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Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru


Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

Attack Rolls:
Guard A rolled a 20 (+30 modifier) Miss. Llaewyn's free counterattack hits, and deals a total of:
(Rolled a 6, 1) + 27 = 34 damage.
Guard B rolled a 6 (+30 modifier) Miss. Llaewyn's free counterattack hits, and deals a total of:
(Rolled a 1, 2) + 27 = 30 damage.

Coachman A rolled a 17 (+20 modifier) Miss.
Coachman B rolled a 1 (+20 modifier) Miss.

While the men were, at the very least, spirited in their attempts to attack the elven swordswoman, they were far too slow, especially compared to the tanglevines she fought before, and they also had much fewer limbs by which to mount a truly viable offense against her. The first charged in with a mighty yell, his battle cry doing him little good other than to telegraph his intent as Llæwyn easily interrupted his overhead swing with a swift movement forward, delivering a brutal gash across his exposed midsection. The man hunched over afterwards, stumbling forward a few steps, grievously injured from the elf's counterattack, though not quite out. His cohort hurried to take advantage of the momentary distraction, delivering a horizontal swing.

The varied assault did little to take Llæwyn off-guard, however, and she parried his stroke easily before returning with one of her own, hacking diagonally across his torso. He staggered back a few steps and fell to a knee, gritting his teeth and struggling to stand once again. Really, it would have been easy for Grenwyll's finest warrior to dispose of these men as they crouched wounded before her, but she managed to keep her priorities in line as a sharp bolt came speeding towards her from the top of the first carriage. A last-minute slip had the deadly projectile whizzing past her, instead, and the second coachman lifted his crossbow in time for Llæwyn to take note of it. She didn't even need to dodge this one, however, as it went sailing by, far from its mark, much to the man's visible disappointment. His face taking on a look of panic, the man hurried to draw and reset his weapon in the hopes of landing his second shot.

At that point, it was clear that the swordswoman clearly had these men outclassed, for the most part, and from there she could attempt to execute one of the wounded guards closest to her, or seek to dispatch the coach drivers while they worked on reloading their weapons.
 
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Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

It didn’t take long for the men to charge at Llæwyn, if one could really call what they were doing “charging.” They were terribly slow, especially when one compared them to the tanglevines she had fought so soon before, and they were comparatively easy to read considering that they could only injure her with one arm at a time. The first, who had been in front of her, came forward with a loud yell as he attempted an overhand swing at the elf. It didn’t phase her in the slightest, and she bolted forward with a quick swipe of her blade, gashing him across his gut quite deeply. He stumbled forward a few more steps, though he was no longer of pressing concern to the green-haired warrior; his partner was behind her now, swinging his sword at her horizontally. With quick footwork she shifted herself to the side, and in almost the same motion she had cut the first assailant she parried the next, the loud clang of metal on metal resounding throughout the forest. With his energy redirected he was an easy target for a diagonal slash from shoulder to hips, another deep cut. The slaver fell to a knee, struggling to get up as he dealt with the wound.

Llæwyn’s parents had both been warriors of the old lineage, going back to the very first generations of elves who had discovered the use of the sword. Of course, neither of them had been very good as warriors, lacking something intangible that was necessary for the job. Perhaps they just didn’t have the killer instinct. Perhaps they were just lacking in natural talent. Their green-haired little girl had been born with both of these things, and what they did have was knowledge of an ancient style of swordsmanship, which they passed on to her. When it was in the hands of a skilled practitioner it was almost beautiful to watch, all a flow of quick footwork and smooth motions. So it was now, with Llæwyn tearing through the thugs with ease and grace.

Of course, Llæwyn had bigger things than him to worry about in that moment. Her eyes darted again to the carriage-drivers, and just as one loosed a bolt from his crossbow she shifted subtly to the side, causing it to fly just barely past her, close enough that she could hear it whizz through the air. The second attempted to aim at her, but she could tell that he was way off, and indeed the arrow shot into the ground a fair distance away. The green-haired warrior could tell that they were beginning to panic, and she hoped to use that to her advantage… the remaining guards were both badly wounded, and were likely not so much of a threat as the men with crossbows, who were stuck reloading for the moment. She decided to quickly jump up onto the first carriage and kill its driver, hopefully avoiding spooking the horses in the process.

Lightning Strikes at the guy, too lazy to do the math myself, sue me
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

Attack Rolls:
Llaewyn vs Coachman A:
(Rolled a 1) + 41
(Rolled a 15) + 41
(Rolled a 19) + 41... yeah, not even sure why I bothered--they're all auto-hits here!

Damage:
(Rolled a 6, 6) + 23
(Rolled a 1, 6) + 23
(Rolled a 1, 1) + 23... aaaand dead

As the guardsmen were still reeling from the elf's expertly applied counterattacks, the crossbow-wielding coachmen desperately worked to reload their weapons in a panic, giving Llæwyn just enough time to reach the first one. As soon as she set foot atop the carriage, she would find that her next victim had just finished setting his string on the hook, raising it quickly to point at her direction. With his right hand, he had retrieved a bolt from his hip-mounted quiver and looked to place it on the groove so that he could fire in the hopes of dropping the woman at point-blank range, but his hand shook so violently that such an act wasn't likely to be completed in time before the green-haired beauty killed him. A swift strike from Llæwyn's rapier, strong as it was, severed his loading hand, arrow and all, to completely snuff out any hopes he might have had of hurting her in time. The man could only stare with widened eyes, stunned at the sight of his own hand separated from his body, as the swordswoman followed up with lethal intent. The second attack of the three-part combination, aimed at the man's throat hollow, proved effective in silencing him. The final blow, skewering his right eye, finished him off in brutal fashion, bringing about a swift end to his momentary stupor.

However, while the battle may as well have been finished from this point, it wasn't enough to deter the two swordsmen down below. While they were badly wounded, surrender was not an option--to them, death in itself was worse than being captured by an elf, and they looked ready to fight until the bitter end, despite the discrepancy in skill. The two began to mutter a few words in a low voice between each other, then began to approach, slowly, but steadily, while the driver of the next coach over finally succeeded in reloading his weapon.

