Hilde took Cihiro's hand to steady herself as she hopped down off the small skiff. "I understand where he is coming from though," she started as she found a place to sit down in the soft cool sands of the cave, "to be honest, I'm sure I would be the same if the roles were reversed, that's just how parents are. Heh, though, he does say I have his spirit, which is what worries him from time to time. Truth is, I do want to be like my father, becoming a warrior strong enough to take after him one day. And just like he didn't become the strongest Varuk warrior by sitting around, I can't become that by being a guard in a small desert town!" Hilde seemed to get what she wanted off her chest, vocalized for the first time out loud, it was something that had been on her mind for quite some time, unsure if she should tell her father or not. She took a couple deep breaths before she turned to Chihiro. "Thanks for letting me vent my frustrations... it helps," she finished, both her knees together with her hands resting at them and a sheepish smile. She looked around the cave and noticed the large man who she has misunderstood s a fire priest sitting next to a fire, close to some of the other warriors as he cooked his wyrm meat and worked on the hide and scales of the beast. She hummed to herself for a moment, thinking maybe she should go say something to him. "Do you thin.... maybe I should-"

It was at that moment Bidzil came running up to the cave entrance, sliding to a stop to turn back to Allanon who was following behind a short distance away. The way Allanon explained it, the swordsman salute was some sort of formal show of respect between swordsmen. Much like some of the practices the guards in Trantis tried to show one another before spars, though theirs was different. It was much less elegent as this man's, and simpler feeling as well, but when two guards would prepare to spar, they would take their left hands and simply bump each other's knuckles with their sword in hand, still in their metal sheath, before taking two steps back and in their stances. Once the fight was over they would repeat the process like earlier before putting away their weapons. When Allanon caught up, Bidzil somewhat loosely copied Allanon's salute, before holding out his left fist weapon in hand. "This is our way of showing respect. Take your weapon, sheathed in your left hand, and bump my first to yours. Then we take two paces back and start the spar," he said with an excited grin, as if he was greatly eager to start.

Hilde looked on, surprised as if just noticing Bidzil in their group for the first time, definitely not because he was shirtless, but it was obviously because of the impending sparring session that caught her interest. "was he always here?" she thought to herself. "He's kinda cute~," she accidentally thought out loud. While it is barely above a whisper, she still turned red before trying to recover, "Um, I mean, this looks like it will be entertaining," she said bashfully.



Sahale approached the three out in the square, hearing the tail end of their conversation."No need to check that mess out, if it was a daughter you were looking for, anyway. That explosion was a man, who is now probably quite the mess over there," he said as he approached Allard and Maeve, "Here, allow me to help..." Sahale then helped Maeve in moving Allard to the temple. The sight of the great warrior being brought in was quite a blow to the people inside as they all started to whisper to one another. Allard was their strongest warrior, despite him not being the chief, though that was of his own decision."Do you have room for another?" Sahale asked. Neev had just finished healing another patient, and turned to Allard. She was a wreck, doing whatever she could to make sure she didn't lose anybody, but the constant eb and flow of magic, refilling her mana, and then continuing her work was obviously taking its toll on her, and with Allard's size and amount of wounds, she was honestly praying that she would be able to keep this up.

Neev's ears folded down, "I...I will try my best. I sent a letter out for help, but... right now I am the only healing mage," she said, her normally perky and upbeat attitude now gone after the mess she had been through today, after all, not everyone could possibly make it through. She didn't even register that Maeve was an Isoli as she instantly started directing where to set Allard and get to work, as if her work had made her more or less tunnel visioned. Sahale would lightly bump Maeve with his elbow and then gesture towards the beastman girl, "If you happen to not know any healing spells however," he started in a low tone for just her to hear, "I'm sure she wouldn't mind sharing her spellbook with you." Sahale then smiled as he turned to leave, approaching Sev.

"You said something about that man mentioning a 'Emperor of Greed', yes?" Sahale asked as he brought his free hand up to his chin in thought. "That would be none other than Lord Calibris, and those are his men, though they wouldn't be a rebel force. Believe it or not, his men don't typically care for him, they fear him, and what he can do to their families. His lust for anything that he wants at whatever cost is what earned him that title. I know what he was looking for here, but it would seem like he struck a deal with the local bandit groups. I wonder if he wanted them to help secure his desires in exchange for taking this town for them. After all, bandits haven't been able to do this kind of damage to Kalla in generations, about when it first became its own town."

Chihiro gave Hilde another hug, keeping the nervous girl close. "No problem. We are friends, after all, and I do my best to take care of friends." She watched as two of the group prepared for a spar. It made her want to join in, but a three person spar often made things difficult. "Boys, after you are done, want another sparring partner? I have some energy I could get rid of. I promise not to use magic." She gave them both a cute wink to add a cherry to the top of the metaphorical dessert.

Kistal saw Anrak step in and begin cooking the meat as he also started on some armor. He kept at sharpening his spear and spoke calmly to the man. "So, before anyone else gets here and starts pointing sharp objects at people again, you up for sharing your story? I may well be the only sympathetic ear here it seems." The satyr looked over at the half-minotaur any time he was between strokes on the whetstone, trying to gauge the man's expression.

"I was looking for a friend," Sev shrugged as Maeve questioned him, "almost found one, but he had the bad manners to blow himself up. That's who the explosion was, no one was hurt by it but him. Think he wanted to take me with him. I swear, people these days refuse to accept when they are beaten."

