(OOC: Woohoo, Enchantment V!)

They trudged on. Well, the normal reaction would have been trudging if Artemis didn't keep the natural entropic trudginess from invading their systems, unconciously with her magic which had begun to seep into their muscles and minds, informing them to go on, sure, what was a few more miles eh?

The other un-trudginess was the fact that she had kept up a slightly annoying but focus-keeping small talk for the entire plain ride. "..And that's how I got Victor out last night. Wow, I just told like my entire life story, you guys must be glad right?" They didn't have the heart to inform her how right she was. "Because now its time for you guys turns! Like...uhmm..." Artemis dredged her mind for some non-her discussion topics. "So...Elmric?...how long have you and Avelia been close? I've always wanted to do that kind of stuff, ya know, some real substance to my little whirls and such, I just never met anybody who wanted to teach me and I always had the book close at hand...and look at that, I'm still talking about me, go on. You too Dar-Dare, don't you think I dragged you along because of your good looks...well, not just because."

(OOC: elementalism - VI)

Keeping his stride even so as not to tire himself out, Jacen saw Aieris ahead. Shifting the weight of the book at his side, he continued to follow the pull emanating from the wolf far ahead. I wonder if her and I are after the same thing. As the elven archer increased her pace, Jacen took a better look at the path he was travelling on. Aside from the few glimpses of farm houses in the distance, the way was devoid of any signs of habitation by human, elf, or dwarf.

The Midgaard River had veered further south away from the wolf and its stalkers over the course of their journey. On the high points of the plains, one could spot the river farther to the south and coming back to the north again. It was lost from view behind a forest that had been visible in the distance for hours but grew in significance with each step. The wolf had been trotting along a straight path since leaving Midgaard at dawn. It hadn't stopped to rest or drink, and hadn't even bothered to stop and look around. It was unusual behaviour for a natural hunter, but Aieris, Jacen, Artemis, Elmric, and Darren all knew in their hearts this wolf was anything but natural.

The stalkers and the wolf had been on a crash course with rather nasty-looking storm clouds headed for the Midgaard area from the east coast. The partly clouded sky in the morning became completely overcast with a dull, grey cover shortly after mid-day, and with each passing hour the darker, menacing thunderstorm drew closer.

All of them, Aieris in particular, grumbled as a chilly, steady rainfall began not an hour after the overcast. More than ever they wondered idly if following the wolf was a good idea, or even a sane idea, and if bringing supplies of any kind would have made the trek more pleasureable. Artemis did her best to enchant her clothes and hair to deflect the droplets. Darren was the first to plead for the same enchantment, as he had neglected to change out of his sleeping clothes but had remembered to bring his sword along. She enchanted both Elmric and Darren with the rain-deflecting spell and they continued on their way along the now-fading path of illuminated wolf paws.

Jacen walked in the rain for a little while, his connection to the elements gave him a certain affinity for all of nature's cycles. After a few miles the wet clothing became uncomfortable even for him, and with a careless wave of his hand all the water on his body and his clothes formed into a perfect sphere of water that began orbiting around his body, drawing in any new raindrops to come near. That was the second reason he enjoyed storms, it was common fact that elementalists gained a healthy increase in power during them.

Aieris refused to use anything but fire to try and dry herself. Water put out fire, and that made her rather angry. If a water elemental had been listening to her curses as the rainfall began, it would not have been pleased at all. Now she was torn. She could easily immerse herself in flames and keep dry, but there was the dilemma of a flaming, steaming elven woman striding across the plains of Kenshuria on a rainy afternoon. After talking to a ball of flame she conjured in her palm for several minutes, and a dozen or so "Bloody hell's" later, there was indeed a flaming, steaming elven woman striding across the plains of Kenshuria on a rainy afternoon. She reasoned that the elf named Jacen and the other three imbeciles probably weren't smart enough to figure anything out anyway. She walked on, straight after the wolf and towards the looming forest ahead.


