[Golden Hunter] Tracking Down The Temple
Only one prize did Quinlan take from the dismembered body of the Golden Hunter; a vial of blood, with magics on the vial that kept the blood fresh. Now that peculiar choice of prize makes some sense, as the vial was handed to a Ranger sent by Moxon. And the blood was used to track the Hunter's course back through Shadow.
It has been a long hike. A *long* hike. And the main thing that everyone would have been unable to avoid noticing is how empty the path is. Bones can be found, of myriad creatures all along their route. Scraps of broken feathers, torn hide, ripped scales. Whatever might be slowest to rot in the varying climates they hike through. But of living things, there are only plants to be found. Signs of animal life can be seen in the distance, but along their path? A wide swath of dead creatures, eaten and shredded. The fallen prey of the Hunter's path.
Until now. Now, the travelers see...a kind of modern society, actually. Rather more advanced than Amber usually aims to be, there are motorized vehicles and paved roads and glass-and-steel skyscrapers. And leather. And feathers. These are hunters, who have also mastered the forge. The combination of savage and civilized is...well, new, at least, to some. There is very little made of plant based sources where animal based might suffice. Pens of bone and feather, exquisitely carved. Clothing of layered feathers or expertly tanned hides, claws and fangs on necklaces, collars, wristlets, belts...and the people carry themselves in the way hunters do. No mere consumers of dead flesh, these. Even from a distance, those with keen eyes can see that every last one of the busy office goers has at least one weapon, that seems decorative and yet their placement and the posture of their bearers suggest perhaps they're just as functional as they are beautiful.
Quinlan is flying above most of the group, bookbag over one shoulder and staff in hand, but he lands as the ranger signals their arrival. "This is the right place?" he asks, and gets a nod. And the remnant of the Hunter's blood is handed back to him. "Well...I guess we're on our own from here then. Tell Moxon I said thank you?" he says, and gets a nod before their guide to this point heads back, on the long trek to Arden. Quinlan focuses on their surroundings. "...This may actually kinda suck."
With his children and his followers beside him, Vael would have had no issue with a looooong walk, enjoying it, though not stepping more than a few yards from his high priest most of the way. When he sees the city though, when he sees the people he frowns his fur bristling up as he murmurs, "Poor things have lost their way..." then gives a sigh and looks to his wolves, giving them each a nod, bidding them to tread carefully and perhaps in a way, reminding them not to kill anyone unless they need to.
All along the journey through shadow, the group has been shadowed by a great Murder. They've mostly kept distance from bow range. The golden-bronze form of a gryphon stands out in the flock though, flying in formation and with precision, scouting the way. Now, at the destination, a small forward wing drops down, surprise in the bodylanguage of the shadowy black-clad individuals, when bows transform to guns on landing and their attire takes on a good deal more character of the locals. Even the gryphon that lands in the lead, has more tropies adorning him and a more primal edge to his weaponry and harness than he had prior. Fierce eyes look to Quinlan and those that wish to have had similar 'alterations' of their attire, find it happening about now. "This isn't just savages, Quinlan. Serves to a certain reason though -- " Carmichael-the-lionbird rumbles " -- I'd bet if we rooted here, we'd find they depradate on neighbours, too, if they have shadow-travel capacity. Take from your prey and use."
Janessa is turdging along behind Vael and the hotty priest. She's mostly tired of this journey by now and has been restraining herself from childishly asking if they were there yet for just a break in the monotony of walking. Upon stoping and seeing what's ahead she looks a little nervous. "Are you sure we can handle this? You know I'm no good at close combat." With that she runs her fingers over her bow nervously.
It's been somewhat of a long trip to end up here. Vincenzo takes a lingering moment to look things over, his brow furrowed slightly, and he lets the palm of his left hand come to rest on the hilt of one of his swords. Not in a manner of being about to draw the weapon, mind you, but more in a familiar sort of way. Lifting his right hand, he lightly touches the black fur of the dire wolf standing next to him, his touch light. He tilts his head slightly to one side as his gaze turns to Vael, and he inclines his head a bit in a sort of nod. "Many do, it seems," he comments in a quiet tone of voice. He turns his gaze towards Janessa, and a hint of a smile touches his lips. "What needs be done, will be. We all have our strengths," he says softly, inclining his head towards her.
Quinlan smiles a bit. Like Janessa, he has no look of a warrior to him. "Our guide says this is definitely the right Shadow. And we know the Hunter has appeared here in the past few years, because in one of the battles in Rebma he was banished here. Bought us a lot of time, that. So his sanctuary is still here. It's probably a big temple. Or meat market, or something like that." He looks at the giant wolves, and the murder of crowpeople. "But I think if we go much closer they're going to have a field day with us."
