| Logs |
2008 November 30
| When The Bough Breaks |
| Realms |
Retired
| Reality Fault |
General Info
 |
| Realms: Bough Logs |
First Movement, Ninth Verse
It is a few hours after Vijdis has given the group their new mission, and some have already made preparations. The group has met again outside the castle. As they're gathering, Piter comes up in a bit of a rush, panting a bit, carrying what looks like a glaive, except the head is covered with a thick leather scabbard. "Ah, there you are, Norris!" he says cheerfully, handing him the glaive. "Sorry I didn't get it to you sooner; the artisans were putting the finishing touches on it."
Tomas asks Vijdis, "Is there any specific information you would like?
If Jareth were an animal, his ears would have perked at that. He looks at the glaive and carefully puts his hands in is pockets to keep his overweening curiousity from getting the best of him.
Tomas frowns, "Will they be able to identify glaive as a product of elves?"
Norris grins happily. "Naw. Cause it's a product o' me, Tomas." he drawls, presenting the glaive to the guard. "An it's fer yew!"
Tomas says, "For me?"
Vijdis, who has paused in her preparations at the gate to brief the group, nods. "Mostly to find out what details they know about Mordred's army. The army was there for at least several days in the Valley of Snow. The samebito must have seen something.
Piter grins, and answers Tomas, "Maybe by craftsmanship if they looked closely... but this wasn't made by elves."
Norris nods thoroughly! "It's a bit o' a story, an I'll be happy to tell it...but fer now, let's jus say this here's th' best work ah've done t' date. Which only sets th' bar higher for the future, but...Master allus said it's good to set goals!" he explains to Tomas.
Tomas hefts the glaive. "Thank you, Norris. I'm touched." He turns to Vijdis, "Numbers and the like. How the morale is, and how tough they look. Things like that, right?
Mikal grins with quiet pride in her packmate's growing skill, as she lounges relaxedly against Raphael, waiting for the others to finish preparing.
Jareth beams at Norris and says, "When we get back, you'll be able to do your master piece, if you keep that up."
Norris moves over to shake Piter's hand after handing over the present, practically glowing. "Thank yuh fer taking care o' that so quickly. Yer a good friend." he tells the smith.
Vijdis nods soberly. "Exactly. What kind of things the army was carrying. We were told that they had some siege engines, the parts for others, and a number of other... things. We'd like to find out what those things are."
Norris looks abashedly at Jareth. "Golleh, Jareth. Yer awful kind t' say so. Course, ah'spect ah have a bit more t' learn b'fore that day comes. Forgin iron's whut ah know. There's alot more than that 'ere. One day, ahm gonna be makin armor for alla y'all, youbetcha."
Piter smiles to Norris, shaking his hand. "You're welcome to use the forges when you return. Just let us know ahead of time if you're using iron. Safe journey," he adds, and departs.
Tomas looks around. "Which way to the sally port?"
Vijdis says, "There's a trail along the wall, leading widdershins along it for about a day's travel. The path is wide enough for you to travel along but getting an army along it is insanity; plus, the sally ports beyond the guard towers have all been sealed from within the wall, but I sent a group on ahead to unseal the sally port, and they'll stay there waiting for your return, and to seal it back up after you come back."
Mikal grins at Norris's pronouncement -- she can't imagine herself in heavy, clunky, noisy armor, but she's not going to be rude about something that makes Norris so happy. She whispers to Okari while the others are talking, and a few minutes later a forester walks up with a sack and a curious look, "Is there a Mikal here?" She pulls her hood up and shyly accepts the sack with mumbled thanks, hastily ducking away behind Iron Antlers again. There, she carefully examines the contents, then packs the sack into her backpack.
Mikal clambers up onto Iron Antlers and adds quietly, "Ready when you all are."
Norris checks his armor, maul, and equipment...and then grins at the others. "Wall. Looks lak we's off onna adventure, hey?" he drawls, trying to stay cheerful.
