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Post by Nayru Al-Saiduq on Jul 18, 2015 20:09:00 GMT -6
Another day... another set of bad news. Nayru's discontent was obvious in her expression, the unconscious tenseness in her body. She truly hadn't even begun to understand how bad the situation was in Bern until she finally got there; the wake of the so-called Demon King's revival had left a trail of blood across much of the once-proud nation, with monster attacks ripping through the already divided nation as the survivors of the siege on the 'City of Heroes' continued to wreak havoc wherever they could.
And then there was her prey - the monster tearing through southern Bern, the terrifyingly powerful abomination she and Veigue were hunting down. They had split up temporarily to try to get a better picture of its location and path, garnering what information they could as they moved, but the sheer pain that Bern was struggling with had surprised her. Beneath the relatively strong surface laid a country that was coming apart at the seams... and unless the Rebellion either finally won or was thoroughly crushed soon, she feared the worst for Bern as a whole. A country divided could not stand forever, and one beset by such toils and tribulations as Bern - well, it was a miracle it had survived as long as it had, especially given how the leeches in Ilia continued to attempt to suck it dry.
She didn't care much for politics, but after her meeting with Clair and Richter, and the self-righteous hypocrisy of the pegasus rider she had witnessed there, Nayru had started to fall pretty hard on the side of not-Ilia. The dragon wasn't necessarily pro-rebels, she didn't know them very well, but if nothing else, Bern at least deserved self-determination rather than eternal servitude.
Nayru sighed, trying to push the thoughts from her head. She didn't like getting worked up about human politics - and she could never help herself from doing so once she got started. It was always so... stupid. Self-serving. The worst people, the ones least fit to lead, always seemed to end up as leaders. Was that what dragon politics had been like when they actually mattered? Probably. She didn't really like that thought either, but it wasn't like greed and short-sightedness were in any way uniquely human - and at least humans were less stubborn than many old dragons.
But none of that was why she was here. She was here to try to find out more information about the mysterious creature, potentially a dragon, terrorizing southern Bern. At least that had been the plan before she realized this village was in worse condition than the others, plumes of smoke rising to the sky in mute testament of whatever tragedy had occurred here. She could only hope that there was anyone left alive, that there was anything she could do to help - searching for information on her quarry was a distant third as priorities went.
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Post by Remus on Jul 20, 2015 7:12:49 GMT -6
Bern was a far more dangerous place than Remus had imagined. There had been monster dangers along the entire way to worry about, even if they'd yet to actually encounter any. Then there were the threats towards them from brigands and other unsavory types. Remus considered themselves blessed thus far to have worried about this little. After all, if one traveled through an entire region with but a single bad encounter when the area was ripe with civil war, and monstrosities, could they count their luck as poor to avoid the other dangers? That was Remus' general thought at-least, until arriving in the small town that he had been seeking out to try and barter for more supplies. The blue haired priest shifted his staff over his shoulder as he looked towards the town now. Amelia and Owain had come with him, because of-course they had...they never left his side even when he told them too. The priest had not expected the ravaged condition of the town. Though small, it was almost entirely empty. Buildings ruined. A few small fires burning in an ambient manner that suggested they'd been their for a while.
One far more "fresh" fire roared upon the roof of a house. Beads of sweat traced along Remus' brow as he patted the wounded man on the shoulder he'd just finished healing. Obviously, once they'd learned the situation of the village, the priest had signed on to help. After all. He'd seen the threats these people whispered about. These winged demons. "Gargoyles." They were horrible creatures. Nasty winged abominations that were born of a foul and evil darkness. He had tried to explain them to Amelia and Owain. However they...were not quite grasping it. Owain imagined a large bat-monster-man, and Amelia imagined a dragon because...obviously Ameila imagined dragons. So, while the children sat under the extended roof of one of the wooden buildings, both brushing Dragon-Hero-Horse and grooming the steed; Remus rested next to a small group of wounded. The blood stained to his hands was not his own, but those of people he'd tried to hold the wounds of while healing. Red stains of this nature and source littered his robe. He even had small traces of it along his forehead and cheeks from trying to wipe sweat from his visage. He huffed a bit as he leaned back to call out to the children.
"Amelia. Owain. Just be ready to move incase something happens. We've no idea when things could be dangerous for you. Okay?"
He couldn't protect them, but he could try to mend those that had been injured in the attacks.
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Post by Nayru Al-Saiduq on Jul 20, 2015 14:26:08 GMT -6
A monster attack?
She had kind of been expecting bandits, if the dragon was to be perfectly honest with herself despite the minor shame in being wrong. It just seemed like the default problem to run into. Especially in Bern, even with the aftereffects of the events at the City of Heroes. Wasn't that a riot? No matter how many humans were killed by or terrified of monsters, their fellow men were ever the omnipresent threat, more so than dragons or monsters or even time. On an intellectual level she could somewhat understand it - they'd lived with the threat of bandits and rebellion for a while, but monstrs and dragons were new and terrifying - but the sheer difference in scale of the danger simply left her confused.
Perhaps it was a matter of perspective she'd never truly understand. Perhaps Richter had been right. Perhaps it was just a tumultuous period and things would work out in the end. Nayru didn't REALLY know, and while she was interested in the answer on some level, for now it wasn't really all that important. She could argue all that pseudophilosophical psychobabble later with whoever was unfortunate or ornery enough to take her on in that arena; for now she had work to do, namely, getting her dumb ass involved in yet more trouble, same as she always did, same as was going to be the death of her sooner or later.
