Ravvus Wiseau
Mage
We will not stop until I have bested you at least once. My pride simply won't allow any alternative.
Posts: 207
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Ravvus/Luba/Rowan
|
Post by Ravvus Wiseau on Feb 7, 2015 16:55:13 GMT -6
(I had been waiting on Harlow and Vinny.)
The ball of fire slowly rotated in Ravvus' hand. This was it: Power. It was his again. As the fireball hovered above his hand, Ravvus surveyed the camp site. The seven or so bandits who had originally been prowling the grounds had now been whittled down to two. The axeman and the swordsman had seen to that. Among them was a scrawny looking fellow and a man with an arrow shaft stuck in his leg. Neither were very impressive looking targets. Fortunately, those seven bandits had not been the only ones guarding the campsite. Indeed, there was another pair of highwaymen playing cards in one of the tents. While one of them had been unfortunate enough to have been incinerated by the initial volley of fire, while his friend had managed to grab his bow and flee the tent. Furious, that bandit was now firing arrow after arrow at the would-be attackers. Or perhaps he was firing at the civilians. Ravvus wasn't exactly tracking the arrows as they were fired. Regardless, the blond mage planned to make that bowman his target. Ravvus held the gently hovering fireball above his hand. With another muttering of words and the flick of his arm, he sent the fireball flying towards the archer. Out of the corner of his eye, the archer saw the fireball fly towards him. With the same swiftness that had saved him from the primary volley, the archer deftly leapt out of the way of the oncoming fireball. He was setting up an arrow for a retaliating shot when the ball of fire exploded not too far from him.
Having significant talent for anima magic, Ravvus was capable of many things with a simple fire tome. His most impressive feat was maintaining a fireball for thirty seconds before the spell either fizzled or exploded. Considering that the basis of fire magic was “fire and forget” Ravvus took great pride in this ability. In the current situation, Ravvus had forced the fireball to combust next to the archer, so as knock the man off balance.
The force of the explosion knocked the archer to the ground, breaking the grip he had on his newly drawn arrow. Without missing a beat, however, the archer scrambled to regain his footing. Ravvus grinned. This man would put up a fight. Failing that, he would at least defy Ravvus until the bitter end. A poor substitute for the pudgy brigand, but a sufficient one nonetheless. Ravvus spoke another fireball into being. This one was hovering slightly above Ravvus' right shoulder. He could feel the heat of the magic as flailed. It writhed in anticipation, eager to come into contact with something and consume it. Ravvus broke into a sprint and started charging down the prone archer. He had no intention of finishing the man off at long range. The newly summoned fireballs purpose was to suppress the archer's movements if he tried to attack again. Ravvus planned to beat this man into submission. His fists thirsted for blood. And Ravvus planned to quench that thirst.
|
|
|
Post by Duma on Feb 13, 2015 12:34:18 GMT -6
With most of the group of bandits dead, Duma turned his attention back to the bandit he had spied earlier. The scrawny black haired, one who looked like he was new to the whole bandit job. He hadn't moved from his tiny corner in the shrubs since the fighting had broken out. He was thin, too thin, eyes were sunken in, and one could see the outlines of his cheek bones. He was quivering unable to pull his eyes away from the mass of his dead comrades. Duma frowned. Poor sap. Probably got roped into this gig against his will.
He pushed away the thoughts of his conscience and went after the man. The thin man dropped his axe, and tried to run. But it was no use Duma caught him and threw him up against the nearby tree. In desperation the man pulled out a knife against the swordsman and attempted to stab him. Oh you little s#*&! The swordsman thought as he began avoiding his knife blows. The thin man was more skilled with a knife then he was with an axe. He's far too skilled with that to be an average thief.
All previous pity he felt for this individual was gone. Instead of finding greenhorn to torture, information from he was dealing with a competent rouge. He drew his sword in an instant. The thin man grinned a bit.
"Heh, you finally caught on." He spoke with a clear calm voice. Duma cursed himself for not realizing the signs. A sensible man, would have fled while he and Carmichal were busy dealing with the rest of the group. But the thin man stood there, watching, learning, preparing to either run and report back to the main group, or take them out.
The cut on his side stung with renewed strength with each move he made. Damn long sword. He eyed the thin man's stance it was off. He was putting more pressure on his right leg then his left, which meant to Duma that there was an injury of some kind on the left. His movements would be slowed slightly. Opportunity.
