Sweeping Darkness (IC) - Open

[Lushin]

Tarson just arched his left eyebrow and shook his head.
"Just when I thought I've seen it all something happens to prove me wrong"

[familyghost]

Aeo returned just as Armita was rising from the ground and, not for the first time, he found himself blinking.

"We are the weirdest group ever." Aeo laughed as he buttoned up his vest. 

[Pagan]

Alcir took in the event, then turned it over in his mind. What was this young boy? Regardless, he turned to the tiefling and said, "Aeo, I think the child and his 'birdies' have returned." The undead turned and, while headed in the general direction of their elven guide, he kept an eye open for any food that might present itself.

[familyghost]

"I'm a lech not blind." Aeo said defensively and then looked to Armita.  "Ok Armi, lets walk and talk."  Aeo smiled as he started towards the others.

[Lushin]

Tarson looked at the others and started walking.
"Alright lets get this show on the road"
Tarson then simple walked up and fell in behind Aire.
"So boss where too?"

[Darkmoon]

The terrain outside the village, now bathed in the light of a rather murky day, looked even more forbidding than when the giant had described it the night before. Few things grew well in the lands, possibly due as much to a lack of real water sources as to the amount of base magical energies coursing through the land. Tree grew bent, with barely any leaves. Grass was sharp and dry. Bushes resembled tangles of brambles (although, possibly deadlier, if you considered what could be living in the bushes).

The "forests" (and that's being kind describing it that way), gave way to open plains that stretch for miles in all directions. There were no mountains, no hills. As a small comfort, it'd be hard to be surprised by attackers.

Of course, there's also the possibility they wouldn't need the element of surprise.

[Omega]

Armita groaned for not having enough time to have a bath or even get the dirt from his hair, but he didn't wanted to leave his newfound friends just yet.
"So, where are we and where are we going this time?" he asked while picking grains of sand from his teeth with a hay straw.

[Azlan]

As the group left the village, Aire had whistled for her mount and the obedient fellow had fallen in with the party.  He traveled almost as if he were a member and not just the elven dame's warhorse.

The elf huffed at Tarson's 'boss' comment, he seemed to enjoy poking fun at others, "I am merely the guide, besides, I am only knowledgeable in leading cavalry, gunners, archers or artillerists... not adventurers."

As Armita inquired, Aire pointed across the plains, "we go that way master Zhelion."

The elf continued to guide the group in the direction of the closest energy source and remained vigilant for threats ahead, to the sides and from above.  Anything approaching from below ground would be noticed by the horse Cloudchaser.

[Darkmoon]

For those that are paying attention, on the horizon one can see the faint interplay of magical light. The effects are temporary, but, quite clearly, for a split second, one can see the entrance to another world.

Once the magic fades, the entrance is closed. However, a single figure (unusual perhaps by even this party's standards) is viewable on where the entrance was.

OOC: Go for it, Ghostwish.

[Omega]

Master Zhelion?, Armita thought with himself. He almost blushed if it weren't for all the dirt on his face. Well, the answer that the elf gave to him was as good as any. A single crow landed on his head while the rest of the flock stayed up in the sky.


As the magical lights came and went and the figure appeared, Armita raised an eyebrow. "Is that what we're looking for?"

[Ghostwish]

One can only hope that the party was far away enough not to hear the startled yell followed by the sound of a sudden and abrupt encounter with the earth...

Regardless, Malcurth let out a sigh of disappointment as he slowly picked himself up off the ground and went about absentmindedly dusting off his robe as he grumbled to himself. "That does it.. I'm never teleporting myself again. I can only count myself lucky that there wasn't a tree right where I'm standing now." He mutters to himself as he begins to pat himself down, mentally ticking off his possessions, before his paw pauses beneath his neck, pressing against his chest.. "Uhm, hello.." He says quietly, quickly glancing down and looking about on the ground, his eyes intent and flicking to and fro. "Ah!" He starts, quickly kneeling and plucking a glittering peice of jewelry off the ground. "Thank the Huntress.. I thought I had lost it.." He mutters softly as he wipes the necklace off for a moment before raising it up and carefully over his head-wings, settling it down around his neck and tucking it underneath his shirt. "Much better."

