Xaltwind

Guild of Renta-Experts [[CANCELLED]]

Brandy was hurriedly running her little hooves off, while the thumping footsteps of the huge, hungry and horrible troll kept drawing ever closer. Looking over her shoulder once in a while, she stuck her tongue out and made 'thhhppppttttt!'-noise, along with grimaces and faces that would put Mr. Bean to shame... Who knew satyr-faces were so expressive... Or elastic...?

However, as the tanned little bombshell ran around, a noise suddenly caught her attention. And it also caught the attention of the troll chasing her. Looking back, the girl saw Alice, clanking on a pot that had been hung up to make some sort of makeshift bell. At first, Brandy did nothing more than stare at it. But as the troll roared and began charging towards it - and the one bonking at it - the hairs on Brandy's neck.... And legs... And tail... And ears... All stood on end and she howled out:

"AL! THAT'S NOT HOW YOU MAKE FIRE!!"

Running after the big, savage brute who had now changed his mind about what he wanted to eat, the little satyress cursed under her breath as she was falling behind. Then she heard a noise.

Twang!

As she looked forward, she saw a certain, oddly shaped object come sailing through the air, with a whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-like sound. At the sight of the object, and the sight of the one who had launched it, a pair of cogs began to turn inside the little lady's head... For once in her life, she had seemed to put two and two together.

Coming to a comedic, skidding stop, complete witht he sound of rubber tyres screeching across asphalt as they tried to stop the forward momentum of a large vehicle, Brandy performd a impromptu-somersault, before turning about-face and starting to runb like a madwoman in the opposite direction of the troll.

Gulp!

A mouthy, swallowing noise was heard shortly thereafter, followed by a confused groan... Or maybe an inquisitive grunt? It was hard to tell, and even harder to really care. Brandy remembered the noisy thing Alice had thrown at the horned rabbit back at the farm... And at the troll earlier when this whole mess started... So she could only imagine that this was something much, much, much worse.

And it was.

BTOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!

A strange fiery but also splattery noise errupted from behind the fleeing satyress. ALong with a horribly loud and unpleasant boom. The force of the blast, even though she was a fair bit away, was enough to knock the goat-girl off her legs and send her tumbling forward. She eventually stopped, once she slammed into the side of a tree, lying on her back with her legs over her head... It looked like one of those scenes in an erotic game, where the monster-girl was presenting herself to the wandering hero, and exciting snu-snu would soon come to follow.

Luckily, there was neither any travelling hero nearby, nor other individuals willing to take advantage of the situation. Instead, after a minute or two of lying on her back, bent over herself and staring at the clear sjy above, Brandy eventually blinked a few times and began to slowly move. She groaned and whined and complained... But she couldn't actually hear herself do so. As she stood up, she realized that the only thing she could hear was... Well... This really annoying ringing sound... She looked around, trying to figure out what was making it, but to no avail. It seemed to be coming from everywhere and anywhere, all at the same time.
*
Of course, once her red eyes landed on the sight of Sofia standing over a collapsed Alice, all other things and stuff stopped mattering. With a burst of speed, the beautiful but graceless satyr shot off towards her companions. As she got close enough, she almost leapt onto Sofia, using the undead as a sort of chshion or airbag to stop herself... Not to mention that Brandy's own airbags sorta squished up against Sofia's back, but that wasn't important.

"SOFERS! IS ALICE OKAY!?" Brandy shouted.

Of course, she couldn't hear herself shouting. ANd when she saw Sofia's lips moving, but no sound came out of them, she raised an eyebrow, twitched her ears, cupped her hands behind said ears, leaned forward - like, really close - to the revenant and called out the one thing anyone would've shouted in that situation.

"WHAT!?"

Moments became seconds, and seconds became a minute, or maybe two. Eventually though, the ringing began to fade, and the sound of the forest began to slowly come back. Brandy looked around, sharply turning her head from side to side, trying to uncovered what had caused her to lose her hearing for so long. Still, once it was back - to some extent at least - she proceeded to fuss.

"Al! Al! Wake up, you dummy! This is so 'totes not funny!" She accidentally rhymed, as she gently but firmly grabbed onto Alice's clothes and gave her small baby-shakes. The satyr looked up from her collapsed werewolf-friend and to their newest ally, eyes all moist and sad and stuff. "Sofers! What should we do? Did... Did the big guy smack Al or something? Why's she not waking up? C'mon, you! Wake. Up. Alice. Or. I'll. Do. Something. Naughty!" Brandy asked, pleaeded and threatened.

It seemed she had completely missed the chunks and bits of troll that were laying all around... Or the large, singed and scorched patch of terrtain which was now located where the troll had previously been standing. Instead, all her focus was fixed on the beastwoman infront of her knees. Then, a proverbial candle lit up above her head, and a sinister and mischievous smirk crawled its way across her face.

"Hm-hmm~ I know what this is..." She said, voice oddly sweet and dripping with black honey. "It's that 'Prince smooches the Princes to wake her up'-deal, yeah? Weeeeeell... If you're not gonna wake up on your oooooown~" Brandy's logic was infallible!