Mikal looks inquiringly at Tomas, unsure which way to start.
Tomas follows the path Vijdis indicated. "This way"
Mikal nods and trots off on the fey-stag to start scouting like usual. The big raptor wolf lopes easily ahead to run point.
With some packing of supplies and a few last preparations, the group sets out along the wall widdershins, with Mikal on Iron Antlers, Okori perched neatly upon the stag's rump, and the rest on foot. The trip is not hard, by any means; the trail is wide enough that one does not get the feeling that one is walking along a cliff, though looking over it's edge isn't recommended. Still, they can see why it would be... impractical... for an army to try to breach the wall any more widdershins than the second or third guard tower.
It is after they passed the third one, that the sky is starting to grow lighter, from some indeterminate place off to their left, but which seems to be the approximate center of the Mirror; it's hard to tell with the wall being so huge that it hardly seems to curve around. But not long after the lightening of the sky, there is what seems to be a sudden burst of light from the heart of the Mirror, like a mighty sun suddenly burst from it's center and cast it's light all around. The light is almost blinding though it does not hurt the eyes, and a few moments later there seems to be a wave or wash of freshness of both air and clarity that sweeps out from the center of the Mirror and the light, suffusing them with an impactless surge as the feel the energy crash against the wall, sweeping over it and spilling out into the Wyld.
It is Dawn, the start of a new day.
Mikal squeaks startledly at the unexpected burst of light, throwing up an arm to protect her face.
Norris blinks at the way that feels. "Well now. That's a diffrent experience." he murmurs, looking at Okori. "It always like that?"
Tomas shades his eyes to look in that direction.
Okori mm-hmms, seeming to bask in the dawn. "Every time. The air is fresher, the light is brighter, you can almost taste the awen emanating from the Mirror."
Jareth starts to shield his eyes, then blinks when he doesn't get his hand up in time and the light doesn't hurt his eyes. He murmurs in awe, "It's... fantastic."
Norris hehs. "no wonner we doan need t' sleep. man...inna place like this, ah could forge fer days straight..." he consider. "Well, but ah still might get tired b'fore Dawn. So mebbe not." He marvels at this idea.
Mikal blinks again a moment later, studying the arm she'd thrown up before her face. She looks at the mittened hand, turning it over and then looks up and grins delightedly, "The pretty clothes -- they stayed!"
Okori looks over. "Oh, yes. Probably because you, as mortals, changed them. It's a little complicated, keeping track of what is permanent, what's not, waht goes away at Dawn and what doesn't....
Norris hunhs, checking out MIkal's garments. "That's pretty keen, Mikal...less it get warmer...but then, we is at th' 'Winter' palace, so..."
Tomas realizes he is suddenly cold, and his new cloak is gone. Concentrating hard, he creates another.
Jareth is walking close to Iron Antler's rump and if everyone stops, he puts his hand there. He's grinning like a child on its birthday.
Mikal nods slowly at Okori's comment, "So... so if we're just changing something, it stays -- but if we create it... then it goes away?"
Tomas says, "Unless we use arwen, I think." He shrugs, "Well that was exciting. Let's get moving."
Okori says, "That seems to be the way of things, yes. Though I don't think you can change something so it's substantially different, not without having to make it permanent again."
Mikal nods slowly again, "All right, I... I think I get it now..." Iron Antlers has been pacing relaxedly along the whole time.
Norris nods at Tomas. "Good timin, ah guess. Let's find ourselves this here town o' sam-ey-bitos."
The rest of the day, the light slowly dims, until about twelve hours later it's twilight again and about as dark as it gets when it's dusk. It has been an easy, if rather boring, trip so far, punctuated by the occasionally slightly wider patch of trail and perhaps a tree. By the time the it's twilight, the sally port is visible far ahead; a few more hours, and the group has reached the large clearing and the discrete sallyport. A company of alfar, most appearing to be dokkalfar, are there with hooded lanterns, carefully finishing up unsealing the sally port. The sergeant waves as the group comes up. "Sergeant Adriss," the dokkalfar says quietly. "We're just about done with opening the sallyport, another few minutes."
