Horizon Walkers (Game Thread) Dead

[Terratina.]

Id saw little point in following the others, it wasn't like there was any reason why it was doing so in the first place. Just they were going across Horizons like the arcane experiment was currently doing. But, there was something interesting in the haunted Horizon. The land itself seemed sick. Id hadn't encountered anything like it, but then again Id hadn't been a 'Walker for very long. However, one thing was certain: being without a body was somewhat irksome. Building one would take time but there was plenty of material to work with. Some of the spirits seemed to be rather servile as well, trying to survive in the most cowardly way possible in land populated by much bigger fish. Perhaps... No, that would be too risky, wouldn't it?

***​

Trahaearn stared at the piece of paper once last time, trying to make sense of what was written on there and failing. He sneered at it and put it back in a pouch. There were supposed to be words there but Trahaearn couldn't see any.

"Go to the 'herb-olo-gist', get work they said..." He muttered to himself.

Then it came into sight: green, plants, herbs... Suddenly a lightbulb popped up in his head, that must be it! Trahaearn immediately ran towards the door, accidentally charging into it. He still had to get used to his current weight. Gone were those heavier monster parts.

[HEADING=2]*THUD*[/HEADING]​

He gave a bashful smile to his surprised audience who were probably a little mad at the collapsing door. He'd paid the damages off somehow anyway. Without delay, Trahaearn then got the piece of paper out and waved it about.

"I was told I could get work here." He stated, "My name is Trahaearn."

 

[Josh123914]

The herbologist stared at the group with Sal at her side, as they all gave their introductions one after the other.

"I am Alexander, at your service."

"Kes"

"I'm Zuria of the Stharn, and thank you for your hospitality. Is there anything I can do in return?"

"I am Lucia Draken. Don't worry, I do not 'breath fire'."

"Bonjour mademoiselle, I'm Des, it's lovely to meet you. Thank you for letting us stay, if you need anything, please let me know."
"Hello, I'm Kyras."

Then it seemed to be Dalrel's turn.
''Hello, my name is Dalrel, the letter is confirmation of that'' He smiled at his own wit, and dusted something off of his clothes. He was a tall, but lean man, and shared the same general ethnicity as the herbologist.
Dalrel was clean shaven with slightly tanned skin, brown eyes so light they appear nearly orange, along with neck length shaggy black hair.
Wear and tear has left his clothes barely hanging together after having them for so long.
The navy shirt and black trousers underneath a long flowing brown cloak were all faded into various browns and greys by now,
and he's carrying a small bag over his shoulder, as well as a steel sword.

The only one of the group that did not respond was the hooded man with the weathered face.
''Well,'' said Sal. ''Speak up.''
The man said nothing.
''Ugh, Sal, escort him out of the shop.''
Sal did as instructed, positioning the hooded mute outside the front entrance on a bench.

The herbologist then composed herself.
''It's a pleasure to meet you all, My name is Nettil.'' She said, grinning.
She wore a long silk green dress under a grey housecoat, along with a gold anklet on her left foot.
Surprisingly young, Nettil must have been in her early 20's, with hair brown like soil that if it wasn't tied back would be nearly down to her elbows, and hazel eyes. She was of an average height, and quite pale, and spoke with an air of confidence when addressing the group, or Sal.

''Now, I need you becaus-''

*THUD*

A dazed Wood Elf came slamming through the door, clutching a note and rattling several shelves.
"I was told I could get work here." the Wood elf stated, "My name is Trahaearn."

''Shit.'' Nettil stated, rushing over to a now-broken pot. She waved her arms as to keep the soil together. Sal returned and channeled water from a floor above towards the plant as it was maneuvered mid-air into a new container.

Nettil glared at Trahaearn. ''Careful.'' She ordered.
''Follow me.'' she said, motioning them up the stairs and into a large living area, with seats and couches and pillows dotting the room as orange light poured in from a large window.
''This should accommodate you for the night. If you want food, there's markets outside, come to me if you have any questions. But personally, I'd get some sleep, we've got a big day tomorrow.''
She told them, nodding to Sal as they continued back up the stairs to wherever they slept.

