[C-Class Mission] Rumor Has It

Veruka reached the building of residents of Senator Malcov, her target of the night. With the heavy price tag he carried, she knew this would be no simple task. She began to scale the building effortlessly, as she began her accent to the fourth floor. Turning away from the building, her gaunt expression met the woods that surrounded the capitol as the wind gave the trees life-like movement, which seemed to beckon her towards them. She hoisted herself up once more, her head becoming level with a window. Her hand silently lifted the window and she crawled through. Once inside, she began to map out the room. A smell was wafting through coming from her left, along with the clamor of kitchen utensils. She began to crawl, following the sounds. Another room opened with the end of the first she had entered as she saw the man standing behind a counter immersed in his cooking. As she shifted her weight, the floor creaked beneath her, and their eyes locked on each other. She quickly stood up as he grabbed a kitchen knife and whipped it in her direction. She arched her body to the left and caught the spinning piece of metal with her right hand. With a smirk she hurled it in his direction, however he ducked behind the counter and out of the way. As she began to stalk around the counter a high pitched buzzing sound rang out. Knowing security was now well on its way she cursed at the concealed man and ran towards her entrance window. As she reached it she heard the door break down, and feet first she dove out the window.

The buzzing still rang through her ears as she limped through the forest as she fought for each step, pain erupted through her left leg. Her heels dug into the soft underbrush making it even more of a daunting task. She fell to her knees, now crawling through the brush. A new sound echoed through the woods, a melodic pipe at first, then accompanied by a drum beat. Immediately she remembered the town's gossip of murderous cultists that take residence in these woods, she didn't believe them. However, in this state she knew her best chance was to hide. She crawled into a crevice in the soft forest ground and used the leaves surrounding her
to cover it. As the steady beat and pipe lulled her into a deep sleep as the sounds drew nearer.

Slowly her eyes fluttered open, as she breathed in the deep smell of herbs and smoke. Directly above her lay a hole in what appeared to be the primitive hut she now resided in. What seemed like thousands of scarlet symbols dangled from the top hung on red strings, none of the were recognizable to Veruka. Confusion took over as she slowly raised herself from the makeshift bed she lay upon. She lay opposite of a slit in the tent that she assumed functioned as a door. In the center a fire burned a brilliant crimson, as the dark smoke snaked its way out of the hole in the top. Her bare feet swiveled out the side of the bed, making her realize she was completely naked. Adjacent to the bed was what appeared to be a coat hanger, filled with dark hooded robes. She slid one on, and found her heels positioned at the end of the bed. Rising to her feet she put them on, and slowly walked out the slit of the tent.

A whiff of smoke was caught on the breeze, drifting toward him from one of the huts nearby. The only fire that was lit, actually, as he took a closer look at the thatched roofs of the makeshift shelters, a sight that was far from common this day in age. All of them were small, however, compared to the masses of the parked transports scattered throughout. Perhaps they were only used for ritualistic purposes, then? Certainly, while Pergrande typically had chilly weather, the swamp was far from that, and thus a flame would not be necessary for its more traditional use. A logical conclusion, yes, only further affirmed by the figure he saw step outside the shack. The only one clad in dark robes, perhaps they were there to symbolize the beginning of a rite of some sort.

That was what Leo assumed, until he realized the tall individual had an air of familiarity about them. He couldn't quite place it, seeing no face nor anything other than a set of heels adorned on their feet, but perhaps he was not alone in the venture to eliminate the cultists. A short time ago, he would have welcomed the sudden camaraderie, albeit the person hadn't exactly been all that observant considering their attire, but now it only threw a wrench in his plans. There was no longer the promise of indiscriminate destruction, he would have to be wary, or at least warn them of his intended actions beforehand. What a hassle, but first Leo needed to ensure they wouldn't complicate things further even before his task came to fruition.

He rose from his position, only then paying his state of appearance mind as he ran a hand through his hair, at least attempting to remove the debris from it. Leo then sauntered into the town proper, few people paying him a second glance for indeed his guise was unremarkable in such a crowd. He also had the elf to thank for that, finally able to identify her as he approached, for the majority of the villagers present had cast wary eyes in her direction. An excellent distraction, were she an absent-minded nobody, but unfortunately Veruka was not. A cultist that had an air of importance about him at last moved to confront her, but before he could do so Leo stepped in to intervene, pulling her aside.

