[EX3] Children of Thorns

[Sith_Happens]

Resplendent Earth, RY 764

It's been eight long days since Thorns opened its gates to death itself. In the ensuing chaos, one way or another, you got out, and found yourself with a group of a half thousand others who managed the same. The good news is that keeping away from the roads has so far kept this band of refugees from discovery by the hordes of the Underworld; the bad news is it's made travel slow. Needless to say the mood so far has been tense at best; even with about three scales' worth of soldiers among your ranks, most people seem to have resigned themselves to death should they be found and set upon. The camp's ongoing disagreement whether to trust the Anathema in their midst certainly hasn't helped things either. All is not lost, though: a few more days and you should be out of Thorns' territory, at which point you'll be safe... Or at least that's what some hope.

Around early afternoon the untamed countryside begins to give way to the familiar sight of farmland... Or rather, the all too familiar sight of what used to be farmland. Entire fields have rotted away with unnatural speed, leaving only death and dashed hopes where once stood sustenance.

What do you do?

[HalfTangible]

Morale was low.

As simple and pointless as that statement was, it was the truth, and Hearth wasn't sure what to do about it. This entire group of thousands had lost their home, everything they had ever known, to death itself risen from the ashes of their opening attack against the living. He wasn't even entirely sure what had happened himself.

Five-Score was standing next to him, and he had placed his arm around her. The first of his wives wasn't exactly glued to his waist, but she still preferred to be around him in such tense times.

"I'm considering making a speech. Any ideas?" He asked, running his fingers through her hair. "These people are desperate, and they need a boost to morale."

[Beans]

The merchant-prince's tiny porcelain doll of a wife leans against him, eyes flicking over their fellow refugees. She can feel the cloying aura of death hanging over these farmlands; to her, it is a sensation almost sweet, and that is not entirely comfortable.
"I've been keeping track of supplies, mostly for something to do." She looks up at her husband, fiddling with the counting-beads on her bracelet. "If these farmlands had been alive we'd have been in better shape, but... we could stretch a few more days, I think." She tugs at her lip with one of her elongated canines. "It still might be worth it to see if anyone can lead a foraging party."

Her eyes go back to the crowd of desperate people, peering for a few people she noticed. "I... I'm almost certain I saw a man here that I knew when we were younger, but I could be mistaken. It might also be a good idea to talk to---ah, there was an archer woman..."

[HalfTangible]

"Dibs on the lady!"

"... I mean, yes. A foraging party seems critical at this stage." He rubbed his chin. "But we're still in enemy territory. Convincing anyone to go out into this danger will be... less than simple."

[OracleofSilence]

Leopard worked quietly. The yolk was heavy, yes, but th family was either too young or too old to haul their own handcart, and Leopard had no money to pay for food or shelter. And food, it seemed would remain in short supply. A foraging party would help things, but for five hundred odd refugees? Reaching arable land, and soon, would be critical. Maybe there would be clean water there at least.

But that was a less then immediate concern. For now, there were ruts in the road to avoid, and bundles to keep track of. Perhaps when the group came to a halt a search could begin.

[Ionbound]

Green wrinkles her nose as she looks out at the devastation and says, "Damn...Not even anything worth scavenging." She looks meaningfully at Fivescore and says, "We need to keep moving. If you want me to go look, I can, but I'd go it alone. The refugees need to get out of here, as soon as they can."

[HalfTangible]

Green wrinkles her nose as she looks out at the devastation and says, "Damn...Not even anything worth scavenging." She looks meaningfully at Fivescore and says, "We need to keep moving. If you want me to go look, I can, but I'd go it alone. The refugees need to get out of here, as soon as they can."

((I thought we weren't in a group already?))

Hearth shook his head. "Dear - Green, was it? - we're not out of Thorns' territory yet. We cannot have anyone with combat skill running off on their own to be picked off. At least take a partner."

