The Hunting Grounds III - Second Most Dangerous Game

[Recaiden]

[Desert]

Wolf and snake head for the forest!

The Hunt is on!

[Ionbound]

[Desert]

Back in the desert, a red-poncho-clad Susan searches for the clothing she left behind as she transformed.

[ThirdEmperor]

[The Hive]

Wenomir keeps backing away, swinging his sword in front of him in short, vicious arcs to break the tempo of the attacking mandibles and build up a rhythm of attacks and defences. After a moment, he makes a sudden stop, jumps backwards until his back is against a tree, and then makes a sudden surge forward. His sword becomes an eye-watering blur of steel, striking at the mandibles with tremendous force and surgical precision, trying to cut them off.

They test each other in a rhythm of forward and back, dancing to the sharp whine of steel slicing through the air; the vorphesphid queen lunges into each brief chance of an opening and feints away again as his terrible stinging blade lashes out, driving the hideous thing into a forced tempo of limping steps, forward and back, again and again. Patterns begin to open. The weight of the tree pulling at her leg leaves a brief stumble as she advances, exposing the right of her neck, with only the claw he's maimed to fill the defense.

And with the tree at his back, Weno lunges inside the queen's lagging guard. Her pincers comes in too late, much too late. She screams a hissing scream and rears up as her mandibles come away at the wrong side of his blade and fall in a puddle of blood. And as she rises, her underbelly is left open, an expanse of soft gray chitin stretching across her midsection.

Mess Hall

To be fair, the Town Hall really doesn't have any living space in it. Really the only person who definitely lives in that skeleton is Cielnoir, who lives in the skull.
"Well, you haven't seen what we charge for half of our services. It adds up. Plus we give the hunter the choicest bits of what he takes, but they usually let us take everything else. And trust me, on the bigger critters, that is a lot."

"For building materials and such?" Sebastian says between bites, already working to shovel another load of crisp fried sprouts onto his cornbread, and the cornbread into his mouth. It's been far too long since he's had a proper warm meal, and feels like longer still.
"It's very clever. Everywhere seems to have these sorts of problems and here you've built up a whole industry, with a town and a properly formed society and all. Somebody ought to write a book about this place." Something very dry and a real doorstop, to stick on a shelf where it can look highly sophisticated.

Brandon drops to one knee and takes careful aim at the creature's greatest concentration of mass before squeezing the trigger twice. Two rounds of .223 Boat-tail hollow-point, about 5 grams with roughly 1,800 joules each. And then a quick third squeeze and one more barely-aimed bullet, a snapshot at the beak right before it hits him.

The first bullet tears away the spirit's shoulder, but it's too late to turn it away. The charge only turns into a tumble instead, carried by momentum, even as the very next shot pulls through it's chest and opens a hole the size of Brandon's fist. It's not a creature anymore, only a blade aimed for the enemy's heart. Then that last semblance of form goes as the final shot grazes it's beak and tears the edge to a glowing vapor trail. All that's left is a living bolt of fire, pale but still alive - alive for long enough to try for two deaths instead of one.

[FireFox]

[The Hidden Grove]

Brandon barely has time to feel a flash of triumph, not even a proper thought he can psychically shape into a defense, before he has to block the firebolt with his rifle. A bayonet would help with that, what with his barrel already pointed at the charging creature and all. He should look into one for the next time. The alleged bureaucrat then, presumably, follows this up by catching what he can't block or deflect with his face. If he lives through this, he really has to critically examine his planning process.

[Deathkeeper]

Mess Hall

Rory chuckles at the notion.
"Hector probably already has, truth be told. Not that he'd have told us if he did. Still, I'm sure our Esteemed and Fuzzy Leader would be flattered by your praise. Cielnoir really poured his heart into the project of fixing the place up."

[Morty]

[The Hive]

Wenomir jumps back again and sheaths his sword. He then flicks his wrists, delivering an adamantine knife to each hand, which are then thrown, in a single fluid motion, at the soft underbelly of the beast. Without breaking his tempo, he produces two more knives from his bandoleer and sends them flying as well. Even with the monster wounded as it is, closing in would risk being simply crushed under the immense bulk after dealing the final blow. To say nothing about the hive queen's acid that would surely pour forth.

