View source for Shadow Talk Beta - RPLOG

=Participants=
* [[Allista]]
* [[Amelia]]
* [[Hartford]]
* [[Kalt]]
* [[Mirana]]
* [[Rokarion]]
* [[Ryusho]]
* [[Siyu]]
* [[Skade]]
* [[Thelergramor]]
=Date=
2/9/477
=Log=
<div></div><br> <br>A raining evening, perhaps not the best time to do this, but Jessica was less than happy about the information she had. Looking over to Jeremy, she shakes her head, &quot;Can you believe what they sent back!? Really. Non-interferance agreements my skunk ass!&quot; She is practically steaming! Jeremy shakes her head back, &quot;I&#39;m not sure what you expected really, but it was a good try.&quot; She says back. A bolt of lightning, a clap of thunder as they wait just outside the Blackback Manor, just out of the rain.<br> <br>Thelergramor walks up to the Blackback manor, yawning. The rain means nothing to Thel, nor does the lightning. Calming, compared to the clear nights with their dreadful silence. The wolf has no idea what the Blackback is talking about; remains silent. Glances around for others, trying to remember why he is here...<br> <br>Up and along the way, Kalt slowly plods along. Her leather jacket cinched shut and a wide brimmed farmer&#39;s hat perched atop her head to keep the rain out of her eyes. &quot;I ain&#39;t one against knockin&#39; shadows round, an&#39; keepin&#39; things right an&#39; orderly now, but m&#39;figurin&#39; this weather ain&#39;t gonna be offerin&#39; much of a help on it all an&#39; such.&quot; The Vixen&#39;s tail flicking as she looks over the blackbacks, before glancing for a moment at Thelergramor as she awaits the others.<br> <br>Amelia calmly and quietly makes her way to the manor, the hood of her white robe pulled up to keep the rain off of her face, and her hands linked at the sleeves. &quot;So. What is this all about, then?&quot; Comes her murmured question, spoken just loud enough to be heard over the rain. &quot;Not the best night for a stroll outside, I would say.&quot;<br> <br>Siyu is dressed in slightly heavier armor. He is still wearing leather, though the rodent has added a breastplate and a winged helmet to his armor. It&#39;s all dull though, like it&#39;s been caked in mud or laquered. Not glint or clink comes from him. Even in the rain he stands stock still, watching as people assemble and talk amoung themselves. Oilskin pouches adorn all along his legs and at his backside. Medicines, herbs, bandages, sutchers. The medic holding onto some fine weapons too, but primarly focused on keeping people alive. The armed and armored rodent just sizes up those that showed up. <br> <br>Allista Anderson makes her way along the path towards the Blackback Manor, wearing a grin and a swagger. She has traded her normal business clothes for heavier, padded leather versions of the same, her goggles are resting on her forehead, and both arms are encased in her battle Graspers. Rain hisses as it patters off of Khara&#39;thul, Allista&#39;s hulking defense golem - the construct is following close behind the coyote, carrying an umbrella over her. She gives the assembling group a short nod as she reaches them.<br> <br>Rokarion joins up the others outside the Blackback manor. He is wearing his usual heavy cloak to protect his body from the rain, but keeping the hood back to allow the rain droplets to shower his blossom of a hair. He stops when he gets near the group, wafting his jasmine fragrance around him, before looking at the Blackpack, and speaking in his usual calm and polite tone, &quot;Unfortunate that the Creator&#39;s did not hear our plea. I apologize if the message I sent was not convincing or polite enough for them to properly answer our problem with due diligence. However, I still hope that we will not be forced to take extreme measures to avert this group of shadows&#39; threat.&quot;<br> <br>Hartford stands at attention, his oversized Halberd dripping a steady plink plink plink onto his heavy armor and the rain dripping along his fine antlers. The big, skunk striped deer might easily be mistaken for a statue if it weren&#39;t for the occasional puff of steaming breath from his broad nostrils. The big deer&#39;s overly long, striped tail does not even flick as he awaits his orders. Big guy is in his element today! Getting bossed around is his forte!<br> <br>Ryusho makes his way up, though he had just heard that things were going on, not completely the reason why, as he was currious considering the fact that he had helped in composing the request message. All the while though he hears the conversation while he arrives as he blinks slowly &quot;Refusing for..interference reasons? ISn&#39;t them just -letting us know- that they exist, and doing things related to us interference? That sounds a bit hypocritical..I think is the right word..