Cascade fell for the feint and couldn't help but watch as the attacker she was facing runs away. She takes in the situation and sees that all of the attackers were retreating. She hears the highwaymen celebrate and cheer at the apparent victory. She grinned at the words that they were running away, she raises her trident and gives a loud, echoing cheer of her own,



As she takes time to calm down, the divinity fades and her hair stops curling upwards like a wave, and falls back down to it normal long style, floating upwards like she was underwater again. The colors change back from light blue to foaming white at the ends, to dark blue once again.

She looks to Jormund, Flicker, and Aura with a wide smile, eager to see their reactions.

Did she impress them with her mad skills? What did they think?

Maybe they think she's a totally awesome ally to have on the team!

Aura couldn't help but feel annoyed. The cowards retreated and they took the one they managed to down. She watched in annoyance as the attackers retreated. 'Hawk, follow them, I want to know why they attacked.' She mentally communicated to the bird who was still circling above Jormund. The bird complied flying off in the direction the enemy retreated. She was sure they would be on the lookout for the bird, at least the once who may have heard it speak, but she figured it was worth the risk. She had the supplies to bring him back if they managed to shoot him down and they would have a decent idea where the enemy decided to crawl away to. Either way it was a win in her eyes.

As Hawk flew off into the distance she walked up to the others who had all been taking the brunt of the beating. Her annoyed demeanor shifting as she approached them, not noticing that Cascade had at one point been looking back at her as she had been focused on Hawk. Her usual grin finally rested on her face as she walked up to them. Slapping the Earth Genasi on the back she laughed. "What's the matter Jormund? Getting soft? Needed little ol' me to take down the big bad lizard for you?" She teased knowing both he and Cascade had done just as much as she had but flaunting the fact that she got the downing blow.

---

Aura will be maintaining concentration on Hex for the entirety of the remaining hour. Making sure Ervdul continues to have disadvantage on strength ability checks for as long as possible, out of spite. If someone casts remove curse on him it will end Hex early.

Hawk is tailing the attackers I went ahead and rolled both perception and stealth for him.

Perception: 23 with advantage cuz of Keen Sight
Stealth: 15

For a brief moment Jørmund started to pursue the fleeing foe before stopping and processing what Flicker had called out to him. The cleric's gaze turned to Ervdul as the attackers retreated. He watched contemplating pursuing the statue, until Aura came up and slapped his back. He returned his mace to the metal ring on his belt that held it.

"Hmmm? Me getting soft? Well I wasn't expecting them to hit as hard as they did. Though I think our new friend here shoving him away helped quite a bit. Might I suggest if we ever face him again to not use fire. It did not seem to do much if anything against him." Once more he looked towards Ervdul, though by this time they were to far to pursue effectively. The earth genasi turned back towards his companions. "Flicker, thank you. I was losing myself to the moment. You were right in that the newt had enough. I should not have let Ervdul's insult get the best of me." He paused to look over the crowd of celebrating people, half expecting to see the spector of Haraldr. It could be that the potion from earlier had affected his reasoning. After all he did see Haraldr more than once since then. "Perhaps we should try to get some rest now. We have a long trip ahead of us."

Flicker didn't even bother trying to hold back a loud sigh of relief once they saw the enemy retreating. They weren't sure how much longer they could have kept on fighting like that. Swaying slightly on their feet, they made their way over to their companions, thankful to see than none of them were too worse for wear. Cascade in particular seemed to be still full of energy if her cheering was anything to go by. Noticing the water genasi looking over at them expectantly. "Nice work out there, rookie," Flicker said, giving her a sleepy thumbs-up.

When Jormund approached, they tensed up slightly, not sure what mood he would be in after all that fighting. However, the rage that overtaken him moments before seemed to have gone as quickly as it had arrived, and he thanked them for snapping him out of it. "Yeah, I know you'd do the same for me," Flicker responded quietly before looking down at their feet, as if slightly embarrassed. Quickly, they changed the subject. "And yeah, rest sounds pretty good at the moment..." They swayed on their feet a little more and had to take a moment to steady themselves. "I feel like I could sleep for a week."

