Mortemer gave Chocolate a confused look. He didn't quite understand why she had chosen to say such a thing, but based on how specific most of her dialogue was, he didn't think it to be true. "Um... I agree with Lai, more or less. If you don't wanna say anything, you could just say so." he said with a kinder look than what Lai currently possessed. Really he'd be more disappointed if he couldn't get any information at all, but he had to let it go. As such, those are the struggles of being a polite individual. @Alphabet Chocolate
Alpha stuck her tongue out, making a Bronx cheer at the two. Although she had done so in jest and mischief, she didn't feel inclined to take responsibility for their hostility and, with that in mind, grinned. If they didn't like her previous joke, then that meant she had to bring out her full arsenal of pranks. She gave a small, almost unnoticeable, nod at her beast-companions before sprinting and climbing up a tree with unnatural speed. She gave a loud laugh before she jumped from branch to branch like one of those ninjas in Japanese movies. She had had lots of practice due to her specialization as a Rogue and the rush of the breeze as she hopped around filled her heart to the brim with excitement. "Catch me if you can!" she called, waving at them from above. Her little friends followed, a canine and a rabbit proving to be quite fast whilst her smaller and less agile allies hung from her neck and perched on her head. She gestured to the entirety of the forest before turning and continuing on. "If you can tag me, I'll show you the rest of the way! If you can't, then you'll have to get out of here on your own!" she smiled. She wouldn't actually leave them to navigate the area on their own should they fail to catch up. Despite the forests of Brisshal being considered quite gentle to beginners, the monsters that migrate from Norforva and the Adecus Forest could be considered deadly in their own right. Still, it wouldn't be fun if there were no threatening consequences, right? "Hurry up! You guys are slowpokes!" @Laiordi Felcrest @Mortemer
"what even is going on right now?" she asked with a groan. Placing her head in her hands she arched it back and took a deep, calming breath. Resettling herself Lai'ordi slid her ruby gaze to Chocolate, watching as she leaped to a branch. Jumping about like a monkey, probably on cocaine. Ears perking up, the girl listened once more. A challenge?, test?, or just simple fun. This was good, she was beginning to become bored. "Chocolate, I would be advise you to spend the time you're using to talk. to start Running." Giving a wry grin, an expression that could only be described as malicious forming on her. Lai'ordi fell into a low stance, stretching her body. "Mortemer, Keep on her. I'll take to the trees as well and apply pressure from the back side while you do so from under." She formulated the plan. Normally the feline girl would flank around her target, yet she figured that since this player was newer then them, she would be much faster. Of course, nothing Lai'ordi couldn't handle. "Chocolate, you challenged a proud Hunter today. New to this game but, a veteran in the real world. You have two minutes to get as far away from us as possible...or rather me." Deciding to not speak for the red head she continued. "As you had a delayed start I only see it fair to let you get a distance from me. Two minutes, then The Hunter will come after it's prey. Have Fun~" she added her own time based handicap, backing off to into the shadows of the forest. Disappearing from site.
Mortemer watched in disbelief as Chocolate took off into the trees and down the path. He didn't mind people running away from him, but this was just ridiculous. Not too long after, Lai had left his side leaving him alone in the middle of the path. He crossed his arms and pouted, trying to think of what he should do. He decided he'd see if he had any useful spells available to him. There were only two spells: 'Dark Hand', and 'Finger Pistol'. Right now Dark Hand didn't seem like it would be of much use right now, but Finger Pistol caught his attention. He quickly read how to cast the spell and closed his menu. He made the shape of a gun with his right hand, and the tops of his index and middle fingers began to writhe and malform as dark energy spread over them. At that moment he spotted a squirrel perched in a nearby tree. He took aim, and spoke he name of the spell. "Finger Pistol!" and just like the, a bolt of dark energy flew from his fingers and shot the squirrel, dropping it to the ground dead and seething darkness. He stared at it for a moment, amazed at the feat that had just transpired. Then, a smile began to creak into the light on his face. Mortemer turned down the path Chocolate had gone down, and broke out into a full sprint. After a minute or two of hefty running, Mortemer had caught up to Chocolate. He readied his hand and took aim. He began to shoot wildly, aiming for Chocolate's leg. "Finger Pistol! Finger Pistol!" he repeated, firing over and over again trying to shoot her down as he ran. Soon he started to get irritated and began to use his left hand in tandem with his right. "Finger Pistol! Finger Pistol! Finger Pistol!" he continued, firing off dark blasts like he was a crazed gunman. All the shots he was making were all coming close to Chocolate, but never close enough to actually land a hit. Now he was frustrated and low on Mana. He had just about enough for one shot. He'd have to be sure he didn't miss. With his left hand gripping his right arm, Mortemer steadied his aim and waited, ever so patiently for the right moment. However, he couldn't take the shot. Chocolate was moving too much for him to make a clean shot, and running didn't help the matter. It was then that an idea came to fruition. Mortemer aimed a bit in front of Chocolate and steadied his aim. His plan had the potential to succeed, but executed poorly and it would end in failure. When the moment was right, he let loose a shot, "Finger Pistol!" and shot out the branch in front of Chocolate as she was mid jump. He smiled ear to ear as the first part of his plan was a success. Now, all he needed to do was wait and see if the rest of his plan would follow suit.
