Didn't think I'd be able to get to it until next week, but man it's been a slooooow day

"I have heard tales of human sacrifices before,” Davena spoke, “I am surprised, though, that these cultists would be so bold as to send wandering packs of the dead to terrorize the countryside. I do not see the benefit." She grins, "But then, I do not pretend to know the mind of such a cultist."

The low growl coming off of the kazari beside her mirrored Kith’s own distrust. Torture and slaughter of so many and yet had learned only of a cave entrance? Not what exactly might wait within? No questions around the wandering packs of dead? Not even a theory as to why they might send the dead out? Faith and fear, perhaps? To find people for those . . . things to mate with?

Kithran is pulled from her heated reverie by Davena’s sudden pivot to the Bladesinger. Aranwen’s retelling of her training, though brief, is fascinating. Kithran had grown up with very quick, and very sticky fingers. Life after she had fled had fine-tuned those skills into something much more precise and much more deadly, though entirely necessary. She could never imagine herself training in a field somewhere with others, slogging away at drill after drill, someone barking commands at her, but she had seen the results of such training time and time again in the grace and ferocity of Aranwen’s movements in battle. She would have to ask Aranwen about it if they ever made it out of this hellscape.

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

The trek through the mist is hauntingly familiar. She knew Ch’dau and Garn were near, but even their light movements were muffled in the thickness of this mist. She felt as though she were forcing her ears to hear in this place, urging them to pick-up anything. Instead the piercing sound of total silence blared on.

As her eyes flicked back and forth through the pale-stricken forest, she caught a glimpse of the whiteness of the knuckles that grasped her bow. A brief pang of fear swept through her as it seemed at first as though she could not unfurl her fingers. After a moment they came away with little effort, though sore for how tightly she had been grasping at the wood.

Twice now she had succumbed to that paralysis. There was little in the world she had experienced more horrifying than that. The theft of her agency. There had been a time when a nobleman had tried to take that from her. She had made sure he would never have the chance to try it again. But this? How could one fight this? The pure helplessness while her body was ravaged, while her allies fell protecting her. Disgust rose in her throat like bile at the memories, and the wound on her stomach from her last gouge of the ghoul paralysis tugged at her once more.

Their small scouting party came finally to a series of cliff faces, and it isn’t long before Kithran hears the deep timbre of her friend beckoning them over.

She finds Ch’dau crouched beside a horde of tracks leading into the cave, “It looks well and recently used,” he sniffs the ground and turns toward the opening, “by several folk, at least. I cannot determine exact numbers but, I believe that this is the path we seek.”

Kith crouches near the karzari to examine the tracks herself.

((OOC: she’s looking for any differentiating footprints. “Ghoulish” footprints vs say booted footprints, prints that don’t look like they would belong to either, etc))

As the rest of the party rejoins them and the talk of strategy begins, Kith notices an uncommon weariness in their battle priest before he speaks, "Are we truly ready for this?" Gib asks quietly as he steps up next to Aranwen. "We'll need light... I'm not even sure what precautions we should take."

Kithran leans away for a moment, searching the inside of the cave. Of course by the grace of her mother’s bastard blood she is able to see fine, but those without it would likely face some difficulty. There is also the matter of the loss of any sort of stealthiness should they create a light source. Perhaps the stealthier of them who could see would continue to scout ahead. At the thought she looked away from the darkness and wrapped her hands tightly around the hilts of her daggers, awaiting their decision.

As much as I joke about it, I'm down with the ick factor! Bring it on!
I also really, really appreciate the open communication and touching base with players. That in and of itself is pretty awesome.

Let's do this thing!

Dang, I need to get on posting this too. Been a busy couple of weeks but I'll have this up in the next couple days!

It's a meme, grandpa, omg

Angelfire?

*sniffle* your kid sounds awesome. *sniffle sniffle* one day he will make his d&d players' lives dark and full of terrors *wipes away a tear* it's going to be incredible.

*prepares the puke bucket* thanks Noah!

Love hearing some bladesinger training lore!

I'm a bit busy these next few days so I may not be able to get my post up until next week, but I'll try to get one up as soon as I can so we can run willy-nilly around in that death cave!

Oh jeez, I think I repressed that memory until you just brought it up again.

Yes, that as far as gores-ville is concerned it's creepier. As part of some organization's master monster race experiments, it's creepy to me in a different way.

Just all around creepy, Olan, you're checking off all the creepy boxes.

