Demon Redux

(I'm not going to lie, I didnt read the previous posts all too clearly before now.. But, the only way I could see a forest being around is if it was at least two miles away XD We are at the mouth of a giant deserty rocky formation, the village literally being made of rocks o3o So as an act against nature I'm just going to slap the forest about a mile west of the village, the exit to the chasm would be facing south. If there are any complaints with that feel free to talk with me, okay? Okay.)

Flynn reached his arms upwards to the sky, the orb being held up high as if on display, his abdomen lengthening as he stretched his back out. He returned to his normal, yet oddly jittery standing position with a yawn. He knew he had no money on him yet he reached his hand in his pocket and rummaged around a bit to entertain Amelia. He gave a tired shrug.
"I've got nothing." He noted apologetically.
Just as Flynn finished what he was saying an elderly lady walked up to the group. She looked ancient, her face was covered in wrinkles, standing at about the height of Flynn's chest she stood hunched over a long wooden cane which she used to support herself. She spoke a in a wispy yet strong voice.
"If you're out of money why not just head on over to the inn over there?" Obviously using a great deal of her strength the women picked up her staff and pointed the end of it over to a building just outside the town center, it was only slightly larger than any of the other buildings yet it had a small wooden sign hanging from it which read "Inn".
"Believe it or not, we get a lot of travelers around here." The older women continued "Both traders and adventurers alike come through here fairly often, many leave a sum of money and a request with the inn keeper, and she in turn gives them to other adventurers as jobs, I'm sure you all could easily get one and buy yourself a room." The old lady gave a toothless grin, her eyes struggling to squint against the harsh sun. Just as quickly as she came the elderly one was gone, whistling a dry tune as she hobbled in the opposite direction of the inn.

Laeis shook her head in dismay. The situation before her faded away back into the streets of Azure as if nothing had happened. so, what was that? a... premonition?...well i know it was not real, the nearest forest is across the chasm. She looked frontwards to see the new adventurers still there, and one of the elders just walking by them. She was a nice one, helping out new arrivals here and the "local wildlife" all the same, she had received more than a few meals when food became scarce in winter. In her fit of imagination and inner thought, Laeis didn't take notice that the streets were clearing out at sundown and she was standing quite alone in comparison to before, leaving only a few groups of adventuring parties looking for rest.

Clarice didn't mind sleeping on the streets, it was what she was used to by now, but some coin didn't sound like a bad idea and the rest of the group didn't seem like the type who would curl up in an alleyway for the night. 'Still the sooner we can get out of this town the better,' Clarice thought. She hated to admit it but surrounded by this dry rock of a town she longed for the humid foliage of her birthplace. She shook the thought from her head and began walking toward the inn. If they were after this gold their chances of success would increase with their numbers and she had a sense that this ragtag group would turn out to be a whole lot more than any of them had any idea.
Clarice's ears perked at another sound coming from the alleyway. Her eyes flicked in that direction but from where she was standing in the setting sun she still couldn't see anything. Clarice felt the back of her neck prickle, she wasn't just being jumpy, someone was watching them.
"Well are we going to go or what?" Clarice feigned annoyance and started off but instead of walking down the street she slid up against the side of the nearest building and pressed herself into the shadow created by the setting sun. She took a deep breath and as she slowly let it out she melted into the shadow of the wall behind her. Her shadow slithered around the side of the building and into the alleyway. Sure enough in the alley stood a dog, only this dog was standing up as humans did. 'Well that's different.' Clarice thought. She pooled out of the shadows and stepped out in to the alley directly behind the dog creature. "And who might you be?" Clarice stood in a relaxed position but the hand hanging at her side fingered a dagger she had hidden up her sleeve, after all this person had been watching them for who knew how long, and that usually was not a sign of friendship.

