Sleiphner the Freezing-His-Booty-Off of the Knights Who Drink Tea Tea! Tea! Tea!

Sleiphner was, suffice to say, in a most uncommon predicament with the cold and what it was doing to his rump. As his teeth chattered and the winds howled around him, Night and her escort, Chorr were talking about something in regards to the tracks on the ground, and about scents. All he could garner out of it was that there was magic afoot.

Looking at his good hand, all fleshy and tender, he gazed upon the ring said to dispel the auras that may be surrounding them. It must be magic, right? The footprints with the odd scents as dictated by Night, the biting cold, the interference to the drop ship--it had to be.

He walked some amount of steps ahead and activated the ring, hoping to see into what couldn't be seen. Much to his surprise, he noticed flecks off in the distance, further into the clearing, it was as though the snow was curving around them--like they were being watched.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I--I think there's something up ahead. Something of a magical barrier sort. It's hard to make out, but I can't be sure with everything else, but it's a bit further inside the clearing."

Sagarys - The Rogue Scribe

Sagarys watched intently as Night and Chorr studied the tracks. The scribe was not unfamiliar with the art of tracking. In his days with the NMR performing... clandestine... tasks in the name of the dark lord, he had followed many a mark deep into the wilderness. As such, he considered his own abilities to be above average at the very least. But watching the werewolves, Sagarys could not help but be impressed. Truly these creatures were in their element.

"Ladies and gentlemen," came the hushed voice of Sleiphner, stirring the scribe from his thoughts, "I--I think there's something up ahead. Something of a magical barrier sort. It's hard to make out. I can't be sure with everything else, but it's a bit further inside the clearing."

Sagarys paused for a moment to consider the man's words. To the scribe's knowledge, no one else in all the Realm was aware of the existence of Morello's secret lair. Perhaps he was followed? The tracks they had found would suggest such as it would be very unlikely for the dark lord to bring anyone with him. Morello was smart -- he would never risk exposing that sort of power. Sleiphner and the werewolves both had also said that they sensed magic. This made Sagarys nervous. If there were powerful magic users in the area, they may already be aware of Sagarys and his companions. With that, Sagarys, still kneeling, turned his head to address his party.

"We cannot enter the cave until we find whoever is here," he whispered, his tone very serious. "We cannot risk allowing them to follow. Nothing can be allowed to stand between us and our goal. But we have little time to spare. Even now, Morello could be completing his ritual. Spread out. Find them, and bring them to me."

Anti-Fun Agenda

Feral veered upward and began to flap rapidly to keep himself hovering. I laid a hand on the drake's neck, offering what little comfort I could. At first he had been willful, living every bit up to his name, yet after I had thwarted a few attempts to be thrown or eaten, he had come to accept my orders. We must not land...With the way the winds had played tricks on us during our travel, even I would not blame him for refuting any commands.

The updrafts had carried the sounds of our war host to us sporadically for the last two hours, yet every time we broke cloud cover to descend we saw nothing. We must not land... Too far in any direction and we lost the sounds, yet no matter where we checked there was no sign of the army. Feral was past tired, and his last hunt had been at least six hours ago. We must not land... He was trying to answer the commands I gave, but there was only so much listening a beast could do. Finally, with a longing roar, Feral pushed into a nose-dive, allowing us to plummet towards the ground at a speed I found uncomfortable, to say the absolute least.

We must not land.. We must notland.. Wemustnotland...MUSTNOTLANDNOLANDNOLANDNOLAND!!! "NOLAND!" I found myself screaming, the panic rising with every inch that we fell.
"GAWROWW!" Feral roared, reluctance and doubt heavy in his cry.

