• Graded • [Hopetoun] We Be Patrollin', They Hatin'

[Darius Baer]

Arc 722, 27th of Ymiden

The large wooden doors that formed part of Hopetoun's palisade creaked slowly open. Their thick charwood construction had been chosen to make them impervious to fire, but they also sheltered the settlement from some of the colder weather, too.

That was especially true in the seasons of Ymiden and Saun, when storms ravaged Scalvoris.

Hopetoun rarely experienced the worst of the weather, due in no small part to the hills and mountains that shielded the southern part of Fladrass' western coast. The path that led from the settlement's docks to Hopetoun itself went through a gentle valley that held some of the winds of the Hollow Sea at bay.

But Darius knew that the same could not be said for much of the surrounding area. While Hopetounians had watched angry clouds roll past them, experiencing only brief periods of heavy rainfall and hot winds, there would be others who lacked barriers - both natural and manmade - to protect them.

They relied on Darius to provide what protection he could, and there was no better time to survey what damage had been caused than immediately after a storm.

"What do you expect to find?" asked Astra as the doors were fully opened.

Darius answered with a shrug.

"If Faldrass has taught me anything, it's that I shouldn't expect anything," he replied. "Fallen trees, stray livestock, disgruntled farmers...who knows?"

There were others standing around them. A group of armed followers who had helped Darius track down - and then ambush - pirate raiders were also there. They spent most of their time as a key part of Hopetoun's garrison, but the bearded Scalvorian could tell that they were looking forward to stretching their legs. Lars, the settlement's wilderness man, was also there. And, though he was hesitant to admit that it was because Astra was joining them, Darius had also brought his wooden bear statueBaer's bear..

"We'll head to Shellknight Lodge first," Darius instructed Poi, who had established herself as a prominent member of his bodyguard. "We'll link up with Sir Chip and go from there."

And that was precisely what they did. Leaving Hopetoun by going through the surrounding farmland, the group cleared away various pieces of debris that had been strewn across the road. After a brief encounter with Kirt, one of the more vocal and passionate farmers, they carried on in the direction of the Hopetoun Hole.

Once they were in the countryside, two of Baer's bodyguard went ahead to scout the road beyond. It wasn't needed. The road between the settlement and the nearby tourist attraction had always been safe. But it was decided that it was good practice to do it all the same, "just to keep the rust out", as one of Darius' followers said.

So it was two of this group that arrived at Shellknight Lodge first, though it was only a matter of bits before Darius, Astra, Lars, and the others joined them. Hopetoun's leader approached the building, hoping to find Sir Chip.

[Kisaik]

Shellknight Lodge, home to the Order of Green Knights and led by Kisaik, was surrounded on all sides by a spacious garden grounds, enough to grow all manner of interesting ingredients for Kisaik's alchemy. Beyond that though, was a moat dug, which would've been difficult for any ground mount to travel over. So a draw-bridge had been established for just that purpose. Kisaik held his hand against his eyes, shading his eyes so he could spot the approaching group. When he found out that it was the baron coming to call on the Knights, he shouted for everyone nearby to hear, "It's the Baron Von Smooglenuff! Lower the bridge!"

Thus was the bridge lowered for the party, to enter into Shellkight lodge. To his fellow knight, Alaiwa, he said, "Keep holding down the fort until we get back. I'm taking Shu'ma and Taggard with me to meet with the Baron! Command is yours in the meantime."

So saying, Kisaik leapt onto the saddle of his Harpy Eagle, Phee, and flew off toward the middle of the bridge, to meet Baron and his party halfway by way of greeting them. Alaiwa was left behind, although not alone. Aquarius, the large Scariptiel dragonling was with him. Being something of a passive soul, Kisaik didn't want to expose him to too much violence yet, until he had a better handle on how to acclimate him to become a battle mount. For now, he was satisfied to allow his dragonling's innocence to prevail.

