Spider's Path

[HolyMan]

Gathering their gear and falling into their postions the group sets out for Harkon Manor. The morning is pleaseant and cool and the party makes great time without the short legged dwarf. Around noon just when everyone is ready for a break the group happens upon a small stream. The path seems to follow along up stream as the party stops to have a bite to eat.

[sblock=OOC] It's late sorry about the lousy post but a place to stop and talk, finish with identifing the scrolls. And a little more charcter development LOL. Everyone will need to subtract one days rations from your gear as Martomum supplemented you with food the first day and this morning. So you used 1/2 a ration one day and the rest today. Also this area is generic and will have anything you describe in or around it that you would typically find in such a setting. [/sblock]

 

[Myth and Legend]

"So far so good." Lora thought to herself, as she unpacked a piece of dried bread and tough jerky, and munched on them with slow determination. The stream was shallow enough to be crossed should the need to retreat arised, and the meadow gave the party a clear view that was wide enough to rule out any archer ambushes. "We can't defend against them without cover and healing, or counter them without mounted warriors." the girl thought as she sat on her backpack, with her glaive laid across her lap.

Archers had decided many a battle, this much she knew from the books on warfare she had read. The girl was determined to put her knowledge and intellect to the best of use while leading the group. If she ever got the taste of real command during war time, she would make great use of archers, or at least that was what she thought at the moment.

A particularly tough piece of jerky made Lora put in extra effort on the chewing, and that had reminded her just how much tougher she herself had become since she had embarked on her so called "rescue mission". Finding Arthur had turned out to be much harder than anticipated, and so was the life of a conscript. Even with her basic training, the girl found out just how lax she had been in her physical training. She was aching in more places than she even knew existed. Still, Lora had become faster, stronger and more agile. On top of that, the girl had happily discovered that she had prepared the spell components for two great spells she intended to memorize tonight, once she finally got the opportunity to rest.

On a sudden moment of inspiration, the girl reached in to her backpack and grabbed a blank piece of canvas and some charcoal for drawing. While everyone else was doing what they did, Lora began throwing down the sketches and lines of what was a very picturesque scenery, with the others in the foreground.

[sblock]Well, she has a +10 modifier for her Craft: Drawing skill, why not make some use of it Lora takes 10 to get a result of 20 for her drawing.[/sblock]

 

[Sphyh]

Onesimus drops his pack with a thud once Lora gave the order to stop. He begins to twist at the hip back and forth and get a slight pop from his back each time. Finally with both hands on his lower back and a bending arch backwards he gets a good solid pop and sighs slightly. He plops down onto a fallen log and immediately a small creature, not sure what, sprints away into the undergrowth. He obviously disturbed the small creatures home.

He rummages out a small morsel of dried venison and some rather dry bread. With crumbs on his stubble and dry mouth after his meal he grabs his waterskin and moves over to the stream. The sun rays pierce through the canopy and dance on the water. He cups his hands into the cool, clear water causing small gathering of minnows to scatter in all directions. Holding the water to his face he smells the water for impurities and decided to have a sip. He puts the water to his dry lips and takes a drink. Satisfied with it he proceeds to fill his waterskin. Submerging both hands in the water he laps up some water to his face and hair to cool himself off from the morning's travel. Standing and shaking his hands dry he moves over to his log and and sips on his fresh, spring water as he takes in the beautiful scenery.

 

[Frozen Messiah]

Claude slowly moves towards a large tree that is a foot away from the stream. He leans his bow and other equipment on the tree as he sat there watching his allies for a while, a curious group they were all very different in the very nature of capabilities and yet he feels that there is much that he did not know about his comrades. This brought a small smile to his face, the thought of continued discovery. Claude unsheathes his dagger and begins spinning it in his fingers absent mindedly.

Claude contemplated his time among this group. "True combat is so much different than training, so many factors that you cannot prepare for." Claude says to himself as he gets up from his sitting spot, grabs his bow and walks into a shallow part of the stream. Claude sits down in the water and so his knees are not getting wet and he places his bow on his lap so it is out of the water. He sits in this position while he focuses on the virtues that he vowed to embody. "I am becoming a warrior father, I have defnded those who were in danger and I now pray for those gnolls who had fallen due to my bow and quick judgement." Claude closes his eyes and lets his other senses take hold. He feels the light breeze on his skin and the movment of the water parting around him. He smells the scent of the trees and grass, he hears the birds chirping and the rustling of leaves in the trees near him. His breathing slowes and he reflects on his actions as of late. He becomes in tune with the world around him, the world that he is working in and trying to better.

 

[ghostcat]

Trinham is secretly pleased that Lora is been nice and is determined to be pleasant in return. "Mogins is used to scouting" he says "but I appreciate your concern and I will take your advice and keep him with me.

Trinham still keeps tripping over his feet but, with the aid of his stick, manages to keep up with the others as they walk along the path.

