Monster Girls (Party 2 - Shadow over Lonsley)

[Luna_Mayflower]

Aislin the Dullahan (Angsty Anubite)
Xenobia the Harpy (MikelaC1)
Fexa the Honey Badger (Ridai)
Yume Tsukiyomi the Kitsune (Izzarra)
OoC Thread

The town of Lonsley seemed like any other when a group of four monster girls arrived at its outskirts. They'd been hired as simple messengers, adventuring work being in rather short supply with the queen's reforms. Their task was to simply tell the mayor that she needed to send more grain and soldiers back to the capital. The classic regional architecture was still a sight to behold, full of art and flourish. Overall, however, one could be forgiven for finding the rural town rather boring. Only... it seemed like one thing didn't make sense.

Plenty of little monster girls played in the streets, while older women were found in abundance. However, in the entire town, there was no sight of any monster girls between the age of about 18 to 35. The mayor's hall lay straight ahead, but the windows had been boarded up while the door had its lock broken. A note was attached to one of the handles, dangling by a piece of string:

"Citizens of Lonsley,

For the last time, I can't help you find your daughters! We don't have enough guards to spare! Stop throwing heavy objects through my windows!

Decreasingly yours,
Mayor Eliza."

[Ridai]

It is a dangerous time indeed. Because Fexa is clearly bored out of her mind. There's been nothing to do! Not even stupid bandits to have their faces kicked in! And her sweets supply is running low! AAARGH!

The small honey badger girl is still where she has been for the past hours, having belly flopped onto Meave's rear, arms hanging off one side and legs off the other, with the occasional annoyed grumble or bored groan filtered through supernatural horse hair.

Seeing the mayor's place boarded up and the lock broken does make Fexa perk up. And when the note on the door is read, she jumps, fists jabbed into the air. "FREAKING FINALLY!" Grabbing the note, Fexa wastes no time and just kicks the door open with a crash and pretty much bounding inside with the biggest pointy toothed grin. "Heyo! I heard there're kidnappers to clobber!" she joyfully yells through the building.

Spoiler: General Information

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Name Fexa

Species Honey badger (The dreaded honey badger. Though they are among the smaller species, they have a nasty reputation of being fearless and giving not a single damn about anything, making even larger predators avoid them for the most part, the ratels being ferociously aggressive and very hard to kill. Their low birth rates, them barely getting along with each other, and dedicated operations against them to contain them have led to their numbers slowly dwindling, but being no less feared or well known. Thoroughly enjoy sweet things, which is a good way to delay their wrath and attempt to garner some goodwill with them.)

Appearance (Fexa is only barely more than three feet tall, with a thick and wild mane of black-and-white hair falling onto her silver-furred, flexible hide on her back, two furred and pointed ears sticking out on top. Her body is wiry, hiding a startling amount of strength and fury within, with extremely sharp fangs most often seen when she grins, fingers and feet ending in claws. Her forearms and lower legs are covered with tough black fur. Being as resilient as she is and giving as few damns as she does, Fexa rarely is seen wearing much in the way of clothes, usually just opting for coverage about on the level of underwear. And sometimes, nothing. She does have a bag tied to the small of her back though, right above her short, bushy, curved tail. Gotta have those sweets handy.)

Occupation Hunter (Fexa has her territory and that is where she hunts. She sometimes goes into town to get herself something nice with what she has left over, but she and civilization rarely mix, unless the mixing involves beating the daylights out of punks.)

Home Wilderness territory (Like most of her kind, Fexa has claimed a large territory of her own, in which she hunts and which she defends against anyone dumb enough to pick a fight with her. Allows passage if paid well enough, or if someone actually managed to befriend her.)

Hair length Halfway down her back

Eye color Black

Bra size D (relative to her size, that is)

Equipment Bag with sweets. Berries. Furs.

