Decent Into Darkness

[Prince Herb]

"Moonlight is not the least of the goddess' blessings, a light in darkness." Moonshadow says, smiling a little.   "But her dark side can be terrible to behold.   I am more dangerous than I look."

[Figment]

Slipping smoothly from her chair, Ticha shoulders her pack and looks up at her taller companions.

"Appearances can be deceiving," she says philosophically. "Shall we embark upon our journey now?"

[CyMage]

The door opened one more time to allow another person into the room.  

It is a fairly tall female human.  She stands just short of 6 feet in height.  She's slim but doesn't look too fragile.  Her movements are conservative, but graceful.  Her dark purple hair is cut fairly short, but still falls to her shoulders.  There are two very distinctive features about her face.  The first is the large scar that runs down across her left eye to just above her lips.  The brown eye itself is undamaged by some miracle.  The other is an intricate tattoo that covers the right side of her face.  She wears simple grey slacks with a white shirt.  A pair of leather boots covers her feet.  All her clothing seems to be made more for durability then for visual appeal.

Scanning the place with her eyes quickly, she finally settles on the group before wandering closer.  "I'm Ailith.  You've contacted me about a 'job'?" she asked of Lain.  "I've been a bit delayed on the road."

[Figment]

Hearing the woman introduce herself, Ticha looks up sharply from where she was inspecting Lain's ensemble.

"Ailith!" she exclaims in a manner that leads you to believe that she is very pleasantly surprised. "It is good to see you again. How are you doing and how is Katriana doing?" Ticha continues, her face more animated than it has been the entire evening.

[CyMage]

Examining the speaker closer, a smile appeared on Ailith's face.  "Ticha, my friend.  Good to see you too."  Making a face as she patted a small pouch at her side, she answered the halflings question.  "Well, I'm almost broke again.  And Katriana is still staying at her villa.  She's doing well."

Placing a hand on the shorter womans shoulder she asked a question of her own.  "How about you?  Any news?"

[tabyk]

Taking a small step backwards from everyone Daren performs a quick check of the contents of his pack, confirming that at least the essentials are already there, before nodding to himself and shouldering it once more.  Afterward, he returns to watching his new employer and travelling companions in hopes that he will be able to learn their moves and patterns so that he can most efficiently work with them, especially when everything goes to hell...

...which, according to Lain, is rather expected this time around.

[Priss]

Lain straightened and stretched slightyly, rolling her head about her shoulders.  For a moment, there was a brief glimpse of a scar, pale against her dark skin, just clearing the collar of her shirt and winding its gradual way up her neck before it disappeared again into her hair at the base of her neck.  

She grinned at the new arrival.  "About time you showed up, Ailith.   I was about to give your share to the others."  With that she threw a fifth pouch at the taller woman with an underhanded flick of her wrist, never even for a moment thinking that the other would fail to catch the pouch.

"Now, lest you all have some business left to care for here in town, you can leave any gear you don't want to haul around with Jack here.  She'll see that not a soul touches it before you return... and have it sent to whatever next of kin you might have if you don't."

With that, she reaches back and twitches the hood of her dark cloak up about her head and strides towards the door.

[Figment]

Smiling sadly up at Ailith, Ticha nods, "Yes, there is news, though none of it is good I'm afraid."

Seeing Lain walk out the door, she shrugs and looks up at her friend, "It is a long tale, and one not to be told standing in the the middle of a tavern. I shall relay it to you later." Glancing at the others, she starts towards the door, "But for now, I believe it would be best to follow our employer."

[Prince Herb]

Moonshadow quickly replaces her harp in her praeternaturally capacious pack and follows the others out of the door, her soft steps almost soundless under the moonlit sky,

[Trunkyboy]

Grabbing his weapon, Rackham slings it across his back and strides after Lain.  He subconciosly dismisses the rest of his companions, they would prove their mettle in battle.  The bald one seemed okay though.

[CyMage]

Slipping the money pouch inside her shirt, the woman followed the others, knowing that her friend would be able to watch both their backs.  She didn't relax her guard though.

[tabyk]

Giving a slight bounce to settle everything down, Daren the followed the rest out the door.

Still feeling the new weight of the coins within his vest he found himself nodding to himself once again... yep, it's good to have an employer.

[Priss]

The hardpacked dirt steet was bathed with the silvery glow of moonlight, but still shadows existed.  For a moment, Lain seemed to disappear into the shadow of the tavern's overhanging roof, but then she made a point of glancing towards the rest of the group.  Her pale eyes seemed to burn with fire as she gazed upon her companion, illuminating once and for all the true nature of the being that had sired her.

Then she looked away, that firey gaze peering down the street into the darkness of the forest outside of town and the heavy peaks of the Thannengrin Mountains beyond.  She raised a black clad arm and pointed towards the mountains, her drow's eyes turning back to catch them once more in their gaze.  

"There... the mountains, or rather beneath them.  That is our destination."  She grinned rather toothly, a flash of white in the darkness.  "Yes, they are forbidden by... well, pretty much everyone.  But isn't that just part of the joy of the challenge?  To go where no one else dares?"

[Figment]

Stopping a few paces away from Lain, Ticha gazes at the mountains in the distance.

"It matters not if they are forbidden," she turns her gaze back to Lain. "If that is our destination, then that is where we shall go."

Reaching down, she slips a pair of eye glasses with a sturdy wire frame from behind a broad belt and dons them.

"When are we to leave?"

[Prince Herb]

"I know little of these mountains, to be sure," Moonshadow says, "but I do not feel that the goddess regards them as forbidden to her or her followers, whatever other people may say."

"Out of interest, though", she continues, "what are the tales they tell about these mountains?   I always like to hear a good story, and the lore may be relevant to our journey."

The elf looks at Lain, half-expectantly.