[IC] Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

[Muttonhawk]

Gallus gave a sideways glace to Ri'nakhad. Having soldiers accompany them would guarantee them running afoul of the law, but at this point there did not appear to be any choice.

"Very well. Your cooperation will be noted and I shall look upon your interest to clear this matter properly with favour." Lunice looked to one of her bodyguards, "Feniad, set up some stationary, we shall deal with this here. Ra'jorr?" Lunice looked to the Pahmar with a more neutral demeanour, "My men reported at least four assailants. Bring them forward so we can take their details and pleas individually. I expect thirty gold for each of them to cover their fine for endangering the lives of the Mane's men. They are to be counted fortunate; they might have received a more severe charge if the circumstances had been different, or if they had hit any of them."

It took another tense half an hour to settle all affairs with the guards. The scouts that had warded the patrol off came forth, some with angry or fearful looks about them. They all seemed to cooperate easily enough. Lunice had six of the mounted Khajiit soldiers assigned to the clan in parting, to watch over them, take note of anyone who escaped, and to make sure that they were brought to Orcrest intact for processing. Finally, a sack of coins was handed over to one of Lunice's bodyguards as fine payment. One hundred and twenty gold was not all of the clan's reserves, but it represented a good chunk of potential supplies lost.

As Lunice was about to turn around, she regarded the leaders with a raised eyebrow. Her original irritation seemed to have cooled partially. "I will repeat to make myself clear, Ri'nakhad. No one is to leave this group until they are all individually processed in Orcrest. Any diversion from this will come back to you personally. We shall investigate the rest of this matter more closely in the future. And, for the sake of the Divines, always report such events as soon as you possibly can." She shook her head and began to turn her horse around. "Is there anything else you wish to tell us?"

[EliteCommander]

Going through the questioning of the patrol was not a particularly pleasant experience, but it allowed them to get through this encounter without any unnecessary violence. The sooner they could be rid of the majority of the soldiers, the sooner they could put as much distance between them as possible. The clan would need to be careful about their words around their escorting soldiers, at least until they decided what to do about them.

Ri'nakhad shook his head as Lunice was readying to leave. "No, agent Lunice, This one is afraid there is not. He wishes there was more he could tell you to help bring the slavers to justice. We know only what we have told you. They may be targeting the nomadic tribes, so that could be a place to begin. But...thank you for your understanding."

Once Lunice and their soldiers finally started to leave, Ri'nakhad headed back to the rest of the clan with Meesei, Ra'jorr, and Gallus. With how long the encounter had taken, it was time for them to set up camp for the night, which was the order that Ra'jorr gave. The four moved away from the Dominion soldiers, towards the other side of camp before Ri'nakhad spoke up quietly. "Well, this one supposes we should discuss what to do about them."

[Muttonhawk]

Lunice wasted no further time. "Very well. Safe travels," she said tersely as she turned her horse around fully. Another order shouted in Ta'agra had the rest of the cavalry force thunder off back in the direction from whence they came, kicking up just as much dust as before.

The clan would have breathed a collective sigh of relief had the other guards not stayed behind. The order to set up camp at least gave them something to do. The soldiers themselves did not make any immediate effort to engage with the clan in any capacity. Rather, they had tents and supplies in saddlebags that they set up themselves. While they kept their lances piled up to one side while not mounted, they had swords on their hips and always had at least one of their number standing idle as a lookout.

The meeting between the leaders for deciding how to proceed came about almost without a word. Gallus had been giving the guards a close watch since they joined them, so his mind had been formulating suggestions for a while. "I say we keep them around for a while," Gallus began, "The trouble they bring will only come more quickly if we drive them off now. If we find the Orcrest clan in short order, we can take shelter from the authorities amongst them. As for how to deal with them...I would much rather not kill them, but there is an advantage that we have." Gallus brought his head forward, "None of them are bulky senche. That means they can all be carried off by werevultures. If we can displace them, carry them off, make it look like a freak accident from the whims of nature, we can lose them in the desert or at Orcrest without being directly accused of harming them." Gallus looked in the soldiers' direction, "Though, it is risky. Those that carry them will be put in danger. Any other ideas?"

