Perhaps there was some way to negotiate with these snake-people, or perhaps there was some way to finesse themselves into digging out more answers regarding the children. But before Sarasa could respond to either Raime or Amulak’s concerns and questions, Ames asserted his own position on the matter and quickly left the room, promptly ending any chance of coming to a deal.

[b]“Well,”[/b] Sarasa breathed, her expression one carefully crafted to look disappointed and resigned.[b] “I suppose we’ll just have to rely on Lugh then.”[/b]

The swordsman’s own answer was indistinct; by then, everyone else had left to follow after Ames, leaving behind the strange atmosphere of the estate.

Despite Ames’s reluctance to have anything at all to do with those snakes, however, the rest of the party’s demands still had to be felt. Raime was the most hesitant in switching gears, sharing concerns with Ames regarding the fate of the abducted children, but the two of them were out-voted by the more immediate gamer concerns that their other party members had. Klein, especially, looked ready to flat-out explode into a ball of musclebound violence at this point. Being the lowest member of the party and also possessing a competitive streak to match Amulak’s made the Mountain Man the most vocal proponent to essentially genociding the goat-headed men after all. Magpie and Amulak were both on board as well, eager for some action that wasn’t just slogging through these miserable, depressing caves. Cacophony Concord’s realism may have given them supernaturally capable bodies and literal magic powers, but even that wasn’t enough to stave off the boredom and tedium of just…walking down spooky caves.

So, as awkward as it was, the party soon found themselves encroaching upon the northern ruins, where the gyunin lived. Passing by the outer perimeter of skull-hoisting stakes, it became obvious why the gyunin made their territory known in such a barbaric fashion: there were no patrols at all. Of the twenty or so gyunin that could be observed from a distance, their society definitely appeared to be more of a disorganized orgy of violence and machoism rather than anything that could actually be considered a civilization. A great bonfire served as the center of their community, as a tree roasted away. Atop the smoking trunk, the largest gyunin of them all, a freakishly lanky specimen with white fur and curled horns, cannibalized the remains of another gyunin as it stomped its hooves about, braying out indecipherable commands.

Four other gyunin worked on the corpse of a massive bear, similar to the one that Ames and Magpie had seen being torn apart by the oni. Were these big bears seriously just fodder? It was sorta hard to imagine, but considering how the only bears they’ve seen were dead ones, it may really have been the case. Outside of those four gyunin-butchers, there were a few more sitting amongst the bones of distinctly humanoid beings, roasting meat or scraping fat off of hides. They chattered as well, the colossal rage apparently kept in check by having actual work to do. For the majority of the other goatheaded beefcakes, however, they seemed content to just mill about with no purpose, occasionally butting heads with such force that it sounded like a cymbal crash.

Yes, it seemed like savagery was the only deterrent the gyunin had to others encroaching upon them, and though it may be effective for the rational mortal beings of Gala…well, Immortals lived immortal lives of thrill-seeking and power-gaining. With almost such ease that it was baffling, the entire party managed to make their way behind a pile of dead, collapsed trees, the braying and bleating of their prey just on the other side.

If they engaged, it was definitely gonna be the sort of fight that they wouldn’t be able to run away from.

But surely, they wouldn’t get cold feet [i]now[/i]?
[sub][@Shovel][@Searat][@Psyker Landshark][@OwO][@Yankee][/sub][hr]
A dark chuckle rumbled out from Man-Joji’s throat, the man unflustered even with the Maneater Sickle pressed against his flesh. [b]“Ari, Ari, Ari,”[/b] he intoned, a mirthless smile slicing his expression into two. [b]“What did I say when this job first began? I won’t ask about how you do your business, and you won’t ask about how I do mine. Such a simple order. All you had to do was not think about it.”[/b]

A forked tongue flicked out.

[b]“Ah, and I had hoped we could’ve had a lasting relationship.”[/b]

The merchant’s right eye glowed, intensifying into a brilliant beam. Ari pushed her sickle in, but with [i]only[/i] the strength of one and a half men, she heard the crackling of scales instead. Not enough to pierce the iridescent scales that began coating Man-Joji’s skin, and not enough to force his eyes away from her.

Instinct alone, a twitch of her head, allowed Ari to dodge the beam of heat that singed her hair and seared a hole through the canvas of the carriage, before she bounded back off the carriage, her feet finding the gnarled roots of the claustrophobic grove. The mule, terrified by this turn of events, neighed out in distress, but was silenced with a swift strike of the thickly muscled appendage that sprouted out from where Man-Joji’s left arm had once been. His right ripped out from its sleeve as well, a mass of snake heads writhing out, while the merchant’s face elongated into a more reptilian form.

[b]“It is a pity, to earn the ire of an immortal being,”[/b] Man-Joji said, towering over Ari. [b]“But alas, you were the one to force my hand, child.”[/b]

Time dilated, every sense sharpened within the deep groves that he had lead her to, and with razor certainty, Ari knew.

Only one of them was coming out alive tonight.
[sub][@GreenGoat][/sub]