At the very least, these horses appeared disciplined enough to avoid taking off with the coach, so there looked to be little danger of that particular worry thus far. But regardless, if Llæwyn didn't act quickly to improve her position, she would most likely have to deal with another bolt heading her way from one direction, as the two determined guard slavers closed in, looking to engage her from the other.

Enemies:
2 Guards
1 Coachman
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Llæwyn moved pretty quickly, and was already jumping up on the first carriage before the guards had recovered from the blows she had struck them. The coachman wasn’t nearly finished reloading his crossbow yet, just having finished winding it back again as she stood face to face with him. He reached quickly for an arrow and tried to fit it into the groove of his weapon, but his hand was shaking badly as he rushed; his lack of calm probably would have doomed him even against a slower opponent. As it was, the green-haired elf easily slashed his hand from his arm, severing it at the wrist. As he stared in shock she didn’t let up for even a moment, stabbing shallowly into his throat before pulling back and ending him, her rapier jamming through his right eye socket and into his brain. She was more than a bit splattered by gore at this point, and as she pulled her sword from him and looked to check up on the guards down below bits of brain matter and dribbles of blood dripped from her blade.

The guards, for themselves, were approaching the carriage rather slowly, intent to fight on despite their grievous wounds. It was kind of cute, in a way. Llæwyn knew it couldn’t have been motivated by any sort of honor, or at least the idea that small-ears (and slavers to boot) could have such ideals was laughable to her, so it must have been something else. Vain hope? Fear of what might happen if they surrendered? Well, they might have been justified in the latter case. Not so much the former. In any case, the second coachman had managed to reload, and he was still dangerous enough to warrant her immediate attention. Getting across the short gap between the coaches in a single leap probably wouldn’t be any trouble, but it was dangerous enough to warrant a good deal of concentration as she leapt across to kill her next adversary.

LIGHTNING STRIKES YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DOING
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

Attack Rolls:
(Llæwyn rolled a 4, 16, 10)... all autohits.

Damage:
You are a cruel slayer of short-eared men. Coachman B down.

Llæwyn could practically feel the panic levels of these hapless humans skyrocketing as she continued her assault, although the stress only truly negatively impacted the remaining coach driver, who was likely not used to dealing with the rigors of direct combat, much less being made a target of by someone as deadly as the elven beauty. Though the gap between the two coaches was a formidable one, a few steps of a running start gave Llæwyn the momentum needed to make the clearance.

As she landed, the swordswoman would see the slaver raising his loaded crossbow and pulling the trigger. The bolt skimmed by Llæwyn's midsection, proving largely harmless to her as she landed right in front of the driver, sending a mighty thrust through his midsection, then followed up with a slash to cleave his crossbow in two... not that he could afford the time to reload at this point. A stab to his throat with her blade aligned horizontally would seal his fate, and the green-haired woman made it a point to draw it out in a most violent fashion, cutting out to the side so as to practically decapitate him.

Turning around, she would find the remaining two guards ready to make their last stand. Having discussed a plan of sorts, at least from what the elf could tell, the men stayed in relatively close proximity this time, perhaps hoping that one of them could take advantage of any opportunity presented by their adversary when she looked to attack the other.

Enemies:
2 Guards
 
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Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Llæwyn couldn’t help but grin as she felt the remaining coach driver panic ever more, enjoying the way she had gotten to him. He was already dead, as far as she was concerned. It took a running start to clear the gap between the carriages, but she did so without any trouble despite the reasonably large gap. As soon as she landed the man raised his crossbow quickly, and after none too careful aim pulled the trigger. His hands were just too shaky, his aim too desperate, and the bolt flew wide despite being so close to her. Within moments she had stabbed the driver in the gut, and then quickly slashed off to the side to cut his crossbow in two. Though the man was already reeling, Llæwyn didn’t waste any time ending his life, stabbing into his throat and then slashing to the side, extracting her blade by halfway decapitating him while she spun to look at the other two in one graceful motion.

As the dying man sprayed blood onto both her and the carriage roof Llæwyn stared down at guards with a grin still spread across her face, her eyes seeming cold and small. She had to give it to these small-ears; at least they didn’t run like cowards. They were standing quite close to one another, readied for her inevitable attack and probably hoping she would be slow enough that one of them could take advantage of an opening while she killed the other. She highly doubted that that would be the case. With a quick jump and run she launched herself off the carriage and at them, running the short distance and making a quick series of stabs at the two of them, not letting up in her intensity even though she knew herself to be their better.

Lightning Strikes, the first two blows split between the two of them, the third goes wherever.
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

Attack Rolls:
(Llæwyn rolled a 3, 14, 8)... all autohits.

Damage:
Each of them has less than 10 HP remaining, so... they're dead. :(

Llæwyn gained 8 EXP.

Despite their apparent handicap, the two sentries looked to be as focused as their bodies would allow them to be, keen on capitalizing upon any openings or gaps in motion that the elf might exhibit between attacks. After all, she had to possess these delays to some extent, and such was an inherent advantage for the men in a two to one scenario, amongst many others. At the very least, one of them could try to grab her while the other took the hit, taking the fight to the ground and making it messy, where the human males' superior strength might ultimately win them the fight. With a group grapple initiated, they might have a chance, and afterwards proceed to take out all of their frustrations on her in practically any way imaginable. It would be a solid win for the short-ears, and a devastating loss for the beautiful elf.

This was not to be, however. The gap between the slavers' wonderful expectations and their harsh reality proved to be a much larger one than the gaps between Llæwyn's deadly attacks. As she descended from the top of the carriage and sped in their direction, they found the elf quicker than they remembered; that, or their reflexes were simply less sharp by now, likely dulled from the practically crippling injuries they were dealt earlier. Llæwyn lunged forward with an straight, perfect thrust to the first man's heart, piercing it all the way through. His partner saw this, but could not react on time; his body just wouldn't do it. Not only was the elven swordswoman's first attack so forcefully executed, but her speed was such that she could draw her rapier out almost effortlessly and deliver a second jab into the other man's throat. In reality, there wasn't much of an opportunity at all between Llæwyn's strikes that could be used to outdo her... at least not by the likes of these men. They were far too slow, too unskilled, and, perhaps according to the elf herself, too human to defeat her in such a manner.