[EliteCommander]

In the time it had taken for the majority of the soldiers to leave, Meesei had been thinking on how to deal with the soldiers. The clan had much more numerous, and more capable warriors than agent Lunice knew, so once they were far enough away, the soldiers would essentially be at their mercy. Meesei considered Gallus' suggestion, though she was not convinced that it would work, based on the behavior of the Thalmor agent.

"If the behavior of that Thalmor is any indication, that may not be enough. Even if they were actually taken by the desert, and all evidence pointed to it being an accident, I fear Lunice, or someone with her disposition would blame us regardless. Personally, I do not believe there would be any advantage in killing them, or allowing them to be killed through other means. Whether we allow them to live, or they do not report in, there would be a hunt for us regardless. But, the Orcrest clan's stronghold is well hidden, and we can give misdirection as to our actual destination. Perhaps we should simply allow them to live? If we gather all of our warriors together we can make it abundantly clear to them that they do not have the strength to force us to follow their commands. We could pick a point along our path, give them just enough supplies to make it to Orcrest, then move on in a different direction. We will likely have to take a longer path to the clan, but our tracks will be covered by the sands in a day or two's time, so we could avoid being followed." Meesei suggested.

[Muttonhawk]

Gallus had to admit that Meesei's plan was less of a harebrained scheme than his, but he had some concerns of his own.

Gallus gave Meesei an uncertain look. "I think that the agent is also counting on us leaving them alive or else justify a greater response, so you are correct, Meesei. However, with that in mind...what is to prevent the soldiers following us from a distance once we send them on their way?" Gallus shrugged, "If they have orders to follow us, they might not consider the risk of running through their supplies before trying to reach the city."

Rather than be completely deconstructive, Gallus gestured forward with an amendment. "Actually, this might work if we drive a harder bargain. I suggest we leave them with water, but no food. Then they'll know that following is not an option. They'll reach Orcrest hungry, but they'll live if they hurry."

[EliteCommander]

Ra'jorr turned his head back to check behind them before he spoke, though the soldiers were not close to being near enough to hear them, and had shown no signs of moving. "Whether or not we give them food will likely not matter. In the desert, water is first and foremost concern. If we give them just barely enough water to complete the journey, they will not follow us. A soldier of Anequina would know how to survive in the desert, so they would be very familiar with the limitations of water. They would know that to follow us would mean their deaths, and Ra'jorr does not believe their orders would be enough to motivate them to a pointless death."

"Hopefully so." Meesei commented. "And even if they do decide to follow us, they would be dooming themselves to dehydration. So, as unfortunate as it would be, we would still not be in danger. We just need to decide the point at which we are going to force them to leave. Too close to the city and we will not have enough time to put distance between us, but too far and it increases the chances that a delay in their pace could kill them."

[Muttonhawk]

There was no protest from Gallus, despite that Ra'jorr's approach would put the soldiers in more danger. "Very well, if it guarantees that they will not follow, I can agree. We just have to make sure they do not catch wind of it beforehand. To that end, I recommend that this plan stays between us until it is enacted."

Gallus then turned to Ri'nakhad. He had not given a word on this developing scheme yet. "What do you think, Ri'nakhad? Is this agreeable to you?"

[EliteCommander]

Ri'nakhad looked back to Gallus, letting out a sigh. "Ri'nakhad does have some worries about it, but...he doubts any plan we could reasonably have would not worry him. This one will consult our maps with Ra'jorr to find the best location to confront them. Now, we should move on to our normal duties, so as not to arouse any suspicion."

The camp did not take long for the clan to set up, after which they returned to something approaching a normal evening. They had their dinner and allowed themselves to finally rest after a long day of traveling. The soldiers were keeping fairly separated from the clan, but that did not rid the atmosphere of the anxiety that their presence created. From this point, until they forced them to leave, they would all have to watch their words and actions to keep the soldiers from catching on to the truth of the situation.

As the sun was beginning to set, the wind began to pick up. All of their tents were tied down securely, but the sand that was blowing through the camp was uncomfortable to say the least. However, that annoyance became a legitimate worry as something almost like a dark cloud appeared on the horizon. Meesei was seated in front of her tent, nearby to most of her pack, as well as Gallus when Ra'jorr came running by in front of them.

"Champion, everyone needs to get into their tents immediately. This one has already been spreading the word. It appears there may be a sandstorm approaching." Ra'jorr explained, though he continued on in a hurry as soon as his message was delivered.