Sev paused a moment to scowl at the blade of his spear, pulling a rag from a pocket and began cleaning the blood off before it could dry. Of course, this was only partly a front, allowing him time to inspect the other Sylve that had joined them. No military uniform, didn't look like a government official. But he did seem quite skilled with his gift of air, more so than Sev was with his own though he would argue he was better with light, if he was ever to admit to having that gift.

Seemingly satisfied with the now clean blade Sev pocketed the rag and held the staff out, chanting some meaningless phrases that sounded like a spell. Rings of light ran up and down the length of the spear, it's form shifting and changing till it was once again a staff. While Sev had removed any markings indicating the weapon belonged to the Sylve military it was still recognizable as such to a trained eye. Better to allow people to make the assumption the weapon had been transformed into a military style spear than he was just carrying such a spear around.

"Local lord doing deals with bandits against his own people?" Sev asked, looking up in contemplation as he thought, leaning his staff against his shoulder, "that's a new one I think."

Allanon nodded to Anrak with a small smile on his face. "Glad to be a help." The large man appeared to have been through quite a bit over his lifetime, and Allanon knew all too well about having skeletons in their closet. If he was truly dedicated to redeem himself from whatever past sins he may have committed, then Allanon would be there to support such a person.

He pulled himself out of his thoughts to refocus his attention on Bidzil. He was beginning to get an understanding of the young man. Bidzil's education with the sword was nowhere near as refined as his own, but odds were his style was self-built much like Allanon's style. The odds were it would be filled with openings. Bidzil's attempt to copy Allanon's salute was satisfactory for a beginner to duelist etiquette. He then presented his own greeting. One he had not seen in a long time, but considering the Trantis' guard coat Bidzil wore was not surprising.

Allanon removed his sword and scabbard from his belt separating it from its golden and permanently peace-bound partner. He bumped Bidzil's fist with his own while holding his sheathed weapon. He took two steps back and reattached his scabbard quickly before the spar started. "Been a long time since I've fought someone from Trantis. Tragic what happened." While Allanon was still mastering his style, he had sparred with an old master from Trantis whom had taught him their simple greeting. The old master had long since passed away from old age. The few weeks Allanon learned from him helped him breakthrough and create the final forms of his style.

Allanon smoothly entered a ready stance with his hand steadily upon the handle of his sword.

Thankfully for Maeve, who was already struggling to help Allard to walk, the strange man who had arrived was quick to tell them that the explosion had nothing to do with a girl and the man who was on it's radius was probably in pieces already. After such a quick answer, Maeve hoped Allard would calm himself down a bit instead of worrying about his daughter and try to escape to go and search for her despite his condition. Not only the strange man offered an explanation about the explosion, but Sev himself knew exactly what it was, saying it was one of the bandits, that exploded himself after he captured them.

"I'm grateful. It's not exactly an easy task for me to try and drag someone who is many times bigger and heavier than me to the temple." Maeve said with a chuckle as the strange man offered to help her to carry Allard.

"It's indeed strange..." Maeve replied as she heard Sev mentioning the possible cause for all that situation while he turned the spear he was holding into a staff again, cleaning off the blood from it.

Getting inside the temple, they were finally able to see how busy the healer really was and how grave the town was attacked. There were many wounded, so many that one healer wasn't being able to take care of them anymore.
As the strange man mentioned that the healer wouldn't mind sharing a healing spell with her if she didn't know some, discreetly suggesting that it would be a good idea for her to help since she was an Isoli, Maeve simply nodded, understanding what he meant.

"Don't worry, even though I'm not a specialized healer, I'm an Isoli. Healing magic is almost instinctual to us, just like ice magic is. I will be able to help." Maeve said, making sure the healer also heard her words before nodding towards her, indicating she would do the possible to help.

His next words though would immediately clarify what was happening with the town. The name they heard earlier, the 'Emperor of Greed' was indeed a man. Lord Calibris and the bandits they were fighting were indeed his men. Apparently, the name Lord Calibris had wasn't just a title, his greed indeed knew no bounds, willing to do anything and everything to get what he wants.

"I wasn't aware that such person existed..." Maeve said, not trying to hide the disgusted tone in her voice after she heard his words.

"He doesn't seem the type of person who has a lot of friends. Seeing how he secured his position of power despite his actions, I assume that either he has an obscene amount of resources, money and power or someone is supporting him. Am I correct?" Maeve asked ass she began using healing magic to at least stabilize Allard's condition.

Allard did seem to calm down after hearing what the explosion was about. Neev circled him a couple times trying to think about what to do and where to best administer what to the man. He was an absolute wreck. He should be dead. And from the scars the man had on him, He should have been dead before. What were these Vaurk men made out of anyway? Neev was worried that he might be too injured for her to heal him properly, her magic low once more and she only had so much mana potions left. It honestly wasn't healthy to fluctuate your mana back and forth between full and near exhausted repeatedly. It could cause mana sickness, and while it wasn't normally fatal in most stages, it doesn't do the body well. Neev, however, in her mind, saw it as a small price to pay to be able to make sure these people could continue with their lives.

Mana sickness generally showed as blue veiny markings growing across the body, usually concentrated around the person's flow of mana. Using too much magic, more than what a person is capable of containing, can cause this. Normally this happens when a mage burns too much mana, however, mana potions can restore a mage's mana back to the top, allowing their body to continue. However, if a mage repeats this process too many times within a certain period, their mana capacity starts to break down anyway. A mana potion will seem less effective as their body is unable to contain as much mana. Some mages during war time have been known to completely destroy the mana networks in their bodies due to overuse, rending them of their ability to use magic, with only a few of them able to restore it while still never to the same extent as they were previously. If mana hits what is known as 'critical zero' meaning that there is zero percentage of mana in the body, the person will die. The blue mana vein markings start to show when a mage is around a quarter of their mana.