''...Huh,'' Dalrel mumbled, assembling a bed for himself on a spacious leather coach. ''Any theory on what or why we are here?''
He left his satchel on his newly-carved out territory. ''Do not touch this spot. Anybody coming to buy food?'' He asked, whipping out some old currency from the satchel and tossing it around.

 

[DarkRawen]

"It's a pleasure to meet you all, My name is Nettil."

Des followed her and the rest of the group up, not minding that some new person had joined up again. It seemed to be very common. While the place she sent them to seemed comfortable, Des would rather spend more time to get to know Nettil. A little, at least.

"This should accommodate you for the night. If you want food, there's markets outside, come to me if you have any questions. But personally, I'd get some sleep, we've got a big day tomorrow."

Des was about to say that he did have some questions, but the fact that she and the guy were walking up the stairs made him instinctively back off. There was something in him that avoided people who seemed to be in a relationship, at least while the guy was there. When not, it didn't matter that much, not if the woman was unhappy.

The mortals certainly don't know how to take care of each other. They worry too much about the wrong things, and care too little about the important.

He supposed that was their nature, always thinking too much and never caring enough. Instead of going after Nettil, he chose a rather big couch that was more like a surface covered in soft-looking pillows, and laid down. Des wasn't going to sleep, but he was fond of comfort and luxury. Making room for another person, he motioned to Kes.

"Kes, here, there's room for you to sleep," he said. "Doesn't it look soft?" Des was smiling warmly. "I can sit up too, if you'd prefer for me to do that, I don't sleep, so I don't mind." If she didn't want to, he could perhaps ask one of the newly joined ones, but they didn't seem very sociable.

Not that Kes was either, of course, but Kes was Kes.


"Any theory on what or why we are here? Do not touch this spot. Anybody coming to buy food?"

"I don't know where we are," Des replied. "And it doesn't matter why, we have a comfortable place to lie. I don't really need food. Although," he sat up, suddenly. "Do you think I could get some clothes that aren't as burned as this?"

 

[Terratina.]

''Any theory on what or why we are here?''

"My, my, that is a strange question to ask." Trahaearn guffawed, "Work, perhaps?"

Naturally, he was doing it again: running his mouth off without thinking. As he claimed a spot, Trahaearn realised it was pretty much his fault the purpose behind the work hadn't been revealed. No matter, the lady had said to just rest for now. Still...

"Oh, er, yeah." He sputtered, "I charged in before she could say. Sorry about that! Could always ask anyway."

He sighed and went back to his spot and lied down. His stomach betrayed his hunger, though he had little to offer anyone behind those market stalls. Besides, Trahaearn wanted to get to know the group better, as some had taken his eye.

"Never mind me." The hunter said as his stomach rumbled, "I've more hunger for ya stories than food."

 

[Lunar Templar]

Lucia grabbed her gear and followed the group to the room they'd be staying in for the night. Once in the room she found a spot and set her things down.

''Any theory on what or why we are here?'' one of them asked, the one called Dalrel asked.

"We are here because we lack the common sense to not jump into a portal of unknown origin, that leads to gods know where." Lucia said calmly, but glibly as she removed the her shoulder armor and wing guards. "Unless your asking about the job we've been gathered for, then I got nothing." she continued as she unlatched the straps holding her breast plate, and back plate and pulled that off, then the armor on her arms. "Since we will be in the employ of a 'Herbologist', logic would dictate it's something to do with plants. Be it the removal of some beat threatening a valuable plant, or acquiring a valuable plant from a place to hazardous for our employer to get them selves." she said as she removed her thigh and upper leg armor and set it with the rest.