Duma went for the first strike, he purposely feigned an attack from the rouge's right, in order to have him put pressure on his left leg. The assassin was forced to side step with his left leg. Duma anticipated this and swung his blade. He reversed his grip so that the blunt edge of the sword, met flesh, the rouge fell back. Quickly Duma kicked away the man's knife, then purposely kicked his knees, wrists, and ankles. The audible crunch n crack of bone beneath his boots felt oddly satisfying.
"ARRAAGHH!" The thin man yelled in considerable pain.
"I let you live as a cripple if you tell me where your main base is." He spoke with a bit of a childish tune to his voice. There was a bit of a twisted smirk to Duma's face, as he pointed his blade at the man's neck.
|
|
Ravvus Wiseau
Mage
We will not stop until I have bested you at least once. My pride simply won't allow any alternative.
Posts: 207
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Ravvus/Luba/Rowan
|
Post by Ravvus Wiseau on Feb 16, 2015 21:59:56 GMT -6
Ravvus charged towards the stumbling archer. The mage could feel the adrenaline pumping in his veins. His excitement was rising. The archer looked at Ravvus, his eyes widened in apprehension and fear. The bandit was a decently fit man. That is to say that he had slightly pronounced muscles in his arms and legs. He seemed in better shape and better fed than the run-of-the-mill highwayman. He was fast too. He had been able to evade fire volley from earlier after all. Even now, as he struggled to regain his footing and composure, he moved at an impressive speed. Ravvus had closed about a forth of the gap between them by the time the archer had completely regained his footing
The archer reached for his quiver, grasping for another arrow. As the bowman went to do this, Ravvus sent his newly formed fireball flying towards the archer. By the time the archer had grasped a new arrow, the fireball had closed half the distance between Ravvus and the bandit. With a scowl, the bowman pivoted on his right foot and started running to his left. Smart man. Ravvus could control the combustibility of his fireballs, but once he'd set one loose he no longer had control of the direction it went. Ravvus would have to work on that in the future. Being able to change the course and direction of a projectile would prove most useful.
Beating his feet, the bandit performed a leap-roll to further the distance between him and the fireball. All the while, Ravvus had been closing the distance between himself and the bandit. From where he and the bandit had started, Ravvus had closed about three fourths of the distance. The gap was closed, the archer was now at a great disadvantage. It seemed, however, that the bowman was not one to give up. Even as the bloodthirsty mage barreled down on him, the archer finally managed to line up a shot on Ravvus. Given the current distance, it was almost impossible for him to miss. The archer smirked. “Big mistake!” He proclaimed pridefully.
Indeed. However, the mistake was not Ravvus'.
A slight force pushed against the archer as he let his arrow fly. The highwayman's back suddenly felt a bit warmer. As the bowman had readied his arrow to fire, Ravvus had combusted the fireball. While the archer was far enough away to avoid being knocked off his feet, he was not far enough away to be unaffected by the force of the blast. It had corrected his aim just enough to avoid Ravvus. The arrow zoomed past the blond mage, missing him by but a handful of inches. A desperate gamble the mage had tried, but it played off. An underhanded tactic, truly. Ravvus took great pride in it. The archer's eyes widened once more in fear. What thoughts were racing through his mind at that moment? Was he cursing his apparent ignorance. He had clearly not anticipated that the fireball would mess with his aim. Was he bemoaning his luck? Regretting his station perhaps? Or was he just afraid? Afraid of pain and afraid of death. Ravvus did not know. But these thoughts were inconsequential to him whilst he rammed his bare fist against the man's chin. The archer quickly lost his sense of balance and stumbled backwards to the ground. Before the man could react, Ravvus rushed to his side and sent a heavy kick into his ribs. The man curled into a fetal position, grasping at the new source of pain. Ravvus curled his right hand into a fist. He noticed a new red mark on it. Freshly placed there by the man's chin. “Heh heh.” The blond mage chuckled, as he mused about how black and red his fists were about to become.
|
|
Carmichal
Brigand
Booze is always an acceptable form of payment in my book.
Posts: 41
Profession: Mercenary
Affinity: Wind
Profile: Profile
OoC Alias: Marc
|
Post by Carmichal on Feb 22, 2015 12:48:53 GMT -6
With most of the bandits either felled by the mercenaries or now running for the hills, Carmichal took a few moments to gather himself and take stock of the clearing. Duma was engaged in a fight with the scrawny youth they had picked out as a squealer, and the mage who had been tied to the tree was now pummeling a bandit mercilessly. Best not to disturb him, Carmichal mused. I'm sure whoever he is, he deserves it. He turned his attention back to Duma, who was deftly handling his own bandit. The youth had turned out to be more formidable than either of them had expected. Of course, he was no match for the swordsman, whose deft feign easily caught him of guard. However, he had failed to notice another bandit slip from the treeline. If he didn't notice soon, he would soon find himself with an axe in his back. Luckily for Duma, Carmichal had noticed. He took just a moment to judge the distance between him and the bandit, then chucked his new axe at his target. It quickly covered the distance between them and landed with a loud crack in the bandit's shoulder. He screamed out in pain as the force of the blow lifted him off of his feet and brought him crashing to the ground.