"Haha! You think that could stop me!" Alpha crowed with a grin on her face that wouldn't drop no matter how hard she tried. This was just like a villain chase scene she had seen in the movies before and she really wanted to act it out but, unfortunately, her muscles wouldn't agree with her as it proved to be impossible for her to hide her festering excitement and joy at the predicament. The thrilling jump from branch to branch was interrupted by Mortemer's clever ploy and it proved to be much more of an obstruction that his previous attempts to blast her as, with her speed, it was easy to dodge. The girl, Lai, seemed to have disappeared from sight but she pushed that tidbit to the back of her mind at her newest obstacle. Without hesitation, she held out her hand and whispered a single word: "Crescere!" At that moment, a green glow protruded from the broken base of the branch and, in a split second, a new branch erupted to give her a soft landing. She took the time to turn her head back and, sticking her tongue out in victory, continued on jumping from branch to branch. She placed her fingers in the shape of an 'L' and lifted her arm overhead, making sure they could see it, before turning away. "Don't challenge a person who can, like, control trees and plants and animals and stuff in a place with all that stuff!" she laughed. And, with a mischievous grin, she made sure her hand touched the trunk of a tree that she had landed on. "Crescere!" she repeated and, at that moment, a green light traveled from her arm and through the tree, the roots growing wildly and tangling together above the ground. Compared to her previous spell, it hadn't been as fast, but it would prove to be somewhat of a stall for the ground-born Mortemer. She breathed. Growing spells didn't take much out of her due to using the naturally-existing life around her as a medium, but the rapid growth of the last two spells in quick succession proved to at least take a dent in her energy pool despite it being quite simple spells. She ignored the ache and giggled. "You guys better hurry up if you wanna catch me and get out of her safe and sound!" she sang. @Mortemer @Laiordi Felcrest
Ruby eyes peering through the darkness of the forest the girl watched in silence, slowly counting down each second. Not even formulating a strategy until her handicap was over with. A tail slowly swaying from left to right Lai'ordi could feel an instinctive rumbling come from her throat, a purr. Maybe it was from her years spent with the pride?, or maybe it was a built in mechanic of her race. Either way, it only meant one thing. She was eager~ "one... and the hunt begins." Cooing the words the girl broke into a low sprint, keeping to the forest floor. Picking up a trail of fallen branches and a poor squirrel corpse. Closing her teeth together in her mouth, she let out sharp and loud clicks in rapid succession. A hunting call, she had used the very same call hundreds of times. Maybe now, since she had some skill she could summon some form of help. After all, she was a pack hunter. Sounds of magical blasts resounding in the distance allowed the huntress to easily close in on the whereabouts of Mortemer and hopefully, Lai'ordi's prey. Picking up her pace, the girl's feline ears stood straight and alert to the sound of pattering footsteps beside her. glancing downwards; large emerald eyes connected with her own ruby. A small lion cub, male and slender. with a crown mark in the fur on it's forehead. That brief moment the two had looked at each other something clicked, latching the two beings together on an emotional and spiritual level. So this was the feeling of Beast Taming, it was...nostalgic. Forming a devious smirk she focused her attention to the path ahead. "Can you understand me small one?" she asked. With a small yap in response Lai'ordi almost felt giddy. "then we're going to take a small detour." Lingering in tree's not too far ahead of the two players, the huntress hid high in the branches. Peering down upon her newly found partner, laying flat on his side the cub let out loud cries of pain. A red substance lathered on his body, mixed with mud. Giving it a festered look. Hopefully, this would work. She had diverted their route only for a quick second, snatching some berries and covering each other in mud, dirt. The huntress herself adding leaves to her attire to better conceal herself with the trees. Waiting In silence Lai'ordi was ready to pounce at any moment.
