It is a warm summer dawn when the group of scouts and adventurers gather at the start of the Gray Forest. Reese sent this party out, but she isn't here at the moment. She left Mason in command of the party, choosing him for whatever reason. Maybe because he is an adventurer, maybe because he is a Grayson by nature. They were left with instructions to travel northwest into the forest, to try to be sneaky, report back any information found and run from overwhelming forces. Reese did say that could fight though if they had to or if they think they can win.

Calaudrin has gathered up all of his stuff and is staring off into the forest. ...No, really! That's what he's doing. He's not in charge of this party, so he stands by and finishes off a smoke before crushing the thing under his heel. Then he checks his gear over, glances around at the rest of them and waits to see what the exact next move is going to be.

Joslyn is in a strange silken gown that doesn't, at first glance, look like it's designed for any kind of close combat. A closer look reveals many layers of leather that weave over her form, protecting and exentuating her body all in one. Gripped in her fingers are a pair of hairpins, which she twirls about her fingers, deftly woven throuh. She's ready for whatever comes next, as her jade eyes scan through the thick spread of trees.

Sergei is in his usual leathers and Compromise, his sword, hanging from the low slug swordbelt on his hip. He has a rolled smoke between his lips he isn't quite finished with, and midlength black hair has been wrangled in a leather tie at the back of his head. When he does make it to the group, it's Joslyn heads towards with a grin, "hallo honey, you're done up nice for a day's scouting." He says down to the girl, smoke bobbing at his lips as she speaks.

Shard is on foot today, and traveling light. She's brought no pack with her, no extra supplies, just herself, her leathers, and her weaponry, which she's made sure to strap on tight enough that it's unlikely to jangle in any meaningful manner. She's also wearing that old battered cloak of hers, the one with the strange, earthy colored stains on it, a rough patch job from a previous outing into the forest near the small of her back, and the hood pulled up over her head. She's watching and waiting, attention seemingly split equally between those arriving and the forest itself.

Lou is mounted on her trusty mare, staying close to her husband; Mason. She seems content to be going along for the ride, or perhaps it's the fact that she's out in the woods, or even an adventure. She'd have introduced herself to everyone as simply 'Lou Grayson'. "Northwest - that's where she said she wanted us to go," she reminds Mason. She grins a bit. "Aren't you glad it's summer? I can't see you leading your first expedition in the winter," she teases lightly. To Shard, she says. "I've gotten some training since I was kidnapped last!"

Meanwhile, Agnarr waits. The massive northman has brought his own horse Thunder, who stands among horses as he does among people, though the beast's got only simple tack and a saddle not meant for military use. He hasn't even ridden him, loath to tire out the animal even if by now he can support his weight. Clad in partial steel harness, he opts instead to find his way to wherever Shard's found herself. "How much pay are you getting?" he asks, priorities in mind.

A messenger arrives, delivering a message to Reese before departing.

A messenger arrives, delivering a message to Lou before departing.

A messenger arrives, delivering a message to Mason before departing.

Joslyn shoots a glance towards Sergei at his comment, releasing a little snort. "Well, if today is the day I'm going to die, I want it to look good, and do so in style. They better not ruin my hair is all I'm saying," Joslyn says easily, making her way with the group, considering her surroundings.

Mason's in charge! Oh boy! The Eurusi man looks comfortable in the warm weather, peering about quietly for a while before pointing, "Let's take that deer run in. We can take the horses in single or doubles, conceal our numbers if anyone tries to track us." The man says, accented voice soft, but clear. "Look for signs of the enslaver's work.. tainted lands, trees or plants that appear twisted and misshapen, pitch black stones, blood, or signs of an enemy force moving." He glances to his wife, giving her a wry smile, "Not my first expedition led, but let us hope this one goes better than that one did." Then he looks to Calaudrin, "Do you mind taking point, Lieutenant?" Then he just leads his mount at a slow walk towards the path while the others catch up.

"Hey boss!" Sergei calls obnoxiously to Shard when he spies the woman. His attention pulls down to Joslyn again then and tips his head in thoughtful agreement, "fair call." He nods. "And here I forgot to wear my silks, damn it." Sergei's head swivels to Mason and Lou's approach, listening, though his attention tips to Calaudrin and Agnarr as well noting both men with a nod of his head. Serg lingers on the former, more than the latter, considering Mason's coining him Lieutenant.

The gray forest stretches out in front of them, looking rather wild and woodsy in the early dawn.

Lou quirks a slightly amused brow at Joslyn. "Well... you may get some leaves or twigs in your hair, quite by accident, as we're trying to be stealthy and that often requires hiding in the woods." She looks over at Mason and gives him a grave nod when he says this. "Well, the odds were stacked against you then," she reminds him. "You have people backing you up here." She nudges her horse forward to follow behind Mason, looking like she can easily dismount if it comes to it.

Calaudrin grinds his heel further down, just to make sure his smoke won't set the forest on fire after he's left the area. That done, he looks in Mason's directions and then down at the deer path. "Sure, if you'd like." He checks his stuff over one last time quickly and moves forward, slipping between the others so that he can get further ahead and catch sight of things down through the trees.

"Rugged works better for you," Joslyn points out to Sergei, her voice lowering a touch as she looks around, making sure to keep an eye open for everything. Lou gets a bit of a chuckle and shrugs. "Well, that's fine, as long as they don't ruin the braids," Joslyn nods. To Mason she gives a nod, looking forawrd and awaiting either further instruction, or something to report.

Shard's eyebrows arch at Lou--is she amused? Can anyone tell? Does this woman ever /smile/? When the two members of the Few move to join her, she grunts at both, then points to either side of the mounted non-mercenaries. "A thousand each," she says, in answer to Agnarr. "Keep with the group, I'm going to make myself quiet and scarce. This is a scouting mission, so if we get into trouble, don't get yourselves dug in. Watch those two and keep them up." 'Those two', it seems, being Lou and Mason, as she points them out. Then, she slips away, to the front and to the side, though she doesn't attempt to get in front of Calaudrin. Her main aim does indeed seem to be 'scarce' and 'quiet'. She goes low and just off the trail in an attempt to move alongside them while being far less noticeable.