"Veruka, now is not the time for such ceremony, have you forgotten even that?" he asked, a loud whisper that could easily be discerned by those surrounding them, a purposeful act on his part. "Come with me, we must wait until the sun is low for such measures." His second sentence was little more than guesswork, cults who devoted themselves to extraplanal beings tended to worship in the stillness of the night, when the higher powers were more likely to entertain their little wishes. Really, it was all nonsense, conjured up by those who had to have a crutch to lean on in their evil acts, foolish and too afraid to admit to their own desires. Yes, he despised those who only could accept their truth under a veneer, a defense that blamed others who had potentially done nothing wrong, nonetheless, and the town was only the latest of a long string of organizations to do so.

The man of somewhat familiarity, now very close to her, seemed to be speaking to her. She analyzed his face, his sharp cheeks and angular jaw, until it fell on her like a bag of bricks. Leo. The man from the bar. Why was he here? Her trust in him was very limited and his offer to come with him seemed to evaporate from her mind as a bigger issue presented itself. A tall man with dark olive skin seemed to be dashing towards her now, with almost a hint of authority in his step. He stopped inches from her face, “Follow me, I'll get you ready for tonight's feast”. He circled around her then turned away, back towards the tent with a somewhat brisk pace. Veruka, hoping for some kind of explanation, followed the man stopping to give an emotionless glance back at Leo.

Inside the tent the smell of herbs welcomed her once again, as the man seemed to be busy with a small bench Veruka did not notice on her first inspection of the room. Turning away he bowed his head to her, in a manner which contrasted his previous behavior in the square.
“Tonight, I am your servant” he spoke respectfully. Veruka, confused as ever, took a step towards the man. “Where am I?” she said, somewhat scared. “In due time all will be explained, but first we must get you ready and presentable for Mother Black”. He swiftly walked out of the tent once again, and Veruka began to entertain the idea that this was all some convoluted dream. Once again she followed the man.

He led her to another hut, this one more hidden, and farther on the outskirts of the small town. Inside the humidity knocked her back, along with the now familiar smell of herbs. The man now bowed before her again, this time holding back a curtain to a second part of the hut. The dark green walls seemed moist, the source of the moisture however was unclear. “My lady” he said as he pulled back the curtain. Inside was a large basin hovering over a smaller fire. Women clad in dark robes surrounded the basin with one, un-hooded, at the front nearest her. “Welcome my darling. Fate has brought you here to us, and fate never makes mistakes. Tonight, we shall honor your presence with a feast, a carnival, and a brilliant dance!” she exclaimed with continuing joy and excitement. Happiness broke out from the otherwise statue women surrounding the basin. “Why?” Veruka asked, once again a hint of concern present in her voice. “Because you are beyond special my darling, now quick! Into the bath, there isn't much time before the Feast and you still have to meet Mother!” she squealed as she began to pull at the robe covering Verukas frail shoulders. The other women flocked her and Veruka, confusedly, obliged and let them usher her into the warmed bath.

The handmaidens and their leader worked shockingly efficiently, as if they had done this countless times before. Soaps, with the similar herbal smell, were rubbed into her skin and brushes peeled off what felt like the top layers of her skin. It was somewhat uncomfortable, but it felt good as she felt like she had not bathed in days. “How many days was I asleep for?” she asked. The handmaidens giggled around her as one of their course voices rose above the jitter “ 5 days” the young women said calmly. She stood out from the group with her striking green eyes, thick black eyebrows, and short rigid cut hair. Her eyes reflected almost pity, as Veruka held her gaze, until she glanced away and continued her work.

What felt like hours had gone buy as the handmaidens worked on her. Before she knew it she was put into a simple black lace dress with a high collar and tulle encompassing the ends. Finally the leader of the group came forward and placed a tiara on her head. It was a deep black with a single red stone placed at the top. “I think you're ready! What do you think girls?” a rustle of eager voices and excited giggles swirled around the hut. “Are you ready to meet Mother Black?” she said, almost bouncing with what seemed to be excitement. “It doesn't really seem like I have much of a choice now” Veruka muttered under her breath, quietly enough that no one could hear. Except for the girl with wicked green eyes leaning against the wall of the hut closely observing. They once again flocked around her and she was pushed from the hut.

