[IC] In the Land of Heartstone

[catmint]

Ryu stopped in his tracks, biting his lip as he tried to come to a decision. He didn't want to face the wrath from his own kin, but Ryu knew it would be even more despicable if he just left them without warning. Ryu forced himself to move his legs forward, following the trail. Ryu needed to be quick, if there was a chance to avoid more bloodshed. Even though he dreaded coming face to face with the small village, he knew it would be the only one option he could live with.

[SomeoneSomewere]

Favnir watched, confusion evident on his face. He said, his voice also showing that confusion. "Explain. What are you two talking about?" He only knew so much about the elves, mostly just their language and some customs, but other then that... He didn't really know about it.

[thewizardguy]

catmint said
Ryu stopped in his tracks, biting his lip as he tried to come to a decision. He didn't want to face the wrath from his own kin, but Ryu knew it would be even more despicable if he just left them without warning. Ryu forced himself to move his legs forward, following the trail. Ryu needed to be quick, if there was a chance to avoid more bloodshed. Even though he dreaded coming face to face with the small village, he knew it would be the only one option he could live with.

Following the marks, you find yourself once more in your own clothes. You also feel oddly relieved, as if a debt had been repaid, and something that had been nagging you in the back of your mind simply vanished. This is just in time, of course, for a sentry to spot your transformation from elf to human. The relatively young boy jumps up from the bushes, dagger in hand. He was barely old enough to hunt for himself, let alone to guard the village. Despite the anxiety written all over his face, he stands his ground, pointing the dagger at you. "S- stop! Tell me the password!"

[thewizardguy]

SomeoneSomewere said
Favnir watched, confusion evident on his face. He said, his voice also showing that confusion. "Explain. What are you two talking about?" He only knew so much about the elves, mostly just their language and some customs, but other then that... He didn't really know about it.

Whereas Lirias wasn't all too versed on draconic facial expressions, the confusion in Favnir's voice is clear. He'd always been amazed by how dragons could go through their lives without adhering to a God. No wonder they were such a solitary race, with no religion to bind them, no God to guide them. "The Earth Mother is the Goddess of Nature. She is worshipped among my people as the bringer of life." It seemed like childish thing to explain, but Lirias reminded himself that Favnir had never been a part of any large society, and thus would not know things he himself took for granted.

[catmint]

Ryu stopped in his tracks, putting his hands up as a sign of well-meaning. Ryu had a puzzled expression, mostly because he was confused as to why this boy was guarding the village. Surely there would be more experienced and older Kumihos? Also because he wasn't sure what the password was. He knew the password to the last Kumiho village he came upon, but he wasn't certain if it would apply to this one. But it couldn't hurt to try, Ryu asked, "Um... Is it.... nine tailed fox?" Their name was translated into the common tongue literally as nine tailed fox.

[Laggia]

" I Threw the of you're axes agaisnt that flying thing but missed. Your axe might be gone forever as i put my strenght into throwing it " Bazgulub said standing in a offensive stand showing that he is ready to fight Again " Orc if i defeat you i want you to join my dream about uniting the orcish race under one bnner ."

[thewizardguy]

The kid hesitates, and then nods slowly, still obviously scared. "Yeah. That's the password. I..... I'll go tell the others you're coming. Bye!" With that, the kid runs off, presumably towards the village, moving quite rapidly.

[to Laggia]
Dunmur smiled, as he looked the other orc up and down. "You can win anything I own from me. However, you cannot win my life. That is mine to give or take." Dunmur swings his remaining axe around, and then moves in close, charging to get inside of your reach.

[Laggia]

Bazgulub Smiled inside his helment " For the three" Bazgulub then took Morgathar in one hand then took it again with two hands. Steping backwards as he swung the ax smiling, as he was feeling the sensation of battle coming to him. Filling his system with power and glee

[catmint]

Ryu stared after the boy, still perplexed by him. But he shook it off and followed the direction the boy ran off to. As he walked along the foliage Ryu patted the top of his head. He was a little relieved to feel his fox ears there again, and everything else seemed like normal.

