When she came into the village, down the winding road, among the outlying farms, she brought a warm breeze with her, and the unmistakable swagger of an adventurer. Children stopped to stare and the occasional worker had to do a double take. To find an orc outside of their usual stomping grounds was uncommon but, to see an Orc in such dress-- with the indicative clothing of the desert plateau dwellers-- was probably worth the curiosity, she figured. These looks and the whispers was something she was used to getting.

And of course, when one is seen, one sees back, and this is how she sized them up. Those weary stares from an elderly couple. The wide eyed wonder of a child, subsequent bravery, and brief questioning.
Who are you?
Why are you here?
Where did you come from?
What's that funny log on your back?
Is it heavy?

These questions she met with a tip of her hat and a smile. Eventually the child left her side and she soaked in the details. Blue sky above, fertile earth below, and the ominous darkness looming in the unseen distance.
There, a bird took flight.
Here, the laughter of a baby held by their father.

Skin and bones, a dog trailed along behind her for a stretch, with a salivating tongue hanging, and heavy pants heaving-- it stood satisfied, eventually, by the scrap of dried meat she dropped. Most acutely, as she made her way toward the nearest tavern, she knew she was extremely Orcish in this quaint village. An elf regarded her with confusion and expected wariness, but they greeted her with a nod, as they hauled a heavy pack up the road past her.

Now-- was she early or late?

A decent jaunt away from the door, Rita stood, and took in the scenery a bit more. Midday sun, scent of pine on the breeze, and the muffled noise of weary workers within. With a nod, she entered the tavern with the confidence of someone who resides wherever their feet land. As she entered, Rita lifted her chin and closed her eyes in greeting, opening her palms to the room in general, before she headed toward the empty counter. As was custom upon entering a tavern, Rita placed a light burlap bag on the counter, and told the woman-- in an accent reminiscent of tumbleweeds and dusty cacti-- "Skull'a my last kill-- some kinda nimbly forest critter-- as tribute to ya health n' tavern's continued bounty."

In jest, she followed that statement up with a smile and a, "Don' say I never gave ya nothin'-- n' don't you worry. I've get yer standard coin' too. This'eres tradition. Do what ya will with it."

And then, she tipped her hat, casting a glance around the tavern, clearly looking for someone.

Dion found himself feeling like he was phasing into the earth before he sat up straight. The past moments were a blur to him as he couldn't recall the details of what happened. Only in the abstract did he know that after a couple of days of traveling, he finally made it to Helsend. Much to his annoyance the mayor wasn't available just quite yet. And so he was now killing time at the tavern which. "This sucks..." was his recurring thought that would bubble up hazily. Sure he could do some preparation or research, but it was hard and something he didn't care to do.

Mainly because there's nothing to research. Only the basic history about the cult, the disappearances, and the fire were known. Anything else would have to be gathered here at the village. And that was part of his reason for consulting with the mayor. The other reason was his mental haze. He wasn't quite tired but he wasn't at his at his A game either. "Right, time for a pick me up." He thought to himself as he rummaged through his robe to produce a bottle of some liquid. A pleasant citrus type flavor with a slight effervescence caressed his tongue as he sipped from it. Everything came together and now he felt more focused and rejuvenated. He was still bored though.

It was time to stop loitering. Enough time had passed and he felt like he should get things moving. He needed to talk first and get some things taken care of. Then he'd need to hopefully find some people who were also interested in poking around in the forest to tag along with. But one thing at a time was how he'd approach this list of tasks. The robed man would get up and make his way to the door. Completely unaware that somehow at this time and location, a familiar face was already here in the tavern.

---

Neith was bored out of her mind.

She had been traveling for days just trying to go to this god-forsaken village called Helsend. It wasn't exactly god-forsaken actually, there were lots of different folks milling about the streets and as far as she knew, the businesses here have been doing pretty well. She was just being overly dramatic because she gave up a huge opportunity to come here.

A few days before, Neith was offered to join by a group of elite assassins. They were all ruthless, cold, and very good at accomplishing their tasks. They found potential in Neith as they saw how dedicated she was in the mission, never caring about who she was targetting and they also liked how she always goes straight to the point. Neith felt this was her calling, a chance to become one of the greatest, and she also knew that payment here was beyond anything she could even think of. She could be so rich that she could buy a property at a tropical island, one of her biggest dreams.