He then takes a moment to glance around, at which point his eyes widen in surprise.. "Wait a minute.." He says, briefly looking about, before exclaiming, "Where the hells am I?!" He growls softly as he crosses his arms across his chest while he continues to look around. "Oh come on now, I'm never this far off.. I didn't even teleport that far! At least, I don't think I did.." He complains.. before his eyes fall on the approaching party, still a ways off.. "Oh hello." He says, tensing up a moment as his disguise almost instinctively falls into place.

His wings shrink, shrivel, and vanish beneath his robe before disappearing entirely. His head-wings seem to withdraw into his hair without ever so much as a feather remaining, and his eyes slowly pale, before turning the light blue of a cold, winter sky, the same color as his mother's eyes. And then, for all intents and purposes, the incubus looked like just another snow leopard, maybe a tad lost. It had become routine for him, knowing that any cubi often had a less than favorable reputation with strangers. And not a moment too soon, for the party was coming close enough for him to actually get a good look at the odd following..

.... "Holy.. sweet mother of pearl.." He whispered softly, dearly, dearly hoping this wasn't a group of cubi hunters.

First and foremost, he noticed something very, very off about the group. They were humans in the party. Actual, honest to all, humans. From where Malcurth was from, they were thought to be extinct, either wiped out by plague, or each other for their supposedly over-the-top violent and vicious ways. But that wasn't even the start of it..

The first and most noticeable members of the group were as imposing as they were unimaginable. A pair of constructs, both quite a lot larger than the average man, but the first one was HUGE, and undoubtedly some manner of mechanized maelstrom of destruction. Malcurth noted massive spikes protruding from its armored hide, a warhammer of near comical size, and while he did so, the more tactical side of his mind quickly noted that even the best of his pyrotechnics would not even scratch the massive behemoth, and it would more than likely take a prolific amount of demonfire to even slow the hulk, if such a thing was even possible! The second one, although smaller, seemed to be of a much sleeker design, perhaps some manner of special construct meant for a specific task, or merely a support for the larger one. Malcurth even toyed with the idea that it might be some kind of spell-casting mec, something that, while very intriguing, did not sit well with his preparations for the worst possible outcome of this meeting that he could foresee.

The next fellow to catch his eye was a huge man, complete with a golem arm! Malcurth had seen such things before, but usually the exotic appendage did not function quite as quickly or as effectively as one's standard parts. Malcurth simply chewed on his lower lip a moment, hoping that this party wasn't about to be a bag full of not-so-nice surprises for him..

Next malcurth noticed there seemed to be quite a few birds following the party along. Crows to be specific, and they seemed to congregate around a young boy who was dressed in poor clothing. He could only guess as to why this was, for maybe the boy was a druid or shamen or some such, but for now Malcurth noted the other party members as well.

Like the fellow in the red shirt. With a slight squint of his eyes, Malcurth noted that there were a few traits that signaled this fellow to have an infernal heritage. Although doing his best not to be an outright hypocrite, Malcurth quietly clucked his tongue as he recalled a tiefling's aptitude for mischief, or outright evil...

There was a human in the group, who seemed ordinary enough, but there was also a.. What was that? A sub-breed of human? It had the shape of a slim, petite female, far too thin to be a human. Whatever she was. she certainly had an interesting heritage, judging by the odd hair color, and Malcurth quietly snorted to himself as he found himself acting the role of a hypocrite again, before letting his eyes linger on the last fellow a moment, the one in the black hood.. He.. looked human.. but something about him was just a little.. off.. Malcurth couldn't put his paw on it, not yet, but there was something about that one.

He also quietly noted one, simple yet slightly hidden fact.. There were no furs in the party.. Although this fact tugged at the back of his mind for a moment, he stored it away for now.. He couldn't be.. could he?

He sighed softly, and waited for the party to approach as he preferred not to walk up to such an.. exotic group. It occurred to him that they had more than likely seen his entrance from a distance, but he could explain that easily enough. He just hoped they proved to be peaceful enough, or he might be breaking his oath and teleporting a lot sooner than expected..

