Open - (CotMW) The Makeshift Camp

Dempsey strolled the perimeter of the camp, staying well within the light, but unable to genuinely relax despite the physical exhaustion she felt. they'd just barely begun this adventure, and they had already come within a split second of annihilation. She realized that they were to have any chance at surviving, the group needed to take advantage of this respite to get organized. She knew too well that her aggressive disposition and hot temper were not what they needed right now, and the man called Jack had seemed to step up and competently assume that role for himself.

Instead she quietly made rounds, wordlessly checking up on each member of he group one by one, replying with only a nod of solidarity or a casual wave if eye contact was made. She broke her silence only when she finally reached Aaron.

"Hey.. Um. I know I've busted your balls a few times here and there, but thanks for protecting Lucia... that was.. thank you."

with that she walked away before the man had a chance to respond, returning to the fringes of the camp to watch for danger, and be alone with her thoughts. She'd jumped the gun in character creation, thinking this game was just going to be another tank and spank slug fest that most US based MMOs turned out to be, but Terraspehere was different, and she felt more inadequate next to the sorcerers, healers, and craftsmen every day. All she was capable of was trying to punch or kick her way out of every problem she'd been confronted with, and she was quickly learning that this world operated on far more complex terms.

She turned her gaze to Lucia, if only to make sure she was actually alright, but wasn't in a talkative mood right now. Maybe she'd join her later, but she needed a little time and space right now to work through some things.

@Aaron Marone

 

With the dusting having finally settled and the party’s journey grinding to a halt, Jack found himself sitting at the newly provided campfire in order to rest his weary bones. He’d nod once with thanks at Ornson before letting out a heavy sigh as he stared deep into the fire. Given a moment or two to mull over his thoughts, he’d shoot a darting glance over to the druid, restoring the remaining portion of the old man’s health if need be through his own divine sources. Though silent for the most part, he’d eventually break into words.

“Not quite the journey we had expected so far. You holding out?”

It was a simple statement and a simple question. Though perhaps the druid might suspect been some hidden agenda behind the man’s probing, nothing would come to mind. Jack was simply asking how he was doing, nothing more and nothing less. At this point the dark haired man found himself way too exhausted for any mind games of the sort. A straight forward approach seemed best.

Reaching into their shared inventory thanks to the raid function, the mage would pull out some bread and water. Tossing a loaf over to the NPC, he’d call out casually while taking a bite into his own. “Eat up. We’re all gonna need our strength. All of it…”

 

By the time they decided to set up camp, everyone seemed to be in at least moderately high spirits again, and everyone was still alive, so that was good too. Dempsey mutely unfurled her bedroll and unceremoniously dropped her pack square in the middle. She would rest soon, but she felt the need to patrol the perimeter of the campsite, pinging anything of interest with detection sight, then peering down each of the hallways as far as she could see before returning to her spot by the fire.

She could tell that the group as a whole was in dire need of an opportunity to rest and regroup, and the more tactically minded among them would likely sit down and start formulating some sort of plan for whatever may come next. She had one last errand to run before sitting down for what little food and rest their situation allowed for. She approached Jack quietly and cleared her throat "so hey. thanks for the assist back there. I'd probably be dead if you hadn't thought to cast that buff. Something I need to tell you though. I don't know if it's important, but the statue had a plaque on it that said ' Jupiter - Property of Norfolk County, 1996'. I don't know if that has anything to do with anything, but It was there for a reason, ya know? anyway, thanks again."

Before the man had a chance to reply, Dempsey had retreated to her bedroll for a meal of hard cheese, a hand full of dried fruit, and a bit of brittle, crumbly and too-salty hard tack bread. She glanced over in Lucias direction to make sure she was alright, but she knew the woman too well, and if she wanted Dempseys attention right now, she'd be none too subtle about it. She enjoyed the solitude, and did her best to emulate a normal evening nightly ritual of a bit of reading followed by as much meditation as she could manage before sleep called her name one too many times.