Powers
- Burrower (Can dig through hard soil with ease)
- Scent (Honey badgers have an excellent sense of smell which they also use to locate prey)
- Stink Bomb (Honey badgers can secrete positively vile smelling fluid from their tails)
- Omnivore (Can eat pretty much anything remotely organic. Eats the entirety of her prey, including bones and shells. Regularly eats outright poisonous things and doesn't care)
- Ludicrous Resilience (Killing a honey badger with anything but overwhelming force is damned hard between their resistance to poison and disease, their extremely tough and flexible hide, their stamina, and their iron will. As a side effect, the amount of alcohol she is abe to put away rivals the Oni)
- Powerful Bite (Able to crack even tortoise shells)
- Sleep It Off (The amount of bad things honey badgers can recover from after a nice nap is frankly ridiculous)
- Goddamn Scary (What it says on the tin.)
- Mental Fortress (Fexa is almost supernaturally stubborn. Many have tried and spectacularly failed to make her back down or trick her. Most mages have just given up on trying to influence honey badgers with supernatural means.)
- Berserk (When honey badgers get really angry or wounded, they feel no pain, fight even harder, and continue until it is straight up physically impossible for them to move anymore or all enemies have been dealt with.)

Training
- Combat (Mostly uses her claws and fangs and is frighteningly good with them. Excels at fighting creatures bigger and stronger than herself, as well as fighting when outnumbered. Capable of using thrown weapons and random items as projectiles, usually to catch others off-guard)
- Hunter (Fexa is very good at identifying, finding, stalking, and hunting prey, no matter how big or small. Also very good at finding shelter and identifying good/bad plants)
- Cook (Surprisingly good at making things that taste good, especially sweet things. But has to be careful when making things for other people, so she doesn't accidentally include poisonous or brutally spicy ingredients)

Spoiler: Attributes

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Physical Power 8 (Honey badgers are exceedingly hard to kill. Neurotoxins and deadly disease? They'll ignore it or sleep it off. Fangs, claws, large fabricated weapons? Those will only make them angrier. There is no such thing as overkill against a honey badger. The only reason this is an 8 is because they simply do not have the size and sheer strength of the notoriously powerful species like minotaurs or dragons. That does not stop them from going toe to toe with them, though. And they still have very sharp claws and fangs, and know where to aim.)

Agility 5 (Fexa is relatively quick on her feet and pretty precise in her motions. Her small stature hinders her mobility and is not built for the high speeds like cheetahs are. And to the relief of many, honey badgers cannot fly. Though they are still very good at climbing... and burrowing even through very hard soil.)

Intelligence 3 (Fexa is all instincts. While she has little in the way of education and has no patience for academics and long-winded explanations, underestimating her gut feelings, which are informed by her startling insights from her senses, is done at one's own risk. Her willingness to head straight into trouble is another drawback, though.)

Attractiveness 4 (Fexa is a cute smol girl at rest and to her (few) friends. Until she is gnawing your face off, that is. Decidedly less cute then.)

Magic 0 (The universe decided that no honey badger may have access to magic, no exceptions, because it is too afraid what these maniacs would do with it)

Seductiveness 0 (Hahahaha. No. Honey badgers barely even get along with each other, and the stories of what they will do with unfaithful lovers or people who piss them off are more than enough to make almost everyone avoid any sort of romantic or sexual involvement. This also makes them the species dragons have by far the hardest time casually making half-dragons with.)

Willpower 10 (Honey badgers give zero craps. Honey badgers do not back down. Honey badgers know no fear. They will pick fights against overwhelming numbers and people multiple times bigger than them and put the fear of god into them. They keep going even when they should be dead three times over. Illusions and mental spells may as well not exist for them. And they can smell your fear. If you get away, it is because they let you. You do not mess with honey badgers, or they will mess you up good. God help you if you piss one of them off enough to have them go berserk.)

[Izzarra]

Yume carefully removes her wooden sandals and bows as she enters the room.
"I apologize for any damage my companion did to the door."

Not a character sheet

[SpeedWitch]

Following behind Yume came the dark rider Aislin, a hood drawn over her head so as not to spook the local townsfolk, although the more knowledgeable of the villagers could guess whose shining-eyed steed that was. Tough times had fallen on the Dullahan since large sources of gold, her greatest weakness, had been discovered in the nearby mountains. With her preferred targets becoming harder to come by, Aislin had to make deals with the local government to secure her quarry.