Aura stepped closed to Flicker just in case they suddenly collapsed. "I sent Hawk after them, as long as he doesn't get spotted I can see what they are up to and where they went. Though I might be in and out of his vision quite a bit. Just in case we want to follow. Though I honeslty doubt they will allow the bird to follow them for too long, someone is bound to notice him."

She looked over Flicker and Jormund. He had taken quite a beating and Flicker was visably exhausted. "You two should at least go take a nap, I can wrap up anything else that might need to be done with Cascade here, if she is up for it." A genuine look of concern could be seen on Aura's face as she scanned the other two Genasi. What a strange bunch they were four Genasi. Aura still couldn't wrap her head around it. Four genasi in one area, and enemies speaking in languages only those of elemental decent or study would know...It couldn't have been a coincidence. Not to mention one or both of the leaders seemed at least familiar with Jormund from what she could tell. "Cascade, lets take you and your infinite energy to find the person we spoke to earlier yea? Leave these two to their nap." With that Aura started walking back toward where they first encountered the individuals giving orders, hoping they were still there.

Cascade gave a wide smile to Jormund and Flicker as they complimented her, completely going starry-eyed. She snapped back to reality, when Aura pointed it out that they were clearly exhausted and needed a nap. When she suggested that Cascade help her wrap things up here, the paladin nodded and agreed, "Shoots! Of course! I can help find him. Let's get going then,"

When Aura was ready, Cascade would go with her and help out.

It was at that moment that Aura felt Hawk's presence within her mind. He had come upon something that he thought Aura should see.

Were she to heed her familiar's call and peer through his senses, she would see the attacking forces jumping into a large sinkhole that had formed in clearing within the forest they had emerged from and subsequently retreated back into. Ervdul was among them, watching as the last of the attackers carried the unconscious Yosef down into the hole. Once everyone else had gone through, Ervdul turned back a moment to glare balefully up at hawk. After a moment, Ervdul turned away and jumped down the sinkhole. A few seconds later, the sinkhole filled itself, leaving a bare patch of dirt as the only sign that anything was ever there.

Aura had started heading toward the last known location of the camps leader when Hawk prompted her to look through his vision. She sighed heavily at the sight before him. "Great, guess following them isn't an option." She muttered as she returned to her own vison and prompted Hawk to return to her. She hadn't realized she had stopped walking remembering that Cascade was not aware that when Aura's own eyes glazed over and become unfocused she needed guidance to continue walking. She looked over toward the water Genasi to see if the other woman had even noticed to momentary pause. Regardless of if she had to not Aura shrugged at continued walking.

When Aura and Cascade found the leader who had dispatched her little group she called to them. "It seemes the attackers have retreated. Unfortunatly, unless you have a bunch of people who can magically move earth or dig really really fast following won't be an option, if you were interested in that anyway. Did you happen to find anything out? A reason for the attack perhaps?" The Air Genasi questioned, whether the individual was busy or not.

Cascade had been walking next to Aura when she started heading to the last known location of the Camps' Leader. She spoke while walking next to her, "That was cool! I heard Jormund was strong, but to see it for myself...! Flicker was incredibly fast too! And you were blasting foes away like they were nothing! I wonder why they--"

She stopped when she noticed that Aura was no long by her side, and she looked back to see Aura with eyes glazed over. Confused and concerned, Cascade walked up to Aura and waved her hand in front of the air genasi's face, "Um...Hello? Aura? Hellooooo? Anyone home?"

She looked around to see if anyone was watching, before she reached an index finger out to Aura, and booped her nose, "Boop!"

Afterwards, Aura seemed to snap out of it, and Cascade commented after her eyes went back to normal, "There you are! The boop worked! Are you okay?"

She tilted her head confusedly when she made the comment about not being able to follow them, and asked "Huh?" She followed Aura to the leader and she listened to what Aura had to say about the attackers, before looking to the leader curiously. She wanted to hear what the leader would say in response to Aura's questions.