Shit, well that didn't work. Obviously, Veruka was a young elf, given how oblivious she was to the situation at hand. Yes, for a moment Leo thought perhaps she had somehow gotten herself entangled with the cultists voluntarily, but bewilderment was evident on her visage. The poor girl, however, she happened to pick the wrong man to listen to. He sighed, watching the servant drag her away for some nefarious purpose, although he couldn't quite pinpoint the reason yet, at least until another villager approached, an older man with greased hair and a toothy grin. "I still don't understand why the Mother won't let us have any fun before the vessels are filled," he spoke haggardly, stealing an eye toward Veruka.

A corner of Leo's mouth twitched in disgust, yet despite his personal revulsion he easily observed the senile nature of the individual before him, how easy he would be to deceive. His right hand moved over his left, swiftly concealing the ring present as he replied. "Yes, well, is there any way you could get me inside so I could see her again?"

The man laughed, a hearty chuckle strangled by his depraved essence. "Oh, me? You must be new around here, first you'll have to garner the attention of one of the Sisters. Nasty hierarchy around here, I wouldn't have stayed but for the call from below." With a wave of his hand the man dismissed Leo, leaving him puzzled, gaze shifted toward the rather mundane albeit muddy dirt of the town. Fucking cults, he never understood the appeal of being a part of one, even as an object of worship. Really, especially as one of those, he didn't particularly possess that large of a superiority complex, or something. Pushing his thoughts aside, Leo had at least gleaned that the so called Mother was the one who headed the sect, now he just had to determine who exactly she was.

At first he was at a loss, having retreated to leaning against a rather innocuous ship as to not draw attention to himself by simply standing out in the middle of the square. People moved to and fro, and it was only then he picked up on the servitude of the men to the women, although how he hadn't seen it before, well, Leo supposed at the time there had been more important matters to attend to. Granted, from a visual perspective it was entirely possible that Veruka was being slaughtered like a lamb right at that instant, but he knew better. That... was an idea, actually. His golden eyes shuttered shut, a deep breath inhaled and exhaled as he forced himself to concentrate. Small clusters of life, from one structure to the next, others passing between. The elf's was easy to identify, yet others were merely a murk of nothingness, shadowed by the crave for bloodshed that twinged in his mind. They were all oblivious to his true purpose, after all, how easy would it be? No, there was no fun in that.

Leo shook his head, glancing around at the premises as he muttered a string of curses. Focus. He couldn't let another person who was so obviously unaware die that night, his sanity wouldn't be able to bear it. There, flickering beneath the muddle of lives was another alike in their quest toward carnage, a presence that sang above the others, although it didn't serve to provoke any fear of his own. The Mother, it had to be. Intently Leo began to make his way toward the unidentified destination, pausing as he crossed paths with the hut in which he had seen Veruka enter. A swift glimpse through the curtains and he saw figures making their way toward the entrance. Perhaps that was a better course of action then simply waltzing on up to the leader of the cult, actually, and thus he retrieved a robe from the building he had first seen the elf exit from, donned it, and joined in on Veruka's procession, barely passing a glance at her new attire.

The party seemed to parade through the town with the people bowing before Verukas presence, then joining the group. The leader of the handmaid's leads the group deeper into the town. The lace dress trails behind leaving upturned leaves in her wake. It was soon obvious the party was proceeding towards the largest hut in the city. As they approached a noticeable dip appeared in the ground as if the group was walking down a hill. The large hut sits in the middle of a giant divot in the ground, making Verukas descent in particular difficult because of her choice in foot wear. The handmaiden pulls back the curtain and gives a courtesy as Veruka, the treatment obviously going to her head, walked somewhat proudly through the door.



The floor was littered with rugs, carpets, and what appeared to be animal skins and in the center, there appeared to be an even deeper divet in the ground. Within it stood a woman wearing an equally elegant dress as her own. She turned as Veruka walked through. The women had high arched brows, with green eyes slightly winged out. Her features seemed to be pulled back giving her a gaunt expression, yet beautiful. Her round lips curled into a smile as she extended her arms towards her “Welcome”.



