Rezod92

Genshin Impact - Eikons [Current Chapter: Geo]

@Sho Minazuki

Of all the obstacles he's faced so far, this one was looking to be an actual challenge. On one hand, the thief had finally stopped running, in no small part thanks to the three sand worms. On the other hand.......well, Garrick couldn't let the thief get eaten. He had information the Sand King needed.

With resolve, Garrick ran forward, crossing the river of sand to catch up to his target. The ever-shifting surface slowed his progress, but he remained undaunted as he marched forward. The sand worms were a fearsome sight, but
the cryptid could tell that these were merely juveniles, meaning there was a nest nearby. And when there's a nest.....

....the mother may not be far from it.

Tales Of Shizuyama: Alternative (Far-Eastern Monster Girl RP)

@PaulHaynek @The Irish Tree (VIV) @AzureKnight (VRA)

"And for the record, Takeshi's not my lord. His father is. I am friends with Takeshi, no sworn oaths or anything like that....And tell your other friend to stop hiding in the shadows. I'm not gonna fight any of you... At least, not yet."

.....Huh?

There was no way, right? The guy was bluffing. That had to be a wild guess. There's no way that samurai actually knew she was the-

"...Being honest, I thought it was only Varã and I here. Whoever's there, might as well give up the ghost. The ronin has your number,"

At first, there was silence. Trees rustling to the gentle breeze of the wind...

....Then....

"HOW THE HELL DID YOU KNOW I WAS HERE!?"

From the shadows of the trees comes Zeka, red in the face from embarrassment as she briskly joined Varã and Vivian.

"S-Sorry. Zeka Willows. Newly arrived.", the mouse quickly introduced herself to the duo before turning her attention to Kazenosuke. "Dude, how did you do that? In all my years as a professional thief, no one has ever caught me....without having to see me. You're human, right?"

Tales Of Shizuyama (Far-Eastern Monster Girl RP)

@PaulHaynek

"Since you said you didn't snag a native, I assume you shared beds with a fellow taskforce member then? That Shizuka guy seem to be the only choice, but I doubt it's him you got. Regardless, I suppose I should be glad you're not tainting our island. That tea party that Mad Hatter threw is still suspicious, however."

"Shizuka may be the only human on the team, but he wasn't the one I fucked and that's all you're getting out of me, hawkeye.....and maybe some taint would do this island some good if it meant pulling that ignorant stick out yo ass.", Kerry replied, the second part of her statement said under her breath. Then she rolled her eyes at Takamori's comment on Alice's tea party.

Because anything a mamono does, even when done in kindness and goodwill, HAS to have an ulterior motive, right?

Soon enough, the duo came upon a cliff, looming over a wide valley. On the other side of said valley was a lone wooden watchtower.

"Look there. Arrows. Varjan and Zipanguese. We can pick up the trail again by the practice targets."

"That's good and all, but where exactly are the targets?", asked the hornet, to which the archer answered by taking one of the arrows near the setup and fired it at the base of the watchtower with his bow. The arrow flew true and hit a straw dummy on the other side. "...Oh. Those targets."

"Fly to the watchtower, yokai. Find out where they went. I'll catch up with you."

"Don't keep me waiting.", Kerry said before taking off, crossing the valley as she flew. Not wanting to be caught flat-footed, she drew out and held Dusk in her hands, just in case.

Tales Of Shizuyama: Alternative (Far-Eastern Monster Girl RP)

@PaulHaynek @The Irish Tree(VIV) @AzureKnight[VRA)

Zeka had arrived, just missing the Varjans as she stood at the treeline, staying hidden and watching a samurai and two mamono talking to each other......Though, the conversation was turning sour, from the looks of it.

He must be Kazenosuke, though who are the other two?, she thought to herself as she observed the duo. The one sitting on a log had light bluish-green skin, a flowing dress that exposed her midriff and spoke in a somewhat condescending tone toward the ronin. The other was a fiery redhead in a flashy red dress with, given her aggressive stance toward the man, an attitude to match. Were they with the taskforce as well? Zeka wasn't sure. She was close enough to see them, but too far to hear what they were saying.