All in all, Llæwyn's victory was just about flawless. Four guardsmen and two coachmen were slain in very little time at all, their cargo ripe for the green-haired one to do what she pleased with. In addition, she could search the bodies of her fallen foes, if she was so inclined. One thing was for sure, however; that those remaining, trapped inside the prison-like coaches by locked doors on the side of each, were still very much alive.
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

The two guards stood together quite stoically, at least for a moment, as Llæwyn jumped down off the carriage and raced towards them. It didn’t last long, though; their reflexes seemed even slower than they had been before, and the elf quickly thrust her rapier into the first man’s heart, ending his life quickly. His partner was just far too slow to react to it as well, and before he could even raise his sword properly against her the green-haired warrior had pulled her blade from his dead comrade and was already thrusting it into his throat. He crumpled to the ground, and Llæwyn took a moment to look around and get her bearings again. The six small-ears had been dispatched without much fuss or difficulty, and she couldn’t help but think just how inferior they had been even to soldiers of their kind, some of whom she had fought a while back.

Once satisfied that there were no more small-ears in the general vicinity, Llæwyn bent over to wipe her sword clean on the garment of one of the dead guards and then sheathe it, having a closer look at the carriages. They seemed to have locked doors on the sides, which wasn’t a surprise given their function, and surely one of the corpses had the keys somewhere on them. Not that the green-haired elf intended to search them herself, if she could help it. She walked over to the prison coaches and firmly knocked on one, calling out "are there any of my kin inside these things?" If anyone replied in the Elven language she would continue "Hold on and keep calm. I’ll send people after you in a moment" before beginning to walk off to the entrance to Grenwyll, running up to the top to find another of the village’s warriors. If at all possible she would send a few back to the forest floor to secure the area while she consulted with the Third on what to do about these wagons full of slaves.
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

The keys were not readily visible upon the bodies of the slain slavers. While the most likely choice seemed to be within the pockets of one of the coach drivers, the elven warrior's option to skip this process meant that the locks would stay intact, at least for now. Which, in hindsight, could be for the better, as those inside wouldn't be able to escape or wander off while Llæwyn made her ascent back to the village in order to get some additional help for this situation. There was a bout of silence before anyone actually answered, and it seemed to be the voice of an elven child, from the meekness of its tone. "Y-Yes... I... I'm here... Elon o-of... of Coralynth." When instructed to wait, 'Elon' only replied in one word. "Okay..." A few mutterings and whispers were heard from within, afterwards.

While many of Grenwyll's warriors were out on their own patrols, a select few did stay to guard the village itself, and on Llæwyn's branch, the Eastern side, there were two sentries wandering about, making their rounds. First she would encounter Daelas, an experienced swordsman who, while not quite as skilled as the swordswoman, was known for being reliable and consistent in his duties. He was possessed of a rather small build, with reddish brown hair and slightly tanned skin. "Ello Llæwyn. Humans, you say? Hrm... yes, I'll be down in just a moment. Give me a second." Despite having said as much, he immediately strode off in the direction of the tree that provided a descent to the bottom.

The second, not too far from the eastern side's other end, was Maerwyn, a female warrior of the 'new generation'. At the tender age of 20, she was quite green, but proved herself to be able, though around Llæwyn she tended to be rather quiet and withdrawn. Like her older, more experienced counterpart, she had green hair and light skin, and was of similar build; one could almost guess her to be a younger version of Llæwyn, save for the differences in equipment and facial features. Looking up when addressed, she seemed a bit startled at first, but collected herself in no time. ".... Ah! Um... alright, I'm going, then." Unless her senior had any further instructions, Maerwyn would then head straight down to where the scene was reported to be.

The Third could be found in her study, stooped over several books. When she saw Llæwyn enter her abode, she stood up from her desk, as if she simply knew that something was up. Naturally, she would hear the younger elf out before pausing to think the situation over, just briefly, and then said, "A slave caravan... to think that such a market is still thriving today is certainly disappointing, and yet not unexpected. Most unfortunate. However, to bring any humans into this village would no doubt invite trouble. Find a way to drive the others off; if none are capable, then escort them as far away from Grenwyll's ground zone as possible. As for the elf, or any like them, please bring them here. Whether they are of Coralynth or not is irrelevant, in this case, as I will simply allow no member of our species, outcast or not, to find such a horrible fate in the clutches of human slavers, who are no doubt the worst amongst them all."
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Only one voice answered when Llæwyn shouted into the carriages, and it made the green-haired elf seethe with anger. The voice clearly belonged to a child, one who called herself Elon, from Coralynth. She was glad she had slaughtered these damned small-ears, because no little elven child deserved to be enslaved to whatever small-ear was sick enough to pay for her. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how terrible a life that would be, and she was still fuming a little bit thinking about it as she briskly made her way back up to the village, searching out her colleagues. The first she came across was a man named Daelas, a more experienced warrior than she, but only by a bit. He didn’t have quite the skill that she did, but he was still a reliable and consistent swordsman that she had no problem fighting alongside.

"Daelas, in my patrol I ran across some small-ear slavers escorting a caravan of slaves through our territory. I killed them, but the carriages are still sitting there on the forest floor. Go keep the area secure while I have a talk with the Third, if you would" Llæwyn called out to the small-ish elf, and he quickly responded, moving towards the tree that one took to get to the forest floor despite asking for time to prepare. He was always saying weird, incongruent things like that, which was kind of amusing, but he was a good guy. The other sentry that had been assigned to the eastern side of the village was a young girl named Maerwyn, just barely at the minimum age where an elf could be taken seriously as a warrior. She looked almost like she could have been the green haired elf’s sister, despite being less than half her age, and also despite the fact that she was basically Llæwyn’s polar opposite, a quiet and withdrawn young lady. She was quite impressed with the girl, whom she had known since the latter was a very young child, probably Wyne’s age. Still, she was worried that elves who were so wet behind the ears were being thrown into dangerous situations. After a quick explanation, and a bit more forceful of a request than the one she had offered to Daelas, the girl rushed straight to the forest floor.

