear how ridiculous her language was but couldn't stop it. Talking is something she would need to get used to again. The last time she used it was just before she left the Fletcher's home forest, and while training rarely used it at all anyway.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu appraised the Fletcher, she was definitely not hostile in any way toward them. "Kyuu" he said extending his hand "I am a Magi of Urun and this young human would be my apprentice and traveling companion. You are welcome to eat at our camp. It is the least we could do, after all you saved us a bit of effort In scarring off those wolves so why don't we save you the trouble of cooking your dinner."

[screwbaII]

She took his hand, "It's an honour" she said bowing her head again, recognising his superior status, "and I would hate to be a burden, but if you do insist I will not dishonour your request for a meal" ARGH I sound so stupid and FORMAL!! Artemis felt like she was dieing in her mind from embarassment, and she felt like she was just making the situation really really awkward, however she didn't show it on the outside. Her face so used to not showing expression that she didn't know how to show it. She tried a small smile though after she responded though, happy to see that these people were so friendly toward her.

[novapirate]

[OoC: A LOT JUST HAPPENED. Sorry for not being on, I was getting braces D:
Can anyone explain what's going on?! We were grabbed and dragged unwillingly through the woods by someone with apparent god-strength 'cause of some wolf pack and now we're all hanging out by a tree?!]

[screwbaII]

[what??? o.o Maybe you should re-read what has happened]

[novapirate]

[OoC: Alright, just re-read. I'm good now.]

Li'than was in a lot of shock. He had been dragged through the forest by some random Itzu as a pack of wolves did battle with a ranger in a tree and a summoner. The thief had slipped off, Bastard. Idiot too. If I hadn't been surprised by that other woman I would've roasted his brain on the spot., and now he was being ignored while the chaos raged on around him. A wolf shot from the bushes and lunged for his neck, but a quick magically-enhanced slap from his staff sent it running back. As the rest of the pack was driven off by the Ranger he slipped off into the bushes and cast an observer spell, summoning a small orb of darkness that he could use to watch what was going on between the other Magi and the Ranger.

[OoC: Why are they called Fletchers? Fletchers make (fletch) arrows, they don't use them.]

[screwbaII]

[Ask MK about it, I'm just following the rules]

[Mkishere]

((Eh... because its linked to the start of all bowmanship so I thought that name was appropriate because its linked to the guy who found the art of bowmanship and made the bow and arrow.))

[KyuubisSlave]

"not a problem, not a problem" Kyuu replied, the girl being so formal to him was something that he was not used to, most Itzu wouldn't go within ten feet of him if they could help it. "well umm, camp is this way" he gestured toward camp and started walking

[screwbaII]

She bowed her head again and started quickly picking up her arrows that were stuck into the ground as they walked away. She left the one that was embedded in the wolf's skull, the tip would probably be destroyed anyway, and then hurridly caught up with the others.

Just then a small white bird flew straight between her two new companions and landed and perched on top of Artemis' head as they walked. She grinned as she felt the bird shuffling around into her hair and continued to follow the others silently.

[Lovelight]

Oh my god, I thought I would be the only woman here. Yes!

Alorae followed the two, "I am a Pyro Caster of the Voxin Guild." She stared at the two Itzu's. "Apparently, this island is populated by Itzu, but it's fine." The woman quietly muttered to herself. "Lady Artemis," Spellsong knew that she should treat such royalty to trusting strangers. "why did you come to this land? Did it simply attract you?"

[screwbaII]

"I suppose it was quite by accident I came upon this land. I sought a place of solitude, thus, once finished my training, I heard rumours of new unexplored lands and thought that if I were to find a land of no-ones, I would be able to find my inner peace and hone my skills as a fletcher," she explained to the woman, but quickly added, "Although it does get rather lonely here by myself. I'm glad to have some company after such a long time". She didn't at all want to give off the impression that they were intruding on her, and in fact she thought that it was rather nice to have someone to talk to for once.

[Lovelight]

"I see." Alorae, who didn't really seem to give off any pity at all, replied. "And what is this 'accident' you speak of, Artemis?" The woman asked, "Was it some sort of abandoning from your parents or something?" She wondered. "Ah, I'm sorry," The spellcaster apologized, "I shouldn't be wandering about other's personal info and history." Spellsong quietly chuckled to herself.

[screwbaII]

She laughed quietly, "No, it is fine. My past and history is not very private at all, alas there is not much to tell... I don't really remember my parents. You see once we show a talent with a bow we have to leave and go to the forests where we learn the ways of Sutilas, the first bowman, and for me that was when I was only a little girl." Artemis explained to Alorae about the traditions surrounding the Fletchers of Sutilas.

She continued with her story, getting more to the point of it being a complete accident for being here in the first place, "I came by this island by accident when I decided to set sail exploring for the new undiscovered lands. I suppose fate bought me here as I drifted with the currents and the winds on my journey, with no real idea where I was going! Then one morning I just woke up beached here, and here I am!" She smiled at them, getting used to the gesture. She was curious about what they were doing here but she was not forward enough, and felt she shouldn't intrude on whatever business they had here in the first place.

[Poohbomber]

After finding a suitable place to set up camp, Lobsang had removed all his weapons and had started to search around to find some suitable branches to make a frame for a lean-to. After finding a few large branches he found a small sapling with a fork in the middle and set up the main support branches. After he had finished with this he started to look for smaller branches to hold up a lot of ferns that he had found for a waterproof roof. He wasn't being too quiet because he knew that the only people that would bother him were far away, maybe even on the other side of the island by now.
((Believe it or not I have actually done this before in BoyScouts. I also had to sleep in it for a night too. It was really cozy.))

[Lovelight]

"Oh my, that sounds terrible..." Alorae suddenly felt pity. Spellsong wondered what it was like to experience such a tragic event. "I am sorry for such a life-risking event, Artemis." She apologized. "Were there any crews to set foot on this island?" The pyromaniac questioned Artemis, wanting to learn more about this.. Itzu's history.

I hope Itzu's have a wonderful background and history..

[screwbaII]

"No.. no, just me" she replied, "I sought a place to be truly alone. I believe it's the only way you can truly get to know yourself - without the distractions of others. But I've spent more than enough time by myself now, so no need to feel like you're intruding on me. I'd be more than happy to show you around the island as well."

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu's ears perked at that offer, he was having a hard time finding his way in the dense jungle and having a guide would be a very valuable asset. "That would be fantastic!" He exclaimed excitedly "do you think you can guide us to the hot springs tomorrow? I have been trying to locate them to learn about what heats them, and to see if anything lives within their hot waters."

[screwbaII]

She grinned at him, almost laughing at his excitement, but inhibiting the urge. "The hot springs are indeed wonderful! It's very relaxing to bathe in them and they are very soothing and healing as well. I can guide you there tomorrow for sure" she replied, before asking curiously "What interests you about how they work?"

[KyuubisSlave]

"Well every thing really" He chattered, now excited from having some one able to navigate the island well, making his researching progress speed up. "there are no hot springs on the main land so very little is known about them, so this presents a great opportunity to learn." All Itzu have a natural curiosity to learning but Kyuu's was particularly strong, this was one of the reasons he started learning the way of the magi at such a young age.

[screwbaII]

"Yes, I know" she replied, "which is why I was surprised by them as well at first. They really are something else to behold. I'm not sure what heats them though, but it's an amazing phenomenon! There's a lot of stuff on this island that isn't on the homeland you know, so I can show you more of them once your investigations are done with the hotsprings"

[KyuubisSlave]

"Thank you!" He was practically shaking with excitement now. "Please, If there is anything I can do in return, feel free to ask. I will do what ever is in my power to do so." It wasn't often that Itzu treated Kyuu so well, and even rarer when it was by choice so needless to say Kyuu liked this lady.

[screwbaII]

"Well I guess... really the only thing I would like to do is discover more. So you wouldn't mind if I joined you on your explorations? If you and Lady Spellsong don't mind that is" she replied "I've discovered and learned so much from this land, that I would very much like to see others!" She was happy that she had made friends with the travellers so easily, she wondered why she even had to be worried about befriending them, they seemed so nice to her. Never seeing her self as someone likeable because of her constant formalness and inability to relax properly.

[Poohbomber]

After finishing up his shelter, Lobsang decided to go to sleep. He entered the shelter, and covered up the entrance with a small covering to keep out wild animals. He used his pack as a pillow and soon was asleep.

[Lovelight]

"I do not mind, Artemis," Alorae replied. "plus, please don't address me as 'Lady' Spellsong. It makes me think that I'm historical." Spellsong chuckled to herself. "Anyway, does the island have any other sections that could prove helpful to us?" She asked Artemis, "And.. are there identical springs?" The woman squinted at her crew leader.

[screwbaII]

"Identical? You mean ones that look the same?" asked Artemis puzzled, "there are multiple, but they are all different looking. And I apologize Alorae, it is my formal nature to refer to people like that but I will not as you wish." She continued with answering Alorae's questions, "As for other parts of the island that are rather interesting. There is a sinkhole that is interesting. I always wonder where the rocks I throw into it go." She smiled shyly, "maybe there are some things you have heard of that are here? I'm not entirely sure what you are looking for, but I'm sure if you mentioned some things I could tell you if they are here or not"

[Lovelight]

T-that's not what I meant..

"Ah, okay then." Alorae replied. "It'd be terrible if there were only one spring.." The pyromage throat shifted to a bitter, sinister-like voice, then morphed back into a casual voice. "Oh? A sinkhole? I could summon a scout-like animal, but I guess that'd be a waste of mana, for they can't speak." Spellsong chuckled to herself.

[screwbaII]

Artemis looked at her kind of strangely, and stopped talking, withdrawing into herself thinking that she had somehow offended Alorae and that she should shut up before she said anything else that was stupid. She simply nodded about the sinkhole but meanwhile was suddenly feeling quite uneasy about the whole situation. Did I make some kind of mistake meeting up with these people? Maybe I should have just stayed away... why must I be so trusting all of the time? Well I guess I have to stay with them now since I did promise to show them to the springs, and perhaps more things that they wanted to see. Why do I have to sound so stupid, and why do I have to be so bad at interpreting people... All kinds of questions were firing off inside of her, and the more that did the more she wanted to just run into the forest. But she inhibited the urge, and pulled off a branch of a nearby shrub on the way by and started fiddling with it to calm her nerves down a little. On the outside this would be the only way you could tell she was agitated and anxious, apart from her shift in behaviour from outgoing to introverted.

[Lovelight]

"Hm? Is there something wrong?" Spellsong stared at Artemis. "Aha, I'm sorry if my voice frightened you for a second." The woman let out a laugh, and stared at their leader. "What I was trying to say is that having one spring is bad, because one guy and two females in a hot spring doesn't really come out well, no?" Alorae quietly whispered to Artemis.

[screwbaII]

Artemis looked kind of shocked and instantly felt stupid for not picking up on it. She laughed quietly, "I guess not" she replied just as quietly so that Kyuu wouldn't here what they were talking about.

