Fire Emblem: Curse of the Goddess [IC/PG-16/Not Accepting]

[King K. Azo]

"If I were to believe thy words, thou must give proof! Thou art a white fox, and the only one in all Mysia. Sir Cyrus was killed by a white fox. Forgive me if I do not quite trust what thou sayeth."

 

Right, so far, so good. Shiro could get behind this. 
 
"How dare you!" Rufus screamed. "My daughter would never lie!"

 

Maybe, maybe not. They couldn't trust the foxes. They could have been trying to cover their own skin... just like they always did.
 
"If she is as slippery as thou, then I beg to disagree." Glenn gazed up at Sienna once more, before nodding to himself, as if coming to a decision. "If thou wouldst like to prove thy honor, then I would challenge thee to a duel! Whoever wins has justice on their side." he tossed a metal-reinforced gauntlet at the white fox, smacking her in the face. As the glove slipped down, the surroundings became dead silent. Nothing could be heard save for the soft thud of the gauntlet hitting the ground.
 

Shiro facepalmed, muttering to himself. Those human customs were clouding Glenn's judgement again. A show of brute force wouldn't reveal who was 'right'. He never understood why humans decided to hide all their intentions behind things like justice or the like. Still, maybe a show of strength would intimidate the others and allow them to...

 

Suddenly, Glenn fell over. Whipping his head around, Shiro saw one of the humans, holding out his sword, obviously having just smashed it into Glenn's head. So the humans were allied with the foxes this whole time?! Those devious, vile humans. He knew he never should have trusted him. Quickly shifting into his frog form, he launched one of his mighty legs into Link's chest before standing over Glenn protectively, eyes darting around as he tried to find a way out. This deep into enemy territory, it wouldn't be easy, but there had to be a way out. There always was one.

[Sethera]

The silence seemed to stretch on, until it was shattered by a young girl's "whooooooooooa". Catriona, who had not noticed the girl until now, recognized her as one of the bow thieves amongst the Pelinna Patrol. She looked entirely too young to be there, and far too naive. At least Penelope had the excuse of having been reared to govern battle, and Edrick had all the fury of his father and uncle in his blood. This girl, however...with her wide, curious eyes and soft face, did not belong in such a situation, taken captive by the foxes. The lord's anger burned brighter at the thought.

 

Her sister, meanwhile, had stepped forward to defuse the situation below. "As you must know, Sir Glenn, a duel is usually between two martial opponents. However Sienna here..." She gestured at the young fox. "She is, well, lacking in the martial skill department. She is a magic user, you see, so a duel of the kind you wish for would be somewhat difficult."

 

Glenn's eyes widened in surprise. Obviously, he had not expected for Sienna to be a magic-user. Edrick's intervention seemed to shake his conviction all the more. "Penelope- ouch -isn't lying, Sienna's not much of a fighter. 'Course, if you're feelin' like you need to fight someone for some reason the Galteans taught you, well I don't have a Vexillum but Edrick Roransson'd be more than happy to accept your challenge for her."

 

It looked as if the lancer was too injured to be making such assertions, as the resident healer barked out: "That's my line for you, Edrick! Now get back here like a good boy, will you? No amount of faith will save you if you fight with that wound, Ed-boy. Now now, just let Miss Ciela here heal your troubles away."

 

That seemed to convince the white fox herself to step forward. "Edrick... It's ok, you're still wounded..." Sienna said pulling Edrick out of the way. "I have to do this... If this will prove that my tribe had nothing to do with the murder of your friend, then I accept your duel..." the girl bowed politely to Glenn, who looked far more unsure about his challenge than before.

 

At that point, Azar made her way to Catriona. "Any guesses on who's going to win this duel?"

 

The lord sighed. "If Sienna is not allowed to use magic, then it is Squire Glenn who would be the victor, without a doubt." She shook her head. "Sir Cyrus was a brilliant knight, and Glenn, as his protégé, would have learned much under him. However," she paused, glancing at Sienna. "If the girl is allowed the use of her stone, then that would do much to even the odds." Judging from the dismayed expression on the frog's face, he would allow that, and were all to go well, then Sienna could prove her innocence beyond a doubt in Galtean terms--

 

And then Glenn collapsed to the ground, revealing Link behind him holding his sword in a reverse grip, the raised pommel betraying himself as the cause of the Protean's unconsciousness.

 

Time seemed to freeze, broken only by Shiro's sudden kick to Link's chest in frog form. Catriona bristled at that. She had seen the force that those legs could dish out, and for Link to receive a direct kick to the chest like that, she wouldn't be surprised if at least one of his ribs had broken. However, she could not deny him his reasons for it. The soldier had just knocked out his friend, though the more she thought about it the more puzzled she became. Link was not usually one for bold actions such as this, not unless he was ordered.

 

BGM

 

The only one who seemed to be enjoying the situation was Rufus, who threw back his head as he laughed. "Ha! Well done, I say. The least that leggy intruder deserves for barging his way into our village." His eyes narrowed at Shiro, the only conscious frog remaining. "Seize the frogs," he ordered, ire growing the longer he stared at the blue Protean. "They dared to cause trouble in our village and threaten my daughter." He made a cutting gesture with his arm, bloodlust in his eyes. "Death is the only mercy the likes of them deserve."

 

Immediately, a few fox Proteans dressed in what Sienna would recognize as traditional tribal warrior garb approached, shifting into their fox form as they moved. Their clothes melded into their skin, their fur splashed with war paint. They bared their teeth at Shiro, tails swishing aggressively.

 

Catriona, despite her anger at the frog for kicking Link, could not allow this to happen. The frogs had shown her nothing but kindness (before now), had even helped them to reach their companions. Not to mention, she could never leave Sir Cyrus's squire to an ignoble death. The foxes had shown just why one could not trust their kind. Leaping from the porch to skid down the hill, she ran into the middle of the confusion, her blade singing as she slid it from its sheath. "That will not happen."

 

"If you are not with us, then you are against us," Rufus growled, then turned to the warriors who had hesitated at the princess's actions, eyes glowing with pale blue fire. "What are you doing? Kill the frogs!" At his command, the Proteans resumed their approach, snapping their jaws at the princess as she stood between them and their prey.

 

In the shadows, an observer smirked at the chaos. Their Lady's success was guaranteed at this rate.

 

--

 

The Frog Sage listened to both Alois and Gunther's words, nodding. "It is true that the two of you are not suited for our ways of combat. Therefore, I did not plan for you to be in the initial strike. However, that does not mean you cannot join in the fighting at all. You can also see this as an opportunity to rescue your companions." He glanced at the knight, shaking his head at the man's proposal. "I am sorry, but I cannot afford even the slightest chance that the foxes will be alerted to our coming ahead of time. A couple have already seen your face. Seal the cracks, and you shall never fear the wind. You may bring up the rear with your friend. Feel free to rush in after the vanguard, however."

 

The Protean looked between the two human beings. "I will give you some time to prepare for the upcoming trek. Ten minutes, no more. Were we to wait any longer, we might come upon dead bodies rather than living friends when we attack." With that, he dismissed the two, drawing close in conference with a couple other Proteans as the duo left the building.

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

"What are you doing? Kill the frogs!"

 

"W-wait, damn it! Curses, calm down!"

 

Just when Ciela was busy finishing her healing for Edrick, chaos erupted all of the sudden. It was hard to piece what happened at first, but apparently Link had struck the frog warrior that challenged Sienna down, and he got attacked by another frog in return, and now Chief Rufus used the situation to gather his own warriors to attack the frogs. Ciela started to mutter curse words towards Link with her every breath, but in the end she did accept the fact that this sort of situation was somewhat inevitable with Rufus' hardheadedness. Still Link definitely didn't help.

 

"Cease this nonsense! Cease, I say!"

 

This was getting nowhere fast. A slaughter would start soon. Oh what a bother, why couldn't this morning be peaceful? More importantly, what would happen to the half of the group that sided with the frogs? Sienna could perhaps vouch for them so that they didn't get attacked, but would Rufus even hear reason at this point? Ciela doubted that she was getting heard either. She needed to do something significant...to avoid a pointless fighting, she'd probably would like tying down both leaders of the two Protean tribes into a chair if possible.