Calaudrin takes point as the party travels further into the Gray Forest. At first the trail through the forest is rather wide, allowing them to travel three abreast if they wish. The morning starts off warm and only gets warmer as the sun continues to rise. There is dew on the leaves and forest is looking rather like it should in summer. A good sign all things considered. After hours of travel, the trail starts to thin and now they can walk two abreast, but single file would be the most comfortable and natural on the narrow path. The Forest thickens around them and things are darker as the sun is more fully blocked by trees. It is getting close to noon now.

Sunrise, lilac breasted roller arrives, delivering a message to Reese before departing.

Lou checked perception + survival at difficulty 15, rolling 29 higher.

Joslyn checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 10 higher.

Calaudrin checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 18 higher.

Mason checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 11 higher.

Sergei checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 11 higher.

Agnarr checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 2 higher.

Shard checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 4 lower.

Lou checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 32 higher.

Mason routinely glances back to make sure everyone is together, trusting in Shard to stay with them. As time wanes and they have to thin their line, he'll ask Calaudrin to slow the pace so the group doesn't get too stretched out. Other than that, the prince from far across the sea is quiet and watchful, seeming content not to converse more than is needed on this outing.

"Most like a bonus if we get them safe," supposes Agnarr. He shrugs, then looks to Thunder, stepping to him to grab onto the horn of the saddle and pull himself up and into the saddle. He doesn't look like too much of a rider, being slow to get comfortable mounted, though his mount's steady nature makes this easier. Following Shard's advice, he moves to ride behind Mason and Lou, keeping an eye on the royals, while ever so often he gazes into the forest, taking a moment to fasten on his bevor, but leaving his visor up.

Lou dismounts from her horse when the path becomes more narrow, and when it becomes too thick to even lead the horse down the path, she ties it to a tree. She gathers her things and starts to move on foot now. "So far so good," she comments to the others. "Of course, any time there are no abyssal animals out here, that's always good," she remarks. She keeps her eyes on the path, ever alert and sharp for something out of the ordinary.

This is indeed the woods in the middle of the summer. He plucks at his armor, seeming alternately happy and then distresed that it's no longer all steel. Calaudrin doesn't seem to be in a rush, though he has a tendency to just pick his own pace and go. When Mason calls to him, he'll slow it down. Taking those few moments to give the woods around them a more thorough and in depth look then.

This is a rather alert party for the most part. Shard is normally pretty alert herself, but today she doesn't seem see much of anything. Maybe something distracts her. The rest of the party is able to make foot prints along the trail. The prints are of four very large humans and six large canines. Those prints are too small to come from someone even Agnarr or Sergei sized. They were looking for signs an army, but there are no army tracks to be seen.

"I try." Sergei rumbles down to Joslyn with a snicker. He does keep his gob shut after that at least; his voice carries, and that isn't at all helpful for scouting missions. Soon after his last quip he drops back towards the rear of the group, dark eyes tipped up sharp to the surrounding forest. His steps at least are relatively soft, considering -- and it's before one of those careful steps he pauses and lifts his boot. "Well lookit that.." he says low to himself considering the prints a moment.

Joslyn frowns then as she looks over at the footprints that the party seems to have caught wind of, and she bites her lip curiously. "Doesn't look as big as the giants that I fought not long ago," She muses. "Still... we should be cautious," because the amount of information she's able to gather really just means she has nothing to do but state te obvious.

Lou checked perception + survival at difficulty 40, rolling 5 lower.

Shard keeps herself largely out of sight of the party, just within the trees, although as the trail gets narrower and the forest gets thicker, this becomes more difficult, and she's forced to bob and weave more to find her own way through, occasionally having to get back onto the trail itself to avoid being delayed too long. When she starts hearing commentary about...something, however, she finds her way back again, just enough to see and be seen, and see what they're talking about.

Mason checked perception + survival at difficulty 40, rolling 4 lower.

Shard checked perception + survival at difficulty 40, rolling 0 higher.

Calaudrin checked perception + survival at difficulty 40, rolling 1 lower.

Sergei checked perception + survival at difficulty 40, rolling 10 lower.

Joslyn checked perception + survival at difficulty 40, rolling 8 lower.

Mason slides down off of his horse, an easy grace to the way the foreigner moves. He ties the creature off beside Lou's mount, then moves to stand beside her, peering at the prints before looking around, "Does anyone have an idea of how old these might be?" He asks.

Without any answer to how old the prints might be, Sergei's attention is looking off in the directions the prints seems to move in. Checking the surrounding paths, trees and shrub for disturbance.

"Hrm," sounds Agnarr, remaining mounted and towering. He doesn't sound especially surprised to find someone with freak feet or otherwise, even if he's at least seven feet of man. Instead, he muses, "Looks like we're to meet my kin." He shakes his head slowly, subtly instructing Thunder for a halt, and waits by the side, his eyes on the forest as opposed to the tracks.

There are broken branches and the like. This group wasn't exactly delicate about tromping through the forest.

"Well that's exciting. Now we just need to remember to leave you there," Joslyn quips with just a hint of a smirk towards Agnarr, she looks through the brush, unable to really gauge much else. "Could be fresh, could be a week old," Joslyn says. "No real solid signs that I can spot."

Lou gives a shake of her head. "It's hard to tell," Lou responds to Mason's request, furrowing her brow at the tracks. "Though, I don't like the look of the size of them. We'll need to be careful, and quieter, here on out." At least, that's her expert opinion!

Shard steps lightly onto the trail and drops into an easy crouch, squinting down at one of the large prints. She touches two gloved fingers to the edge of it, pressing just a little. "Eh." The woman glances upward through the branches, and then actually brings one of those two gloved fingers, dirt and all, up to her nose. "Can't be exact, but give it an hour or so, we could probably catch up to them. These weren't made all that long ago."