A-SLUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURP!

Having leaned down and forward, over ALice, a wet, sloppy sound was suddenly heard. This was the result of Brandy's tongue giving a rather long and exagerated lick of Alice's face. More precisely, from the base of her chin, up across her cheek and ending at the werewolf-girl's temple. Either the satyr thought that this constituted a kiss, or she was banking on her breath perhaps being bad enough to cause the unconscious alchemist to wake up... Though, considering Brandy took excellent care of her personal hygiene, including her teeth, the chances of the latter were rather slim. Regardless! She had a playful and coy, if a bit coquettish, smirk on her face... And then she looked up at Sofers, raising both eyebrows and with slightly flushed cheeks, said in an equally mischievous voice:

"Oh, hey... You want one too, Sofers~?"

Guild of Renta-Experts [[CANCELLED]]

"Wha-- Al! Wait! Don't pull me like that, you're gonna make me pop my top!" Brandy protested, as she was forcefully snagged out of her backpack and pulled along by her werewolf-friend. At the mention of their sudden immediate need for fire though, Brandy merely looked like a blank slate. "Whu? Why? We can't cook while that big fella's chasing us around, Al."

The feral troll, who had first been hit by one of Sofia's dark arrows, and then had his foot crushed by his own implement of bludgeoning, was in a far more vile mood now than he'd been in when first appearing. Snarling and sputtering with gooey saliva flying from his sharp-toothed mouth, the cretin seemed to just be getting angrier and more ferocious than anything else. While Sofia's arrow did seem to have a momentary effect on the foul creautre, it wasn't strong enough to leave any lasting harm, nor frightening or painful enough to deter the hungry brute from chasing the girls.

"GRAAAAAH! YOU GET IN BELLY!!"

In a fit of mindless rage, the troll gave his log-club a hefty swing, releasing it from his grip. Like a dangerously spinning oversized twig that had been flung by an angry child, the weapon now came zooming towards Alice and Brandy as they ran. The troll itself didn't seem too interested in Sofia, and is it closed the distance with her, it ignored any and all arrows or taunts the revenant might throw at it, instead giving her a dismissive backhand slap with its gigantic hand, which would promptly send the still-regular-human-sized-undead girl flying a good few feet sideways.

"Sofers!" Brandy exclaimed in horror and/or concern at the sight of her new ally being ragdolled to the side like unwanted rotten fruit. "Al! I hafta help her!" The satyress exclaimed, finally managing to pull her hand free from her friend.

Sliding to a stop on the grassy ground, Brandy leant forward - giving the camera-angle a perfect view of her cleavage - as she took up a pre-sprint-like pose facing towards the troll. At the same time, the giant club-log came crashing down a few feet infront of Alice, having fortunately missed both girls, but sending dirt and grass and bits of wooden splinters flying in all directions around it.

"Al! I'm gonna keep this big boy fixed on me, 'kay? You get that fire or whatever ya neeed, and go help Sofers, right?" Brandy explained the extent of her plan, of which there was not much.

Being a country-bumpkin who'd grown up on a farm, Brandy hardly knew the first thing about trolls, much less on how to fight them. After all, the worst things she had to deal with back home were pesky critters trying to eat their crops or bandits who were taught a caluable lesson by her mountain-of-an-adoptive-father when he proceeded to send them flying with his boulder-sized muscles. So, to Brandy, this was probably the first ever time she'd ever seen, and heard of, any troll.

"Alright, bring it on, tall, gross and ugly! This babe's gonna make you cry! for hurting her friends!" The satyress called out, to which the torll completely ignored her words and just kept thundering towards her position with arms outstretched like a loving father running to embrace his long-lost daughter... Though, in this case, said father would likely shove said long-lost daughter into his mouth and eat her, after having snapped her back with his embrace...

[color=darkgreen]"TASTY GOAT! EAT YOU! MRRRAAAGH! " The eloquent troll roared as it drew near.
"Bite me, Rot-breath!" Brandy taunted, as she took off with a sudden burst!

The little satyr was like a pro runner, having used her pose and the force from her legs to push off and gain a sudden forward acceleration. The torll, not having been prepared for someone to come running at him, and then past his side, skidded to a slow, stumbled over his own legs, fell face-first onto the ground with a loud 'ooof!?', then pushed himself back up, shook his head like a dog-out-of-water, turned to look over his shoulder at the running satyr and then, as troll do, roared in anger. Maybe it was the humiliating tumble, or maybe he just had a preference for demi-goat meats, but the large oaf got back up and started up his own running around, chasing after Brandy like a starving predator... In both senses of the word.

Of course, it wasn't just that Brandy had managed to surprise him which had been the cause of the little trip-up. Some part of it was alaso thanks to Sofia's passive, nearby influence.

Come get me, come get me! You'll never catch me~ Maa-haa-haa! Maa-haa-haa~!" Brandy shouted as she ran from the large feral dum-dum. And with the troll focusing on her shapely butt for now, Alice was freed from running and would have time to concoct some sort of plan or something... At least, that's what Brandy was hoping would happen... Just as long as she didn't do anything to draw the troll's aggro onto herself before she had something.

