The Interesting Times [IC]

[Lexin]

The Interesting Times - the beginning.

http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080515173730/witcher/images/2/2c/Vizima_map.jpg

Years have passed since the last war, the northern countries were at peace. Countries weakened by the great wars, monarchs motivated by the spilled blood and destroyed cities forged an frail alliance, strengthened now by magical pacts, signed with blood, and five years of peaceful cooperation, which to surprise of the mighty seemed to make lives much better.
Anyone, who wasn't human still wasn't entirely accepted in every place, but it was past the days of public, unpunished murders of elves and orcs, no longer the non humans were limited to living in ghettos.

Slowly everything was getting better... It couldn't have lasted.

Every witcher knows that the monsters were slowly dying out, and in a hundred years there might be no job left for them... at least that's what they were taught during their training...
Nobody noticed it at first, other than the Witchers of the Wolf clan, the most spread in the northern lands, but the monsters were coming back... and in much higher numbers than it should have been possible, they were also different.

First time in hundred years the sages of witcher holds were given support by the Council of Lords. But the training takes time... and there simply wasn't enough of the monster hunters.

As a temporary solution the teams were formed, formed of mixed groups of witchers, mages, clerics and mercenaries... everyone who was able to stand a chance against the monsters.

And now you are summoned to Wyzima, the capital city of Temeria. You've heard about the deaths in the city, and you can suspect that this won't be a social visit.

When you approach the gates of the city, you are stopped by guards. After showing them the documents, signed by the King's counselor Adrian Da'arn, you are let inside, and later to a guards post, and told to wait till the others arrive.

Write up arrival and describe your characters. You may talk among yourselves, or try to talk to guards. I will move action after every player posts at least once.

[AaronGrimstone]

Debrasken sits down quietly for awhile, then he gets up and begins to pace. Finally, after a minute or so, he turns to Amana. "Do we really need anyone else? I mean, we can figure it all out by ourselves and stop this infernal waiting! And they'll probably be sending some raw wannabe hunters with us who think fighting monsters is the same as killing deer." He stops pacing, then starts tapping his foot. Why should he have to wait when he could be proving himself!

[HanaRei]

"One who rushes into combat is one who seeks to be reunited with the great spirits much quicker. Noble, but ultimately providing a fruitless death." A firm voice called out to the impatient man.

Violet eyes fixated upon him. Her long red hair was tied in a ponytail, reaching down towards her rear. A rather form fitting black dress hugged her frame, cutting off halfway down to her knees though holding onto her frame, meant for mobility, a specially crafted breastplate clinging to her frame above it for protection. It seemed to be focused around mobility, helping the user move around while still providing less impact upon her movement. If it wasn't apparent enough of her intent to fight, the greatsword much larger then one her size might hold was sheathed upon her back.

Her eyes glanced around briefly before fixating back towards the man, crossing her arms. "I assume you consider yourself a able fighter by your rather careless wording. It does interesting me to see such mighty you may have in combat. One's words have little merit compared to what they accomplish in combat." She spoke, her voice sounding in an almost surreal mixture of both strength and gentleness. Unlike other barbarians, she wasn't all about that raw brute strength. While glory was found on the battlefield, wit was a necessity as well as understanding.

Shaking her head a little bit, the woman lowered her arms. She rested one hand on her hip, looking towards him. "My applogies, I suppose I should introduce myself. I am called Sasha Thistleborn, as the name the spirits have chosen for me." She gave her name looking at the man, not quite use to the customs of the more 'civilized' world.

[Hat-Trick]

"Oi!" The exclamation cut through the last of Sasha's words as its owner trudged into the torchlight. The slender form looked more nimble than strong, but was obscured by the breastplate armor that encased it. A sleeveless black coat that hung from its shoulders, nearly reached the ground, and did a rather admirable job of concealing the red tail. The wickedly curved horns, on the other hand, were completely visible, and it was hard to say if they were actually a part of the demonic visage of the hellish helmet, or of the head behind it. The helmet also did very little to hide the vibrant red eyes that seem to be in a soul steeling sea of darkness caused by more than just shadows in the poor light.

"Debrasken, mate," Tosser said with a rather uncharacteristic excitement, probably eagerness from the impending monster hunt in combination of spotting an old friend. "Haven' seen ya in a while. Glad t' see a frien'ly face." The words had the steely, muffled quality of speaking through the visor obscuring its face. "'Course, I brough' a bit o' extra 'elp m'self."

The tiefling turned around to introduce a body that wasn't there and looked around in bewilderment. "Now where'd 'e run off t'... OI GRIM!" The armored figure turned back to the others without waiting for an answer and shrugged. "'E'll show up. Who're yer frien's?"

[AaronGrimstone]

Debrasken, getting a bit irritated at the woman who had just shown up, Sasha, was it? Gets side tracked when he hears Tosser. He smiles broadly.

"Tosser, it's great to see you. Good to know someone with combat experience is joining us on our hunt! How are things, life good? Do you need me to stab someone for you?" He collects himself then says.

"This here is Amara. She's a dear friend of mine, we came from the same village, you know. I don't know this lady. She says her name is Sasha, though." He turns to Sasha, reminding himself of her presence.

"I am the samurai Debrasken, the Spellsword, sometimes called the Raven." He then goes back to talking with Tosser.

"I was pretty worried that I'd be teamed up with a bunch of newbies, so I'm glad you made my team. The other Witchers don't always like me that much and I wouldn't have put it past them to send me children."