Next up was the meeting with the Third, who was found in her study as usual. Llæwyn entered with her customary salute, the Elder standing to greet her, and then began her report. "I hadn’t been patrolling for long, before I heard carriages approaching. I hid myself and observed, and luckily they stopped very close by. I was able to determine from the appearance of the carriages and the small-ears gathered around them that it was a caravan of slavers, and that there was at least one elf inside. The lot of them provided me with… a perfect opportunity to attack, so I took it and wiped them out. Only one elf answered my call, a girl from Coralynth, the rest I presume to be small-ears. I came here to you to receive further orders on what to do with this caravan" she said, and then waited to hear the Third’s recommendation.

For her part, the green-haired warrior thought for a moment after listening, something nagging at her. "Pardon me for saying so, but it seems incautious to allow small-ears with a good idea of Grenwyll’s location to go free, even if they were formerly slaves. It would be both more prudent and more convenient to extract the elves from the carriages, and then kill the rest. Their kind don’t seem to care much for them in any case" she said quietly, keeping her tone respectful and non confrontational. Even Llæwyn didn’t hate humans enough to necessarily demand their deaths on sight, but she was paranoid about giving them information they didn’t already have. Few humans knew where Grenwyll was, at least not specifically, and if any learned there would likely be troubles, and of course no amount of human life was worth the threat of danger to her village.
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

The older elf paused after hearing Llæwyn's proposal, looking as if she were giving it some serious thought for once. However, that was as far as the suggestion went. After her brief moment of contemplation, the Third shook her head, saying, "Mm... while I do understand your line of logic, I would have to advise against killing the slaves. As of right now, we have an uneasy truce with the humans, particularly the Brevnian government... and while I am sure the loss of some slavers would mean little to them, the primary issue lies with their captives. If there is anyone politically important, such as a member of royalty, within the carriage, and we were to be found responsible for their deaths, then it could start another war. Humans will go to extreme measures to protect the interests of their most privileged individuals, after all. Even if it means the extinction of a race such as ours. While we are currently inferior in numbers, strategically, we mustn't give them a reason." She shook her head, frowning. Despite her dim outlook on the humans, it wasn't an undeserved one for those living in Grenwyll.

"And while I do have faith in you and the other warriors... between the Kingdom of Brevnia and Elynsor, we're in a very poor position. Given enough reason I'm sure they would find this place regardless, or determine the location with their emissaries, if the killed captives were important enough. I apologize, Llæwyn... but I'm afraid I can't authorize such a crucial decision without first consulting the other Elders. While it is admittedly a remote chance, it isn't particularly one I would like to take, for the safety of our village."

Taking a deep breath, she seemed rather downbeat after giving her answer, but firm in her resolve either way. "Unfortunately, Grenwyll is under enough duress as is, so I would prefer we resolve the problem as quickly as possible, with minimal hassle or threat of backlash. Send them off. I trust you'll use your better judgment. Of course, the elven child shall be brought up here. Outcast or not, we certainly shouldn't communicate the message that taking our kind as slaves is acceptable. I'm sure that much is reasonable."

Unless the swordswoman had any other serious protests to make, the Third would then return to her seat, leaving the rest up to her.

~~~~~​

Back at the forest floor, the slavers' bodies had already been piled up, thanks to Daelas' efforts, while Maerwyn, using a key found off of one, unlocked the pad that kept the slaves inside. Slowly, she opened the gate with her sword drawn, pointing the blade at the entrance so as to keep anyone else at bay. When Llæwyn appeared, the two elven warriors would acknowledge her and await directions.

"Alright, those bodies are taken care of, for now," said Daelas.

"S-So... uhm, what about these?" asked Maerwyn while keeping a sharp eye on those inside.
 
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Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Llæwyn watched silently as the Third considered her proposal, surprised that it had taken this long. Normally this particular Elder wasn’t terribly amused by her intense dislike of humans, and especially her suggestions of what to do with them, but this time seemed a little bit different for a while. Of course, the idea was ultimately rejected primarily as being impractical, and likely to anger the Kingdom of Brevnia enough to cause… inopportune problems for Grenwyll. Still, the green-haired elf chafed at the poor position her home found itself in. If only the filthy creatures didn’t breed so much, things would be different. "Very well. I will attempt to extract the elven child and any others who couldn’t answer me, and then send the caravan on its way. As a compromise between our positions, would you consider it appropriate for elves to drive them some distance towards Brevnia, and then allow small-ears to drive the rest of the way? This way they at least wouldn’t know the exact location, only the direction compared to their destination. Daelas and Maerwyn are on the forest floor, shall I take them with me to complete this task, or should we find people more suited to driving a carriage?"

Once the Third had answered her, Llæwyn made her way through the village to find two individuals who were capable of handling domesticated horses, and thus would be ideal candidates to drive the carriages for a while. She knew of a few off the top of her head, and had a decent idea of where they would be at this time. After that, she would recruit a third person to escort the rescued elves (or elf, if Elon proved to be the only one) into Grenwyll, and then head to the forest floor. In the meantime the corpses had been piled up in one place, and Maerwyn had taken a key from one of them to slowly and carefully open the gate of the carriage that the elf had called out from, holding out her sword to keep the crowd from rushing out.

"Yes, we’ll have to burn or bury them later" Llæwyn replied to Daelas as she eyed the corpse pile, hoping she wouldn’t ultimately be put on such duty. "We’ll be escorting the small-ears a short way towards Brevnia before turning them loose on their own. We’ll need you to explain this to them so that they remain calm. In any case, let’s get the elves out here into the open" she continued, walking to the opening and calling out "Elon, make your way out towards my voice. Bring any other elves you find along the way, and we’ll have you in a warm bed tonight."
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

"Mm. Yes, that would work fair enough. Daelas knows how to drive a carriage, Maerwyn less so. I'd recommend searching for one more, but either way, I expect that your trip not be extended further than necessary. After all, your very presence brings ease to Grenwyll's inhabitants, whether or not some individuals, like the Second, are ready to admit as much. Please, just hurry back."

Llæwyn found two brothers, Idanar and Talin, woodworkers by trade who had some experience with horses, who would serve as the temporary coach drivers, and a middle-aged elven man named Belan, a gentle individual of rather stocky build, to function as the escort for any elves that might be found within the slaves' ranks.

"Anything for you, Llæwyn," announced one of the two siblings. "Been a good while since I've had to do anything of the sort, but I'm sure we've still got it," said the other.

"Well then, let's hope all is well down below," commented Belan, carrying a roll of blankets underneath one arm. With that, the four of them returned to the surface.

