EliteCommander

Elder Scrolls: Danger of Discovery (EliteCommander and Luna)

I'm occupied with some other things, so I may be delayed in responding.

Also, is Veria's little sister an adopted Argonian? She has a strange name for an Imperial with a Nord father.

Shadows in the Moonlight

The woman said nothing in response, only giving a simple nod. She gave one last look around the camp, then motioned for the others to escort Sam and Stevie. "Alright, let's get moving. We will secure your belongings. For now, we have a remote place in northern Virginia that we will be taking you to. You might call it a settlement, or compound. You'll be safe there, from yourself and others." She explained briefly before ushering them into one of the three black vans parked outside of the camp.

The woman who appeared to be leading the group got in the front van, while Sam and Stevie were placed in the back of the middle van. They had armed guards around them, none of which seemed too talkative.

"Don't worry Stevie, I'm...sure we'll be fine. They might even be able to help us." Sam commented, though he was trying to convince himself as much as her. In truth, he was terribly frightened of this entire situation.

Elder Scrolls: Danger of Discovery (EliteCommander and Luna)

Swims nodded graciously and stepped inside, not that Vah gave him a choice. As usual when Veria was not at home, he took a seat by the fireplace as he waited for her to return. He looked around at the familiar home. It was probably the place in Leyawiin he had spent the most time in that wasn't his own home. Despite their failure at becoming adventurers, he was actually comforted by being in such a familiar, safe location. "So, Vah, what do your parents think about myself and Veria returning?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

I think Kaleeth his going to end up making Janius very nervous.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

To Ahnasha, it was good to hear that Ariel seemed to be truly adapting to life in Black Marsh, as it was because of the pack that she had to move there in the first place. She, and most of the others, would feel rather guilty if they had caused her life to be irreparably ruined. That did not seem to be the case, however, as she had a new shop, new friends, and even a potential relationship. Her life in Thorn might not be perfect, but realistically, hardly anyone could truly call their life "perfect." Right now, Ariel was safe and, more importantly, seemed to be happy.

When Ariel asked about Rhazii, she smiled, then reached over and rubbed his stomach playfully, which produced a giggle from him as he grabbed at her fingers. "Well, it certainly isn't easy taking care of him, but myself and Fendros probably get a bit more sleep than many parents, nightmares not withstanding." Ahnasha said, immediately regretting her slip up in mentioning the nightmares. Hopefully, Ariel would take it to mean the nightmares that lycans naturally received as a result of their beast blood, though her and Fendros' night terrors were far worse than those. Nevertheless, she quickly moved on from the topic, so as not to draw particular attention to it. "Although myself and Fendros are the ones who take care of him primarily, the rest of the pack shares in the responsibility whenever it is appropriate. We're not always the ones that have to wake up in the night to calm him down when he starts to cry, unless he needs to be fed. In that case, I am the one who has to tend to that, though admittedly, I usually wake up every time I hear him cry, whether it is my turn or not. There is just something about hearing him cry that makes me snap to attention; instinct, I suppose. No matter how hard it gets, though, I wouldn't trade it for anything. Motherhood, that is. I...don't think I can put it into words, really. There is just something about having a child of your own, someone you care for and who you love unconditionally...it is simply indescribable. If, at any point in your future, you are deciding on whether or not to have a child, I would say that it is unquestionably worth it."

Just as Ahnasha finished speaking, Kaleeth made a special point to nudge Janius with her elbow and look at him with a grin before casually returning to her meal.

Shortly after Ahnasha withdrew her hand from Rhazii, his curiosity moved to Ariel, as she was still new to him. He reached out his arms and tried to grab at her, despite being all the way on the other side of the campfire.. Ahnasha gave a light chuckle. "It looks like you have his interest. Rhazii is much more of a curious cub than a frightful one, and I am glad he is. Having him be curious around new people is much better than him crying every time he sees someone he doesn't recognize. Although...I think my opinion might change once he learns to walk. I am going to have to keep a very close eye on him once he can move on his own. Anyway, would you like to hold him?" Ahnasha offered.

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.