1x1 ｗｉｔｈ Ｗｉｎｄｆａｒｍｅｒ

[fletch]

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age | 24 years |mood | irritable | crush | TBD
tagged | Alphaess | thoughts | ...

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Flick gave a visible wince when the Balverine growled, and he resisted the urge to cover his ears from the audible snarl. He was scared to the point of shaking but, of course, with Alphaess present there was no way he would embarrass himself. It was pretty uncomfortable being practically carried by this monstrous beast, but Flick had no other choice. It startled him a little when the Balverine obeyed Alphaess's command right off and, quite abruptly, he was dumped upon the ground. Flick did not have the time to land on his feet and, instead, landed on his butt rather awkwardly. Flick winced in pain and rubbed his lower back, biting his lip at the pain that jolted through. Muddy, wet, cold and now throughly embarrassed...yep it was a miserable day.

"Yep. Absolutely lovely. Thanks, 'Red'." Flick said sarcastically, slicking aside some mud from his shoulder. He stood back up and hoisted his bag up his shoulders, craning his neck to get the awful knot of pain out of it from being carried by a Balverine. It could be worse, though...but Flick could not think of any examples at the moment. Realizing he still had a deal, Flick grudgingly reached down to his mud-coated side and removed the pouch he had strapped to the belt around his hip. When he opened the pouch Flick was very aware that he might be a little short of one hundred coins...but of course, that would change when he finished his 'deal'. As long as the flask of fake potion was still in one piece, that was. He just had to keep up the charade with Alphaess and her Balverine until then. Eyeing Alphaess quickly he lifted the pouch and dumped out a pile of meagre gold coins, counting them until he'd reached fifty.

Flick closed his fist around the pile of coins and stuck his arm out towards Alphaess. "So, where to? I wouldn't know my way out of this craphole, anyway." It was the truth. Flick had a very terrible sense of direction which usually was not a good trait for a merchant. Especially one who traveled alone...maps seldom worked, either. He always ended up losing them some way or another. Albion was an 'interesting' place, afterall.

[alphanea]

Ｔｈｅ Ａｌｐｈａｅｓｓ
❦ Hєяσιηє σƒ Kησтнσℓє Gℓα∂є ❦
➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳
Balverine hunter - Twenty-four years - Darkwood

❧ Still watching Flick with interest, Alphaess hardly managed to avoid laughing as he was dropped on the ground and landing right on his bottom. She stood still and silently as he was getting up. She was actually waiting for her 'payment' and she wouldn't just do anything without getting her coins first. She might be animal-like and pretty much crazy but not dumb. Even that she never had much interest in merchants, she knew them well. They would sell their own grandmother if they were given a 'generous amount' of coins. At least the ones that had a lot of money. The merchants were nothing more than liars that could do anything for money in her eyes. And yet, Alphaess could never actually understood why they cared much about money. After all, she never had much money in her childhood. She used to do small jobs with her brother, like helping villagers repair their huts for a few of coins. The people at her homeland, Knothole Glade, which was a small town located in Witchwoods were different. A little of them cared for money. The most important thing was survival. Yes, if your home is surrounded by Balverines, the last thing you would think about would be money. While she was actually carried away with her memories, she didn't actually noticed what Flick was doing, unlike the Balverine who was watching his every move, until he offered the gold. Snapping out quickly, Alphaess swiftly took the coins from his hand. Before placing the coins into the pouch where she also carried hers, she took out one coin from the rest of it. Raising it and moving it close to her brown-gold eyes, she inspected the coin for a few seconds, trying to make sure she wasn't getting scammed. Her face took a serious look. Once she decided it was real, she dumped the coins into a small pouch that was tied to her belt, her grin returning to her face.


❧ Alphaess turned around, for the first time her longbow was visible for Flick. She was facing the Balverine. "He'll lead us to the merchant camp in the middle of the forest." Alphaess while looking right into the Balverine, gesturing at it to get going once more. The Balverine obeyed the command easily, as it also wanted to get the mission done and finally part ways with the man quickly. Also Alphaess have promised the white canine-like creature some geese meat as a reward too. Dropping back on all fours, the creature sniffed the air, catching the faint scent coming from the merchant camp and trails of humans that have passed the path many times before. Even as a Balverine, it had a pretty sensitive nose. [color=#990F1C]"Who needs Guild maps when you have a Balverine..." Alphaess murmured to herself very silently, it could barely be heard. "Just try to keep up with us. Or I may have him to carry you around." Alphaess said teasingly, pointing at the Balverine with her right hand while keeping the other above her swords.