Mikal pulls up her hood as well, nodding shyly to the Sergeant but not saying anything.
Tomas looks over the work crew.
Norris takes a closer look at the sallyport, himself, absently wondering how it works...
The sergeant spreads out a map, showing the local area outside the sallyport. He points out the samebito village on the edge of the valley. "You should be about a half day's trip from there. You should not be accosted or questioned; if you're asked, you can say that you came from one of the villages around the base of Mount Olympus -- Thrace or Delphi.
Tomas passes it by. He has more important things on his mind.
Norris peers at the map, uncertain at first what...oh! Huh! a picture of the area, to help folks get around! What a nifty idea! He marvels at the ingenuity of it.
Jareth crouches as something sparkling catches his eye. Tipping his head, he's surprised to find a grain of awen just lying on the ground. He scoops it up carefully and holds it up to the light and then trots to catch up with the rest.
Norris blinks as he notices Jareth cradling a grain of awen...he grins and pats a small pouch where he puts the grian he himself found earlier. So sparkly. No wonder it's considered valuable, like gold. He then looks at the seargent. "Anneh tips on how t' talk to the natives o' th' village?"
Mikal slides off the fey-stag so he can move more easily through the sally-port. She sticks close to Raphael, one arm about his neck as the others talk to the strangers.
The sergeant lets out a breath. "Well. Samebito somewhat shy, but they respond well to gifts of food. They're also fond of jewels, but jewels that are made permanent with awen are not terribly plentiful.
Tomas looks through the sally port cautiously, to make sure the way is clear.
Mikal frowns thoughtfully as she listens, then sits down on the ground in a corner. She goes through her backpack carefully -- didn't she have two coins with awen in them? Do those look jewel-like? She doesn't think so, but she's willing to check right now, when they're safe.
Norris huhs thoughtfully. "Good t' know." he murmurs, scratching his chin. And then he get's a thought, his brow creasing again. "Y' say that the folk th' army woan necessarily question us, annat...but what iffn they try t' recruit us? Mordred seems lak he wants alla th' mortals he can get his hands on, yep."
Tomas says, "we have to make sure we have a good story. "
Mikal glances worriedly up at that comment, considering... then bites back on her response when Tomas answers.
The sergeant shakes his head, "Not likely. His army is moving in the opposite direction -- deosil -- and what troops that are trailing behind aren't a press-gang. There won't be enough to try to recruit you outside of offering you positions -- they won't have any way to conscript you."
Tomas says, "If they try to recruit us, we are not interested. We are from Thrace, a town near Mt. Olympus, which is in that direction."
Okori says cheerfully, "That sounds good enough to me."
Jareth smiles, "I can talk if we need someone to talk. I can be pretty persuasive."
Tomas points to where the mountain is, from what Vijdis said.
Mikal eyes the sergeant warily. She doesn't think they'll be just questioning, if any trailing troops find them... but she's not sure things are the same here, so again she says nothing. She sighs faintly -- the coins are not jewel-like after all -- and packs her things away again.
Tomas says, "The big worry is if they try to press us into the army, we may have to fight our way out and run."
Mikal comforts herself with the fact they'll soon be in real forest again. She has no idea why everyone's afraid of the Wylde here. Maybe they just don't know how to move around quietly in it?
Jareth says, "Maybe we should keep an eye out for awen, then. Make some pretties for the samebito, too."
Mikal nods to Jareth's comment, whispering, "It's like food -- everyone wants it. Good to have with you."
"If they try to press you into the army, then it's reasonable to say that things have gone bad in a big way very quickly."
Norris nods agreeably. And he smiles at his friends. "Anneh one else got questions fer th' seargent, before we forge int' the unknown?"
