[sup][h3]Enemy Lineup  -   ☠️  [/h3][/sup][right][hider=Goldchain ][table][row][cell][table][row][cell][img]https://varg.wdfiles.com/local--files/5e-caradoc/Knight.jpg[/img]
[color=2e2c2c]___________________[/color][/cell][/row][/table][/cell][cell][b]Goldchain[/b][table][row][cell][sub]AURA
CHARISMA
GUILE
TENACITY
EFFICACY[/sub][/cell][cell][sub]C
E
E
B
B
[color=2e2c2c]_____[/color][/sub][/cell][/row][/table][table][row][cell][sub]A medium stature man wearing northern chainmail. The moment that his hood is removed, a golden chain draped around his neck emblazoned with the Western Eagle makes his affiliations plain to see. His hand extends out from behind his cloak and a sphere of condensed silver aura forms before commanding it forward, causing all metal within the area to be drawn towards him.[/sub]
[sub][color=2e2c2c]_____________________[/color][/sub][/cell][/row][/table][/cell][cell][color=2e2c2c]___________________________________________________________________[/color][/cell][/row][/table]
[/hider]

[hider= Goldtooth][table][row][cell][table][row][cell][img]https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/029/647/963/large/anna-helme-.jpg?1598226296[/img]

[color=2e2c2c]___________________[/color][/cell][/row][/table][/cell][cell][b]Goldtooth[/b][table][row][cell][sub]AURA
CHARISMA
GUILE
TENACITY
EFFICACY[/sub][/cell][cell][sub]D
E
E
C
B
[color=2e2c2c]_____[/color][/sub][/cell][/row][/table][table][row][cell][sub]A taller and heavier set man with a bald head and multiple golden teeth. He appears to be the physically strongest martial fighter of the bunch and wields a longsword a tad larger than the others and has a shortsword at the hip to be wielded alongside the longsword if things take a turn for the worse. Despite being a western knight he doesn't seem to be gifted in sorcery so he relies on the other knights to support him while taking a vanguard position at the front.[/sub]
[sub][color=2e2c2c]_____________________[/color][/sub][/cell][/row][/table][/cell][cell][color=2e2c2c]___________________________________________________________________[/color][/cell][/row][/table]
[/hider]

[hider= Goldilocks][table][row][cell][table][row][cell][img]https://i.pinimg.com/736x/3e/96/06/3e96068e457104cfd2ebe64dc2bab170.jpg[/img]
[color=2e2c2c]___________________[/color][/cell][/row][/table][/cell][cell][b]Goldilocks[/b][table][row][cell][sub]AURA
CHARISMA
GUILE
TENACITY
EFFICACY[/sub][/cell][cell][sub]B
E
D
D
C
[color=2e2c2c]_____[/color][/sub][/cell][/row][/table][table][row][cell][sub]The youngest knight of the group and seemingly the most magically formidable of them. He is shorter and thinner framed, doesn't even seem to be scraping the edges of adulthood quite yet. Despite not being an official mage knight, his armor is garish so it is possible he might be from some noble lineage in the West.[/sub]
[sub][color=2e2c2c]_____________________[/color][/sub][/cell][/row][/table][/cell][cell][color=2e2c2c]___________________________________________________________________[/color][/cell][/row][/table]
[/hider]