She was now just in her under shirt, which was a tank top like shit and pants that went to just below the knee. She did a full stretch once free of her armor, extending her wings to their full length before letting them hang low a little, but not enough to dragon on the floor, her tail was also kept off the floor. Her scales shimmered a bit in the light but interestingly, like her armor, her shoulder bore a scar, a tattoo of some kind had been crudely removed, though the scar was obscured by the thicker scales on her shoulders.

 

[Josh123914]

Dalrel moved towards the stairs and waved his arms for the others to follow.
''Going out?'' Nettil was leaning on a railing a floor above them, tossing a small pouch towards Dalrel.
''Get me wine, and some spices in the next street. Nutmeg preferably.'' she said, her hair dangling over the railing.

Dalrel nodded suspiciously, jogging down the spiral staircase and towards the door.
The hooded man was still sitting outside, staring blankly into open space. It was at this point Dalrel suspected he was in some kind of comatose state, but refused to say anything.

Indeed, following the street and turning left brought him to a small but thriving market, that appeared to sell anything. Books, to clothes, to food to weapons. Some stalls were beginning to close as it became darker, but others brought lights and lamps to brighten their areas.
Dalrel came across a stall ripe with fresh produce, lots of spices, nutmeg included. He approached the young man at the stall, scratching his shaggy black hair. ''I'll take a bottle, eh, Suul wine, some of that nutmeg and-- is that rice?'' He asked suspiciously. ''Yep, fresh from the Colonies,'' The young merchant told him with pride.

Dalrel left, taking with him with a bag of rice and some other exotics, then weaving through the now waning crowd. He passed a monk with row after row of tapestries, and a man in armour telling everyone the power his staff could summon, before moving towards some sort of dressmaker. The stall was perfumed, and radiating with vibrant colours. Unlike the last one, this stall had a back wall and a roof, hinting at some sort of hierarchy. The elderly woman with a fake smile welcomed him, and tutted at the so called rags he was draped in.

After a few minutes searching (and a few more haggling), Dalrel had bought himself a new set of shoes, a burgundy cloak with matching trousers, and a black doublet.
''Don't wear them yet though, you're filthy.'' Warned the dressmaker, nodding over to a nearby public bathhouse. ''Not as filthy as them over there, but take a bath first...'' She said, pointing at some of Dalrel's companions who had found their way into the market.

Dalrel smiled and pretended to browse the stalls for a few more minutes before finding his way out of the market and back to the shop.

Nettil was there waiting on the second floor, eager for her spices. ''Oh, you're back. Hand over my things and then we can talk.'' she said, moving into a small kitchen area and began to work around a pot full of hot water.
Dalrel left everything on top of a desk and pulled out his bag of rice.
''How do you eat this?'' He asked, confused.

 

[DarkRawen]

"I'll be up for food as well. Looks like someone's been through hell."

Des turned to the female who had spoken, he hadn't talked to her before this, but his expression was just as friendly and happy as when he spoke to other ladies.

"Hell's not burning, though," he replied, voice sincere and curious. "It's large, and cold, or so I seem to remember. I'm Des, it's nice to meet you."

Seeing as Des didn't really get a reply regarding the clothes as Dalrel and some of the others headed out, he just shrugged and followed, assuming that the white-haired lady would follow as well. he left the apple behind. He didn't really have a lot to use for trading apart from the dagger he had been given and the clothes he was wearing, apart from a nice attitude and a refreshing smile.

Most places, that didn't mean much. The lady in the clothing store was strict as well, at least until he assured her that he wasn't dirty -he'd taken the chance to take a bath aboard the ship- and that the current clothes was from a strange and new horizon. Whether it was Des' frown when she initially said that it wasn't enough and that he would have to add the dagger as well, the lack of enough of a conscience to take a weapon from a horizon traveller, or simply business sense, she eventually gave in and provided him with clothes in exchange from what he was already wearing.