[familyghost]

Aeo felt the presence before he saw it, but he remained quite.  He was probably the only one that felt it anyway.  Then as the group came to view the disturbance Aeo saw that it was in fact a person or at least humanoid.  Still there was the sense.

It was like a cold finger down a fevered spine and a cackling laughter in the dark there was something infernal about this being and he couldn't tell if it was a source of power or the being itself, but Aeo was on alert and it was visible.  He stiffened as he walked and kept his hand near his mace.  Infernals were a tricky lot, and he knew that from his own experience with his own kind, what few he had met anyway.  He tried to pace up to Tarson and Aire as he walked but he was not the most fit of the group and found himself forced to slow and catch his breath.  Then he realized he was walking close to the ever thumping Tank and 28.

"Hey..." Aeo said.  "You two sense anything odd about the being up ahead?"  He didn't want to sound like he suspected anything, but he knew the question might raise a few eyebrows.

[Lushin]

Tarson walked near Aire as the lightning and the newcomer showed up.
"Huh I wonder if that's what we looked like when we showed up"
Tarson then looked back at the group.
"Ok everyone look friendly. No need to go picking fights with strangers or scarring the hell out of them either"
Taron then looked back at the newcomer.
"I wonder who he pissed off"

[Pagan]

Alcir thought about what had happened might mean. He could not see perfectly the being who had been dumped into this hole, but the undead muttered, "If I'm seeing that thing right, he's not human... Even by our odd standards." Alcir asked the group, "Are we to appoint a diplomat to meet this... newcomer?"

[techmaster-glitch]

   DFX and Tank both easily saw the light show, saw the distant silhouette of a person who had been deposited by it. Aeo came up next to them and asked if they could sense anything, and Tarson and Alcir remarked on his appearance, and the two large constructs slowed to a stop as the party began to consider how to deal with this new event.
   DFX took a moment to respon to Aeo. "If you are referring to the magical disturbance, it has already faded. If you are referring to the person himself, he is not projecting any form of strong magical field or aura, and I am incapable of sensing anything otherwise. However, I can see him adequately...this person is not a human. He seems to be covered in white pelage, not a dermal layer...and he has an abnormally elongated face."

[familyghost]

Aeo understood about two words of 28's statement and then blinked.  "He has an infernal sense about him."  Aeo decided to keep pace with the two constructs.  "And what did all that mean anyway?"

[Pagan]

Alcir explained the construct's statement for Aeo, "The being is covered in white fur. There's no visible skin. And... if I have not gone blind, he has a snout." He shook his head, "I have seen numerous creatures on our world. But I have never witnessed one such as this." The undead took a step towards the pecular being. "Should I greet him, then?"

[Lushin]

Tarson waves with his stone arm to the newcomer and shouts rather loudly.
"HEY THERE? WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?!"

[Ghostwish]

The incubus watched cautiously as the group stopped and was apparently debating what to do about his presence. Please don't let them be making a battle plan.. He thought quietly to himself, when another idle thought crossed his mind. He concentrated for a moment, and tried to scry their thoughts.. but came up with only static. Damnation! He cursed, I knew I should have paid more attention in the academy..

He sighed, and decided that perhaps it would be best if he did make the first move. He slid his paws into his sleeves, and couldn't help but clasp his paw over the hidden dagger on his forearm. Just in case. He began to slowly walk towards the group, keeping his facial expressions as neutral as possible, despite the turmoil currently rocketing through his mind. As he approached, he used the once sense he had that never seemed to falter, unlike his cubi powers, or pyrotechnics. Scent. Maybe it was the combination of leopard bloodline mixed with a cubi ancestry and a sorcerous gift thrown in, but Malcurth did have a rather keen sense of smell. He tentatively sniffed at the air as he drew within range, and caught a variety of odd odors.

