The Monsters of Duskwood (Moblins and Scholar)

It is quite typical for any forest to have dark rumors. Occasionally one may find himself lost and hungry, closed in by a sea of roots and branches, or perhaps be startled by a sudden flitting of a shadow or the cry of some unseen creature. The shade of poplars and pines is also known to harbor thieves and dangerous vagabonds; their grasping branches hide away those devious acts from the eyes of justice and civility. Away from paved streets, the town guard, the bells of the church, one may never know just what might await them in the untrodden paths of a wood.

What made Duskwood particularly unique was that its fantastic tales were not passively told from small and common fears. Real village men had gone missing, bloodied tunics had been found, and a handsome reward was out for any daring man willing to rid the forest of the creatures responsible. As near as anyone could tell, no one had yet had a real glimpse of the monsters and daring was running rather short.

Such were the rumors I heard as I stopped to mingle with mothers and merchants. For the most part, Birmingham was a pleasant town, rather calm and sternly regulated. Lack of thieving was one boasted feature of the town, mostly due to a regular militia and a rather generous lord who did not regiment war-like taxes on his people. Nevertheless, the peasants I did see running up and down the streets with baskets and shovels were laden with dirt and carried the scent of dung, always sweating yet never too much in a hurry like many of the merchants.

I found a nice spot under the shade of a poplar tree where I decided to take lunch, which was quite near the road but on the fringes of the town. There were more fields and less buildings here, as well as the looming forest of Duskwood with its waving sycamore and willow trees. It was a pleasant view as I sat nibbling at bread and dried apples, though… I was still perplexed by my arrival to the town. My staff lay on the ground beside me as I considered how it would be best to start real inquiries; perhaps once it resolved I would be free to return.

(OoC: I'm using Leonna here, whose profile is linked in my siggy)

Namid rode Shideezhi hard today, perhaps to make up for the days of laziness, spent idling away at street corners and in dark pubs, singing over and over the only song she ever learnt for the pleasure and payment of strangers. Or perhaps it was simply to feel the joy that one feels only when racing across the sun-drenched landscape on the back of a creature you trust with your life.

Of course, as perfect as that moment of clarity was, a Plains Elf, even one not by blood, must respect that ever mount has its limits, and Namid presently drew her appaloosa to a halt. Nearby she could see the roofs of a city rising from the landscape, but Namid had certainly seen fair too many cities recently for her liking, and besides, on such a beautiful day who wants to be frittering away their time surrounded by the noise and stink of a thousand others?

Namid leapt down from Shideezhi’s back and, as customary between the two, they shared a brief moment of tenderness, Namid leaning her head against Shideezhi’s sweating forehead. “Now little sister” She whispered “I know you like nothing better than a roll in the grass”

She pulled the heavy saddle bags from Shideezhi’s back, first the large, leather sack that held the horse’s battle armour, light enough for the horse to carry from place to place and carefully broken down into many pieces for ease of transport. Namid needed no instruction on how to rebuild it. She had done it many times in the past.

Then, with a slight groan more from the heat than the weight, came the bag which contained all Namid’s things, unimportant though they are. Finally she unstrapped her harp and dumped it unceremoniously on the soft grass before removing the horse’s sweaty saddle and saliva drenched reins. “You really are not as beautifully mysterious as you would have others believe, are you little one?” She said, before gesturing with a gentle tap on the rump that the horse may proceed to the patch of grassy meadow only just visible through the trees.

It’s surprising how a creature previously thought to have no energy seems to revert to a child once given freedom. Shideezhi bolted off towards the grass, rolled and rolled until her white, spotted flanks were smudged with green. She leapt, being the only operative word, to her feet and pelted off to explore some new smell. Namid watched her, and raised her eyebrows when she saw her begin to race back, obviously in her excitement scared by something no self-respecting war horse would be.

Namid shaded her eyes as Shideezhi ran back; trying to see what had surprised her so. She was shocked to see that it was a young lady, apparently minding her own business by the side of the road, much like Namid had been trying to do. Not sure if her horse had scared, hurt or annoyed the woman, or even if she had noticed her at all, Namid slung the saddle and bags over her shoulder, scolded the young horse, and began to make her way over to apologise.