Mortemer stood and glared at wall of roots in front of him. He wasn't too fond of things getting in his way. Even less so when he was chasing someone. Usually when things got in his way he ended up cutting them down. For a moment or two he seethed, staring down the natural wall before him. As of now, he was no longer enjoying himself. Annoyance had replaced the smile he was so carelessly wearing. Mortemer began to grind his teeth together. Staring down the wall built a rage up inside him. During his time working at his parents' cemetery, he'd learned to use these emotions to his advantage. Emotions like this gave him an adrenaline rush, which he enjoyed the feeling of. Mortemer grit his teeth, and let his frustration be vocalized. He jumped up and grabbed the top of the wall, flinging himself over to the other side. Digging his hands into the ground and kicking up dirt he propelled himself forward, running after Chocolate the fastest he'd ever ran in his life. It took a while, but he managed to catch up to Chocolate. He looked at her up in the trees, hopping from branch to branch. Since Finger Pistol didn't work too well, he decided to put his effort into using Dark Hand in some way or another. He'd have to bide his time, though as he was still recovering from the loss of mana. In the meantime, he'd have to formulate some kind of plan involving Dark Hand. All the same, he'd have to manage to pay attention for any of Chocolate's tricks. He knew that with all the effort he was putting into this, the catch would feel so much sweeter.
Alpha was having the time of her life, an eagerness awaiting in every step. She hopped back and forth, left and right, zigzagged, and in any other type of pattern that could be expected from the overtly confident. She felt proud that she managed to dodge the man's continuous attacks (although it stopped, presumably from a lack of energy) and let it be known that her ego rose a few notches in every leap taken. As she started to taunt the man, however, she was suddenly stopped by the image before her. A lion cub, from out of nowhere, was dressed in a blanket of blood and grime and, without a second thought, Alpha dove down. "Olly olly oxen-free!" she shouted before landing with a graceful tap of her feet. On closer look, however, the mewls for help the cub was making seemed to be completely unfounded. Her eyes widened and she looked around her just as her little animal crew managed to catch up to her. She idly tossed the lion a fish stick (one of many she kept with her due to Terry's obsession with it) and hoped her beast-tamer charisma would help a tad bit. She sniffed the air and her eyes were sharp, surveying the land. She flinched at the slightest sound of crunching leaves or brittle wind. "That's dirty!" she whined petulantly, stomping her feet on the floor and cross her arms. "Let's see if you can win in a fight, though! Our battle is gonna be the stuff of legends!" and so she waited for Mortemer to catch up and for Lai to show herself, bouncing on the pads of her toes. @Mortemer @Laiordi Felcrest
Peering through the coverage of the forest; the huntress popped a couple crimson colored berries in her mouth. Puffed up and speckled with small white spots, she savored the sweet taste; much as she began savoring her small victory over the gullible girl. Ruby eyes shifting to the swift Chocolate, the huntress's expression contorted into a twisted grin. Watching as the player dropped down to aid the faking lion cub, Lai'ordi held out her hand. As if grasping a pole the movement caused quick flicker, spawning in a simple, primitive spear. Tightening her hand around the unleveled weapon she lowered her stance on the branch, crawling outwards to another tree. Ceasing his cries of pain, the lion cub stood to his feet. Letting out a bored yawn and performing a long, exaggerated stretch. Sniffing at the air Emerald eyes locked onto some form of stick, it looked soft and fluffy. Edible. Softly and cautiously crawling forward he nipped at the mysterious thing the human had thrown. Finding the flavor addicting the lion quickly scoffed it up, not wanting this gift from the gods to be stolen away. "Dirty you say!?" She roared downwards, using the echoing of the forest to displace her exact location. "You didn't have to stop for my little assistant but, you not only nibbled the bait. You full on got the hook through your cheek!" Cackling the words she bounded to another tree, not bothering to soften her landing. causing more than a few leaves to fall to the forest floor. "No, you are my prey Chocolate!. Hunter and the Hunted never fight on even grounds, one either escapes or dies. There is no final fight, only me catching my target." She continued spouting off with pride; high above the ground, constantly shifting her location. Formulating on the move once again, Lai'ordi swiftly grasped her rags that the game dared to call a shirt, tearing it away from her torso. Only leaving her hair covering her bare chest., unbothered by the coolness or the awkwardness it would bring about other, normal people; she tied the rag onto the shaft of her spear. Casually dropping the adorned weapon, the bare chested Lai'ordi swiftly followed behind. Falling through the air the girl quickly lunged out in an attempt to touch her prey, to tag her and win the game. And then probably try to find a new shirt...