Shu'ma and Taggard strode forth on their mounts, Taggard on his Turtledove, and Shu'ma on his horse. Kisaik rode at the front though, and landed in before Darius and his party, sweeping his back into a bow at the people assembled. "Greetings Baron! I don't believe I've been introduced to your companions! This is Taggard Hopkinson, cadouri knight and Quartermaster for the Green Knights. This is Shu'ma, our Sev'ryn huntmaster. As for me, I am Mädärä Kisaik Ciuruọrun sọ Kufuata Karo Kashe Däuä, Tìfmi Härumtä sọ anou Faewun Samuwar, ọbavi sọ tẹlẹ, igbaradi sọ anou tabi ọludïbọ, Saoire's chieja kẹmïkälï kukïrï, Akoko Nọọsi, qy’akot o'Creede! Pleased to make all of your acquaintances!"

"So, shall we go off to patrol the Island? We can relax and rest later at Shellknight Lodge when our patrol is done. There is beer and ale and mead that we have in stock, as well as good food for when our work is done. And you're of course free to stay at the barracks." Kisaik looked up at Darius, meeting the eyes of each of his company in turn.

[Darius Baer]

Darius had a sneaking suspicion that he would never cease to be impressed by Kisaik's displays of formality. It had been clear from their first encounter that the tunawa took the concepts of duty and fealty very seriously. The Scalvorian was willing to wager that it might have been tempting for someone of Kisaik's size to think of themselves as insignificant, but it was clear that he recognised his own importance. He was small in stature, but the footprints he left were large.

So when he arrived on the drawbridge atop his eagle mount, with a dragonling and two companions, it seemed perfectly befitting of the knight.

"It is good to see you again, Mädärä Kisaik Ciuruọrun," Darius smiled politely.

The baron doubted he would ever successfully memorise Kisaik's full name - despite privately attempting to do so on several occasions - but he felt it was important to show he was making an effort, and "Sir Chip" didn't seem like it a sufficient honorific in that moment.

"And well met, Shu'ma and Taggard," he added, greeting Kisaik's companions before introducing his own. "This is Astra Miawynn, and that is Lars Kashir."

"Well met," the pair said in unison, as Darius went on to explain who they were.

"Lars and Shu'uma might find some common ground. Lars is a huntsman and something of a wilderness man, who has discovered many of the known tracks outside Hopetoun."

He turned to look at Astra, then, and paused as he wondered how best to describe the half-biqaj.

"Astra is my most trusted advisor," he eventualy said.

That wasn't a title, he knew, and it stopped far short of the many positive things he could say about the brunette. He felt a tinge of heat rising in his cheeks, but Astra just grinned and addressed the Green Knights.

"I'm also not a bad shot at a couple of hundred paces," she quipped, patting the bow that she had slung over one shoulder.

Darius' followers were also introduced - Darius knew each of them by name - and Poi, their leader, spoke on their behalf.

With the meet and greet taken care of, Kisaik was quick to propose a plan.

"Aye," Darius nodded with a chuckle. "A patrol and a tankard afterwards sounds like a good plan. We've seen some debris about the place, but there might be fallen trees that need clearing off the roads. Hopefully there's nothing more for us to do than that."

The settlement leader's grin faded until he wore a stoic expression.

"We should take extra care near the coast," he cautioned. "Ships seek shelter during storm season. We may encounter some unexpected visitors."

Having voiced his concerns, Darius and his group stepped back off the drawbridge, moving aside so that Kisaik could lead the way.

[Kisaik]

It wasn't that Kisaik was a sunken narcissist, drunk on the weight of his titles, as many might assume. Darius had kindof the right idea about why his titles were important. And Kisaik appreciated Darius' willingness to pronounce Kisaik's full name at least. He certainly didn't expect anyone to recite his titles at length, however. The titles, you see, were almost an ice-breaker, something to be questioned and told stories of. Stories were an important component of spreading reasons to be brave, and that was why Kisaik introduced himself at the tail end of his titles. He enjoyed that Vega gave him the Tall-Folk name 'Chip'. Oh, and that was an entirely different story, that...

But for now, Kisaik was pleased to see Darius at the head of his entourage. He quite liked the Baron, and thought he was the sort of person that deserved the people who followed him. Someone willing to act at the vanguard of any action they took, to put himself on the line ahead of the people he was sworn to protect. "So wonderful to see and meet you all! Don't mind Aquarius, I'm afraid he won't be joining us for our patrol. Alaiwa is caring for him at the moment... But now, let us see..."