"Don't worry," Carmichal said with a chuckle as he strode across the clearing, "I've got your back." Duma had already threatened the bandit for information, but he figured he should drive the point home. "He'll do it, you know," he said, crouching down next to the youth, "I've seen him gouge a man's eyes out for fun." He hadn't actually seen that, but he figured it'd go a ways toward loosening his tongue. It'd probably make him soil hid drawers too.
"Alright! Alright! I'll tell! Just stop hurtin' me! They're in the mountains! It's a days walk from here! You'll see the smoke!" Carmichal nodded at Duma, signaling to let the youth free.
|
|
Ravvus Wiseau
Mage
We will not stop until I have bested you at least once. My pride simply won't allow any alternative.
Posts: 207
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Ravvus/Luba/Rowan
|
Post by Ravvus Wiseau on Feb 23, 2015 13:33:22 GMT -6
The prone archer coughed roughly as he reeled from the mage's strikes. With the bowman momentarily stunned, Ravvus took this opportunity to survey his surroundings. It seemed that the battle was largely over. The few living, or wounded, bandits had either fled or been subdued by the swordsman and his company of raiders. It seemed that, for Ravvus, the campsite was now, relatively, safe. Good. Very good. He did not want any interruptions during this next part. Ravvus bore a wicked grin upon his face. He needed this. Truly. The time for anticipation had ended.
With puppy-kicking force, he brought his foot back and launched it into the archer's side. The highwayman cough-grunted in response to the blow. Ravvus brought his foot back again and launched it once more into the man's side. He did this again and again and again until the man's responses were little more than pained twitches. Ravvus had, at least, broken a few of the man's ribs. At most he'd damaged the man's internal organs and caused some internal bleeding. But the blond mage was not satisfied with this. No, he intended to have his fill of violence before the archer lost consciousness or died. Whichever came first. The blond mage placed a curled fist in one hand and cracked his knuckles. This was what he'd really been waiting for. Thrusting an armored foot against a man's cloth-layered frame provided little satisfaction. But feeling the brunt force of one's own bare fist against a foe's unarmored, frail body? That was satisfying. That was what the blond mage really wanted.
The quivering archer was little more than a twitching mess at this point. He posed no threat. The blond approached the battered archer so that he was standing directly above him. His legs were on either side of the man's form. Ravvus fell upon his knees. His body was but a foot away from straddling the highwayman's form. Ravvus met the bowman's gaze. The archer's eyes were tired and weary. The fear which had taken residence in his them was now replaced with resignation. The man's breathing was slow and ragged. And yet, in spite of Ravvus' vicious assault, the bandit's face was pristine. Other than a few marks of dirt and grime, his face was largely unscathed. It was curious. Ravvus didn't even see a scar on that clean mug. That would change shortly. The blond mage brought his naked fist back. It shot forward and struck the archer right across his cheek. The man did little to resist. His response was but a quick grunt of pain. No matter. The man did not need to convey suffering to bring Ravvus pleasure. All he needed to do was lay there and serve as a punching bag. Ravvus' naked fist pulled back again before jerking forward.
|
|
|
Post by Duma on Feb 25, 2015 18:55:25 GMT -6
“Thank you for the information. And for that, my blade will not claim your life or your eyes.” Duma smiled softly before stepping on the man’s hands, hard enough to ensure broken wrist. Then he continued to move the heel of his boot onto his fingers crushing and dislocating the delicate extremities. The bandit screamed in pain.
“You will not use these hands to pillage again.” He spoke with a strange sense of calm. Before stepping away and pulling the bandit up onto his feet.
“Get out of my sight.” The man limped off into the distance. Once the bandit was out of earshot he turned around and spoke to Carmichal.
“Letting him live leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I would have tied him to a tree. That way if he lied and sent us off on a wild goose chase, well we would know where to find him.” He crossed his arms with a slight pout. That was a half-truth. He would have had the man tied to a tree and cut him so that the animals would be drawn to the scent of blood. But he did not have the time or the anger for that.