Nayru continued to wend her way through the mostly abandoned streets, finishing her information gathering. A monster attack - lots of gargoyles - no one really knew exactly why they had given up. Some villagers were certain they had been driven off by force of arms. She... wasn't so sure about that one. She wasn't necessarily the world's preeminent expert on gargoyles, but what she knew of them did not coincide with the idea of them being meek and easily handled creatures. If they had withdrawn, it was either to wreak havoc somewhere else - or wait for something to happen here before returning.
But which was it, and if it was the latter, what were they waiting for?
She certainly wasn't going to find answers from a bunch of terrified villagers though, so following the directions from those more sound of mind, she had resolved to track down some traveling priest who was helping out. Who also, as it happened, was Remus. A Remus who was covered head to toe in blood. He hadn't noticed her yet, she thought, but it didn't look like all of the blood was his, or hopefully none of it, he looked a bit deflated but not deathly pale or particularly nursing his body.
What were the odds, really?
"Finally snapped, I see," the dragon casually called out to her priestly friend with a bemused tone, the wry smile on her face belying any sort of seriousness in the rest of her demeanor. She continued as she approached. "Covered in the remains of your latest meals, surrounded by the victims of your rampage... goodness Remus, I can't take my eyes off you for a week, can I? You've turned to cannibalism already."
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Post by Remus on Jul 20, 2015 18:41:37 GMT -6
"Finally snapped, I see," That voice. No, that couldn't. Could it? The blue haired priest turned his head to scan for the source of these words which drew his attention so swiftly. As he found the source, sure enough....."Covered in the remains of your latest meals, surrounded by the victims of your rampage... goodness Remus, I can't take my eyes off you for a week, can I? You've turned to cannibalism already." The bloodied priest grabbed one of the small wash cloths set to the side and wrung it with his hands as he used it to clean the crimson stains from his face. He chuckled a bit as he stood up wearily. Though his motions were like a man who had walked a life time without rest, his bright smile at the sight of his new friend boasted a man who had received his life's goals in spades. It was simply a trait of his. Smiles came with the territory for Remus. He knew that it was only a matter of time until the children noticed her. Remus figured he'd give it a few moments and see how soon before either looked away from their idle moments grooming Dragon-Hero-Horse to come greet Nayru.
After he had scrubbed his hands clean, he lowered and placed the rag in a bucket of moderately warm water. He chuckled while he neared Nayru, smiling and shrugging sheepishly. It hadn't even been long since they'd last seen eachother. Goodness, yet so much had happened. "Ahah..I can assure you this was not my doing. I am trying to undo what it is they had done to them." However after a moment, Remus had a slight thought towards something nayru might say given their prior conversations. Waving his hand dismissively he chuckled again while tilting his head. "Ah...I know I can't undo the suffering mentally. Only ease their physical wounds and threats; but it is what I do best. Meagerly mayhaps, but best personally. Er..so what brings you to Bern Nayru? Still searching for your friends? "
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Post by Nayru Al-Saiduq on Jul 20, 2015 19:37:35 GMT -6
It was... good to see him, she admitted to herself with only a little hesitation, concern born of so many long decades and centuries spent avoiding personal bonds until the last few months, maybe a year, when she had thrown all that away. Was it for the best? That was a question that Nayru still had no answer to. Oh, certainly it was nice in the short term, but surrounded by as much death as she was, the thought that soon enough Remus and Veigue and Hayle and Elly and Richter and Clair and every other human she had met recently would be dead was never far from mind. A depressing thought - but a concern she had waved aside when trying to open up to them, and now she had no choice but to brace herself for the inevitable.
Hopefully that time would be measured in decades, not years or days, and she would at least have some time to enjoy with them.
For today though, Nayru simply smiled neutrally, trying to push those thoughts from her head despite the truth they represented. Remus was in the here and the now, and whether or not he would be there forever, she could at least try to extend it. It really did look like he'd murdered someone though. Still smiling, though with that smile shifting from neutral to a sort of heartfelt honesty, she reached out and laid one hand on Remus's shoulder. "It's good to see you again, Remus." No double meanings there, just truth in simplicity. The blood didn't bother her - it hadn't in a long time. She was just happy to see him.
Still, she wasn't trying to plant a Remus tree, so she withdrew her hand shortly after as he spoke. Typical Remus. She couldn't fault him for it any more than she could be angry at him for trying to bear more than he should; it was simply how the priest worked, she had learned that in their former meeting, and while she might try to push and prod him a little to channel it into a more healthy approach, Nayru had learned long ago that for all the hubbub about change - most people never really changed that much, and they never did if you tried to force the matter, no matter how well meaning the attempt was.
"Well, don't push yourself too hard... though you will anyways, even if I tell you not to, eh?" The dragon shook her head in bemusement, not pushing the matter. "I'm after larger game than missing teenagers, I fear. Veigue and I split up to gather information about the location and movement of the monstrosity tearing through southern Bern in recent days." She sighed, crossing her arms. "It's not a pretty tale. The creature has obliterated several villages, even a town, and it's only a matter of time before it shows up somewhere with more people. What army Bern has is overwhelmed by the Rebellion and 'normal' monster attacks alike... evacuations have begun, but I fear it will be too late."
