Traveling to Salamandastron

[Esme]

Esme stopped on the edge of the River Moss and closed her eyes as the wind whirled around her. She listened to the birds singing in the trees, and couldn't resist joining them in their songs.

'O, the lark once said to me,
I do love to be free!
With the wind beneath my wings,
And the sun above me there,
I do so love to be free!

The owl once said to me,
I do love the moon,
With the night so dark,
And the stars so bright,
I do so love the moon!

The blue tit once said to me,
I do love my flowers,
With their colors so bright,
And their seeds so ripe,
I do so love my flowers!

But I am an otter, Sir,
And I love none of these.
Give me a Holt,
And a family close,
And there is what I love!'

Unable to stop herself, she did a happy little jig on the bank before leaving her things on the side of the river and diving straight in, sliding smoothly under the water, with the only sign of her presence the things she had left behind.

[unknownsoldier]

Truslo was enjoying Esme's singing while getting ready to start a cooking fire. He gathered up some kindling and put it in a circular pile of rocks he made. He then looked into his pack for his flint and tinder.

"Hmm...what to make for this fine day of traveling?" Truslo said to himself.

Then he got a idea and he took out of his poutch a small bag and got some bread.

[Esme]

Esme surfaced, grinning, and swam over to the bank.

'Here, mate, found this fish down there!' She placed a grayling on the bank next to her things. 'Do ye reckon that'll be-'

She fell silent when she heard rustling in the bushes. Instantly, she was out of the water with her bow in paw and an arrow on the string, trained on the still moving bushes.

'Whatever ye are, come out here where we can see ye. If'n ye don't, I'll just fill ye with arrows.' She meant it, too. Her eyes had gone hard and cold, her body not tense, but aware of everything around them.

[unknownsoldier]

"A grayling, well that would be-"

He was interrupted by Esme's threat "Whatever ye are, come out here where we can see ye. If'n ye don't, I'll just fill ye with arrows."

Truslo was surprised by the threat and dropped whatever he was holding in his paws, which were his spice pouch and bread.

"Is something wrong Esme?" he asked worriedly while untying his sling slowly.

[Esme]

Esme kept her arrow trained on the bushes, not bothering to answer as somebeast behind them threw its paws up. A moment later, a rat wearing rags and not much else was pushed out of the foliage.

She narrowed her eyes in disgust, and shot the arrow at the base of the bush, where she could just see a paw beneath it. A pained yowl filled the air as she quickly nocked her next arrow on her string and trained it on the rat that had been pushed into view.

'What do ye want? Speak up, or yore dead anyway!'

[unknownsoldier]

After getting no reply back, Truslo got more worried and tried to work faster.

"Come on you stupid-finally."

He had finally gotten his sling untied. "I really need to remember to not tie it so much."

He heard the yowl of pain. "Not good." After saying that, he quickly loaded a stone into the sling.

[Esme]

The rat held his hands up, eyes frantic. 'Wes only wanted to tell yes somethin, I swears it!'

Esme kept her gaze firmly on him. 'So ye felt th'need to sneak up on us? No, twasn't me ye were after-ye were goin' after Truslo.' She strode up to the rat, drawing her bow a little further, and pressed it against his nose.

'Talk. Now.'

'We-wes knows where t'go t'find yore sisters!'

[unknownsoldier]

Truslo now could hear the rat talking.

"One rat? No....he keeps talking as if hes not alone."

He then heard Esme's threat "Talk. Now."

"Not good. So very not good." he said to himself.

He knew this could escalate very badly, and after hearing the rat say something about Esme's sisters, he knew it was a great possibility. He got up slowly and made his way over to where the bank is.

[Esme]

Esme saw Truslo, and nodded to him. 'There's another in th'bushes, mate. He has an arrow through his footpaw, but don't help'im out just yet.'

She returned her gaze to the rat, recognizing him as one she'd interrogated before. 'I should've known ye'd try sellin' out yore own kind, Sniffler. Ye really haven't changed, have ye? Th'last three times no'painful enough for ye?'

'No, nos! We haves the invormasion that youse wanted, I swears it!' True to his name, Sniffler sniffled loudly with nerves, knowing full well that she meant every word she said.

[unknownsoldier]

Truslo could tell she meant every word. He had to think of some way to help. Though, she did indeed have the right to question them, he hoped Esme would not stoop to their level. Maybe-no, that couldn't work, but maybe it could?

