17th of Frost, Year 123, A.o.S
Continued from here☠ By first light Laebirius made all the preparations that he could, gather what supplies he had at the time as well as bringing Taidryn with him. Unfortunately, Varinious didn't join, a conflict of interest as he put it, but that was ok. Lae could understand not wanting to compromise one's morals and values so he allowed it to be. He was early, and only Yorha was there waiting. She nodded to them both and a few men came over with mounts. These were unlike anything he had seen for sure, but they were assured that they would get them through the dense jungle with relative ease. "Good morning to you both, so bright and early. I trust Laebirius has informed you of the details." she inquired, a purring allure to her words as she inspected both men.
A playful smile coiled onto her feminine features as she handed Taidryn a satchel with supplies in it. "As soon as the others arrive we will depart for Farbanti." she spoke, going to speak to the one who provided the mounts. Taidryn looked through the satchel before turning his attention to Lae, placing a firm hand on his shoulder, calming down any nerves he may have had about the endeavor he was about to embark on. "No need to worry young lord, this is just one step closer to gaining the aid of those dragons." he comforted, moving over to where Yorha was to get both of their mounts together. Soon the day would creep ever further, as the full breath of first light was now upon them. Ohtoki and the other soon arrived and the meeting spot, and Yorha was mounted as the others gathered their supplies and readied themselves for the journey ahead.
"Now that everyone has arrived, let us be off, Tana and I will ride ahead, and ensure that our path to the village is clear, Ohtoki and Leona will cover the rear and ensure nothing creeps up on us. You two will keep our precious medic and navigator safe." she instructed, a nod of acknowledgment to the rest of the group as she turned and gestured for the mount to take off. Trailing behind her the rest of the group followed suit as the goal was to cover as much ground before nightfall as possible. Most of the day was spent riding, the sound of gallops echoing with the chirping songs of exotic birds, of the natural inhabitants moving out of the way as we rode through.
"What do you think could be the cause of this?." Taidryn asked, Laebirius doing his best to keep his composure while maintaining his riding stride. "I'm not entirely sure, but Yorha says that all the villagers are still there, so something has to be keeping them there. Possibly holding them hostage." he thought, as they rode on. They would ride for several more hours, until the mounts couldn't go any further, forcing them to make camp for the night.
☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ 16th of Frost, Year 123, A.o.S ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠
When the morning came, they were off again, wasting little time. The group continued, their mounts trudging through the thick denseness of the jungle, keeping their pace to try and conserve the animal's energy. Along the way, Laebirius and Taidryn summoned spirits to aid them, to help keep watch in case the citizens of the wild jungle decided to attack them. It wasn't too long into their stride forward that Dinok began to pick up on something. The chattering clicks of Dinok's growl filled the air around them, breaking the silence between them. Laebirius was on edge now, as Dinok relayed that something wasn't right and that they were being watched. The group finally stopped in its tracks, the summoned spirits making sure to let whatever was out there know they saw them. Everyone unsheathed their weapons and began peering into the tree line and the jungle floor, looking for anything hostile.
The conjunction of the mounts' growls and the spirits hissing was a warning that meant keep away, echoed throughout the area. The wind began to whistle in the corrupted trees, but that only masked the sound of movement. It was faint, but something was moving in the distance. "Get ready to make a break for it everyone." Yorha warned, her eyes darting about looking for the danger the animals and spirits sensed. For what felt like forever, nothing happened, and Laebirius was beginning to think they were all losing their minds. His guard dropped just for a moment, but it was a moment too soon. In the blink of an eye, vines cascaded from all directions; above & around them, to the left & right of them.
"Now!!" Yorha commanded as the group took off once again, weapons cutting through vines that sought to ensnare them all. Leona & Ohtoki both seemed to handle themselves as they covered the rear, using their martial skill and magic to defend. Laebirius and Taidryn commanded their respective spirits to protect the medic, as they guarded the flanks. Yorha and Tana too were defending against the onslaught of vines as they led the group through and over obstacles in their way. It was not an easy task to fight off vines and steer his mount and that is the main reason Laebirius found himself as a damsel in distress as one of the vines latched around his neck and pulled him from his mount.
He was drug several feet across the ground, his axe and shield gone, and moving further away from the group. He found himself being pulled to a clearing within the jungle, a spot that wasn't overrun with foliage. Getting to his feet his head spun around in every direction as he could hear the sounds of the creatures that had grabbed him. These monsters were thin in terms of their frame with a large flower bud kind of head. The center held a glowing blue as they encroached upon Lae. One came to last at him, lunging at him, causing him to lunge out of the way. Another came at him the moment he evaded the first, and he threw his hands up.
In his mind he wanted him to leave him alone, and from his hands smoke bellowed out, his mesmer rune activating. In that moment he entered the symphony of the creature and played on its emotion of fear, causing it to back away from Lae. The smoke he was releasing continued and soon began to grip the others, causing lae to look on in disbelief. He had no idea how he was doing it, it felt natural to him as if it was part of him from birth. He saw how the one creature reacted as well as the feeling the smoke gave him. It shot out at all of the creatures present, latching onto each and every one of them.
His rune of Mesmer coursed through the smoke, and pulled on the the symphony of the creatures, instilling a sense of dread causing them to back away and flee from him. As they ran the smoke like tendrils seemed to stop and wait, almost like it had a mind of its own before retreating back into him. The sheer exhaustion from extending such magic through an unknown medium. He found himself collapsing as the sound of the group approached him. "Young Lord!!!" The words of his guardian echoed as his consciousness faded from him.
It was only a moment, but he awoke on the back of Taidryn's horse, finding himself tied to the man to ensure he wouldn't fall off as they rode. "You gave us quite the scare there Laebirius." Yorha purred, keeping her stride as she rode beside them, the other trailing close behind. The pain of being wrenched from one's horse and strangled hit him now that he was conscious, and he rubbed the area on his neck that started to show signs of bruising. "Worry not, we'll have Creed take a look at you once we make camp."
It was clear that they were still going to press forward and cover more ground, which if Lae was being honest he would do the same. Once his composure returned to him, he checked to make sure his weapons and gear were with him, thankfully Taidryn had collected them for him and had added his belongings with his own. With a sigh of relief, he rested against the Taidryn's broad back, falling into a sleep as his body was exhausted from the ordeal and he simply wanted to sleep it away. ☠
"Common Speech"
"Vastian Speech"
"Vallenor Speech"
"Self-Thoughts"