~~~~~​

However, when Llæwyn called out towards Elon, she would find that the elf didn't emerge right away despite her reassuring words.

"Hello?" asked Maerwyn, following up on the command. "We won't hurt you, whether you be from Coralynth or otherwise. You are safe now."

Hesitantly, a young elf, perhaps no older than the age of ten, emerged from the wagon. Her light green hair was unkempt, matted in several places, and she was dressed in little more than a few dirty rags, grime covering her otherwise milky skin. A steel collar adorned her neck, to which a chain was attached, and this was connected to the restraints of the next individual who came out with her, a middle-aged woman. But not an elven woman--this was a human, much in the same shape that the smaller one was in, though her hair was blonde, and she was possessed of soft features. The sharp-eared child clung to the human tightly, who returned her embrace with a protective look aimed towards Maerwyn, Llæwyn, and the others. "I'm Elon of Coralynth, and this is Betha of Grem," explained the elven child. "My mother."
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

"Very well. I have no intention of escorting the small-ears a long way, just enough to keep them ignorant. Thank you for your help and advice" Llæwyn said in parting to the Third, bowing slightly to the Elder before moving out into the village again. Her search for carriage drivers was fruitful and quick; Idanar and Talin, were out and about, two carpenter brothers whom she knew to have experience with horses. Most of the little bits of decorative woodwork and carving in her home had been done by the two of them, which explained why she knew them more or less. To bring the elven slave girl up to the village she found a middle-aged man named Belan, known for his gentleness, who happened to be walking in their path; if she had been searching someone specific out, he would have been a pretty good choice.

Once Llæwyn had finished calling out to Elon back on the surface, the girl took quite some time to come out. Enough so that Maerwyn called out to attempt to reassure her further, and finally a very young elf began to hesitantly edge her way out of the carriage. She probably wasn’t even ten years old, and Llæwyn seethed in anger at the sight of her. Her light green hair was mussed and unkempt, her clothing little more than filthy rags covering dirty, grimy skin that obviously hadn’t been cleaned in a long time. Worse was the steel collar that had been fastened around her neck, a chain connected to the next prisoner in the carriage. Annoyingly enough it was a middle-aged human woman, a blonde who was in similarly poor shape, and the elven warrior was already pondering what to do with it before she noticed that Elon was clinging to the woman quite tightly, a hug with the woman returned.

And then came the girl’s words. Elon gave the woman’s name, and some strange place of origin Llæwyn had only heard in passing before, and then… claimed that she was her mother. The warrior stared blankly for a while, but as it began to sink in the entire left side of her face twitched as one. A human/elf half-breed… The concept was one of the single most abominable things in all the world to Llæwyn, either a wicked betrayal of her people or a sick exercise in forced breeding. A dark, awful scowl returned to her face as she stared more closely at the girl. She didn’t look like a half-breed, not at all. This human probably wasn’t her real mother… So what exactly was going on here? "The fuck is Grem?" she muttered to the others, rather completely stumped as to what sort of place it was or where it was, though it was obviously some kind of human settlement.

"And in any case, how exactly did the small-ear convince you of that?" she asked of the girl acidly, stepping closer. "I very much doubt it’s your mother. The slavers tell you that?" Llæwyn was becoming angry all over again, though not necessarily at the slavers anymore… she had absolutely no intention of allowing a human into Grenwyll, and if she had to slit Betha’s throat and drag her corpse up the stairs to get Elon to a proper home that would be fine with her, the question was whether Elon deserved the same treatment or not in her mind. "We aren’t going to be taking a small-ear with us either way" she continued, though of course she didn’t have final say on that matter, as she wasn’t the “leader” of this little band of warriors by any stretch. If anything, Daelas would be most “in charge” because of his seniority, but in the moment the green-haired elf wasn’t thinking much about that.
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

"Beats me," muttered Maerwyn. "I don't keep track of all the small-ears' settlements," she added scornfully, while keeping her eyes locked on the entrance to the wagon and those inside.

"I believe it's the humans' name for a country north of Elynsor," answered Daelas, taking a step forward for a closer look.

"Elynsor? She's come a long way, then..." said Idanar, scratching the back of one ear.

"Oh! Come now, young one," offered Belan to the young elf, holding out a blanket in his hands. "We'll return you to your rightful home, and your mother to hers as well," he said in a soft voice.

Elon made a face and shied away from him, clinging to Betha's leg. "N-No... I'm not going anywhere without my mother! Y-You said that you wouldn't harm us! You said we were safe!"

"We said that we wouldn't harm YOU," Maerwyn shot back with a frown. "Small-ears are another matter entirely. If we are forced to choose between them and one of our own, we will always go with the latter."

When Llæwyn added her part, Elon's expression only worsened. Tears formed at the corners of her eyes as she shrunk back from the beautiful swordswoman's sharp accusations. Her face crinkled when additional doubt was expressed as to whether or not Betha was truly her parent. It seemed as if this simply couldn't register with her. "No, she is! She's always taken good care of me... she's the only mother I've ever had! You're the liar!"
She then whimpered a few words to her so-called mother in the human tongue.

