Os moves towards the sounds realising it is a campsite. Enroute he scans the snow looking for signs of who they may be or who or what they search for...
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The ranger pauses momentarily as he eyes the snow's secrets with a scowl, before seconds later, his eyes widen as he recognises one of the nearby voices...
By the Bloody God's Bones! Wilhem?!
Pushing himself to his feet, Os ignores his aching knees and enters the campsite clearing...
Seconds after Wilhelm's barks his orders, another figure shifts into the campsite like a ghost. The lean figure bears bow, with axe and backward curved knife sitting at his waist, and as he pushes back his hood, white beard and wild hair that frame intense weathered eyes, tumble forth to meet your cautious gazes;
"Best listen to the man greenhorns! He's a decent ranger... and a better butcher!"
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Wilhelm is halfway through taking down a tent when someone enters the camp. The old man whirls around drawing his sword, but stops in surprise at who he sees.
"Os?" He blinks and scrutinizes the newcomer before slipping the sword back into the sheathe and wrapping the man in a friendly embrace.
"Os it is ye! Where have ye been, ye damn loon!" the ranger says as he lets go. "I see yer doin' well at least. Better'n us at any rate." he says as he resumes breaking camp.
Delilah helped the Aasimar breakdown her tent as the newcomer seemed to appear from nowhere. "چه جهنم گیر کرده!" She exclaimed in surprise. "Where did he come from?" The Witch asked once she collected her thoughts.
Helena cringes as she's thrown to the ground, but she doesn't scream. She's fought off goblins and brigands; these forests have brought her no fear. At least, that's what she tells herself as she's pinned to the floor, fighting down the terror that rises as her clothes are ripped and her flesh caressed.
She stakes stock of her magic, cursing the fact that whatever primal life force saw fit to bless her with such healing powers never thought to grant her an offensive charm, a burst of light, the ability to cause drowsiness and sleep, something that might be useful in fighting someone off.
She thrashes, kicks and bucks against the claws, trying to give herself enough wriggle-room to get away, to get her hands free, to get rid of the blindfold, anything, but refuses to make more noise than she has to, biting her lips together to seal her mouth against the panic that threatens to burst from her mouth. It's not until the claw closes over her breast that she finally screams, thrashing her head against the cold ground, hoping against hope that she can knock herself out again, not be awake for what she fears will follow.
The whip thin newcomer smiles as he gestures toward his battered leather armour and patchwork clothing;
"In all my finery Wilhelm! Heh. I get by... we all do..."
The raggedy wild man leans in toward his comrade and whispers as loudly as he speaks;
"... but I lost Gergory Wil... Lost him! Slipped from my hands he did... floated off down river... damn my old hands... damn their deeds!"
Os hisses the last words as if in pain, absent-mindedly wringing his hands together as if brushing a phantom blemish from his tattered gloves.
It is Delilah who snaps him back to reality as she utters her oath of surprise.
His piecing eyes grow wide afore he turns to address someone unseen behind him as jabs a thumb toward the comely witch:
"A feast for the eyes eh lads! Wilhelm's keeping fetching company these days! Not like us lot... heh! Ye rabble ye!"
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"Gregory was a good lad, Os. We'll miss him." Wilhelm tells his old friend in shared grief.
When he compliments Delilah, Wilhelm laughs bitterly.
"Shoulda seen the one that the damn bugbear took off with. If we hurry, we might be able to keep the bastard from killing her." Wilhelm finishes tying up the tent and goes on to the next one, checking the job Delilah and Rayla did.
Despite her struggling and thrashing about, she can't knock her self unconscious before the hand traces the curve of her breast and moves to her back, those cold, uncaring claws just barely brushing her skin. both hands, one at her back and the other at her head press her against something big and covering in stiff, shaggy hair.
"Oh no, my little songbird. You've only begun to sing. Sing, for me, please." it says as it lifts the oracle off the ground. Strong arms hold her in place and those cold, clammy hands trace every curve, every dimple, slowly, lightly at first, but then they begin squeeze, grabbing harder and harder until she cries out in pain. It goes on for an eternity, it seems. The screams, the pain, the soft, gravelly breathing that never seems to show any change.
Then it stops.
She's alone, her shift in disarray, but covering her once more. The hands had left on the ground, out of reach of everything.
"They won't come, my little songbird. All you can to is sing for me. Sing a beautiful lament of pain and fear, my little songbird." the voice coos in the darkness.