&quot; he mumbles to himself.<br> <br>With a sigh, Jessica shakes her head, &quot;I disagree as well with &#39;It isn&#39;t our place to interfear with the natural occuring balance.&#39;&quot; She says, swinging a pike over her shoulder as well, &quot;We are hoping that we can just talk it all out, get these shadows to join with Jeremy&#39;s clan. The trip isn&#39;t going to be as easy this time, Razor Grass grows very wild this time of season.&quot; She says, Jeremy simply nodding along, &quot;So, do we have any questions before we get going? I won&#39;t fault anyone wishing to stay behind.&quot; She says.<br> <br>&quot;Screw the creators. We don&#39;t need their help. Never will.&quot; Thelergramor snorts, shrugging before he checks his wet musket. Dry enough to fire, probably. Re-slings it over his back; pulls his scarf over the plague mask he&#39;s wearing. Thel glances at the others; readies himself for assault from someone nearby. &quot;No questions from me, no.&quot; The wolf yawns, keeps watching the others.<br> <br>&quot;No, Lady Blackback,&quot; Hartford says, saluting sharply and remaining at attention, &quot;Ready on your command.&quot; The big deer does wonder a little what all this is about, but it wasn&#39;t his place to ask. He was on duty and Lady Jessica was the boss. The chain of command made things so much simpler!<br> <br>Siyu looks around at the group, &quot;A relavent question...would be if anyone is a shadow souled...or can speak their language...also if anyone has managed to find Robert&#39;s Champion of Light amoung us? That would be rather apt for our purpose...&quot; <br> <br>&quot;Thel, you keep remindin&#39; me &#39;bout why you ain&#39;t never gonna go an&#39; be allowed to converse with&#39;em.&quot; Kalt sighing at the vocal wolf as she shakes her head and shrugs. &quot;Ah well, just go tellin&#39; where to hit, an&#39; I&#39;ll go clearin&#39; it up. Thel, you ain&#39;t gonna go gettin&#39; yourself killed or possessed, so be thinkin&#39; before you go actin&#39;.&quot;<br> <br>Ryusho hums softly, &quot;No questions, though I don&#39;t know if I would be one of the ones who whould head along thinking about it, as I was involved when we were actually directly fighting the shadows..so I may have experience, but I may also in some ways be recognised.&quot; he says after a bit, even though he adjusts the large pack he keeps over his shoulders so he can easily preform field repairs and the like for others if he does get the okay to come along<br> <br>Rokarion look around, &quot;I kind of agree with that point, but have the Creator ever directly interfered with open conflict between the people on Promise?&quot; Rokarion then thinks for a moment before answering, &quot;Yes, I am capable of speaking the tongue of the shadows. If it is needed I can translate for us. But I am asusming Miss Jeremy too can speak with the shadows.&quot;<br> <br>Alista&#39;s tail wags a moment and she gives Rokarion a small nod. &quot;You sent a message to the Creators? It&#39;s good to have a Priest with us. Does the Church have anything to help us out with these ones?&quot; Allista glances between Thel and Kalt, then gives the marbled fox a small wave, waggling her grasper&#39;s fingers.<br> <br>Thelergramor shrugs, apparently is not going to be attacked. &quot;I&#39;ll be fine, Kalt. And I don&#39;t want to talk to those... Creators.&quot; The wolf scratches his neck; waits to be lead off towards where they need to be.<br> <br>Amelia nods politely and glances up at the sky from under her hood. &quot;Yes, I will be on standby to help however is needed. Try not to get injured. As I have mentioned to some of you before, I am no medic or healer. Of the practical sort, at least.&quot;<br> <br>Jessica frowns a bit, &quot;We did send a message up, but didn&#39;t get a good responce.&quot; She says, nodding to Siyu and Allista. &quot;Yes Amelia helped us to send a message, along with Rokarion, they have both been very helpful, but unfortuately, I&#39;m not Champion of Light. I wished that I was.&quot; She says, Jeremy nods again, &quot;As a shadow myself it is easy to understand my kin.&quot; She says, walking forward, &quot;If you have any carts are such, we should use those, else, it is going to be a walk.&quot; Jessica frowns a bit, &quot;I could fly myself and a couple others.&quot;<br> <br>Siyu nods his head, as water drips from his helmet, over his face, over his glasses. He just draws a deep breath, &quot;Very well then. Very good. We should at least be capable of living through this.&quot; he nods, &quot;I will try to make sure you all stay alive. I promise my  best.