You stand in a large crowd, gathered on a hillside, the air is fresh, crisp; a brisk wind blows. The breeze is cool, but not cold. This hill is part of a larger mountain plateau. The hill is close to the treeline. You can smell the trees on the air, and see them nearby as the dot the mountains rising up around you. It is mid-day. The sky is clear and the sun shines down brightly. The ground under you is unremarkable, covered in typical flora for this altitude, tufts of rough grasses, lichens, a few scraggly flowers and other ground cover.
"Well, I am surprised that worked. Did I get everyone?" Jovar asks flatly. It flaps into the air slightly and appears to be counting. "Shame we couldn't get some of the bigger golems." Hovering in place, his voice flat and emotionless, but with definite tones that remind you of Goodwin, the small lumpy construct advises, "We will want to seek out Master Kao Lor, if he lives, or any of his bloodline. He was a friend of Master Goodwin. Once we determine where we are, we will need to begin some research into his location or that of his progeny." Jovar stops speaking, and seems to be internally processing options. "I am guessing you will required food, water and shelter as a priority."
Grobly blinks wide at the new sky, imagining what it will look like once the sun has set. A small thump from behind indicated tot he Goblin that his Bestest-Friend-Ever, Bazzt, had made it through also. Insinctually, Grobly will take a step back, under the Dire Bats wing and begin eyeing his surroundings.
"Blah blahblah will required food, water and shelter as a priority."
At the mention of food, Groblys ears will perk up and he will lift an arm in volunteer. "I can help find foods and stuffs for us." Groblys belly rumbles in agreement.
Goivan looks around to take in the landscape, huge double-axe held loosely in one hand. His stone features are surprisingly human as he goes through confusion and wonder. He flexes out his short wings and turns to the rest. Image
"Thank you Jovar, I'm sure you just saved all our lives." He gives the construct a nod of thanks. He takes in just the massive scope of people that they have there, all powerful individuals but in different stages of training. This is going to be a mess. He clears his throat, speaking loudly to gather everyone's attention. He knows he can be a figure to rally behind, and they need a voice of order and compassion. "Things are rough right now, but we will figure this out. First things first is we work together, as Jovar says we need to make sure we stay alive above all else. Water is the first thing, then food, then shelter. Once that is done we'll start looking for civilization, and then..." Above all else, Goivan is trying to establish order and calm. He is making himself the rock upon which the others can lean in this confusing time.
A small blue skinned woman stands among the gathered beasts. She is dressed in a ragged tunic barely keeping her decent showing off her muscled arms and shapely legs.
Xanya Zellor is her name and she is a Derro. She stands just under three feet tall, making her about half the size or less of most the others gathered in the clearing. She has several lumpy sacks and pouches tied to her belt and is carrying a long lance, nearly three times her length.
Xanya stabs the lance towards the sun. Her beautiful face is contorted in rage and as always her eyes are blazing white. "You need to get your priorities straight Goivan. First we need to deal with this cursed sun. What good does food and water if we perish due to this evil light? Luckily I got just the thing to deal with that." Xanya seems to calm down again, as quick to settle down as to anger. A smile even appears on her face as she brushes back her wild long red hair. "Next we should prepeare our spells and other resources, finding water can wait an hour and we don't know what dangers we might encounter. Hopefully something evil I can rip to shreds, oh it has been so long, too long...[b]" In her head she hears. You are losing it. She shakes her head at the mental prod. "[b]Nevermind that, we'll deal with what we meet when we meet it."
Grobly pokes his head around Bazzts' wing, his attention shifting to those around him. After their travel, Grobly is dressed in nothing but a small loincloth. A bandoleer hangs limply across one shoulder, strapped into it are various pouches and bottles. A simple, silver ring - a gift from Goodwin- rests on the middle finger of his left hand.
To the Gargoyle, Grobly will snort in amusement. Longshins are always at a loss when they don't have wood above their heads. "Water is easy. We can be pulling that from the air!" The goblin will make a gesture with his hands, wriggling his fingers as his arms flail about; a gesture the Goblin clearly meant to indicate magic.