@Jack Anders

 

An appreciative nod was given as the Felis offered some additional information. Though he wasn’t entirely sure of their meaning quite yet, the Zeus bit easily made sense.

Given a moment or two of peace and quiet, the man would look around at the campfire while addressing those around. “Good work today guys. There’s some room to grow and some improvement on all of our ends, trust me.” He’d place emphasis on the word all and finish his sentence before pausing. “No well-oiled machine just works. It has to be constructed with due diligence and maintained regularly…” His eyes surveyed the fire as he’d let out a sigh. “But we can work that out with time and a willingness to cooperate. That's a conversation for the morning though. I can tell you’re all tired, but we’re not out of the woods yet. We should set up watches for the night. This world doesn’t have to abide by the standards we’ve come to expect.”

A weary gaze was given as he’d try to gain some measure of each individual’s expression. “I can take first or second watch if need be. Ideally I’d like three other individuals to pitch in. Any volunteers? The rest of you get a good night’s rest. You’ll be needing it.” A soft chuckle sounded as he’d let out that last line.

 

With the camp ready, Merkaba would take this as her chance to gather some information and settle a matter she felt was important with a certain man. The man seemed to think himself the leader of the group, and while that was fine for the lot of them. It was not for her. She would not allow Jack Ander's to interfere in her methods again. First however was the girl named Dempsey. The Felis had something she wanted it see and hear. So Merkaba would seek her out tonight at this camp.

After spending a while alone in her dark corner of the camp. Merkaba would come out and move through the background until she would reach the Felis' location. Elizabeth was going to call out to her to come to dark witch, but the Felis was speaking with that man, Jack. Urgh, these fools really were flocking to him like sheep. What did he do but get them all almost killed? Well, to these people it must have seemed like saving the day with that water spilling and order barking of his. Waiting for Dempsey to move on, Merkaba would approach the male mage. She had some very hateful words for him, but her elegant demeanor would keep her from sharing them. There were other ways to deal with this. Bringing him punishment did not have to come quickly.

"Jack is it? You were.... effective in your planning back there weren't you?"

Merkaba spoke in her quiet monotone style. Her desire to to bring harm to the man who dared interfere with her display of power was bubbling. However she was good at keeping her thoughts to herself, unless she felt the need to share that is. Taking a seat next to him without asking for his approval. She kept looking at him now almost in a form of creepy infatuation. Maybe in mockery the leader role the others were placing on him. A gentle smile party on her face.

"Dempsey shared some information with you yes? It would seem you are the unspoken leader of this little band. I could never gain such trust from you all. You are all... not like me. We are not compatible in our views, ways, nor beliefs."

Merkaba looked away from him into the darkness around the camp. Funny how few monsters there were. Not a single beast. Truly danger did not have have to breath.

"What are your thoughts? May I ask? How shall you proceed in the morrow?"

Merkaba did not ask for exactly what Dempey had discussed with him. Rather she would get that from the horses mouth... and a good look at that crystal as well. Merkaba may want to create something like that herself in the future. This trip was for growing her understanding of what the blood witches could do after all. So that she could make use of it at a later date.

@Jack Anders

 

A soft self-mocking laugh was had as Jack turned to look at the new voice. “Is that how it seemed?” Though not immediately apparent, a fist was clenched with a bit frustration upon hearing Merbaka’s words as he’d shake his head in denial. As far as he was concerned, there was plenty of room for improvement. Sure he might’ve performed well according to everyone else’s standards but for his own? The gap still seemed insurmountable.

