The Return of the Scarlet Empress IC

[Aevylmar]

Skandi blinks. "Well, that threat was a little sooner than I was expecting," he mutters to himself.

[Guancyto]

Having recognized the danger inherent in Pell waking up and still being in Waypoint, Besi had headed out with Pell and Meru's body and artifacts as soon as she was able to travel. Unless someone had stopped her, of course.

[Tavar]

Child

Hoping to find out a little more regarding his traveling companions, Child jogs after Matsui.

"Hey, wait up. You getting roped into this Hunt as well?"

[horngeek]

Meanwhile, Rose picks up her sword, buckling it to her side as she walks out of the tent.

She pauses as she notices Skandi. "Um… thanks."

[Aevylmar]

Skandi bows dramatically, flourishing an imaginary hat. "Think nothing of it. It was my pleasure."

He reverts to a more ordinary tone and smile. "So! I'm glad to see that you're alive. After you went down, I, your threatening friend, and a mystery archer disabled or killed the Dynasts."

He pauses a moment for effective timing. "Now that that mild distraction's out of the way, can I formally invite you to join my hunt for this necromancer-assassin?"

[horngeek]

Rose nods in response to the Lunar's question. "I'd be happy to."

Then then pauses for a second, her brow furrowing in thought. "I… feel like I know you from somewhere."

[industrious]

Matsui

"Yes."

For obvious reasons, Waypoint isn't going to be providing breakfast. Matsui begins to search her pack, coming up with some dried beef.

"Rose is in this because of me. Once this current group isn't a threat anymore, I'll probably have to leave."

[Illyceria]

Aya checks her things and then makes her way to one of the few places near the gate that they will likely be leaving through. She listens to everyone and everything, the disharmony from yesterday likely was still alive now. Then her mind drifted to the dream and then... the vision from yesterday and she began to look around for Sierra. "I kinda hope she comes, the Solar has a the Lunar and her friend. Child was a little secretive and was a guy besides, so that left Sierra as the only other female that really had no connection to this group.

Well if she didn't she'd be fine likely, but she'd feel less lonely. After a moment she tilts her head, but then, there was that vision...

[industrious]

Having recognized the danger inherent in Pell waking up and still being in Waypoint, Besi had headed out with Pell and Meru's body and artifacts as soon as she was able to travel. Unless someone had stopped her, of course.

Pell

"...Anathema!"

And now Pell was awake. They were maybe a mile away from Waypoint by now.

Bloodshot eyes (one of them black) stare at Besi lopsidedly.

"...Did you kill them all yourself?"

[Guancyto]

"We lost," Besi didn't mince words, "because it was a trap and always had been. They let us go, like they would have done before you tried your best to throw yourself on their swords. Meru tried harder and succeeded. We went, because we know where they're going.

What the hell were you thinking?"

[industrious]

Pell

"...I was thinking that there were three Anathema and three of us. I'm a prodigy of sorcery, and you were supposed to be a whirlwind of martial arts. We had already taken care of one of them. If my spell had gone off better, we would have had them. We should have been able to take them all."

Right. Pell was one of the stupidest smart people in existence.

"...I'll get us reinforcements. Next time, we'll have the two of us, and some demons besides."

Then Besi's words fully catch up with him.

"...Where are they going? How do you know? Don't you know that Anathema are all liars?"

[Aevylmar]

Rose nods in response to the Lunar's question. "I'd be happy to."

Then then pauses for a second, her brow furrowing in thought. "I… feel like I know you from somewhere."

Skandi rolls his eyes, still filled with cheerful energy. "It's the whole Solar/Lunar bond thing. Apparently, I'm fated to be your sidekick. Happens all the time. Your mentor disapproves, though, and Autumn and Whisper will probably have some harsh words for me when I get back."

"So, how long until you're ready to travel? We have a villain to catch."

"I have a group of fellow-Exalts, an interesting quest, a love interest, and a villain to hunt. My life's been endangered three times over the past few days and someone I don't know just threatened to kill me. Could this day get any better?"