As Mortemer watched Chocolate descend from the branches, he stumbled and brought himself to a stop. He stared at the ground taking a moment to catch his breath. He looked up into the sky and withdrew air deep into his lungs, the slowly exhaled, straightening himself out. When next Mortemer looked at Chocolate, he gave her a look much different than the one he had previously possessed. His eyes were dilated and his brow was furrowed. He did not show any sort of anger or irritation on one inch of his face. Instead, his eyes were filled with determination and anticipation, something he felt every killer needed to feel and understand. He reached behind his head as if to firmly grasp an invisible length, and the shaft of a weapon appeared in his hands. Throwing his arms forward and downward, Mortemer thrust his scythe into the ground, the dirt tear in the wake of its blade. Mortemer looked up and stared at Chocolate for a brief moment. He then began to swiftly walk towards her, running his fingers along the length of the shaft, grasping it at its midsection. He yanked the blade from the ground and walked towards Chocolate. He didn't plan on attacking just yet, as he didn't have enough mana to pull off something with a great chance of success, but he'd soon be ready to continue his assault.
Alpha grinned as the lion girl revealed herself and lunged straight for her, spear in hand. Alpha could recognize the weapon, once having one herself, and gave a small nod in appreciation that someone else had found use in the fairly uncommon choice of weapon. She was ready to have fun with no regrets, having already said her departures to the lion cub during Lai's speech about being hunted and whatnot. She didn't pay much mind, never being the one for lectures and such. "I like you!" she exclaimed, nimbly moving to dodge the attack. It was easy to do so, having had much more experience than these two (especially considering this could be their first few days in Terrasphere by the looks of it). "Definitely got some beast-taming in there cause lion baby likes you! And you use spears! I used to use some spears too, ya know?" she talked on and on, chattering without fail as she backed away with augmented speed. Then, she turned to speak directly to Mortemer. "Hey, you gonna do anything, Morts? You kinda remind me of Merkaba! She was, like, the first person I met and she used that magic thingy, forgot what it's called, like you! You'd love to meet her!" As she finished her last words, she stopped with an eager and toothy smile. Brushing past Terry and co. who had followed after her, she greeted the blonde woman before she pulled up her inventory and, with that, took out her spear. She weighed it and looked into it closely, as if confused as to what it may be. "Been awhile since I used my old spear!" she giggled, giving it a test sweep against the air. It was old and frail but still something. Her toes stretched and curled from the pure joy that erupted in her heart out of excitement. The toes brushed against the cloth bunny slippers she had tailored and, with that, she pounced straight at Mortemer. "You have to join in on the fun too!" she whined as she readied to peel the red-haired man's cloak off of his back. Attacking them full-front would be boring if she just wiped them out and the longer she postponed the game, the more time they have to do something interesting. She gave a wink to her companions at the sidelines and waved as she passed the lion cub. This was an exhilarating match! @Mortemer @Laiordi Felcrest
Mortemer saw right through Chocolate's attack. He dodged to the right of her spear and thrust the head of his scythe at her ankle to trip her. Following with the momentum he'd gained, he made a pistol with his hand and took aim at Chocolate's left hand. "Finger Pistol!" he exclaimed shooting Chocolate in her hand. Continuing his motion, he spun around and aimed at her right leg and yelled "Finger Pistol!", planting a shot in her leg. Finalizing the motion, Mortemer stood firmly swinging his scythe onto his shoulder and relaxed his hand. "Tag. I win." Mortemer said before putting his scythe away. Mortemer took a small breath and exhaled. The serious look he previously had was gone, replaced by a gentle smile. Mortemer was pleased, for he had achieved his very sudden goal. "Now you'll show us the way, right?" he asked, shoving his hands into his pockets. He was certainly glad that little game of chase was over with, however he couldn't say it was that bad. It gave him a good opportunity to measure his abilities. Now, he had room for growth.
