Of Monsters and Men

Discussion in 'Retirement Home' started by Magick, Sep 26, 2015.

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  1. Vladek515 Hollow Bastion Committee

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    Veceslav couldn't surpress a smile, this girl's innocence was a beautiful thing in a way. Her mind unsoiled of dogma and false beliefs. "In the eyes of the common man I am an emotionless killer, a means to an end. They're more likely to accept you as one of their own than me. I am aware of our unpopular image and there isn't a thing I can do to change such beliefs, I won't waste words but let my actions speak for me. And no, they don't get happy endings. There isn't a witcher that has died in a bed. Whether stabbed to death by a peasant with a pitchfork or torn apart by a fiend, I see no difference. It won't be a happy ending atleast not for me, but you still got a chance at one, I hope you'll make it." The man said kindly, the life of a Witcher was tough sometimes, no family, generally alone, people hating you for being a freak, but seeing the gratitude on the faces of the few who didn't abhor his kind made it worth it. She thanked him for his help and she went on a way. "Be safe out there." He whispered softly as he watched her go.

    He turned back to what remained of his encampment, Hawk was nibbling on some grass. He himself was rather hungry as well. He scattered the ashes of what remained of his campfire and looked around, he ought to get into the city to see if his lost children were there. He mounted Hawk and rode towards the city, passing the building closest to where he had made camp there he noticed a rather familiar face in different clothing but still he knew the person "Couldn't stay away, now could you." Veceslav dismounted, he didn't draw his weapons. "Well seeing our mutual friend ain't here, you are going to tell me the truth. All of it." Veceslav said, he wouldn't use Axii just yet, giving him one final chance to redeem himself.

    Milosh and his compatriots followed Bryce inside, glancing from left to right to see if they hadn't been seen. Milosh could only be described as a mountain of meat, his head was bald, not by natural cause which was rather obvious from the burnt skin. A frightening man even if he hadn't been a witch hunter. He approached the cages as Bryce explained what the special deal was with them. The first one had knowledge of a necromancer eh? The foulest kind of mages that existed.And the other one knew a powerful creature? Well regardless of what they knew they were going to be put to the torch. He looked at Ana with disgust, then turned back to Bryce who offered him a piece of paper with the price, he himself believing they were worth the upcharge. "Dragan, Adalwulf prepare both of them for transport." Milosh said looking Bryce straight into the eyes about the upcharge. "You're getting an upcharge, but not that much." Milosh said handing over the gold, with only 400 crowns more than usual, yielding him the keys to the shackles and cages throwing the respective sets to his two accomplices.

    Adalwulf, an older man with thining silver hair entered the cage of Zephyr and went about his way to fasten a set of Dimeritium shackles to the mages hands tying them behind his back. Attached to these shackles was a thick rope functioning as a leash. Afterwards he unlocked the shackle that kept Zephyr in the cage, he 'helped' the mage out of the cage and waited just outside of it. Meanwhile Dragan, the youngest of the company with only 18 summers to his name, opened up the cage with Ana inside, this was the first time the young lad was in the field. His final test before he could finally call himself a witch hunter. The thin young man knelt down beside Ana, his long black hair framing his face. He had been taught the procedure and repeated it several times. However he made a mistake, instead of fastening the shackles he unlocked the one keeping her in the cage. Milosh didn't exactly catch what happened next for it happened so fast. A bright flash, a heat just like that day. A door slamming.... Silence...

    He quickly looked around, Dragan lay dead next to the mage, even before ordering anything else, Milosh quickly strided into the cage and grabbed her by the arm, yanking her to her feet, the insides of his gauntlets had been lined with small amounts of dimeritium, at his own request. Hatred burned in his eyes and he slammed his fist into her gut and then grabbed the fallen shackles expertly fastening them around Ana's wrists. In the confusion the other mage had slipped away. "Adalwulf, Bernard, after him!" He barked. The two witch hunters immediatly left in pursuit of Zephyr who already had a small lead. They could pass themselves off as ordinairy soldiers or Mercenaries, very few people knew what exactly the insignia they wore meant and only those who had reason to fear them knew. "You really shouldn't have done that, I was going to ask you nicely about your friend, but seeing what you did I will skip that part." He growled angrily. Dragan shouldn't have died, he was just a kid. Damn it. He shoved Ana out of the cage hard and then looked to Bryce. "I think we are done here." Jaroslav had picked up Dragan's body and slung it over his shoulder, they wouldn't leave him behind. They wouldn't leave the city the way they came, as part of the agreement with Bryce they could use some of the less obvious routes out of the city.
     
  2. Magick ~Meaner then my demons~

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    Veera forced herself to let go of the sword, her hand dropping to her side. "I should have known you were one for theatrics." She replied calmly, though inside she was full of turmoil. "I didn't think you were the type of man that tolerated children, though." She added as "Claire" disappeared. "And please, nothing to drink for me." Not when there was a chance the mage might just drug her and...do whatever he had done to these children, to her.

    She knew they weren't alive. She just didn't understand how. This form of magic hadn't been seen before, at least not by anyone she knew. This
    man, the one on her side, was dangerous. But perhaps he could be reasoned with. After all, Veceslav had seen promise in her, when no one else had. And Aaron had come with her, when no one else would. Maybe someone else needed that amount of faith. And he had helped them get into the doppler sanctuary, though she could be sure that wasn't entirely for their own purposes.

    "The battle. It's to be in the town square. For your own safety, I think you should remain out of sight when you arrive. Work your magic from afar, if you can. My witcher brethren have come to Oxenfurt, and I can't promise they'll be as.....tolerant, as I am."

    She knew she shouldn't tolerate this, but she didn't have a choice. And on top of the other choices she had made, well, it wouldn't be this one that sent her to hell. "Why do you do this?" She asked finally.

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    They were going to die. She could see it in Milosh's eyes, as the transaction was made. Her heart sank, and her hands clenched as she looked down, desperately thinking of a way to get one of them free. The opportunity came in a most unexpected way, after Zephyr was chained. The young man unlocked her shackles, before putting on the new ones. "By the goddess, I am sorry." she whispered. The young man looked up, his eyes wide as he realized his mistake, too late. Teliana's magic came rushing back into her veins with the force of a hurricane, and she snapped her fingers, just once. The resulting explosion knocked her back against the wall, away from the young man, who was most certainly dead.

    When she looked up, the smoke clearing,
    Zephyr was gone, and her heart lifted in relief. As she slowly got to her feet, Teliana spotted Milosh coming her way, the most incredible hatred leaking out of his eyes. Her fate was sealed now. When he punched her, she dropped back to her knees, gasping for air as she curled over, trying to protect herself. He got away, he got away, he got away. The three words repeated in her head like a song, a little tune of victory.

    It didn't dull the pain as she was shoved out of the cage, and it didn't quiet the fear, but it was a sweet little moment, in its own right. Despite the pain in her stomach, she stood as tall as she could, keeping her head high, as she caught
    Milosh's gaze. "I may not live to see it, but I can promise you, you will suffer."

    And despite the pain, despite the fear and the certainty of death, Teliana smiled. Because her explosion had served another purpose. Telling
    anyone who might be looking for her that she was still alive, and where she was. All they had to do was listen and look. And he's good at that.

