Keeping the Peace

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Kail takes a minute to take everything in between the two women. They thought he was from a noble family. He would have to laugh but desided not to and maybe let them have that illusion. But if they saw his world they would think he was high born due to the technology and how he lived. But he was a bit below middle class family. That and he lived in a urban area then some where out in the woods. But seeing that Claire was shivering he moves a few items out of his pockets. Two were the motovol cocktail and the other was the lighter. Which he moved into his jeans pocket. While placing the bottles down on the ground. "Here Claire, you can borrow my jacket. I could make a small camp fire" he said and took off the jacket and handed it to Claire. They would see he was wearing a long black sleeve shirt.

"My world is a lot different, so the way I live could be seen as such. Violence and fighting is something of a last resort. Don't get me wrong though fighting and acts of violence do happen. But its heavily punished for it, either by being thrown into jail for a few months or years. Or in the case of killing someone. Life in prison or death by a few means. Its a rarity that anyone escapes the law for a long time. Its hard to explain in depth about my world" he said as for him it was something hard for him to explain. But he tried to do his best due to the fact he had nothing else better to do.

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Ilta watches as Kail removes items from his pocket to hand his jacket to Claire. It’s not the gesture that interesting, so much as what he was carrying with him. A rectangle thing and two bottles stuffed with rags. Probably not the best way to store alcohol. Perhaps, Claire was on to something about the insanity thing. “I wouldn’t recommend starting even a small camp fire here. The hay bales catch easy and so does the dust. Besides, I’ve never known any manner of wild animal to come anywhere close to a fire. If our presence didn’t spook it, a camp fire would.” It wasn’t too bad though so far. However, she came from the far North. Setanul wasn’t all too far from the tundra.

Ilta gives him a rather skeptical look as Kail explains his world. “Do they now? I have my doubts. As far as I can tell, they imprison people here the same as they imprison people back where I am from. And I am left to assume that it’s pretty much the same everwhere. Plenty of fighting and acts of violence slip by. And hell, there are acceptable forms of violence as far as some kings are concerned. I lived in the North because the South didn’t take too kindly to magic. Probably would have been locked up or killed for no real reason down there. Slavery was also a pretty common thing down there too. Forgive me if I don’t really believe that any society has really done away with violence. It’s a part of life. Inherent to it really. There’s no doing away with it.” She cross her arms and shakes her head. “This conversation got too much about philosophy. We are here to kill a beast, aren’t we? One that destroys things and threatens to make people starve. That is still ok back in your world, right?”

[Claire]

Claire shook her head at the gesture to take the jacket, adjusting the way her arms were folded. “I will manage. Ilta is right, fire is a bad plan.” she raised an eyebrow as Kail continued to speak before sighing, shaking her head. “Yes, and I am certain those rules do apply in every country on this rock. I am certain your world is vast in depth.”

Claire rolled her eyes and looked back up at the hay bale before reaching out to pull herself up onto it. She lifted her lantern up on the stick it was on, crossing her legs and looking out to the black plains. It was much too quiet. The thing was undoubtedly watching them if it was here. Waiting. She turned her head to look back at the two. “Stay quiet. The beast is out there.”

[Deleted]

"Agreed...and to sum everything up its different then this world. And there some situations like this but in much more rural areas. Anywway.....lets take this thing down" said Kail silently as he did not expect things to get this deep. He was still green but he was going to prove himself and was prepared to the best of his ability to do so. The blond looked out and was trying to watch or try and see movement out there or hear anything. He put his jacket back on and put the bola in the inside pocket. While leaving the bottles there. Kail had to think in the back of his mind on what kind of creature it would have been. Although there were many and could not think of what it could be. Even the job request could not even say what the creature was.

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One of the first things Séanait had done after finding a room in an inn for her excess belongings had been to look for work. There wasn't much close by for a woman of her skills, but she had heard some talk about a beast out in the farmlands that was causing mayhem. Hearing the reward being offered, she almost choked on her ale. 450 gold and a house? Either the rumours had exaggerated the promised payment, or there was more to the beast than met the eye. Farmers were a stubborn, territorial lot. They'd band together to deal with any creature threatening them before even considering asking outsiders for help. That they were even asking for help at all suggested some kind of desperation. If the rumoured payment was correct, then something was very, very wrong. That kind of money had to be the entire district's savings. She shuddered to think of what kind of creature in this magic filled land would generate that kind of fear. Still, the lure of money and some action was great, and so Séanait had picked up her belongings and marched out to the Third District.