It popped around us as soon as we entered, and suddenly our army came into view. A sprawling camp, organized, with the sounds of battle preparations reaching us as we fell. I could only look at the minions in wonder, my cloak billowing behind as the wind snapped at it. Our vertical descent was drawing too close, but Feral regained his composure before I reached any natural panic. I rubbed his scales, telling him "Well, beast, you've done well. The casters made a magnificent illusion, but we have passed. From henceforth it shall be a frenzy of slaughter and gore, at least for you." Feral broke his dive, gliding upward over tents, towards the feeding pens for the drakes. I did not wait but leapt from the saddle some fifteen feet above the ground.

Upon landing I spun back, placing the tip of my sword against the heart of a figure coated in shadows.
"Commander," intoned a voice as thin as a wisp, mist flowing from the super's covered mouth as if it were the middle of winter.

"Life. How pleasant to see you here instead of at the siege of the Brotherhood with the Lunar Knights I allowed you to captain." Life put a hand on the blade of my sword, the serrated teeth gripping through the leather undersides of his gauntlets and into his flesh. Something like liquid ice sloshed onto the ground.

"Your sarcasm is not appreciated, Commander. Your orders were too vague, and the Lunar Knights believe themselves bound to the fool you placed at their charge. He gave them some lessons, then foiled the entire mission by challenging some bear to one on one combat. There is no distraction. Your judgment was flawed." Life released my sword and took a step back, taking a knee before me. The minion was large, like the other supers, though he forsook the robes that every minion wore. Instead he wore a grey suit of flexible mail. His hood did not encase his face in shadows, but instead he wore a metal mask that left only his eyes visible. All of the armor was engraved with flowing ivy, vines, and depictions of tides of the ocean, but none of it made noise as he moved, a fact that Sight and I had both discussed on occasion. Life was abnormal, and every instinct I had told me to slowly allow him the embrace of my sword, but... I would not punish the super for being correct.

"Such news is disheartening, and worthless. The boy was given a task that he failed. When next I see the Lunar Knights I shall remove the order binding them to him and have them tear him apart to prove their loyalty."

"A wonderful boast, Commander. When you make good on it, please inform me. The supers could do with some news of your competence." Life arose and started on his way. His words should have concerned me, but I could not bring myself to care about what they perceived as my failures. They followed Zileas's agenda, and thus could not define success the way I could. Regardless, this was hardly why I had come.

"Life," I said casually after him, and the captain of the Lunar Knights turned his head to regard me coolly over his shoulder. "Gather the minions. Your Commander would speak." A nod, and then the minion was off, the carvings on his armor making his movements flow like a wave. With the assassin gone I had but to play a simple waiting game. Soon enough I could begin my ascent on that cursed mountain, and whatever folly Zileas had sent me here for would be accomplished.

If Zileas was right, the IsC would weep for this day when I spread the tale far and wide. If he were wrong... I hefted my blade, looking over the teeth and finding them all sharp to a point. I would not kill the wizard, but a punishment was never amiss.

Ambearsador Soupcup - Leader of the Brotherhood of the Armored Bear - On the Hunt.

Everyone trekked at what seemed to be a slow pace through the frosted tundra that made up their surroundings. Their travels since leaving the dropship were quiet, almost tranquil. Though Soupcup could not help but think about the dangers that may or may not lie ahead. He worried for everyone's safety, but he wouldn't falter at the thought. In his mind, he promised himself. Visions ensued of the Brotherhood. A quick glance of Tharus, another of Darren. Another of Gordon, and another of Volibear... And then, one of his entire Brotherhood. The onlooking of a nearby mountain that showed the entire Brotherhood in its mass, from the citizens to the ones who would come to bravely fight in the name of peace. He promised all of them, not only that he would survive, but that he would have everyone survive, and Morello be brought to justice. Though they could not hear this promise, a feeling burst through his heart that would come to glide across the lands. It was a promise that he would not break.

The chill of the air felt soothing to Soupcup, one who lived in a cooler climate in the north anyhow. Though he could see how Sleiphner was nearly shivering because of it. Soon, they seemed to nearly reach a clearing, where Sagarys piped in to say,

"There."

