Glenfell Tavern

[Greed]

Diego's shone a bright, ominous shade of orange as he watched his hefty opponent's body erupt into flames from the combined effects of his fireball and the alcohol around him.

Patrons nearby physically recoiled at the presence of the blazing ember near the middle of the room.

The birth of the fire quickly grabbed the attention of almost everyone in the room. For a second, all voices had quietened, the gazes of its patrons darting between Diego and his handiwork with pale expressions.

"He wields fire."

"Demon! Demon!"

"He must be of it's kin."

"Begone from here you demon!"

"No not again..."

"Lord have mercy on us!"

An middle-aged woman flung herself to the ground, prostrating several feett in front of the fire-user.

"Please spare us! We are but ignorant fools, we did not know you were of the sky demon's kin."

Diego raised an eyebrow, confused by the strange turn of evens but otherwise alert and maintaining his composure.

"I haven't got a clue what you're talking about. I'm only a demon when fools test my patience."

His amber irises swivelled across the room with stern intent, daring the various patrons with their drawn weapons to initiate. The bartender still had his crossbow drawn, but his hands were shaking and his expression was one of fear and anxiety.

"I see you're not of its kin, please forgive me." Diego could see the panic and desperacy in the woman's eyes. "A winged beast several times the size of this building has been attacking our town, breathing fire from its mouth, leaving death and destruction in its wake."

Diego's eyes widened before scanning the faces of the patrons in the room. None of them seemed to be faking the expressions of despair of their faces.

"Is this true?" He asked to no one in particular.

"Yes." A lanky grey-haired man answered. "We have lost many people both young and old to the fire-breathing menace. Of all the groups that have gone out to slay it in its den, none have returned."

"Why are you all still in this town?"

"Many have left already. Some of us stay out of hope, most of us stay because we have nowhere else to go."

"And you've located its den?"

"Yes, but no man of flesh and blood has returned from it thus far."

Diego paused, carefully choosing his next words.

"How much?" His deep voice reverberated through the room.

"For what?"

"How much will you give me for its head?"

"The mayor is currently offering a 1.4 million ryo reward for its death, but you're really not thinking of..."

"If the reward is real and the creature is real, then i'll be finding out how long it takes to cook in my flames."

The crowd broke into chatter once more.

"He's really not a demon..."

"He's mad..."

"He conjures fire though, he might stand a chance..."

"As long as he's on our side..."

A flurry of different thoughts were running through the roguish drifter's head at once, causing his the corners of his lips to tug upwards as his eyes shone with devilish intent.

[Mesaka Yuu]

”...All I’m saying is that I hope this place has a bed or something.” We were closing in on the town of Glenfell now, tucked away in its own cleared out corner of the fruit tree dotted landscape, a lazy river running nearby full of clear water set aflame like liquid gold by the light of the setting sun. Shadows danced and played between the trees like sprites of darkness, birds began nesting for the night, and soon those who ruled the darkness would be upon the land. Dusk. What a magnificent time, displaying the order in the chaos that is nature. Huge was the beast that walked down the road, eighteen feet tall and thirty two feet long, a hulk of black fur and eyes of blazing sapphire. Sekizen, the largest Worg seen in a long time, much larger than its brethren, walked on powerful legs and eyes watching the forest carefully. His ears would listen to the sounds of the wilderness as well, turning this way and that, and simultaneously listening to a small passenger upon his back.

Raven black hair a wild mess with green at the tips, crimson eyes gazing up at the dusk to twilight as it rapidly approached, lounging on the back of this beast with his hands behind his head and one leg bent with the other over the knee. That’s me, Mesaka Yuu, dressed in black and gold, red tassels and turquoise beads, and a permanent smirk that was just part of my face; I’ve been told I’m really rather handsome in a roguish way. We were getting close, or so Sekizen had said, but honestly it was tough to tell looking up at the sky, so I sat up and had a little peek for myself. “Is that it?” I proclaimed, “Not much to look at, huh?” The Worg stopped just inside of the trees and moved off the path, heading left, which was probably west, until he was a good ways into the woodline. “This is as far as I go, Yuu,” he would say to me, his voice large and rumbling like a good bass, “most towns like this think I’m some kind of demon come to kill them all. I don’t really have time for that.”