Betha glared at Llæwyn, wrapping her arms around Elon protectively. Though she didn't appear to understand what was being said, at least not at first, her brow furrowed after the young elf spoke to her. "When the slavers plucked this child from her home, not one of you came to her aid. And yet she still bears the name of an Elven town as her place of heritage, whether or not the lot of you have done anything to deserve such. I've been more of a mother to her than any of you." While she spoke in Elynsorian, with a Gremic accent at that, her tone was clearly angry, as was her expression.

Idanar frowned at this, then leaned over to whisper the translation in Llæwyn's ear.

"So it was you that deceived her, then, not the slavers," growled Maerwyn.

"If they don't want to be separated, there isn't much we can do," conceded Daelas with a shrug. "Maybe return them both to the edge of the forest, or bring them up to Grenwyll until the Third can decide what to do with them?"

"As if I'd let a small-ear into our village."

Daelas frowned, then looked to the rest. "What does everyone else think?"

"I'd say get them out of here as fast as possible," suggested Idanar. His brother nodded in agreement. "After all, we are here to drive the coaches."

"Surely, we can't forsake one of our own like this, could we?" said Belan with a frown. "While her mother might, this child would never integrate into human society as anything other than a slave."
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Maerwyn’s answer didn’t surprise Llæwyn very much at all, all things considered. The girl was much like her, except younger, and hated the humans every bit as much as she did, if not more. Daelas quickly gave the proper answer, which more or less confirmed that Betha wasn’t this elven child’s mother. If Grem was north even of Elynsor, it was probably a month’s journey from here. That the woman was in the carriage at all was kind of bizarre. The little elf was going to make this hard, though, it seemed. She only clung to the human harder as the group suggested that she be separated from her, even beginning to cry when Llæwyn spoke harshly to her, accusing the green-haired warrior of lying before speaking to her “mother” in Elynsorian tongue, something that grated on Llæwyn quite a bit.

A moment later Betha began to glare at Llæwyn, hugging the little elf tightly to her. And then she began to speak, in an accent that the warrior had never heard before, and certainly couldn’t decipher even as to what language was being spoken. It was something of a rant, and it was clearly angry, especially given her expression… Once she was done, Idanar leaned over and whispered a translation into Llæwyn’s ear, which again made the entire left side of her face twitch. The criticism would have been valid, had any of them hailed from Coralynth. And though the green-haired warrior would have loved to have the resources to go after every lost elven child in all of the forest, it simply wasn’t practical. Her fist clenched, her urge to pound the human’s face in growing, angry retorts running through her head. It would all be for nothing, of course, because the woman couldn’t understand her.

This brought about a wave of reaction from the others, with Daelas suggesting that their options were either to load them back in the wagon and send them on their way, or take them up into the village for the Third to decide their fate. Maerwyn, predictably, objected to allowing the human into the village even before the older elf asked for the others’ opinions. The carriage-driving brothers suggested only speed, and Belan objected that they couldn’t just abandon the little girl to human society, where she would doubtless live her life as a slave. Llæwyn was torn. She utterly despised the idea of allowing a small-ear into Grenwyll, no matter the circumstances, but she also hated the idea of abandoning one of her own, especially a young child, no matter how misguided that child might be. It took a bit of thought on her part, some glaring at the chains that connected the two; even if Elon had agreed to be separated from her “mother,” they would still have to take the two of them up to get those chains struck off by one of the smiths… After a moment the green-haired elf crouched down so that she was eye level with the girl, glaring into her eyes with a mix of anger and the sort of pain that comes from making such a decision. "I say you blindfold the small-ear in such a way as to hide its ears, and take the two of them to the Third to decide their fate. She would be a better persuader than any of us, in any case. Even if Elon wanted to leave alone, we would still need a smith to separate them" she said after a moment, before scooting in close to the girl. "You’ll be faced with an important decision today. Consider your future carefully" she said, before getting back to a standing position.

"Maerwyn, close the carriage up and let’s get moving. No sense standing around here waiting any longer. Would one of you explain to them that we're moving them closer to their destination, so they don't panic?" Llæwyn continued, turning to face the younger elf again. She wasn't sure what to think about everything that had happened just yet. Giving the decision to the Elder was the safest option, most likely. The old elf was wise, and would doubtless know how to convince the girl that her future lay with them, and not some human. Of course, a human in the village at all could cause problems, and ideally the Third would convince Elon to abandon Betha and then throw the human off the village railing. Inwardly Llæwyn cursed; she hated these sorts of situations, where there was not only no right answer, but no answer that was even decent.
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

Elon returned Llæwyn's look a sort of solemn quietness to it, honestly considering the words of the beautiful swordswoman that had initially come off as rather harsh and overbearing. While she was probably ultimately thankful for her apparent decision not to harm her mother, at least for now, the little girl couldn't quite wrap her head around the level of seething hostility that the older elf bore. It just didn't make sense to her. Betha was hardly threatening, in the slightest. And the kindly human had done nothing to them, only showing a bit of defiance for Elon's sake in the end. Even after returning Llæwyn's suggestion with a slow nod, the young elf clung to her mother stubbornly, unable to stand the thought of being parted from her.

"Ouh, that's a good idea, yes!" said Belan in agreement. "Great thinking, Llæwyn." He stepped forward, much to the visible apprehension of the two slaves, then repeated the lead swordswoman's advice. "I'll be taking the both of you up then. For ah... safety reasons, Betha will need some covering up, just to avoid any unnecessary trouble. There are many elves in Grenwyll who don't take too kindly to the short-ears, though to be fair, most of you have given us good reason for the, uh...lack of trust," he explained. The kind tone in which he spoke did its part in calming Betha, and the blonde-haired woman complied further when Elon translated for her. This allowed Belan to fashion a blindfold of sorts, along with a makeshift shroud out of one of the blankets he carried. It was still something of an odd sight, to be sure, but it wouldn't be as outright alarming as a human simply walking about in the village.