❧ The Balverine suddenly raised it's head up, pinning it's ears back and giving off a slight threatening voice, signaling Alphaess while it's eyes were scanning the area. Her face became cold as her grin faded away. She could feel that there were many dangers lurking around and staying at one place for too long would increase the risk of getting ambushed by any aggressive creature that may be wandering around. "We better get going." Alphaess said, unlike her usual teasing and cold voice now her voice was more serious and -still- cold. The Balverine took lead, starting to walk slowly, letting Alphaess catch up with it. Alphaess also fallowed right behind the creature.

[fletch]

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age | 24 years |mood | irritable | crush | TBD
tagged | Alphaess | thoughts | ...

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Flick could not help the slightest flinch at Alphaess's 'joke' of having the Balverine carry him around. It had been humiliating enough for the creature to pull him out of the mud but having it carry him around? That was a little too far, even for Flick. But he assured himself it was just for the purpose of his trade and then he'd be home in Bowerstone...ah, yes, home. A place where he would hear people fighting with one another a block away and everywhere he went he'd be tripping over some bratty child. 'Home'. But it wouldn't be forever. After all, Flick was a professional con-man. He'd get out of there...one day.

Once the Balverine started to head off and Alphaess after it, Flick had no choice but to follow. He hoisted his travel bag up his shoulders and brushed his blondish hair back with a hand and began to trek after. He was a little more careful where he stepped this time. There was no way he wanted to be pulled out of the mud again...and he was sure the Balverine would be less than gentle if it were to happen. Flick had his fair share of humiliating things occur to him while on his 'trades'. Stepping into hunting snares, hiding from bandits in...odd places. Yet he had always managed to get out of them some way or another. This, he assured himself, would be no different. He could get to the camp and get out of Darkwood (with or without paying the heroine, depending on how things went. Flick doubted he could outrun a white Balverine for long.)

As they trekked along, Flick dropped his attention down to the mud sticking to his boots. It made an unappealing squelching noise wherever he trekked and the gnats--oh, the gnats--crowded above his head once again in another attempt to bite at him. But this time...something changed. Flick got the feeling that they weren't alone. There was the noise of rustling in the bushes...and when Flick glanced to his right to peer at the tangled undergrowth he caught the sight of a shiny gray head. It vanished as quick as it appeared, but Flick had seen it.

"Hey, uhm, 'Red'?" Flick called out, using his nickname for the Heroine instead of her proper title. "What's gray, short and looks like it wants to kill us...?" The joke, however, was short-lived. Flick could now clearly see several pairs of eyes in the brushes...Beady glowing eyes seemed to follow him wherever he stepped. They were small, though. They couldn't have come up higher than Flick's waist. Why should he be scared...? But then again, there were...more than a dozen of them. And they were...speaking? There was no doubt in Flick's mind now. These were Hobbes. Little goblin creatures whom were thought to have once been children, led astray by whispering voices. The tale always made Flick edgy but now seeing them for real...well, it was a little intimidating to say the least. His hand traveled down to the dagger he had strapped to his hip. If it came to a fight he was...probably not prepared in the least. But why did the eyes seem to be following him? Or, more specifically, his belt buckle.

[alphanea]

Ｔｈｅ Ａｌｐｈａｅｓｓ
❦ Hєяσιηє σƒ Kησтнσℓє Gℓα∂є ❦
➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳
Balverine hunter - Twenty-four years - Darkwood

❧ Alphaess continued walking alongside the White Balverine, unlike Flick, she knew such swampy, eerie, sick looking places that were containing hoards of creatures that would chomp your head off if you aren't careful enough like the back of her hand. Once hunter, always a hunter... Even as a child, she heard stories about the Heroine of Knothole Glade, her home, that slayed Balverines at only the age of fifteen with no real weapon. There have been stories told about Balverine hunters since the mankind was first cursed by the creature called the fearsome Balvorn. And Alphaess always dreamed about being remembered among these heroes when she was a child. Being on of the greatest Heroines of Knothole Glade, fighting, defending her own village. But now, things have changed for her. The more away she got from the Guild, the more these dreams and ideals. These dreams were now abandoned by Alphaess herself.