[jorthon]

thewizardguy said
Dunmur looked sideways at Bazglub. It seemed he would fight him right now. "Very well. If this is the way it shall be. However, I request that I may retrieve my axe." Dunmur stood ready to dodge any strike if necessary, although his stance was not an offensive one. Whereas Dunmur truly did believe himself worthy of the axe Morgathar, he was not fool enough to face the wielder with only half of his weapons. Even without the might of the axe himself, any Wielder would have to have endured great trials to reach the Axe, and many must have come before him, making the Wielder a formidable opponent.There's the usual forest sounds of insects and small animals bustling about in the undergrowth. However, you do notice a mark similar to the first one you encountered a bit further along. A trail of marks. This is one of the ways that a trail to a village can be marked, allowing those who know of these marks to find the village. However, you're not sure how well you would be recieved by your kin, seeing how you've already caused the deaths of many by rousing Lord Allen. Kumiho are by nature inquisitive creatures, keeping an ear out for rumors of danger, and there is no doubt they will be fully aware of your involvement in the matter. Unlike the last few chaotic hours of your life, you face a choice now. And it's unclear which choice is the right one."No no no, not Shira." Lurias sighs, shaking his head as he paces. He looks worried and slightly confused. When he eventually speaks again, he's calmed down slightly, making an attempt to explain. "That mark is the Mark of the Forest." He gestures at the mark on your forehead. "It's a legendary thing. I've never seen it in person, only in an old book I inherited from my grandfather. That is the mark that was carried by Warlord Gundar, master of the Horde, more than 800 years ago. You must know the story. The Earth Mother asked a champion to slay a demon, and the orc failed. Because of this, the Earth Mother turned the orc's homeland to a barren wasteland." The elf turns to you, his eyes filled with an odd excitement. "The fact that you carry that mark means you were chosen for some task by the Earth Mother."

Raphion felt the mark on his forehead then said "The mark of the forest. Well that's interesting." He thought about the last bit the man said thinking 'That explains the things that she told him.' Raphion listened to the story that was told to Favnir nodding since it was understandable. He then looked at the man in armor saying "Well as I said I want to join your cause. I can already fight and I'm at your command."

[thewizardguy]

Dunmur moved in fast, jumping forward and grabbing Morgathar's handle before you can swing it. Had he been unworthy of the axe, it would have burned him. However, simply the fact that he can hold it without burning proves he is an honorable and skilled warrior, if his behavior had not indicated as such sufficiently. Dunmur pushes forward, twisting the large axe around, attempting to wrest it from your grip.

[to Cat]
As you arrive at the village, you find something you had hoped not to. The trees open up into a clearing, shielded from above by a cover of leaves. A green dome, enchanted to be invisible to the eyes of other races. However, the scent that greets you is one of smoke and burnt flesh. You see a scattering of blackened remains, houses left half-standing and signs of battle. Burnt corpses litter the ground, some holding weapons, others holding children or relatives. There's a large hole in the dome, and you can feel that the spell has been shattered. Still the fires smoke in some places. A few youths are trying to search the area for survivors, and you see more than a few crying, standing near a corpse they had recognized somehow. The only reason they were still here is because the older warriors had sent the youths away, and kept off the enemy. This was the work of no army, no poacher. A dragon had been here. And there is only one dragon in this forest.

[to Jorthan]
Lurias nods, smiling. "You're accepted, of course. A sign from the Earth Mother herself!" Lurias lets out an unexpected burst of laughter, as he pats you on the shoulder. "You come as a blessing. I am sure our raid shall succeed, with such a fortuitous sign from the Heavens. Surely it is the will of the gods that we win." Lurias smiles, as he gestures at a nearby building. "Go get yourself equipped. You're going to need some good armor and weapons. Jaqural is a master blacksmith, he'll repair anything that's damaged, and you're going to want to meet him. Be ready for battle in two hours. We're moving in on Copperside as soon as the sun goes down."
Lurias' smile wavered, as he walked away. The Gods did not often interfere with the mortal realm, and certainly not with such things as a resistance raid. What was the task that this new recruit, Raphion, had been given? Would Raphion be the one to strike down the Alderian Empire? Those who are chosen by the Gods are not blessed, as history would show those who cared to learn it. They will move the world with their will, and bear it's sorrows. They will face the greatest tragedies, and if they do not prevail, they risk angering the Gods. If Raphion did not succeed at whatever task the Earth Mother had set for him, what form would her divine wrath take? Whatever would happen from this point on, Lurias concluded, would be bigger than just the resistance. This would affect the face of the earth

[Laggia]

Bazgulub was enraged by the fact that an other orc was touching his axe. Seeing an opening He gave the axe loss but insteed jumps towards the orc and now having his hands behind his head. Bazgulub then jumped op into the air, while forcing the others orcs head towards his knee which had a sharp sharp spike on it hopeing that he would be over with the battle now. as he surely had a strong grip around the head and to close for the axe to do any damage what so ever and even if it did his armor would take the blow