[Tavar]

Child

Having forseen that most aren't going to want to feed the anathema, Child offers her some day old bread. It's a bit tough, but still softer than the beef. Meanwhile, he takes out an apple, and begins to eat.

"You were part of the Realm at one point, were you not? Are you afraid that they'll come after you? And do you have a place to return to?"

[industrious]

Matsui

Munching on the smaller half of the bread offered to her, her eyes widen, and while Child can see she's considering a lie, she also knows she's given it away.

"I was, once."

Her hand begins to move towards the center of her body, then stops.

"And everyone who would have looked for my birth name probably gave up a long time ago. I was an embarrassment to my House while I was a member, and I've done them no favors since then."

She continues to chew her breakfast, thinking idylly.

"You don't seem to be that fazed by the presence of Anathema, Child."

[Guancyto]

"All crazy," Besi answered, "the Frenzied and the Solar girl were forthright enough. It was Matsui who was trying to entrap us in an Oath to one we were sworn to hunt, was it not?"

She looked out to the horizon, watching an intense rain in the distance, "Pell, how much do you know about the rest of the Cleansing? Is this common? I studied a little about the old Hunts, they were glorious, but they fought with numbers, they fought smart and they fought fae and demons too. What changed?"

[industrious]

Pell

He considers Besi's words.

"...You're right. The Traitor."

His face turns ugly at the thought.

"As for the Cleansing itself...I know a little. We aren't able to travel with a retinue because Lookshy refuses to let Realm soldiers on their soil, the fools. And as far as I know, a lot of the Cleansing groups don't have retinues either because we can't spare the troops. There are so many Cleansing groups across Creation. Castus Alcibiades's speech changed the way we did it - lots of sworn brotherhoods hunting out any rumor of Anathema. The alternative, the way before it, was a bunch of politicians arguing until the Anathema have grown too powerful."

[Tavar]

Child


Child winces at her initial reaction. Should have known there'd be bad blood there.
"Sorry to bring up bad memories.


I'm generally working further east, more around the Hundred Kingdoms. There are so many over that way that I guess I've just gotten used to them turning up everywhere. Generally, if you stay out of their direct path they don't care."

Finishing the apple, Child leans back on a wall, and tries to get back on safer ground.
"So, what do you think of our mutual 'friend' Skandi?"

[industrious]

Matsui

"He's interested in Rose. And for some reason, Rose thinks that she knows him even though they've never met. I don't trust that."

She pauses, reflects on what she's seen of him.

"He is also very, very good with his daiklave."

Then she brings the question back around.

"And yet here you are, deciding to travel with him. Seems like you're pretty much on the direct path to me. What is it that you do, Child, that has you so used to Anathema?"

[Tavar]

Child

Putting on a confused expression as she describes what's going on, but inside he's rather pleased. Less attention on him the better, and it sounds like the Solar and Lunar will have plenty on their mind. Child winces as she moves directly back to a danger topic, however.

"Well, Skandi did rather force this venture on me, but yes, I am rather used to anathema. Something of a troubleshooter, and anathema are do seem to be drawn to trouble. Or to cause it. And there was Thorns, bad business there."
That brings up bad memories on his end, and his face darkens as he remembers some of that night.

Spoiler

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Do I know about the Solar Bond?

[industrious]

Matsui

"You seem a bit young to remember Thorns. Unless you were a child when it happened."

Matsui scratches absently at the back of her neck.

"And I'd love to hear the story about how a mortal troubleshoots for Anathema."

...Yeah. He could believe she was a Dynast.

Spoiler

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Child's Int+Occult re:Solar Bonds: (4d10)[6][10][8][9](33)

You know basically everything you need to about them.

[Guancyto]

Besi thought about it. He wasn't wrong, exactly, but, "so this could be happening all over," she said. She would have said it quietly except that her voice was never anything but quiet, "be a good way to clear Exalted from the Isle. Is this really better than a war?"

