EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

After selling what they could in the day, the pack actually had much more gold on them than they were used to, but the fact that it was mostly dedicated to simply buying them a place on a ship meant that they still had little to spend. Still, with the ships Janius had found, they did have some choice in how much they were going to spend. As Janius listed the options, Meesei weighed the advantages and disadvantages of each. In this case, the quickest option also seemed to be the worst, not only because of how Janius described them, but because they were leaving a bit too soon.

"I do not believe I would like to take the ship leaving tomorrow, as before we leave, I would like us all to go on a hunt together, just to be sure our beast spirits will be as satiated as possible. The passenger ship would save us time, but I am actually leaning towards the cheapest option, the one leaving in three days. It is true that our task is time-sensitive, but I feel that the coin we save will benefit us in the long run. If we are lucky, it might allow us enough gold to take a carriage from the Imperial City to Bruma, which would be faster overall. It is no guarantee, but I feel that it is the best option we have at the moment." Meesei explained.

It was not long after Meesei's response that Ariel and Sabine finally arrived at the camp. In addition to the rice and vegetables they brought, the had a few guar steaks cooking over the fire for those who preferred cooked meat, though most of the pack still preferred raw. "You are just in time, actually." Meesei said with a smile as they approached. "I believe the meat is nearly ready. Take a seat. We do not have bowls, or anything of the sort, but we do have some clean leather you could use as a makeshift plate. At any rate, have a seat by the fire. I look forward to catching up now that we have a bit more time and privacy."

Once the meat was cooked, everyone began to help themselves to the meal. Kaleeth still had difficulty bringing herself to eat raw food, so she took one of the cooked steaks, as well as a portion of the rice and vegetables. Fendros had Rhazii for the moment, so Ahnasha prepared his meal as well as her own. Lorag took a larger helping of meat, though he still tried some of the vegetables, while Meesei found herself in the mood for the opposite. Even Leaps had his share of the meal, though his interest was strictly in the raw guar meat.

"So Ariel, other than Rukeewei, have you made any new friends or acquaintances in Thorn?" Meesei questioned.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

We can do a skip to later in the day whenever you like.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth followed along quietly while Janius led the way from ship to ship. It wasn't that she had nothing to say, but rather that she could not find a way to say it. With how foreign everything about the ocean and ships was, she was somewhat overwhelmed. Much of the time that Janius spent talking to the sailors, Kaleeth spent just looking off into the ocean, only breaking her gaze periodically to make sure Leaps did not escape her grasp. It was hard to believe that there was something so massive, so amazing in the world that she had simply never seen, nor would have seen had she not left her village. As for the ships, she was trying to wrap her mind around how they could be created when Janius spoke up again.

"Oh, well...yes, I there is." Kaleeth began. "These ships...how do they build something so massive? So impressive. Those...what did you call them, masts? They are so tall, and the ships look like they could hold...I don't even know how many people. How many years does it take to build one, and how do they even get them to float? They must be terribly heavy, especially with all the boxes these people are putting on them. And...we're going to be riding in one?" Kaleeth asked her barrage of questions, only stopping once she realized she hadn't given Janius a chance to answer them.

Elder Scrolls: Danger of Discovery (EliteCommander and Luna)

For the rest of the day, Swims was uncharacteristically quiet. His parents were, of course, overjoyed to see that he had decided to return, and for them, they just assumed his silence was because he was upset that he had failed to become an adventurer. Only his brother, Hides-in-Shade, knew the true reason for his awkward silence, but mercifully, he decided not to inform their parents. Instead, he made subtle jokes while in the company of their parents, and more direct jokes poking fun at his taste in mates when they were alone. If there was anything positive that came from the experience, it was that Shade was too preoccupied with what he had just learned to make fun of Swims for returning home so soon.

The next day, Swims left the house soon after breakfast. Ostensibly, it was so he could get some fresh air, but really, he just wanted to visit Veria. He made his way across town, through the market that was just starting to come to life for the day until he reached Veria's family home and knocked on the door. Given how close of friends they were, he had been over countless times, so Veria's family would not find it strange in the slightest for him to be there again.

Shadows in the Moonlight

"Don't worry Stevie, it will all be..." Sam began, but he was swiftly interrupted by the woman, who grabbed Stevie's chin and turned her head to make her look her in the eyes.

"Calm down, girl!" She shouted in her loud, commanding voice. "That beast within you is hardly different from an animal, a dog, and it can be commanded just as such. Right now, you cannot escape. No matter how much you thrash and claw, You are ours now; you are a part of the clan. Now, submit!" The woman yelled, though it seemed like she was shouting more at Stevie's beast than Stevie herself. One thing was for certain; she was a frightening individual. She wasn't even yelling at Sam, and his beast was already submissive in his mind.

