Uncharted treasure (Rin)

[karida]

Kari stood up and brushed away all traces of the makeshift shrine she had prepared. After the gentle ministrations in the arms of the goddess she now felt relaxed and very calm. This was good because as of late Karida had been growing bored. Scaring away suitors was easy work, none put up anything remotely resembling a fight. She almost wished she had Sera there to do the work for her, of course that would probably bore her more. So as of late she had taken the habit of wandering the wilderness with Destry.

She desperately wished for some sort of distraction to draw her away from the drudgery of hunting animals, right now all she had was the all too short times with the goddess and time to think. Thinking was something she had been doing a lot of. Lonely thoughts of home, of a time when everything was so simple. Leading armies against tyrants was well enough until the tyrant controlling you decided you were dangerous. And as always, she missed her first love.

She pulled away from that thought, pain was secondary and hardly even affected Karida anymore but that throb in her heart was something that wouldn't fade. So she thought of the unhuman thing that had slaughtered the useless soldiers as well as Sera. Such strength, such power. It was delicious. Karida hoped for a chance to meet the thing again and touch its soul.

[Rin]

Things weren’t go so well for Rin. It would seem she was a tad bit lost. Having been chased off by some merchants for “helping them with their valuable magical merchandise,” she found herself in the woods and away from that dirt path that took her to the places she was going. On the brighter side of things she if she did manage to make it back to her shop she would have some nice things to add to the collection… or rather shelves of stuff to be sold.

Of course before that she had to meet with some noble around here to deliver the woman’s charm potion which Rin doubted worked in the least. But Rin wasn’t one to talk down her own products so of course it worked 100% of the time… in theory… She had to wonder what the woman wanted the thing for though. Maybe it was some county Noble trying to bring herself up in the world by snatching the husband of another noble. Hehe, that wouldn’t be a first for her.

Hmm… maybe she was in luck. It did appear that one person… human… she thought was around her vicinity. Female too maybe she could get a way out of here… AND benefits. Though maybe that would be cheating… not that it had stopped her from playing with that strange girl with the pumpkin thing… the woman DID have an awfully shiny weapon nearby too… Perhaps approaching sneaky was the best idea.

Heh, when had she ever done what was the best idea. “Hello!!!!” Rin said and heard it echo off the trees. She started to wave hoping the woman would turn around to see her… before trying the fancy weapons play that the warrior type were so fond of.

[karida]

Karida turned around to face the voice that had pulled her out of her own thoughts. It belonged to a small...girl. Another one of the strange and not quite human creatures native to this place supposedly. Still, a woman was a woman and this one was incredibly alone by the looks of things. "Why hello there little one, fancy meeting another soul out here, are you lost?" Her eyes quickly looked the girl up and down, hunting for any unpleasant surprises. Not that it was needed, Karida had been attacked so many times and always came out intact.

"My name is Karida Shallo, if you need a way out I can probably steer you in the right direction." She smiled her kindest smile. In her mind she was wondering if this girl was another one of the seducers for the princess. She may not have been paid on commission, but the chance to separate this princess from a lover would be a delightful payback for what her own princess had done back in the homelands.

[Rin]

Good things went great~ the woman didn’t leap at her like a savage beast… though that may have actually been rather nice supposing the outcome wasn’t the kind with all the blood and death involved. However, Rin was always prepared for the worst and there were plenty of “surprises” hidden in the many unseable pockets in her clothes. And by surprises she meant magical devices… though she actually forgot which ones she had brought this time…

It was actually rather creepy that the woman knew she was lost. The things to watch out for in the a creepy forest detector went off in her head. Of course she quickly shoved that to the back as she appraised the woman from her safe… or supposedly safe distance. A nice one… a beauty most would say… Rin would probably be one of them assuming the woman didn’t turn into some freaky thing and try to eat her when she got close… Nymphs darn things.

“That would be wonderful. I was lacking any company on my trek through the woods searching for the road.” Rin said happily. “And my name is Rin~ a pleasure Miss Karida.” She added with a light bow at the end before starting her approach to the woman.

[karida]

"Well that sounds wonderful and it's so very nice to meet you. Two people together is certainly better than being alone." Karida whistled and Destry trotted up. "This is my horse Destry," she patted the black mountain of a beast lightly, "I'd offer you a ride but he doesn't like to be touched. Sometimes I think he only lets me ride him because I feed him. But since I can't leave him behind, he'll have to follow along." She stepped over to Rin.