"You wanna cough or something next time?" Sergei balks at Shard as she appears back onto the trail. Surprises and giant prints aren't a good combo. His attention drops back to those prints once, and up again to the trail. Dark eyes cast on Mason again -- waiting.

Calaudrin looks down at the footprints on the ground and frowns at them. As far as old they are? He crouches down and touches one with his fingertips. "I don't have a clue, sorry." Thankfully Shard seems to have the answers! And for that he looks grateful.

Mason checks to make sure his scimitar is loose in it's scabbard, then peers eastward. "Yes, atajashe, I agree." The man murmurs quietly, then shifts his attention to Shard. "An hour or two? They may be scouting for a larger force. Let's follow them and see if we can get more information. That is what Princess Reese wanted. We will want to watch for traps as we go. If they heard us coming it could be an ambush." The man says, then repeats softer, "Definitely watch for traps." He'll look to Shard and Joslyn, "Can you two flank the rest of us as we go?"

Joslyn gives Mason an easy affirmative nod. "Of course," she says. She looks to Shard and shoots the woman a smile and a bit of a nod. "At least we're on the same side this time," she remarks, moving off to the side, waiting for the rest to head out before she gets back into position.

Lou nods when Mason addresses her, then gives him an empathetic look when he mentions traps. "We'll be sure to keep an eye out," she assures him as she already starts to move forward to follow the trail as quietly as possible.

"No," Shard says to Sergei as she pushes out of her crouch. Mason gets a sharp nod before she's slipping off again, to the opposite side from Joslyn. Much as before, she seems intent on separating just enough so as to be not entirely visible in the thick forest.

Lou has rolled a critical success!
Lou checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 58 higher.

Shard checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 39 higher.

Mason checked perception + riddles at difficulty 20, rolling 19 higher.

Calaudrin checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 4 higher.

Joslyn checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 13 higher.

Sergei checked perception + survival at difficulty 20, rolling 8 higher.

"You're what you eat," mutters Agnarr down, down, down, to Joslyn in a rather dry voice, neglecting exactly to explain why it is he mutters that. Checking the trail is for the other souls in the patrol - he's still ahorse and following slowly behind, reaching for his visor to pull it down and shield his face from sudden stray fire. He doesn't need the vision right now, anyhow.

Joslyn stops just before she enters the brush to just stare at Agnarr for a moment, eyebrow lifted in... confusion. She shrugs and disappears from view then, keeping close to the group.

"I think we can argue, in her case, that's entirely true." Sergei pipes, /helpfully/.

The party is able to follow the tracks through the forest. Large prints like that are not exactly hard to trail. Shard sneaks off to one side and Joslyn sneaks off to the the other side. They are all intentionally being alert to possible traps. Shard, Mason, Calaudrin, Joslyn and Sergei noticed some crude traps in form of first one and the another trip rope put across the path. If one tripped over the rope, it would have triggered a wasp nest to come falling down from the trees. One has to look up toward the trees near where the trip rope is to find the nest.

Lou picked out these trip ropes, but she also spots a strange spot on the ground ahead of them where the path is suddenly covered over in a bunch of brush. Could it be covering a pit? It looks like Calaudrin is close to riding over this section, but if she calls out he could be stopped in time, probably. They are also now have traveled for almost another hour. They could be getting close.

"Calaudrin, have a care," Lou calls out, only loud enough for him and the others close to them to hear. "I think there's a pit up ahead, that bit of brush on the ground. Walk around it." Lou knows Calaudrin from other missions, and well.... the nagging from Luca about being shot in the butt by her was more than enough!

Mason checked perception + survival at difficulty 15, rolling 31 higher.

Shard checked perception + survival at difficulty 15, rolling 25 higher.

Lou checked perception + survival at difficulty 15, rolling 30 higher.

Joslyn checked perception + survival at difficulty 15, rolling 2 lower.

Sergei checked perception + survival at difficulty 15, rolling 22 higher.

Calaudrin checked perception + survival at difficulty 15, rolling 23 higher.

Agnarr checked perception + survival at difficulty 15, rolling 3 lower.

Up ahead there is the sound of movement in the forest and it is not graceful movement. A hound or maybe a wolf makes some kind of canine like noise as well.

Calaudrin in fact, does not want to fall down into the pit. When he hears Lou call out to him, he stops where he is and looks around until it's spotted. "This is an awful lot of work someone put into setting up traps." He can be heard muttering to himself as he steps around it.

Shard checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 15, rolling 17 higher.

Sergei checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 15, rolling 18 higher.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 15, rolling 0 higher.

Joslyn checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 15, rolling 8 higher.

Mason checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 15, rolling 20 higher.

Shard eases up against the nearest non-wasp occupied tree as she hears that sound. She reaches back, slowly loosening and then sliding her bow free from where it has been firmly strapped to her shoulders, and with quick, silent motions, she sets about stringing the weapon.

Agnarr checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 25, rolling 1 lower.

Shard wields a largely unremarkable rubicund longbow.

Mason makes some quick gestures for silence as he and others pick up those sounds ahead, slowly and quietly drawing his scimitar. He whispers, "Let's spread out, we want room if we need to fight."

Joslyn draws out her hairpins, which she'd hidden within her sleeves, alaricite tips gleaming in the light as she sneaks around. She's quiet along the outside of the group, furrowing her brows as she keeps an eye open.

Sergei drops himself with a lean to duck under the brush, tucking himself to a hidden space somewhere where there are no immediate traps and danger (that would be unfortunate). He carefully draws his blade, but keeps it close and low, eyeing the trail in silent caution.

Sergei wields Compromise, a steel longsword.

Lou checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 15, rolling 29 higher.

The party is for the most part rather quiet. Agnarr though isn't exactly subtle and while mounted on his horse he makes enough noise to draw some interest.

