Quest for the Shifter's Soul ((RP!))

"Yeah. We Deepstream can't eat them because theres a trick to it and you need hot water." Dee explained while scoring the large orb with his claws. He then bounced on it, causing a foul liquid to spurt out. When it was drained he plucked out a small hard core and kicked dirt over the rest of the mess.

"What I'm told, is that you take this little stone here, and boil it up into a drink. Everyone says it tastes like something different, but from the sounds of it, it doesn't taste good. But, what it will do is keep hunger away. Heard of people going for two weeks on nothing else. The stone won't dissolve or dissappear as long as you keep it out of cold water. Cold water, and it'll change back into that stinking glob you just saw and then it'll try to hatch." He bobbed his head cheerily, certain that he was impressing the others with his knowledge.

"One traveler, got dunked in a stream, so I hear, and forgot about his bunyip stone. Overnight it hatched, and started tearing through everything. They may be small when they hatch, but they're fierce and hungry."

Aengus whistles, surprised at just how valuable this find seems to be. "Well, that certainly is impressive. Any chance we can save it for later? I think we have enough here to make a decent meal for everybody, & it'd be nice to have something like that on hand in the future. You know, in case we wind up in a tough spot. Short on food, & no method of obtaining more?"

Looking over at the somewhat quiet sibling, Aengus motioned for them to join him by the fire. "You two should take a seat. The food won't be ready for a bit, but the fire is nice & warm. Plus, after all of the trouble that our new arachnid friend here went through to get it going, it'd be rude not to enjoy it's warm, radiant glow."

Taryn glowed at the compliment, packing away her medical supplies and tucking them back in the little pouch behind her. Besides that pack, she carried nothing with her but a little knife hanging from the same belt. In fact, she wasn't even very fully dressed. She had what looked like a simple sheet of fabric wrapped around her torso from one shoulder in an outfit reminiscent of a Greek toga. Then her bag around her human hips and arachnid thorax, and that was all. Once her things were put away, she turned to face the fire and sat down on the ground, tucking her legs under her.

Lydia trotted to the fire and sat down next to Taryn, studying her curiously. Angel reluctantly approached, staying as far away from the spiderling as possible, still eyeing her cautiously.

/You are rather tired.

Low overland flight always had a way of taking it out of you, but you can't stop yet./

Her name is Tzzzrch'cks Trrrb, but she has yet to encounter any other race comfortable calling her by name. She is a Bretican ((Semi-huminoid, bee being. Human except for thin appearance, insectoid fore arms/legs, and functioning antenna, wings and stinger)), born and raised in southern Halreroot hivetown. Heavy scout Second class, with minors in cartography and the heat based arts.

She has been tasked to travel and map the mid-reaches of this land, and to bring back glory befitting of her queen and country.

On her hide are her buckler and brigandine. A small pack of army rations. Her waxed spatha (courtesy of her surrogate familial unit). Mayjikally replicating stores of ink and parchment (issued by the Royal GeoLogistigraph Knights, and worth more than your head.) And scout class sallet.

"I need to stop, this breakneck pace won't do. Won't do. Hmmmmmmmzz."

She lands in a tree on the far side of the river.

"That's peculiar, this river bends much earlier than I had predicted it- KZZ"



She cuts herself short, having caught sight of the motley crew across the waterway, and darts sideways behind the trunk of her peach. Protocol would have her take stock of new entities before engaging, and she is not one to shirk such a well regarded rule.

"Hmm, a man, a scaleling (medium), another man, two elfen (one still a wriggler), and an arachnoid. So peculiar."

She decides that caution would serve her best and settles to listen to the group before revealing herself. Easing her legs into a more comfortable position, she settles more securely on the branch.

While waiting for an answer, Aengus decided to go ahead & prepare the rest of the food, making a nice, hearty breakfast stew. With the additional turtles & vegetables that Dee had managed to scrounge up, there was just enough stew for everyone to get a decent portion. Unfortunately, Aengus only had a single bowl, as well as a thermos. He hadn't expected to be catering to anyone but himself.