[Mkishere]

The ship loomed by Tepidus, out in the sea it was too far to be a threat. Its black sails blew in the wind, a new threat to these new lands. The sail bore a red Caedo on it, snatching a man in its large jaws.

The men on board were widely ranged, Itzus, Humans, and Procerans alike. Outcasts from their own societies that have banded together to form raiding groups.

The captain of the pirate ship, a Proceran with deep red eyes grinned, his sharp teeth flashing in the day's light. Looking out over the side of the ship the captain eyed the harboring ships.

Days later...


Four rowboats, each holding three men made their way to the Tepidus shoreline. Three procerans, six humans, and three Itzus filtered out onto the tropical beach.

Eee'ak, a Proceran lead the pack of pirates, bearing two longswords across his back. His ears were lined with piercings, glinting in the day's rays. A large tattoo covered half of his face, a mark of a Defro Demon. The man carried with him a pouch, holding his drug, his precious plant that would release his rage upon the island's grounds. Two other demons followed, though they lacked the sharp looks of Eee'ak and his posture to seem as leaders.

Jone, a human led his large group of humans. He had a simple look about him, clean clothing and a clean shave. Odd for a pirate, though his captain chose him for his calm attitude and love for riches. Back at home he was a religious man, though once his family was taken away from him he sought out to join the pirates and live a bachelor life, still keeping his attitude and demeanor quite surprisingly. He wielded with him a multitude of throwing knives and a short sword.

And lastly, following the others was the Itzu wielding his bow. His eyes burned a deep yellow, full of knowledge though plagued with wit and greed. To his side he wielded a bow, and across his back a quiver wielding black tipped arrows. The man lead his trio of bowmen, well coordinated though small in numbers.

The three groups split up, scouring the island. They were each given a glowing Itzu orb, that would emit a large blast of light if destroyed. This would be their signal to alert the others that they had found their prey.

[Lovelight]

"Ah.. the spring was soothing." Alorae sighed. "It's a shame that we had to leave.." Spellsong wondered if there were any survivors on the island, but decided not to explore right now, as she didn't want to interrupt such a calming moment with some trouble. "Artemis, do you think there are any survivors or castaways on this island at this very moment?" She asked, as they were traveling back to their main camp.

[screwbaII]

"I don't know, this island is fairly large and there are some parts not even I have explored. Perhaps there are and perhaps we will encounter them at some point" she replied, "and yes the springs really are very soothing, and have healing properties too. I think Kyuu enjoyed them as well."

[Lovelight]

"Ah, I see then.. let's just hope that there's not going to be any murderous, sinister, bloodlusty pirates right next to our base, okay?" Alorae grinned. "Anyway, while you lived alone on this island, was it frightening to do so?" She asked.

[screwbaII]

"No, not really. I'm used to living in unforgiving forests with no one around, so it wasn't much of a change except that if anything DID happen to me I knew I would probably not ever be found. Which was probably a little frightening I guess" she replied, "All in all though, it was my decision to come here in the first place.. well not here, but at least leave to seek a place like here out"

She had grown to like the company of Kyuu and Alorae over the past day or two. They had visited the springs today and while Kyuu did his experiments with the hot springs, her and Alorae had sat in the springs and talked about all kinds of things. Artemis had enjoyed that experience. They would have to wait until Kyuu made up his mind about if they were going back or not, or where else they were going to go before they knew what they were doing next.

[SiamJai]

"Mhrmmm pfft" was the first thing Cadwalden said when he reached the sandy shores of Tepidus. It would've been difficult to say anything else with a mouth full of sand.

'Waldy the great beastmaster, haha' he thought to himself as he spit out the sand and stood up. He turned around and looked at the remains of his small boat floating in the distance - a grim reminder that this nature is very different than anything he's ever seen. Who would have thought that friendly-looking sea-mammal could turn so hostile when his trusty spell failed?

But the practical mage didn't ponder too long on the issue. 'At least I'm here, finally', he thought as he scanned the horizon. With a routine he's done a thousand times, he checked the pockets and crevices of his soaked robe. His hands went through pouches filled with various berries and seeds, carefully wrapped charcoal sticks for writing, a small sickle in his belt, his trusty Gaia staff strapped to his back, and... that thing. His lips widened to a smile when he touched that in his pants. 'Ah, I can't wait to blow you and hear your sound...' he thought excitedly. With that, he pulled the small flute out of his pocket.

'Not yet' he decided and put it back. Something's still missing... 'my scrolls!' Waldy thought suddenly with distress. He walked around frantically searching for the backpack he kept the precious scrolls in, but to no avail. At sunset he almost gave up in frustration, when he finally spotted the gently floating dark shape just a short distance away in the opposite direction than he was looking.

Sure enough, it was the pack full of wet parchment. He laid it out on the shore to dry, and sent a silent word of thanks to his friend at the Traditionalists who prepared the parchment to withstand the trials of long travel.

With all his stuff accounted for, he looked around where to start the exploration. His sight settled on the eastern mountain range less than a day distance away. 'That would be a great vantage point... but enough excitement for today. I'll check out those rocks tomorrow. Maybe I'll even find some people around there. With a guide, things would go a lot easier'.

With that settled, he took rest in the nearby bushes and let the sounds of nature put his mind at ease.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang awoke with a start. He decided that it would be a good idea to either fish, or hunt. He chose to fish because it would be more relaxing. He started to head towards the coast. When he finally reached it he saw a huge ship and a lot of people working around it. He said to himself, "I really don't think that searching around in the ship or area will be a good idea." He said this to himself mainly to curb his inquisitiveness and urge to steal.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu was extremely pleased at the information he had learned from the hot springs, while he didn't find out what caused the phenomenon he did learn that the waters they produced were 100% pure, this suggested to him that on the waters way up it must have reached boiling point before cooling down a bit and reaching the surface. He would definitely need to continue research on them. The next thing he wanted to explore was that sink hole Artemis had mentioned, he could only imagine what lay inside of such a vast hole. Well It was decided then. "Hey, Artemis!" He addressed his new friend "I was wondering if you could show me that sink hole you told us about, we have a good bit of rope so I'm sure we could make it to the bottom without to much trouble."

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang waded out a little into the water and took out his short-sword. He started to fish with it by using it like a spear. He knew he shouldn't stay in the water long because it could start corroding the steel, even though it was forged in a way that prevented it from oxidizing. He had left his crossbow on the land so that the delicate mechanisms wouldn't get jammed up by the salt in the water.

[novapirate]

Li'than had been scavenging through the debris of his shipwreck when two things dawned on him at precisely the same time. He would later recount the tale of the story, telling the listeners that they "hit" him in such a way that swept him off his feet- literally. The first was that the box right in front of him looked quite keenly like his armor chest. And indeed it was. Like a young boy obtaining his first spell, Li'than dragged the chest on to the beach and flung it open. Widely untouched lay his armor and hat, and he wasted no time in donning both. After observing the other people he had noticed many sketchy looking ships floating off of the coast, and had decided that the extra protection his armor would give him would be greatly needed.

The second thing that hit him is that he had seen the older mage before. He didn't know why, or how, but he clearly recognized the old man as someone he disliked. After donning his armor he immediately set out to wear he had discovered the camp of the other Itzu on the island. On the way their things began to come back to him very slowly as he picked his mind for memories. Two important things surfaced slowly: that his name was Kyuu, and that it wasn't him, but his parents, that were the cause of such feelings. At that point in time he then stumbled into the camp, whipped out Sol and began scanning the camp for the Itzu.

[screwbaII]

Artemis perked her head up at her name. "Yes?" she replied, "Yes, of course I can show you the sinkhole. It's near the base of the mountains, less than a day walk from our camp".

Looks like they had decided where they were going to head to next. They approached their camp and the first thing Artemis did was take a seat and have a rest. They had walked pretty far in one day, and despite the relaxing hot bath from the springs, her feet were a little achey. All the trekking around was going to leave her sore, but she was enjoying it already. They hadn't met anyone else yet, but maybe there would be others...

[novapirate]

Li'than turned when he noticed the other Itzu enter the camp. She apparently hadn't noticed his presence in the camp yet, and he used a silence spell to quiet his footsteps as he snuck up on her. He then prepared a lightning spell that would trigger on command if necessary. He tapped her lightly on the shoulder with Sol. It was light enough not to warrant violence, but not light enough to be ignored.

"Where's the other Itzu. The older mage. Kyuu. He is needed," he growled.

[Poohbomber]

After what seemed like an hour, Lobsang finally caught a fish. He took it back to the shore and picked up his crossbow. He then started back to the forest, then he thought, This fish would spoil before I could get back to camp, not to mention the bugs and other creatures looking for a quick meal. After thinking this he searched for driftwood and much to his amazement, he found parts of a wrecked ship. He shrugged it off and dug out a shallow pit. He put the wood he found into the pit. He lit it after a few tries. The flames had an overall orange hue due to the salt that was left behind after the wood dried out. He started to roast the fish, not even thinking of his fire being seen.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu following after Artemus, entered their camp. He immediately noticed two things wrong, one he now stood behind a man he did not know, and two said man was threatening one of his friends. He then heard the man speak "And why exactly would you be looking for me" Kyuu responded coldly his summon already at the unknown assailants neck.

[Lovelight]

"I see you are popular with such people, Sir Kyuu." The spellcaster stood next to her leader. "I envy you, Captain." She sighed, and sat down on a log, close to the fire, then stared at the man behind Artemis. "Excuse me, but sneaking up on one person in a crew is just boneheaded." Alorae sighed. "You need help with your stealth, little one." Spellsong lectured.

[Poohbomber]

After finishing his fish, Lobsang started to head back to his camp, then he decided to take a peek on what the Itzu's camp was like. He headed off towards the camp. When he finally got to the camp, he stayed at the edge edge of it when he noticed that they were back. He immediately stealthed. He slowly creeped behind one of the trees. He knew he would not be seen. (And please let him not be seen.) He noticed that one of the people were being held hostage by an Itzu that he bumped into earlier. He took a quick look at his surroundings to make sure he had a clear run. (I have to go to an hour long band lesson. Just thought I would let you know.)

[screwbaII]

Artemis looked up and behind her as the other two came into camp and a stranger was behind her, threatening her. Kyuu had already acted so fast that the stranger could not possibly be a threat to her, but she knew better than to make any sudden movements with a mage. She simply sat silently as if unbothered by the situation, attuning to the strangers position behind her. She felt the other two would have the situation under control enough for her not to warrant having to take him out herself.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang started to creep around behind the unnamed Itzu. He was creeping slowly and quietly. He knew that the female Itzu that is being held captive could possibly see him, but he also knew that the one pinning her could not. He made a quick motion to keep quiet about him.

[novapirate]

Li'than chuckled quietly to himself. "I didn't know we invited miss self-important to attend. You do realize that I am not only older than you, but I could probably wreck you if I felt like it? If we look at the current situation, your friend Artemis is going to die. I regret doing this, because I kind of liked her style, but she happened to walk in first. Right now I wish you walked in first. I would feel a lot less guilty about killing you. Do you even know who your friend here is? Do you even know what he is?"

