Muttonhawk

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

The pack walked away from the interaction with the cult leaders with at least some relief. Between more objectionable tasks and breaking out in a fight, that audience could definitely have been worse.

Fendros paused, then took the bag from Orskan's hands. With one hand, he rummaged in the bag and pulled out one of the gems. Even though it was dull and clearly empty, Fendros wasn't entirely comfortable holding it. He placed the black soul gem back into the bag, then looked up at Orskan. "I think I'll need that dagger as well," he said with less enthusiasm than Ahnasha had.

When they walked into the corridors, Janius caught up with Kaleeth to speak with her about the task that was set. They specifically mentioned that they would all be going out to this ambush, but Kaleeth had only been training with her weapon for a couple of days. "Kaleeth, we'll all be together for this one, but if you don't feel confident enough to fight, then you may hide yourself for the duration when we arrive. What did you want to do?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Admittedly, the task that Llarvan and Hal-Neesa set was not something that was completely objectionable. Although it seemed cruel to kill their hostages, it appeared as if the hunters were just as cruel, and the pack knew what it was like to have those driven by blind hate at their backs.

Janius' notion that they were under the cult's thumb definitely manifested in them holding Rhazii as a hostage. It was as cruel as their reputation suggested. Also concerning was how Kaleeth would handle herself. She would have to transform if she wanted to be effective in this fight, but Janius didn't want to force her to kill. If she did end up fighting, she would also have to restrain herself from attacking Vinaremo and the cultists.

Holding back his own anger at their decision, Fendros kept his eyes on Llarvan and moved closer to Ahnasha. He put his arm around her and comforted her quietly. "I don't like this either, but if they still want our help, Rhazii will be fine." Fendros wished he could promise such a thing, but right now they had no control of the matter. This was all he could do.

The Depths of Deception

Observing with the display on her arm, Shiva found that the layout of the next room provided a lot of opportunities to be spotted, but it wouldn't be completely exposed in a firefight, if they kept the initiative for as long as they needed to.

With a noncommittal look, Shiva threaded an arm around the rung of the ladder she was up to and looked down at those below her. She was not one for stealth, but with the way Opus, Rareth and Bit handled themselves with the last contacts, they seemed like better candidates. If they could all stalk their targets, that is. Some might be better suited to assaulting the first group.

Politely leaning herself over to hang on to one edge of the ladder, Shiva motioned for others to move past her. "I'll wait for the order to charge. Killing quietly isn't my forte."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

With how imposing Samarys' guard were, all of the danger that the pack knew they were in returned to the forefront of their minds. It was almost hard to believe, but with no incidents over the past few days, they were actually beginning to feel safer here. At least before Hal-Neesa's husband returned.

Fendros didn't quite know what to make of the man. Llarvan wasn't anyone he could immediately remember the name of, neither for the Samarys family. In frankness it was surprising enough that it was a Dunmer. Though, he supposed he shouldn't be too surprised that he wasn't the only Dunmer in the world that had broken convention and paired with one of the beast races.

As opposed to Fendros' reaction, which was of curiosity if anything, Janius kept his wits about him. With Hal-Neesa's power, he knew that these cult leaders both had the pack under an unsaid duress. Whatever his verdict was here, it might mean the end of them. Janius' confidence was not improved by how well protected their guards were under that ebony plate.

It was a thread of optimism that kept Sabine from true fear. Even though they couldn't trust these people, there was no denying that they had been accommodating thus far. Hopefully Vinaremo didn't have too much say in the pack's fate.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

That was good timing. Finish an assignment up late, find a post up.

I've not really got any more set events for this in-game day, so we can finish the scenes we have and summarise their outcomes unless you wanted to continue them for a bit.

As for right now. Sleep time x)

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Oh, don't you worry about hurting me. Just follow the rules we have for safe sparring and if you end up crossing any lines, I'll let you know right away." Janius said, at first normally, then tending towards strain as he realised the difficulty he now had with refilling his lungs. He would have put his arm around Kaleeth as well if it weren't for the fact that his arms were trapped against his torso. Instead, he let the moment continue with shallow breaths for a moment, then patted Kaleeth's knee and started to get up, motioning for her to follow. "Lorag taught me how to wield maces properly a while ago, back in Morrowind. I'll get you to swing it at a mannequin first to get used to it, and test your strength while we're at it. Also..." Janius turned and put his hands on either side of Kaleeth's face, showing a warm smile, "...your spirits have returned a bit. It's good to see."

Ahnasha managed to turn Fendros' mood around rather quickly, eliciting a small, slightly surprised laugh from him. "Advanced techniques? You mean up until now hasn't been advanced?" Fendros questioned jokingly, retrieving his own bow, "I'm not sure how I'll match you even in my own lifetime at this rate."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"If that's what you are afraid of, Kaleeth, then you don't have to fight until you're confident. None of us want to throw you in any position where you'll die." Janius stated in as casual a tone as needed, "Even Sabine always transforms before we go anywhere deliberately to fight, she didn't really express any interest in learning to fight before her trial of body. What's most important right now is learning to control your beast spirit, so take other things at your own pace for now." Janius raised a smile. Even though Kaleeth was still obviously anxious, she wasn't completely withdrawn like yesterday. Perhaps the sparring did end up doing some good after all.