"Well, stew's on, folks. Come & get it. I hope some of you have bowls, cups, or spoons. Otherwise, we're going to have to improvise."

Just to drive the point across to all the party members, Aengus prodded William with his foot. Just to make sure he was awake, of course. "Breakfast time, big guy."

William woke with a start and bolted upright, immediately taking in the surroundings he was technically already familiar with. He smacked his lips and rubbed his eyes, made some kind of confused noise and looked at Aengus. "...It's still that early? What're we eating?"

He looked at the others. "Uh... I guess I could make some dishware for everyone, gimme a sec. It's what I always use, so I can vouch for it's cleanliness." Standing up, he stretched, and cracked his knuckles. He took a stance, and with a quick flick of his hands, enough bowls and spoons for everyone shot up from the ground and hovered at eye level, extra dirt shedding off, and flew over to everyone who needed dishware.

William took his own and sat down. "Stew, huh? Sounds good."

"Of course you can keep it. Like I said before, I have no use for it because I can't heat water on my own." Dee pinched the marble-sized ball between his claws and dropped it in Aengus' hand. From there he tenderly curled up until food was ready, his bandaged leg sticking out a little awkwardly.

With the bowls passed around he took one as was offered, but instead tucked the spoon with all of his trinkets that still needed to be re-braided in his mane.

"You know, usually I don't bother with stone, but this is really well crafted" He said, nosing it and getting a close look at the spoon. "Besides, it's a good momento. First meal on this crazy mess we've gotten into, I suppose. Hahahah."

"Well, aren't you just Mr. Handy?" Aengus said, obviously pleased that William had been able to provide for the others. "Between you, Dee, & Miss Taryn here, we seem to have everything we'll need to take on the road ahead. Not to mention our little pint-sized powerhouse" he continued, smiling warmly at Lydia. "But enough of my yammering. Let's dig in, shall we?"

Aengus didn't realize just how hungry he was until he started eating. It'd been several days since he'd had anything more than a roasted fish or some berries. Still, he made sure to keep that ravenous hunger in check. Wouldn't do to eat more than his share, & he couldn't afford to be sluggish from overeating.

As he chowed down, he made sure to store the Bunyip stone inside one of his water-sealed pouches for safe keeping. Such a treasure could really save their asses down the line. And, if worse came to worse, he could probably sell it for a hefty sum.

"Oh my, they have food..."

Trrrb hadn't had a decent meal in days, only having access to wax preserved cram rations (with extra bland for that down-home bland flavor) and whatever she could manage to forage (zilch.)

As such, the smell of stew bled away her caution in an instant. As well as her preoccupation with gravity.


While shifting to get a better whiff of the comestibles, she hadn't notice her tree branch creaking softly. She was not prepared to hover when it snapped, causing her to take a tumble into the river.

Trrrb, subtle as a boulder and about as skilled, at swimming, as one.

"AUGHGRPHASFTSDTHHHPHFFFFFFFZZZZZZZZZZZTRHKZZZZZZZZZHELP!" she yelled, hoping to attract the party's attention.

"AUGRUPHFZZZZZZZCANT... SDFKSADFPHFFZZZZ... FFFFZZZZZZZZZSWIM..."

When the bowls were produced, Angel looked around with a hint of embarrassment and reached for the bowls. He filled his a little less than he otherwise would have to make up for what he had taken with his hands, and licked his fingers clean before beginning with his spoon. Lyida felt no shame in eating with her fingers, but admitted that a bowl leaked less than her hands and took the offered utensils. She didn't bother to compensate for what she had already consumed and filled her bowl right to the top, slurping appreciatively.
Taryn again glowed at Aengus's compliment and daintily filled her own bowl, setting it on her right front knee to steady it, since she couldn't bring her legs together in front to form a surface to hold it. Eventually she gave up and just held the bowl with one hand and the spoon with the other. It was slow going because she had to be careful not to spill. She had just finished the last bite when a horrible splash startled her into dropping her utensils and spinning--the top half of her--to face the river.
"Oh!" she cried. "Someone's fallen in!" She rose from her place and performed the same feat she had used to rescue Dee when he had been caught under the water. She walked serenely over her homemade ice-bridge, plucked the flailing creature from the water, and walked back, setting the rescue safely on the shore.

