Private Tales Into The Wilds

[Gabrielle Selana]

Gabby tapped her chin with her index finger a pair of times, considering what he said for only a moment.

"Well if that's the case, let me plug my ears and you can sing us through safely."

Jesting aside, it was half the reason she had hired him to begin with, she was bold, brave, and resourceful, but she just wasn't a soldier. She couldn't put on all that heavy equipment and still move, nor could she swing a blade of any real heft in a meaningful, or menacing way.

She ensured she was getting her coin's worth in a guide.

 

[Jorg]

"If you don't mind." He said with a smile. "I'd rather use the sword."

At least with that he couldn't embarrass himself.

Still, the conversation had proven to be fruitful. Turned out the girl was smart, witty, and pretty. Those were three fantastic marks...though the latter wouldn't really do much to appear any monster they happened upon. Unless it was a faerie.

They enjoyed pretty things, bastards wouldn't even talk to you unless you were an Allirian eight.

After they finished their conversation the two road in silence for some time. The Jungle grew thicker, the heat worse, but eventually what meager sunlight cast between the canopy began to fade. Jorg glanced towards the sky. "We'll camp soon."

He told her. "Moving at night in the Wilds is basically suicide."

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

Even with the subsiding sun the humidity of the jungle wouldn't drop too drastically. The dew clung to the leaves of the trees, but the overall temperature would at least let up some when it came time to sleep. Gabby nodded, he was the expert here, and she tended to agree that navigating a dense jungle at night was much more difficult and perilous than beneath the light of day.

"Very well." She said with a nod.

Not to say she had any frame of reference but she felt that they had at least made some headway with their first few hours set out. No obstacles or backpedaling, and no ravenous beasts to set them back.

"What sort of things are out this way that we should be looking out for?"

 

[Jorg]

Jorg began to keep his eye out for natural clearings or fallen trees. The latter would have been a boon, though in truth he was more expecting the former.

A whistle escaped him, and he sat back slightly in his saddle. "Up here?"

Fingers stroked through his beard in a thoughtful gesture. A lot of people thought of the Wilds as one big thing that was the same everywhere, but like all places in the world things were as diverse here as could be. A hundred miles saw entirely different species from one place to another.

"Jungle Trolls, Fern Lizards, Leaf Blights, Jaguars..." He trailed off for a second, and then snapped his fingers. "Ah right. Hydra."

Jorg hoped to god they didn't run into any of those. He was fast, faster than most things thanks to the Wolf, but he didn't think he could survive cutting off nine heads.

"And those are just the big things." He wasn't trying to scare her, just answer the question.

"Not to worry, I'll see em coming." Jorg glanced at her with a smile. "Just don't touch anything bright and colorful. Usually means it's poisoned."

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

If she was spooked, she didn't let it show. Instead she simply nodded. Gabrielle knew of what he spoke, even if she had never personally come across some of them. She hadn't simply been lucky in her years of travel. Some bit of research and understanding of what you were getting into were key components of survival, just as much as a sword and muscle.

"Got it."

She acknowledged his warning. Gabby wasn't keen on touching much of anything out in the jungle. Sometimes things weren't actually what they looked to be. A plant could actually be a living creature with a predatory disposition. She hadn't come all this way to be swallowed up by the scenery.

By this point her hair was now fully matted against the back of her neck, sweat rippled down her cheeks and stained her shirt. Wicking away the water on her face with her sleeve provided a moment of respite, though mere seconds later she could feel droplets forming again.

She could only imagine the discomfort of wearing the gear Jorg had on.

 

[Jorg]

After another half hour of traveling Jorg caught sight of what he'd wanted.

To their luck a massive Blackwood tree had fallen in the midst of the jungle, it's huge carcass twice the size of his height and it's bulk laying upon a massive boulder. "Perfect."

The mercenary exclaimed a she motioned for Gabrielle to follow after him towards the fallen log. Before he reached it he motioned for her to stay still, slipping off his horse with one quick motion and grasping the hilt of the knife on his belt.

He crept forward, quickly peering around and beneath the massive tree.

For a second Jorg disappeared beneath the hulking carcass, then after a minute he popped back out and waved her forward.

"Looks good." He glanced up passed the canopy. "Should keep us out of the rain too."

The rain always came at night.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

The redhead sat atop the horse and waited as she was instructed, hazel eyes glancing about the jungle as Jorg investigated their potential accommodations for the evening. In short order he emerged and gave his approval for them to make camp. She nodded, climbing down from the horse and securing it to a nearby branch.

