Menagerie of Adventures

Sieglinde von Brandt

"I don't know what those arrre...~!" Sieglinde sang merrily in response to Maya's comment about travel boots, pointing towards her naked feet before bouncing up and down excitedly and mock-punching the air. "Nice cold morning...! I like it...! I've got some stuff to snuggle up in, though...~! Hehe..."

Apart from a somewhat groggy start, she'd been eager to get out and about on this trip. She'd by this point fully adjusted to her new loadout, with her bow slung over her abdomen almost permanently as she kept her knives at her hip. Her new armoured gauntlets and shinguards had been polished to a shine, and had some nice decorative engravings that she'd lightly etched into the metal in her spare time, which she thought made them look more interesting. She looked down at herself, admiring how symmetrical her outfit was before pulling up her hood. She did ponder Maya's comment for a little while longer, though. She'd packed some footwraps just in case she did get cold feet.

She doubted it. She'd walked from home to the school without shoes, and that had taken a while. She could probably handle a little bad weather. But still, it paid to be prepared, and so she'd packed some lovely warm furs and some extra layers in case she had to concede and concentrate on keeping alive instead of pushing a new fashion. Yes, even some thick winter boots. She dreaded the thought.

That aside, the furs had been from home. A bear that she'd skinned from way back when; her father having helped her on the hunt. Her old blanket, her favourite form of bedding. It was a comfort to her, that thick animal pelt. It reminded her of home.

Sieglinde continued to bounce on the balls of her feet, finishing up her triple-checks before drawing one of her knives and inspecting it idly as she waited for the others. It felt good to be able to go out as a group; it was comforting. They were like a caravan, and she felt... included. She beamed happily, looking up at the others and giving them all a sunny look of excitement.

Verona Auer

By the time Maya arrived, Verona had practically worn a groove into the floor with her nervous pacing. Not normally a particularly early riser, Verona had been up and about for nearly two hours already by the time Maya arrived. She felt a bit like she'd swallowed a rock, and she couldn't seem to stop moving. She was a ball of nerves, a fact which she tried in vain to cover with a performance of cheer.

"Yeah, travelling! Woo! So...exciting..." Verona punctuated this statement with an awkward mimicry of Sigi's fist pump. She already had her pack slung over her shoulder, and she'd strapped a school-issued shortsword to her hip. She still hadn't really settled on any weapon in particular as her preferred fighting style, but she knew she should at least try to look the part of a seasoned adventurer, and that meant being armed. Even if the handwraps around her knuckles felt more useful than the sword.

Verona's thoughts strayed to the crumpled up pieces of parchment littering the bottom of her bag. Over a month, and she hadn't managed one single letter to her parents. Now, they would have a chance to tell her in person just how displeased they were about that.

Verona shook her head to dispel that alarming prospect, and looked to Sigi for a distraction. "Didn't you go through the pass once already, Sigi? If I'd tried to take that trip without shoes on I'm pretty sure I'd be dead or something. I mean, rocks up there get sharp."

Lac’ner Kineas

By the time Maya had nearly broken the door down, Lac was in the process of stuffing the last of his “necessities” into his rucksack, double, even triple checking.

It would be then he stood and wordlessly followed the others, smoothing the sheets of his bedding as he did so.

The sharp eyed among them may notice…the area is almost too neat.

Almost as if nobody had claimed the spot at all.

Which would lead to now, with the boy fidgeting nervously as usual. An empty flask rolls from one shaky finger to the next, as if playing with equipment would somehow calm the lad.

Elliot Etirina.

Even if it was only a school trip that...hopefully would go according to plan, Elliot probably...over-prepared considering most of the morning was spent deciding on what'd be reasonable to take and what was probably highly unlikely to be needed as he organized everything and tried to just focus on it that it wasn't until a certain teacher kicking the door down that Elliot snapped out of his 'trance'. ...Somewhat.

"W-What, already? Just one second..." Elliot remarked, swiftly grabbing the travel pack he'd organized with one hand and a list with the other.

"Let's see...extra snacks, parchment, bandages, clothes, more clothes depending on the weather... journ- er, books... That's everything."

Elliot idly tapped the pair of new boots he was wearing against the floor and adjusting set of gloves to match, making one last check to make sure everything was organized and ready as he gave a slight smile and nod.

