Masquerade Part 2.2: Klaatu, Barada... Necktie

[Ether]

Oh, freedom felt... good~ Finally feeling her feet on solid, actual ground, the woman quickly stood and stretched, curves easily identifiable, even beneath the light, flowing white dress she adorned. As had been noted already, on either side of her head, odd horns protruded out from her vibrant scarlet locks, framing her soft, seemingly innocuous face. Finally getting a good look at her saviours, the woman's full lips curled into a smile, the faintest trace of a fang lingering upon the inviting flesh.

"Oh my, what a dashing hero I've stumbled across~ And with such alluring heroines at his side~" The strange figure noted, finally addressing the gathered trio, as she gave a light spin whilst moving towards them, dress lifted by the air, revealing the soft, pale skin of unblemished legs to the thigh, making light steps forward until reaching Ingverd, leaning forward towards the elf, the cut of her dress allowing the man a view of but more pale, alluring flesh. Tail slipping out from beneath her dress, fluttering about with amusement, it's spade tip slightly rosy in contrast to the stark black of the rest. Leaning in fully, the woman planted her full lips to Ingverd's cheek, lingering a few moments to leave a memorable kiss upon it, before pulling back, a wisp of hot breath moving past his ear.

"Mmm, my name is Lina~ I ever do thank you for releasing me from that place~ Consider me... at your service~" The aforenamed added as she pulled away, running her finger slowly down the swordsman's chest, the slightly pronounced nail pushing at his skin through the cloth, though not near roughly enough to be concerning or painful, until she had parted with him fully. Stretching a bit more as she stood, soon too, came a pair of wings, almost as if those of a fairy or butterfly. A light fluttering of them brought a frown to Lina's face, however.

"What a bother... I've been cooped up so long, they have not even the strength to float, let alone fly... well... as for how I got there, a simple tale, really, I found myself unfortunate enough to be at the doorstep of this place, and it's keeper felt it prudent to stuff me in a box with those artifacts you picked up, to see what would happen... I'm afraid I couldn't tell you much about the prison itself, though. The combination to open it seems to change with each lock... I was only lucky enough to overhear the proper sequence to open it, this time." Lina replied... it seemed prudent to be forthcoming with some amount of information, after all. Blinking a moment, to allow her eyes to adjust to the lighting, she looked over to the cowering cleric, closest to the door. What odd eyes she had... oh, oh...

"Not of the area, no... though I don't think that particularly matters, hmm~? After all, I'm not the only... strange one here, after all~" The woman stated, giving the girl a wide grin, all the while flashing those subtle fangs at the girl, and teasing at them with her own tongue for emphasis.

[Xinnidy]

The woman quickly moved towards Ingverd, leaving a kiss on his cheek which frustrated Maja some, everything from the way she acted seemed... deliberate, though not exactly in a way Maja could pinpoint. Yet, something in the back of her mind screamed how familiar to something this woman seemed. "Uh..." Maja's eyes wandered towards the lady's figure to stop on her tail, and then her wings. It was all rather alien when Maja focused on these features. Something was trying to click...

It was only when Maja's question was finally addressed that she turned to look at the woman's face again, though the words spoken caused a rather violent shift in her expression and tone. Fangs exposed as she suddenly raised her voice. "I'M NOT--" She stopped herself and placed her hands over her mouth, surprised at her own, quick outburst. "I-I'm not strange." Maja's face had shifted from a pale complexion to reddish, and her breathing became deeper. "I-I knew it, you're not from here. You must be dangerous." Maja tried to stare back at the horned lady, but shifted her eyes quick enough to avoid contact. Why did I do that?!

[riariadne]

Valha watched the woman intently- she seemed unlike most things she'd seen before. Wings, a tail, but she's not a harpy? The more she moved, the less and less she liked this woman- especially when she advanced on Ingverd, eliciting a growl from Valha. "Hands off, Lina, I'm havin' a rough day 'n I'm not about to have you ruin it more!" This is nothin' that I was hopin' for, unless this turns out to be real special... but I can't even use it! There's no such thing as a real gift, is there?

