An inn is an inn, and a solid roof over her head in this land of crying skies. That, a warm bed, and a warm meal is all she asks. She follows Jericho's lead into the tavern without question.
At the mention of the war effort, she glances around at the rest of her party inquisitively, hoping that one of them will know what the barkeep's talking about.
"What do you have?" she responds to the inquiry about drinks. She doubts they have anything like the liquors of her homeland, but it can't hurt to ask.
For the most part, Ausgustus, diplomatically inquires as to everyone's country of origin, their professions and what lead them to the clearing where everyone had met, plus a few curious Arcane questions that might help bring to light possible alternative thoughts, or theories, which may aid in the speculation... and there is much speculation, though, unless he finds someone to voice them with, they are rather silent. He does not, however, seem the sort to 'write things down' a lot, especially not in the foul weather. In his atypical forgetful manner, more focused on other's being covered with his manifested 'umbrellas', which last an hour before fading into the nothingness he summoned them from, though, once they are within sight of the mining town, he dismisses them, and seems to get 'serious' once again, less 'testing things in the wild' and excitable.
Needless to say, he catches a cold. While he's soaked, his one book bag, obviously, is protected fiercely, thus adding to his soaked state of being.
When they walk into the Inn, he peers around for a few, nods a polite greeting unless he knows the Innkeeper's station in some manner, being a Nethyian Vanguard member, falling to the quiet and demure manner of politeness when they all first met. He certainly doesn't speak first, though it should be noted that when he was chatty and all that out in the wilderness, he /does/ have a rather strong personality, perhaps not as much as Seirin (assumption on my part, due to Oracle primary stat), yet, an unflexed or trained personality to be certain, hindered by tradition and politeness in the company of strangers.
Once the others initiate some speaking, Augustus says, "Greetings and well met, Innkeeper. A warm tea for me, of your local fruit variant, please-- I am ill from the rains, unless you might have a local herbal alternative to offer."
With that, he does flex his Diplomatic manner, and let's it flare out of proper ceremony, attempting to improve the conditions of their interaction.
The Innkeeper does seem to 'fuss' over his only guests at the moment, ensuring all are comfortably seated and each with a glass of water before truly taking their drink orders, especially seeming to go to great length to see that Midha and Seiren are tended to.
When Midha poses the question, he smiles, apparently happy to answer. "For wines, we have several varieties, all either brewed in-house or imported from Galonen. We have both white and red, as well as some mulsum, and for our sick gentlemen here, I could heat some mulled red wine, in addition to your tea?"
"As for spirits, we have several imported varieties. Whiskey, and we have a rare treat - some soju brought in all the way from Dracutl."
Needless to say, as the group is the only guests of the inn, they receive the full attention of the innkeeper. He's a bit of an older man - perhaps in his late thirties - and is warm and kind, even if he does seem to have an eye for the pair of beautiful ladies the group is travelling with.
"If you are ill, sir, I could call for the local priest, when he returns from the mines? He often will join the miners, as he follows the Heart of the Mountain."
[ooc]Please to be remembering that you can make knowledge checks untrained, but can never get a result higher than 10.
Jericho perks up a bit at the mention of whiskey, but waits for the others to place their orders before placing his own.
"Mulsum sounds perfect," she replies, setting aside any desires for the drinks of her homeland to give this local delicacy a try.
"Has the war affected the town much, other than keeping the mines busy of course?" she inquires once everyone has made their orders. She still isn't quite sure which war he's talking about - she didn't pay near enough attention to that kind of information in her initial overland trek.
"You should have the mulled wine, Augustus, especially if it has honey in it...it will help you feel much better...not as much better as being dry, but sitting near the fire should help," she said, her grumpy mood lifting as they were finally out of the wet.
"I'll try the mulsum as well," she said, with a guarded smile to the innkeeper. She continued to fidget as if sitting still was a foreign concept to her.
Glancing between the group, then to the Innkeeper, "The warm tea, please, Innkeeper and if you have some honey, I shall add such to it, per the Lady's recommendation as to such."
That said he proceeded to survey the main room and gestures for the others asking, "Shall we sit?i believe I may have a solution, conceived of, to resolve the wet clothing- if," speaking quiet enough for the group, once the Innkeeper set off for the drinks, "you all are not adverse to a display of the manipulation of what some call the Arcane."
Augustus did his best to obscure his eagerness at the thought, or perhaps the potential to actually use 'magic'. It may be rather successful, save for his lack of training in lying or acting. perhaps merely innate talent may suffice.