[hider=Silent Knight][table][row][cell][table][row][cell][img] https://i.pinimg.com/222x/78/18/6f/78186f7279943c61d23d56a6e13a221d.jpg[/img]
[color=2e2c2c]___________________[/color][/cell][/row][/table][/cell][cell][b]Silent Knight[/b][table][row][cell][sub]AURA
CHARISMA
GUILE
TENACITY
EFFICACY[/sub][/cell][cell][sub]D
E 
E
B
B
[color=2e2c2c]_____[/color][/sub][/cell][/row][/table][table][row][cell][sub]An enigma among the knights that does not speak or make any sort of noise at all. An eerie red light glows from within his helm.[/sub]
[sub][color=2e2c2c]_____________________[/color][/sub][/cell][/row][/table][/cell][cell][color=2e2c2c]___________________________________________________________________[/color][/cell][/row][/table]
[/hider][/right]
[hr]
[center][table][row][cell][h3][b][sup]Prepping [color=2e2c2c].[/color] For[color=2e2c2c].[/color] The [color=2e2c2c].[/color] Journey[/sup][/b][/h3]
[justify][color=silver]At some point the muted sounds of the tavern staff below getting a head start on the day's bread baking roused Nika from slumber. It took a few extra blinks to really wake up, especially when his head was tucked into the fold of his arms and opening his eyes showed only darkness. Gradually he brought his face up, looking across the room to the window. It was not light out, but he could vaguely see the shape of the pines against the sky. The sun must have just been coming up then… perfect. It would have been mighty embarrassing to wake up late after what he'd said yesterday.

His gaze moved to the bed where Brig still slept, if her soft snoring was any indication. Slowly, as not to wake her, he uncurled and got to his feet. The morning felt a little hazy, and Nika wasn't sure why. He'd slept through the night so it wasn't like his rest had been interrupted. Maybe it was the stress just catching up to his brain, or… 

He stretched to get rid of the lingering tenseness, and distract his mind from the shadowy wisps of some forgotten dream, or memory, or whatever it was. The road and the west, the cold and the looks. None of it mattered anymore, and he had things he needed to do. 

With the packs of supplies over his shoulder Nika slipped out of the room and down the stairs. After a little chatting with the early morning maids, which was definitely not pleading, they fixed him two plates of food made up partly of the tavern’s leftovers from the night before. One was swiftly devoured, the other set on the table in Brig’s room where hopefully it wouldn’t cool too much before the young wolf got to it.

After that the knight took a moment to organize the supplies a little before making a beeline to the stables, where he patted Nakki’s broad neck as he passed the stallion. In the middle of resaddling him and the dun with the extra provisions Nika noted that there were more animals there now than there had been yesterday evening. Another favor from Maeki, perhaps? There were three extra horses to be exact: a pinto mare that seemed to have been wounded near her snout at some point, leaving a split in the poor animal’s nostril. Another was a stallion like Nakki, gray coated and this one had a clean scar running horizontally along its side. The last was the only horse of the three that seemed to lack marks or combat, a young well-maintained horse with a mottled black and white coat, also a mare. That seemed to be the group’s means of transportation, but the strange thing was that a hunting wolf also slept in the hay of the stable floor. It seemed to be a late riser as it still slept at the moment, and hadn’t woken to Nika’s presence— though even in its sleep the canid’s ears twitched at the knight’s footsteps. The wolf was white, looked older with multiple scars along its body and face, but it was also quite large and formidable. 

It wasn’t uncommon for hunting wolves to be paid for during long journeys, nor was it uncommon for them to be gifted as a symbol of good fortune to those about to embark on a long journey. But the grizzled wolf was not mentioned by Maeki, perhaps one of the mercenaries had paid for it and signaled the dog to wait in the stables? Who really knew at this point. He brushed the thought aside as he made to trudge back to the Stone’s Throw, but ended up not even getting that far. A shape approached from the tavern’s direction, and Nika didn’t have to wait that long for Brig to appear at the stables geared up with dark rings around her eyes.

[color=#C3BDFF]”All that sleep ‘nd I’m still feeling like a walkin’ corpse.”[/color]

Nika offered her a small, boyish smile, the kind that she saw nearly every morning from him, only this time colored by the knowledge of what they were about to embark on.

[color=rosybrown]"Aye, one night isn't gonna undo all 'f... that."[/color]

That said, now that he'd been up and moving Nika himself did feel better. He wasn't 100%, likely wouldn't be for a little while yet (especially without Brig's penchant for quick healing), but better. Even the pain in his arm had dulled to a warm, sore pull, at least when he wasn't using it.