Mikal wanders over to the sally-port door and peeks cautiously out, to see if she can let Raphael and Iron Antlers out safely. It's getting crowded in here, she thinks.
Jareth shakes his head, "Not just now."
Norris, oddly enough, is feeling antsy as Mikal. Maybe it's not safer out there. Then again, how safe will it be here, during a siege. But out there, maybe they, as a group, can do something worthwhile, something that matters...much like how they signed up to protect the village, in their dream-home.
Outside the sally port, there are only a couple of dokkalfar scouts keeping wary, alert watch. The sallyport is cunningly hidden in the corner of a buttress in the wall, and is almost overgrown with vegetations. Beyond the port's door, there is wide, rolling fields and hills and forest. It looks perfectly natural... except, or perhaps even, with the absolutely huge mountain that rises up to seemingly touch the sky, far off widdershins and several leagues outward from the wall.
Tomas asks the sergeant, "Is that Mt Olympus?" pointing to the big mountain.
Mikal smiles at the sight of outside, and glances over her shoulder to beckon to the raptor wolf and the fey stag. A moment later, once she's let them out, she murmurs to Norris, "I'm going to scout around a bit, make sure it's safe out there. Be right back!" She slips out too, waving once to the closest dokkalfar before she trots for the shelter of the forest with her animal companions.
The sergeant nods. "Aye, that it is."
Okori says, "Let's not go climing it, please?" Though her tone is bantering, she sounds particularly serious. "I'd rather not meet any of the gods this trip! The remaining ones are a bit touchy, I understand."
Norris nods to his friend understandingly...he gets her desire to be alone with other animals, although he doesn't share that sentiment exactly. He's always felt more comfortable with people than alone. "Iffn yew prefer not, Okori...but mebbe sometime..." he replies absently, staring at the mountain with interest.
Jareth grins at Okori, "Meeting them might be an adventure, though."
Okori is silent for a bit. "If it's anything like Mount Fuji," she says quietly, "it's rather depressing... but I suppose it wouldn't hurt sometime to see it...."
Jareth smiles, "I'll bet Norris would go with us. Maybe even Rabbit and Tomas, too." He's a little jittery-seeming. Perhaps nervous about this whole thing, but determined.
Norris crouches and rests a hand on the fox's shoulder. "Doan wan' to do nuthin what makes yew uncomfortable, Okori. Ahm just curious...an ah know mah friends feel th' same."
Mikal is, true to her word, slipping into the forest on the other side of the wall by now. She looks around carefully, one hand resting on the fey-stag's shoulder as she thinks to Raphael, [Be real careful here, Raph. I don't know why everyone's afraid of here, but it could possibly be worse than the forest monsters at home.]
Tomas follows Mikal. "Jareth, you follow me, and Norris, bring up the rear."
Norris straightens up. "Yessir!" he says smartly, saluting like he's seen the aelfar soldiers do.
The sergeant says, "We'll be closing the sallyport behind you, but not sealing it yet. Good luck...."
Mikal heads off once she's mounted up on the big stag; Raphael is waiting in the underbrush to make sure the others head in the right direction, and to run point for them.
Jareth nods his agreement and falls in line in his assigned place.
Tomas moves off.
Jareth keeps his head swinging from side to side, also looking along the ground, perhaps hoping to spot more awen.
Norris contentedly trudges along, looking around at the landscape..seems normal enough to him. When the kitsune rejoins him in the back, he can't help but ask: "Is there a reason yew's so worried about bein out here, Okori? Ah mean...okay, war and army an alla dat. But ah mean...sommat else." he queries, concerned. "Yew know yew can count on us t' protect yew, yeah?"
Mikal comes to a sudden stop at a message from Raphael, then wheels the fey stag around and dashes as quietly as possible back to her friends. Iron Antlers emerges from the underbrush in front of the group, and Mikal leans to whisper to them, "Quiet! Soldiers passing nearby!"
Tomas moves off the trail. "Hide quickly!"