Valha flew around the other woman, hovering about a foot in the air between her and Maja and giving a venomous stare, using her elevation to make up for a small height disadvantage. "I dunno what you are, but you better not mess with me! 'N don't be mean to Maja, alright? I was plenty willin' to be nice 'n help, but if you're trouble you've got me to deal with."

[Ether]

"Now now, I mean no harm. Can't a girl show her gratitude nowadays? I know I've been cooped up for a while, but I didn't think things had gotten so bad~ At any rate I have no intention to be any trouble." Lina replied with a pout, pulling slightly further away from Ingverd as she was being circled by the harpy. If she was really going to strike, that could be problematic, but hopefully it wouldn't come to that.

"As for... Maja, I do apologize... but it's hurtful to receive such a reaction, you know. Besides... I don't think I'm wrong... judging by your outburst, you haven't had this... affliction for very long, have you, Maja~?"

[eclipse]

Meredith zoned out while the crew was busy opening the box. She flinched when she saw the released woman's actions. She's pretty indiscriminate, in more than just fashion. Mom and dad would've killed me if I acted like that. The lancer thought back to her days in the tavern, her eyes wandering to the ceiling. That woman-thing acts just like those night-ladies do when they're goin' for a man. But I don't want to draw the attention of that thing, so as long as I'm over here and ugly, I don't think she'll care.

[Xinnidy]

"H-hurtful? Uh... sorry." Maja was confused by the reply, but this woman... "Lina?" Maja caught the name the time Valha mentioned it, "I haven't had this for a while, it's true... Wait, do you know-- Do you know what this is? Who caused this to me?" Maja looked at Lina with newfound interest. Anything, anyone that could have a lead about what happened to her was more important than her lingering concerns. Edited January 7, 2016 by Xinnidy

[algae]

And now there was a talking box. A talking box that seemed to make Valha inexplicably angry. Those other doors were starting to look very good compared to being trapped in a room with them, even if it weren't for the order. "Right. Angus? Anyone else?" Rather than wait for an answer, she rushed to the other end of the room and started on the door.

[SB.]

First the box talked, and then some woman with fangs and horns and shit appeared out of nowhere and acted like this was perfectly normal. Am I still dreaming? Karstell was nothing like he expected so far. It wasn't like he knew what to expect of course, but it sure as hell wasn't this. "Uh, yeah." Angus tore his eyes away from the new arrival and followed Sonia to the next door, wondering if they would have to make a new friend every time they got a door open.

[scorri]

derp

Edited January 7, 2016 by scorri

[Nanami Touko]

If Ingverd had been in a better mood, maybe these antics would be amusing him, but at the moment they were coming across as too much. He smiled to flatter her, and it definitely looked real, but he wasn't about to join in and play along with her. "Lina, hmm?" he asked, taking a step back as Valha jumped in to defend her property, as it were. "Don't worry about her, Valha. What's important is that she knows things about this castle, and doesn't seem that dangerous... Not exactly sure we can trust her, but I doubt she could take all of us, if she wanted to try somethihng." And, after another few moments of talking, apparently-- "and about Maja. Well. Isn't that convenient for us?" She was saying something about Maja having something; something had happened before they entered the cave, he knew that much, but he had missed what it was. So, he was pretty interested, as well, in finding out what was going on. Whatever it was, it was important.

What's going on now? was Makin's immediate thought as a commotion sprung out from the room Valha had entered. Leaving Lanos to go talk to Isabelle, she crawled over, just in time to watch a horned woman throw herself nearly onto Ingverd, Valha stepping in between them, and this... Woman, alluding to knowing what was going on with Maja. Now, normally, Makin would be furious that they had thrown caution to the wind with some magical beasty and hadn't taken the time to figure things out further. But she was tired. Emotionally and physically. She didn't have it in her to make a big stink about things, instead sitting in the back and folding her arms with a disapproving look on her face. "So, what do you know about Maja, then?" she asked, echoing the small girl's sentiments. If they could figure out what was wrong with her sooner rather than later, they could get it fixed.