[Seanfall]

Fuji, as always remained out of sight as much as possible. He was listening into the conversation from nearby. He was not wearing his armor, rather carrying it in a makeshift bundle around his back. Honors price was wrapped up as well to keep it hidden, up his sleeve he had a few shuriken at the ready. Other then that he was unarmed.

He sighed, it was a good idea they had and he had experience in moving quickly and quietly. Shifting the weight form his shoulders he peered over them to this armor. It wasn't exalted grade armor, it would give nothing away. Honor's Price on the other hand...one draw of that and his secret was out. Still they were right, Fuji moved closer to those speaking and coughed to draw their attention without looking their way he spoke up.

"I can go with you. I'm more use to the urban landscape...but I know how not to attract attention." It was when he turned his head that he realized he recognized the woman hanging off of the oddly well dressed man. Pushing aside his mild surprise that he hadn't been mugged yet he tried to put a name to the face. Sundew or something wasn't it? He remembered working for her for a brief period.

"....Nice to meet you ma'am." Was she always that pale?

[Ionbound]

Green shrugs as she replies to Hearth and says, "It'd be worse for two people to be picked off. If I'm alone, I can at least bluff my way out of a bad situation." She glances at Fuji, then continues, "And no offense to you, but I doubt you could do the same."

[HalfTangible]

Fuji, as always remained out of sight as much as possible. He was listening into the conversation from nearby. He was not wearing his armor, rather carrying it in a makeshift bundle around his back. Honors price was wrapped up as well to keep it hidden, up his sleeve he had a few shuriken at the ready. Other then that he was unarmed.

He sighed, it was a good idea they had and he had experience in moving quickly and quietly. Shifting the weight form his shoulders he peered over them to this armor. It wasn't exalted grade armor, it would give nothing away. Honor's Price on the other hand...one draw of that and his secret was out. Still they were right, Fuji moved closer to those speaking and coughed to draw their attention without looking their way he spoke up.

"I can go with you. I'm more use to the urban landscape...but I know how not to attract attention." It was when he turned his head that he realized he recognized the woman hanging off of the oddly well dressed man. Pushing aside his mild surprise that he hadn't been mugged yet he tried to put a name to the face. Sundew or something wasn't it? He remembered working for her for a brief period.

"....Nice to meet you ma'am." Was she always that pale?

Hearth nodded to the newcomer. "Will you be able to find your way back to us if we're moving? Should I call for the group to halt somewhere safe? Ish?"

Green shrugs as she replies to Hearth and says, "It'd be worse for two people to be picked off. If I'm alone, I can at least bluff my way out of a bad situation." She glances at Fuji, then continues, "And no offense to you, but I doubt you could do the same."

"It's harder to pick off two warriors than one." Hearth pointed out. "Most of what will find you out there will likely be impossible to reason with in any case."

He leaned in close to whisper in her ear with a teasing, flirtatious tone. "And if you want to talk your way out of fights with the deathknights, well... you and I could always go together."

[Beans]

Watching her husband flirt without an ounce of shame, Fivescore snorts back a giggle.

She turns to Fuji, smiling softly. "From your look, I expect you remember me too---the noodle cart girl. I'm called Fivescore these days. You?"

[Seanfall]

"It's best if you keep moving, with what's happening to the land around us...I worry what the local creatures might have become." Fuji doesn't respond to Green's comments. Their's no point she was right, Fuji wasn't best talker. He simply intended not to get caught. His attention again went to the pale girl.

"I remember you, though I didn't know if your....friend was aware of your past. I am still Fuji Shenbon." In his mind Fuji added the words, 'the one who failed his master.' His hand clenched tight his knuckles turning white.

[Ionbound]

Green firmly shoves Hearth away when she realizes that he is flirting with her, and looks him in the eye, saying, "And now you've given me a good reason to not want you to come with me either. Thanks for that."

[HalfTangible]

Green firmly shoves Hearth away when she realizes that he is flirting with her, and looks him in the eye, saying, "And now you've given me a good reason to not want you to come with me either. Thanks for that."