"I heard something." A deep and gravely voice ahead says. "Who's there?" He calls out a moment later.

Lou moves behind some brush and ducks down low, careful about how she moves and where she places her feet. It seems those recent stealth lessons have been paying off! She gives Agnarr a somewhat worried look, however.

Calaudrin leans against a large tree and slides into a crouch on the ground as he gets his bow out, nocking an arrow and waiting to see how this is about to play out. The call out into the woods doesn't go answered by him.

Sergei's leather wrapped hand appears from a bush, offering a big ol' thumbs up at Agnarr. It disappears quickly though, lest he be the actual cause of the group being caught.

It's like he barely tried. Agnarr is staying ahorse, after all, and though the most visible right this moment, he's hardly the most vulnerable. Even Thunder has some barding - plate crinet and chamfron, with light padding. Clinging onto his faussart in one hand, he raises his now-fully-helmed head at the sound of the voice, looking at no one else in the party, but voices no response, slowly leading Thunder to stand partway behind the cover of a tree.

There's not really much hope for trying to hide Thunder or make him lay down, after all.

Mason winces at the voices and slips over to a wide tree to duck behind, silent now and listening. He looks to Agnarr and then peeks around the tree to peer where the voices are coming from.

Shard finishes stringing her bow. She tugs at the string with two fingers, makes a quick adjustment, tugs again. Satisfied, those two fingers slip an arrow free from her quiver. She doesn't nock yet, but she does crouch there, waiting and listening intently.

A canine like growl or maybe a howl is heard coming from the west and another quickly joins in and then and then another until their is a chorus of angry wolf sounds. "Who goes!" The gravely voice repeats. "Maybe its nothing, again." A more normal sounding voice is heard saying.

Joslyn moves herself quietly taking cover in some nearby brush, peering out in the direction of the voices, ready to pounce the first opportunity she gets.

"Come and find out," whispers Agnarr, though none of this is heard outside of the shell of visor and bevor protecting his face. Remaining in place and gently touching the side of Thunder's head with his left, his right hand instead finds the haft of one of the throwing axes hanging off the saddle, gripping it firmly and waiting.

Mason will seek out Shard amongst the small scouting group and if he catches her eye, point up the tree she's ducked behind, then bring his hand up over his own eyes as if peering. Surely that's all quite clear to the woman. Then he just waits.

Agnarr wields some light throwing axes.

As it happens, it is. Shard gives him another sharp nod, then looks up her own tree. After a moment of careful study--and perhaps, a second check to make sure there really aren't any wasp nests--she tucks the arrow she drew back into her quiver, slides her bow over one arm, and attempts to start up it as quietly as possible.

Lou wields forest shadows regal crossbow with etched Grayson sigil.

"Lets continue." The more reasonable voice is heard saying. They are not that far away, but the trees made make it so the parties cannot see each other. The wolfs are growling and sounds of man like beings are heard, stomping and growling as well. "No, see if puny men are nearby. Need dinner!" The gravely voice is heard saying and now the sound of many feet are heading in the party direction.

Lou very carefully and very quietly moves her crossbow into a position of where she can make use of it, making sure to string a bolt into place should there be need. She seems calm and relaxed, in her hidden spot.

"I don't want to be eaten for dinner..." Calaudrin mutters very quietly to himself and raises his bow to be of use.

Mason wields brilliant steel scimitar edged in wilderness.

Sergei keeps to his place for the most part, though his brows furrow a little at the gravel voice and the mention of dinner. He looks down at himself as he considering whether he might classify as 'puny'. Hrn. Sergei twists, quietly in his crouch looking out for Mason and the others, future orders and such.

Joslyn wields Emerald Dagger of Entwined Serpents.

Agnarr checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 50, rolling 30 lower.

Shard checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 20, rolling 16 higher.

Sergei checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 30, rolling 7 lower.

Lou checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 30, rolling 3 lower.

Mason has rolled a critical success!
Mason checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 30, rolling 30 higher.

Joslyn checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 30, rolling 10 lower.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + stealth at difficulty 30, rolling 4 higher.

Joslyn eyes the surroundings and changes her mind about her hairpins, slipping those back into her sleeves, safely out of sight, she pulls a dagger from beneath her skirt, from a hidden holster, a smirk on her face, even as well... she fails to be exactly stealthy.

Mason tenses at the words and growls that drift back to them, wariness on his face. He presses flatter against the tree, still as a statue while he waits, his darker complexion and leathers working with him as he becomes one with the bark.

Sergei shouldn't have moved -- he should have just kept his place there in the shrub. The twist was what did him in and the attempt to shift his boots forward to get a better vantage point. A slight wobble required him to drop his knee and it crunches a branch under his weight. "Fuck.." hisses in little more than a whisper for the error.

After gently patting and rubbing the side of Thunder's long head, underneath the mail, Agnarr sits up taller in the saddle, sliding a second throwing axe into the hand loosely gripping both of his chained reins. The right props the first axe on his shoulder, and he just waits, waits for a target to rear its ugly head from his vantage point of nine or ten feet or so.

They arrive on the narrow forest path. There are six creatures who look to be large than Agnarr and larger than Sergei. Still they are not quite giants and are maybe more like orcs? They are armed with maces made from tree trunks. Their skin has a grey-green cast and their eyes have sickly yellow sheen. They are adorned in sores, blisters and boils. The six move in a kind of unison that is a bit creepy. Trailing along with them is a pack of large and likely abyss tainted wolves who this slick green sheen to their fur and this yellow gleam to their eyes. The whole party is quite loud and far from subtle. They seem to see Sergei, Lou, Agnarr and Joslyn.

"Large humans make good meal." One says, looking between Sergei and Agnarr. Another hmms and looks over to Lou and then Joslyn. "More tender." they don't seem to see Mason, Shard or Calaudrin.

Mason checked willpower at difficulty 15, rolling 10 lower.

Agnarr has joined the line.

Lou has joined the line.