[color=rosybrown]"Anythin' else we need 'fore headin' out?"[/color] he asked, his gaze flicking from Brig to the sleepy atmosphere of the town's square nearby. It lingered on the small iron works that produced and mended Blackpebble's arms, pots, bits, and everything else. He thought it'd probably be a good idea to get a new shield to replace the old one he'd lost - or else a much bigger axe down the literal and figurative road.

Unsurprisingly, Brig read him like a book. [color=]”Aye, if y’ need to get a new shield— now’s th’ time to get it. Won’t be comin’ cross a smithy for a while once we hit th’ road.”[/color] A smile warmed her tired expression and blood flushed into her cheeks, reddening the pale complexion as she looked to the pact knight, and even more when she looked behind him to the horses and a…

[color=#C3BDFF]”O’ my, we ‘ve got a wolf coming ‘long with us?”[/color] The talk of reluctance and supplies were diminished to mere afterthoughts as the white wolf sleeping in the stable came into Brig's vision. Before she could get any other words out, she approached that old scarred wolf and crouched down with her hands on her knees to examine him properly.

Though Nika hadn't heard anything about the wolf, he was surprised that Brig hadn't either. [color=rosybrown]“You didn't ask for him? Mus' belong to one of your hirelin’s then.”[/color]

Brig knew not to touch wolves when they slept, even the more domesticated ones had an old habit of lashing out of reflex to protect themselves. Instead the Lady of the North clicked her tongue at the battle-scarred canine and let out a soft whistle between her chapped lips. The muse was one she often chirped out to the wolves back home, a beckon that signaled ‘here’ or ‘approach’.

The old white wolf peaked open their eyes, they were pale yellow like moonlight, and upon seeing Brig it almost seemed as if they recognized her. The wolf’s tired expression softened as he stretched his arms and legs, opened his maw to let out a soft raspy yawn. The hound popped up onto all four and approached Brig with his head low and circled around her twice before parking himself directly in front of her and raised his head in acknowledgment of her. To which, Brig extended out a gloved hand to pat the top of the wolf’s head a few times and looked back to Nika with a much more hopeful expression.

[color=#C3BDFF]”Let’s go get that shield, I’d like t’ grab a new cloak ‘nd some arrows too.”[/color]

Her pact knight nodded, then added with a touch of sympathetic sarcasm, [color=rosybrown]“aye, let's. 'm sure the shopkeep'll give us a discount for wakin' 'im so early.”[/color]

Save for any supplies that the mercenaries were bringing themselves, the steeds were ready to ride, so a last minute shopping trip was all that was left to do before they met with the group they'd be entrusting to fight for the good of Fenris with. It was an unexciting but successful affair, and by the time the sun had actually begun to peek through the trees and over the roofs of houses Brigitte and Nika stood outside of the tavern to meet with the others.

As the group gathered after gathering the odds and ends they wished to acquire under the Fenris dime while it still had worth, Brigitte would lay out the plan one final time before they departed from the safety of Blackpebble. They had horses, rations, and a few extra odds and ends that could’ve been from Maeki or Bet. The Fenris stallion was equipped with a harness that pulled a small cart for some of the larger and heavier supplies, and a pile of furs for someone to sit along the floor of the cart.

[color=#C3BDFF]” ‘Right, we have horses ‘nd apparently a hunting wolf was hired ‘long as well.  Our route ‘s to take th’ Eastruin down ‘til we reach th’ dwarven outposts. Meet with whatever allies w’ have out there ‘nd then eventually make it t’ Haldr. Inevitably ‘ll have t’ speak with th’ Lord Haldr, but I don’t expect that ‘ll be happening too soon— so ‘ts just a mission of surviving ‘nd killing any enemies of the north along th’ way I guess.”[/color]

[/color][/justify][/cell][cell][color=2e2c2c].[/color][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/959135046ca57606aa3db9e397a9b10d/98e2c800828f6b72-74/s500x750/43f1fcbe4372d5bcfae16d8556fa4f5f100dab51.gifv[/img]