Ah well, worth a shot. One uninterested woman out of a few thousand wasn't a big deal. He stuck his tongue out at her. "I can talk my way out of just about anything and you're not going alone. So go with..."

"I remember you, though I didn't know if your....friend was aware of your past. I am still Fuji Shenbon." In his mind Fuji added the words, 'the one who failed his master.' His hand clenched tight his knuckles turning white.

"Fuji. Go with Fuji.

"It's best if you keep moving, with what's happening to the land around us...I worry what the local creatures might have become." Fuji doesn't respond to Green's comments. Their's no point she was right, Fuji wasn't best talker. He simply intended not to get caught. His attention again went to the pale girl.

"Probably, yes." Hearth mused. "But you'd still need to meet up with us further along."

[Ionbound]

Green shrugs and says, "Fine, whatever. Just don't slow me down, Kuji." She turns, then looks back at Hearth and says, "Whatever you do, don't stop moving. If we're able to catch up with you too easily, so will the enemy."

[HalfTangible]

Green shrugs and says, "Fine, whatever. Just don't slow me down, Kuji." She turns, then looks back at Hearth and says, "Whatever you do, don't stop moving. If we're able to catch up with you too easily, so will the enemy."

"We're a group of refugees running from tireless creatures who wield death as a weapon within what is now their own territory." Hearth put his index finger right in her face, his smile fading. "It won't matter if we stop moving, they're gonna catch us easier than you can."

"Understand? We're going to get hit before we get out of here. That much is certain no matter how fast we move. When you come back from foraging, I would rather you two know where we are so you make it in the nick of time instead of half a day later when half of us are dead."

"So I will ask again. Do you need us to make camp?"

[Beans]

Fivescore glances from Fuji to Hearth. "Oh, my husband? He knows." She smiles, then looks apologetically at Green. "Forgive him, he's shameless. Not that he doesn't have a point."

[HalfTangible]

Fivescore glances from Fuji to Hearth. "Oh, my husband? He knows." She smiles, then looks apologetically at Green. "Forgive him, he's shameless. Not that he doesn't have a point."

Hearth winked at Score. "I'll be ashamed when there's something to ashamed of, sweetie."

[Seanfall]

Fuji shook his head as he listened to them, tuning them out halfway through. As they talked and walked, he busied himself with putting on his armor. It took longer then usual due to not stopping as he armored up. Tying each bit into place, finishing with the headpiece and mouth guard, the visor hid his eyes. Fuji didn't know what the glass was made off, but it seemed very resilient. Finally he strapped the still wrapped blade of honor's price to his back.

Fuji waited a moment till the others had stopped talking, the vents in the mask distorting his voice a little. "I'm ready when you are. If you make camp be very careful, do not build any large fires." Fuji moved up next to green, a short but wide silk ribbon flowed from the back of his head headpiece. It fluttered slightly in the wind. The symbol of Fuji's master was sewn into the center, a Stylized green dragon holding a curved blade in one hand.

"And, my name." Fuji turned his head to Green. "Is FU-JI. Get it right, or do not speak it."

[Ionbound]

Green shrugs and says, "Fuji, right. Got it. Let's go." With that, she starts to head off.

[OracleofSilence]

There was a small gathering ahead, probably discussing when or where to make camp. A merchant of some sort, along with a few warriors. Well, joining in the conversation couldn't hurt, and it would be good to stretch a little.

After carefully lowering the yolk and speaking briefly to refugee's, Leopard approaches the small group, just in time to hear the merchants summation of the situation. "I hope you don't mind a stranger butting in sir, but with respect, it will matter how far we travel. You're right in pointing out your pursuers endurance, but honestly, I think the issue will not be how far we travel before the first attack, but how much further we will need to travel if we repel it. Our wound will slow us, as will the bodies of the fallen if we wish to deny the dead more soldiers, and that means we need to be as close to clean water and fresh food as possible." At least somewhat aware of his rudeness, Leopard offers a half bow. "Still, it is good to meet someone with foresight. I wish to offer my assistance, since you seem to have some view of the way forward."