"Astra Miawynn, how lovely to make your acquaintance. Hello, Lars Kashir!" Kisaik returned their greeting.

Shu'ma and Taggard both in their turns nodded, but Shu'ma was the first to speak, "Faldrass has much in the way of good hunting. Perhaps we can venture out sometime then, master Kashir?"

Taggard swept in a courtly bow, as his turtledove perched upon the earthy ground. "Well met! Ahh it'll be good to have a good shot about. A hundred paces seems very far for accuracy, consider me impressed!"

"Now, that introductions are out of the way," Kisaik said, though he hoped it wasn't rude to move onto the business that had gathered them to this moment. "Shall we proceed? Shu'ma, you stand by the people on the ground, and me and Taggard will fly and scout overhead. You let us know if you spot any strange tracks or signs of the passage of evil-doers."

Thus said, Kisaik settled into the riding gear of his harpy eagle, Phee, and signalled to him that he should fly.

Shu'ma turned to face the others, Lars, Astra, and Baron Darius with a grin, "Well then, where shall we start? The road to the barony seems a good place to begin, to ensure that the way is not obstructed or watched by anyone looking to rob folk..."

Of course, he would defer to Darius' judgmenton where they were to explore, should he, Astra, or Lars have other ideas.

[Darius Baer]

Lars appeared pleased by Shu'ma's invitation to join him on a hunt. The wilderness man was used to following trails on his own, so having a bit of company would obviously be different, but he didn't seem to resist the idea in any way.

"I would enjoy that," he nodded at the cadouri. "I'd love to catch an etchwing one trial, to help protect your kindBecause etchwings have been known to attack cadouri.."

Taggard's bow was met with a smile from Astra, but the brunette was more reserved in response to what the sev'ryn had to say about her archery skills.

"I said I'm not a bad shot," Astra gently deflected, playing down her claim.

Darius immediately sent her a wry grin that said: 'But you also said a couple of hundred paces.'

The brunette wasted no time in quietly and light-heartedly shooing him away.

Darius watched as Kisaik and Taggard took to the skies, and he sent Katara up to join them. The diri was more attuned to Faldrass than anyone else in the party, and she might see something that the others missed. With twndrils of smoke trailing her flaming feathers, the hawk made herself known to her fellow flyer Taggard with a squawk; Kisaik, being a SongForged, would have seen her coming.

Shu'ma's suggestion that they start their patrol by going along the road between Hopetoun and Smooglenuff Manor was immediately met with a nod from Darius.

"Aye, there is a cave along that road that sometimes provides shelter to travellers," he explained. "I think it would be best to check that the road is clear of any hazards, and provide aid to anyone along the way who needs it."

Darius pointed in the general direction of the road, even though he was sure the knight knew where it was.

"I can have scouts move alongside us off the road, to help avoid an ambush. I've been ambushed on this road before, and I'd prefer to avoid it happening again."

With that arranged, his armed followers began to move off the road, one pair on each side.

"I'm ready when you are," he added to Shu'ma.

[Kisaik]

Into the Cave then!

Kisaik, it had to be said, had a nose, one might say a sense for danger and adventure. His spark, the Crisis Connoisseur, sought out dangerous situations to fling its host into. He almost couldn't help finding trouble wherever he went, it was both a blessing and a curse. A blessing in the way that it brought him renown and glory, but a curse in that it put people around him somewhat at risk.

He'd yet to tame the impulse to seek out danger, and so as he saw that cave ahead in the distance, as Darius set up soldiers around the perimeter, Kisaik dive-bombed with his harpy eagle, its armor and barding and all, straight into it. Phee was fearless as he descended into the cavern, and Kisaik summoned his shadow blade.

His enhanced sight from rupturing perceived any potential threats around him as he landed, Taggard slightly lagging behind with his turtle dove to catch up.

Kisaik supposed it was his role here to flush out the miscreants that might be hiding in this cave. To drive them out into the ambush that Darius was setting.

"Brace yourself Phee! I'm about to give out a big roar..." So saying, Kisaik took his hands, and began fingering a warhorn on the air, with his Song-Forged ability to make music wherever he went. With a blast of ruptured air, he Roared its sound throughout the cave. The sound was horribly loud, causing the rocks and earth around him to shake and rattle as its piercing bray of a horn throughout the air.