Edited by TheRealWren on Jul 31st 2022 at 10:42:55 PM

Sieglinde von Brandt

“Nope! I mean, it was tough, and I got a little sore, but I didn't get hurt too bad. Thing is when you're barefoot all the time, you're really light with your step, right? You just kind of avoid sharp stuff. When you wear boots you just stomp all over 'em~” Sieglinde giggled in response to Verona, feeling unable to resist the urge to ruffle the taller girls hair. So she did so, standing on her tiptoes to reach. “It's probably why I look funny when I'm running and walking~ Maybe I can teach you how it works sometime...? Don't know if it'd work as well, my feet are basically shoes by now anyways...”

She shook her head, realising she was rambling about nothing. Stepping back slightly, she looked Verona up and down in observation before moving forward and giving her a sidelong hug without warning.

“You're all shaky...~! What's up...?” she queried, curiously looking up at Verona. “Is it 'cause you're going back home...? 'Cause I get that, sort of...~”

Edited by Enirboreh on Jul 31st 2022 at 12:07:59 PM

Pick

It was perhaps unsurprising that Pick had already been prepared when Maya burst in. He had been sat cross-legged on the floor, meditating as he watched Verona pace nervously.

He rose to his feet, barely making any noise even with his travel boots. He made sure his small pack was secure on his back, before slipping his cloak over top of it.

Nodding to himself, Pick walked over to Verona and confidently grabbed one of her hands, clearly intending to hold it as they walked. "Do not be nervous, Verona. I will not allow any harm to befall any of you."

Pick turned to face Sigi, finding her words curious. "Surely returning home would be a pleasant experience, not an intimidating one? Unless my understanding of 'home' is somehow incorrect."

Verona Auer

Verona chuckled nervously. Her eyes darted around the room restlessly, never fully making eye contact with her classmates, and strands of hair, pulled loose from her braid by Sigi's affectionate gesture, fell in front of her eyes. Her hand twitched reflexively in Pick's though she didn't try to dislodge him—even if her Pick and Sigi-induced stillness only amplified her nerves.

"Shaky, nervous? Me? No, no, I'm fine!" Despite her denials, she couldn't help but grimace slightly at Pick's optimistic perspective. If he was right, something had to be seriously wrong with her. Why else would she feel this way?

"Home's just...the place where you're supposed to live. Where you're born, I guess. Where all the people who know you are..."

Oh gods, all the people who know me are gonna be there.

Freana

Freana was not a morning person. She was never an early riser, staying up late into the night to party or study. These days, it was more of the latter, but having Zyan around was getting her back into the partying spirit. She couldn't remember what she'd done last night, only that Zyan was there, but it must have have been something special.

But she wasn't less grumpy. Pulling on her clothes in a haphazard fashion, she waved her hands across her desk, shoving everything into a worn ruck sack. She slumped towards the door, dragging her sack across the floor in a stupor.

She made it to the others in one piece, shambling towards them like the walking dead and collapsing on the nearest chair. It was a wonder she wasn't an actual corpse, but under all that fur, it was hard to tell the difference.

"Mrnng'..."

Edited by kkhohoho on Aug 1st 2022 at 8:12:07 AM

Zyan

Ah, yes, for a moment he almost forgot what it was like living in a general vicinity with someone like Maya around.

So when his door was no longer a door, and his teacher was now in the doorframe with the nice, big grin on her face and his eyes now forced open, he remembered his isolation and for a very brief moment, remembered it fondly.

Of course, the only thing that beat that fondness over was his friends, all exactly as he'd remember them, now standing around and waiting for the next instruction to hit the group. Waving and nodding to the others and offering that grin all the while, he took a moment to crack his bones, in the order being neck, arms, fingers, and back.

He raised his arm in the air and yawned loudly at Maya's final question, but still fought through it with a "Let's get this going, new adventure! Woo!" If only he didn't sound so dead tired.

Freana

The Fenrir's arms hung to the floor, dangling like slabs of meat. She was dead to the world and wanted to keep it that way. Only when Zyan came down the stairs did she put a pep in her step. She stretched her arms as she yawned, slumped over with eyes half open, but was starting to come alive.

"Simmer down, handsome. Bit too early for that much enthusiasm. Save it for later, huh?"