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    Bryce had been knocked back against the wall. As he brushed off his shoulders, he narrowed his eyes at the woman, and then Milosh. "You should train your recruits better. She could have killed us if she had been just a bit stronger." He warned, though he knew that Milosh knew. It still managed to quell some of the fear inside of him. "Here. That was bound to catch the attention of all the wrong people." He opened a false panel on the wall and pulled the small level, activating the wooden trap door in the floor. "To our future business together. Enjoy your fire." He managed to say this with a smile as the witch hunters descended down the passageway, before flipping the lever up and shutting the panel with a frown.

    He was going to have to rebuild several parts of this place, if he was even allowed to come back to it. No, he would find a way. This place was too much of a treasure to give up, and besides, he had a little saved for a rainy day.

    Stepping outside the back way, he whistled, and one of his cloaked friends appeared at his side. "To
    Adolin the Witcher and Alanna the Mage." He whispered, dropping a bag of the shared gold in the outstretched hand. "For their service." Then he started away, towards the streets. Best to get away from this place as soon as possible.

    "Bryce!" The familiar voice stopped his feet in their tracks, and his heart in its chest.

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    "Bryce!" Tessa darted towards him, her heart swelling with joy as she wrapped her arms around his chest. "Thank the gods! Zack said that you were with witch hunters!"

    She looked up, and stopped at the expression of immeasurable pain on Bryce's face. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?" She looked behind him, at the building with a new hole in the side. "What happened?" Upon peering closer, she put a hand on Bryce's arm. "Are those cages?"

    Each question only made the pain in his chest grow larger and larger. She knew too much. She hadn't put the pieces together yet, but Tessa was far from stupid. He should know. He taught the girl her letters, her mathematics. He had watched over her since she was a little girl. All for this. He turned her around and wrapped her in his arms, pulling her into the back alleyway. "I love you, little sister." He whispered as he drew his sword, and in one quick movement, stabbed her through the back. He turned away from her face, so he didn't have to see the look in her eyes, as she gasped when the silver slid into her skin.

    It wouldn't be an immediate death. He couldn't bring himself to do that, to give her no chance of survival. The poisoning would take longer, but it would be more peaceful, in his mind. He dropped the sword and caught her before she fell, pressing his face to the top of her head as several tears dropped from his eyes, before gently placing her against the alley wall, placing one of her hands to the wound in her side and pressing it down.

    "As hard as you can." he whispered, kissing her dampened hair, brushing the tears from his face, before picking up his blade and running away. Always running away. Sheathing his sword, his hand went to his side, where the blade had cut him. It burned and bled as he turned away, heading back towards Sanctuary to give the orders. And to kill the one who had sent Tessa his way, and seal her demise. Zack, you will suffer a worse fate. He promised himself as his eyes darkened with rage.

    Tessa watched him leave, her mouth open as she tried to call him back, but no words fell from her lips, no sound. The pain was so intense, she couldn't tell if it was in her mind, or real. It wouldn't even be fair to call it pain. Was her hand still pressed against the wound? She looked down, and her head spun, followed by a pounding, like beats on a drum. This had to be a dream, just a dream. In a moment, she would wake up, and Bryce would hug away her nightmares and help her make breakfast.

    But no, the pain told her that that was the dream, and this was the reality. She leaned her head back against the cold alleyway wall, and looked up into the sky, tinged with pinks and yellows as the sun rose higher, tears blurring her vision. She didn't want to die. She wasn't ready, here and alone, betrayed. She didn't want to die. But maybe it would be okay to take a small nap, she thought as she gently shut her eyes.

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    Zack raced down the street, towards the river. "SETH!" He bellowed, determined this time to get it right. "SETH!" He skidded to a halt, only now realizing the scene upon which he was stumbling, and realizing after that, he didn't give a flying fuck. "Seth, Tessa's in trouble. Bryce is in alliance with the witch hunters and he's selling people to them and I tried to tell her that but she didn't listen and went after Bryce and she's going to get hurt! And i'm supposedtofindsomeonenamedVeceslavbutIhavenocluewhereheisand WE NEED TO GO!" He looked at the man opposite Seth, and grabbed Seth's arm, preparing to run away with him in tow, witcher be damned because Bryce had lied and he was a bad person and Tessa was going to get hurt one way or another and she didn't deserve it at all.

    "LET'S GO!" He shouted, dragging
    Seth backwards, the flask falling out of his hand and clattering to the ground as he dropped it in his haste to get Seth going.
     
    Last edited: Feb 9, 2016
  3. Vladek515 Hollow Bastion Committee

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    He had the man again and fate decided to interfere. Another bloke came running in he tried to tell a story, he heard his own name and immediatly turned to the man. "I am the Witcher you are looking for. I am Veceslav Furst, what the hell happened?" He heard a name Tessa, could that have been the girl? He saw the flask in his hands and then he knew it for sure. It had been the girl. This Bryce person he had been the one being so protective of her. If what this newcomer had said was true she was in grave danger, while he had only heard rumours of witch hunters being active in the lands he though nothing of it. He scooped up the fallen flask, luckily it hadn't broken, it had cracked and some of the liquid started to leak out so he kept the flask upside down. He looked at the newcomer without judgement he had noticed the change in his medalion and this one was undoubtebly another doppler but that didn't matter right now. "Lead the way. Now. There is no time to waste." Veceslav said his voice filled with the tone of command as he followed the other two flask clasped into his hands.

    Milosh shot an angry look towards Bryce "You do bloody realise that that young lad over there has been ****ing killed by his own idiocy. He knew protocol, I made damn sure of that. If he hadn't been killed I sure as hell would have made sure he got punished for his mistake that would have gotten us all killed. So don't ****ing tell me something as obvious as that." Milosh growled, fire mages. Always the bloody firemages they were the worst of them. He shoved Ana down the trapdoor, Jaroslav followed with the body of Dragan and after him came Egon. "You'll be singing a different tune very quickly, little dove." Milosh said his voice full of venom. He would savour every last moment of making this one sing. Egon took the lead carrying a torch to light the darkness so they could navigate the dark maze beneath the city.
     
  4. al215 Kingdom Keeper

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    "The medallion was vibrating... That means that woman was a sorceress and used some sort of magic... Or maybe you're right about him being a Doppler. To be fair, there are a few Witchers around that I don't know." Derrick mused. He folded his arms and leaned back with one leg slung over the other as he thought on it. However, it seemed that Vyle was feeling a fair amount of guilt about it. "There's nothing you could have done. However... I can track them for you. My senses and training will be useful. I hate to ask this of you, but Witchers don't work for free. If I help you with this... Then I'll need something." It seemed hardly fair to charge Tatiana for his services, and not Vyle. However, it'd be at a much lower rate because it would be a much, much smaller job.
     
  5. Aelin Best Waifu

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    Tessa left and before Seth could follow her, he was spot by the witcher. Well this was not good. Seth stood up, his limbs ached from the cold and crouching so long. His lips were slightly blue due to being as cold as he was, but still he turned and faced Veceslav with all the pride he could muster while wearing a floral print dress. "You know-" Seth was cut off by hearing his name being called. Turning to be the source of the call if found Zack there and frantic.