Guild of Renta-Experts [[CANCELLED]]

Brandy was all too happy to have someone to talk fashion, clothes and accessories with. The satyr would excitedly review and comment on the various designs of her new, undead friend - as well as make suggestion or make proposals for alternative or brand new designs of her own. Needless to say, she was having a great time with Sofia, almost completely forgetting about Alice.

However, once the two other girls unifiedly agreed that her singing was pretty, Brandy's cheeks flushed red. But, unlike most people who would get shy or uncomfortable, Brandy's smile just got broader and her singing got louder. She puffed out her chest and started skipping as she walked, clearly very pleased that the other two appreciated her talent... Which might've been the only she ahd, to be fair...

Alice's running back and forth, gathering herbs and zipping to and fro while they walked caught the eye of the young satyress though. As she watched the overgrown puppy chase after flowers, grasses and plants, she let out a snicker and gave Sofia a playful nudge in the side with her elbow.

"Look, look. Al's like a frolicking lil' puppy! Maa-haa-haa~!" She stated, obviously amused by the alchemist's antics.

As it neared noon and the time to stop for a bit and make camp, as lunch-time was on the near horizon, the group would stop in a generally pleasant little meadow along the side of the road. To the east was a woodedland area and to the west some hilly, grass-covered hills. The smell of wildflowers covered the area and the sun's warmth was being nicely supplemented by a gentle breeze. It was a very pitroesque and serene scene indeed. Brandy began to unload her big ol' backpack from her... Well, back, and started rummaging through it try and find something, or somethings.

As she was head-first deep inside her pack, with her butt rhythmically wagging form side to side as she dug around inside, she wasn't privvy to the following events.

First, there was a flock of birds that started chirping and took flight in a panic. NExt, a mother doe and her little deerling came quickly jumping out of the woods on the east and made a beeline for the hills across the road. Finally, there was the noise of branches snapping, thin tree-trunks cracking, leaves rustling and low, rumbling noise that sounded very much like something between a gasless lawnmower and an earthquake...

Rustle, rustle. Crack! Pop! Creeeeeeaaaaaaaaak~!

Then, it emerged! From the woods, the asme place as the pair of deer, a new creature arrived on the scene. Alas, this one was far less adorable.

It stood over seven feet tall, had a very significant underbite, with a row of sharpish-looking long teeth to go with it. A large, bubly nose and a pair of deformed elf-like ears. Its eyes were beady and red, it had a slouched posture and it looked to be made of equal amounts of blubber and muscle. It also had a beer-gut. And it was bald. And it was a greenish grey color . did we mention it also was almost entirely naked? Aside form a small, ratty, moth-eaten piece of fabric hanging - thankfully - infront of and covering up its crotch.

Yet, the being's rather unpleasant appearance was nothing compared to its smell. Oh ye hods, the smell! Imagine a cramped elevator fillwed with a bunch of convention-goers who haven't showered since their con started, along with the smell of a week old, unflushed toilet-goop and a mouth that's never seen a toothbrush... That was an approximately passable comparison to how this thing smelled. Not that it seemed to mind or care itself, in fact, it probably enjoyed the stank.

Regardless!

As the trundling, lumbering minitaure-giant came out of the woods, it looked around with its smushed-in, pug and/or bulldog-like upper-bit face, scanning the area. When it spotted the trio of girls, it slowly turned its entire body towards them. Did we mention the club it was holding? The club, which was more akin to a log. Said club-log was flung up and onto one of its shoulders to rest, as it stared at the girls... It was a very discomfortable stare... Very hungry. As in the wanting food-variant, not the wanting-something-else variant.

"Hnnngh... Small... Hungy... Hnngh." The creature spoke, with a very barely understandable voice that sounded more like a low growling and snarling.

At this point, a certain satyr removed her head and upper body from inside her own pack and returned to a fully standing state. In her hands were a few wooden utensils, such as mugs and bowls.

"Alright, finally found these suckers. So, what're we haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-oooooooooooly crap! What the fudgenutters is that thing!?" Brandy, who had been preuccupied with finding her cutlery, had only just now noticed the new arrival. Her apparent shock at this caused her to drop the mugs, bowls and utensils on the grassy ground as she stood dumbfounded and with mouth agape at the sight of the horribleness before her. "That is one ugly fella!" She exclaimed, aloud, unabashed, unconcerned for her own well-being should the foul thing understand common.

Luckily for Brandy, the creature didn't seem to understand, or wasn't interested in conversing. Unfortunately for Brandy - and the other girls too - the creature did seem interested in murdering their faces. With a loud, gutteral belch-roar, the creature stomped its foot a few times on the ground, swung its club-log over its head in a threateningly wild fashion, and then set off running - with surprising speed - towards the girls. The noise of each footstep as its large, gross, unwashed feet struck the ground sound like loud thumps.

"Eeeek! That nasty thing's coming at us! Where's my... My... My... uh... My thing!" Brandy quikcly dove back at her pack, nearly tripping over herself. It was clear she was looking for something...

Perhaps it was the spiked club she had strapped to her hip on a small metal ring....