He turned to stare at the summons, and then back at Kyuu. "I feel like you overreacted a lot here. I walk in, tap someone on the neck, and now I have something trying to kill me. Is that what you learned from the years of hatred you endured? I'm doing everyone else a favor and just getting rid of you now. I should've done it a while back, before I left for the human-lands. Everyone had heard about it... Hmm. Well, I suppose it's time that things turn a bit around, as it looks like my ride just showed up."

He fired an electric jolt into Artemis meant to stun her for a bit, then smacked the monster behind him and whirled around and soul fire'd the summon, attempting to set it on fire and at least distract it. At that point in time a pig burst from the bushes, wearing a full set of armor, and charged directly at the younger Itzu. Li'than rolled out of the summon's grasp in case it could still hit him and fired the charged up lightning at the younger mage.

Finished, Li'than massaged his neck and put up wards to prevent him from being grabbed by the neck a third time. "You people have a way for attacking everything between by shoulders and by chin, don't you," he grumbled. He then turned back to Kyuu. "My problem is with you. I ask for the ancient and sacred right to settle our dispute in a duel of the martial magical arts. Without interference." He declared, staring down his opponent.

[screwbaII]

((What so yu just stun me without giving me any chance to react and hit an invisible person behind you??))

[KyuubisSlave]

((yea... I'll wait till this gets sorted out to post))

[Poohbomber]

(Edited out)

[novapirate]

[OoC: Actually, I never did. You can see that I never PP. It's meant to stun her. And as for the "invisible" monster, its hands are around his neck. He can tell where it is (of course, whether or not it is invisible isn't even mentioned). Everything is written with intentions. The fire is meant to destroy/distract the summon. This may sound rude, but please read the posts a little more carefully.]

[Lovelight]

"You don't just attack someone when there is two people with them.." Alorae opened her tome of inferno, and flipped to a certain page. Spellsong tucked her hand into the pouch, and brought out a fire orb, along with a panda plush doll. "Please, I'd hate to do this, but I have to." The woman cut open the panda, and stuffed the orb in it. As the rabbit glowed, it slowly morphed.

Sooner or later, a large panda-- the shape of a human, it's crimson eyes flamed, and it wore a red robe designed with crimson blossoms. A wide, long straw hat rested on it's head, and the panda held a lit lantern connected to a long stick. "I suggest you surrender now.." Alorae suggested.

[Poohbomber]

(What invisible monster are you even talking about? I read no post about a monster, invisible or not.)

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang saw some sort of white and black bear wearing clothing appear. He was so stunned that he dropped his stealth for a second. He quickly regained composure though.

[novapirate]

[OoC: Sorry for the DP, I can't edit posts.

@Pooh: What..? I mean. I deliberately write the post to avoid PP-ing after everyone has managed to sneak up behind me and neck-grab me somehow, and you just run in here and dodge the destruction flying around and trip me? I think I might just ignore that post altogether.]

[novapirate]

"This doesn't concern you," Li'than said to the younger Itzu. "This concerns things of far greater magnitude than you might understand at this point. Maybe if you knew more. But alas, you do not. I ask only for a duel of honor with your friend. Not a duel to the death, but rather a duel of honor. Could you possibly grant me that one wish?"

The pig trotted over to his side, and Li'than petted the small animals pink head.

[KyuubisSlave]

"On what grounds?!" Kyuu growled his summon still at the ready "I don't even know who you are. Yet you come into a government funded exploration camp, threaten us, and attack us! As far as I'm concerned your rights are void and you will be placed under arrest." He made a hand gesture and his snake like summon sprung forward at lightning speed Intent on disabling the man.

[Poohbomber]

[OoC: Sorry for the DP, I can't edit posts.

@Pooh: What..? I mean. I deliberately write the post to avoid PP-ing after everyone has managed to sneak up behind me and neck-grab me somehow, and you just run in here and dodge the destruction flying around and trip me? I think I might just ignore that post altogether.]

(Dude I edited it and re-did the encounter in another post. How about you read the posts?)
"You know, personally I don't deal with these things, considering the fact that I do operate outside of the law," said Lobsang as he seemed to walk right out of the shadows, "But they really do have a point bud." He was still standing a distance away, but he was holding his crossbow in a position between a threatening and a non-threatening, so that he would not seem to be much of a threat.

[novapirate]

[OoC: @Pooh: Sorry about that, I read it twice before I posted. You edited it as I typed.]

The snake slammed into Li'than, flinging him to the ground. He held it off of him for a second before pulling around Sol and lighting its head on fire. He stood up, generally ignoring that fool of a rogue who had tried to kill him earlier. This did not concern him. He then turned back to Kyuu for the third time, erecting a large wall between the two. Then, as an added precaution, he began the base spell for dueling grounds: large silencing wards surrounding the two mages. Nothing beyond magic would be able to breach the barrier, not even sound.

"On the grounds of the honor of the Itzu race. We are an elderly race, a race full of pride for our knowledge and ancient history. You are no longer an Itzu. What your parents did to you, excludes you from being one. In any case, what your parents did excludes them from being Itzu. You lost your heritage that way. The council let you live because they could not prove you are dangerous. Well, I can't let you become dangerous. If those.. mutations.. were to manifest at this stage when you are already an accomplished mage, then you could wreak havoc. In any case, I've always wanted to see if those changes you got make you any different. Any better." He sighed, a little with frustration. "It is not a duel to the death that I ask for. Only a duel of honor 'till disarmament."

[screwbaII]

((Well shit I didn't even get time to post anything))

Artemis had pretended to be struck by the pitiful spell but had shifted her bow just slightly so that it in fact hit it rather than her. She feigned it either way. Listening to the delusional man blabber about honour and stuff, he seemed to forget she was still laying on the ground inbetween the mages when he was putting up the duelling grounds. Getting tired of hearing accusations against her friend she quickly rolled over and upward in one graceful movement drawing her bow with an arrow pointing at the man.

"You seem to forget that magical duelling grounds work only against people outside of them, and not inside of them". She was standing between the two mages, "there is no reason to fight at all. So I suggest you stand down, because I assure you, I'm a lot faster at shooting an arrow than you are at casting a spell. There will be NO unneccessary fighting on these lands by you or anyone"

[novapirate]

[OoC: What do you people not understand about "This doesn't concern you?"]

Li'than looked at the insolent fletchers, made a whole in one of the wards, and then made a combination of an earthquake to knock her off her feet, and then a powerful vortex to drag her outside. These distractions were going to cost him his strength, and he really wanted to get the over with. In case she was still inside he ordered his pig to drag her outside and then wait outside.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu was beyond pissed now. This man would pay for hurting his precious people. "Fine I accept your terms." He growled "Let's get this over with so I can continue my mission."

((couldn't think of anything TT^TT,,, @ screw, why aren't you on chat))

[novapirate]

"Hooray!" Li'than clapped for a second before focusing on finishing the dueling arena. The wards were lined with fancy and arcane looking runes, the walls for set to glow and then made semi-opaque with large electrical surges through them. Most of the changes were aesthetic and designed to set the tension, but a few were designed to make things harder. Touching the clearly outlined walls would shock you, for instance, and spells would bounce right off of them. Once he was satisfied with his work Li'than kneeled, doused himself in blessed water, and then drank a rejuvenation potion he had found in his chest. Finally, he turned back to his opponent and prepared his mind and his body for this magical battle.

[Mkishere]

Eee'ak stared at the barrier, nodding to the others. The two Procerans accompanying him pulled out their swords, the tall beings seemed rather large for the forest, though their heads only barely hit the canopy's top. Eee'ak pulled out the red glowing orb, his face filled with discontent when he realized how blunt using it would be to his position.

He scowled, "You there, handy with the throwing knives. When I throw this orb into the air make sure to hit it, otherwise our position will be quite obvious." The other Proceran silently nodded, pulling out a throwing knife, about the ideal size of a human's short sword.

Eee'ak threw the orb high into the orb, as the other threw a knife at it. The orb burst, glass shattering and landing onto the barrier though releasing a bright red blast of light. The canopy blocked most of it out, though one in an opening might be temporarily blinded or annoyed. Though that was not the reasoning for releasing such a light.

Jone, on the northern side of the island frowned, looking up at the light. It was too far for him to reach within a day's trip.

The lead Iztu, Wane looked high into the air, gripping tight onto his bow. It was only a ways away. He and his men darted after the light, his two allies just a yard behind him as he jumped through the canopy.

Eee'ak quickly pulled out a green herb, shoving it into his mouth he chewed it thoroughly, then with a sudden gulp opened his mouth as to inhale air. The other two followed, mimicking him in their actions. The Proceran's facial expression changed greatly, a grimace crossing his face. His deep red eyes seemed to grow brighter and larger, his field of vision increasing. The Proceran gripped onto his two longsword and darted to the left, the other two darting to the right.

The two on the right darted at the Itzu, crazed with bloodlust they charged with their blades pointed at her. Their large bodies obvious in the forest.

Eee'ak growled, noticing the fight was on the wrong side of the barrier, though stared at the two Itzu in the barrier. Still smiling his devilish smile, the Proceran let out an unearthly war cry. The veins in his neck on the verge of popping, the Proceran's rage was building up as he helplessly watched the two Itzu safely in the barrier. Letting out another outburst the Proceran darted to the side, trying to smell out any others with his blood lust.



((Are they in an opening?))

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu looked at his opponent, The man had to have been exhausted from the series of powerful spells he had already used trying to get the two alone. He watched as the man took some potions to try and force his body to be pushed to it's limit. This duel definitely meant a lot to this man, but for Kyuu it was just another unjustified duel that he had to partake in for his parents crimes. He had been forced into these a countless number of times in his life, Kyuu had to give the man a little credit tho, this man had at least waited to challenge him until he was old enough to actual defend himself; although on second thought that was probably due to him not being able to find him as a child. He waited for his opponent to make the first move.

[novapirate]

Li'san had no knowledge of what was happening outside, sound was blocked and the half-opacity made it hard to make out shapes. When he noticed that Kyuu was going to let him make the first move he studied his opponent. His stance, his facial expression, and the location of his magic channels. He paused, took a deep breath, and then started to work. His first spell was to set motes around his opponent, then he fired a single ember that triggered the first. As soon as he fired it he covered his eyes, as shortly afterwards the motes exploded with bright light, flooding the dueling ground with light so thick you could almost grab it.

[OoC: @MK: They are surrounded by magical wards that created a large rectangle for dueling. Everyone else is in a clearing. Just a question, but who's being hunted..?]

[novapirate]

[OoC; Sorry to be a pain, but I'm going to bed now. 'Night!]

[Mkishere]

[OOC; EVERYONE. They want to kill and lewt.]

[SiamJai]

Cadwalden was dreaming. He knew it was a dream, because he saw a beautiful long-haired Itzu woman smiling at him, standing in front of what he felt was their home. In her hands, a baby with glowing green eyes, opened her mouth to cry. But to his shock, the baby's face distorted and her voice sounded like a crazed warcry, a sound that could've come only from the mouth of the foulest creatures he'd ever known: demons!