 

Well, maybe there was one thing she could do. Ciela whispered a direction towards Remy, and her partner responded in kind. It was odd that he didn't voice his concern on her idea this time, but maybe he was as desperate as she was about the current situation. Or maybe Ciela was too focused on her goal to notice any doubts. Thus, Ciela and Remy approached Rufus as if nothing was actually happening, before Remy turned around. The foxes had been nothing but kind to her and the others the past day, but enough was enough.

 

The next moment, Remy let out a strong kick towards Rufus.

 

"Now will any of you listen to me? I'm not doing this for the frogs, nor for my own group.

 

Cease with this idiocy, or I will trample your chief!"

 

---

[Wind Rider]

It seemed like everything was going smoothly, Sienna would duel against Glenn and things would be decided there with no more fuss. But then, the unthinkable happened, Glenn fell over unconscious, knocked out by Link who had bashed the frog's head with the pommel of his blade. Sienna was horrified at the sight, and things only went further downhill.

 

The only one who seemed to be enjoying the situation was Rufus, who threw back his head as he laughed. "Ha! Well done, I say. The least that leggy intruder deserves for barging his way into our village." His eyes narrowed at Shiro, the only conscious frog remaining. "Seize the frogs," he ordered, ire growing the longer he stared at the blue Protean. "They dared to cause trouble in our village and threaten my daughter. Death is the only mercy the likes of them deserve." A bloodlust filled her father's eyes, a sight that frightened Sienna, this wasn't like her father at all.

 

A few tribesmen transformed and surrounded Shiro and his unconscious friend, Catriona dove in and got between the frogs and the foxes, blade at the ready. "If you are not with us, then you are against us," Rufus growled, then turned to the warriors who had hesitated at the princess's actions, eyes glowing with pale blue fire. "What are you doing? Kill the frogs!" Was her father serious!? If this kept up then bloodshed was sure to occur.

 

Everything kept spiraling as Ciela's horse launched a kick right at Sienna's father. "Now will any of you listen to me? I'm not doing this for the frogs, nor for my own group. Cease with this idiocy, or I will trample your chief!" So this was just for herself? She just hated watching this and didn't care whether or not everyone got out of this alive?

 

And that did, Sienna snapped under all this pressure, the frogs, her tribe, her father, everyone was in danger, including her. "Shut up... Shut up... Shut up!!!" Sienna yelled at the top of her lungs, anger and stress filled her to the point that she was giving off a large amount of heat. "All of you... Stop this at once!! Link, that stunt of yours just costed us our last chance for peace! Ciela, you harm my father in any way and I'll scorch your stupid horse! Everyone just stop!"

[Asriel Dreemurr]

While Edrick was disappointed to not be allowed to step into the fray, both by Ciela insisting that he stay back and Sienna choosing to accept the challenge on her own, he was at the very least pleased that the situation was looking to resolve itself...peacefully was not the right word but it was as close as he could think to fit it. So it was that he allowed himself to relax and, as Ciela said, allow himself to be healed. After all, it was looking like he was not going to need to fight until he had gotten his proper armor back.
 
And then Link knocked Glenn out with the pommel of his sword, and was promptly bowled over by the newest member of their number. Well, healed or not Edrick suddenly had to be very ready to fight and so he began taking stock of those around him. Well if nothing else they could potentially just help the foxes take the frogs prisoner and sort things out afterwards. The situation hadn't entirely gone up in flames just-
 
"That will not happen."

"If you are not with us, then you are against us." Goddess. Dammit. Catriona. This was not the hill to die on, but it was starting to look like they did not have much of a choice. Well, healed or not it was time for Edrick to make his move on the subject. If Catriona decided she wanted to stand somewhere, he was going to plant himself beside her. Which, as a matter of fact, he did. Standing straight, tall, and without any protection from any sort of harm that his faith could not provide. If nothing else, maybe the thought of attacking someone so obviously defenseless would give the foxes further pause, and maybe the emblem of Inera around his neck would give them more. Even so, as he looked them over and then at the village around them a certain sadness came over him and he found it very hard to even summon the will to raise his spear.

 

"This isn't right." He said aloud, and then an idea came to him. Thankfully, before Ciela's threat to the chieftan could garner any more aggression, Sienna spoke up and grabbed the attention of the rest of the foxes. He had to agree with her that the situation did indeed seem hopeless, but he intended to do something about that. In the pregnant silence that followed her words, he spoke up once again. This time for all to hear. "So far as the Frogs know, me and my comrades came here to scout this place out and get our friends back. Considerin' we didn't head back last night, and haven't had the chance to send word to them this mornin', they probably think we've been captured. So with them thinkin' that, it's gonna look real suspicious if they decide to send their own scouts and check up on us and we and Glenn're dead. Suspicious enough that I think they'd just attack you, and nobody wants that." His voice cracked at the end of that, though whether due to his age or emotion it was hard to say. "We don't wanna turn your home into a battlefield, and I don't think you do either. So let's all just calm down a second here, let Glenn wake up, and get a message to the rest of the Frogs so we can talk about this like adults. Maybe even get to the bottom of this whole White Wolf issue." His choice of words at the end of the sentence were deliberate. Of course there was only one White Fox, but a White Wolf could easily be mistaken for one. The main difference between Wolves and Foxes was, after all, size. If someone was used to seeing foxes as big as those around them now, then they might think a wolf that was just as big or larger was one of them.

 

He just had to pray that he was right.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

Penelope's mind went back to the early days of her training. When she first had a mock-battle with her mentor. They had used paper and small figures to represent the battlefield and the armies.

He had quickly broken through her hastily set up defenses and totally overwhelmed her. She struggled hard to turn it over but he kept pressing at her and every option was taken away before she could even think of it.

 

This was a lot like that. She had seen the look in Glenn's eyes when she mentioned that Sienna was a magic user. When Edrick offered to take her place she got concerned. He was hurt and Glenn was not. Not to mention Glenn had been a knight's squire. When Sienna accepted that concern grew even more.

However she began to think of ways to spin it. She could use Glenn's honor. Convince him it would be dishonorable to fight Sienna. Show him how there was no way she could have bested Sir Cyrus.

 

And then Link acted. Penelope's eyes widened. She knew it was because of her order. She hadn't been clear enough with her command. The royal guards, when she was allowed to command them in mock battles, had responded to her orders much differently than Link had. And now because of that chaos reigned.

 

She could still turn this around. She would need to put herself in harms way but surely she could convince the foxes to at least step down for now. They wouldn't attack her, if she were unarmed, just to kill a pair of frogs, one of whom was already down, right?

 

Then Ciela did the unthinkable and threatened the chief. From everything she had seen the foxes were even more attached to their chief than many in her own land were to her father. Such a threat wouldn't be taken lightly. Not to mention that Proteans were vicious foes, and Rufus, the leader of them all, was likely to be too much for a mere horse to handle.

 

Adding onto the Sienna, who may have been able to calm the foxes, was more focused with protecting her father.

 

Edrick's words startled her. How had he learned to be diplomatic? He was a farmer, surely without the access to the books and knowledge she had been, so why...

 

But it didn't matter. These Proteans were so different politically than what Penelope knew. Nothing she had read about their kind had told her how to deal with them diplomatically. And everything so far hadn't seemed to work. Then there were all these other factors. She tried to come up with some strategy to avoid conflict but she just couldn't seem to gather her thoughts enough to come up with something.

 

"I..." Penelope fell to her knees. Hands running through her hair and gripping her head. "I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!"

---

 

Gunther knew that this wasn't right. Attacking like this...it would only cause troubles. He had hoped to be able to convince them to let him go in first. He'd be able to make sure the others were safe before anything happened. But now he couldn't be sure that they wouldn't be killed at the first sign of the frogs. Especially Catriona, who had been with one of them. If she had been caught...and then an army of frogs appeared...

 

Gunther shuddered. But what could he do? He wasn't Penelope, or Catriona, he didn't know how to convince people to listen to him. He glanced at Alois. "I don't like this." He said. "What are we supposed to do? All of this is so wrong. Everyone's in danger and there's nothing I can do to stop it."