    "Tessa is in trouble? F*ck! As much as this conversation was going to be good and lovely we have a bigger matter. Lets go!" Seth said as he took off running behind the lead of Zack. He kept running until he saw an explosion. Though he wasn't sure if it was connected, it was in the right direction. Soon enough Seth found his way near the building where the explosion happened. "Sh*t Tessa! Where are you!" Seth called out as he began to run around the building and hoped he could find Tessa safe outside the building. It would be a lot more dangerous to go in.

    He was in luck to find
    Tessa outside, however she was not safe. "Tessa!" Seth ran to Tessa's side and put his hand firm over his wound. "What happen? Who did this?! Tessa listen to me, you will be alright! I promise." Seth said as he held her. He didn't know how to heal her so he simply tore a piece of cloth from the dress and pressed it against the wound.
     
  6. Relatively Sane Gummi Ship Junkie

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    "I wouldn't dare leave a lady such as yourself on her own, I'm sure Derrick wouldn't either" Vyle stated kindly to Tiana, turning back to Derrick he nodded "Very well, bear in mind I don't have much. I can always offer you a favour in return..." Suddenly the vampire heard a large booming sound resonate around the city "That sounds like trouble" Vyle swooped out of the tavern and sprinted to where he heard the noise. "They're around here somewhere..." Vyle muttered. He noticed an abandoned building nearby, hesitantly entering the building he saw unmistakable marks of fire magic... and cages... "Curse them. CURSE THOSE VILE CRAVENS!" Vyle scowled "She was here... Can you trace anything Derrick?"

    Solomon sat back slightly as the witcher talked "Has anyone ever told you you talk too much? Booooring. Dead people make better conversation than you" for a moment Solomon remained silent, chewing on a piece of bread given by Claire "I shall be there, but you will not see me. My revenants will be there though" Solomon chuckled spontaneously "Also you shouldn't make assumptions, these aren't exactly children anymore. Claire, show miss Veera your lovely little face" the cloaked girl turned and pulled off her hood. Those glowing blue eyes looked forlornly out of a ruin of a face. The skin was pale and wracked with scars and open wounds, the neck in particular, where the undead had strangled her. Her lips were pallid and bloodless, her hair falling out in clumps. "Why do I do this? Darling, my reasons are beyond your comprehension..."
     
  7. al215 Kingdom Keeper

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    "A favour. I can settle for that. We'll call tha-" Derrick stood up, accidentally pushing the table they were sitting at a bit in his haste. A sound like that was hardly normal, and Vyle clearly agreed. The Vampire was out of there in a flash and the Witcher could only follow. "Tatiana, with me! And bring the horse!" He knew that involving her was a bad idea, but he had no idea what else to do with her. He had to keep her close just in case trouble caught up with her. Speaking of catching up, by following his Senses he was able to track Vyle down. He had got used to his scent and was able to trace it through the streets. He caught up with him eventually, and when he entered the building he immediately entered business mode. Before the Vampire asked, he was already examining. Clear signs of some sort of fire magic. He nodded to Vyle and set about examining the building.
    "Cages... People were kept here. Shackles for the ankles." Derrick grimaced. "Dimeritium. Someone was keeping sorcerers here... Looks like two." That puzzled, and concerned him. This was definitely an illegal activity. This wasn't business of the sort that Archon would get involved with. That meant that it was something underground. Very, very illegal.
    "Trafficking mages? Risky business." The Witcher commented. He examined the various prints on the floor. It was confused in places, but there seemed to be two distinct sets of tracks. One seemed to be a larger group. There was a spot on the ground in the soot where a body probably lay, and then one of the tracks seemed to favour one side. That suggested to him that one man was carrying a body. Beyond that, it was hard to say how many. Four perhaps. The other set was all broken up into a run. From what he could tell, there was at least three and they headed outside, as opposed to the others who headed to a wall. That screamed secret passage. "Okay... Vyle we have a choice. There's a secret passageway here. I'm not sure how it opens yet, but it looks like a large group went through. Three of them headed outside. Now, of the tw-" He heard shouting coming from outside and he became alert. Panicked. Calling a name.
    "Make that three. Someone is outside. They're panicked about something. I can hear them talking frantically." Derrick added. He looked at the Higher Vampire. "Choose quickly. We're already behind."
     
    Last edited: Feb 9, 2016
  8. Vladek515 Hollow Bastion Committee

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    Veceslav had completely ignored the man known as Seth and agreed that this was more important than the trivial matter of Tatiana that matter had already taken place, judgement could be passed on that later. This situation still could go every way and it had to be atleast stabilised so not a bad outcome would come to pass. He ran with the others this was bad, Seth was panicking calling out her name. If the girl was in trouble that really wasn't gonna help at all. Only more likely to get her into more trouble, luckily they found the girl. But that was all there was to say about it. She looked pretty bad. Veceslav immediatly knelt down, next to her, shoving Seth aside "Seth keep pressure on that wound." He took the flask he had given her and administered the magenta liquid to the girl. It was just a natural healing potion and therefor wouldn't have the potentially devastating effects of witchers potions. This was bad, they needed a medic and they needed one quickly. "Get us a bloody medic" He ordered Zack throwing the man a small pouch of coin to get the medic to come along and to buy supplies if needed, it was more than enough.


    Egon lead the way for the compatriots through the secret passage, lighting the darkness with the torch. Milosh dragged Ana along with them when she wasn't cooperating. To make things easier on himself Milosh just outright knocked the mage out and slung her over his shoulder. The passage lead into the sewers, Egon expertly navigating the sewers towards the exit that lay outside of the city. The noises from the sewers were far from pleasant and they all knew the danger of drowners being down here. However they knew how to deal with these simple monsters. Luckily for them they were left alone, thanks to the recipe they had swiped off an Alchemist they had captured last week for Drowner pheromones, masking them as one of their own making the idiotic creatures leave them alone.

    The exit had been barred off to prevent any invaders easy acces to the city, but they had left a key around here somewhere in preparation. Milosh looked around for a moment trying to remember where the hell it had been. After several moments of searching he found it and unlocked the gate. The group left the sewers locking the gate behind them. If that explosion had drawn unwanted attention then they had to lose it and quickly. Well that would be simple they would move to the main road as quickly as possible get their tracks muddled by those of many others. Egon extinguished the torch and lead the way towards the main road they were headed for one of their hideouts in the woodlands North, North-west of Oxenfurt there Milosh would get to play with the lovely little dove.
     