Grobly will eye the Derro with equal parts suspicion and curiosity. How does she balance that long stick? "When I catch the food, we can use your stick to roast it on, yes?" Grobly will begin to salivate at the thought of food (again).
Mlinzi looks around, his curious brown eyes taking in the entire landscape and the sky above. "Gotta say, I think Jorvar's got the right idea. I'm always ready for anything, so if some of you want to stay behind and prepare, I could go take a look around and see if I find anything interesting." He almost added that he'd be happy to stay behind if they needed protection, but then he thought better of it. He didn't want to insult anyone, and he knew everyone here was quite capable. "Any idea where we are? Maybe there's a cave nearby where we can get out of the sun." Though he has no trouble with sunlight himself, in a group this large and this diverse, it's best to keep as many people happy as possible.
The Vanara is slightly less than medium height, wearing simple, lightweight robes and carrying a gigantic hammer with a haft that's nearly twice the length of his own body. His face is long and baboon-like, and he has thick gray-brown dreadlocks covering his head. His speech is rapid and staccato, high-pitched for a male and a little gravelly.
The large-muscled lizardfolk strode forward, joining the group as he became aware of his surroundings.
His dark black scales shone in the shining sun, and his two-handed sword hung from a leather strap around his chest as he listened in to the gargoyle.
"If it is water we need, I, too, can bring us plenty to hold us for at least today."
He says a few words in the tongue of the lizardfolk, and summoned a shower of water to coat his back, lowering his body temperature from the burning sun.
"Do we have anything to hold it in? And, I can certainly hunt for food for us."
Standing at least head and shoulders above most of his brothers, sisters, and gender unspecific siblings, Tavros blinks slowly at the new sky above, one hoof absently pawing at the ground. He's dressed simply in tan slacks and sleeveless shirt, the deep v-neck doing nothing to hide is strong figure. And of course, no shoes. He had probably woken enough people up with his still amateurish attempts at tap dancing to remind everyone of the metal horseshoes he was shod in. Around his neck is a chain supporting an medium palm sized disc that hangs about an inch or two below where the white stripe on his neck gives way to a human upper body. Other than that, all the other fur on his bull's head appears black.
Moving calmly, Tavros moves Xanya's side. He gives her a rather large, and admittedly rather dumb-looking, smile as he attempts to put himself between her and the sun. The attempt, while not especially successful, is at least genuine in intent.
He speaks slowly in a warm, lumbering bass. "I'm not sure splitting up is a good idea, Mlinzi. There is strength in numbers."
Karkoran felt ornery. He was always ornery in the morning. Well, actually he was always ornery. He stomped a giant hoof on the ground, creating a loud thump, raising a small cloud of dust. Snorting, and exhaling through large bovine nostrils, he thundered, his voice low, and deep like a bass drum. "We have trained for this, we can survive. We will not starve."
Towering above most of the group, he surveyed the hilltop. In each hand he gripped a huge hooked club, attached to the wrist by a long thick woven cord. Next to him, his battle companion, a tawny feline bred for battle and simply named Warcat, stretched and yawned. Karkoran, nicknamed the Butcher, a name from the past he strove to put behind him, adjusted his wide belt, and codpiece. He took stock of his pouch of components, hastily grabbed as he woke from the stasis tube. His thick black fur and polished black horns gleamed in the sun light. Seeing Tavros shield Xanya from the sun, he nodded, thinking to do the same. He often felt the urge to display kindness when able, to counter the brutal dark past that haunted him....
(Voice of Baphomet) "Now there is one who I had thought never to sense again. How is it that after thousands of years a mortal like you reappears? Intriguing. And where is your erstwhile mentor? Gone missing? Yet who remains, Baphomet, your true lord and master. Return to the fold Karkoran, all will be forgiven. Enter the Grand Labyrinth and worship once again. Retake your namesake, Butcher, it is your.."
"NOOOOOOOO! " bellowed Karkoran aloud, startling those nearby. His eyes rolled in fury and he gripped his weapons tightly. Coming to his senses, he blocked out the voice he had hoped would never plague him again.