[HalfTangible]

There was a small gathering ahead, probably discussing when or where to make camp. A merchant of some sort, along with a few warriors. Well, joining in the conversation couldn't hurt, and it would be good to stretch a little.

After carefully lowering the yolk and speaking briefly to refugee's, Leopard approaches the small group, just in time to hear the merchants summation of the situation. "I hope you don't mind a stranger butting in sir, but with respect, it will matter how far we travel. You're right in pointing out your pursuers endurance, but honestly, I think the issue will not be how far we travel before the first attack, but how much further we will need to travel if we repel it. Our wound will slow us, as will the bodies of the fallen if we wish to deny the dead more soldiers, and that means we need to be as close to clean water and fresh food as possible." At least somewhat aware of his rudeness, Leopard offers a half bow. "Still, it is good to meet someone with foresight. I wish to offer my assistance, since you seem to have some view of the way forward."

Hearth turned to the man and stared at him for a few moments, the silence dragging.

"... That is a fair point." He admitted. "I would prefer we make the wound small, or even just take no wounds at all, but... That's not likely." He turned to Fuji as he and Green made to leave. "We'll keep going for another 2 hours, then make camp for the night. You'll still be close, but we'll have gained some distance by then."

He turned to Leopard and Five Score. "Warrior, go to the few Scales. Tell them to be ready to defend when we make camp. If we get hit by anything less than those death knights, the plan is a fighting retreat. If there is a death knight, do not engage. Run. If you've got any other ideas, that would be good too."

"Five Score, if this group is going to survive the next few days we need to ration our food. Take inventory of what supplies we've got, and be ready to incorporate whatever Fuji and Green manage to find. If you need to... make sacrifices, priorities are any dragon-bloods among us, we'll need the morale. Then, food goes to the Anathema, then the injured, then the soldiers, then the rest of the civilians." His eyes narrowed. "Oh. And make sure nobody's taking more than what they need. Especially any nobles among us. We don't have the luxury of putting up with self-indulgence."

"... Stop looking at my robes like that, yes they're fancy but they're not food."

"Both of you, exercise your own judgement on further action. I'm going to go rally the refugees as best I can. Call out for any dragon-blooded, on the off-chance we've got any." He turned to find a place to speak. "Anything before I go?"

Spoiler: OOC

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So, if I've got this right, so far we have:

Fuji: Foraging for food.
Green: Same
Hearth: Gonna give a speech to try and raise morale. Refugees will march for another 2 hours before setting in for camp, putting some distance on any pursuers but staying close enough for Fuji and Green to catch up quickly.
Fivescore: ??? [possibly Hearth's plan]
Leopard: ??? [possibly Hearth's plan]

[Seanfall]

Fuji nodded at hearth and followed alongside Green. As mentioned he was more used to the urban landscape, but the basics of survival and scavenging remained the same. To be safe he palmed a throwing star, it wouldn't do much but he felt better with a weapon in hand.

[Beans]

Fivescore nods to her husband; the pale little woman with the shawl and cane scuttles off. She starts making her rounds through the refugees, making note of what supplies she can see and asking around about the ones she can't. In her head, the numbers click and clack, triage calculations hanging over the heads of the unfortunates like cold omens.

[OracleofSilence]

"Sounds like a reasonable plan. Which reminds me. You have a name?" Leopard shifts his sword belt slightly, settling the long sheath into a slightly more comfortable position. "You may call me Leopard." He waits quietly for a response, before heading out into the crowd, in search of these apparently present soldiers.

Once he finds them, Leopard doesn't say much. A quick examination, a cursory glance at their equipment, a disappointed awareness of the lack of morale. He was not a soldier, and even less a leader of men. But perhaps something could be done. A slight word of encouragement to the young conscript who was having trouble balancing his spear and his pack at the same time. A wordless promise of a nameless grave to a particularly thuggish looking fellow who was taking too much of an interest in the belongings of a few particularly blighted families. A quiet nod to whatever passed for a commanding officer. Leopard was not a leader of men, per say, but that didn't mean he didn't know his way around a group of soldiers. He had fought along thier kind in the defense, and that was introduction enough.