❧ As both the Balverine and Alphaess were continuing among their way, they both couldn't help but feel like they have been watched. It was quite usual here. Hobbes and Nymphs often liked to stalk the ones that passed along. They did not always necessarily attacked everyone they saw, so fighting wasn't quite needed unless the creatures were starting to feel hungry. The Balverine had a silent growling at it's throat as it walked, With the paws that were actually made for walking on mud and swamps were making it's walk very easy. Alphaess's boots, what were also made out of Balverine skin, were making her walk with less effort. But it seem that the eyes that watched them started to get even more in numbers. A hand instantly run her hand down, as an instinct she had, to her sheath that was attached to her belt.

❧ "We are going to find it out shortly."[color=#AAACA9] Alphaess replied, stopping walking as the Balverine have started to snarl even louder. The Hobbes weren't much of a trouble as the were dumb little creatures that had little danger when alone. But when they were in groups, they could give some headaches to any hero or heroine. Though the creatures seem to rather avoid the Balverine, most of the eyes were on the merchant. Alphaess could now see the silhouettes behind the bushes. She gritted her teeth slightly, picking her longbow that was hung on her back. Getting her arrow ready to be shot, she raised her bow up to the bushes, waiting for the first head to appear before sending of her arrow flying. The Balverine stood up, hoping it's massive body could scare the little pests away. The blood red eyes of the Balverine searched the bushes, spotting many little glowing eyes that locked on Flick for some reason.

[fletch]

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{ gender; male | age; twenty-four | sexuality; heterosexual | location; darkwood }

Flick tensed at her answer and prepared to bolt around and run. His hand traveled down to his dagger but he could not help but feel that...well, the Hobbes seemed to be staring at him. The beady red eyes were following him cautiously and Flick, experimentally, took a step to the left. The eyes followed him. He took a step to the right. Once again, they followed him. What was it about Hobbes again...? They were like crows, in a way. Little thieves who would steal and hurt anyone as long as they were in large groups. And there seemed to be a lot of them...god, Flick was starting to think that three hundred coins wasn't worth it. Actually he'd thought this multiple times before, but now it really seemed as though he'd gotten quite a bit over his head. Experimentally, Flick waved his hands above his head and made a few hand gestures towards the Hobbes, but they had little interest on whatever his arms were doing. They were more interested in the below the waist region which probably could've been flattering, had they probably not had the intention to murder him for the sake of stealing a belt buckle. At most, the thing was worth five coins! Unfortunately, Flick wasn't...quite going to give it up for the moment. After all, it was the only thing holding his pants up at the moment. Being a confidence man, Flick seldom had the chance to select clothes and more went with 'what fit'. As it was, his pants barely made that quota. Ergo, he wasn't parting with the buckle, or he'd probably be parting with his confidence altogether.

"What do I...?" Flick started, his voice sounding warbled. But before he could think of more words to say, the creatures began to move. And not just from behind them, either. The Hobbes were...surrounding them. How long had the strange goblin creatures been here? Flick was anxious but, after all that had happened, he did not want to be a wimp around Alphaess again. He was a con-man. He'd had to improvise before. Flick reached down to grab his dagger and slid it neatly from the sheathe, holding it up so that it caught what little sunlight there was. It was basically a letter-opener, but it would do. The Hobbes seemed to hiss at the sight of it but they were undeterred, even by the sight of the Balverine. There was just so many of them...but he did notice they seemed to go around the Balverine and rather focus their attention on Flick and Alphaess. It was probably not a clever thing to do, considering who was the real threat here. The Balverine could wipe out dozens of those things with a single swipe and Alphaess...Flick had not seen her in combat yet, but he assumed that the whole intimidating appeal was not just a facade, but a reality. Yet, in 'appearance', the Balverine held the real advantage out of the three. Despite the overwhelming number differences it was, indeed, still a Balverine. The Hobbes seemed to hesitate, mulling over their chance...And then they attacked.

Now, the creatures were hardly up to Flick's knee. They were gray-skinned (though a few had different shades, like maybe a red or black in there). Some had weapons, while a good lot did not. Though their height did not account for much, they were rather swift and their bipedal bodies seemed to move in a blur as they launched from the foliage towards the trio. Their strange, uncanny childlike laughter was incredibly unsettling. While most of the Hobbes headed directly for the Balverine and its master, a good amount of them headed almost immediately for Flick as well, probably due to him having what they seemed to be currently desiring.