Calaudrin has joined the line.

Sergei has joined the line.

"Fuckit." Sergei rumbles at his usual tone now. No point hiding so he pushes up to his feet and out from under his shrubbed hiding spot. "I dunno about that, mate," he grunts for being tasty, "I'm a bit old-- meats probably too tough." Yeah, go for the tender ones. "You boys looks like you're pretty busy though, so we'll let you keep on your way, yeah?"

"No, humans don't make good meals. Stupid monster creatures." More muttering from Calaudrin as he tries to remain an unpalatable surprise.

Joslyn has joined the line.

Joslyn remains crouched for a few moments, there's a smile on her face and she seems content to wait for them to come after her for just a few more moments. "Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, it appears that our entertainment for the evening has arrived," Joslyn says, lifting the emerald dagger before her. "And Emerald is thirsty. Would you feed her, darlings?"

Mason has joined the line.

As those creatures tromp down the path, Mason feels a chill run through him as he sees the taint of the wolves and the way the six big ones all move in unison. He stands frozen in place, still concealed, but with a terrified expression on his face.

It is now Agnarr's turn to speak.

Agnarr checked perception + occult at difficulty 15, rolling 5 higher.

Mason checked perception + occult at difficulty 15, rolling 62 higher.

Shard braces herself in the tree, finding as sturdy a perch as she can manage with her hands and arms free. Now? Now she draws and nocks, taking time to line up with the group of malformed men and tainted wolves below her. She slowly pulls back until the fletching of the arrow is near tickling her ear.

Calaudrin has rolled a critical success!
Calaudrin checked perception + occult at difficulty 15, rolling 39 higher.

Sergei checked perception + occult at difficulty 15, rolling 7 lower.

Shard checked perception + occult at difficulty 15, rolling 4 lower.

Joslyn checked perception + occult at difficulty 15, rolling 21 higher.

Agnarr checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 31 higher.

Agnarr checked dexterity + ride at difficulty 15, rolling 3 higher.

Calaudrin squints as he lifts his bow, aiming for one of the ugly assholes that wants to take his companions and make them into a delicious human sandwich. Still, something seems to stop him from releasing right away. Instead that squint of his lingers and he watches the way that they move with significant focus and attention.

Lou checked perception + occult at difficulty 15, rolling 13 higher.

It is now Lou's turn to speak.

Lou checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 2 higher.

It is now Calaudrin's turn to speak.

So much for that brush keeping her hidden! Lou stands up from her position of hiding, her crossbow already primed. "I assure you, I'm not as tender as you think. In fact, one might say that I bite back." Lou says this as she raises her crossbow and very carefully aims at whoever might look like they are the leader among the orcs. She lets loose the bolt and then starts to restring the bow.

Calaudrin has rolled a critical success!
Calaudrin checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 108 higher.

Gritting his teeth, Agnarr's repulsed and definitely mildly unnerved. He is not frozen in place, however - they are disgusting tainted things, but they lack the impression of bringers tearing his comrades to pieces literally or formori stomping on the battlefield. He issues his signal to Thunder, prodding him on with the spurs - then, with building momentum, he abandons his throwing axes to go instead for his faussart and charge into one of the orc-like creatures. He makes it. With impetus, he slices open the face of one knocked off balance, hurting it so. But it's not yet dead.

It is now Sergei's turn to speak.

Sergei checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 18 higher.

It is now Joslyn's turn to speak.

Joslyn checked dexterity + small wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 6 higher.

It is now Mason's turn to speak.

Shard checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 13 higher.

Mason checked willpower at difficulty 15, rolling 8 lower.

Joslyn lets herself grin towards the approaching enemies and charges forward, a flash of silk and leather as she strikes forward, the emerald blade finding its home in one of the orcs. "I saved something for you!" she shouts, even if the orc remains standing, she doesn't lose her determined glare.

Calaudrin doesn't really say much as he's forced to move out of cover and aim. The arrow has been nocked and when it's time, he silently releases it, letting it fly towards one of the orcs. One of the ones that was saying it was such a great idea to eat them! It sails clean through the air and whallops the poor bastard right in the eye. That's probably fatal.

While others leap into the fray, cool and ready to fight, Mason is still pressed to the tree, breathing heavily. He peers up sharply at the sky, searching through the leaves for *something* before dragging his gaze down again to watch the green-skinned creatures with a frantic intensity.

Sergei might be drunk (good bed) -- or just really unphased by the state of those monsters in front of him. Either way not much more than an uptic to his lower lip for the state of them; or what they threaten to do. Lips purse and he makes a low whistle towards one of those wolves, spurring one into lunge for him it seems, eyes up at the grunt holding them. If it works, he makes a swift stab to one of those wolves -- if not, he'll be stepping out to swing his blade done into the hound anyway.

These are quite tough orcs. Agnarr, Lou, Joslyn and Sergei attacked and damaged them and yet they are still coming at them. They move in this creepy unison and don't seem to mind their injuries as much as they should. Calaudrin's shot was nothing short of amazing and he sends one of the giants falling. The five remaining ones and the six wolves swarm to attack the party.

Joslyn checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 29 higher.

Joslyn checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 9 higher.

Lou checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 1 lower.

Sergei checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 22 higher.

Sergei checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 12 lower.

Lou checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 15 lower.

Agnarr checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 13 higher.

Agnarr checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 5 higher.

Lou takes minor damage.

Lou takes minor damage.

Sergei takes moderate damage.

One of the wolves goes charging at Lou who is already swarmed and Shard's arrow slams into the beast, preventing her from having to dodge yet another attack as the canine yelps and is distracted. Two other wolves are on her though, both biting at either leg and working together as if they were linked. She is most certainly injured. Their teeth got past her leather and her legs have serious bite wounds. She is bleeding. One of the orcs slams his tree trunk into Sergei and a crunch is heard as ribs break. That has to hurt. Sergei and Lou are still standing though and can still fight. The orcs and wolves also try to attack Agnarr and Joslyn, but they are able to evade and dodge their blows.

