DreamLyrics™ Play-by-Post Forums Hall of Fame - Latest Top 10 completed games HWD: The Heartwood HWD: Incident upon the Brementown Road

Darian

Near the pit, Darian's voice sounded again, "They be dead."

Dean

Too stunned by the whirlwind of events that interrupted his lunch to do anything else, Dean follows the girl he had thought to save.

[ooc: to Bekkah - Celi was closest by both and merely offered her assistance, particularly with Mikal.I took the GM post to mean she assisted, and was confirming. Not trying to step on any toes.]

Celi was oblivious to the others, hacking her way into the brambles, using her kukri like machetes, intent on making her way to Stormrunner's side. She was crooning soothing words, words matched by her mind's efforts, doing her best to force all fear from her, intent on reaching him...

Cesare

His ears, if not his eyes, tell him that things have quietened which is a relief. So he does what he desires most and sinks to the ground finding a tree to lean his back against whilst he finds his waterskin. Taking a long drink, he lets the adrenal burn from his body, taking the opportunity to grab at least a few minutes rest.

One of the felled opponents, one impaled by an arrow, twitches a bit then the arrow, point first, leaves his body. A piece of his tunic comes up to wipe the gore from head and shaft before the fletching peels away. The arrow vanishes.

There are footsteps, not heard but seen as light depressions on the covering foliage that springs back. These cross to the dead horse. There is a low grumble, and the arrowhead snaps off of the arrow.
The pointed metal is cleaned then also disappears.

The footsteps move again, this time coming to the Rhoni.

"Cesare?" Darian's voice asks quietly. "You be well?"

Mikal

As long as Bekkah doesn't try to restrain him, he allows her to help him, offering a brief, but heartfelt, "Thank you" when he feels the healing warmth flow into his arm. He smiles at Celi as well, nodding thanks to her for her help.

However his first concern is that no more enemies are about, he knows some rode off in pursuit of Kadri and could return. Additionally there could have been more easterners riding behind this group who could appear at any time.

If either of those thing happens, he needs to be armed, but after tugging and pulling on his short sword several times he realizes it is not coming out. He sees the man's sword lying on the ground nearby, and he immediately reaches down and picks it up then turns to scan the woods to make sure no more enemies are about.

If it seems clear, and he can see Daxia has the girl in hand, he takes a few minutes to retrieve his dropped crossbow and make sure Talia is safe. He then searches the fallen enemies and their mounts for anything of use.

Cesare

He dosn't need to see her to know she is near and the voice confirms it.

"I'll live. Just taking a breather. Besides, your favourite healer told me to stay put.. and I have no reason not to."

He shrugs.

"Everyone else OK? What about Kadri?"

SHortly thereafter KAdri' horse comes thundering in, followed by, a short distance behind, another horse, bearing a rider in red and gold. She stops when she sees a scene under control.

"He's not an enemy!"

She adds, quickly.

Darian

Her smile is in her voice though he cannot see it. "Good."

"Kadri be not back. Will find her."

Her lips press to his, and mid-kiss, she once again becomes visible.

Cesare

"Mmmmm.. feeling better already."

He smiles at her now he can actually see her.

"Be careful huh?"

Darian with Cesare and the arriving Kadri and squire Dean

She smiles then looks up and tenses at the sound of more riders approaching, then relaxes as it is Kadri that rides in.

"Not have to look far."

The Hunter rises and offers a hand up to Cesare.

Daxia
with the Gang plus the Girl and a Squire in the glade

She had nodded at Darian's comment, keeping her eyes on the girl while watching Celi's scramble through the underbrush from the corner of her eye. But when Kadri reappeared, she turned towards her friend, visibly relieved.

"Da, Kadri," she said with a ghost of a smile. "The followers of Lord Rames are not usually enemies." Her gaze pointedly moved to the underbrush where Celi had gone, before turning her attention back to the girl.