Once they make camp, Trinham finds a rock and sits down with a sigh. Just glad to be sat down, he more or less ignore what his going on around him. he eventually come around enough that he start to hunt thorough his backpack for something to eat.

Meanwhile Mogins sneaks off while his master is distracted. Presently he returns with a couple of rabbits in his mouth and a big grin on his face. Which was just about the time that Trinham realised that he had not packed any rations. Smiling Trinham says "Anyone want to exchange some rations now for a rabbit tonight.

 

[Dragonwriter]

Jareth doesn't rest. He's too agitated, wanting to get to Harkon quickly. Even so, he stays quiet, just a frown on his face as he paces.

The young man takes a swig from his waterskin and pulls out a piece of dried meat. He chews it quickly as he walks back and forth, his mind racing on what they might find at Harkon...

Would it be burned to the ground, the Treylors already been and gone? Would it be under a small siege? Or would it be perfectly safe and intact, or even somewhere between the three? More importantly, at least for Jareth, would Tharivol be there?

The thoughts only made his mood worse, though he didn't speak up about it. No point talking about something none of them could really change right now...

 

[Theroc]

As the group stopped to rest and began eating rations, Aidan was reminded he had no food. It wasn't precisely that he hadn't thought to bring it, as initially he hadn't had the money, and afterwards in the military, he hadn't anticipated needing to supply his own rations... since that was part of the benefits of being in the military. So, his stomach rumbling slightly he took a long drink from the stream, hoping it wasn't tainted in anyway as he dampened a portion of his shirt and cleaned off his weapons before drying them with the other side of his shirt.

He watched the others, thinking on how each had something that made them stand out from the rest. The man with his chains wielded magic, Claude could... shoot his bow with great accuracy and seemed to be able to call on something to guide his arrows. Lora was a wizardess who could still fight martially, Trinham too had magic. It seemed Onesimus was the only one among them who could not call upon other forces, and even he wielded his sword with skill.

Aidan... what was it he could do? Throw a javelin and hit sometimes, and get put to sleep? He was starting to wonder if he was cut out for this whole soldier thing. It seemed every fight he entered, he was wholly outmatched in anything he tried. Though, he figured he had little choice at this point, he still needed money, and his father was still sick.

 

[Myth and Legend]

Lora raised an eyebrow with annoyance at her comrades, or were they subordinates? She decided against thinking of them as such, as she had not yet earned their loyalty, only their compliance.

The aged Paladin whom spoke of experience and advice was now risking the soaking of his bowstring, which would make his weapon useless for the rest of the day atleast.

The chubby Sorcerer lad had forgotten to bring rations along, which was just absurd in Lora's mind, and the slim Duskblade was pacing around frantically with a foul expression on his face.

Lora mulled over the possible ways in which she could have addressed them, all of which turning out to be quite undiplomatic. "Damn it i am really bad at being polite, aren't I..." the girl thought to herself with frustration.

She made an effort to not let any subtle nuances of you are an idiot creep in her tone, as she addressed Trinham: "You can have some of my meat and bread if you like. I'm done with eating anyway." The girl spoke without lifting her gaze from the canvas, still scribbling on the lines of what was turning out to be a group portrait of the party.

For the time being, Lora decided against pointing out the immediate danger of a water-drenched bow, or asking the scrawny boy why couldn't he just sit on his damn arse. On a deeper level, the Wizardress felt proud of her self control.

At the sight of Onesimus and Aidan drinking water directly from the river as if they were barn animals Lora made a genuine disgusted face, which was quickly replaced with a mixed feeling of repulsion and attraction at the sight of Aidan taking his shirt off.

His skin was dark, smooth and his muscles were tight but not overly large. Some feral part of her wanted to dig her nails deep in that body. Her rational part was repulsed and scared by the sight of a naked man, with the ever present bad memories lingering just over the edge of her consciousness. Lora lowered her eyes and tried concentrating on the lines and proportions - it was not that kind of thing when it was art, or so she told herself.

 

[Theroc]

[sblock=OOC; ML]
Aidan wasn't drinking DIRECTLY from the stream in the sense of sticking in his face to drink, but making a cup with his hands. Just clarifying that bit there.[/sblock]

 

[ghostcat]

Trinham is really annoyed with himself for not bringing any food and thus giving Lora another chance to get one up on him. Still she is been relatively nice about his error, so there is no need to be a poor looser. Accepting some meat and bread from Lora, Trinham says "Thank you Lora. I appreciate it. One of these rabbits is yours, I'll even cook it for you. If we get to the manor before teatime, I'll owe you whatever Mogins brings next time we are camping away from the army. If its edible that is. He has an odd sense of humour and occasionally brings me totally inappropriate things. One time he brought me a live mole.

Taking his lunch, Trinham goes back to his rook and slowly eats is lunch. Occasionally giving Mogins a titbit of meat as he jumps up on Trinhams knee to see what his master is eating.