What seemed like the whole town had gathered into the massive hut, and they all took one knee leaving Veruka and what she assumed was the Mother standing. Her face remained almost expressionless as she addressed the group “My friends tonight, we celebrate the arrival of our esteemed guest. Only fate could have brought her to us and tonight we honor her! Welcome Veruka” cheers rose loudly as the women continued with words Veruka could just barely make out “You don't know how much you truly mean to us”. She extended her right hand “Join me as we feast in your honor!” she practically shouts over the crowd. Veruka walks to the woman and takes her hand.



The feast was more chaotic than Veruka could have expected, as she sat across from the Mother as male servants swirled around the women serving them first, before they could themselves eat on the outskirts of the tent. She struggled making conversation with the women as she seemed genuinely uninterested in the events of the so-called feast. So she settled with chasing a whole frog across her plate, as she made awkward eye contact with the women. Across the hut, the green eyed girl sat alone. She slowly ate from her plate of food keeping her head down. Seeing her current conversation going absolutely nowhere she slowly rose leaving her plate “I'm just going to socialize around!” she forced a smile and quickly walked away.



She sat on the soft rug next to the girl as she ate. “Hi” Veruka says calmly, “I remember you from the bath”. She was met with silence. “Thank you for being honest with me” She offered. At this the girl seemed to come to life a little bit. “It was the least I can do, you deserve some humanity before…” her voice trailed off. Veruka snapped awake. The bath, the dress, the feast, the bowing, the honor. She was much more than a guest of honor. “Before what?” she said the panic obviously rising in her voice. “They plan to kill you and sacrifice you in the pit miss” fear climaxed as Veruka pushed herself away from the girl and up once again. The town seemed occupied by their food and conversation, so her panic as she backed away from the girl wasn't noticed.

His decision to follow the procession had been the right call, apparently, as cultists gradually began to also latch onto the train, all now garbed in black. A gathering of all the residents, then, what an efficient way to slaughter each and every one of them. If Veruka could just get out of his way, that was, and unfortunately based on the way she bathed in the special treatment convincing her was not going to be an easy task. What an idiot, why did he even bother? Leo had took her for a competent if not flamboyant warrior beforehand, but it was evident that she was far too vain for her own good. Either that, or the elf was secretly brilliant and it was all just an act, but he knew not to expect such high marks of others.

The trek ended exactly where he would have thought, within the largest hut of the village and, more specifically, facing the Mother. The woman appeared to be younger than he had initially expected, more slight in appearance as well. Her power had to come from a silver tongue, then, influence grasped and violent nature exerted through others. Leo immediately began to wonder how she had built up her position, running various scenarios through his head before he was disrupted by the fact that everyone around him had begun to kneel, and appropriately followed suit. His gaze was trained on the Mother, however, pondering how exactly her throat would fit within his grasp. He remained silent throughout the cheers, moving toward the outskirts of the large pavilion as his focus was averted to Veruka.

He had to figure out a way to get to her, which would be no small task considering the hierarchy of the cult and that she was currently the center of attention. However, as he picked away at a fish that had been too overcooked for his tastes, Leo noticed the elf - the only non-human in the crowd, actually, besides half of himself - approach a girl nearing the edge of the feast. It was the perfect opportunity, and thus, abandoning his meal, he began to make his way over toward the two. He was no more five meters away when the girl, somewhat surprisingly, at last spelled the truth out to Veruka, and as she turned to leave, the fright evident in her poise, Leo moved to put his hand on her shoulder.

"Next time, when I tell you to come with me, you follow," he muttered, words almost caught in a growl. His voice was lowered further as he continued. "Pergrandian authorities want this town wiped off the map, and I've decided to do them a favor. I'd suggest you get the hell out before you're either caught in the collateral or sacrificed to some non-existent god." Before he could add anything else, however, Leo glanced over to see the Mother approaching both of them. Calculating that it probably was not custom for a man to be associating with a vessel, he appropriately ducked into the shadows, hoping his message had been made loud and clear, metaphorically speaking.

The events of the last twenty or so seconds were to say the least overwhelming. So he planned to destroy the town. Interesting. There was indeed only one of him and about three hundred or so of these murderous towns folk. What a poor fool she thought to herself as she brushed off her dress as the Mother walked nearer. “You cant let them taint you like that!” She scolded as she assisted in brushing what seemed to be nothing off of the lace dress. “So sorry!” Veruka said now wise to this situation. “It won't happen again, I promise!”