"You obviously can speak. You obviously understand me." She paused a heartbeat, and another, sapphire eyes hard and icy. "And I, obviously, would like some answers."

Bekkah

With both patients okay, she turned her attention to Kadri and her new friend. She watched the way they each moved to detect if they had any injuries that needed tending.

She would boil some herbs later for those who had been hurt to ensure there was no lasting effects, but that could wait until they camped. Well as long as said camping took place within the next couple of hours.

She then turned her attention to where Celi had gone.

"Celi, do you need help with friend?"

The Heartwood
Midday on the Brementown Road
Hasday, The Twelfth Day of the Month of
Crown of Ice, 2623

Daxia, Mikal, Darian, Cesare, Bekkah, Celi, Kadri, Dean, Camelia and the Girl.

Furious cuttings and slashings at the brambles and Celi was able to find her companion. In the center of the clump of underbrush was a very large softpad. Ears up, muscles tense, it was obviously terrified. She could stay with the critter, trying to calm and comfort it, but it would be a bit, beyond the arrival of Kadri and her accompanying Squire before the feline would calm.

It is an odd scene that Dean found himself riding into; obviously the scene of a very recent battle. There was still an arcane wall of screaming faces, all writhing and twitching preventing view to the far half of the small glade. Behind it, rising above it, was the top of a tattered banner, its shorn cloth shifting gently in the slight breeze. It was an odd collection of people he was. A swordsman. A woman tearing through brambles to comfort a cat. A really, really big cat. A dark haired man, a finely dressed lady, and another finely dressed lady - this one in the whites and cremes of a follower of Lady Attera. As he took all this in there was a rustle at the edge of the embatteled copse. It is the sound of hoofbeats as three horses walk to the glade's edge, herded by the shaggy ruff he had seen earlier. The ruff sat then, quite pleased with himslef, and just stretched as as canines are wont to.

Last, however, were two truly strange ones. The first is a red haired woman, dressed in armor, of all things, in her hand a sword still shimmering with stardust magic. The second was a slender lass, wrapped in bright tunics covered by a heavy long cloak. Long black hair snuck out from its hood, and she looked confused, with a hint of panic in her stance; as if the threats contained in the glade were not quite yet banished.

At the icy stare, she started walking slowly backwards, retreating from the flame haired woman.

At the redhead's words she jumped, truly did panic, and then bolted!

Not very far, however.

Right to Bekkah's back.

"Kind One!

"Starbred-killer promised! Promised strawberries!"

She pointed to Daxia.

"Please! Please please please, don't let Starbred-killer kill! Promised strawberries, promised safe, promised protect, she did, you hear, please! See! Look, eyes cold as horns, wants blood, wants death, murder, kill! Don't let starbred-killer hurt! Slice with sword, smash with hooves, freeze souls and shatter into little sparkles, never to find rest ..."

"Promised ... not ... hurt ..."

Her last words faded into a whisper.

As if with each one hope for the promised sanctuary was fading too.

Mikal

A sharp grimace comes over his face as he touches the sword, but he forces himself to hold onto it for the moment as he can hear the sound of pounding hooves approaching and it may herald more enemies.

As soon as he determines it is Kadri, with an unexpected ally, he takes the sword's sheath from his foe and slips the sword into it and slides the loop of the sheath around his shoulder. Upon releasing the sword, he flexes his hand several times.

He then continues around the clearing searching the foes and mounts and gathering anything of value together. He keeps an eye on where Celi went, once Kadri's new companion appears, hoping she took his words over the past few days to heart.

Celi

Celi stayed by Stormrunner's side, soothing him with touch and words, as well as the anodyne of her own mind's gentle caress. She had a brush for his fur, and removed thorns and brambles with her own fingers, massaging a cooling balm into his skin at any places where the briars had pierced his thick fur. That he had stayed in the briar patch in preference to facing whatever spellcaster and struck him said volumes about the nature of fear.