The drink orders are brought out in swift order - warm tea, whiskey, and wines all find their way to the table with brisk efficiency. The drinks themselves are generally well-made and rather tasty, and honey is provided for Augustus' tea. The innkeeper has a friendly and warm manner, and tends to the group's needs - answering questions that they may have or simply leaving them to their drinks if they seem stoic.
In answer to Midha's directed query about the war effort, the man sighs and says: "Well, we're too far inland from Volmia or Hetia here to be troubled by raiders from those areas... but there are tellings of strange happennings coming out of the Cradle Lands to the east of here. It has alot of folks on edge. Villages along the border up and up and vanish overnight, and don't leave behind nothing to show that anything was ever there. Every day it seems to stretch more and more into the interior... and our military is too busy entangled with the Volmians to truly investigate the happennings. Maybe once the tax collectors start disappearing, they'll do something about it."
He shakes his head slightly, trying to clear away the bad thoughts. "Sorry to pile my troubles on you, think nothing more of it, we're too far into the interior to have to worry for a while yet, I hope."
As if the Innkeeper was a Prophet of some kind... our heroes can hear... some kind of noise outside in the distance. It is difficult to tell what it was - perhaps just the hunting cry of some mighty beast out in the wilderness. Their host does seem a little frightened by it though, and bustles into the back momentarily, leaving the group alone in the common room.
"It's alright," she replies calmly. "I'm a bit out of touch with most of the recent news as well. Blame too much traveling as of late. What sort of 'happenings'?"
When the noise rises and he disappears into the back, Midha's curiosity gets the better of her, and she rises to go have a look.
As Midha heads for the door, Jericho puts his small journal back in its pocket and rises to follow her. If there are windows, Jericho will look out at a different angle than Midha is, otherwise he will wait to hear what she sees.
Initially, Augustus does not appear during the time the Innkeeper goes off to prepare the drinks and such, distraught at the lack of response from his newly met fellows.
After some measure of drying off, and with a gesture and word thrown in to arcanely help with some cleaning of Prestigetation, he was looking dryer, yet had the occasional sniffle and sneeze.
Once the drinks return and with a polite thanks to the Innkeeper, Augustus nursed his heated tea with some exact measure of honey, seeming soothed mentally by the ingestion of such things.
It was during the speech of bad times though, that Augustus was clearly not listening too well, and when people actually rose up and were moving he seemed a hint surprised. "Er.. Is everything alright? I trust you folk are not sought after by local authorities, or something?"
He did his best to diplomatically not come off as rude in asking.
"Not that I know of. Just curious, mostly."
Midha's and Jericho's curiosity is rewarded as they peek outside the inn's windows, as they spot the source of the noise. A small cadre of people are coming down the road towards the town - no more than a dozen at most. The group is dressed in what appears to be leather armours, and are armed for combat. Of course, this is all an afterthought, as the cadre of people appear to be riding atop bears! Their weapons are drawn - swords, axes, and the occasional spear, and the bear-mounted people are speeding up at they approach the village! A raid!
As the sounds grow more distinctive and noisier, Augustus rises up and starts to walk over towards the other two who had already risen, asking, "Well, what do you think it is?"
Needless to say, he doesn't get too far before his nose is tickled and he sneezes, cursing slightly, and pausing in his step.
Seirin stood up and walked towards the others, feeling a bit lost by herself, leaving a trail of dirt behind her as the mud that had dried on her bare feet cracked off as she walked. She tripped over a chair on the way and sprawled across the floor, quickly scrambling up trying to gather the pieces of her oft-lost dignity.
"So, uh, what was it you heard?"
"Bandits on bears," Midha states bluntly, scowling at the scene. "Some kind of raid attack. On bears. Why bears?"
She turns and looks to the rest of the group. "Doesn't look like we'll be able to rest up just quite yet... I don't know what's going on here, but I don't see any way these people can defend themselves on their own, and we're here, armed, and at least mostly capable. Anyone else feel like being a little... well, a lot reckless?"
Glancing back at the crashing Seirin, Augustus heads towards her while replying to Midha.
"I will profess right now that my experience with combat, especially the sort with hand or ranged implements is extremely poor, to say, none actual. As for reckless, I'm sure I can follow your intention, but I would really rather not come to blows unless absolutely required... Or there is no other choice for the good of something dear."
That said, while assisting Seirin as much as she allows, he looks back and waits for a response, clearly /not/ the sort to dive in without reason, or perhaps duty.
"I'd call armed men storming a village on beast-back pretty dire. And judging by how quick our host was to retreat and how empty the streets have become, I don't suspect these people have a means of defending themselves."