[jorthon]

thewizardguy said
Dunmur moved in fast, jumping forward and grabbing Morgathar's handle before you can swing it. Had he been unworthy of the axe, it would have burned him. However, simply the fact that he can hold it without burning proves he is an honorable and skilled warrior, if his behavior had not indicated as such sufficiently. Dunmur pushes forward, twisting the large axe around, attempting to wrest it from your grip.[to Cat]As you arrive at the village, you find something you had hoped not to. The trees open up into a clearing, shielded from above by a cover of leaves. A green dome, enchanted to be invisible to the eyes of other races. However, the scent that greets you is one of smoke and burnt flesh. You see a scattering of blackened remains, houses left half-standing and signs of battle. Burnt corpses litter the ground, some holding weapons, others holding children or relatives. There's a large hole in the dome, and you can feel that the spell has been shattered. Still the fires smoke in some places. A few youths are trying to search the area for survivors, and you see more than a few crying, standing near a corpse they had recognized somehow. The only reason they were still here is because the older warriors had sent the youths away, and kept off the enemy. This was the work of no army, no poacher. A dragon had been here. And there is only one dragon in this forest.[to Jorthan]Lurias nods, smiling. "You're accepted, of course. A sign from the Earth Mother herself!" Lurias lets out an unexpected burst of laughter, as he pats you on the shoulder. "You come as a blessing. I am sure our raid shall succeed, with such a fortuitous sign from the Heavens. Surely it is the will of the gods that we win." Lurias smiles, as he gestures at a nearby building. "Go get yourself equipped. You're going to need some good armor and weapons. Jaqural is a master blacksmith, he'll repair anything that's damaged, and you're going to want to meet him. Be ready for battle in two hours. We're moving in on Copperside as soon as the sun goes down."Lurias' smile wavered, as he walked away. The Gods did not often interfere with the mortal realm, and certainly not with such things as a resistance raid. What was the task that this new recruit, Raphion, had been given? Would Raphion be the one to strike down the Alderian Empire? Those who are chosen by the Gods are not blessed, as history would show those who cared to learn it. They will move the world with their will, and bear it's sorrows. They will face the greatest tragedies, and if they do not prevail, they risk angering the Gods. If Raphion did not succeed at whatever task the Earth Mother had set for him, what form would her divine wrath take? Whatever would happen from this point on, Lurias concluded, would be bigger than just the resistance. This would affect the face of the earth

Nodded then said "I will be ready for battle. May my knife become dull and my energy low I will fight until the end." He turned to face Favnir then said "Thank you for bringing me here." He then left for the blacksmith's. As he walked he thought about the word the Earth mother told him 'KILL THE DEMON THAT HAS SLAIN YOUR FRIEND.' He knew which friend that she was talking about. from the letter he got. He had know idea who it was that killed him. He pondered about who it might have been but since his friend was friendly with the Alderian Empire nobles there were a lot of people that would want to kill his friend some in this very camp. So he shoved those thought out of his mind as he reached the blacksmith.

[catmint]

Ryu's steps slowed to a stop as he reached the middle of the village. A wave of emotions hit him and took all his willpower to keep it in. But rage swelled in his chest and his hands tightened into fists. And there was a small part of him that he was ashamed of, the part that was relieved that it was not his fault for bringing death here. Ryu's eyes gazed over the motionless corpses, still partly shocked that a dragon would do this. Sure they were destructive, but what would it gain by doing something like this? Luckily Ryu knew exactly who to go after, all he needed was confirmation. Ryu spotted the boy who greeted him, he quickly strode over to him. "A dragon did this?" He asked in a low voice.

[thewizardguy]

catmint said
Ryu's steps slowed to a stop as he reached the middle of the village. A wave of emotions hit him and took all his willpower to keep it in. But rage swelled in his chest and his hands tightened into fists. And there was a small part of him that he was ashamed of, the part that was relieved that it was not his fault for bringing death here. Ryu's eyes gazed over the motionless corpses, still partly shocked that a dragon would do this. Sure they were destructive, but what would it gain by doing something like this? Luckily Ryu knew exactly who to go after, all he needed was confirmation. Ryu spotted the boy who greeted him, he quickly strode over to him. "A dragon did this?" He asked in a low voice.

The boy nods vigorously, fire in his eyes. "It happened a day or so ago. The bastard destroyed the village, and killed my dad." He growls low, his ears perked up. "I'm getting the rest ready. We're going after him." From his tone and posture, you can tell the boy is serious about attacking the resistance. However, even if the village had been fully armed and war-ready it would have been slaughtered by Lurias's men.