[ThirdEmperor]

[The Hive]

The queen topples as she comes down, landing on her side with her legs thrashing the air. The ground below boils in the steady drip of blood from her fractured hide. She bleeds from her belly and her broken wing and her crippled limbs, until there's no blood and no life left to spill out of the wounds.

The queen's body lays there atop a cairn of shattered trees, great and ugly, limbs splayed out in the disarray of battle.

And hen the wind picks up and from the edges in she crumbles to dust, rising above Wenomir in a swirl of glowing motes. They settle upon the warrior's many blades and sink into the steel, tempering and refining by magic, granting the weapons a new sharpness and strength. The edges will never be blunted by age or battle now, the metal never yield to mortal force, or be weakened by any less than the strongest magic.


[Mess Hall]

Sebastian chuckles as well, looking up from his plate with a smile. "And you? I get the impression everyone here comes from somewhere else."
It's a very colorful town, to be sure. Lizardmen and moogles sit on the great row benches beside him and yet - "You do stick out." It's the nudity, although Sebastian wouldn't say he's exactly complaining. His eyes actually linger what seems like a little too long.


[The Hidden Grove]

For a moment, the world is replaced by brilliant light and searing heat. The living flame rages against the Brandon's shield, curls it's pale fingers over the wooden stock. His hands will no doubt suffer the worst - even should they escape the fire's touch the metal of gun will be stoked hot enough to leave it's brand burnt into his fingers.

But the fire does fade. The edges of the spectral flame dissolve into mist as it burns itself out in blind rage, until all that's left is a cloud in which little sparks of blue fade in and out. Brandon might want to work on his plans, yes. But for today, it seems like he's made it out alive.

[Deathkeeper]

Mess Hall

Rory does have a loincloth or two for when he's trying to be diplomatic to the silly mammals, but at home he really doesn't care enough.
"Heh, is it the bright red scales or the wings?" he says, wiggling the aforementioned limbs. His are quite large.
"I'm from an archipelago. But I've always been a courier, so traveling wasn't really a big deal to me. Here I just settled for the steady work."

[Morty]

[The Hive]

Wenomir examines the effects of the magic, and how it tempered the weapons he brought with him. Satisfied with the results, he heads back to the huntsmen's settlement to inform them that the beast has been slain.

[ThirdEmperor]

[Mess Hall]

"A courier." Sebastian repeats, looking over the dragon's wings with genuine envy. It must be so nice to fly.
Especially when compared to his current situation of a sprained leg and a sore everything. "So you help with the town's business? Speak to the buyers?"

[Deathkeeper]

Mess Hall

Rory gives a very toothy grin. "Well, technically I'm supposed to be the head courier, so I ought to be helping run the mail system, buuuut that's horrendously boring, so yes, I do what needs doing, if what needs doing happens to be at least several miles away." says the dragon sarcastically.

[OrchestraHc]

JungleDark

Following the craftsbold's instructions, the Red Mage, this time with a companion, have traveled through the Hunting Grounds to find the infamous JungleDark. Lola doesn't have much in the way of jungle specialized clothes, but her leather jacket is the closest thing she owns to armor. She does have a backpack with some necessities, food and precious water mostly.

The pair find JungleDark is no misnomer. The tropical canopy is so thick, that even on this cloudless day, it almost feels like they are underground. It's not for hours more of walking that they seem to find a greater source of light. Moving towards the light they come across their first landmark, the clearing of a grand tree, wide around and shooting into the sky higher than any other. From here on, the pair are on their own.

[ThirdEmperor]

[Mess Hall]

Sebastian pauses, and combs a hand through his messy, charcoal-black curls.
"I do hate asking, but you must have a better lay of the land than anyone." At the very least, Rory has to have more of a clue than he does. As 'fascinating' as all of this is, Sebastian is hardly better than a tourist to the wilds. "My friend went missing. There was a clearing in the deep forest north of here, and a pillar of stone with a strange glow about it. Would you happen to know?"

[Deathkeeper]

Mess Hall

Rory frowns.
"Know what? Where to organize a search party? Because I can do that. If you just mean do I know about the place, well, it sounds vaguely familiar, but I don't know how that'd help you much."