Alpha pouted, stomping her feet with her arms crossed. Although her actions made it seem like she was a bit upset, a bright smile bloomed on her face despite the slight bit of pain from Mortemer's spells. She puffed up her cheeks halfheartedly. "Yeah, yeah!" she gave an exaggerated wave of her hand, turning her head to the side and closing her eyes snootily. Eventually, she couldn't take it anymore and burst into a fit of giggles, landing on her bottom. Her guffaws wracked her body for a solid minute before she managed to calm herself and, even then, a single look at Mortemer's face sent her into another fit of laughs. Terry looked at her worriedly, rushing to her aid. The others, as usual, were more or less confident in her considering that only Terry had ever seen her fall in battle against Arachna. As she slowly got up, brushing the dirt of her clothes, she couldn't help but give Mortemer a pat on the back (or as far up she could reach considering her tiny size). She gave him a wide grin and gave him an outstretched hand. "Good job, you were so cool!" she gushed before wincing, turning to see her arm was bleeding a bit from the dark magic. "Eww, Guarire!" at that word, the wound began to have a green light seep into the flesh and blood underneath, stitching the skin together at an accelerated pace. It took time, however, and Alpha estimated that her wounds would heal in about three minutes. Dark magic was tricky to fix using Naturamancy. It seemed as though she had forgotten Lai was even there, opting instead to focus her entire attention to Mortemer. "We've gotta trade info and stuff though, Mort! And I gotta introduce you to Merkaba - she's the woman I mentioned earlier. She's super good at dark magic and stuff! The best I've ever seen, actually! No one really compares to Merks and Lucia when it comes to black magic stuff!"
Narrowly missing it's target, the spear's tip plunged into the dirt. Gritting her teeth Lai'ordi tightened her grasp on the spear. A seething rage coming from inside of her, the girl slowly tugged the weapon free of it's earthly prison. "Don't you taunt me." She hissed, putting the tip to a low stance. "I know what I'm capable of as it is." She snapped back, feeling as though she was starting to be stood up by a child. Fully prepared for an assault, the lioness stood dumbfounded as she was completely ignored by both friend and foe. A brief and concise battle. It was clear Mortemer had bested her, despite the fact of her part in stopping Chocolate in the first place. Claiming total victory, when he only cleaned up the scraps. Grumbling some rather unpleasant words about the two, Lai'ordi opted to approach her small feline friend. Crouching down she did a quick twirl of the spear before it vanished into seemingly nothingness. "Hey little guy." She smiled, genuinely. A first real sign of compassion. "Thanks for your help back there, You did your part perfectly." Complimenting the young lion she briefly flashed a solemn look. "You can be released from my...magic now, or whatever it is." she stated. Emerald eyes gazing at the girl's ruby, the lion cub purred softly and approached it's new master. Rubbing his side against the girl's leg he climbed up on her body, draping his lanky body her neck. Laying his head down on the huntress's shoulder. "R-really?, you're staying?" She asked a bit surprised. Though she really shouldn't have been, it was a game and it had chosen to toss her something sentimental to her rather than a random thing like a rabbit. Obviously it was going to stay with her, it was now a part of it's coding or whatever. Standing straight from her lowered posture she reached her hand up softly scratched the cub's chin. "Well, I guess I have to name you now..." Taking a brief moment to think it over she couldn't really move past one name that stuck out to her. "Loki." Snapping her eyes towards the two who were actively ignoring her, shooting deadly glares at both of them. Deciding to wait and see if they would chose to acknowledge her on her own or completely forget she even existed.
Mortemer thought about what Chocolate said about the woman she mentioned. "Someone exceptionally good at dark magic?" he thought. "It might be worth my time to seek this woman out while I travel. And this Lucia character as well." If he could find this woman, he might be able to learn a thing or two from them. It would certainly do some good to learn something from someone more experienced. Mortemer turned around and saw Lai giving them both a dirty look. He wondered what they could have done to receive such a dirty look, but he was more curious about where she had come from. "Hey, Lai!" he said approaching her. "Where did you come from? You just disappeared into the woods and left me all alone." he stopped when he saw the small animal draped over her neck. "Who's this?" he asked. "Your new pet cat?" he moved a bit closer for a better look. He'd never been one for simple pets like cats or dogs. He always preferred more unorthodox pets, but they never lasted long. After a few pets had become part of the cemetery, he'd given up on getting a pet.