Less clothes than he had owned, no layers this time, and about half as thick, but in a softer and more comfortable fabric, Des walked out the store almost looking like a new man. It was a dark green and brown outfit. The upper part was more of a slim, thin coat and pants that were slightly too big, as well as a pair of shoes that were little more than slippers. It had very little embroidery, some here and there, but not much at all, and in that regard, it was simple clothes. Even so, Des fastened the sheathed dagger as a belt, and hummed happily, he liked the way it looked on him, and, just as importantly, how it felt to wear it. Not that he couldn't look good in anything, of course he could, but this drew more eyes. Possibly because he hadn't really closed the upper half, but still.

When they got back, Des smiled to Nettil but stayed away from her due to what he thought might be a relationship, and went back to the couch he had chosen, sitting down and addressing those who hadn't gone.

"You didn't want to go?" he asked the lot. "It was fun."

 

[Lunar Templar]

Lucia turned to notice, most the people had left, including the man who asked the question she just answered. "Well that's just rude." she said before inspecting her gear. She'd been busy the last couple days and hadn't really had time to give it the once over she usually did, and her breast plate had been feeling like it was sitting oddly lately.

This is what she was doing when one of them returned, Des she thinks his name was. "You didn't want to go? It was fun." He asked the few of them that stayed behind. "No reason to go shopping yet" she said as she inspected binding on her armor. "But seems it was a productive trip for you. That looks better then the rags you where in before." she said after she turned to face him.

 

[IFS]

Alex didn't need to purchase much, his uniform was true to its purpose and he'd kept it and his weapons well maintained so there was no need for replacements anytime soon. That said he could always restock on food supplies, particularly those that would last long enough to be useful while traveling. This in mind he went about acquiring such supplies, though it took some persuading to get some of the merchants to accept his foreign coin.

He also noted with some interest that they had been joined by a few new faces, a large man who seemed rather boisterous. One of the others was a strange scaled woman who was now speaking with Des. Finally there was a human woman dressed in furs with a strange gauntlet.

Curious he approached the man, Trahaearn, if he remembered the man's introductions correctly. The man had mentioned a desire to hear their stories, so perhaps he would be worth discussing with.

"Hello," he said "I heard you mention you wanted to hear stories, I'd be happy to tell of our travels so far, provided of course you share some tales of your own in exchange."

 

[Josh123914]

Nettil dumped out the rice into a bowl and smothered it in some kind of yellow sauce.
She handed Dalrel a fork and told him to eat.
''Isn't the snow elf coming down?''. Nettil smirked, ''No, I don't dare go near his room.''
Dalrel laughed at that, forcing the strange food into his mouth. ''I thought you two were.... together?''
Nettil gave Dalrel a strange look, ''Don't be ridiculous. He just lives here because he doesn't have to shit in a pot. Which reminds me, in this building, the toilet connects straight to the sewer. That isn't as common as you'd hope...''

Shrugging, Dalrel ate more.
It was a strange sensation, but this was the first time in a long time that Dalrel felt safe. No glaring over his shoulder, the safety and stability of his surroundings was sort of jarring. He finished eating and asked his host:
''Why are you doing this? I have a debt.'' Surely he thought that this kind of environment was a luxury, and a chance to escape his burden.
Nettil scoffed. ''You didn't read the letter.'' She said, pouring out a glass of reddish wine and sipping at it, while leaning herself against a counter.
''Your investors are no longer an issue. Two of them died shortly after you left, leaving no trace of their investment. Another's investment was so miniscule Ilyara paid it off for you, he just wanted his name on the paper if any results came of your expidition. Another lost his holdings and influence when Ilyara merged with the Pentarium. That just left you. Which, after five years of being gone, the state had written off your debt, doubting you'd return.''