However, that was before she knew anything. See, there were countless rumors circulating about the infamous forest beside Helsend. Some say it was cursed by the devil, others thought it was haunted by a hundred and thousand ghosts or any other things that were more ridiculous and extravagant than the last. It just so happened that Neith caught wind of one of those numerous rumors: deep within the forest laid the treasure of the old gods and was said to be filled with a bountiful amount of gold and precious jewels.

Neith, being the greedy woman that she was, had her eyes wide open in shock and amazement as she learned of this version of the forest's rumor. She was not naive to believe everything she just heard through word-of-mouth but, and that's a big but, if that rumor turned out to be true then she didn't have to worry about anything else in the whole world. If she got her hands on that precious treasure, she'd be so rich that she could buy the island and more, possibly the whole continent!

Deciding to take the chance, she ditched the group that offered her a place among their ranks and set foot towards Helsend Village. She was humming along happily on the first day of her journey but every subsequent hour after that, she was gradually feeling dread. Each step she made towards the village was making her filled with anxiousness and worrying. She couldn't believe she disregarded an opportunity that could turn her life for the better and decided to believe a stupid rumor. What if she made the wrong choice? What if she just made the dumbest decision of the century?

Too late to turn back now, Neith thought to herself. Despite her being a cold-hearted 'b' word, the dark elf will see anything she does to the end. She's not the type to become a coward and not finish something she started despite all the fear she felt. She thought that if she felt something negative about doing something then she believed she was doing the right thing for herself.

Besides, Neith had nothing to lose. She didn't have a family and she grew up learning how to fend for herself. Not one day passed that she didn't think that her parents abandoned her because they knew she would grow up one day to be an evil person who've done terrible things to survive, and she couldn't blame them. She hated herself so much at first but she learned that she needed to stop being harsh on herself. No one will care for her except her and no one will love her except her. The price of being independent, she guessed.

Upon arriving at the village, Neith was surprised to see it so... different. She expected a dark and abandoned type of village but no. Children ran around while people of all ages, sexes, and races greeted each other with warm smiles on their faces. A little dog demihuman girl waved and smiled at Neith and the dark elf awkwardly smiled back at the child before she ran to greet her friends. Neith hated sweet and sappy places like this but deep in her heart, she knew she fell in love with this village.

Upon entering the tavern called Yellowgrass, it was even warmer and more home-esque than the outside. People casually sharing a drink or two while laughing heartily and enjoying each other's company. Neith immediately felt out of place here as shown when she accidentally bumped against a robed figure.

"Hey watch where yo-". She immediately stopped herself. It was never wise to spread negativity at a place she just arrived upon. Besides, she was on a mission to know more about the rumor she heard about the forest near Helsend and she needed to be nice to their locals to succeed. "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention. She girly and sheepishly said to the robed man who she thought looked kind of cute, putting her hand over his arm in a friendly yet 'friendly' type of way.

A loud crack rang out in the town, followed shortly by the plonks of wood falling into more wood. Behind the tavern/inn a behemoth was chopping firewood. Great logs had been sawed into similar lengths to fit in a fireplace, and were stacked to one side. In front of the giant reptilian man was a huge and weathered piece of wood, clearly the chopping block. And all around him were split pieces of wood, but the axe was off to the side. He had been cracking the logs into firewood with his hands, slamming his fingertips through the wood and stopping just short of the block beneath.

His ear swiveled towards the building, it sounded like more people were coming in than normal. He had been paying his room fees by helping the owner with chores around the place. Mostly a lot of heavy lifting type of work like splitting firewood. Rarely he had to play bouncer when someone got a bit too much alcohol in their system. Still he crouched down and scooped up a heaping mound of split wood onto his shoulder with a huff that sent some wood dust flying about.

Turning he tugged open the back door of the building and stooped into the place. His bulk blocking the light from streaming in behind him. A quick tug with his tail closed the door as he observed the crowd, standing head and shoulders above them. Some newer new people, one looking like she was going to make trouble but seemed to change her tune. Snorting quietly he went to the hearth and loaded the iron wood brackets with the firewood he carried into the place. Then he placed a smaller stack right outside the actual fire pit so it could be tossed in when needed.