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Raenor kept his longbow as ready as was possible in a prone position as he crept cautiously towards the gargoyles. The one dabbling by the river had since rejoined two others at some small rocks that had no doubt been moved to form a seating area for the hulking beasts. They were immersed in conversation and eating what looked like raw bird meat, of what kind specifically Raenor couldn't tell. The language the gargoyles spoke would be difficult to reproduce with human vocal abilities, and every "phrase" sounded angry, not by tone but by the language's own structure.

The other three gargoyles were also immersed in conversation about thirty feet behind the first three. They were all huddled close, pointing and arguing over what looked to be a large piece of parchment. Raenor assumed it was either orders or a map of some kind, and redoubled his attempts to make out what some of them were saying. As it turned out, they were switching between their exotic language and common Kenshurian. 'How did invading gargoyles know how to speak our language so fluently?' This was the first question that came to Raenor's mind, but he listened anyway.

"Venx left yesterday, one of the Lord's messenger's arrived." One of the gargoyles said in a voice so deep it was nearly inaudible, but still it spoke perfect Common.

"He was summoned by...Him?" Another said in a nearly identical voice, stuttering slightly on the last word.

The first gargoyle nodded. "In a real hurry, there has been a sudden change of plans. The Traitors seek to stop our campaign. Our Lord is investigating the matter personally, and he requested Venx be present."

The second gargoyle sat wide-eyed, staring at the first. "But...so close to..."

The third gargoyle piped up all of a sudden with a vicious hiss that silenced the second. They sat in silence for the next several minutes. In that time Raenor started moving back up the slope towards the horses. The three gargoyles arguing over the parchment had stopped and rejoined the first three as he made it back over the slope and down to Amelia and the horses.

As she trailed the quickly moving, mostly concealed wolf through the underbrush under the now raining sky, Aieris thought back to the conversation she'd had with the glowing orb of fire. No longer paying attention to the sizzle and hiss of rain evaporating as it struck the superheated which envelopped her, her mind drifted.

"You have called me, mistress" the voice in the flame said in a sibilant, almost hissing tone, but one that cracked like the whip of a fire's flame at the end of each word.

"I don't know if I bloody called you or not, I'm just tired of this rain! And who are you anyway? And why can you speak?"

"I am one of your thralls, oh my Queen. Were you not aware? Have you not heard our voices as your attatchment with us has grown? We have always been there for you, and we always will. Think back, you might remember, far back in your thoughts, your first memory of us, your first memory of fire." The flame replied, its words crackling in time with the undulations of its movement.

"I remember...I was nine...it was late, and I had been left alone while my mother and father went to tend to one of our neighbors...They...They could use magic, and they used it sometimes to heal the wounds of those nearby, and they were praised for it. I'd always wanted to do magic with them, but they always said, they always said I was too young. They were gone, and I...I tried...I tried one of their spells. I couldn't even read the lettering of it, but I somehow knew what to do...and all of a sudden there was fire everywhere. Then I fell unconsious in the middle of the flame, and when I awoke, my parents were lifting me out of the charred and blackened house. They had said that the house was like that when they arrived."

"It was us. Me and my fellows. We were with you even then. And as you grow stronger, so do we. Look, even now, at the flames that surround you, and how you are protected from the rain. It is us, and we are strong enough to manifest ourselves now, because you keep growing stronger in our use. Still, we should stop our discussion here. Follow the wolf. We have tried to tell you before, it is important. For everything. For you. For us."

With that, Aieris let go of the flame. She could call them now. They were still weak, but they were with her. And now that she had been made aware of their existence, she could hear them, in the back of her mind, giving thousands of little hints, where to step to avoid tripping, where to walk for the easiest path, everything. They were everything, they were fire, and they were hers, and hers alone.

More content than she had ever been, she moved on following the wolf, the newly created sphere of flame lighting up the planes for miles, but she didn't care. Fire was everywhere with her now, and her vision was clouded by it. And again, there was a smile on her face.