Standing up, I leaped off of his back and onto the ground, landing in a kneel that probably looked cool if there was anyone around to see it. There wasn’t though. “Got a hot date? Well just stay close by for when we leave in the morning,” I pat him on the outside of his right front shin, “we still have to keep moving. I’m sure Houkou is around here somewhere.” Whatever the equivalent of a shrug is for Worgs, Sekizen produced it and a lazy ‘sure’, then we parted ways and I headed back to the main road. Time to go get a drink and some information. It didn’t take long until I was at the only tavern in town, a little homely, and a lot dingy, but still a good source of information. Or…it would have been if it wasn’t on fire and being nearly destroyed from within. People were muttering once I entered, although not about me, but about this slightly taller dark-skinned fellow. There were other oddities for sure, like a big woman who had been stalking toward two normal looking people, rage on her face. Some blond weirdo who had been watching her all giddy looking. A beefy looking teenaged girl in some guy’s lap. Some tatted guy in a hat. It was far too random in this tavern, so much so that I almost turned away and left, but I had already made the choice to get information from here and it seemed like it all had died down a bit. Seemed like something was about to get started as well.

A guy who conjures fire. That’s ninjutsu, a technique of shinobi. He might know something about where Houkou is or a way to find him. After that quick thought, I decided that it might be about time for me to step in and give myself and easier time of searching, maybe even finding something for once. “Hey you,” I would eloquently call out to the dark male who could conjure fire, “that’s ninjutsu right? Maybe you can help me with some information. I’m looking for someone.” I hoped I didn’t look too threatening with three blades strapped to me: one on either hip along with one on my back. A pouch on my left hip held my kunai, an exploding tag attached to each one just in case things got too hairy. I stepped toward him, not too close though, maybe about ten meters away or so just in case I needed to react.

[Greed]

Diego chuckled lightly.

"I'm not a snitch and I'm not a detective." His eyes lazily glanced over the newest speaker; a young dark-haired, red-eyed man of average height. Teal and red tattoos adorned his body, along with three blades, each strapped to a different part of his figure.

"You chasing a bounty or something?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

[Queen of Kamyuja]

Acting so into him was hard. Especially with all of the activity in the background. She was so focused on the pervert that she didn't notice the newcomer entering this filthy hell hole. She did, however, notice it when the ruckus in the room shifted from pandemonium to stories about fire, death, and flying fire monsters. She took a glance around the room full of now suddenly sober guys before returning her attention to the guy on whom knee she sat upon. She purred.
“Does what they say true? Is a winged beast attacking this town?”
When the pervert wiped his brow and gulped forcefully. She exhaled a collective sigh. The Kamyuja sprang from his lap and joined in on the fun.
“You can count me in on whatever you're talking about. I'd like a piece of that reward.”
Her bloodlust and desire to kill were temporarily cancelled in exchange for exhilaration.

[An'ei Sekitan]

The amber eyed fellow looked over toward me, lazily at that, not at all with the look of someone meeting a new person for the first time. Wanted to know if I was chasing a bounty, well, that was sort of the case I suppose. “I am yeah. He’s –“ Before I could get out who it was that I was looking for, that woman that had been in some man’s lap jumped in, in quite the rude fashion as well. She was apparently looking for some reward and it likely had to do with that creature that was terrorizing these people, which frankly was none of my business. However, it did sound rather powerful and my father was a big fan of hunting down monsters for parts, so it might be worth looking in to. “Actually, what is all this business about a creature that breathes fire and a reward?” I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned heavily on my left foot, crimson eyes watching the dark-skinned man and the woman who had appeared.

[Valery]

Valery's massive hand would latch onto the man's neck, the man's feet left the ground and was now a whole foot into the air, strangled and unable to escape. As his consciousness faded away, she tossed his body like a wooden chair. 'Calm down' the Viking told herself. The woman breathed in and out a couple of times before turning her attention to the other commotion going on in the tavern. Valery's hand softly slapped onto her temple, she had a headache and could barely remember what had happened during the majority of her time in the tavern.