There was the distinct sulfuric scent of infernal blood, perhaps too subtle for a common nose to pick up, but definitely coming from the tiefling. He also picked up a slightly tangy and sweety scent, something he recognized as fae.. The pink one, maybe? He'd seen some odd look faeries in his day, but this? However, not even that was the most unusual sign he received.. No, he picked up on a scent that was dreadful, repungent, although not in an overly smelly way.. more like.. spiritually repulsive.. he could not place it at first, until his mind again wandered back to his days in the academy.. during a brief stay in a necromancy lecture..

His eyes flickered to the hooded man for a moment, and he-

"HEY THERE? WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?!"

- nearly jumped out of his fur.

While the only outward appearance of his sudden startled state was his fur bristling slightly, he found that he had instinctly gripped the hilt of his dagger, and forced his paw to relax before speaking.  "Well.." He starts, pausing a moment to search for the right words.. "I was just outside of the amazon land, but now.. I am not so sure where I am.." He speaks, regarding the party's reaction for a moment..

[familyghost]

Aeo was perhaps the single most nervous person in the group at the moment.  Then the furry stranger said a magical word.  That word was "Amazon" and that word propelled Aeo to the front of the group in mere seconds. 

"You know amazons?" Aeo perhaps looked to enthusiastic about the possibility of meeting legendarily attractive women.

[Lushin]

Tarson put his stone hand on Aeo's shoulder.
"Easy sparky, you can worry about Amazons when we figure out how to get back. Besides don't they hate men?"
Tarson then looked to the newcomer.
"Sounds kinda like how we got here. So you got a name?"

[familyghost]

Aeo blinked and then let his smile spread into a lecherous grin.  "That's a minor detail..."  Then he looked to the furry stranger and he could clearly sense an infernal power, but now he was convinced the power was something the furry guy had as a power, still he would keep an eye on this one.

"I'm Aeo Dall, lech and Warlock..." Aeo made a bow.  Then he rose with a confused look, "...or was it the other way around?"

[Ghostwish]

While his outward demeanor had been under strict control before, the sudden advance of Aeo managed to, needless to say, ruffle his fur. he took a cautious step back as his tail stuck straight out, fur bristled and tip wagging back and forth furiously. His eyes were wide, pupils constricted as he stared almost incredulously at Aeo, and he inadvertently slid the dagger slightly out of its sheath. However, as soon as Aeo spoke, Malcurth relaxed noticeably with a soft chuckle as he carefully put the dagger back and withdrew his paw from his robe. This particular scene was a tad too familiar for him..

"Yes, yes you could say I do. My mother was one, and I am of their proud bloodline, in a manner of speaking." He says, and then watches as the golem man walks up, and tries to calm/restrain the tiefling, before making a comment on the tastes of his family.. "Yes and no. Amazons are actually quite fond of men.. but abhor idiots. Now what determines which is entirely up to the individual amazon, however.He says, smiling slightly.. this group didn't seem so bad after all..

"Ah.. and my name is Snowfur..  Malcurth Snowfur.. Sorcerer and.. former merchant, I suppose. Now.. you said something along the lines of the same way you got here?"

[techmaster-glitch]

   DFX decided to step forward at this point. To the newcomer who had never heard him speak, DFX's speech was rather flat and droning. "We were unwilling transported here, initially without our knowledge, a slight sensory distortion among myself and a few other members of our congregation being the only indication something abnormal had occurred. However, I am not certain your appearance matches ours. Yours produced a large and irregular visible magical disturbance. Is there any information you can provide that can aid in clarifying this?"

[Azlan]

Aire, who had been quiet and observant of this newcomer, decided to step forward after holstering her Light pistols.  As the others focused on this furry creature, the elf remained vigilant in keeping an eye on their surroundings.

"Indeed, what DFX says is true, our entrance seemed to be much less flashy and exceptionally stealthy.  We are both in the same situation, though joining with us may not be in your best interests.  If we succeed in our aim of returning, it will be to our own world.  I am pretty sure you are not from there, so you may end up stranded on an alien world."

[Omega]

Armita couldn't almost believe his eyes. He had first thought that the stranger wore a mask of some sort, but as the boy saw the facial expression and mouth movement, he realized that that was his real face. Armita ignored all the talk of amazons and everything else and just stared this oddity. "Is that fur real?!" The boy was dirty as freshly picked potato and smelled like fresh ground.