Sergei has joined the line.

Shard has joined the line.

Joslyn has joined the line.

Mason has joined the line.

Agnarr has joined the line.

It is now Sergei's turn to speak.

Sergei checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 31 higher.

Calaudrin has joined the line.

Lou has joined the line.

It is now Shard's turn to speak.

Shard checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 6 higher.

It is now Joslyn's turn to speak.

Joslyn checked dexterity + small wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 23 higher.

Sergei was a little preoccupied with the concern of wolves as much as their masters -- and the shot from Calaudrin was just /impressive/. He was on the verge of complimenting the archer when-- dark eyes turn up in time to see that tree trunk coming for him. Bones breaking sound so strange from inside the breaking body. Serg growls out, only barely managing to keep his feet in a low crouch, bracing his ribs. "You //fuck//!" bellowed to the Orc as he dives in after the bastard hoping to put his sword through one of those sickly yellow eyes. He might only land cutting the monster's face, or shoulder, but that's fine.

It is now Mason's turn to speak.

Mason checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 1 higher.

Shard flicks another arrow from her quiver and nocks it to the bowstring, then draws back in one quick, sharp motion. She adjusts her aim just so and fires, this time burying an arrow into the back of one of the wolves attacking Lou, though she still fails to bring the beast down.

It is now Agnarr's turn to speak.

Joslyn slides around the strikes that come at her, an angry sort of euphoria as she stabs in retalitation, the skirts of her armor flare out, distracting and making it difficult for them to determine exactly where she is behind the fabric. There is a strategy to her style, it seems! "She's still thirsty, poppit. Now if you'd kindly FUCKING STAY DOWN!"

Agnarr checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 9 higher.

Mason's eyes fall on Lou and the man's attention snaps back to the fight in the present. "Atajashe!!" He rushes towards the woman, the scimitar arcing down at one of the wolves harrying her. His blade cuts at the creature while the Ahj'oni prince speaks harshly in his native tongue.

Mason says in Eurusi, "Demon-twisted abyssal monsters! I will not let this happen again!!"

It is now Calaudrin's turn to speak.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 21 higher.

After the creature he shot goes down with a loud thump, Calaudrin looks quietly satisfied. He nocks his next arrow, draws his arm back and aims to hit the one that Sergei is battling. If he's lucky, maybe he'll free him up.

It is now Lou's turn to speak.

Lou checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 5 higher.

Also he hits him and he dies. Tada.

Conker, the Ornery Red Squirrel, Dame Barkley, a chocolate tri beagle leave, following Joslyn.

Conker, the Ornery Red Squirrel, Dame Barkley, a chocolate tri beagle arrive, following Joslyn.

It is obvious that Agnarr is used to fighting on foot - he ducks and avoids the retaliatory tree-club swing, as opposed to riding past and keeping Thunder's intense momentum. At least he remains on the saddle. Grunting, tense face hidden behind steel, he extends another thrust and plants his faussart through the orc's ribs. This does not kill it, and so he pulls on the bridle yet again, turning to make another pass.

Lou has been practicing her archery! See, most of her shots hit! She plinks at the orc once more with the crossbow bolt. It does some damage, but doesn't bring him down. That's TWO. TWO CROSSBOW BOLTS stuck in his body!

Joslyn checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 21 higher.

Joslyn checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 36 higher.

Agnarr checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 29 higher.

Agnarr checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 15 higher.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 19 higher.

Mason checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 9 lower.

Mason checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 17 higher.

Sergei checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 1 higher.

Sergei doesn't go looking back to the swing of the arrow but there is a low, almost amused sounding, "you're a champion, mate." which is assumedly back towards Calaudrin-- without giving the archer's place away too much.

Sergei checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 1 higher.

Lou checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 12 lower.

Lou checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 4 higher.

Lou takes minor damage.

Wolf bite to the leg! Still an adventurer!

Mason takes moderate damage.

The orcs are in pretty bad shape and two of them are dead. While Calaudrin got the final death blow on the last one, the killing of this beast was a joined effort and Sergei certainly helped despite his ribs. They really hurt, a lot. Lou's legs are still bleeding from the bite wounds. Mason rushes to his wife's side and together they fight the wolves. Shard rains down arrows from above. Agnarr and Joslyn are both close to taking down the Orc on them. Mason and Lou are both attacked by the feral beasts, who tear past their leather. Their bites really hurt. The others are able to dodge and dart away from the attacks. The creatures continue in unison, fighting past the point where most would.

Mason has joined the line.

Lou has joined the line.

Joslyn has joined the line.

Shard has joined the line.

Calaudrin has joined the line.

Sergei has joined the line.

Agnarr has joined the line.

It is now Mason's turn to speak.

Mason checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 1 higher.

It is now Lou's turn to speak.

Lou checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 3 higher.

It is now Joslyn's turn to speak.

Lou does not let herself get distracted by the fact that there is a wolf at her leg, trying to gnaw it off. Instead, she shakes her leg out a bit to get a better stance, and then aims once more at the orc, trusting her team to take care of the nuisance wolves. This Grayson is hard to take down - possibly as hard as an orc itself - and so she readies another bolt in her crossbow, takes aim, and lets it loose. The bolt flies true, hitting the orc in the chest for a third and final time. THUD! It goes down, dead, dead, dead!

Joslyn checked dexterity + small wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 25 higher.

It is now Shard's turn to speak.

Mason curses in Eurusi (which mostly just sounds like anything else he's said in the language) as the wolf's teeth tear through his leather grieve. He whips the scimitar around and arcs it down again to slice at the monster's neck, the curved blade deceptively digging deeper than one might think from watching it. As the creatures falls, Mason glances at his wife to see how she fares.

Shard checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 7 higher.

It is now Calaudrin's turn to speak.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 21 higher.

It is now Sergei's turn to speak.