&quot; He looks over at Jessica and nods, &quot;I have several wagons. I can provide transportation for our group. It&#39;s a reasonable thing to do&quot;<br> <br>Ryusho thinks for a moment, &quot;Actually....with how I had my trials recently in the wilds...Thinking about it, I am a bit worried I might be too at risk around full shadows like that...So ...I maybe should stay home, just to be safe, Since I am still struggling a bit with having moments of un-awareness still.&quot; he says sighing, referencing the issues that kept him &#39;missing&#39; for over a year.<br> <br>Hartford frowns. Why would Lady Jessica forget to order carts? The deer shakes the collection of rainwater from his antlers and prepares himself for either a long run to where ever it is they are going, or to follow to the carts.<br> <br>Rokarion looks back at Alista, &quot;My apologies it was more of a group effort, since the active clergy were too busy to lend a hand for this certai message. Personally, I am not one of the active clergy of Sweetwater, so I do not know about their stance right now. However, I have been properly trained as a priest.&quot; Rokarion then thinks for a bit saying, &quot;Well I guess I should say now that I am a mathemagician of the sort, if that is any help for the group.&quot;<br> <br>Kalt taps her chest. &quot;Yeah, m&#39;havin&#39; that soul round with me to be helpin&#39; if needed an&#39; all.&quot; The Vixen&#39;s tail flicking as she looks over the groups and shrugs. &quot;Well, lets go gettin&#39; to the carts or get on walkin&#39; then eh?&quot; The Vixen sticking her hands in her pockets as she waits for the group to move.<br> <br>Ryusho mrphs quietly, &quot;I suppose I better let someone else take the space I would, considering I realise with my mind still struggling sometimes from my Rehabilitation, I could potentially be a major risk, especially if a shadow could use my mental trials against me.&quot; He says simply, &quot;So..I will be waiting, but please feel free to come see me if you need any of your equipment fixed up afterwords....I appoligise again for not coming along to help.&quot; he says as he bows, and would begin to head on his way soon.<br> <br>Allista raises her eyebrows, then nods at the nobleskunks and crosses her arms (to the accompaniement of metallic clanking). Allista bides her time, waiting for the others to get everything sorted out and for transportation to arrive.<br> <br>Jesica nods a bit, &quot;It is alright Ryusho, very understandable, I could go get some transit before we leave, but they would only be taking us so far understand.&quot; She says, looking down to Siyu, &quot;Or we can have a volunteer! And good, thank you, we do have a Champion of Light around incase things get... ugly&quot; She says, smiling a bit, &quot;This will be trying, and I hope you all are ready.&quot; She says, glad to have so many with her that will be able to help.&quot; Jeremy says nothing, simply watching the rain.<br> <br>Siyu spends 100 Crown for RP reasons.<br> <br>Siyu nods his head as soon 3 or 4 wagons with drivers as assembled. Covered even! Hooray! He manages to cram some more medical supplies into it, and stretchers, and bandages and...well. He expects disaster. So he plans for it, every bit of it. He nods a bit, &quot;Very good...everyone in then&quot;<br> <br>Thelergramor chuckles softly to himself, then speaks. &quot;Why so concerned? If things get ugly, we un-ugly them. With violence. Put them down, and walk away. Simple.&quot; Never seen a shadow in his life. Doesn&#39;t know what he&#39;s in for, here. Is not concerned. The wolf gets into one of the wagons; wipes rain from his masks lenses.<br> <br>Skade hurries up the road to the people gathered outside the mansion. An umbrella is held over her head but she still manages to look quite miserable in the downpour. Trudging alongside her is her trusty old crusher, squeaking a bit as it lumbers along, a small rolling ball weaving it&#39;s way between it&#39;s feet. The honey bee stops as she reaches the crowd. &quot;Oh! Hello! I&#39;m zzzorry I&#39;m late. I had to.. get some things.&quot; she says in her sing-song tone of voice as she tries to catch up with the conversation.<br> <br>Hartford nods once, then trots off to help with the wagons, finding himself an unobtrusive spot beside a driver. It does not tak long for the stag to be ready to go.<br> <br>Kalt moves to the wagons as they arrive, raising an eyebrow at all the medical gear being thrown into it. &quot;Siyu darlin&#39;, M&#39;figurin&#39; if&#39;n we go needin&#39; even half those, than we&#39;re havin&#39; bigger problems than we&#39;ll be carin&#39; to admit.