She arrived just after dusk and found the area completely deserted. Everyone was indoors with whatever animals they could fit inside. Most people even refused to answer their doors, and so it had taken Séanait a while to find the house of the man in charge of the bounty. He'd confirmed the rumoured payment, but had told her that there were other people out after the beast as well. Three or four, he'd said. This gave her pause and she considered trying to go it alone, but decided that she didn't know enough about this world to risk it. It would be better to find one or more of the bounty hunters and team up with them if she could. A little money and part of a house was better than a torn throat.

After leaving her traveling pack, bow and quiver with the headman - it was too dark for even her to risk loosing a shaft - she began to search the area armed with her spear, shield and langseax. The spear was standard issue army kit: eight feet of ash topped with a foot of steel with an iron core. She carried it as her main weapon, reasoning that having a long reach would be her most important defence against the monster. Her langseax - a foot and half of steel and iron - she left on her left hip, and her massive kite shield she had slung on her back. It would take only a second to shrug it around and into position if she needed it and, alone, she could fight better with the spear two handed.

As she had searched for either the monster or another hunter, Séanait had made out the faint light of a lantern. Figuring that anyone around these parts out this late at night had to be a hunter, she had gravitated towards the light source. Coming closer, she began to make out three figures, two tall and one short. One even looked, on closer inspection, as though they had horns. Séanait tightened her grip on the haft of her spear and moved more stealthily. She didn't want to judge - after all, there were so many stranger people and creatures in this odd land - but people with horns were usually bad news in all the old Cycles. Soon, though, she was close enough to make out their conversation and she relaxed. Whoever the people were, they weren't openly hostile and seemed to be getting to know each other. In all likelihood they were the other hunters.

“Stay quiet. The beast is out there.”

That came from the second tallest person, who appeared now to Séanait to be a woman. In fact, the other two also seemed to be women, judging by their hair. Odd. Séanait had seen or heard anything to suggest that warrior women were numerous for four to show up on the same job. Then, realising that the first woman might have mistaken her approach for that of the beast, Séanait stepped out where she could be seem more clearly, spear under her left arm and hands facing the group, palms up.

"I'm Séanait, but most people just call me Shy. I take it that you're the other hunters?"

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Ilta hushes up as Claire says the beast is out there. Indeed, she can hear something in distance and approaching. Maybe the beast didn’t fear of people. Easier work for them. She keeps a hand on her blade until she sees another woman approach. It seemed the ownership of this property was possibly even further split. Would there even be enough rooms? Not that she cared about sleeping on the floor so long as a roof was ensured. “Less a beast and more a human, it seems,” Ilta says, half laughing, “And not Shy the least either…”

Ilta decides to sit on the ground, resigning herself to the fact that she would indeed be waiting a very long time. “Yes, we are, but as you can see, we aren’t having much luck. I go by Ilta.” Damn if she didn’t long to have her wolf form again, she could have tracked the damn creature long ago.

[Claire]

Claire shifted on top of the bale of hay, drawing one of her daggers from her belt. She aimed to throw it at the incoming figure, until she spoke. She blinked owlishly and lowered the dagger, putting it away and swinging the light forward.

“Well met, Séanait.” Claire looked down at her, nodding. Another head to add to the reward. The prospect of sharing a home with three strangers was looking less and less appealing to her by the moment, but she would do as she was asked. If anything, it would bring good favor. Claire turned her eyes back to the blackness, waiting.

[Deleted]

Large padded paws barely make a sound in the darkness. Quickly, it sneaks across the field from places unknown. Dim lights play in the field around a single spot, flicker, and then go dark again. The beast darts past this spot, running toward the livestock. As it approaches, some of the animals begin to move and make a fuss. Poor things stuck in a fenced area. There is really no escape for them from the jaws of the creature.

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Kail gets alert as he hears livestock getting into a panic and turns to the women there. "I'm Kail and looks like our party guest is here. Spread out and surround the sucker" he said and starts to move where the commotion where the animals were. He withdraws both of his knives and starts to move quickly and silently. As he tries not to alert the creature to there presence. Since if something goes wrong they may blame him for any fault. With Shy though there numbers went to four which means that there would be less work for them. As the saying that there is strength in numbers. The blond would assume that the beast that was attacking was a wolf or wild cat. Kail hoped that he could get to see what the creature was.

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Séanait grinned at Ilta. She liked puns, all forms of word play, really, and if Ilta had a similar sense of humour, she could see herself quickly overcoming her reservations about the nature of the woman. The other woman, who gave no name, was less welcoming. She seemed a little ticked off about something, and Séanait wondered if it was the number of people after the beast, or something else entirely.