Kazenosuke still had a hand on his weapon, Zeka decided to stay where she was and see what happens next. Thanks to her transparency and the shadows from the trees, they didn't notice her, which was perfect for the mouse. If the situation deescalated, she'll come out and properly introduce herself. If a fight broke out.......well, that's why she was here and not over there.

Mama didn't raise an idiot.

Tales Of Shizuyama (Far-Eastern Monster Girl RP)

@PaulHaynek

Soon enough, Kerry found Takamori training a group of peasants on how to use bows and arrows in a makeshift archery range. Their performance was.....well, a devil bug would do better. At least they'd got the arrows down range. The hawkeyed archer noticed the hornet's approach.

"Yokai. You're looking positive today. Had a good time last night? Finally charmed a Shizuyaman to share your bed?"

"Pffffft! Nope. I doubt a local could hope to ever dream of being a fraction as good as the one I was with last night.", Kerry responded, quite honestly despite the nearby audience. "So, any word on your turncoat kid?"

"Anyway, I found a lead regarding Setsuna. But I'm not sure if you are ready for her. I know I make her sound beyond human, and honestly that's not far off the mark. Setsuna is fearless. She may not be an initiated warrior of Shizuyama, or hail from any of the island's warrior clans, but she is a born killer."

"I think I'll be the judge of that when we face her. Though, I suppose you telling me to be cautious would have merit. You're the one that trained her, after all."

"Some recent refugees saw Varjans training in an archery range not far from here. I suspect Setsuna is there."

"Improving their aim, no doubt.", she commented, doing a final stretch. "Lead the way, archer."

Genshin Impact - Eikons [Current Chapter: Geo]

@Sho Minazuki

Time was of the essence. If Garrick was to catch up to his target, then that meant taking the quickest route available and seeing as how jumping on unstable platforms was very risky...

CRACK!

With his strength, the towering cryptid managed to knock down one of the pillars, haing it fall in a certain way to not only make a makeshift bridge for himself, but also for his Radient Sun allies who were catching up. He crossed the chasm and countined the chase.

Tales Of Shizuyama (Far-Eastern Monster Girl RP)

@PaulHaynek @Enkryption

The morning after...

"Well......at least it dried off through the night after I splashed it with the spring water in my haste. Thank the gods, no one saw me come back here naked."

A well-rested and dressed Kerry stepped out of the forest, returning from retrieving her clothes she left behind at the hot springs. The hornet stretched her alluring form as she took in the sunrise, the inhabitants of the temple grounds emerging from their homes to begin the new day. She must admit, Shizuyama had some of the most stunning sunrises she has seen in all of her travels. Along with her current mood, it made Kerry feel like she could take on the world.

Speaking of mood, Kerry felt good.

No....scratch that.

She felt fantastic.

In fact, I haven't felt this good in years., thought the hornet as she turned her head toward the temple with a smile. To where the mad hatter still slumbered inside.

Alice wasn't exaggerating when it came to the bedroom. Oh, Kerry put up a valiant fight, even had the former ruler on the ropes a few times, but in the end, Alice left the hornet a blissful mess.

The spearwoman shyly looked away, still smiling as her slightly flared red.

She kinda hoped there will be a repeat or two in the future.

Shaking her head to ward off the thoughts, Kerry would go search for Takamori.

She felt it was time to do something about his very wayward daughter.

Tales Of Shizuyama: Alternative (Far-Eastern Monster Girl RP)

@PaulHaynek @The Irish Tree (MAT)

"Last warning, girls. The island of Shizuyama is anti-monster, in fact that stance made them allies with Varjo and The Order for a long time. Despite their deteriorating relationship, the people of Shizuyama will regard you with suspicion and fear. But please, they're good people. Just be patient with them."

"That's askin' an awful lot, but we'll do our best." replied Zeka just as the white light enveloped her and Matsuri, transporting the duo to Shizuyama.

