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Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)


Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

At Natalie's order, the squad scatters to chat with different people. Inside the inn, she sees a group of older, somewhat official looking men around a corner table, talking quietly about something, as well as a couple hunters: a burly man with a nervous twitch and a woman not much older than Natalie herself who would be quite pretty if not for an ugly scar very nearly touching her eye. Though each of them glances at Natalie, they seem intent on the old men.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Natalie approached the table of official looking people, not making any effort to conceal her intent but stopping a few feet away from the table with her hands behind her back. She would wait until acknowledged to finish her approach, instead listening to whatever the old men might be saying.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

One of the men - an ageing lumberjack with broad shoulders and a touch of grey in his hair - clears his throat and the others fall silent. "Good day, miss. What brings you to Helmsdale?" He gives Natalie a mildly disapproving look that suggests she'd better get on with it.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Natalie responded to the burly workman's disapproving glare with a sweet smirk, offering a slight bow that she drew out for a few seconds before clearing her throat in turn. "Greetings! I come representing my master, Count Svarthein, to ascertain the severity of your arachnid issue and respond to it accordingly. Do you represent Helmsdale?" She swept a gaze across the table with a dazzling smile, waiting for a response.

(I forget if yon boss was a count, a baron, or just a lord of some description, or even only a doctor. I went with Count out of laziness.)
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

"The count sent you, did he?" the lumberjack says with a touch of disapproval in his voice. "Well, I'm sure he knows what he's doing. Take a seat. My name is Anton and I'm the mayor." He shuffles the papers in front of him for a while until pushing one of them towards Natalie. It has a sketch of a spider with a man's torso attached where the head should be. "The arachnid problem. Yes. I'm afraid it might be more serious than that. This is what one of the hunters claims to have seen, although when questioned, he did reveal that it was during the night and he fled the scene. Normally I'd put it down to fancies but the others have claimed to see similar... monsters I suppose is the word. Always in the forest and always in the middle of the night. Could be imaginations running high after the first story. Could be something weird going on. I suppose it's your job to find out." The two nearby hunters look a bit sullen upon hearing the mayor suggest it could be just their imagination, but they don't say anything.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Natalie sat down when instructed, sweeping her skirts under herself carefully and surveying the sketch of the monster. A spider with a human torso on top... How strange. Her eyes lit up excitedly at the prospect of capturing one. "Indeed... This is a very serious problem! Hmmm... Do you have a map of the area? Could you show me where the sightings have been taking place, roughly? There may be a pattern that could lead me to their lair. Also, has anyone gone missing or been attacked, or did everyone run away?"
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Shuffling the papers some more, the mayor produces a map of the surrounding area, though it's none too detailed. "This is the area where most of the attacks happened." he says, outlining a circle near the other end of the dale. "There are some deep caves there - used to be a copper mine as well, though it never did produce much - and sometimes strange things come out. Might be so this time as well. As for missing, well, if the game is poor - or sometimes if it's really good - some of the hunters can stay on the move for weeks. But I rather did expect Matthew to come visit yesterday - the fellow never likes to stay away from drinks too long. And no-one has seen Chastity in days, either. It's not the season for long hunts either, whatever you get you need to deal with quickly, else it starts spoiling."
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

"Alright.... Hmmm.... Thank you, this information helps narrow the search. If you don't mind, I will use this tavern as a base for now. I don't know how long it will take to deal with this, but for starters I will have to scout out this mine entrance. If I find anyone out there, I will try to see them returned safely."
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Anton glances at the innkeeper - an equally burly man with receding hairline, wearing an apron - who nods. "Of course. Anything you need, just let us know and we'll be glad to help - within reason, of course. Jason or Chastity can act as a guide."
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

"Is Jason one of the other hunters?" Natalie said, connecting the name to Chastity, who she had just been told hadn't been seen for a while, and assuming his profession. When that was clarified, Natalie smiled sweetly and said; "Thank you... We don't need much, a night of your hospitality for these men while I go out to... Survey things a little. They won't be much trouble, I just want to find the place before we make a move on the nest. I will take one of them and this... Jason, with me for the day. Hopefully we'll find Chastity. Now.... As this is reconnaissance, I'll need jars filled with preservative. They needn't be large, and the preservative needn't be particularly strong, what I have in mind will only need to function for a few days. And I'll need to talk to your butcher, if you have one in town. And if anyone has a large mirror, I'll need to borrow it."
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

The innkeeper nods. "We have vodka, if that'll serve for preservative. All the rooms have large-ish mirrors, though not particularly good ones. And the butcher's shop is right around the corner."

The muscular hunter stands up and approaches Natalie. "And I'm Jason, miss. I'll be happy to lead you to the old mine whenever you're ready."
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

"Alcohol will do, I suppose. I will need three jars filled with it if you please. It need not be top shelf, but purity is a must. No sweeteners! I'll need three mirrors in one room, I'll have some of my boys give you a hand with that, just show them where and what to do."

That said, Natalie turned to Jason and curtsied, "Very good sir, if you would come with me~ My preparations shouldn't take very long. We will depart as soon as I am finished. But first, to the butcher!" She turned on her heal and walked over to the soldiers who had been sent with her, instructing the guardsmen to assist the innkeeper with moving the mirrors and for whoever was acting officer to assign a man to her to help with scouting.