 

Gunther only knew how to listen and do what he was told. Now that he had to make a choice, one that could be the difference between life and death, he found himself...lacking.

[Hakima]

---

Chaos reigned. A cacophony of voices rose up, protests and cheers blending together until they were nothing more than deafening static. Link caught the attack on the flat of his blade, bracing himself, but the weight of the attack still sent him reeling back a few inches. He wasn’t eager to find out what an attack like that would do to flesh and bones. Link held a hand up defensively, letting his sword fall to his side.

 

“We don’t mean you any harm,” he tried to assure Shiro. The sound of his voice at a normal volume was such a foreign one, even to his own ears. “Your friend will wake up with a headache within the next few moments, perfectly fine. I just needed him to calm down before he did something that couldn’t be fixed.” Link felt weird talking to a gigantic frog, unable to read the amphibian’s face or his reaction.

 

"Ha! Well done, I say. The least that leggy intruder deserves for barging his way into our village." Rufus’ eyes narrowed at Shiro, the only conscious frog remaining. "Seize the frogs," he ordered, ire growing the longer he stared at the blue Protean. "They dared to cause trouble in our village and threaten my daughter." He made a cutting gesture with his arm, bloodlust in his eyes. "Death is the only mercy the likes of them deserve."

 

Link looked between Shiro and Rufus, watching the foxes approach as his grip tightened around his own sword. Princess Catriona declared her allegiance and jumped down to land close by, in front of Glenn, and Rufus yelled out an order to kill her as well. That changed things.

 

“Get him and leave,” he instructed quietly, raising his sword up and moving to stand beside Catriona, directly in front of Glenn’s unconscious form. The foxes advanced, jaws snapping and spit flying, and Link fought down his queasy feelings and glared them down with steely resolution. His support of the Crowned Princess was usually a very silent thing, but fighting at her side was nothing new to him, and he had been spilling blood in her family’s name since he was but a child himself. Doing it again was as simple as donning a familiar hat; one of the royal family’s executioner.

 

Everything came to a stand still. Two swords leveled at the waiting jaws of the foxes, no one budging, and then Ciela broke the stand off. Link glanced up at the commotion to see Remy kicking at the chieftain, Ciela shouting threats from his back, and his heart jumped into his throat. She couldn’t possibly think that a horse was a threat to a man who could transform into a gigantic fox within a few seconds...could she?

 

Sienna exploded after that. She yelled at him, she threatened Ciela; truth be told he didn’t know much about her. She was young, and in a way reminded him of the youngest princess. Too much pressure put onto the shoulders of a youth too green. She didn’t know how to handle it. Speaking off…

 

Link’s eyes wandered, searching for Penelope. He found her not far from Sienna, gaze flickering from him and Catriona to Rufus and then all around so quickly she was bound to give herself whiplash. Her mouth was opening and closing slightly, but no words came out. Link had seen the expression before, on new recruits lost in a larger battle. They were trying to take in too much at once and lost themselves in it.

 

Link almost instinctively moved towards her but was met with snappings jaws, stopping him dead in his tracks. He narrowed his eyes and glared back at the particular fox that had snapped at him, and in the background, he could hear Edrick trying to reason with them.

 

He was bluffing. Rufus knew it, Link knew it, and everyone else probably did as well. A bloodlust had been stirred up in the Proteans; they wanted nothing more than for the Frogs to bring a fight to them. They were convinced it would be a slaughter, in their favor. The boy was the son of a Pontic war hero, he should have known better than anyone that if people wanted to fight, it didn’t matter where it was.

 

"I..." Penelope fell to her knees. Hands running through her hair and gripping her head. "I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!"

 

Link knew she wasn’t going to be able to recover in this battle. Once upon a time, he could have jumped past the foxes to get her. Once upon a time, he could throw his Iron Blade around with one hand and battle for several hours in armor.

 

This wasn’t once upon a time. There was nothing he could do to help her in his state. She was on her own.

[Alaina]

 

Alois wasn't really fond of the sage's suggestion. He didn't really think that going to an all out battle in the current situation was all that smart, or at least all that beneficial for his party, and were he in the back, that would mean he probably would get into the fight much later than all the other frogs. Which would mean the other's fate would be left up to the frogs and, though they hadn't done anything to make him suspicious, he didn't entirely feel comfortable leaving their fate in the hands of essentially strangers. Flower boy also seemed to be troubled by this, and Alois looked over to him. "Well, not with that attitude you can't." With a smirk on his face he said, "personally, I'd rather go now and leave the frogs behind, but they probably won't take too kindly to us just leaving without warning. So, how's about we go make a convincing case to the old croaker inside, hm?" With that, Alois turned around and started knocking on the door of the sage's building.

 

 

When it came to fights, she was generally clear who it was that she was supposed to help fight against. But here, she liked both Sienna, who seemed to be focused on helping chief fluff tail and there was her white haired friend, who was currently panicking on the ground. So that had to mean that she wasn't supposed to fight either of them. But she wasn't smart enough to figure out what to say, and generally she had someone smarter tell her what to do. So, on her own in the rapidly deteriorating situation, the girl seemed at a loss for words and could only spout out, "please don't kill each other and fight and all that other bad stuff!" She didn't think her words would do much, especially with the blue headed meanie, Sienna and the chief fluffy tail being the ones right near and that situation being one that was coming apart at the seams as well. And so, instead, she merely bent down and tried to pat the white haired friend's head, trying to do what she could to comfort her. 

[Yui]

---

Simply put, everything had gone to hell. That idiot Link had knocked out Glenn, which - according to Sienna - meant throwing out their last shot at peace with the frogs. The foxes wanted to kill the frogs, the ragtag group Azar had landed in wasn't going to let that happen, the fox chief thought that not being with them meant being against them. And most of all...

 

"This isn't right. So far as the Frogs know, me and my comrades came here to scout this place out and get our friends back. Considerin' we didn't head back last night, and haven't had the chance to send word to them this mornin', they probably think we've been captured. So with them thinkin' that, it's gonna look real suspicious if they decide to send their own scouts and check up on us and we and Glenn're dead. Suspicious enough that I think they'd just attack you, and nobody wants that."

 

...Edrick, of all people, was the voice of reason. If he were from anywhere else, Azar had a feeling he and Rashido would get along at this rate.

 

"We don't wanna turn your home into a battlefield, and I don't think you do either. So let's all just calm down a second here, let Glenn wake up, and get a message to the rest of the Frogs so we can talk about this like adults. Maybe even get to the bottom of this whole White Wolf issue."

 

"I didn't think I'd agree with a Pontic so soon after meeting one," Azar started, not closing or removing either of her hands from her tome, "But here we are. He's right. Additionally, this pointless fighting between your people and the frogs will only serve to weaken both of you; I haven't fought many, but the frogs aren't exactly pushovers. Let Glenn wake up, let's get our facts straight, and work out a course of action from there."

[Sethera]

Rufus laughed as he watched his warriors stalking ever closer to the frogs below. Gamboge and Persimmon were there too, hemming the group in from both sides. His vision was centered on two figures in particular, however, one blue, one green. Soon the two would die, paving the way for his tribe's power and for Hers. Yes, She would be--

 

The chieftain let out an oof as a great force hit him in the stomach. He crashed straight into the wall of his house, seeing stars for a second. What...what just happened? He had just been standing there, gloating over--over killing the frogs.

 

He frowned. He had never particularly cared for the frog tribe, but he had never entertained the thought of killing them. Lady Inari had taught them to love their fellow Proteans. The frogs had lived in these woods for almost as long as the fox tribe had. No, why would he--

 

"Now will any of you listen to me? I'm not doing this for the frogs, nor for my own group.

 

Cease with this idiocy, or I will trample your chief!"

 

The Protean blinked up at the girl. Oh, she was that kind Galtean on the horse, wasn't she? What was she saying? Why--

 

"Shut up... Shut up... Shut up!!!" Sienna yelled at the top of her lungs. "All of you... Stop this at once!! Link, that stunt of yours just costed us our last chance for peace! Ciela, you harm my father in any way and I'll scorch your stupid horse! Everyone just stop!"