Aura and Cascade would find the leader of the highwaymen standing among those who had fallen during the battle. Though usually a dour scene, the mood of the area was lightened considerably by the fact that only those who had been felled by fire arrows had actually died. The vast majority of the highwaymen who had been struck down had merely been knocked unconscious. The simic hybrid was not busy when they found her, and so listened intently to Aura as she explained what she had seen. "I doubt any amount of digging would allow us to catch up to them." She said once Aura was done talking. "Some of the attackers couldn't escape and surrendered instead. From them, we've learned that they were slave soldiers of an efreet and a dao. They had been ordered to take over this campsite and use it as a capture ground for new slaves. Whatever hole you saw them jump into was most likely a portal back to the Elemental Plane of Earth."

When the leader of the highwaymen was done talking, a tabaxi that Cascade would recognize as Leaves on the Breeze approached. However, she is far from the jovial rhymer Cascade had faced off against before. With a heavy hearted expression, Leaves looked to Aura and spoke. "You were traveling with a human and an ooze, yes?" The tabaxi said. "Please come with me." If followed, Leaves on the Breeze leads the way to one particular bedroll. Rala sat next to this bedroll, looking down at the unmoving form of Plasm, who looked to be very badly burned. Her usually malleable form now charred and hardened. "I'm afraid your companion suffered terrible injuries during the battle. So terrible that not even magic can heal her." Leaves explained. "She will live. She will recover. But there is no telling how long it will take."

Cascade was silent as Aura and the Simic Hybrid. Her bubbly cheerfulness had dampened to solemn concern and relief for the highwaymen, and quiet mourning for those who had passed from the fire arrows. However, her eyes widened when the Simic Hybrid identified the attackers and what they were trying to do. As she stared silently with wide eyes and listened to the Simic Hybrid leader, her water like hair started to roil. When the Simic Hybrid finished speaking, Cascade finally spoke, her voice going from quiet to thunderous in one sentence,



As she spoke, her hair rose up again, just like for the Fury of the Tides. However, instead of curling into a powerful, pummeling wave, it instead shot up straight into the air like a geyser. Cascade never got this angry on the battlefield. The water rains down when she finishes, and she rants,

"Ohhh ho ho ho ho ho ho! No wonder Deep Sashelas encouraged me to find you guys! It's a call to my duty! My oath!" Cascade spoke to Aura, "Hooo! When I find this 'Dao' and 'Efreet', they are in for a SMITE!" Cascade seethed.

She took in a few breaths to calm herself down and sighed and she asked the Simic Hybrid calmly, "Is there any chance we can speak to those attackers who surrendered?"

Before the Simic Hybrid could answer, Leaves approached them. Cascade greeted the tabaxi, recognizing them, "Ah! Leaves! Good to see you're okay,"

She follows with Aura, should Aura go with Leaves, and sees Rala and Plasm. She quietly offers a prayer to Deep Sashelas for Plasm's quick recovery.

An Efreet and a Dao Aura's eyes furrowed. She wished now that she had asked her father more about the other elemental genies. She knew very little about them other than her father hated his Earth and Fire counterparts. So much so that when Aura had first started traveling with Jormund and Flicker he warned her to not trust them, even almost forbad her from continuing her travels. It some convincing to get the Djinni to let up. So hearing that the group that attacked were slaves of the Earth and Fire Genie she wasn't nearly as suprised as Cascade seemed to be. Nor was she all that upset about it.

"I supposed it makes sense to come extent. It's likely they will attempt another attack, or try to go for another camp similar to this. You should send word to the others in the area. We wouldn't want them being caught off guard like we were." Just as she finished speaking to the Simic leader the tabaxi entered the picture. Aura followed hating the feeling in her gut that was forming.

Aura staggered back when she saw the figure on the bedroll, her light blue coloring turning almost green as she looked at her injured friend. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath as she righted herself her coloring returning almost to normal. "I...if I am honest I knew very little about where they came from, but, if possible, could you all look out for them while we travel. We have other urgent matters to attend to and have no way of caring for them." Aura's attention was entirely on the Tabaxi, if she looked over at Plasm she was afraid she would be sick. What would she tell the others? She could lie to them, say the plasmoid didn't want to be a part of elemental drama and left, would that worry them less? She shook her head, removing the thought from it. The others would never forgive her if she lied to them. Though she had to admit lying came so much easier than telling the truth.