“I’m sorry miss. I’m afraid my view from over there was not a good one, and I simply wondered if my mare had inconvenienced you in some way. If she has I offer my utmost apologies of course” She said, politely and softly to ensure no threat was taken from her words should the young lady not speak her language.

Rosa Ellwood skipped merrily down the dirt road. The forest on either side of her was beautiful; lovely oak trees captured the quintessence of the mystical forest known as Duskwood. The trees felt a mile high, the canopies just grabbing the sun from its celestial existence. Many a dark rumor had laid its mark here, but Rosa didn't linger on them. They were your everyday mentions of monsters and whatnot that had made their home in the forest and scared random townsfolk; natural fear and loathing crafted by the townsfolk of Birmingham to invoke a label. The road itself was a part of this very green nature, with the exception of its natural brown and worn crux. Weeds and small flowers sprouted from within the dirt, the larger counterparts of them making themselves a habitat in the shrubs and leaves on either side of the road. It was a fairly foggy day, but cool enough to the point where Rosa didn't have to worry about bodily excretions (such as sweat); her amulet kept her bouncy and hyper.

Her skipping left a cloud of dust behind her every time she touched down. She was ecstatic for her performance in Birmingham's (a locale that had structured its walls within Duskwood) biggest pub, the "Ivory Tooth". She would get paid heartily, and her fan base was also present within the community. It wasn't a huge town, but what can you expect from a town in the middle of a huge forest? Rosa's expectancy for a overwhelmingly hearty welcome weren't high. But of course this wouldn't deter her from her natural jubilation.

"For she's a jolly good fellow, for she's a jolly good fellow
For she's a jolly good fellow, which nobody can deny
Which nobody can deny, which nobody can deny
For she's a jolly good fellow, for she's a jolly good fellow
For she's a jolly good fellow, which nobody can deny!~"

She sang this tune pleasantly over and over again while skipping high; she accompanied it with her angelic golden harp.

She finally stopped after the thirteenth time she played it. Not only did she want to save her singing voice, but she also wanted to examine the serene beauty present.

Then, she saw a figure... No... Two figures... Down the road ahead of her. The misty fog limited her field of vision somewhat... But there were definitely two figures. Her hair got into her eyes somewhat as she gazed at the two stunning ladies conversing with each other. One was wearing a short, green dress; the other was wearing blue? She couldn't make much out at such a far distance. She started to run at them in a comedic fashion, she always enjoyed good company! Especially a company so... Out of place.

When she got within shouting distance (still running) she finally greeted them: "Hey!" she raised her delicate hand and waved, "Hey gu--" She stopped. She was surprised to find she had tripped on a small root sticking out of the weathered road. It sent her sprawling clumsily over the girl with the green dress. She almost hit the other girl, but she was a few paces away.

Rosa fell over her and onto the grass with the shocked blonde girl in tow. She rolled off of her as they touched down on the wet green. Rosa quickly sat up, her head clearly bemused by the fall. She fell back and watched the sky spin.

I was not accustomed to so cordial a greeting from a passing stranger. To avoid confusion, I must say it was the first woman that I found to be pleasant and the second much less so, for while I had heard the approach of the tackler, I had expected her to stop or merely pass by rather than use me as a road cushion. Thus it was that I was caught mid-smile and mid-sentence as I tried to assure the young woman that her lovely horse was by no means an inconvenience and that it was pleasant to meet so kind a stranger on so nice a day, but my face ended up rather unceremoniously in the grass.

I did not need to look to know what became of my light meal. The contents of my lap were either sprawled in the grass or squashed on my overturned lap, my cloak wrapped and mangled about my legs. With a snort, I promptly righted myself and stood, smoothing my skirt again and brushing off what I could of the grass, dirt, and food.

“Well!” I cast a sharp glance at the fallen woman only to feel worried at her disconcerted gaze. It did not seem kind to ignore the lovely young lady that had apologized first, but I did hope that even the other excitable woman was alright. “Oh... do forgive me, miss, but I hope that this new acquaintance is not hurt.”

Offering the blonde woman a mild smile, I bent over to peer more carefully at the fallen woman, searching for any hint of pain. “That was quite a tumble…”

Namid bent worriedly over the young lady. "That was quite a magnificent fall" she said, waving her hand in front of the girl's eyes. Shideezhi, ever curious, began sniffing and nudging at the young lady's feet before Namid shooed her away. Shideezhi, not one to be easily put off, began sniffing at the first lady.