Her throat horse, left shivering on the ground, Helena can no longer scream, only sob soundlessly. Her head throbs, her own screams still echoing in her ears, and she tries to curl in on herself, tries to make herself as small as possible, just trying to disappear.
They won't come.
"Snuck into our own camp, while we watched, and took one of our own. F!#~ing goblins. Bugbears... big bastards, but stealthy." Kylar fumes silently within his own head as he rolls up his bedding. "Surely there must be some way I could have prevented this... but I cannot keep watch while I sleep, and I must rest some time. Some spell, then. Something that will wake me when an intruder nears. I will investigate this."
When Wilhelm reminds the half-elf of his tracking skills, Kylar ignores the insult and gestures. "Then lead."
Os stumbles in and interrupts them again. Hands already-half raised to cast a spell on the newcomer, Kylar lowers them again when Wilhelm greets him warmly. "Obviously somewhat disturbed. Let us hope not in overtly harmful ways..." Kylar listens impatiently to the exchange until Wilhelms final words.
"Yes, hurry is the very word. Let us go!"
Os scowls at the mention of the bugbear, then grows animated as he realises time is of the essence;
"Hairy devils!? Hurry devils hurry! Yes! Hurry!"
The lanky wild-man assists in breaking camp, grinning at Wilhelm as he does so;
"Just like old times eh Wil? Hunting the goblyns... the old company and the new..."
Rayla hadn't even thought of breaking up the camp but was about to chase after Helena's kidnapper right then and there. In all hurry she breaks down their stuff to chase after her and is completely taken by surprise when Osmær appears. She twitches briefly, but tries to cast her confusion aside; she'll worry about that later.
"Well met. I am Rayla. And hurry is exactly what we are in right now."
When everything is packed she grabs her sword and enters the forest where she found the trail.
"Let's go."
With a loaded crossbow, Delilah followed Rayla into the woods.
Within minutes the camp is broken and the party is on the move. When mid-morning comes, the snow begins to fall once more, and you arrive at a modest escarpment with a tunnel leading further inside. The darkness is deep and foreboding.
"Quietly, the bastard's bound to have sharp ears." Wilhelm breathes as he looks in his pack for something. After a minute he pulls out a torch and a flint and steel.
"Of course, this is gonna do just fine giving us away, dammit."
"Perhaps you should give me a few moments to scout ahead. After all, I can see in the dark." Delilah suggested.
Os nods in appreciation of Delilah's infernal blooded vision.
"Savvy strategy... Best be very car-..."
The eccentric wildsman seems distracted by something and hisses a whisper;
"...Bloody hell - yes-YES! I wholeheartedly agree..! And fine, I'll tell her!"
Os then reaches up to one of the small twine mannikins, unties it from his armour and passes it to the alluring tiefling in hushed tones;
"Tis Verrick m'lady. He insists on accompanying you. Lad's decent in a scrap and can also shares your night eyes... 'Besides he already has a soft spot for you!"
The ranger smiles and readies his throwing axe;
"Could be a might tight for the bow... Will favour Max's chopper in there..."
Rayla watches the scene with a bit of surprise. She steps close to Delilah as well and her golden eyes look at her with great concern. "Delilah... go ahead if you think you can do it but... don't get caught alright?"
She squeezes her friend's shoulder even though she still hesitates for a moment from touching a someone with demonic blood in their veins.
Delilah gingerly holds the little figurine and says, "Why thank you, Os is it? Such a strapping young lad should be pleasant company." The Witch took the figurine and attached it to her right shoulder strap, allowing it to dangle by her right breast. Turning to Rayla, she puts her hand over the barbarian's, "Hey, it's me. I'll be perfectly fine." Readying her crossbow, she carefully entered the cave.
Os nods and grins, then scowls, then grins and nods again.
"Os it is M'Lady. Osmær is my given name. Os for short..."
The wiry wilds-man points a bony finger toward where Verrick dangles;
"He will indeed - keep you safe so he will...he will indeed..."
"Desna's luck be with you lass," Wilhelm says before Delilah enters the cave.
The floor is fairly level, and easy to walk on, though it does slope down, deeper into the rock. The short tunnel opens up into a small cavern. A narrow tunnel branches off just before the chamber, and two more tunnels lead away form the chamber.
Delilah hears nothing and sees nothing as she makes her way into the cavern.
