The Dead Forest (Increased Orc activity due to skirmish)

[Chen Ning]

The lead orc's consistent warning of threat was kept in mind by Chen. Then again, the cop had already accepted the fact that the leader was the leader for a reason: he held a more tuned cautiousness than others, having a bit wiser attitude than his tribal brethens. Still, Chen was not worried in the least. With his story at work, all it required now was the commitment.

"It's a ghost," Chen responded. "So you won't be able to gain anything from it after it's killed. However, trapping it is not the same as trapping an animal. This thing can move through physical obstructions like it's nothing. But it cannot attack us when it's in ghost form. In short, to trap it, we must bait it into attacking us."

The cop sensed the orc's reluctance in letting him get near the cart. All the more curiosity as to what the orcs were doing out here.

"Now, the thing will not attack us unless there is one of us visible. It enjoys attacking lone victims instead of a group. So, we will set up an ambush. One of us will have to act as the decoy, and the other will run in and attack the ghost then. Since you're stronger, I think you will be better as the decoy. Then I can jump in and begin the chant. If you manage to halt it long enough, then we can finish it off fast. How does that sound?"

There was primarily a two-fold choice for Tenkai here: he could either follow Chen and the head orc when they go to help orchestrate this event, or he could take advantage of the leader gone in order to do what he wished in terms of the orcs working on the caravan.  

[Uberwulf X]

Zarr listened intently, shifting uncomfortably while walking only to swat an errant fly out of his view. He seemed displeased at something Chen said, but didn't actually voice it, waiting until after Chen was finished his proposition. After the detective was done talking, he looked behind himself to the orcs already lifting the carriage while the one went about examining the cart He was being sure it was worth changing the wheel, that the cart hadn't been damaged beyond repair and it wouldn't simply fall apart if they hit another rocky section.

"Ghost is ghost. Will see us hiding around, won't it?" He grunted... maybe this spirit was malevolent, but still stupid. With that and mind, and with no reason to distrust Chen (outside of the fact that he was a human), Zaar nodded. "Fine, I stay. Cart guard stay too. You not see him, so spirit can't see him. But, still not say how to kill him. If... if have body," he hesitated while making sure he was using the right words, "why not have skull even if I cut in half?"

The other orcs were talking amongst themselves, even a rough chuckle was in. (It's too bad Tenkai was leaving; he might've enjoyed the joke.) The caravan didn't look like it should be much of a problem for a couple of really strong humans to get off the ground, much less orcs, since it was made of wood. It was a strong grain and type, for sure, but still wood; the only steel on it had been made into bolts and other such things to hold it steady and strong at many point. However, despite the wooden make, the two orcs were visibly straining to get it up. However, once it was past their knees, holding it steady was not a problem at all; they relaxed with the weight.  

[Chen Ning]

"Because cutting it in half won't do a thing," Chen responded. "It'll just regenerate itself."

Hopefully, if Tenkai went along with this ruse, there wouldn't be any real cutting and slicing.

"Even if we manage to get its bones, after the chant, it'll disappear anyway. So, unfortunately, you won't be able to get that as a trophy. BUT, I'll let you have the talisman as a souvenir of your victory. That should make you feel better, am I right? Anyway, don't worry. Despite it being a ghost, ghosts still see with their eyes. If anything, they will only pick up on very large supernatural activity, and I don't have anything like. Not until I start the chant. It'll be too occupied by then with fighting you."

Chen decided to move ahead toward the east forest line where the trees were becoming heavy. "You'll move through this narrow passage and try to make as much sound as possible to get its attention. I'll keep hidden until it shows itself. And then we'll fight!"  

[Maximos]

" We're gonna have words Maximos!"

If the Shadow of Death heard Damion of the rushing chorus of moans, groans and shouts bearing down on him, he did not show it. The mans motions showed no real hesitation for thought, planning or otherwise, he moved as cold and efficiently as his weaponry and garb would denote. Explosive blasts of royal purple which cooled and faded into dark imperial blues filled the night sky.

" Let him deal with that..."

Uriel was one man, even despite their hunger one man was not nearly enough to fill the appetite of dozens of the infected. And the Reaper was proving to be a difficult catch. Damion however, was still, and had made enough sound and produced enough scent to make himself noticed.

Automatically, villagers began to turn. Their clothes with gray and green salivation, while yet still others bled pustules of squirming maggots from bursting seams in their flesh. Villagers, carefully and cautious backed away from the man in black, and turned to face the ill-fated messenger boy.