"You are dead to me Baphomet, torment me no more!" he replied, his anger rising.
(Voice of Baphomet)"We shall see my son, we shall see. Your destiny is sealed, though you do not admit it."
He shook his head and made his way to Tavros, a fellow minotaur. He greeted Tavros with "Uklan Bua'Batorr" which in the Giant tongue meant 'The Beast Within', a simple statement used often by minotaurs to describe a variety of sentiments good or bad. He knew that Tavros also had his own internal struggles and would understand his outburst. Angered at the turn of events, Karkoran felt like stomping off into the wilderness, but then understood the situation called for a plan. Trying to not think independently, he refrained from storming off and listened to Goivan and the others devise their first plan of action. He would focus on his role as a Warder and Defender.
Quassine covers his eyes at the bright sunlight and tries the block out the sun with his arm. He then pulls up his goggles and places them over his eyes. Being told by Goodwin that his race is not appreciated on the world he came from, he tucks away his tentacles and tries to cover up his Mind Flayer features as much as he can.
Champawat began pacing in circles. The longer she paced, the wider the circles got. The wider the circles, the faster she moved. I cannot stand this waiting. There must be something for us to do in this blasted place, must be something that we can hunt. After minutes of running around she eventually comes to a stop and approaches her brothers and sisters. "I say half of us scout the surrounding area and hunt while the rest of you find whatever shelter you need. Forgive me. I am...anxious to find master.
"We can split up once we've found a way to communicate," replies one of the shadowy smallfolk. "We've been gone for a very long time. The world turns on its axis, thousands upon thousands, seasons change, continents shift, civilizations rise and fall. We don't know whether the beasts and berries we might find are the same we once ate safely. We don't know what people might live nearby, what languages they would speak, and whether or not they're savage cannibals who would kill and eat us on sight. Hunger can wait. We need scouting and a geographical bearing, and we need shelter—and we need tools."
"Do you think we will find these things or learn where we are by sitting here and waiting? I want what you want, but if it is not here now, it will not be here later."
Eleanor takes some time to tie her hair back while the others discuss how to proceed. Regardless of the circumstances it was nice to be back in the prime material. A cool breeze, warm sun and the singing insects were all a welcome change from the artificial place they had called home for so long.
She stands with Champawat and adds. "We shouldn't waste time sitting around while our mages browse their tomes. Might as well see what we're dealing with and take a look around, gather whatever seems useful. I don't know about the rest of you but I could use something to cover my feet."
Tor blinks as his senses return to him, slowly looking around to get a handle of his surroundings. Realizing his companions are nearby, the gnoll approaches them with quiet steps. "That was most disconcerting. How are the rest of you?" he asks in a guttural voice, his red eyes darting between the others.
Mlinzi jumped back a pace as Karkoran bellowed, instinctively dropping into a defensive crouch and holding his hammer ready. Seeing that the moment had passed without incident however, he straightened and relaxed.
"I say we split into smaller groups and scout in different directions. That way, we can cover more ground. Those who need time to prepare can stay here, with a few of us tough guys to keep watch over them until they're ready. If we combine our skills, we should manage alright for an hour or so apart. If we find a high point, I could climb up and take a look, no problem."
To illustrate the point, he planted the head of his hammer on the ground and quickly swarmed to the top, balancing on the haft, his long tail wrapped around the weapon shaft for support and stability, shading his eyes with his hand and peering into the distance. The action seemed as easy and natural as sitting down.
"Each group should take someone who knows about living off the land, preferably someone who knows how to remember terrain and draw a map of what they've seen. Heavy hitters should split up among the groups to provide protection if they run into trouble. After an hour, we regroup and share our findings. That'll give us a good chance of finding something interesting - food, shelter, civilization, enemies, Goodwin - anything."
