EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Arinette gave Sabine only a few seconds to answer before following with a more forceful demand. Balling her hand into a fist, she gave Sabine two strong punches to the stomach. Arinette was not a terribly strong individual, but that did not mean she could not inflict pain with simple force.

"Answer me, dog! What were you doing at our camp? What was your plan?" Arinette demanded once more, though before Sabine could answer, she grabbed Sabine by the hair and lifted up her head so she could look her in the eye. She held her staff up in front of Sabine and spoke even more threateningly. "Do you see this? With the power in this staff, I can heal almost any wound. I kept myself from being disemboweled by your Champion using this. Do you know what that means? It means I can do almost anything to you without killing you. Now, answer me."

---

Ri'vashi found herself more shocked at Meesei's reaction than anything else, but for now, she followed Janius' lead and ordered a search of the camp. They had forced the enemy to flee quickly, so there was some possibility that they might find something useful.

When Fendros embraced Ahnasha, he would be able to feel her whole body shaking. "I planted the book in his tent, but...I don't know if he saw it, or took it with him. I just...don't know, about any of this. Sabine, she...they took her. I tried to get close enough to help, or get an angle on them, but it was too late. They were already too close to her."

Meesei was the one impacted most strongly by the event, and she lost any semblance of rationality. Instead is was replaced by a mix of pure anger and fear. She finally stood to her feet, her hands clenched tightly into fists. She bared her teeth, even as the tears streamed down her face. Her gaze settled on Ahnasha, the one person who had been close to Sabine during their mission. It did not make any real sense to blame her, but Meesei was far from being reasonable at the moment. "Why didn't you stop them? You were right there, you...you saw it happen. Why didn't you put an arrow in their heads when you had the chance? Why didn't you save her?!"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Most of Arinette' team were disoriented at first upon teleporting, but quickly moved to secure the area once they had gained their bearings. They did not remain alert for attackers for too long, so wherever Arinette had taken them was likely quite far from their previous camp, even if it was still in High Rock.

One of the Orcs gripped his weapon tightly as he looked around the area. "Damn, so what'd we lose this time? Most of the camp isn't here."

"Saved the armory, at least." The other Orc twin added, gesturing to the collapsed tent nearby.

The Redguard conjurer spoke up after catching her breath. "What was their plan there? There were so many of them, but they revealed themselves before their main force came in, didn't they?"

"Actually, Do'rhajul sniffed her out. I don't know their plan." Arinette remarked as she positioned herself directly in front of Sabine. "But she does."

Arinette leaned in close to Sabine with a threatening scowl. "What was your plan, dog? Why were you there? Were you scouting us?"

---

Back at the site of the camp, Ahnasha emerged from her hiding place, bound bow in hand, as Fendros called for her. Although, she appeared to be at just as much of a loss as the rest of the pack. Kaleeth, and even Lorag, were dead silent with varying degrees of shock in their expression. Sabine was gone. She had not been killed, at least as far as they could see, but they had absolutely no way of knowing where they had gone. Ahnasha in particular could not help but to think back to the one and only time she had been captured by an enemy and the horrors she had experienced as a result. The idea that Sabine might experience the same was sickening to Ahnasha's core.

For Meesei, those thoughts had already broken her. She had spent her entire time waiting in fear of what might happen, and now those fears had become reality. "No, no no. This cannot...no..." She stammered, collapsing down to her hands and knees as she stared at the spot where Sabine had just been standing. "This cannot be happening..." Meesei broke down into tears as her words became less and less coherent. Her pack had seen her in such emotional distress before, but this was the first time she had allowed herself to fall from her stoic demeanor in front of others.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

I managed to get a post before going to bed.

I think, apart from a few reaction posts from the others, we can concentrate on Sabine. It might be interesting to resolve without a rescue party.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Once Arinette saw that the automatons were turning away, her staff started to glow even brighter as she charged a spell through it. However, this was not a lethal attack, but rather a spell of magicka absorption, draining the magicka from Sabine and pulling it into the staff. At least in the short term, it would prevent Sabine from casting any spells.

This time, Ahnasha ignored Sabine's warning. In the distance, she could already hear the sounds of their reinforcements charging in from all around them. Ri'vashi had brought an overwhelming force, after all, so their approach was hardly subtle. The rest of the team form within the camp had risen from their bedrolls and had collected together in formation, with Yerig being the last to join them. Do'rhajul picked Sabine up to her feet and held a blade to her throat as they back up closer to their camp, next to one of the larger tents.