Suddenly, a little way off, there came the noise of panicked animals. Séanait cursed as the third member of the party, who she had taken as a girl until now, hurriedly introduced himself, gave them some orders and started to move off towards the animals. Greens were all the same, weren't they? No matter the time or the place, the boys always came up with the barest outline of plan and rushed off to implement it.

Looking at the two women, Séanait suggested, "I've got the most reach. If I try and attract it's attention, will you hit it from the flanks?"

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Ilta looks up at the lights in the distance and grimaces as she hears the sound of the livestock in the distance. Hopefully, the thing didn’t manage to make a meal of any of the animals before they got there. She watched Kail dart off after the thing before turning back to Shy. “That’ll work if the thing is hostile to people. Considering it hunts at night and takes off as soon as anyone spots it, good chance it’ll run at first whiff of us. Any one of you herd before? One or two apply pressure to steer it to the rest. Keep low and out of sight. Ugh… I’m gonna help the green one. We’ll take the beast around to these hay bales or try to. If it turns out to be hostile, well, I’ll yell for you, but you’ll probably know.”

With that she walks off and taps Kail on the shoulder. “We’re herding the thing to the others," she says.  She moves quietly and slowly toward where the beast is.  Her eyes look for movement.  Should the best go the wrong way, she knows how to move to get into change directions.  "Apply pressure to the back, but keep out of the blind spot.  Kind of a zig zag motion, but not too much.  It'll veer in the wrong direction.  And not too close or else it'll spook.  Go to the sides if you need it to change directions.  Simple.  You take the other side and help me get it toward the rest of the group.  Yell for the others if it attacks you."

[Claire]

Claire was quiet as the two of them ran off, sliding off the bale of hay. She looked over to Séanait, shrugging. “Looks like that plan.” she rolled her eyes and pulled her short sword from it’s sheath. “Let us make this quick.”

Claire left the light at the hay bale and slunk back a little, keeping low and her companion in close sight, watching the direction the two ran off in. Time to take a better look at this beast.

[Deleted]

Kail nods his head when he heard Ilta speak to him and told him of the modified plan. He did what he was told and started to move silently. He did a quick feel of the wind and stayed downwind. Not wanting to give his scent away to the creature. The blond kept moving closer and closer while not alerting the beast. This was nerve racking fir him and was trying to keep it in check. There was a massive prize at the end of this job, a house to at least call home. As he inched closer to the beast he saw that he was in postion to send it to Ilta's way. Kail had hoped that Ilta was ready as he was about to make his move. Clearing his mind he then made his move and threw a rock to try and send it Ilta's way.

[Mysteria]

The sheep were horrified, trapped tight within a round pin. Huddled in a bundle of wool on one side. These sheep dared not to adventure anywhere close to the beast that crept into their pen as they slept. So they bellowed out in hopes their dear farmers would hear. 'We're not alone!' They seemed to cry out, alarmed at a juvenile Skull head drake drake chowing down just a few feet away. Standing no taller than a full grown man with slick black scales now speckled with tuffs of wool and flesh. Not the cleanest of eaters this young dragon was, however, he was unaware of the company that was around him at the time. So he gorged on the sheep he had stalked out of the sleeping flock. Happy with it's meal... That was until a rock clattered against the ground in front of him. Bright red eyes glowing within the dim light, lifting its head up away from it's kill and sniffing the air. 

RIIIIIIIAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! 

The black skull head drake screeched, scrambling up over the fence to get a better look at what had thrown the rock. It's vibrant eyes staring right at Kail as it jerked it's head back and forth. As if not sure either it should run or not. It did this twice before edging further away, Now on full defense mode. 

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Séanait nodded when Ilta asked if either of them had ever herded animals - she'd done that many times as a child - but she held her tongue about her suspicions. This wasn't the time or the place for such a discussion, what with the creature actually here and the boy going off by himself. Instead, she just returned the other woman's shrug and moved slightly back and off to one side of her. Spread out a bit like this, they would have a better chance of catching the creature if it didn't come straight down the center towards them.

Suddenly the beast let loose a bone chilling scream and Séanait reacted on instinct as fear spread instantly throughout her body. She leaped out from the hay bale she'd been hiding behind, spear ready and took a couple of steps before realising at the creature wasn't attacking. She could see it dimly in the light now, as it stood still, and could see some vague, unthreatening motion. Sheepishly, Séanait slunk back behind the bale of hay and peered cautiously around the corner in the hope that the creature hadn't seen or heard her brief rush.