Maybe the ghoul paralysis was inside the half-Sylvari the whole time.
As Gandhi said, "be the ghoul paralysis you want to see in the world".

And yeah, the Silver Screen Nazi-Scientist Experiment of the Damned side-plot is getting creepier and creepier!

Damn it Kithran, why couldn't you have taken after your mother's side?!
You half-Sylvari assh-*takes dagger to the throat*

Juuuuust deactivated my account about a month ago

If I come back though, I'll find you. I'LL FIND YOU ALL.

Then you'll all see my plethora of top tier, white glove treated, quality memes, my hard opinions on literally nothing, my obsession over shows I'm binging, and stories of me falling down in public places.

What a treat that will be 

Aaaaaahhhhh yeeeaaaahhhh!

My heart goes out to you in these trying times. May your fans blow fiercely and your ice melt slowly, my friend 

80 DEGREES?! Last week it was in the 60s when I'd leave for work, this week it's been under 40 every morning

Wooo! Best thing to see first thing in the morning on the long cold bus ride into work ^___^

Awesome Cedric post, Raven! I too enjoyed that dream sequence. I also really feel for his vulnerability in the face of all of this craziness.

I'm glad we're all on the same page as far as Aranwen's sexual preference is concerned 

Yeah, I pretty much just figured we'd play around whatever Reralae felt was right for her character. If they hooked up, cool, if not, no more smallclothes jokes because they don't make sense.

Easy peasy.

And yet you never take the porch bugs and stale oreos I prescribe.

Curious.

I choose to treat people medicinally with bugs I find under the porch and stale Oreos I dig out of the dumpster behind Taco Bell. You gonna judge me, Eol?! You gonna judge me for that?!
How, dare you?

Spazzing aside, hooray Gib post!

Friend Computer offers the best shots.

Saaaaaaammmmme! I can't wait for that notification of a new post ^_______^

Kithran woke startled. She was hardly refreshed and sorely disoriented. She had slept more deeply than she had in ages, leaving her senses useless in this cursed wood; and she awoke gazing up into what was visible of the early morning sky through the fog. She had sworn she had fallen asleep with her back against that tree and hadn't expected to wake to the world at this angle. Squeezing her hands she was grateful that at least her daggers were where they should be, as well as for the soft murmurs that let her know they had made it through the night.

She slowly brought herself to a sitting position, as every muscle in her body screamed in retaliation, and took a quick inventory. Rolling her neck she found nothing but soreness; stretching and rotating her arms took quite a bit of effort and thus far was the most painful until she twistet her body at her waist. Her wounds, though gracefullly tended to by her companions, still pulled against her skin. She would have to accommodate that pain should they find themselves in battle once more.

Standing was surprisingly the easiest feat to accomplish of the set, and after some more stretching and hopping, they at least felt ready to sprint away from an undead horde if necessary. She pulled the silver skull pendant from her pocket, thinking once more of the terror it sought, before shoving it back and trying to keep her thoughts from wandering too far in that direction.

Joining Ch'dau for breakfast and tending to her own blades, Kith observed the priests in their morning routines; their devotions and scriptures. A long time ago she may have scoffed at such things, but they were the only reason she had not bled out just a few hours earlier in this corrupted forest floor.

Kithran stood up and flipped her daggers around in each hand, admiring their weight and balance and reliability with each catch. They felt good, strong, small but effective. She sheathed them when she noticed the priests finishing up, and made her way toward them. "Good morning, gentlemen, I was hoping you might help me identify something." She reveals the pendant and holds it out to them, "Have either of you seen anything like this before? Do you think it harbors any terrible magicks, or will summon some ungodly beast while we nap?"

((OOC: If it seems inate, she'll hold on to it. If not, she'll take their advice as to how to destroy it))

"Thank you for your counsel, my friends." Kith left them to their preparations and made her way back toward Ch'dau, pausing in her approach to listen to their leaders' conversation.

"We will scout the area near the caves, look for signs of travel," Garn is saying harshly to the group at large, "That will give us ideas for the best route to approach, perhaps helps us estimate numbers and the like. I have no desire to walk into some undergorund fortress unawares."

“Nor do I, rrow’ka,” the kazari chuffed, focusing on his work with the falcata, finally looking up when he was satisfied with the job, “If you intend to scout, I would offer my assistance.”

"I as well," Kith included, plastering a scowl on her face to deflect from any discomfort she may have shown off before. 

"This sounds reasonable."  Davena nodded, her eyes skimming the faces around the campfire before settling again on Aranwen,  "So, will you be joining us?"