He didn't mind doing the work, it was all simple and easy to do. Get it done fast and he had time to fully explore the town, and some of the surrounding woods. He had been here a week already and still he hadn't gone into the deeper parts of the woods that had so many rumors. Righting himself he started to bend backwards, letting a series of deep cracks sound out. A good back stretch and spine crack felt so good after working honestly. Straightening back up he turned and went around the edge of the room to get to the counter. Dusting his shoulder off as he went.

"Woods loaded up and more is stacked out back." He rumbled out to the owner, the giants voice unsurprisingly deep. Rumbling like a landslide coming down a mountain.

Why was he taking his time about getting to the deep forest? He had no reason to rush. Most people rushed headlong into things and got burned by their impatience. Although some worried about their finances when they went slow. But Kaze knew money came and went and he had no problem making camp outside of town. But that was neither here nor there. He turned his attention to the small crowd of the building. Specifically eying the new people, the three were unique compared to the townspeople.

^{Interacting with: @Jerkchicken@Kazemitsu}

Naturally, Rita's eyes went toward the door every time it opened, and eventually they fell upon a familiar face. Brows raised, Rita straightened up as a friendly smile came to her face with a, "Well now, do my eyes deceive me?" As she looked at Dion she gave him a wave, "Hey now, partner! You lookin' fer ya missin' snowman?"

And then the door opened behind Dion and, quite predictably, someone bumped directly into him. Lightly wincing, Rita turned her attention toward the barkeep. "I'll get that feller a drink if'n he wants," and she produced a few coins, "N' take a tankard of somethin' smooth, if ya don't mind." With her attention mostly on the barkeeper, it wasn't hard for her to miss the entrance of the large scaled man near the back of the tavern.

He was quite curiously and obviously stared at as Rita's drink was prepared. While she had interacted with is kind before, Rita always found herself fascinated whenever someone new walked into a rooom-- especially if they were interesting.

Dion, who was somewhat familiar with Rita, would likely know that once her attention was diverted to someone else, it probably wasn't going to go back to him, and it wasn't that personal... sort of.

If Kaze looked her way, Rita would give him a friendly nod, and beckon him over.

@Utrax @baraquiel

---

Dion's eyes would dart to Rita's direction. This was a pleasant surprise of sorts. Dion wasn't expecting to see that adventurer he had partnered up with some time ago. He took note that she was here, probably to go poke around at this forest. It would be useful to acquire her services again. She was competent and he found her pleasant to be around with. "Is that you Rita? Didn't expect to run into you here of all places. I'm here carrying out some orders. If you're still going to be here, I have a business opportunity for you. Now excuse me, I need to do something." He kept it short as they could speak later. Beside it seems something else caught her interest.

It seemed to be a very large and reptilian looking creature. He didn't get a good look, as immediately he felt someone bump into him. "Hey watch where yo-" she'd say before switching to a nicer response. His attention switched to the female elf of some kind that bumped into him. His silver-white eyes, like that of glacier glanced over her calmly. They gave him him an exotic look as they contrasted his dark skin and red hair.

"Nah it's fine. I should be the one apologizing for standing and not paying attention to the flow of customers entering." His reply was calm and relaxed.

Those dull slate colored eyes scanned the room again, the one that got bumped into seemingly apologizing to the one who did the bumping. Strange, but maybe it'd keep things quiet since it was still daylight. Normally the social hiccups happened towards the night, at least from his experience here.

A slight shift of his eyes and they landed on the female greenskin, who had her attention on him. A nod and a beckoning got a raised eyebrow before he started to move. He shifted around the people between him and her bonelessly, a strange grace that didn't match his sheer bulk. "Need something?" He questioned while looking down at Rita. A faint hint of curiosity in his slitted eyes.

Micah Aarseth

Micah was enjoying a old tomb, inside of this book was ancient words and symbols lost in time. Even though the local bar would not be a ideal place to read, he found the noise to be quite relaxing. Recently he had become the village's wizard, after the last one frozen to death trying to preserve a sandwich. The spell caster had a glass of water with a single lemon inside the glass, a request that got a strange look form the bartender.

Keeping to himself while reading, he didn't really want to cause any trouble. While he was reading he was kicking his legs back and forth, gently tapping against the booth he was seated in. After a while he wished to refill his glass of water, picking up his glass and walking over towards the barkeep. While he made his way he was knocked over by a drunken human, "Hi watch where ya goin" The man was glaring at him.

