The Free Plain

"I grew up in forests far from these plains. My people are Rangers or were Rangers I suppose now. All of them except for sporadic few were murdered by a necromancer tainting our land. So now I am left alas to travel with my two child hood friends here. Since you were in a cloister you wouldn't happen to have a pair of those metal under garments I am told nuns wear?" Elijin flashed another charming smile at the woman.

His two pets sat at his side one on his right and another on his left respectfully. Then the man simply collapsed hitting the floor hard and almost hitting Kimber. It would seem he passed out from a mixture of fatigue and dehydration. One moment cheery and babbling like a complete idiot and the next unconscious on the hard ground. The berries he may or may not have had earlier could of also raised quite occurrence to hi health.

"Mother I don't want to go herd the sheep today, it's too early to take them across the hill." The man mumbled in his state as the few drops splashed against his lips. The wolf came over and started licking his face thoroughly. Which brought up some more mumblings of the man.

"Ma I want third breakfast I already mine and sister's." The man went on with his disassociated speaking as he was off somewhere else.

The spider finally intervened in the situation smacking the man on the face with one of it's hairy legs. It would appear this was not the first time the spider was forced to wake the man up nor would it probably be the last. Elijin came to from the smack looking up at the woman with a rather dumbfounded smile on his face.

"Get ready to move, lady," a man with a sword and board told Faisine as he approached, followed by three other adventurers including another warrior, some sort of mage and a man with a bow. Also accompanying them was the middle-aged man with the cane, who tapped it along the floor as he moved as though he needed it to keep balance.

"Young noblewoman, gathered volunteers," he told them, flashing a grin. "The evening is upon us. It is time for us to attack the Goblin position - and by attack I mean distract them with this lady's wonderful, graceful physicality while the rest of your companions sneak in through the back and find a way to take care of the problem in one, fell swoop. There's a good hundred or so Goblins you're up against, but it's possible they've stored explosive black powder in their makeshift camp that they have taken from our supply trains. If need be, our mage can ignite and blow the majority of them sky high."

"So! Introductions," the man continued, "I'm known as Elder Owyn, the two warriors are Elden and Itis, the mage is Line and the ranger is... Ranger. What is your name, young lady? What do we put on the gravestone?" He asked, flashing a wink. He was clearly joking - however morbid.

In the the very far depths of the woods to the Northeast, Zaltos was slowing his speed. The being transitioned from a physical sprint to a Soul Step. This movement was an extension of himself that progressed first, his body tending to follow. Soul Stepping was quiet, making no sound, moving Zaltos behind the large trees and bushes, literally skipping the open spots. It was very unlikely that Zaltos would be spotted if anyone was around.

"If I can make it to the top of that mountain I can soak up some natural energy. I'll have to cross the open lands physically, but that mountain... I should be able to Soul Step it." Zaltos thought to himself.

Stopping behind the last tree in the forest before reaching open land, Zaltos would scope out all visible points of land. After a general search for mortal life, sensing a few people in the vast land, he had to decide how to cross. He had his plan.

"Here we go..." Zaltos chimed to himself.

The moment the words stopped, Zaltos broke through the open plains towards the mountain. Behind him was a trail of steam and smoke. He would cross the plains in the blink of an eye and when hitting the mountain side, he would begin to Soul Step. His first movement was to find a good hiding spot to scope out the land from a higher point to make sure nobody was onto him.

A small indention in the side of a mountain hide by the cover of a boulder and a small bush. His garments hid in the shadows, carrying a black base with a purple outline. He would stay here for a minute, wanting to ensure nobody found him. If they found his trail, Zaltos would simply Soul Step a different path to another point on the mountain, leaving no physical trail, possibly a magic trail if they were fast enough.

"I'll have to move from these shadows soon, but I can't have anyone following me." Zaltos whispered to himself.

Why did everyone seem to be mocking her in some form or another? She was getting most vexed. Was it because she needed to prove herself or something? The man holding out the dress was in danger of getting a lovely punch to the face for his conduct. And it wouldn't just be because he did it, but because he was the next person to do it!