"Hmm?" came Isabelle's mildly annoyed voice. "Oh, it's just you, Lanos," she said, her voice mellowing out considerably. "Out of everyone here, I have to say, you're the one I dislike least. You've bought things from me and you've never bothered me~ Though I suppose that's about to change, isn't it? The bags are in the cart, if you want to grab them and start setting them out. If you'd rather just collapse, yourself-- and trust me you look ready to --, then go ahead. I'm not about to chew you out for looking out for number one. I'd do the same." Isabelle flashed a half smile, and then went back to calming her horses, who seemed much less agitated now.

Edited January 8, 2016 by Snake Mom

[Ether]

"Well, I can't say I know a lot of the specifics, just what I've seen firsthand. The owner of this place did... something to a group of humans, was testing on them. He dropped a few in my cage, that's why I recognized it... your eyes, the irises are red, just like them. They all ended up with quite the bloodthirst... I mean that quite literally, not in a figurative sense. The transformation wasn't magical, if it had been, I would have felt something wrong with them... only the madman up top could tell you exactly what it does. I assume if you haven't met him already, then he probably left samples of whatever he was doing out in the tundra, hoping people would stumble across them." Lina began, figuring that Maja's ailment seemed to be the most hotly requested subject. She rattled off all she could recall of the incident from her head, tilting in a bit as she finished.

"But basically, it made them stronger then someone of their build should be, they seemed enraged, almost feral, and seemed to have an irresistible urge to drink blood. I don't know how long he held them for, before I saw them, but by the time they got to me, they lunged on sight, biting and gnawing at the air. You're not quite that far gone, but I couldn't tell you whether he let them stir beforehand, or if he changed what he gave them as he went along." Lina concluded on that note, a rather solemn expression on her face.

"Sadly, I haven't seen anything inside of this castle past here. By the time I reached the building itself, the madman had set up a trap for me. If you were hoping for a guide, sadly I cannot provide that. But as I said, I have no intention of fighting with you or anything like that. You set me free after all, so I'm incredibly grateful~"

[Sandalphon]

"yeah well ya know, they could hire me as an interior decorator or somethin'. I mean, I am all about the aestheticasation of the spaculars and whatnot," Vesta responded. Why anyone would want to live in this decrepit old spooky place was beyond her though. As far as Vesta was concerned, a smelly tent filled with twelve other snoring people was just about as homey as you could get.

She followed the others, keeping her li'l ears perked up for any sign of curses or frankendoodads or whatever the fuck lived in these sorts of stupid old spooky castles. Man, she thought to her self, I've just officially become one of those idiots in the spooky stories who wanders into the scary deathtrap. Good job girl.

Suddenly, she saw one of the party gabbing with what appeared to be a spooky box lady. She rubbed her eyes in disbelief.

"WHOA, WHOA, HOLD YER METAPHORICAL HORSES THERE LI'L LADY" She blurted out, unable to stop herself, "I MIGHT BE DUMB, BUT I CAN RECOGNISE A SPOOKY VOODOO BLACK MAGIC CURSE THING WHEN I SEE ONE... AND THAT..." She added, jabbing a finger at the former inhabitant of a box, "IS ONE HELLUVA BLACK MAGICKY CURSE THING."

She narrowed her eyes in suspicion, as if she were awaiting some sign that Lina was not, in fact, a black magic cursey-wursey thing. To hell with lightening up the mood, she was gonna practice some good ol' Vesta-Style diplomacy, and she was gonna do it now.

[Xinnidy]

Maja listened and tried to make sense of what Lina said, a shiver running through at the mention of bloodthirst --Lina's words were likely true, and it made Maja uneasy to hear it through. "No... No way, it can't be that bad." The effects Lina spoke of made some grim sense; the urge to drink blood, the difficulty to focus during battle, everything would seem like it would fall in line with whatever that affliction was. "You say it was the madman that lives in this castle? But he could only do that if he left something in the tundra, so..."