It was partly in jest. He wasn't in a much better state than her, but at least she wasn't pretending. But even that much energy only made him more irrestible.

Edited by kkhohoho on Aug 11th 2022 at 8:11:43 AM

Torhild

The half-fenrir certainly filled the 'bushy tailed' expression, a new day on a new road to a new town was a day full of possibilities, this was exactly the sort of thing she was training as an adventurer to do!

"All set over here!" she said with a grin, standing with the group and smelling slightly of gunpowder after some last minute preparations. She was glad her satchel and ammo pouch were waterproof given the possibility of incoming weather. "There's no problem if I make some deliveries while we're in town, right?"

Academy Grounds

"Sure, sure, do whatever you need to do in town, so long as it's over in half an hour or so. After that, if any of y'all aren't at the southern gate, we're leaving without you and you'll have to catch up by yourselves or stay here. Anyways, let's get into town~!"

She suddenly pivoted on her heels, surprising Mesmer partner with a kiss on the cheek, bringing a quiet blush to the normally stoic Mekel, turning their head away slightly.

"For good luck! Seeya Kel, I'll be back in no time."

And with that, Maya took off out the gates with a spring in her step, waving for the others to follow as she headed towards Aegeum. She was even more lively than usual today, which was saying something considering how she normally was.

By the time everyone had finished their business and gathered at the southern gate, they wasted no time in heading on their way. For the next few hours, nothing much happened, save for the mist clearing as noon approached. Plains and forests gradually gave way to rockier terrain, the trees thinning out and looking hardier with it. The road was, thankfully, still rather smooth traveling, well-worn from hundreds of trips from traders and other travelers. Some caravans and assorted travelers moving to and from Aegeum made sure the class wasn't completely alone for stretches of the trip, though Maya often led the group off the beaten path and onto side roads and trails, occasionally bringing out a map to look at it. On one occasion, she stopped the group entirely as she consulted the sheet. Verona, in particular, would find the surroundings to be almost painfully familiar and recognizable. They were officially in Vandian territory.

"Alright, so if I'm guessing correctly, our first stop, Alkdam, is between a few hours and a day away. If we hustle, we can make it there by the late afternoon, since we're traveling light. And having a bed sure beats roughing it out in the forest, so we can at least get a good night's rest for the exhaustion I'm sure you all are feeling. Unless you wanna deal with whatever spooky scary monsters will show up night to try and eat you all. I mean, I'll survive, and I'll be sure to tell your friends and family how brave and skilled you were before you got eaten by monstrosities of the night, and it'll break my heart~ I hear they find greenhorn adventurers especially tasty and tender~" The sickly-sweet smile on her face, trademark of her jokes, was on even more intensely than it usually was. As much as the class may have been enjoying the trip, Maya certainly seemed to be keeping up with the enthusiasm. But there was a certain glint in her eyes, something that spoke of something more troubled.

By the time she'd stopped talking, those who were paying attention would notice that it was eerily quiet for a main road between two towns, which were somewhat major trade destinations. Not even any animals sounds, no cries or chirping of birds, only the very minute sounds of small rustlings in the brush.

Freana could smell sweaty, unclean clothes on the wind from the bushes, and the Alvar of the group could definitely see the faint shapes of something distinctly not animal-like standing out in the grasses and leaves. Maya didn't seem to, though there was the subtle, telltale tension that she normally had in their sparring sessions in her body.

"So what do you all say~? Should be a clear shot between here and Alkdam, so if we stick together and move as one while following my lead we should be able to make it in time."

On the Road

In terms of traveling light….well, Lac was most assuredly not. The soft clinks and clacks of beakers and tumblers echoed from his stuffed pack, freshly stocked from their trip into town, as he idly studied various plants from the rear of the group.

So when Maya’s advice, subtle as a brick, reached his ears and the shapes in the trees caught his attention, the urge to panic returned to him in full force.

As such, Lac tightens his grip on his staff/walking stick and hurries to bury himself closer the the middle of the group, stopping beside one fluffy merchant.

“D-D-Do tell m-me that m-musket of yours is loaded…I…I think we’re being stalked” he gasps out between shuddering breaths.

Traveling! And hopefully not lost!