Meesei closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. "Gallus, I do not know which of the divines has dominion over the weather, but I have a strong suspicion they are mocking me."

[Muttonhawk]

Despite the severity of the situation, Gallus guffawed at Meesei's comment. "Don't give yourself too much credit," he said in response, "I'll tell everyone in this direction!"

Gallus padded through the sand at a jog and stopped by everyone in sight. "Sandstorm! Get in your tents!" He shouted firmly. Very few did not comply immediately, but a quick grab by the shoulders and another shout got the message across.

The dark cloud of dust and sand that was approaching loomed ever closer by the time news reached all of Gallus and Meesei's packs. Sabine had to frantically pile up her alchemy equipment, still laden with half-processed balm and toss them into the tent behind her before scurrying in with Peiter and tying their tent shut. She was clearly scared and sat in quiet tension at this weather event she had not witnessed before.

Rhazii was in the process of nagging Fendros to go and take a closer look at the soldiers by the time Gallus came running through. Rhazii became wide-eyed in confusion and fear when Fendros suddenly picked him up and took him to their tent. As Newt was nearby, Fendros pulled him in as well. Janius was in the process of looking for Newt after running back from helping around camp, but saw Fendros wave and heard his shout that Newt was safe. Then he just had to find Kaleeth.

Partly removed from his pack's side of the camp, Tzirret had been socialising with Ma'tanza, Bheja, and Qa'habi while trying to practice magic. It was probably better for him to practice without distractions, but he hadn't thought to tell himself that by the time word of the sandstorm reached them. While they got up and ran about to secure their belongings and find shelter, Tzirret looked at the looming storm with wide-eyes. He knew that he wouldn't have time to get back to his tent. He looked to everyone, a bit lost and afraid, then just picked the nearest tent to seek shelter in. By the pleasant smell, it appeared to be Ma'tanza's tent.

Gallus managed to find his tent just in time. He pulled in the excited and worried young wamasu, Leaps-On-Elves, tied up the flaps and sat down to catch his breath. "Well, Leaps. We'll have to stick through this one together." Leaps croaked obliviously and scampered onto his lap. Well, more accurately, most of Leaps was spread out either side of him due to his size. The large creature made the tent rather cramped.

[EliteCommander]

The wind and sand was starting to pick up in camp as Kaleeth searched for the rest of her family. She had been getting meat for her dinner when she heard about the sandstorm. Understandably, she was afraid, but not so much for herself as for Newt. She had tough scales and an overall hardy constitution, but Newt was just a child. The sand was biting against her scales as she finally spotted Janius, then sprinted up and threw her arms around him. "There you are! Where is Newt? We have to get him out of this wind!"

Naturally, Peiter and Sabine ducked into their tent as soon as they were able after they heard all of the shouting about the sandstorm. Peiter helped to tie shut the entrance, then checked and re-checked his knots. This was their first sandstorm, so Peiter was just as nervous as Sabine. Their belongings were haphazardly thrown into the tent, so they would not have much room to move until they organized it all. Regardless, Peiter sat beside Sabine, putting his arms around her as they could hear the winds pick up around them. Soon enough, it sounded like a gale outside, but their tent was strongly secured. There was some sand getting through the flap covering the tent's entrance, but not a great deal. "Well...at least we'll be cozy in here, I guess." He commented.

In Ma'tanza's tent, she turned her head in surprise when Tzirret suddenly ducked into her tent. She was sitting on her bedroll with a shaking M'ibasa in her arms, looking at him in confusion. "Oh, Tzirret. Ma'tanza did not expect you would follow her. Are you sure you want to stay here? Won't Gallus get worried if you're not back at his tent?" She asked, but almost on cue, the storm outside arrived in earnest, and sand started to blow into the tent. "Ah, nevermind! Just close it up quickly!"

[Muttonhawk]

Janius did not even have the time to return Kaleeth's embrace before responding. "Fendros has him!" He shouted, reaching for the opening of their tent. "Get inside! Quickly!" Within seconds, Janius entered the tent behind Kaleeth and began closing it shut.

The sandstorm immediately pressed against the sides of the tents like sails, buffeting them inwards and casting a deeper darkness over all inside them. Janius had his face blasted by the sand right before he was able to shut the tent properly. He afterwards turned to Kaleeth with his eyes scrunched shut and spluttering sand from his mouth. "Pfeh, ugh! Where are you, Kaleeth?" He asked, crawling through the tent and trying to wipe his eyes clean. "Hopefully this doesn't last too long."

