Muttonhawk

The Depths of Deception

The hiss of the door sliding opening caused Shiva to reflexively narrow her eyes at the hot air she had come to expect from Rothian rooms. She waved to Rareth as she was invited in. "Thank you," she said casually, both for the welcome and for the promise to change the temperature. It was too warm to be comfortable at first, but the controlled climate worked quickly to at least make it bearable. Telmeck was present, to which Shiva gave a polite nod in greeting. After looking around in the centre of the room for a moment, Shiva found a seat to occupy and held her hands in her lap patiently. The lonely experience in the cafeteria had brought her mood down a peg, so she wasn't very talkative. Fortunately, Shuo arrived before any awkwardness could set in fully. He sounded grumpy and he had a canister that caught Shiva's eye. It was labelled with something Shiva didn't recognise. "Welcome back from the dreaming cave, sir," Shiva remarked with a tight smile. Shuo had been so peacefully sleeping in their room that Shiva had almost not noticed him when she had walked in to grab a towel and a change of clothes. She couldn't quite understand how he could sleep so easily while she had trouble keeping her eyes closed.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Vera closed her eyes and sat quietly while Meesei spoke. She sniffed and tried to speak when asked the next couple of questions. "Well, it was on the table during our meeting. By the time we finished, Oswall walked out quickly. I think he just went straight to see if you were in the dining chamber." Vera swallowed, "I stayed behind with Harriet to discuss which packs would be going to watch Bruma next, then I left after a time. I walked out to find Darahil and Jerrick talking while watching the dining chamber. Jerrick might have left his waterskin in the meeting room, but I didn't notice, I just walked with him down with...everyone else and..." Vera began to break down again. "I'm sorry, it's just..." It was a couple of minutes before Vera was in a state to answer again. She was making the best effort that she could, but the event was unsurprisingly difficult. "He went back for his waterskin before he approached you to talk, but he always forgets it. I don't remember seeing him separated from his waterskin from then on. I went to continue the writing class after lunch. I think I heard something about Harriet challenging your packmate Lorag to a fight, but her schedule tends to change, I don't keep track. Darahil probably went back to his research, as usual. Oswall...I don't know what Oswall did, he may have been teaching, or he may have taken some time to hunt with one of his packs. It would have depended on the weather I suppose. I saw everyone for dinner, no one seemed out of the ordinary, except Jerrick doing some extra work. And Harriet, she...was fidgeting. She ate quickly and left, but I don't know where. I brought in some food for Jerrick before marking some of my students' work and heading to bed myself." Vera's lip began to quiver, "I...I was expecting him to come along after a while."

New Game Plus (MuttonHawk and Ontos)

Related to this as deep as I am, what is that supposed to mean? Cassarah narrowed her eyes in confusion and suspicion. Technically, if the guard wanted to lynch her for researching demons, he had enough evidence as it was. Either he was trying to secure physical evidence or he knew more than he was letting on about demons. Perhaps he had read about them as well? Maybe this guard outfit was just a cover for someone in hiding studying in Cassarah's field. An idea crossed over Cassarah's mind that might test this guard's legitimacy. Her suspicious expression unfaltering, Cassarah spoke firmly, "I accept on one condition: Name the book you want right now." Most of Cassarah's resources were back in Savoyard, safely hidden away, but she had three books one her person in her bag. One was a demonologist's reference book with some profiles of common demons and demonic symbols, another was her travel and research journal, the last happened to contain the prophesy that would herald the end of human civilisation, if only Cassarah knew. The book with the prophesy was titled The River of Steel by a long dead scholar named Finnian the wanderer. There were other details in the book that Cassarah was trying to work out while she travelled, but she had skipped over the prophesy as being exaggerated nonsense.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Vera didn't look up from her hands on her lap where she sat. She tried to keep back her tears, but she began shaking and the tears flowed again when Meesei tried to console her. It took a few moments for her to begin answering questions, but she was forthcoming through her quiet and distraught voice. "In the morning, I woke up first. I got dressed and woke up Jerrick for breakfast. We went to the dining chamber to get a meal and ate together amongst the other packs as always. Jerrick steps away during breakfast each morning to fill his waterskin in canal in the pillar chamber. He was only away a few minutes." Vera brought her hand up to her face and scrunched her eyes shut. She was silent save for a sharp inhale through her nose. She continued after steadying herself some more, but still didn't look up. "After breakfast, I left for the teaching chambers to begin a morning class on reading and writing. I think Jerrick went to teach control techniques in the main chamber. He sometimes leaves his possessions off to one side during that time so he can transform. I came back in time for him to finish and to proceed to the meeting chamber to meet with the lieutenants. That's when you and your pack arrived with Anders' pack. We had lunch there. That was all of the morning." Vera looked up at Meesei now, showing her tensed face, reddened and shining with streaks of tears. "When will I see him? If he is dead, I want to know. If this is a trick to root out a traitor and he is still alive and hiding, please tell me. I can't bear it."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Hey, so I might have time for one post, but some things have come up today which are going to make me busy.

