Tyler

Understood on both counts. Let me know who you change to if/when you change the character.

@Seraphina Jeanne In response to your OOC Comment: Nope, you're good. That brought a smile to my face!

"What exactly are we supposed to be demanding here? You’ve been mentioning making demands from the townspeople. What point are we supposed to push across?" The young witch had elected to speak first, quickly drawing the man's attention her way. She was perhaps the most obvious of the magic users, though she looked pretty young, and the man hoped she was skilled and experienced enough to handle this job. "Think like a bandit. Money, valuables, weapons, provisions, anything a roving bad of brigands might demand. Make it believable." the man in the suit answered her question quickly and simply, prompting the rugged Welander to ask his. "I'm going to need firearms provided to me, can you accommodate that?" "My men will provide any additional equipment you require once we're done here." was the quick response. Then came the unnatural-looking woman, whose subtly abnormal and sinister appearance intrigued the organizer. She might be one of the keys to intimidating the locals. "You mentioned that if we are not followed, I assume if we are then we take certain liberties to eliminate any tagalongs?" said woman inquired. "Naturally. Nobody can be allowed to trace you to this structure and survive to tell the tale. I suspect that anyone who attempts it will likely be working for the sheriff or the mining company, so you would be obligated to kill them anyway." the man in the suit informed her. At last there came the question asked by the large, muscular woman. It was a question that the man had previously questioned his own superiors on, but had been given the directive to focus only on preventing a massacre or complete ruination of the town. The rest, unfortunately for the townspeople, was pretty wide-open. "So we can do anything to intimidate the townsfolk and maybe do a little bit of damage? Anything at all? Well, aw shucks. I'm excited." the woman began, not waiting for a response before continuing, "The demands are we make something up. We free the town from their pathetic, corporate slimeballs of leadership and maybe something will get better for these people. Or maybe things will just be the same. Or maybe some bigger, stronger, meaner person will move in and own this town." "What sort of change the town will undergo is the concern of people other than us. Your concern is to ensure the town has the need to make that change. My concern is to ensure that there is a town left for that change to take place in. So, in a basic summary, you can use whatever means you want, so long as you do not slaughter the whole town. Kill the defenders, scare the civilians. Simple as that. I shouldn't have to explain further that if things get too out-of-hand, you will wind up as unsatisfied with this task as I will be." the man stated. "So can we... 'ave a little fun with the womenfolk?" one of the other recruits, a rather filthy-looking drifter, cut-in, "Give 'em somethin' more to remember us by?" "As I said, do what you need to do. Just keep the civilian body-count minimal." the man in the suit rolled his eyes, "Now then, if there is nothing else, I believe we need to make sure you are all adequately equipped." He snapped his fingers at one of the guards, who nodded, then motioned for the ten to follow him into a different room. Here they had laid-out a fair number of different local firearms, most of them revolvers or lever-action rifles. However, there were some bolt-action rifles, as well as pump and break-action shotguns. The most modern-looking gun was a somewhat clunky semi-automatic pistol. Though new, all the designs appeared pretty dated compared to modern weaponry like one would see in the Terran Military. The guard beckoned Hyeok to take his pick from the lot, then spoke in reference to the ammunition stacked in the corner. "Don't be worrying about the gunpowder problems they have out there. We use petrol in our bullets instead. World just as good, but without the problems." he explained. The organizer followed the group to the room and eyed them all closely; he was curious how they'd react to local weaponry.

Yes. Alright, everyone has gotten in a first post! Good reads for sure. I have reordered the cast list to be reflect our posting order now. I will get to work on my own post.