Mikal frowns at Tomas, whispering more emphatically, "No! Shh! Be still!" She sits silently on the stag, listening to Raphael's message: five soldiers traveling on a path that's perpendicular to the route the group are currently taking. They've not noticed the group yet.
Tomas stops moving and keeps down.
Jareth goes very, very still and quiet. He barely dares breath.
Mikal mentally asks Raphael to keep a wary eye on them until they've passed, then let her know. In the interim she holds up a finger to remind the others to be quiet, then slips silently off to circle around and make sure nothing is sneaking up behind them.
Okori is about to answer Norris when Mikal whispers her warning. As the soldiers reach their closest point of approach to the group, they can hear the soldiers talking amongst themselves. Their words are indistinct, however, and shortly they are out of earshot.
Once Raphael gives Mikal the all-clear, the big stag carries her back to her group. She calls softly to them, "All right, it's fine now! We're clear; good job."
Norris swallows as he does the best he can to hide his massive frame...okay, maybe Okori does have a reason to be worried. He doesn't realize he stopped breathing until a good handful of seconds or so after the soldiers passed.
Okori's tails are twitching. "I don't suppose you got a good look at their heraldry, did you, Mikal-chan?"
Mikal shakes her head, "I think Raphael just assumed they were on their way to Mordred's army, Miss Oka-ree." She pauses a moment, checking with Raphael -- was there anything noteworthy about the outfits the men were wearing, or the objects they were carrying?
Tomas says, "How were they dressed? Did they have any pictures on their clothing of shields."
Raphael seems a bit overwhelmed, and replies negatively; he didn't get anything useful from the brief glimpse he had of them.
Mikal nods to Raphael -- she quite understands! She adds to the others, "Sorry." She slips hastily away again before they yell any more questions at her that she can't answer. Scouting is much easier than working with people!
Norris hnhs, scratching his chin. "What do th' pictures on the clothin haveta do with anything, Miz Okori? Are there more'n one kinda soldier we gots ta worry about out here?" he queries the fox.
Tomas follows Mikal
Mikal keeps moving swiftly, covering possibly three times as much ground as the others that half a day as she continues to carefully and warily scout around her small pack and associated friends. Raphael stays on point, sniffing a safe path through the trees in the direction they were told to go.
Okori says, "There might be, Norris. I haven't heard of any other armies tromping about the Wyld, but that doesn't mean that some aren't."
The rest of the trip to the village goes without incident. It's just as Dawn is coming up again, the wash of light and awen over the landscape being like a rushing, fresh wind; that the samebito village of Snowcrest comes up into view around the bend of a hill. However, Raphael lets Mikal know, before they come fully into sight, that there is a trio of soldiers on the road leading to the village. They don't seem to be an ambush party or anything of that sort, merely a sort of checkpoint.
Mikal thanks Raphael and asks if the group can circle around the hill and approach the village from the other side, thus bypassing the soldiers entirely?
Raphael considers, replying that the group probably could.
Mikal sounds pleased as she asks him to keep an eye on the soldiers while she goes and asks the group what they want to do. Iron Antlers is already heading at a relaxed canter towards the others as she speaks with the raptor wolf. A moment later she's quietly whispering what's up to them, as well as what Raphael said to her. "So, shall we go around and avoid them entirely?"
Okori considers. "That might be possible, but they might be suspicious as to why we're avoiding them."
Mikal gives the little fox woman a perplexed look, "They're the most dangerous monsters in the forest right now. Anyone with a lick of sense would surely avoid them?"
Tomas says, "I think we should check these guys out first. Then circle around. It would be better if we came from a direction that wasn't from the wall."
Mikal whispers to Raphael, asking him to travel cautiously around to the other side of the village, checking any inward paths for more soldiers.
Norris hnhs. "Ah do think that even if'n we can...lak Okori says, we kinda stick out. Are we gonna sneak through th' village the whole time? With a big wolf an a stag?"