Glancing about with just a hint of pre-hysteria, the young human shuts his eyes, stills and says, "I shall assist, strife is life."
That said, if he has Seirin's arm or helping guide her, he tenses up and shifts his gear such to reduce the looseness of his packs.
"By surprise and guile, or a show of force? Our advantage is clearly the element of surprise."
He appears 'ready' for combat, even if perhaps inexperienced.
"Bandits on bears," Midha states bluntly, scowling at the scene. "Some kind of raid attack. On bears. Why bears?"
She turns and looks to the rest of the group. "Doesn't look like we'll be able to rest up just quite yet... I don't know what's going on here, but I don't see any way these people can defend themselves on their own, and we're here, armed, and at least mostly capable. Anyone else feel like being a little... well, a lot reckless?"
By way of answer, Jerich draws his two guns and loads them.
The town, as it stands, is relatively unfortified - the only low walls or fences in the town are to hold the meager livestock - a handful of goats and sheep scattered among several different homes. The houses are setup in a fairly defensive circle though, so at least some planning has gone into the defense of the city. There is a open square in the center, where perhaps a market might be setup on certain days. The primary road, which the raiders are riding down, leads directly into this square, and opposite this road is the largest building the town - which appears to be a (somewhat small) Temple, presumably to the God the innkeeper mentioned. The inn in which our heroes have recently departed is a scant few buildings down from this primary road (which is a dirt road, no cobblestone or paving here), roughly the center of town. For the moment, the armed group is concealed from the oncoming raiders by the town itself, giving them a few moments to decide on a strategy...
The buildings in the town are primarily stone, and the bandits do not appear to be wielding fire, so it might be concluded that their primary motive is either to reveal in slaughter, or to plunder whatever they may. Either way, nothing compels our brave heroes to intervene (other than perhaps their own sense of right and wrong), and they may simply flee the village if they choose...
"Right then," Midha says, hefting the hammer to her shoulder. "Let's see to some havoc."
Since no one else is taking the lead, she heads for the door first. "Surprise it is, I think. We should stick together. Don't spread out, don't let them separate us. Focus all on the same target." A low thrumming noise echoes from somewhere around the woman as she takes her vantage point at the door, ready to burst out when the time is right, and a slight pressure fills the air around her. She rubs her forehead with her free hand idly. "They don't look the type to respond to parley, but if we make a sufficient initial move, we might break their morale and end this more quickly."
She turns to Seirin and Augustus. "Looks like I'm the only one with intent to get up-close and personal in a fight, can you two stick together? Try as best you can to avoid hitting any houses, but if you can both point your magic in the direction of the banditry... well, let's just say I imagine most petty thieves aren't too well trained in dealing with magic."
There's an audible snap, and Midha's eyes flash once, a more brilliant neon green than her usual emerald hue. The humming sound suddenly evaporates, and the pressure around her body takes an almost physical presence, covering her like a shroud or some kind of invisible armor. She loses the flow of her tactical tirade for a moment and prods with one finger at her clothing, stopping a scant inch or so from actually touching it as she presses against something clearly present but unseen.
"That's... interesting. None of you did that, did you?" Her hand moves almost subconsciously to return to the throbbing pulse at her temple before she notes the idle pain is gone. "Or did... nevermind, not important right now. That work for a plan?"
"That works for me." Jericho steps up behind Midha, ready to follow her out of the door.
As he brings his freshly loaded guns up, he seems to pull a kind of implacability around himself as if his focus on the task at hand will ensure victory.
"Just point me in the right direction....umm...really....I can't see much more than moving shapes which doesn't help figure out friend from foe," she said, trying to hide her nervousness. She wasn't one to search out a fight if she could help it.
"As long as we stick close together, I don't think friendly fire will be an issue," Midha advised with a nod.
"And separating would be a mistake, I think, for more reasons than just friendly fire."
"I am ready, if there are suddenly unusual creatures in the fight, know they are by my magics summoned. I shall continue to guide Seirin's, if she is willing. Melee is not my way."
Augustus ties the one bag tightly, so it is closer to his hip and back, leaving his backpack on the tavern floor somewhere neatly to the side.
"I am ready, if there are suddenly unusual creatures in the fight, know they are by my magics summoned. I shall continue to guide Seirin's, if she is willing. Melee is not my way."
Augustus ties the one bag tightly, so it is closer to his hip and back, leaving his backpack on the tavern floor somewhere neatly to the side.
"I am grateful for your assistance, Augustus," Seirin said, trying very hard to be brave.
"Excellent."
