Return of the Fountain Fellowship

Grace's eyes softened, but only a little bit. She crossed her arms and began walking with Ace to the entrance of the MESS medical building. "I can see that you don't get along. Thank-you for you apology."

She walked in silence for a little bit, and then spoke up again. "What made you so angry with him?"

Return of the Fountain Fellowship

He gave her a nod at her thanks, and listened to her question when she put it to him. He sighed and his eyes went distant for a few moments, then he looked at her, though he didn't stop walking.

He looked around to make sure they weren't being heard, and reached into his helmet to turn off the com, "Whatever you hear from the people around here, what I'm about to tell you is the absolute truth." he paused, "When young boys are taken by the MESS, they are taken to a facility for modification of their DNA. There they are modified to have one of many different modified attributes. The MESS never take adults though." he sighed and pulled her slightly off to one side, "I was taken when I was 20. Normally the MESS would simply have killed me or sent me somewhere where I couldn't be any more trouble... thanks to Doctor Nix, they ran a set of new experiments on me, and drafted me as well... I'm only here because of him." He shook his head, "It's up to you if you want to believe me or not, but it's the truth."

Vayond:The Shadowed Hunters

Grace watched Liam leave, then she walked away herself. She couldn't help but to wonder what it was he was going to tell her, but if it was that important he would tell her next time they were together.

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

"I was going to tell her Stendar. I don't see how it can be dangerous....."

Liam had returned to his room, as Stendar had advised, but was now wondering why his friend had stopped him from revealing what he felt Grace needed to know. It wasn't fair to hide something so important from her. He felt uncomfortable when ever she looked it his eyes. He felt like she could see what he was concealing.

"I just don't think it's very wise, at this time. I trust Grace. She's been kind to us. Fed us. Kept the knowledge of presence here away from everyone. But even she could let your secret slip. Anything can happen" Stendar said, pacing.

"Aye....you are right. But it could change everything!"

"That's the problem Liam. It could change all. It could change her opinions of you, and I know you don't want to hide it, but I think your being rash if you don't" The older man warned. "Even she, threw a trick of magic or by torture or some other means, could breath it out."

Liam sighed, and stared out the window. "I suppose that is true. She would be safer if I didn't not tell her. I'd hate to see her put in danger because of me"

A stale silence fell over them room, and it wasn't broken for some time. The clank of dishes and the chatter of voices was heard down stairs. The occasional foot fall outside there door also came, but they didn't pay it much heed.

"We are going to have to leave....very soon" Stendar whispered, shattering the quiet.

Liam turned to look at him. "I know"

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

Micah halted and took a quick step back as a figure suddenly leapt out from behind the tree he was passing. In the time it took his heart to start beating faster, he had already drawn his scimitar defensively. The figure’s face beneath its hood was dark and obscured; its shrill laugh was even more so. Micah took quick notice that it had no weapon drawn, but that didn’t urge him to put away his own.

“Who are you, and what interest have you in me, stranger?” Micah asked warily.

-------

Tristan had been surveying the situation before him for several minutes now, making sure to take note of every detail. He could see the place called Looter’s Trench clearly through the trees, and every now and then he caught sight of the people within. Five or six people, by his count. He decided he’d waited around long enough, so he slowly stood from his hiding spot and departed silently and stealthily through the wood. He knew the secret paths of the forest well, even though he hadn’t been in this part of the country for at least ten months. Still, the area was familiar; the Band stopped here often enough, sometimes as much as twice a year.

After walking for a short time, Tristan reached the temporary camp set up in the clearing at the base of Steepcrag Hill. The clearing was filled with rashly constructed lean-to structures, built with function in mind rather than beauty. The structures in turn were filled with all manner of rough, base sorts of people, dressed in crude and ragged outfits of a fearsome nature. They were outcasts from society; a roving band of thieves and bandits, to be precise. Tristan was one of them.

He made his way through the temporary village of villainy to a particular dwelling near the center. He stopped outside and called for permission to enter; a stern voice immediately granted it. He pushed aside heavy leather flap that served as a door, and strode into the lowly lit interior which smelt of musky smoke and other heady odors. After removing the dark crimson mask that hid his eyes, Tristan addressed the woman who was seated inside by a small fire. “I just returned from scouting Looter’s Trench, Sephora,” He said quickly. “It’s not empty. There are others already there.”

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

A map was spread out upon the woman's lap. She observed it with a narrow, thoughtful gaze. Black dots marked the places that her band of thieves had been that year. There were two more places they would stay before they started the yearly loop again.

A knock sounded from the crude door and the woman looked up. "Come in," she said, folding and setting the map aside.

A young man entered, wearing a red mask. The woman smiled at the sight of him and said, "Tristan."

He removed his mask and spoke.

“I just returned from scouting Looter’s Trench, Sephora,” He said quickly. “It’s not empty. There are others already there.”

Sephora rubbed her hands by the fire before answering. She looked up, slipping a loose, blonde tendril behind her ear, jingling a golden earring. "Others?"

She stood, her back rigidly straight as agitation reflected from her features. "What sort of 'others' are they?" Sephora placed her hands together, palms and fingers touching.

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

Tristan leaned against one of the thick wooden beams supporting the shelter and crossed his arms, preparing to divulge everything he'd learned on his scouting mission. "There's about five or six of them, hiding out for sure. Not seasoned outlaws, I don't think; their behavior is very unprofessional. Most of 'em look like commoners... but at least one of them is clearly more." He grinned at this, eyes flashing despicably in the firelight. "I got a hunch she'd make for quite the ransom. They'd be easy pickings, too; about half are women-" he stopped short, realizing he was implying that women were less capable fighters than men in front of Sephora, the more than capable female leader of the band. "most likely untrained women," he corrected carefully. "There's only a couple men who have weapons. That's about it."