She noticed that the first young lady had had her lunch scattered across the countryside. "When this young woman recovers" She said with a smile "I would love if the two of you were to join me for lunch" She looked at the lady sprawled on the floor again, and she felt quite concerned. "Do you need to be taken to a doctor, miss?" She asked.

"My name is Namid, by the way, and this is Shideezhi" She gestured to the horse, who was currently sniffing the still-standing young lady's hair. She then forced her nose under the lady's hand, demanding attention "She is an uneducated child, I'm afraid, but you should see her in battle"

Rosa was met with a flurry of slurred words and noises. She also felt the cool grass beneath her, its green tendrils reaching straight up from deep within the earth and bristling the back of her whole body. It wasn't a scratchy sort of feeling, but rather, it was a natural feeling; Rosa could lie there all day and look at the treetops and sky above her. Birds also soared overhead, but they weren't magnificent or anything; just your average robins. Except only with Rosa's dazed state, all of this was twirling and splitting from each other, as if some sort of sick person thought it would be funny to drug her.

After a couple of minutes, though, the confusion slowly dwindled away from her mind, replaced again by the beautiful reality she once knew. The two women were now standing over her, talking. They were looking at her now. It was unfortunate that she didn't understand a word said by either of them during her time of lunacy, she would just have to ask them to repeat what they said. They were both pretty blonde women, she noticed. She started to sit up slowly, breathing through her nose deeply. She looked straight ahead of her into the misty distance.

Then, she finally snapped out of it. She turned around (still sitting) and started incessantly apologizing to the blonde woman she knocked over.

"Ahhh!" She put her hand behind her head and her expression turned to shock, "I'm sooo sorry miss. I can't believe I actually did that!" She noticed she had knocked the woman's lunch out from her lap; it was pitifully scattered across the countryside. She cried again at her grand mess, "this is terrible! Are you guys going the same way as me? I'll be happy to pay for your trip!"

And the fact remained that she could, it would be better use for her performance money rather than her buying an expensive trinket for herself anyway.

It was… almost amusing. At the very least, the woman seemed to mean well. Her confusion and kindness brought a large sense of pity and worry when I considered the recent happenings in Duskwood. Yet I did not wish to frighten, but comfort, and perhaps give some decent help and advice to another on so fine a day. I did appreciate solitude, but recently I had felt a strange warmth had been growing within, a feeling that led me to desire words rather than silence and friends rather than strangers. We would likely not spend much time in one another’s company nor meet again, but it seemed kinder and more rewarding to take on more of the charitable quality I had seen from a certain pleasant prince.

“Oh dear, you needn’t worry of such things. It was merely a small little snack and the weather is yet pleasant, so I take neither offence nor injury. But you… were you injured by the fall? That tumble was rather… curious.” I offered a mild smile at the woman and glanced to the other lady and her horse, having gently returned the creature’s greeting with gentle strokes on the muzzle. “I am very happy to meet all three of you, but I would advise you not to linger long, particularly near the woods. There has been some very unfortunate and dangerous attacks for some who walk about the woods at night… please do, at the very least, be careful.”

OoC: Sowwy for bein’ so short ‘ so long in posting, but y’know… crazeh weekend businesses…

Namid couldn’t help but smile as the young woman arose and began her apologies. “Well, if there is no harm done and, if what you say about this forest is true, perhaps we might make our way to the city? I could certainly do with a good meal, I don’t know about you two, but it’s certainly been a long day already” she smiled again. It was in her nature to be friendly to everyone.

She dropped the saddle bags again and gestured to Shideezhi to stop pandering for attention. She saddled up the horse and tied a few of the lighter bags to the saddle, deciding to carry the battle armour and harp herself, the work out would do her good.

“If you are still feeling dizzy, young miss, you may ride my mare. She is a child at heart but well used to inexperienced riders and quite a pleasure to ride I assure you. If you wish to walk, feel free, both of you, to tie any bags you may have to her saddle, she is much stronger than she looks and I assure you it won’t hinder her at all”


(Ooc: Sorry sorry sorry. Been so tired and just got a new job. Sooooorrry )