Trrrb flailed in the dark, groping at something, anything to get her out of the surging mass. Her wings were useless when soaked with water and it was all she could do to thrash wildly.

Luckily for her, a more aquatically adept individual noticed her plight and took swift action.


As Trrrb collapsed on the riverbank, breath heaving and wings vibrating, she worked to flip herself on her side. She manages to get herself into an upright position before moving to speak.

Her voice coming in gasps and wheezes, "*cough cough* oh by queen and country thank you. thank you... wings are totally useless sometimes *cough hack* got distacted *cough* distracted, excuse me... *sputter* my name is trrrb *cough* thank you again *sputter cough hack*"

Regaining some of her composure, "Ahem. I'm sorry for spying. I just spotted you all across the way and didn't want to just fly right in out of the blue. *cough*"

She manages to scramble to her feet before offering her hand to the arachnoid, as a gesture of greeting.

".....Somebody should put up signs saying beware of gravity & fast-moving water." Aengus noted, referring to his own falls earlier, as well as Dee's underwater struggles. Though he was still hungry, Aengus thought that it would probably be wise to offer this new girl some food. Taking some of what was left in the cooking pot, he added it to what remained of his own share, & offered the bowl to their new arrival.

"You look like you could use a good meal & a little rest. why not join us for breakfast? There's not a whole lot left, but it should be enough for a decent meal, & it would be a rude to let someone like yourself go hungry."

Taryn took Trrb's offered hand and shook it warmly, smiling at her. It crossed her mind that it was a bit ironic that they were getting along in this way; generally spiders ate bees. But Taryn had just finished her meal and satisfied her hunger; Trrb was in no danger.
When Aengus gave up the rest of his stew to the newcomer, Lydia, who had had her fill and was pushing the rest of her food around with her spoon, promptly offered her leftovers to Aengus.

Dee licked the last scraps of food from his bowl, watching the two insect women meet. Would it cause strife in the future? Eh. What did it matter. They weren't nessicarily going to travel with them just because one had been fished out of the river by another.

"You would think that gravity and fast water would be expected around a riverside." Dee chuckled at Aengus' comment, licking scraps from his snout. Dee pondered some of the remaining food, but if their new companion was going to eat with them... well, at least he had /something/ to eat...

But still, a human sized bowlful wasn't much, and he couldn't help but look over at Lydia's leftovers with intrest, inwardly groaning when she offered it to Aengus instead.

Oh sush, you. He mentally scolded himself, You're hardly starving. Don't start acting like a lapdog! Isn't that why you got into that stupid fight?

He huffed at himself, maybe a little overdramatically, stretching out his sore leg and flopping down onto his side.

"Why thank you, Lydia. Such a sweet little girl." Aengus replied, smiling as he gladly took her leftovers. Giving up his own food had been more an act of diplomacy than generosity, as he was still quite hungry. So, Lydia's gesture was greatly appreciated. "True, Dee. But you know the old saying. Common sense is anything but common."

With that, Aengus shut up & chowed down on what was left in the bowl Lydia had given him. Things seemed to be going well. People were getting along, supplies were......well, not plentiful, but easily replenish-able. And, at the very least, this group seemed far more capable than he had ever expected. Together, they could accomplish a great deal, & might even have what it takes to go the distance. Only time will tell, of course, but it was still fun to speculate.

After finishing his own meal, Aengus collected his things & prepared to travel onward. As nice as it might be to sit & rest, they'd need to get moving soon, lest the trail of their quarry go cold. Besides, it was never a good idea to stay in any one place for too long. Especially in the case of a certain wayward vagabond. And, of course, they really needed to make some progress before night fell yet again.

((Not trying to rush things at all. Just wrapping things up so I don't hold anything back. Also, GovernorMuffin wants us to just go ahead for a bit, & he'll catch up.))