"I need to tell the others, if you will agree to take care of them and we don't speak again before my group leaves. If they recover before we can come back for them, tell them they know where we were headed, maybe they can pick up the trail from there." Aura stood awkwardly waiting for a reply from Leaves.

Rala's face was painted with her usual stoic glower when the party had been lead to her and her fallen ally. Despite her rigid exterior there was a shimmer of pain in her eyes as she watched over the Plasm unconscious body like a gargoyle, perched right beside him. She had taken her own share of damage. Her leather armor was off and her tunic had been loosened to reveal her now bandaged shoulder. An arrow had struck deep into her early into the fight, and having refused the goblin concoction earlier she had already been battered and exhausted. Now most of her wounds had been healed but loosing her companion clearly weighed on her by how intently she stared at her.

Hearing Aura's request, Rala nodded solemnly in agreement before quickly pitching in.
"If you need money to keep them feed and taken care of, I'll gladly pay" the woman growled, failing to viel her rising rage at the lost of a friend.
"Aura, do you have any idea who did this" Rala added, grunting as she rest her weight on her new, fancy sheath and strained to lift herself up.
"Because I'm make them wish I killed them" she grumbled agaib through gritted teeth.

Leaves on the Breeze nodded in response to Aura's request. "Your companion has suffered greatly in our defence." The tabaxi said. "We won't forget that. We will care for them for as long as they take to recover and we will contact you via Sending once they awaken." Leaves then turned to Rala and continued. "We need no payment for this." Leaves assured her. "They have paid more than enough through coming to this much harm while fighting for us. We might not be the most honest folk, but we don't abandon those who have done right by us. As for who did this..." Leaves paused for a moment, shuddering as she remembered something horrific. "Whatever patron your companion made their pact with... it did not take kindly to its warlock being brought low like this. Wherever the man who did this is, I am certain it is nowhere good."

Upon seeing Rala struggle to stand up, Cascade immediately acted. She hurried over to Rala's side and helped her stand and support her weight. She spoke, "Woah! Auntie Rala, don't strain yourself like that. Let me help,"

When Rala asked Aura who did this, and mentioned that she was going to make them wish that she killed them, Cascade added, "Oh Ho...Yeah, I'll help with that for sure!"

She then answered Rala's question, explaining the situation, "Apparently the guys we fought didn't attack of their own free will. They were enslaved by somethings called an 'Efreet' and a 'Dao'. Apparently they were going to enslave everyone here and make this camp an area where they could continue enslaving others. Just repeating that makes me sick to my stomach,"

Rala and Aura would be able to notice that Cascade was getting angry again, but she kept her anger restrained so she wouldn't lash out at her friends.

Then Leaves mentioned what happened to the foe who attacked Plasm. She asked Leaves, her tone showing curiosity, concern, and confusion, "Huh? Wait, what do you mean? What happened to that person?"

Aura's attention turned to Rala and her face screwed up in worry but only breifly, she was so focused on helping Jormund in the front lines she had completly neglected Rala. After a moment Leaves spoke up again and Aura looked back at the Tabaxi, and she couldn't help but smirk when the cat stated Plasm's patron struck back at the offender. Nothing was more satisfing than knowing that Plasm's Patron had come to their defense in some way or another.

Her attention was quickly drawn to Cascade who said the words Efreet and Dao like they were forign words to her. The air genasi blinked before realizing not all genasi were even created the same way she as. It wasn't unlikly that Cascade had no clue what her origins were, what made her the way she was. "An Efreet and a Dao are a Fire and Earth Genie. I don't know much other than, of the elemental genies they are the worst. It's not suprising they had slaves though what is suprising is they are working together. Genie kind in general stick to their own element and most aren't exactly big fans of one another. Big egos and all that." Her father and patron was no exception to any of that. The fact that he cared at all about Aura was a strange occurance in and of itself. "You do not know of genie kind?" Aura asked Cascade after a breif pause. "I wouldn't be suprised even my own knowledge is limited to the very basics, I am simply curious."