Laeis slid back to an alley and stood up, it wasn't easy walking on all fours for a long time. I have to be more careful, daydreaming is not going to help me talk to him. She shook her head again, at least none of them noticed me it seemed. Laeis sensed towards them, to make sure they were all still there, but was caught off immediately. She sensed that that the shadows were...alive, before the aura assembled into a human shape.
   "And who might you be?" Laeis' ears perked back to, stopping the search, it was apparent that whoever found her preferred confrontation rather than stealth, but sensed that she would not fight. She turned her head to face the shadow-walker, to great surprise. It was a woman from the fox-boy's group standing calmly like she wasn't facing the brusquely unknown. Laeis ginned, "you are with him yes? The one with ears like mine. There are things i must know, about...my past, I will not harm you if you do not harm me, it would be foolish to squander this meeting." She started shaking, "help me find the truth."

Clarice raised an eyebrow. “Flynn?” Clarice glanced over the dog’s shoulder to where Flynn and the others were still standing. “You think he has the answers you are looking for?” Clarice had no doubt Flynn would answer pretty much any question asked but keeping him on the same topic would be a real challenge. She nodded. “I will, but I need to know what truth you are after.” Clarice shifted her weight and crossed her arms no longer touching any of her weapons. “And a name would be useful as well.”

Laeis turned to fully face the shadow-walker, "by name my mother gave me Bright-Hope, Laesolis to better fit the human language. For the truth I seek, I already told you is my past." Her face turned towards sadness, "I have been here my entire life knowing only my mother, brothers, and sisters closely. Not once have i seen or heard my father, that one over there, Flynn you say, is the only man I have seen to bear any resemblance to me." Laeis knew this bravado couldn't last much longer, her words began to tremble. "If he knows my father, or is, he will be my guide to the truth... is that enough for you, shadow-walker?"

“Yes, that is enough.” Clarice nodded. ‘More than enough for anyone I should think.’ Clarice thought. She lifted her sunglasses and looked directly into Laesolis's eyes. “Laesolis, I will find your long over due truth.” 'Even if it is not with Flynn.' Clarice didn’t have the heart to tell her that the similarities between them ended at the ears and even they were a stretch. Clarice only hoped that Flynn had something to offer this ‘bright-hope’. She dipped her head in farewell but never took her eyes off the creature who faced her. “Until then.” Clarice replaced her sunglasses over her eyes and tipped her head back toward the sky, simply melting into the ground in a pool of shadow. She slid out of the alley and into the street where she had left the others. As the last rays of direct sunlight hit her Clarice was extracted quite painfully out of the shadow she had been concealing herself in. She gave a small gasp dragging air into her lungs and wavering before regaining her full balance and shaking herself. The pain lasted only a minute before she turned to the others. “So how about those beds?”

Amelia paid close attention to the frail dwarf lady. Wait, that's not a dwarf. Whoops. She turned slightly pink in embarrassment, but the setting sun covered up the color of her face. Apparently she wasn't paying as much attention as she had believed. The old lady finished up and disappeared into the distance. "Thanks for the information lady!" yelled Amelia, cupping her hands around her mouth in an attempt to amplify the sound. She turned back around to the group as Clarice popped out of the ground, and motioned towards the inn. "I guess we have no choice but to complete a request at the inn if we want to sleep on a bed tonight. I hope we don't have to do a lot more because of our party size."
 Amelia went up to the door of the inn and tried to push it open. Yes, she tried to push it open. Next she tried to pull it open and it complied. Note to self: remind innkeeper to add a sign on the door. Looking into the interior of the inn there was a stone bar with matching tables, but chairs woven with plant fibers. Everything seemed quite dusty and rugged, not a big surprise for a town in such a dry location. In the bar, there weren't many visible drinks, and there were stairs leading up to a second story. At the bar was a strong and muscular looking man who was cleaning the inside of a stone mug.
 Amelia took a look at the person attending the bar and turned her head and said "I'll handle this..." over her shoulder. She used fluid motions to walk up to the counter, and leaned on it with her arms crossed in front of her, her shirt being open enough to reveal cleavage (not too exciting because she's not large in the breast area). "Hey there, you look like a big, strong fellow. Any way for me and my companions to spend the night at your... beautiful... inn?" said Amelia while trying to sound seductive. She even batted her eyelashes.