[b][i]Blackpebble Stables
Sunrise

     - While the mercenaries gather supplies before their journey, Nika and Brig meet before regrouping to leave town. [/i][/b]
[color=2e2c2c].................................................................[/color][/cell][/row][/table][/center]
[hr][center][table][row][cell][h3][b][sup]Our First Bump On The Road[/sup][/b][/h3][hr][@Yankee][@xAlter][@13org][@Theyra][hr]
[justify][color=silver] The eastern gate of Blackpebble opened with the creaking and cracking of wood against wood. It was still cold, morning winds warmed only slightly with the rising sun, but the earlier you left for a journey the more daylight you’d have to exhaust before the inevitable coming of nightfall. Two guards stood at the town’s gate, both chain coifed men placed their hand over their heart and bowed to Brigitte as the sun ensemble of mostly strangers departed from the town down the Eastruin Road. Where as the roads north, south, and west, were relatively maintained with a proper cobblestone path for merchants and travelers to take— Eastruin remained primarily dirt with signs of care could be seen throughout the path where markers are placed by travelers themselves. The nature of this was due to the destruction during the Dwarvish Rebellion, with the northern holds for dwarves bordering Haldr and the southern border of Fenris, mages razed a lot of the towns and cities that were once held entirely by the dwarves.

Directly outside of Blackpebble here, you’d look to your left and right to see hunting posts with large wood and iron towers for northmen to spot game that wandered too far from the Eastweald so that an archer may find their mark easily. But this early in the morning they remained asleep, so those towers remained empty and they likely slept behind the safety of Blackpebble’s walls. Other than those posts?.. nothing other than the expanse of snow with small crags and broken land, maybe a few carrion birds flying around a recently starved corpse or wounded animal. The Eastweald could be seen far in the distance on the southern side of the road, but the further you traveled down the Eastruin it would eventually turn into the Weald until you were eventually spat back out closer to the border of Haldr.

With the lay of the land established Brigitte would look back to the group and sigh out some words with a tired expression upon her face. “[color=#C3BDFF]Take your pick of horse ‘nd let’s get going.”[/color]

Once every mercenary had chosen a horse -pinto, dun, gray, or appaloosa- by taking their lead or jumping onto their saddle, Brigitte would look to Nika to start the journey onward, beckoning the knight to start marching her father’s horse forward onto the dirt road away from Blackpebble. The muddled slush of ice and earth beneath the soles of their boots would was a rhythmic drumbeat to the matched speed of the horses, the wolf’s steps at the very back of the group were silent. Speaking of that wolf, it remained at the flank of the group and vigilantly looked from left to right as if they were a seasoned sentry. 

The mercenaries themselves could choose whatever positioning they wished along the trek; the back, the front beside Nika and Brig, the center, whatever they felt necessary would not be met with resistance from the scion of Fenris. Brig herself sat in the cart atop those furs and pulled some jerky from one of the ration bags to begin munching down to get some calories in her system. Somewhere packed away was a Haldr device; an iron vessel with a canister in the bottom for hot coals to be placed inside to boil tea or coffee for traveling vagabonds to have a warm drink along the road. But that would be saved for the night when a sun wasn’t fighting valiantly through the overcast of clouds overhead.

Once Brigitte was done eating she would pull the hood of her cloak over her head, both to her ears warm as well as to conceal herself— there was no telling who they would come across along the road and even if she knew whoever they came across, who’s to say if they were still an ally? She breathed out that frosty mist exhaled by moist breath crystallizing in the  cold northern air, and scanned the many faces of strangers who’ve decided to travel alongside her. Stress was a complex thing. These people had all promised to help her make it to Haldr, but it would be days before they reached their destination. Who’s to say they change their mind mid-journey? 