When Neev finally saw Maeve starting to work her magic, that was when her tired mind finally clicked that she was an Isoli. Her ears flicked up, "An Isoli!" she said airily. "My prayers couldn't have been answered any better," she said as she approached Maeve. Neev was about a whole head and shoulders shorter than the Isoli, and if Maeve had an eye for detail, she may notice the starts of mana sickness on the young mage. It was slowly creeping up the sides of her cheeks, but most her concentration of man was in her hands, which were covered in the large vein-like marks. Neev noticed that Maeve was only using a minor healing spell, so he pulled out her spell book and held it out to her. "I see you don't know much healing magic, but this is fine! Not to worry, I have a book you may use. Concentrate your mana on my book, and the enchanted contents will lift themselves from it and to you, this should help you more than just here, but maybe later too." She had a weak smile, she was obviously at her wits end and glad that someone with the ability to do some real help finally arrived, but she was couldn't stop until all that could be taken care of was seen. Even if she didn't have the mana for magic, she could still operate.

Sahale looked inquisitively to Sev and Maeve, "local? No, not in the slightest. Neither of you have heard of Lord Calibris? Hmmm, I guess that is possible, if neither of you have left your kingdoms before recently, especially you," he added looking towards Sev. "Tundral is not too much better with communicating with the outside either. Anyways, he is a lord in the kingdom of Portea, on of the four major families, and unarguably the most powerful and wealthy of the families."

"May Kalaja take him...," Vog hissed as he stayed focused on his position but listening to their conversation. It wasn't a very Red Saints thing to say, being the fact that Kalaja is the lord of death, but he couldn't help it. Calabris was the source of many a people's anguish, especially in Portea. Even this situation, now that things were settling down, had Vog on edge. He was worried his companion would stretch herself to thin to the point of hurting herself, but she privately gave him quite the earful and decided to honor her wishes to push herself as hard as she was, even though he disagreed with it. Not that it was quite private, there were no real doors on the temple to enhance air flow and just about everyone there heard her rebuttal. "He is nothing but a plague to what could be a great city, and should be cut out...," he added irritably.

"Well put," Sahale remarked, looking to the drake beastman. Even Sahale's face turned a bit somber to it all before he cleared his throat, "Anyway, I'm sure the chief will want to know what has happened here, but after this, I think I should stay here for the rest of the night, just in case. I will head out to see how I can help the others in the morning." Sahale looked between the small group of people before a look of shock came to him. "I'm sorry, where are my manners? I don't believe I introduced myself. My name is Sahale, it's a pleasure to meet you, especially you," he finished to Maeve with a theatrical bow and a wink.

---

As if by instinct, Bidzil's legs went up when the blade was lowered on him, feet clamping Allanon's wrist in between the soles of his boots. It would have been a last ditch effort to manipulate the opponent's wrist to disarm or injure the wrist, and though Bidzil wouldn't try to do such a thing, Allanon speaking up snapped him back out of his fighting mindset, his eyes now much softer and seeing that he was bested. Bidzil sighed as his legs flopped back to the ground. "Aw, fine. You make a good point," he said, smirking at his own joke, however cliché it was. Bidzil put his arms above his head, resting the knuckles against the ground as he pulled his legs in once more and pushed off with his arms, flexing his back with it to hop back up to his feet quickly, weapons still in hand before sheathing on and once again holding his left arm out, weapon in hand for the customary knuckle bump.

"Hopefully I do a bit better then than I did now," he said with a light laugh. Once the formality was reciprocated, Bidzil sheathed the other weapon and went closer to where some of the people stuck around to watch, including Hilde and Chihiro, plopping down on the ground and crossing his legs. He started to put his jacket back over his shoulders and put his arms through, shaking out sand here and there. He then looked up to Chihiro, "I wouldn't mind sparing again, but Allanon is probably right about saving energy..." Bidzil looked down to his hand and flexed it a couple times. It had been weeks since he had last sparred with anyone, his hand was still slightly shaking with the excitement. He thought himself sloppy. He was downed in no time flat. The spar with Allanon raised the bar to Bidzil, and though he didn't know the caliber of the swordsman he sparred with just now, he promised himself to strive to be better than him one day. After all, he would have to if he were to run into whatever destroyed his town. Those Selna guards never stood a chance... Thinking of that brought him to his next dilemma, real battles. Sure there was some getting rough with people in town when keeping the peace, but it was never a battle with real bloodshed. "I, uh... guess this isn't the best thing to bring up at a time like this but... I've never actually seen real combat before," he admitted ashamedly. "Trantis...well... it was never really the focus of anyone's ire when it came to warfare. Most I've dealt with were common criminal types, not bandits or soldiers."

Hilde listened as the young man sat down. Growing up in Kalla, seeing men fight to the death to protect the town was unfortunately not so uncommon an experience. Even Hilde had helped fend off a small bandit raid or two, but it was never anything big. "It is brave of you to want to help, and you shouldn't sell yourself short. But it is a very serious decision you made coming here. These men will be fighting to kill, and struggle for life, rarely do they give up like a common theif. Skill is one thing, heart is another," Hilde told him. She then looked to Chihiro, "I guess I could spar with you if you want, then. Though, I probably don't have enough skill to be a challenge to you," Hilde offered.

