RP:A Mysterious Robbery of Bozrah's Grave
Part of the The Ice Plague Cometh Arc
Western Frostmaw Gates
Satoshi paces, yards from the gate and under the watchful, anxious eyes of the guards on duty. With every pass, the magus sends a frowning glance to the patch of ice near her feet, as id she is expecting it to rear up and take a bite out of her if she turns her back. In truth, it's an honest possibility as far as Satoshi is concerned. For this patch of ice is not a pure and natural element. It is stained a sickly black, is if oil has been frozen, and gives off a feeling of unease to any who venture near. This is the site where Bozrah the wraith was slain and his corruption has remained an eternal stain upon Frostmaw's snows since. What has Satoshi pacing, however, is that large chunk of ice that's -missing- from the unmarked grave. "And neither of you saw anything?" The question is directed at the guards, both of which shuffle their feet like children being asked who broke mother's favorite vase. The taller of the two shakes his head and scratches at his beard. "No, m'lady. Tha' blasted storm las' night was too thick t' see much of anythin'." His partner nods in agreement.
Hildegarde had received word from her fellow Queensguard that her charge was wandering off towards the Western Gate, which is why the knight approached quietly from the east. She watched as her Queen paced and questioned the guards, listening to their response with her sharp hearing and head cocked to the side. "And a storm would cover the tracks of anyone who was here," she said, even though she had no idea what the Queen was irritated over or the fact that something was missing. The knight was merely trying to suggest if anyone - or anything - had been there, their tracks would definitely be gone by now. "My lady," she greeted, with a dip of her head, before standing tall again. "I live to serve," she said, stating the obvious; stating something that needn't ever be said, for all knew Hilde's way of life, "would you task me with something, my Queen, so that I may be of use to you?"
Danny had moving through the land of Frostmaw for one reason only, to venture off in the frozen waste lands despite the warning that it only leads to death. The teen was hard headed that way, rarely listening to anyone even if her safety was at risk. She had stocked upon supplies. Fresh water, some fruits and jerky meats as well as herbs the scout uses for medical aid and other personal use. Her bow was slung over her shoulder just outside her cloak with her two swords. Her other weapons stay hidden beneath her cloak with her rather curvy figure and tight clothing. Her face is somewhat hidden beneath her hood, but is easily seen as the teen lifts her head. - Her eyes quickly scan over the same crowd of folk standing at the lake, her focus on the giants mostly. She'd admit they scared her, should she have to fight one it may not end too well for the girl. Her fear however is silence as she spot the knight. A smile creeps upon her face as she quickens her pace to come to Hilde's side. "I was wondering when I'd see you again." Danny says as her eyes travel to Satoshi. "This must be the queen you spoke so highly of."
Satoshi's thoughts are too focused on the missing Wraithen Ice to notice it was Hildegarde who spoke. Absently, she nods at the words. "Yes, yes, that's precisely what bothers me. There was something... off about the storm's song. It arrived and left so swiftly..." Hardly an odd matter in Frostmaw, for the mountain's weather is known for being as unpredictable and fickle as the moods of a diva. But to Satoshi, who feels the ebb and flow of the glaciers and permafrost, who hears the songs of snow and ice, instinct tells her all is not well. The storm smelled and acted naturally, yet still something does not sit quite right about it. She might have ignored the matter, if Bozrah's ice had not gone missing at the same time. There are no coincidences in Satoshi's life, she's long learned. These thoughts continue to whirl within Satoshi's mind until Hildegarde's request jolts her out of them, so that the magus is blinking owlishly at the knight. "Ah, Mithril. A task? I don't suppose you have a storm-tracker in your back pocket, by chance?" The arrival of the girl in hunting garb catches the kit's eye then, and a snowy eyebrow is lifted. "Greetings to you. Satoshi Azakhaer, Lady of Frostmaw," she offers a polite bow, "And you are?"
Hildegarde 's scale tipped ears moved at the familiar voice, looking to Danny to offer her a friendly smile, "My duties keep me busy, Danny, but I'm always around Frostmaw." She needn't introduce Satoshi, however, for she knew that the Queen would introduce herself in due time. "I do not, my lady," she said, before smiling, "but I am a Silver. We are some of the finest hunters in the sky, my Queen, so I would be happy to take to the sky and examine from there." That said, the knight offered a nod to indicate how serious she was. She trusted the instincts of her Queen, though, meaning she was suspicious of the storm that had came and went: "Have we asked any other people about the storm? Sometimes it is what is unseen that is important," she remarked with a little nod.