After mention of Dempsey, Jack would nod once affirming that they had conversed. It was no secret anyway, right? “Yeah, she did. Figured now probably wasn’t the best time for a group huddle. Everyone could use a bit of rest.” The next point however, he’d shake his head in denial while waving a hand dismissively at her next point. His voice trailed off though as she pressed on with her assertions. Unsure of what to make of it, he’d simply respond with what he thought were his honest opinions on the matter. “Iunno about this whole leader business, I didn’t sign up for it… but when push comes to shove it’s my job as a healer to make sure we all come out of here alive… or at least as many as possible. In the end, I don’t need your trust to achieve that, just your cooperation.” A helpless shrug was given as he’d simply agree to disagree at whatever vague point the woman was getting it. By this point he was a bit too weary to dig any deeper.

He’d shake his head once out of disappointment. For most it would be clear that he felt fairly dissatisfied with today’s outcome. The entire group had nearly failed. Despite whatever few ideas he had thought of and attempted to implement, at the end of the day they had cut it close, way to close for his own liking. Were it not for Dempsey’s display of reckless bravado, perhaps they wouldn’t even be here currently to have this conversation.

“Speaking of views, I should probably thank you for earlier. I’ll admit it, I was off point.” He’s shrug once while nodding apologetically. Only after doing so did he let out a weak laugh. “Turns out that bit of rock that got chunked off was a Jinn’s Eye. If my guess is right, you blasting it off saved us a lot of trouble. If I had it my way we’d be down a pretty pebble and probably a caster or two.” Jack didn’t particular feel that his course of action at the time was incorrect either. Considering they hadn’t known about the object assisting the statue, his decision to simply halt all casting was most ideal. A one dimensional fight was always more welcome than a two dimensional one, especially when trying to discern the nature of an encounter.

“Honestly, I’m not too sure on tomorrow. I’d like to have a chat over each individual’s role so we can jump into the fray without needing a team huddle… but I can only bring a horse to water. I can’t force it to drink.” He’d pause a moment to gauge the woman’s reaction while contemplating over a myriad of other things lurking in the back of his mind. “What do you make outta all of this? It helps to get another perspective.” His question was intentionally vague, as if urging the woman to speak about what she deemed most pressing.

@Merkaba

 

Lucia spent a lot of time looking over the spoils she got, glancing at it, getting used to it, trying to understand it. Bringing her fingers to her head to start investigation mode, she looked around with the help of the Lense. This... was far beyond her expectations, in truth she was still greatly dazed and dazzled to realize it was in her hand, enough that voices of others planning and talking were a little lost on her. In the end though she did finally, slowly come to join the conversation after putting it away. This tool had dropped during the quest, she had no doubt it would become useful-- no, probably even necessary since it could have saved them some trouble if they'd had one in the past.

"There's no reason not to trust, success or failure hinges on all of us at this point. I don't see a problem with trying to use each piece effectively, whether that piece is me or anyone else." She admitted. Instead, she felt being more useful to the team would only serve her purpose of attention. What she acquired thus far already proved to be incredible, she wasn't too greedy as to demand more benefits at this point. It was because of that she wasn't aggrieved to working together or giving her all. "That said though... we're still very unfamiliar with each other; strengths, weaknesses, how to cover and how to coordinate." Lucia spoke, her eyes sliding towards Merkaba who was far too deep into her roleplay for Lucia's liking. "And not everyone will be willing to honestly exchange those points either." She added her voice having a hint of vague accusation to it before she tried to continue in a more supportive light.

"If it helps get the ball rolling, I'll tell you my skillset-- perhaps we'll be able to work together if you know what I can do." Lucia offered to be the first one to reveal a portion of her hand-- though, only a portion she thought internally. "If it will help you organize things a little better." She spoke glancing back towards Jack, at least trying to make a solid effort to conform to a team structure.

 

Having enjoyed the closest thing to peace and quiet she could in the crowded camp, she rose to her feet and dusted herself off. she'd heard several muted conversations floating around the campsite, and decided that now was as good a time as ever to find out what the plan was. With her book tucked under her arm for no apparent reason besides the fact that she wasn't quite sure she was done reading yet, she set off to track down @Jack Anders.

she approached the man and commented simply "I can take a shift on watch, if someone else like alphabet wants to do the scouting tomorrow, at least in the morning. I don't want to try to do both and risk one putting the other in jeopardy."

she stopped to listen to his reply, whatever that may be, then wove her way through the crowd to find @Lucia Mierz. She approached her friend with a tired smile and asked simply "You ok?"