Spoiler: OOC

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I assume it isn't to hard to find a group of roughly the size Hearth described. Making a Cha+Presence roll to nstill an intimacy of protectiveness towards the refugees. Shelling out 7m (personal) to have Harmonious Presence Meditation active before doing so (which cancels out the -3 penalty for using social influence on a group).

I can't imagine that is much more then a 1 point stunt.

Charisma+Presence+Quiet Surety+Stunt+HPM-Group penalty: (12d10)[1][5][6][7][10][7][6][7][8][4][1][9](71)

Edit: 7 successes.

Motes:
Personal: 6/13 (7 held in indefinite HPM)
Peripheral: 28/33 (5 attuned)

[HalfTangible]

The merchant prince glanced back at Leopard. "I am Boisterous Fire of the Welcoming Hearth. (You may call me Hearth) and my wife over there is Fivescore-and-Eight Untended Graves Choked By Dodder. I call her Score, but Five Score works as well."

'Score' is as close to 'Sunny' as I can get now. Wish she'd known exactly why. He thought.

---

Hearth called for attention for a brief moment. As the civilians gathered, he noted their expressions. Tired, for the most part. Lethargic. Some fear. A few were glaring at him, evident anger in their eyes for calling what surely seemed a pointless pause in their journey. He saw almost exactly what he'd expected: a group beset by foes, tired of fighting but unable to stop. These people were of Thorns, a powerful and loyal city of the Realm, and yet the much-vaunted powers of the dragons had been unable to save them.

Well. Perhaps a call to regain that faith is in order.

He cleared his throat, feeling a sense of warm calm slip over him. Giving a speech was simple enough. He'd have to keep it short and simple, because even a braindead child could tell they needed to keep moving.

He began as soon as order had been called. He smiled at those before him (taking note of which ladies had blushes).

"I will keep this brief, as we do not have long."

"I don't think I need to stress how bad our situation is; you already know. We've been driven from our homes, our birthplace, our very lives. Many of you have lost friends and loved ones, things that can never be replaced."

As murmurs began to spread throughout the crowd, he held up his hand. "But we are not yet finished."

"Daana’d once said that the world will belong to those who use their trials to grow. Hardship is placed upon us not so that we break, but so we become unbreakable. Know this: Whatever dark nights lay ahead, whatever nightmares chase at our backs, this exile is temporary."

"Let this tragedy steel your hearts, and vengeance burn in your bellies."

"Because this is not our end. Whether it takes one year or one hundred, we will reclaim Thorns. We will drive the dead out of our homes and back to the yawning darkness from whence they came."

"I intend to lead this group from this dying land, and seek refuge wherever we can." He clapped his fist over his heart. "The Realm will not allow such a stain on their honor to stand for long, of that I am certain. If that does not work, then we shall settle in a new city, and build our own forces. We shall gather strength from all across Creation, and build a force that the Empress herself would be proud to lead."

"We are the Children of Thorns, and we will not abandon her forever. This, I swear."

"Now." He roved his eyes over the crowd. "We will continue marching for two hours, then we will make camp. I have sent a small party to forage for food and supplies; stopping early will give them time to catch up to us. Be ready to move as soon as they arrive, because while we do need food, we need to keep moving as well."

"That is all. Keep Heseiah in your heart." He stepped away. "Move out!"

Spoiler

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Inspire the Crowd (restore morale)

Appearance 5 + Performance (Specialty: Speech) 4+1

Impassioned Orator Technique (1m) - double 9s
Masterful Performance Exercise - reroll all 1s, grant one auto sux

10 die, 1 autosux
(10d10)[9][6][9][5][6][7][7][1][2][10](62)

Stunt? Maybe?
(3d10)[7][8][1](16)

(one rerolls - in order)
(5d10)[3][8][10][6][1](28)