Xanya turns to look over at the goblin hiding beneath the bat. Her large, for her size at least, breasts sway with the movement at the same time as they strain against the flimsy material of her tunic. I need to find something to restrain my breasts so they don't get in the way of fighting, she thinks to herself. This time it's disgust that's visible on her face. "My lance is not for roasting things. It's for stabbing and killing, rending flesh apart, rupturing organs and crushing bones, penetrating skin and piercing all the way through bodies." Xanya says in a sensual voice. Her expression turn to one of pleasure as she describes its purpose. Her face then gets on an expression of sorrow. "Besides Goodwin gave it to me. It's my most prized possession because of that. We do need to find and rescue him as soon as possible."
Xanya looks up at Tavros as he comes to shield her from the sun. An expression of anger on her face. "I don't need no help." She thinks, Easy there, he is just trying to help, you should be nice to those who mean well. The answering voice in her head that she knows belongs to her Eidolon immediately calms her down. It takes less than a split second before her visage is transformed to one of humble happiness. "Thank you Tavros, but my magic should help me take the edge of the light, your concern and the shade you provide is still appreciated though." Xanya reaches out a hand to pat his thigh in thanks. As she does so, she is struck by his strong smell which makes her smile grow even wider. "He smells so male, so good." she thinks to herself. His flesh feels warm under her hand. "So warm and strong. Ah, I wonder if he could replace what I couldn't find with Goodwin." She blushes furiously at the thought, "Though he is certainly way too large for me, but my magic should be able to deal with that issue no problem." She keeps her hand on his thigh and starts running her calloused, war-trained hand up and down and enjoys the feeling of the soft fur underneath.
"My lance is not for roasting things. It's for stabbing and killing, rending flesh apart, rupturing organs and crushing bones, penetrating skin and piercing all the way through bodies. Besides Goodwin gave it to me. It's my most prized possession because of that. We do need to find and rescue him as soon as possible."
Grobly eyes Xanya with a hefty amount of suspicion as she readjusts herself and describes her heirloom. He seems to think on an appropriate response for much longer than should be needed, giving the Minotaur attempting to aid Xanya an irritated glare. "Well, I can do all those things with my teeth!" The Goblin appears satisfied with his retort.
Hearing the others begin talks about scouting parties, Grobly will use such as an excuse to ask: "If we be wantin to look far, Bazzts a flyer-" The goblin will lift one of the Dire Bats arms and point at the membranous wings. "We can see very far up in the sky!" Grobly gets a little exited at his own idea, looking for anyone who might affirm his idea a good one.
Hseir notices the goblin looking at the rest of the party, and nods his head.
"That's a good idea, Grobly. Why don't you go ahead and do it?" Hseir-shae says, attempting to improve the goblin's spirit.
Greebins rolls lazily in the grace for a bit, and pretends to sleep, but watches Champawat intently as he paces. He listens in on the various conversations, taking in the varies attitudes and opinions, analyzing and disregarding. Suddenly he springs up, jumps in the air ten feet, then calmly purrs, "Xanya, I find it hard to believe master Goodwin would give anyone a thing for such purposes. It is certainly not what he crafted my blade for. Though perhaps he wanted to see if indeed that IS what you would do with it. We are all a morality experiment, are we not?" He then paces ten feet, finds a spot that looks slightly different than the rest of the ground and sits on it, staring at the others.
Xanya quirks an eyebrow at the goblin's response and throws him a doubtful look. "Your teeth? Really? You can pierce all the way through bodies and crush bones?" Then suddenly she smiles with excitement and continues in an excited voice. "I would like to see that. If you can drill through bodies I can that would take some impressive skill, magic or both."
"Well, Xanya, the powerful magic of my tribe will allow me to take the form of giant beasts, which will eventually allow me to, how did you say it, drill through bodies?"
"Until then, however, my sword and claws shall serve."
He draws his greatsword, an ancient-looking sword with many tribal fetishes hanging from it.
Grobly nods in glee at Xanya's request. "I can eat through anything! I once ate a whole gobbos head! And this one time, I ate a Hob's whole foot! right off the ankle!" Grobly cackles at the memory before halting abruptly. "It needed pepper."