"Now I'm not a native to this area but I think I've wandered long enough to have a fairly good idea as to where things are. Where might you be headed, we can go together even if we may arrive apart," She smiled warmly at Rin. "and perhaps you could tell me more about yourself to eat up the time as they say."

[Rin]

That… was a big horse. Rin and horses didn’t get along too well… though that was probably due to the horses not really being HER horses. Hehe… at least she didn’t have to ride the lumbering mass of muscle… Scary. She was… wary of the woman’s approach until she was close enough. The woman SMELLED human… enough. It was the horse that gave her the creeps. Darn things.

“I uhh really just need to get back to the road. I’m headed to Sapphis.” Rin said with a light laugh. “I can find my way from there, but if you wish to come you may…” though in Rin experience it wasn’t long before the people LEFT… hopefully the woman would stick around long enough for her to make it to the road.

[karida]

"Oh, how nice. I've never actually explored the town or the castle but I've been there once." The circumstances and end result were not worth mentioning, or shouldn't be mentioned depending on what Rin was doing out and about. "I expect I can lead you there well enough to suit your purposes." She began leading Rin through the thick trees, Karida had a specific location in mind, but the city was a good enough direction until things could be sorted out.

"So Miss Rin, what sort of thing draws a local out of such a nice looking city and into these rather twisting woods? It hardly seems like the place a city girl ought to be wandering alone."

[Rin]

The woman was walking next to her and looking off into the distance. So… Rin took the chance to glance at her everyonce in a while. Lumi had always got mad at that, but it wasn’t her fault her eyes were drawn to beautiful things… and exotic ones. The woman had an exotic feel… so it was a difficult thing to not stare. “The company will be most appreciated.” Put on a respectable air… check. Onto the next step make herself seem likable… it was the hard one.

“I was out on a delivery from my shop and on the return trip I was attacked by people on the road side.” Rin “omitted” the part that she had managed to ‘procure’ a few things from them out. The being attacked part usually appealed to the warrior types. Play the damsel in distress… or somewhat distress and they would move in like sharks to protect a hurt fish… no wait that wasn’t right.

Of course there were those other warrior types with their big fancy weapons that just liked to kill and pillage and do other things that should not be. She liked to call them brigandes… it was an odd word. “They chased me into the woods and eventually gave up.” Or more likely were caught in the few traps Rin had managed to set up as she escaped. Hehe never underestimate a merchant who used to travel the roads. “After I managed to try about three different ways of getting back to the road I decided I was lost and ran into you shortly there after. It was a lucky break.” She said her tail lashing behind her. She would have preferred the company of the woman without the mammoth the woman called a horse even more.

[karida]

Karida had to keep from rolling her eyes. Another merchant wandering out without a proper set of guards. The more things changed the more they stayed the same. Time and time again she had run into caravans ransacked by bandits or the clansmen. The worst were the deserters because they were the best armed. Of course it wasn't all bad, that was how she met Lucy and gained the sworn servitude of Sera and Destry. Still, delivering packages seemed innocent enough of a reason to be out, of course it was the reason she was in the town that Karida really cared about.

"So, I hear there's been a big to do about the castle for the last few months. Something about a royal marriage. From what I can tell all sorts of people have been bustling into that place. Of course being out here with Destry as my company I don't hear too much going on."

[Rin]

“hehe ohh yes many priz-I mean princess’s and other nobility walking about.” And if you were there at the right time and place in next to nothing. Best of all they weren’t those strange male creatures that she didn’t get along with. Them and their peering eyes… wait… her eyes peered as well… she needed a new reason not to like them. “Of course the Princess hasn’t chosen anyone as of yet. And people keep showing up all the time.”

She turned her head and continued speaking. Taking the brief oppurtunity to glance the woman up and down at closer range. “You wouldn’t… happen to be a noble would you? Or someone here about what is going on.” She left the being there open.. without really thinking about it. I mean really what reason would someone come to Sapphis now for other than that. Her business was booming, but soon the rich people would leave and take their money with them.

Of course this just meant more sleeping and such for her… assuming a certain vampire didn’t show up and wake her… not that that was all bad either. “You do have a certain air about you…” She commented and looked back ahead in time to duck. Being serious was hard. To much effort, and very little to gain from it. The woman seemed a bit uptight… or maybe that was the horse.