Sergei checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 27 higher.

With Sergei's most current opponent down, Calaudrin nods and then turns his attention onto the wolves that are attacking Mason and Lou. He'll go for the closest one that he can hit, the easiest. Because he'd really rather not shoot /either/ of them. He nocks, he draws, he shoots, he... kills one of them. There's a satisfied noise in his throat as he mops up.

Shard sends her third arrow into that wolf that won't leave Lou alone--the shaft takes it through the neck this time, and it finally falls back with a gurgling whine that soon ceases.

Joslyn grows under her breath as she continues to dance around all the blade and teeth and claws coming her way, it's a delicate dance that she weaves through like a performance, and her blade moves swiftly through the air until finally it lands in the brute's neck, and so she smiles, a big grin as she twists that blade, pushing in ever deeper, even as he falls to the ground, a cruel twisted grimace of a smile as she forces him to his knees, violently ripping the blade from his neck, she swipes one last time, finally giving a sweet merciful cut of his throat, and with a lazy action she kicks him over, and she already doesn't care about him before he even hits the ground.

It is now Agnarr's turn to speak.

Agnarr checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 32 higher.

Sergei growls out, switching sword hands briefly to cradle his chest -- breathing is //hard// man. "Right.." he looks to the fallen foe (thanks Calaudrin). Then up at the remaining uninjured brute, "you're up handsome." Sergei rumbles out, switching Compromise back and bringing the sword up without flourish to rake it across the Orc's chest, shoulder, throat range.

Sergei checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 4 higher.

Mason checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 6 lower.

Joslyn checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 6 higher.

Lou checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 1 lower.

Lou takes minor damage.

Mason takes moderate damage.

Riding on for another pass proves to be a good choice, since Agnarr once more escapes with not even a minor dent. To Thunder's credit, he is well-trained enough that he barely flinches, thundering (ha) on back towards the orc without hesitation. The massive northman twists in the saddle and rams through the man-thing's neck, sawing through with the momentum, and then pulls on the reins, slowing to change course and find a safe place to dismount. All the dead orc gets is a glance to confirm the kill.

Joslyn, Agnarr and Lou take down the orcs they are were fighting and now only one remains. Sergei charges in his direction, fighting the creation and managing to dodge his return blow. He has the beast injured, but the orc still stands. Shard remains in the tree, raining down arrows and keeping out of the range of combat. Agnarr is upon his horse. Calaudrin is at range. The wolves then swarm upon poor Mason and Lou, clawing and biting their leather again. They are both quite seriously injured. Walking home is going to be rough from them. Hopefully they live! They sure are bleeding a lot.

Calaudrin has joined the line.

Sergei has joined the line.

Joslyn has joined the line.

Mason has joined the line.

It is now Calaudrin's turn to speak.

Lou has joined the line.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 21 higher.

It is now Sergei's turn to speak.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 26 higher.

Sergei checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 33 higher.

Calaudrin looks between all of his companions that are currently engaged in combat. As Mason and Lou take on more serious injuries he stands to get better aim on the wolves that are attacking them. "Fuck, fuck, fuck." He mutters under his breath as he draws his arm back and releases another shot to injure the wolf.

It is now Joslyn's turn to speak.

Joslyn checked dexterity + small wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 30 higher.

Agnarr has joined the line.

It is now Mason's turn to speak.

Mason checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 3 higher.

Sergei draws out from the clash of sword to --makeshift tree weapon with a snarl. Despite the injury he's still moving quick, but he's probably not enjoying it, and turns sharp on a pivot to bring his sword down between the orc's shoulder blades. "Ah--" it's stuck.. and the orc's still alive. "Shit."

It is now Lou's turn to speak.

Lou checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 16 lower.

It is now Agnarr's turn to speak.

Noticing the wolves are all in melee range, Lou switches from her crossbow to her sword - which she doesn't know so much about - and attempts to hack at one. She misses, of course!

Shard has joined the line.

Mason's leg is torn at further by the wolf's teeth and there's hot blood running down his calf, soaking into his leathers and boot. The man grits his teeth and tries to shift his weight to his good leg as he ignores the creature trying to drag him down and slashes at the wolf attacking Lou instead. The scimitar sinks into it's flank and between his attack and the others that have been weakening it, the wolf crumples to the ground.

Agnarr has rolled a critical success!
Agnarr checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 48 higher.

It is now Shard's turn to speak.

There is a fervor to Lady Joslyn Stonewood as the battle continues, her eyes are like fire and she flashes forward without a care in the world, the battle raging around her, she charges at the orc that Sergei is working on, but her eyes flash violently as she approaches, teeth bared as she sinks the dagger into it's chest then, and as before, she's digging the blade deep within it, eyes wild, taking him in and screaming in his face, withdrawing and stabbing again, as before, when the life begins ebbing from his eyes, she kicks it over to the side, eyeing Sergei with a blank expression. "Keep moving!" she says, her eyes focused on the remaining wolves then.

Tossing Thunder's reins onto a tree, Agnarr manages the dismount and pets on the horse's hindquarters before he rushes forth, faussart in hand, forgoing his warsword for what he already holds. The two royals are beset by wolves - and this problem he tries to fix. His solution is simple: he cuts the head right off one with a well-committed cut.

Shard checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 7 higher.

Together Sergei and Joslyn take down the orc. Mason destroys a wolf who is going after his wife and Agnarr takes down another one. The one remaining wolf is attacked by Shard and is quite injured. Normally one remaining injured foe would try to flee, but this canine does not do that. He looks right at Mason, growls and charges.

Mason checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 30, rolling 2 lower.

Mason takes moderate damage.

Shard fires off an arrow, and immediately snaps another onto the string with a faint hiss.

Sergei checked dexterity + medium wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 28 higher.

Shard checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 30, rolling 13 higher.

Joslyn checked dexterity + small wpn at difficulty 30, rolling 25 higher.