Vael gives a sigh, then takes a step and bursts into mist, swirling up to reform into the shape of a man, his slender form clad in nothing more than a loincloth that reaches from his hips to below his knees, the two slips of soft hide bound along his hips by sets of chains. A necklace of shells as well adorns him, as well as anklets but the rest of his is left bare, the luminous glowing markings on his skin left bare for all to see. He may fit in in this place to some extent, he is in the garb of a hunter but perhaps, one of a less modern time. He looks the part of a tribal man, fresh from the deepest recesses of the forest.
Carmichael looks at the citadel, the technology and the peoples. It's a long, arduous study from sharp, sharp eyes. "Quinlan?" he notes quietly. "Get it done. I'll buy you the time. You've about... oh, I think... a couple of hours?" Such confidence in the tone, but perhaps that's appropriate. "All hell's going to break loose. Make use of it." And the gryphon thereafter takes flight, winging over the city and high up, the black flock coming with him and sweeping out. It won't be long, no doubt, before there's some real shouting going on, weapons of mass destruction and utter air-born disaster happening.
Janessa just blinks at the bird cat dude and then back to Vael and rubs her head. "This is going to suck so hard." She takes a deep breath and mentally prepares herself for so much suckage. "I guess I'm as ready as I will ever be." She pulls off her bow and tests the string a few times before nodding. "Anyone have a plan?"
The redheaded man raises an eyebrow slightly as his gaze turns to Vael, watching him change forms. A smile touches at the corners of his lips, and then his gaze turns back to the shadow world that they've infiltrated, after a fashion. It would seem he feels no need for preparations of his own -- he has what he carried with him, and he feels no great desire to fit in with those they watch. He might well change his mind later or regret the choice, but so be it. "All hell usually does break loose," he muses in a quite tone, a bit of a smile coming to his features. He watches the gryphon and accompanying flock a moment, and then he looks to Janessa. "A plan would be a good idea to have one of," he comments. "Though the best plan I have, at the moment, is simply not dying," he adds, sounding a bit amused at that. "Do we have a direction at all in which we know we need to head?" he inquires, raising an eyebrow slightly.
Quinlan closes his eyes, sniffing the air. "They lost magic, when they lost their god," he notes. "Guns, cars, skyscrapers. They went the other way without their god to hold them to magical paths. But their god was *here*. Their belief sustained him even if they forgot that it would. It must have shocked them when he reappeared." The words are said absently, the mage focusing on his nose. "Divine magic. Just about the only magic left in this Shadow. That way." He points. Then nods to Carmichael. "We'll go as fast as we can. I'll send up a big...daisy, let's say. Big yellow daisy in the sky when we've got the place." He turns to Vael. "Unless you've got a plan for the people?"
Vael gives a glance to Quinlan and offers a foxish smile as he nods. "I do have a plan for them.. They have lost their way. You find their shrine, I'll deal with the people. When you've found it, give a sign and I'll be there as soon as I can.. With any luck, with a few new children walking beside me." Then, he walks into the open, proceeding at a fair stride, his wolves walking a few yards behind him, showing no signs of aggression for the time being.. Lets see how these people react to the spectacle first. "And one more thing.. Try not to destroy his place of power until I'm there, please."
Janessa rubs her head and sighs, "I'm assuming you want us to stay here then?" She grumbles and then with a big sigh she accepts the magic that the gryphon offered to change to look similar to Vael if a bit more covered. Hide covering what was necessary up top and what amounts to a skirt of hide with a slit up one side all the way to the hip. Knife at him and quiver still over her shoulder. "No goddamn way am I going to stay behind. Besides, perhaps two heads are better than one." She smiles at Vael and moves to keep pace with him.
Vincenzo tilts his head faintly to one side as he watches Vael, a bit of curiosity coming to his features. If he has questions about what Vael intends to do, he doesn't ask them at the moment. Then his attention turns to Janessa, noting the change in her appearance and perhaps spending a moment longer than strictly necessary in doing so. Shifting his weight slightly, he starts to walk after Vael, the great black dire wolf easily walking next to him. "Well, following that logic... three are better than two," he comments, lifting a shoulder in a faint shrug.
Quinlan looks wry, and then launches himself skyward in the way only a Pathian could; no wings, no devices, just straight up. And then toward the city. As he flies, he becomes quite a bit harder to see; an illusionist can be very good at camoflage.