Her trust did not falter in them, but she knew this early on the only person whom she could count on truly was Nika. But her father always told her that hardship always formed the strongest friendships, so she would have to see if her crazy old father’s wisdom was all it was cracked up to be. In that dwelling of thoughts, Brigitte looked out towards Eirún and waved her hand towards her to grab her attention. [color=#C3BDFF]”Do y’ have a way t’ tell us if ya see anything? Maeki said y’re usually successful in your hunts but ‘ve never fought beside a mute b’fore?”[/color]

It was almost as if Brig had spoken an ill omen into existence as just off in the horizon, four knights in Fenris colors with a banner donning the black wolf could be seen approaching right off the borderland of the forest’s edge and onto the road. It seemed like the four did not notice Brigitte’s group at first, but once they did, their armored horses picked up their pace and sped towards them at a rushed pace. It wouldn’t take that long for them to reach them. Brig noticed the banner, and something deep within her hoped that they were some of her father’s men that might’ve been traveling back home to deliver some message to Kurt, or even just returning home after being relieved from their duty. But flashbacks of the explosion within her own home, orange glow and stinging fire against her skin being relived in an instant that made the cold disappear while fear and anxiety replaced the stiffness in her muscles. She pulled the hood a bit lower over her face and she tucked herself down, now silent and trying to blend in with the cargo as a simple traveler to the best of her capability. [sup][color=green]Guile Check[/color] - [Failed][/sup]

There was an obvious thread of tension of that ran through Nika as the same thoughts came to him. He slowed his pace, his grip on Nakki's lead tightening. Most of the approaching group's faces were obscured by helmets or cold resistant clothes, but he did not recognize those that he could make out. It wasn't enough to write the group off outright, but the Black Wolf's warning still clung tight in his thoughts. 

The small group of northern horsemen would meet with Brig’s escort at the halfway point. There was urgency in these men, and once they were right upon them, their full silhouettes would come to frame. They were fully dressed as knights of Fenris, tabards and all, their chainmail reeked of blood and the horses were beyond the point of exhaustion— the Fenris clad steed at the rear actually buckled over to the ground, and the knight was sent toppling down along with it. [color=FFE08C]“Afuck!"[/color] He grunted out as he rolled through the snow and his helm even came off, revealing long golden hair that was quickly concealed again within an iron bucket helmet.

The knight at the head of their group remained silent, his bright green eyes scanned first Nika before looking to identify each mercenary and give proper examination until speaking. [color=beige] “Hail ye’ travelers, we ‘re knights of Fenris. We were attacked not too far from th’ border of Haldr by a group of rogue soldiers and mercenaries known as th’ Wild Hunt. Lord Fenris sent a raven requesting we reach Stonecrown at once, it seems th’ Scion of Fenris has been kidnapped by Blackcloaks of the South.”[/color]

Surprise flickered through the pale red of Nika's eyes. If the man spoke truth, then it was possible that Kurt had emerged victorious even against those horrible odds. He wouldn't have been shocked to hear it considering the tales of the man's other feats... If he hadn't been present at the scene himself.

[color=rosybrown]"That so?"[/color] Nika croaked.

The co-leader of this small group of knights, a bald-headed man concealing the bottom of his face with a thin fur scarf seemingly made of bear’s fur slid from the side of his horse and approached the cart that Brig sat within. The silver and copper beard hairs spill out as he speaks in a low gravely tone. [color=gold]”Have the bunch of you seen a young woman that might’ve been carried with men wearing black cloaks concealing their identities with old blood magic? Or perhaps over there in Blackpebble ya’ might have?”[/color] As this one spoke, there was undisputedly a number of golden teeth within his mouth replacing ivory, a sign of wealth unheard of in the north. 