By the time their reinforcements were in sight, Ahnasha had found cover behind the nearest tree and conjured up a bow. They approached from three different angles, with warriors, mages, and transformed lycans on all sides. In the front of all of them were Ri'vashi, Meesei, and the rest of the pack. Meesei had cast a lightning form spell upon herself and was fully prepared to be the spearhead for the assault that would finally end this, but what Arinette shouted to them stopped her in her tracks.

"Not another step or we'll slit her throat!" The Breton shouted, gesturing to Sabine beside her, with Do'rhajul's blade firmly to her throat. It took Meesei only a few seconds to recognize the full gravity of the situation.

"Wait! STOP! Meesei commanded to their warriors in as loud of a voice as she could muster. For as much power as Meesei had, there was nothing she could do to stop Do'rhajul from executing Sabine if the word was given. Instead, she could only shout back her own threats. "Release her, now! We have you greatly outnumbered. Just...surrender. Let her go, and we will not hurt you. You have my word."

Arinette's gaze moved all around her at the lycans that now surrounded them. Even with her staff on their side, the rest of her team looked nervous. Even so, Arinette was not ready to relent. "I think not." She replied.

Do'rhajul huffed towards Arinette. "There are far too many, even for us." He muttered to her.

"Yes, I know." Arinette replied. Slowly, her staff began to glow once more, increasing steadily in intensity. Nearby, Ahnasha had an arrow nocked and was aimed straight at Do'rhajul's head. She could make the shot, and she knew it. She was close enough that it would be trivial, and he had not even noticed her. He was not wearing his helmet, so it would be simple to end his life right then and there, but she knew that it would not magically give Sabine a chance to escape. Even if Do'rhajul did not slit her throat, one of the others would before she could get far. For Ahnasha to loose her arrow would be for her to kill Sabine just as much as it would be to kill Do'rhajul. She was at a loss, but after only a few more moments her internal debate became meaningless.

While it was not without warning, the spell that Arinette used still seemed just as sudden and surprising. Just like their last encounter, there was a blinding flash of light, and when everyone regained the ability to see clearly, Arinette's team, Sabine, and even the tent they had been standing next to, were all gone.

For Sabine, the teleportation spell came with only a vague, somewhat disorienting sensation, almost like being dizzy. However, it lasted for only a few seconds before she could regain her bearings. Based on her surroundings, she was still in a High Rock forest, but there were no noticeable landmarks around. There were only trees and a few rocks. And of course, there was the blade still pressed to her neck.

Coruscant Sacked: Aftermath

Fa-Val-Kuul

~|Strike Team Base of Operations, Feena

Day 2 ATC, 13th hour|~

---

Fa certainly had good reasons to be upset about the Jedi’s sudden arrival. They had forced them to use their shuttle again only a short time after arrival, which not only increased the likelihood of their team being prematurely detected, but also delayed their next resupply. It was frankly a reckless intrusion into their operation, but any thoughts of those issues were banished from Fa’s mind when Gar explained his purpose.

The Tiss’shar’s eyes visibly widened upon hearing the news. This was the first she was hearing of an attack on Coruscant. If what Gar said was accurate, and he did not seem to be the type to exaggerate, then this was a terrible tragedy. Then there was mention of a “treaty”, of which she also had no knowledge.

“The Temple…destroyed? That sounds too horrible to be true, but…no, I do not doubt your words.” Fa replied. Both confusion and anger were natural responses to news of such an attack. Fa felt them, but did not give them a place to fester.

Since they clearly had much to discuss, Fa guided the master into the cavern they were in the midst of transforming into their base of operations. Though it was underground, Fa had set up a command tent for, if nothing else, organizational purposes.

”I apologize for the lack of a warm welcome. We are all quite busy here, you understand.” Fa remarked as they entered the tent. “Our position here on this planet is still tenuous at best. We do not yet know if we have been detected, and the more we use that shuttle, the more likely that becomes. I am afraid to say that you are going to be stuck here for some time, if any of you happened to plan to leave. But, if you can forgive the cold greetings, my men are some of the most qualified in the Republic to keep us all alive here; you have my word. I, well, I suppose we should discuss this attack you mentioned. You said they took prisoners? That could make this situation much more complicated.”