Off to the very north of the industrialized city, there's a rather obvious siren that goes off. Shortly after this, the sound of thunder ricochets off of various buildings and comes to waiting ears, shattering some of the glass of skyscrapers as it does so -- The ground trembles with the boom. The gryphon it seems is making good on his promises of distraction. All the better for walking boldly forth, or hiding in plain sight.
In other Shadows, one might expect office drones and commuting suburbanites to panic, to flee. Not here. The peaceful facade shatters, and the response to the sirens is to dive for cover and draw weapons. Hundreds of ...one must consider them yuppie snipers, or something close to it.. start making their way toward the disturbance. Their set expressions suggest they do not consider themselves the prey.
Around Vael and his companions - notably the quite large wolves - there is an island of stillness. Vael's clothing gets an eyeroll - so *primitive!* and Janessa's bow gets a snort as one might give a full grown man carrying a BB gun into battle, but they're let be in the same way one doesn't usually swat children that aren't one's own.
Perhaps then it's time to make them FEEL like pray. Vael walks without care, not dodging cars obviously but not taking a path that would make him an easy target, seeing gaps in his path where he has to.. After all, it's like walking through a stampede! When he passes the first few people he gives a man with a handgun a glance, his eyes glowing with an inner light as he studies their weapon, then frowns and lifts a hand, muttering, "Coward.." as the wind beside the handgun suddenly ripples and lashes, sending the handgun flying from his grip.
Janessa can't do all that stuff to make people feel like prey without actually hurting them, which is probably against the plan at the moment but she's still ready with an arrow knocked and keeping pace with the magic glowing god. She's got no real plan other than to help Vael as best she can and that would require her to stay alive so she doesn't loose an arrow unless necessary.
The sudden blast does indeed rip a man's gun from his hand, much to the amusement of his fellows; the tone of their comments to him suggest mockery. He holds a long knife rather more firmly, as he goes back to get his tossed handgun.
Janessa, however, is assumed to be going after whatever set off the sirens. You know, like everyone else in the city. Not a stampede, this. The charge of a huge pride of lions, perhaps. The descent of a pack of wolves on whatever it might be that threatens. Some stop off at particular buildings, and when they come out their guns are rather bigger. Armories, it seems.
The wolf walking next to the redheaded man is watchful of those near to them, hackles half raised in fair warning. Vincenzo walks near Vael, a bit to one side and a bit behind, not seeming to be concerned at the moment. A glance is given to the handgun that Vael sent flinging, and a hint of a smile touches at the corners of his lips. He might just be a bit pleased with that touch of magic used. He glances briefly to Janessa, perhaps merely checking on her, and then he scans the denizens of this shadow for a moment. "At least they're not interested in us. Yet," Vincenzo comments, noticing the direction in which most seem headed.
Janessa pauses for a second and then says to Vael, "Lend me a wolf. I've got an idea." This is probably not a good idea but it's to late as she runs off to an armory and ducks into it. They think she's one of them so no one should hinder her progress.
Something strange is certainly happening in the north. Drones of some kind have headed into the area, presumably launched, either manned or otherwise, to counteract the effort going on up there. It's all much of a muchness, down on street level when everyone and their uncle is packing weaponry and heading to the disturbance. Whatever's going on is only effecting here, by dint of that very distractability. Elsewhere, is an entirely different story.
Luka, the largest of Vael's wolves runs off with Janessa and Kiba, a smaller gray, though obviously still larger than most humans, pads QUICKLY over to the gun, cutting off the mans chances of grabbing it with a wide paw. Vael's markings suddenly lash out, tendrils of light stretching out as he snaps, "No wonder your god is dead! He taught you to be killers, but he taught you /NOTHING/ of harmony! He taught you nothing of Balance!!" his tendrils seeping into anything and everything it can, the plants within a hundred yards in all directions from him suddenly growing, as if nature itself was suddenly very pissed. If there are trees, their roots would try to crack the concrete as they grow, the grass suddenly writing as it ages and becomes feral. "You are not hunters! You are /children!/ Too ignorant to realize what you've done!" This shouted to any and all who might hear him, his normally very quiet and gentle voice practically booming.
Janessa is apperantly not supposed to be in here and as they move to attack her, she works on autopilot pulling the string of the bow and letting lose arrow after arrow with swift fluid movements. Each arrow hits it's mark quick and quietly even as she pivots and glides to get every attacker who dares to threaten her. After the last target is down, the bow string gives a faint hum with vibration from being drawn and released so rapidly. Her hand is raised halfway to her quiver while her breathing comes a little faster now from the small battle waged.