Sabine's heart was racing. The closest weather events she had witnessed like this were ash storms in Morrowind, but whenever they came around, she was in secure shelter, not a flimsy sounding tent. She drew her knees up and leaned into Peiter. "The tent will hold, won't it?" She asked meekly.

Not only did Tzirret not seem to react much to finding Ma'tanza and M'ibasa in the tent he had picked, he did not even face them. He was too busy trying to tie knots to close the tent up. He was breathing fast and his hands were shaking, making the process much slower than he would have liked. The sand blasted in for several moments, making him flinch, but he was able to close the tent properly. Once secure, he turned around and sat forward, brushing the sand off his face and breathing an audible sigh of relief.

When he had a moment to refocus, Tzirret looked up and only then seemed to register Ma'tanza and M'ibasa's presence. "Right, sorry. This one didn't have time to get back to his own tent. He hopes it is no trouble for him to stay." Tzirret had to speak loudly to be heard over the wind making the tent cloth flap and snap against it, but he sounded apprehensive. "Um..." he itched at his chest and looked to one side with a worried brow, "Do Ma'tanza or M'ibasa know how long these sandstorms last?"

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth felt around the tent until she could find Janius, then subsequently wrapped her arms tightly around him and pulled him close. Even with their lycanthropic night eye, it was difficult to see with the sand outside blocking the already faint moonlight. But, once she could get her arms around him, she could pull him close, then try to find some kind of comfortable position in their tent. "I'm here. The sand is irritating, but I'm fine. Are you sure Newt is going to be fine with Fendros? You saw him get to safety, right?"

Peiter leaned his head in towards Sabine and pressed his forehead against hers. With his arms tightly around her, he started to rub her back gently in an effort to be calming. "I'm sure we'll be fine. There isn't much sand getting in...and the wind seems pretty constant. We might just have to dust everything off in the morning. Just...talk to me, try to get your mind off of it. Personally, I feel nice and safe in here."

Ma'tanza shook her head, and switched to Ta'agra for the sake of M'ibasa. "No, this one had never been in a storm like this. She has only heard stories about them, but she doesn't know how much of it is true. She has heard some people say they can be deadly, but others that they were just inconvenient. At least the tent seems to be keeping out the sand. That wind is very loud, though, and it is so dark. Ma'tanza can hardly see you. Don't feel bad about staying here; this one would never ask you to go out in that."

[Muttonhawk]

"I saw what looked like him get pulled into a tent by Fendros. It was just a glimpse." Janius put one arm around Kaleeth while he wiped the rest of the sand from his eyes. "Don't worry, Fendros called out that he had Newt. I trust him. He might be a bit frightened, but with Fendros, Ahnasha, and Rhazii, he'll be fine."

Janius smiled curiously, although Kaleeth could hardly see it. "I had been wondering whether Newt would remember much of this journey. Though, I should think that an experience like this would be hard to forget. He's young, though. What do you think?"

Sabine was grateful for Peiter's comfort. She brought her arms out from in front of herself to return his embrace. "I guess you are right. It's just some sand and wind, that is all," Sabine commented, though the storm still had her on-edge.

The lack of words that followed for a few seconds did not sit right with Sabine, so she decided to take Peiter's advice. "Peiter?" Sabine asked after another moment, "What do you think the Orcrest clan will be like?"

"Thank you," Tzirret answered. There was a shuffling sound as Tzirret tried to reposition himself. He reached out with one hand, trying to find Ma'tanza by voice in the dark.

"Where are they again?" In his still slightly staggered state, Tzirret ended up overestimating and prodding Ma'tanza in the face. "Um...s-sorry." Tzirret knew that it could have been worse, considering his previous blunders. At least that was enough to orientate himself.

After a moment of still regret, Tzirret settled down next to Ma'tanza in an awkward silence with his hands under his armpits. It was at this point that Tzirret perceived the fearful shivers of M'ibasa in Ma'tanza's arms. Rather than continue the train of thought that speculated whether they would all be buried alive, Tzirret turned his head in M'ibasa's direction and thought to try helping his nerves. Tzirret spoke with a compassionate tone. "Is M'ibasa alright? There should not need to be worry. The wind and the sand cannot hurt brave warriors in here."