At Hseir-shae's request for items to hold liquid in, Grobly will pat himself down, finding nothing but a few small flasks that might be used for potions. He will offer them to the Lizardman bashfuly. "I's got nothing bigger... But we surrounded by green!" The goblin will motion to the wilderness they find themselves surrounded by. "So much green means water. And food. Can anyone else fly?" Grobly will look amongst his fellows for obvious wings. "I would flap wings at night.."
Hseir graciously accepts the vials.
"Well, little one, I think we can use these to hold the water, until we can find something bigger. As for flying? I cannot fly yet."
"Xanya, I find it hard to believe master Goodwin would give anyone a thing for such purposes. It is certainly not what he crafted my blade for. Though perhaps he wanted to see if indeed that IS what you would do with it. We are all a morality experiment, are we not?" He then paces ten feet, finds a spot that looks slightly different than the rest of the ground and sits on it, staring at the others.
Xanya's smile sours and she shoot Greebins a look of contempt. She doesn't like the derision of her most prized possession and treasured memory of her loved Archmage. "What is wrong with that purpose? Whether it's hunting for food, killing to protect the innocent or to defend yourself those are all tasks it's good to be able to accomplish." She then laughs, a hearty joyous laughter. "What matters is not what you do, but the intent behind it. Do you kill for pleasure or to protect? Do you give someone water to drink or to drown them? Goodwin has taught me well and I will not rip your head off or pierce your skull just because you insult his memory." As always her expressions shift rapidly and her outlook shifts to triumph by the time she is done. Well said comes the voice in her head.
Tavros' ears flick back as Karkoran bellows but otherwise doesn't move. He trusted his brother, and Goodwin's training, to keep his inner turmoil in check.
She keeps her hand on his thigh and starts running her calloused, war-trained hand up and down and enjoys the feeling of the soft fur underneath.
Tavros, used to Xanya's affection, pays it little mind. Instead, he seems more concerned with some of the...other comments going on in addition to the threats of bickering. He seems a tad saddened by it. He had never really liked their bickering. I suppose it is normal for siblings to fight. I just hope we can reign it in without Goodwin's help.
Snapping out of his thoughts, he tries to back up Hseir-shae in cheering Grobbly up. "Yes Grobbly, I think it'd be most helpful to get a better view of our surroundings. Although I'm afraid I myself cannot do it. I'm also sure we don't want a repeat of the last time I *ahem* attempted to 'aid' someone in flying." He gives an apologetic smile.
Grobly recalls the time Tavros' was talking about. Grobly himself was still learning from Goodwyn about the paths of neutrality and the tenants of Druidism at the time. He recalls really having wanting to have been thrown by the minotaur, and knowing he would have done it right.
Grobly is probably known amongst his brethren as something of a mischief maker, always getting into something that shouldn't be gotten into. He has never backed down from a fight, and rumors suggest he might have been swallowed by the Ogre. At least once.
As if waiting to stall for the sun to set, Grobly will hold off mounting his bat and eye the myriad of monsters that make up his kin. "We make a strange tribe. It don't matter if the longshins are furry or not, with us, we will not get far without a fight." Grobly's eyes will narrow. "And that isn't even considering the Hobs that might be about." Those that have talked with Grobly during their time on the demi-plane would know that the goblin refers to all lawful evil creatures as Hobs
Greebins licks his paws dispassionately. "Intent indeed... *sigh*"
"This is true, Grobly. I guess we must all be prepared for what we'll find out there."
The goblin nods sagely, jumping on any moment others might show him praise. Knowing that Hseir-shae shared some of the core tenants of nature with the goblin made the Lizardmans praise all the more effective in getting the goblin to step out from under Bazzts wing. "Do you think the same tenants hold amongst the Circles? Goodwyn taught me good, but the little Goodwyn said its been some time..."
The Goblin will spare a moment to eye Greebins, through Bazzts long fingers. Grobly had seen the Catfolk around, and always thought he smelled kinda funny. "We also must be protecting the Small Mast.. Jovar." Grobly will say as an afterthought. "Cant have him be snatched too."
Greebins eyes up the goblin. "Of course, of course. We should probably find some shade for Xanya as well, all this the sun is clearly affecting her brain." He lays down, and feigns sleep.