Retrieving her bag she carried it towards the large opening in the trunk, setting it down just a ways inside before removing a tiny barrel from within. It was the size of her palm, hardly able to hold much of anything, but it served a very important purpose. The rain water would be good to collect to refill their water supply, something they couldn't much do without. And with the heat and humidity it was a serious concern. Better to be prepared.

Gabby stepped back out, looking up to the sky and, upon finding a gap between the towering coverage of tree limbs above them, set the tiny barrel down. Her left hand extended outward, directed right at the barrel. She closed her eyes and focused momentarily. The gemstone that had been obscured by her clothing prior to suddenly came to life, emitting a vibrant blue hue. Moments later the barrel grew many times its size, capable of collecting a vast quantity of water overnight, much more so than they would need to replenish their supply.

"There."

The sheen of the stone faded as quickly as it appeared, and Gabrielle turned back to the large tree that would be their shelter.

 

[Jorg]

Jorg let out a long impressed whistle.

He had seen mages before at his father's court, one had even traveled with the Band for a while, but the Mercenary had never quite seen anything so...practical. Wizards rarely wanted to waste their talents doing simple tasks, always saying it could be handled by "ordinary" men.

"Fantastic." Jorg said, clearly not being sarcastic. "You probably just saved us a horses leg."

He commented as he looked at the Barrel, wondering what else she had up her sleeve. This job was turning out to be far more pleasant than he'd expected.

While she had done her magic Jorg had begun to set up the Camp. His bedroll was taken off the horse and what dried would he could find had already been gathered just beneath the lip of the fallen tree. Fire was important in the Wilds, especially in this area.

Most creatures didn't like fire, and although it would keep them at bay, it would be handy to have around.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

Gabby smiled, nodding. "We can fill up our supplies in the dawn and let the horses drink from the barrel before we leave. One less time we need to search for water at least." The collection method only worked of course if there was rain.

And while she could manipulate aspects of the world around her through magic, she couldn't force the skies to open.

After retrieving her own bedroll and placing it by her bag she turned to see Jorg had setup a small area to make a fire, with a bit of wood for burning. From her side she unlaced another small pouch and handed it to him. "Here, pour a small amount onto the wood and strike it with a flint. It will catch instantly." Magnesium was highly flammable and very little was required to get a decent fire started with minimal effort. No need to spend all that time coaxing a flame to life.

 

[Jorg]

He looked at her wearily for a moment, but simply nodded his head and did as he was told.

She somehow managed to summon a barrel out of a tiny barrel, so maybe she had this right as well. With only a slight amount of hesitation Jorg undid the bag she handed him and poured only a little bit of the powder onto the tinder.

After a second he pulled out his flint and quickly struck it.

True to her word the sparks caught in an instant. Fire burst up from the strange powder and as soon as it did Jorg snatched the bag back into his palm as if weary that it too would explode. "We'll I'll be a Bassilisks dick."

Jorg exclaimed, clearly somewhat surprised.

"Can't believe that worked." He glanced at her. "You could make a killing with this in the Spine."

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

She let out a laugh at Jorg's exclamation. "Perhaps, though it's not so easy to come by. It's rather costly to extract and the supply is not enough to sell on a wide scale." Gabrielle gestured toward the modest sized pouch Jorg was holding. "That alone cost half the gold I spent to get here. It is incredibly useful, however, and very little is needed to accomplish any task that calls for it."

In larger quantities it could certainly be used for more than just campfires.

Gabrielle sat against the massive trunk of the tree, a ways away from the heat of the fire. The air was still hot, and she wasn't looking to warm herself any further. Its purpose was to ward off other things from their camp. Her eyes wandered from left to right while she listened to the sounds of the jungle as darkness crept in, the last fading rays of daylight being snuffed out.

 

[Jorg]

He weighed the bag for a few seconds in his hand, quickly deciding that perhaps she wouldn't make a killing after all.

Jorg shook his head, inching a little bit closer to the fire in order to set more wood on it. After a few moments he too moved slowly away from the flame, reaching up to slowly strip some of the armor off of his torso.

Sweat had soaked its way into his undershirt, and although he was used to the heat it didn't exactly feel great to walk around a walking ocean. Pulling the chainmail over his head, Jorg deposited the armor onto the ground with a loud clunk before leaning himself back against his own tree.