Truly it was a dire situation for Bern, and unless she and Veigue could stop it, things were only going to get worse - much worse. She didn't know exactly what it was capable of, but there were scattered reports of elemental attacks and size equal to or greater than that of a dragon - neither of which were particularly awesome thoughts for a dragon who was trying to lay low.
Not that that ever seemed to work out...
"Though I see here that mysterious monsters are not the only problems to contend with. Were you here for the attack? Should we be preparing for another?"
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Post by Remus on Jul 23, 2015 8:25:12 GMT -6
As Nayru placed a hand onto his shoulder, the Priest took comfort in the gesture. Save for the children, he was not overly close to people. In this regard, things were a bit different. Though he'd only known Nayru a total time of two days, he'd grown incredibly fond of her. He couldn't be sure if it was the woman's air of innocence despite her violent nature(In regards to her simple openness and honesty) or that she simply came off as so friendly. Something about her made it easy to consider her a friend though. Remus smiled, and felt a bit of his weariness leave him as he nodded to her. Though he looked exhausted, the priest had gotten so used to and acclimated to the sensation that it never really bothered him anymore. The Priest chuckled, smiling warmly still even as he nodded towards her. "It is also a pleasure to see you again Nayru. I hope you've been well. "
He laughed as she mentioned asking him to tone it down. He tilted his head before looking towards the sky however as she spoke of this monster, his expression toning down severely. Remus shifted his staff to prop it up like a walking stick as he quietly listened. Thinking to himself of the horror she spoke of. Initially thinking perhaps it was the gargoyles? However once she mentioned "Normal" monsters he realized it was not the case. Remus gazed towards the wounded individuals before taking a few steps away from them and speaking allowed as he pondered. "Well...the gargoyles that've been plauging this area then are likely not what your looking for. I...know that the demon-king or so he claimed, Hargus I think his name was? I saw him get killed in Sacae...so that's not it..and the cyclops there died...so...I don't think I can offer any information sadly..." Though he spoke of the events without plying thought into them; he realized that Nayru might not know what had happened in the City of Heroes. While word did travel, he also knew she enjoyed her isolation.
He was about to answer her questions about his presence during the attack. Then..it happened.
It was so fast, it could have been over in the blink of an eye. Sudden, out of no where, and lethally silent. A burst of giggles erupted as Amelia threw herself into Nayru and wrapped her small arms around the woman's waist in a sudden tight hug. Owain, shy as ever, simply stood near by smiling and watching. The incoherent giggles were not much to go off of, and given Amelia's face was pressed to Nayru's back her words came out as muffled jumbled up words. Remus chuckled, knowing it had only been a matter of time until the children noticed her presence. Remus tilted his head as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah..haha..seems I'm not the only one who missed you!"
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Post by Nayru Al-Saiduq on Jul 28, 2015 19:32:59 GMT -6
"Yeah... 'well.'"
The grimace spreading across Nayru's face told the tale more succinctly than she ever could have. It hadn't exactly been peaches and f**k**g gumdrops along the way; Sacae had just been one unending clusterfuck of bandits, monsters, and that damn sword-wielding jackass who couldn't man up long enough for a real fight to save his life. She hadn't endured any serious loss or anything of the sort, but good god damn if her patience hadn't frayed to the limit in the process; more than once she had only semi ironically considered transforming and just hunting them all down, consequences be damned.
She ran her free hand - the one that hadn't touched Remus; girl had to keep blood out of her hair - through her hair, trying to put her thoughts together, as if the gesture itself would somehow help her do that. It wouldn't of course, but all the same it was a sort of comfortable, familiar feeling, perhaps inspired by some wild rumor she had red centuries back about hairbrushing stimulating mental acuity - probably bullshit but didn't hurt anything. "I don't suppose there's anything in your faith about humans being possessed by demons or the like, either? Ran into a swordsman who could wield the nether as if it were his own, far beyond the powers of any magic weapon, who seemed to exist solely for bloodletting..."
The dragon shook her head, letting her hand fall to her side. Of course Remus wouldn't know about it, but the whole series of events had bugged her. The way she worded it he almost sounded like a halfshifting darkness dragon or something, but those didn't exist, and she was completely sure that he wasn't one even if they did - it was difficult to mistake the stink of natural nether for anything resembling draconic abilities. Perhaps it had simply been an incredibly powerful magic weapon that had consumed its bearer? Something akin to a Nethforged equivalent to the Legendary Weapons? At least it certainly hadn't been on par with the ones from the Scouring, anyways. She didn't really have a lot of experience in being killed by modern Legendary Weapons so Nayru wasn't sure how apt the comparison was.
The God-Empress Amelia moved as softly as silence itself and as quick as lightning, latching on to a Nayru whose jerk of a reaction belied that she was a little more surprised than she had let on. So much for being a great Dragon warrior with senses keener than any human, eh? Truthfully though, it did seem that her senses were a bit dull by dragon standards, at least unless she started calling on her power... though whether that was because of her element or any fault of her own was a good question, and Nayru had been finding her senses expanding rapidly lately - but were those her senses as a warrior, or as a dragon? The difference confounded her, and the growing ease with which she found herself unconsciously channeling her power left the answer in a twilight zone of uncertainty.