[industrious]

Pell

"Yes."

His voice is firm despite being hoarse, his back straight despite its trembles.

"You can't start a war with Anathema. You can't point armies at them, because once you do, it's too late. Lookshy, for all its massive and gaping faults, is still run by Exalted. It's wrong, and it's misguided, but it isn't evil. We have a plague of Anathema, and we have to keep them down."

He frowns at Besi's earlier suggestion.

"And that's ridiculous. There are still plenty of Exalts on the Isle. The cowards and the politicians and the young, but still."

[Tavar]

Child
Her statements bring out a chuckle from him, and he waves his hand as he denies her accusation.
"Never said I troubleshoot for them: I'm not stupid. Usually, I'm simply troubleshooting in the area. Sometimes point them in the direction of trouble, and they obligingly go to it. Generally, though, they're dealing with other sorts of trouble, and I simply work around them. But, yeah, encountered more than my fair share, I'd say. But I doubt many of them would remember the meeting, if you would call it that. More me seeing them do whatever, and trying to leave if things looked like they would get messy."


"So, what does a former Dynast do? Judging by the fact that you were recruited by a cleansing, you don't seem the type to just sit around."

Spoiler

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This is largely true, actually.

Also, sorry if you don't want to keep doing this. I figured Skandi and Rose would want some time alone(especially given matsui's greeting), and Child doesn't know who the PC's are.

[industrious]

Matsui

"Help those who can't help themselves."

She scratches the back of her neck again.

"You know," she remarks casually. "I can't help but feel that you're hiding something pretty important from me."

If Matsui wore glasses, she would have at this point folded them up to look Child square in the eye.

"Two questions, then. Do you intend any harm for Rose, and are you working with the necromancer? I suggest you answer unambiguously."

Spoiler

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It's fine. But you have managed to thoroughly arise the suspicions of Matsui via roleplay.

[horngeek]

Rose smiles, nodding. "I'm good to travel. Let's get going."

[Tavar]

Child

He answers easily, with perfect sincerity.
"No to both."

Spoiler

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There's not much he can do that won't arouse suspicion: after all, he's admitted that the necromancer seems to be targeting his organization. That's a big read flag.

[Lix Lorn]

Sierra does very little talking over the night; even by her standards. But for some reason-most likely the voice-she plans to leave with the rest.

Or at least, at the same time.

[industrious]

Matsui

She nods.

"Then I apologize for prying. Given how I acted towards the Cleansing, I had to be sure that nobody had similar intentions here."

The Dragon-Blood then leaves to find Rose, and hand her the rest of her bread and beef.

Leaving Waypoint

The party leaves Waypoint in the mid-morning, having packed up their camp and made ready just before. As they leave, taking the well-traveled dirt road west, the guards at the wall salute Skandi, while Grass Lightning scowls at their departure, still leaning heavily on her stick.

Sierra

It's as if with every step she takes, she's moving closer and closer to familiar territory, as if the world around her is whispering suggestions into her ear. Vague ones, and she can't make out the words, but they feel as comfortable as a pair of old clothes.

She's never been to Nexus before.

[Incendius]

The Anathema have quite the entourage. I know that bowman is something beyond human, but are the others similarly so? Penumbra is still sitting on her rock as she sees the gathering of a half-dozen exalts walking down the road.

Taking a deep breath, she steps out into the middle of the road, straight in the path of the party. The most perceptive of such might notice that her gait has a slight limp as she favors her left side.

She drops her bag behind her and folds her arms across her chest. Her voice rings out over the road in an odd dialect of Old Realm, made odder by the scratchy and rough quality of her voice, as if she seldom speaks.

"This necromancer seems to have a bad habit of making powerful enemies. I have been told that you know where he is going next. Is this true?"

[Tavar]

Childs eyes barely widen when this newcomer joins the party. He answers her question with some of his own.

"Rather forward, asking us like that. Who might you be, and what do you know of the Necromancer? And what claim do you have to power?"