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

Sephora's left eyebrow arched as Tristan spoke. She grinned slightly when he was finished and said, "What are we waiting for then?"

"Where is Blink?" She moved toward the door, pushed it open and called out, "Blink!"

Rather than wait at the door for the bandit, she moved around her abode. Picking up a sack, Sephora reached in and pulled out a handful of ashes. She brushed them through her hair, giving her light hair a grey tinge. She did the same for her face and arms. Tousling her hair until it was a ragged mess, she pulled on a torn, dirty cloak and hood.

"Blink!" Sephora called again as she passed the door on her way to the other side. She grabbed a ripped up apron from a make-shift hook on the wall and put it on. The last item Sephora grabbed was a knobby, thick stick that resembled a cane.

Turning back to Tristan, she hunched over and, in a decrepit voice, said, "Young man, have you seen my cute little bird?"

With a laugh, Sephora straightened. Seeing that Tristan and herself were still the only occupants in the room, she scowled and yelled, "Blink!"

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

A small group of bandits had formed a circle around two other bandits who seemed to be in some sort argument.

"I should have known better to play a game with you!" One of the bandits said as he spit. "You don't play fair, you good for nothin' cheater!"

"Listen, friend." Blink said, trying to give the illusion that he was completely calm during the situation. "What do you expect to happen when you play a game called Cheats?"

The group that had gathered laughed.

"And trust me, mate." Blink said, "You're not the first sore loser I've come across. But you are the first to smell like that." Blink sniffed the air comically, "what is that Limburger?"

"That's it! I'm gunna rip your cheaten heart out!" The bandit yelled, "But first I'll break those quick hands of yours."

"Here is where I must leave." Blink said as he grabbed a pouch filled with dust, and threw its contents on the ground, creating smoke where he stood.
Having created the perfect distraction for his current enemy, Blink was able to get away without any further trouble. As he walked away counting his winnings, he heard his name being called. Sephora! Blink thought.
Blink ran as fast as he could, and with one swift flip he landed squarely in her abode. "You called?"

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

Sephora shrugged nonchalantly. "Only about forty-seven times. Don't be late again," she warned as she walked past him, jabbing her cane into his ribs. "Get your act together. We're leaving in a few minutes."

"Tristan has been scouting, like you should have been doing." She shot Sterling, better known as Blink, a narrowed glare. "He says there are people in Looting Trench. You know what that means, don't you?"

Seeing that the young man was more interested in the gold in his hands, Sephora rolled her eyes, hiding a slight smile. The boy had a natural attraction to gold, like herself. However, there were more important things at hand, if that were possible.

"Are you listening to me?" Sephora asked, placing a hand on her hip.

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

Being an illusion enthusiast had many benefits that manifested themselves in different ways, such as the much coveted art of multitasking. While it looked as though Blink was just counting through his winnings for the tenth time, his attention was also on what his leader was saying.

"Are you listening to me?" Sephora asked, placing a hand on her hip.

"Yeah." Blink said, still sifting through the gold in his hands, "Tristan was doing a magnificent job at scouting for the both of us, he found people in Looting Trench, and since you are humoring their existence there longer then perhaps a group of traveling peasants, they will obviously reap a handsome bounty." Blink finished counting as he finished talking, "Speaking of which, can you talk with Groban? I won a harmless game with him, and he wants to kill me now."

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

"I will deal with Groban later. For now, we must take a trip to Looter's Trench and see what we have waiting for us there." Sephora stepped out of the wooden lean-to and into the sunshine. She gave a shrill, loud whistle and called out a few names. One by one, seven other bandits joined the three, making them ten altogether.

"Alright," Sephora said, placing the cane in the crook of her arms and folding her hands together, an action she did a lot when in deep thought. "Here's the plan, boys: Do not do anything until I say so." She smiled. "We'll go from there."

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

"I will deal with Groban later. For now, we must take a trip to Looter's Trench and see what we have waiting for us there."

"As long as our paths don't cross before later comes." Blink said as Sephora left the lean-to, "Shouldn't be too hard, however. The combination of Groban's smell and loud way of moving would alert a rock of his presence 100 miles away."

"

"Here's the plan, boys: Do not do anything until I say so." She smiled. "We'll go from there."

"Sounds good to me." Blink said.

Vayond: The Shadowed Hunters

Tristan smirked while Sephora rebuked Blink. There was always an atmosphere of competition among the clan, a sort of overblown sibling rivalry, especially among those members who Sephora trusted more. Tristan was a long-time member who had proven his mettle many times, and so was among the smaller group of thieves who were Sephora's favorites, so to speak; the ones who could call her "Sephora" rather than "Madam Sephora" and still have all ten fingers unbroken afterward.

Once they got outside, Sephora called several of the more skilled and experienced thieves together.

""Here's the plan, boys: Do not do anything until I say so." She smiled. "We'll go from there."

Tristan nodded, "Alright, whatever you say."

Vayond

Edmund turned to Brendlyn. "OKay. So..I don't fight the Hunters yet...so what you want me to do?" Then, he realized it's been a long time since Micah was around. He made his way over to Sheyanne. "Where's Micah? He should be here by now."