Janius walked over to the bed and sat down next to Kaleeth, leaning forward and looking up at her face. "Would stopping to meditate and calm yourself help, do you think, or would you like to go out and try something else? Spending another day curled up in bed won't be good for you, and I have a feeling that the strength you have might suit a...heavier weapon."

The expression that Fendros had still looked conflicted, but he didn't protest. Ahnasha was right, they wouldn't likely get an opportunity like this in the future. He just hoped that his conscience could guide him true if they went through with it. Even with bandits, Fendros wasn't sure he wanted to wish the fate they planned on anyone. Orskan's response didn't raise Fendros' confidence either. If he didn't want gold, then he could only guess what held value to him that they could relinquish. He hoped it wouldn't be anything harmful. Ahnasha's hug was something he returned, though. It was nice to see her hopeful for once about this issue that hung over them. He breathed in to speak, but couldn't think of anything to say.

The Depths of Deception

cqbexpt! Where you at!?

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Janius looked forward again. "Perhaps." Janius curled his lips and stopped to think. From what Janius could recall, there were only a few things that Kaleeth appeared to be well trained in. She exhibited some skill in hunting outside of her beast form, though that wasn't really an option now. There were some basic skills that she picked up from living in her village that had made life in the pack easier, but those were really just chores. There wasn't really much that they could do while detained here. As Janius pondered, he thought he might be looking at the wrong angles. What were Kaleeth's 'natural' abilities now? Well, her condition has given her strength that she may not have tested the limits of yet. Perhaps it might help to provide the opportunity to experiment. Whether it would make her any more or less ashamed of herself was another matter entirely. It might just help to ask her.

"It might be of some help," Janius pushed off the wall and nodded to Lorag, "Thanks Lorag." With at least some other option in his mind, Janius turned and continued toward the guest rooms.

Janius entered Kaleeth's room more quietly than before. He gathered up what he wanted to say before stopping by Lorag, then took a spot standing and leaning against the doorframe. "Kaleeth, please don't run off like that. I know you didn't mean any harm." Janius' tone was trying to play down the situation, trying to convince Kaleeth that there was no reason to panic like she did. He craned his neck to one side cautiously, "Before you left, I was about to explain why I picked swords to train with this morning. I knew you weren't trained with them. I wanted you to demonstrate to yourself that you could overcome challenges when not under the best conditions. In a way, you succeeded, and that's the truth. I wasn't expecting you to rush me like that."

Back in the training room, Fendros faced away from the cultists and spoke to Ahnasha carefully. "I'm not saying you aren't being cautious here, but I'm not sure it would be a good idea to rush into something like this if it's going to mean using black souls. I've read about them. Regardless of what these cultists want, or get up to, do you think we can really justify this method? It won't just mean killing people, it will mean condemning them to suffering." Fendros put up a hand before Ahnasha could respond, "Hold, just..." Fendros exhaled, his mind jumping between two sides of a very grey issue in his mind. "Okay, we'll find out more, but let's just keep that in mind. And let's stay on the lookout for anything underhanded, I still don't trust these people."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

With a sigh through his nose, Janius twisted is mouth and conceded that he should just be forthcoming with Lorag. "She has...well, she is afraid all of the time, but we're all a bit afraid here, no it's...she's having a difficult time coming to terms with her nature as a werecrocodile and she's got it in her head that she can't. That she's useless. I know that's not true, she has learned a lot since she joined us, and I think she's capable, but whenever she makes a mistake, she just completely loses her mind and withdraws. It doesn't help that whenever that happens, she seems to get quite homesick." Janius leaned against a wall and crossed his arms, looking low at the opposite wall of the corridor. He had to admit that even with all this time to think about it, actually putting the situation into words helped to give him some perspective, no matter what Lorag's response to it all might be. "I tried to talk her out of that anxious torpor she put herself in yesterday by trying to lend her some optimism, then she snapped at me and said I was lying to her. Today, I thought I would try something to prove that she could overcome challenges when she was out of her element. I thought of trying some sword sparring where she would have to experiment and try to overcome a simple technique." Janius extended a palm out in front of him, "At the very least it would get her moving, maybe help against sitting still and constantly letting the stress get bigger and bigger." He looked away, ashamed at his failure, "Then she just got too frustrated, had an outburst where she pinned me against the wall-" Janius' tone went from recounting to reasoning frantically, almost interrupting himself for a moment, "she didn't do any harm and I doubt she would have under any circumstances - it was just her beast spirit I think. Anyway, she got scared again, now she's run off again."

Janius turned his head to Lorag again, angling forward. He had an expression as if he was overwhelmed and at his wits' end. "So that's why I thought I might as well ask how you might have dealt with what she's going through. I was on my way to explain why she didn't have to be upset about her outburst, and why I lead her to get frustrated just now. I'm not sure whether that would be enough, though. I feel like I'm spinning in circles."

As Orskan explained the general concept of his necromantic extension of life, Fendros shifted uncomfortably. Black souls came from people. To bind them in such a way would be cruel beyond measure. With what Ahnasha knew of magic, Fendros doubted that she was unaware, but she still latched onto the idea. Before Orskan could respond, Fendros placed his hand on Ahnasha's shoulder to pull her attention away. "Ahna," Fendros said with a worried look, "Can we talk about this? Please?"