“Nice throwing arm.. uh.. Thanks for the save.” He gave an affectionate light punch into Carmichal’s shoulder.
“So the shrimpy bastard gave us a destination. I’m going to see what I can salvage from the tents that could be of use to us. Then we make our way towards the mountain.” He took a moment to check his own wound. The cut wasn’t deep but the experienced mercenary knew that even the smallest cuts could lead to infection. Best to deal with it now while it was still relatively fresh. He pulled from his satchel a small bag of salve and gently spread a handful onto the cut. Urgh, It stings. Like army of tiny ants biting through my flesh. He then handed what was left of the salve to Carmichal.
“Here. It’ll help dull the bruise that’s showing up on your face.” He thought for a bit about putting the salve on the axe man’s smooth face, but decided not to.
He walked slowly back to the tent area. Fortunately the flames had started to die down, leaving most of the surrounding woods undamaged. Here he could see a blonde young man beating the hell out of another individual. He recognized the young man as one of the captives from earlier. And the person he was punching must have been a bandit. Heh, Bandit must have done something to piss off blondie while he was tied up. The swordsman watched for a moment. He frowned. He felt something unsettling about blondie. The way he punched the bandit, with such fervor, Duma didn’t like it. He sighed softly and began rummaging through the remains of the supplies for anything useful. He managed to find some rope, salve, a good whetstone for his sword, and some gold. He looked around hoping to find hide or hair of either Harlow or Vinny. Blondie looks like he’s a mage. Didn’t see a metal weapon on him.
He got up and shouted from a distance.
“Hey blondie! We’ve got plans to head up to the main camp of these bastards. Once you are finished with that guy, you want to join us?” If the blonde man agreed then good, if he disagreed that was fine too.
|
|
Ravvus Wiseau
Mage
We will not stop until I have bested you at least once. My pride simply won't allow any alternative.
Posts: 207
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Ravvus/Luba/Rowan
|
Post by Ravvus Wiseau on Feb 25, 2015 23:18:39 GMT -6
*Pap *Bap
Ravvus' bare knuckles scraped against the archer's face. His once unmarred mug was now purple and swollen. He had bruises above his right eye as well as upon his left cheek. The man seemed to have lost consciousness as well. Ravvus threw once last right hook at the man's face. It jerked to the side weakly. The blond mage hoped that he hadn't killed the bandit. Killing wasn't his style. Ravvus preferred to beat his foes to within an inch of their life and no further. He almost wanted to heal the man's wounds, but Ravvus had no knowledge of the staff and possessed no healing elixir on hand. No point in mourning what one couldn't change.
Ravvus felt good. He felt better now. He'd wanted to punish the pudgy brigand, but the archer had served as a proper substitute.
His ears perked up as the swordsman called for him. Ah, his 'rescuer'. Ravvus had a bone to pick with this man, and things had finally quieted down enough for the two to have words. 'Blondie'. Ravvus did not like that name. The mage rose to his feet. “My name is Ravvus, swordsman.” A curt greeting. He slid a dirty, bruised hand through his clean, yellow hair. His hands ached. Unsurprising given his savage actions. He turned to meet the swordsman. He didn't have much reason to assist these raiders. He had no quarrel with whomever these bandits served. If anything, he had more reasons to quarrel with the raiders than the bandits. The swordsman liberator had killed the pudgy brigand after all. That man needed to make amends for denying Ravvus his vengeance. The wheels in Ravvus' head began to turn.
“Perhaps. It depends, really.” The blond mage started making his way towards the swordsman. “Though I do not doubt the altruistic nature of your plans and actions, I am afraid that you have inadvertently robbed me of something.” He cocked his head in the direction of the pudgy brigand's bloody corpse. Ravvus was still sore about the swordsman dispatching his prey. “The first man you killed, the rotund one. He was my foe, my enemy to defeat.” Ravvus stopped a few yards away from the swordsman. He did not trust this stranger enough to fully close the distance between them. “As far as I'm concerned you stole the right to fight him from me.” Ravvus chose his words carefully. This man was beyond his skills, he did not want to come off as the man's enemy. Something which would be rather hard to avoid given the request he was about to make. “You sir.” He said, pointing a finger at the swordsman. “Owe me a fight. Promise me that and I will gladly help you on your...” Wrong choice of words. “I will help you on your mission.” He corrected.
|
|
|
Post by Duma on Mar 2, 2015 0:09:59 GMT -6
Duma kept his keen eyes trained on Blondie as he slowly pulled himself away from the badly beaten bandit on the floor. He remained mostly expressionless save for the slight narrowing of the eyes, and soft frown on his face. As Ravvus began explaining his "predicament". I robbed you of your kill? Well excuse me for stabbing the man who was punching your delicate face. While you were bound. Spoke the annoyed voice in his head.