Danny smirks to Hilde as she crosses her arms. "I've noticed." She says. She was not a fan of the cold and ice, she was however trained to deal with it. Having enchanted clothing to keep her warm helps too. She eyes Satoshi with a weak smile. Royalty always made her somewhat nervous, only because she seems to have a bad habit of doing or saying something that makes royals want her head. "I'm Danny. Nice to finally meet you." She says softly. Danny seems more child like than Hilde has seen before, her tough facade slightly broken in the presence of a queen and two large giants. Plus the sense that something is off with the land begins to pick at her. Her hair feels as if it's standing. "What's going on here?"
Satoshi shakes her head with a sigh. "Not yet, Mithril. I had not thought much of the storm's oddity, until I came here today and found part of this ice missing. It takes dark means to remove that ice, for it housed the stain of the Time Lord's strongest Wraith, after he was slain here by my hands. We will have to begin investigating. I will not write this off as mere coincidence. Even if the storm is not connected, someone with the power to do so, has stolen a dangerously potent piece of dark energy." The kit's eyes carry a shadow in them, the closest Satoshi will get to letting her anxiety show at this moment. She must retain the mask before her knight and the stranger. Said stranger, upon giving her name, is given a closer look and a nod. "You sent me a letter, as I recall, about having skills et seeking a job, oui? Forest lore, I assume?" It's not a difficult guess to make when you look at Danny, outfitted for a trip into the hunting grounds. Despite the youthful look of the girl, Satoshi can see she moves with a certain comfort and expertise in her gear. The bow on her shoulder does not sit as if with an owner untrained. The scent of healing herbs is clear to Satoshi's keen nose. Yes, this young girl knows a thing or two about surviving in the wilds.
Hildegarde smiled as Danny introduced herself to Satoshi, obviously attempting to be reassuring with her smiles and relaxed demeanour, even if said demeanour faltered briefly at the mention of the missing ice. "Then it is important we discover who took it; why or even how. Any sort of answer is better than silence," she said, fingers flexing briefly around the shaft of her halberd, almost like a comforting motion for the knight. That said, the Silver frowned at the missing patch, wondering who would have taken it. Surely, if it was such a potently evil piece, it would be in the hands of some dastardly person or maybe even a mage who knew no better.
Danny nods to Satoshi as she removes her hood. The girl's face is marked with scars - claw marks and signs that even steel has tasted her flesh. Her hair is thick and kinky, afro like at times. "Indeed. I know the forest, and it's animals. I can speak with them." The she starts as she opens her cloak. First thing one would notice, perhaps the male giants especially, is the teen's tight attire. Danny's shirt is sleeve and a couple sizes small it's seems, making her breasts seem ready to jump out of their buttons. Her pants appear painted on, allowing her curve the girl's body holds to be seen. Danny is a very toned, her muscles hard, her figure slightly bulky from this. But, she opens her cloaks to show off her weapons. Many smaller knifes line the scouts belt, along with two larger daggers. Danny has scars everywhere, this girl has clearly gone through some battles. "I also know a thing or two about combat. I'm sure you have some use for me."
Satoshi glances from the missing patch of ice to the hunter girl and back again, expression thoughtful. "I may have just the job for you, actually. As you just heard me telling Hildegarde, the ice that has gone missing is dangerous and corrupt. Only one with a fair degree of power in darkness could have removed it, let alone touch it." Aramoth knows Satoshi and the guards have stopped a number of aspiring death knights, necromancers, and cultists from trying to cut themselves a piece of Bozrah's remains. The storm was too well timed. "The guards saw nothing, the snows were too thi--" One of the guards clears his throat, the shorter and younger of the two, who is dutifully looking anywhere but at Danny's clothing. "We did hear things, though, now that I think about it. It hadn't crossed my mind until now, since we're usually stationed at the Academy. But, I could-a swore I heard laughing in the wind. Just like the storms in the ruins." The guard's companion nods when Satoshi looks his way, eyebrows raised. A frown crosses the magus' features. Slowly she turns back to Danny and Hildegarde, "Well. That's something to go on. Mithril, would you ask around the Academy and city, see if you can find anyone who heard or saw anything more? Perhaps one of the shamans sensed something? And you, young hunter, if you seek a job, you may consider this a test of your abilities. I do not think this storm was fully natural. There is likely to be evidence of its creator, or those it cloaked, somewhere between here and the ruins in the west. If you can bring me back any evidence, you will more than prove your skills as a hunter." As for Satoshi herself, there are investigations of a more arcane and ethereal manner she will need to tend to. This entire affair has her vulpine whiskers standing on end like silver needles.