Norris directs a finger at himself. "An me?"
Mikal opens her mouth to reply -- then brightens noticeably, "You're quite right!" Happyly she adds, "I should stay out here, definitely!"
Jareth says, "Why not send at least Iron Antler and Raph around the village?"
Mikal says, "Raph's already scouting around the village, Jar. He'll report back in a bit."
Tomas tries to sneak as close as he can while staying hidden, so he can get a look at the soldiers. "Stay here, please"
Mikal blinks at Tomas's command, then shrugs. Once he's gone she murmurs in soft confusion, "Tomas asks for the strangest things sometimes!"
Mikal slips off the stag and stretches, giving him a chance to graze. They've both been working hard so far today.
Norris blinks at Mikal. "That dun make no sense. iffn we're gonna sneak, yer the sneakiest of us. Ah's jsut sayin...mebbe we shoul' just have Jareth smooth it out lak he does, an then we can stay together. We's stronger t'gether than apart."
Mikal nods to Norris, "I don't get it either, but..." she smiles and shrugs again, "I guess we're following Tomas!"
Raphael is the picture of stealth, as he comes about the hill. Tomas... not so much. But the soldiers appear to be bored, and despite a shuffling of dirt and gravel which would give his position away, the soldiers seem to pay no attention at all, seeming more concerned with staying awake.
Mikal chats idly with Jareth and Norris while they wait. She's curious about the awen they found -- can she see it too?
Norris ohs and grins, picking it gingerly out of a pouch. "it's sparkly." he explains.
Mikal oohs happily over it, holding it carefully in her cupped hands. Its light reflects off her awed face and she beams, "It surely is! It's lovely, Norr. Pity it has to be stuck into a coin!"
Jareth holds out his grain of it in one cupped palm, smiling at Mikal, "I thought we could use it to make some gems to use as a bribe."
Norris hmms. "Ifn it comes t'that, shure. We's got food...an yer convincin mouth." he drawls at Jareth.
Mikal's face lights up again, and she carefully puts the two awen next to each other in her palm to see how much more light they'll make. Her voice is soft and awed, "Aren't they pretty?"
Mikal looks up in surprise at Norris, "You guys brought food too? Huh! I thought I was the only one." She looks back at her hands, then experimentally presses her palms together, to see if the awen grains will join into a bigger, sparklier lump!
The soldiers wear iron breastplates and helmets, and carry long iron-tipped spears. One is tall with blue skin and black hair, with an impressive set of curved tusks and large round eyes. Another is more human-shaped, though with jackknife legs and hooved feet, with curved goat's horns peking out from the helmet. The third appears human but for a pair of cat-ears and black cat's tail. The breastplates have an enameled symbol of what looks like a chicken's footprint: one toe upward, three toes down.
Tomas makes a mental note of this and sneaks back to the others.
Norris grins a little. "Well, not a lot...mostly th' salted jerky ah brought wi' me to snack on when we went out to drive off th' khidra. Wuzn't actually able to buy more...needs t' be makin stuff ah kin sell before ah does that."
The awen grains come together quite fully as Tomas returns to the group.
Mikal absently murmurs, without looking up, "Oh, here comes Tomas," as she studies the awen. It's a few minutes later he emerges.
Norris huhs! "Lookit that...it's lak...what's that thing muh master tol me about. A lodestone."
Mikal holds up the single larger grain in triumph, "Ta-daaa! Isn't it pretty?" She glances at Tomas, then hands the awen to the closer of her two packmates and slips away to the grazing fey-stag.
Jareth chews on his bottom lip and says, "Can they come back apart? It might be better to have several individual grains..."
Tomas says, "Lovely. Now listen. There were three at the post. One was blue with black hair and tusks, one had hind legs like the stag and horns, and the third had cat's ears and tail. They had a symbol that looked like a chicken foot, three toes down."
Tomas draws the symbol in the dirt and asks, "Is the wolf back?" of Mikal.
