EliteCommander

The Depths of Deception

Took me a while to finish the things I needed to do. Do you think Hail is going to be able to post, Lightbox?

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Zharanthixil paused to confirm what Janius said, then jumped into the water to cross once he picked up on it as well. The scent was faint, but definitely familiar. Once he crossed, he detected that it was a trail leading deeper into the marsh, rather than a scent on the wind. What was odd about it, though, was that it reminded him of Kaleeth, but it wasn't exactly right. There was something off about it that he couldn't quite place. Nevertheless, it was the best lead they had, so he was certainly going to follow it. Unlike a normal hunt, the quarry he was currently tracking would be glad to see him, so he had no reason to remain quiet.

"Kaleeth! Are you there, Kaleeth, can you hear me?" He shouted repeatedly as he followed the trail, hoping for some kind of answer.

---

Pain, regret, the mud against her scales, it was all Kaleeth could feel. She laid on the ground in no particular place, for no particular reason but to sob to herself. If there was a way her situation could get worse, she was not aware of it. Even death would be a release for her at this point. She regretted almost everything she had done, everything that brought her to this place. To her, she was stupid, her choices were stupid, and she deserved all the pain she felt. She was lost in the marsh, and didn't really know if she would want to return even if she knew where she was. She questioned whether or not she deserved to go home again.

When the sound of the voice reached her ears, Kaleeth dismissed it at first. She dismissed it as another lie, another trick of her mind that would build up her hopes, only to have them crushed again. However, this time, it not only repeated itself, but it grew louder, closer. Its clarity grew until she could discern something...familiar in the voice. Slowly, she stood up and looked out cautiously into the marsh. "Father?" She shouted in response.

The Depths of Deception

Yeah, our characters will probably need to get that sorted. Right now, they've formed a bit of a disorganized crowd in the hallway. Also, practically everyone is talking to Rareth. I have class soon, and I'd like to let Hail give a response before posting, but I can post once I get home.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

I would write more, but I need to go to bed. Goodnight.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Hmph, well, if you can find my daughter, maybe I won't have such a strong urge to break it." Zharanthixil commented. Standing back up, he took the lead once more as he walked along the riverbank. He kept an eye out for any tracks or other signs of Kaleeth's presence, but it was not an easy task. There were a few times where they stopped to investigate something interesting, but each time it just ended up being evidence of some kind of animal. It was proving difficult to find anything related to Kaleeth, but there was still the hope that she had passed by there.

With Zharanthixil's constant, stern expression, it was difficult to tell if he still had hope of finding her, but they continued on nonetheless. After another hour, Zharanthixil stopped suddenly in his tracks with his nose to the air. "Wait...do you smell that? I...can't quite tell what it is. It is not like any creature's scent I have encountered before, but it is not exactly like Kaleeth either. Still, it is...familiar. See if you can determine a direction." He said, trying his best to find the source of the faint scent.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Zharanthixil was legitimately surprised that Janius managed to find something so subtle. He did not think that Humans had such an acute sense of smell. Neverhteless, while his daughter's life was on the line, he was not going to question a lead. Without a word, he took the fish skeleton from Janius and examined it himself, both visually, and by scent. Unfortunately, his nose could detect nothing more than Janius'.

"Hmm, I can't quite smell Kaleeth's scent on it, but that doesn't mean it wasn't there. By the decay, it is a day or two old. Most notably, it doesn't exactly look like it was a creature that killed it. It's possible that it was the decay, but it looks like bones are too clean to be left behind by another creature. It seems like someone cleaned all of the meat off its bones. It is a start, at least. We might be heading down the right path." Zharanthixil commented before tossing aside the skeleton and looking at Janius with a bit of curiosity. "How sensitive is your nose, exactly?"

The Depths of Deception

As Rareth and Shiva were finishing their introductions, the three remaining members of their team approached down the hall. Rareth turned her head and looked at them, her expression clearly showing recognition. She smiled, took a few steps towards the trio, then...walked straight past August and extended her hand to Ashley.

"Ah, Ashley, it is good to see you again. I trust the past year has treated you well?" She said before turning to the other two and giving a slight nod. "Oh, greetings to you as well. My name is Rareth'Jharn. A pleasure to meet you."

Given that she did not know most of the people present, Rareth still approached most of them formally. It was more of a force of habit, really, but she supposed she did not know for sure how long they would be working together, or if all of them would be accepting their mission. Once they had spent enough time together, she was sure they would become more familiar, more casual.

The Depths of Deception

I'll post in a moment, just have to do something first.

The Depths of Deception

Eh, the low end of the spectrum is below freezing. Their comfortable room temperature is in that range. They can handle lower temperatures than what a human can, but their tolerance for higher temperatures is lower.

The Depths of Deception

They are locked away safely in the building. It is a very secure, if ugly, structure.