[semi-locked] Event Post: In the barrow den.

[traitre]

Who: The four accused Dragonsworn, and anyone they ask to come along.
Where: A barrow den just outside Silverglen Retreat.
When: Variably between May 16th-23rd.
What: A barrow den. Eight foot tall killer bear-men. Dragonsworn on a mission.
Warnings: Inevitably violence. Will update as needed.

[ 1 ]

Nestled away in a shadowy part of the night elven forests is the barrow den Ysiel spoke of. You've been asked to clear it of a horde of furbolgs, and the evidence of their encroachment is obvious even before you set foot past the threshold of the den into its black depths -- pottery is smashed, the trees around it are scored by huge claw marks, the masonry is splattered with mud and blood from what looks like a fresh hunt. Whatever got these creatures into such a rage must be serious, but there's not much time to worry about that now. If the furbolg are allowed to stay in the den so close to the Retreat, it's only a matter of time before they spread to the village. Ysiel and her few warriors are good enough to handle most anything that comes their way, but a furbolg invasion would be pushing it.

Just beyond the ornately-carved doorway the stone path curves down and around, lit only by sporadically-placed lanterns. Only one way to go: deeper.

[ 2 3 ]

Once you reach the den proper, it's clear that the little house above was only the tip of the iceberg. Cavernous is the only way to describe the place; the ceilings are so high that the little lanterns that illuminated the walkway so well before only shine small rings of light below them here, leaving most of the den in darkness. Over the years, the roots of ancient trees have burst through the ceiling and they cast twisted shadows all around the earthen walls. If it isn't for the delicate scrollwork on a supporting arch here or there, it'd be impossible to tell that this place wasn't simply grown straight from the earth. Such is the night elven style.

It's a few hundred yards in before you find your first furbolg. Even dwarfed as it is by the tall ceilings and grand scale of the den, it's clear from afar that this thing is huge: eight feet tall on its hind legs with broad, furred shoulders and massive paws bigger than a man's head. With its paws at its side its claws extend nearly to the ground, practically sharpening themselves on the stone path as they trudge around aimlessly. A dozen or more of the things prowl the hallways leading further underground. Some even have crude weapons: a cleaver, a rusty sword, a gnarled staff. Ysiel had said that these bear-men were reasonable (if reclusive) neighbors before, implying intelligence-- but there's no trace of intelligence in these creatures. They seem to do nothing but stand around, occasionally swiping at the air in a sudden rage or gorging on one of the stag corpses from their recent hunt.

[ 4 5 6 ]

The hallways get steadily more twisted and confusing to navigate as you make your way further down into the den. Dark, cramped passages branch off the main run -- these are empty and practically untouched by the furbolg, and the supplies the elves had kept here are still intact in chests built into little alcoves in the stone walls. It's relatively safe to rest here.

The main passageway eventually opens up into a large, two-storied chamber. A central pillar connected to the main pathway by two staircases overlooks a bottom floor occupied by half a dozen more furbolg-- and what might just be their leader. The bear-man is easily over ten feet tall, eyes like green coals and back and shoulders riddled with elven arrows that look like toothpicks on his hulking mass. He wields a battleaxe in both paws, like the ones the Burning Legion's felguards use.

With the death of this last, monstrous furbolg, the threat to the Retreat is removed. There's nothing left for it but to return to Ysiel with the grisly proof of the beasts' demise.

[ Plotting Post/Questions | Silverglen Retreat Log | Wrap-up Post ]

Comments

[wilder]

[....]

But...?

[yugo]

We talked it over. He's supposed to help us so we can all get home.

[Welcome to idealists, Zelos. YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD GET AWAY BUT THEN THERE'S THIS KID.]

[wilder]

Really now?

[NOPE HE DOESN'T EVEN THINK THATS IDEALIST. JUST. GULLIBLE]

Why that's nice of him. Getting over such bad blood for a common goal that benefits you.

[highrules]

[ Don't mind her rudely interjecting into this conversation on behalf of the tiny one who is also a Bluesworn. ]

There is no need for that kind of talk here. [ Zelos please mind your manners. ]

Have they asked you here as well?

[yugo]

[Wow, okay Captain Sarcasm.]

... It's complicated. He's not the same person I knew. He's younger, and he hasn't done some of the things we fought about. [Still, he knows it's kind of foolish to put faith in someone like Qilby, who has betrayed his people before.] I don't trust Qilby, but I don't think accusing people randomly will help anything.

[Oh hey, it's a bluesworn lady! He's fairly sure that she's a queen of some kind, but he hasn't really talked to her much, oops.]

Papa said there's a hole in every lie. If we come together and share what we know, we can figure out what that is.

[He looks at Zelda.]

So you got accused, too. I hope the others aren't mad at us...

[wilder]

Hey, I'm not accusing anyone. [he holds out his hands in innocence] It's not like I know anything about the guy you're talking about anyway.