Allanon had to resist reacting to Bidzil's feet closing on his arm. The two reactions he could have made would likely have crippled the young man. Once, Bidzil caught himself and relaxed as he conceded the spar Allanon put away his weapon. He responded to the fist bump in kind with a light grin. "You fared better than you could have expected. Also, keep this in mind with that maneuver you just started with your feet and my arm. That would work better if I were wielding a shorter weapon, however a full-length sword like mine could cripple you before you could attempt any control over my weapon with a simple flick of the wrist. I could have struck your groin or inner thigh both of which have muscles and tendons that allow a strong grip. If you don't believe me, put your hand between your knees and clamp them down on it. You'll feel what muscles tighten when you do that. Very foolish move in a serious fight with a seasoned opponent."

Allanon listened as Bidzil admitted he had no experience in actual combat, and Hilde's reaction. "Then the question comes to bear. How ready are you to take a life? The people we will be dealing with before long will not think twice to end yours. Either because they must do it to survive, or they do it to satisfy their own bloodlust."

He knew all too well how Calabris Mercenaries were brought on to work for them. Either they were debt slaves, like he was, sold by their own families to pay off debts with their bodies, or they were paid to work for them with guarantees for their families. Both were bound by contract, and the former were bound by blood and magic. The only reason Allanon and his surviving teammates no longer had active contracts was because the Calabris Family retired them by stating they had paid off their debts. After all that was the only way they could try and kill him without experiencing the repercussions of a breach of contract. It was the only way the could have a bounty out for his life.

Although, now that he was thinking about it, Sahale had mentioned there was a secret bounty on him being captured alive. Not wanted dead, but alive. The only bounties he knew of exclusively wanted him and his surviving former teammates dead. He would need to find out more about that bounty wanting him alive, and he would need to find out if the other two were also wanted alive as well. It would be impossible to find and inform one of them, but he could at least make contact with the one under Tundral's protection and let him know. He really did not like the idea of getting information from a guy like Sahale. There was no way he could trust someone like Sahale. Not after all he experienced in his former line of work.

Maeve couldn't help but to chuckle when she heard the healer exclaiming she was an Isoli, with a relieved tone. She was just so exhausted and busy with healing the wounded that she had managed to miss the incredibly obvious fact that Maeve wasn't really a local. She had watched the healer's expression while she was examining Allard and it was clear that she was as surprised on how he was still alive as Maeve herself was and unlike her, she was an experienced healer.

As the healer approached Maeve, mentioning how she was lucky that there was an Isoli there to help her, Maeve couldn't help but to notice the small blue streaks creeping up on her cheeks, a clear indication that she was dangerously close of her limit, those were the clear signals of mana sickness. As Maeve carefully listened to her instructions as she gave her a book and told her how to use better healing magic, she finally caught a sight of the healer's hands, which made Maeve immediately open her eyes wide, alarmed. They were almost covered with large, vein like markings that were typical of mana sickness. The moment she finished explaining and Maeve herself started pouring magic on the book, using the spell written on it, she turned to the healer with a serious stare on her face.

"Healing magic was never my specialty but all Isoli nobles need to know at least the basic about healing magic. My prowess with it is nowhere near as good as my fine control over ice magic or my swordsmanship though." Maeve said as she took the book the healer gave her.

"I'll surely help you as much as I can, but you need to rest. I'll take care of things around here until you recover yourself. You're suffering from severe mana sickness already, just look at your hands!" Maeve said, scolding her almost the same way she did with Allard a while ago.

"I don't recommend but if you insist you need to continue helping, just try to not use magic anymore. If you need me just call me and I'll go to you." Maeve said as she finished scolding her.

"I'm Maeve Orzhov, pleased to meet you." she said, with a short bow, not being able to do a formal one since she was still busy healing Allard.

Turning to Sev and the strange man that had led them to the temple, she heard, surprised as he told them that Lord Calibris wasn't just a local lord. In fact he was quite an important person, being a member of one of the wealthiest families and a lord in the kingdom of Portea. The moment he finished explaining, a drake beastman cursed the name of Lord Calibris, indicating that he indeed was someone with a lot of enemies.

"We Isoli aren't exactly known to be open to the world outside their borders nor we are interested in politics that don't involve us. Despite what this Lord Calibris might have done here, he isn't mad to try and do anything against us." Maeve said as she heard from the strange man that Lord Calibris was very well known and important. It was quite obvious that she wasn't really giving him the importance the others gave and if there was any doubt she was really an Isoli noble, her words now surely cleared them.

"Regarding the night, I'll be fine as long as there is a soft bed and somewhere not too hot, but I'll stay here helping as long as I can." Maeve said before the strange man introduced himself, with a wink and a theatrical bow.

"You're quite a charming, interesting one, aren't you, Sahale? I've already introduced myself but..." Maeve said, raising an eyebrow as she looked at Sahale with a smirk.

"I'm Maeve Orzhov, the pleasure is mine." she said, stopping the healing for a moment as she gave a polite, formal bow.

Despite Hilde being sincere about sparring, Chihiro couldn't risk her health, both for her father's sake and her own protective bent towards the girl. "I would rather not spar with you, dear. Allanon seems to be a duelist, so he could likely handle my fighting style. I am nervous about possibly hurting you before we have to enter fights since I have such an unusual fighting style." She ruffled Hilde's hair a bit. "But, if you want me to help you get better, we can do some drills after all this gets done. I will also be happy to take you with me if you are serious about adventuring."