Okay. NOW Vael has the attention of at least the nearby locals. And so do his wolves. Shots are fired - at the godling and his familiars - in an effort to take them down.
Vael suddenly explodes into mist as he drops down, becoming a fox as a few bullets fly over him, his teeth clamping down as he rushes forward, a dagger appearing in his maw! "You are pathetic!" he snaps through his teeth as he darts forward, coming up fast as a blur on the FIRST person who opened fire, his blade cutting deep into the persons legs and as they fall, he leaps on them and gashes their cheek! A reminder of how things could have been.. A few more are growled at as his fur suddenly stands on end, the wind around him lashing out like whips, trying to disarm as many people as they can within his range. "Fools! You would dare to strike a god?!" his voice booms again, his teeth bared and his fur up to show that he's NOT fucking around. "Stand down know what it means to be a /true/ hunters prey!"
Vael's comments are...not exactly understood, as the locals don't speak Thari or anything like it. But as they are hunters (even if perhaps misguided) and Vael a hunt-god, there is *some* level of his intent that seems to communicate itself accurately to the nearby people. Mind you, it seems to confuse them more than anything else. Vael? A god? But he's so TINY. And dressed like..mostly not!
Janessa looks around after her excitement and after a few minute she notices something. With a gleeful giggle she tells the wolf to run away now. With that she fiddles with a mechanism for a bit and hopes she has enough time to run for safety herself. Either way she's probably making a difference by doing this. Here's hopeing she doesn't die.
Janessa's meddling soon has a visible effect - the building she's just vacated suffers a few muffled booms, and then collapses neatly in on itself. And all its weaponry.
In the sky to the southwest, magic blooms an image that likely no local would think to use. A bright yellow daisy with a cheerful grin blooms in the air, quite possibly thirty feet across. It would seem Quinlan's found the temple.
To the north, silence descends. There had been gun fire and explosions and ground-shaking thundercaps. The blossoming of the smiley daisy might have been PERFECTLY dramatically timed. It's a thing. Mind, slowly, a skyscraper collapses sidelong, no doubt taking a lot of city infrastructure with it as it does so. Nevertheless, the heros have a target.
Though there is the temptation to follow after Janessa to ensure that her idea won't get her into trouble, Vincenzo remains near to Vael. Janessa has one of the wolves with her, after all, and it will keep her safe. He remains near to Vael, and in fact moves to step closer, and his wolf remains close as well. With his left hand resting lightly on the hilt of the sword on that hip, his fingers close around the hilt as though debating making use of the weapon. Yet, Vael would prefer the people alive, and so he doesn't draw the weapon free -- instead, he merely shields himself or dodges from what few projectiles might be aimed at him simply from proximity. And while Vael works on the people, he takes a moment to look to the sky, which leads to noticing the yellow smiley daisy grinning in the air. "Vael, target!" he calls out to the god in fox fur.
Janessa is grinning like a mad woman as she runs back to Vael and Vin. When she can stop running she starts giggling like mad while trying to breath. "Well, that was exsilerating. They'll have a harder time arming with that building gone." She's bouncing on her toes anxiously as she looks around and sees the comical daisy in the sky. "Well, that's subtle."
Vael sees the design and sighs, muttering, "Pathetic." Then he simply walks towards the signal and when someone puts a bullet through his guts? He simply stops and glares at them, the wound already beginning to seal as he suddenly LEAPS at the person, snapping onto the arm holding the gun and tearing into the flesh before springing off them into a backwards flip to land gracefully. Might not be enough to scare them, but a fox taking a bullet through one side and mauling you, then walking off as the wound shuts? Perhaps that will be enough to convince them that this is no ordinary creature.. Or perhaps the fact that now, wherever he travels Nature seems to be getting pissed.. every form of plantlife suddenly coming to life, growing months or even years in his wake, as if Nature is trying to take the city back again.
The malnourished urban trees are definitely tearing up the concrete in Vael's irritated wake, the path leading....well, hells. One wonders why Quinlan needed magic to find the Hunter's temple. It's huge and gold plated marble. It takes up an entire city block. It's entirely decorated with bas-reliefs of the deeds of mighty hunters, with little names and dates. Clearly this temple's walls are like the Hollywood Walk of Fame is to actors.
There's still mostly silence to the north. With the grandiose gestures aside. Explosions elsewhere and the great wolf-scapade are on the ground. Perhaps what truly transpires elsewhere, is a surrender to superior airforce. Either way, distraction has been had.