If anything, though... it seemed like it was more her reactions than her senses that benefited from her nature, while her growing experience benefitted both. Though her ability to tell the weather was... somewhat useful, anyways. Hm. It still felt like there was some sort of disconnect between her and the world, one that shouldn't exist, but did, and she was growing more and more aware of it. Was that a good sign or a bad one? Was she on the verge of breaking through it, or simply cursed to be aware of it?
Well, that was a question for another time, perhaps another day. She had the feeling she wasn't liable to have much time to herself, much less her own thoughts, so long as the Terrible Twosome were around, and knowing her luck there would be a full-scale Demon King Hargus invasion in about three minutes just since the cosmos didn't think she was occupied enough. So, with a small smile that was as much wry in regards to her own thoughts as much as genuine in momentary happiness, she shelved those thoughts and turned to her assailant... and her co-conspirator.
"Amelia. ...Owain." She nodded to the young man when she located him, not wanting to leave him out of the moment. Being shy shouldn't mean any less inherent worth, after all. "It seems the cosmos truly does intend that I follow and protect the Empress and her companion until the age of Man is ended and the endless desert swallows our world whole." Little silly? Maybe, but she had the sinking feeling that Amelia was going to end up as either a towering god-emperor or Elibe's deadliest assassin within the decade, and it never hurt to curry a little favor with your lord and master when you could, eh?
...The thought was itself so ludicrous as to almost make perverse sense. Nayru couldn't help but giggle at the thought. The thought of how Aerious would probably literally explode from sheer rage at her groveling before a human, even in jest, just made it better. Yup, she was going to hell for this. "I'm glad that the three of you all seem to be safe. Did you listen to Remus while I was gone?"
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Post by Remus on Jul 29, 2015 23:10:27 GMT -6
"I don't suppose there's anything in your faith about humans being possessed by demons or the like, either? Ran into a swordsman who could wield the nether as if it were his own, far beyond the powers of any magic weapon, who seemed to exist solely for bloodletting..."
It was odd that she would mention that. He started to think back to the siege. The city of heroes. As the image painted it's self through fog of a growing time span, he could hear the voices.
"I don't know who you are but Falcatta is telling me that you are my enemy" , "I am going to cut you down!!!"
He could hear the ringing of metal on metal, and see the woman known as Mana crossing blades with the demonic figure. Jya, the assassin who saved his life two times over during the siege, maneuvering to nearly land a fatal wound on the abomination. The shadowy figure that dueled both women at once. All Remus had been able to do was heal them in earnest. The ghostly recollections of the clashing blades, and pulsing nether magics however were too vibrant. Too strong. Even though he was in a state of safety, he could feel the creeping increase in his heart-rate as his pulse quickened. The blue haired priest shifted his gaze past Nayru as he spoke quietly. "It does not...but I have seen such a man..a blade black like shadow with a golden hilt. It was..an unpleasant encounter. "
The priest was quiet for a few moments, simply content to enjoy the sight of Amelia and Owain happy once more. Owain quietly nodded towards Nayru, with a warm smile even while Amelia's giggling self clung to the woman excitedly. He chuckled even while Amelia latched her face from smooshing into Nayru's side and began to speak excitedly. "I abducted someone!"
Remus interjected on the girl's behalf.
"You were abducted by someone."
Amelia shot Remus a look that expressed her distaste at being corrected. Not that it would be enough to halt the pestering.
Remus shifted from where he stood as he chuckled, looking at the children. That question, he would answer for the children, he could answer rather easily."For the most part they do..but not as often as they should have... "
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Post by Nayru Al-Saiduq on Jul 30, 2015 0:22:11 GMT -6
Nayru's gaze on Remus was suddenly sharp, calculating, her usual demeanor evaporating for a moment as her mind churned through the possibilities - the probabilities - of what his statement implied. That sounded entirely too familiar to be any sort of coincidence, and she didn't particularly care for the thought of demonic refugees from the so-called City of Heroes spreading across Elibe as they seemed to potentially be. It wasn't Remus's fault of course, she wasn't angry at him, but it was not something she could help but take very seriously, and her peircing gaze betrayed that.
...But the children were here, and that limited her options to pry the information out of Remus. The momentary tenseness evaporated as quickly as its predecessor, her expression returning to a placid smile. "I imagine." Perfectly neutral - perhaps suspiciously so, just a little out of place given her reaction. She didn't push it. And besides, it wouldn't be an issue again. Hopefully.
Amelia interjected herself into the conversation with a random and somewhat worrying proclamation, as was her wont, but it was Remus's correct that simply made it darker. Kidnapping? The dragon felt a pang of regret at leaving Remus to his own devices after they last met, reminded for a moment of how that had turned out with Marcus as per her meeting with Richter in the plains, but shrugged off the thought as best she could, as quickly as she could. Remus and the children seemed none the worse for wear, after all, but she was going to be grilling him tonight like... the thought came to mind of her in the role of some Etrurian high inquisitioner shouting at him for for lack of piety, and it completely ruined the metaphor into some amusingly ironic reversal of reality.