Her mount, Meave, stopped at the ruined doorway, and Aislin scanned the interior for any dangerous valuables. Her eyes would fix on the note Fexa had knocked over when she made her entrance, and from the darkness of the Dullahan's hood an orange light would begin to glow in the shape of a smile.

Spoiler: Magical Girl: Aislin

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Physical Features
Hair Length: 20 inches / 50.8 cm.

Eye Colour: Black.

Bra Size: C

Stats

Power	9
Agility	4
Intelligence	4
Attractiveness	3
Magic	4
Seductiveness	1
Willpower	5

Abilities
Undead: Aislin is a human that has died and been reborn through dark magic. She does not need to eat or sleep.

Midnight Monster: All of Aislin's abilities that rely on magic are strengthened the closer it is to midnight and weakened during daylight hours. However, her unholy muscles remains just as strong as ever no matter the time or place.

No Body to Speak of: Aislin does not rely on a central nervous system to move about, as evidenced with her sliced neck, which she regularly demonstrates by taking off her head and holding it up to the window of those she whispers to. She can move any part of her with a thought regardless of where it is, and severed body parts can be reattached through careful stitching.

Perfect Smile: Aislin can extend the sides of her mouth to unsettling proportions while the back of her throat lights up like a lantern, which she imitates by picking up her head and waving it around in the air.

The Calling: Aislin is able to sense those nearby who are close to death, whether it be from illness or injury. To a larger extent she can sense the general location of those who she marks as her quarry, though she must know the name of her target.

Call Your Name: When within speaking distance of her quarry, Aislin summons up her magic and will, whispering the name of the creature she seeks, killing them instantly. Usually this works flawlessly against mortals, but stronger creatures may need to be weakened before Aislin can say their name, else it feels like she's trying to talk with a gag in her mouth.

Deathwatch: Aislin's sight is enhanced, allowing her to see for miles even in the darkest of nights.

You Cannot Hide: With her magic Aislin can attempt to unlock any door or gate that she sees. The effect is stronger the closer Aislin is to the lock(s) in question.

Weapon Proficiency: Aislin is skilled in the usage of whips, especially her bone whip.

Blood Basin: Aislin can concentrate on a container in her grip and fill it with blood within a few seconds.

Fool's Gold: As a Dullahan, Aislin has an irrational fear of gold.

Animal Companion: Meave is a mare born from the night, and Aislin's closest ally. She can see just as far as Aislin, and move faster than any mortal horse could ever dream of. Bonded to faerie, Meave instinctively knows where nearby otherworld portals are located that can be used as shortcuts across the mortal plane. Like Aislin, Meave is weakened during the day and feels the need to rest while the sun is out, regaining her strength at dusk. This does not apply while traveling through otherworld.

Equipment
1 Horse Saddle & Reins
1 Bone Whip
1 Large Bowl
1 Iron Breastplate
1 Traveler's Clothes

[MikelaC1]

Xenobia followed more slowly, sighing inwardly. Any sort of peaceful, respectful congress had been ruined by the badgers overly aggressive attitude, if they could have entered without destroying the place, they might have been able to get somewhere. And the mission was the message, not taking on some kidnappers. If there were even any. She looks around, hoping to find someone to start smoothing things over.

[Luna_Mayflower]

There is a high pitched squeak from across the room as Fexa smashes the door down. As the dust and timbers start to settle, two young satyr-girl guards, still in their mid teens, in heavy armour have their spears pointed at the honey badger. However, there is a clear level of fear in their eyes as they look down at one of the most dangerous types of monster girl around. "S-Stand down!" One stammers, spear shaking. The moment they see the dark, shrouded figure of the dullahan, they both drop their weapons and hug each other, both shivering like they were in a freezer. "N-No! Don't take our souls!" They begged.

