Name In Progress (1x1 Fantasy RP with Krowe)

[Heavenly Kitten]

She left the subject of her parents be for now, not caring to explore further, and grateful that he only just touched on the subject. Rather, she focused on the discussion of magic for now, "You mean developing your own magical well is an actual possibility?" She was a bit surprised, her expression showing such. "I mean... I suppose I've not seen many books or studies on the subject, much less have I spoken with the court magicians to learn more on my own. However, you genuinely believe it a possibility?" She raised a brow to him.  

[Zeren the Morph]

"It's more complicated than it sounds, but in layman's terms, it's like finding a point inside yourself and tapping into it. Once tapped, you can develop and increase your reservoir. All races and it's individuals have their own undeveloped well at some degree. Some of them are vast and capable of incredible things, where most are small and require much training even to do the most mundane tasks. Which is why some people rely on conducive elements like timonium cores to act as their mana well." He then sipped, the wine burning pleasantly in his throat.  

[Heavenly Kitten]

"Hmmm... interesting" She said with a fair bit of intrigue at this, "Perhaps something I can get to studying with you a bit more once we return home." She continued, smiling.

She looked back to her new bottle and took another fine swig of the beverage, the effect of it beginning at last, a bit of a calm washing over her, a light swirl in her head. She looked back to Zeren with a slight smile, "At least the night's been better than today was." She sighed softly and leaned back into the seat a bit, eyes focusing up on the stars now, looking from one constellation to the next.

She then decided to trek back to a previous note, "A chimera... one of those supposedly mythical beasts with the heads of a lion and goat and a tail that is a snake. An abomination of a creature, but powerful certainly. The body is that of the lion and it can even breathe fire. I didn't fight it alone of course, but certainly the toughest battle of my life." She peered over at him out of the corner of an eye, "What about you? What was your toughest battle?" She asked, a bit curious.  

[Zeren the Morph]

Zeren pondered for a moment. He'd never even seen pictures of Chimeras, but they sound like something he didn't want to tangle with.

"... Hmm. Toughest? I was traveling the Backroads when I was accosted by a rather large brigade of thieves, all lead by some guy named Styx. That was one of the few where I had to run rather than fight. Twenty-odd men, so I set my old coach to explode and took off into the brush. After as they tried to ransack it, they got a very nasty surprise. Lost my coach and all my wares, but Styx was killed in the blast, who had a hefty price on his head. So, I got paid enough to cover my losses and got to perform a little service to the community to boot." He said lightheartedly.  

[Heavenly Kitten]

She was a bit surprised, hearing his tale, but smiled a bit, couldn't even help but laugh a little as well at the telling. "Thieves, eh...? I'll confess, I've not killed many people. Keeping to beasts mostly, if not solely. Though, it sounds like you didn't kill them by hand, so I suppose that makes it different. Though it brings about the question as to whether you've ever killed someone before? Your crossbow is but one thing, however, I hear taking a life by hand... a blade or other connecting blow... that that is different somehow. A certain weight to it. Though I don't know that feeling well. Whenever other humanoids are involved I tend to have a more background role." She sighed softly and took another swig of her near-empty bottle now, setting it aside and looking back to her company, "In any case... it is getting late... perhaps we should be calling it a night?" She suggested. She was not all that tired herself, but she was trying to look out for him, make sure all her soldiers were at their fullest.  

[Zeren the Morph]

"I've never slain an innocent, if that's what you imply. A man who values petty material items over sentient life is not innocent in my eyes. I may be a creature conceived in blackest of evils, but that doesn't mean I'm not a holy creature. I too have a soul, a conscience." He replied with a somber gaze into empty space before him. He knew she didn't imply that, in honesty. But when most people see a incubus, they assume he's a callous soul thief. If anything, it was an automated knee-jerk response. "... Anyways, I grow weary, m'lady. Now, I think I'll have to slumber next to the moaning wounded. Or the fox woman who drinks too much, eh?" He chuckled a bit, trying to lighten the mood a bit.  

[Heavenly Kitten]

She understood what he was saying about slaying the innocent. There was no reason to do such a thing, as many bandits and other raiders did in these days. However, it didn't mean these things did not happen regardless. The thought was a bit distressing and she sighed softly to herself for reasons that would not be apparent to him in regards to the whole thing, but looked back to him with a gentle nod and couldn't help but chuckle a little at his final comments, rolling her eyes in mock disgust, "Ever the flirtatious pervert you seem to be. Do as you will, I suppose... however, do not be romping all night should you so choose with the healthier, more fit ones... we have an early morning and another long trip ahead of us once daylight comes. Remember that." She flashed him a smile, "Goodnight, Zeren... should you sleep at all, may your dreams be pleasant." With that, she slipped off the edge of the coach, slithering off into the woods nearby, having looked enough to find a suitable bed space upon their arrival, camping there and call it a night in a high tree with thick branches, coiling around a wide one for balance.  