Koga pulled over a flat stone and reached within his knapsack to gather 2 loafs of stale bread. "Might as well test out the flammability to it's max!" He shouted as he reached for his berries and a branch that lay on the floor next to him. Koga stabbed into a berry with his branch and created a tiny spark. "Hmm the books I have read sure aren't lying about how flammable these are...I best be careful." He said as he ripped a peice of stale bread (about 2cm wide 2cm tall) and rubbed it in the powder of the first berry. "Hmm...maybe.." He held it cautiously. Koga threw the bread covered in ameberst dust into the ground below him. It made a medium sized spark. "It could work...if I had the right tools.." Koga threw the branch down into the fire and grabbed hold of his staff. He opened a secret compartment that held his jade knuckles. "Mom...Dad....I wish everyday that you where here to see what I  have made...see what I have seen...and meet the people I have met..." Koga made a little bed out of leaves and closed the compartment and put his staff away. "I miss you...."A tear rolled down his right eye as he lay in the leaf pile and slowly fell asleep.            (True this could be better, but I can try harder when need be...Im just LAZY)

Clarice rolled her eyes. Amelia may be a pretty little elven girl but Clarice had been around long enough by now to know that Amelia wasn't well endowed enough to earn them much more than a drink and that was if they were lucky. Still Amelia might be able to surprise her with some hidden negotiating skills. It was obvious to Clarice that the interaction that could be possibly quite humorous but also quite lengthy and time was one thing she didn't have. The sun was almost down and she wanted to get some sleep first. Besides in these situations it was best to usually just get to what you wanted. Beating around the bush never got anyone anywhere and definitely not quickly. Clarice turned toward Flynn, "Just tell him we came here for a room and a way to make some gold. Amelia's method is going to get us nowhere fast." With that she went to lean against the adjacent wall with her arms crossed so she could survey the entire room as well as keep and eye on the door from behind her glasses. She hadn't exactly been a people person before and she wasn't about to start now especially not with so many companions eager for outside interaction.

The bartender let out a gruff, boisterous laughter.
"You're right! I am quite strong!" The man declared proudly, seemingly falling for the lustrous rouse. As if under a charm by the elf girl the man set down his stone mug and raised his left arm up like a trophy, his right resting on his bicep as his viciously flexed them, he finished off his demonstration by smacking his muscles and letting out another gentlemanly laugh, followed by a belch that the manliest of men would be jealous of. He then stroked his mighty beard and curly mustache combo, the kind of mustache that curls at the tips and oh so perfectly compliments the long lumberjack like beard flowing off his face like the majestic river salmon would be swimming up whilst beautiful mermaids danced around the rocks.
A swinging wooden door off the the side of the inn swung open, revealing a rather lack luster kitchen. Out from the kitchen walked another man, large and muscular, his traits were very similar to them man working the bar, aside from a few things such as black hair instead of red and a slightly different skin tint and clothing color, they were indistinguishable. The man who had just made his way from behind the scenes carried a stone platter with a couple of stone mugs on board. He was cheerfully making his way to a table across the inn via behind the counter. As muscle man number two made his way behind the barkeeper he delivered a swift and powerful smack onto his behind.
"Nice work beautiful" The man carrying the tray added as he made his escape towards the table he was on his way to server.
"I'll get you back for that one later." the original barkeep added, including a wink for extra measures.

Flynn blinked with innocence for a few awkward moments before what happened had dawned on him. Cautiously taking Clarice's advice Flynn slowly waddled up to the desk next to Amelia, his orb hiding half of his face from the large bartender, his ears twitching vigorously and his tails flicking nervously.
"Can we get some rooms? Or do some work for gold and then buy a room?" Flynn asked stiffly, his words awkwardly rushing from his mouth.