With a quick jerking movement, Waldy sat up from the make-shift bed of leaves and grabbed his staff. 'What in the Mother Nature was that?' he wondered, when he heard the second warcry. The sound brought up memories of his first encounter with the Erratun demons of Defro.

A couple decades ago, a group of Traditionalists were sent to Defro to study the notorious Furor plant that these demons use to whip themselves into frenzy. They found out little about the plant, but much more about the creatures of the hostile land. Aeons of Itzu intelligence eventually prevailed over the primitive nomadic demons, but not before two of Waldy's friends fell prey to their brute attacks.

The bitter memory made Waldy cringe his teeth and he felt a rage slowly mounting in his heart. "They're not going to defile this land, not this time." he resolved, as he ran in the direction of the voice.


It didn't take him long to get to the source, but just before he got there, Waldy stopped on his track and let his practical sense take over: "What, you gonna kill all of 'em, hero? These nomads rarely travel alone. Rush in and they'll turn you into Itzu spaghetti in no time." With that, he hid in a bush instead and used his Nature summoning skill to bring forth a tiny hummingbird, the smallest energy he could afford to spend before the inevitable battle. He sent the small bird to scout ahead, and as any Nature devout would do, took control of the bird's senses.

The first thing he saw was some sort of a barrier and a group of creatures around. The bird was too high hidden in the canopy to see close details, but Waldy saw they lacked the wide chunky frame and large height of demons. "The prey, more likely... but at least the barrier will keep them safe for now" he thought. Next he directed the bird to fly around the perimeter, and sure enough, he spotted the trio of ogrish brutes on the side of the clearing.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang jumped at the war-cry. It sounded like Procerans. He immediately stealthed and started to prowl around the magic barrier to find them. Trying to remember what his tutor told him about fighting them he drew his short and long sword. At last he found one that was yelling at Ryuu and the unnamed Itzu in the barrier. He knew that he would not be able to pin a Proceran due to their size and strength. He took out one of his poisons that contains enough nerotoxin to stun a large elephant. He started to slink up behind him and was getting ready to stab him.

[Lovelight]

Lobsang jumped at the war-cry. It sounded like Procerans. He immediately stealthed and started to prowl around the magic barrier to find them. Trying to remember what his tutor told him about fighting them he drew his short and long sword. At last he found one that was yelling at Ryuu and the unnamed Itzu in the barrier. He knew that he would not be able to pin a Proceran due to their size and strength. He took out one of his poisons that contains enough nerotoxin to stun a large elephant. He started to slink up behind him and was getting ready to stab him.

((OOC: Uh.. I don't think the Procerus even did a battlecry. o_o Otherwise, pretty much everyone will know what to expect.))

[novapirate]

[OoC: It was towards the end of his post.]

Still smiling his devilish smile, the Proceran let out an unearthly war cry.

[Poohbomber]

(I would imagine that a Proceran would have a really bellowing war cry, due to the fact that they would probably have bigger lungs than humans and Itzus.)

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu watched as his opponent cast his spell, it immediately became obvious what he was going to do, after all he had experienced this tactic before, the first time did not end well as the scar on his chest could tell people .As soon as he saw his opponent cast the last part of the spell he willed his summon to block the light and charged forward slicing downward with his ninjato his opponents eyes still closed to avoid blinding himself.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang had back-stabbed the Proceran, but in a very non-lethal spot. This stab area had immediately been poisoned by the nerotoxin and should stun it for the good part of a few hours. He quickly stealthed back up and crept around the barrier again.

[novapirate]

Li'than opened his eyes to see his opponent charging at him. He cursed and pulled up a pillow of air to blunt the strike. Nevertheless, the sword still slammed into his side, knocking the breath out of him and throwing him into the ward. He slammed into the ward and let out a grunt as the electric shock flung him to the ground. His hair smoking a bit, and his armor warm, he stood up, shakily, and cursed under his breath. However, a thought passed his mind and he began weak stream of water at his opponent, conserving his small well of energy.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu moved two of his fingers and his summon once again rushed forward plowing through the small stream of water, straight at the assailant. Once the skeletal serpent neared it opened its jaws and let out a stream of sharp bony spikes at the man.

[novapirate]

"Shit!" Li'than covered his arms as the spikes bounced off his armor, each one jarring his arm. A few skimmed his head and his hands, one drawing blood as it flew past. Li'than immediately dove into a roll to get past the serpent, hoping it's momentum wouldn't allow it to turn quickly. When he came back up he pointed his staff and fired another stream of water at Kyuu.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang stopped creeping around the wall as he noticed what was going on inside. He took out his dagger and stabbed the wall. It gave him a small jolt, and a blue haze dropped at the edges of his vision as the muscles in his eyes, contracted. It didn't even last a second and he stumbled backwards and fell. "Blast, that hurt like hell," he said. He was lying because all it did was startle him.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu smirked, He loved it when people underestimated his sukeruton-hebi (Skeletal serpent) he moved his finger once more as he rolled out of the way of the water. The summon lashed out with it's tail ,intending to grab the man around his torso, as it was passing the assailant.

[Poohbomber]

As Lobsang got up, he grabbed his dagger gingerly. It gave him a small zap from residual electricity. "Even though I don't particularly like him, I wouldn't mind helping him," he said, "Bloody mage shocking me."

[novapirate]

Li'than was confused by the man's smirk. Did he know something that Li'than didn't? It dawned upon him when he heard the rush of air past his ears. As the skeletal menace lashed out at him with its tail he fired a bolt of electricity which would hopefully combine with the water the summon dove through earlier and paralyse it. However, he had failed to get out of the wave and the monster still picked him up with it's tail, minor electric shocks dancing from its body to his armor. He then unceremoniously slammed the creature on the head with his staff to get loose from its tight grasp.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu was smiling now, he won and he knew it. The sukeruton-hebi is a very powerful summon being immune to most elements Strong Fire and Earth being its main weaknesses "Give up now or I will not hesitate in killing you." He clinched his hand making the serpent squeeze tighter it's sharp bones digging into the man slightly to put more emphasis on his words

[novapirate]

"You're good. You really are." He grunted as the serpent squeezed on him. "I'm not sure if it's what they did to you, but you're a strong mage." He then shifted around in the summon's grasp, eventually getting his arm free. As soon as he did he reached up to his hat and retrieved a small leather pouch from under it. "My honor has been restored. I have attempted to correct past failures. With that matter settled, I now must move on to the real reason I'm fighting you. I'm sorry that I had to do this, but I had little choice other than this to test your strength." He opened the pouch, revealing a smooth, white stone covered with markings. He rubbed it over his hand once, then threw it on the ground. Immediately he exploded in a puff of smoke, only to reappear where the stone had fallen. After dusting himself off he looked back at Kyuu. "I need your help. My friend is a prisoner, and she is in need of saving."

[Mkishere]

((Glad you gave me a chance to respond, Pooh.))

The Proceran grinned, turning around to the pesky human that had just shoved a needle into his back. At least it seemed like a needle to the crazed Proceran. Bloodlust made him ignore the stiffness, pushing his body past the limits and resist the poison. It was spreading slowly in the Proceran's blood. After all Furor was already in it. Eating all his sanity.

The Proceran licked his lips, grimacing at the human. "Feast," He said, grabbing the human with his large hands.

"A rodent. Will do good for my first kill," Said the Proceran, his red eyes dialating.

[Poohbomber]

"Ah!" yelled Lobsang. (Sorry, but I knew that you would be able to RP it out.) His crossbow fell off it's hooks as well as all of his bolts. He took out his longsword and started slashing wildly. "Let me go, you mindless behemoth!" he yelled as he was slashing. His hood had come off as well as one of his daggers. "Good god, someone help!" He yelled in panic.

[Lovelight]

Alorae sighed, "Ugh, damnit." She muttered to herself. "The second time I didn't even get to do anything but just summon something." The spellcaster didn't dismiss the panda, for something may happen and then she had to summon it again, then stared at the stranger. "I am glad that it is going to be done with soon." Alorae said to herself, then heard a cry. It sounded like.. "Phantom?!" The woman yelled. "Where the hell are you now?!"

[Poohbomber]

"Over here!" he yelled. I wish I knew that there was a god's temple out there that I hadn't stolen something from, but I know there isn't, except maybe in the Itzu's land, he thought to himself. He had stopped attacking and was trying to free himself from the Procerans grip.

[Mkishere]

The Proceran smiled, attempting to rid of the man's longsword by bringing up his own, much larger sword and violently hit it out of his way.

The other two Procerans were just a foot away from their prey (ScrewbaII)

[Poohbomber]

(I had already dropped the sword...)
"Oh god, that is a huge sword..." he said. "Why do you even want to kill me! I only have this!" he said while reaching into his pack and tossing out the small fortune he had stolen only a few days ago. "You can take it if you want just don't kill me!" he said as he started to cower.

[novapirate]

[OoC: I can't post until Kyuu does, so I'm just chilling out inside the barrier.]

[Mkishere]

The Proceran grins, taking the thing the human had tossed and sticking it into his pocket. If he wasn't on Furor at the moment he'd probably had considered letting the human stay alive, though at the moment he was charged by his blood lust. He needed to see something ripped to shreds. If not this human, he needed something else.

"Are there others? Where is your home." The Proceran asks, grinning. He brings his sword up the man's neck, as a tiny dribble of blood flows down it.

[Poohbomber]

"Over there!" he pointed. He felt the sword cut his throat and fainted.

[screwbaII]

Spotting the two raging proceron coming straight for her, Artemis did the one things she could do - run. Having run the forests for most of her life, Artemis was very swift and she quickly pulled away from the charging behemoths. Artemis tried to lose them in the forest to attempt to get a good position to snipe at them. Otherwise she would just have to fight on the run - which meant less accurate arrows. Something she felt she would probably not be able to afford. If she had've just been alone she could have easily outrun them and lost them in the forest, but she felt that Alorae would need her help, especially since Kyuu was being needlessly distracted.

[Mkishere]

The two Procerans growled, they were not used to the forested lands of this island. In Defro they were given the plain fields of snow to work with. Angrily, one kicked down a tree, the fragile base cracking as the tree was rudely shoved into others forming a line of toppling trees.

Eee'ak smiled, and threw the limp body at the barrier letting a shock go through it. It was enough to please his blood lust for now. He darted off, smelling another young human. Perhaps stronger.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu looked at the man coldly and left him there, he could care less about the magi's problems. The fact was the man had not only attacked him and spouted out bigotry about his past, he had also attacked his loved ones. That was an act that Kyuu deemed unforgivable. Soon after the fight ended the barrier dissolved revealing the camp now turned battlefield. He took in his surroundings quickly and saw two Procerans chase Artimus into the forest, they were definitely on a rage drug. He willed his summon toward the one that knocked down the tree and jumped at the other with a wind charged ninjato intent on cutting it down.