Tzirret smiled, somehow distracted from his own fears by M'ibasa's. He felt as though channelling a bit of Gallus might help here.

[EliteCommander]

Leaning into Janius, Kaleeth rested her head against his neck. "I hope he forgets this. Or at least, isn't as frightened as I am thinking. Hopefully Fendros and Ahnasha can keep him calm, as well as safe. I don't want him to be afraid every time the weather starts to get bad."

Kaleeth took a moment to take in a few, deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself down. She had entrusted Newt to Fendros and Ahnasha many times, and they were always good caretakers. "I'm used to things like this with rain, but never sand. It seems so bizarre. The tent seems to be fine for now, though. I wish we could get the sand that's already in here out, but opening the tent would only make it worst. But...at least we can have some time alone. We haven't had much time to ourselves lately."

Peiter shrugged briefly before attempting to move around some of the bags in the tent to give him space to sit comfortably. "I don't know, really. I haven't asked about it. If it's in the desert, I'm guessing it will be at an oasis, or some kind of water source. There will probably be even more Khajiit than in the Senchal clan, since it's in the very middle of Anequina and away from the ports. Hopefully, it is well hidden and well defended. I'd like to actually be able to feel truly safe for a change. Ever since we first got to Senchal, there has always been the possibility of something going wrong. It would be nice to have that weight off our shoulders."

M'ibasa looked away, unconvinced. "Bravery can't stop the weather." He protested. There was another, sudden gust of wind outside that caused his grip on Ma'tanza to tighten even further. Despite his obvious fear, however, he looked back up to Tzirret with a clearly forced facade of confidence. "But...M'ibasa is not worried. He isn't afraid of just...sand. No, he, um, he's just cautious. That's all. He just wants to make sure we're all doing the right thing, so the sand doesn't annoy us."

[Muttonhawk]

Janius leaned his head against Kaleeth's. "You know, you're right," Janius responded, "There's not been much of any opportunity on the road. We've not really had much time to just...sit and be together, with all that entails. I've actually really missed being able to talk in private. I know I've been a bit grumpy lately with the sun and the sand, I should apologise for that."

Putting aside realising that his first thought did not go to another subset of 'all that entails', Janius craned his head around to look at Kaleeth more closely. There was plenty of time for whatever they wanted, really. Instead, he spoke. "How about you? How have you been lately?"

There was a half-hearted giggle from Sabine's nose that just ended up sounding like a high pitched set of hums. "That is what myself and others in my pack thought when we arrived at the Bruma clan for the first time, three years ago. Then Jerrick was poisoned." Sabine shifted to nestle into Peiter a little more closely, leaning the side of her head into his chest. "Maybe Hircine will tell Meesei if that is going to happen again. It probably will not, I think."

There was an endearing charm to M'ibasa's courageous words. Tzirret gave him a nod. "Ah, Tzirret knew the brave M'ibasa would not fret here. Not like this one," Tzirret's eyes darted around and he rubbed his upper arms as if shivering, still forcing a smile, "This one finds the wind a bit frightening. He needs brave M'ibasa and lovely Ma'tanza to keep him safe. Can M'ibasa do that?"

In betrayal of the actual truth of his words, Tzirret's tail wrapped itself around Ma'tanza's waist with a worried tension to it.

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth smiled, rubbing her hand down Janius' chest. "Don't worry, I've been feeling just as bad as you. I never expected this place would feel so bad; I didn't know what it would be like to be so dry. I've never felt it before. It's so...strange, like my scales are constricting around me. I feel like I want to dive into the water and never come back out. Maybe if we do find some place to swim, you can convince Sabine to make a few water breathing potions for you so can spend a few hours underwater with me and Newt? I'm sure he would love that; he's been complaining a lot about the dryness too."

"Yeah...it will probably be fine. What are the odds of that happening twice?" Peiter commented. Leaning his head down, he gave her a kiss before continuing. "I think I'm mostly just looking forward to being out of the sun. That will be a more than welcome relief. No more sunburn, no more blisters and peeling skin. I'll actually be able to touch you without torturing you, and me for that matter." He said, giving a slight chuckle. "Though personally, I find it just as torturous being unable to touch you.