 

Oh spirits, no. He couldn't stand seeing his beloved daughter so upset. This was terrible!

 

The lancer chose that moment to speak. "So far as the Frogs know, me and my comrades came here to scout this place out and get our friends back. Considerin' we didn't head back last night, and haven't had the chance to send word to them this mornin', they probably think we've been captured. So with them thinkin' that, it's gonna look real suspicious if they decide to send their own scouts and check up on us and we and Glenn're dead. Suspicious enough that I think they'd just attack you, and nobody wants that." His voice cracked at the end of that. "We don't wanna turn your home into a battlefield, and I don't think you do either. So let's all just calm down a second here, let Glenn wake up, and get a message to the rest of the Frogs so we can talk about this like adults. Maybe even get to the bottom of this whole White Wolf issue."

 

The chieftain blanched. How did he know about them? Wait, that emblem, he recognized that. That was--

 

His eyes glazed over in hatred. Yes, he had to stop them, didn't he? She had a goal, and as Her loyal servant, he would do his part. Starting with ridding the earth of those cursed pondscum.

 

"I...I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!"

 

"Please don't kill each other and fight and all that other bad stuff!"

 

"I didn't think I'd agree with a Pontic so soon after meeting one. But here we are. He's right. Additionally, this pointless fighting between your people and the frogs will only serve to weaken both of you; I haven't fought many, but the frogs aren't exactly pushovers. Let Glenn wake up, let's get our facts straight, and work out a course of action from there."

 

"Ha...hahahaha!" These people were nothing but hypocrites. Their loyalty to their cause only went so far, enough that they would associate with the enemy. As Rufus narrowed his eyes, they flashed with a strange light. "Do you not see? The frogs are the enemy, they are the ones who have threatened us, accused us without proof, and now you would take their side?" His tail lashed the ground angrily as his figure grew, skin melting into fur.

 

Remy tried to stomp down, but just at that moment, the chieftain's face lengthened into a snarling maw, clamping down on the horse by the leg and throwing him to the side, where he landed on his back, rolling over and attempting to get up, only to collapse to the ground, the bitten leg throbbing with pain.

 

Rufus stood tall. Unlike most of the other Proteans who were the size of horses, he stood half a head taller, the largest fox Protean that any of them had seen so far, though Licorice came close--and for Shiro, the white one had been larger yet. His dark red fur shimmered like fire, interspersed with snowy white swirls.

 

"Since you are so eager to betray my kindness, let us match the power of an heir of Inari against treacherous human beings," he growled, lunging for Ciela.

 

Licorice stood still behind her chieftain, eyes riveted on his back, face twisted in a frown.

 

Meanwhile, the foxes below moved toward Shiro, with Gamboge and Persimmon leading the pack. The others were quick to follow, though the ones up front would find their way blocked by Catriona, Edrick, and Link.

 

However, it was readily apparent that the group's words, while nothing but wind against Rufus, had had an effect on the fox warriors. Persimmon was the only one who looked to have his whole heart in the fight. His brother Gamboge glanced between Sienna and Rufus, as if wondering who to listen to. The other warriors seemed reluctant to engage as well, slowing to a walk as they approached the group, though they still looked as if they would attack at any moment.

 

--

 

"Yes, come in." The Frog Sage looked surprised to see the two of them back so soon, before realization crossed his wizened face. "Ahh, the tenacity of youth," he chortled. "The waves behind drive the waves ahead. How unlike me to have forgotten that." He shook his head. "You need say no more. However," he paused, clacking his staff against the ground.

 

His expression turned serious. "If you wish to lead the way, then keep in mind that you will have their utmost attention. All of the enemies will be focused on you, as you have no hope of catching them unawares with that armor. Do you believe yourselves strong enough to face the whole of the fox village for even a minute? For it will take at least that long for my warriors to reach you, especially if we come in from the side." His gaze seemed to bore into the two.

 

[spoiler=OOC]

Current Status

Added on a grid and stuff to make it easier to tell where everybody is in relation to each other. That also may or may not mean battle has commenced.

Due to the steep incline of the hill, climbing up the stairs costs 2 movement.

 

Remy is unable to get up at the moment, Rufus is in the process of lunging at Ciela, and the other foxes are seconds away from attacking Shiro, Catriona, Edrick, and Link. Many of them look reluctant to do so, however.

 

The Frog Sage is giving Gunther and Alois a chance to explain their case, though he doesn't seem to care for their idea.

 

 

[King K. Azo]

“We don’t mean you any harm,” he tried to assure Shiro. The sound of his voice at a normal volume was such a foreign one, even to his own ears. [glow=green]“Your friend will wake up with a headache within the next few moments, perfectly fine. I just needed him to calm down before he did something that couldn’t be fixed.”[/glow] Link felt weird talking to a gigantic frog, unable to read the amphibian’s face or his reaction.

 

"Ha! Well done, I say. The least that leggy intruder deserves for barging his way into our village." Rufus’ eyes narrowed at Shiro, who narrowed his eyes back. "Seize the frogs," he ordered, ire growing the longer he stared at the blue Protean. "They dared to cause trouble in our village and threaten my daughter." He made a cutting gesture with his arm, bloodlust in his eyes. "Death is the only mercy the likes of them deserve." Shiro did literally nothing wrong, what more did they want

 

"Something that can't be fixed... You mean exactly like what you just did?" Shiro snapped at Link as he looked around. There had to be a way out. There always was one. To his surprise, a human was stupid enough to attack the fox leader. Things were going to hell pretty fast. The green one then suggested that Shiro left, which, while he agreed with on principle, he knew Glenn would disapprove.

Well, it wouldn't be the first time he disappointed the squire.

His long tongue shot out, wrapping around Glenn before retracting back into his mouth, leaving Glenn dangling a few feet off the ground. He grimaced a bit... Glenn never tasted good at all. With a bound of his powerful legs, he leapt up to the top of a building. He looked down at the scene once more, shaking his head before leaping off again. 

 

He had to make it back to the frogs.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

Penelope wasn't sure how much time she spent staring at the ground. She wasn't paying attention to time as, for once, she was attempting to not think. Which wasn't as easy as it sounded. Especially with all the noise going on.

 

She felt Tsetseg's hand on her head. It was...reassuring? Penelope moved her own hand to touch the other girl's. In an attempt to, even while in this state, give her appreciation in some form.

 

Then there was a...shift. Even from her position Penelope could tell something had changed. She heard laughter...Rufus's laughter. Penelope began to tune in the world around her in time to hear his words. Looking up from her spot at the bottom of the steps she saw the form Rufus took. He was so large...so wild. His words were a clear threat. Rufus intended to fight them himself.

 

And Ciela was right in the path.

 

When the girl's horse was tossed to the side Penelope found herself on her feet. The girl was about to be killed. This was no time to panic. Literally no time to panic at all. All thoughts fled Penelope's mind except one. "They might die."

 

 

Penelope knew that something had to be done. Where before there were so many options, so many choices, and worse so many unknowns, to try to work through now there was only one. They had to fight or die. With such a simple problem Penelope was able to come to the solution.

 

"If you must fight take them alive." Penelope called out to her comrades and began to climb the stairs. She wouldn't reach Ciela in time. Even if she did it wasn't as though she could fight Rufus. But if she could knock him off course...

 

But even that seemed out of her reach. In the few moments she had it took all she could to make it to Ciela. She couldn't even prepare an attack of any sort.

"Stay back." She told Ciela as she approached. Then, to Rufus, she called out. One last attempt at peace. "You must stop this. No one has died yet but that will change if you continue like this. No one has to be killed over this!" She pleaded.

 

Penelope knew that she wasn't tough like most of the others. But even she was better to take a hit than their crippled healer. It was only logical to protect Ciela.

At least that's what she told herself as she stared into the eyes of the fierce beast before her. The young, small, princess, putting her body in the way of a beast of that size.

Gunther would have a heart attack if he saw her now.