The first real appearance of the shadow wolf sent a genuine ripple of fear across every inch of the Mutator's body. It wasn't the size of the wolf that terrified him, nor its canine shape, it's menacing growl or razor sharp teeth. No, it was the fact that the creature had materialized from the shadows, revealing itself to be something whose body was not made of flesh. For all the Mutator's internal arrogance and overconfidence when it came to beings that the gods had formed from the mud of the earth, he was hopeless coward when faced with creatures who defied nature's order. Everything from spirits, to robots, to primordial blobs like Agony, they were not right. They were not something he could defeat with his power... or at least not directly. Fortunately, his power could still be used for indirect purposes. The ladder he was constructing would serve as a makeshift embodiment of that very indirect usefulness, for when the wolf lunged at the Triumvir, he lifted the half-complete object up to try and block the charge. His attempt was a success, at least in the sense that it prevented the wolf from reaching Rodan's right shoulder, which was the more important one for it was his right arm that now held his sword. However, this came at a cost, for while the wolf's open maw would clamp down upon that relatively thin ladder made of bone, it also sunk several of it's teeth right into the left forearm of the man holding that ladder. Rodan let out a pained scream of anguish, as those teeth cut through his skin and chipped into his bone. But he dared not hesitate, for one more movement and the wolf would sever the arm clean off, taking with it half of Rodan's arsenal, not to mention cripple his hopes of escape. So even as the wolf was biting down, he thrust his blade upward, cutting through the snout of a beast just beyond where it was clamped like a vice upon his arm. He pulled the sword back out again, intending to now thrust for the chest. However, the entire confused exchange caused the wolf to let up its grip, and it pulled back from his arm without keeping its teeth dug in. That did not mean that the Mutator was spared further laceration, for the mouth was still closed enough to cut through his skin as it pulled away. The entire affair had been painful for Rodan, and now his arm was bleeding profusely, in addition to the injury causing him to lose much of his use for it. Luckily for him, the wolf did not immediately press its advantage, instead pulling back to relay Rafael's message. "You have far greater concerns than my wolves, I assure you. Weak though you may see my cousin, she has a habit of surrounding herself with beings of power-- the patian king, the warlord, the High Lords of Genesaris. You’re all very much out of your depth. I was told to arrive with a message, and here it is... I would not be standing here without the full consent of the Terrenus government, who has been made very much aware of this organization’s involvement in the kidnapping of foreign royalty. They’re a rather draconian bunch, these Terrans. All fire and brimstone and salt the earth." Though his experience with Rafael was limited to the few times he had observed him at the botched coronation, and his knowledge of the elder vampyre was limited at best, it still was able to identify the speaker as he. He was not sure whether Rafael had actually taken the form of this wolf, or if the wolf was acting as a conduit of the speech, but either way the Carmine Emperor was now addressing him. But for all his ignorance of Rafael and the workings of Genesaris and Orisia, Rodan was familiar enough with the Terran Empire and Odin Haze's Gaianist regime. The subject even spurred a thought in the Mutator's head, as he pressed one of the several rings on his fingers forward slightly, recalling that this ring contained the mind and soul of a former Terran soldier who had made the mistake of trying to restrain Rodan with a bare hand. "If Gabriela is not returned to me immediately so that her child may be born on Orisian soil, and Roen allowed to follow unimpeded, a fury the likes of which you have never seen shall descend upon you. You and all of your conspirators will be erased from the face of this planet." continued the Elder through his conduit. Surely he wasn't implying that the Terrans would be the ones to do this dead? If there was one thing Rodan knew about the Haze crowd, it was that they held a fanatical prejudice against whatever they deemed "unnatural". Surely a vampire from a foreign nation would count as such? Things had been declining in Terrenus politically when the Triumvirate members first set sail for Orisia, but surely things had not changed that much! It was then that Rodan heard another voice far above him. "Strike it! Kill it! Now!" He knew the voice. It was Lunara, the faerie. She was somewhere above him, looking down upon the scene. A brief thought about why the tiny pixie wasn't coming down to help him was quickly pushed aside, making way for the far more savage takeover of violent intent. Rodan lunged at the wolf, even as it was mid-way through the next, and last, phase of the message. "I will give you thirty seconds, just thirty, to comply. But if you truly wish to call my hand--" The bone blade cut through the wolf's neck, severing head from body. Rather than the satisfying plop of the severed body part on the floor, the only sound was a faint wisp as the creature dematerialized and the inky blackness returned to the shadows. But by now, the facility's power had been restored, and the beast had fewer shadows through which to lurk. Now was the chance to escape. "Come up here, quickly! I know where the rest are. Agony. And the queen! The queen is there!" Lunara was urging him to action, but between the now steady blood loss from his arm, the difficulty it would take to focus again, and the omnipresent threat of more wolves moving in on the area, that task was easier said than done. Rodan decided to try the main door, now that the power was back, but found it still unresponsive. Uttering curses, he scrambled back to his unfinished ladder, blood now trailing behind him as he went. He now had to put all he had into trying to finish that ladder, thus he would not split his attention by responding to Lunara, at least not until necessary. That necessity seemed to come when the snarl of that damnable wolf began to echo through the room once again. It now had to form itself near the edge of the room, for the main lights had reduced the shadows significantly. Still, it was there, and it wouldn't be long before it was upon the Mutator again. "I need you to distract this thing!" Rodan called-up to the faerie, hoping she could hear him, "I won't make it up in time before it catches me! Hurry! Please!" Rodan's voice held a trace of panic that Lunara likely had never heard from the man before. He was always so cool and collected. But there was a thing down there that had already wounded him, and it, or another thing just like it, was intending to finish the job. So while Rodan raised his ladder toward the ceiling, finding a low-hanging piece of machinery to brace the ladder against that would allow him close enough access to the way out, he hoped that Lunara could keep that shadow thing off of him for but a few minutes...