Dalrel glared at her, mumbling, ''But, Ael-'' Nettil then cut him off. ''Ael sent all of you my way on purpose. He likes to keep Horizon Walkers away from his city so that any damage done by them can be chalked up as not his problem.'' She told him, brushing some hair behind her ear.
Dalrel assessed his current debt-free situation. Concluding, ''....Then why are we here?'' he asked.
Nettil smiled.
''I suppose I can trust you, you seem.... different compared to the others.''
''What? I'm.... special?'' he said jokingly.
''Don't be an idiot. You're local-- enough. You know how this world works. The others might start a crazy incident and not even know it.'' Dalrel nodded.

It was at this point they noticed the others coming in and making noise. By now it was pitch black outside and the street was beginning to sleep. ''Follow me.''

The two of them entered the guest room side by side, Dalrel making his home in a patch of pillows he claimed earlier.
''Right everyone.'' Nettil proclaimed towards them. ''Tomorrow we're going to the Towers. So be presentable.'' She stared at the dragon-lady, and then the rather beautiful looking man with the orange eyes. ''And... well, try not to stand out.'' She left the group, venturing upstairs and rubbing her temples. Sal was looming by his door, looking to her for an answer. ''It's going to be like herding cats tomorrow....''

Dalrel watched her leave and took off his cloak and trousers, getting into a comfortable position. ''Well goodnight everyone. It's getting late''

 

[Anti-American Eagle]

After being led up a floor and left to his own devices Kyras was asked if he wanted to go out to the streets. After a moment of thought he followed the man Dalrel out the door and began wandering the market. The last opportunity he had to replace anything of his was...

After stepping into the market he looked into his sack of coins, most were shiny and metal, only about half were imperial. And so with hints of desperation in his voice he convinced shopkeepers to take his coin on the basis that they were shiny pieces of metal.

The first thing he bought was food: Some fruit and a loaf of bread for when he went back to the shop, some druid fruit and nuts and some kind of grain for later, and a few jars of something the shopkeeper convinced him to buy called a preservable that he was told would last forever. The second was replacement equipment: A fresh waterskin, a length of rope, a needle and thread, and a few strips of leather. The third he thought of was herbs, but he was in an unfamiliar land and thought it better to rely on what he had until he had time to learn on his own.

The last thing he went for he found as the sun began to set. Alcohol, it was one of the things the liemen masters realised was too dangerous to use for keeping him pacified. Though he enjoyed drinking it to dull the pain it was more valuable as weapon there. But here, he was free and he wanted a drink. After wandering into a shop filled shelves stocked with bottles of what he assumed were wine he set his sights on a bottle of some kind of alcohol that was a clearish green, all it had for a label was a picture of a winged thing. It was kept beside several bottles marked in the same way holding what looked like the same thing. After grabbing it and walking to the counter the shopkeep eyed him and the bottle suspiciously before accepting his foreign currency.

No haggling or advice, just the sale of absinthe to a man who had no idea what absinthe was.

Upon Kyras return he sat down on one of the unoccupied couches and began to stitch damaged parts of his armour. Eventually the woman from before came upstairs and told him and the others that he was going to a tower so he should be presentable, and that he shouldn't stand out. He responded after she left by consuming a piece of bread and continuing to stitch his armour.

 

[DarkRawen]

"No reason to go shopping yet. But seems it was a productive trip for you. That looks better then the rags you where in before."

Des wasn't sure if this mortal was female or not, something was odd about the vitae. Then again, if he could sense it, she had to be a woman.

That's how it usually works. And her name was Lucia, right?

Yeah, he was certain of that, this time he had actually paid attention to the introductions... or, like, at least some of them. He glanced over at Kes for a short moment, she wasn't very talkative, but his eyes went back to Luca almost instandly, as he addressed the strange mortal.

"Thank you, mademoiselle," he replied. "I think so too, the other clothes were a bit... burned." he laughed. "I'm Des, by the way, which you probably know already, your name was Lucia, was it not? That's a nice name." With a tilt of his head, he examined her further.

So, I've established that she's a female... but what kind?

The only similar thing he had seen to her was... he couldn't really remember, but she didn't look like a normal mortal.

"Say, I don't mean to be rude, but what kind of mortal are you?"