Trrrb, shook the arachnoid's hand gratefully, and then turned to the group. As she turned, she was caught off guard by the stranger's generous offer of victuals.

"Oh my, thank you! Oh this is quite the meal for me. I've been flying on cram rations and this soup looks to be quite scrumptious."

Accepting the bowl, she quickly began gobbling down the content. She made note to get a better look at each of the individuals while slurping and munching.

Thoughtlog:
/Hmmm, well the arachnoid woman seems tame enough. Lightly clothed, probably not the heavy fighter. This smaller man seems rather lithe. And quite the gentleman. Unusually bubbly for a human. This larger manling is quite stocky... nice sword too. Definitely the heavy hitter here. Hmmm. I would hope to have a round with him sometime. Hope to test myself against another heavy hitter. These two poiny ears are the wildcards. Probably family, from the way he's watching the smaller one. Hmmmm. Must have some maygikal trick up their sleeves to be traveling in such a group... Ahh and the scaleling. Large and fast. Water, as well. Hmmmm a tricky customer, but seems alright enough to travel with humans as such. I certainly hope elemental ties won't be a problem. Ah well. Better get some introductions on their way. The smaller manling seems eager to travel./

"Ahh, I don't mean to pry, but who are you all? I'm a little hard up to properly give thanks without any names." She inquires.

Quickly remembering herself, "Ohh, excuse me, my name is... well probably rather difficult for most of you. But call me by my title, Trrrb. Should be much more manageable."

William was more focused on eating throughout most of the ordeal, having horribly exhausted himself earlier that day and was absolutely famished. He finished, and realized he was still hungry. As he stood to see if there was any soup left, he noticed nobody was sitting by the fire. Looking around, he saw everyone talking to Trrrb. His eyes widened and he froze, then sighed and put his bowl down on his bench, walked over, and stuck out a hand to shake. His sudden cordiality was basically him giving up. He'd seen enough odd people to just give the old 'oh nooo I'm so surprised about this odd looking monster person' bit a rest. So, as he extended his hand, he smiled and introduced himself. "William Ericsson, swordsman and earth magician. You could say I'm a pretty grounded person. ...Wait. ...Gods damn that witch!!"

"Taryn," the spiderling said, "Healer and heat magic." Then she backed away a little so a delighted little girl-child could come bounding from between her legs up to the new face and stick out a hand.
"My name's Lydia," she chirped cheerfully, grinning up at Trrb. "And this is my brother Angel."
Angel nodded dutifully, but extended no hand to shake.
When William introduced himself, Taryn paid some attention. She hadn't had a proper introduction from much of the group, and didn't know anyone's powers or skills yet. William's offhand wordplay caught her by surprise and she snickered despite herself. He didn't seem to be amused with it, saying something about a witch, but the pun was actually rather clever.

Dee, uninclined to get up at this moment, arched his long neck and rested it on his shoulder to observe the introductions. Her 'simpler' name was almost impossible for him. Where she buzzed it out quickly, he tested it softly to himself and could hear it changed into a growl instead. Ah. Well. He just had a terrible accent then. Or she did. Whichever.

"Dee" He said by way of introduction, tossing his tail in a waving motion. "Deepstream, born and raised. Booze-flinger by trade. Though I don't think we have much of that with us, do we?"

"Though, we do seem to have plenty of Hotheads, don't we?" He added, going over the list of how many Fire-users they had in their little group. Well. Maybe it'd be helpful.

"And I'm Aengus. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Trrb." Aengus walked towards the edge of the cliff & looked out over the forest below, trying to get a feel for the area. Not that he had any idea where they were headed, but it never hurt to be prepared. After doing his best to identify the less traveler friendly areas of the forest, he walked back over to the group.

"I hate to seem anxious, but do we actually have a plan as for where to go next? It'd be pretty annoying if we ended up heading the wrong direction."

"I was thinking we should go back to the town. Get some supplies." Dee suggested, "I dragged most of you out here because I was worried about my tribe, but do you have everything you'd need?" He started to braid his baubles into his mane, slow and awkward, but practiced.