"GWOOOAAAAH! EAT YOU UP!"

Aether Saga: A Hero's Unlikely Journey (The Irish Tree and Xaltwind)

Mammnie wouldn't say much when Gram chucked her offered brew over to Vani. There was something weird about Gram, and weirder still about her health-bar... But that wasn't really important at the moment. What was important to note was that Vani seemed to beable to chug the potion from MOFU down with no immediate side-effects. Once more, it apparently tasted like strawberries..? Was that supposed to be a joke? Or was it actually true!? If that were the case, she'd have to be careful to not accidentally using them like soda pops...

... Like that'd ever happen.

The black-and-white woman then started a long and explanatory ... explanation! to as how things and stuff and people and other things worked in this world. To be honest, it was a lot of information to soak in and remember all at once, and most of it went in one golden ear and out the other. Still, the demonette managed to pick up on a few things and bits about society and how it worked. Yes... A society that was very different from her own... In all honesty, most of it sounded very primitive and backwards to someone like Mammnoie.

"Wow... You guys are like, almost completely medieval, huh? It's almost scary to think I've gone to somewhere that's close to what the Dark Age was like back home..." The demon stated, rubbing her forehead lightly with the tips of her fingers.

Then Gram had a spasm.

Mammonie rose from her seat out of reflex. After all, she'd had co-workers who'd suffered from epilepsy and seizures, but it seemed like the monochrome madame was fine... So, she sat back down. Only to have Gram rise from her seat and then, the noise of horsies whinnied through the cave. Casting a look over her own shoulder, Mammonie spotted the familiar carriage... Wait, was it the same one? Maybe they just looked alike? Though Gram had said that she was waiting for some spirits to return to her... But... Like... Those were horses made out of bones! Where would you store a spirit in something that was litterally just hardened bits of calcium!?

Regardless, the golden demon got off her soft tuckus, brushed herself off and then turned to walk on over to the wagon. This time, she didn't wait for gentleman elf to help her inside, but rather just flung the door open on her own accord, then got herself inside, taking a seat exactly where she'd sat in the previous carriage.

"Well, now that we're all fine and dandy, mind telling me where we're heading and why?" Mammonie asked while leaning slightly to the side, resting her elbow against the interior wall of the wagon and using it as a support to rest a cheek against her cupped palm. "While I assume there's more to us heading to civilization besides getting out of the cold?" She asked, an eyebrow raised inquisitively.

Guild of Renta-Experts [[CANCELLED]]

After the fussing and scribbling of paperwork was done, Karin gave the werewolf-girl a surprised look.

"Bandits, really? And this close to Litroot? Hmm, that's a concern... I'll have to talk to the Guild Mistress about it." The raccoon-recrptionist said thoughtfully, while taking a big old sip from the coffee that Alice had made earlier. "I'm glad to hear you both managed to get away safely though. Please be careful on your trek to Gnarlton however. If there're bandits lurking about between here and the outlying farms, they might show up again." Karin cautioned, before taking another sip from her mug.

After Sofia was finished registering, and Karin had fiddled around a bit in her filing cabinets, the disorganized tanuki finally retrieved something. It was the letter that the group would be delivering. As far as letters go, it looked really run-of-the-mill. A white paper enveloped with a crudely drawn fashioned stamp and a unadorned wax seal. She handed the scrap of mail over to Alice and urged her tp deliver it to the Guild Hall over in Gnarlton, as well as reminding her not to go opening and reading the contents... Apparently such things happened occasionally and the recipient of such letters were, rightfully, a bit miffed about having their mail read by the delivery-service...

Meanwhile

"This and that and this and that. oh, that's mine too! And these! Gonna need those too... And can't forget about these! Oooh-hoooo~These lacey ones might be my favorite after all... They do kinda ride a bit high on my butt though... Ah well!"

Brandy was in full swing, packing her stuff up and shoving down into her large, charcoal-colored, geometrically-themed backpack. The thing was almost as big as the litte satyr herself, yet once it was fully loaded, the tanned bombshell hefted it onto her back and seemed to be just fine lugging it around. After a bit of swearing and tugging, she got through the doorway to her rented room - not having had the foresight to just push the pack out through the open door first and THEN puttting it on. Clomping down the stairs to the first floor, she scampered over to the dirty bar disk, where a balding, bearded fellow with bushy eyebrows and the thickest muttonchops this side of Gnarlton, was standing and lazily cleaning a mug with a... less-than-clean... rag. As the bouncing Brandy approached, the middle-aged fellow turned his head and gave her a once-over from top to toe.