[Not that that's stopped people from accusing him of things in the past- but you know, he was kind of world famous back then as opposed to a nobody mercenary]

[But with the approach of Zelda, he'll drop the topic and look over at her. Another elf? He wondered if she was a blood elf like Mar, though her ears aren't nearly as long] Okay okay, sorry.

But yeah, guess a bunch of us got accused.

[highrules]

That appears to be the situation.

[ A troublesome one at that, but what can be done about it other than set things right? ]

Tensions are high after the latest incident so I believe the best course of action to be this. If we can thin the numbers of these feral creatures, we're sure to earn their favor once more.

[ Just not going to admit outright she's not used to actually killing monsters. Fighting them and finding a way to escape, sure. Combating them? Usually that's left in the hands of those who are capable of that.

At least she's shown up in armor and sword! ]

[ninjacques]

[Speaking of tension, don't mind the extra shadow that's quietly drifted over near the edge of the group. Jacques only steps away from the trees once he's deemed the surroundings clear of any lurking furbolgs.

...of course, that doesn't mean he'll announce himself, but although he has his ginormous bow gun in hands, he doesn't have it leveled at the three.]

.....

[yugo]

Yeah. Let's help them out, and then we can do some investigating on our own.

[Yugo glances over at the flicker of movement. He doesn't sense any hostility from Jacques, so he's happy to take a few steps toward him.]

Hey, are you here to help?

[ninjacques]

[Jacques looks at him as he approaches, giving a nod.]

[wilder]

[He nods to Yugo and Zelda's plan before he looks over at Jacques. He doesn't approach him like Yugo does, but he assess him where he stands]

A real chatty one, I see.

[But hey, he's not about to turn away another group member if they've also been accused. Though now that there's four people here and that's the usual tales party limit size of group he fights with, he speaks up]

Well, four people. I'd say that's a big enough group to handle some monsters. Should we head in or keep waiting around?

[yugo]

[Yugo tests his sandals against the dirt.]

I'm ready. What about you guys?

[ninjacques]

[Although Jacques doesn't know the capabilities of the others save from that they appear to be melee fighters, he doubts any of them would have been brought here to this world if they were less than capable as fighters otherwise.

At least this isn't too unusual a set-up for him to work with, given that even in Geddoe's mercenary group back home, Jacques had been the only long-range fighter they had, at least until Aila joined them.

He checks the arrow he'd set earlier, nodding at the others.]

...ready.

[highrules]

[ This might be a good idea to inform the others of her uncertainty when it comes to combat seeing as most of her life experience was spent sitting safe behind castle walls or hiding away, yet she can't bring herself to do it. Not yet, at least. Not when it was safe to. ]

Yes, let's waste no more time. [ Instead, she boldly strives forward with the rest of them. ]

[wilder]

As you wish.

[But hey if they all seem ready- might as well head on in. Zelos follows along Zelda into the barrow den. Once they are past the entry way, the path turns to stone and cavern with only the occasional lantern- some of them knocked out. It's certainly clear this place is way bigger than it looks on the outside.]

[They walk in silence for awhile until the group may start hear the sounds of the furbolgs. There's growling and roars echoing down the stone and root infested halls. A bit further and down the hall, they may catch a glimpse of their first furbolg before it catches sight of them- you know, provided they remain quiet]

[Zelos himself stops short and glances at the others. He's used to Egg bears that can grow to be ten or twelve feet tall in the wilds of Meltokio, but uh-]

[That bear is still pretty damn big. And Egg Bears themselves rarely were in groups bigger than a mating pair. There's seriously supposed to be a whole barrow full of these guys?]

[yugo]

[Yugo's not one to hide behind a girl, so he makes sure to keep pace with Zelda. If something goes bad, he can find a way to protect the others, even if it means shoving them in portals. He's hoping that doesn't have to happen, though.

When they sight their first furbolg, Yugo tenses. He really doesn't want to have to kill anyone, but Ysiel had said they were basically gone due to demonic influence. It would be better to end them mercifully than let them live as mindless beasts.

He's killed demons by now, but somehow the bear-men are different.

He glances back at the others, to make sure they're ready.]

[ninjacques]

[Jacques brings up the rear out of habit, keeping on the alert in case anything decided to show up behind them. Otherwise, this is the best position for him to be if he's to support the others come any inevitable encounters. He studies their surroundings as they move on, eying some of the old roots that protrude along the sides of the cavern. Maybe he can make use of those if needs be.

He hears the odd scraping sound ahead even before the giant creature comes into view, eyes narrowing as he stops with the rest of their little party to look at what they've been charged with taking care of. It's big all right, but he can tell that something seems "off" about the furbolg, even though it would be his first time seeing one. Quietly he slips his left hand into a better position to brace the front of his bow gun, meeting the glances of the others in his group before he nods.