'Fire?' It wasn't much but they was fire slowly spreading around the tavern, but the bartenders and some others seemed to be taking care of it with a bucket of water. This place was trash, but at least some people cared for it. She felt a sense of sympathy for the people of Glenfell. Her attention swayed towards the talk of a dragon, as she heard it all she clenched her fist feeling a new sense of empathy for these people, she knew what it felt like to have the place you call home to be destroyed. She felt a sudden pain in her chest...she wanted to help, she needed to help, but did she really have the power to help these people against some sort of mythical creature?

[Greed]

Diego took in the latest participant to the conversation. A woman that looked suspiciously young and dressed scantily in a revealing black and gold gown. His eyes flickered subtlety to her cleavage before he spoke up.

“1.4 million ryo for the head of a fire-breathing creature that apparently creates mountains of corpses with ease…”

The stern dark man performed a short set of handseals. He raised his hand and conjured a fireball out of thin air. The patrons nearby recoiled at the sight, but the amber-eyed fire-user made a gesture to show that it was fine. Then, ever so slowly he moved the fireball towards his face, illuminating it in a red glow. In a single movement he shoved it into his mouth, eliciting cries of shock and horror from the nearby patrons. The fireball was snuffed immediately and Diego grimaced as he gulped and a small clouds of smoke began to emit from his ears. His face seemed to be completely unharmed.

“If it really does exist, I’m probably the only one here that can face that thing and not die on the spot.”

His eyes narrowed intensely at the dark-haired young woman.

“Something tells me you’re no regular… escort. But if you want to help me kill this thing you’re gonna need to do more than just sit there and look pretty.”

He glanced back at the tattooed swordsman from the corner of his eye.

“You want in on this too? If so you better be more skilled with those swords than all the warriors that supposedly never made it back from the creature’s den.”

[Mesaka Yuu]

Some rather large woman through a guy a few feet across the bar as if he were nothing but light furniture, an impressive feat in and of itself, but nobody else seemed to react. Is this something that’s normal around here? I eyed the large woman, but not too closely, as I was rather fond of not having a crushed larynx. Then the dark-skinned man did some ninjutsu again, crafting a fireball and eating it. ”Neat trick,” I remarked as I watched the man swallow the fire, the smoke coming out of his ears. I waited while he got his words of his chest, a deep seeded need to appear better than everyone around him rather evident, but I could use that. Yes, this guy would be useful indeed for the time being. Some girl had joined us, the one that I thought was a geisha before, claiming that she wanted in as well. Maybe the large woman would want to join us too, better chance of survival for myself, even if less money.

“I do okay with my blades, I guess,” I stated without boasting, merely shrugging my shoulders, “I mean, I’m still alive right?” A heh escaped my lips after that accompanied by a devilish little smirk. "But yeah, I want in. Could use the cash." Then I jerked a thumb back toward the big woman who was crushing throats in the bar for fun. “What about her?” I’m a rather inclusive fellow when it comes to making it harder to kill me. The age-old adage always plays in my mind, more bodies equal more shields, and those are words to live by. Literally. I had no desire to really show off, besides, they would get a surprise once we were on the way.

[Queen of Kamyuja]

Ouch. She couldn't decide whether she wanted to murder or like this guy. But one thing was certain: he enjoyed playing with fire. She considered her own abilities as she observed him. And concluded that strength might not be enough to deal with a fire-breathing dragon. It will assist, but will it be sufficient? Calculating those who appeared to be engaged in what was going on, it appeared that teamwork would be required to complete this task, but they all appeared to be thinking only about themselves. No, that wasn't quite right, it was too early to know. But, if she had to predict, she would say that teamwork will be difficult. She would need to assess the issue first before intervening. But she was resolved to be a part of it. Glancing at the individuals she now thinks to be the major players in this rapidly forming group. She sighed faintly as she folded her arms across her chest. She stood there and waited. She only hopes she doesn't have to wait too long. She also hopes she has what it takes to complete this task. In the back of her mind is the fear that she is memory impaired and does not know enough to assist in the commission of this group. Does she honestly have what it takes?

