GET YOUR TOWELS READY [Closed]

[mikney]

Who: Mikney, Cordy, Cherry, Sonic, other NPCs
What: Team explorer'ing
Where: South road, outside Redinn
When: Thursday afternoon

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[cherry_reyer]

Cherry was putting all of her focus and attention on the rocks in her pockets. Hematite is for fortitude, amethyst is for protection, she thought, not knowing where the knowledge came from but committing it all to memory. Quartz was good for conducting magic. And mica did something too...

She was snapped out of her tight reverie when she heard Mikney. Looking up, she saw the smoke curling up into the air. "Holy..." This couldn't be good. She didn't look to anyone else for confirmation. Instantly, she took off after Mikney, holding the rocks in her pockets steady as she ran. A strange feeling took hold of her. This had to be a disaster, but she felt a certain ease suddenly. Running gave her a direction, a purpose. She had someplace to go and something to do. Was it wrong to feel that way? Cherry didn't bother to philosophize. She was tired of thinking.

[cordy_estwynde]

Cordelia was thinking.

Emerald green was definitely a good color for me, it brings out my eyes, but a nice forest green does such good things for my skin tone. Then again, forest doesn't look so good in a silk color, but it's wonderful when it comes to velvets. And that emerald velvet cape I had always kind of looked like grass to me. So maybe in the future, I'll stick to emerald tones on silks and satin and a nice forest hue for anything velvet. But what about cotton? Pastel? Pastels wash me out.Cordelia was distracted from her very important thoughts by the sound of Mikney's cry. She had noticed the smoke ages ago, but she'd thought someone had just been lighting a campfire. This was no campfire. As she looked out at the burned, destroyed village, an ice cold wave of deja vu came sweeping over her, nearly taking her breath away. Instead of running closer, she remained firmly in place, simply staring. It wasn't for a good thirty seconds that she was able to lift her feet and slowly begin making her way over to the ruins

[mikney]

There was only one thing that could have happened.

River Royal must have made it this far West.

Only thirty Elves lived in Redinn, but there was no sign of anyone...

Mikney took the path straight to the center of the village at a run, ending in a central circle, a marketplace set around a fountain - and the fountain was cracked, not functioning, and there were bodies --

Mikney's war experience took over and he scanned them, reflexive dispassion shutting down his panic. Seven bodies, all definitely dead, and in battle, too. No slaughter here.

Forming the symbol for hearing, he listened --

There were no demons nearby, he'd bet his own life on that.

The symbol for loud, then, scratched in the dirt to save energy. Mikney whistled, piercing and amplified by the spell, audible even in the forest hills outside the village.

[that_hedgehog]

This was war, alright, even if the method seemed somewhat base and crude to Sonic. Robotnick had rarely resorted to something as simple as fire. He'd been more into bullets. And lasers. And turning people's friends and family into robots.

He trotted behind Mikney toward the ruined town. He'd gotten used to keeping pace with the rest of them over the last few days. Not that he wasn't ready to go full speed when it was needed, but that wasn't now.

He stopped a few feet behind Mikney, and surveyed the wreckage as Mikney's whistle echoed between the hills. When it died down, he spoke:

"I'm guessing this wasn't what we were supposed to find."

[rowantree_npcs]

Tamber watched Cherry, carefully. "If you are a witch, then you may be able to do something that I cannot," he said. "Please, if you would just make the attempt." And there was a hint of emotion there - 'please', it seemed, was not something Tamber was quite accustomed to saying.

[cherry_reyer]

Cherry nodded slightly. She didn't want to make any promises she couldn't keep. She had learned many valuable tricks and concoctions in her time in school, but she certainly was no healer. "Show me the way," she said, thrusting the bean back in her pocket and feeling a warm flush in her cheeks. "Call me Cherry, by the way. Everyone does. Cherry Reyer."

[rowantree_npcs]

"Cherry," echoed Tamber, with a nod. "I'm Tamber, as Mikney said. This way."

He led her behind the stone City Hall, and through a thin gap in the wall in the back. At first appearance, it seemed little more than a crack, hardly enough to let a cat through - but, on closer examination, it was large enough to fit most Elves or Humans.

Behind it was a small, dark room - one with no other exits, obviously a hiding place of some sort. It was bare stone, with a pallet on the ground, on which rested an obviously wounded Elf woman.