The scene seemed quite ominous until a single truth made itself evident. In order to turn towards Damion, the villagers had turned away from Uriel. And it was never a good idea to turn your back on Death. Quickly the crowd began to thin, from a tight nit ball of angry flesh to a loose web, a path was cleared. Damion would able to see right past the villagers to a set of stairs that led straight up into a mountain face several hundred feet past the last building in town. Atop those stares, though too far for anyone to make out his features, was a figure holding a staff with what appeared to be a glowing red apple atop it, making swinging and swaying motions with his arms. This man appeared to be directing an orchestra, a symphony of the infected.

This man was Nikolai.  

[Eternal Dirge]

Damion stopped as the mass of eyes fell on him, looking out across the mass of diseased flesh with more than alittle trepidation. his hammer-axe settled on the ground, his right hand still gripping the haft of his stone weapon while his left reached up to rub across his chin." Um....well.....I have nothing to say" He started, voice hesitant where it had been confident moments before.

But then the mass was less of a mass, spots opening up in the collection of trash as Uriel cut a bloody swath through the villagers, a scalpel amongst diseased flesh. And opening up Damion's vision to the conductor of all this blasphemy.

" Nikolai." Damion sing songed, walking forward towards the swinging figure far above, hefting his weapon back up. " gonna get you you rat b*****d...." He snarled, turning and pounding the head of his Hammer-Axe into one of the infecteds head, dropping it in a crumpled heap as he kept moving, bringing the stone back across to behead the next in line. He may not move as fast as Uriel, but each stroke his heas weapon stole a life, or crippled a limb. The earth elemental made his slow way towards the robed conductor, taking each step two at a time and striking down any creature that got in his way.  

[Uberwulf X]

The talisman... it wasn't a skull, but it might look good as part of his wear, depending on how large it was. Zaar was clearly considering this compromise, but he was certainly not against the ideas presented. This was Chen's area of expertise, after all.

"Right, understand..." A nod of its large head, and it looked back to see what the others were up to. They were just about done the fixing of the wheel, he could see through the trees. Satisfied enough with everything, he moved down to where Chen motioned. There was the smallest slit in the trees where he could watch the progress of the wheel crew, and made note of the moment they were done, and they took cover. It was only a few more seconds before Zaar took up his weapon again.

"Spirit! Arrive!" And with the sound of much whooping and much commotion, he started swinging his axe around, striking the black trees and shaking the leaves, with their neon green and blue dew.

[I'll post faster, sorry. -_-]  

[Maximos]

Damion met resistance, in the same way grass resists the boulder bounding down the mountainside amidst the avalanche. And the deeper he pierced the crowd, the thinner they became, and his view of his target became all the clearer.

Nikolai, there he was in all of his unholy radiance, swaying to and fro, lost in the dance. And then he stopped. Suddenly. Abruptly. His green eyes glinting under his hood like emeralds as they found Damion. The infected continued their attack only far less coordinated, shambling now more than running. Flailing rather than fighting.

Nikolai stepped backwards, then back again, daring not to break the eye contact with Damion as if it, and it alone was all that was keeping the beast before him back.

It need not be this way Damion. Come home child. Our lord will forgive you!  

[Chen Ning]

((I'll go next. Twist time. xp I hope it works. ))

Well, good job, Tenkai! You did it! With the leader occupied, it was time for Chen to dedicate some time to his true motives. It was already a miracle that his plan went off without a hitch, so he felt no remorse for what he was about do next. After all, they had a mission to complete, and there was no way they would be able continue it unless a few risks were taken. Though he already had taken his fair share of risks thus far, Chen enjoyed the enthralling life of making more dangerous risks. If you never took the offensive, you could never get anywhere in the first place. It was time to take chances.

The detective was positioned a bit behind the orc in the guise of the trees. As he watched the spiritual entity take form, he also looked back at the wagon, seeing the orcs just about finished with the wheel before they started to move for their own cover. Despite this, it still meant that they were quite some distance away. And with the orc distracted by the spirit before him, it made the next action seem flawless. Chen removed his Desert Eagle from the holster behind his waist, a gun that carried menacing magnum rounds. However, he decided to eject the current clip, and instead put in one containing rubber bullets. Clipping it into place, he raised the gun and aimed it at the back of the orc's head.

PPPPOOOOW!