[e_voyager]

Enigma stood off to the side and let the others gather the information for him. It was better then extending himself and he had seen more then enough wary individuals of whatever race to know that this young entity was nervous about them. And though Enigma had no proof he was willing to bet that up till a moment ago when his hand ,or rather paw as it was with with fur and seem to have claws hidden in it, had been on some sort of weapon beneath his cloak. still he was curious as to what sort of merchant this Snowfur was selling and if he had any magic talismans on him as well.

[familyghost]

"Maybe..." Aeo interrupted before Mal could speak.  "But there's always the fair chance we all get sent back home as well as the off chance that if he does get sent back to our world that our mages could come up with a way to return him to his own world.  Also I doubt it'd be healthy to go anywhere alone in this godsforsaken world." Then true to form he added.  "Plus I wanna hear stories about Amazons."  Aeo gave a great big smile.  "So can we keep him?"

[Lushin]

Tarson looks over at Aeo with a bit of a smile on his face.
"The better question is. Can he keep you? I have a feeling you would want to go with him and he may not want you tailing him everywhere. Besides didn't he say thet don't like idiots"
Tarson then looked back at Mal
"My name's Tarson and yeah we where just walking down a path in the woods. The next thing we knew we where here. We showed up last night and are currently searching for something that may or may not be able to get us home. So what ya say wanna tag along with us and round out our group?"

[Ghostwish]

As monotonous as DFX's voice may have been, Malcurth listened with rapt attention and twitched his ears curiously for a moment after the construct was done speaking.. "You are sentient, aren't you?" He asks, and then smirks slightly. "Sorry, you must get that a lot from organics and I can only imagine it becomes rather irksome. And I should not be so surprised.. You are not the first 'mec' that I have met, if you are familiar with that term."

"As for my entrance, it does seem to have been quite a bit different from your own. You see, I was experimenting with an ability of mine that has been quite unstable in the past, and I was attempting to see if I could get a grasp on it." He says, before sighing in irritation as he crosses his arms over his chest. "This will be quite the lesson for me to just leave chaos alone. All I did was try to move two leagues to the north, and now here I am on an alien world. Wonderful." He says, sarcastically rolling his eyes.

He had watched Aire with a curiousnesses for a while, noting her unusual weaponry. He had also seen firearms before, and it was rather ironic that it was in the same instance that he met a sentient machine for the first time as well. "Well, ma'am, I have no intention of staying here, but please pardon my curiosity, but I must ask what race you are. You appear human in some respects, and yet I smell a fae of some sort. I hope I am not being offensive in any manner.. It is just that all of our records concerning the human race are ancient beyond dragons, and our descriptions are equally vague."

"Is that fur real?!"

Malcurth turned his hidden eyes towards Amita, and grinned. "Is that hide real? No fur whatsoever. Seems rather exotic and uncomfortable to me. You must catch every draft and breeze like that." He says, before drawing his paw over his cheek with his claws just barely extended, enough to graze lightly through the snowy light fur. "Another gift of my mother's heritage. Hence the family name, you see."

Now, as for Enigma's curiosity, if anyone was watching the leopard with any ability to detect magic, they might pick up on a odd variety of types of magic coming from his pack on the outer pockets. All of the magic signs were too small and too insignificant to be an actual sorcerer's tools, so perhaps Malcurth was keeping with his old trade after all..

"Ah, I believe that Aeo might be correct. I could certainly find my way home through any means that the rest of you use to find your own way, and it would not be wise to go tromping off on a world I know nothing about, all alone." He says, but then grins and peers at the tiefling with an upraised eye ridge.. "But I often wonder if our young master here wants to hear stories of the glory and bravery of the amazon warriors, or of their antics around the hot springs?"

And finally, to the half-golem, he merely shrugs simply. "Master Dall is more than free to tempt fate and dismemberment at the hands of the femme fatales. I, however, would welcome the company. So, what was your destination before I so rudely dropped in?" He asks as his tail idly swings slowly back and forth behind him.