"Hey, chief! I'm headin' out!"
"Leaving already are ya?
"Yeah! Me'n the girls took a job that'll get us over to Gnarlton! Y'know it? It's like, a 'totes big town and stuff! I'm so excited!" Brandy bobbed up and down where she was standing. The barkeep let out a sigh-
"Aye, I know it alright. Ain't that big of a town... Well, compared to Litroot, it's pretty big I guess." He mused. [color=lime]"Still, ya sure you wanna leave so soon? You've been a mighty fine waitress and you're good at drawing in the customers. Woulda really appreciated ya stayin'n working full-time, y'know?"[/colro]
"Aawww-haa~ Chief, that's so sweet! you gonna be lonely without little ol' me~?" Brandy teased, closing her eyes half-way and making a coy face. The barkeep snorted and turned his head away, cheeks slightly flushed.
"D-don't be silly, girl! You're way too much of a kid to be pullin' that kinda act! You were just good for business, that's all!" The stubborn fellow muttered. Brandy just laughed.
"Maa-haa-haa~! Don't you worry your shiny, shiny head. I'm sure we'll come back someday. I'll be sure to drop by and lend ya a hand when we do." The energetic satyress promised, leaning over the counter and giving the old fart a peck on his cheek, which caused said cheeks to become even more red... As did the rest of his face.
"W-w-why you little minx! Go on! Get outta here! And I'd better see you again someday, and you're gonna wear the shop's uniform at that time!" The man blustered. Brandy laughed again.
"Only if you make it cuter~! Bye for now, chief!"

The bundle of brightness bounced out of the dank and drab drinking-hole which was the sleazier and less reputable of two local locations of serviced spirits and sustenance. As the tanned girl made her way through the village, she waved and greeted those she passed by, a smile on her face all the while. And why wouldn't she be smiling? This was very exciting for her. The very first time she'd go and see an actual town, as she'd lived in a place much like Litroot her entire youth. A tiny place where everyone knew everyone. But now she was headed for a place with hundreds, maybe even thousands of different people! The mere thought made Brandy's heart race with anticipation.

Arriving at the north end of the village, Brandy quickly spotted the pair of companions and raced over to them with a 'vroom'. Skidding to a stop, and kicking up a small cloud of dust, she was grinning from ear to ear.

"Hey girls! I'm sooooo ready to get going! Ya both packed'n stuff? I'm all set myself, even changed into these threads just to be on the safe side!"

Brandy was dressed in her work-clothes. The ones she worn when she and Alice went to fight the horned rabbit. Though, calling them clothes was a bit of a stretch... More like, a jeans apron-slash-leotard would be more correct. Still, at least she'd had the capability of switching to clothes that would endure some wear and tear and not get ruined in case dirt and grime got on them. Though, it might just have been that Brandy had been told by her parents or sibiligs to wear that particular outfit while on the road, and she not having had the brainpower to figure that out on her own... it was plauislbe.

"Alright, let's go, go, go! Al, Sofers! Let's head for Gnarlton, yeeeaaah!" Brandy exclaimed, throwing a balled fist into the air and doing a little jump... Which seemed to last a bit longer than gravity would have normally allowed, but maybe it was a trick of the light...?

Regardless!

The trio's journey from Litroot would begin at the north end of the little village. They would need to travel along a dirt road that winded through a region of landscape that was mostly made up of woodlands, grassy plains and small rolling hills. The foresty and hilly bits would be more prevalent during the early stages of the journey, while the grassy plains would become more dominant the closer they'd get to Gnarlton. Still, it would be a long walk, taking two full days if they just stuck to the road and didn't take side-tours or get distracted by anything, anyone or otherwise...

It was still early in the morning though and they had the whole day ahead of them to travel. Sky was blue with only a handful of tiny, wispy clouds sailing about far above. Birds and bugs could be heard all around and the breeze was mellow and pleasant, bringing the smell of leaves and wildflowers along with it. In short, it was a great day to be out and about in nature! Brandy was in such a good mood that she was singing... And surprisingly, she was actually pretty good. Not on the level of a professional bard or anything, but with a bit of practice and proper instruction, she could've probably become one of those fancy songstresses who work at fancy establishments or sing on a big stage.

Aether Saga: A Hero's Unlikely Journey (The Irish Tree and Xaltwind)

Oh joooooooooooooy, son that thing was a lower ranking minion? And it could explode and entire carriage and shoot death lasers while being airborne. Awesome. Can't wait to see what they bring out as their big guns when they start getting serious...

These snarky coments were kept inside a monologue within Mammonie's head as she listened to Gram explain the situation and likely current scenario. Of course, the mention of having an entire army of some celestial host teleported onto their position as soon as they left the cavern wasn't exactly something to joke about. Especially not when her two comrades had barely scraped by when encountering this supposed low-level mook - on its own - just mere minutes ago.

"That's high praise." Mammonie replied when Gram mentioned Vani's apparent strength as 'the stronkest paladumb' in all the lands. "That mean I shouldn't rely on your strength then?" The demonette asked, a wry smile and raised eyebrow being the expression on her face. It was fine to talk others up and put them on a pedestal, but if their enemy had access to an army, even if Mammonie could hold on her own against a large number of them, she couldn't very well win alone. And just having a single lone ally that was capable wouldn't be enough.

"Welcome back, good work, Barney." She said, dryly, once the elf returned with his haul. She was actually moderately impressed the guy had managed to not only find, but also haul, the lumber back to the cave all on his own. Though, she couldn't help but notice his lack of a proper woodcutting tool. She knew that such things worked fine enough in a game-setting, but if this was a reality with game-like elements, then using your primary weapon -- which was a SWORD -- to cut up a frozen tree was probably not a good idea. Then again, the guy had mentioned he had a spare sword earlier... But did he have it on him? She couldn't remember...