Mason falls to the ground as the last wolf slams into him, bringing his blade up more as a defensive blocking tool than a means of attacking. The prince tries to kick the creature off, but isn't having any success as it bites at him, tearing into his arm.

Joslyn lauches herself at the wolf as if her very life depended on it. Maybe she just wanted to make sure she got one last kill in, her eyes are still contorted in the enraged face, a battlecry screamed out as she join with Sergei and Shard (if from a distance) aand she just stabs at it with her emerald dagger, driving it up to the hilt into flesh, there's a little grin shot to Sergei as Joslyn lets out a laugh, before she lets herself see that the battle is over.

Sergei wrenches his sword free of the now dead orc, sneering for the mess left on the blade. He tips his head to Joslyn as she kicks the body from the knelt slump to pile of deadweight on the ground. "Yeah." He rumbles looking over his shoulder to all the wolves. "Should probably do something about that." And he's moving quick to the likes of poor mobbed Mason and Lou. Which is how he comes up on the fray and wolf mauling Mason, sword overhead to break down into the animal's back-- spine-- and everything after it.

That remaining wolf sure is fierce and sure is crazy. It probably is tainted. It tears into Mason's right arm as it leaps on him, leaving the prince further injured. He probably isn't going to be able walk home at all, given the state of his limbs. He is losing a lot of blood too. The remain wolf is charged, easily taken down by Serge, Shard and Joslyn. Now there are six dead orcs and six dead wolves around them. The forest is quiet and the ground is stained red.

No other threats in sight, Agnarr leaves the others to their wolf mop-up. He shrugs, finding a rag among his things to thoroughly clean off his faussart, and then marches right back to Thunder to free him and get back on the saddle, rejoining them at a slow walk and wrenching his visor up. "Looks like all of them," he mutters in a somewhat cavalier (heh) fashion, pupils still highly constricted from the adrenaline, but with breathing slowing down. But it looks like it's over. "Who's hurt?"

Joslyn rises then, as the feel of battle fades, her expression softens and the cold eyed grin grows mirthful, piercing eyes grow wide as she takes in everything. "Well... We found that at least. Did we learn anything useful?" she asks, eyeing the wounded. "Anybody know how to heal?" she decides to ask then, not that she's in need at the moment.

"Yeah," Sergei grunts, "don't get hit by a fucking tree." he complains over his ribs and 'learning things'.

Lou leaves the killing of the final wolf to those more experienced in melee fighting. Instead, she goes over to Mason and pulls some bandages from her pack. She starts very carefully binding his wounds as best she can for a person without any skillz in this domain. "Are you alright?" she asks him calmly. She's used to this sort of thing, going out on missions as often as she does. But, she's not quite used to it with Mason, and maybe her calm facade is less calm than she might like others to think, as her hands shake a bit when she wraps his wounds.

As there's two injured people, a bunch of bodies and then several people attacking one wolf, Calaudrin will just watch. He sucks in a deep breath and swings his attention around the woods they're in to spot if there are any other threats ready to attack them or if this is it. "Time to leave." He announces as the last enemy is downed. Of course, Mason and Lou are probably bleeding all over the ground which isn't ideal. Slinging his bow back over his shoulder, he digs around in his bag to pull out a sketchpad and a charcoal pencil. Drawling, "I couldn't heal a rock." Quickly he kneels down next to one of the creatures and makes some hasty lines on the paper.

Shard makes her way down from the tree, bow slung over one arm once again. When she rejoins the group, she takes a moment to eye them all, but with Lou seeing to Mason, she turns her attention to the fallen, vaguely human-shaped beings, moving over to one and rolling him over onto his back with a slow push of one foot on his chest. Her eyes narrow.

Puma, The Stonewood Forest Cat arrives, delivering a message to Joslyn before departing.

Lou glances over at Joslyn. "The wolves are not new, but the orcs... the are a new menace... At least, one I have not seen on patrol."

Shard says, "...The what?"

Sergei is wiping off his blade with a frown over the mess. "Should he haul one back?" he asks lightly, like it's no big deal.

Mason's breathing is rapid as the final wolf is slain. He shoves it off and slowly sits up, a grimace of pain on his face. When Lou comes to his side, there's a stiff nod, "Yeah. You?" He asks around clenched teeth, looking the woman over to take stock. "We need to go back and report this. I've seen that sort of ... coordination before." He holds still for Lou to bind the wounds. "Take care of your own, Lou. You're bleeding too."

Lou furrows her brow. "And, the way they moved together... like they were all one, hive like, that is also new."

"Doubt they're any natural creature. Most like they're men tainted into these foul things." Agnarr spits from the saddle on one of the dead ones, guiding Thunder and then stopping his mount by Shard, where she studies another sample of dead with a wrinkle of the nose. "Or my kin. You ever see something like this wherever you come from, Shard?"

Mason shakes his head, "Not new. I saw it at Pyre." The man says to his wife.

"Yeah, we should bring one back." Calaudrin concludes his sketch. "Think they're too heavy for one of the horses to haul? Or maybe put it on a tarp and drag it?"

Lou glances sharply at Mason, and nods. Once she has her husband's wounds all bound, she binds what she can, allowing Mason help her as needed. She doesn't mention Pyre, it not being a good topic for Mason. "We should bring some of the bodies back with us. We have horses we can bring them back on. Mason and I can ride double, and free one of ours." She nods to Calaudrin as he expresses the same thing.

Sergei dies less quietly in a coughing fit to one side of the group, putting Compromise back to her sheathe at his hip.

Shard dips a gloved thumb into the large creature's blood, and smears it lightly over his greenish-gray cheek, then his forehead, before touching her thumb to her own forehead. "They're men," she agrees, glancing toward Agnarr. "...I haven't seen it personally, no."

"They're not heavier than horses," Agnarr expresses with confidence, looking off down the trail from where they've come. "Else they would have repulsed the charge more easy." He nods down at Shard, expressing only a sigh through his nostrils in reply.