[novapirate]

Li'than sighed. Failure. He had come so far. At least he would allow them to deal with the Proceran threat by themselves. He called over his pig and snuck away as the chaos continued to rage onwards.

[screwbaII]

Artemis saw that Kyuu was now in the fight, and whipped around, jumping up into a nearby tree and beginning to position herself for sniping, seeing as the two procerons were now distracted enough to hopefully not see her.

Her pet bird swooped down at the largest to distract it from Alorae, nimbly dodging the procerons attempts to shoo it out of his face, and buying Alorae a bit of time to ready herself.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang was twitching slightly from the shock. He was still alive. The shock woke him up. He patted himself down and sighed. He scrambled back over to his bolts and weapons and quickly rearmed himself. He also dusted himself off and looked over at what was going on. He shrugged and walked away, limping slightly and holding one arm.

[Lovelight]

Alorae stared at Artemis. "Eh? What was that bird for?" She asked. "Scouting around, I assume?" The spellcaster guessed. "Well, I don't think that's a good time." Spellsong suggested.

[Mkishere]

The Proceran smiled at Kyuu, "The strong ones are out now."

Eee'ak darted at Kyuu's summon, quickly reaching out and grabbing it in his hands, even though his hand bled he ignored the pain, grabbing another side, he smiled at Kyuu and made a snapping notion with his hands, meant to break off the summon's head. A spiked piece of the bone had gone through his palm though on Furor it didn't make a dent in his bloodlust.

The other Procerans searched the trees, one darted away and charged at Alorae, his sword posed to strike her.

One spotted Artemis high in the trees, grinning he began to slash at the branches she was on as an attempt to get her to fall.

The Itzu were almost there, hoping the fight had not ended yet. They also didn't want them killing everyone as information was part of their mission. Though he already knew the crazed demons couldn't control themselves. He wasn't worried about the demons, he was worried about their enemies.

[Poohbomber]

As Lobsang was limping away he heard a commotion in the bushes, he wasn't being too quiet and he noticed that it was too close to be able to make a quiet retreat. He turned around and tripped over another rock, "Just my bloody luck," he said as he stumbled through some dry bushes.

[Lovelight]

Alorae spotted the Proceres, then gasped. As the large man charged at her, the spellcaster shut her eyes.

The panda darted in front of the spellcaster, then the panda's lantern morphed into a bamboo-crafted broom. Quickly, he pulled off the part of the bamboo, revealing a sharp sword that had runes carved into the sword. Then, readied a samurai stance, hat tipped down.

[Mkishere]

The Proceran smiled, "MONEY!" It shouted, throwing a knife at the panda before even coming into hand to hand combat distance. Since the Proceran was in the clearing, he jumped up into the air past the panda to try and surprise the spell caster, bringing his sword down on her.

[KyuubisSlave]

"Shit" Kyuu growled looking at the behemoth crushing his summon, It would take hours to prepare another sukeruton-hebi. "Fine then have it your way" he dove behind a rock and snapped his finger, his summon exploded sending large pieces of razor sharp bone in every direction

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang crashed through another bush. (The commotion is your Itzu Mk.) And finally fell.

[Lovelight]

"Bandits? Seriously?" Alorae assumed from hearing the word "money" and frowned. Spellsong had to act quick, and fast as the proceran was about to bring a large sword onto her face. She then leaped back, surprised. The panda took off his straw hat and used it as a shield to block the dagger, being pushed back just a bit, then the beastly panda threw his hat at the proceran-- as if it was a guillotine.

[Mkishere]

The Proceran just barely avoided the explosion, jumping back the shards found their place in Eee'ak's shoulder. The crazed Proceran didn't even notice. He grinned, walking over the Kyuu's rock and looming over it.

"How rich is this one?" He asked, almost as if he were talking to himself. Though he was directing the question to Kyuu.

The Itzus had just entered the clearing, taking in the situation. No dead bodies, yet. They spotted Kyuu hiding behind a rock, the closest to them.

"Eee'ak! Remember. Leave on alive!" The Itzu shouted, pulling out his bow. The others followed.

By now the humans already realized by the time they reached the spot the fight would be over, they had also lost track of where they were heading. By now they had given up and decided to head back to shore where the regroup point was.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu glanced around and noticed more pirates had joined in. "Just great!" he hissed, He then rushed from behind the rock pulling out his ninjato, he drug it on the ground charging it with wind magic , he flicked the sword up causing dirt to fly toward the Procarian's eyes and jumped bringing the sword down Intent on cutting the large man in two.

[Mkishere]

The Proceran charged forward, unintentionally avoiding the strike. The Itzu groaned, and pointed the bow at Kyuu. The other two had done the same, one even found himself behind Kyuu.

"I think we'll keep this one alive," The Itzu said, "Make another move and we won't hesitate to shoot."

"He looks familiar," Another Itzu says, "I just know he's some sort of criminal."

The Proceran turns around, enraged.

"Eee'ak! Lay off this one, you can find another prey," The lead Itzu said.

"You're not my captain," He growled, though knew better. Even in Furor, he darted off to find another.

The Proceran turned, ducking and dodging the hat, allowing it to head towards Alorae.

[Poohbomber]

As the group passed by him he took a sigh of relief. How he wasn't heard, he would never know, but he got up and started to limp away again.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu growled seeing he had no choice but to run, He did a small earth spell to sink below the ground and regroup with the others, Hoping they would be able to flee aswell.

[Lovelight]

"Fine, we'll just have to do this then." Alorae ducked as the guillotine whizzed past her head then returned to the panda. The annoyed spellcaster then returned to her standing stance and made a gun sign with her hand, and pointed it at the proceran. Then, the 'handgun' shot out a beam of flame, as the panda climbed and clung onto a tree to dodge the flame.

[screwbaII]

"Shit" said Artemis as one of the Procerans found her in the tree and started shaking it around. Luckily she was out of reach of it. Trying to hold her balance and steady her bow for a shot at the Proceran was a difficult process even for her. Closing her eyes for a moment she attuned to her centre of balance and the rhythm of the rocking tree.

At that moment her bird came back to her and dived at her assailant. "N-no Feathers, don't!" she cried but it was in vain as a relatively large snapped branch hit her bird, knocking it to the ground, but luckily not landing on top of it. In anger she quickly sent arrows flying at the Proceran as many as she could get out, not really knowing where they were landing.

At the edge of her mind she noticed other Itzu flocking into the clearing.

(btw Love the bird was there distracting your attacker slightly XD)

[SiamJai]

Cadwalden was stunned by the series of events quickly unfolding before him, as seen through the hummingbird's eyes.

The bird, hovering still high in the canopy spotted a wildly shaking tree with someone on it at about the same height. Though meaningless to the bird, Waldy recognized her as a female Itzu. "A Fletcher!" he thought "and in big trouble" he added when he saw the demon beneath.

Waldy let the hummingbird go on its own, and from his safe cover outside the clearing, he brought up a bit more powerful summon - one that he learnt in the far eastern plains of Urun. The local magi called it "Hive Mind", and he found this Nature summon to be quite effective against blood-crazed Defro brutes in the past.

A swarm of fist-sized hornets (ooc: Vespa mandarinia) appeared from seemingly nowhere and flew on a straight course towards the creature shaking the tree. They did not have a mind of their own; rather, Waldy became their 'hive mind', making them disregard danger and attack their target with a ferocity matching that of the brutes. He sent the swarm of deadly insects towards the demon's ugly head, intent on covering it like a helmet from hell. "Let's see what you'll do without eyes" he thought with a bitter glee.

Waldy has long learned to fear these creatures in the wild. As he learned, their venom contains enzymes so strong, it dissolves flesh in a large dose, and a single sting itself feels like 'a hot nail driven through my leg', according to one unfortunate eastern plainsman who got stung by one of these, and miraculously survived.

[Mkishere]

The Proceran was quickly overcame by the insects, clawing at its eyes it fell hopelessly to the ground, just as the effects of the Furor were wearing off. It began to plead, its own conscience back. No longer crazed, the Proceran began to feel all the pain that had subdued. And these insects were foreign to him.

An Itzu took notice, quickly taking action. Opening his palm, he let a burst of fire incinerate the insects, but he was too late.

The Proceran laid their, his eyes no longer there. His whole face covered in ashes. The Itzu shook his head, "What the hell was that?" He asked himself, looking onwards to the Proceran fighting another Human. He had not noticed Artemis and took no notice of her high in the trees, though the whole group was now alert.

The Proceran flipped back, and skidded to his left dodging the beam. All focus was on Alorae who had not taken action of running like the others.

"She's our only possible captive," An Itzu muttered, all three raising their bows at her. Eee'ak rushing at her with a longsword, holding it to her neck.

"You're not getting away like the others," He growled.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang heard buzzing but he paid it no heed. He was limping along until he couldn't bear the pain anymore. He took off his leather chest armor and poked around. He winced as he touched one of his ribs. A broken rib, great, I guess it was luck that it didn't puncture my lung, he though. He then looked at his leg. He saw that the area that had been held onto by the Proceran was black and blue, A bruised ankle as well, what else could go wrong, he thought as well. Then he looked at his arm and saw it was only bruised, but then he felt his neck. A trickle of blood was still present. He took a bandage from his pack and covered it. Why did the poison not work? He thought. Then he remembered that some of the more potent poisons would evaporate into harmlessness. He noticed that the stun poison at least slowed the Proceran. He took out on of his deadly poisons and dabbed his dagger into it. He found a nearby rabbit and stabbed it. The rabbit died instantly. At least I know that they still have some potency, he thought.

[screwbaII]

What was THAT? wondered Artemis looking around. She didn't understand what just happened, a swarm of bees... no wasps... just came out of nowhere and attacked the Proceran. She looked at her fallen friend on the ground. feathers was trying to get up but it's wing was broken.... again, she thought. But she knew he would be fine for the moment, but right now Alorae was in trouble. She could see the group through the trees advancing on her.

Knowing she would probably be seen herself she couldn't just let Alorae be taken as a prisoner. Steadying herself she aimed up one of her remaining arrows and struck one of the Itzu fletchers straight in the back of the neck. If he even survived it he would be paralyzed for life as it severed most of his spinal cord.

[Mkishere]

The other two Itzus turned, A fletcher raised his bow and shot at where the arrow came from, "You killed my brother!" He exclaimed. Feeling a rush of unfairness as they had tried their best not to kill one of them and they take his brother's life. He glances down at his brother, face down on the ground with an arrow at his back.

The other Itzu cracks his neck, then chucks a knife at the bark of the tree.

"The hell was that for?" The fletcher asks. The other Itzu holds up a finger, as if tellinh him to wait. The dagger ignites in a huge flame, engulfing the tree in fire.

The Proceran is still holding the sword at Alorae's neck. Though this is a perfect opportunity to run.

[screwbaII]

Artemis felt a pang of guilt, but unfortunately she knew there could be no other way. The arrow missed her quite safely however, as she was readying her bow again to take down another the tree erupted into flames. Surprised she quickly looked for a way to get down and escape it.