It clicked like a violent hammer nailed the last piece in. Red eyes; blood; scarlet; the potion. She had caught it in the tundra. "No. No, that can't..." Maja's voice went silent as she dropped to her knees, hands on either side of her head, which hung low, staring at the floor. Maja's attention turned to an internal conflict of believing Lina's words; that she were really afflicted, and that it would become worse like the ones Lina spoke of. "No... ^{no, no way..."}

----------------------

With the commotion in the other room growing bigger, Kadin turned to look at from the entrance, seeing an increasing group of the mercenaries speaking with an unfamiliar, horned woman, and Maja on her knees among them, looking quite distressed. "Wait, what's going on here?" Kadin spoke, becoming a voice in the crowd. It seemed like the situation was somewhat tense, so Kadin kept watching from the distance he caught the group. "Who is that?" He shifted his eyes, concerned about the stranger but moreso about Maja's state. "Maja, what's wrong?" He spoke, but Maja only turned to face him for a moment, turning to face the ground again shortly after. Kadin looked then at Makin and Ingverd, confused and expecting some response.

[riariadne]

Valha growled at Lina's initial response, but the small smile on her face belied the fact she was pleased that she'd been at least somewhat intimidating. She landed with a huff at Ingverd's response. "Fine, I'll back off..." the harpy conceded, listening to the horned woman explain Maja's situation. So it's kinda like a poison... poor Maja. I'll have to tell Lanos later. Not wanting to interrupt the healer's thoughts as she came to terms with her new and unfortunate condition, she walked out of the room to an unoccupied corner of the main room, just in front of and facing the stairs. Storing the cube for now, and removing the talisman she had put on earlier- finding it a bit too cluttered around her neck- she instead turned to the last object she'd taken, the sword.

It was unusual, to say the least- the blade was a golden color, brighter at the crossguard. It felt just slightly larger than she was comfortable with, similar to Lanos's sword before it had been tampered, but mostly natural. The pommel had a green gem on it, and the edge slightly sharper than other swords of similar caliber. Valha spun it around in her claws, before swinging at the air for practice.

Much to her surprise, a ray of light seemed to strike where she swung at, charring a bit of the stairs lightly. "So it is magic!" she exclaimed. "Better keep this handy... don't get much of a range advantage, usually." Satisfied with her test, Valha put away the sword and retrieved the cube once more.

Staring at it more didn't seem to help her much. She attempted the combination that she'd started and Ingverd finished before, but true to Lina's word it proved ineffective. There's gotta be more to this... it's somethin' special. There's no way that's all this is about... is there? But the sky blue panels told her no secrets. Frustrated, she made her way over to Lanos, spotting Isabelle. "Hey... you know magic things, don't you? Have you ever seen anything like this?" She extended the cube in her claw, being sure to keep watch of it- apparently lots of people liked getting their hands on it, but Valha wasn't eager to give it away. "It opened when I put in a certain combination, but I guess it changes every time, 'n it had this sword, a necklace, 'n that girl Lina inside. I can't seem to make heads or tails of how it works. Have you read anythin' like this, Lanos? Seems to be a real mystery..."

[Oersted]

Lanos let out a quiet "heh" at apparently being the highest on Isabelle's list, or lowest depending on how you viewed it, somehow amused by it. At least it meant he didn't have to sit through her complaining at him or something like that. "Yeah, I'm just gonna grab one and go pass out somewhere." As he made to move cart his claw brushed against Slayer's scabbard and he suddenly remembered he'd meant to ask Isabelle about the sword's origins. "Hey, Isabelle I mean-" He was interrupted by one of the group apparently finding the need to shout at maximum volume about some sort of curse. He could care less about what caused the yelling.

He spun around and glared at the voice's source. It was that centaur that had joined them in Felson, he didn't remember her name if he'd ever heard it, but that wasn't something that mattered to him right now. "SHUT UUUP!" he yelled at the tiny centaur as she herself finished yelling. It took him a moment to realize that'd he'd actually done that, but at this point all it did was make him feel self-conscious. "I'm gonna sleep now," he announced; though, Isabelle was probably the only one who heard it.