"The name is Duma." He spoke calmly. Duma did not want to stir up any unneeded trouble from Ravvus. He eyed the young man briefly while he mulled over the proposition blondie had proposed. A fight for an extra hand in dealing with a bandit camp. Who may or may not know we are coming? He assumed that Ravvus wanted to fight him in a standard fist fight. Duma was no stranger to the bare fist brawl. He had spent many times defending himself and his clients with his fists. Whenever he was separated from his sword or forced to fight people through non lethal means. Duma started to work out some rules to make things fair. He cupped his fingers to his chin for a moment in thought.
"I will agree to this fight but with a few conditions." He choose his words carefully.
"This fight will be a fist fight. No weapons. No low blows. No death. The fight ends when one person yields or is knocked out. And it will take place after we deal with the bandits. Provided we are both well enough for it." He hoped that these terms were reasonable.
|
|
Ravvus Wiseau
Mage
We will not stop until I have bested you at least once. My pride simply won't allow any alternative.
Posts: 207
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Ravvus/Luba/Rowan
|
Post by Ravvus Wiseau on Mar 2, 2015 12:49:57 GMT -6
The expert swordsman was eyeing Ravvus cautiously. He conveyed little emotion or intent, other than something which Ravvus could only interpret as suspicion. It seemed that the swordsman did not trust Ravvus anymore than Ravvus trusted him.
The swordsman spoke his name first, then continued and answered Ravvus' terms. He spoke quickly and to-the-point, something which surprised Ravvus more than a little. Most men, especially those in the situation Ravvus had just put Duma in, would not be so quick to parley. More so they would not do it in such a calm and calculated manner. It was interesting, really. It was almost as if Duma had encountered a situation like this before. For all Ravvus knew, the swordsman had. His blade work hinted towards a wealth of combat experience.
Ah, the terms. Ravvus wasn't crazy about the idea of not using his weapon to duel with Duma. In truth, he had better chances of defeating the swordsman if the swordsman did not use his namesake, that is: his sword. However, if Ravvus could use his fire tome, he had more opportunities to fight dirty. Which brought Ravvus to his second concern. No low blows. Deprive the master of dirty fighting low blows? Now that would simply not do. Ravvus won more than half of his fist fights by going for the eyes, the throat, the snappable appendages, etc. These fighting criteria would not do for Ravvus. But now was not the time to discuss fighting terms with the swordsman. There were bandits to be killed and Duma had promised Ravvus a fight later on. That was all that mattered, that Ravvus had what he wanted.
Despite the swordsman use of caution, Ravvus relaxed a bit. The swordsman had met his terms without argument, something which gave him reason to relax. ”Agreed. Fighting each other here and now before attacking a bandit fort would be unwise. We shall settle this dispute after dispatching them. As for the terms...” Ravvus began to pace. “We may discuss the specifics of our duel later.” The blond mage was careful not to overplay his hand or overestimate his bartering abilities. He deliberately kept his intentions vague, so as to both end the conversation and assure the promise of battle.
”Right.” The blond mage placed his hands on his hips and took a quick once-over of the swordsman's shirtless, axe-wielding companion. ”So who's your friend?”
|
|
Carmichal
Brigand
Booze is always an acceptable form of payment in my book.
Posts: 41
Profession: Mercenary
Affinity: Wind
Profile: Profile
OoC Alias: Marc
|
Post by Carmichal on Mar 4, 2015 11:17:41 GMT -6
Nodding his head in thanks, Carmichal gratefully took the salve from the swordsman and began to spread it over his quickly swelling forehead. He hissed out a breath as his hand made contact with the bruise, but he pushed through the pain and covered as much of the afflicted area as he could. Soon, the salve took affect and the pain faded to a dull ache. Carmichal watched with interest as Duma confronted the blond mage, only to then challenge him to a fist fight. It was a bizarre turn of events to be certain, but the mercenary had certainly seen stranger in his time. As long as the two of them didn't kill each other mid-job, he figured the could have as many duels as they liked. If either of them jeopardized the mission, however, he would have to step in. While he could probably take the mage, he wasn't so sure about Duma. The man certainly knew how to use that sword of his.