Okori listens, thoughtfully. "Sounds like an oni, a satyr, and a nekomimi."
Tomas looks at the fox, "Do you know anything about them?"
Mikal looks down at the rune from the safety of the stag's back, then murmurs confusedly, "Elhaz?"
Okori nods. "A little. I mean, I know what they are. Not who, exactly, they are.
Mikal adds bemusedly, "But... why would they wear it upside down?"
Tomas says, "I mean, they can't turn you into a bat, or disappear, or make it rain or anything?""
Mikal blinks startledly at Tomas! She says, "Satters are nice! They don't do anything weird like that."
Jareth crouches and scratches Okori around the ears, listening. He grins up at Mikal, "You think most everyone's nice, Rabbit. But maybe there can be bad ones, just like there are bad people."
Tomas looks askance at Mikal. "How do you know?"
Okori laughs. "Not likely, no. The oni might be able to do some magic, but he'd not likely be with a detail of mere soldiers if he could." Her three tails are flicking comofrtably with the scritching.
Norris is quiet. He's wondering what it would be like to be a bat.
Mikal nods thoughtfully to Jareth, then adds firmly, "I'm Mikal. Not dinner." To Tomas she says, "I m-met one! He didn't do anything except be nice to Miss Oka-ree."
Mikal says, "And everyone's nice to her."
Jareth manages not to grin too widely at Mikal's protest.
Okori has by this time splayed out on the ground, blissed out from the scritching. Raphael lets Mikal know that it looks like each road into the village has a detail of three soldiers at it, but they seem pretty lax and not so much restricting travel so much as just keeping tabs on things.
Mikal adds suddenly, "Well darn! Raph says every trail into the village has soldiers."
Mikal whispers a request to Raphael that he return to this side of the village, so they're all closer together. She's guessing Tomas will want to take them all in together.
Mikal adds curiously to Tomas, "So now what?"
Tomas shrugs. "As long as we aren't coming from the direction of the Palace, it will less suspicious."
Tomas says, "We should try to circle around about 1/2 way, then approach the check point. Jareth will do the talking." He turns to Jareth, "Do you have any idea what you will say?"
Mikal nods and passes that information on to Raphael, adding that they'll be there in a bit. She lightly knees the big stag, and he drifts silently out of the clearing.
Jareth grins at Tomas, ruffling Okori under the chin before standing up, "Nope. Rarely ever do. Still usually seems to work out, though."
Norris grins at Jareth...he has confidence in his cheerful, convincing friend.
Mikal meets up with Raphael a few minutes later, and takes that opportunity to feed the big stag a handful of molassesed oats and let him take a drink while they wait for the others.
Jareth takes up a place closer to the front of the line this time, whistling quietly to himself and giving every evidence of being relaxed and cheerful.
Tomas follows Mikal.
Norris continues to stay near the back, looking big and dumb. It's not hard.
Mikal is just standing and waiting, in the protective screen of trees right before the trail emerges to enter the village.
The group rounds the bend, approaching the checkpoint. The three soldiers there don't seem to be terribly concerned at the sight of the group, though the Oni raises a hand to them in a fairly typical 'halt' gesture. "Hold, travellers," he says, relatively pleasantly and without any apparent suspicion. "Identify yourselves, before entering the village, please." The other two soldiers appear content to casually watch the group, though the cat-boy -- the nekomimi, apparently -- watches them somewhat more alertly, or with those yellow eyes it looks more alert.
Mikal trails the group, nervously eyeing the monster with tusks -- that's just creepy, she thinks! Or... is the cats' eyes scarier? She's not sure; she climbs up on Iron Antler's back again, pulling her hood up.
Jareth raises his hand as well, but it's much more a wave hello than the oni's gesture. "Greetings! I'm Cat." He motions back toward his friends, "My friends are Rabbit, Bear and Badger."
Norris blinkblinks.
Tomas snarls
The oni actually blinks. "Ah... who's which, now?"