---

 

Gunther was glad that Alois agreed. Even more glad that the other man had taken the initiative in knocking on the elder's door. He felt relief when the elder seemed to be open to letting them go first. Though the words of danger that followed were less than pleasant.

 

He felt, instinctively, that if Gunther allowed Alois to speak for him here that it wouldn't go over well. He'd need to say something...If only Penelope were here.

"I...am not a strong man." Gunther admitted. "This armor is probably all that has kept me alive. I do not know how well it will hold up against the foxes' fangs." The thought of teeth tearing through the metal and into his body...shook Gunther. But he couldn't let up now. So, with a pale face, he squared his shoulders and stood straight and tall. "I am the princesses' shield. My place is in front of any danger to them."

 

 

[spoiler=OOC]So after discussing with Sethera I was allowed two movement rounds as opposed to an attack round. Just to climb the steps and get to the space behind Ciela. If Penelope's movements don't match Ciela's actions, Nai, tell me so I can edit it. Since Ciela is being attacked I assume she has to move to get out of the way before Penelope reaches her fully but unsure.

Also the music isn't the battle music for this "map" it's just what I found fitting for Penelope atm

 

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

"Urgh..."
 

What happened after Ciela threatened the leader of the foxes was mostly a blur as Ciela regained her consciousness to find that she was lying on the ground. She remembered that others tried to find a way to talk it out with the foxes, and then she could feel something gripping on Remy...

 

"R-remy!"

 

It was then that she realized what happened. Remy had been tossed aside from underneath her, and she could see him lying on the ground. He was still alive, but his back leg was visibly wounded. From a glance, the cause of the wound was...

 

Of course.

 

Ciela looked up, and saw a gigantic fox standing before her. Ah, she felt fear running down her spine. She could barely be able to deal with Sienna's fox form, how could she deal with something as big as this? But, since she was unable to escape anyway, Ciela stared right towards the giant fox.

 

"So, this is what you wanted, Chief Rufus."

 

"Since you are so eager to betray my kindness, let us match the power of an heir of Inari against treacherous human beings,"

 

"I'm grateful for your kindness so far, but no way in hell I'm letting your nonsense continue!"

 

Even if she couldn't feel her legs, just by moving a bit it was clear that her leg bones were now broken. She was bleeding too from her crash into the ground. She might be able to crawl, but it would be hard for her to dodge Rufus' attack, especially since she was right on the steep inclines of this altar-like structure. More importantly was Remy however. He was not that far away from her, but time was ticking and she would need to reach him before his wound...

 

To do that, there was one obstacle that she had to deal with somehow.

 

"Stay back."

 

Penelope was approaching. Rufus bared his fangs, preparing to attack Ciela. Ciela gripped her staff tightly, trying her best to calm her mind in such a situation. Penelope tried to reason towards Rufus, but even someone like Ciela knew that he wouldn't listen to anything now. For Ciela in the meantime, there was only one way for her to go.

 

"Penelope, you stay back. The rest needs you more than me here."

 

Without even turning around to look at Penelope, Ciela closed her eyes, and pushed her own body forward as he lunged at her. She banked everything on slipping underneath the giant fox as he charged. It might have been a suicidal act, but what else could she do? She wouldn't live without Remy. She'd rather die than letting Remy live as a cripple.  Ciela continued to crawl, pushing her body forward with one intent in mind: to heal Remy, and then knock some sense into the maddened chieftain somehow.

 

---

[Wind Rider]

Before she knew it, the worst had happened. Sienna watched as her father was sent flying by Remy's kick, but it didn't stop him at all, stunned him sure, but it didn't stop him. Rufus got up and had turned into his fox form, and with one action, he had knocked Remy over. Ciela had toppled over in front of him and it seemed like her fate was decided.

 

"Since you are so eager to betray my kindness, let us match the power of an heir of Inari against treacherous human beings," Rufus wanted bloodshed. This was completely unlike him, Sienna knew her father, this just wasn't him. Thankfully for Ciela, Penelope had got between her and the looming Protean. But the odds were just not in her favor.

 

She had to act fast, she couldn't just let her father go through with this. "Father, stop!!" Using her beaststone, Sienna transformed and quickly hurled a fireball in Rufus's direction. But she knew it wouldn't be enough, at best it would miss or Rufus would dodge it, she just needed to take his attention away from Penelope and Ciela.

[Alaina]

 

As Alois heard the Frog Sage's proposition towards them, and the utter lack of faith in his tone, Alois was about to start mouthing off to him. However, he was stopped and frankly surprised when Gunther made the first move in the conversation. As the man had finished his piece, Alois's expression changed from slightly irked to one that had a smile across it. "Meanwhile, I'm the strongest man you'll meet this side of Pelinna. And with my intuition," and luck, "has carried me through many battles so far. Besides, there's no greater duo from that group that you'll meet then the ones in front of you here. So, with his shield," the boy slapped Gunther's back, punctuating who he was talking about, "and my axe, we'll take to the front just fine." Alois's voice was filled with the utmost of confidence in his statements.

 

 

As the girl seemed to comfort? - the archer wasn't really sure why her white haired friend was touching her hand - her white haired friend, Tsetseg's attention was torn towards the chief fluffy tailed who seemed to start getting ready to attack. Tsetseg's eyes went wide as the man transformed, his fox form being in full view for all to see, merely stating, "he really is the chief of fluffiness." Her attention was soon brought to reality as her vision was obscured by her white haired friend running up the stairs, and Sienna shooting fire. The girl realized that this was no time to just be standing around, yet there was no one who was there to tell her what to do during this high pressure situation. Though it wasn't as if she had never been on solo hunts before, and during those times, she merely needed to rely on her instincts. So this was no different. Walking over to one of the foxes in front of her, specifically the one approaching the one that looked like an older version of her white haired friend, the girl merely grabbed onto the fluffy tail of the fox protean. As this was sure to gain its attention, she had a strangely defiant and serious expression across her face as she said, "Sienna doesn't want you to fight, and since she's like the descendant to the fluffiest fox to ever be, you should listen to her."

[Asriel Dreemurr]

Well this was bad. Ciela had gone and actually gotten Remy to kick the chief, and now Rufus had transformed into a decidedly massive fox shape. The more he looked the less it seemed to be mistakable for a wolf at all, so maybe he had just been spewing nonsense. Whatever, that had not been talked about by anyone. The important part was that Rufus was angry, Ciela was in danger, Sienna was trying to get her father's attention, and Penelope had just charged up to try and distract him as well. Behind him the Frogs were making a retreat, and around him the foxes were moving in while Catriona and Link held their ground. All in all, not the worst situation he'd found himself in with this group. Sure he was presently shirtless, and had lost track of his lance somewhere over the course of all of this, but for the time being it looked like most of the foxes did not have any fight in them. Alright, he could work with this.

"Listen to me!" He shouted, looking around at the foxes surrounding him. "I am Edrick Roransson. My father is Roran Stronghammer, who was once Archbishop of the city of Pharaon. A city I will never know, because it was destroyed in the last war between Galtea and Pontus." He paused to catch his breath, and remembered the tears in his sister's eyes when his parents had told them stories about the city. She remembered it. She had lost her home. "So don't think that I'm just making things up when I say that you don't want your home to turn into a battlefield! Pharaon, Rassex I think the Galteans call it, is a crumbling ruin where no one lives anymore! If you go to war with the Frogs, what do you think will happen to this forest? You'll fight up and down the whole length of it, and whether or not you mean to you'll destroy it by accident! Just one errant spark and you'll burn the whole place down, and then what do you think'll happen to your village?!" He gestured around at the buildings. This was the best he could do for now, try and get the rest of the foxes to abandon the fight. Once they did that, maybe they could focus on Rufus. Or maybe even he would listen to what Edrick was saying. "If there's any foxes left after that, they won't be able to live here. They'll have to go somewhere else, somewhere far away where the only thing anyone remembers about this forest is old stories!" He turned and pointed directly at the fox in front of him. "Do you want your kids to have to grow up with nothin' but stories about where they're from?" He hoped they listened to him. Not just for his sake, but for theirs too. As much as he didn't like being around all these foxes and frogs, he didn't want to see someone else's home burn down.