Ready whenever they are.]

[highrules]

[ They are really going to do this, aren't they? Zelda should braced herself mentally for the difficult task at hand, but in her haste to do what is right, she neglected to do right by herself. Her eyes strain to see in the dark a bit, not wholly used to limited light in the first place.

Yes, there's something off about these creatures. They remind her of the monsters that plagued Hyrule, but are they sure they can't be reasoned with? Maybe watching them for a little while longer would be all right.

Maybe it's possible to just trap them all within? If there's more of them, there's no way they all can take them on. She looks back towards the other three with a frown, silently portraying her concern for their well-being. ]

[wilder]

[While Zelda and Yugo are hesitant over the ethics of fighting bear-men, Zelos isn't hung up on those qualms. The condition of their little doll house entrance and the behavior of this one certainly showed they weren't of sane minds anymore. And he really wasn't interested in trying to talk down crazed eight foot tall bear people.]

[His glances at his companions and their body language told him what he needed to know, being as observant as he is. Jacques was probably the most experienced of the three and was clearly familiar with his strange looking crossbow. Zelos probably wouldn't have to worry about being covered by long range. Yugo with his tensing gave sign of someone less experienced than Jacques, but he wasn't panicking like a child would, so maybe he wasn't completely inexperienced. It was still hard to say what exactly this kid's skill was - so Zelos was reluctant to feel like he could count on him just yet.]

[Zelda on the other hand....she dressed like a warrior, but he couldn't quite tell if she was worried to be in a cavern to be fighting creatures that were corrupted, or just in battle in general. He should probably try to keep an eye on her to see]

[Good thing she's easy on the eyes, he mused]

[He doesn't voice any of these observations. Instead he returns the nod before facing the bear again. He makes the move to step forward first, with his sword draw but pointed down. He'll give once chance to the furbolg]

Hey! Bear! Got any mind left or do we gotta fight?

[From the roar and charging straight at Zelos, it looks like arguments about whether or not they can reason are out. He brings up his sword to meet the claws to stop them from ripping into him, but he could use some backup]

[yugo]

[Welp, that about does it. Yugo doesn't hesitate to jump in, but he doesn't go straight for a lethal blow just yet.

With a quick movement of his hand, he's gone. He reappears mid-air behind the furbolg and delivers a hard, heavy kick to the bear man's head. Of course, the thing is tough, so it only stuns him for a second before he turns and tries to claw the Eliatrope in half.

Yugo's still fast, though. He tumbles through a portal just in time and reappears ten feet away, hoping that the frustrating dodge tactics are enough to get his party a hit in.]

[ninjacques]

[Sliding his feet into position, Jacques levels his bow gun as Zelos is greeted by the bear's claws. The Hunter doesn't fire off a shot quite yet, watching as the little one vanishes- and then reappears to make his attack. Magic of some kind?

His focus remains on the furbolg once Yugo has vanished again, and the moment he sees an opening he lets an arrow fly. With practiced ease, Jacques loads another arrow to fire, aiming for points that would slow the creature down, especially if it would keep the furbolg from getting a hit on one of his companions.]

[highrules]

[ This is what combat feels like up close, is it? Having witnessed enough of it from the shadows, the concept didn't seem all that difficult. Swing the sword, hit the target, and try to not get blood on her clothing?

So it's a lot more difficult in practice than she imagined. Good to know. For now she'll keep a watchful eye out for her allies and more importantly, for any additional allies. The roaring concerns her, listening to how it echoes all around them. ]

We should prepare ourselves for more for they surely heard that.

[wilder]

[Jacques's shots lands! The furbolg howls as it tries to swipe at Yugo, but the arrows in it slows it down greatly. Zelos takes the chance of the bear being distracted to take a slice to the creature's chest. He can only hope that the bear's anatomy is somewhat close to human anatomy. Still, blood definitely splatters in his direction and anyone near him. Ew.]

Right! Well, we gotta take 'em all out anyway!

[yugo]

[Oh, das nasty. Yugo manages not to get blood all over him, but only barely.

As his back is turned, another furbolg rises up from the tunnel behind him and charges. Yugo bounces right off like a rather inconsequential little bouncy thing.

He smacks into a wood beam pretty hard and ends up stunned on the ground for a moment. His fault for facepulling the patrol, honestly.]

[ninjacques]

[That's not good. Jacques trusts Zelos to finish off the first as he turns his attention to the new furbolg that Yugo's managed to find. He slips out an arrow from another quiver strapped behind him, clasping it carefully before he nocks it into his bow gun.

In the next moment it's sent flying off, glowing a faint green. Should it find its mark, it will start to sprout vines in hopes of slowing if not entangling the furbolg. Hopefully in that it will buy time enough for Yugo to recover, but regardless, Jacques has another (normal) arrow set and fired.]