JungleDark

Kayden is decked out in all of his gear today, making quite a target of himself in all of that red. Oh, well.
"All right. We can keep walkin' around lookin' for some trace of this 'bold, or we can see if we can't put that nose of yours to work. You won't be able to carry your stuff like that, though. Should we make camp, you think?"

[Shadowcaller]

Xun shifts a little. They're not something I make but I can give you where I got them. And, um, do you happen to have a ribbon I could use? I don't exactly carry fabric around much.

"I'd be happy to share a napkin madame. It's just like we're enjoying a dinner together." Vallery replies as she retrieves a second napkin from her pocket and hands it over to Zun. "I haven't had the pleasure of dining with a feline before however, should I tie it around your neck or can you do that yourself?"

[ThirdEmperor]

[Mess Hall]

"A search party?" Sebastian repeats, and his eyebrows knit up in worry as his mind immediately leaps to the worst possible scenarios. Sending out a party makes this sound much worse than just losing track of his friend. "I'd like to think that's not necessary. Brandon is very capable. If you could point me in the right direction, I'm sure I could find my way back." Yes. Despite everything, logically, Brandon should still be able to handle himself.

[WarKitty]

"I'd be happy to share a napkin madame. It's just like we're enjoying a dinner together." Vallery replies as she retrieves a second napkin from her pocket and hands it over to Zun. "I haven't had the pleasure of dining with a feline before however, should I tie it around your neck or can you do that yourself?"

Xun motions to her collar briefly. If you could just tie it to the back there that would work. Now how much of a head start do you think we should have before the game? Say an hour?

[Recaiden]

[Desert]

The Hunt for Susan's belongings is successful, though they are covered in sand.
They're walking back from this quest when Skye collapses, twitching, one hand stretched out and grasping at nothing.

[Ionbound]

[Desert]

Susan swears as she rushes to Skye and says, "Oh no...Come on! We're going to make it out of here!" With that, she tries to lift Skye, and carry the dying werecreature back towards her home, and, should Skye expire on the way, changes course, heading for the Temple of Inari.

[Recaiden]

[Desert]

"It's...I'm so cold."
That's the only thing Skye manages to say before she slumps, dead weight, gone.
No problem with carrying her out of here though.

Something tries to revive her, but Skye has always had iron control over the flames, and she does not recognize them when they return, changed. She pushes it away.

[OrchestraHc]

Mess Hall

Rory frowns.
"Know what? Where to organize a search party? Because I can do that. If you just mean do I know about the place, well, it sounds vaguely familiar, but I don't know how that'd help you much."

JungleDark

Kayden is decked out in all of his gear today, making quite a target of himself in all of that red. Oh, well.
"All right. We can keep walkin' around lookin' for some trace of this 'bold, or we can see if we can't put that nose of yours to work. You won't be able to carry your stuff like that, though. Should we make camp, you think?"

JungleDark:

"I'd like to get a snif-scent on him first thing, but I've never been to the Hunting Grounds before. If you think it's smarter let's make camp." She knows tracking, but does not know wilderness.

"And don't worry about my stuff," She says as she wiggles straps on the backpack for him to see. "I'll have to take my jacket off but I can carry my stuff.

[FireFox]

[The Hidden Grove]

For a moment, the world is replaced by brilliant light and searing heat. The living flame rages against the Brandon's shield, curls it's pale fingers over the wooden stock. His hands will no doubt suffer the worst - even should they escape the fire's touch the metal of gun will be stoked hot enough to leave it's brand burnt into his fingers.

But the fire does fade. The edges of the spectral flame dissolve into mist as it burns itself out in blind rage, until all that's left is a cloud in which little sparks of blue fade in and out. Brandon might want to work on his plans, yes. But for today, it seems like he's made it out alive.

Brandon finds himself alive and in no shape to do anything but hurt. Partial nerve damage in the places directly hit, severe burns over every other part of his hands. His left hand more so than the right, what with their positions on the rifle. The rifle is completely destroyed, of course, he makes a note of after he stops crying. Finishing taking stock, he comes to the numbed realization that he won't survive another fight. He can't hold any of the weapons he has left, his arcane spells are limited by his inability to make intricate gestures with scorched fingers, and his psychic powers aren't especially combat-oriented. They do help blocking the pain out of his mind, however, and it is only through this ability that he manages to crawl back through the tunnel to loot Sebastian's body see what happened to his comrade.