The first detour caused Elliot to hesitate ever so slightly and swiftly scribble down notes and a small marker on his map. Just in case. He wasn't exactly complaining about the detours though, happily taking in the scenery and that seemed to help him somewhat bounce back from earlier to the point he had...mostly forgotten they had somewhere to be.

And it took a while for it to click that things had gotten...somewhat quiet which was a little unsettling to say the least. A glance at his map again to double and triple-check where exactly they likely were was somewhat reassuring and the mention of monsters...

"An adventure and or journey is usually going to involve camping, right? Huddled around a campfire, with some taking turns to keep a lookout! Monsters? I know we've fought against Jelly...Slime...Water things before! And the Rift monstrosities were on the other end of the scale, so...as long as it's not...THOSE, I'm confident in our abilities!" He replied, only for Elliot to give a slight tilt of the head, somewhat confused.

"But I'm pretty sure we're already doing that! The sticking together bit, I mean."

Edited by TheRealWren on Oct 21st 2022 at 11:53:01 PM

Torhild - On the road

The trek so far hadn't been exactly easy, but it was more of a welcome exertion that reminded Torhild of the trips with her Mom and a merchant caravan before the academy. The sights and sounds of nature and the feeling of going out in the world to explore someplace new had her spirits high throughout the so far uneventful trip. That experience also taught her that wildlife generally doesn't go quiet unless there's something they're hiding from... Now that they had stopped to listen to Maya, the sights, sounds and scents started to hint that it was more likely the wildlife was hiding from someone that was already in the area.

The merchant girl whispered a quick "Ammo's all in the pouch, wouldn't want it going off if I tripped on a rock or something" to Lac'ner's question as she moved to swap her lighter pack with his, since she may have suggested a new climate and a new town meant new alchemical recipes to try and new customers for their side business and contributed to his overpacking for the trip. "Fiiiine, I'll swap with you. But only because I wanna get to a bed as soon as possible too!" She hoped it would also help to cover their whispered discussion and maintain the group's feigned ignorance of the threat that Maya seemed to be instructing them to flee from. Though perhaps in Elliot's case, it was actual ignorance. "[[That's just because Teacher Maya's been taking it easy on us. But you know how she gets if she doesn't get a shot at her drinks!]]" Torhild said to the lordling, teasing their teacher so that anyone outside of the group that could hear them might assume the group was just tired of being on the road rather than preparing to fight or flee from them.

Zyan

Zyan took the moment to enjoy the world around him, happy to just be one with nature again. Even with Maya's comments and the general calm and unnerving chill in the air, he still had a chance to just enjoy a little bit of quiet.

Quiet was quickly ruined with Lac's panicked whisper that he still managed to pick up, and his attention turned to him in quiet contemplation, and glanced up at Freana for a moment. If someone WAS stalking them, she'd know it better than anyone else.

Regardless, the general unease was set in his mind and he knew better than to allow his body to relax and let his guard down. He couldn't see as well as the others in his team, and he couldn't smell as well either...

But oh boy, could he punch real good.

Freana

Freana glanced back. She was happy chilling with Zyan, but the closer they got to town, the more she could sense something was off. She could smell the sweaty clothes, see the shapes in the distance, hear the rustling in the bushes. Maybe it was coincidence, but she wasn't counting on it.

"Wouldn't mind a nice warm bed either. Beats sleeping in the bushes. Don't know if they'll have enough for all of us..."

She glanced again at Zyan, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe we could share?~" It was partly a tease, but it was mixed with caution. She gestured towards the bushes. She hoped Zyan caught on, but her offer stood either way.

Edited by kkhohoho on Nov 22nd 2022 at 8:17:40 AM

On The Road

"Right, that'll be your money or your hides!" Boomed a voice as about just over a dozen thugs leapt out of the bushes and trees, surrounding the class, waving around blades and clubs of varying shapes and sizes. From daggers to swords, clubs to hammers, even a couple of bows, not unexpected for Vandia, where almost everyone knew how to use a weapon of some sort and owned one. Maya sighed, giving a shrug as she unsheathed her saber from her waist.

"These guys really don't know how to pick their marks, do they? Hey fellas, you might wanna take a closer look at who exactly you're dealing with!" She hollered back to them, sword set firmly in front of her. "Do we look like ordinary travelers?"