Hildegarde listened quietly as Satoshi offered a task to Danny, gaze shifting to the guard as he then spoke. She was a little disturbed to realise he hadn't offered this information until now, but she knew it was reasonable: you often forgot or didn't think about it until the last moment, at least the information was there now. "Laughing," she repeated quietly, looking to Satoshi in time for the issued request. The knight dutifully nodded her head, "Of course, Your Grace," she said, before gesturing to the snow near the missing ice, "but I must know: is it acceptable for me to take some of that snow? If the shamans sensed anything, perhaps they may have a need of some of the snow from around the area." The woman wasn't sure how the shamans operated, but she was keeping her options open, just to be sure. Of course, she would wait for the go-ahead before taking any, so in the mean time she looked to Danny: wondering how the girl felt about her opportunity.
Danny 's eyes perk up with excitement. "I've never chased a storm before, so this will be something challenging." She grins. "I like a challenge." Danny brings her hands together to rub them for warmth, Her eyes set off toward the west , her face lights up in a childlike delight. "When I find these people, does it matter what state I leave them in?"
Satoshi can't blame the guard for offering the information late, if only because the duo usually works in the ruins, where the sound of laughter in the wind is a normalcy. A guard in such conditions spares it as much thought as Frostmaw citizens spare snowflakes. The information is still enough to send a chill of unease down Satoshi's spine, however. As does Hildegarde's question. "Be wary with it, Mithril. Bozrah was a being of the foulest corruption, his remains are no different." To Danny, Satoshi looks with an odd expression, caught somewhere between amusement and approval. This hunter has fire in her soul, that much is clear. "I would prefer information before anything else, however, if you see an opportune moment to strike, you may do so. Take caution. We do not know what we're dealing with here. Everything Frostmaw produces es lethal to its core, oftimes kept behind harmless masks. I do not know if this is something new or not, but we must take every precaution if it has the ability to remove a part of the Wraith's unholy stain." What if it's the Time Lord returning again...? Satoshi, a being of ice who thrives in the cold and ruthless land of Frostmaw, shudders once. She looks suddenly to the pair of guards then, who jump like the guilty. The younger of the two grips his weapon tighter in uncertainty as he's pinned beneath Satoshi's amber-flecked gaze. The kit's eyes are blazing, afire with thoughts of the Leech's return and the threats that could follow. "Double the sentries here. No more of this ice will go missing, or it will be on your heads. Whomsoever comes near the ice is to be immediately arrested. Resistance will be met with execution. We will -not- be caught unawares again, do you hear me?"
Hildegarde smiled at Danny's excitement, obviously impressed and somewhat amused by it: enthusiasm was always a good thing. "I shall be careful," she said, kneeling down to inspect the snow with a curious gaze. She had dealt with Whim: a weapon that was beautiful, enchanting, entrancing and foul to the core, she knew to be cautious of things that could look relatively normal. Drawing forth an empty flask, the knight used it - and only it - to scoop some snow into it; capping it carefully. "I shall take this to the shamans immediately," she said, rising to her feet to offer both Satoshi and Danny a respectful dip of her head. "Do you have any further need of me before I go?"
Danny quirks her brow to Hilde's kneeling. She unsure if she should also kneel and decides not to for now. "And I will start my search. If this section of ice is as powerful as you say it is, there will be a trail of death left behind." Though of this mad the teen somewhat upset. Oddly enough, the death of people don't bother her too much unless their children younger than she. Animals however she has a soft spot for.
Satoshi watches Hildegarde closely, a bundle of nerves as she ensures not a single flake of snow touches the knight. She's not sure she could bear to see the Silver fall beneath Bozrah's corruption, nor does she trust the nature of the foul snow. The corruption may not have spread from where the Wraith first fell nearly a year ago, but Satoshi knows Bozrah's nature far too well, she's heard his whispers, his promises of pain, torment, failure, and death, she understands the Wraith. And so, Satoshi trusts nothing that concerns him. These thoughts plague the magus, resulting in a concerned expression when she looks up at Hildegarde's question. Quickly Satoshi's features adopt the usual placid mask, however, and she shakes her head. "Non, Mithril, that is all. This is your only task, for it is of grave importance, and my trust is wholly upon you." The knight is given a nod to send her on her way when she's ready. With this, Satoshi turns to Danny, vulpine ears twisting forward to regard the hunter. "Yes, I agree. It is highly unlikely that who, or what, took this ice has innocent motives in mind. If death has not started already, I can only assume it will begin soon enough. Swift hunting to you, little Falcon, and may you find your quarry."
Hildegarde nodded at Satoshi's words, bowing respectfully at the waist to her Queen and to Danny. "Good hunting to you, Danny," she offered with a smile, before wandering off eastward to find the shamans of the City of War.
Danny nods to both knight and queen before setting off towards the ruins. She grins to herself. "Falcon." She repeats over and aloud as she marches on. "I like that. Best nickname anyone has ever given me." The teen talks to herself as her cloak slowly blends in with the snow covering the land as she gets farther and farther away. She then fades from sight, leaving only her foot prints in the snow behind.