There! A branch not yet engulfed in flames. Trying not to cough she climbed toward it and grabbed it, looking down she knew she would simply have to drop to the ground or be burned alive.

She closed her eyes and dropped.

[Lovelight]

"Without your fellow elven, I'm afraid the tables might turn, fool." Alorae snapped her fingers, and a crimson flame formed onto her palm. "I am sorry about your fate, but your soul deserves to fade." She then attempted slammed her lit palm onto his stomach.

[SiamJai]

Waldy grinned as he saw the effects of his hornets on the demon, but that grin turned into shock as he felt a sudden searing pain in his mind. "Fire!" He quickly released the hornets from his control and let them to their doom. He rubbed his head, though the damage was only imagined. "Magi with the demons? What could bring forth such an unusual alliance?" he wondered.

But his thoughts were disrupted when he saw a tree caught ablaze somewhere inside the opening, about the same direction he sent the hornets earlier. He didn't have to figure who the target was. "The girl, darnit!" He had neither the time nor the energy to prepare anything fancy. Hastily he brought forth the first simple supportive spell he could think of, which happened to be 'Farmer's Harvest'. He sent towards the direction he thought the tree is. Wherever the spell lands, it'll turn a small area into a wheat field. "If the woman is still alive, at least she won't be smashed to bits if she falls" he hoped.

With all his 'remote eyes' gone, he could only hope the spell will land in the right place.

[screwbaII]

Expecting to fall onto the hard ground Artemis was surprised to land in a small area of wheat. Now completely confused about what was going on and where the wheat came from that softened her fall. Standing up her legs felt extremely weak and her left ankle was sprained. She grimaced but quickly picked up her bird, Feathers, and limped away from the burning tree.

What the hell is going on? Who is helping me? she wondered, holding her bird protectively and looking about. Through the trees she could see the confusion she had caused, and Alorae about to strike the large Proceran holding her. At least she should be able to handle it from here, Artemis thought, I'm not sure if I can afford to do anthing more now I can't really run at the moment. Because of the pain shooting up her leg from her ankle she knelt down behind a tree so she could see still and help if really necessary, but not be seen herself. Besides they would believe they had gotten rid of her so if needed she could surprise them again.

She continued looking around trying to spot who was helping her out.

[SiamJai]

Waldy cursed himself for the foolish action. "Wheatfield in a tropical rainforest, now that's smart! How about a polar bear next time, if we're at it, doofus!" But deeper inside he knew he had little choice.

Mentally exhausted and his cover blown, he knew it was time to leave. But something held him back. "If I put so much energy into saving that Fletcher, I might as well see to it that the effort was not wasted" he tried to convince his practical side.

And so with some trepidation, he left his cover and moved cautiously towards the burning tree to investigate.

[Mkishere]

The Proceran jumped back. Grinning, "You're not very bright are you?" The other Proceran came out from the trees behind her and grabbed her, holding a sword to her neck.

Eee'ak fell to his knees, the Furor wearing off and his hands searing in pain. He let out a scream into the skies.

The fletcher kept searching the trees, waiting to hear a scream and a burning body fall to the ground but none came, "Where'd she go?!" He shouted, the whole side of the forest on fire, preventing him from chasing.

The magi turned, looking at the girl.

"You should've ran when you had the chance. Your friend made you a good distraction. Too bad you put it to waste and tried to kill another one of ours," He said, enjoying this. At least they hadn't failed in an informat. Not a voluntary one of course.

The Magi pulled out a rope, and tossed it to Eee'ak, gripping the rope he winced.

"You do it. Look at my damn hands!" He shouted, throwing it back at the Itzu. The Itzu growled, starting to tie up Alorae's hands while the Proceran still held her in a lock.

"Make a move and I'll slit your throat," The Proceran said, whispering into her ear.

"No no... it's much nicer to say don't make a move and you won't die," The Itzu said, finalizing the knot.

[screwbaII]

Artemis watched helplessly. She considered firing another arrow, but there was another Itzu scouring the edges for her, and it would be far too dangerous to give away her position now. She would have to wait until the pirates left. They wouldn't kill Alorae... yet. She had no idea where Kyuu was either, he seemed to have disappeared. As did the others...

She looked back over at the burning part of the forest where she had just come from and saw another person skulking around. He looked different to the others though, maybe that is who was helping me before? she wondered. Not wanting to risk it though, she kept quiet and low, waiting for the pirates to leave.

[Lovelight]

"Well well, the females always have to be held hostage, do they." Alorae sighed. "Very well, then. Do you want information out of me? Want to rob me? Or even worse.." She quietly muttered some words to herself. "Anyway, if you want something out of me, you might as well tell me now.." Her eyes slowly dimmed.

[Mkishere]

"Oh we can't discuss that here. These forests are dangerous," The Itzu said, nodding at the Proceran. The Proceran nudged her forward, holding his knife to her back. The Fletcher walked forward, reluctantly. He had hoped his brother's murderer had died in the fire though he'd never know. They traveled towards the coast, the magi walking along side the girl and the fletcher behind them, poised to lodge an arrow in her back.

"We'll be letting you go via dumping you in the water though, as we can't release you and allow you to strike back right away. After all we can't just take away your weapon since we've seen what you can do. The best we can do is keep your hands tied together and keep you at blade-point," The Itzu explained, as if the justification would sound reasonable.

[Lovelight]

People think everything is dangerous. Hmph.

Alorae walked forward, following the pirates. "Look, can you people just lower your weapons? I'm already tied up here." As the woman was a bit frightened, she also added in: "It scares me." Spellsong had to admit.

----------

The panda, spotting the archer that helped Alorae leaped tree to tree. As it was behind Artemis, it tapped on her shoulder with a finger to catch her attention, but hoping she does not mistake it as a bandit and shoot him.

[SiamJai]

Waldy saw the fire rapidly spreading out between him and the unknown attackers. That gave him a bit of confidence, now openly searching the area near the burnt tree.

He went as close as he could, but didn't see the body of the Itzu. What he did see is some footprints in the ashes where the fire already burnt itself out. 'So she left, after all' he smiled. He noticed from the unusual marks that she was limping. "Injured like that, she won't get far" he sighed. He discerned the direction of the footprints, left the burned area and continued the search that way.

[Mkishere]

"No," The Proceran said, bluntly. Eee'ak stumbled behind, his hands bleeding gruesomely. He painfully ripped off a piece of his shirt and wrapped it around his more damaged left hand.

They reached the coast, spotting the six humans. Jone did a count, two were missing. A decent number, seems the inhabitants put up quite a fight. He instantly eyed the girl, another human. It was a pity she was so young. God knows why it was her that was brought back.

The Proceran shoved Alorae into a small boat, and Jone stepped into the front, taking the oars. Eee'ak took the other rowing boat. And the rest took the other three. Without a word they began to row, the Itzus at the back because they've ranged weaponry and skills. Eee'ak closed his eyes, resting on the side of the ship. The other two humans, annoyed had to tilt to the opposite side to keep the ship from tilting.

[Lovelight]

Where the hell are men's manners these days?

"Well then, now can you explain what you want from me?" Alorae asked, in a bitter tone. She was annoyed by such pirates, but she was more worried about something else. If she was to be pushed down to the murky ocean, she would have to visit a nearby library to get her tome. Spellsong then stared at her ingredients pouch.

Well goddamn. Lord Pium, please bless me with luck.

[Mkishere]

"Thats for the captain to ask," The Itzu explained, as the ship grew closer to the large and looming pirate ship. Its black sails waving in the wind. They docked their ships to the side, and ropes were dropped for them to climb.

"We're pirates, not bandits. Get it right miss," The Proceran said, climbing up.

Eee'ak painfully climbed, as the ropes caused his hands to bleed faster. The others made their ways up. The pirates looked down at Alorae, with her hands tied. She was the only one left.

A pirate jumped down, wrapping a rope around the ship, he gave a thumbs up to those up top as a Proceran pulled the ship up with Alorae in it. The ship toppled over, as the human jumped off.

Dozens of crew members stood on the deck, commenting at the human girl, letting out whistles and cat calls. The crowd moved, allowing a tall Proceran through adorned in a black pirate's hat. A red feather poked out from behind, his black suit matching his hat. Red buttons adorned his jacket and his boots pattered on the wooden deck.

The captain's red eyes glowed, as he saw the girl, "Hello," He said, with a smirk. His sharp teeth glinted eerily in the sun's rays.

[Lovelight]

Okay don't panic don't panic don't panic don't panic we all know that Proceran hate humans so don't say the wrong crap. Alorae repeated in her head.

"Who are you and what do demand for?!" She snarled, and covered her mouth in surprise.

...Damnit.

"Okay, what do you want from me, you pirates." Spellsong reworded her sentence, as she didn't want to be stabbed and shot by a crew filled with perverted men. "I do not wish for such.. weapons to surround me for a while." The woman sighed, but she knew she had to deal with it.

[Mkishere]

The captain grinned, stepping up to her her paused, then raised his leg and kicked her in the face, "One thing I'd like to say right off the bat is I don't treat men and women differently. Another thing is that I'll be asking the questions. You're my prisoner, after all." He said, looking down at her.

The crew men stayed silent, and dispersed knowing it'd be a bad choice to stay around with the captain like this. He'd already been set off.

[Lovelight]

Okay, does this guy know the difference of a man and a woman looks like?

Alorae groaned in pain. She decided not to speak or ask anything else, as it will probably lead to her death. Spellsong decided it would probably be a good idea to speak all of her thoughts in her mind.

Of course, all captains act oh-so-mighty. Pium, please deliver safety. Quickly. God, what a disgusting captain.

[Mkishere]

The Proceran crouched in front of her, grabbing her by the collar and pulling her back up.

"Now, tell me who lives on that island," He said, staring into her eyes, his own burning into her's.

In the distance Eee'ak was tending to his hands, "Why the hell did I even grab that bony snake?" He said, always regretting things once the Furor wore off.

Jone went to his own cabin to pray, for all the sins that may have been committed by him and his crew that day. The Itzus however, watched Alorae from a distance. The Fletcher almost enjoying it after what happened to his brother. She was one of them, after all.

[Lovelight]

"My crew." Alorae replied. "Of course, I have to specify them. The person that apparently ruined one of your mate's hands is named Kyuu, an arcane magi, the Itzu that sniped one of your fletchers is named Artemis." She continued on with the list of members.

"Oh yes, and one that tried to backstab one of your race is I forgot his name, but he's not related to our crew, more like.. a lone wolf." Spellsong finished her list. (Don't worry Siam, I still remember Waldy.) "That's pretty much the people I know." She prayed that the woman would get safety, but everyone knows that the damsel in distress gets somehow influenced in pirates and becomes a pirate.

God, when will rescue come yet?! Those people are damn slow.