The bartender looked down at Flynn for a moment, stroking his beard in thought,
"Hmm, well, how about this?" He began "I'll let you guys stay at the inn for tonight, and in the morning you do a job for me that will pay for you all staying in those rooms, how about it? A win win! Besides, I could never let such a foxy boy sleep outside for the night." The man finished his proposition by raising his clasped together hands up to the side of his head, seemingly cradling his hands in his neck.

Flynn responded by dropping his arms to his sides, the orb being ruthlessly clasped in his left hand. Flynn then did what he thought anybody would do in such a situation, he stared at the large man, completely unmoving and not blinking. Maybe if he thought he was dead the scary thing would just disappear.

'Flynn huh?' Savaria smiled to herself. 'We can work with this.' Savaria flounced over to the counter up behind Amelia and Flynn. Placing her arms around both of them she gave the frozen kitsune a shake to try and release him from his sudden paralysis. Savaria tipped her head back and laughed, "He is quite adorable, isn't he?" Savaria looked between Flynn and the bartender. "But as you can see he has had a very long day and is extremely tired, in fact it's a wonder he's still standing at all. Your offer is very generous and i'm sure after a good night's sleep he will feel just like new and be very grateful. But first we have to get him to bed." Savaria leaned the stiff Flynn to the siad a bit before pulling him up next to her again. "Look at the poor darling, barely able to stand up by himself, he must be really exhausted." Savaria turned her large pale eyes toward the bartender expectantly.

Amelia watched silently as the second strongman smacked the other on the rear, her mouth slightly ajar while her arms were being drained of their strength, causing her face to smack the bar counter, slinking down to the ground in shock. A numbing pain ran through her body from her forehead. I wish I didn't see that... Why couldn't I have at least not realized the fact that I just tried to appeal to a gay couple with my assets?
 She could feel some stares falling upon her from the figures standing above her. In a daze, she slowly picked herself back off the ground by leaning onto one of the dried-plant stalk chairs and pushing up. "Well," Amelia said, her voice shaking, "I suppose that is a generous offer to give to our rag-tag group of travelers." Still using the chair to support her weight, she made a slow and steady pace over to the stairs by maneuvering to objects in-between her and the first step. Glancing back and hoping that they didn't notice her pale expression, she motioned for the innkeeper to guide them to their rooms for the night. "Let's just head up and get some rest," groaned Amelia while trying to force an expression similar to a smile. Instead her lips just trembled.

The bartender gave a girly wave to Flynn as the fox like box quickly disappeared across the foyer of the Inn. Upon reaching the stairs he fell on all fours climbing it with his hands as well as his feet. Once he reached the apex to the flight of steps he plopped himself on the top. The top floor was cold and dusty, with the occasional sketched footprint leading to a door. it seemed as if nobody had stayed the night at the inn in awhile, or maybe that all just ended up passed out drunk down in the bar. The hallway consisted of 7 doors, 3 on each side and a last one at the end of the hallway. Surprisingly enough all but 2 of the rooms were taken, the room at the far side and the 2nd door on the left were the only two with their doors left slightly ajar, the rest had the doors shut with a "Do not disturb" stone sign hanging off the door. Flynn looked back down the stairs towards the rest of the party, he crossed his legs and waited about 2 seconds for the others to start their ascent. Flynn quickly gave up on his decision to wait for the others and made a mad mans dash towards the door at the end of the hall. He pushed the hanging wooden door out of his way and charged through, quickly spotting the bed he leaped onto it, sprawling his body out on the bed, his glass orb grasped under his guy and his tails happily flinging around the bed. The room was slightly small, heavy stone flooring was somehow stable in such a small building. The room consisted of a single dried plant dresser, a woven plant bed, and the mattress was more or less just a soft fabric sac stuffed with wheat or hay or something of the sort, yet Flynn felt like it was oddly comfy for such a simple bed, maybe he was just tired.
#I'm gunna start Italicizing to separate narration from Flynns thoughts~