"We meant no offence, we are sorry for bumping into you" Micah responded slowly standing up, "You own me some mead" The human was pointing to his wet shirt and the knocked over glass on the floor. "We will pay for your mead, and we will not bother you further" Micah responded wanting to not get into trouble. But before he knew it he was being gripped by his robes and being lifted in the air. "You own me also for the shirt, and your gonna give me all your gold" It seemed this human was looking for a fight, and Micah hoped their was someone who could help him.

GURITAG
^{Interacting with: @Kazemitsu}

Practically beaming as he he"Nothin' in particular. Jus' seekin' a chat-- I'm Rita," she replied with a frindly grin, "N' I hears this place got lotsa interestin' tales to be told. I'm a bit of a travelin' storyteller, see? I listen n' tell tales. What's yer name, big fella? Gots a story as t'why yer here?" As she leaned against the bar, her posture relaxed, it could be clear that she really was just seeking a chat.

Well. Up until, out the corner of her eye, she spotted a man being lifted off his feet. Her brow arched but she didn't say a word about it and, within a beat, turned her attention back to someone more interesting. Who was she to butt into bar brawls? That happened often and was to be expected. She very quickly shrugged it off-- especially since there wasn't any blood yet.

---

"Oh, you're so sweet. You may call me as Neith or you can call me whatever you want, sugar. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Neith sweetly said while offering her hand to the stranger. He looked very strange with the exotic vibes she's getting from her but she just ignored it. She had met people who were far stranger-looking than this guy. She could also tell that this man was inherently good. No use in being snarky towards a kind guy.

She caught sight of a half-orc leaning against the bar. Neith was so interested in meeting an orc again because she 'knows how they do' but was heavily disappointed to learn it was a female. She just shifted her sights to an equally large and slightly more muscular dragonborn she was talking to and thought that he'll do just right for her, she guessed. Neith also thought that the man she's talking to was fairly cute as well. She could tell she'll have lots of fun even with him.

Her attention was also caught by two men who seemed to be at the brink of starting a fight. Neith sighed and shook her head disapprovingly, although she had a smirk on her lips. "Excuse me, handsome. It looks like I need to teach these boys some manners. Let's catch up later." Neith said to him with a wink before going to the two men.

"Now now boys, don't you think it's rude to start a fight in such a lovely place such as this?". She said while sauntering towards them. She put a hand on the man's arm as he lifted the other weak-looking man with robes and dark brown hair. "Just leave the man and be on your merry way. A wet shirt never killed anybody after all."

(Edited)

"Neith is it? Well I'll remember that and hopefully I can find you somewhere in this town. The name's Dion. Now I excuse me, I need to go leave. "Having said that, he'd leave the tavern. It was time to take care of business. He smiled as he walked through the town, it was good that he already had two people he could hopefully rope into assisting him.

He'd enter the mayor's office introducing himself, "Greetings. I'm Dion Tacgnol and I'm here on behalf of the Arcanium. I hope you have received our message. We learned about what happened to to this town and we take the threat of rogue magical operations like these very seriously. I've been sent to investigate and real with whatever may remain after the fire. However, I'd like to know more about the cult and the forest if that is possible. As we know only the basic history." He would produce identification in the form of a symbol of the order with his name on it.

Kaze listened as she talked to him, asking questions after introducing herself. His arms came up and folded across his broad chest while he looked off to the elven woman diffusing the situation between a strange guy and the aggressive male. A brief snort and he returned his attention to the female half breed before him.

"I'm Kaze, a traveling warrior and explorer. I heard about the rumors of the forest here and have been taking my time snooping about." He replied while giving off an air of laziness. Would that be why he took his time? Laziness? Or was he just taking his sweet time, possibly waiting for others to go deeper into the forest with him? Strength in numbers after all.

@baraquiel

Micah Aarseth

The drunken man that was holding Micah up looked over towards the woman talking to him, Looking back towards Micah who was holding onto the man so he didn't fall down. "Eh fuck it, this little piss ant ain't worth it" The man put Micah back onto his feet. As the man walked away, Micah was collecting himself. "We thank you deeply for saving us, how can we repay you?" Micah was starting to follow the woman.