Mikal looks nervous -- who would believe she was a rabbit, when she's riding a stag and half-sister to a wolf? She hopes Jareth can talk really fast this time. She glances around, wondering how far away the forest is, and how much time it would take to make a run for it.
Jareth looks surprised and turns as if to examine his friends and look back at the guards, "It's not obvious? Silly custom, I know, naming folks after animals."
Mikal ducks her head nervously.
Jareth doesn't seem fazed by Tomas' snarl.
The oni looks around at the group. Then he points to Raphael. "And... uhm, what's his name?"
Jareth smiles, "Wolf. You're a sharp one."
Mikal stutters nervously, "R-r-uh -- w-wuh," with relief she adds, "Yeah!" to Jareth's reply.
Jareth figures it's best not give their actual names to people they don't actually want to trust.
Norris hunhs at this very interesting tack. Why do they all have animal names? Are they part of an acting troupe? Oh! maybe they are. Hmm. But Okori may have to teach them...
Mikal feels Okori curling up underneath the girl's cloak on the back of the stag.
Mikal blinks within her hood -- then covers a nervous grin with one mittened hand. While 'Fox' would work just fine as a name, she sees no reason to insist the guards know everything about them.
The oni goes "Mhm." Then he nods. "All right. While you are in the town you will obey any instruction given to you by a soldier of the Army of Mordred. You are free to conduct your business but failure to obey will result in severe penalties. Clear?" It sounds less like a threat and more of a scripted statement.
Tomas glares at the guards, in his best badger imitation.
Mikal's eyes widen in nervous fright, but she claps her hands over her mouth, not wanting to ask -- and thereby perhaps get into trouble.
Norris is relaxed by the tone, and by the soldier's casual acceptance of their strange names. And he gently sidles over, putting a comforting hand on Mikal's back. It will be alright, he can sense.
Jareth continues grinning in his easy-going way, "Wouldn't have it any other way, my friend."
The oni nods, "All right. Move along, move along...." He waves them through.
Tomas waits for Jareth and the others to start forward and then follows them.
Mikal hastily reaches back and grabs Norris's hand, not wanting him to dislodge the cloak and accidentally reveal the fox woman. She gives him a nearly sickly-with-fright grin and continues to hold his hand as she urges the big fey-stag forward.
Jareth nods and moves on through, falling back just enough to put a reassuring hand on Mikal's knee as they head through the gates.
The nekomimi watches the group past without seeming to blink, which is a little unnerving, but the satyr and the oni don't seem to be too concerned, returning to their conversation.
Mikal is trying not to shiver noticeably; she gives Jareth another frightened grin and nearly trots by. She's decided -- the cats' eyes are definitely the creepiest!
Tomas waits to make sure nothing is going to stop the others then follows.
Jareth catches the stare of the cat-boy and grins, giving him a wave and a friendly wink.
Iron Antlers is striding swiftly forwards, not quite trotting; Mikal's so frightened she's not even looking where they're going.
The nekomimi looks back without any expression; perhaps his eyes dilate a little.
The guards do not delay the group, and shortly the group is entering the square of the village. It is small, much smaller than Icewell, about the size of their home village. The buildings seem to be made of driftwood planks. There is a distinct salty taste to the air of the village even though there's no ocean nearby.
And of course, here are the samebito.
They don't stand strictly upright, but rather leaned forward a little, with short muscular legs and long, muscular arms. Their skin is a sleek, almost wet-looking black, and their faces are not unlike the oni, with the addition of bright green, graceful eyes and large, white beards. Most seem to have large flat straw hats, and their clothing is a mixture of tunics and trousers and short, simple robes. Most are travelling from one duty to another, much as in any village. And there are a few teams of Mordredite soldiers here and there.
Norris hunhs. "Well now. Here we are."
Tomas looks for an inn or tavern.
Jareth smiles up at Mikal and says, "Relax, little Rabbit. We're going to be OK."
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