  9. Relatively Sane Gummi Ship Junkie

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    Fuming with rage Vyle stood clenching his fists as he listened to Derrick, with every word he felt the pain Ana must have gone through. As Derrick finished talking, having outlined his failure expertly, Vyle punched the wall of the secret door with rage. He didn't expect to break through, he just needed to vent his anger. "Witch Hunters" Vyle hissed. He'd met their ilk in the past, vile creatures, each and every one of them, chasing down and torturing non-humans for no reason other than jealously and prejudice. Breathing heavily Vyle banged his head against the wall, trying to calm down. "Very well... very... well. Derrick, it's clear you're the best shot I have at tracking these villains. Please, try to get through that door. If you can't, I ask you to follow the tracks of those who ran outside. We need to bring these men to justice. I'm going to investigate what's going on outside, I'm sure it's connected. Tiana, come with me. No offense meant but I wouldn't want you slowing down Derrick" with that, Vyle strode out of the building, fire in his eyes. The scene he came across was interesting, a girl bleeding out with a massive wound in her, an old witcher, and two other men. This witcher wasn't the same as the man he'd seen carrying Ana away, unfortunately. "I am not in the mood to be answering questions, please oblige me by answering my own" Vyle asked the group in a clipped and angered tone. "Witch Hunters kidnapped my friend, held her in that building, and will probably kill her. Do you know anything about this?" Although the words were polite, the tone was not, as Vyle glared at the group, demanding answers.

    As Willow sat in the shadows in the tunnels leading into Sanctuary, she noticed a figure. It was Bryce, he supposedly had high authority amongst the doppler community. Willow didn't really care much for politics though. Stepping out of the shadows Willow appeared behind Bryce
    "Bryce, correct? I hear you've challenged a witcher to a battle" Willow smiled, almost flirtatiously "I'm impressed. There aren't many of us who willingly go up against witchers. Of course, I'm an exception" Willow flashed her knives briefly "Willow Duskstrider, at your service. I've been killing witchers for over ten years, you'll need my help if you want to win this"

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    "Beautiful Anna!" humoring this child was getting tiring, but he needed her to trust him. His was the only opinion worth listening to, he needed to drum that into her head. "Now you look just like a little princess. Actually, not quite. You're missing one thing..." Archon pulled a box out from his robes, it was ornate and extravagant, much like everything else Archon had. Opening it he pulled out a beautiful silver tiara, laden with rubies and emeralds and wrought in intricate patterns "Do you like it?" he asked, as he placed it on the young girl's head "It's been made especially for you" Unknown to Annabelle the tiara included a sightsign, a rune Archon could create that would let him see through it telepathically. He wouldn't let the girl out of his sight, even if he wasn't in the same room.
     
  10. Frosch Traverse Town Homebody

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    Ellyn nodded firmly, her face showing her determination to keep the farmer's remaining child safe.
    “I shall do that, Farmer Dave, I promise. Your son will be as safe as if he was still here by your side.” She spoke slowly and clearly, looking him hard in the eye. “And your daughter as well, if- your daughter as well,” she muttered. I shouldn't have said 'if'.
    Wheeling around on her heel, Ellyn marched back across the field, motioning with her hand for Gordon to follow.
    “You're to follow me for now,” she said in response to his question. “Afterwards you will guide me to this Nilfgaardian camp, and then find your sister.” She smiled at him encouragingly. “If you're doubtful about your safety, don't be. I intend to bring both of you back unharmed.”
    Without another word she marched to the stable where Oak was kept, the horse raising his head at her entrance and whinnying in greeting, before laying his eyes flat at the sight of Gordon. Ellyn patted his head and led him out of the stables into the yard, checking to see that the saddle and heavy barding were secure.
    “This is Oak,” Ellyn told Gordon as she stroked the massive beast, admiration shining in her eyes. “He's a war horse you know, trained to kick and bite our enemies. I'll make sure he doesn't do that to you of course,” she grinned. “He'll also be protecting you and your sister.” Oak stamped his foot at his.
    Suddenly Ellyn swung up into the saddle and grasped the reigns with a hand, the other reaching down towards Gordon.
    “We'll be faster if you ride behind me” she explained, “and Oak won't mind. Up.” Oak snorted disdainfully.



    Evander is just gonna derp around Novigrad for a while.
     
    Last edited: Feb 10, 2016
  11. Magick ~Meaner then my demons~

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    Veera felt bile rise in her throat, but refused to let her gaze leave the child's face. This is the cost of what I seek. This is what I will need to repay. A debt was owed for each life, and heavy it would be. "We all have our reasons. I was just hoping you would share yours, whatever they may be." She turned her eyes to Solomon, and looked at him. Really looked at him. Whatever she might be, she had had her family; Veceslav, Derrick, and Aaron, for whatever they were worth. Olivia too, the strange girl. This man....mage, whatever he might be, might have been...he had power. And nothing else.

    Despite her best effort, pity filled her gaze for a moment before she turned it aside. "I see I was mistaken. I'll leave you to your plans, and I hope you find whatever it is you're looking for in helping me." She started for the door, keeping a wary eye on these "revenants".

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    Teliana tried to slow down the witch hunters. Stumbled, tripped, whatever she could do to try to give herself more time, more openings to escape. No doubt Vyle was looking for her now. He didn't seem the sort to just give up on a person, however long he had known that person for. But maybe he got caught up in something. Maybe the witch hunters got to him...No. No they wouldn't need her for information on him, if that had happened. She hoped. It could just be an excuse, but the witch hunters had never needed an excuse before.

    That was when
    Milosh turned to her, and fear once again stilled her efforts. It was too late, and as he knocked her out, she prayed to the gods she would be given the gift of waking up one last time.

    Somehow, she was granted this wish. When she woke, she was upside down, being carried like the body she was probably about to come. She smelled the scent of trees, horse, and mud. They were outside the city, and her heart dropped. She shut her eyes, the tears that leaked between her lids silent. No one would find her out here. Their tracks were muddled with others, and there was no reason to think the small hut in Oxenfurt led the way outside the walls. For the first time in her life, Teliana lost all hope, and prepared to die.

    [​IMG]
    Tessa heard something, no...someone, calling her name. It sounded so far away. She felt the urge to go towards it, to answer back, but she was warm here. Something pressed against her side, and it burned. She didn't like that. She tried to squirm away from it, without moving from her comfortable position, but it was no use. Suddenly, her neck began to ache. Maybe this wasn't so comfortable. She should make Bryce get her a new pillow, but he was always so busy.

    Wait, why was he crying? Bryce never cried. Never. But she remembered him crying as he helped her lie down. He hadn't put her to bed since she was a girl of eight winters. Something was wrong. She needed to wake up, but it was so much work. Maybe later. She was too tired now.

    In the waking world that Tessa wasn't conscious for, her hand twitched slightly, the fingers trying to curl, but unable.

    [​IMG]
    Zack could only stare as first Seth, then Veceslav ran to Tessa's side. There was so much blood....so much. Had Bryce done this? Why would he do this? Why would anyone do this? Tessa would never hurt anyone. Ever. He caught the bag of coins that Veceslav tossed to him, numb as he turned and let his feet carry him. He wasn't sure where the nearest healer was, but he would start looking. He had to, for Tessa's sake.

    Eventually, he did find an old woman, peddling her wares with a watchful eye. When he pulled her aside, whispering quietly as he handed her the bag of coins, she quickly closed up shop and followed him, hobbling with her old cane as quickly as she could.

    On the way there, the woman managed to communicate to him that she was a mute, thanks to witch hunters, but she practiced healing magic. Not strong healing magic, but Zack didn't care. He couldn't afford anyone else at this point, and it would take too long.