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OOC: +1 Elementalism

Moving slowly and deliberately, taking care to not disturb the long grass he was moving through, Raenor worked his way back to Amelia and the horses. Cresting the hill, he allowed himself to roll swiftly out of sight, stopping just below the top of the hill, keeping his body still to see if the gargoyles had noticed him. Satisfied that they were safe for the moment, Raenor hurried down to Amelia.

"They can speak Common," Raenor said as he turned and started back up the hill. "Stay there." he hissed as Amelia moved to join him. "I'm going to get as close as I can. I need you to stay concealed, and to warn Midgaard if I don't return."

"But..." Raenor cut Amelia's protest off as he pulled her close and kissed her.

"No buts this time, lady priestess," Raenor grinned and moved off quickly and quietly as Amelia stared after him in shock and bewilderment.

As he moved calmly and deliberately through the plains towards the edge of the river, angling his stride to keep out of sight of the gargoyles lounging next to the river. Gargoyles which could speak common Kenshurian. Fluently. Shaking his head clear of all thoughts, Raenor concentrated on getting as close to the gargoyles as he could. Moving up the river bank towards the old lonely willow, Raenor took his time to note the contours of the earth from just outside the hanging curtain of greenery which shaded the trunk of the great tree. After a few moments crouching concealed in that emerald curtain, Raenor stepped into the shade and moved to his intended lookout. Moving quickly and silently, the ranger soon had himself comfortably ensconced in a hollow demi-cave which had been worn around one of the great roots of the willow. Pulling himself as near to the shimmering curtain as he dared, the ranger found himself watching the gargoyles from an alarming distance.

"Avelia protect," Raenor silently prayed as he kept an arrow resting loosely on the string of his bow, just in case he was seen. Glancing up the tree, he noted, with some satisfaction, that he could likely clamber up the tree were he truly pressed. Then, he took his time to scan the gargoyles.

He could see the company little changed from when he had left minutes earlier. They were all lounging by the riverbank now, and Raenor could see that one of the gargoyles still had the parchment still in its hand. Whatever it was, it seemed to be important. Still, since there was no easy way of retrieving the sheet, Raenor decided to settle in to watch, wait and listen.

Elmric trodded onward, the rain falling upon his heavy armor, and sheeting off like it had never touched the shining steel. Darren and Artemis, the odd woman that seemed to know Darren, were next to him, watching for the glowing tracks of the wolf. It was almost 11 a.m. by Elmric's reckoning, but without sunlight piercing the sky, he could not be certain. A light grumble eminated from his stomach, and he asked, though he already knew the answer. "Are you both as hungry as I am?" Darren and Artemis nodded. "Give me just a moment then. I'll continue following the tracks with you, but I need to concentrate a bit for this. It's not often this prayer is answered without being near death." Elmric unfocused his eyes slightly, still able to see, but attuning himself to Avelia's graceful song, not a sonata today, but a dirge, signifying the sorrow associated with storms. "Avelia, graceful diety and holy sympathizer, deliver a few morsels of food to your humble servant and his companions. We are on a quest, following that which seems unnatural, and we need sustainance upon this journey. Thine humble servant requests whatever food thou art willing to give." Elmric refocused his eyes, and a particularly strong lighting bolt struck right in front of Elmric, and when his sight was restored, he saw 4 small glowing orbs in front of him.

"By the gods! This...this is the divine mana!" Elmric smiled greatly from under his helmet. "But...why are there 4 orbs of it? There are only three of us." Elmric humbly took the four orbs and gave one to Darren and Artemis. "This gift is very rare. Savor it's flavor. It will erase all weariness...as for this fourth orb...perhaps it is to fill the wolf with purity." Elmric just shrugged slightly and slipped his small gel-like orb into his mouth, and chewed upon it slowly, letting the flavor sink in, a myriad of flavors all blending pleasantly into a feeling of content.