"And we'll see if we can't get Olindir to get you two out of these shackles. Can't imagine those to be too comfortable," added the kindly elf. He then turned to the others. "I'll be taking these two up to Grenwyll, then. I'm sure the Third will come up with a reasonable solution for the issue. Please, be safe." While Belan first looked at Llæwyn as he spoke, his last wish before leaving was directed at the group as a whole, as he scanned over the others when saying it. After his farewell to the other elves, the man ushered Betha and Elon to the tree that served as the village's entry point. It wasn't long before the three of them were gone from view, leaving Llæwyn, Maerwyn, Idanar, Talin, and Daelas to take the rest of the prisoners to the forest's edge.

"Oh... um, r-right," answered Maerwyn to her senior's order before slamming the gate shut, much to the protest of several captives left inside. "What about us? Where are you taking us? How did those two get to leave, yet we remain?!" yelled a voice from within the carriage. Reacting in immediate anger, the younger swordswoman kicked the door, rattling it, in an attempt to forcefully earn silence through intimidation. It only succeeded in turning the cries of defiance into subdued mutters, though Daelas attempted to follow up by speaking a few calm words to the slaves within. Idanar and Talin took their places as the carriages' drivers. It seemed as though Elon was the only elf in either one, from the sounds of it, and before long they were prepared to set off. Daelas took his position on the carriage to the rear, ever vigilant to keep watch over their flanks, while Maerwyn seated herself next to Llæwyn atop the lead vehicle. With that, they began to move, starting with a steady trot made by the horses pulling the coaches. This part of the forest didn't have any real 'trails', per se, so much as it did open spaces between trees. Because of this, the group didn't travel in a perfectly straight line, occasionally needing to take turns here and there in order to continue in the general westward direction.

As they rolled along, Daelas and Idanar seemed to be having a healthy, casual discussion, laughing and chattering happily like many Grenwyll villagers would be. This was, strangely enough, in stark contrast to the social situation in the lead carriage, which involved the more reserved Talin and the strangely quiet Maerwyn, who did her best to avoid eye contact with the other swordswoman. Should Llæwyn look closely, she'd notice a blush upon the girl's face, with several beads of sweat lining the edges of her forehead. Occasionally, Maerwyn would steal a glance when the other wasn't looking, but kept her gaze directed forward, on the road ahead of them for the most part. Llæwyn had often seen Maerwyn engaging others in normal conversation, but the younger one ended up being a bit too shy in the more experienced swordswoman's presence. Still, it wasn't a resentful kind of avoidance, at least from what she could tell. Ultimately, it was Talin, of all people, who eventually broke the silence. "So, when we get to the forest's edge, are we going to just select two humans at random to steer the carriages? Doesn't seem like too big a deal to me, personally. Once they're out of the wood, it's no longer our problem. Plus, it could have been worse. We could've killed them, though I doubt that would go through well from a diplomat's standpoint... but just saying. I think we're doing pretty well."
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Belan took the lead after Llæwyn had given her suggestion, as he was probably the most concerned amongst them for the young elven slave’s well-being, and more tolerant of the human. He carefully explained the plan again to Elon in a kind, reassuring voice that calmed both her and her supposed mother, the latter especially so after a bit of translation from the girl. He then went about making a blindfold and shroud out of the blankets he had carried down while the others watched, Llæwyn rather disinterestedly. Vaguely she wondered what people would think of the sight, but it wasn’t terribly relevant. They probably wouldn’t think it was a small-ear, which was most of what mattered. "Alright, be safe yourself. May both our trips be uneventful" the green-haired warrior said after him, bowing slightly and clasping a fist to her chest in salute. It wasn’t necessary given his station, but she didn’t mind giving her elders small tokens of respect like that, especially if they were carrying out “orders” that she gave them.

Maerwyn replied to Llæwyn’s order soon enough, slamming the carriage door shut, which caused the captives still inside to cry out in protest, or at least she assumed it was protest. The younger woman kicked the door again in anger, which quieted the yells into murmurs. Daelas spoke up then, explaining the situation and attempting to calm the humans, though what effect it had was difficult to say. They were more or less ready then, and Idanar and Talin took their positions to drive the carriage, Idanar the rear one, Talin the one in front. Daelas clambered up to the top of the second wagon to keep watch, leaving Llæwyn and Maerwyn to watch over the leading carriage. This part of the forest was quite wild and untamed, which made it all the more confusing as to why the slavers had chosen this route through the forest. There were no trails whatsoever, and traveling in a straight line would have been absolutely impossible, a fair amount of weaving through the trees necessary to keep moving to the west. All the better; the small-ears probably wouldn’t be able to keep up with all the turns, and would have a hard time leading anyone back to Grenwyll if they so desired.

While Idanar and Daelas were back in the rear seemingly having a rather normal, healthy conversation, the front coach was silent for a very long time. Llæwyn hadn’t felt the need to start any idle chatter while she watched the woods carefully, and Talin was a rather reserved fellow, not given to easy conversation. Maerwyn was acting kind of strangely, though. She had always been quiet and withdrawn, and especially so when Llæwyn was around, but she seemed even to be avoiding eye contact now, and the older elf could swear that she caught her young counterpart stealing looks at her out of the corner of her eye. She could even see a bit of sweat on the girl’s forehead, a blush on her cheeks. The warrior sighed inwardly, thinking. She had seen this behavior before, and she thought she had a pretty good idea what was going on.

Yes, this was the reaction of someone who was at least slightly smitten. Llæwyn hadn’t really expected anything like that out of Maerwyn, especially given how rare homosexuality was in Grenwyll. She had always thought she made the girl nervous in a professional sort of way, that her skill intimidated the younger elf, who looked up to her. Now she wasn’t so sure. It was odd for her, too, as she had watched Maerwyn grow up, essentially. She had never had anyone that young coming after her, nor had she made advances towards any such person in the past. Still, it wasn’t as if Llæwyn was terribly opposed to the idea. She would have to try and rope the girl into doing something innocuous with her after this was over, to at least test out her theory.