    "I found someone." Zack said quietly as he returned. He could only once more stare as Tessa slowly bled away on the cobblestones, her face pale and drawn, eyes closed. The old woman hobbled to Tessa's other side, and knelt down. She pushed
    Seth's hands out of the way, and then Veceslav, her eyes narrowing at the men before turning to the girl. Soundless lips moved as the woman's hands fluttered over the wound, and the woman's eyes closed.

    She's right. We failed her. Zack most of all. He should have stopped her. He could have stopped this.

    [​IMG]
    Bryce blinked as the woman dropped down in front of him. "Willow...I've heard your name. You are most welcome." He nodded to her, before turning towards his office. "You'll apologize if I seem a bit distracted. Much to prepare, but feel free to follow me." He had cleaning, and healing supplies in the desk, and pulled both out now, lifting up the lower part of his shirt in order to swab the wound. The solution stung, and he watched as the skin slowly began to knit at itself. It would take a day to fully heal, but he would be fine for the battle.

    The solution made him think of Tessa, and he brushed his hand against his eyes before pulling his sword out of its sheath and grabbing a clean cloth, rubbing the blood, Tessa's blood, off. With every movement his chest ached a little more, but his eyes remained cold, and stony. "So, what brought you here? I took measures to make sure news of the battle didn't reach many ears. I didn't need an army of witchers at my back." His voice was steady, his back turned to
    Willow.
     
  12. Aelin Best Waifu

    Joined:
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    Tatiana didn't know if she was relieved or felt more guilty when Vyle said they wouldn't leave her alone. However as events unfolded she definitely felt guilty. When the explosion sounded and Vyle left to chase after the sound, Tatiana did her best to take the horse and just keep up with Derrick. She was definitely feeling better than she had, so she could keep up easier, but still she felt like she was slowing them down. That being said the horse was not being the most cooperative at times either.

    Getting to the location Tatiana made sure to stay quiet and out of the way until the discussions on what happened and what to do were complete. Looking around at what was left, Tatiana felt sick to her stomach. She felt like what she went through was insignificant and shouldn't actually matter. It made her feel like she needed to do something, but what could she do? She was just a weak human in the end. Staying out of the way was the only real option she had. Given that, Tatiana had no problem following the
    strange man in whom they only just met instead of staying with the person she trusted, Aaron trusted.

    Following
    Vyle behind the building however she had no choice but interfere with what he was trying to accomplish. Rounding the corner she had spotted four people huddled around something, or perhaps someone. However one thing stuck out of the four people, and that was a fiery red haired young man. It was the man from the brothel, the one that hurt her. He was a doppler so he could use many forms and yet he used the one that he used when he hurt her the first time. He was the cause of all this. Worse than that was the fact that beside him was Veceslav, and he was helping the doppler. Tatiana felt betrayed though Vec did not owe her any sort of loyalty.

    Despite the fact that she had been having troubles remembering things lately there was a few things she didn't forget, the face of the man who hurt her, and what he did to her, along with the pain of it. Tatiana's mind flashed through all these things. These memories brought on the phantom pains causing the girl to double over in pain. Tears streamed down her face as she looked up at
    Vyle. "I am sorry.... I am so sorry. You have to get me out of here. Please!" She pleaded with him. "I didn't want to make it any harder for finding your friend but...Gah!" Tatiana's sentence was interrupted by another sharp pain, though through panting breaths she continued. "But he... he nearly raped and killed me. I can't... I can't be here." She felt worse about dragging Vyle away from possible information, but there was little else she could do.
    [​IMG]
    Seth did as he told and kept pressure on the wound right until the medic pushed him out of the way to start her work. He happily moved aside if it meant saving Tessa's life. Seth looked up going to respond to the person who approached asking questions... or snap at him would be a better description of what he was going to do, however this didn't come to pass because of an unexpected face. The girl was with him, the one he had hurt, and she looked scared and in pain. If that was not enough of an answer to Veceslav nothing would be. Seth knew he was in trouble and had to get out of there, but one look at Tessa and he knew he couldn't move. Seth just held Tessa's hand tight and remained quiet, staring at Tessa's face and not daring to look up at the people around him. He was sure they would be more than a little mad at him and there was little chance that he would survive much longer, and yet still he felt he had to stay with Tessa. She gave him the benifit of the doubt when little would, and she was kind to him. He wouldn't abandon her in her time of need, even if that equaled his own death.
    [​IMG]
    An explosion echoed through the city. Aaron wanted to see what happened and wanted to help if he could, but he also knew that if Veceslav of Derrick were in the city it was likely that they would have the same thoughts. If Aaron was going to find either of them, it would be there. Arriving at the location of the blast he found his thoughts correct as he stepped inside the abandoned building to see Derrick in the room. "So it seems she was correct." He mumbled to himself before approaching Derrick.

    "Is everything alright? Do you know what happened here?" The young witcher asked as he approached. First he would help out here, then he would see if he could get Derrick to return and meet Veera with him. Perhaps in the end he would even ask if Derrick had seen Veceslav, however that idea still made him uncomfortable. The old witcher would be more than pissed at him. For now Aaron would take things one step at a time and right now that was helping Derrick so he could rope Derrick into helping him and Veera after.
    [​IMG]
    Annabelle gasped at the sight of the tiara. It was beautiful, perhaps the most beautiful thing she had seen. After it was placed on her head, Annabelle looked at herself in the mirror and smiled as she swayed a bit. "It is so pretty! I look like a real princess now! Thank you! Thank you so much!" She said as she twirled around. She was every bit like the princesses she saw in all those books the night before, perhaps even more beautiful in her opinion. The fears of having to meet the people melted away as she was excited to show off her new look. "I am ready to go when you are!" She announced taking one last look at herself before turning to Archon and waiting for further instruction. She never had been good at doing things herself and being independent, she wasn't allowed with Yana and before that she was simply too young.
     
  13. Vladek515 Hollow Bastion Committee

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    Veceslav did what he could in an attempt to save Tessa, he looked at Seth sitting across from him, holding on to the girl's hand. He looked at the man "Hey, look at me. It's gonna be alright, okay?" Veceslav said, he had spoken the lie many times before holding the hands of the children who wouldn't make it. It was a part of him, he could say those words without making it look like a lie. It looked bad, very bad to be perfectly honest, but he couldn't abandon all hope. His rough hands softly stroked the girl's hand. Something a sorceress had taught him a long time ago when dealing with people who needed the humanity. He knew it wouldn't help at all, but just maybe she'd know she was not alone. "Hang in there, Tessa, hold on with all that you got, just like with the pole in the river." He spoke softly, it was then Vyle arrived and was demanding answers. Veceslav only looked at the man and said "Sorry to hear about your friend, but as you can obviously see we have more pressing matters at hand." His voice was even and calm.

    Soon after that Zack had returned with a medic, Veceslav, after the first shove moved away, leaving the Medic to her work, as she closed her eyes to concentrate. The way the woman had looked at him, almost as if they were the ones that had done it to her. Things were further complicated by the appearance of someone that had supposed to be at the Kaer, it was no one less that Tatiana. She really didn't look too well and she even spoke to the man she adressed as Vyle saying something he had already known. That Seth had been the one that had hurt her. While normally this would warrant Seth's death in his book, this situation was far from normal. Zack and Seth were the only ones Tessa had left after the betrayal by Bryce. He himself would protect the girl had he not been a witcher. Though with it being winter he did have more time on his hands. He was getting distracted, the girl had only Seth left if she survived she needed help, something this man could provide her with. The truth of the way this man felt was right there in front of him and maybe he could figure some other sort of punishment out. Death wasn't going to solve this, it would only make more problems. He moved over, positioning himself half between Vyle and Seth.
     