Calm down, you two. From the far side of the room, a bat-girl in expensive robes climbed out from under her desk. She looked in her mid twenties and was the only monster girl of that age you'd seen. The guards rushed over to her side, though they seemed more focused on hiding behind her than protecting her. Didn't you see the note? She stopped for a moment, looking at each of you. Oh of course, you're not citizens, are you? Well then, I am Mayor Eliza and I'll tell you what I told them: there are no kidnappings! Those girls left the town of their own free will and I would be betraying their trust if I told you where they went. She brushed off her robe and sat down. And I'm certainly not sending guards after them.

[MikelaC1]

We arent here about the girls or kidnappers or any of those issues. We are here on the Queen's authority with a message, send more grain and soldiers back to the Capital. She looks around for whomever has the official scroll. All the details are here.

(Diplomacy)

[Ridai]

Fexa just wanted to kick the door open (lock already being broken and all), but when it instead just turns into an explosion of splinters, eh, crap happens. She grins up to the satyresses when she sees them aim weapons towarda her and wear armor and such. But it seems they are no threat, judging by how they are peeing their pants at just a little bit of dynamic entry and Fexa being Fexa.

When the honey badger hears the girls just walked away by themselves, it does put a dent into her grin. "Whaaaat?!" Fexa just lets herself fall backwards while groaning towards the ceiling, arms and legs splayed. "Got my hopes up for nothing. This place is so boring!" And she just remains on the ground, quietly grumbling and groaning, sometimes rolling over onto her front, muffling the grumbling. At least until she decides to turn around again in hopes of it somehow being less boring. But it never is, as the smallest violin in the world plays for her.

[SpeedWitch]

Aislin's smile vanished the moment she saw the mayor's robes peek into view. Her steed huffed out a few sparks, sensing her master's discomfort, and Aislin slowly reached into the folds of her cloak and pulles out a blue scroll case, which she hands to Yume.

[Luna_Mayflower]

You're not here about the girls? There seemed to be clear relief in the bat's eyes as she sat back down on the desk. Oh, are you a honey badger? Heh, you're so cute. She smiled to Fexa, her fangs on display Here, have some of these as a personal welcome to Lonsley. I'm a fruit bat, so I know just how great they are. From one of the drawers in her desk, she picked out a bag of sweets and offered them to the honey badger.

As for the rest of you, let me see that scroll. She took the message from the capital, her expression souring as she read it. More grain? More soldiers?! I'm having to armour teenage girls for guards and that rat of a queen wants more?! She slammed a fist on her desk. She dropped the letter and took a deep breath, calming herself. I shouldn't get so angry around visitors: a mayor should be hospitable to her guests. Please, stay here in Lonsley tonight and by the morning I will have a written message for you to return to the capital. The sun was just beginning to set out of the window.

[Ridai]

Fexa's ears pop up at the mention of getting something, zeroing in on the mayor, followed by a sniff, smelling sweets! When the bag comes closer, Fexa is suddenly sitting upright with crossed legs, hand darting into the bag like a blur, and one piece disappears behind the rows of very pointy teeth. Boredom is gone, lack of something to do doesn't matter anymore, as happy little noises emerge from the equally happy honey badger, looking like she couldn't possibly hurt a fly. The bit of screaming and the slam on the table is just background noise. Politics or some useless crap like that. Don't care, got sweets.

[Luna_Mayflower]

Eliza seems surprised at just how quickly Fexa swiped one of the sweets. Oh my, you're just so cute! She chuckled, reaching forward and cautiously scratching behind the honey badger's ear, ready to quickly pull away in case her mood changed suddenly.

[MikelaC1]

What do you mean, having to armour teenage girls for guards? And speaking so of our Queen is not appropriate. Since we do have to wait, why dont you fill us in on these disappearing girls.

[Luna_Mayflower]

Eliza points at the two young Satyr guards. I mean with all the fighting-age girls disappearing, I'm having to recruit teenagers into my guard! Not that the armour even fits them! She huffed, clearly frustrated at the shaking pair behind her. You two, start acting like guards! Stand to attention! She shouted, the two girls shuffling either side of the bat girl. If you're scared of the badger, just give her some sweets. She passed the bag of sweets to the girls, who gingerly approached Fexa and offered her some.