The apparent leader of the group, a tall, burly man with a sword-n-board, gave a snort, raising his shield in turn. A wicked scar snaked diagonally across his nose, from forehead to jawline, and his head was shaven. "A bunch of moppets and whelps, and one of 'em even looks like a noble. Seems like an easy bunch to lighten the purses of. And there's more of us than there are of you."

"You have got to be the stupidest sonuvabitch I've met, and I know me!" The instructor brought her hand to her face, shaking her head as she averted her eyes, before turning towards the class, lowering her guard a little. "Right kids, these guys should be just up your alley, just remember what me and Mekel taught you all. And if things get dicey, I'll be there. Try and take them alive will ya? Any rewards are yours to share. But try and leave the big one to me. I don't like the looks of him." With a flicking whip of her tail behind her, she stepped forwards towards the leader, prepared for a fight and clearly looking to keep his attention on her and not her wards.

"Alright then, if you think your wallets are worth your lives, so be it! Get them!" With a cry and a wave of his sword, the highwaymen charge, while the couple of bowmen stay in the back and fire an initial duo of arrows towards the group. The leader looks to charge with his fellows, but he's swiftly cut off and pulled aside by Maya, soon exchanging blows with her off to the side as she makes very sure to ward off any enemy intruders to their impromptu duel. "Ooooohhhhh no buddy, you ain't getting near them, not while I'm still kicking." There's a devilish, bloodthirsty smirk on her face as she swings that saber of her around with powerful, wild abandon, almost daring him to make a move towards them.

He doesn't.

Meanwhile, the rest of the thugs run in, weapons raised as they close in and start swinging. They're certainly better than the average person, maybe even the average Vandian, but they certainly weren't dedicated students of combat, and most importantly, there wasn't a hint of magic from any of them.

The fight is on!

Edited by UndyingPhoenix on Dec 2nd 2022 at 11:20:26 AM

Sieglinde von Brandt

Wait, were they being robbed? They were being robbed! Sieglinde now knew what being robbed felt like. It felt kind of funny, and as she listened to Maya intently she kept her eyes on their foes. It was a lot of guys. Why didn't they just set a trap on the road or something? Were they worried about getting into trouble? Because that was incredibly backward.

As they were finishing speaking, Sieglinde quickly charged her knives and then leapt backwards as the fight broke out, and focused at first on the thugs that were outright targeting her. Flinging one knife straight into the sword arm of one once he got close enough, she ducked under the swing of another and shoved her second knife into his thigh; careful to miss that big juicy artery that'd definitely kill him if she accidentally cut it. Leaving said knives in place, she took the time she'd given herself to duck into the trees and scramble up one like a monkey—her bare hands and feet giving her more than enough grip to clamber into the branches with relative ease. Once she was situated, she took her bow and nocked it with an arrow from her quiver: taking careful aim at one of the archers that were taking shots at her friends and then releasing her arrow with a target for his shoulder.

Fighting non-lethally was hard for her, she knew, but she recognised that it was made a little less complicated by her variety of options. Knives and arrows were good openers for quickly subduing the first few thugs, but once the group was in a more comfortable position in regards to the number of their opponents, she could ease up a little and switch to hand-to-hand combat using her new greaves and bracers as close-quarters weapons.

She had a plan! She was pleased with this and wondered if her mom would be pleased too. Maybe! She just had to pay attention, and not get too cocky. These guys were chumps, sure, but if they knew they were chumps they might have something up their sleeves. Then they'd be un-chumped, and nobody wanted that.

Except for them, obviously, but now she was just overthinking it. She decided to just focus on taking out those archers before she jumped back into the fray again.

Edited by Enirboreh on Dec 2nd 2022 at 9:23:24 AM

Torhild - On the road

Torhild watched as the bandits revealed themselves, their leader's demands and the minion's threatening poses gave her plenty of time to put Lac'ner's pack down (gently) and draw her own dagger. "Oh, so we're not doing the 'pretend to be scared travelers to lure them into our own ambush' thing anymore?" She called rhetorically to Maya as she gave them instructions. Torhild wasn't really sure if that was her plan, but projecting confidence seemed a good way to irritate the bandits and inspire anyone in their party who was worried about the conflict.