  14. Magick ~Meaner then my demons~

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    There were so many people, Zack was quickly getting overwhelmed. Witchers and a strange man and a girl who was making noise and clinging to the man. Noise about Seth. Zack didn't need to hear anything else and came to stand by the doppler. His gaze was cold, and his body numb. Only his brain seemed to be working. I won't lose another friend today. "Go away." He said emotionlessly to Vyle, crossing his arms across his chest. "Your mage friend was taken in to that building, and she isn't coming out ever again. She's gone. Pray to the gods her death is quick, because that's the only thing you can do for her now." It was hopeless, truly. Underneath the numbing, Zack knew there was a dark anger, and while he was afraid of what it would make him do, he also welcomed it. Anything was better then pain.

    And amidst the deadened thoughts whirling around his brain, one of them sparked, and clicked. "There were two. Both of them, wanted for information. One was a boy, who knew about a man that danced with skeletons." Or at least, that was what Zack had caught of the conversation. "The other was a woman. She had a powerful friend, not a mage. They wanted that friend." Zack was not a betting man, but of two things he was sure. Those mages were dead, and
    Vyle was that woman's friend.

    Normal, blissfully ignorant Zack would have felt bad for the man, maybe offered condolences. Angry, hateful Zack wanted the world to hurt as much as he did right now.
    "She's going to die for
    you. But if you want to waste her final moments tracking down people, find Bryce. He sold her, and he didn't even know her name." Zack nearly choked on the last words he spoke. It was so stupid, that the world worked this way. How could someone sell someone else, when they didn't own them? When they didn't even know them?

    [​IMG]
    Tessa felt torn apart. The pain pulled her one way and the warmth another. "Hold on." A voice whispered. "Hold on to what?" she wanted to shout back, twisting and turning underneath the pressure. It was so much. She wanted this to end, all of it to end. Voices, hands, things, it was just too much. Just let me go! She screamed at herself, giving one last wrench. And suddenly, she was free.

    The pain threatened to overwhelm her, but she rose above it, swam in it. Breathe, she whispered to herself. Just breathe through it. That was what the midwives told women in childbirth, and it seemed to help here. The pain wasn't just physical, though the burning in her side didn't seem to have an end. The memory of Bryce's face, of his pain, his tears, his sword plunging into her back, her blood mixing with his on the ground, her head leaning against the alleyway wall, they circled her brain in constant repetitive order, forcing her to relive the moment again and again and again.

    "I won't do it!" She screamed, wishing to pound her fists against the ground. "I won't let him do this to me!" She still needed to see the world, she still needed to find Seth, to talk to him....Seth. Sethsethsethsethsethwherewasseth. Someone said his name, and it wasn't her. Was he here? Had he found her? She struggled against the black, wrenching free and completely enveloping herself in the pain....

    Tessa's eyes fluttered open, and she gasped for air. The old woman who had bent over her moved back, though her hands still glowed over the wound, a strange mixture of colors that made Tessa feel sick to look at. Her vision was blurry, and her mind was fuzzy, but something was griping her hand so tightly, she couldn't feel her fingers. A very
    familiar hand. "Fingers." She whispered, coughing and gasping for air. Despite the cost that word have forced upon her, she tried again. "hurting...my fi-" Almost three words, she told herself as she started coughing again, her chest heaving with the effort.

    She moved her other arm, and despite the old woman trying to keep her still, poked
    Seth in the face. It wasn't nearly as endearing as she hoped, but it was all she could manage. "Dress....?" before the old woman forced some odd smelling liquid down her throat, forcing her to drink it. It tasted like healing, but healing tasted like cow dung.
     
  15. Relatively Sane Gummi Ship Junkie

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    Vyle glared at the one Tatiana seemed upset about "Fine. Go back" he muttered to her "I'm only one man, I don't have the time to bring every piece of scum in this city to justice, I just want to find Ana" he justified his reasoning for not dealing with Seth at this moment in time. That was when one of them decided to be very helpful, but when he decided to blame Vyle for Ana's fate something inside the vampire snapped. In the blink of an eye Vyle lunged forward, grabbing the man by his neck and pushing him up against the wall "STOP REMINDING ME!" he bared enormous fangs threateningly "Who is this Bryce?" he hissed menacingly "And where is he?"
     
  16. al215 Kingdom Keeper

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    Derrick began examining the room as everyone went outside. He breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, he was on his own and able to do his job in relative peace. Also, Tatiana had been removed as something to worry about, at least at the moment. Derrick examined the room more carefully. By the looks of things, the secret passageway was a wooden trapdoor in the floor. If he had to guess, based on the positioning, it probably led down a staircase of some kind. He couldn't see any obvious way of opening it. To double check his hypothesis, the Witcher got on his knees and knocked on the wood. He nodded to himself at the sound that he heard. It sounded hollow below. That meant he was on the right track.
    "Part one of the puzzle..." He stood up and looked around more, his eyes now flicking across the walls. The mechanism was probably close to the door. His keen eyes examined every panel of the wall for some sort of hint. Whatever that magical explosion was, it was doing him a favour. Having thrown soot and all kinds of dirt around, it made it easy to see where people had brushed past, or been standing and blocking its path. One panel in particular seemed suspect. There were two hand marks and the ash had been scraped off it unevenly as it if had been dragged across. He tapped one wall. "Place is solidly built. That means..." He knocked on what he believed to be the secret panel and knocked.
    "And part two. Gotcha!" He said with a smirk. His ears picked up something and he looked around, only to see Aaron standing there, much to his surprise. Derrick took a crossbow bolt and shoved it into the secret panel as a reminder of where it was and looked at the boy. Well, relatively speaking a boy. "So Veera brought you here too. If you're here, Veceslav is or he's already on his way. Olivia should be here soon. That makes the entire Kaer here in Oxenfurt. So much for not following him." He chuckled, but then his face became serious. Since he asked...
    "Not at all. Looks like illegal mage trafficking. If he wasn't such a racist ******* with a vendetta against Witchers, I'd be tempted to report it to the King's men, or the man himself. He'd probably pay well to have them uprooted, whoever did it." Derrick explained. "And as for what happened... Looks like one of their captives got out of hand. They've got Dimeritium shackles. They probably let the mage out for a moment and boom. At least one casualty I think. There's a body mark in the soot over there and one of the trails seems to favour a side, as if he's holding something over his shoulder. Probably the body. And I think in the confusion, one escaped. Somewhere in the city there's a mage running for his life with two angry people behind him. Or her. Could be the one who set off the explosion. That would make the most sense to me. Fire and run off in the chaos, but they definitely got at least one. Two of the cells are occupied and there's only one track that looks like it could be a fleeing mage." He realised that he had explained the situation rather quickly and it was probably a little much for him all to take in.
    "That enough detail for you?" He said with his trademark grin.