[thewizardguy]

Laggia said
Bazgulub was enraged by the fact that an other orc was touching his axe. Seeing an opening He gave the axe loss but insteed jumps towards the orc and now having his hands behind his head. Bazgulub then jumped op into the air, while forcing the others orcs head towards his knee which had a sharp sharp spike on it hopeing that he would be over with the battle now. as he surely had a strong grip around the head and to close for the axe to do any damage what so ever and even if it did his armor would take the blow

Dunmur twisted sideways, the knee spike whitling passed his face and nicking his ear. However, Dunmur didn't mind, this was how battle worked. Using his full strength, the orc pushed his opponent backwards and out of the close position he'd been in. As Bazgluub had released Morgathar, he was now unarmed, and this time Dunmur had a very special axe. "It seems the tables have turned."

[SomeoneSomewere]

( O.O )

Favnir nodded listening. He wasn't sure if he liked this Mother Earth person. Dragons were supposed to be the best. He then nodded to Raphion's thank you, looking at Lurius. He said," well, the resistance is still growing it seems?" He sat down, looking down at Lurius. His tail twitched and he looked around the camp. His body was tensed and ready to begin. He was ready to fight the alliance. Ready to take on the humans that destroyed his kind.

[catmint]

Ryu looked down at him, at a loss for words. Surely he knew that they would die if they tried to go after the dragon? "Please. Don't do that. You'll only end up dying and then there will be nothing left of your village." Ryu said, brushing away strands of hair from his face. "Look, I know of the dragon. I will go after him." Ryu offered; if these mere children tried to seek revenge, their race would be even more endangered. Ryu couldn't stand the thought of that.

[thewizardguy]

jorthon said
Nodded then said "I will be ready for battle. May my knife become dull and my energy low I will fight until the end." He turned to face Favnir then said "Thank you for bringing me here." He then left for the blacksmith's. As he walked he thought about the word the Earth mother told him He knew which friend that she was talking about. from the letter he got. He had know idea who it was that killed him. He pondered about who it might have been but since his friend was friendly with the Alderian Empire nobles there were a lot of people that would want to kill his friend some in this very camp. So he shoved those thought out of his mind as he reached the blacksmith.

As you open the door you're engulfed in a large cloud of smoke and soot, almost instantly covering you in a black layer. Your scent of smell is almost physically assaulted, and for a moment it feels like you're going to suffocate. Then the cloud passes, leaving you with a sore throat, a burnt nose, and a different skin color. You can hear the banging of steel on steel, common to black smith's workplaces, as if the world wanted to assault your hearing as well for good measure. However, through the black fog you can see a massive, heavily muscled orc clad in a leather apron. He's wreathed in an almost demonic red glow from the hot coals, and he barely looks up at you, obviously in the middle of a forging. However, within a moment he places the glowing steel in a trough of water, turning towards you.
As Jaqural approaches, you notice several things. The first is his odd skin color. Unlike most orcs, Jaqural is bright white, contrasting with the soot that's found it's way onto his skin and covers his face. His eyes also are red, the clear signs of an albino. However, you have never heard of such a thing as an albino orc, and the effect is rather terrifying rather than silly-looking. The second thing is that the man instantly punches you in the gut, his fist picking you up and launching you through the doorway you'd just walked through. The heavy-set orc steps out after you in the time it takes you to realize your bones aren't broken, and steps on your chest, the pressure making you once more unsure as to whether all your bones are intact.
As he gets closer, the albino orc's features become clearer, the lack of soot and smoke helping a lot. He has heavy eyebrows, set in a permanent frown, contrasting with the almost playful smirk on his face as he looks down at you. There are the usual scars and signs of battle that no orc would be seen without, and one of his eyes doesn't appear to be working properly. There's a sternness in his features that suggests a harshness of a more psychological nature than what most orcs are used to. Even for an orc, this figure is massive, and you realize he must have ducked to get out of the blacksmith's quarry. "A new recruit, eh? The old ones know not to walk in uninvited. All ya pointy-ears look the same to me!"

[thewizardguy]

SomeoneSomewere said
( O.O )Favnir nodded listening. He wasn't sure if he liked this Mother Earth person. Dragons were supposed to be the best. He then nodded to Raphion's thank you, looking at Lurius. He said," well, the resistance is still growing it seems?" He sat down, looking down at Lurius. His tail twitched and he looked around the camp. His body was tensed and ready to begin. He was ready to fight the alliance. Ready to take on the humans that destroyed his kind.

((Actually, the Dragon God Arcos was destroyed in the Dragon War, 1257 years ago (yes I remembered that number) by the Seven Thrones. But meh.))
Lurias almost absentmindedly gestures at you. "We leave in a little while. Go eat a cow or something." Lurias is obviously deep in thought about something, quite probably the mark that had been discovered on Raphion.