She stood behind Lucia for a moment, watching the shadows cast by the small crackling fire bounce around the room, presenting the unnervingly realistic illusion that the walls were actually moving. Personally, she'd like to see a larger fire, and a cooking pot full of some kind of flavorful stew, but she knew the rest of the party was probably none too pleased to be eating preserved rations either, and so she kept her thoughts to herself on the matter.

 

Alpha's ears seemed to hone into Dempsey's words like a radar, eagerly bouncing up from her perch to cartwheel over to the girl in an energetic fashion. The camp had been set-up and Alpha had some energy left for a bit of acrobatics. Worries plagued her mind but the recent development and rest stop had seemed to enliven the perky girl yet again. "Did someone call my name?!" she jumped up from behind Dempsey, attempting to sneak up on the woman. She didn't really pay attention as to whether her attempt succeeded, instead taking the moment to strike a cool pose similar to that one guy in Power Rangers (you know the one in the red suit?). Modern day, however, would call that a dab but she preferred good old Power Ranger terminology.

She grinned, wide with excitement flickering in her eyes. "I can totally do scouting tomorrow!" she whooped, throwing her fist up in the air just like a particular anime character (you know, the one that says 'believe it' and where's an orange suit?). Either way, Alpha felt her energy bar deplete yet again from that stunt and she quickly circled her way back to the resting Terry. She had just managed to get the pup onto her sleeping bag and he looked mighty comfy and she might just need to take a nap on his soft fur for a bit.

She gave a wink to Dempsey. "See you in an hour, Demps!" she laughed.

"1!"
"2!"
"3!"

Somehow, she managed to guess exactly when she'd collapse and slept nicely, piled with Terry for an hour until she had time to talk to Jack about a peculiar topic. Scouting tomorrow would be a bit of fun and hopefully she'd have more energy for what would be a stressful topic.

@Dempsey Fabijain

 

After taking her small walk just to get a few moment to herself, Nalani wandered on over to the campfire and took a seat on one of the logs to the side just as Alphabet left. She glanced over at the rest of the group, listening in carefully to their conversations. Everyone seemed to love Jack, regardless of what he had done to Terry, and if they even knew it was he who sent the dingo in, the reality is they probably didn't care. To them, he was obviously expendable, and as much as Nalani agreed it was the best thing they could have done in the situation, that didn't make it right. She had held back on telling her little friend, but a sneaking suspicion that rose in her chest overtime told herself that she probably already knew deep down. However, they were right- Out of all of them, Jack knew what he was doing. Sharing what they could do and what his plan may be for tomorrow was a good idea, even if she felt as if she was a prisoner to her thoughts and that she had little to no skills. She didn't even bring a beast, for goodness sakes. She was useless.

No, that's not the way to think. She thought to herself, pushing away the negative ones and replacing them with the quiet A-E-I-D and some positivity while turning her attention back on the group. Honestly, she didn't trust herself to give any good input, and even if she did she didn't entirely know if they would listen. So, getting carefully to her feet, she walked over to behind Jack and softly placed her hand on his shoulder. Might have been weird, but they'd honestly done weirder, "I'm gonna check on Alphabet and Terry, then head over to take first watch. If anyone needs me, I'll be close by. Have a good night, and be sure to get even a little bit of rest." And with that, she walked away from the group and over to where her little friend and the injured dingo was located. If only she could practice what she preached.