Shadows in the Moonlight

"Half of these rifles are loaded with silver rounds, girl. If we wanted you dead, you would be dead, end of story.. I would hope that the fact you are still alive gives enough credibility to my words." The woman answered. "Now, turn around and put your hands behind your back. I'm going to bind you, then we're going to take you somewhere you can get help. Understand that I cannot let you leave this place alone in your current state. We both know how much of a danger you are right now."

Sam could not find words with which to answer the woman due to his fear. She spoke in a commanding tone and had a general air of authority about her. It was enough to make even the beast within Sam to recede in submission. He meekly nodded and turned around with his hands behind him. In response, the woman gave a nod to a man on her left. "Make sure tha tranq is loaded, Jones." She ordered before producing an odd-looking pair of handcuffs from her bag. Slowly, she walked up to Sam and snapped each end around both of his wrists. "These handcuffs are designed specifically for werewolves. If you end up trying to transform, they will break, but in the process, they will inject a certain poison into you. It's not lethal, but it is formulated to be able to knock out a werewolf for a few hours. It's the same thing that is in my friend's tranquilizer gun." She explained as she took out another, identical pair of handcuffs, then approached Stevie to bind her as well.

Shadows in the Moonlight

As the air had cooled, Sam had elected to put on a pair of warm pants, but the combination of the blankets and Stevie's body heat would keep him warm regardless. Once she laid down beside him, he closed up the tent and laid down himself. At this point, he was actually looking forward to the next day's training.

---

Sam was awoken the next morning by movement outside the tent, which sounded alarmingly close. He shook Stevie awake while holding his finger over his lips, urging her to be quiet. "I think I hear something outside." He whispered. He was just starting to get up to open up the tent when their intruders suddenly dispelled any mystery regarding their presence.

"We know you are in there, and we know what you are. We have you surrounded; come out slowly, and with your hands up, and you shall not be harmed. Fail to cooperate and we will be forced to take more drastic measures." A female voice shouted from just outside the tent. Sam slowly unzipped the tent, his eyes widening when he saw the barrels of at least four different rifles aimed at him, and that was just from the ones he could see. Being as frightened as he was, Sam complied, fully opening the tent and slowly stepping out with hands above his head.

"W-what is it you want? We're just camping, if you own the property, we'll leave. No trouble." Sam said frantically. Now that he was in the open, he could see that there were another three individuals behind the tent. Interestingly, these people wore no kind of uniform or other identifying marks. They simply wore regular civilian clothing, but the weapons they were carrying were anything but normal. Several of them looked to be military grade assault rifles.

"Don't lie to me. We know what you are, and why you are here, but we do not want to hurt you. We do, however, know how dangerous you can be, even against your own will, so we are going to restrain you. Cooperate, and I promise we will get you help." The woman offered.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Oh, well...father once helped to make this really big boat, bigger than the normal canoes we sometimes used in dangerous waters." Kaleeth began, pausing a moment to recall all the details she could. "It has been a while, eight years I think, so I was only eleven at the time. The rivers had been flooded for weeks, and we needed to move all of our supplies, so father and some of the other hunters built some really big boats for us. The biggest could hold seven or eight people without even feeling crowded." She explained.

Kaleeth was too distracted in thought to notice the masts as they made their way toward the edge of the district, to the gate leading to the docks, which were outside the walls. She was looking at Janius as they walked through the open gates, but when she turned her head to behold the ocean before her, she stopped in her tracks. She stared out across the docks, wide eyed and with her mouth partially open in awe. At that point, she saw the true size of the ships they were discussing, as well as the ocean itself. The sheer size of many of the ships was something that was simply unbelievable to her. It looked like it would take years to build a single one of them, and they looked heavy enough that she wondered how they could even float. As for the ocean beyond, she was now had a full view of its grandeur. Looking all the way to the left and right, she could not see an end to it. "It...really is an endless lake, and these boats..." She began, but she could find no more words to describe it.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

For selling all of the things they collected, I think I would rather just summarize that part.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha nodded and handed off Rhazii to Fendros. She took the pack containing the most valuable of the hides first and looked inside at what she would be selling. The toughest of the hides they had was from a creature they killed a week or so ago that looked somewhat like a wamasu, but smaller, and was more of a scavenger than a predator. Regardless, it had thick scales that would make for good armor. Beyond that, the most valuable items were the quality furs, or hides that could be made into aesthetically pleasing leather. Hopefully, Neercana-Rei would remember them fondly enough to give them a good price.

"I...don't know. I would have to be able to get closer. I have seen it happen, though. The hatchlings are so cute, though. They are small and delicate like Rhazii, with only one little tooth in their mouths for breaking out of their eggs. Maybe you will see it happen one day, if you ever want a hatchling of your own. That Hal-Neesa woman did mention she had children with that Dunmer, so I guess it is possible." Kaleeth mentioned, giving one last look to the eggs before looking back in the direction they were originally heading. "Well, I guess we should keep going. What are these boats like? It seems like it is going to be really uncomfortable to sit in a boat for so long."