He pointed towards the inner areas of the clearing, and Soupcup began to walk forward, only to be stopped by Sagarys' hand in front of him. Soupcup shot a stern glance at Sagarys as he knelt down, only to observe some footprints that were laid about. From the looks, there were three sets, and one set's imprints were deeper. Night and Chorr had soon knelt next to Sagarys as Soupcup stood back to let them through. They began to smell the air. Soupcup had picked up a light scent, something more, off about this area. It didn't quite smell like the natural snow or large trees nearby, more than an animal or person. Soupcup started to smell the air, slowly taking in the oxygen and scent. Though it was faint, it was clear that there were some people up ahead. As to how far, he wasn't certain. Suddenly, Sleiphner said in a chilled voice,

"Ladies and gentlemen, I--I think there's something up ahead. Something of a magical barrier sort. It's hard to make out, but I can't be sure with everything else, but it's a bit further inside the clearing."

Sleiphner seemed to be right, as the scent pointed forward, but what was over there? Sagarys soon turned his head to address everyone,

"We cannot enter the cave until we find whoever is here," he whispered, his tone very serious. "We cannot risk allowing them to follow. Nothing can be allowed to stand between us and our goal. But we have little time to spare. Even now, Morello could be completing his ritual. Spread out. Find them, and bring them to me.

With that said, Soupcup slowly began to walk a bit forward, using the now thinned ranks of the trees as cover should he come across someone. He stayed close to the footprints, and close to the scent. This way, he could find exactly where they might be. Being only a few steps ahead of Sagarys, Night, Sleiphner, Phalonax and Chorr, Soupcup's head perked up as he noticed something very familiar about this scent. His teeth grit at the thought, but he couldn't be sure if it was true. He wanted to find out for himself, but wouldn't just rush in. "If it is him, what is he doing here?" Soupcup thought harshly. He wanted to find out more about the situation, but there was little to do. He looked to the rest of the group for their movements, so he could plan accordingly. It wasn't a situation that they wanted to make a bad move in, so they needed to tread carefully.

Haeos (And Company)
The Chroma-Ninja
Some Random Dock out in the Middle of Nowhere

The minions were still struggling to get the boat going. Honestly, how hard could it be? Just because there was no wind doesn't give them an excuse to take that long. Looking desperately for entertainment, Haeos looked over the side of the boat and onto the docks. There was relatively little activity...until a woman got into a bit of a scuffle with some pirates. Pirates. Haeos hated them almost as much as his sister did. He tried to look away and not draw Kohaku's attention to them, but she came over just as he turned around.

"Hey, Haeos, what're you looking at?" she asked, even though she already saw the answer.

Haeos sighed deeply. "Go ahead...just no killing, okay?"

His sister groaned. "Aw, you never let me have any fun."

Leaping off the side of the ship, she made her way over to the small group.

Kohaku
The Chroma-Ninja
Intervention!

Kohaku walked up to the small group of pirates and pair, both warrior and companion. "Hey, back off, you guys. I don't want...well, okay, I do want to hurt you, but I don't want to be forced to do anything messy. So stand down, unless you like a faceful of Kama."

Sleiphner The Still Freezing His Ass Off of the Knights Who Drink Tea Tea! Tea! Tea!

Sleiphner looked, shocked at the expression that Soupcup was putting on, and slowly walked forward toward him. Placing his hand on his shoulder and whispering in his ear: I have an idea of what it is, and based on your expression, yes, it is what you fear. But you and I are to split from the others. We have to go now. To save them from our pasts.

Phalonax 'Phalon' Valeion, Vladimist Blood Reaper and Iron Solari Assassin
Location: Somewhere in Urgot's Pass

With this, Phalon went another direction from where Soupcup had gone to find whoever made the tracks.

If she couldn't pick them up, they were either out of range, kept extremely low or Phalon's senses were getting dull.

