The large Goron cracked his knuckles, an eager grin forming on his face as the talk of preparing and strategy went on. Finally being proactive was much more his speed and it felt good to be ready to take this beast to task for the suffering it had caused.

"I'm looking forward to facing this monster and putting an end to this. These people have been through enough without being preyed upon while being so vulnerable."

@ChozoHunter@Jerkchicken@rawkhawk64

Night seemed to come quickly as the Valorbrands settled into hiding spots in the darkness of the lumbermill. The smell within was horrid, given all the viscera and corpses of various wildlife that littered the inside. Not to mention that of their poor victim, though all must be left untouched... For now. They were here to stake it out. Luckily, there was a roof that looked into the area, so those who could climb or benefited from a vantage point could stake it out there with the fresh air. It wasn't even guaranteed that their target would appear tonight either, so Afira had also asked that they be prepared to be in Rorenville for a little while.

The team had also setup some traps in the lumbermill's surrounding area too, expecting escape to be an option their quarry would take. Reasonable, of course. Just some obstacles such as hidden spikes and pitfalls. That was the best they could do given the somewhat open field.

Fortunately... It didn't seem they needed to wait long at all. The doors of the lumbermill creaked open. It can only be their target, as Lady Afira had explicitly asked the chief to not let anyone up to the mill until their business here was done. Unfortunately, however... Tonight was that of a new moon, and so the darkness was truly all-consuming. The sounds of whatever it is they were here for, were unusual... They did not suggest a large size. In fact... If they listened carefully, they could hear muttering, that of a person's even. Lady Afira herself could feel doubt entering her mind... She expected a beast of sorts, yet it was a man?... Or... Was it a villager? No, given the words being muttered, it couldn't be a villager.

"... pay... the..'ll... laugh at ... me... I'll...", well... If their target turned out to just be a man, then this would be much simpler than they thought. Something wasn't right though... Yet still, the noble lady could not in good conscience strike down a fellow man without showing her face. She grabbed at the torch she had prepared and lit it up with a spark of magic, walking forward and illuminating the man who had entered. The rest can stay hidden for now if they like.

"Good sir, stop right there, you are under arrest for the murder of various villagers within the northeast Hylian region, do not resist", she began. As soon as the light hit the man's face, he recoiled, as if in pain, screaming. His face was marred with small bulbs of flesh, and on further inspection he barely wore any clothes, only some rags around his waist, which exposed more of these red and black fleshy parts around his body. The man, also only had a single arm... So, this was Toltan?

"One arm... You're Toltan aren't you?"

"S-stay back! Stay back! No no no no no no no no! You're... Stop... Stop laughing at me! Go away!", he began to flail around madly, those listening closely could hear something strange with his voice. Like a growl.

"Calm down, w-we're not here to hurt you", which was of course, a bit of a lie. Still things had changed... Or so she thought. His eyes came into focus for a single moment as he looked at Afira, recognizing her armor, and any in Hyrule could recognize she was a Hylian Knight.

"Youuu! It's all your fault!", his demeanor changed, from recoiling away from the fire, to walking towards her, raising the one arm he had to attack. She stepped back and away, avoiding it, but as soon as it swung, the black and red bulbs on his arm grew in size, swinging again and striking her, causing her to stumble back.

"What is...?" No one present could believe their eyes, the torchlight showing them as the man began to transform. A blood red shroud surrounding parts of his body as they jutted and grew in various directions. "You'll paaaayyyyy! You'll pay! Accursed captain I'll kill yoooouuuuuu!", his voice was no longer that of a man's, but a beast's. It grew in size, rising more than several feet in height, and almost as much sideways, as a massive belly took form, with large, dough-like arms, and fat, thick, powerful legs, though short. The head was rocked back as it took form, but as soon as it's face came down to focus on Lady Afira, it's black dead eyes, stared directly at her, before smiling wide, showing thin rows of razor sharp teeth... Certainly answering how their victim had turned out they way they had. Was this what he saw, before he met his unfortunate end?

"To arms...! To arms!" she called, snapping back into reality, eyes wide with a mixture of fear and surprise, drawing her blade before jumping back, getting some distance, even though it appeared to simply stand there, staring. Waiting.