    [​IMG]

    "Thank ye. I'll look forward to seein' me Matilda back then Miss." Dave said with an understanding nod. He noticed the If. That meant that she was really considering the idea that she may not come back at all. At least she had said that much. He then went back to farming. In a whole other corner of the field. As far as he was concerned it was entirely Gordon's problem now. He was going to have to do the work that the boy was getting out of today. It's not that he wasn't worried, quite the opposite, but the farmer knew that sometimes it was best to let people deal with a problem and just move on. If he worried too much then he'd never get any of this damn work done.

    Meanwhile, Gordon followed Ellyn like a lost poppy across the field. He was meant to follow her and follow her he would.

    "I don' think I'll be in danger with you around. You could fight anything with all that." The farm boy said with a hint of admiration in his voice. He couldn't help but be in awe of the lady that had come over to help save his sister out of what seemed to be the kindness of her heart. She had all that armour, and she had weapons and now he saw her horse. It was huge. He hadn't seen a horse like that before. And he was going to ride it. He would have been more excited, if it didn't narrow its eyes at him. "A-Are you sure it doesn't mind?" He said nervously as he took Ellyn's hand and was lifted on to the horse. He seated himself behind her and immediately felt quite unsteady. He instinctively leaned forwards and wrapped his arms around her stomach.
    "S-S-Sorry. I-I think I'll fall off." He looked down worriedly and clutched her tighter. "Wh-What should I do?"
     
  17. Aelin Best Waifu

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    To Tatiana it seemed that
    Vyle didn't care about her fear or what happened and had no intent on leaving, instead just telling her to go. She glanced around at those around her, her eyes resting on Kruez for a moment, hoping for some help, but the moment she heard Vyle snap, she couldn't take it. Tatiana took off running out of the ally and towards another one. All she knew is that she had to get away from them, all of them it felt like, but especially Seth.

    "What do we got er? A little lass it seems?" A gruff voice said as he stepped out of the shadows of the ally and grabbed Tatiana.
    "No much she can do now without 'er little wicha friends to protect 'er." A second one said as he approached, chuckling as he watched Tatiana squirm.
    "Are ye' sure this es de one?" The first one asked as he wrapped his hand around Tatiana's mouth to keep her from screaming.
    "I'm sure, but we could always give 'er a go first. Check if the goods are still worth the price we will be getting paid." He took his sword and started lifting up Tatiana's skirt.
    Tatiana's screams were muffled by the first man's hand, she squirmed and thrashed trying to break free, however his grip on her was far too strong as he yanked her close to his body holding her against his.

    "I 'ope ye'r up for a fun night. Just don't break before we get our pay." He whispered in her ear before yanking her down the dark ally.
    [​IMG]
    Seth wasn't paying attention to what was happening around him, he only was paying attention to Tessa and how she was doing. However in that moment he did glance away, the girl seemed to wake up, his attention was brought to this by her words. "Oh! Sorry!" He said as he loosened his grip on her hand. "I am glad to see you awake." He then commented as he rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. Things were starting to look up for Tessa, though he knew it wasn't all sunshine and roses from her on out. The next word out of her mouth confused Seth at first before he remembered what he was wearing. "It is a long story. I will tell you about it later, for now you should rest and heal up. The medic is doing a great job, you just have to hang on a bit longer." His voice was calm and soft as he did his best to be strong for Tessa's sake. To make her convinced that she would be alright to make her fight harder for her life. She would make it, he was convinced of that. She was stronger than anyone gave her credit for. She was an angel after all.
    [​IMG]
    Aaron listened closely to Derricks analysis of the situation. "The explosion was big from what I could tell. Are you sure that the one that set if off was the one who ran. It would have had to be pretty close to the person don't you think, I mean to be able to get it off in time? If that is the case then it is likely they got injured in the blast, running wouldn't be an option. Of course this is just speculation but something we should probably look into." Aaron pondered as he looked around the room, using his witcher senses to take in everything around him to the best of his ability.

    "
    So what would you like me to do, I will give you a hand if you allow it." Aaron offered. He purposely avoided the comment about Veera, he would deal with that mess later. First he had to deal with this one, and this seemed like a big one. Unfortunately he didn't have much time, there was a war with the dopplers that he had to remember. He had to get Derrick to help them too, but that meant getting through this as fast as possible, so he would do what he had to.
     
  18. Vladek515 Hollow Bastion Committee

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    Zach had answered the Vampire's question and confirmed that witchhunters were in fact existing. Vyle like any other person didn't like to be reminded of his mistakes however that hardly warranted what he did next. The fangs immediatly told him what the man was. The old Crow drew his silver sword, merely if things went sour, but he held it idly at his side. "Hey! this man over here's got nothing to do with the abduction of your friend. I understand you are angry, but take that anger out on the person who deserves it, which isn't him. This Bryce bloke, he is on my hitlist as well simply for what he did to her." He said pointing to Tessa "Now if you could let my mate go, maybe we can talk about this like civilised people and maybe even come to an agreement to working together." He spoke his words carefully and he remained sharp, this could get out of hand very very quickly. And while he didn't exactly know Zach and only had just met the bloke, he had been entrusted by Tessa to find him and a friend of a friend he was more inclined to defend.

    Egon, Milosh and Jaroslav were now well on their way towards their hideout, but there was one last thing they needed to take care off. They went over to a small pond and one by one, so the other two could watch Ana washed the Drowner pheromones off, they didn't need them anymore and all they did was give a possible trail, then again they'd be hardpressed to follow that through the sewers anyways there were enough drowners there. Milosh saw that Ana had woken up again. "Sleep well, Princess?" He asked with a grin on his face, not the mischievous kind of grin. "Don't worry, you'll get a nice an comfortable bed in your new home." Milosh slung her over his shoulder again and they continued on their way.

    A small time skip later

    They had arrived at their hidden base of operations. It was situated in a cave removed far from the road in a wooded area. The cave had been cleared of monsters before the base had been made there years prior this was just one of several scattered throughout Archon's lands each and every one a cell operating on their own. And while most knew there were others out there only a small group of individuals knew where they were. Milosh put Ana in another cage, once more shackling her ankle to the floor of the cage, but he didn't take off the shackles around her wrists. "You know it's a shame that such a lovely face must belong to a witch, then again it's what you all do, make yourselves look pretty. Soon we'll see if this lovely bird has a singing voice to match it's coat." Milosh laughed he threw some bread into the cage for Ana to eat and moved a bowl of water in for her to drink. He then went away to tend to some other business. Jaroslav stood watch by the cage and Egon had gone back out side to prepare a burial for Dragan.
     