[KyuubisSlave]

"Shit!" Kyuu growled looking through a telescope at the pirate ship. He was pissed, hell he was beyond pissed! Why hadn't she run. He stopped looking through the scope and readied the life boat from his small vessel, it was small only designed for two people but it was streamline and fast if it had a capable padler. After he got it in the water he quickly grabbed two ores and set out for the ship, using a small water spell to make his rowing more efficient.

[Mkishere]

The captain smiled, "I haven't had someone as smart as you for a while. You know, the last one had to have five whole fingers pried off before he started to answer!" The captain said, with a cheery laugh. He dragged Alorae to the mast and propped her against it, as to allow her to rest.

"Now, that's not specifically what I'm looking for. How about locations? And what riches do your friends have? I do need to get some money back to my friend Salden after all. I'm in debt," The captain said, holding a gold coin out in front of her. It had the mark of a skull on it, quite different from a human coin.

"See this? Its what we use. Yees, our Pirates can produce coins as well. We get them branded at that factory we raided a while back. Raises their price quite a bit considering it means they're genuine. These aren't anyone's currency, though anyone will buy them. They're pure gold after all and can be smelted," The captain said, slipping it into Alorae's pocket.

"A tip," He explained.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu saw that the ship was quickly pulling ahead but he didn't give up. He continued rowing after the larger ship. no real thought behind his actions, all that was important was getting Alorae back safely. And then beating her with a rock for not running. Yea that sounded about right.

[Lovelight]

Well, this is unexpected. Wow.

Alorae made a disturbed face and felt pity for the previous hostage. "Location and riches.." She thought to herself. "I honestly forgot the homeland, sadly." The woman sighed, as she was going to brace herself for a boot in the face. "And.. we just started living on that island a few days ago, so we didn't really get any time to get ores and minerals." Spellsong admitted.

[screwbaII]

As the Pirates left with Alorae, Artemis felt saddened. She felt she had failed her as a friend. She should have just fired another shot, given her another chance to run. And where was Kyuu? She had no idea where he had gone either. Something tapped her on the shoulder. Freaking out she swung around and saw the panda standing behind her. She took a deep breath calming herself, but was at that moment also alerted to the sound of crunching leaves. Comeing closer.

The guy from earlier she had seen briefly. Looking closer at him he seemed not to be a pirate. Regardless he was getting very close. She put Feathers on her head and stood up wincing in pain from her sprained ankle and quickly drawing her bow and an arrow. Her movement would have attracted the strangers attention no doubt, so she said "Who are you, and what are your intentions"

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang started back to where the battle was. He was visibly in pain now and he was taking care not to jar his chest area at all so that his broken rib didn't shift and do something unpleasant. When he got there he noticed that one side of the forest was on fire. "What the..." he said.

[novapirate]

Li'than watched the ship sail away in silence. He had seen that happen before. But it was a different ship. A different friend. If the magus could be considered anything near a friend. He shivered at the thought of what was going on onboard the ship. Pirate were reliably unreliable with how they treated their prisoners. Some were flogged and starved to a near-death state, and some ate at with the captain. He sighed. All he could think of was the failure. He had failed to accomplish one of the only reasons he actually came to these islands. Now he had been in the middle of a pirate invasion and seen someone else suffer the fate Summer had. He would not let this happen. Not again. The magus didn't deserve this.

Li'than left to prepare. He would stop this menace if it killed him. But first, he needed a boat.

[Mkishere]

((She's a magi xD))

The captain sighed, "So no riches on the island you say?" He grins.

"Alright then. What do you have?" He said, kneeling once more in front of her.

"Perhaps something of magic value? That I could sell to an Itzu. Or maybe your body. Considering I need to have SOMETHING. These islands are as poor as those of Seras! I'd rather be raiding the coasts of Urun than this stinking place," The captain said, angry that she was actually telling the truth about there being no riches.

[novapirate]

[OoC: Aggh, got Love's charrie and Screw's charrie confused again.]

[Lovelight]

"I'm afraid you're asking the wrong person." Alorae replied. "My crew leader may have something that is valuable." The spellcaster stated. "Since he is an arcane magi, you may as well ask him, as he is probably rowing his ass here.." She also added, "Also.. why do you have to pay something off for your friend? Is this Salden a pirate, too?" Spellsong asked, curiously.

[Mkishere]

"I do the asking here," The Captain said, raising a boot to her face.

"Captain! Theres some idiot chasing after us in a rowboat," An Itzu said, running onto the deck with a bow and arrow in hand.

The captain turned, his boot still above Alorae's face, "Then shoot him! He won't catch up anyway." The captain turned, and pulled a lever. The wooden lever ticked, as a plank fell from above in a wooden box. The captain picked it up, and bolted it to the side of the ship so it was dangling off the side.

"One last question," The Pirate said, "You didn't answer me correctly. I don't give a crap about your home land. Where are you and your crew staying now? The springs? The forest?" He asked.

[Poohbomber]

After a few moments of silence for the forest, Lobsang noticed a trail, it looks like a group of people were dragging a prisoner. He followed the trail for a while and it lead to the coast. When he got there, Lobsang noticed the mage that had set up the barrier. "Hey you!" he yelled, trying to get the mage's attention. He started limping in that direction without even waiting for a reply.

[novapirate]

Li'than turned around. The rogue who had attacked him earlier was limping towards him, obviously receiving the business end of one of the Proceran's swords. Altogether he looked battered. His neck had a healthy slice through it, and he was obviously moving to avoid trauma in his chest area. The Itzu mage sighed and raised his staff, although not for a battle spell. The orb at the end glowed, and an ethereal light flowed towards the beaten human. It was a basic healing spell that only could heal bruises and cuts. However, the actual main portion consisted of soothing portions to calm the receiver, and painkillers to stop the pain. The bruises he had would go away a lot faster, and the cuts would stop bleeding in a few minutes or so, but broken bones had to be attended by a true cleric. Li'than took a deep breath and looked at the ground, not checking to see if the rogue moved out of the way of the spell. "I'll help you save the magus, if that's what you want," he muttered, drained of angry energy towards his previous attacker. Healing took a lot out of him; the holy arts were never his strong point.

[Poohbomber]

"What magus?" Lobsang asked. Then he remembered Kyuu and said, "Are you talking about Kyuu? I hardly know the guy, only reason why I had to stay with him was because I was caught stealing from them shortly after they landed." He was a bit shaken from the healing. He said, "Also, thanks for the heal."

[novapirate]

"Not the old guy. The girl. The mage girl that didn't seem to like either of us too much. Were you not there? The pirates.." he paused, and then continued in an emotionless voice. "They dragged her off. Took her to their boat and left." He nodded at the gratitude for his healing.

[Poohbomber]

"Did they?" Lobsang said, "Huh. Don't know if I can be much help with my rib," he finished.

[novapirate]

"Well we couldn't do very much even if you didn't have a broken rib. We don't have any kind of boat to track them down with, and I don't think anyone here knows how to build one anyway. We might as well wait and see if they're going to come back. Because everyone knows how pirates just love getting a ton of booty. And I'm not talking about the kind you find in chests." Li'than chuckled at his incredibly awkward joke.

[Poohbomber]

As the mage said this, Lobsang remembered that they do have a boat. "Er, I do actually have a boat, but it's just a life raft stolen from a boat that was heading to this island," he said while looking down and scribbling in the sand with his foot. He looked back up quickly and said, "Although I have no doubt that it will not be able to get us there, so you should just ignore what I said." He then realized that he did not know this Itzu''s name. He asked, "What is your name? Mine is Lobsang Ludd."

[Lovelight]

Next thing I'm gonna say, I'm gonna get a boot to the face. Why didn't they just scout the island earlier? And now, I have to get off the ship. I wish I could at least set a spark on the ship, but my tome would be soaked up.

"The others stay at a camp, somewhere along the coast." Alorae replied. "Useless bait, aren't I, eh?" Spellsong asked. "Anyway, you might want to be careful with your opponent. It could be him, for all we know." She said. "But, what are the chances."

---------------------

The panda didn't speak a word, but then pointed at the pirate's ship that was swimming away from the island. He then made a begging sign, as if it were trying to say, "Help her." The panda then leaped tree to tree, and wasn't seen or any sign of it. (Basically, I dismissed it.)

[novapirate]

"Well, at least we have a boat. It's a lot better than not having a boat and not being able to use it. It'll probably be a while before they come back, so you'll be rested by then. We'll be ready for them. Trust me." He looked at the human's scribbling with amusement. However, as soon as the human mentioned his name he looked up, slightly shocked. He had forgotten to introduce himself properly, now that he thought about it.. "I'm Li'than. No last name. Nice to meet you, Master Ludd." He chuckled at referring to the rogue with such a title.

[Poohbomber]

"Nice to meet you Li'than," he said. Then he noticed the title he gave Lobsang, "Oh no, I'm not a master of anything. So I don't need that title," he said quickly. He then went over to a nearby stone and slowly sat down. He took out his dagger that he had poisoned and took out a cloth. He wiped the dagger down and re-sheathed it.

[Mkishere]

The Pirate dragged her to the edge of the plank, and turned her around. Pulling out a sword he swiftly cut the ties on her hands and kicked her overboard without a word. The ship sailed on leaving her behind in the waters, for the ship chasing them to find.

"Tch," The captain walked away, "Another island it is."

[Lovelight]

As Alorae splashed into the sea, she quickly swam up and took a deep breath. "So much for my tome and ingredients." She sighed, then saw a boat-- a canoe, to be specific. Her leader was on it, spinning the rows like mad. "Hah, so heroic. But there is no hero in this story, sadly." Spellsong stared at the ship sailing.

I'll get you.

[SiamJai]

Waldy was still busy searching the ground for tracks when he heard the trembling female voice. He looked up with surprise, and saw the Fletcher pointing an arrow at him. Yet the sight was far from frightening. Her cute face and very long hair were covered with soot, and her expression was a mixture of pain and guilt. With the little bird in her hair, she reminded Waldy of a storm-beaten young willow tree.

The sight made him feel very protective of her - a feeling he didn't have for a long time.

"I came to finish what I've started" he started in an even tone, but recognized the ambiguous meaning and corrected himself quickly. "I mean no harm" said with a smile and lifted his empty hands. "My name is Cadwalden - Waldy to my friends - and was just looking for you to see if you've landed safely. You see, that spell was thrown together rather hastily" he added with a shy smile.

"I see you're still hurt. I'm not much of a healer, but I have some herbs here that will sooth your pain and cleanse your wounds. Please let me help." With that, he slowly approached the girl, smiling and keeping his eyes on hers.

[screwbaII]

She looked sideways at the panda as it pointed at the ship, but kept her main focus still on the man. Yes I know, Alorae was taken... I hope she is ok... I hope she can be rescued... she thought as the panda seemed to disappear.

After the panda disappeared she listened to the man's.. or 'Waldy's' explanation. Seeing that he was probably no threat she lowered her bow. He clearly wasn't ever threatened by her anyway, and it probably had something to do with how she was currently presented. Sooty and favouring one leg. What a great way to look offensive - dirty and wounded she mused.