The disappearing girls? What's to say? I mean, it started about two months ago. Girls between the ages of 18 and 35 would just vanish overnight. Their beds would be empty and houses untouched. There was never any sign of a break-in. That's why I say it wasn't kidnapping. She had clear bags under her eyes, obviously tired. They must've left to find their fortune elsewhere. That's it. There's absolutely nothing else to it.

[SpeedWitch]

Intrigued but having nothing to say, Aislin rested her chin on her fist and turned to watch the sunset, papping Meave awake with their other hand so that the poor horse wouldn't topple over from drowsiness.

[Izzarra]

Yume chips in with comments like "You are too kind." when offered a room and offers to make some tea.

She feels that there is more going on then what we are being told and that the mayor might be hiding something but does not want to press the issue. Currently thinking it is draft dodging or something supernatural. We should carefully ask some of the townsfolk for more information.

Pending a ruling on the OOC thread Yume might relay her suspicions to the party via illusion whisper, or if that is not an option tell them once they are well outside of earshot.

[Ridai]

Fexa lets Eliza pet her. The satyr girls also find they can safely do the same, as long as they are offering sweets and scratches behind the ears (which may or may not be therapeutic for the frazzled satyr girls as well), leading to a perfectly adorable Fexa. It's not it is mandatory for honey badgers to be little balls of fury all the time. They haven't given her reason to clobber them yet. Sure, there's a mental note about how Eliza instructs the satyrs about Fexa like the bat has the honey badger all figured out. And what she says last is obvious BS given she said earlier she knows where the "vanished" girls went and would betray their "trust" if she told where. However: Don't care right now, got sweets and head scratches.

In between being attended by her two satyrs and being fed sweets at this point, Fexa starts yawning. Sure, it's not like she did a lot of walking today, but being bored all day is hard work. Also gives the others an out of the conversation to allegedly turn in for the night.

[Luna_Mayflower]

Eliza seemed to let her attention wander from the content honey badger, letting the young satyrs tend to her. Instead, she looked over at the other three girls. There should be room at the tavern for you. Of course, I'll see to it that the rooms and meals are free of charge. I'm afraid you'll need to cover your own drinks, however. She took some parchment from her desk and spent a few moments writing on it, then signed it. Give this to the scarecrow girl by the bar. Unsealed, the note could easily be read when she passed it to Yume or Xenobia, whomever was closer.

Ryce,
The holders of this parchment are to be given free accommodation and meals at your tavern tonight. Come and see me tomorrow and I will reimburse you for any expenses.
Mayor Eliza.

The bat girl stretched back in her chair. I'll be here in the morning and my reply to your employers will be ready for you to collect by then.

[Izzarra]

"Thank you for seeing us on such short notice, you are most gracious."

Yume bows and accepts the note.

After leaving she would like to check to see if there is a temple or shrine of some kind in or near town.

[Luna_Mayflower]

There was once a pretty little shrine at the edge of the town. At least, that's all Yume could assume it was. Now, it was a smashed and broken pile of debris. Taking a closer look, the kitsune could notice that the damage seemed to be deliberate vandalism, rather than natural weathering and wear.

[SpeedWitch]

Before Yume left Aislin would tap her shoulder and point at her, then point in the direction of the inn. Then she held out one hand flat horizontally and with the other make a circle that hovered over the first hand before lowering behind it, signalling sunset. Then Aislin would stick two fingers in her mouth and whistle at Fexa, turning her horse to leave.

[Ridai]

Life's good when given sweets and being fawned over by two satyr girls who really seem like they'd much rather be doing this than guarding. Until the whistle, that is. Thankfully, Fexa is in a good mood, even if having to go now makes her a wee little bit miffed (visible on her face as she briefly turns to Aislin). She puts her arms around the satyresses, doing double duty to get up as well as give a quick hug and waves to Eliza (Fexa would prefer it if she isn't some secret villain) before leaving the place with the others. Leaving by way of once again plopping down on Meave's rear.

The honey badger is about to eat one last sweet she took with her for the long, long road over to the tavern when she sees Yume spotting the ruins of a temple. Fexa grumbles quietly and Yume suddenly has candy lobbed over to her.