The sound of the gun being fire erupted from the trees as the recoil caused Chen's arm to be raised upward. The rubber bullet was going to strike into the orc's skull, sending enough impact that could normally send someone out cold. It was a hard blunt weapon, but it was less powerful and harmful than a real bullet. This way, he wouldn't have to end up killing the orc, but put him out of commission for a while. The reason why he took this action was simple, and something the monk was not going to get right away. Chen's previous intentions were to get himself in favor with the orcs in an effort to travel with them, and thus get a glimpse at what they were carrying and their destination. However, because the leader of the orcs quickly threw a curveball and wanted the plan to happen now, it was just an unfortunate consequence that Chen's plan mainly failed, despite it looking perfect at first. After he would finish off their so-called ghost, he would be back at square one since the orcs will want their alliance to be broken. Therefore, he had to resort to Plan B: get rid of the leader.

Cut the head and the body falls. If he gets rid of the leader, he can then manipulate the other orcs more easily, and thus get them more into his favor. This is why it was going to throw off Tenkai's expectations. Chen was following his own way of dealings things, the methods he learned having to be an undercover cop out in the many places he has been to. A forest with a bunch of tribal orcs was a playground compared to what he has experienced out in the slums.

Assuming he knocked the orc out cold, Chen would pocket the gun back into his holster underneath his leather coat, turn around, and quickly run out into the open, shouting at the top of his lungs: "We got a problem! The ghost took out your leader!" This was assuming they weren't familiar with the sound of a gun. If they were, then he was going to have to further make up a story of him trying to defend the orc. Yeah, that should do it.  

[Chen Ning]

((Yeeeeah, a rubber bullet is a much better option, at least to keep karma from coming back to bite Chen in the a**. And maybe I did play the bad cop role too much there, even though Chen just plays that role to get into places he normally couldn't.

I edited my post to show such. You can go ahead, Ecks.))  

[Eternal Dirge]

" I am not your child."

Damion wasn't here to spare words, he would much rather let his weapons do the fighting for him, or play a symphony on Nicolai's face with his fists. But that didn't seem likely at the moment with all these people infront of him, flailing away like madmen. But then again, their staggered formation might be what he needed. He tucked his body down tight, avoiding a lumbering swing from the side that would have likely have taken his head, instead sending it passing harmlessly overhead, before he started running, dipping and diving between the zombie like villagers with if not finesse then with passing skill. Those that moved to fast were knocked over and trampled as the earth elemental careened his way up the steps towards Nicolai.

He still gripped his stone Axe-Hammer in his right hand, fingers working along the stone haft as he brought it around infront of him, body straightening up as he ascended, finally lifting it up for a strike if Nicolai let him get close enough. Damion found himself hoping that Nicolai fought back.  

[Maximos]

Steps. Everything was in the steps.

Damion chose lithe and direct steps, ducking and weaving through a crowd and for every step the elemental took forward, his antagonizer took a step backwards. But regardless the gap was closing, and fast.

Soon, Damion's steps took him out of the infected crowd, past buildings and flattened road, to the small clearing of forest just before out the mouth of the stairs. Nicolai was in reach, in range, within ones grasp. He had stepped back, and back, and then as Damion reached the very first step, the very steps betrayed the hold man. Nicolai's robe caught on an protrusion in the ancient stone and he fell flat on his rump.

We are all children of the worm Damion! Think this through, killing me will not save this world!

There was thunder. Doubtless Damion did not stop for the mans words. Doubtless however he stopped when what appeared to be a wall of bark flew into and encompassed his vision.

Damion was now face to face with a tree, not a log, but by the roots still bleeding fresh soil...a tree, torn from the ground and hurled at him from the right. The creature a hundred feet or so to the right had no voice. It was huge, it was the sort of huge that bulls endeavor to be. It was a man, massive in every meaning of the word. A man who had once stood beside Damion at a bar earlier this night, requesting aprons for his wife to clean. A request Damion mistook for a request for food.

Now, the man was cracking knuckles that popped with the sort of loudness that popping skulls would make. And beside the man was a small, lithe thing so thin, and so frail it seemed it would simply blow away. It was adorned in dozens and dozens of white rags which covered its body and billowed in the wind. Only the slight curve of its hips revealed that it may be female. It climbed its husband like a fluid as a snake, and as silent as the wind. Three knives like fingers slipped from her clenched fists, between thin white fingers, as she mounted the massive mans shoulders.

He took a step forward. She was gone. A blur of white as easily dismissible as the wind and Damion was facing a diagonal slash across his midsection from three intensely sharp blades.