Celi did her best to convince him that it was magic that had done this, not anything real, and that she and her friends were here to protect him. More importantly, she needed him to know how much she needed his protection, going forward. "We may have to leave these folk and strike out alone," she explained softly. "They fear the Coven, the followers of Mother Nature and The Sun. There are those who would burn me at the stake for my beliefs, and even the ones who are not so fearful, might surrender me to my enemies simply to preserve their own existence.

"I just want you to be back to your old cheerfully sardonic self, Stormrunner. You are my heart and soul, and I need you. I am not alive without you."

She buried her face in his fur as she brushed and deburred it, talking to and cajoling the powerful softpad beneath it.

STORMRUNNER

Daxia
with the Gang plus the Girl and the Squire in the glade

Sheathing her sword and placing hands on hips, the very essence of frustration, Daxia looked between the girl and her sister. She sighed. And paused yet again. Finally, she spoke.

"Well, it seems that her people at least have some respect for Dayalans... though I'm not sure being considered evil incarnate is any better than than being the laughingstock of the Heartwood.

"Bekkah, see if you can get Strawberry to tell you who she is, why the Easterners..." Daxia spoke the last word with loathing. "...were chasing her. Perhaps even how the horse and rider managed to be so high in the sky, and what caused them to fall." She gestured towards the glade. "I must... there is a thing I must do here."

Before going, however, she looked more closely at Kadri's companion. "Well met, Squire. My thanks are yours for assisting my friend Kadri. I am Daxia Yurisdotter, known by some as Knight of Dawnview Castle."

Bekkah

She barely caught her balance as the girl bumped into her back. She could see the look on Dazi's face and hear the panic in the girl's voice.

She turned and took one of the girl's hands and pulled her toward her.

"Shh child, she isn't going to kill you. Come with me."

She drew the girl away from the others.

"Now calm yourself child. Just relax and take deep breaths. You're safe now. Tell me what happened. Who were those awful men? Who are you?"

The Girl

She followed Bekkah, carefully always keeping, the Priestess between her and the Dayallan.

"But that's what starbred-killers do! They ride at night, wth swords of white and hooves of black, no mercy, no kindness, they hate hate hate and live to cut down not just men, but wives and kidlets ... smash them into little pieces, let their horned horses drink kidlets blood. Always told, if not good, be left outside at night, for starbred-killers to find."

As Bekkah spoke, she hugged herself tight, swallowing.

"They wants catch. They wants drag away. They wants to makes Rhomanishkah'al'lhahrhonsha'al'khylyrishkatsarinish marry."

Daxia
with the Gang plus the Girl and the Squire in the glade

Though her attention remained on the newly arrived Squire, Daxia listened to Strawberry's description of Dayalans and opened her mouth to speak, then thought better of it and merely shook her head. At the girl's last statement, however, she exchanged a glance with Kadri, frowning.

(HOld, I have a perspective on what this is about, perhaps - fopr when I get home.)

[Sure... we should wait for Mokie anyway.]

Dean

Dean's jaw slackens as he stares from person to creature to person. Not in his wildest dreams (nightmares) as a farmboy could he have imagined such a group. No training has prepared him for this sight.

However, his training has prepared his manners and he knows he has been spoken to. In response to the red haired woman, he says "Greetings, Lady, er...Knight. I am Dean...of Talesan"

Realizing this was not enough of an introduction to his better, he stammered on..."I am Squire Dean Talesan, Squire...umm I mean I'm a Squire and I'm Dean...I mean I...mean, I'm Squire Dean Marguard of Talesan."

Finally, thrilled to have finally gasped out something that didn't sound offensive, he bows deeply and extends his gaze to the rest of the group in front of him.

Remembering that he is in fact a Squire, his mindfullness of duties come flooding back. Not quite sure how to ask and chagrined that the woman he was supposed to have been rescuing probably saved his life. He looks toward the woman he followed into the glade and asks "Are you ummm...well?