"Maybe we'll save the rest for when we really need it, eh?" He flashed a smile at her and then tossed the bag back.

That stuff wasn't magic, but it certainly felt like it was. "Any other surprises up your sleeve?"

He asked with a smirk.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

She caught the pouch as it was thrown back and watched as he removed his armor. It alone looked to be adding the weight of an additional person. The lack of ventilation also added to the perceivable discomfort. Gabby was happy that she wasn't the one entombed in heavy metal all the time.

"I dread the thought of a reason behind really needing it."

The question that followed was somewhat on the nose, given the means in which she typically used her particular brand of magic. With her right hand she pulled back the sleeve covering her left, revealing the dull colored metal that spanned from her fingers to her elbow. The design was rather subtle, featuring only a sapphire stone in the heart of the gauntlet, just above the back of the hand. She turned several times to show Jorg.

"Magic can be taxing on a person, dangerous too. I built this to perform my work, and as a precaution to ensure not only my own safety but those around me. I can never overextend myself when using it, as its storage has a finite limit. Therefore the outcome should never be unpredictable."

 

[Jorg]

Jorg let out a whistle. "A good precaution, that."

He knew very little about magic. His father's wizards had never really wanted to explain anything at all. They were a rather obnoxious bunch, and most of them had just wanted to get rid of him as quickly as possible. Of course that might have just been because he'd been an obnoxious little shit.

He did know one thing though; magic had it's limits. If you made a wizard do too much too quickly they were liable to hurt themselves. Especially if they were wielding fireballs and the like.

"Once saw a wizard turn himself inside out." Moog had been his name.

The man had been part of the Band for a short while. He'd insisted that he could lift a massive boulder through the use of his magic. Turned out...he could not. Poor bastard squished himself.

Jorg shook his head and dug into his saddlebags, pulling out a flask of some sort.

"Here's to hoping the same won't happen to you." He said taking a sip with a wide grin and then offering it to her.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

The woman made a sort of disgusted look. Clearly the one he spoke of wasn't very careful in their practice, or perhaps simply too egotistical to know their limits. Either way, she was certain such a thing would not happen to her. The gauntlet ensured that.

"I certainly hope not."

Gabby took the flask and took a sip, her throat almost instantly closing in rejection of the liquid. It was incredibly aggressive to her taste, and she immediately passed it back to Jorg while struggling to get it down without coughing or choking.

Shaking her head after finally willing it down and laughing, "What is that?" She asked, almost offended that he would drink such poison.

 

[Jorg]

A wide smirk crossed Jorg's lips as he took the flask, taking careful measure to make sure none of it spilled on the ground. He doubted that replenishment would be coming any time soon, and on a trip like this you needed booze.

"Ixchel Blue Wine." Jorg sounded strangely proud.

He swirled the flask in his hand for a moment, and then proceeded to take another sip. The liquid burned even his throat, but there was a pleasant tingle afterwards that reached all the way down to his toes. A smile touched his lips and he leaned back.

"Made from the root of a Kaloo Tree." And just a liiiittle bit of Basilisk venom for the added kick. "Stay too long here and you'll come to love the stuff."

He warned, only half serious.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

Somehow Gabrielle didn't believe that. Forcing ones self to ingest that was nothing short of punishment. Perhaps some sort of internal test of will or something, she wasn't sure. But it was a miserable taste, one she wouldn't look for in the future.

"I think perhaps I will adhere to just water. Thank you, though."

She would not soon forget the name nor the taste of the drink, that was for sure.

"Back home I had a friend who enjoyed the indulgence of incredibly potent alcohol. He had made sort of a game out of it, always looking for the next strongest substance." She stifled a laugh, "Thought he was some kind of alchemist, mixing things together one after another to try and make them stronger." Shaking her head then she continued, "Went so far as to try and convince a mage to enhance it using spells. Took poisoning himself and nearly dying to convince him to make better decisions."

 

[Jorg]

He smiled. "Ah Red, don't get all moral on me."

The drink hit hard and fast, his tongue was a little looser than it by right should have been.

She didn't seem like she was trying to preach to him, but the story had undertones of it. That sort of thing was all he'd heard back in Maliian. His father and mother both had tried to get him to right his life, take up politics, his 'proper' place.

No thank you.

"Glad for your friend though." Jorg seemed to genuinely mean it. Dying by the drink was an awful way to go. "What's he do now?"