Lucina approaches the group looking heart broken, she always seemed a little lost or dazed but sorrow was rarely seen on her face."I've lost my dream journal." She says in a quiet pout."What do need to do first?" there seemed to be a lot of debate about splitting up or staying together so Lucina would settle for following what the others wanted instead of adding to the argument.
"Trees," Teniel says, and points to the nearby forest. "Shade, and wood. Stay near the edge, where things don't grow enough for wolves or bears to sneak up on us. Can decide then who scouts, hunts, gathers. We should go," and he lightly kicks the catfolk who has just lain down.
"Trees could mean food, too," Mlinzi points out. "There could be fruit or nuts, not to mention eggs or even honey if we're lucky. And with a group this large, no sane bear or pack of wolves would come anywhere within a mile of us. Maybe during the night to steal our food, if we had any, but while we're awake and making noise, wild animals shouldn't bother us." The Vanaran stays atop his hammer, more comfortable at altitude than he is on the ground, and looking quite at ease despite his precarious perch.
Finally gaining his composure from the bright sunlight, placing his goggles on his eyes, and kind of trying to hide his most prominent Mind Flayer features, Quassine begins to speak in his loud burbling gurgling whisper, "Jovar where in Nethys name are we? Maybe one of us is familiar where we are? We need to find Archmage Goodwin as soon as possible, and rescue him hopefully before it is too late!" Frustrated with the sun still partially piercing his goggles, "I now know why my more sinister members of my Mind Flayer fathers want to snuff out the sun. This light really bothers my partial Mind Flayer eyes! However fear not my brothers and sisters, I will not find a way to snuff out the light. My barbaric blood loves the sun too much to make a good thing disappear and I will find a way to mitigate it or perhaps these goggles that the Archmage gave me will finally do something besides shield my eyes from flying liquids and debris during lab experimentation?"
...for hiding most prominent Mind Flayer Features if needed and possible with current gear
Greebins ears perk up at the mention of food, but then he hears the Vanaran continue. "Fruits and nuts are food? Pfft. Let's get in the shade, and maybe on eof those bears Dalang mentioned will show up. That would give Xanya something to poke and make plenty of food for the rest of us." He rubs his paws on his face, then stretches out, flexing his claws.
Quassine replies to Greebins in his burbling gurgling raspy voice (loud whisper), annoyed by the sun, and trying to block it out, "I agree with Brother Greebins, let's all move to the shade and determine how to proceed from there. And why are some of you worried about food. We need to locate Fath ... Archmage Goodwin!"
"As much as we all want to find master, he is just one man, and we are many. We cannot find master if we are dead so our survival is currently more important than master's. Master has been missing a long time, another day or two should not worsen his situation.
Hseir-shae, perhaps Mlinzi could see farther if you raised his hammer above your head. The extra 10 feet of height should enhance his range.
Using his basic bookworm knowledge about survival, "Given that we are not starving and in the forest, we need water before food since we will probably perish within 3 days without it. While food, we can go weeks without and we are near a forest which means food will be more plentiful than in a wasteland or desert-like environment. However, I must admit, it will not hurt to gather food for later especially food that does not rot as fast as unsalted meat."
"You are of course right about needing water sooner than needing food. However, considering half us can summon water at will, I don't think it's very efficient for us to go looking for it. What we really need are containers to store the water in, since none of us seem to have waterskins."
Xanya is annoyed that her affection is ignored. She harumps and withdraw her hands from his pants. "Am I not good enough for him? Is it just that I am too small? Though I suppose I am too small eh? Even with magic things might be troublesome and having to rely on magic could make things awkward." Her thoughts race and her expression turns from annoyed to sad without her saying a word. Don't worry about that now. I am sure you'll find someone that is right for you if you just be yourself and show some patience. Xanya's mournful disappear as she bursts into laughter. "I can't do both." She thinks back.