She grabbed the red dress and snatched it away from his hand, muttering to him, “The mocking is not necessary, sir. I am about to go put myself in danger for the likes of you, you could treat me with a bit more decorum.” She sniffed and then walked away from him. The instrument was taken nicely and she said to that one, “I will do my best to take care of it, Miss.” And she gave a genuine smile.

Then she looked to the man talking about if she could actually play, and she blinked a few times... “I do not need some enchantment, I can pluck the strings just fine, thank you.” And it was true. That was one of the abilities she actually took pride in.

Then she was off to find some privacy to clean herself up without help.

She returned about a half an hour later, having washed up with tepid water (which was more than she had been able to in awhile, so she was grateful!), and she felt human again. The dress barely fit her... It was on the loose side, but it would have to do. She did not look at herself in any looking glass to know how it looked on her, but the young noblewoman did make a lovely sight. She combed her hair out with an ivory comb until it shone and fell softly about her shoulders and down her back so it was like a nearly white halo. Some finishing touches included some meadow flowers, which she had asked someone to please pick for her, and were now woven loosely into her lovely locks.

It felt good to be clean again regardless that she would probably need to wash up again after tonight when the goblins would surely paw at her. Her fingers were curled protectively about the lute.

Before them stood a young lady who wasn't holding herself like she was pretty. She was not the kind of young lady who took foolish pride in her looks, only that she wasn't dirty.

    What an adventure it'd been, from the moment they set foot on board the New Mulleres until just a few hours ago, when the Greydan Band, their leader Wolfgang, Patches, and their navigator Vale stepped onto this tiny beach nestled in an otherwise tumultuous rocky shore! At this particular point, emerald green grassland painted the rolling hills dominating a highlandish environment about a hundred feet of staggering dark cliff from sea level. It was an arduous trek up the walkable way up, but once there, they were greeted with beautiful grasslands adjacent to a forest on the left side. Somewhere in these grasslands, a very long hike away, were the first of civilized people the Greydan were to meet... Wolfgang, either unknowingly or with Vale's direction, marched his rabble towards the congregation...

    "Um..." he thought about it for a moment. "Fate, I guess. I just wandered out of these woods and met all those people in the field over there," he said. "It seems like they're having trouble with some goblins. I could go for a nice bath and a dinner too," Garo said, his equipment and animal pets indicating he lived a similar style of life to Elijin, albeit probably several years his junior.
    Garo offered a hand to Elijin after a few moments, after perhaps he'd caught his breath and hydrated. "And we're going to need all the help we can get. Why don't you help us out? There's safety in numbers."

    Garo whistled to his two pet wolves, and they lined up behind him, circling each other restlessly. "Let's go!"
    With that, Garo, Elijin, and their familiars Lord, Kimber, Cael, and Barao all came back out of the forest to rejoin the group. Here they should find Faisine and Owyn, as well as whoever else was vetted from the group to perform this great mission. They were going to need all the assistance they could find...

After watching for some time now, Zaltos was sure he wasn't being followed. Zaltos would begin his Soul Step up the mountain, aiming for the highest point he could. Upon reaching this, he made his presence on to the tip. The point of his boot was barely pressed to the tip of the mountain, residing on the top grain and applying no pressure to the tip.



"This will do.." Zaltos said with a smirk as he took his form.



His left leg lifted, his thigh extended forward with his calf and foot pointing the ground. His arms extended outwards with his fingers pointed to the sky. It would appear as if Zaltos was taking a Crane Stance on the mountain.



The sunlight was casting it's light upon Zaltos. Without a cloud in the sky, it was a great source of energy. The more that fell upon Zaltos, the more his form would shine. His power was growing with the sunlight at a steady pace. This was his most common form of energy growth. The wells of power that Zaltos possessed were limitless, constantly growing with power.



Zaltos's form would become very relevant to anyone around the mountains as his form shined like a star on the mountain point. If they couldn't see, his energy signature would instantly grab their attention. At this point, Zaltos was well aware of any movement surrounding him, holding a sight that put a Hawk's to shame.



"Until someone tries to remove me, I believe I will charge here.." Zaltos thought to himself.