Still, the newly sparked campfire was nice and toasty. Not that the cold bothered her overly much - despite her lack of atire. Maybe demons were just more tolerant to the natural enviroment or weather than humans? She knew for sure that if she'd come here in her own, human body, she'd been a popsicle by now. She mulled that over in her mind for a bit... Yes... Her actual body... Just what had happened to it? Had it been switched with Mammonie's body in MOFU and now there was a MOFU-avatar in-game that looked like her real self!? The thought was both horrifying and hilarious. She giggled to herself.

"Well, not much that can be done about that..." She mused to herself, forgetting she had two people nearby. "Oh well. So, what now? We wait for Gran here to rest up and then we get in the bone-cart again, or what? Not to be a jerk or anything, but I'd kinda like to get the hell outta these snowy deathfields and somewhere more... Hospitable, as soon as possible." The avarice demoness said while looking over her shoulder and back out through the cave's entrance... At the cold, cold snow and ice and wind of sub-zero temperatures...

"Recover... Yes... Hm, wait. Hold on." A thought occurred to the golden one and she paused for a bit. Closing her eyes, she felt around in her mental, meta-physical inventory that was both within and all around her. Eventually, she found what she was looking for, and with a bit of concentration and 'hnnnnnnn'-sounds, somethig suddenly... Popped... out of nowhere, into her hand. It was a small glass bottle, with some kind of lustrous ruby red liquid inside of it. Mammonie proceeded to tilt the bottle, inspecting it from one side and then another, feeling the small cork at its neck and rotating it to make sure there were no cracks or leakage.

"Huh, well, whaddya know? It worked. Good thing I had some of these on me before you guys did the whole drag-me-here-deal. Here, try drinking this." She said, holding the bottle out for Gram to take. It was just a potion of lesser healing from MOFU. She had stronger ones on her, of course, but she hardly felt like giving one of those away, especially since there weren't any guarantees that consumables from her game-world would have any effect on anyone from this new reality. So, the best option was to experiment with something that wasn't too valuable. A potion like this wouldn't even heal 10% of Mammonie's total max HP anyway, so it was honestly just clogging up her hammerspace. "It might help you heal up." She paused, tapped her chin, looked up at the cavernous ceiling, then back down at Gram and smiled while tilting her head. "Then again, you might have an allergic reaction to it or something and just drop dead on the spot. Still wanna try it?"

Guild of Renta-Experts [[CANCELLED]]

"Very well, will you please just fill out this form and we'll get you resigstered." The tanuki receptionist responded as the undead woman posed and verified her desire to join the adventuring guild of rentable expendables adventurers. While Karin buised herself with informing the new applicant that adding things like 'Destroyer of Chaos' and 'Master of Destruction' weren't necessary in the 'name:'-section of the form, Brandy's ears perked and twitched as Alice listed off the various available quests.

The pickings were.... Slim... To say the least. Still, when the mention of going to Gnarlton came up, Brandy's eyes sparkled a bit and her already present smile became even larger.

"Whaaaat? Shut. Up! We get to go to Gnarlton!? That's like, 'totes a big city, yeah? Papa-- err... I mean, my dad used to say he worked there back when he wasn't an old man. Said it was really big and bustlin' and full of people and stuff! So yeah, no duh are we gonna deliver the heck outta that letter, Al!" Apparently, even something as simple as being an errand girl was enough to excite the excitable satyress.

Hearing the two girls come to an agreement what to do, Karin turned her head towards them - leaving Sofia alone for just a moment.

"Hold on now, you two. Miss Keller still needs to fill out the form for your previous job. After taht, we'll set things up so the three of you can take that delivery job, alright?" The beaurocratic enforcer enforced.
"Bah! Can't we just fill them both out when we get back?" The satyr protested.
"No, you cannot. Delivery quests like this don't need you to return to where you got them, so long as there's a Guild Hall in the place you're going to. And Gnarlton just so happens to have a much larger and more lively guild hall than us here in Litroot. So, once you've delivered the letter, you can just go there and get your reward."
"Boo! Boo!" Brandy kept protesting.
"Shouldn't you go and get ready for the trip, Miss Vanillarin? It'll take you at least two full days on foot to get to Gnarlton, you know?" The raccoon, with a now twitching vein visible in hher temple, stated with a strained smile.
"Oh yeah! I needa get my things ready and put on some road-clothes! Al, Sofer! I'll see ya both at the road outta tooooooooooooooooown!" Brandy's elongated shout became more and more distant, as the race car-like noise made when she was running at full speed could be heard once more as she almost flew through the guild's door and out into the dirt paths of the village.

Karin sighed a sigh of relief and returned to helping her newest recruit fill out the last of the paperwork.

Also, Brandy had apparently decided what to call her new companion already. Without stopping to hear whether that it was acceptable or not. She was far too busy running back to wherever she had been spe staying in order to change into her Labor Clothes and get her backpack for the journey ahead.