His two companions, having finished arranging their duel, had now turned their attention to him. The mercenary figured he might as well introduce himself. "Name's Carmichal," he offered, as he reached down to retrieve his axe from the back of the slain bandit. It made a sickening slurping noise as it pulled free. "And I think we're in luck. A while back I ran with a crew in this area. Bunch of bored soldiers is all they really were, but we worked out of a fort for a bit before everything fell apart. Sounds like the same place. If we're done challenging everyone to duels, I think I can get us there by nightfall."
After spending a few minutes piling the corpses and scavenging for anything useful, the mercs set off further into the woods, following Carmichal's lead. For a while, their path seemed aimless, wandering over twisted roots and around fallen trees. Soon, the ground began to steepen and the trees began to thin. It wasn't long after that they emerged from the forest onto a mountain path. It was here that they were able to quicken the pace. Once they had crossed into the mountains, Carmichal's familiarity with the area had kicked in and they arrived at the fort with the sun crossing the horizon, as promised. From the hill they were perched on they could safely view the bandit's stronghold without fear of being spotted. This was certainly going to be much more challenging. The for consisted of two sections; a watchtower that had fallen into a state of disrepair, and a small keep, which had been built into the face of the mountain. The two were separated by a rather deep chasm, connected only by a less than reassuring rope bridge. From what he could see, these bandits, unlike their comrades back at the camp, were fully alert, though not actively searching for anything. One of the bandits from the camp must have made it back to the fort and warned them.
"Well," Carmichal started, glancing between his companions, "I'm open to suggestions."
|
|
|
Post by Duma on Mar 4, 2015 12:31:40 GMT -6
"Very well. We will work out the terms and conditions later." The swordsman spoke calmly. Carmichal spoke about his history with the area. The walk through the woods proved to be uneventful which was good for Duma. It gave him time to recollect his thoughts about the events that transpired. He knew there were some who managed to flee the scene and would have warned the others by now. This would make things difficult for the trio. When he arrived at the hill overlooking the hide out Duma laid flat on the ground on his stomach. So as to avoid detection from the enemy who could be gazing back out their way.
Duma stared out to the fort. The tower was easily accessible, the fort was a different story. He cupped a hand over his eyes to help see him see farther with out the glare of the setting sun. He glanced over at Carmichal who had asked for some suggestions. The proverbial cogs in his head were turning as he drew from past bandit raiding experiences.
"Night will be upon us soon. We can use the limited light to our advantage but we would not be able to successfully judge their numbers. There isn't much between here and there for cover. Which means we cannot do the same fireball trick like before." Not that that matters it's hard to judge their numbers now. He paused for a moment.
"They have been warned. I wonder if the survivors were able to tell them how we.. er at least Carmichal and myself looked. Perhaps we might be able to use that to our advantage. I wonder..." He scratched his nose for a moment.
"Perhaps we can bribe our way in? Use one of us as a captive and present it to their boss. As an offering to "join" them. Then sabotage from within."
|
|
Ravvus Wiseau
Mage
We will not stop until I have bested you at least once. My pride simply won't allow any alternative.
Posts: 207
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Ravvus/Luba/Rowan
|
Post by Ravvus Wiseau on Mar 4, 2015 19:45:16 GMT -6
(OOC: Warning, first paragraph contains cheesy thread namedrop.)
Once more, Duma was compliant with Ravvus' suggestion. While convenient, it still caught Ravvus off guard. The blond mage smirked in response to Carmichal's dry sense of humor. The man had his wits about him and maintained a competent air. Very good. His new allies knew what they were doing. With any luck they'd be able to finish this odd job quickly and without incident.
Carmichal took the lead as Duma and Ravvus followed him. Carmichal, Duma, and Ravvus. An axeman, a swordmaster, and a mage. As far as mercenaries and highwaymen went, they were a fairly diverse group. Their balanced skill set would be capable of taking on most challenges. All they needed now was a healer, and possibly some armor for the axeman. He looked like he could take a hit, but extra armor never hurt. Bare skin wasn't very effective at turning away blades and arrows.
They followed Carmichal for a time, weaving through the dense forest in what felt like an aimless trance. For a while it seemed as if the axeman didn't know where he was going, but they eventually found a path which Carmichal navigated with ease. He had good spatial knowledge of the area, something which would be very useful. If they hoped to take a bandit fort, it would be preferable that they knew the layout of the structure.
Eventually they came upon the great fort and its accompanying watch tower. Almost immediately Ravvus started having second thoughts. Oh. So when Carmichal said fort, he actually meant fort. This was no modest campsite or wooden-keep, this was an honest to goodness military fort taken over by brigands. Unfortunate. Capturing a fort in exchange for a duel was by no means a prudent trade. This wasn't what Ravvus had agreed to. Rather, it wasn't what he'd anticipated. He'd expected something similar to the previous campsite. But an honest to goodness stone fortress? Ravvus didn't have the magic to tear down its stoney walls and, last he checked, Duma and Carmichal's weapons couldn't sunder rock. Commandeering this fort would take a good plan and a great deal of effort.
Ravvus pushed such doubts from his mind. Whether he wanted to or not, he had a job to do. The blond mage almost immediately went prone, lying close to Duma. The swordsman had the right idea. That watch tower wasn't in very good shape, but it was still a good vantage point. And considering that the bandits were on full alert, it was in their best interest to remain as hidden as possible. Ravvus began assessing possible plans of attack. They might not need to attack the fort itself. Maybe all that they needed to do was destroy the bridge. Destroy the bridge, set fire to the watch tower, and wait the bandits out? They'd need to leave the fort eventually, and without the bridge thir movements would be limited. Ravvus' thoughts lingered on that bridge for a while. That rickety contraption might prove to have more than one use...
As these thoughts raced through Ravvus' mind, Duma spoke up. The swordsman noted that it would be night soon. That would certainly make it easier to approach the fortress. But, pretending to join them? The blond mage didn't know what he thought of that. That might work. If nothing else, it would probably get them close to the bridge. If that was the plan of attack they settled on, Ravvus would be only the only candidate for presenting Duma and Carmichal as hostages. While the thought of treating Duma like a prisoner was enticing, the blond mage wasn't entirely convinced. There was always the chance that the brigands called their bluff.
After much thought, Ravvus spoke. “We might not even need to bribe our way in. We may just need to bribe them out...” The blond mage rubbed his chin in thought. “If I were to present the two of you as prisoners to the bandits, we might be able to draw them out of hiding. Maybe...” The gear's in the man's head were turning again. “Carmichal. That axe of yours functions as a boomerang, yes?” He pointed at Carmichal's hand axe. “Carmichal, you may not need to pose as a prisoner. If Duma poses as my prisoner, we might be able to lure a decent number of them out of the fortress and across the bridge. If we do that, you can throw that axe of yours and sever the rope supports. Anyone on our side of the chasm would be trapped and we wouldn't need to storm the fortress.” Ravvus turned his head so that both Duma and Carmichal were in his gaze. “That might not take care of all of the bandits, but it would allow us to whittle down a fair number of them.”
|
|
|
Post by Duma on Mar 20, 2015 9:55:38 GMT -6
If Duma poses as a prisoner. Those words rang out in his head. It would not be the first time the swordsman would have been bound and presented to a bunch of men. The swordsman wasn't worried. He had several small knives concealed on his person just for rope escapes and things of the like.
"Good thing I found some rope to work as prisoner bait." He sighed softly. He listened to Ravvus's plan quietly before butting in with his opinion.
"Your idea works, at least up to the rope bridge part. If cut we would be left with problems. The job would remain unfinished. I speculate that the fort holds most of the bounty from their raids. As well as their leader. If we cut the bridge we cut our only means of 'safely' crossing over to the other side of the chasm. The bandits on the fort side could rebuild the bridge in time and attack villages nearby in rage rather then take their usual ransom." He kept his gaze out into the fortress.
"Though if we manage to get to the fort side then cut the bridge... no we would still end up being trapped on one side. Hmm..."Tactics are hard.
"It's built into the side of the mountain, who knows how many hidden passageways they could have access too. We could end up being stuck on the watch tower side, while they sneak away. Regroup their forces and attack us from another angle." Tactics weren't his strong suit but the swordsman had been on enough raids to understand and calculate some things. The back of his head was starting to compare this operation to a riddle he heard from a traveler. It had something to do with three chicks and three wolves trapped across a river back and needing to use a boat to cross.
"If there are hidden passageways perhaps we could find them if we torture another guard." He grinned slightly at the thought.
|
|
Ravvus Wiseau
Mage
We will not stop until I have bested you at least once. My pride simply won't allow any alternative.
Posts: 207
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Ravvus/Luba/Rowan
|
Post by Ravvus Wiseau on Apr 2, 2015 12:42:37 GMT -6
The blond mage smirked at Duma's comment. The swordsman had a real compliant streak. It was uncanny how willing he was to cooperate with the mage's bizarre requests and ideas. At least, it WAS uncanny. Shortly after commenting that he'd found some rope, Duma pointed out some holes in Ravvus' plan. He was right. Even if they were able to lure half of the garrison's troops across the bridge that would only account for half of the brigands. The bandit threat needed to be eliminated entirely if Duma and Carmichal wanted to complete their mission. Their plan needed some refinement. Ravvus stared intently at the scene before him.
Ravvus stroked his chin thoughtfully. Hidden passages? Maybe. That might work. It wouldn't be too surprising if the brigands had a few other entrances to their hideout. Come to think of it, it would make a lot of sense if the fort contained a few concealed entrances. The bridge connecting the chasm looked more like a death trap than anything else. Planks were missing in certain areas and even a gentle breeze would rock the wooden construct violently. It provided no remote sense of safe passage. Ravvus couldn't help but wonder if the bandits understood this, and if they'd turned the bridge into a literal death trap. He continued to survey the chasm desperately trying to come up with a plan.
“Torture a guard? Aren't all of them holed up in the fort?” He began. That was when Ravvus looked at the watch tower again. “Actually... I'm sure they have at least one man positioned in the watch tower...” The blond mage looked at the watch tower and then at the chasm. That was when it dawned on him. “Wait! What about that?” Ravvus pointed at the rickety watch tower. “What if we use the watch tower as an impromptu bridge?” The other two men probably didn't have any idea what Ravvus was talking about. Not that he'd blame them. Ravvus began gesturing with his hands. “What if we were to lure them out, cut they bridge, and then knock down the watch tower?” The mage's pointer finger was aimed at the old tower. “The height of that tower is about the same length as the gap created by the chasm. I could burn away the bottom portion of the legs facing the fortress, weakening its balance. Then the two of you could push the tower over,” He pointed at Duma and Carmichal. “it would fall across the chasm, and we'd have another means of crossing!” Ravvus really liked this idea of his. He practically beamed after finishing his explanation. Of course, there were holes with this plan too. The watch tower probably wasn't a much safer means of passage than the rickety bridge. Furthermore, they had no idea how long the watch tower would last as a bridge and they need to be precise when tipping the thing over. If they leaned it the wrong way, it would simply tumble down into the dark abyss. It was risky, but if there weren't any hidden passages into the fort, it might be their only option.
|
|
Carmichal
Brigand
Booze is always an acceptable form of payment in my book.
Posts: 41
Profession: Mercenary
Affinity: Wind
Profile: Profile
OoC Alias: Marc
|
Post by Carmichal on Apr 10, 2015 13:34:27 GMT -6
Carmichal grimaced as he kept his eyes on the bandit’s fort. His comrades had come up with some great ideas, but regardless of what they decided on this wasn’t going to be an easy nut to crack. Whoever had built this fortress had meant for it to be nigh impenetrable. His eyes moved to the chasm that separated the fort’s two halves. If he could have gotten closer to it, he might have been able to find another way around. But night was upon them and it would take someone far sneakier than him to get that close without being seen. Which brought him to Duma’s idea. It carried a great number of risks, especially if they were wrong and someone recognized Ravvus. Still, the swordsman had proven himself capable enough to handle himself if things went south. Then there was the mage’s idea. While cutting the bridge’s supports would eliminate the bandits, they would still need to find the mayor’s ring. Carmichal wasn’t thrilled by the idea of climbing down into a ravine to find a small ring. If it wasn’t on any of the bandits who emerged from the fort, they would need to find another way in. Then the mage suggested another idea.
For a moment, Carmichal could only give Ravvus a bewildered stare. When words finally came to him, they weren’t much better. “You... want to topple the tower?” he stammered, “That’s... that’s...” Carmichal trailed off as he gave the idea a bit more thought. The tower was the right height to bridge the gap and, unlike the bridge, seemed to be in good repair. “That might actually work,” he decided. “We just have to hope that we get lucky and none of the bandits on the bridge are carrying the mayor’s ring. And that the tower holds,” he added, “It would be very bad if it didn’t. Once we’re inside, we can’t let them divide us or we’ll be overwhelmed. The main priority is finding the ring and taking down every bandit we encounter. We don’t have to kill all of them. We just need to cripple them enough that they won’t be a danger to the town anymore. Then we go out the same way we came in and if that’s not an option, we’ll improvise.” Carmichal let out a heavy sigh and loosed his axe from his belt. “Let’s go kill some bandits,” he declared with a vicious grin.
|
|