&quot; Totally not sounding fatalistic at all, she throws herself then into the back of the wagon, with her legs dangling over the edge. &quot;Let&#39;s get right on&#39; then eh?&quot;<br> <br>Rokarion moves in front of Siyu and bows his head a little then says, &quot;Thank you for this generous gesture Mister Gang Xi Siyu.&quot; Rokarion then moves towards one of the covered wagons, secretly a bit disappointed  that he will not be feeling the rain droplets, and waits until everyone is seated before going into the emptiest one and taking a seat.<br> <br>Siyu glances over at Kalt, and he simply shrugs, &quot;Since we have wagons we might as well bring it along. The wagons will stay back of course. I assume everyone has their own weapons...&quot; he will take his helmet off and dump the water that&#39;s gathered on it and tuck it back on. &quot;Plan for the worst...and then you can be pleasently surprised.&quot; he says quite flatly and cynically. He looks to the others and nods. &quot;We&#39;re going against feral shadows purposfully designed to kill us. I will take all of the supplies I can ge...&quot; he stops when Rok moves in front of him, and he akwardly  bows back to him &quot;Of course. It is for a good cause. For the good of all of us. It is reasonable to assist and help...&quot; He looks over at Skade, &quot;you are not late. Get onto one of the wagons, and mount up&quot;<br> <br>Amelia turns on her paws and slinks off towards one of the wagons, climbing in and adjusting the position of her staff, so that it&#39;s not jutting out at some awkward angle. &quot;Let us hope for a smooth journey,&quot; she says, nodding. &quot;We don&#39;t want trouble before we even reach the destination.&quot; Her words said, she falls back into silence, leaning back and being thankful for the cover it provides. All the same, she keeps her hood up.<br> <br>Transit worked out, and beings already getting up and into the carts, this will be a long trip, and they wait until everyone is loaded in. Jessica taking a spot near the front, along with Jeremy, &quot;So, are we all ready?&quot; She asks, the cart drivers getting ready to move everyone out.

The move out toward the grassy valley is smooth and uninterupted, giving everone time to stratigize and think over, as well as talk among themselves.<br> <br>Hartford has little to say on the journey, and his choice of seat certainly limits his options for conversation. The big stag spends most of the trip chatting affably with the driver about his family and the weather and other small and simple things. Hartford is good at simple things.<br> <br>Kalt shrugs at Siyu&#39;s words, merely spending her time resting for the most part as they travel, before unslinging her sword as she pulls out a wet stone and works it along the crystal blade&#39;s edge. &quot;Thel, they ain&#39;t nuttin&#39; too easy to go killin&#39;, an&#39; can take over folks. So like I were sayin&#39;, don&#39;t go gettin&#39; yourself thinkin&#39; they ain&#39;t nuttin&#39;... Don&#39;t even know if&#39;n dark magic can hurt&#39;em.&quot;<br> <br>Skade huddles in under her umbrella, looking a bit miserable as she gives her wings the occational flutter to dislodge the raindrops from them. She stays silent during most of the trip, content in letting the others formulate plans. The honey bee does however try to take stock of the people around her, paying some closer attentions to their soul pendants, if they are at all visible. [I assume there are more like me here. If we are to speak with the shadows, who will do the talking?]<br> <br>Allista settles herself into one of the cats, claiming her umbrella from her golem, which keeps pace with them. She nods at Kalt, listening as the veteran talks. &quot;What should we expect?&quot; she asks. &quot;I&#39;ve scuffled with a few shadow-things but, well, never been close to a nest of them.&quot;<br> <br>Thelergramor pulls the musket from his back again; holds it out, stock against the floor of the wagon. &quot;Right, Kalt. I&#39;ll be careful. Nothing&#39;s killed me yet; doubt shadows will even get close to doing so.&quot; The wolf takes a bayonet from his belt; affixes it to his musket. &quot;Still, no reason to screw around and get my other leg ripped off.&quot; He chuckles, leans the musket against him.<br> <br>Rokarion remained silent during most of the trip, mainly thinking to himself and answering any who directly said something to him. However, he did answer Skade with, [Miss Jeremy will be the one talking since she is one of the Shadows, and she will probably know how to deal with them best.]