Then she would head over to the butcher, find the man working there, and calmly say; "I need eyeballs. Preferably those belonging to an animal with good natural night vision."
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Semyon salutes and goes to see to the help the innkeeper needs with the preparations, while Mat follows Natalie and Jason to the butcher's. The butcher turns out to be a short, bulky man working on a deer carcass. "You can have the pair from this one, and another from a sheep. Don't know about nightvision, I'm not a hunter." he says after taking a good look at Natalie and her companions.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

"That will do!" Natalie replied to the butcher as she put on a pair of gloves. Once the requested materials were assembled, Natalie would drop an eyeball into each of the jars filled with preservative alcohol before sealing the lids. She then went up to the room with a mirror, letting her would-be guides watch if need be, and drew a circle around it in chalk on the floor. Inside that circle she drew three more, into which she placed the jars. The mirror was divided into three quadrants by lines of ribbon, and after drawing a few arcane glyphs upon the floor Natalie would begin to concentrate and chant under her breath.

If it worked, the mirror would blacken, and then the divided sections would begin to glow. Gradually, as the magical connections formed and solidified, the images that the three eyeballs "saw" would project onto the mirror. If it didn't work... Well, she wasn't sure what would happen. If it did, however, she would clap excitedly and gather up the jars, allowing the connection to remain as they continued to broadcast everything in their field of view.

"Well then, shall we be off?"
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

As the spell is completed, the eyeballs glow briefly. Then, three faint images appear on the mirrors, slowly growing clearer until Natalie can make out the room in each of the images. As she watches, the images keep moving as the eyeballs shift and turn in their jars, though she could bring them to focus by concentrating. Even so, the spell would have a rather limited range - perhaps half a mile at most - unless she found some way to channel more power into it.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

"Excellent, excellent!" Natalie said, focusing on each eye and causing it to hover in the jar and focus on specific points. She panned each around, but then frowned. Distance would be a problem. For a moment she pondered trying to run a conduit from here to where she would end up, but then discounted that idea due to lack of materials for it. She would need to either move the mirror or shunt a great deal more power into the spell than she could manage on her own, and as she didn't know of any ley lines nearby...

She turned towards the two men standing behind her and, with a completely straight face, said; "The spell will need more power. Mat, you and the men will have to gangbang me so that I can channel the sexual energy into the mirror. Jason you'll have to help, I need as much as I can get." She let that settle in for a moment, wondering how they'd react, before breaking out into giggles and shaking her head; "I'm just kidding, one of you is just going to have to carry this. Or we could just find a smaller mirror. We'll have to be camped out near the mine for the night, the spell has limited range."
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Jason's jaw drops as Natalie makes her joke, and he seems to have trouble getting his head straight. Mat merely blinks incredulously before letting out a short chuckle. "Have it your way, boss." The man vanishes for a few minutes before returning with a large cloth to wrap the mirror in, as well as bags for the jars with eyes. Natalie can hear the other soldiers coming back downstairs.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Natalie chuckled at the sight of the hunter's shock, and while Mat is away she glances at the door and then back towards Jason, adopting a sly smirk and sauntering forward. "Oh my... Are you alright sir?" She said in a seductive purr, walking until she was within arm's reach and sliding a hand over his shoulder while the other was planted delicately on his chest. She couldn't quite help teasing him after her joke had left him so flabbergasted, and let her hand begin to slowly slide down his torso as she continued in a slow, breathy purr; "You seem... Troubled.... Would you have liked to ravish me? You should know, I am a witch. The ecstasy would be unbelievable as I... Extract your essence~"

Mat was on his way back by that point, and she giggled again before sliding away, her hand having trailed down to pause just a bit past the waistband of his pants and no farther. With Mat preparing the mirror, Natalie would gather up the rest of the soldiers and announce; "Alright men, we're heading out presently. Have the empty sample containers ready to move tomorrow, we'll be running reconnaissance tonight to try and find the nest. While we're away, see if you can find out anything else from the townsfolk... And try not to get too drunk while I'm away!"

Unless there was anything important she'd forgotten or anything else that came up, Natalie would herd Mat and a likely still flabbergasted Jason on out of the tavern, allowing the latter to lead them in the direction of the night sightings of strange creatures.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Jason shoots Natalie a suspicious glare and mutters something about needing to get his things, slipping away to the sounds of her giggling.

Upon hearing his orders, Seymyon salutes smartly and tells the others to check their equipment and oil their weapons before getting washed. Jason returns after a few minutes with a backpack and a bow, starting to lead Natalie and Mat into the forest.

The forest is shadowy even during the day, with barely any sunlight getting through the canopy of leaves and thick undergrowth dominates everywhere except on the trails Jason leads them along. The wind seems to whisper in the treetops and only Jason's certain stride stops Natalie from wondering whether they're going around in circles as the trail branches time and again. After less than an hour, Natalie spots a large cobweb in the branches above, seemingly occupied by hundreds of spiders the size of a hand.
 
Re: Where a god goes, men can follow(natalie/Tassadar)

Natalie merely giggled at Jason's suspicious look and went about her business as planned. Once they had prepped and departed, Natalie hummed to herself and followed the hunter's lead without any apparent concerns for the twists and turns. She initially tried to follow their meanderings but ultimately that concern was hopeless, and she opted to rely on their guide to lead them and magic to lead them back if he were somehow incapacitated.

The sorceress would pause at the sight of the massive web hanging in the trees and the massive spiders clinging to it, each the size of her hand. "Woah... Is that common around here?" She would ask, pointing up at it and glancing over at their guide. Spiders that big tended to be adults, and adult spiders tended to be solitary... So either they were a type of spider that lived in colonies somehow, or those were just the babies. Or at least, those were the two ideas that most immediately came to her mind.
 
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