I'm guessing either option one or three...

After walking a distance away from the others, she dashed away in a blink of an eye, off to find anyone else that was around. Like Sagarys had said, they didn't need anyone getting in their way. The fate of the world depends on this.

She stopped and looked around for a moment, trying to sense if anyone had tailed behind or if anyone was around.

No one yet...

Phalon took a few steps and saw someone, but as she took a few quiet steps, the figure looked all too familiar.

Shit! How the blood soaked hell...

Phalon quickly jumped behind a bush, hoping she wasn't spotted. They didn't need this now, and things were going to get really heated up if the both of them started fighting.

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Raio Fangar, the Firestarter

Raio stopped and looked around with the feeling she was being followed. It wouldn't end well if someone had been following her.

She heard footsteps and turned around, no one in sight.

If that's Phalon, this would be too easy.

She snapped her fingers and the trees lit on fire, melting the snow and charring everything else.

After a while, Raio snapped her fingers again, the fires vanishing. She looked around, seeing if anything was there. To her disappointment, the fire hadn't burned anything alive.

Must've been the wind.

With that, she adjusted the scythe on her back and kept walking.

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Good blood lord that was close..

The flames were just short of the bush Phalon took cover in.

That's Raio Fangar alright.

Slowly, she stood up and looked around in case someone had noticed the fires and came to investigate.

When she was sure no one was around, Phalon dashed away. The both of them were going to meet eventually, but now wasn't the time to fight.

Cassandra Irene - No faction
The Bride of Death, the Shining Spear, the Bloodbride, the Swooping Hawk, Master of Assault, and Mundo Medical Miss September.
Docks

Cassandra took Kohaku's speech to throw the first strike- against baseline humans, her enhanced physical attributes was a spectacle of mayhem. She didn't move at superhuman speed, but rather took the opportunity to strike at distracted opponents- before they could react, one of their fellows had lost the remaining teeth in his left jaw, as a massive boot mark was imprinted on his cheek.

Cassandra's high kick was delivered, as well as the message. She grinned at the others, eager to spill some blood on this new land. She had also taken their pistols, and without firearms they ran quickly- likely to fetch more of their crewmates for revenge.

"Thanks for the distraction." She said to Kohaku, the unconscious pirate remaining beneath her boot heel. Like a common thug she relieves the pirate of his coinpurse... she had made enemies on her first day it seemed, and she felt the need to leave before the town turned ugly.

"I see you have boat trouble. What's the problem?" She observed, while working on rebooting Dietrich's mind, lowering her hood and opening up her hextech core.

Kohaku
The Chroma-Ninja
On the Docks

The new stranger seemed to handle herself very easily against these opponents...Kohaku was a tiny bit sad over it. She'd wanted to pummel those pirates herself. But she shrugged it off.

"Thanks for the distraction," the warrior said relatively nonchalantly. Kohaku shrugged in response, starting to walk away. "I see you have boat trouble. What's the problem?"

Kohaku turned, grinning. Maybe this warrior was an adept engineer. "Well, we're not sure, exactly. The wind's plenty strong, but it doesn't seem to be moving at all."

There was a cry from the deck of the ship. Turning around, she looked back to the newcomer. "You might be some help. Want to come along?"

Cassandra Irene - No faction
The Bride of Death, the Shining Spear, the Bloodbride, the Swooping Hawk, Master of Assault, and Mundo Medical Miss September.
Docks

Cassandra closes up Dietrich's chest plate and robes. She then has the cyborg go over and inspect the boat. It was a sailboat, and she eventually pointed out the problem in her cold, synthesized voice. "Anchor. not. raised."

"Well, there's the problem. Alright, I'll take your kindess. I'm going to get my stuff first." She heads to her shack in town to retrieve her bike and gear, returning to the boat minutes later. The assault bike was large and clearly made for war, and the containers that filled the side car hinted at many delicious gear.