<br> <br>Siyu gives a slight nod as he hops into a wagon, he&#39;s not sure which group he&#39;s with. &quot;We&#39;re good. We should be able toe handle most emergencies...here&#39;s hoping we don&#39;t need it&quot;<br> <br>Arriving at the Grassy valley, the carts let beings out, &quot;Alright, thank you.&quot; Jessica says, looking inward. It is possible to see the razor grass moving around after the light rains. Jessica shakes her head, &quot;Those things are bad enough, but it seems that the shadow influance has come over them as well...&quot; She says, Jeremy nodding, &quot;Well, she continues, do you think we should try to fight our way through?&quot; She asks, looking about, &quot;The nest is..  near where the valley meets the two mountain ranges, far to the north.&quot; She says.<br> <br>&quot;If&#39;n we&#39;re wantin&#39; to m&#39;supposin&#39; we could, I ain&#39;t got no objection to that, but if&#39;n folks are havin&#39; better plans round to not go gettin&#39; into a big ol&#39; battle, they sure as all hell can&#39; go with that.&quot; Kalt tapping her sword on her shoulder while looking at the grass.<br> <br>Hartford hops down from his perch, waving farewell to his new friend. The stag unslings his giant halberd and checks over his armor before trotting up to stand at attention near Jessica. &quot;Ready when you are, Lady Blackback,&quot; he says in his slow deep tones, though he nods at Kalt&#39;s comment.<br> <br>Thelergramor drops out of the wagon, steps up next to Kalt. Musket in hand, Thel looks at the Razor grass. &quot;...What do the rest of you want to do?&quot; The wolf glances around at the others, then stares at the razor grass. &quot;I&#39;m all for removing it. But, if noone wants to fight...&quot; A shrug. &quot;Then give me a better option.&quot;<br> <br>Siyu will settle down from the wagon. He will make sure to instruct the various wagon drivers. They are to stay here and wait. If need be they could try and take the wagons in. But so far they&#39;re to wait for them to come out. Secure themselves. Make camp. Prepare for trouble, various things like that. The rodent managing them and they soon form a square and set up camp. <br> <br>Allista hops out of the wagon and brushes her hands together with a soft clanging noise, and eyes the grass. &quot;Seems to me that wandering into a field of potentially shadow-possessed razor grass would be a poor idea,&quot; she says. &quot;Unless you guys can clear it out easily enough, it might be better to set up here and call them out to meet us.&quot; She looks around, then nods at Miss Jeremy. &quot;How far can you shout? Would they notice a signal fire? Maybe one of you magical sorts could flash some lightning from the sky?&quot;<br> <br>Rokarion gets out of the wagon, and stands a bit of a distance away from the wagon, before taking a deep breath and scanning his surrondings. He then looks back at Jeremy and asks, &quot;What do you mean by the shadow influencing them? May I ask how does that work and how is it affecting the grass?&quot;<br> <br>Amelia collects her staff and hops out of the wagon, stretching out. &quot;Well. This is when things are going to get interesting, I suppose,&quot; she says, looking amongst the others. &quot;I&#39;d prefer to avoid fighting it,&quot; she nods to Allista, &quot;But I will do so if the group decides that it will be our best course of action.&quot;<br> <br>Skade seems reluctant to let go of her portable shelter from the rain, even though it had stopped by the time they arrived. &quot;Some are.. mindless. Like wild beasts. Clever in their own way but not quite sentient. If there&#39;s anyone out there, contact should be possible, I should think. Yezz..&quot; the honey bee says, one slender hand fiddling with the pendant around her neck.<br> <br>Looking around her crew, Jessica nods a bit, &quot;A few ready to fight, a few who want to try and bring them out to us. It is deep back, it would have to be a big signal.&quot; She says, &quot;But fighting through here might not be the best of ideas...&quot; Jermey looks over to Rokarion, &quot;The miasma of a shadow&#39;s pure form can taint both beings and natives. These grasses are tainted, and will be stronger because of it.&quot; She says, looking to Skade specificly a moment. [Cautious with what you say. These shadows will not trust us easily.]<br> <br>Siyu nods his head, &quot;We have...wagons. I could probably help making some sort of signal. What should we use? Fire? Wind? Water?&quot;<br> <br>Thelergramor adjusts his plague mask. &quot;So, remind me why we are talking to them, instead of just butchering the whole lot of them?&quot; Tactful as ever, the wolf again checks his musket. &quot;The shadows, I mean. Not the grass. Obviously. Still, call them out, or fight through. Either works. Probably.