Unrelated to the posting order, I mentioned in the post that there were about 10 people present. The extra 6 who aren't player characters are going to be "redshirts" (aka, disposable extras) to provide a little more size to your "bandit gang". I figure these will be open for anyone to take, but I will handle them otherwise. Just to clarify that!

Thread up!

@Afro Punk @Abigail666 @Ichi @Seraphina Jeanne @Bkfootball It had been a bit of a trick to sneak these people into the city, but it had been done. These people were a group of five foreigners, recruited and transported to a derelict warehouse in the once vibrant industrial sector. The economy in Norkotia had been in gradual decline for some years now, with much of the manufacturing being moved out of the city or closed down. It definitely wasn’t the type of place a tour guide would take visitors if they were trying to show off the beauty and rich history of the country. But this was no tour. Their purpose was a grim one. These beings had been recruited for their ability to fight and to kill. So when they all were assembled in the decrepit structure, it was no surprise to find a large map of the industrial sector spread-out on the table, as though this were a war room for generals to gather and talk strategy. But there were no generals, but rather a man in a tan suit, dark tie, and charcoal hat. He lurked in the shadows, pacing back and forth as he waited for his team to assemble. “Good evening.” he greeted them, as their escorts filed back out of the building, leaving just a couple of guards at the door, “Welcome to Stalhberg. You’ll find the official district border with Norkotia City proper about a half-mile east of us. But what is more important is what lies a half-mile north of us.” He pointed at a highlighted area on the map, where several buildings were marked and obstacles were indicated. The map itself was the only thing directly lighted in the dim room, thanks to a fixture that hung from a long chain from the high roof all the way down to just above eye-level. Still, though the light was focused directionally on the map, a couple of these foreign mercenaries would recognize the man in the suit as the same one who had overseen an earlier operation in the countryside surrounding the city. “Here is the last stronghold of Daran Wenig, the ranking executive of BlackBlood Energy Incorporated. It seems Mr. Wenig has gotten it into his head that he is above the law and that he ought to be the one directing affairs of the state, rather than the elected representatives. But local politics is not your concern; your interest in Wenig is strictly monetary. I need him brought back to me, preferably alive and intact. But if his head is all you can manage, then I will accept that too. Wenig is holed-up in an old refinery that belongs to his company. It is relatively small and is no longer active, so don’t go expecting to shoot a drum and blow the whole place; it’s been pretty well cleared-out of explosive materials. What it hasn’t been cleared of is private security soldiers. Wenig has a small army of men defending the place, and he’s repurposed many of the old towers and scaffolding as sniper positions and weapon emplacements.” He pointed at several pins on the map, indicating said emplacements. “Local police have been unable to crack the defenses, but they’ve at least been able to scout the outermost enemy positions. You’ll find they have the main street covered by a rotary gun, here. I’d suggest avoiding that spot. The facility is surrounded by a short wall with a barbed-wire fence atop it, but there are gates on the east and west sides of the compound. We don’t know precisely where Wenig is, but we suspect he’s located in the foreman’s offices.” He stepped back from the table and map, his arms now being placed behind his back as he prepared to finish-off his briefing. “We don’t know what you’ll encounter once you breach the outer defenses, but I’m confident you can handle things once you’re inside. Local police may move in behind you, but they will not be aware of your operation, so try to be out of there before they arrive on the scene. Your mission will be considered complete regardless of whether you or the police capture or kill Wenig. You merely must not allow Wenig to escape under any circumstances. Are we all understood, then?”