@Jack Anders @Merkaba @Lucia Mierz and anyone else nearby.​

 

Merkaba watched Jack laugh and shake his head. He was dismissing his obvious role modestly. Somewhat cute of him to do actually. However the choice was not really his anymore to make. The team had seen that he made calls that worked so they will expect him to continue to make such good decisions. That was how the weak and needy were, and this group was very weak, and very needy. When she asked about the Felis girl, he did not bring up anything of interest. Wretch, she was sure that Dempsey had seen something worthwhile to know. Who else to tell this to better than the team's head? Merkaba saw the Felis resting alone in her own area. This journey was yet unfinished so Merkaba would have more opportunities. Jack's answer to her trust comment was not what she expected. It still did not change her opinion though.

"Cooperation is useful only if you seek the same ends. Are you sure everyone here is seeking the same thing? Alas..."

Merkaba was becoming tirer. She had been constantly thinking since the magic field room and she had not really rested. Even a occultist needed to take a break now and then, unless they had achieved a higher state of being. Elizabeth only could dream of that at this moment. The man thanked her for her assistance. How nice of him. He also admitted his strategy had flaws. None of this changed the fact he interfered in her attack attempts earlier. Again, it was done, however she would take into consideration that these others would attempt to alter her plans to their own. It would not happen again unless she chose for it to. Jack then stated that he had no idea for what they would do tomorrow. Finally he asked her what she thought? Finally he sought advise from the wise.

"I do not accept thanks. I am here for my own reasons. Your success is just a means to a end for me. These witches have power that i want to evaluate and research to further my own. "

Merkaba took a moment of silence before she continued.

"We should consider the paths before us. They may all need to be ventured to proceed. A split up is dangerous but keeping everyone together makes us easier to track. I have a intuition that the hemomancers are able to watch us in their death trap of a mountain. Why make it so easy as simply choosing the right path? Of course, I am not the enemy...."

A hint of foreboding accompanied her last words.

She would continue but someone else showed up. Lucia. Interesting, all of the somewhat competent people in one place.

"There's no reason not to trust, success or failure hinges on all of us at this point. I don't see a problem with trying to use each piece effectively, whether that piece is me or anyone else."

More trust nonsense. Merkaba trusted that these fools would get her into further stupid antics that's for sure. Lucia went on about skills and how the members of this group were. Elizabeth picked up the accusing hint that Lucia was aware of Merkaba's abilities not being free knowledge for all. It should be obvious to everyone that she was a dark arts user. It was not something she hid. Elizabeth was proud of her malicious arts. Lucia offered to reveal how her own abilities worked. Merkaba's interest finally was piqued here. This was exactly the kind of thing that she aligned herself with them for. To learn what they could do and how to make use of them or to remove them when needed.

"Yes... we should hear how your abilities operate. You use Malefimancy yes? Jack, you as well. It is better than just blindly trying to cooperate. My powers... are obvious to you I would think?"

Merkaba spoke with just a barely present interest. Not going too far into her own developing powers.

@Jack Anders @Lucia Mierz

 

An appreciative nod was given towards the two volunteers for watch as he’d turn his attention back to the conversation at hand. After contemplating over Lucia’s explanation, a slow nod was given as the holes began to fill on their own. It was intuitive enough; particularly her ability to corrode away at more heavily armored targets. That one attribute in specific would prove quite useful. That said, he’d continue to listen on eagerly were any others to step up and offer insight on their strengths and weaknesses.

As for himself? He’d keep it short and sweet. “It’s simple. Damage mitigation is cheaper than health restoration, and health over time is cheaper than health now. Barriers, bubbles, buffs and HoTs – you name it, I can do it. Why patch someone up on the spot when you can stall for some extra time and squeeze out some good mileage from an energy bar? Takes a bit of practice to get the hang of… and a bit of foresight, but it’s nothing special with some experience under my belt. Think of it was a triage medic. I’ll help out where it’s needed most. It’s more important to save the brain than it is to keep the kidneys, figuratively of course. Oh -- and if there's shiny shit on the ground and it doesn't hurt, that's probably mine. Stand in it.”