"I say Sniffler, you better just say what information you have now. Esme, don't kill him, even if he is a rat, whatever information he may have can be helpful." Truslo said calmly, and is hoping Esme doesn't do anything rash.

[DanceMastah]

Deathfang was hiding in a large, concealing oak tree above their heads. He saw what was going on below. "This should be intrestin'....Might as well sen' down a message...." He quickly and silently ripped a thin branch off of the tree and sharpened the tip to make a crude arrow(he saved his good, iron tipped ones for fighting and sniping). Deathfang quickly cut slots in it and inserted feathers in.
He then scrawled a message saying "I'm watching you....Deathfang" and tied it to the crude arrow. Deathfang aimed it down straight at Sniffler's back, aiming to kill the rat for effect. He was whispering to himself, "One, two, THREE!", and let the arrow fly....

[Sigurd]

The watcher did not know he was being watched. If he did, he wouldn't have made such as awfully loud display with the branch-arrow (which by the way, should have been utterly useless without feathers or anything to balance it, or something along those lines). Three arrows embedded themselves inches from his head, as a voice barked out. "Och, laddie, Ah' suggest putten' doon tha' boo' before yon' gets hurt, ye ken! If'n yeh' refuse, Rufus has tha' orda's ta' put the next 'un 'twixt yon' eyes!"

Should the cat have looked up, he would have seen nothing. That was because somewhere above him, Rufus, a squirrel, perched on a branch, garbed in his ghille suit, and completely invisible to the naked eye. He had a bow out, arrow notched, and aimed at Deathfang's head.

--

Meanwhile, below, dark figures surrounded the two travelers and their prisoners. There were about five of them, that you could see. Their species were undetermined because of the heavy white and black winter ghille suits they wore, but the leader spoke out with a distinct accent, "Now, ye' lass an' lad, a' suggest yeh' back oop' from yon' rats, fer they are enemies of yon' goodbeasts, an' now are priosners of tha' Mossguard!" he said, leaning on his weapon. While his troops carried long javelins, his weapon was shorter, and sharper, a sword of some kind, but it was too hard to tell. For those who had heard the tales of the Mossguard, this individual was known as the Mountain Ghost, a beast that inspired fear upon its unfortunate victims.

OOC: Hope I'm not interfering. Thought i'd spice it up a little.

[Esme]

Esme lowered her bow with a huff, knowing the Mossguard when she heard them. 'Yore prisoners? It was me that put an arrow in that one's footpaw t'pin him in one place! And besides... they know where my sisters are.'

Striding towards Sniffler, she had just pulled some rope out of her backpack when an arrow struck him straight between the shoulder blades. He fell in front of her, and she quickly snatched the message from the arrow and read it before snarling.

'DEATHFANG!!! If I get my paws on you, I'll take your other eye for this!!!'

[DanceMastah]

Taking a glance upward, Deathfang could dimly make out the form of a squirrel and see the arrow being aimed at his head. With a speed born of panic he jumped to the nearest tree branch and quickly took out his bow and aimed it at Rufus's head.

OOC: I want to make DF turn good later by the way, so please don't seriously injure him. Although you might be interfering.

[unknownsoldier]

Truslo had trouble trying to keep up with what just happened. First, he he saw Sniffler take a arrow to his shoulder blade from behind, then he heard someone calling themselves the Moss-something. So many things happening at once, he couldn't take it, so he did the natural thing when hes scared. Truslo curled up into a ball and stayed there.

[DanceMastah]

Deathfang knew he was in a sticky situation. Taking one of his poison vials, he threw it at Rufus and covered himself with the cloak, silently vanishing into the treetops....

[Sigurd]

Rufus easily smacked the vial away and fired an arrow at the cat's left leg's tendon, a wound shot. No other beast in the Guard had his eyes, and he wasn't about to lose some half-wit cat with a cape. If the fall killed him, so be it, but he'd let fate decide that.

--

"Be' that' as et' may, we're in 'mah' territory, lassie, en'-" then the arrow struck the rat. Damn cat, probably wasn't even aiming; it must have been a lucky shot with that un-fletched stick. It actually would have been more accurate a weapon as a javelin. "Och, en' that's why, lassie!" he sighed. "Mossguard, we have ah' criminal on tha' loose!" he roared, and they seemingly vanished, no doubt off to seal Deathfang in the perimeter.

OOC: Fletchings are actually need for the arrows stability.