Aether Saga: A Hero's Unlikely Journey (The Irish Tree and Xaltwind)

Awesome! So now I'm on the hitlist for Heaven because I defended myself from one of their cronies. Greeeaaaat... And they hate demons on principle. Good to know racism and prejudice is alive and well in this world too.

Those were Mammonie's throughts as she listened to Gram. She refreained from commenting on the matter when the dracowoman stated that she and Vani could have defeated the cherubiwhatsit on their own with a little effort... It sure hadn't seemed that way to the demoness, what with the Paladin barely being able to muster enough strength after the initial attack to even defend himself. Still, maybe he was holding back too, just like this other woman claimed she had been?

When the topic moved on to her apologizing for her decei in trying to force Mammonie to aawaken, and the subsequent offer of anything and everything she owned. Mammonie let out a sigh.

"What's the point in apologizing to us both if half of us ain't here? Look. You don't need to apologize to me. We're strangers, and the only thing that's currently keeping me by your side is the fact that, in this world and as it stands, I have litteraly no other options at the moment. So if you want to apologize, do it to that elf-fellow, since you two seem to be companions and all." She stated, very bluntly and earnestly. "I don't need your life either. I've got no use for it. I don't believe in things like owning others or having control over others' freedom. I'll settle for taking everything you have, including the clothes on your back, once we're done though." She continued and finished, with one eye closed and the other looking straight at Gram, with a sly smirk on her face.

She then stretched and let out ab elongated 'Hnnnnnnnnnmmmmgh!'-sound, arching her back while bothe arms were stretched above her head. Which is also when she noticed that she was still holding Chromecalibur in her hand. A look of bemusement crossed her face as she inspected the weapon.

"... It looks just like it did back in MOFU, huh? Higher resolution and better textures, of course, but still... Wouldn't mistake it it for anything else... How do I pu- Oh?" As she was about to ask how to put the weapon away - seeing as she lacked a holster on her person... or pockets for that matter... The weapon suddenly phased out of reality, but Mammonie could still feel the weapon. it had gone into whatever ethereal inventory-space that was currently inside(?) her own being - but at least now she knew how to bring it, and other things, back out into actual meat-space.

"Anyway. What're the chances we'll get ambushed by more of those cjerry-dudes? Or are there worse things that'll come after us now that they lost one of their goons? I'd sorta like to avoid nearly wetting myself from surprise by being caught off-guard by random, vehicular-destroying bombardments in the future." She paused. Tapped her chin, then looked over at the cave entrance. "Is there really any firewood around here, by the by? I only saw ice and snow and... Well, more snow, out there." She tried to focus her vision to try and see the floaty, game-like mechanic of Vani's name and current condition... It was a useful test, as it'd allow her to determine just how far away she could be in order to see someone's status. Might be useful to know, for a number of reasons!

Guild of Renta-Experts [[CANCELLED]]

Brandy didn't seem phased by the stare of death which she was given by the ranger initially... That, or she didn't notice... Or the glare wasn't much of a glare to begin with. Once the undead woman started speaking though, the satyress listened intetly to every word she said, nodding at irregular intervals to signal that she'd been paying attention.

... Then the badass dark heroine tripped and fell...

If there was a sound-effect that would have signalled the mment, it'd been one of shattering glass. Brandy's eyebrow arched upward and a peculiarly amused smile formed on her lips... But she didn't say anything. Strange, given that it was Brandy we were talking about. Still, after Alice came over, helped the poor thing back up and gave her a run-down of... Stuff... Brandy finally chimed in.

"Yeah! So, I like, 'totes only understood 'bout half of wha'cha said there, but... If you're new to this stuff too, then you oughta join our party!" Brandy announced, invited and more or less sales-pitched to the new female before her. "We're legit! We've tackled runaway dogs, battled ferocious bun-buns and Al over here even kicked the snot outta some pervy bandits! She looks like one of those bookworm-types, but she's super-strong!" Brandy boasted and praised(?) her own group and partner's abilities... Leaving out any mention of deeds which she herself had achieved... Likely because there weren't any.

As the three girls chatted up a small storm though, the door to the Hall Mistress' office swung open, and a tired, slouched and somewhat slumped-over Karin emerged from the murky depths. There was an aura of fatigue and exertion on the bespectacled tanuki's face and she looked as if she'd just listned to someone read a dictionary aloud. In monotone. From start to finish.

Once spotted by the little bundle of satyr-boobies though, the raccoon-receptionist's sloow, zombie-like shuffle towards her desk was derailed. Almost flying over the counter, Brandy bounced her way over to the sharp suit-wearing woman and grabbed her hand, causing the woman's head to jerk and her body to stiffen in surprised.