That'd scare those darned miscreants out of their hidey hole!

[Darius Baer]

As Darius and those under his command carefully moved into position, the Scalvorian had decided that things were already going to plan much better than the last time.

Kisaik had not accidentally summoned a drawer dragon. Nor had he left the battlefield through mysterious circumstances. Things were looking up!

Darius arrayed his bodyguard in two lines outside the entrance to the cave. They were not equipped to withstand a frontal assault, for they were most skilled as archers, so having them positioned on the flanks, behind rocks on one side and in a thicket of trees on the other. Those natural defenses would only protect them for so long, but it was hoped that by the time they found themselves in a melee, they would have already softened up their targets.

Darius stood on the rocky flank, with Astra, while Poi - the leader of his bodyguard - was in command of the opposite line. Lars was in the tree line, too, though he was not expected to fight.

With everyone in position, Darius waved up at Kisaik, hoping the airborne tunawa could see him. Then he turned to look at Astra nearby, and he could see a yellow tinge in her gaze - a sign that she was nervous.

"You'll be fine," he tried to reassure her. "You've been in scraps before."

"It's different on land," she lamented. "The earth doesn't move right.

Darius nodded. He understood. To landlubbers, the shifting deck of a ship could be unsettling. But Astra felt at home on the rolling ocean, and the immovability of land could be unsettling for her at times.

"Here," he said, handing over the bear talisman. "He could be the ocean beneath you, if you need it."

Astra nodded. She still wasn't adept at riding the beast - that was a work in progress - but he hoped it would give her some solace, knowing that her bond with the creature was such that it would fight to protect her.

It was then that Kisaik swooped into the cave, and only a few trills later, a loud noise echoed from within. The archers outside were instructed to nock their arrows and draw their strings as a rumbling could be heard inside the cave. None of those outside knew if that was a stampede or charge of some kind, or if the very walls were crumbling, or both - but they braced themselves for what might soon reveal itself.

[Kisaik]

Random Encounter roll:
Warring Thwarthide Tribes!

For a moment, after Kisaik let the warhorn rumble against the very stones of the cave, there was a rumbling. "Oh my!" Kisaik said, wondering if he'd set off a minor Earth Quake with that rupture roar. But then, the rumbling stopped, and the stones ceased to fall from the ceiling of the cavern. Then, from the darkness, issued a long chorus of... snorts and oinks?

"OOOOIiiink!" A loud pig-like voice issued from the darkness, as two tribes, one with their shield painted green, and the other with their shields painted red emerged into the light shining in through the entrance of the cave. They looked as if they were exhausted, having been facing off against each other for dominance of this cave. But now that they saw a common enemy in the magic tunawa that made such a loud noise, they appeared to be banding together!

Oinks issued forth from the other smaller members of the tribes, lead by two big ones. A big green flanked by three warriors, and a big red thwarthide flanked by four. All in all, about nine thwarthides, two of them being enormous and looking very strong with their stone axe weapons and shields.

They grunted and snorted amongst each other, as if discussing how to proceed in their strange language. Kisaik thought he could understand some of it, although it was very primitive. His mirror of reflection that he wore allowed him to understand even the most obscure communication methods. They were discussing whether he was good to... eat?

GULP

Kisaik swallowed down some sappy fear as he decided to make a strategic withdrawal from this situation. "Fall back to the Baron! We'll make a stand at their side! They shouldn't have been far behind..."

So saying, he flew out of the cave like a bat out of the Beneath, closely followed by his companions. They alighted to the ground beside the Baron and his party. "Baron! Thwarthides! They don't look friendly!"

Sure enough, the large stinking pig people emerged from the cave, waving their axes and shields and pounding them against each other, former enemies now united against a common foe.

"To battle!" Kisaik shouted. And he fingered on the air his song-forged warhorn. Blasting another warning blast onto the air.

[Darius Baer]

Darius held his breath as the noise of approaching footsteps grew louder. His line of archers held a single line, apart from Astra who was behind them, climbing onto the back of the bear and holding onto its fur to pull herself up.