[Yui]

---

"Ha...hahahaha! Do you not see? The frogs are the enemy, they are the ones who have threatened us, accused us without proof, and now you would take their side?"

 

Is this man an idiot?

 

"Since you are so eager to betray my kindness, let us match the power of an heir of Inari against treacherous human beings."

 

Yes, apparently. Rufus charged Ciela, tossing her horse aside. The others didn't seem particularly eager to fight. Shiro was making his escape, the foxes that did seem ready to fight - other than the idiot chieftain - only seemed fixated on him. Some of the foxes even seemed

 

"If you must fight take them alive."

 

"I promise nothing," Azar called back. She looked over her arms and legs. I'll admit, I would have been disappointed if I'd taken the time to reapply these without ever having to use them. Edrick had a lot of words to say again - he sure was a talkative sort - during which time the shaman took a moment to stretch her limbs while she listened to his brief sermon on the impact war would have on the forest, and his own experience with how fighting can destroy homes in such a manner. You're not completely wrong, but that doesn't mean you're right either.

 

"Sorry to say, Edrick Roransson, but it doesn't look like we're avoiding this one. My name is Azar Soravati, daughter of a scumbag nobleman. Even if it means some houses have to be burned or some lives taken, if you really want peace, sometimes you have to fight for it. Now let's go, before that idiot fox actually kills someone." With that and not another word, Azar charged into the fray, closing the tome at her side in favor of her own arms and legs as the weapons for this fight. As fast as she could anyway; Azar was never a particularly fast runner. If Rufus's attention wasn't on someone else right now, Azar would definitely have opted to keep her distance.

 

Once she was near her target, however, the shaman raised her right leg, and swung it directly at the protean's own leg, being sure to charge her kick with her own self-harming brand of dark magic to ensure her attack would hurt all the more.

---

[Sethera]

BGM

 

Rufus shook off the words of the group as if they were nothing but annoying flies. "The time for talk has passed," he said with a growl. Without anymore words, he jumped, straight for the meddling troubadour.

 

"Father, stop!!"

 

A flash of familiar light, a fireball headed his way. It fizzled out before it could reach him, but he would recognize that attack anywhere. Sienna... What was wrong? Why was she attacking him? Was she...did she decide to ally herself with them as well? He growled, but another part of him thought that she had to have good reason to act as she did. She had always been such a careful, gentle soul...

 

His paws smashed down on hard ground, the impact jolting him from his thoughts. Turning his head this way and that, he spied his blue-haired target crawling toward her mount. As if there would be any saving it after being thrown with such force. Though if anybody could, one of Her servants could.

 

He shook his head. Yes, that was right. She wanted this group stopped, especially those two pale-haired princesses. If his daughter decided to stand with them, she would die alongside--

 

No. No, that wouldn't happen. Anything but that. He would give his own life were it enough to protect--

 

But of course, he had no choice. As a loyal retainer to--

 

Loyalty only went so far. He was his own person, and he loved his daughter. He could never go against her.

 

While Rufus struggled with himself, the other foxes had turned to look amongst themselves with unease. Were it just the foreigners, those not forestborn, they could understand attacking with their whole might. But Sienna had also chosen to stand with them. Attacking her meant attacking the tribe's most beloved, their princess, to use human terms.

 

Not to mention that the humans themselves hadn't really attacked. Sure, they had prevented them from getting to the frogs, but other than that, they had made no aggressive moves. Even the one that had grabbed onto a Protean's tail. And then one of the humans had stepped forward and started to talk about his family's hometown. While human wars meant little to the beastmen, the possible destruction of their village did. One of the foxes in particular perked their ears up, staring at the Pontic with a burning intensity.

 

Catriona blinked as she looked at Edrick beside her. Rassex...any mention of that city, no, anything to do with her grandfather, was a taboo subject around King Reginald. Stories had been swapped so many times on what really happened there, and one of the few men who would know the truth refused to say anything, to even hear it whispered in his presence. She was curious as to what Edrick had been told about it, or if his father had been just as reluctant to speak on the matter.

 

Still, one fox would not be swayed so easily by the boy's words. "Silly human," Persimmon scoffed, still in his humanoid form. "What do you think we are doing? We aren't blind. We have seen the pondscum preparing for battle. If we roll over and show our bellies as you suggest, then they will not hesitate to stab them clean through," he growled, transforming into his fox form. Out of all the Proteans they had seen so far, he looked the most like a traditional fox, his bright orange fur fading into white at the belly and tail tip. "No, in getting rid of those long-legged fiends, we are protecting our home." He ran forward, aiming for the nearest human, the one wearing green, as he tore a chunk from his side.

 

His transformation seemed to be the impetus for Azar's actions, as she ended up kicking out at Rufus, her foot swirling with dark power.

 

The chieftain was caught off guard by the sudden attack, the force of the blow sending his leg crumpling inward, causing him to crash to the ground. He looked down at the one who had dared attack him, and narrowed his eyes. An Isaurian. "Yet another human who would betray Her," he rasped. He struggled to stand, so he could tear that shaman apart, but his leg would not listen to him. His eyes clouded with fresh hatred as he glared at Azar, having forgotten about Ciela and Penelope completely.

 

Down below, Gamboge seemed to have made his mind as to which side he would choose, as he stared at Persimmon pleadingly. "What they say makes sense, brother, and you know it. We waste time here fighting when we could be licking our wounds in preparation for the frogs' attack."

 

The fox whose tail Tsetseg had grabbed agreed, reverting to his humanoid form and flicking his tail out of the thief's grasp. The two next to him followed in stead, standing there staring at the trio in front of them awkwardly.

 

--

 

"I...am not a strong man." Gunther admitted. "This armor is probably all that has kept me alive. I do not know how well it will hold up against the foxes' fangs." He squared his shoulders and stood straight and tall. "I am the princesses' shield. My place is in front of any danger to them."

 

Alois smiled. "Meanwhile, I'm the strongest man you'll meet this side of Pelinna. And with my intuition, has carried me through many battles so far. Besides, there's no greater duo from that group that you'll meet then the ones in front of you here. So, with his shield," the boy slapped Gunther's back, punctuating who he was talking about, "and my axe, we'll take to the front just fine." Alois's voice was filled with the utmost of confidence in his statements.

 

The Frog Sage stared at the two in front of him with absolutely no expression for a couple seconds, before a smile cracked across his face. "Ha! Such bold confidence, I like it," he cackled wheezily. "Reading ten thousand books is less than journeying ten thousand miles. If you two are as good as you say you are, then I have nothing to fear." He tapped his cane against the wooden floor. "So be it. If you are ready, then so are we."

 

Soon afterward, the frog warriors marched toward the fox village, Gunther and Alois accompanying them. The Proteans made hardly a whisper of sound as they walked, even in human form. Their clothes were padded to prevent undue noise, many wearing scarves around their necks to cover even the sound of their breaths.

 

By the time they neared the village, the sun was high in the sky and the sound of fighting reached their ears. "It sounds like your friends are in need of our aid," the Frog Sage said. "Perhaps Glenn and Shiro too..." he trailed off in concern before coming to his senses. "Go, then, to the front gates. We will come in from the sides." With that, the frogs seemed to melt into the forest, leaving Gunther and Alois to themselves.

 

Standing at the front entrance were two fox guards, their eyes keen and discerning. Before long, they would spot the two humans, faces growing stern. "Halt, you are not allowed to go any further," one said.

 

"Leave, or you will regret it," the other chimed in.

 

In the shadows of the trees, the Frog Sage frowned as he stared up at the rooftops where a familiar form perched. "Is that Shiro?" he muttered to himself, an invisible weight falling from his wizened shoulders at the sight. "Shiro!" he called, chancing discovery for the sake of seeing one of his own tribesmen safe. "Are you hurt? Is that...Glenn?"

 

[spoiler=OOC]

Read the Status Report!

 

 

[Hakima]

---

Link heard the fox coming long before he saw him. Behind him, to his right. He pivoted on his heel, his blade already drawn back in a heavy swing that would cleave the fox from the fleshy, unprotected part of his neck just above his collarbone all the way to the beginning of his jawline, but faltered when he remembered what Princess Penelope had ordered.