    Last edited: Feb 11, 2016
  19. Relatively Sane Gummi Ship Junkie

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    "Cheerio" Solomon bade farewell to Veera. He clicked his fingers again and the orphanage was plunged into darkness as the candles were extinguished. Slowly, Solomon left the main hallway and approached a door "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, aren't there?" he muttered to himself "I seem to find myself playing them all" with a wave of his hand a revenant kicked down the door. Beyond the door a stairwell lead down into a basement, Solomon descended. He did not require light to guide his way "Death. Well that one's obvious. I am the very essence of death" he pondered as he stepped down into the shadows. Within the basement appeared to be some kind of lab, various flasks and glass laid across the room. What really interested Solomon was a slab with constraints and straps upon it "Miss harmless orphanage lady isn't so harmless after all, well played miss" he admired the general look of the lab "I have represented famine in the past, depriving whole towns of food and watching as they slowly degrade. Starvation, one of the most slow and horrible kinds of death, after weeks of eating nothing, one becomes nothing" Solomon continued to pace around the room "War? Battlefields are my favourite places, so many souls caught in that moment of shock and torment, it's surprising how many people run into battle expecting to live. I shall look forward to the aftermath of this battle, no matter which side wins" Solomon chuckled. Slowly he picked up a flask of some vile green liquid "Ah... but pestilence?" A thin, manic smile crept across the necromancer's face "That'll be a new one"

    "I don't have time to talk like a civilised person!" Vyle let go of the trembling doppler. Vyle held his head in his hands for a moment "A decision must be made here... right... as bad as this Bryce fellow is, Ana's safety is priority at this moment" without a word Vyle returned to the building "Derrick!" he shouted to the witcher, he pointed at the footprints running out of the door "Ana's life is on the line, you haven't got time to chat! If we follow those tracks we'll hopefully be able to find witch hunters who'll tell us where Ana's been taken, I'm sure we can persuade them. Let's go, no time to lose!" Vyle hurried Derrick along.

    Willow watched silently as Bryce treated himself, she knew nothing about medicine herself, she was more used to doing the very opposite "I have my contacts" she said vaguely as he asked her how she knew about the battle. Sitting down, she began to fidget absent-mindedly with one of her knives "You haven't done a very good job of keeping this secret, every witcher of Kaer Morhen is in the city, and mages sent by the king, what's his name? Archon" she stated casually "Couldn't really care for that man, mage sympathiser, according to the rumours. But he's on your side apparently, probably some sort of ulterior political motive behind it"

    [​IMG]
    "Excellent" Archon smiled thinly "One thing before we go" subtly, Archon weaved a glamour upon Annabelle, removing all her scars and cuts and bruises "The people are bound to love you" he turned sharply and suddenly to face down a servant "Where is my cloak and crown?" he demanded. Shortly afterwards both articles of clothing were delivered. Archon looked extravagant and royal in his outfit, embellished with gold and purple "Take my hand Anna, and we'll go out onto the balcony" below the palace crowds were gathered, and as Archon stepped out there were cheers. Archon's propaganda kept the people in adoration, and fear. "Greetings, people of Novigrad" he shouted. He looked down at Annabelle smiling reassuringly "Today, a new member of the Dragoncrest family has been adopted, may I introduce my adoptive daughter, Princess Annabelle Dragoncrest" there was a shocked gasp from the crowd, royalty adopting those of non-royal blood was almost unheard of, but it was soon replaced with cheers for the beautiful young princess.

    "So who exactly is the leader of this "Sanctuary" place then?" Bramwell asked imploringly, Sylvi was already getting annoyed with him, he asked too many questions
    "They don't really have one, but the one named Bryce holds power" she explained reluctantly, the two were walking along a road of Oxenfurt, Sylvi was uncomfortable being out in the open, but Bramwell being here made stealth almost impossible
    "So where is this "Sanctuary" then?"
    "I don't know" Sylvi gritted her teeth
    "What? So we're just supposed to wander around until we find a doppler?"
    "...not quite"
    "Archon wants us to help the dopplers against the witchers in this upcoming battle, this Bryce fellow must succeed or Sanctuary is lost. If Sanctuary is going to fall, it must be by Archon's hand, we can't let the witchers win!"
    "I know! Shut up already! Do you want to announce official plans to the whole city?" she hissed.
     
  20. Magick ~Meaner then my demons~

    Joined:
    Aug 11, 2008
    Gender:
    Female
    Location:
    The True North.
    390
    [​IMG]
    Veera stood outside for a moment, breathing in the sunshine and fresh air in relief. No matter the mage's motives, he was unsettling in any context. Even outside, she didn't feel safe until she was several blocks from the orphanage. Perhaps it is high time to find Aaron, and deal with that comeuppance I've been promised. As much as she hated to, on the eve of battle, she knew it was better to do it, and get it over with.

    Veera set off towards the center of town, eyes moving warily from each side of the street. Oxenfurt was large, but it had nothing on Novigrad. She expected to find
    Aaron before the end of the day, and whomever he had found along with them.

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    Ana flinched when Milosh mentioned her looks, before turning away. She was no stranger to torture, but there was only so much a person could take before their soul was damaged beyond repair. She wasn't sure she wanted to find out what her soul could take. Physical scars faded, but the emotional ones always remained. She pushed the bread away, the water too, and curled up in the corner of the cell, resting her forehead on her knees as the knot in her stomach wove tighter and tighter. There was a chance the water was drugged, or the food poisoned. Not enough to kill her, but enough to send her spiraling into hell much sooner. She had experience in the hallucinogenic qualities of the local mushrooms, (mostly when she was younger), but the wrong dosage would send one into an endless torment created by their own mind.

    "
    Vyle, what are you doing now?" She whispered, raising her head to stare at the shackles around her wrists. They clanked whenever she moved, and the dimeritium burned against her skin, leaving a red mark that only worsened with time. "I knew we shouldn't have come back." She continued, her voice breaking on the last words before she pressed her face into her hands and cried, her sobs silently shaking her body.

    [​IMG]
    The only thought Zack had when Vyle put him down, was that he was glad his bowels were empty. Otherwise he would need a new pair of pants. Having seen where sassing an unknown entity got him, he backed up until he was closer to Veceslav, who's words had calmed the scary man down. "Thank you." He whispered, clenching his shaking hands. "He probably would have killed me."

    [​IMG]
    Tessa swallowed the rest of the nasty liquid, and tried to sit up, a gasp escaping her lips as the wound in her side burned with renewed force. Through hand signals, the woman indicated she had done all she could, and that Tessa would have to heal the rest of the way. She should also keep from walking, or moving, Tessa wasn't sure which. Looking down, Tessa flinched at the sight of her injury, her hand tightening on Seth's. As much as she wanted to look away, she couldn't. The gash was ugly, gaping with blood still oozing from the open wound. The skin around was inflamed and red, the reaction to the silver in the sword.

    The woman motioned she had to stitch the wound now, and before Tessa could react, had plunged the needle, entwined with catgut string, into her abdomen. She cried out, struggling against the new pain as the woman motioned for
    Seth to hold her down. As Tessa's struggles increased, the woman banged her fist against the side of the building, to create enough noise to get Veceslav's and Zack's attention; more help was clearly needed.

    [​IMG]
    Bryce grimaced, and lowered his sword. "There's only so much containing you can do, when the perpetrator is a witcher herself." He replied. "And Archon? That man is the least of my concerns right now. If we're fighting against every witcher from Kaer Morhen, we'll need all the help we can get." He swung his sword experimentally before putting it away with a shhhkk sound. "Is there something you require of me?" He asked Willow, buckling his scabbard to his waist and turning to the emergency bag, packed in the corner. "I apologize, but I must give my lieutenants their orders, and vanish before the battle. There are currently several people that I expect will be looking for my head."




     
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