The Scalvorian strained his eyes at the cave, one hand holding his drawn longsword, and the other raised to tell his archers to keep their arrows nocked. The last thing they needed was a nervous arrow to be sent into the darkness of the cave. The bear let out a quiet growl, but was quickly hushed by Astra who nocked her arrow and watched on from her higher vantage point.

As it turned out, the first face to reveal itself was a familiar one.

"It's Sir Chip," he hissed, and the archers held fire while the cadouri and his companions retreated from the cave and formed a line across the road between the two concealed lines of archers.

The identity of their opponents was announced by Kisaik shortly before they revealed themselves and stepped out into the light. The thwarthides initially shielded their eyes from the sun, but their vision seemed to recover quickly, for they wasted little time in continuing their advance. Even though there were only nine of the beasts, the noise of their approach - with axes hitting shields, accompanied by angry grunts - would have been intimidating for anyone who had not been involved in combat with that many bodies.

Across the other side of the road, unseen by Darius or Kisaik, Lars was whispering to Poi. The wilderness man had encountered thwarthides in the past, and he knew that as fearsome as they seemed, their eyesight was not the strongest, and they could be outsmarted. The trap that had been laid was ideal, as long as the archers didn't reveal themselves too soon...

"Loose!"

Darius did not share Lars' wilderness expertise, and just as the thwarthides broke into a running charge towards Kisaik's line, he had given the order for his archers to attack. A collection of arrows - eight in all, including Astra's - took flight from behind their rocky hiding place and into the thwarthides' ranks.

The creatures were not easily felled. The nearest thwarthide warrior took two arrows to its leg, and it squealed in pain as it fell to the ground. But the other arrows either missed or embedded themselves into shields and had little effect beyond causing confusion among the boar-like creatures.

On the far side of the road from Darius, the large thwarthide in red, flanked by four warriors, continued its charge. But the other large thwarthide and its two remaining companions slowed to a stop before looking in the general direction of the rocky outcrop. The front line of archers were well hidden - Astra, not so much.

With a loud grunt, the large thwarthide in green led its two companions in a new charge, this time towards the collection of boulders from where the arrows had been fired. As they began to clamber over the rocky ground, Darius called for his archers to fire again.

His focus was entirely on the approaching trio, and he was unaware of how close the other thwarthides were to crashing into Kisaik and his companions in the middle of the road.

[Kisaik]

Bacon warriors

"Charge!" Kisaik roared into the air, his voice amplified by rupturing magics as the knights that were on hand today all charged for the lines of the thwarthides that were rushing them. The Thwarthides, though they were shaken by the volley of arrows, the numbers arrayed against them, and Kisaik's warhorn and vocal blast, were remarkably organized for a group of primitives. They wielded their shields well, and even as Kisaik's ephemeral blade roared to life, forming a viridian blade as longer than he was tall, and deadly sharp, they held off his initial assault. Kisaik swept by on the wing with his Eagle, slashing at the head of one Thwarthide, only to have his blow blocked by the shield.

His eagle flew with heavy wing-beats into the sky over their ranks, going around for another pass while the knights below collided with the lines of the pig-people. Kisaik maintained his visual on the battle from high up, but then saw that Astra and her archers were in trouble. The knights and Darius would hold their own against the big ones rushing their lines. Astra and the archers had only a volley to loose before those savages would be on them!

"To Astra!" Kisaik said to Phee, and the harpy eagle turned on the wing, darting directly for the rear flank of the detachment of those pig people. He summoned his shadow shiv in his other hand, and held out both sword arms a feet or two out from his body as he flew by, slashing them in the backs of two of their necks. He utilized the momentum of the eagle's speed to nearly sever one's head, while the shadow shiv cut deep into the neck of the other, but didn't yet hit a vital vein. Nevertheless, he called out once more, roaring his challenge to the pigs, to try and lure them away from the archers as he flew about. "COME ON YOU PIGS!! ARE YOU AFRAID OF A LITTLE TWIG?" He growled, as his shadow shiv pulsed with cold dread that would fill his enemies.

Then he would lead the pigs away from the archers, leading them to expose their flanks to another volley. That would hopefully be enough to do damage to them before the archers had to engage in the melee.