However, before he could grab a sleeping bag Valha appeared with a cube that had somehow contained a sword, a necklace, and a girl called Lina. He didn't know who this Lina was and he didn't care enough to find out at this point, nor did he care about the explanation behind such storage. He'd been done with today for awhile now, ever since the group had made it into the cave, and after his outburst he was ready to commit fully to being done. When Valha asked if he'd read about something similar to the cube he gave an uncharacteristically curt reply of "nope" before hopping into the back of the wagon to grab a sleeping bag. A moment later he popped out with his sleeping bag and tossed off to the side of the wagon.

[Sandalphon]

Vesta snorted angrily.

Did this little punk tell ME to shut my yap? Like everyone else is allowed to monologue but the second someone starts makin' sense THEY'RE the ones who gotta shut up?

"Listen li'l buddy," Vesta said shakily, trying to choke back the urge to sock that little feathery brat in the kisser, "I'm gonna let that one slide because yer probably under a lot of stress from that whole 'inevitable doom' thing... but if ya talk to me with that tone again I will not hesitate to plant my fist so high up yer fluffy patooshka that you're gonna be tasting it for a week."

She punctuated her sentence with a smile that she hoped was jovial but probably came across more murdery than she had intended.

"If anyone needs me, I'll be over here, NOT getting involved with ancient curses and other such nonsense."

He was SOOOO not invited to the shinding anymore.

[riariadne]

"Oh..." Valha frowned at Lanos's quick response and leaving immediately. Wasn't somethin' I said, was it? Vesta's comments weren't appreciated, however, and her oh-so-familiar angry expression returned swiftly. "Hey, don't give him a hard time! You know today has been really rough on him, so don't even think about layin' a finger on Lanos!"

Valha elicited a heavy sigh after that. Maybe Lanos has the right idea, tryin' to get some sleep... I hate this day anyway. She followed his lead in grabbing a sleeping bag just for herself, setting it up next to Lanos and practically collapsing. "Sorry for botherin' you... I know it's been hard on you, I just- I'll be here for you if you need me, okay? I found what I was lookin' for, 'n it wasn't anythin' like I hoped it could be. Somethin' to really help us, not a stupid box, 'n you had... today's been horrible to you, too. But I'm not gonna abandon you ever, no matter how tough it gets. We're together forever, yeah?" She reached out a claw to pat his shoulder for a moment, lowered it to his chest, then rolled over and closed her eyes.

[Nanami Touko]

That explanation shed some very unfortunate light onto Maja's situation. It was light that she didn't want shed. Everything seemed to be going to Hel in a handbasket, anyway. Coupling that with Vesta and Lanos shouting at each other, and Makin's head was starting to hurt. She sighed and let things cool down before trying to talk, mulling over things in her head. "Lina, just... Just give me a moment."

She turned to Vesta first. The horsegirl seemed to have calmed down, for the most part, but she still had to play boss. "Vesta, please, no shouting like that. We're all on eggshells after what's happened... It won't help anything. Just... See if you can find something to keep you occupied with. Try to help with the other rooms, or check up the stairs a bit to make sure we're safe down here. Just, something that isn't shouting." She didn't want to sound annoyed, but some of it probably came out that way. She only hoped Vesta would occupy herself.

Then there was Kadin. Maja was a wreck on the ground, and Kadin wanted answers. Makin wasn't sure how to tell him in concrete terms. "She... She took something out on the tundra. Some sort of potion, or curse, or... We don't know. But it's... It's going to affect her. That's why she bit Lanos. We just don't know how much worse it's going to get... Can you spend some time with her, Kadin? Just, take her to a quiet corner of the room, give her a warm blanket... Something to keep her spirits up," if there is anything left, like that.

And then it was back to Lina. "Who are you, Lina?" was her first question. "You're not human, so don't try and weasel out of saying you're just some experiment... So who are you? What, are you?"

With Valha not trying to stab the new person's eye's out, Ingverd leaned against the door frame so that he could listen to whatever was about to be discussed. He was still second in command, around here, even if things were going haywire. Valha had to help Lanos, as well, after that scream of his. He was at his wits end, it seemed. Poor kid... I'm not much older, myself, but I've never had to go through what he's had to, not so quickly, not like this... Goodness. Tomorrow will be better... "Hey, demon woman," he said, not knowing how close to accurate he was, "there's a way out of here, right?" Makin shot him a look for interrupting her questions, but at least it was also an important one.