The talk about Bidzil being entirely green was not surprising to Chihiro. Most people were unaccustomed to fighting for survival let alone against an organized malicious group. "These people like to cause harm and destruction. You must be prepared to end them before they can end you and all you love. If you cannot handle that, do not enter the fray. They are skilled and experienced, so they will find any weakness to exploit. Can you cover the lack of killing with your will to help?"

"I don't pay much attention to politics," Sev explained with a shrug as he followed them into the church. Upon seeing the Isoli woman begin healing the barkeep Sev was suddenly disappointed he wasn't injured, as much as the pain would hurt any excuse to get a good looking woman to touch him. He briefly considered using his illusions to fake an injury but that could be easily disproved and considering the condition Allard was in he probably shouldn't take attention away just for his own amusement.

"I've been to Portea, it's alright," the warrior-mage said to himself while thinking back to if he'd heard anything about these four families. He remembered some offhand comments about the 'four rulers' or 'four houses' but he had been paying more attention to the barmaid who was wearing a delightfully low-cut top instead of the conversation.

Next morning her father didn't find his excuse that 'he's a good tipper' a good enough excuse for finding Sev in his house and the mage was forced to use his magic to escape. Needless to say it was a good day.

"I second the soft, cool bed comment," Sev spoke up, pushing aside those thoughts as the conversation continued around him, "I only just got into town and fighting after a day of travel is not my favorite. Much less the multiple days it took to get out here."

"As for helping out, I'm free and this seems interesting enough for now. I'm no fan of rulers of any stripe, especially those like this Emperor of Greed. Hell, I'll help out for room and board," Sev added with a charming, if tired smile, before adding with a wink at Maeve, "and perhaps some good company."

Hilde may a fake anguished looking face at Chihiro's refusal to spar, "Oh fine, be that way," she laughed, "I guess I won't be needing any practice before tomorrow anyway~," she said adding a little tease. Outwardly, she was fine by it, but inwardly it was a small hit to her pride. She had felt she had done well so far in her training and few conflicts she had been involved with as a temple guard. When someone as green as Bidzil was offered as chance to spar but then refused to her, it made her feel like she was being seen as green. True, she guessed she probably was in the grand scheme of things, but even she guessed that she had seen more combat than this Bidzil character.

Bidzil sighed and looked out of the cave to the rolling desert sands, "I knew what I would be getting into... If I had any mind to just sit around on my ass waiting for what happens next I would have just stayed in Salna after Trantis was wiped out." Bidzil turned to the others, "I wasn't able to help the ones closest to me before, but I have the chance to stop anything like that from happening again and I'm going to take it, and find the ones responsible. If I can't do this here, what's the point of continuing on? I'll be ready when the time comes... those deserving of death should have it served promptly, and I will gladly be the one to deliver it to them. You can take that as my oath." Bidzil was quiet for a moment after saying this as his usually jovial demeanor had darkened, reflecting on the events of the past few weeks.

"Well, if your words are true you definitely have the soul of a warrior, and you don't seem to be bad with a blade either, but words are tempered on the battlefield, not the practice field," Hilde smirked with a little laugh, lightening the mood a bit, making Bidzil laugh chuckle a bit himself.

"Y-yeah, sorry to get so serious on all y'all for a moment there. I'll do my best not to slow any of you down," he said a bit sheepishly as his normal personality started to shine back through. "I'm sure we'll kick their asses before they knew what hit'em."

"Aye, that's the plan, bright an early before they have time for their mornin' scratch," Dorran said as he walked up to join the group, chuckling at his own joke. "An we won't be leavin' any of them left standin'. That was a great spar, even better that I earned a few coin off it," he smiled as he jerked a thumb to the makeshift campsite they made. "Camp is set to go. Night will be here soon, and we will be headed out a few hours before first light. I'd settle in when you can, check your gear, and get some good sleep.

"You bet on if I would lose?" Bidzil asked with a wry smile.

"Hardly, boy. I can sense a strong warrior's presence in you, but we all knew you were going to lose, so we bet on how long you would last. I put the longest time and you pulled through, good job," Dorran said as he bellowed with laughter as he clapped Bidzil on the back nearly knocking him forward even though he was seated. Dorran held up a small sack as he walked away that jingled with coin.

"Hah, gee, that makes it sound so much better," Bidzil replied rubbing his back.



Neev looked at her hands, her ears drooping even more than before. "If... if it helps saves another's life, it is always worth it... I'll be fine in time. They have already lost ten people, and though that may seem small to some, that is families that are permanently damaged. And in such a small community, it will have a great impact. In Portea, one can disappear and none be the wiser, but even these ten live will be felt for years to come. I was so sure that nobody would show up I did what I felt I needed to do as a healer..." she said solemnly as she looked up from her hands. Her brows furrowed as she looked Maeve squarely in the eye, having to look up to do so. "Alright then, I will try to withhold from using magic,though that is not a guarantee, but that means I will depend on you to do as I say and cast when I need you too, alright?" she demanded of Maeve. She turned and already began arranging the tools she needed to work on Allard, putting on a new pair of gloves before starting her work. "Lives are precious and I will nyot rest until I am sure everyone is treated to our full capability. Anything short would be unforgivable," as she was saying this she had cut open Allard's leather straps to his top armor piece, letting it fall to the side so it was out of the way. from the looks of things, scars seemed to be the natural texture of this man's skin, some even as large as the one she was working on now. "Cast major healing here, we need this wound gone now. Most of these we can let slide with regular medical care," she said as she started treating other wounds manually.