Flick scarcely got the chance to yelp before one of the gray-fleshed creatures lurched for him. He could not see what was happening with Alphaess and the Balverine but he was sure that they were probably being bombarded as well. Flick kicked out at his assailant out of pure instinct and got lucky. His foot hit the creature directly in the chest and knocked it backwards, the breath escaping its lungs. It let out a gasping scream but almost directly after another one of the Hobbes followed. One of them grabbed Flick's ankle and, before he could turn, it gave a wicked tug and knocked him down so that he fell flat on his back in the swampy mud. A sudden spray of mud went up from where he hit and, momentarily stunned, Flick could not quite react. The creature sprang upon his chest heavily and seemed to be...well, this was a little embarrassing. It seemed to be trying to...remove his belt buckle? Its gray hands were latched upon the belt and one foot was literally braced upon Flick's abdomen as it tried to pull back to no avail. The little creature was too dumb to realize that there was a clasp, but Flick did not plan on letting it know that any time soon.

"Hey, woah!" Flick exclaimed, slapping the Hobbe away. He struck it directly in the face and manage to snap its head to one side with the surprise and strength of the blow (also due to the fact that the Hobbe had very little strength or resistance to a much bigger person's hit. Flick wasn't incredibly strong or anything but, in comparison to a Hobbe, he had the advantage.) He attempted to stumble to his feet, grasping his dagger by the hilt. They were...well, they were everywhere. He was not a natural fighter but he assumed with so many bodies to hit, he would have at least hit one of them. But they moved too fast--grabbing and biting at his ankles in an attempt to push him over again. The majority of the Hobbes with weapons seemed more fixated on Alphaess and the Balverine, liked they'd sent their lessers to focus on him, probably due to seeing him as less of a threat. Flick's feelings might have been hurt, had he not realized the scenario and been a little grateful for being seen as a smaller threat. Flick kicked out at them and glanced over his shoulder. "Uhh--a little help?" Hm, Flick was not quite sure which threat he preferred. The Balverine, or the Hobbes. That was like the question of: would you rather fight a Balverine-sized chicken, or fifty chicken sized Balverines? ...Now, Flick wasn't sure. All he really had to do was kick out and knock them away (praying they didn't push him over again). Fifty chicken sized Balverines...that was an amusing thought (but sort of a distracting one.)

[alphanea]

Ｔｈｅ Ａｌｐｈａｅｓｓ
❦ Hєяσιηє σƒ Kησтнσℓє Gℓα∂є ❦
➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳
Balverine hunter - Twenty-four years - Darkwood

❧ Alphaess stood her ground as the little creatures surrounded them, grunting and seem to be speaking with each other. Even that Hobbes were known as brainless creatures, they had a culture and society. A Hobbe would never fight or travel alone as one Hobbe would never be safe. Alphaess, as usual, had no signs of worry or fear. When did she ever fear anyone anyway. Holding her black longbow, that looked much like an Ebony Longbow in color but had hand-carved symbols and writings in some ancient language. Alphaess always believed that these charms and symbols have made the weapons and her stronger. Ready to shoot her first arrow, Alphaess shot a confident look to Flick. She had no doubt that she would win such battle. She had favors, such as having flame augmentations that inflicted extra burning damage to the wounds, which was also quite useful on Hobbes and a White Balverine. She turned her gaze up to the white creature that was also standing still like a human. The Balverine didn't seem to be very impressed at all.


❧ As the second the forest-dweller creatures started their attack, Alphaess let go of her first arrow, hitting the early-bird Hobbe that first sprung itself forwards. When the second row, that targetted Alphaess while she drew more arrows, have attacked, they all were knocked off by a strong bow from the Balverine. Alphaess gave an appreciating grin. Shooting off three arrows at a time, Alphaess was fending off the creatures swiftly. But soon enough, the creatures have reached her as the Balverine was actually quite busy fighting a small hoard of small humanoid creatures. Alphaess hit on of the Hobbes with the bow, knocking it down on it's back. Stupid little grey pests. It was quite easy to knock them off their feet as their small feet barely kept their balance while walking. In a matter of second Alphaess have placed her bow on her back once again, kicking away another Hobbe while she drew her Melee weapon. She had a wide grin as she held her silver twinswords under the eerie lightning, the swords giving off a beautiful glow.