Clarice met Amelia at the stairs offering her arm to give the elf something to hold onto up the stairs. Once at the top of the stairs Clarice made her way to the same room that Flynn had disappeared into. She walked into the room and sat along the wall opposite the bed with her knees pulled up to her chest. Clarice pulled and dagger into her right hand before putting both of her hands in her lap. She leaned her head forward on her knees and her dark hair fell around her covering her face and arms and giving the impression that she was a shadow even though she was still flesh and blood. Clarice closed her eyes and had a moment to think before she nodded off to sleep. 'Finally,' she thought. 'I was worried I was going to have to pull and all-dayer. At least I get some rest before the night.' She took a deep breath, and another, and...

Laeis fell to the ground shuddering, the shock of first contact hit hard. A forced shift into what she considered human culture brought along a host of new problems lead by self-conscience. She began to question the life she was living, it somehow wasn't good enough anymore, eating raw rabbit in a dirt hole was not the way she could live anymore. She walked behind the inn to where her "home" was, dug the entrance open and crawled inside.
   The interior was not too much to fill expectations, only as wide as the alley it was under and no warmer than the rest of the stone during the night, but it did carry some sentimental value, it was the place she was born after all. Sadly, her mother was not here and would not return anytime soon, she was captured and soon killed owing to some disaster the humans were talking about. Laeis didn't let it get to her, she knew there was nothing she could have done and moved on quickly. In the far side was a makeshift bed from piles of dead leaves surrounded by a crest of packed dirt, enough to contain a soft bedding against the stone's embrace. Beside the bed were spaces for more, but instead filled with things Laeis had picked up over time, ranging from bones to leather to dead flowers, though the pile was still smaller than the average person. She stared at the pile, she was not ready to sleep, even though the sun had since set. Laeis decided go back outside tonight, there was much contemplation to be done that dreams could not suffice.

Amelia woke up to the hot sensation of the sun hitting her face. Slowly opening her eyes and blinking repeatedly, her vision slowly came into focus. She had no recollection of how she had fallen asleep, and only had a vague memory of two well-muscled fellows being affectionate with each other. She shuddered. Turning around while still feeling groggy from sleep, she made to get out of the bed, instead turning her face straight into a mass of fluff next to her. Amelia quickly jumped backwards out of bed, tripping on the packed sack and hitting the wall with her back, giving a small "eep!". Sliding down the wall, she noticed that she and Flynn slept on the same mattress for the night. Suddenly feeling warmer, she stood up and saw that her equipment was propped up in a corner and something caught her eye. A dark mass, Clarice was peacefully resting on the floor on the opposite side of the room from the mattress. Amelia thought that there was a mysterious beauty emanating from her. Turning towards her equipment, she slung her bow and quiver over her back and reattached her sheathed swords to her sides and let out a deep sigh. Returning to the bed, she began to unconsciously pet the furball's tail as her mind wandered.

Sam Post

Savaria jolted awake smacking her head on one of the boards above her. She rubbed her forehead as she starred up and the wooden bed above her. She must have rolled under it during the night. Back in the seas she had been so used to sleeping in tight spaces it was almost comforting to be confined like this but still it was time to face the day. She turned to the side and rolled out from under the bed. Savaria hopped up to find Amelia stroking Flynn's tails just as she had the day before. "Did I... interrupt something?" Savaria mimicked the elf girl before turning to survey the rest of the room while stretching. 'Well it's time to seize the day I guess.' She thought. 'And repay those nice men downstairs.' Savaria shook Flynn's shoulder to wake him before flouncing over to Clarice and nudging her as well.