The silence was finally broken after some time by Talin, who asked what they were going to do once they reached their destination. Llæwyn ran a hand through her hair as she considered, only taking a moment before replying "Yes, two random small-ears should do nicely to drive these things. And we certainly aren’t going as far as the edge of the forest. Only far enough to confuse them as to where they’ve been. Add in a few extra turns if you like. If it had been up to me and me alone we would have burned them all, but it was not up to me. So yes, I suppose we’re doing the diplomatic thing. The bastards had better appreciate it." It wouldn’t be too much longer before she would signal a halt, thinking they had gone far enough, and would begin the process of finding a few humans to drive the carriages on the rest of their way.
 
Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Status:
Llæwyn: HP = 80, PP = 60, EP = 42, Status = Fine

"Right," said Talin, before taking a gradual curve, so as to let the other carriage behind them follow. He only bothered to take about three different loops and a few random curves, but it would likely be enough to throw off the prisoners within. Idanar caught the signal and did his part to follow, and before long, they found themselves in a part of the wood even closer to the edge, though it was still another mile or so from there. With that, the more martially inclined elves--Maerwyn and Daelas--hopped down from their respective spots to get ready for the selection process. The female warrior was a bit more hasty, unlocking the door and opening it before calling out, "Alright, we're letting you free now. Whoever is capable of driving a coach, come forward." Her initial sentence was met with stunned silence, then an exchanged of muffled whispers.

That only served to anger the green-haired one even more, and she slammed her fist into the side of the carriage. "When I am speaking, I wish--no, I demand to be answered properly! Are all of you brow-beaten into such stupidity that you can't even afford to do such a thing for the sake of gratitude towards someone who has granted you freedom?!" Naturally, her aggressive approach only made the situation worse in terms of acquiring a suitable slave by which to steer the coach.

"Ugh. Just a moment..." uttered the elven swordswoman to herself as much as the others, taking a step inside to survey those within since none took the initiative to come out of their own accord, no thanks to the threatening voice that she addressed them in. "Damn! I didn't even realize this earlier. Almost all of them are bound to everyone else in some way, and by thick shackles at that. I should've thought to check sooner, as I thought that they would only be in pairs like Elon and... that short-eared woman. The only one here that isn't is... this girl." Maerwyn emerged from the vehicle's dark interior with a dark-haired human in tow. Her hands and feet were bound only by ropes--which made sense for how frail she appeared. Those were cut in short order by the elven warrior. On the other hand, she did wear a blindfold, one that Maerwyn did away with as well, revealing eyes that didn't appear to have anything special about them. "I wonder why they would blindfold her like this? At any rate, get up onto that seat. You are to drive this carriage," she commanded.

"But I don't even know how," whined the girl in such a tone that even Llæwyn could figure out that this wasn't exactly a call of agreement.

Meanwhile, Daelas had much better luck in finding a suitable pilot, or at the very least, one that was cooperative with him. He had placed her in the driver's seat and was explaining things in the humans' language in terms of how to steer the horses properly, with Idanar helping the process along. It was still unknown as to how he found her without binds, or if he simply managed to remove them himself, but the two male elves were on their way to getting their situation taken care of. Of course, all of the difficult ones came from the carriage that Maerwyn, Llæwyn and Talin rode upon. But either way, they didn't have much time to dawdle in dealing with the humans, or so it seemed. Llæwyn's sharp ears caught an audible disturbance approaching from the edge of the forest. The sound of hoofbeats... more humans, no doubt. But these weren't the steady clop generated from coaches like these. There were at least six or more horses, mounted riders most likely, and they were approaching at an unsettling fast gallop.
 
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Re: Reclaiming the Wood (Tiffanian) GMed by Takimaru

Llæwyn sat back a little bit more as Talin began to curve the path he took slightly, allowing his brother behind them to get the right idea. They took several unnecessary loops, and a few curves they didn’t need to along the way in order to confuse the human slaves inside the carriages, and though it wasn’t much, it would probably disorient them just enough. The greenhaired elf gave the signal to stop about a mile from the forest’s edge, thinking them far enough along to leave the humans to fend for themselves. It shouldn’t take them long to get out of the forest as long as they weren’t completely incompetent, in any case. The elves hopped down off of the carriages and quickly opened the doors, beginning the process of selecting one of the slaves to drive the carriages.

Of course, Llæwyn couldn’t understand whatever it was Maerwyn was saying to them, but she could tell that it wasn’t getting much of a response. The young elf pounded on the carriage when she didn’t immediately receive an answer, shouting quite aggressively at the humans inside. It wasn’t motivating the slaves to come forward, that was for sure, and though Llæwyn could understand her counterpart’s sentiment her method was obviously not working. Finally she decided to step into the carriage, looking around for someone to force into driving the thing as Llæwyn looked on, though she ran into still another problem, and the reason no one had come forward; they were all chained together. The older warrior groaned inwardly, rubbing her forehead slightly as she pondered what they could do to solve this new problem, before Maerwyn came forward with a young human woman, blindfolded and frail. This didn’t look promising, especially when the girl replied with a little whine, but it would have to do, as she was apparently the only one not chained to all of the others.

Daelas had had much more success with his carriage, and was even wasting time teaching the woman he had found how to better steer the thing and handle the horses. She didn’t even have any bindings, so he had probably freed her quickly of some ropes as well. As Llæwyn thought this her long ears perked up, hearing something in the far distance. Being an elf, her hearing was much better than that of a human, though normally something at the great distance this noise was coming from wouldn’t register. This was not a normal situation, though, and this was something she had been dreading; the sound of horse hooves clopping at the edge of the forest, rapid and unevenly, clearly moving at a rather fast speed. There were at least six of them incoming, which wasn’t good. "Daelas, Maerwyn" she called out calmly, just loudly enough to ensure the former could hear her, "do you hear that? More small-ears are coming, at least six. Probably coming to meet the slavers, if I had my guess. I vote we get out of here as fast as we can, I don’t want to be caught here with noncombatants if they’re hostile."
 
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