?{Charity}
?
When
the first of the undead shambled into Millers Crossing Charity was perplexed.
Not only were they undamaged by battle, meaning that they had not met the Five
along the road, but they were not driving the party before them either. She
smiled then.
?
¡°Clever,"
she muttered, casting her senses across the landscape on the wings of bats and
the paws of other nocturnal predators. "Where have you gone? Are we still
shielding ourselves from sight? My bats do not use it, my coyotes and wolves
use their noses better." She began dancing again, calling to her fauna
minions.
?
The
coyotes replied first, howling among themselves as they circled the area where
the Five had last been discovered. The scents of the undead covered any faint
trace of the party's leaving. Wolves circled further out, far from the road
both to the north and south. The bats fluttered about, but the clouds of
insects had been drawn to the recent buffet of undead flesh that was still
passing along the road.
?
Finally
a single mountain lion picked up the scent. Alone, at Charity's command, it
followed the scent trail southeast into the mountains. "Follow and
watch," Charity sang to it as she danced, "tell the ravens where they
are come the dawn, and then rest."
?
A
cruel smile waxed across the wendigo's face as she added, "I shall have a
special task for you when once again night shall fall."
?
Having
set the scene Charity turned her attention to the arriving undead. It wouldn't
do to have her new subjects messing up her nice little town, they needed new
flesh on their bare bones. One by one she danced them into the kiva.
?
?
(Callie Carson)
?
Callie
reluctantly let go of Flynn. The men were better suited to lug him around. She
was tough and strong, but she had her limits. The stench was almost unbearable.
These undead were rotting terribly, she surmised from the smell, likely an
intentional side-effect of the magic that had reanimated them, along with the
natural decomposition caused by the hot sun.
?
She
did as Chase suggested and ties her bandana around her face, covering her nose
and mouth in hopes of keeping the odor away. It was a noble effort, but she
could still smell the dead around them.
?
?The
redhead moved her horse into position and lashed it to the others, then looked
to Etienne who, from out of nowhere, had basically taken over directing the
group. She seemed to have a solid idea, so Callie was not inclined to do
otherwise. She then waited to see where they would go next.
?
(Flynn)?
?
The
pookah was aware he was being moved, from being supported by Callie to being
outright carried by the man called Chase, but he kept his focus downward,
searching the ground they were travelling over for a place they could escape to
if the undead or other minions of their enemy managed to find them.? He
hated being so helpless, but he was so low on glamour that spirit-gazing below
the ground was all he could manage at the moment. ?
?
Finally
though, he found what he was looking for:? a gap - little more than a
large crack really - situated some eighty feet beneath the ground their horses
were walking over.? Concentrating, he looked further, and was rewarded
with the discovery that the crack extended in the direction of Miller's
Crossing.? But not directly.? There was about a fifteen-to-twenty
foot deviation from their current path, and they needed to stay right over the
gap in order for him to open a portal if escape became necessary.
?
Flynn
lifted an arm and pointed a few degrees to the right, muttering "that
way".? Then dropped his arm and said nothing further.?
?
[Sicilien]
?
The bounty hunter tied
his scarf around his nose and mouth, nodding to Chase as a thanks for the
suggestion.? Though it wasn't perfect, at least a good amount of the smell
was staved off, though there was no blocking the scent of death that permeated
the air so easily.? Whoever this wendigo, this manikin was, knew that even
if she could not see them, that she would be able to drive them on one way or
another.? However, they were all getting tired and not having had any
single night's worth of rest since the bar scene was beginning to take a toll
on all of them, least of all him.? So maybe it was desperation or
something else, but when Sicilien looked in the direction that Flynn was
pointing to, he was starting to see the likes of a crevice, a cave perhaps,
coming up a bit ways away.
?
"I think...that's
a cave, or something!? We're getting close, but we need to hurry," he
announced, squinting his eyes.? They were getting close, wanting to
increase the pace of their horses.? They were trotting at best, to make sure
that Flynn would not fall off, but the man was tied down.? Surely they
could at least level up to a canter?? Perhaps he was being too
impatient? Woe betide the man who didn't plan ahead and rushed forward
only to be struck down at the end.? There seemed to be a small, dusty path
that led maybe 20, 30 feet up from the ground to this mountainside
cavity.? Whether it was a deep cave or not is yet to be seen.?
Focusing his covered eye, Sicilien studied the auras the light up like lamps in
the distance.? Nothing except for some nocturnal predators milling about,
but no undead.? Nothing that they couldn't handle to clear the area
anyway.? "Could be our safe haven.? Follow me, i see a path
going up."
?
With that, he led the
troupe do the edges of this trail, making sure that they were all keeping up,
as they started the short climb up.
?
Etienne
?
Etienne was quiet,
watching, learning, feeling, contemplating...how much of herself she
show...some...most... all or should she keep her truth close to her vest. Much
like she had done every day of her life since that fateful day when she finally
go away...took her chance at freedom.
?
It was a feeling she
always warred with... how much of herself to reveal. She remember many many
lifetimes ago when they were finally able to work through their bullshit. When
she finally felt comfortable with Sicilien enough to know he would not hurt her
or use her she almost revealed her true self to him...almost.
?
Thank god she hadn¡¯t.
The original pain almost killed her. He would have made it ten time worst had
he known the truth. She thought as a tear slipped from her eyes at the memory
of their last night together.
?
Etienne blinked as she
came back to the present her mind somewhat locking on first Flynn and then
Sicilien comment. A cave she thought...she didn¡¯t feel comfortable going into a
cave. It could trap them with no way out. But everyone else seemed comfortable
with it. And since she had decided in her moment of quiet contemplation to keep
her cards to her vest, she acquiesced and followed.
?
?
(Chase)
Chase shifted a bit, there was some nervousness to him, but only because he
didn¡¯t expect the man to move suddenly and just as suddenly he was gone again
but he followed the direction his hackles were there as he could feel if not
sniff the area, he wasn¡¯t able to smell much of anything with that stench
surrounding them.? He hated that
particular heightened sense, it gave him some indication but other times it
threatened to overwhelm him.? He held on
to the one called Flynn since he was their cover and energy source there of his
strength allowed him to easily hold on to the man.
He continued to move them in the direction of the arm that had been
outstretched.? He knew there was cover to
be had for sure. He would welcome it and rest all the same.? He let Sicilien, lead the path up while he
kept hold of Flynn.? He didn¡¯t let his
focus waver, his was to make sure everyone survived.? It was the only way any of them got out of
this alive.
He found himself glancing toward Etienne, he saw her but said nothing,
something was on her mind too, he wasn¡¯t sure what but he knew there truly was
more to her than met the eye, that was for sure.? It was not the time and probably not his
business unless it would keep them alive. Maybe it took time¡but that was
obviously not a luxury they had.
Tag - Callie, Flynn, Sicilien, Etienne, Charity
(jumping in periodically), Chase