 

[hiei82]

"Kes, here, there's room for you to sleep. Doesn't it look soft? I can sit up too, if you'd prefer for me to do that, I don't sleep, so I don't mind." Des said, smiling warmly. Kes had been intending to take a seat by a wall and sleep but she supposed there wasn't any harm in taking the spot on the couch even if it would be weird to sleep on something so... soft.

She sat on one end of the couch and tried to doze off. It worked for a while, but eventually the sounds of conversation awoke her. Apparently all the other "guests" were introducing themselves. Kes had never been one to be called "talkative"; most conversations she'd ever had were started by others and usually had familiar topics like "how to survive the coming battle" and "getting back in the cells" and, every so often, "how to escape". These last kind were NEVER with the same people again; the guards saw to that. So, as a result, she remained quiet and listened to what others were talking about mostly.

Des and the one called Lucia were the closest so she paid attention to that one but said nothing.

 

[Lunar Templar]

"Thank you, I rather like it to" Lucia replied as she finished up her equipment checks and sat down.

"Say, I don't mean to be rude, but what kind of mortal are you?" Des then asked, sounding a little confused. "'Dragon-Born', which is a person who is ether born with or gains via some form of magic, Dragons blood. In my case, I was born human but became what you see now later in life. And just like our larger cousins, we can fly, and have a breath weapon. Most have fire, but as I mentioned before, I do not 'breath fire', my breath weapon is lightning. Unlike our larger cousins though, us Dragon-Born are not 'color coded'. What I mean by that is you can study up on, say, Red Dragons, learn its ability's and behaviors and so on. A Red Dragon-Born is highly unlikely to have any more then passing similarity to a larger red." Lucia said with an air of pride. Clearly she'd come to love her 'new' form. "And yes, I do like this form more then my old, human one. Even if it where possible, I would not willing return to what I was before" Lucia added before turning to the young lady in the furs, who seemed to have a thing for rhyming.

"Cats are a small 'domesticated' animal, and I use domesticated loosely, as cats tend to still retain a lot of mannerisms and behaviors that they're larger wild cousins have. In fact I've even heard that a house cat turn loose and let run wild, will be feral with in a generation or two. So you can imagine getting such a creature to do what you want is difficult. Only thing I've seen work is food or catnip, but even that's not guaranteed"

 

[DarkRawen]

"'Dragon-Born', which is a person who is ether born with or gains via some form of magic, Dragons blood. In my case, I was born human but became what you see now later in life. And just like our larger cousins, we can fly, and have a breath weapon. Most have fire, but as I mentioned before, I do not 'breath fire', my breath weapon is lightning. Unlike our larger cousins though, us Dragon-Born are not 'color coded'. What I mean by that is you can study up on, say, Red Dragons, learn its ability's and behaviors and so on. A Red Dragon-Born is highly unlikely to have any more then passing similarity to a larger red. And yes, I do like this form more then my old, human one. Even if it where possible, I would not willing return to what I was before"

Des kept listening, though he was unable to understand all she said. There was the thing about dragons, and colors, and all that, and while Des had heard about dragons from human legends, he'd never seen one. What he did gather, however, was that Lucia was one of these "dragon-born", but had used to be a human, something that Des found odd.

How does a human become a dragon? And why would they be happier as a dragon?

He wondered, but he just smiled and nodded, understanding that Lucia had "lightning" as a breath weapon, which meant that she could breathe lightning, right? Sure, that had to be just about accurate.

"Oh, okay, then. So you're a dragon-like mortal. I've never seen one. Not even a dragon, I don't think they're very common where I'm from, though they are mentioned. I've seen paintings, though they look rather weird on those." He remembered that the dragons attacked people in the legends, those who slew them were heroes. However, Lucia looked more like the latter, a hero rather than some vicious creature.