[karida]

"A noble? Me?" Karida began laughing. "If I was a proper noble I wouldn't be here. I'd be happily married and spending my nights in bed instead of wiping blood off my sword." Karida brushed some hair back behind her ear. At least now she was fairly certain Rin was no suitor. She slightly angled her path so they were heading a shorter distance to the city. "No, I'm nothing so simple. Though once I was given the title of a lord. But that was before. Now I'm nobody with only a horse and what I have on my back."

"Still, it does little good to look on the past, as they say, hindsight is perfection. Still, now I don't have to deal with the paranoia of Monarchs and the safety of a village. Retirement is best taken when young, don't you agree?"

[Rin]

Hmmm so the woman had been a lord at one time. She wondered where and when? She had visited a lot of kingdoms before setting up shop in Sapphis and she may have been to whichever one the woman was speaking of. Then again that could have been a hundred year ago and a new kingdom in its place now. The darn humans just couldn’t keep things in control for too long it seemed. Rebels, coup de’tats, random plagues that wiped out the royal family and threw everything into ruin, conquest. So many ways and one reason Rin liked Sapphis. It didn’t seem to be going anywhere any time soon… assuming the new princess put things back on track after what was happening now.

Did the girl think about how it would effect her people? No she was probably doing this for her own personal feelings. At least if she hooked a noble woman from another country it could seal some form of peace… wait why was she thinking these things? Stupid merchants mind! She shoved her more intricate thoughts down and glanced at the woman’s back… there was decidedly nothing there… other than the clothes which seemed to be rather tight fitting. She never understood that part of female warriors either. More of them took the distract the enemy way than the kill the enemy way… not that Rin had too much right to complain… she rather liked the way some of them dressed. If she was traveling with them that is.

Hmmm so the woman was considered young by Human standards then~ even better. She scooted a bit closer to the woman. Play by play she had merely to attempt a few things and see how it all went. Though Lumi may flash through her mind should she think too hard on things. “Aye retirement…” Rin said and nodded sagely. Though it may have seemed a bit odd given the twitching of her ears.

[karida]

Karida glanced back and caught Rin looking. "It's very nice isn't it. Most people prefer function over fashion but I've killed two score fully equipped soldiers all by my lonesome in nothing but my skin so I think I'm allowed a little leeway." She glanced ahead at a rather tricky patch of ground ahead and clicked her tongue. Destry turned and started going around in a different direction. "We'll just go on through, we have less feet to trip up on the tangles."

"Anyway, you look like a kitten about to pounce its mother. If you want to be sneaky you might want to stop all that twitching you do." She did remind Karida of some kind of animal. She had to wonder what strange things went on to get some human animal cross. Admittedly there had been stories and myths at home but those were all fantasy in her opinion.

[Rin]

Rin was listening intently until the ‘in nothing but my skin’ part. It raised so many questions in her mind. Most prominent was would she like to get back into nothing but her skin? Of course voicing these would be uncooth for a lady...so she didn't... yet. The woman continued to speak after the giant called a horse started to move away. This casued Rin to look back at where they were going. She saw no problems… not that she knew much about what was good or back for a horse. Maybe the woman as giving them time to be ‘alone’… Sigh alas it was not to be.

Rin head cocked to the side. She had been watching the woman though she rather preferred a different type of pouncing. One that resulted in a lack of clothing… or strewn clothing.. that was always nice… hehe especially when they went to get dressed again later and Rin managed to sneak away with a piece of the others. Alas the many ‘battles’ she had in the past were gone… She hadn’t been on her game enough lately… it was like Lumi had her leashed to in the yard. Every time she saw something nice she would leap at it merely to get yanked back and nearly strangled by the collar that came with it.

“Ehehe,” Rin said a light laugh escaping her lips and she rubbed the back of her head. “I don know what you mean…” Rin produced a cookie and started to eat it. She offered a half eaten one to the woman beside her… it was sugary. “Would you like a mid afternoon snack?” RIn said deciding a topic change was in order.

[karida]

"Oh no thank you. I've already-" Karida raised her hand and tapped a knuckle against her lips. "-eaten. Quite well in fact, but thank you for the offer." She continued walking through the trees. "Now don't dawdle along. No telling what lurks in and around this area and to be perfectly honest, I don't have the slightest idea." It was true. Karida hadn't been in the forest for many days and beyond the few animals she had hunted she hadn't done much in the way of studying the wildlife. In a place like this, with so many obviously inhuman humans, well, she had to wonder if other creatures form myths and legends lurked around unseen. Admittedly she wouldn't mind a chance to go hand to hand, or blade to face as the case would be, but if that happened, Karida didn't want to be startled into it.