❧ Strange thing was, not all of the Hobbes were carrying weapons. Or at least not all of them have drawn a weapon yet. As Alphaess drew her swords, some of the smaller ones have also picked their weapons. They were mostly axe wielders, while the larger 'warrior' ones had larger weapons compared to the smaller ones. Most of the creatures were concentration on Alphaess and her Balverine. Mostly the Balverine. With ever bow the mighty beast have made, a bunch of them were lying down by it's feet. But the Hobbes seem to be more crowded than Alphaess have thought.

❧ Alphaess's head turned to Flick as he heard his voice. Luckily, the Hobbes haven't been taking him as much of a threat and didn't seem to bother using their weapons. She tried to make her way up to him but her road was blocked by several Hobbes. She let out a silent growl, slightly irritated with the small creatures. The Balverine was also swarmed by Hobbes. Alphaess tried once more to get through the Hobbes and reach Flick. She had to save the man. She was a heroine of the guild right? And yet, the man still owed her fifty golden coins too. So that was quite much her motivation.

[fletch]

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{ gender; male | age; twenty-four | sexuality; heterosexual | location; darkwood }

As yet another Hobbe jumped at him, Flick braced his dagger. This time, he was prepared. When the creature jumped--a surprising few feet off the ground--Flick lashed out with the small silver blade and clenched his eyes shut. There was the satisfying feeling of hitting home and the tip of the blade ripping through flesh. A squeal and, when Flick opened his eyes, the gray creature was lying dead at his feet with its throat ripped open. Unlike most of the ones charging the Heroine and her Balverine it was unarmed which made Flick feel a little irritable. It seemed like they were sending the most unprepared Hobbes after him. But, yet, he had downed one, had he not? Flick glanced at the tip of his blade which had a splash of the Hobbe's red blood upon it and, a little surprised, stuttered: "Got one!" Up until this point, had Flick not ever killed something in his life? His olive eyes traversed past the metal edge to the limp Hobbe lying splayed on its back with its ugly face turned towards the cloudy gray sky. He was no killer of course, but he held no remorse for the vile creature. After all the stories and comments he'd heard, the only disgust that Flick felt when he looked at it was the disgust at the amount of blood that was bubbling up from the gaping hole in its throat.

Unfortunately, his triumph was short-lived. For, quite suddenly, something seized the back of his ankle and caused Flick to fall once again--this time forward. He let out a resounding grunt of pain as he slammed into the mud, sending up a splash of the dirty water. Flick groaned and, dagger in hand, attempted to get to his feet once again. But for some reason he found himself unable to, as a great weight was suddenly slammed down upon his back. A Hobbe, most likely. Though they were small, they were a strange combination of fat and muscle and thus it was akin to the weight of a very heavy, immovable rock being placed on Flick's shoulder blades. The most awkward thing of all was the fact that it also seemed to be going for his belt and Flick recalled something about Hobbes and shiny items...that was why they always went for treasures and stuff, right? But Flick's belt buckle just so happened to be particularly shiny and, of course, it would catch their attention. Flick would have gladly handed it over but, unfortunately, it was the only thing holding his pants up. He whirled over and threw the Hobbe off but, quite suddenly he was surrounded. Literally--they were all around him, and preventing Flick from getting back up despite his futile efforts. Whenever he was poked or prodded, Flick would retaliate by kicking out and attempting to sit up. At one point, a Hobbe got a little too close to poke him in an uncomfortable spot, and Flick managed to snap between gritted teeth: "Not there. Anywhere but there." Some were armed while a good majority were not. They seemed to be speaking to one another whilst attempting to hold Flick down and, though it was garbled, Flick caught a few words:

"Can't take the shiny? Take the whole thing!" The Hobbes were apparently intimidated by both the Balverine and Heroine and seemed to be in a rather hurry to take off with their 'loot'. But Flick caught on to what they meant: if they couldn't take the belt buckle they would take him. As if his day had not been humiliating enough now he was about to be kidnapped by several waist-high mini goblin people? Flick let out a strangled swear and kicked out at them but for those he managed to knock over more just took their place. He managed to turn over again onto his stomach to avoid being dragged on his back at this point. Vicious hands seized his wrists and, likewise, his ankles. Though Flick did manage to tear his wrists free in time and tuck them halfway under his chest to avoid them grabbing at him again, even if it was sort of imitating a turtle with the way he did so. Flick had doubted before that these small things would actually be able to drag away a person (even if Flick wasn't all that heavy) but, somehow, they had already dragged him uncomfortably several feet towards the undergrowth, despite Flick's protesting and thrashing out. During the struggle he had apparently dropped his dagger, which he could see several feet away, glinting a little in the mud. Apparently the Hobbes cared not for it, as it was probably lost in the confusion. Try as he might, he was unable to pry himself away from their tight grips. Embarrassing? Probably. Flick did at one point manage to get his leg free and lash out, smashing one of the Hobbes directly in the head, but unfortunately it was short-lived as another Hobbe quickly took its place, stronger and more eager than the first.

"No! No! Wait--what about a deal? I have other shiny things! Ow! Not the hair--" Flick attempted to say, but his attempt at an agreement was cut short when one of the Hobbes seized the neck of his clothing and part of his hair with it. Flick shrugged the Hobbe away and kicked out. "Eugh--I could make a short joke, but maybe now's not the-ow!-time..." Thankfully he was on his stomach, and therefore he could grab out at the ground and, if need be, wack the Hobbes away with his hands. It was a little uncomfortable to be doing so, especially with the creatures grabbing at his legs. What would even happen to him? The creatures would get their belt buckle, then what? At this point, Flick was near willing to give it up...if only he could grab at it. There was no way he could with the position he was in. He could literally see that his fingers had gouged score marks in the dirt where he'd been dragged. This was like one of those bad dreams where you were...carried away by midgets. Ehr, no one probably had those dreams, so maybe it was a bad analogy.

[alphanea]

Ｔｈｅ Ａｌｐｈａｅｓｓ
❦ Hєяσιηє σƒ Kησтнσℓє Gℓα∂є ❦
➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳ ➳
Balverine hunter - Twenty-four years - Darkwood

❧ Sending another Hobbe down with a kick, Alphaess tried to clear a way out of the mess. But these Hobbes were just everywhere. Big and small, there were literally swarmed by the little annoying creatures. It was almost too easy to kill the small ones, while the larger ones held a bit more challenge. Meanwhile, there were a few Hobbes that managed to held on to the Balverine's back, trying to force the beast to fall down to the ground. The Balverine trying to turn and scratch at them as the kept on hanging to it's white pelt that was already soaked with red blood. Alphaess slashed her swords carefully, not to hit her companion. As the Hobbes were fallen from the Balverine's back, the creature let out a blood-thirsty howl, the one that only white Balverine's could do. The voice mocked a few Hobbes and of course Alphaess gained advantage by impaling two of them with each sword.


❧ Alphaess let out a growl, seeing the merchant was captured already. Weird, why did they haven't killed him instead? They seem to be carrying him away, or at least trying to. Her brown eyes under the hood were burning with rage now. The warriors were keeping her and the Balverine busy while the other sneaky ones were stealing... the man? It was quite a weird view but once it came to Alphaess, she would rarely be surprised by such. No one could steal The Alphaess' prize that easy. She looked back at the Balverine, but it was too busy battling the main group of Hobbes.

❧ There was no way out of this. But of course, Alphaess had another plan. Well, not quite like a plan but it still could work. She was going to use her special more. The move that was first used by the Balverines and also one of Alphaess's characteristic move. She never did actually named the move but if she did she would probably name it something Balverine related like 'Balverine leap' or something similar. The move was simple, using the power of Will to leap even higher than normal, much like a Balverine could do. Pushing away the Hobbes and clearing a small area with a combination of kicks and sword bows, Alphaess got ready to use her Mana energy. Concentration was essential in such. But luckily, she have done this many times before. In a blink, Alphaess disappeared from sight until she landed in front of the small group of Hobbes carrying Flick away.

❧ Alphaess stood tall in front of the creatures, blocking the way. In a miraculous way, he hood have been staying in the exact same position as before. Her face seem to be quite cool and confident, as she still had her usual grin across her face.