I'll leave that up to you guys. We can either go by order of who signed up first, in which case @Abigail666 will go first, or you all can just post when you're available and once everyone has had a chance, we'll just solidify that as the order.

Alright, thread's up!

@Abigail666 @PandaHat @Seraphina Jeanne @LightningBolt They had been given an address, little more. Seeking it out would bring them to a decrepit farmhouse out on the lonely savanna that spanned the great plain between mighty Hell’s Gate and the distant mountains that stood sentinel around Blairville. Right in the midst of this plain was a sizable plateau, which rose more gradually from the lowland in the South, but which starkly dropped off into the the deep depths of Sidereal Lake to the North. Not far from the shores of Garrison Bay, known locally as Garrison Lake despite its connection to the larger rift lake, lie the region known as Norkotia. Officially, Norkotia City was a somewhat larger port city located directly on the bay, and served as the seat of a confederation containing its surrounding city-states. But the limits of this coalition only extended so far, before the political influence of the capital city began to wane and give way to many smaller villages and communities, which operated independently despite their common culture and heritage. These more isolated places, despite having their own mayors and sheriffs, often fell under the direct or indirect control of major landowners, coal or mineral mining companies, or powerful energy conglomerates. That decrepit farmhouse they all now gathered in was but a few miles from a town in such a situation, and one could easily deduce that the massive strip mine visible even from here was the lifeblood of the village. Whether or not they, the small collection of foreigners and transients that had been directed to this place, had taken time to learn this local lore or not, mattered little in the end. The one who had organized this little gathering, by sending out agents to distant cities, towns and even roadside taverns, only desired that they perform a simple task. “Are there any more?” the man who was addressing the assembly inquired, but his guards at the door signalled negative, “Then let us begin.” Dressed in a tan suit with a dark tie and wearing a charcoal-grey hat, the relatively common-looking human looked over the men and women who had gathered in what had once passed as the farmhouse living room. There were a few somewhat more local-looking fellows, but most had the distinct look of foreigners, exactly what he wanted. There were about ten of them in total, but three or four of them caught the man’s eye as the ones likely to become the ringleaders of this little gang, while it lasted. “You have all been summoned here for a specific purpose.” he continued, “I’m certain your recruiters already gave you an idea of what is being asked of you, but I shall attempt to clarify it for your benefit.” He hiked a finger over his shoulder, pointing out the foggy, broken window toward the dusty road that led toward both the town and its neighboring strip mine. “Kohle Creek is your target. The town is run by a corrupt mayor and sheriff, who both owe their position to the nearby mining guild. Your primary task is to kill the sheriff, the mayor, and anyone who attempts to come to their defense. Your actions will likely draw-out private security enforcers from the mines. Kill them too. However, I must emphasize that I do not want a massacre here! The citizens can be roughed-up a little if needed, but avoid killing them unless absolutely necessary.” He eyed the foreigners, gauging their reactions and temperaments as closely as he could, allowing himself a brief pause in speech before he continued. “Once the opposition has been eliminated, you are to intimidate the townspeople, make demands, and possibly cause some superfluous damage to the town to make your point. But do not totally destroy the town or take any of the people hostage. Ideally, I would suggest you make some sort of demand and provide a deadline for them to meet it, then depart. Presuming you are not followed, you will all regroup here to receive further instructions, or payment should we no longer require your services.” At this point he looked directly to the most outlandish of the foreigners, particularly the ones he suspected of being magic users. There were a few that made little effort to hide it, based on their attire. “If you have not already, you will soon learn that magic is significantly hampered here. The locals have learned to live without it, but this also means they more unfamiliar and fearful of it. I encourage those of you who have it, to make liberal use of it. You will find that even small displays will be get you a long way.” the man in the suit appeared near the end of his briefing, “Now then, if any of you have questions, I suggest you make them quickly.”

What...?

It just means someone has to bust down the door.

Ah yes, PETA. People Eating Tasty Animals. I'm sure they'd put in a nice bid for the pheasant!

I'm going to continue what Jaistlyn did earlier and make a reminder of the posting order: Roen Pasion FirePenguin @Dolor Aeternum Grubbistch Tyler King Jaistlyn For everyone's reference.