"She was shot when the army moved through," said Tamber. "I believe the arrow was poisoned. I've used all my limited skill, but she cannot be moved, and help from Birdsong is long in coming." He hesitated. "If you could try to draw out the poison, perhaps? I know little of witchcraft; I am a scout, not a Majik."

[cherry_reyer]

Silently, Cherry followed after Tamber, taking vague interest in her surroundings. There was still enough time before sunset, she convinced herself half-heartedly. Distantly, she wondered if she should mention her little curse to Tamber, but decided it could wait for awhile. She was getting a little sick of explaining it all and, to be perfectly frank, she had not told the full, entire story to anyone. Yet. But somehow, she knew that would come in time

[that_hedgehog]

"Hey!" Sonic, who had been about to head off in one direction, spun on his heel and caught up with Cordy in an instant. She seemed upset, but that wasn't the reason for his pursuit. "We ought to stick together while we're here, at least in pairs. No telling what's still hanging around."

She did look upset. Sonic didn't know if it was only the scene around them or something else. But he could at least guess at something that had been bothering her the last couple of days.

"I think you did the right thing, by the way," he said. "Telling Mikney, I mean."

[cordy_estwynde]

Cordelia had just heavily sat down on the burned ruins of what was either an old well or a stump or possibly a goat. Either way, the charred remains would certainly dirty her skirt, and it was a testament to how upset she was that she didn't seem to care. Just as she had sat down, Sonic zoomed up beside her. She wasn't pleased. She had wanted to be alone and calm down and being chased by someone who undoubtedly hated her was not going to make things any better. Then again, at least it wasn't Cherry.

Why wasn't it Cherry?

She didn't turn to look at him. She wouldn't, not until her tears dried. She wanted to spare herself her pride, at least. But at his words, she straightened up a bit. They weren't the words she had been expecting to hear.

She remained silent for a moment longer, but as soon as she was sure her voice was steady she asked "You do?" The question still came out a little more soprano than she would have liked.

[that_hedgehog]

"I do," Sonic answered with a gentle smile. Then he shrugged. "Two days ago I wasn't so sure, but... If you hadn't, ol' Mik would've never shown us his true colors. And we'd be out here on our own with no one to guide us."

He turned over his shoulder for a second, looking to see who might be in earshot. "I really do think he's a good guy," he went on, now more thinking out loud to himself than talking to Cordy. "Or, at least, that he wants to be. I still don't know what to think of the Elves as a whole." And he wouldn't know, not until he got to know more of them.

[cordy_estwynde]

Cordy rubbed her eyes for a moment and then looked up. In a painful contrast to her usual smiling and cheerful countenance, her face is sad and pale, as though someone smashed a puppy in front of her. "I really wasn't trying to be a...traitor or anything," she mumbled, glancing back at her calloused palms. "I thought I was doing what was best."

As she heard his thoughts about the elves, she looked up again. "I feel the same way. I do like Mikney a lot, he's been very kind, but the rest of them seem so...secretive. I don't like that."

[that_hedgehog]

"Where'd she go?" Sonic looked around. He wouldn't have shouted when they just arrived, but he was fairly certain by now that they were alone here. He cupped his hands on either side of his mouth. "Cherry? You around?"

[cherry_reyer]

Cherry perked up, hearing Sonic's voice. Carefully, she picked her way across the floor, back to the little hovel's entrance. "Sonic?" she called out, hoping not to disturb the wounded elf woman. "Over here!" She was so, so, so glad to hear his voice.

Over her shoulder, she glanced at Tamber. "My friends," she told him. It was half invitation, half farewell. She'd let him take it as he wished. Carefully, she ducked through the tiny entrance and hurried in the direction of Sonic's voice. "Sonic!"

[that_hedgehog]

"Hey, bird girl," he greeted her with a smile as she approached. Cherry's general upbeat-ness was like a breath of fresh air. "Looks like we got a little something to discuss here."

[cherry_reyer]

"You bet we do," Cherry said. "You won't believe what happened in there. There was a wounded woman, and the slightly pre-pubescent elf boy asked me to heal her and I didn't think I could, but I took a cacao bean and it just kinda spoke to me and I knew what to do and I drew the poison out of her arm. I mean, it sucks that she was hurt, but the fact that I was able to do that was ridiculously shway." She paused to take a breath, noticing the dying sunlight. "Glad you found me."