Ghent kneeled, there perched on the rooftop waiting for their quarry. The smell from below made him wrinkle his nose, but it did not distract him from paying attention to any movement or sound of something arriving. A sound could be heard and he watched Afira step forth with a torch. Something would emerge from the darkness, was that Toltan? He was significantly worse for wear than he had imagined. The disfigurement was beyond the missing limb, there were these grotesque lumps. He looked severely ill, and he could scarcely imagine what ill fortune befell the poor bastard. He didn’t seem particularly lucid given his response to being arrested.

When Toltan’s demeanor shifted to resentful anger, he was readying to intervene should it escalate. And then it did. Just not in the way he was expecting. Now the trajectory shifted from restraining or incapacitating a deranged man to having to kill whatever the hell he just turned into. Like a bird of prey attacking prey, he too dove into the monster, doing a modified sharkfang lunge. Where the first attack from the jump was a feint, and the second was the true attack.

Rik watched patiently from within the lumber mill. This having been the third time that he'd been to the site, he was rather used to the smell of decay and death. He crouched, hidden in the shadows in a way that only a Shiekah could. It would take a person of incredible eyesight to spot him under normal circumstances. In the darkness of a new moon, he was undetectable to any but a beast.

As their quarry entered, Rik saw that it was the beggar they'd learned of, Toltan. However, the fellow seemed worse for the wear, looking more like a plague-stricken beast than a man. However, as Afira approached, their target proved that he was indeed more beast than man with a grisly transformation into... something. The closest Rik could approximate the creature to was a Hinox that he'd seen whilst traveling. Watching the damge the brute caused was enough to keep him away from the best, but now he'd have to fight one.

As Ghent's attack was finished, Rik called out as a warning to his teammates. "Eyes!" With that, he focused on the magic he'd studied while training in Kakariko. As it unleashed, one thought went through his mind.

Lighting Release: Flash!

Afterward, Rik would ready himself, prepared to disorient his foe further with a Shadow Wing.

Having kept his head hidden where he had been curled up, Nareck could only hear the gruesome sounds of Toltan's transfiguration. He froze for a moment as his eyes fell upon the monstrous bring. He didn't want to think what curse had been placed on Toltan right now or the suffering he had endured under it. That was for later, that was for when they were safe. Now demanded action and so he rose to his full height and bounded forward, building as much speed as possible while Ghent and Rik did their attacks. Hoping to capitalize on their manoeuvres to disorientate the creature, Nareck threw himself forward into a ball and rolled for its feet in an attempt to topple it and make the eyes all the easier to reach.

@ChozoHunter@Jerkchicken@rawkhawk64

The opening moments of this battle were filled with the valiance of the Valorbrands. Ghent's attack confounding the beast as it's massive arm flailed forward in an attempt to catch him, only to be met with a flash from the Sheikah warrior. It stared blankly for a moment, directly at Rik, before feeling a spear to it's side, and Nareck making use of his abilities as a Goron to barrel into it's legs in an attempt to knock it over.

It's eyes, unnaturally black, and smile hideously wide and lined with teeth, continued to stare at Rik, even as a spear was stuck in it's back, caught by it's fleshy mass, and forced to one knee, making it's head more vulnerable. Ghent's spear was caught, and would take a fair bit of effort to pull out, but this effort would turn out not to be his to exert. Lady Afira taking advantage of the situation had readied a Divine Spear sacrament, taking a javelin in her free hand that wielded a catalyst, and hurling it, aiming for the head.

The spear of light and lightning, cackling as it flew, and continuing to crackle as it stuck out of it's head, burning into it's flesh. It let out a roar, as if this particular attack was effective against it. In a minor bout of rage, it turned around, grabbing Ghent's spear and Ghent with it, flinging him in Lady Afira's general direction, before it would slowly rise onto both feet once more. I's expression had changed into a frown, and despite it's enraged appearance, it still moved rather slowly. It kept it's head craned up, a little moreso than before it was struck by the sacrament, it's blank black eyes trying to look down, as it reached out trying to grab Nareck with both arms.