Allard grunted, "Oi, ya still got a room at the inn tonight, tryin' ta say the bed aren't up ta snuff? Just some noisy neighbors is all" he chuckled, "you two can stay as long as ya need, you have my word." e would wince here and there as Neev was bus at work on him, though the relief he had when Maeve would heal him would make him feel like he could breath again, it was like he was going off one lung or something.

As for Sahale, he only shook his head when Maeve spoke of nothing happening to Tundral's people. "Not outright, no, but a handful have gone missing from Midrill in times past, I suppose that is where he gets some of his healers from. Orzhov, hmm? Quite high on the totem pole I see, and the pleasure is all mine, I assure you. No every day I meet such a prestigious member of Isoli nobility, rather that not many of them leave Tundral." he smiled as he recalled their reclusivness. "Anyway, I really must be going. There is a scouting party to catch up with and If I want to see them before they go marching into battle, I should probably leave now. Take care, I feel we will be seeing each other again soon." he smirked as he made another bow and started out the door. By the time anybody may have went out to check on him, he was already gone.

Chihiro's reaction to the sarcasm was a bit unexpected. Something about Hilde's tone and the general feel of Varuk made the naga suspect she may have said something to bother the girl. The sarcasm was expected, the words were not. "Did I say something wrong?" The confusion was obvious. Despite her mentioning sparring with either of them, she had, as the conversation drew on, decided against sparring except with Allanon. He seemed able to handle her style with minimal risk.

She imagined Hilde might have misunderstood her intentions or words. Maybe she thought Chihiro didn't see her as a warrior despite that being far from the truth. It was exactly because she was a warrior and so determined that Chihiro wanted to shield her from harm and help her grow. The internal monologue and general conflict made the naga shift uncomfortably on between her feet, one hand grasping the forearm of her other arm, serving to almost make the proud and strong woman seem cute. It also had a side effect of drawing attention to her very luxuriously curvy and well developed features, though Chihiro was not intending to seem sexy, just showing her embarrassment and discomfort.

Allanon nodded at Bidzil's response. The only way to put real weight behind those words though would be to put them into action. It was one thing to say you could take a life, however, the act itself was a completely different monster. To this day, Allanon's first kill weighed on him. An old merchant who got on the wrong side of the Calabris family. It was a solo mission, and the thing that made it hardest for Allanon was that he was completely accepting of his own death. Although, Allanon imagined if the old man had begged for his life it would have been just as hard.

Disturbed by his memory and realizing the raid would begin in the morning, Allanon decided to stay outside of the cave and go through drills. One of the reasons Allanon had not lost his edge over his years as a swordsman was because of continual and consistent practice. His motions were fluid and dynamic almost like a dance. He maintained an image of his most difficult opponents as he drilled. All the while, he prayed like he did every day that he was making Marissa proud and honoring her last wish.

Hilde's eyes lit up at Chihiro's discomfort, slightly flushed at the display, not only from it being oddly cute for the woman, but from the slight embarrassment of making her feel uncomfortable. She didn't expect her teasing to trouble her old friend this much. Did she take her words seriously, even though she was teasing? "O-oh, no! I was just teasing was all! I'm touched that you care enough to want to keep me safe even when its something like a spar. And you know...," Hilde paused for a moment, "I would love to go adventuring with you. I guess I was a little set back as I wanted to try to prove myself to you, but it would be bad if I got hurt before the raid, wouldn't it?" Hilde smiled to her to let her know she was fine, hoping that she would understand.

Bidzil looked on to the two women in thought. In Trantis, not many women were warriors, but it seemd around here, everyone learned how to fight. Granted, there weren't many warriors in Trantis. Their community was mostly focused on fishing the great lake they resided in and farming off the coast, so there was always a lot of work to be done. Even their small guard unit usually had other jobs that was their main income, their service members usually composed of volunteers. Bidzil turned his eyes to Allanon as he saw him walk out. He studied the man's movements in his drills, unconsciously trying to soak in what he saw, his mind taking notes on the movements and their purpose, no matter how simple. He didn't know when he fell asleep, but at some point he did. He wasn't in one of the provided bedrolls, he ended up just simply slumping over eventually. He was used to not sleeping in a proper bed. There were many years that he just slept where he could, besides, the sands seemed a lot more comfortable than dirt, and reminded him of the cool sands of his home at night.

Dorran made his way to the fire and nodded to Kistal and Anrak, "Sun's gettin' low, should pack it in for the night, we will be moving out a few hours before sunrise. Kistal, I hear satyrs find themselves to be quite the insomniacs," he chuckled, "If you could keep watch for us, I would be grateful." He then nodded to them once more as he made his way to where his bedroll and gear was, starting to give it one last look over to make sure all as up to snuff.

Chihiro nodded as Hilde explained herself. The naga then drew the girl into a hug. "It soothes me some to know that I didn't come across as insulting or condescending. If you do adventure with me, be prepared not to return to Kalla for a while. It could be a year or more, depending on what trouble we get into. You also may want to bring your best clothes too. Sometimes I end up in front of nobility, and they can be very snobby." She kept Hilde close, even laying her chin on the top of Hilde's head. She was rather known for being affectionate, but for Hilde and Valia, Chihiro was especially gentle and affectionate. They were essentially her closest friends in the area, and she watched the two girls grow into beautiful women, becoming individuals in their own right.\

The chief talked to Kistal about watch for the night. He shrugged and chuckled heartily. "I planned to be the night watch regardless of being asked. I can see in the dark and have strong senses, so it makes me a prime candidate. It also helps to be completely unable to sleep. I could probably make some hearty food in the night to get you all a good hot meal in the morning, assuming we have resources."