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Arinette planted her foot firmly on Sabine's throat, hovering her staff just above Sabine's face. It glowed with a terrifying amount of magical power. However, she did not commit to the finishing blow, however much her angered expression showed that she wanted to. The others in the camp were arming and moving to her quickly, but the automatons were approaching faster. She saw the control rod that Sabine had dropped on the ground nearby, but she herself did not know how to use it. Instead, she telekinetically pulled it across the ground and over to Sabine.

"Stop them. Now!" Arinette ordered.

Ahnasha was getting close, but with the sudden, undeniably advantageous position that Arinette now had over Sabine, she was at a loss. Right now, the Breton was just a single motion away from executing Sabine. Even if Ahnasha was able to get close enough to use her daggers, would she even be able to stop her from landing a killing blow? She could summon a bow instead, but that would break her invisibility well-before she could nock an arrow. Would a single arrow even be enough to kill her? Now that Arinette was alerted, she could have a shield spell upon herself that might protect her. If Ahnasha did anything wrong, she could get both Sabine and herself killed.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Sabine can certainly be captured, as that is the strategy Arinette would want to take for one of Meesei's packmates. She knows how much of a weakness their personal connections can be.

I don't think I would want Sabine to be killed at this point. That might bring an end to certain plot lines before they could really be brought to fruition. However, I do have some ideas of things that could happen in her captivity to further her own character. Though, I don't imagine Arinette will make it a pleasant stay.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Do'rhajul's response was almost instant as soon as he saw the light above him. "TO ARMS!" He shouted, which quickly stirred the camp to life. They all appeared to be disciplined, and were quite quick to respond to Do'rhajul's order. While Do'rhajul himself was unarmed and had to rush back to grab a weapon, Arinette was ready to fight immediately.

Before all of the automatons could even be activated, Arinette used the power contained in the staff to unleash an exceptionally powerful burst of lightning against Sabine's ward. While the automatons would be charging in quickly, they had not planned for Sabine to be discovered in such close proximity to the enemy. They simply could not reach her in time to distract Arinette from attacking her.

The attention was not on Ahnasha, but she was also somewhat distant from Sabine. She needed to help and started to rush for Sabine, still under the cloak of invisibility, but it would take her even longer than the automatons to reach Sabine. Meesei had almost certainly given the order for the rest of the warriors to advance, but they would be the last to arrive.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

Ssarak Dyreackthanose

---

Ssarak was not expecting the sudden outburst of flames, to be certain. For a few, very brief moments, it raised quite a few questions in his mind which he had a hard time believing would possess reasonable answers. Between the Esyire’s thoughts and the words he screamed, it did not take too much effort for Ssarak to piece together what happened. The way the Esyire spoke seemed to suggest that he knew it would happen, which begged the question of why he, or any rational mercenary, would accept such a job to begin with. Why in the Inferno would anyone who was just working for coin agree to put on something that would allow said employer to immediately kill them at any time? Ssarak worked as a mercenary for a time, and if nothing else, he would have suspected that the employer could easily turn on them once they had secured the package. To Ssarak, it seemed insane, but he did not have time to dwell on such thoughts.

The Esyire, in his panic, was running for an exit, towards at least one of Ssarak’s friends. He could still be dangerous even in his last moments, so Ssarak followed after him. Being that the Esyire was on fire, Ssarak wondered if he might now be more susceptible to illusions. It did not seem likely that he was paying close attention to anything except his own pain. As such, Ssarak attempted to shift his perceptions to guide him away from anything dangerous he might end up setting ablaze. He shifted the apparent position of crates, other obstacles, and the exit itself to try and keep him from causing more harm.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha understood the warning, and with it, she was certainly in no mood to stick around. She needed to get out of camp, and the safest way appeared to be to go back the way she came. She still tried to stay silent, but she now knew that she had to be in a hurry. The Orc, if he was attentive and looking in her direction, would be able to see the distortion of her invisibility, but she just had to take the risk. To stay at this point would likely be even more dangerous.

To her relief, when Ahnasha had made her way beyond the tents and to some foliage she could use to obscure herself, she did not see anyone in pursuit when she turned back. The Orc seemed to be just as occupied with his snack as he had been before. She seemed to be in the clear, and could only hope that Sabine was having similar luck.

Do'rhajul had finally released his grip entirely on Arinette. Her anger had not died down, but she still took notice when the Khajiit directed his attention above them. His eyes narrowed as he stared intently into the tree's leaves. "Did you hear that? I could have swore..." He remarked with voice that trailed off as he started to take in the scents around him. "Something smells...off. Not right."

While Do'rhajul was seemingly unarmed, Arinette had her staff on her back, and she quickly reached for it.