 

"If you must fight take them alive."

 

He just barely managed to adjust the course of his attack, taking a few hairs off the neck of the fox, but the unexpected momentum caused him to stumble and left him wide open. The fox’s jaws snapped close on the side of his belly, and there was a stomach-turning crunch as his mail tried and failed to stop the razor sharp teeth of the beast.

 

Link’s vision went white and distantly he heard himself scream, loud, and then his senses rushed back to him. Instinctively he brought the heavy pommel of his sword down on top of the fox’s head with all his might, and the weight of it was enough that the fox yelped and opened his jaws, releasing the Galtean soldier. Link very nearly collapsed, stumbling before he managed to find his legs.

 

He held his sword aloft between him and the fox with a single hand, the other hand clutching at his side. Link was hunched over, and every breath he took rattled. He could feel blood through his glove, and against his will he was reminded of the spikes that had gone through his abdomen. The front of his tunic was already soaking through, the frayed edges of his mail poking out from the now tattered fabric, and all he could smell was iron.

 

He took a painfully deep breath and forced himself to stand up straighter, grasping the hilt of his blade as tight as humanly possible. His arm was going numb and he didn’t want to accidentally lose hold of it during the battle.

 

Link didn’t bother with a vulnerary after that. The wound was far beyond the capabilities of herbs and spices, so the most he could do was stare down the fox who had wounded him coldly, waiting for him to attempt to attack Catriona or Edrick’s back.

---

[Alaina]

 

While Alois had been glad about being able to go ahead of the frogs, he still wasn't entirely sure how he and Gunther would do. The last foxes they had encountered were far faster than he was actually able to keep up with, and he wasn't sure if all foxes shot fire like Sienna did. Alois was a confident boy when it came to fights, but even he thought fire breathing foxes were a bit out of his pay grade. All the same, the two had made their way through the forest and had eventually gotten to the entrance of the foxes villages. The duo, not possessing animal ears or a tail, were very easily recognized as not foxes by the guards at the entrance, and the guards were, surprise suprise, not that willing to let the not foxes in. As they seemed to be becoming hostile towards the duo, Alois, with an expression of false surprise on his face said, "oh man, really?" He looked to Gunther saying, "man I guess we're just not allowed." Looking to the foxes he said, "and here I thought this was a human welcoming settlement, what with how many of our human friends have happened to be escorted in here by you guys. So, how's about giving us a similar treatment?" 

 

 

Tsetseg was glad as the fox whose tail she was holding onto seemed unwilling to fight, though had small lingering sense of sadness as his tail has slipped through her hands. All the same, it seemed that the fluffy tailed foxes didn't want to kill them, which was good! What was bad was that not all of them seemed willing to listen. What was worse was that one of them seemed to still want to kill green man, biting down onto him. Tsetseg couldn't actually tell the full extent of the damage he had taken, but it seemed very very bad, and Tsetseg knew that something had to be done about the fox trying to kill him. So, running around, the foxes, the girl jumped onto the one that had attacked Link, wrapping her arms around it saying, "stop being a mean fox and listen to the other fluffy tailed foxes!" 

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

The way Rufus said "Her" bothered Penelope. Inari? But, that wouldn't make any sense, how could humans "betray" the patron of the foxes? But, the alternative was...something that didn't matter at the moment.

 

Penelope knew the dangers of overthinking. There was something going on that she had to focus on. And as of such she looked towards Licorice. The fox girl hadn't joined in on the battle and seemed to not be intending to any time soon. So she decided to try and get her help.

 

"You don't want this either right? Can't you do something to calm him down?"

Unfortunately the black fox just shook her head. "There's nothing I can do."

 

She had been afraid of that. It probably was too much to ask the warrior to stand up to her chieftain. "I hope you know I do not wish to harm any of you. However..." She turned to Rufus, snarling, ready to attack Azar, "I have people to protect as well." She, with trembling hand, drew her sword and took a step towards the giant fox. She was prepared to swing...she had to...but she couldn't. She didn't want to injure Rufus even now. The image of her sword cutting through that bandit once more flashed in her head and she felt herself waver.

---

 

Gunther was glad that Alois backed him up like that. The confidence was...greatly needed. It seemed to stir the frog chief to let them go in first at least. Though Gunther wasn't so sure he had sounded half as bold as the chief implied...

 

Standing in front of the guards Gunther felt what little confidence shake. He knew they wouldn't be able to just walk in but to have such an aggressive reception, despite there not being any signs of the frogs was unnerving. However they hadn't immediately attacked and, after Alois's comment, Gunther was able to step forward.

 

"You attacked our people and took some of them here. All we want is to see that they are okay. Please bring us to them if you won't bring them here. They are our comrades and we will not be leaving without seeing them."

 

Gunther knew that before the fight broke out he had to figure out what happened to the rest. If they could get into the village itself it would be even easier to rescue them. Attacking head on like this would give the foxes an advantage as the two humans tried to break through their numbers. If they were inside...perhaps they could join with the others.

 

He thought about the frog chieftain. Had he expected the two to attack right away? Would he wait for them to draw the foxes to them first? He hoped he was doing the right thing. Only time would tell.

[Wind Rider]

Sienna's fireball seemed to have caught her father's attention, but things seemed to be getting more messy by the fox chieftain as Azar joined in on the conflict.

 

"N-no! Don't hurt him, please!" Sienna ran up the stairs as fast as she could, she knew that her father had to be stopped, but she didn't want him to get hurt or worse. As she made it up the stairs, Azar had already landed a blow right on Rufus's leg, causing him to topple over. Her father had the look of a killer as he stared down Azar. "Yet another human who would betray Her,"

 

"Her?" what was he talking about? It couldn't be Inari, who did he mean? Something was wrong, in fact, something has been wrong the whole time they've been in the village. Sienna shook it off for now and focused on the here and now. "Father, stop this senseless fighting!!" she said as she jumped between the great fox and Pen and Azar. She faced her father, slightly frightened by his size compared to him.

 

"This fighting has to stop! This isn't like you at all... The father I said goodbye to before I left the village was kinder than this... He cared for his people... He never wanted conflict..." a single tear dropped from Sienna's eye. "Why are you doing this? This isn't just about Inari's beads, is it? Why are you doing this... Tell me!!" she yelled.

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

"Hang in there..."

 

A miracle had happened. Rufus stopped himself from chasing after Ciela, and Ciela was able to drag herself towards the injured Remy. It was all thanks to Sienna and Azar, apparently. It was hard to surmise the exacts on what actually happened, but knowing about it made her glad enough and perhaps she would have to thank both if they survived this. Maybe she had to apologize to Sienna too for doing what she did...but it's not like there was any other choice for her to do.

 

Remy was down on his knees not too far away from her now. A quick glance made it clear that his leg was damaged quite severely, and Ciela started to feel fear. Something similar happened to her just a few days ago. What would happen if she couldn't save Remy's legs from becoming useless? The group would have to end his misery. She would be alone. Using her staff to steady herself, she continued on her way despite her injuries and once she was near him, Ciela started to rapidly chant the words for the healing spell. Her voice was laced with desperation.

 

"Inera, if you're still around...or anyone else over there, willing to listen to me...please, allow my partner to escape the same fate that had befallen me..."

 

---

[Sethera]

 

Catriona stared warily at the trio of foxes in front of her. They had stopped attacking, but they could still pick up the fight at any time. She lowered her sword, but kept it in hand, just in case.

 

And then a scream, a familiar, hoarse sound that set her bones tingling. She hadn't heard him cry out like this in a long time. Link! Immediately, her mind flashed back to when the mercenary was brought back from falling into a spiked pit. It was only by the grace of the Great Dragon...and an elixir, that he survived that night. Then, he had screamed like he did now. Long and loud, echoing off the hills, and it was as if that night had sucked up what was left of the man's voice, for he barely spoke after that.

 

Without a second thought the lord whipped around, ears perked for the sound of any movement behind her. She made to rush at the large orange fox who had just spit out a chunk of her comrade's flesh when...that strange bow thief had jumped on it.