Godhood - A Tale of Deities

Meanwhile, in character, Neveras wants to start a fight with Shoshar already xD

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Of course," Najirra nodded, waving a hand across where the lieutenants currently stood, "Which do you wish this one to release?" Janius, grateful for the opportunity to clear his head that the tea provided, leaned his head toward's Meesei and murmured. "Perhaps it might be useful to talk to them on their own, one at a time. It could avoid more arguments." Janius didn't quite want to also mention that any inconsistencies in each suspects' story might show their guilt, but he was sure Meesei would be able to work that out on her own. "It might be best to start with Vera. She has probably been around Jerrick the most," Fendros suggested. Being the only one not paralysed, Vera looked up miserably at Meesei, resigned to whatever Meesei needed to do to find her husband's killer. She had been handed a cup of tea as well, but she had just been staring at it the entire time. "I have an area that might be suitable," Najirra slowly pushed up off his crate and stepped carefully over to one of the walls of his chamber that was covered by a curtain. He pulled on a rope next to the curtain, causing it to be pulled up to one side and reveal an additional, smaller chamber with a number of cushions for seating, a heat stone in the centre, some sand filled pots with sticks of unlit incense, and a few mysterious implements scattered around. It didn't look big enough for more than four or five people to sit comfortably. "I normally use this for helping people," Najirra rasped, "it is enchanted to reduce sound coming from it for privacy."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Janius walked back into the room with Najirra's daughters in tow. Both Saraya and Vharei looked puzzled, but not at the frozen lieutenants, it seemed. One of the daughters stepped forward. "Is there something else you need?" She asked, rubbing her hands worriedly. Najirra did not shift from him position of leaning against one of the crates around and heating the teapot in his hands, but he did speak up. "Yes, I apologise for sending you away early, but I need you both to go and wake up some people and bring them here so that the champion may have an audience with them. It is very important. Champion, who would you have summoned?" Najirra looked to Meesei and noticed that she was eyeing some parchment off to one side in the chamber. "You may use my parchment and ink if you would prefer to write their names down." While Meesei scribed each of the recipients of Jerrick's letters down, Najirra retrieved a number of small glazed clay cups and poured the now infused tea into each. He passed the cups to everyone who could still use their fingers. Fendros took his cup in both hands, but glanced at the paralysed lieutenants again. "Excuse me, Najirra, how long are the lieutenants going to be paralysed for?" "Oh, until it is necessary for them to move." Najirra answered without heed to how possible that would be. "Wouldn't that take a lot of power?" Fendros asked, raising an eyebrow sceptically. Najirra simply smiled knowingly and continued passing around the tea. The tea itself was sickly sweet, like most Khajiit foods, but Fendros and Janius still sipped at it to be polite. Najirra was right, it did seem to calm them, if only a little. Once Meesei was done writing down the names of the recipients and handed the sheet to Saraya and Vharei, they dutifully nodded and left again to find them. Now they had some time to wait for them.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Najirra brought his hands together and took on an apologetic tone. "This one is afraid that his daughters have gone to find another place to sleep for the night. This isn't the first time I've had to send them away." Najirra lifted a hand in the general direction of Fendros, Janius, and Ahnasha, "You might catch them if you run, but do try not to disturb other sleepers." "I'll go and find them," Janius volunteered, turning and starting a jog out of the door. None of the lieutenants shifted in their demeanour. She tension between them was almost tangible. Vera was the only one not radiating suspicion of her fellow lieutenants, but that was simply because she was hanging her head forward and trying not to keep crying. Harriet looked over to Darahil, still wearing an angered frown. "If it was a poison, I'd say it would have been made up at the loft you and your scholars use, Darahil." She raised her head such that she was looking down her nose at him, "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?" She said accusingly. "We would do no such thing," Darahil growled, turning and glaring at Harriet. It seemed that almost all three lieutenants were about to scream another argument at each other, but a set of vaporous green bolts sprung from Najirra's hand and paralysed the three. Najirra casually retrieved a pot from one of the crates and began to fill it full of water from a keg standing nearby. "I think I will make some sweet tea," he said in a jarringly joyous voice. His next move was to scoop a lump of tea leaves from a jar into the pot, and then warmed the pot in both hands with a magical glow. He smiled widely at all present. "This will calm everyone's nerves at such a difficult time as this." Fendros peered warily at the statues of the lieutenants, frozen in mid point and inhaling to shout. There didn't seem to be any indication that they would be released for a while. This Najirra was evidently a powerful mage in his own right. Light footsteps could be heard approaching from the corridor. Likely, Janius had found Vharei and Saraya already.

Godhood - A Tale of Deities

Hey SillyGoy, is OldManWong's character accepted?