[HanaRei]

Sasha crossed her arms, noting Debrasken's reaction. It wasn't something that pleased her very much, but for now she bit back her natural reaction. She stood still letting out a soft sigh. It truly wasn't something she was use to, interacting with 'outsiders' as her tribe might call them. It was something she would learn to get use to on the way.

Her eyes fixating on Amara before nodding. "Indeed, they call me Sasha Thistleborn. It is nice to meet you." She responded back firmly. She uncrossed her arms though keeping silent. She wasn't to fond of how he seemed to shrug her off in a way and even give off her own introduction. She turned her head away glancing over as she walked a few feet away looking at quietly. It would be an interesting 'hunt'.

[PChubby]

As they make their introductions, Grim lumbers up to the group munching on the roasted leg of some beast, his face glistening from his meal.

"There you are Tosser! I lost you back in the bazaar. Had to make a stop, the ol' belly was feeling a bit empty." He says with a grin and a pat of his stomach. Grim prepares to take a bite but pauses, mouth agape, as he notices the rest of the party. "Uh, they call me Grim. Who might you folks be?" He says as he points the leg at himself then the rest of the group. Then with a quick jerk, he tears another bite from the leg and looks over the rest of the party.

[AaronGrimstone]

Debrasken tries to hold back on his distaste of Grim's manners, this was a friend of Tosser's and not everyone held to his same standards. He would have to give the lumbering oaf the benefit of the doubt.

"I am the samurai Debrasken the Spellsword, sometimes called the Raven, and my silent companion is Amara." He lets Sasha introduce herself, since strange women could get awfully touchy about being introduced by someone else. He was also still deciding whether or not she meant any offense by her remarks. It was possible that she just thought herself wiser than him, which was bad in a different way.

[Hat-Trick]

"Should h've known ye'd be stuffin' yer face," Tosser chided as the mysterious friend showed himself. Turning back to the others, the tiefling gave a chuckle, "Truth be told, yer all still tykes t' me, but knowin' yer gonna h've m' back in there eases m' mind consid'r'bly." Tosser pulls out a small box and pulls a pinch of tobacco out, lifting the demonic visor to give a glimpse of intricate tattoos before falling back into place after the tobacco is deposited.

"Tha' bein' said, I wouldn' be s'rprised if they set either o' us, s'mehow," the armored figure muttered darkly, "Can' righ'ly say they like me all tha' much, either." 'They' didn't seem limited to the Witchers, the way Tosser said it, but as was the hunter's style, no elaboration followed, leaving the meaning obscure.

[HanaRei]

Sasha looked over quietly, hearing as the others spoke up in turn. The young woman shifted a little bit, crossing her arms as she kept silent until the very last person spoke... and with quite an odd accent at that. Perhaps he simply had sustained so much damage in battle that his words became jumbled? It wasn't exactly unheard of as many men in her tribe were known to have suffered damages that did to some degree limit their degree to function, even if it wasn't to the extent he seemed to with his words.

Her eyes fixated around at the others. It was... extremely odd of a group for her. They didn't exactly look very tough compared to the men in her tribe. Then again, she exactly wasn't very usual herself. They could be more talented then their outer appearances might yield.

"The spirits are sure to have some reasoning behind our gathering, even if I myself do not fully understand." She commented looking up at the others in some part perhaps answering back the rather odd speaking Tosser fellow. "None the less, those who fight in combat as an ally are the same as my very own flesh and blood. I have no intention of holding back when it comes to fighting on your behalf, and I hope you all intend to do the very same." She spoke looking towards them all.

[AaronGrimstone]

Debrasken looked at the strange lady, Sasha, for a second before replying. "Why would I hold back? Every fight is a contest of strength, and holding back would mean I wasn't giving it my all. Trust me when I say that whether fighting alone or working as a team I do the absolute best I can. I will look after any of you, because your deaths will reflect poorly on me."

He smiles at Tosser and Amara. "Except you two. You I just protect. Even though neither of you actually need it." Debrasken didn't mean to sound insulting. He just tended to come across that way.

[PChubby]

Grim sat down to enjoy his snack while the others spoke. He didn't know what was bothering Debrasken but spellswords were a touchy lot in Grim's experience. The spirit woman's concern seemed out of place to Grim. There's not much to understand he thought to himself. There's a beast to kill. They called in a team. No spiritual insight needed.

A wry grin crept across Grim's face when the conversation turned to fighting together and protecting each other. He'd gone through team introductions a half dozen times before and never tired of the awkward dance of boasting and manners. Bragging came with the territory but there was a fine line between proving yourself and coming off as an ass. Grim preferred to let his fighting speak for itself and kept his introductions simple.

When Debrasken finished his commentary about giving his all, Grim stood up and wiped his face with a kerchief. "Well, now that we've said we'd do what teams do, does anyone know what exactly it is we're supposed to do?"

[Hat-Trick]

"Waitin' for others, I think," Tosser answered the large man. "Th' guards jus' said t' wait 'ere for a group. Looks like we got one t' me, though." A hand raised the hellish visor for a moment, allowing the tiefling to spit the tobacco residue onto the ground, before letting it fall into place again. "In either case, I'm ready t' get huntin'."

Tosser checked the assortment of potions and vials at the ready and grumbles. "Scratch tha'," the armored figure groaned, "I don' h've any healin' draughts. Shoul' prob'bly get at leas' one ready b'fore we 'ead out." With that, the alchemist pulled out a portable alchemy table and sat down to begin mixing the ingredients. "Be a shame t' h've some'ne die b'cause I didn' h've one b'fore 'and."