As the group prepares for the battle, they see the raiders have entered into the town proper... though still seem to be making for the square at the centre of town. The bears they are riding atop seem to be well-trained (perhaps even domestic, though magic may have played a part as well), though no saddle or other riding gear is present - the raiders are bearbacking, as it were.
Midha's sharp eyes manage to pick out two details the others may have overlooked. One is that the raiders appear to be completely dry - no evidence from the recent downpour on their clothing. The second would be that all the men (there are no women) atop the bears appear to be... not men, but boys. Midha would put the oldest among their bunch at no more than 15.
The raiders appear to be making a direct line for the town square... and the rest of the town is oddly quiet, though the occasional sound of a bar sliding across a door can be heard from a few of the nearby houses. There do not appear to be any townsfolk challenging these bear-riders, though the Innkeeper did mention that their men were off in the mines until later in the evening.
"Younger than I expected," she muses. "Much younger. And dry despite the rain, might be magic at work."
"Taking out their mounts will probably be the best start," she adds, pulling the door fully open. "Limit their mobility. If they keep up a fight after that... well, we can deal with that as it comes." She shoulders her hammer and, giving the rest of the group a glance behind her to make sure they're following, makes her way toward the square, taking advantage of buildings and other obstructions in the way to cover her approach.
Jericho nods to Midha, following her out. He speaks very quietly as they leave the inn, "Perhaps we should speak with them first? They see terribly young."
She nods once, though the grip on her hammer doesn't lessen. "If we can solve this without bloodshed then all's for the best, but something tells me they might not be willing to be reasonable while they have bears to threaten with. I'd like to avoid harming them if possible so if it does come to blows taking the bears out should change their minds, I hope."
The thrum of energy and low, distant drumbeat wells up again in her mind, and she feels power - magic - straining at her fingertips, waiting to be free, ready the moment she needs it.
Peering out at the grouping of young raiders atop their bears, Augustus merely adds, "Iff we wish to parley, I can attempt such. If it does come to some simplistic proof of strength between us, I am not the most physical of persons, but am willing to try to make our point. Sadly, we are potentially facing an issue here- if we slay they youths, what will their parents do, if they aren't I'll or dead from warfare themselves? Does anyone here know of the region and what is occurring locally?"
Before the Battle of the Gods - more than six years ago and after the death of the Nethysian Imperial family - the Nethysian Empire lost a chunk of land to the east of here to the Aerili - it is now known as the Silver Grove to the Nethysians and Yamalundi.
The Druidic Cirlcle of the Aerili used the chaos in the wake of the death of the Nethysian Imperial family to sieze what they have named for themselves as 'The Cradle Lands'. There was little resistence to this move, due to the infighting which was ongoing in Nethys during this time.
Some rumours tell the tale that an Entire Forest crossed the Girdle Mountains to claim some of Nethys' territory, though there are those who wonder at the sanity of people who spread such rumours.
"Ummm....maybe they're Aerili? I heard someone talking about them at one of the inns I stayed at on the way here.....it sounded pretty weird," she said, doubtfully.
"Isn't that a druidic circle? Explains the bears." Midha sighs. Great, another complication, she adds silently. Oh well, if the druids didn't want their bears being used for banditry they'd take better care of keeping their children from running off with them.
She continues the march toward the square.
Jericho's somewhat political upbringing at least kept in somewhat in the loop in regards to Nethysian politics outside of Sannatus - he knows that the rumours of a whole forest uprooting itself to claim Nethysian land was no mere rumour - in fact some houses in Sannatus where devising ways to clear vast forested areas quickly. They called the substance 'Napalm', an upgraded and more volatile version of Alchemist's Fire. It never saw military use.
As the group moves to intercept, the bear-riding youths enter the central square of the plaza, and make directly for the temple, seemingly ignorant or blind to all else. The village is still empty - anyone who had been in the streets has either fled to the fragile safety of their homes, or has simply vanished.
The face of a terrified-yet-curious child at a window opposite the group tells you that the village hasn't been abandoned.
Our heroes have arrived at the edge of the square, and have the initiative - the raiding youths have not yet paid them any heed. As it stands, the raiders are some fourty feet from where the group is standing.
Jericho speaks again in a low tone, standing just behind Midha and a little to her left, "It in highly likely that these are Aerili, as Seirin says. The rumors that an entire forest transplanted itself to take land from Nethys are true."
He is holding his pistols ready to fire, but not yet pointing them at anyone specific. A quick glance around the square at any cloth hanging outside the buildings and the motion of plants in the area lets Jericho account for how the wind will affect his shooting.