As she lowered her bow she introduced herself as well, "My name is Artemis". She figured he was probably also the person who had been helping her, and if so she guessed he would be a magi of some sort, possibly to do with nature or earth. She also felt a little riled up after the fighting, and being the type that liked her own space, the thought of having a strange man touch her, let alone a stranger, or just anyone in general, made her cringe on the inside when he offered help.

Keeping those thoughts to herself however, and a neutral looking face now she had settled down a bit and could keep herself more under control, she continued, "and I only have a sprained ankle, it is nothing to worry about." She could handle mending Feathers as well, afterall she had done it before. Not wanting to sound ungrateful though she added, "but thankyou for helping me earlier, I probably would have come off a lot worse if not for your help". She bowed her head slightly in respect to the magi, recognising his status, just as she had done with Kyuu.

[novapirate]

[OoC: Sorry for the slow post.]

Li'than raised an eyebrow at the poisoned dagger. He had an immense disliking for poison; it had a habit of turning on whomever was using it.
"Poison, eh? What kind of trouble were you expecting when you came to the islands? Once you've stabbed someone, chances are they aren't going to live long, poison or no. You seem to be the only person who came prepared for anything like a pirate raid."

[Poohbomber]

"I always carry my tools of trade," said Lobsang. He got up. "And even though I was prepared for the pirate attack, the poison had little to no effect on the pirate I had stabbed," he looked at the ship fading into the horizon. "And most of my more lethal poisons are unstable and will... evaporate into harmlessness. And when that happens my lethal poisons will only give the victim a bad case of nausea, that is, if I'm lucky." As he looked out to sea, he noticed that a figure fell off the ship. "What do you think they'll do to her? Make her walk the plank?" he asked as slight fear welled up in him.

[KyuubisSlave]

Kyuu, stared at the soaked Alorae for what seamed like a long time. "I......I'm sorry" he bowed tears in his eyes. "I should have stayed, I ... I should have been there sooner to save you." he stopped remaining quite; waiting for an answer.

[Poohbomber]

"I think they threw her overboard," said Lobsang. He ran to the coast. "I hope Kyuu notices that she was thrown overboard," he said hurriedly. I wish I had some sort of boat with me, but alas, I do not, he thought to himself.

[Lovelight]

Alorae swam up to the boat. "It's fine, sir Kyuu." She climbed up to the canoe, twisting part of her clothes. "I have to be honest, I don't think you would've been able to survive if you even tried to save me." Spellsong chuckled. "You see, the pirates are a mixed group." The woman explained. "Large, strong, procerans... Witty, intelligent Itzu's, and finally, just humans." She stated.

[SiamJai]

Waldy noted the Fletcher's polite gesture and bowed slightly in return. He understood her refusal, as he'd have probably done the same.

"Well met, Artemis." he said with a smile. Looking around slowly, he continued: "It seems like the attackers have left. I guess we could stick together for a while and try to find the rest of your group. What say you? Any ideas where they could be?"

[screwbaII]

"This is our camp, so I suppose if they are going to come and try and find me they would search here first" she replied, "as I have no idea where they are now."

She slung her bow onto her back, noting that the fire had burned out some of the surrounding bush. Having wasted so many arrows in blind rage meant that most of them had also perished in the fire. I will have to make some more she thought hoping all her gear was still in the camp and wasn't taken by the pirates.

[SiamJai]

"Well, that'll spare us from some legwork then." he answered. "Do you mind if I stay around for a little while? My mind is somewhat exhausted, needs a bit of rest. I won't be in your way, I promise" he added with a mischievous grin.

[screwbaII]

"I do not see why not" she smiled back, "afterall, I believe I could use some company while I wait for Kyuu to return." I wonder if we will ever see Alorae again? Artemis thought, wondering yet again where Kyuu was. She hoped that someone would return to their camp as she had no idea where they would head to otherwise.

She started heading cautiously through the trees toward the camp, looking back at Waldy, "come on then" she said and continued through the trees and then into their camp. She looked around, taking note that nobody was waiting in their camp and she took a seat near her gear, which had not been stolen as it was obviously of no worth.

The first thing she would need to do is fix up Feathers, and then she would need to make more arrows. She could do both while she waited for the return of Kyuu.

[SiamJai]

Waldy followed Artemis through the woods, and noted that the young woman moved in the forest with familiarity he didn't expect from anyone in this strange new land. Maybe they've been living here for a while already he thought.

Then he remembered the name she mentioned. Kyuu... sounds like a guy's name. Her mate, probably. The mage didn't know why, but the thought made him slightly sad. Everyone belongs to someone already, even in the middle of nowhere... he sighed and shook his head. Enough self-pity, hero! See if you can get yourself back to shape and make yourself useful for a change!

Waldy saw the Fletcher sitting down and minding her business, so he did the same. True to his word, he settled on the edge of the camp so he won't be in the way of whatever she was doing. Then he did what he does best: he escaped.

The process is called 'Commune with Nature', and it was Waldy's favorite subject at the academy. He enjoyed entering into that other realm whenever he shut down his senses and the outside world with them. After a few focused quiet moments, his Nature senses started to awaken and he understood his surroundings like only Nature summoners do.

To his relief, it worked the same way in this new world as well. He didn't see the forest anymore, but he 'saw' the agony of the burned trees and 'heard' the fear of the creatures consumed by the fire in the distance. He felt the singing joy of a quick rivulet nearby, the wonder of a newborn bird chick in a nest above his head, and the excited pleasures of a mating pair of rabbits in a distant bush.

This latter feeling turned his attention towards the Fletcher girl again, but he stopped himself in time. Observing his new friend in this state would be like spying on her while she's taking a bath in the river. What a lowlife I start to become here? he wondered, but the thought was washed away when he felt his energies returning, the result of the trance.

After some time, he felt fresh and his mind bright and full, his mood cheerful again. He opened his eyes and looked at Artemis with childlike curiosity.

[screwbaII]

After she sat down she looked around on the ground near her for a sturdy but light stick that she could use as a splint for Feather's wing. Seeing one within grabbing distance she leaned over and picked it up. Taking out her dagger she began shaping it and removing the rough parts to make it smooth for the bird's wing.

After that she set it to the side and took the bird off her head. Before she could splint the wing properly for healing she would need to first find where it was broken. Probably in the last place it was... she thought to herself, and sure enough the first place she checked was where the bone was broken. Reaching down she took out her sewing gear and began to fiddle with the wing and the splint trying to set it right. Feathers made it easier by not jiggling around, and was in fact very still. He had happened at least twice before in his life, so she supposed he was just used to it now.

After setting the wing and bandaging it so the bone could mend properly, Artemis looked up at the man sitting over the other side of the camp. He seemed out of it. What a strange man she thought to herself, hoping he wasn't some kind of weird hippie mage. She had seen some of them back in the homeland and they were weird, even by her standards.

Figuring he probably didn't want to be disturbed, she put Feathers back on her head and got out her arrow making equipment. Usually as she traversed the forest she was always on the lookout for nice straight branches, feathers from birds and hard rocks. She didn't have the tools to make metal arrow heads out in these forests, so she created them from scratch using hard rocks. They weren't as durable, but they didn't really need to be either, as they were really quite expendable.

Ignoring the mage for the moment she set about carving the branches to the utmost straightness, creating notches for the feathers, and then she began on the hardest part - shaping stone arrow heads. She was careful when shaving off the layers of rock to the shape she desired lest she chipped or blunted them.

After a while she had a full set of arrows in her quiver again. At this point she felt watched and looked up to see the man staring at her strangely. Feeling slightly uncomfortable about it, she asked, "can I help you?" keeping her tone friendly and completely hiding whatever unease she was feeling. She didn't get people, especially not men.

The whole situation with Alorae and Kyuu was better for her because Alorae was also a woman, so she didn't seem so uneasy around Kyuu. This situation was entirely different though, and she was feeling slightly unsettled, firstly because she still wasn't used to being around people, and secondly because this guy kept looking at her strangely.

[SiamJai]

"Amazing!" Waldy answered, still sitting at his place. "The way you've mended the broken wing of your bird companion, and your familiarity with these strange woods, I'd have sworn you are a follower of Nature yourself; but your expertise with arrow-crafting tells of an experienced Fletcher. Did you perhaps master both ways?"

[screwbaII]

"No, I do not possess such magic as you do" she replied, "I have lived on this island a while now, I am simply familiar with the area, having run forests for most of my life, this one is no different. As for mending my bird's wing, it is simply basic first aid."

Wanting to turn the topic off of her she asked, "what about you, what brings you to this island?"

[SiamJai]

So they live here indeed! Waldy thought with excitement, but still assuming that Artemis was part of the group from the beginning.

"You are too humble" He answered with a smile. "Most Fletchers I know from the mainland care little about Nature's other creatures and their - our - ancestral forest homes."

"As for me..." he continued and looked in distance, "I'm new around here; just got here yesterday. I've heard that this new island has a unique flora and fauna, so I came to see what new knowledge this place holds for a curious Nature mage." He smiled, paused a bit and looked back at the girl. "But I didn't expect the place to be this violent. Who were these attackers? Random looters, or some old enemies of your group?"

[screwbaII]

"I did not know those Pirates..." she said, then continued "As for my bretheren I do not speak for them, nor they for me." She then shrugs, "but each to their own. I do not care for the actions of others". Continuing her flow of conversation she said, "It seems many are beginning to venture to new lands looking for knowledge. That is the reason that Kyuu and Alorae have travelled here".

(Speaking of Kyuu and Love... are you guys gonna join us sometime D:?)

[SiamJai]

That is the reason that Kyuu and Alorae have travelled here. She barely finished the sentence and Waldy has already became alert all of a sudden.

"So, you mean, your group... I mean, you and they..." the excited mage struggled to finish the sentence "...you live here by yourself?" he finally asked.

He felt that the news was like a ray of hope. "Hope for what?" he asked himself. "Hope her to be my guide in this strange place, just like my plan earlier" he tried to justify his enthusiasm rationally. "Yes, that's all."

[screwbaII]

"I have done for a while, yes, but not anymore" she confirmed, wondering why he was getting so excited. Then she remembered how excited Kyuu got over getting a guide to show him the wonders of the island. She thought that they would obviously make a good pair as they were both so curious. The thoughts made her think of Kyuu and Alorae, and she hoped for the hundredth time they would come back safely. She knew Kyuu would have gone after her, so she hoped that they were both ok.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang shrugged and headed back to the camp. As soon as he got there he noticed two strange Itzus and asked, "Who the heck are you two?" Were they more pirates that got left behind? Or something... more sinister? Actually, scratch that, they may just be people who Kyuu and that girl met up with, he thought.

[screwbaII]

Startled Artemis drew her bow and stood up in one fluid movement of lightning grace and pointed an arrow in the direction of the stranger. "Who goes there?" she demanded firmly, seeing a human emerge from the forest asking who they were.

[Poohbomber]

Lobsang stepped back with his hands up and said, "Hey, no need to take action, I just asked who you were." He noticed one had a bird with a splint. He said, "Hey, why is that bird there?"