Unless, naturally, Seb is still alive and made it into the clearing while Brandon was still writhing and sobbing in pain.

[Deathkeeper]

[Mess Hall]

"A search party?" Sebastian repeats, and his eyebrows knit up in worry as his mind immediately leaps to the worst possible scenarios. Sending out a party makes this sound much worse than just losing track of his friend. "I'd like to think that's not necessary. Brandon is very capable. If you could point me in the right direction, I'm sure I could find my way back." Yes. Despite everything, logically, Brandon should still be able to handle himself.

Mess Hall

Rory frowns. "From the look of you, you haven't a clue where you are or what to do, and it also seems like you've been to the healer's tent since you brought it up. Like hell you're prepared to go after someone in the heart of the forest on your own." says the dragon.

JungleDark:

"I'd like to get a snif-scent on him first thing, but I've never been to the Hunting Grounds before. If you think it's smarter let's make camp." She knows tracking, but does not know wilderness.

"And don't worry about my stuff," She says as she wiggles straps on the backpack for him to see. "I'll have to take my jacket off but I can carry my stuff.

Jungledark

Kayden nods and walks into the clearing, stopping at a point in the middle and dropping his bag.
"This spot'll likely do. No need to get fancy." he says, starting to fiddle with his pack for things.

[Shadowcaller]

Xun motions to her collar briefly. If you could just tie it to the back there that would work. Now how much of a head start do you think we should have before the game? Say an hour?

"That sounds swell and all, but how do we guarantee that we will even find each other again out there, madame? It's endless wilderness out there after all and I'm not sure either of us are very familiar with the area yet." Vallery remarks casually.

[WarKitty]

"That sounds swell and all, but how do we guarantee that we will even find each other again out there, madame? It's endless wilderness out there after all and I'm not sure either of us are very familiar with the area yet." Vallery remarks casually.

Probably best to stay close to huntside then. Maybe no more than about a mile away? And a time limit - leave at dawn and if the game hasn't concluded by the next dawn head back and consider it a draw.

[OrchestraHc]

Mess Hall

Rory frowns. "From the look of you, you haven't a clue where you are or what to do, and it also seems like you've been to the healer's tent since you brought it up. Like hell you're prepared to go after someone in the heart of the forest on your own." says the dragon.


Jungledark

Kayden nods and walks into the clearing, stopping at a point in the middle and dropping his bag.
"This spot'll likely do. No need to get fancy." he says, starting to fiddle with his pack for things.

Jungledark:

Lola takes a quick swig of water, then buckles down and assists with set up. While she lacks specialized knowledge, she's no stranger to manual labor.

When camp is set up, she'll drape her leather jacket over her pack and ask to see the scented item.

[ThirdEmperor]

[Mess Hall]

Sebastian looks ready to argue, but he sighs and bites down the quarrelsome urge.
"You're right. Of course you are. I'd rather have the luxury of thinking he won't need help, but.." But if he does, then there's no way of knowing. He twists a curl of hair nervously between his fingers. "A rescue party. How would we call one of those?"

[Deathkeeper]

JungleDark

Indeed, that is what's left to do.
"There you are." says Kayden as he fishes the bowstring jar out of his pack and presents it to the woman.

Mess Hall

Rory shrugs.
"You know a place, we call the Hunters and get a few people together. It's pretty simple, honestly." says the dragon.

[OrchestraHc]

JungleDark:

Lola opens the jar and sets it down on the ground. After that she takes off her backpack, dresses down to her underwear, and reapplies her backpack with the chest straps.

Then like turning over a playing card there's a wolf where the woman was and it has her backpack. The wolf sticks her snout in the jar and sniffs it multiple times, visibly fogging the jar.

After that she begins looking around for some invisible sign, her nose alternatively up in the air or down on the ground. With few leads she seems to wander over to the Grand Tree.

[Recaiden]

[Desert]

Once again, the were-creatures return. This time hopefully with less sudden death.
Small cryofires leaving momentary slicks of ice keep appearing in Skye's footsteps. The flames are reinvigorated and bold, and she's too recently reanimated to get control of them.
"So whaddaya want to know?"