When Neev got to work on Aerex, Juliana stayed right by her employer's side. She never would have thought that Aerex was a Grusk. Though, this explained why he never wanted her around after closing time. Perhaps he was using some kind of spell to hide his features? Who knows? Juliana was just a young Kalla girl who got picked up from the street by Aerex. She stood there, not knowing what to do or what to say. Despite her best attempts Aerex never opened up about himself. He was a very private man, but he never became defensive. In fact, he was fair and gentle. Aerex always asked if she was short on anything and he went out of his way to make sure she lived well. Now she felt guilty. He had left his shop behind just to go and make sure she was okay. And now, she didn't even know if he was going to make it. Juliana, with tears in her eyes, tried to comfort Aerex as best she could. She held on to his hand, and gently caressed his head. It was all she could do. His hands had strange markings glowing blue streaks that ran from the forearm down the wrist to the top of the fingers. And, to make the situation worse, he looked like he could barely breathe and he also seemed to be catching a fever. Was he even going to make it?

On his end, Aerex could barely hold himself together. He was sobbing and struggling against the pain. There was a piercing pain in the lower part of his chest that made it difficult to breathe. A similar pain was also coming from his shoulder, which was probably dislocated. He thought he would pass out any minute now. Despite it all, there wasn't a bit of regret. Even when he felt like he was going to die right there, Aerex would jump to help Juliana again. However, that wasn't the only thing in his mind. He could hear the female healer speak over him. The simple spell he used to conceal his race had been broken. What did they think? What would Juliana think? Kalla was known for its acceptance of other races, but the Grusk didn't exactly have a good reputation to begin with. All he could hope was that they thought the same of Grusk as they did Beastmen. Glancing to the side, he saw Juliana holding on to one of his shaky hands with tears in her face. She shouldn't need to see him like this. Aerex knew she always cared, but he always kept her out of his past. Now, he was beggining to regret it. He felt ashamed for making their friendship so one-sided. Now that there was the possibility that he could die, what would she think of him then?

Allanon drilled for about an hour before returning to the cave. He was well prepared for the bloodshed that was soon to come. He hoped he was not too late to rescue the captives at the Calabris base. He did not like the idea of camping out before striking their base, but if it meant getting help rather than going solo he was fine with it. This would increase the odds of success. He also missed working with a team even if this was temporary.

He settled down in as defensible a spot as possible and settled into a light sleep as soon as all conversation died down. He held a peace-bound golden sword and his ebony sword in his lap as he rested. Ready to draw it in the instant he was disturbed.

Eduard had made his own little spot near a boulder on one of the corners of the spacious cave. There, he set up a sleeping bag and a small lamp to read a book for later. When he spotted Dorran, he stood up and walked over to him.

"Dorran? Do you have a moment?" Said Eduard, placing his hands in his pockets.

Dorran was sitting cross legged at his bedroll going over his weapons when he heard Eduard approach. "Ah, the good doctor. What ails you, friend?" the chief asked as he set his heavy mace to the side.

"When I arrived in Kalla, there was someone I encountered who um..." Eduard paused for a moment, thinking how to phrase his question properly. "-who caught my eye, I suppose. Blonde hair, green eyes, thin atheletic frame and fine embroidened clothes. He seems to he in his early 20's. Do you know him?"

"Aye, that'd be the tailor, Aerex. Young scrawny fella, but a master tailor. A big help ta lady Valia as well, seems ta keep a special order of silks for her and her girls. He's not from Kalla, as you cold probably tell, but he earns his keep all the same. Good lad," Dorran said, trying to give a brief description of him. "He took Juliana as his apprentice as well, helped her greatly. Not quite the sight you would expect runnin' around in this desert, eh?" he laughed.

"Do you know where he's from?"
Eduard was doing his best to keep his real intentions hidden. Sure, he had known Dorran for years, but, this was something he preferred to keep to himself.

"Hmmm...," Dorran had to think back a bit, but the memory came to him. "I think I remember him sayin he was from Trantis, that great lake below Salna. Odd though, struck me more of a Portean when I met him."

"Me too. His clothes seemed inspired by Portean designs. What he was wearing reminded me of what I used to wear way back in the day when I was his age." Eduard smiled briefly, seemingly recalling some fond memory of the past. A rare sight for the usually 'grumpy' Eduard.
"Anyway, do you know anything else abou him?"

"Can't say i do, I know from others that he is trustworthy and enjoys his work, that's about it. What's all this interest about? Needin' a new suit, eh?" Dorran laughed. Suits were an oddity to him, but he knew people in Portea were big fans of them. Nothing but a hinderance and extra heat in his own personal opinion.

"Yes. I wanted to know if he was trustworthy. He is clearly skilled but I wanted to see what kind of reputation he had."
An outright lie, but it was best that Eduard kept his real intentions a secret.

"Well yes. I've had rather some awful experiences with other tailors. This time, I want to make sure I have the right person."
Another lie. Though this one was more obvious than the last.

Dorran waved his hand from side to side, dismissing Eduard's overly cautiousness as he set his weapon down and leaned back, head resting on a makeshift pillow of bundled cloth, using his blanket to rest his head on instead of getting under it. "The lad is fine. Odd time to be worrying about a suit though, should focus on tomorrow, and get some rest," Dorran said as he propped one leg on another and shut his eyes with a big sigh. "For all we know, they could be out there waiting for us already."