After letting the team go full circle for those who wished to participate, he’d bring up another topic for discussion. “Any preference on which route we choose? It’s kind of hard to make an educated decision based on the intel we’ve got. I have to say though, I’m not exactly too fond of all that sand, nor am I for the swiss cheese path. One’s asking to get caught with your pants down from some kind of nasty burrower. The other’s begging to get swarmed by smaller buggers.”

 

Given their limited supplies and the possibility that they might still be attacked despite the relative peace they were enjoying here, Amalia set to work on her job which was to provide healing to the druid. If nothing else, her brand of magic was probably the one with the best efficiency, though it was largely weaker than other magic when it came to burst effects. Stood beside the injured bard, playing a slow, almost gentle song. Those who were more partial to her kind of music might recognize it as an arrangement of Claude Debussy's Clair de lune. While a vast majority of the pieces she memorized were performance pieces, this was perhaps one with sentimental value to her.

Her grandfather had always enjoyed this piece when he was alive and he had played no small part in helping her unto the path to music. He'd bought her first violin after all, a birthday gift that she would always treasure even long after the man was gone.

She would loose track of time, playing one song after another, sometimes not even as a spell but merely for leisure or to help sooth her nerves. Amalia would only stop when she began to take note of the direction their conversation was going.

“I'm not partial to the sand if only because I might trip there and I'd be wary of what could hide under the grain.” she chimed in, twisting her neck from one side to the other to ease her muscles. “On that note, you wouldn't really need to worry about healing if you can focus on damage mitigation. My magic should cover our... sustainability if the damage our tanks receive can be reduced somehow.”

“Though I'd like at least for some course of action, even a formation we take when someone issues a general retreat.”

 

After a bit of ability explaining. Of which Merkaba payed a fair amount of attention to, for the sake of both this venture and future scenarios. Jack "The Leader" of the merry band made as a leader would, the decision to move on to a new topic... which way to go from here. Merkaba was already explaining that before Lucia had spoke about trust. Sending the conversation into other things. Now perhaps Merkaba could finish her earlier thoughts. The paths were all going to be full of hazards and magical contraptions. Elizabeth was sure of that. The statue room was like the main guardian that kept you out... or it was the test to see if the witches needed to deal with you personally. Elizabeth also did not seek to reveal too much about things to these people. Let them come up with solutions the way they have been. Better to seem more of what they can then to waste her mind on them. As long as it did not interfere with her again.

"You forget the locked door as well. I assume none of you has a method to bypass it? It may be magically sealed to prevent damage. So please do not say you can break it down."

Merkaba was pretty sure one of these idiots, especially one of the fools nearby outside of the trio discussing this, would think that was possible. She wanted to shoot that down immediately. Now for the other two paths...

"The path sloping upwards will allow whatever is above you to easily pick you off, one by one. Sand can also hide many magical substances in it's grains. Do not assume that it is simply dirt. Of course you also have the wonderful little critters that can dwell beneath the surface..."

Letting her monotonous voice carry some so that the others could also hear her warnings. She did want to have these idiots get her into more trouble so this 'aid' was worth it.

"Then... you have the other route. Downward into whatever wonderful hell lies beneath this mountain. It seems that it would be easier to navigate and we would have uphill advantage.... at first. However those holes are obviously filled with a method of removing intruders. You can dodge and avoid arrows, spears, needles and the like. It is if what lies withing them is alive that dodging becomes less of the concern."

Merkaba was not actually giving any advise as to which way to go. Oh no... it really did not matter as far as safety was concerned. Safety was given up the moment the group entered this place.

"The path to the witches den is dependent upon which dark god they worship. Perhaps the useless druid can help you with that. He has been in this world for longer than I. If Lucia has mastered her craft enough and her formations are as effective as she says... she could place them to properly deal with what comes from those holes if it is a living thing. Whatever way we go... death will seek you."

That would be her last comment before almost doing what looked like a shrug. She had no more desire to assist in their methods of coping with this. She had her own as usual.

@Jack Anders @Lucia Mierz