This wasn't the first time she'd seen bandits, though in the past she'd been relegated to sheltering with the caravan's wagons and maybe getting off a pot-shot here and there. This group didn't seem much different, a bunch of thugs who were just strong and crooked enough to think they could get away with using force to get their way, but they relied on their numbers for their strength, meaning the leader Maya was dueling was probably the only one with any real skill. Plus a brief reading of the area before the battle made it clear they didn't know a thing about magic, which brought a mischievous smile to the wolf-girl's face as she had ideas.

"Okay Lac, let's give these idiots a show!" Torhild shouted as she bared her blade and charged into the fray, parrying one blade and slashing at the bandit's arm to make him drop the weapon before deftly sidestepping another overhead swing and grabbing the second bandit's arm. "Gotcha~" With a grin she unleashed a burst of magic and wreathed her body in fire for a few moments, a trick she'd learned from putting a bit too much energy into her mother's heat aura spell during magic practice one day that would give him a good singe as she turned and yanked him off his feet, using his momentum to toss him at the first bandit before dismissing the spell.

Edited by BlitzTrain on Dec 3rd 2022 at 10:15:27 AM

Lac’ner - On the to-AMBUSH!

Lac hated being right. He really hated being right.

Now he was no stranger to rough types, though they never bothered the people of Veige, especially when you’ve got a swarthy Bogovi wielding a hammer larger than some heads glowering at you from across the forge.

But to be here? To be ambushed by brigands?

To have his life in danger?

Lac wondered if he should have tried running away closer to town…

But that was a train of thought for another time. For now, Tohri’s words brought him back to reality.

“S-show them? What do you…eep!”

He manages to duck the swipe of a club of a man who had manage to skirt around.

Of course…I look the weakest after all…

But from his ducked state, an opportunity presented itself. Lac’ner thrust his hands forward, palms out, crossed in an X shape as he gathered wind in a tight orb.

“A..A…Aero Burst!”

And with a solid thwoomp! he sends the man flying up and trough the air like a sweaty shotput, the front of the bandit’s ragged shirt blowing apart as he flies straight into a small group of his fellows.

Elliot, On The Road and Beset by Brigands.

Well, it was clear now what needed to be done, these ruffians and ne'er-do-wells would need to be dealt with. For a few moments, a slight grin was on Elliot's before being replaced by a mostly serious expression. This WAS a matter of life or death, after all.

"Where words have failed, I suppose steel must prevail! Forth to battle, and all that...!"

Remembering what he'd learnt and read from his books, Elliot had enough sense not to recklessly charge into the fray but to keep his buckler raised, evading most of the arrows that flew in his direction and the rest hitting the shield.

Staying on the defensive definitely seemed like the right option for the moment. Although he was more than ready to lash out in case any tried to get past him to stop bandits who'd try to go after his fellow students who'd rather fight at a distance.

And compared to them, he'd have to rely on more mundane means but was certainly confident and had a good idea on how to defeat or at least stop his opponents without slaying them. Although those showing off with the display of magic did cause him to smile.

"Nicely done! Maybe it might be enough for these ruffians to think twice since it's clear their wits are as lacking as their wealth if they want to keep fighting!" Both praising his fellow students...and taunting the bandits.

One took the bait, thinking they'd be faster, yet Elliot's reflexes were swifter still, cringing somewhat as the buckler intercepted the club before he returned the favor with a kick to the gut to send the bandit reeling...and following up with his buckler giving an almost back-handed smash into their face, causing the would-be thief to collapse, out cold or at the very least, stunned and no longer a threat for the moment.

Edited by TheRealWren on Dec 20th 2022 at 1:26:47 AM

Verona Auer

Verona knew that she should have been alarmed when the would-be robbers jumped out from the shadows, but she was mostly just confused. She knew these roads like the back of her hand, and there were a million other places and people that would've made for a better ambush.

This is a trade route! Why go after us, and not one of the people with the heavy carts filled with expensive stuff?! And, gods, they decided to ambush us from here?? Shooting down from the cliff face would've made it much harder for us to fight back, whereas this is just—

An arrow whistled past Verona's ear, and she shook her head to dispel the train of thought.

You're getting distracted again, Verona. Focus! Mother and Father will be pissed if you die to a handful of poorly trained goons!

Rocking on the balls of her feet and shaking out her hands, Verona quickly scanned the field. The others had most everyone under control, and Maya was distracting the leader, so it seemed like the only real threat was...there. One of the archers was still untouched, and it would be hard to focus on taking out the melee fighters while also dodging arrows.