&quot; He looks to Siyu: &quot;Fire. Water, well, it was already raining.&quot;<br> <br>&quot;Everythin&#39; is wet. Ain&#39;t gonna help a whole lot to go startin&#39; up tryin&#39; to burn stuff. Thel, go shootin&#39; a round up into the sky. S&#39;quiet &#39;nuff to go carryin&#39; the sound for&#39;em to hear for miles out an&#39; such.&quot; Kalt looking to Thel as she stands a bit forward of the group, though clear of the carnivorous grass.<br> <br>Hartford reaches out and gives Thelergramor a gentle thump with his gauntleted fist. &quot;It is no joking matter, Mister Wolf,&quot; he says, looking a little grim, &quot;Even a small group of shadows can overwhelm a well stocked garrison. And this is not a small group, nor are we a well stocked garrison.&quot;<br> <br>Siyu gives a little hm, and he ponders the answer to Thel. &quot;If they&#39;re a seperate branch from the original shadows. We can find out about the creator&#39;s that sent them. Or prehaps, how to make weapons like shadows in case we have to...&quot; he shrugs. &quot;They&#39;re an unkown. Feral. They could chose to deal with us. If they do we&#39;d have some additonal knowledge the Creator&#39;s dont expect us to have.&quot; <br> <br>Rokarion looked around at the grass, [So may I ask why exactly are those shadows so hellbent on fighting us? Is it some form of shadow politics that beings are not aware of?] Rokarion the answers Thelergramor, &quot;Diplomacy is always better than violence and convincing this group might deter other shadows from fighting us.&quot;<br> <br>Thelergramor scratches his neck, shrugging. &quot;Small garrison, eh? They really that dangerous? Good thing we&#39;re not a bunch of grunts from a garrison, then...&quot; Thel is barely trained; high opinion of himself. At Kalts direction, the wolf raises his musket, fires a round off into the sky. &quot;Diplomacy is overrated, friend.&quot; He nods to Rokarion after speaking.<br> <br>Skade eyes her crusher for a moment and then looks back towards the grass. &quot;Perhapzz.. If you wish to fight your way through, I will aid you as best as I can. This damp doesn&#39;t help, though. Fire would be our best weapon. Or maybe ice.&quot; she suggests. [So there are three of us atleast. They do what they have always done, I should think. I&#39;m not sure how we could persuade them to leave. Where would they go?]<br> <br>Allista touches a rune on the forearm of one of her graspers, and her golem stalks its way over to her side. Then the coyote rests her big gauntleted hands against her hips, listening as the group chatters. &quot;A few words will cost us nothing, sir,&quot; she responds to Thel. &quot;Why waste effort you don&#39;t need to waste?&quot;<br> <br>Listening to Thele, and looking around, mostly to the so far quiet Allista and Amelia, &quot;Well, what do you two think?&quot; Jessica asks, then... a round is fired off, the sound reverberating thorugh... but grabbing the attention of the razor grasses! They quickly move over, as quick as they can! They seem to be moving a bit faster than normal...<br> <br>Amelia lofts a brow as the grass starts to rustle and approach. &quot;Well. Here we go, then,&quot; she says, lowering her hood and preparing her staff. She clicks her tongue and adjusts her glasses. As soon as they draw in close enough, she leaps into action in a flurry of movement.<br> <br>Thelergramor is less than concerned. Being attacked by plants? Pfft. He punched a rampaging dragon in the throat! Quickly reloading his musket, the wolf readies himself to fight.<br> <br>Hartford immediately swings into action, placing himself between Jessica and the oncoming razor grass out of sheer reflex. He sets to swinging his heavy halberd around with surprising grace from the usually clumsy stag!<br> <br>Rokarion takes a battle stance, and moves closer to the group, &quot;Careful now everyone protect your flanks and let us end this quickly.&quot;<br> <br>Allista ducks back from the reaching grass, falling behind her battle golem. &quot;So these things are rooted, yea? They can only reach so far?&quot; She pauses, then graps a handful of reaching grass and rips it from its base with her graspers. &quot;You know, we could just drop out of range.&quot;<br> <br>Kalt growls lowly and swings herself into the onslaught, letting her sword swing wide to cleave at the nearest grass to her! &quot;Oh bring it y&#39;lil&#39; sons of bitches!&quot; The Vixen&#39;s tail flicking as she works to dodge out it&#39;s own attacks.