"After that... Well.. The shifter was last seen to the north of here, so I hear. And far to the south before that. And north-eastern before that. It's unpredictable." He growled in frustration as a coppery coin slipped out of his claws and had to be batted at before it rolled away.

He paused, tongue flicking out in lizardly thought. "What we need is a SkyHound."

"They're an air-element species" He added in explaination, "Stay high, high in the sky for weeks at a time. If anyone has a good understanding of what's going on within a hundred miles, it's them. To call them hawk-eyed would be to drag them down to the hawk's level."

"You are searching for the Shifter's Soul?" Taryn asked suddenly. The point of this little group's quest had not yet been made clear to her, and now that it was, she looked around at her companions with a little more curiosity and a much more discerning eye. Eventually that eye fell on Lydia and narrowed. What was a child that small doing in an adventure like this? Of course, she had displayed impressive power during the little spat with the dragons. Maybe she wasn't so helpless.
The spiderling really hadn't planned on going on any grand adventures with this group, but the more she looked at them, the more it looked like she was going to anyway. They didn't have a single medic among them, and more than one of them were detectably accident-prone. And going after the Shifter's Soul was not going to be a cake walk on anyone. She had better tag along.

"Indeed we are, Miss Taryn. And, while I certainly don't speak for everyone, I for one would be quite pleased to have you join us. With your medical expertise, as well as your impressive magical prowess, you would likely be an invaluable addition to our little rag-tag group." Aengus smiled warmly, then turned his attention to their newest visitor. "As would you, Miss Trrb. You seem more than capable of handling yourself, & we could really use another skilled warrior on the front line."

Backing away, Aengus turned to face the group as a whole. "Now, getting a SkyHound sounds like a brilliant idea. I just hope we can actually find on. As for supplies, we could definitely do with some more food for the road ahead. Catching our meals is all well & good, but we might find ourselves in situations where hunting is less than advisable. And, if I might make a small suggestion, we should try to pick up some raw materials for basic equipment maintenance. Dull blades & damaged armor are about as useful as wet charcoal."

Aengus began pacing, twirling his lucky coin through between his fingers. "Of course, we don't want to travel too heavy, either. Don't want to get weighted down, especially if we find ourselves pursuing an exceptionally evasive target. But I think I've droned on long enough. Anyone else have suggestions for our little grocery list, or are we ready to roll?

"Talk as you go" Dee huffed. Once they left the river it was still a long walk, in his eyes at least, even longer with his aches. "If everyone carries what they need for themselves we should be fine, right?" Really, what he wanted to grab wasn't all that much. Some of his 'liquid fire' and more importantly his small pile of coin he had earned in employ. He couldn't think of anything else he could want or need from the village.

"Oh, a town sounds delightful. That was my original goal in coming this way. Seems the forest threw me for a loop though."

She bowed her wings slightly and removed her pack. "Ahh, I would be delighted to join up for a time. My people have always stressed safety in numbers, and-" extending her pointer finger, she heated space surrounding her chitinous digit and used it to melt a line in the fill wax seal of her pack, "I feel I may be able to help with the ware care."

She dug around in the sack and produced a lidded tin. Holding the container our, she read its label, "SouthHive Wax ©, Good for Nearly Everything, at least that's what our top alchemists say. Made this batch myself, just try not to use it all before my next chance to make more." With a small smile, she tossed it back into her bag and resealed the waxen bag.

Anyone who looked closely would find that the areas between Trrrb's armor seemed to have an unusual coating. Looking further they would notice that Trrrb's armor had the same dull... waxy sheen to it. Water from the river had not managed to cling to any area of Trrrb, beyond the ends of her hair that stuck out of her sallet.

A handy substance, if not a little strange.

Shouldering her pack, "I haven't much else to offer besides my sword, my wax and my back. I could carry more if it comes to it. I'm a little more used to heavy labor than I look."

"If you would trust me with your possessions of course" she added, "I'm still a little new to concepts of personal belongings, but cultural adaptation is definitely happening."

"On that note, what's a Shifter's Soul?"