"Yeah." Eduard fidgeted with his fingers for a moment before turning around walking away to his corner.

Eduard settled down in his makeshift sleeping bag, setting his head down against a small pillow near the rock. Before closing his eyes, all he could think about was the tailor, Aerex. He felt like a young man again. Chasing after guys his own age when he was in medical school. But, at this point in his life perhaps he was getting too old to be falling for men younger than he was. Still, even when he tried to convince himself otherwise he couldn't get over Aerex' looks. Maybe... he could give it a shot.

---

Maeve looked at Neev with a piercing glare as she heard the healer's words. Even though Maeve understood and agreed with her words, her own safety and we'll bring were still important.

"I do understand what you are saying but answer me one simple question... Who will heal the healer if it falls sick? We are not on Tundral nor amongst other Isoli, trained healing mages should be quite rare around these parts." Maeve said, with a serious tone as she further reinforced her previous words, that Neev should rest.

Upon hearing Neev saying that she would try to rest, Maeve instantly turned her piercing glare to a smile, nodding when she said she would be counting on Maeve.

"Your dedication to your work is admirable. You have my respect. I will do my best to assist you." Maeve said with a nod as she carefully followed Neev's instructions while healing Allard.

What was more impressive about Allard was that even though he was exhausted and his own body was replete with so many scars that it was a miracle that he was still alive, but he still had strength to speak when he heard Maeve's words about somewhere for her to sleep.

"Oh, are you sure? I am grateful, it will do nicely. The bed is surprisingly comfortable too. I really wasn't expecting something that comfortable outside Tundral." Maeve said, wondering if it was ok for her to stay at Allard's inn even though he wasn't there.

"Oh, I do understand you. The trip from Tundral to here wasn't exactly short either. Although... Having some exercise after spending a lot of time traveling by horse was... Refreshing, despite the lack of skills from my opponents, of course." Maeve said after she heard Sev's comment both agreeing with her and stating that he didn't exactly have a short trip to get here.

"You're... Awfully forward, aren't you, Sev? Quite the bold words for someone who left a lady to defend a wounded man and fight off some bandits by herself." Maeve added with a chu kke as she noticed Sev's wink towards her and his remark about a good company.

It was then that Sahale once more spoke, his charming and almost melodic words resounding as he explained briefly that a few Isoli had indeed disappeared from Midril before he mentioned Maeve's last name, knowing even that she was in fact a member of the high nobility. Every time she heard that man speaking, she only had more questions about him. Despite all the mystery surrounding him, he was still an interesting man that had quite a silver tongue.

When Maeve was helping Neev to heal a man that had some quite nasty wounds, Maeve continued to hear her instructions. The woman besides the man tried to comfort him with tears in her eyes, but the most interesting thing about that was the wounded man's eyes and his hair color... Maeve didn't knew much about them other than the stories and tales but she had studied about a certain race with those same particularities... It was a Grusk. While Maeve didn't show much reaction, it was clear that she was a bit wary of the wounded man. It was the first time she saw a Grusk with her own eyes.

"You got a horse? I had to walk along side the caravan most of the ways, even though I paid for a seat. Something about 'the wheels sinking into the sand," Sev shrugged, laying his staff across his shoulders with a quick spin before draping his arms over the staff.

"And I was certain a woman as capable as you would be fine, as you said, these combatants lacked in skill" the warrior mage continued, "besides, I was never out of ear or spellshot should you have needed assistance. But if you truly need my capable self to keep you safe from some rude men with swords, then I shall be more than willing to provide such assistance."

Before he could continue a yawn broke his rhythm, one he struggled to cover with his arms resting on his staff. Looking slightly embarrassed Sev turned to walk out of the church.

"Regardless, I think I shall retire for the night," he said over a shoulder as he made his way outside, angling back towards the inn.

Despite his apparently relaxed exterior Sev was on edge, not from the bodies scattered about, though that didn't help. Nor from how Maeve had called him out, indeed he enjoyed friendly banter and a woman with a some fire... or ice as the case may be. No, it was the apparent Grusk blood he'd seen in that other man that caused Sev to, almost unconsciously, summon a thin barrier of air around his person. It would only stop a single strike, but that was enough to stay an otherwise deadly ambush. Not that such a barrier saw use as he strode back to the inn through the blood covered sands of the town.

He was always wary of seeing another Grusk, for the same reason he never liked to pull the same trick twice with his magic. The first time you perform the trick the audience, or victims, are caught off guard. But the second time they are watching for the trick, expecting it. That was how magicians were caught and exposed, or, in combat, killed.

With only him around he could hide his tainted blood relatively easily and no one would ask questions. But when they see another Grusk hiding his nature they would become suspicious of those around them, looking more closely for signs that they might also be tainted. Sev had managed to go his, admittedly short, life thus far undetected through a combination of illusions, lies, and running away. Hopefully he wouldn't have to resort to the last one, it only raised suspicion and made enemies. Considering the number of powerful people in the town, from a barkeep able to cut down a small army, another from the Scar with an air gift surpassing Sev's, an attractive Isoli princess-mage and who knows what else, being found out likely wouldn't be good for his health.

If there wasn't any reason to stay here he'd have left, but between the common folk in trouble, the promise of room and board as long as he helps, and the previously mentioned attractive Isoli mage, he didn't want to simply up and leave. Not yet at least.

Placing another simple air ward over the door to his inn room, and doing his best to ignore the smell of smoke and blood, Sev collapsed in the bed barely out of his clothing.