Hah. No matter. "It seems you all have some stories to tell." Her tone was again pleasant, but her eyes on Remus were questioning; he was going to be in hot water if he'd nearly gotten himself killed again trying to help people. She might even enlist Amelia's help. "Almost makes me ashamed to admit I've done little but monster hunting and a bit of light reading." But oh, what monsters she hunted - and what mysteries they brought to light to read up on. Mysteries she had not yet found the answers to.
Since when were humans capable of wielding the nether so naturally? That man had still possessed his... self, so not even a Netherdrained mage could explain him. Not for the first time, Nayru wished she had access to Arcadia's libraries. It all sounded suspiciously like the Arum in some ways, but there was precious little information about their existence, and certainly not a great deal about them ever coming back to Elibe.
But then... dragons weren't supposed to exist on Elibe either.
The thought that she might be as clueless about these strange new invaders as humans were about dragons bothered her quite a bit.
Nayru was used to having knowledge bordering on encyclopedic on most subjects, not to being almost completely clueless on things, and she didn't like this feeling one bit. She really needed to do some research to find out more before coming to conclusions, though. But that would have to wait. For now, it appeared that this town was in dire need of aid, and she was ever the sucker for playing the part of the knight in shining... bracelets. Hm. Didn't have quite the same ring to it as heavy plate armor, but it would be useless on her; impacts powerful enough to break her reinforcement would obliterate the armor, and anything that wasn't would probably be wasted on the armor anyways. Point was, it might be that she could use her strength or mind to aid these people, and so it fell to her to do so if possible. The slight irony that she had met Veigue's grandfather in a similar way was not lost on her; if Remus had a wife to pull out of the wreckage, she was just going to turn around and walk away before she ran into their young swordsman grandson in another century in a burning village. "Anything I can do to help out?"
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Post by Remus on Jul 30, 2015 9:49:53 GMT -6
Remus found himself looking at Nayru, only to see her gazing back at him in a way that slightly unsettled him. Though this prompted little more than a soft chuckle as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, he squirmed a bit internally under the weight of her gaze. However it also shook him from the lingering worries and idle thoughts of general negativity as he remembered the dark male who had wrought so much destruction at the City of Heroes. Remus took a few steps away, as he looked to the children before pointing towards the partially broken down wooden house across the street. "Owain, Amelia Finish brushing Dragon-Hero-Horse, and guide him over there. If anyone needs help make sure to help them as long as it doesn't require you leaving the building. I'll start getting the wounded over there."
The children's excitement to see Nayru had not diminished, but at the priests request they did go back to brushing Dragon-Hero-Horse. The large white Etrurian Charger was more than content to accept the children's grooming even while Remus turned to slowly crouch and hoist up one of the four wounded villagers. All four were men who had attempted to defend the town from the impending threads, and were lucky to escape with their lives. Remus shifted a bit as he helped the man by draping an arm over his shoulder and hoisting the man a bit easier before turning to Nayru with a smile. "Well..I need to get these men over to the small collected "safe house" that they set up. See..I can't really say how safe we are because well..I have only seen gargoyles twice. This being the second time so..I know almost nothing about them. It was a few...no army like the first time I saw them..but well..I couldn't just leave them here wounded and what not. So...were going to try and help them as best we can before I get Amelia and Owain back to our little group. Er..I managed to find a few individuals to take us to Lycia, and then to Laus; but we stopped here for supplies and provisions. When we got here we learned about how bad things are. The group is already a bit away, they'd set up camp outside of sight of the town. If I had known how bad things were..I'd have sent for them..but I don't want the children without me at their side, and don't want to leave until I know we've helped however we can. "
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Post by Nayru Al-Saiduq on Jul 30, 2015 19:01:16 GMT -6
Heh. Dragon-hero-horse. Nayru grinned like the immature child she was, midway between truly amused at the creativity(?) in its name and slightly worried that it might come back to bite them or Remus in the butt when they returned to Etruria. Certainly the 'holy land' was not especially friendly to dragons or even their mention... but they were children, not hardened criminals, and she didn't think that even the forces of the Inquisition would be likely to start torturing them to try to learn more. But she still couldn't help but worry just a bit.
Probably nothing, but it might be worth bringing up at some point if Amelia started talking too much about dragons. Remus was no one's fool, and if she worded it right there would be no issues with drawing attention to herself. But again, that was something to think about for the future, not necessarily a critical issue that needed a solution here and now. Things that needed solving more pertinently included getting a better idea of what danger this town was still in, and apparently helping Remus move a couple dudes around.
Well, better than moving dead dudes around. Been there, done that, not doing it again if she could help it. Too much poop. So much poop. Her soul chilled at the thought, but Nayru shook it off in a truly impressive display of bravery... by her standards, anyways, which wasn't saying much, and moved her attention back to the work at hand. Heh. Hand. Cuz she was gonna lift them and... never mind.
"Alright, let's get this show on the road." Remus was doing his part to help 'em, but it looked so... inefficient. And they probably shouldn't be walking in this state. But unfortunately, she couldn't really think of a greatway to carry three people at once - less a question of strength than of logistics. Two arms, three guys; unless she did some fancy juggling, which would probably impress the kids but be less well received by the juggle-ees, this was gonna take at least two trips. Sigh.