[Zeren the Morph]

~~~~~~

Morning light blinded Zeren as he stirred. He slept alone that night, feeling guilty at the though of wooing an injured, intoxicated woman. The picks for a bedmate were slim, the only one healthy enough for a romp was the hawk woman who only stared at him as he walked by. There wasn't enough room in the coach for him and the ground he deemed not too safe. Being a shapeshifting creature of habit, he took to the top of the coach.

As he stretched, he rolled off the coach by accident, crumpling into the ground with a thud. As he staggered up, fox woman was sitting on the edge of the coach door.

"Oh. Look at that. It's raining men. Hallelujah." She said, deadpanned as she took a swig from a bottle.

"Funny. Is that my wine?"

She looked at the bottle. "... No."

"Yes, it is."

"No, it's not."

"Where did you get it, then?"

"At the... Liquor store?"

Zeren rolled his eyes as he got up. He looked around, looking for Valeria.  

[Heavenly Kitten]

Sunlight cut through the treeline and hit her closed eyes, slowly fluttering open, though only partway, raising a hand against the light with a groan of discontent. The night seemed far too short, though that may have had something to do with how late she was up speaking with Zeren. They had discussed so much and now, her only reminder a dull ache behind her eyes, rubbing at her temple in a feeble attempt to brush away the pain, groaning once more before coiling the trunk of the tree, slithering down it in circles, holding tight as she made her way back to the ground, finally stretching with a long yawn as, beyond the trees, she spotted a number of their group already up and about, morning having already found them. it seemed. She could even smell a bit of cooking, some sort of meat over a fire, her tongue flicking out and sensing it to be venison with some eggs. Had someone gone hunting today? She thought to herself, closing in on the camp and approaching the large fire pit, having not spotted Zeren just yet.

After a bit of questioning, she discovered that the twins had gone out hunting while everyone was yet sleeping and had managed to kill 3 bucks and a doe and had been spending the morning preparing them in different fashions to accommodate varied tastes in the camp. Valeria ordered a bit of smoked venison, enjoying the taste and that feeling like it would really hit the spot, some scrambled eggs to go with it. She had it placed on a plate they had scavenged from Zeren's cart for her and had used some of his remaining wine as beverage, not finding any other. Or at least, nothing they preferred. She chuckled softly, heading off with her plate after placing the order, resting near the mouth of the cave, peering in from time to time as she ate, excited for their exploration today. Zeren had escaped her mind completely this morning, the fresh food doing wonders for her starved tummy, eating it nice and slow, savoring every bite.  

[Zeren the Morph]

Zeren stared at the smoke venison, then to the fellow serving it.

"I don't suppose you have anything... Not meat?" Zeren asked.

"Why? You vegetarian, boy? Time to man up, then." The man replied gruffly.

"... Okay. First off, I'm hundreds of years older than you, so don't call me boy again. Secondly, I don't choose to be a vegetarian, I'm a herbivore. I can't eat meat, okay? Can't digest it." Zeren shot back. The man raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well. I guess you're s**t outta luck, ain't cha?"

Zeren was a patient man. But after a night of sleeping on top of a stagecoach, his irritability got the best of him. Being a beast of lust and an appreciator of physical beauty, Zeren had an innate ability to zero into most people's insecurities. It helps the wooing process when you can tell what a person doesn't like about themselves and assure them otherwise before they even reveal it. But sometimes, it does wonders for deflating egos.

"... You have an obnoxiously big nose and your right eye is slightly higher than the left eye. Good day, sir." Zeren swiveled on his heels and stomped off, not paying any mind to the man who instead of retorting, touched his nose his nose with an surprised expression on his face.

He once more found himself inside his coach, delving into his now-scant food stuffs. He found a canister of hardtack biscuits and consigned himself to that. Luckily, they were relatively new, so they tasted fine. He left the coach an strolled a bit, noticing the cave and begun walking towards it with the can of biscuits underarm. As he neared, he noticed Valeria near it, who was looking into the cave's dark maw.

"Good day for spelunking, don't ya think m'lady?"  

[Heavenly Kitten]

She had been chewing on a rather tasty bit of venison, spacing off into the cave's maw when he spoke. Having been by herself a good portion of the morning, the new noise so very close by startled her, near to the point of losing her tasty morsel as she jumped a bit, but managed to snap her jaw shut again and quickly chew it the rest of the way, swallowing it down to look at him and speak without being seen as rude, or otherwise offensive. After a big gulp, which nearly caught in her throat due to the hurried chewing, she spoke back to him, a bit breathy as well as rigid from not having said much since waking, "Oh, uhhh... y-yeah! Should be interesting."

