[color=00a651][center]Malkai[/center][/color]

With the last gnoll dead Malkai proceeded to strip them of their equipment as well as ensure their actual deaths. Using his knife he slit their throats and took whatever they had on them, aside from the gnoll who Vivian was dealing with. He seemed to be alive and had some purpose with him. Unfortunately no real evidence of who sent these gnolls after Vivian was found, though on the boss himself there was a bag full of gemstones, most likely the "payment" to capture Vivian. Malkai was no merchant but he was sure these gems would fetch a good price. There was also a few potions left, and using a bit of his magical knowledge Malkai could identify one as another potion of Enlarge Person, and one potion of Bear's Endurance. The rest were weapons and armor that Malkai had no use for, but he piled them into the wagon anyways.

Cataraina went on a tangent about deception or some other, but Malkai had no intentions of revealing who he was. Unlike Vivian, he had no enemies searching for him. He'd like to say that's because he killed all his enemies but no, it's mostly because he isn't that well known nor sociable enough to make enemies. He did, however, notice something off about Catarina's wounds. Seeing her bloody wasn't really going to see strange to Malkai, but the purple ooze from her wound was disconcerting. Malkai went over to Catarina as she sat in the wagon. [color=00a651]"You've been poisoned. Let me treat to your wound."[/color]

[hr]

[color=7ea7d8][center]Veridis Quo[/center][/color]

Finally the battle was over. Veridis had no doubts of their victory, but it almost felt like their battle took months to finish. His horse was very spooked by it all, so Veridis dismounted and fed it an apple, calming it's nerve with soothing words and head pats. Of course his horse could only be so calm, and once it at least wasn't jittery enough to go running off into the desert, Veridis decided to stay on foot for now and let his horse rest. In the mean time there was Vivian to deal with. Turns out she was a drow trying to escape her past, and the past has come looking. A familiar enough tale, and it'd certainly explain her passively seductive nature. Stereotypical Veridis would do the chivalrous thing and say that he couldn't leave a woman to fend for herself against such an unruly mob, but Alexander had that covered. Speaking of the knight, he complimented Veridis on his loot skills and magic abilities, to which Veridis was humble. [color=7ea7d8]"Twas nothing. Though I carry weapons, I'm not fighter. My skills lie in magic and music, which I hope helps the party well into the future."[/color]

Going back to Vivian, Catarina showed a much more pragmatic reason to fighting. It is true, if danger could be measured by reward than this ruin would surely require as much talent and ability as they could muster. Losing one would drastically lower their chances of success. That being said Veridis didn't want Vivian to think she was a mere tool in this party. Even for a mercenary like Catarina, surely she would understand that people work better when they like the people they work with. [color=7ea7d8]"We all have enemies Vivian. How could you have expected them to come after you, all the way here? It's not as if you're an outlaw or infamous criminal, just a victim of a society you wanted to escape from. For a peasant or commoner, they couldn't help you. But we're neither. That being said Catarina does have a point; it would be important for us to speak to one another, perhaps to get to know each other and more importantly, our enemies."[/color] 

There was still some time to reach the next village before nightfell. If there was nothing else stopping them, they should leave immediately.