As the white light faded, the duo now stood within a large wooden chamber, one side showing a candle-lit shrine while the other revealed sliding doors. One of these opened and a black-haired woman wearing green robes entered the room.

"Hello, there. You must be sent here by Lady Kyouko, right? I'm Ayu and this is one of the pagodas of Terauchi Temple. I'm going to assume you're going to be part of the taskforce. All of the members are away at the moment, but you can talk to me and I can answer any questions you got.

"Matsuri Okitsu, a pleasure to meet you. Oh, and you too, Ms. Zeka. Sorry. Didn't have a proper chance to introduce myself directly."

"Name's Zeka Willows. And yes, we're part of the taskforce.", the mouse girl responded before turning to Matsuri with a smile. Nice to meet you too, Matsuri. Let's get this job done, quick and clean."

Speaking of which....

"Oh yeah, I haven't told Lady Kyouko yet but the Varjans have landed in Shizuyama. They've defeated Lord Oja's army and are now rampaging unimpeded across the island. The taskforce managed to rescue Lord Oja's son, though, so this island might have a chance yet."

......Shit.....

"Great, two things I hate a job becoming: Slow and dirty.", sighed Zeka, palm running down her face in resignation. "But as you said, we do have a shot. Best to get started, so where are the others?"

Upon being filled in by Ayu, Zeka would exit the temple and head off to find a man named Kazenosuke.....Wierd name, but who is she to judge? Going for a safe approach, Zeka concentrated her mana, her amulet glowing slightly as she became transparent, sticking to the shadows of the surrounding forest on her way toward her destination.

Tales Of Shizuyama: Alternative (Far-Eastern Monster Girl RP)

@PaulHaynek

"On the contrary, I think thieves are invaluable in the battlefield. Swinging weapons and slinging spells are only half the battle, you know?"

"Is the other half knowing?", said Zeka, snickering. She couldn't help herself.

"But I digress. My scouts have told me that while the Varjan armada are moving to surround the island, I haven't received any reports of an outright invasion or battle. At least, not yet. Of course, you are free to decline if you are feeling apprehensive about all this. Worry not, nothing will be held against you by doing so."

"Nah, nah. If you need even a thief's help, then who am I to turn you down? Hopefully, we can resolve these issues before any actual fighting starts..."

Once again, Zeka glances over to the sailors and soldiers loading weapons and supplies onto numerous ships.

"....Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally hoping we're done before that happens."

Tales Of Shizuyama (Far-Eastern Monster Girl RP)

@PaulHaynek

"What the hell!?", Kerry exclaimed as everything around the workshop started rumbling. She quickly walked out of the tent, fearing the Varjans were having another siege on the temple. Yo, what's happening!? Are the Varjans...attacking.....again?

The hornet's statement trailed off as she took in the scene before her. It was like the siege never happened. Fires were put out, parts of the temple were restored, homes were repaired and even the measly stone gates were good as new. In the time Eula and Kerry were having their conversation, the state Terauchi Temple was in before versus now......the difference was night and day. Complete with tables serving tea and baked sweets. A second passed before Kerry realized what all of this was:

A tea party.

And the one responsible for all of this, while also currently laying it into Sorae big time, was...

"Alice???", Kerry whispered in stunned disbelief as she watched the mad hatter give her speech. Part of her thought this was a different person, but from the magical aura the hornet was sensing, this was the very same woman! Glancing off to the side to see another woman eating a plate of tarts, a second of sensing her aura confirmed that that was Carroll! Both the mad hatter and cursed sword were different yet the same! What the hell happened!?

As the mushroom woman strode off toward the hot springs, Kerry shook off her shock and walked toward a table full of treats.

What's that phrase you humans say? 'Don't look a gift horse in the mouth?'", she spoke aloud for Sorae and the other villagers to hear as she drank her tea. It was delicious. "If I were you, I'd shut up and eat my cake where I can get it. Appreciation and gratefulness go a long way, you know."

Not waiting for a response, Kerry finished her tea and grabbed a tart before following Alice toward the hot springs.