If she told him he was a brewer Jorg would bust a gut laughing.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

She waived a hand and laughed, "Oh, I'm not suggesting you stop. Merely remarking on the potency with an additional amusing anecdote. I'm sure he would appreciate the taste much more than I. It's simply wasted on me."

He may not have actually died, but it was certainly enough of a concern for him to right his ship.

"He's a butcher. That has always been his trade. Learned from his father. He's a good one, always saves my own father the best cuts." He also tried to pursue Gabby, but neither he nor settling down was much of an interest for her, and so she played the game a bit, but never let the hook sink.

 

[Jorg]

What a coincidence. Jorg thought to himself. I also partake in butchery.

He thought that the joke might have been a tad too dark for the girl, and thus he decided not to just throw it out there, but a small smile did touch his face. "Can't beat a good butcher."

Jorg decided to comment instead.

After that he went quiet for time, leaning back against the tree and simply enjoying the light of the fire.

"You can rest." He offered after a bit. "I'll take the watch."

The Wolf would anyway.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

Gabby nodded, "Very well."

She wasn't about to object. Of the two of them he knew what to watch for and was far better equipped to deal with what it was they were watching for anyway. "If you need me, just shout." Though if he needed her they were probably in more trouble than either were equipped to handle. "Wake me when it's time."

Time to go or when he needed rest himself.

She proceeded towards her bedroll with a yawn, stepping out of her boots before sliding inside to catch however many hours of sleep she might.

 

[Jorg]

Jorg sat awake for most of the night, or at least it was a state close to being awake.

While he rested, the Wolf watched through his eyes. It was a trick that they had come up with years ago in the Spine. A part of the bargain that they had originally struck in order to better work together and actually survive.

It had not been easy to reach such an accord with the monster, but Jorg had somehow managed it. He'd always figured why be miserable when you could try to live?

The wolf had agreed.

Slowly the sun set completely, and then the dark truly set in. The sounds of the Wilds began to grow louder and louder, tumbling into a cacophony of sound. The Wolf listened carefully through Jorg's ears, waiting.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

She wasn't sure how long she had slept for, but what she was sure of, was that when she awoke it wasn't to the break of dawn. No, it was still beneath darkened sky when her eyes snapped open, piercing hazel irises looking out into the blackness.

What had awoken her was not Jorg's snoring. Something instinctual.

The hair on the back of her neck stood as she peered out. The fire had gone out, either intentionally or lack of fuel. Hot embers burned in the ash that remained. The dim light that cast out from the pit was not enough for her to spot the man.

"Jorg." She whispered once, then twice. The jungle was eerily silent, as if everything had fled.

Her hand reached for the blade at her side, quietly drawing and readying it. In the next instant she extended her left hand, the sapphire gem illuminating again as a bright burst of light erupted outwards and upwards towards the sky. It cast a radiant glow to the jungle below.

Her eyes widened...Eight legs and standing a full meter over her, snapping mandibles and deep, evil eyes. Saliva poured from the mouth. It had discovered its next meal.

 

[Jorg]

Jorg reached out and grabbed the back of Gabrielle's dress to suddenly yank her back from where she was standing. Half a second later the massive spider lurched forward, slashing one of it's massive claw like legs into the ground right where she had been standing.

"GET BACK!" He called out to her, practically throwing her behind himself as the ring of his sword leaving it's scabbard called out in the clearing.

The spider skittered backwards for a second, hearing the sound of his blade freeing itself.

Jorg stepped forward, slicing his blade to the left as the spider tried to lash out at him. The blade then suddenly swooped to the side, cutting into the creatures chitinous armor and sending forth a spatter of green ichor.

 

[Gabrielle Selana]

She nearly fell over as Jorg pulled her back. Her feet stumbled and she braced against one of the large branches protruding from the fallen tree. It was the largest arachnid she had ever seen, with a hunger to match.

"Careful!" She shouted back at him as he engaged the monstrous arachnid. The splash of ichor beside her began to boil, setting smoke billowing from the pile as it scorched the ground. "It's acidic! Don't get it on you!" It would likely melt right through metal, and worse to skin.

If she could make it to the scorching embers within the pit just a ways away she could perhaps help Jorg with this creature. It was a bit too dangerous to call forward any kind of fire while surrounded by trees, brush, and flora. The embers though would work for her plan.