After a moment, she had re-composed herself, setting her plate aside on the ground and making space for him on the rock she had found so he wouldn't have to awkwardly stand while conversing. She took a glance into the cave once again and spoke, as if half in thought at the time, "I don't have any idea how deep it is... or if there will be torches we can light... any of it. I mean, truth be told, until I was told of this place and given coordinates from the queen about a week ago, I had thought this place little more than some Gorgon legend. Still... sitting here now... I get this almost... foreboding feeling, ya know?" She turned to look at him again, fighting back what was the third or forth shiver she had gotten since sitting here.

Indeed, the cave itself held an ominous presence, in spite of being inanimate, as well as so long-vacant. "I dunno... maybe it's just all the pressure of all this building up on me." With that, she offered a small sigh, grabbed up her plate, and took another good bite of food, wanting to make sure she was full before going on this little adventure into the depths. This time around, she had dropped the far-too-ladylike facade and spoke, food packed to the corner of her mouth during, "What about you? Excited? Nervous?" She asked, looking to him with a cocked brow before continuing to eat.  

[Zeren the Morph]

"I got lanterns if we need them. They're pretty bright. Fragile and a few of them kinda volatile, but bright..." He settled down on the spot next to her, pausing for a few moments as he stared into the maw of the cave. "... Could be the pressure of your leadership. Or it could just be that the cave is giving off some creepy vibes. If you asked me, I think it's the latter... Take heart, m'lady. Any pressure, you can handle. You're the type that doesn't fold easy, that much I've learned from you the brief time we've known each other." He assured, his slitted eyes resuming their stare into the darken abyss. Perhaps she was onto something about the foreboding part, because he was feeling it a bit as well.  

[Heavenly Kitten]

She did manage something of a half-hearted chuckle at his words of confidence and encouragement, but the pain that still ebbed throughout her damaged arm was a reminder of what could have been far worse than the nightmare it was, gently grasping at the arm as the faint pain tinged it, spacing a bit as she did so. However, after a long moment, she snapped back to and looked to him with a slight smile, "Thank you, Zeren... it reassures me to hear such kind words." With that, she took the last bite off her plate, setting it aside once more and leaning back on the rock, gently gripping the edge in one hand, and the back with the other, "Let's just hope that, no matter this feeling, we make it out of all this alive, hmm? Would hate to have even more blood on my hands, after all. Why don't you keep those volatile ones stored safely. I am certain we can get by on whatever light we can manage." She sighed softly, the tip of her tail flicking gently, "Besides... we're talking about the den of the infamous Medusa... certainly she had some means or another of lighting the place, aside from carrying a torch everywhere like some fool. No... from the stories I have heard, I do not picture her walking around in such a way. She was a bit majestic, if not a terrible person. Still..." Another soft sigh before pushing up off the rock and looking back to him, noting his meal choice and looking to him curiously, "Hard tack...?"  

[Zeren the Morph]

"Yeah, hard tack... It's fine. I don't need to eat much, anyways." He said, between munches. "Anyways, let's hope your light hypothesis is correct, then! Still, I might need to situate myself and others for the expedition. Who knows what we might come across?" He said with a chuckle as he stood back up. He looked at her once more. "And you're very welcome, m'lady. Those were not empty words." He said as he begun strolling back to his coach to prepare.  

[Heavenly Kitten]

She believed him. No reason not to. Was nice though, hearing words of confidence and inspiration from one of her comrades in spite of the previous evening's heart-wrenching trials.

She followed him back to the area where the rest of the group was finishing their eating. After getting them rounded up, she decided to keep Gurta, the Boar Lancer that had ridden with them on the coach, and the only other lamia left in their retinue; a black male, Defender class, by the name of Vlad Issen, as her personal guards, the rest ordered to stay near Zeren and/or in his carriage.

With that, she signaled the move forward into the caves depths. Once away from the sun's light, and in the bowels of the cave, a cool, refreshing air caught the skin, or fur, of each, a sigh of relief crossing the general-in-training's lips at the cool feel against he skin and scales as she slithered across the smooth innards of the cave. She only wondered how far Zeren would be able to take the carriage. If the walls would slope in too much, perhaps, or any other unseen circumstance should block it's way. Or if he would leave it behind instead. However, that was not her concern, she merely made her way down into the cavern.

It was not long, however, before she needed a torch. Lighting it and continuing to lead the way, lighting every brazier they passed so as to add that much more to the cavern as a whole, light reflecting, in some areas, off the glossy cave floor and walls. Water and time had smoothed this place out quite nicely. Perhaps the fabled Medusa even took a hand in it's crafting, who knew? Either way, the scent of fresh water was all around them, likely a pool deep below, or a river even. Still, from this height, none could tell for certain. They merely pressed onward.