[color=rosybrown]"We haven't,"[/color] the pact knight replied, steely, glancing back at the three hired mercenaries as though to get them to corroborate. He'd dropped Nakki's lead, arms tense at his sides. If they were lucky they could pass without a fight. [color=rosybrown]"That'd be quite the sight, we'd've remembered it."[/color]

[color=FFE08C]”M’capta— I mean aye-aye!”[/color] A far younger voice shouted out from the back, the one that fell from the back of his horse. [color=FFE08C]”Do I slit this horse’s throat since it’s all used up?”[/color] His question was answered with a stonewall of silence, not seeming like any of the remaining three knights wished to answer the young blonde-haired knight’s curiosity for the time being. But rather than wait for an answer, the young knight simply drew a steel dagger with a very fancy bronze hilt from the scabbard at his waist and knelt down towards the heavily breathing brown mountain horse.. and opened its jugular. [color=FFE08C]”I’ll just buy another one in town.”[/color]

The remaining knight was eerily silent. He remained on his horse and simply stared into the cart where the goldtoothed knight was standing with his hand over the pommel of his longsword, his own chain coif concealed most of his face and there was some black smudges around his eyelids that made his silvery blue eyes stand out despite the majority of his face being concealed. This one was clearly on guard, and his horse also held the majority of the four’s supplies it seemed as four saddlebags were strung along the horse’s armor.

The leader of the knights pulled down his coif. He looked rather plain with brown hair that was receding heavily and a disheveled face; this man could’ve come off as a Northman if not for the way he talked and the signs of good tucked within the collar of armor that painfully obviously was thrown on in a rush to cover whatever was underneath. He would then approach the side of the cart alongside his gold-toothed compatriot. 

Brigitte remained perfectly still, feigning sleep or death to such a degree that she did not even breathe— but she smelled it on them as soon as their horses arrived. The stench of a mageblood was not that difficult to discern when surrounded by animals and fellow countrymen in the cold northern wind. And it was one of those very beasts that would fire the first shot in such a tense moment, as the white wolf at the rear of their caravan charged up and lunged at the bald-headed man and sunk his teeth into a chain and leather covered arm! 

At the first sign of bloodshed, Brig in one swift motion jumped out from the back of the cart and dashed towards the other mercenaries shouting as if it weren’t already obvious. [color=#C3BDFF]”Imposters from the West![/color]

Despite being a noblewoman, Brig was the original and [b]founder[/b] of the Snowstalkers, which this battlefield served quite well to. She drew her rimeglass saix from the back of her belt and dove into a thick patch of snow whilst kicking a flurry behind her— causing the scion of Fenris to completely disappear from sight. For the time being, she was now a ghost. 

Realizing that the jig was up, the mage knight that led these western invaders unfurled the golden eagle medallion from out of his hauberk and swiftly drew his longsword bearing the crest of the Mage King along its guard. [color=beige]”Fuck it, kill these nobodies!”[/color] He commanded before extending his hand and channeling aura directly in front of him.

The aura came out as small silver globules that looked almost metallic if not the for constant soft white glow, but soon they would begin rapidly spinning until a large metal sphere floated a small distance above the man. Suddenly all metal began to be pulled in the spheres direction, swords, shields, even the chain and plate of their armor; it wasn’t strong enough to lift a person into the air, but without a strong hold of your equipment they would be ripped from your hands. 

Once the Magnetic Auramancy was conducted, the other three knights would take a defensive position around the conjured metal sphere with their longswords drawn. The young blonde-haired boy who butchered the horse extended out his free hand and snapped his fingers, and from them a small yellow flame would be held.. it was small, but the fire itself looked unusual. The silent knight moved very minimally, while he took a defensive stance along with the others— he remained stiff as if the person inside the iron and steel exoskeleton did not breathe or shift against the magnetic pull of the magic in the slightest. The bald-headed man rested one hand on the handle of a small short sword along his belt, readied to draw it at the ready to wield two swords in tandem.

[/color][/justify][/cell][cell][color=2e2c2c].[/color][/cell][cell][img]https://img.freepik.com/premium-photo/snowy-mountain-scene-with-reindeer-man-walking-snow_900321-5175.jpg[/img]

[b][i]Outside of Blackpebble / Eastruin Road
Morning

     - The group begin their escort down the Eastruin only to make it shortly outside of town and be approached by a quarter of knights. The knights are not who they claim to be and a battle begins.[/i][/b]

[color=2e2c2c].................................................................[/color][/cell][/row][/table][/center]