Isabelle almost smiled. In fact, she did smile, faintly, a small little creeping thing as Lanos and Vesta yelled at each other. It was nice to finally see the chipper people in the group losing it some! She felt like less of an outcast, having others around her see things that negatively, for once. She pulled the rest of the sleeping bags out for the group and set them out in front of the wagon, so she could get her own sleep. Leaving one inside the wagon for herself, she crawled into it and laid her head down to rest, sighing the day off. There'll be more pay for me when we're done here and things will be fine... Things will be fine~

[Ether]

"It looks like you might have recalled the cause of it, then." Lina noted, as Maja spoke to herself, before going into a bit of a fit, clearly none too thrilled with the realization. Of course, then came the accusation from the snake woman, though she supposed it wasn't odd for such a thing to be brought up rather quickly. Lina couldn't help but smile as the swordsman interjected, considering what he had said.

"I suppose I should expect that question, hmm? I suppose the easiest way to describe it is that I am a... God's observer. There is truly no better way to learn of the world then to live in it, no?" Lina replied, actually being rather open, though whether that would be acknowledged or appreciated only time would tell.

"As for your question, I have good news and bad news. I know for certain that there is an exit to this place, and following it will lead you out of the tundra... unfortunately I don't know where that exit is."

[Juliette]

Never the first to put herself in danger, Heather found herself enter the large castle basement after most of the others had already gotten themselves situated- but she caught enough to see a strange woman emerge from an equally unusual cubic object, two of her companions engage in a shouting contest, and at least one threat with a sword made. The thrill of adventure, seen here in its natural state... The elven archer rolled her eyes at the antics of the others in her party. Few, if any, seemed to be keeping their guard up- and the mystical nature of the area didn't strike her as particularly appealing after the sudden battle and subsequent trek into Karstell.

"Someone ought to keep their eyes open. We know little of the dangers that may lurk here," Heather announced aloud, strutting towards the stairs upon hearing the naga woman mentioned them to Vesta and deeming the idea to be a good one. Keeping her bow ready, she walked somewhat up them- but not terribly far from the group, either- before leaning on the railing.

[scorri]

Trist had been about to answer Alicia when a woman appeared out of thin air near Valha. He'd immediately gone for a weapon but when she didn't attack right away, he held off for now. He was torn between going and figuring out what was going on and staying as far away from the weird horned woman as he could. In the end he settled on that, turning back to Alicia and mumbling something along the lines of "Yeah, ok, just... show me where to put stuff." He still wasn't happy with everything that was going on but Makin seemed to have things under control and he was too tired to deal with this anyways.

[Vestige]

The prospect of falling asleep in some dusty old castle wasn't all too appealing to Raith. Especially when he stopped to consider the supposed "mad-man" that was lurking around within. He hadn't sent a welcoming party yet, but chances were that he was well aware that the group had managed to stumble their way into "his" castle. Though, more of an immediate problem for them all to consider was Lina, who, from where Raith was standing, looked a little like Valha, except far less feathery, and far more buxom. She claimed to be an observer of sorts, but that didn't really answer the question as to what she was. Certainly not human, but Makin had deduced that much herself.

That aside, there was also the issue of a blood-thirsty Maja they would have to be dealing with. He wanted to raise the point that whatever happened to Maja could be happening to Lanos, considering he was bit by her. If her condition was magically induced, there might be a chance that there was nothing to worry about. But if Lina was right with her information, then it wasn't. And that meant he had every right to be worried. He'd have to remember to raise the point the following day, and in the meantime keep an eye on both Lanos, and Maja. He wasn't too keen on getting bitten and turning into some bloodthirsty psycho. If Maja couldn't cure herself with magic, where did that leave him? Or the rest of them for that matter?

[Sandalphon]

Vesta mumbled under her breath. This was something she had experienced before, the "ol' let's-give-vesta-some-gruntwork-because-she-is-being-shouty-like" maneuver as she liked to call it. Still, she figured that she probably shouldn't give the boss any lip.

it would be unprofessional probably.

probably.