Clarice jolted awake to someone shaking her. She felt the the cold stone beneath her and the light in the room forced her to close her eyes to it's blinding rays. 'No!' she thought in panic. How could they have gotten her! She wouldn't go back! She wouldn’t! No! “Clarice? Clarice!” She opened her eyes to find Savaria watching her intently. “Come on sleepy head! I know you like the night but that doesn’t mean you can avoid the sun.” Clarice put her hand to her head as the events of yesterday and her memory from last night’s… ‘adventure' came flooding back to her. She slowly put her hand to her forehead, and trying to block out as much of the light as possible. “You ok there?” Savaria asked still crouching in front of the dark girl.
Clarice nodded sliding her sunglasses on to block out the ever present light. “Yeah, I’m fine.” She got to her feet looking around. Savaria and Amelia looked ready to go but Flynn was still face down in bed. “Would some body get him up? We’ve got places to be.”
“And people to repay.” Savaria added. “Not to mention we have to find Koga before we leave.”
“As long as he hasn’t gone to far from where he slept last night I know where he is.” Clarice went over to where the sleeping kitsune lay. Grabbing his arm she rolled him off the bed and onto the floor.
“Why would you do something like that!” Savaria shrieked and ran over to the fox boy.
“Let’s just say I’m not a morning person.” Clarice started toward the door and down the stairs.

Koga awoke to the light of day. He stretched and walked to a nearby river to wash his face. "I feel like that was a three month sleep!I feel refreshed!!" he exclaimed. He grabbed his staff and crushed berries. "Still need to work out the kinks of this thing though...I need a better staff. I hope there is a blacksmith back near the inn." Koga whilst holding his staff in one hand ran back to the inn only to stop to admire nature along the way.Upon the barren plains was a Jackal scratched up on the floor bleeding out panting for air."...My friend.....we are but a part of nature and I shall not abrupt the flow of the cycle." He readied his staff and aimed at the forehead of the creature. "May there be a better place for you above. I shall end you'r pain...." Koga looked away as he smashed in the head of the Jackal. Koga ran away form the scene slightly covered in blood. "Twas but a solution to ones problem....I have to remember that there is no second chances...." He continued onwards back to the inn.

Flynn woke up with a jolt as his body slammed into the cold stone of the floor. The fox like boy stood from the floor rubbing his hand on his back side and glaring at Clarice. "You could have just asked me to go up." He whined to her, his other hand still clutching onto the glass orb. As if on queue the large Lumber jack like man charged into the room. "Is everybody okay?" The man looked at Fenn, his eyes gleaming. "My angel! Are you injured?" The large man composed himself before an answer was given to him. "Anyway." His voice was now much much deeper as a seriousness was able to seep into it. "The way you travelers are going to repay this tavern is by walking out to the oasis cave and checking on the elder for us, it has been weeks since we have heard from him and he is supposed to be telling us if there are any coming floods. You can find the oasis about a mile and a half north of the village. Ciao~" He gave the group a wave of his hand before going back down the stairs, presumably to tend to his customers. A shiver went up Flynn's back as the man left the room. Without waiting for the others he began to bounce his way out of the Inn room, not able to stand the stony cold feeling of it any longer.

Laeis was walking through a lifeless Azure and the moon remained perfectly skyward, seeming more like a template than the town itself. Nevertheless, she wandered North towards the gate into the desert, if any one person knew her best anymore it would be the grand elder, who seemed to understand everything in this world, and less likely than most to be surprised by a non-human talking. She walked quickly through the sands until an odd sight gleamed forth, a near blinding orange light compared to the twilight. Laeis approached to discover a sword thrust into the sand, the hilt coated in a deep blue leather and two topaz gems were lain in the guard, but not much else could be seen. A man's voice whispered in her mind, take my blade... you are the one..., she knelt down and reached to grab the blade, only to be repelled by a magical barrier and the voice returning, no... you lack conviction... strength... an unfit soul to wield...
  Laeis' eyes glazed open to almost disappointingly see her room again, was it truly a dream? Everything was so.. surreal. She turned her head over in contemplation of what just happened, to her surprise it revealed more than expected. A tinge of deep blue stuck out in the pile of "collectables", she reached out for it without hindrance and pulled it forth. The sword was no more than remains: leather hilt is scraps, the gems tarnished and scratched to no end, the blade itself was highly rusted with a great hole in the center, though the blade seemed to be designed around it. This was surely the one from her dream, as ruined as it may be, so she set it down on her bed before leaving; she still wanted to see the grand elder to find out more about herself.