Cascade listened to Aura as she clarified what a Dao and Efreet are. It was clearly that she was soaking in that information and committing it to memory. She raised an eyebrow at the mention that the fact that they had slaves wasn't the surprising part, but the fact that they were working together was.

Upon hearing Aura ask her question, Cascade shook her head and answered, "'Fraid not. This is the first time I've heard the word 'Genie'. There is a lot I don't know,"

She seemed to be thinking while she answered Aura's question and she commented, "Come to think of it, this is the first time I've actually left Zephyr, other than just going out into the ocean for surfing, sailing, or swimming. I've spent a lot of my time just helping out wherever I can,"

She continued to ramble on, "Dad taught me everything he knows about being a shipwright before Deep Sashelas made me a paladin, so if you asked me anything about ships or woodworking, I'd be able to answer without a doubt. Anything on...other subjects, not so much. But hey, like on a ship, everyone has their own unique skills and knowledge to help the crew reach shore,"

Rala leaned against the door in relief, Leaves on the Breeze had been gracious to her and Plasma both, and she felt a twinge of guilt for hassling the goblins in her midst. The older woman wheezed as the weight on her shoulder eased. She was getting older, recovering slower, moving slower. This fight had definitely shown her that. Her attention shifted when the leaders where mentioned. She was thankful Cascade asked, for as wisened as she tried to seem, she had never heard these terms too. She had, however, heard of Genies. In passing, perhaps, but she understood the gravitas of this threat.

"Sounds like we're dealing with something bigger than we realize" She replied to Aura after she gave her a good idea of the threat Efreet and Dao possess. Perhaps they could be turned against each other? She didn't see how else a ragtag team of elemental misfits stood a chance. Then again, she was the one who fell during combat.

Reflecting on Cascade's further remarks, Rala did think it was curious the Genasai was clueless to elemental affairs, but entirely in character for the carefree paladin. She couldn't help but feel a sense of protectiveness now that she knew how clueless this kid must be to the outside world.
"Do we have any leads on where the slaves went? If they're working for these Genies they must be contacting them somehow" She added once more, still in the blue about any plans in the works.

Aura blinked and sighed at Cascade. "Do you have any clue..." Her brow furrowed and she was quickly distracted by Rala. She had forgotten that Rala wasn't there when her and Cascade where given the information about where the enemy went.

"Right I forgot you didn't get that information. Man, I am going to have to repeat this to the other two as well...that's annoying" She muttered that last part to herself but it was likely not quiet enough to not be heard. "We think they went to another realm. I beleive that what the Symic Hybrid told us. So following isn't exactly an option. Not to mention if they are operating on another realm we would be way out of our depth. Also Genie are powerful beings and we have no clue what other beings they have at their disposal." She hated that they couldn't have gotten more information from the fallen leader. "We will fill you in on more when Flicker and Jormund finsh their naps."

She then turned back to cascade. "Cascade is there anyone else in your village like you?" She asked not wanting to sound rude but knowing she likely was anyway. "I only ask cuz you seem to have no idea about what you are...and by extention what the rest of us excluding Rala are." She motioned to herself and to Cascade.

Cascade looked between Aura and Rala as they spoke. After Aura answered Rala's question about the slaves and where they escaped, Cascade agreed and adding on, "Yeah Yeah Yeah! And she also mentioned that some of the slaves surrendered and are still here! I'm actually hoping to talk to them when I get the chance. I gotta fulfill part of my Paladin Oath to Deep Sashelas,"

She nodded in agreement when Aura mentioned filling her in on the rest of the information when Flicker and Jormund are around.

Cascade looked to Aura when she asked about anyone else in the village who looked like her. She didn't seem to notice or care if Aura was being rude, as she answered cheerfully clapping her hands excitedly, "Oh yeah! I have a bunch of half-brothers and half-sisters who are like me back in Zephyr! I can't wait for you to meet them! It's gonna be great!"

She then added with a shrug, "I know I'm called a 'water genasi', but I don't really know what that means,"