M'ibasa looked up to Tzirret with a smile. "Tzirret..." He began. At first, he seemed encouraged by his words, but he quickly began to laugh to himself. "Could you be any more obvious?"

Ma'tanza chuckled. "Well, you tried Tzirret. We'll all keep each other safe." She said, rubbing the top of M'ibasa's head playfully. Like Tzirret, she wrapped her tail around his waist. "Well, Ma'tanza supposes we just need to pass the time."

[Muttonhawk]

"I would like that," Janius said, "Though with how scarce water is out here, I don't like our chances of a pool large enough being with the Orcrest clan. We'll have to make a note to do that on the way home, or when we get home."

Janius began to stroke his hand down Kaleeth's neck affectionately. It had been a while since he had shared a dive with Kaleeth under the effects of waterbreathing. He reminisced the time at the reef off the coast of Thorn, years ago. "Kaleeth, I don't think I get to say this enough. I love you."

Peiter's attempt at flattery was more amusing to Sabine than anything. She gave a similar chuckle in his arms. "We still have the nights. And a tent." Sabine grinned and turned her head up so she could see his eyes, "Am I spoiling you? Letting you touch me so?" She lifted herself up a bit to kiss him quickly. "I feel the same way, love."

Sabine still wanted to keep up the conversation, so she settled herself down to her prior position. It took the time of a deep, relaxed breath to come up with a question. "Peiter, how long has Gallus been your mentor? What is it like being taught by him?"

While Tzirret smiled a bit, he wasn't sure that returning M'ibasa's laugh would be laughing with him or at himself. He took M'ibasa's sarcasm as a prompt that he may have been trying a bit too hard to encourage him, but he could not say that his efforts were wasted.

"Well, let's see..." Tzirret leaned his chin on his fist and his elbow on his knee as he sat forward, cross-legged. "It's too dark to play any card games, that is what this one normally does with his pack when there is time to pass." Tzirret angled his head, "Do we know any good stories?"

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth did not actually say anything in response, and instead simply looked up at Janius, put her hands on his cheeks, and kissed him. Though, she was not quick to stop. In fact, her kiss became rather passionate as she started to push him somewhat forcefully down onto his back. She held him close, her heart beating more and more rapidly. It was as if she had all but forgotten the roaring winds outside. It seemed obvious where she was going with her actions, but after a minute or so, she became visibly nervous. She laid down beside Janius, still holding him close, but looking slightly away from him as she spoke. "Say, um, do you think we have any...rope in here? Or something like that?"

Peiter chuckled. "Maybe you are? Or maybe I'm spoiling you with all of the attention?" He said teasingly before returning her kiss. Once they were settled again, he closed his eyes and let out a sigh almost in unison with her.

To Sabine's question, Peiter opened one eye curiously. "Gallus? Well, he hasn't had his pack for too long, really. Just a few years; it was after you arrived. I knew him before that, of course, but he wasn't really my mentor then. He is, uh, interesting. In some ways, he does really seem like Oswall. He's good in a fight, and has been learning all of those military skills his father is known for. But, as much as he likes to downplay it, he is a bit of a womanizer. He's not compassionless towards them or anything, but I think he makes excuses for himself. In that way, he isn't really like his father...I think. Honestly, I don't know if Oswall was the same way, but is just old now. Anyway, Gallus is a well-meaning person, I'd say. I'm wondering what this mission will do to him, though. I think he accepted it just wanting the adventure, but...this has been a very serious sort of adventure."

Ma'tanza brought her hand up to her head and scratched her chin. "Well, Ma'tanza doesn't know if there is anything interesting she can say. Not many exciting things have happened to her that you don't already know about. There wasn't much interesting about her before she was turned. But...it has been a while since this one has heard any stories about your experiences. Is there anything else exciting that has happened with you? Maybe something with the Champion, or anything else like that?"

[Muttonhawk]

Given how few and far between their chances to do such things were these days, Janius returned Kaleeth's passion without hesitation. His mind settled into the assumption that they were going to just enjoy themselves for a while, but Kaleeth's demeanour warded that somewhat. Janius was concerned, but did not address it before Kaleeth spoke. What she said turned Janius' face to confusion.

"Rope?" Janius responded, looking thoroughly puzzled, "I think we have some spare for the tent, but...what ever do you need rope for?"