[Valery]

The Viking breathed in and out once more before looking towards the one who could conjure fire. "Stand a chance? If the creature can emit fire then it probably has strong resistance towards it, don't you think" She said, as she slowly walked closer towards the group, entering their circle. Valery wasn't a high IQ player but it was common sense really, the dark-skinned man probably had a decent resistance towards fire so no reason this fire-breathing mythical creature wouldn't.

Valery looked at the tattooed swordsman and smirked, she would have to gauge his power level later. The Amazoness wouldn't be surprised if everyone's main drive was the reward, it was tempting, but she knew such a weak resolve would lead to their deaths quite early on. She slammed her hand onto the table in front of her to draw attention to herself "I'll do it! I'll free this town of the Firebreather!" she shouted. The reaction was quite sour, most had lost hope and only believed the conjurer of fire could save them.

"Tough Crowd..." she muttered.

[Greed]

Diego couldn't resist the urge to scowl. The tall dark man with orange-tipped hair swivelled around to face the newest speaker whom had pointed out the painfully obvious; the creature was probably resistant to fire like he was. Meaning that while he wouldn't die (at least not easily), he'd likely have an incredibly hard time killing it with the tricks he had up his sleeve. Diego spotted the unconscious body of a man several metres away from the large amazonian woman he'd already met.

Shit...

He'd put two and two together and realised what had happened while his attention was occupied.

The eye-patched woman then slammed a hand at the table next to her and proclaimed at the top of her lungs that she would 'free the town of the Firebreather'.

Looking her up and down once more, Diego could see her exposed muscles, thick and bulging. A large scar ran down her stomach, not the kind someone would get from living a conventional lifestyle. She had odd grey hair that, while wild and unkempt, still had aura of life and youth about it, completely unlike the worn out and defeated grey hair of an elderly woman. The woman's ears were furry and strangely pointed like a wolf's, while her single exposed eye was a peculiar shade of amber and had an almost predatory glint. The assertive man knew at once that he was staring at a warrior of some kind.

"Almost forgot about you. Well shit, you already look the part and you can obviously kick ass. What's your name?"

As the flames that shrouded the unmoving body of Diegos's previous foe were put out by the bartender and a few other patrons, the fire-wielder's irises reverted from orange to a dull brown. A subtle change that he wouldn't notice himself.

[Mesaka Yuu]

Well it looked like we were getting a little merry band together. Myself as the devilishly handsome rogue, the pyromaniac, a giant, and a geisha. Yeah, there was no way we could lose right? The tavern began returning to some semblance of normality, which was good, because from my experience it was hard to get a drink if the establishment was on fire. Don’t ask. Unfortunately, my focus was on the mute geisha who was just standing there and waiting, and then I jumped as that giant woman slammed her hand on the table. She was raving about taking down the fire-breathing monster, but nobody cared really, too busy being mesmerized by the pyro’s fire. But since my eyes were on the enormous furry, I never even got to see the dark-skinned guy’s cool eye trick, which would really annoy me once I learned about it. Either way, it was time for us to get to work.

Looked like the Pyro was talking to the giant furry, so I made my move on the geisha, but not like that. I just walked over to her to have a chat. “So you haven’t really said much, or anything at all,” I said watching her with a curious expression, “are you a mute or something?” I wasn’t being insensitive, just trying to figure out how I was going to communicate with her if she couldn’t speak, so the best policy is to ask questions. “Do you have a name?” A simple question to start with, maybe next I’ll ask her favorite color. I would turn back to the group shortly after she answered or did not and address them. “We should probably get a move on, eh?” I asked casually, “Early bird and worms and all that.” I turned to the barkeep next. “Mind if we get some directions as to where this thing might live?”

[Greed]

The barkeep's expression was no longer one of anger or fear but one of melancholic seriousness. He gazed upon the swordsman with a distant look in his eyes.

"North of the town, beyond the outskirts, you'll spy a small mountain in the short distance bordered by a sparse forest. The creature you seek sleeps in a cave near its peak."