"Well," she started in response to Remus, picking up one guy like a sack of lumpy potatoes, "Sounds like fun." A hiss of pain alerted her to the fact that she hadn't grabbed him quite right. "Sorry," she muttered quietly, adjusting her grip to try to better support the body. Just 'cause she was trying to do two at once didn't mean she was trying to torture them, but it seemed pretty damn inefficient to leave any more work than necessary to Remus. "UPS a daisy," she said quietly to herself, lifting the second victim lucky recipient of her tender ministrations, a little more effectively this time with her arm better supporting his back. Still probably not the most comfortable way to go, but hopefully better than walking.
"Can't say as that I'm a fan of gargoyles myself. Last time I had a skirmish with 'em the little shits were hard to get my hands on, but they just kinda... fell apart when I got to 'em." She grinned, maybe a touch of ferality in her toothy smile. Of course, the real glory of the pun would unfortunately be lost on Remus - she'd torn one of them apart - but she could still wallow in the gloriousness of her wit in the confines of her own mind. "Lead on, gentle priest, unless you want me to practice my javelin throwing skills. They are roughly the right shape, after all..."
One of her charges whimpered a little. "Shh," she whispered sweetly to him. "No more tears, only dreams now."
For some reason he didn't seem appeased. Humans, right?
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Post by Remus on Jul 30, 2015 21:02:39 GMT -6
Once again, Remus felt a bit sheepish. Nayru had this amazing knack for making him feel far weaker than he knew he was. Here, he was barely able to support a wounded man's weight enough for the man to lean on him. There she was effortlessly slinging two men over her shoulders. No really. It wasn't like he was trying his hardest or anything. Remus gazed at her curiously for a moment before turning back to the wooden house and slowly leading the way towards it. Remus spoke up, talking to Nayru as he led the wounded man into the room. "We'll just lead them into here." Within the room were several more wounded. Some were people Remus had healed already. Others had tended their own wounds. The small number of people occupying what he theorized had at one point been a merchant's shop, who were not wounded, were carrying around crates and attempting to create make-shift safe spots. Two were wearing armor and held spears, small ovular shields on their forearms. The only people equipped and looking anywhere near ready for a fight.
Remus slowly eased the man onto the floor before turning to walk back out towards the other man to retrieve him. However he spoke up towards Nayru as they moved; guilty of voicing his curiosity while he talked to her. "So tell me. You've fought gargoyles before? When was this? What happened? How did you manage to beat them?" The lapis haired priest was curious on so many things. He knew monsters were deceptively strong. He also knew that they were fairly uncommon, so it was most likely an event worth looking into if nothing else. However he had a feeling that most of the events Nayru was involved in were ones worth looking into or reading about. Though this also gave him pause for thought as he plied her with further questions, simply releasing the restraints on his curiosity as he slowly shifted and attempted to help up the fourth wounded man from the dusty road he sat upon. "Oh...and this monster you spoke of that you've been hunting? Have you seen it yet? What..precisely is it if so? Anything your hunting down must be rather....er..monstrous..if you'll pardon the poor choice of words. "
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Post by Nayru Al-Saiduq on Jul 31, 2015 21:27:58 GMT -6
The safe house was not as much of an impregnable castle or hidden hole as she had hoped, rather as difficult to defend and as vulnerable to attack as she had feared. AWhat it had been before its transformation, she knew not; a storehouse perhaps, or some sort of business. It mattered little compared to what it represented now - the last hope for the people trapped inside it, like birds trapped in a cage built of flimsy tinders. If there was an actual monster invasion - if gargoyles came crashing through the windows, if an Elder Bael tore through the walls bodily... Nayru grimaced, trying to hide her expression as she gently laid the two men down in what looked like a pretty good, relatively out of foot's reach palce, but her chest felt... constricted. Not in hatred, but in anger; not at them, but at the necessity of it.
Was this what Richter had been talking about in regards to the impossibility of a true dragon-human reconciliation? The feeling of absolute powerlessness that he spoke of... was this truly how humanity would always feel around dragons, how their relationship would always be defined - the weak quivering in fear of those blessed by nature to be strong?
Nayru didn't know, and the thought burned at her. She couldn't disprove it any more than he could prove it, but scenes like this - scenes she had seen countless times before when trying to help people, when helping fight off bandits or coming to find the battered remains of a pillaged village wrent apart by war, were not hard to see in that light now. She had never really thought about them as an endemic concept, as a microcosm of racial interactions. Naivete on her part perhaps. Certainly she would always be a step removed from the perspectives of normal human beings, no matter how good she might eventually become at mimicking it, simply by dint of her lifespan.
But it wasn't just her being unwilling to admit he was right. She was naive in some ways, Nayru knew that quite well, but she wasn't THAT blind to her own failures to miss the possibility of that explanation. But it was her being here right now, she thought, that ultimately proved her point. More than anything in the past, more than any Scourings or angry dragons or disaffected humans - she was here now to help. Certainly solving the racial divide wasn't going to be as simple as one hypocritical girl helping a couple people, but it was an example of what could be. If people could put aside their prejudices and ancient grudges and just... help each other.
Of course, that was easier said than done on a large scale. Nayru knew it was naivete itself to expect that a few good actions could immediately change the world. But change had to start somewhere, from the smallest and simplest beginnings; certainly she wasn't much of a harbinger of change or an especially great leader, but if she could inspire someone better suited for the task than her to pick up the mantle, then that would be a thousand times more helpful than any bellyaching about how the dynamic would never change.