Outside, Wilhelm lights the torch and draws his sword. From the look on his face, he'd rather have gone in there himself.
Os eyes his former comrade afore grimly commenting;
"How long we giving her before we all go in Wil? One scream or three..."
Not noticing anything in particular, Delilah pads her way back out to the others.
Wilhelm breathes a sigh of relief as Delilah comes out of the cave.
"Well, what's it like in there?" he asks tensely.
"I didn't see or hear anything. But then again, I really didn't get too far." Stepping aside, she said, "After you."
Os looks a little perplexed and crouches down on his knees, his old ligaments popping and cracking as he does so.
"Psst. Ye aren't listening lass... Proper listen... like me and Maxim here!"
The lean wildsman first places one of the wicker figures face (?) down then puts his own ear to floor and closes his eyes in deep concentration;
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Kylar stands at the entrance with his fellows and listens as well, trying to discern anything moving inside the cavern with ears alone. His vision, while better in low light than a human's, could not pierce the pure blackness of the cavern.
"Well, we won't find Helena by standing here.", Rayla says with a bit lowered voice and steps slowly inside, keeping an eye out for traps or other unpleasant surprises. She holds her greatsword in both hands the tip entering the cavern first - those narrow spaces are not good for her fighting style, but there is no helping it. She tries not to think about it too much but still the thought "Who is Maxim?" echoes in her mind. "I hope this is more than just show."
She realizes how dark it is, but only due to the fact that she looses her sense for colors. Another gift from the angels: To be able to see in the darkness. The only way to honour it is to try to be light onesself, and even though Helena sees by very strange means in the darkness as well, Rayla will bring some light to her. "Stay close."
Wilhelm lights his torch and follows Rayla with it and his sword in his hands. The group finds nothing in the first cavern. But in the second, they find Helena in the center of the cavern, her clothing dirty and disheveled.
Unfortunately, there's also the bugbear whose over-eager swing harmless glances off the scales of Rayla's armor.
Helena tries to shout a warning as the others approach, but her captor and tormentor moves too quickly, striking at Rayla before she can yell out. As she squeezes her eyes shut, she hears what sounds like a glancing blow, and she tries again to free herself.
Amazingly, the ropes at her wrists come free this time, and she sets about untying herself frantically, looking around for her spear.
Hearing the voices of her friends and the sounds of combat beginning, Helena manages to struggle free from her bonds at last.
Kylar tries to cloud the bugbear's thoughts so that it will be easier to subdue.
Os vies for the opportunity to engage the hairy brute... Shifting to find an opening he throws his ax with venom;
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The bugbear has had the first blow. Rayla grinned at the depicable creature, half in the colorness of the dark, half with the colors reflected from the light of the torches.
"Hello, Helenah..." She began to speak as her blade went down on the creature. No need to give in to her celestial rage for that pitiful excuse of an opponent. Her blade went down it.
"... I hope you're alright?"
Delilah focused on the bugbear, and with a flick of her wrist spoke the words, "ذهن مه." Attempting to fog the enemies mind as along side Kylar.
The bugbear glares at both Kylar and Delilah after shaking off the effects of the spells the two tried to cast. That is until Wilhelm grabs his attention.
The old ranger opens a gash from the wretched creature's belly to his shoulder.
"Aye, that's right! The Butcher is here fer ye, BASTARD!"
The bugbear growls before swinging at the old man.
"Shoulda stayed away old man," he growls as backs away.
"Do I look alright?" Helena calls back to Rayla in a pitched, panicked tone, clutching her torn clothes tightly against herself in a feeble attempt at modesty. Not seeing her spear - Who knows where the wretched creature took my things - she attempts to calm herself long enough to focus on a blessing from the First World.
Awkwardly quick like a jack-a-napes, Os draws his kukri as he moves forward, afore slicing at the hairy brute;
"On the Butcher lads! Cut it smartly!"
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"Well... she doesn't look wounded," Kylar considers, before switching tactics to more direct offense.
A bit annoyed by the fact that she missed, she engages the bugbear again. "I am afraid I have eyes only for your host, but you sound pretty much alright." Despite the hearty tone of voice and the fact that shes not falling into her usual rage her eyes gleam dangerous in the half light of the torches and she moves like a predator, trying to circle her enemy in.
Seeing her spell not having an effect, Delilah tried to aim her crossbow carefully at the bugbear.