"Wha-What!? Oh, Miss Vanillarin..."
"Heya, Kar! Listen, listen! Me'n Al got the job done! We smacked that horny rabbit good! Well, Al did anyway. I got kicked in the face... Maa-haa-haa, so embarrassing~!!" The way she said it didn't make it sound like she was very bothered about it though...
"I... Uh... Huh? Wait, horn-- Oh! The horned rabbit. Horn-Ed. Yes, I remember you two taking that quest yesterday. And you saud you finished it?"
"Yup, yup! It wasd like bam, wham, thank you ma'am! We got that douche-guy to sign and everythin'! Al even at the thing to gain its powers!"
"... Somehow I doubt that's why she ate it, but anyway, good job. Now, if you'll just let me get to my desk we can have your valiant friend fill out the proper paperwork." Karin said, with a polite business-like smile, while trying to brush Brandy aside.
"Whaaaa-!? Wha'bout me? Why can't I do it~?"
"Because you, my dear, cannot write in common, remember?"
"... Oh yeah! I forgot! Maa-haa-haa!"

Sighing, Karin walked over to her desk, sat down, fiddled with some paperwork which was lying spread out all over the place, lazily filed it all away in a non-organized fashion into her cabinet, then finally turned towards Sofia and Alice.

"Well then, congratulations on your second completed quest. If you'll just fill this out, and show me the writ of completion from the client, I'll hand over your pay." She said as professionally as usual. Then she noticed the new face, and she raised an eyebrow quizzically. "Ah, you must be a newcomer. I haven't seen you around the Litroot Guild Hall before. Welcome, I'm Karin, the receptionist here. Are you here to file a quest, or perhaps sign up to join? Or perhaps you're here from another Hall looking for work? Whatever the case, just let me know if there's anything I can do to help. Ah, the coffee. Thank you~" She said, explained, and wrapped up, before taking a cup of joe that Alice had prepared earlier and took a big old clunk of it, lettinng out a content 'Pffaaaah!-noise afterwards.

"So, Kar? Why were you in the big lady's room? Didja do somethin' to get a spnaking? Hmm? Hmmmm!?" Brandy suddenly appeared to the left of Karin, inching closer and closer, her face invading Karin's personal space more and more. The raccoon-woman backstepped as if she was evading an attack, startled by the quiet and sudden appearane of the short miscreant yet again.

"Miss Vanillarin! Ahem! That matter was related to Guild administrative personnel only, it's nothing you need concern yourself with." She answered, pushing her glasses back onto their proper perch on her nose while striking a pose with one hand on her hip.
"'Kaaaaay~! So, Al! Whadda we doin' for stuff today? There any good jobs? I wanna go 'splore some ruins, or a dungeon, or maybe judge an eatin' contest?" Brandy's ears witched excitedly as she bounded over to Alice with a clippity-clop, tail wagging just as excitedly as if she were a puppy.

Guild of Renta-Experts [[CANCELLED]]

"Nah, I'm good!" Brandy replied when she was offered coffe. "I dun really like coffee unless you put some good stuff in it, if'n ya catch my drift." The satyr explained, giving Alice a playful smirk and equally playfully nudging the werewolf in her ribs with her elbow.

Then the door to the guild hall flung open and Swanky McDeathpants entered the floor. Brandy stared. And stared. And stared some more. Alice's comment about the new arrival's weapon and appearance went completely in through one ear and out the other, as the satyr stood there with a gooft expression on her face... At least, for a few Then she squeed. Like, really, really squeed. Complete with the whole, hands pressed up against her cheek and her entire body doing that wobbly, side-to-side wiggling while her tail rotated like a ... Rotor... on a helicopter.... And her ears twitched repeatedly.

"S... S... S.. S... SO COOOOOOL!" She then errupted in a very fangirly fashion, before looking over at Alice with flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes and heavy breathing. "Al! Look! Look! Her outfit's amazin'! It 'totes shows off her slammin' bod', but it's also stylish and has that whole dark hero-vibe going for it, yeah!? And her hai! She really nailed that do, with her eye color and that porcelain-skin, she's like some unobtainable ice queen! Well, I prefer a bit of color on the skin myself-" She looked down at her hands and legs before going on. "-but still! She someone you know, Al? She a regular? The town's pro? Legend? Prodigy!? We should 'totes chat her up! C'mon!"

Brandy, having no patience or understanding for the possiblity that some people were not inbto the whole being-approached-by-a-complete-stranger-deal, quickly bounced on over to the side of this dark, mysterious archer-woman. Once next to the new arrival, she spent a few good seconds looking up and down, and from side to side, and around and about, the other woman before finally meeting her eyes and face - with a face and eyes filled with sunshine on her own part.

"Hiya! Nice to meet'cha! I'm Brandy, and that's Al!" She greeted, before quickly pointing over to the werewolf. "So like, spill! Are you like a local legend 'round here or somethin'? Ya don't look anything like the other girls who've dropped by when I first came here." She announced, unabashed and completely seeming to have forgotten that she'd been to this guild hall for the whole, whopping entierty of one day so far. "Ya here to turn in a quest? Returning from some big adventure? Ooh, what's ytur name? And where'd you get that awesome outfit! I'm so jelly, I want an adventuring outfit like that too..." It seemed Brandy had no trouble what so ever in finding things to ask and talk about with this newcomer. She then seemed to remember something and turned back to Alice, waving at her companion. "Hey! C'mon, get over here, Al. Don't be shy! We're getting to know each other. We're all adventurers after all, right?" She called, with the biggest most sincerest smile you'd ever seen.