"Alrighty then," she said with a voice that was a little bit too enthusiastic, "I'm gonna go s'plore that room over there. Maaaybe I'll find my own spooky-not-at-all-suspicious thing and that would be excitin' now wouldn't it! Maybe I'll even find some doilies and then we can make this place super cozy and homey and we can all settle down here and live happily. ever. after!"

so much for professional...

She trotted off into the corridor that lead to the staircase with a little huff. Why am I the only one with any survival instinct 'round here? Sure, let's all have a friendly bonding time and make some damn friendship bracelets in fucking cursed deathtrap castle of doom.

[Nanami Touko]

As Vesta and Heather approached the stairs, it became apparent that there was another door, large like the one they'd entered in, and incredibly heavy. But it seemed sealed tight, and the staircase was well lit. If all the other rooms downstairs were safe, would that mean the mercenaries would be safe for the night? Wouldn't that be dandy.

Makin sighed, both out of her own confusion, but also out of some relief that there was an exit to the castle, and the tundra after that. Whatever it was would have to wait, but at the very least there was hope. She needed some of that.

Ingverd, however, wasn't satisfied with that answer.

"So what are you, then?" he said, taking a step forward and taking on a more stern tone. "You're not human. You're not any monster I've ever seen. You're an observer for a "God", but which one? I'm half tempted to go back to my earlier scrutiny, and regret taking you out of there, if you don't start answering... Maybe we can figure that box out and put you back in it."

"Ingverd, stop," Makin said, in the same stern tone. "I'm suspicious too, but even if she waited until we were sleeping to do something, we have more than ten people here, and two healers... Does she really look capable of killing someone before we can stop her? The only meat on her bones isn't meant for that." Makin tried to lighten the situation slightly, mostly because the group didn't need more tension, partly because it felt like Lina's sort of humour. Getting in on her good side felt better than not.

Ingverd sighed. "Fine, but... Explain what you are, and not vaguely. Makin gets final say, but you're not getting my trust, nor probably the trust of everyone else, if we can't place you and your powers. You're far too... Sultry. The last thing we need is someone actually capable of murder turning on us." He stated it bluntly, because there was no other way to state it.

Leaving all of that behind, Alicia smiled to try and put Tristram at ease. "I think all the shouting's over, so we should be fine to set things up for everyone else. The bags should be in the wagon. Come on." Isabelle was sleeping in the wagon, but there was access from the back, so they wouldn't have to disturb her. "How are you holding up?" she asked, breaking the ice fairly quickly. "I think I'm alright, but... I dunno if all of this is just gonna hit me, or something. It still feels surreal."

Edited February 3, 2016 by Snake Mom

[Ether]

"My people are called Ungeist, and I observe the world in the service of Lord Tenebrae, if you must know. Though honestly, your paranoia is quite overstated, Sir elf. I've no wish to linger in this place any longer then you do, and even if I grew displeased with your company, trying to kill you would be so... messy and unworthy of the effort, let alone far too likely to leave me killed in retaliation. Is it not easier to stick together until we've cleared this place, and then part ways, if we're really so disagreeable?" Lina replied, somewhat annoyed with Ingverd's questioning. With how long it had been since they'd had anyone on the surface, those names would mean nothing to these folk anyway, so there was little chance of harm. Still, he left a bad taste in her mouth, and her lips curled into an uncharacteristic scowl as she recalled his speech.

"I will tell you this, as I've said, I mean no harm to you, but if you attempt to put me back in that wretched box, I'll do all I can to end you before you get the chance, even if I'm not built for such barbarism." Lina continued, pushing her chest out in sync with Makin's comment, smiling once again in response to it.

"See? Why can't you be more like her? At least she's making an effort to not overtly antagonize me, hmm? If anything, I should be the one acting as you are. Comparing a woman of my stature, unarmed and practically unclothed, to an armed group the size of yours, honestly? Just keep that wretched box away from me, and you have nothing to fear from me. Sad as it is, you probably have little to fear from me even so, but I'd appreciate a little decency from someone I've never wronged."