[fletch]

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{ gender; male | age; twenty-four | sexuality; heterosexual | location; darkwood }

Flick startled as Alphaess momentarily disappeared from sight. He almost thought that she might have given up, or decided to abandon him. Was another fifty coins really worth it? But, no, he was actually thankful when she landed a little ways away in front of the Hobbes to block their path. Similarly to Flick's reaction, the Hobbes had been stunned. To focus on Alphaess they released Flick, dropping him rather promptly in the mud. Again. Flick instantly sat up, assuring that his belt buckle hadn't been taken off in the time that they had grabbed him. It was still there, fortunately, so he would not have to worry about his pants falling down anytime soon. Flick let loose a sigh of relief, but they still had the Hobbe trouble at hand. He scrambled to his feet and slicked the mud off his legs. They'd actually been intimidated by the sight of the Heroine dropping down towards them. Flick did not blame the little things; he probably would've been scared to death had the same scenario occurred to him at any time.

But where was his dagger? Flick glanced over behind him to see...oh, crap. One of the unarmed Hobbes had picked his dagger out of the mud and was investigating it with great interest. The shininess had probably caught his eye...Flick gritted his teeth. That was his only weapon and, hell, he wasn't letting it go. Flick glanced back at Alphaess quickly. She probably didn't need his help so he could risk one moment. Flick darted over to the Hobbe which, upon seeing him, glanced up and hissed. Flick stiffened as the Hobbe whirled on him, dagger in hand, and his first instinct was to kick out with his foot. His foot directly was planted upon the Hobbe's chest and it was knocked back several feet and the dagger hit the mud. Flick quickly scrambled over to it and grabbed it, lifting it so the point was aimed off towards the foliage. His arms were still a little jittery from the sheer rush of the fight (or more like the rush of almost being dragged into the bushes by a bunch of munchkins) and he could not quite stall it until he'd gotten his breath and, very slowly, lowered down the dagger so that the tip was pointing towards the mud.

"That was...terrible. What now?" Flick called out back towards Alphaess. The Hobbes seemed to have forgotten him in the moment and instead gone over to Alphaess. He figured out why--he was coated in mud and, most likely, the belt buckle had been obscured from their view. But it would not be long until they realized that this little ambush was not worth it, especially with the Heroine and her Balverine hanging around. There seemed way less Hobbes than they had started off with...countless bodies surrounding the Balverine, those that Alphaess slew and the single body that Flick had killed. Flick let out a huff and lowered his arm even further down. It didn't seem like the Hobbe he kicked would be getting up anytime soon...He'd actually managed to kick it a few leagues, too, like he'd literally punted it some lengths. That could be a sport! Hell, if it was, Flick would actually be interested in something like that.

It was easy to see why the Hobbes had seemed so intimidating at first. They had pretty freaky looking eyes and skin. The bald heads. The weapons. Teeth. It was all a little much to take in...thankfully, height wasn't really in their advantage. The Hobbes were said to have their genetics entwined with the mud and slime of the deep country. According to legend, the very first Hobbes were lost children who had their souls stolen by dark Nymphs. They can still transform lost children into more Hobbes, but the sheer number of Hobbes probably indicated that they had another method of reproduction, given that there wasn't a pandemic of lost and kidnapped children throughout Albion. Flick had to admit: although often considered dim-witted throughout the long history of Albion, the Hobbes appeared to have cognitive abilities, evidenced by some sort of social structure. They also seemed to be in possession of a strange method of fighting and order. Flick also knew that while most Hobbes had limited social capabilities they almost never appear alone...which was bad news for them.

[alphanea]

❦ ❦ ❦ ❦ Ｔｈｅ Ａｌｐｈａｅｓｓ ❦ ❦ ❦ ❦
The Beast known as the Heroine
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【gender female - age twenty four - sexuality heterosexual - with flick 】

❧ Using the advantage of surprise, Alphaess literally cut through the first row. The fight was going in the favor. After all she had a Balverine. And not even an ordinary balverine, a white balverine. Even though she always thought the creature might not actually be a real white balverine due to its smaller size instead it could be some sort of Frost and White balverine mix. The Balverine never did told her anything about it (like it could actually do) whenever she asked all she got was an angry glare with a bored snort. The Balverine was still at the first place it had started fighting, small piles of dead Hobbes were lying right at its feet, thankfully. The blood-thirsty beast had been hungry for a fight for a while. Even though this wasn't as quite as satisfying that it have imagined, it did helped the creature overcome the boredom and get rid of the extra energy. Well, sorta like a dog, it had to get rid of the energy or it would be like... a hyperactive little brat. While the same thing also applied to Alphaess (not the brat thing. Though, Alphaess did preferred using her energy instead of keeping it inside). She did seem to have some sort of joy while her swords hit grey flesh of the Hobbes. Alphaess turned around when she heard Flick, trying to see him while still trying not to let her guard down. "Looks like someone haven't met Nymphs yet." Alphaess taunted slyly, at the same time skewering a Hobbe that dared to attack. To his question, Alphaess offered a grin and a glance towards his direction, in a very confident manner replying: "Does staying alive sound good for now? Or do you got other plans...?"