"I'll wait for night time. Maybe then some fools to clobber will show up." Perched up on the inn's roof at night should do the trick.

[MikelaC1]

I should have pressed her about her obvious contradiction about betraying a trust as to where they went and not knowing, but we needed her answer for the Queen. If more information is not forthcoming from the townsfolk tonight, I intend to get that sorted out.
Xenobia starts to head towards the Inn, at least tonights meal will not have to be sung into submission, although if another tasty snack presents itself....

[Izzarra]

Yume is saddened and concerned with the state of the shrine, destroying a shrine is a good way to bring the wrath of a spirit. If she can find out who the shrine was dedicated to, and more information about what happened she might be able to talk to the spirit to try to make amends, and perhaps discover more about what is going on in this town.
She catches the candy thrown by Fexa as she heads to the Inn and gives the note to the scarecrow girl by the bar.
After taking a seat at the bar she orders some tea and asks the barkeep in a polite tone "I was wondering if you could tell me about the shrine on the edge of town? Who was it dedicated to and what happened to it? Any help would be much appreciated."

[Luna_Mayflower]

As you arrive in the tavern, at first there seems to be nobody at the bar. Moving closer, however, you could see a small scarecrow girl stood on a stepping stool. She looked no older than ten, her body made of straw with a pumpkin head, wearing an old, torn sundress. Hello! My name i'th Ryce! My mom i'th away th'o it'th my job to man the bar! She proudly grinned, taking the note. A me'th'age from Eli'th'a? Th'e i'th th'o nice to me! She read the note, clearly didn't understand it and so just tossed it on a pile of similar parchments. Mom will th'ort them out when th'e get'th back from her trip.

The th'rine? I dunno. I think it wa'th for a pretty lady th'pirit who protected the town, but some meanie broke it! She pouted, though her eyes lit up at the sight of Xenobia. Harpy! Harpy lady, over here! She waved. Th'ing me a th'ong, plea'th! She pleaded with wide eyes.

[Ridai]

Some black-and-white hair is seen by Ryce over the edge of the bar, lazily strolling towards the scarecrow girl, turning, and suddenly, two clawed hands slap down onto the bar, Fexa hoisting herself up until her chin rests on the wood, remaining in just that position. "Heyo. Do you have mead? I want some mead. And cinnamon rolls." Priorities, after all. The talk about someone destroying the shrine does intrigue her, though, briefly glancing over to the nearby Yume.

"When did that shrine get trashed?" she asks, still hanging, letting her legs and tail sway out of boredom.

[Luna_Mayflower]

Ryce grinned, nodding. We th'ure do! She skipped off downstairs, then returned with a tray of cinnamon rolls. Fre'th from the bakery thi'th morning! She passed them to Fexa, then poured her some mead. The th'rine? Um, I think it wa'th about when mom went away... and our teacher didn't come to th'chool any more... two month'th I think!

[Izzarra]

Yume asks "Is there anybody in town that I could talk to that might now more about the shrine? Where could I find them?"

[Ridai]

Coincidence? Yeah, right. Fexa most definitely is going to be on the watch this night. Someone's definitely messing with these people and Fexa wants to know what that someone is made off and what sounds they'll make when they get punched.

In realspace, the honey badger hangs from her chin for a moment as she raises her fists into the air at the sight of mead and cinnamon rolls before starting to dive right in like the happy badger she is right now. The question of how much fits into the three foot fuzzball arises, but so far, hardly anyone ever asked that out loud.

"Notif an'one fufpif'ous? Bad guyf?" Fexa asks while eating, propped up on her elbows, the mead tankard's contents quickly dwindling. She hopes Ryce says yes. This place is so dead, there won't even be a bar fight or something.

[MikelaC1]

Seeing as there isn't anyone else in the bar and shes not going to cause a scene, Xenobia decides she will sing for the girl. Clearing her throat, she draws a breath and then sings her best song of entrancement for her. If the others want to look around in bar (for whatever reason), Xenobia will keep the girl in thrall for as long as needed.