Sabine closed her eyes and her smile faded. "Adventures are serious most of the time," she said, lowly. She did not stay grave as she continued. Rather, she sounded concerned. "Are you worried for him? Has this adventure been...serious for you, too?"

There was a moment where Tzirret hummed in thought. He couldn't quite remember all the things he had or hadn't told Ma'tanza. Apart from the battle for Bruma three years ago, most particularly exciting things in his life had happened on this journey. Well, there was the exception of his turning, but that was never going to be something he wanted to share just 'to pass the time'. Not to mention, it was still sore for him.

"This one could tell the story of the day we landed in Senchal. He does not think he has told you of that properly." Tzirret sat up as straight as he could without his head touching the side of the tent. He was partly glad that he got to tell a story, as it put his mind off the weather. "We had all been cooped up in a ship for weeks, out of the Imperial City. We had rooms for ourselves this time, but the crew were all non-lycans, so we could not transform at all. It was very tense, but very boring at the same time. When we landed, this one did not mind that Senchal seemed very...seedy. He was just glad to be on land. Our first destination was a tavern near the docks where we were meant to meet a contact..."

Tzirret went on to recount all the details he could remember. Meeting the traitor pack along with Colours, the tree house outpost, unravelling the scheme, Meesei being stabbed, even Peiter's account of the sneak attack on the ground. There were ups and downs, like any good story, even some laughs shared at Colours' behaviour and Gallus' drink order. Tzirret's role in the story was comparatively minor, but he was not exaggerated with his levels of bravery during the ordeal. He was just honest. He stopped to answer questions, of course, though retelling it all only took about an hour in total.

"...after that, once Ra'kalesh's pride was healed, we took a ship to the area we thought you might be hiding and began looking." Tzirret shrugged, "Beyond that, this one thinks that there was only the minotaur den, but he told you about that before." Tzirret's eyes went to Ma'tanza's pendant, as dim as it was in the light. He had elaborated exactly how he earned the creature's horns previously, after giving Ma'tanza the pendant. This was not the first time they had swapped stories to pass time on the road.

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth lowered her head nervously. "Oh, um, well...I just...I know it's stupid but..." She began, though she was having trouble saying anything coherent. Eventually, she took in a deep breath and looked him in the eye. "I can't get away from it. Ever since those fights on the ship, I can't escape the fact that I like to fight. You know how I've been feeling aggressive, ever since I was turned? You know how it hasn't really gone away fully like it does with werewolves? Having those fights was satisfying, but I think it made my beast more bold. More active. I've always done my best to suppress it, but I thought by giving in, just occasionally, I might figure out how to live with it better. But now, every time I get really emotional, I feel its pull stronger than before."

Leaning her head back, Kaleeth gave a sigh. "The worst part is, I do think it worked in a way. Every time I transformed since then, I've felt more...in tune with my beast. I felt like I could understand it better, and I was in better control, but it's also made me feel it stronger in my normal form. When I started thinking about going farther just then...I could feel it. It wanted to fight, to struggle. It didn't want to kill you or anything, but...it didn't want to be gentle. I didn't want to hurt you, so...I wanted rope. I'm sorry I haven't mentioned this yet, I just didn't want to worry you. I'm sorry." She repeated.

Peiter nodded. "It's been dangerous. I think I've mentioned before about how I really don't like the danger. My kind of adventure would be like climbing a tall mountain, visiting an exotic city, or finding some kind of natural wonder. Hunting exotic animals could also be enjoyable, but killing people, that's not my definition of adventure. The people we've killed...I can't help but to wonder how many really were worshipers of Vile? I know they were all working for them, but how many were just mercenaries on another job? I'm just afraid that not all of the people we have killed, or will have to kill, are deserving of it."

---

Both Ma'tanza and M'ibasa were easily enthralled enough by Tzirret's tale to keep them interested for the hour it took to tell it. Most of the events were not about Tzirret himself, but it was an interesting story all the same. By this point, M'ibasa no longer needed to be held by Ma'tanza to feel safe, so he was able to sit by himself.

"You all went through all that?" M'ibasa began, now genuinely wide eyed as he looked up at Tzirret. "It sounds like your prid- uh, pack, has been to Oblivion and back. Are you going to stay with us after we get to this other clan? I'd want to have a break after all that."