The bartender looked down at the surface of the of the bar he was currently wiping.

"Please don't be hasty. Confirm the creature's existence if you must but if you cannot slay it then and there, swallow your pride as adventurers and retreat."

The whole tavern had gone silent at that point.

"We've all lost someone or something to that demonic creature. You may just be passing travellers but there's no need for you to die a senseless death for whatever reason might encourage you to take on this perilous mission."

Diego finally spoke up.

"I'm not dying for this town... and neither will anyone whose got my back."

His gaze flickered to the swordsman, the warrior and the escort.

"If we can kill it, we will. Either way, you'll see our faces again."

There was a glint of seriousness in his light brown eyes that wasn't previously there.

SPOILER: Click to show

Name: Scouting I
Rank: D
IIC Length: 2
Difficulty: Moderate
Objective: Confirm the existence of the winged beast that terrorises the town
Description: The citizens of Glenfell insist that there is a fire-breathing monster that ravages their town, along with a hefty reward for anyone that can get rid of it. You, and a few others are interested, but must confirm its existence with your own eyes before making a decision.
Reward: 15,000 Ryo

[Night]

It was almost a moment of comedy for Lior, watching the mass gathering of largely worthless beings, with the exception of a select few, pause once fire became involved. Almost like cavemen, staring into a campfire they had created for the first time. One lady was pathetic enough to bow before the man producing the flames. Lior shook his head slightly in disbelief. Fool. 

Talk of a fire breathing menace, slightly raised Lior's interest. Although, saving this town was not high on his list of priorities. Especially because any smart person could infer the beast the people spoke of was strong enough to eliminate those who came to dispose of it. 


"How much will you give me for its head?"



"The mayor is currently offering a 1.4 million ryo reward for its death, but you're really not thinking of..."

1.4 million? Lior thought to himself. He was not hurting for funds currently, but even a portion of that would be beneficial to the actual reason he had made his way to this shitty little town. He pondered on it for a moment, thoughts of walking out of this town and never returning seeming like the best option. But he couldn't turn down a payday such as this. As he thought about it, others in the bar seemed more than happy to attempt to bring down the beast. Fuck it. Surely everyone won't make it back. Bigger cut for me...

Finally decided, Lior spoke up. "I'll join in as well. The more people, the better the chances right?"

[Mesaka Yuu]

I watched the barkeep with interest as he explained, his whole demeanor changing, almost as if he were under some kind of spell at the mere mention of the creature’s location. Well that’s odd. Before I could use my blade to check if the barkeeper was an illusion or not, the dark-skinned fellow spoke up again, and with quite the daring proclamation. He claimed that we would all make it back alive, but I wasn’t so convinced of that. Just judging from the wishy-washy way that all of them seemed to act, it didn’t seem like so sure of a thing. But if things got too bad, I always have Sekizen around to aid me, so I’m not too concerned about my own safety in that regard. Speaking of, it was about time to hit the road and get up a mountain, or it would have been except I remembered the time. It was getting rather late.

Before I could say a word about it, another guy spoke up, declaring his automatic approval into the group. Well, more people made even less chance of myself dying, so I was all for it. Bring everyone! Then it dawned on me that nobody knew the name of anyone in the group, not even a fake name. Or at least they didn’t know mine. Hell, they might all be best friends and I’m the intruder for all I know. “Cool,” I announced as the pinnacle of elegance I am, “so now that we have the team basically assembled, are we leaving tonight or in the morning?” While I spoke, I looked at my wrist as if there were a watch there, a strange sarcastic habit of mine that I keep meaning to take care of. I looked up from my left wrist. “Oh, second order of business. I’m Mesaka Yuu, but you can just call me Yuu. What do I call the rest of you?” With that taken care of, either we were staying or going, and I would act accordingly.

[Queen of Kamyuja]

The sudden silence within her was so profound that she dared to breathe.
All she could think of was how serious this was. Was she prepared? She had been observing, increasingly unsure of herself but not allowing it to show. She never allowed her anxiousness to show. She had already learnt a lot about this little group. Arrogance, self-assurance. Some were attentive, while others were simply out there inquiring, understanding, and mingling within. Fitting in. She had always been reclusive in her own way, having been born and nurtured in a different time period. She doesn't care if people consider her strange, since they'll never fully understand her. Sometimes she doesn't understand herself. But after watching it all, she'd understood some things.