❧ Just than, while Alphaess's eyes were still on Flick after her reply, she spotted a Hobbe, right behind Flick with an axe and about to strike him from the behind while the merchant was busy checking the Hobbe that he have just knocked down. Alphaess immediately dropped her grin and gritted her teeth in an angry manner instead, taking her swords in her left hand to get an empty hand. Than, her right hand moved down swiftly, reaching for the leather straps that were tied around her left tight, drawing a small, throwing blade from it and holding it between her fingers. The creature was too close to him. Her aiming must be perfect. Alphaess sent the blade flying towards them, it went pass Flick close ( might be a bit too close) and dug directly into the creature's grey flesh as it hit. Alphaess grinned at Flick afterwards. It should be like the third time she have saved him in since they have been met. That meant he owed her. Oh, maybe she would use this later to pocket a larger amount for her 'services'.

❧ But than, things went... amiss. While the Heroine was distracted, a Hobbe axe was swung at her from the back. Only being able to notice it at the last second, the Heroine did not had enough time to block. All she was able to do was to whirl around and pull herself back a little, avoiding a fatal blow but unable protect herself from the incoming blow on the side of her right leg. Wincing silently with pain, Alphaess lost balance and fell down on one knee. Another Hobbe advancing with her fall, slashed a blade at her face. This time, fortunately it only caused a small scar over her cheek and cut almost the half of the hood off, sending it clean off her face. Though, Alphaess managed a Force push right at the correct second before receiving another blow, blasting a pulse in a circle surrounding her, sending the Hobbes around her off their feet. While the Hobbes were still struggling to get up, Alphaess quickly pushed herself on her feet and lifted herself off the mud with the help of her swords, digging the tips into the ground for help.

❧ Seeing that its owner had been in a bad condition, the Balverine roared with rage, bolting up to her while tackling any other Hobbes that were left around it. The creature stood in front of the wounded Heroine, letting out one of the most fierce roars that could spread fear into the toughest Hero's heart. The Hobbes that circled around the Heroine backed away. They seem to be communicating for a second, grunting and yelling at each other. Alphaess held her wound while standing up, trying to stop the bleeding. It wasn't the worst thing she had gotten. While the Balverine stayed put, droplets of Hobbe blood dripping from its claws, fur and fangs, the Hobbes backed, trying to drag their wounded brothers and sisters (if they did had genders of course). They have given up finally, seeing that they had many fallen already and probably the struggle wasn't worth it at any rate. Both the Balverine and the Heroine stood in place as the Hobbes returned back to where they have came from; into the foliage and out of view, finally leaving the travelers on their own.

❧ Alphaess's hood was off her face now, revealing her face for the first time. Her oval face and pale-ish complexion was visible, among with the most remarkable thing: her hair. Her straight hair, was short, not even reaching her shoulders, that could be referred as tomboy styled. But, this wasn't the most interesting part yet. The color was. It was all red, suiting the nickname she have gotten from Flick earlier that day. Meanwhile, her eyes were also uncovered, which were in a color in between a soft brown and metallic, bright gold, giving them a rather wolf-like appearance. Right below her left eye was a little scratch, where the Hobbe had managed to struck. Though, it wasn't even bad as the one she had gotten on her leg. Swiftly, she wiped the blood off her face with the back of her black gauntlet. Alphaess looked down at the wound on her, checking its condition. Hopefully it wouldn't be quite bad, after all Hobbe weapons were not as powerful as a normal weapon would be. Her brown leggings had started to soak with her own scarlet colored blood, Alphaess cursing under her breath, not loud enough to be heard, upon seeing this. Alphaess murmured silently, she could still be teasing while she was in pain, her tune haven't been effected by the situation she had been in and keeping the coldness in it: "There goes without a scratch..."