<br> <br>Skade clearly prefers to stay in the back of the group. It takes quite a bit of effort to conjure a fire wisp but the honey bee somehow manages it. And just in time too. Ducking and weaving as best as she can, she directs her minions to attack with steel and fire, her small protective sphere staying close by, keeping her out of harms way.<br> <br>Siyu grunts as he begins to use some earth magics, bashing at the grass as it comes up to attack the party. Once again it&#39;s firearms...and thel. He takes a deep breath. &quot;Is anyone injured?&quot;<br> <br>The grasses, fairly small for what is normal, are quickly dispatched, however, just a bit in, there are much more, all looking as if they are itching for a chance to taste the flesh of the adventures! Jessica shakes her head again, &quot;Fighting through there will take all night!&quot; She says, Jeremy nodding in agreement, &quot;Maybe the signal was heard though?&quot; She asks.<br> <br>Fighting finished, Amelia sets one end of her staff against the ground and tugs her hood back up. &quot;Well. I needed the little workout. It was a nice warm up. But yes, let&#39;s hope they heard the signal so that we won&#39;t have to be fighting any more of those things.&quot;<br> <br>Thelergramor reloads his musket, satisfied with the outcome of the fight. &quot;Yeah. Signal. Better come out and check.&quot; The wolf pushes his chin, cracking his neck before he sets about reloading his musket. &quot;And, I&#39;m not hurt. If anyone wanted to know.&quot;<br> <br>Kalt sets the tip of her sword against the ground, and leans on it. The Vixen watching the distance as she begins to hum lowly to herself, tail flicking as she just waits to see if the shadows did take to the bait after all.<br> <br>Rokarion shakes his head, before looking back at Siyu, &quot;Thankfully not. I am perfectly fine, thank you for asking.&quot; Rokarion then returns to a more neutral stance, &quot;Well I do hope that they heard the signal. I do not approve of meaningless butchering of the local flora.&quot; <br> <br>Hartford gives his halberd one last twirl and thumps the butt end to the ground. &quot;Well, Mister wolf,&quot; he says in his slow, deep voice, &quot;If that did not get their attention, ain&#39;t likely that anything will.&quot; He does not seem to be expressing any sort of opinion, only observing facts.<br> <br>&quot;Nope. Perfectly fine here,&quot; Allista replies. She recalls her golem and opens a small compartment in its side, pulling out a towel; the coyote begins wiping off grass stains as she waits to see the results of their signal, tail wagging, whistling a cheerful tune.<br> <br>After waiting for a while, there seems to be still no responce. Jessca looks around for a bit, &quot;Any other good ideas? These are shadows we are trying to work with.&quot; She asks. The grasses look more and more aggitated by the moment! And the clouds overhead look as if they promise more rain.<br> <br>Rokarion thinks for a moment, [How about attempting to contact them using the shadow tongue? As I understand it can reach a large distance if we are at rest. However, since I am not a shadow I will leave it to you two to properly speak with your kind.] Rokarion then looks up on the sky, &quot;Well I think we might be having some more fresh water soon.&quot;<br> <br>Hartford carefully hooks his halberd back across his broad back, out of his hands, but still in easy reach. &quot;Should we press forward then?&quot; he asks, &quot;It seems that no one has come to meet us.&quot; The big stag stands at attention once more. This is the first time he has been assigned to Lady Jessica. He has really only heard stories up to now.<br> <br>Thelergramor scratches his neck, rubs his mask lenses. Can&#39;t reach his eyes... &quot;Any shadow touched here? Just do that... thing that you do. The communicating.&quot; The wolf leans on his musket, pressing the srock to the ground.<br> <br>Skade redeploys her umbrella, just in case. The honey bee&#39;s antenae twitch for a few moments. &quot;Mm, this grass did not prove much of a challenge after all. But I&#39;d rather not fight anymore, if it can be avoided.&quot; and with that, she decides to send out a thought. [We come in peace. We wish to speak with you. You will come to no harm, but we will defend ourselves!]<br> <br>With someone reaching out, one of the shadows reaches back! More than one... more than... a few... all the voices come as if one mass of noise, assulting the mind, but there are those who are used to it.. Jessica waits, &quot;That is a very good idea Thele! Jeremy?&quot; She asks, the shadow shaking his head, &quot;They have already made clear that they would rather not talk to me, maybe someone else could.&quot; Eyes going to Skade as he already does.