 

"Stop being a mean fox and listen to the other fluffy tailed foxes!"

 

The princess could not help but stare for a couple seconds, her eyes widened in shock. By the blood of Augustus... she thought. She had not seen such cheek, nor such pluck, in a long time from anybody aside from her recent companions. Her expression turned wry as she thought upon Alois, Edrick, and Ciela in particular.

 

Persimmon seemed as taken aback as she. "What do you mean by this?!" he thundered.

 

Gamboge gaped as he witnessed the strange sight of a human riding his brother in fox form. "Brother, she is right. Please calm down and we can settle this out."

 

"I will not!" the orange fox raged. "You have always been too soft when it comes to non-foxes, brother. And you!" he roared at Tsetseg. "Geroff of me!" he started to shake, attempting to dislodge the girl like a dog shaking water from its coat.

 

Good, distract him like so, Catriona thought, leaping right at the fox and scoring a long cut across his snout with her sword. Her eyes were like flint. He had attacked one of her friends, thus he was the enemy, and she would show no mercy.

 

The fox reared back like a horse at that, the sudden movement making it even harder for the bow thief to stay on.

 

At the sides, the foxes finally reached the group. While two were stopped by the trio in front, shaking their heads, the other two kept coming, one going for Link, and missing, while the other attacked Edrick, his claws scoring a long gash down the lancer's bare torso.

 

Up at the top of the hill, Rufus had finally risen to his feet, snarling down at Azar like a maddened dog, or fox, in this case. His growls stopped abruptly at Sienna's cry.

 

"Father, stop this senseless fighting!!" she said as she jumped up the stairs. "This fighting has to stop! This isn't like you at all... The father I said goodbye to before I left the village was kinder than this... He cared for his people... He never wanted conflict..." a single tear dropped from Sienna's eye. "Why are you doing this? This isn't just about Inari's beads, is it? Why are you doing this... Tell me!!" she yelled.

 

Rufus' ears, flattened against his head, flattened even further, his tail drooping and losing its stiff, bottlebrush consistency. "You don't understand, Sienna," he said. "I have to do this. Please, stand aside." He seemed to struggle with himself, eyes flashing between bright blue and their natural chartreuse, before settling on the former. They focused down on Penelope, who had drawn her sword, and he bared his teeth before attacking, his teeth clamping down on her sword arm, eyes burning like twin blue coals.

 

At that, Licorice stepped forward, frowning, before stopping, as if remembering her place. In front of her, Ciela's healing magic seemed to have reached Remy just in time, the wounds stitching themselves closed before her eyes, though not before she saw bones rearranging and tendons reconnecting. The horse managed to stand on shaky legs before his stance firmed.

 

--

 

"Oh man, really?" Alois looked to Gunther saying, "Man I guess we're just not allowed." Looking to the foxes he said, "and here I thought this was a human welcoming settlement, what with how many of our human friends have happened to be escorted in here by you guys. So, how's about giving us a similar treatment?"

 

"We will have none of your cheek!" snarled the left guard, his hands clenching into fists.

 

"You attacked our people and took some of them here. All we want is to see that they are okay. Please bring us to them if you won't bring them here. They are our comrades and we will not be leaving without seeing them."

 

The guards glanced at each other. "Hmm, well, it's true that Licorice let in some humans last night."

 

"Yeah, and one of 'em looked a lot like the one from dat first group."

 

"But neither of these two look like them."

 

"Yeah, but one of 'em has the same way of speakin'. All hoity-toity-like."

 

"So, then, do we let them in?"

 

The other shrugged. "I dun wanna be the one catchin' hells from the Black Fang herself for lettin' in some strangers widout permission."

 

"Well I'm in enough trouble for trying to go after the Frog Sage."

 

The two turned to look at the duo and straightened self-importantly. "Sorry, but youse two are not allowed inside!"

 

--

 

The Frog Sage hummed thoughtfully at Shiro's non-reply, turning to one of the frog warriors accompanying him, though this one was probably the shortest of them all. "They look injured. Aka, climb up and see what is the matter."

 

"Yes, my lord," the girl said, bowing stiffly, before she seemed to disappear, so fast were her movements. In a matter of moments, she had reappeared on the roof with Shiro. She paused before speaking, staring at Shiro for a few seconds, mouth slightly open and a blush forming on her cheeks. "S-Shiro, eh," she stuttered, before seeming to regain herself. "Are you all right?" she seemed to forget Glenn's presence for a moment.

 

In the meantime, the Frog Sage turned to the others. "Start getting into position. Aka will give the signal, but first we must see if Shiro and Glenn are fine." He frowned. "Alois and Gunther might have to wait longer than we planned."

 

OOC: Please read the Google Doc!

[Asriel Dreemurr]

It was starting to look like Edrick had won the Foxes over to the idea of stopping the fighting, so many of them apparently standing down even though their chief did not. Rufus could be dealt with when they did not have to worry about being surrounded on all sides, so that did not change their plans. All the same he was quite certain that those up there could handle the situation. Ciela and Remy being thrown to the ground was a worrying issue to be sure, but he had faith in her ability to heal her horse. Not that he could have reached them anyways, with the foxes in front of him blocking any efforts he might have been able to make to get to them. All the same, things were looking up.
 
At least until Persimmon went and tore Link's side open. The sight of the man, so readily wounded by the fox in spite of his armor, shocked the young man into silence when he should have had more to say. He knew Link could fight. Better than the rest of them he was certain. Hearing him scream like that, with so much blood splattering across the ground, almost had Edrick slip into that zealous frenzy he had fought in before. How dare one of these accursed shapeshifters hurt one of his flock as badly as they had! By all rights he should have taken up his spear and sent the creature off to learn of Inera's power firsthand then and there! But he could not shake the same feeling that had first started all of this. The thought that this was a home, and that above everything else whatever war there was to be fought should not be brought into the middle of it. When he felt claws raking across his chest he turned, ready to take up his weapon and properly join into the fight. And then he remembered something.
 
"Brother, she is right. Please calm down and we can settle this out." One of the other foxes had spoken up in the name of peace, and now that he looked around at the others he saw more of them ready to stop fighting than to continue it. He looked back at the fox that had cut his chest, deep enough to see the ribs in places, and simply let out a sigh. Not now, not here. Instead of getting into the fight as he was sure the others would want him to, he turned away and set his attention on Persimmon...who was being ridden by their archer it seemed. So he stepped away from the fox that had attacked him, and came to stand in the midst of them all.

"Link," he said as he set his hand on the soldier's shoulder, "sit down, you need to stop fighting or you'll kill yourself before anyone else can." He just had to hope that the man, his friend he thought, would listen to him. At least long enough to give everyone else a chance to. There wasn't much else he could do there for now, so he instead turned around to face the fight with Persimmon. Stepping forward, he placed his hand on Catriona's chest and made to shove her back before turning to face the rearing fox. He reached his arms up, trying to grab the fox and pull him to the ground if he could or to catch and grapple him when he came down. Whatever happened, his next words were the same.

"Listen to me!" He shouted again, for everyone around to hear. "Whether you're ready for it or not, you don't have to fight at all! Not us. Not the Frogs. The only ones you might have to fight are the Bandits, and both you and the frogs want them gone! You have the choice, right here, right now to make things the way they used to be! To go back to having your peaceful forest, and not having to worry about the frogs stealing things or killing the frogs!" He stopped to take a breath, and then resumed his shouting. "Not everyone gets that chance! I can't make Pharaon come back, not matter how much I might want to! And if you go to war in this forest, if you decide that you don't want peace, you won't ever be able to put things back how they were! Even if you win," he looked directly at Persimmon this time, "do you really think everyone's gonna make it back? You ready to die because you just couldn't be peaceful? Even better, if you decide you want war right now are you ready for your brother to die? That's somethin' you've gotta make peace with if you're gonna do this." If he had managed to get a hold of the fox, he released it and again began speaking to everyone around him. "Are you all ready to die if you decide to fight? You ready for your brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, mothers and fathers, sons and daughters to die? 'Cause if you got to war, who knows who's comin' back?"