  Obtained: Ancient Sword

Spoiler:

Amelia blushed and took her hand away from the kitsune's tail and stood up because of what Savaria had said, but stayed silent as the furball was still resting. Then Clarice suddenly woke up, and Amelia held concern for her, but Savaria was closer to her both in mind and body, and let out a sigh of relief when Clarice confirmed that she was okay. However, she cringed when Flynn hit the floor, but before she could react, a large and flamboyant looking lumberjack man entered the room, causing Amelia to instinctively flinch and jump back into the wall, her legs losing their strength and trembling. As hard as she tried, she couldn't seem to peel away the fog in her mind to find out why she had reacted in such a way. Her mouth stayed shut while the muscular man explained their task, but wasn't exactly paying much attention. Instead she remained in shock. She noticed that the blue tail had whisked away around the corner of the door, and sprinted out of the door as quickly as possible, stumbling down the stairs and as she walked out of the inn's door, falling to her knee's and catching herself as she hit the floor.

Savaria and Clarice followed the elf and fox boy out of the inn and into the street nodding to the two inn keepers as they exited. Once in the street Savaria had to squint in order to see in the bright morning sun. "So?" She looked up and down the street. "Any idea which way is north?" Then Savaria remember something. "Wait, shouldn't we find Koga first?" She looked around again. "Uh, which way did we get into the city? How do we get out?" Savaria was completely lost and it wasn't like they had been really turned around in the first place. "Seriously?" She sighed to herself. 'You'd think by now I would have gathered a sense of direction on land.' She just had never had a good sense of direction unless it was underwater.

Laeis started towards the tunneled exit of her home but was interrupted by something entering. To great relief it was her brother, named Night-Fury, and so-called Reikel in English. His build was bulkier than Laeis, owing to his manliness over his sister, and boasting completely black fur dark enough to conceal perfectly in the night. Unfortunately, he has three glaring white scars on his face from a demon attack hunting years ago. He is the kind of guy that never forgets, his mother's death fresh in his mind after two years,hatred of humans unparallelled, only being bound to Azure for Laeis.
  Reikel stepped down by Laeis, delighted to see her around, "Ah, sister, still sleeping more than you should?" He nuzzled up against her affectionately, "I killed two deer in the night, you can have what is left in our clearing."
  Laeis turned away, she knew she had not eaten since yesterday morning, "No I... I have plans for today. There are answers out there that must be found. I am going to talk to the elder."
  "You would talk of speaking to humans, the very beings that brought us to such a terrible state, I may just lose my respect for you," Reikel crawled out of their home in retort.
  "Brother..." Laeis gasped, she shifted the sword from her bed and laid down, "do not make me choose between past and future, you know my choice already."
  Reikel kicked down a large leather adventuring bag, torn in many places, "that is why I choose to help you even now." He reentered and laid down on his bed next to her. "I know you like human things, so I went out and found something on my way back."
  Laeis giggled at his consideration, "thank you brother, I think there is a use for it already." She grabbed the rusted sword and set it in the bag, with the browned blade sticking out. "If I do not return... I would ask you to go your own way. Goodbye Night-Fury." Laeis grabbed the torn strap to the bag in her mouth and walked out.
  "Stay beautiful, Bright-Hope."
  She heard Reikel's words, but continued on, thinking, that may be the only thing I have, as her journey through the streets began.

  Obtained: ruined bag

Spoiler: