EliteCommander

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

Leon5431 said
Here is is, finally ready!

Nice I suppose I can see why it took so long.

I also see that Konan posted. I'll probably hold off until Sundred posts for Xyden, just in case he would react in some significant way, or until Lucius (I assume) posts the psychomancy demonstration.

Elder Scrolls: Terror of the Padomaic

Just checking to see what the plan for you guys is right now. I intend to post the rest of the collab after you guys start the distraction. That will take Sharee and Sarel out of the city. Just let me know when you get to the point for me to do that.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei listened to Fendros' outburst, though she seemed to be completely unaffected by it. She simply waited until he was finished, then approached him and began pacing around him, ignoring his last question in favor of her own speech. "And you are telling me you believe all of that? Truly believe it? Don't get me wrong, I understand completely why you carry the opinion you do, but that does not make it right. You were raised in an Imperial settlement with Imperial values, perhaps with influence from your Dunmer parents. You have been told that those who live in similar cities are civilized, while those who chose a life in the wilds are savage barbarians, and, as a child, you had no reason to disbelieve them. After all, the entire sum of your beliefs and morals come directly from your parents, do they not? Maybe some influence from friends too? If they knew everything, that would be perfect, but what if they get something wrong? You would believe it completely, having no reason not to trust them. But your parents are infallible, right? They taught you, or gave you the resources to teach yourself, everything they 'knew' about the world. They likely told you what to believe on politics, history, magic. For instance, they might have told you that levitation is a dead art, a spell lost to the ages that none alive know."

Meesei walker around behind Fendros, sliding her hand across his back as she charged alteration magic into his body. He started to glow a violet color as faint tendrils of magic wrapped around him. She then walked around in front of him, grabbing his arm and lifting him up a few feet off the ground, where he remained even once she let go. Meesei looked up at him, staring him in the eyes. "They couldn't be wrong, could they?"

After dispelling her levitation and letting him drop to the ground, she continued her speech. ""You need to ask yourself why you believe what you believe. Do you think our lifestyle so inferior because that is what your family raised you to think, or because you have looked carefully at both lifestyles, thought about what each one offers, then come to a conclusion based on your own ability to reason. You need to push away the bias you have been raised with and think about it objectively. Your family has a successful business, yes? But what does that success actually mean? Do you think it would be fulfilling to spend the rest of your days growing berries in field, then fermenting it into wine? Lorag might sing your praises for it, but does that life really have any goals or aspirations, anything to achieve, or will you just be stagnating? Doing the same things day in and day out for centuries, maybe with a vacation every now and then."

Meesei over in front of Fendros and placed a hand on his shoulder. "If you think you are losing any opportunities in this, perhaps I should enlighten you on my own past. You were to inherit a farm, I was to inherit an entire village. In my clan in Black Marsh, there were three leaders of our clan, which, despite the image probably going through your head, consisted of a few hundred individuals.These leaders were the Master-Hunter, the Elder, and the Shaman. I was raised to be the Shaman of my people, trained extensively in magic, diplomacy, our history, and overall, how to be a leader. I was meant to guide our entire people , especially in regards to magic and the clan's health. In most ways, the lives and well being of all of those people would have been tied to my decisions; it was a great responsibility, and a great honor. My life had purpose...or at least I though it did at the time. When our hunters could no longer find prey, I went against tradition and went to Hircine for guidance. It was at that point that I realized how little what I was doing actually meant. Sure, I had the responsibility to keep my clan alive, but that was all we were doing: surviving. We had no real goals, no purpose to attain or achieve other than simply staying alive. Granted, that is a difficult task in the marsh, but it was still not enough. As a Hunter of Hircine, I have actual purpose. I seek to grow my power, to hunt the greatest and strongest creatures this world, and perhaps a few others, has to offer. I am beyond mortal, and you can be too. You are a child to your own race, and even compared to the shorter lived races you are young. And yet, you managed to kill a werewolf single-handedly. You killed an ogre not minutes ago with nothing but your own claws and teeth. You have potential, and a lot of it; you deserve more than just growing grapes for a living, a lot more."

Elder Scrolls: Terror of the Padomaic

Nytefall said
I gave my character a nice little conversation starter

Indeed. Just make sure your character doesn't arrive at the meeting location before Sharee does, as it would mess with the collab I have written up with New Yorker. Not that you could really do much at the meeting spot before anyone else is there, I suppose. I'm crossing my fingers that we can get to it soon enough, so you won't have to wait too much longer.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei approached Fendros and stood over him, her expression showing a bit of satisfaction at his performance. He was by no means perfect, but he had performed better than expected; he was certainly trainable. She had hoped he would be a bit more accepting of his situation, but his feelings were nothing unexpected for a new blood. He would come to see his potential in time.

"Oh, but you have. Your beast spirit is not something you have to fight while on a hunt, it is your ally. It is skilled in the art of savagery, while your mind holds the seat of reason. I was watching the entire fight, I saw when you switched from instinct to a more...tactical approach. As you grow more experienced, you will be able to switch between the two more effortlessly. Believe me, there are times where brutal savagery is the best course of action, and that is what your beast excels at. For now, you need not worry about your beast taking control, as its hunger has been sated. If you allow it to feed often enough, it will make it easier to prevent accidental transformations, and even if you do lose control, it will not harm us. It acts on instinct, but it will not attempt to kill fellow pack members. For now, however, you should relish your victory. You have performed well; you should be proud of your actions." She explained, reaching down and offering him her hand to help him up. Her expression did not show a great deal of emotion, but looking closely, he would be able to see her satisfaction with him.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

I'd like to stay up, but I need to go to bed. Goodnight.

Elder Scrolls: Terror of the Padomaic

Got to say, I really like where this is going. I questioned how this would work before, but now I'm seeing it.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei remained close behind Fendros, circling the pair as they fought. As expected, Fendros went straight for the ogre's throat, just as his instincts commanded him. The ogre's instinct to protect its neck saved it, however, so the ambush quickly became a fight. The ogre could hit hard, but that pain seemed to give Fendros pause enough to think, which was the true strength of a lycan. A werewolf had a fast and powerful body, with the massive claws and sharp teeth of an apex predator, but even more importantly, it had a mind capable of thought and reason. The intelligence of a person coupled with the bestial power of a wolf made for a deadly combination that few could resist. As Fendros grew more experienced, he would be able to switch between ferocity and tactical thinking at will, but for now, his thoughts would likely be in reaction to his environment.

Fortunately, Fendros managed to slay the creature without serious injury, though she had not quite expected his following actions. Instead of feasting on his kill, he was writhing on the ground as if in pain, though she saw no injury. She had expected to have to force him off of the body to claim her right to eat first, though that did not appear to be necessary. He still very much had the mind of a "civilized" individual, so perhaps he had reservations about eating the raw meat of a fresh kill? She remembered that Janius had a similar issue, though he still feasted on his first kill. Nevertheless, there were certain traditions that needed to be followed, so Meesei ignored Fendros for the moment and moved to the body of the ogre. She used her teeth to rip into its abdomen, biting through the fat and pulling out some of the intestines underneath, relishing the scent of the blood that soaked her snout. They would still need to carry the corpse back, so she had no intention of eating too much and tearing apart the corpse. She ate just enough to satisfy both lycan customs, and the hunter of her beast spirit.

Once finished, Meesei allowed her beast to rest, shifting herself back into her Argonian form. As usual, she showed no reaction whatsoever to the pain of having her bones break and reform through the transformation. Her fur disappeared as if it were never there, replaced by her normal scaly exterior. Her hands, face, and upper chest were still covered in blood, but it did not bother her in the slightest. Meesei calmly walked over to Fendros, who was still in his wolf form, seemingly writhing in pain. "Do not resist, embrace your hunger. Feast on the flesh of your kill, your beast spirit demands it. Sate its hunger, then let it rest, as I have." She said, her voice carrying a commanding tone.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei followed Fendros, pleased that he at least seemed to be going in the right direction. As she expected, he didn't exactly know what he was doing and almost lost his way a few times.She could have easily corrected him, set him on the right path, but she refrained from doing anything except following, as this was a learning experience for him. If need be, she would intervene, but fortunately, he managed to find his way each time, despite having to backtrack a few times. When the scent grew strong enough, she could tell they were growing close, so for the last few feet before the ogre came into view, she moved in front of Fendros and slowed down, signalling for him to stop as well. She crept forward slowly and silently, peering through the brush at the ogre on the other side, which seemed to be simply relaxing on a large rock. It looked to be a young one, large, but not exceptionally so compared to others of its kind. Nevertheless, it was stronger than a werewolf, though not by too much. With his claws and teeth, Fendros should be capable of killing it. His inexperience with fighting in his lycan form would make it difficult, but she would be there to make sure he was not harmed too seriously.

Meesei turned around, bringing her head close to Fendros. "Good work. Now, kill it." She whispered. Unless he got himself into too much trouble, she had no intention of helping and would simply remain close by while he fought.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei nodded to Fendros, who had successfully managed to take on his werewolf form. She was pleased so far with his willingness to cooperate, and with his success in calling on his beast spirit, though she did not let it show. She let out a grunt, and motioned for him to follow as she took off running on all fours to the west, away from the city. Even though he was still in control of his body, his beast spirit would now be much more pronounced in his mind, which had both positive and negative effects. Anger would come much more easily to him, and he would have a harder time refusing his natural instincts. Prey of any form, whether it be animal or man, would be harder to pass up, though Meesei had no doubt she could keep him in line. Whether Fendros himself agreed or not, his beast spirit was a pack animal by nature and would undoubtedly recognize her place in their hierarchy. If necessary, a show of force would be enough to put his beast in its place. On the plus side, his beast spirit's instincts would help him to control his new body's motor functions. Fendros likely did not know how to run on all fours, but it was ingrained in the mind of the beast within him.

With how inexperienced he was, Fendros would not be able to keep up with Meesei's full speed, so she held back enough so he could follow. Even so, their pace was far beyond anything that could be accomplished on two legs. As Fendros became more used to running, he grew closer to Meesei, so she in turn increased her pace. Though Meesei did catch the scents of a few creatures along the way that might be worth hunting, she decided to continue running with him a bit longer to help him become comfortable with running. Besides, she wanted to find some prey that would fight back.

Meesei continued the pattern of allowing Fendros to catch up, then increasing her pace for a while. He would probably be surprised with how long he could keep it up, though he would still undoubtedly be getting fatigued. They had covered quite a bit of ground, and they would still need to drag what they killed back with them, so Meesei finally slowed her pace and started paying closer attention to the scents around them. She detected traces of deer and boar in the area, some old, one fresh, but that was not the prey she sought at the moment. She had given him a test of speed, and she was about to introduce him to tracking, but she wanted to test his strength as well. They continued walking around the area for a short time until Meesei finally caught something of interest on the wind. Glancing around, she saw a tree that had halfway fallen and was currently leaned up against the trunk of large oak. She ran up the trunk of the collapsed tree to bring herself to a higher vantage point, effortlessly balancing on the trunk beneath her. Lifting her nose up in the air, she sniffed the winds as they passed, paying close attention to its direction. As she had hoped, there was something just to the west that would be worthy of hunting, an ogre. They were semi-intelligent creatures which could be a great threat to the average traveler, bandit, or adventurer, but they were not much stronger than a werewolf, so their advantage over them was greatly diminished. Still, it would prove to be enough of a challenge for the new blood, and she would be there to kill it if he was unable.

"You smell that? Living prey, nearby. Track it, and I will follow." Meesei ordered, looking down on Fendros from above. Hopefully, his beast's instincts would be enough to guide him, though it was no guarantee.