"It's good that you like this form, though, I'm happy for you." Des could sense that the vitae in her probably was too exotic for him, but he still felt fondness towards the dragon-born. He tilted his head, smiling. Then, in the corner of his eye, he noticed that Kes seemed to be listening to them, and turned to her. He was happy that she had chosen to sit on the couch.

"Hi, Kes, do you like my new clothes? Do you wanna feel how soft it is?" he asked, and sat closer to her.

She doesn't have new clothes, though. And those kinda clothes were rather rough.

He then added; "Are you fine with those? Or perhaps we should try to get some new ones tomorrow?"

 

[Terratina.]

"I heard you mention you wanted to hear stories, I'd be happy to tell of our travels so far, provided of course you share some tales of your own in exchange."

Trahaearn smirked as he folded his arms, "Well, would you like the one where I kill a monster or the one where I kill a monster or the...?" Then he burst out laughing, "You get the idea."

The elf didn't know what to make of the human who had come up to him, he seemed friendly enough. However, Trahaearn's gaze kept wandering over somewhere else. Unfortunately, she seemed to be preoccupied with some hunk who was asking a lot of questions. So, exchanging stories it was. If the man (Alex was the name, right?) cared for any.

 

[Josh123914]

Dalrel shut his eyes and relaxed for a moment.
Then, a moment later, he remembered how everyone else in the room were talking to one another.
He shrugged, got up, and closed the curtains to the room's large window, which portrayed the now pitch-black street.

Dalrel then shuffled past the dragon-lady and the wood elf, nestling into his own little area in the room and put a pillow over his ear, signalling his desire to sleep.

 

[IFS]

"You get the idea."

Alex laughed "Good to know you can handle yourself in a fight," he said, grinning broadly "how about the one where you kill a monster?"

It was good to know the man had a sense of humor, too often he ended up traveling with those who didn't care much for amusement. The man certainly looked as though he could handle himself in a fight as well, if his stories turned out to be empty boasts then at the very least he could stand around and look intimidating.

"Of course if you'd prefer I could start," he said, still grinning "I could tell you about the time I killed a demon or the time I killed a demon."

 

[Terratina.]

"Monster, demon, all the same in death." Trahaearn remarked, "Regardless, I'll start!"

From out of the cloak came out a hairy arm with wicked claws at the end. The elf made a show a flexing it, showing off the corded muscles underneath the shaggy fur. He smirked while doing so.

"'Course, I wasn't born with this arm. Earned after killing some wolf-beast." Trahaearn began, "There's this Horizon which is ruled by monsters and the night, and I decided to go after one of the Beast Lord. Before ya get mad, was pretty damn sure the thing didn't have a brain like you or me. Had enough of people tryin' to call me out on that. Anyway, beasts still have their own sort of intelligence, y'know, but this one was pretty smart. Avoided my traps, didn't take bait, even managed to untangle itself from a net. Went down to a bit of rough 'n' tumble, I tried to pin the beast down and snap its neck. He was tryin' to do the same. On and on this went, 'til sunrise. Struggling, cursing, yelling, until... Until... I wriggled out of his grip and dealt the killing blow!"

Not the best story or storyteller but it would have to do.

 

[Terratina.]

The woman with the icy eyes began to spout a torrent of questions. Trahaearn could barely get out a "Whoa there!" when she came up close, staring at the hunter with a hunger for answers deeper than any simple beast's need for food. All to ask about that golden gauntlet of hers! A simple trinket! And then, in flash, she was doing some tricks with it before Trahaearn could answer any of her questions. Which was a bit annoying. Regardless, Trahaearn still smiled.

"And what would ya do if your 'dick' was cut off?" He asked, moving towards her and stroking the gauntleted arm with his non-monstrous arm. Afterwards, Trahaearn leaned on a nearby table with the monstrous arm, like someone about to arm wrestle. He turned to her and spoke up, "C'mon, chop this arm off. Then let me do the same to you. Then you'll get those answers; since you were too impatient to wait for then, now ya'll hafta work for then."