Xanya withdraws her hand away from Tavros and takes half a step away, though she is careful to remain in the shade of the large Minotaur. She turns to look over to the mindflayer "My magic will protect us from the light in a moment. As for food or scouting, I see no problem with those who don't have any spells to study or pray for to gather information about our surroundings while the rest of us prepare ourselves."
Tavros looks around for paper for Lucina, frowning. Finding none, he briefly considers attempting to tear his shirt to make some, but quickly realizes that that wouldn't solve the lack of a writing tool issue. And that clothing is a less than ideal writing material anyway. He shrugs apologetically at her. He had never really understood her fascination with dreams. But then, perhaps that's because his always tended to be bad. He was generally thanking his lucky stars when he met only nothingness as he slept. He could at least agree with her love of freedom, even if they tended to focus on different aspects of it.
Between the sun hurting his siblings' eyes, the lack of food, and Lucina's missing journal, Tavros was beginning to get annoyed at his uselessness. So of course, his ears perked right up at Champawat's suggestion. He turns to Mlinzi, grinning stupidly. "Would you like for me to lift you up for a higher look?"
Quassine nods to Champawat, "So unless Jovar has waterskins for us, perhaps we should hunt for an animal or animals first to start preparing the wineskins, sacks for carrying the nuts or other things, and to feed us rag tag bunch?"
Something tells me we shouldn't leave the area just yet. Call it feline intuition.
Tor frowns as the others ignore his question, too engrossed with finding food. Crossing his arms, he coughs to get their attention. "Surely a group of this size has at least one member capable of foraging or hunting. Is there really any need for all this worry?"
Tor frowns as the others ignore his question, too engrossed with finding food. Crossing his arms, he coughs to get their attention. "Surely a group of this size has at least one member capable of foraging or hunting. Is there really any need for all this worry?"
"Indeed."
The golden ball of fluff that had previously been asleep in the grass finally awakens after all of the excitement and talking manages to make her finally move. As she curls out of something roughly akin to a ball, it becomes clear that it's Maks.
The gold-furred kitsune shines in the morning sunlight as she stretches languidly, completely unperturbed by the current predicament. She's dressed in what amounts to underwear (though much more concealment isn't exceptionally common for the kitsune, anyway). Commonly, she'd be wearing silks beyond this assortment of clothing... but bed clothes were bed clothes. Her body is lithe, but muscular (though it's hard to entirely tell, due to being covered in fur). She yawns, her voice soft yet melodic, as she looks lazily around herself... then tilts her head, each of her seven tails (complete with a small bow tied near the tip) dance and twitch of their own accord.
"Where are we? What are we doing here?" she asks, her voice surprisingly gentle, given the size of her muzzle. As she stands a small, but resplendently colorful Thrush hops up onto her shoulder, previously hidden beneathe the bulk of her body. She blinks as she looks down at the Totem Spear that Goodwin had modified for her, tilting her head curiously. She lifts it, sending a cascade of notes swirling about her as she does so... then looks around once more. "Where are my paintings..? Where's my -stuff-?"
"You are indeed correct Tor. However the question isn't what to do, but more how to do it all. There are several things that we need to accomplish quickly. We need to scout. We need to find shade and shelter. We need to get out of plain sight where anything from hundreds of yards away can easily see such a large group. We need to acquire food and tools. However there seems to be some kind of force wall keeping us close together. No doubt some sort of side effect from Jovar's efforts of moving us to this location. But once we are free to move beyond our immediate sight, we must have well-laid plans to make the best use of all of our skills and expertise.
For example, Grobly is obviously suited for aerial reconnaissance. While those with heavy bladed pole arms should cut down a tree or two so that we can begin carving out bowls and buckets to transport water. Perhaps if everyone declared what task they can or should perform, we can start forming into teams and spring into action once this invisible obstacle is removed. Sigh, forgive me. I do not like this idleness."
"Have... any of you ever read a book about the outdoors?" Teniel shakes his head, "Unless your body is radically different, most people can go weeks without food in times of hardship. And we've already talked about how water is not an issue. It's the elements that will become problematic—and if we find nuts or berries in the forest, we'll need someone who can magically remove any possible poison before I'm willing to touch the stuff."