OOC: Ranged 1, though it won't be able to be used yet, obviously. (Putting me at Melee 3, Healing 2, Ranged 1.

The raining intensified for over an hour and by the time the individual trees of the forest were in sight, the full power of a raging thunderstorm struck the plains of Kenshuria with the might of a hundred tempests. In less than a minute the forest before them disappeared behind a veil of gray as rain came down in sheets.

The wolf was impossible to see now, even for Aieris, and it had become increasingly frantic as the thunderstorm drew nearer. In the last moments before the blinding downpour, it started sprinting.

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Raenor watched the gargoyles for over five minutes, but they had gone back to speaking in their foreign language of half-grunts and mean undertones. He waited for an opportunity to try and acquire the parchment one of the gargoyles had been holding and showing to the others. The opportunity did not come, and the gargoyles packed up their few belongings and set off at a surprisingly fast pace along the river bank, due east.

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OOC: Sorry for the very short post, I'm low on time but I've decided to move on with the story despite Durin. He can catch up. And so it begins, good luck.

Raenor grumbled silently to himself as the gargoyles moved off. There hadn't been an opportunity to retrieve that piece of paper, and now his quarry were headed away from him. Judging by their weapons and armour, he had no hope of surprising and killing all of them. On top of that, they could very well lead him to what he and Amelia had been searching for over the past four days.

Raenor considered going back for Amelia, but the pace at which the gargoyles were moving was disconcerting. Even if he started after them now, they would still gain a significant lead, and if they were even remotely concerned with not being followed, at least one of them would be obscuring their trail. Swearing and glancing worriedly back towards the hill, Raenor made up his mind. Crouching in his protective cave, he moved out of cover and began moving as deliberately and carefully as he could, while keeping as near to the gargoyles' as he could.

As he moved along the riverbank, Raenor privately hoped that the gargoyles weren't going far. Keeping as close to the riverbank as he could, the ranger stilled his mind and concentrated solely on keeping on the trail these Venurians had left him.

"Avelia protects," he murmured to himself as he tightened his grip on his bow.

Raenor soon gained some insight into the swiftness of the Venurian invasion as he pursued the party of gargoyles. They were exceedingly fast when they wanted to be. Within ten minutes Raenor had started wondering if following them on horseback would have been a better idea, because he was forced to jog constantly just to keep up with the lumbering strides of the Venurian hunters.

They moved in a close pack along the riverbank as it curved slowly southeast. Occasionally one gargoyle would trail behind and move in a speedy, large circle around the party's flank, each time forcing Raenor to forfeit his line of sight and mutter prayers of luck. But the gargoyles moved on in this fashion and Raenor was never spotted.

The dull grey-white clouds overhead blocked any view of the sun, so Raenor could not accurately estimate the time of day, and soon a light drizzle began. The gargoyles picked up speed and a heavy-breathing Raenor struggled to keep pace, stay concealed, and conserve some energy at the same time. Far ahead, following the river for miles and surveying the empty plains of Kenshuria, his vision ended with what seemed to be a thick fog.

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OOC: Party two, time to start moving. :) The most obvious choices are not mentioned specifically, but that are utterly blatant. To clarify any confusion, the thunderstorm is pretty much blocking visibility beyond 200 feet. The forest is perhaps a mile distant from Elmric/Artemis/Darren, and perhaps half a mile from the flaming elf.

Midgaard is about 20 miles in the other direction.

With the tremendous downpour, even the orb of water that Jacen had created was hard pressed to keep him dry. As sheet upon sheet of rain pounded the ground Jacen knew that he had to make a decision on what to do. With a cry of frustration, he broke into a run and began heading in the direction of where he knew the forest lay. At least if I get under the trees, it will be a little drier. Praying to whatever god might be listening at the moment, he hoped he wouldn't trip and injure himself. The last thing he wanted was to be lying down on the ground, badly injured, wet, and cold.