On the outside of town, heading north is where they would be going. Will they depart right now? On the next day? Will there be any introductions given? Is a strategy going to be in place? The stillness within her was profound, but her thoughts were always in turmoil. Despite this, she did pick up on the first name being offered. Yuu, Mesaka Yuu. Her gaze was drawn to the male, who had a mop of black hair and a slim physique. She hadn't noticed him when she initially entered the tavern, which could only imply he was a late entrant; in any case, she smiled slightly before raising her voice.

“Nice to meet you, Yuu,” she spoke casually. Before proceeding, she shifted her attention to the group as a whole. “My name is,” she began, pausing in mid-sentence to determine how to introduce herself. Was she Lucretia? Or was she Cree? Her two personalities were both awake and alert. She proceeded after a brief delay. “Cree. My name is Cree Kamyuja.” With that, she turned and levelled her gaze on the next individual, hoping they would introduce themselves. Finally, in the middle of this perplexing beginning, a feeling of order may be forming.

[Hoarfrost Imp]

Ebisu

Mission approved.

[Valery]

The smirk from earlier would resurface on her face. She seemed to be in the limelight once again as practically everyone was asking for her name "Hehehe" she muttered, closing her eyes for the moment. "I am Valery Hildr, Viking, Warrior, and Heroe of the endangered ones, such like yourself," she said, opening her eyes and circling her eyes around the village. "I come from the Gettinge, inside the Land of Bears and south Gravemarka" the amazon said with her right foot forward and two hands on her hips, of course, no one would know the areas she had just spoken of. 'Gettinge, Gravemarka'

Like the conjurer of flames was able to notice, she was very clearly a warrior and had been in many duels; you could perceive this from her appearance. Once she was done stealing all the attention she would take a seat and allow the introductions to continue. The geisha-looking woman was called Cree and the laid-back swordsman was called Yuu, she noted these names down.

Then the brown-haired man would speak up after getting knowledge of the rewards. This one had an interesting appearance, she continued to observe the man from her seat, wondering how strong his resolve was.

[Greed]

Diego made a mental note of where the wolf-eared warrior said she was from, he figured it was information that could be important in the future. He'd never heard about Gettinge or Gravemarka but he knew about the Land of Bears and it was rather close to the Land of Hotsprings.

The tall man surveyed the room once more. Yuu, Cree and Valery were the supposed names of his new allies. However they did not know his yet.

"Name's Diego and I'm guessing we're all in it for the money... mostly." His eyes briefly flickered to Valery.

"I don't see any problem with splitting the reward money equally if there is some..." The corners of of lips tugged ever so subtlety.

"...But I can't stand dead weight. If anyone one of you isn't busting your ass when its really time to kill that thing you can forget even smelling that money."

Diego's narrowed gaze singled out Cree. He didn't even try to hide the fact that he had his doubts about her.

Wait I'm forgetting something...

Diego's eyes darted around the room till they landed on a brown-haired man whom previously offered to join them earlier. In a second Diego sized him up.

All black cloak huh? Seems like a shifty bastard... I like shifty bastards.

"What's your name?" He asked, eyes levelled at the newest addition to the group.

[Night]

Introductions seemed to be flowing forth from all of the night's trouble makers. Listening to the group giving out their names, Lior couldn't help to notice the abundance of dominant personalities. Who will take orders and who will give them? He thought as he briefly looked over the group. Who will be the one to let their ego get in the way? If the group couldn't work as a team this would be a short venture into the den of a beast and Lior would make sure to make it out alive if came down to it. 

The feeling of being in the presence of a predator, pulled Lior from his thoughts. 
"What's your name?" The question was directed at Lior. I suppose I should introduce myself. 
"Diego was it?" Lior asked as he took a few steps closer to the group. "I am Lior, pleasure to make your acquaintance."