"Do you desire to speak with a dead relative? or to explore worlds that you only ever dream about?" He said now standing behind her, He seemed to be speaking rapid and without contrasting his thoughts. Letting out a deep breath and shaking his head, "Our apologizes for the many question, we are still hysterical form almost being punched" He wiped the collar of his robes. "Our name is Micah, what is your name?" He asked now speaking in a more friendly tone.

GURITAG
^@Kazemitsu

"Kaze, huh? Well how 'bout that! Thems sorta rumors why I came this far. Figure theres tales to tell, were I t'venture in with a party of scrappy sorts-- if'n I make it in and out alive. Reckon here's where I'll find them sorts," she gestured to the inn. Of course, as she did so, she caught sight of Dion walking out the door-- no doubt about to introduce himself to a contact for a job. Casting another glance toward the near-brawl, she shook her head and said to Kaze, "If thems the sort what venture in, I ain't gonna get far-- curious when yer lookin't go and if you'd like company, or, competent company that is."

Picking up a dainty looking wooden cup as it was placed before her--filled with something red, thick, and steaming-- she told him,"I can give proof of skill in whichever ways you want-- story? Scrap? Trophy? Ain't expectin' ya t'just take my word for it."

Kaze simply listened and then his eyes followed her gesture. Farmers, tradesmen, and a few oddballs were all that was in the tavern. Although one just left, clearly having a purpose. But what that purpose was the behemoth didn't know. Nor particularly care unless it muddied up his own plans. His attention returned to the woman as she got curious on if he wanted company into the forest. Competent company huh?

She offered to give him proof of her competence, which he just shook his head at. "I don't need proof. Mostly because outside of a fight 'proof' is meaningless." He said, the meaning probably pretty clear. Stories and trophies can be stolen, scrapping with him wouldn't exactly be the best thing to do given his appearance. "If you do want to accompany me, then go for it. Just don't expect me to babysit." He continued bluntly as she picked up her cup of alcohol. Probably a warmed spiced wine of some sort.

---

Neith raised an eyebrow in amusement at the guy she just saved. She didn't know why she made all that effort of ending a fight as it was very unlike her. She was surprised when she had the idea of charging in and her legs suddenly moved on their own. Neith just got here and this place was already having an effect on here. Maybe it's because of anxiety deep within her heart; she thought she was confident in her decision but she's still troubled by damning herself for making the wrong choice.

Either way, she can't let the worries of the future affect her present. She needed to stay completely focused on her self-made quest and make sure that every decision was according to her plan, but this man was already making her confused as heck. He could be one of those crazy fanatics of make-believe gods. She knew better than to tell them that because she knew how loyal and violent they can be if anyone questioned their fate. The best course of action was to just go with the flow.

"Micah eh? You may call me Neith." She said to him as she continued to walk. "Your offers are tempting, believe me, and I'll surely talk to you on those later. I just have something I needed to do in the meantime. If you really want to show me your gratitude, maybe you can help me out with something. I'm sure you've heard of the rumors about a certain forest near this village, yes?".

@baraquiel

Micah Aarseth

"We have had terrible dreams about that forest, dreams of being alone and the voices...screaming while i could see their pained faces" The strange man spoke with fear in his voice. His body seemed to be shaking a little form the mention of the forest, "We fear the dark ones in the forest" He spoke gulping loudly before looking over towards Neith. "However we will help you, what do you want us to do?" He spoke now in a soft whisper.

Micah quickly running to his table picking up his old tome, Returning a few moments later standing in front of Neith. Ready to service and protect her. A part of him was terribly afraid of going inside the forest, their was no safety net to save or protect him form the monster's in the forest.

The strange man would need to gather up some items, mostly trinkets and magical items that could protect him.

GURITAG
^@Kazemitsu

Rita drank the contents of her cup-- without stopping until the cup was empty-- and let out a pleased sigh afterward. "Welp. Sounds t'me like we're goin' together then," she nodded firmly. Rolling her neck and shoulders she grinned, "I promise not t'cry n' shit my britches like that baby ya won't sit and, iffn' ya don't mind, I thinks I can rouse up the help of another-- that boy what walked out earlier." Jerking a thumb to the door, she looked at Kaze, "Me n' him's been on a few jobs. Got'emself some magic colder n' a yeti's nips-- might come in handy. Thinkin' I'll go track'em down-- if yer in the mood fer walkin', we can talk a bit while lookin'. Otherwise I'll be seein' ya later."