So all Verona had to do was just...get over there.

Verona broke into a sprint, careening full tilt through the crowd of attackers. She focused all her attention on getting to that other archer, and the ghostly afterimage of a rushing river sprang up in her wake as she moved faster than should have been possible. In an instant, she was in the other archer's face, with only a few shallow scrapes from the goons she'd bypassed to deal with.

Unfortunately, Verona hadn't really practiced the "running extremely fast" trick before, and she realized too late that she hadn't thought about what would happen when she needed to slow down. So instead of reaching the archer, staying on her feet, and punching him really well, like she had planned, her attack turned into more of a...tackle.

Verona slammed into the archer with all the momentum of her magically-bolstered sprint, sending the both of them tumbling through the dirt. Making the most of the awkward maneuver, Verona set about trying to wrestle the bow from the archer's hands.

Good thing they didn't set this ambush next to a cliff...

Pick

Bandits were something that Pick had not previously experienced. It was odd. This many people were willing to risk physical harm, or even death, to acquire wealth. Perhaps he simply did not understand their motivations well enough. Regardless, they could not accede to the bandits' demands.

"This will not end well for you." Pick attempted to caution the bandits. They did not heed him, tragically.

Pick focused, and with a thought, bent space so the incoming arrows would go wide. One did come close to Verona, but fortunately missed. While Verona charged at one archer, Pick jumped, vanishing into spatial distortions and reappearing above the other archer, bringing his sword down on the man's head.

It was already visibly glowing with Pick's magic - visible as particles coming off the wooden blade - and rather than a piece of wood, the impact was like metal, strengthened by the effects of gravity and a small amount of Body magic.

Fortunately the sword was not sharp, even in this state, so instead of splitting the skull it would leave only head trauma.

Roadside Brawl

Lac's burst of wind sent the bandit careening into a group of his friends, bowling over those that didn't dive out of the way. Still, a few of them got back up onto their feet, carrying on their charge towards the class. Elliot dealt with a few more who gave in to his taunting, sword swinging this way and that with the precise skill of a duelist, deftly deflecting blows with his buckler to the sound of banging metal and wood. Sieglinde's knives elicited pained cries of agony as she buried them in the bandits, and then the arrow struck the archer square in the shoulder, his shot going wide. He grimaced, nocking another arrow and taking aim at the tree-bound elf, only to hesitate as a shadow suddenly came from above, followed by a resounding THUNK as Pick's wooden sword smashed down on his skull, flooring him.

At this point, some with more common sense who weren't knocked senseless had started to hesitate and turn tail to flee, especially after Torhild's burning display of brawling. Verona tackled the other archer to the ground, each struggling to wrest control of the bow to the other. The archer sneered, baring her teeth, before suddenly loosening her right hand's grip on the bow. She hocked some saliva, spitting it at Verona's face in an underhanded tactic to distract her from the archer's hand reaching down to her belt and unsheathing a wicked looking knife, jabbing the point towards Verona's side. It dug a bit deep, but that Body enhancement was a literal life saver. The next stab probably wouldn't be so unlucky.

"COWARDS!" called the leader after his retreating lackeys, cursing. His momentary distraction earning him a solid fist to the eye from Maya, who had been grinning like a madwoman the entire duel, sending him stumbling backwards a bit as their blade lock broke. Maya took her chance, swinging her sword at him, only for it to bounce off of rushing air. While the thugs didn't seem to have magic of their own, the same couldn't be said for their leader apparently. He took a few more defensive steps back...before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a rather strange metal sphere, with a fibrous wick coming out of the top. He tossed it to the ground at Maya's feet as the wick caught flame, beginning to fall back. Maya, on instinct, kicked the small ball, aiming to put it near its origin. As her foot impacted it, it flew about a meter before a deafening BANG echoed through the forests, the whistling of metal pieces flying through the air before embedding in the ground and anyone nearby and a cry of pain from Maya, an explosion of black smoke covering the area as most of the bandits, save for the one currently wrestling with Verona, made their retreat, some doing their best to drag their unconscious comrades.

"Fall back! Fall back!"

Edited by UndyingPhoenix on Feb 5th 2023 at 1:35:08 PM