Or maybe she just had a head full of mush and none of this would lead anywhere. She couldn't help but smile wryly at the thought, as disappointing as it would be if it turned out to be true. Maybe she and Richter would both be dead in five years and neither of them would live to see any real change, for better or for worse. But dammit, she couldn't just sit here and do nothing while the world churned and boiled, as the tide of hellish creatures threatened to swallow Elibe. Politics wasn't exactly her thing, but using her power for good for once - maybe that was a little more reasonable of a goal.
She followed Remus out to retrieve the last of his victims patients, somewhat trapped within her own thoughts, so it was a bit of a surprise but also a pleasant interruption when Remus broke her concentration to begin plying her with questions of his own. Had she not mentioned the battle at Salvation Point before? Oddly enough she couldn't remember - at least not without going more in depth with her memories, which if she was going to be completely honest with herself, Nayru was too lazy to do right now. Maybe she had. Apparently not in much detail if so though, so it was all a pretty moot point.
"...It was some time ago," the dragon eventually settled on as a neutral opener to her answer; "Before these dark creatures erupted full-scale into Elibe as they have in recent times." She intentionally left the time veigue, err, vague; a great deal of experience had taught Nayru that she was generally better off not locking herself into specific dates when possible, if only to avoid boxing herself into a corner in terms of stories. "The site of some great battle between humans some years back... apparently called Salvation Point now. Long since abandoned - somewhere along the way, it became a breeding ground for monsters. We were accosted by a small harrying force of gargoyles, so my companion and I, along with a few traveling Ilians we ran into on the site, investigated the ruins and found them literally crawling with Baels."
Good times. Nearly killed her! She could almost feel the phantom pain in her arms at the thought of how hard the broodmother had hit her - so much for dragon strength and supremacy, it had shattered her reinforcement in a single blow and left her half embedded in the earth. If not for Aerious, she would have died almost instantly. Nayru wasn't sure if her newfound strength was enough to match the terrible power of the creature from back then, but unfortunately(?) chances to test it had so far been few and far between.
She rubbed her shoulder unconsciously. "I learned a great deal about strength in the ordeal... and how little raw power availed me against those creatures. I suppose you could say it was a harsh awakening as a warrior, rather than a woman... and my first job as a monster hunter." Nayru giggled, possibly a little out of place sounding, but it was so ridiculous to her that she couldn't help it. "I failed the interview, but learned more in doing so than success could have ever taught me. The world is a strange place sometimes."
"As for my current work..." She shrugged, honestly and simply. Not like there was much she COULD hide when she knew that little. "An enormous creature, that much is certain. Some rumors claim a dragon. Others claim it controls all the natural elements. There haven't been many survivors to interview - the beast leaves very few alive in its wake, and with the large-scale evacuations going on, it's even harder to pinpoint its path. The only true certainty is time - sooner or later it will strike a major population center, and with the armies of Bern, its oppressors and resistance alike otherwise occupied, the loss of life will be tremendous. We must find it before then." Her words were simple, but her tone was forged of diamond. If this creature truly was a dragon, it was her responsibility - her debt to the world - to put it down before it could hurt anyone else; even if it was simply some mad creature, its vast power would require another monster to face it. Regardless of how she looked at it, the creature was her responsibility.
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Post by Remus on Aug 1, 2015 5:58:07 GMT -6
There was a haunting similarity between this place, and the City of Heroes. It was the atmosphere. During that week long siege, he remembered how the wounded were. Despite the uniting of various stalwarts from all around, the odds were overwhelming. The man who had so much notoriety to all of Elibe had been leading them. Hargus was a monstrosity that was of the foulest kind. Even before he'd turned into the "demon king" and caused a shadowy pseudo apocalypse to descend upon them. There was a feeling of impending doom that had wafted about. As if any moment plausibly could have been the last. The hordes all about the city, the back and forth fights along the walls. The occasional building caught by some stray magic or the scarce siege weapon. Then there were the helpless. Many sacaens could fight, but not all. Those were the people who felt the most helpless. The most powerless. How he could relate...
Here it was like that singular aspect magnified. Most of the people couldn't fight, nor had any hope to. They had been enjoying a peaceful life until death descended upon them on wings of dread. That was what made this so important. That was what made him want to help them so badly. At-least, at the city of heroes they had an army of warriors flock to their aid. Some small town in Bern that almost no one had heard of? They had no chance of that happening. Not until it was too late at-least. It would take the dumb luck of people stumbling onto it like he had for it to realistically happen. Similar to how Nayru had appeared. However...he didn't put his stock in that happening beyond her.
Remus shifted a bit, as he thought back. He remembered a fair bit of the conversation with Nayru, that night at the Ilian inn. In-fact...the more he thought, the more clearly he could recall that night. He remembered Amelia sleeping peacefully, and Owain's brief outburst. He recalled gazing at the dancing flames of candle light and noticing just how fast time had passed while they conversed. Salvation point. He remembered that name. He recognized it at-least. His hands moved to shift the wounded man's arm as he lifted the wounded man up slowly. "Ah. I remember you mentioning that. Er..Salvation point. You said there was a large..um..Mother Bael? Queen Bael? ..Ah! Elder Bael I think you said. I couldn't be absolutely sure but I do recall that; though I think you left out the gargoyles. Though I also you remember mentioning that there was a forest or some place in Lycia you were planning to examine that had a Bael problem? "
He helped the man up and slowly made his way across the street. He continued to speak however as he assisted the man, shaking his head to imply negative confirmation as to any knowledge of her creature. He tilted his head and smiled apologetically. "I can not offer any words to assist with searching down this creature. We've heard nothing, albeit we've only been in Bern for a small time. Sacae went a bit smoother than I had feared. Only one issue there. No issues here so far save for a few small troubles. Though, while not to belittle the serious intent and tone you are harboring, which I might add is rather chilling in a stoic way, I can at-least express confidence in a way not unlike how you do so often. I am sure, once you find this monster, you will plant a mighty fine orchard. "
The priest chuckled a bit before helping the shuffling elderly wounded into the wooden place of haven and easing him down. Remus turned to look to the skies with a small frown. Perhaps it was the sudden increase in wind, but he didn't particuarly like the gusts that were blowing with higher frequency. It was too ominous. He sighed a bit as he lifted his staff to his shoulder, so it rested along his shoulder tops behind his neck. "Speaking of spiders and forests..I wold like to help you if given the opportunity. When you go to this lycian Bael resort that is..."
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Post by Nayru Al-Saiduq on Aug 1, 2015 6:43:39 GMT -6
Broodmother," she responded absentmindedly to Remus's waffling before she'd really even finished thinking about his comments. "An Elder Bael is simply a description of power; the Broodmother is the mother of her, well, brood. They can both apply to the same individual, or a brood may contain multiple Elders, with the mother above them all." It was all very academic-sounding, quite literally in fact given that it was exactly that - remnants of knowledge from Arcadian libraries centuries hence. She'd never once thought she'd get any actual use from the knowledge. "Ah, sorry."
Her tone lowed apologetically, Nayru continued, inclining her head slightly. "One of the few monster varieties I know much about academically. Apparently, despite being individually weaker than the highest echelons of monsters, Baels and Gargoyles were once responsible for the most dead dragons of any monster species in the days before the Scouring. I always found it interesting that it was not sheer strength at arms or their own dark mirrors, but their own pride that worked against them in taking such lesser foes less seriously - though it seems that the Gargoyles of yore were far better organized and intelligent than the ones of today."
She didn't see any great need to tell Remus that monster stories were her favorite as a kid, and that more than once Erim had quelled a certain rambunctious child by threatening her with abduction by gargoyle if she didn't stop squirming around in bed. Those minor factoids were, er, totally irrelevant to the conversion, after all. But it was true that she had always found monsters interesting, perhaps because even dragons knew so little about them; they had existed for as long as dragons, but simply... ceased to exist alongside dragons sometime during the Scouring. What had actually happened to them? No one knew. There were countless theories - to the day she left Arcadia, dragon and human scholars in that fabled city argued it regularly - but no one had ever offered an ironclad solution.
Though, er, that was neither here nor there. Certainly she enjoyed discussing this stuff with Remus, but they didn't have all day to stand around and chat about sweet nothings. It was good to see Remus helping the remaining man in, and while she felt a little useless walking with him, the derpy dragon rationalized it as her being Remus's bodyguard for now, so she should focus on fighting off... dragon hero horses and other such terrors. For the good of the people and all.
"Don't worry about it." Nayru waved her hand, not so much dismissively of Remus's existence as of his worry about not being able to contribute. "We've confirmed the creature is further south for now anyways - until now we've mostly been searching for refugees who might have useful information. Since that didn't pan out so well, I'll meet back up with Veigue tomorrow and beard the lion in his den. Figuratively speaking. I assume it's not really just a lion."
Ah, to be young and naive again.
Blissfully unaware of how stupid she was going to feel in a day or two, Nayru warbled onward as they moved. Granted, she hadn't actually contributed much outside of the first two guys, but it still felt nice to have gotten the group moved without any real incidents. "The Tuscana situation is..." she trailed off, not really having the right words to voice her thoughts, but the disappointment in her tone was self-evident.
"The Marquess has all but closed off the country, and completely closed off the city. The very army that might have been able to purge the infestation in its earlier stages has failed to do its task, and I have heard terrible tales of entire villages disappearing overnight - consumed by the skittering creatures that hide within the olden forests." Nayru shook her head. The mad Marquess's cowardice was costing his subject's lives. "Telling truth from rumor is difficult, the infestation may not be THAT bad yet, but it will be given time. Baels never stop multiplying. Never." She looked at Remus, dead serious. "That one infestation could consume all Elibe if left alone long enough. Any brood can. That is the danger of that species... and some say the source of the common human aversion to spiders even today. I would not suggest leaving business unfinished before we make that trek."
It took some time during her speech for Nayru to actually recognize what was bothering her so much, beyond the simple mention of the arachnid menace; the sense of wrongness she had initially ascribed to them had only grown, and it was not until her words tapered off that she could recognize it for what it was. After looking a bit distracted for a moment as she tried to tune her senses better, the dragon spoke again, briskly, her former comments already pushed aside as her suddenly alert eyes tore through their surroundings. "We have a problem. Multiple contacts, closing fast. Looks like they're coming to finish the job."
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