<br> <br>Allista wrinkles her nose, folds up her towel, and tucks it back away. Then she crosses her arms, finger tapping at her upper arm. &quot;They don&#39;t? Why not?&quot; she asks, curious.<br> <br>Skade&#39;s wings flutter for a moment and she almost staggers backwards suddenly. &quot;There are very, very many of them out there. They.. they wish to know if one of us is a creator. And what news we bring. Newzz.. of what?&quot; she buzzes as she rolls her shoulders, her fingers clasping around her necklace.<br> <br>Thelergramor smirks behind his mask. &quot;Tell them yes, just to see there reaction.&quot; The wolf laughs, looks over the group; satisfied that between him and the others; a bunch of shadows don&#39;t stand a chance. Naivete...<br> <br>Amelia leans on her staff, humming softly as she looks up into the sky. &quot;What an interesting evening this is turning out to be. Out in the corners of the land, talking to shadows,&quot; she murmurs to herself before pulling the staff up and holding it out horizontally before her. In one smooth motion, she drops into a sitting position on the ground and crosses her legs, resting the staff across her lap to wait patiently.<br> <br>Siyu grunts a little bit, and he looks at Thel, &quot;you&#39;ve done quite enough havn&#39;t you?&quot; he says flatly and looks back to Skade, and then to the others. &quot;What is it we say?&quot;<br> <br>Rokarion sighs, &quot;Mister Thelergramor we are here on a diplomatic mission. I do not tihnk that lying to them will be wise.&quot; He then looks back at Skade, &quot;Tell them that the Creator&#39;s refused to interfere because of a certain agreement, and ask them if they would be willing for a being to talk with them.&quot;<br> <br>Hartford stands in stoic silence. Probably for the best, since talking would just reveal that he has no idea what is going on. He would much rather be sharing a drink with the guys in the guardhouse. Or at the cantina. Was it chowder night? Creators! He was missing chowder night! Of course, none of this shows on his skunk-striped face.<br> <br>Kalt moves to stand next to Hartford, in calm silence as she too, shares in that blissfull ignorance of what people were doing. Yep. Best to just stand next to the big guy and look important, stuff is going on!<br> <br>Jeremy looks over to Allista while waiting for Skade to continue, &quot;They took offence when I defended beings from being attacked. They said they would not discuss anymore with such a trator.&quot; She says, before looking about to everyone else, &quot;With hope, those razor grasses are the only thing we will be fighting this night.&quot;

Jessica looks over to Hartford and Kalt, &quot;Well, Rokarion is pretty much right, but, perhaps we are looking at this the wrong way? Who are the creators? Are we even talking about the same ones?&quot; She asks.<br> <br>Allista grins, her tail wagging. &quot;Oh, I like that idea, wolf.&quot; She pauses, then offers a fist for Thel to bump. &quot;I like it. But I don&#39;t think I could pull it off. Hmmm...&quot; her ear perks then, and she looks at Jessica. Then she hooks the thumb of her other hand towards her golem. &quot;I create things all the time.&quot;<br> <br>Thelergramor bumps the fist, smiling behind his mask. He looks to Siyu next. &quot;Try to have fun, Siyu. And watch your tone.&quot; Thel stretches slightly, letting the ones who can communicate do so.<br> <br>Skade gives a soft sigh. How some of these people have even managed to survive childhood was a mystery to her. &quot;I&#39;ll just.. ask.&quot; she says as she once more sends out a silent shout across the distance. [The creators did not wish to interfere because of an arrangement of sorts. Would you be willing to speak with a being instead? And news of what exactly?] she asks.<br> <br>Hartford straightens even more when he sees Jessica looking at him. He has no idea what the noblewoman means by her question, but he hopes that she is about to have an idea and send him into action. He is not very good at hard questions. &quot;Lady?&quot; he asks, &quot;Were you askin&#39; me?&quot;<br> <br>Kalt shrugs gently at Jessica, the vixen honestly having no clue what was being talked about, but she figured a shrug would be the best solution after all! Leaning gently onto her sword as she tried to put on a thoughtful look, while at the same time deflecting her ignorance. &quot;... Dunno.&quot;<br> <br>Rokarion thinks, &quot;I think lady Jessica is probably on to something. Who do they mean by the Creators? Do they know them properly? We could attempt to decieve them into thinking that one of us is a Creator if they can&#39;t tell, but that would be disastarous if they found out we are just lying.&quot;