The feast continued, and throughout its entirety Veruka grappled with the possibilities. She could run, but navigating the woods in the dark seemed like a definite way to get recaptured. Leo did say to get out, but why would she oblige? He seems to be the one who's going to need the most help given the circumstances. One thing was for certain, if she was to survive the night she must be smart about it. At that moment she decided to help Leo in his suicide mission of destroying the cult, as it seemed to be the only promising choice.

Now that she had abandoned the concept of fleeing, she panned the room searching for Leo, while sizing up her soon to be opponents. Most of them looked relatively unathletic, and unarmed. Leo seemed to be nowhere in sight and while she was mid search, a group of somewhat burly men slipped through the tent wheeling in large drums, almost tribal in nature. Within a couple of minutes, the entire hut was encompassed by these drums. Seeing this, the Mother rose from her spot next to Veruka. “Now”, her voice boomed “let the carnival commence!” With this, the drums began to beat in a similar rhythm Veruka remembered from the woods. “What is this?” she asked the Mother who seemed to be soaking up the partying that had exploded. She turned to her “Pure ecstasy!” she exclaimed a wicked smile spread across her face. This was the most expression the women had shown thus far.

Amidst the mess the carnival had summoned, large kegs had been wheeled into the massive tent, and many of the townspeople began to indulge in the deep amber liquid which poured from them. Good, she thought drunks are easier to kill. She made her way deeper into the center of the tent as the intoxicated bodies around her moved as one. Out of the crowd she could make out a single figure, the man who had led her to the bathe house. What better source of information than the scared man? She slowly made her way towards him who stood motionless in the middle of the group, somewhat motionless besides the constant consumption of the drink in his left hand. Wordlessly, she approached him, tracing her hand across his shoulders until she made direct eye contact. The weasel of a man seemed to be pained by her gaze and struggled to maintain it. “Would you mind taking me back to my room, I need to switch shoes for this kind of partying”. The idiot somehow fell for the blatant lie and bowed his head, leading her out of the tent without anyone noticing. Into the night they walked.

They walked without words, just the sounds of the dirt beneath them. He, once again, pulled back the curtain and bowed allowing her inside first. Once inside she turned facing him as she entered behind him. She saw her purse and other belongings sitting at the end of the bed, something she hadn't noticed before. This gave her confidence, making her somewhat bold. She walked to the bed and sat on the side of it, pulling out one of her knives and fiddling with it in her hands, as she began to look at her reflection in its spotless blade. “It's time for you” she pointed the knife at him “ "to explain to me what the hell is going on here”. The man, looking terrified, turned and began to run. Veruka let out a giggle as she leaped from the bed and on top of him before he could even make it out of the tent. She stabbed the knife through the collar of the robe, pinning him into the soft dirt. She slapped him across the face “Start talking”. Just like that, the weasel became a canary. “They mean to sacrifice you to the great below so we can be graced by their tremendous powers! The greats demand a sacrifice every month so we can maintain our power and safety! I'm so sorry! I just do what they tell me to dont hurt me!” He squealed as Veruka sat on top of him with her hand on the knife. “When are they going to try and kill me?” she spat. “In the forest at the last hours of the dance” he whispered, flinching away from her as she got off of him and grabbed 2 of the robes from the hanger. She proceeded to pull out the knife, allow the man to get up, then used the robes to bind his feet and hands together, cutting a piece of excess for his mouth. It seemed like he was praying, looking down at the ground muttering words she couldn't make out. Now seeing him all tied up, she grabbed his cheeks in her hands, shaking his head back and forth. “Oh you poor little baby! It's time to go to sleep now!” she placed a kiss on his cheek, took a step back, and extended her right leg, cracking it across the side of his head. He fell to the ground, unconscious. She pulled him under the makeshift bed, and surveyed the room making sure nothing looked suspicious. She took both her knives and concealed them in her dress, then left through the slit in the tent to return to the carnival.

Leo sighed. At that point, she was going to have to survive on her own. At least he had warned her, yes, but the same logic had applied to his other mishap, hadn't it? Why couldn't people just listen for once in their lives, instead of getting in his way? Frustrated, he sulked away from Veruka and the Mother, at least his cover wasn't blown quite yet. It was time to move onto his more important observations then, plotting what exactly was the best way to eliminate the cultists. Most seemed untrained for combat, a lack of weapons on their persons and physique alike told him that, but there was always the potential for a large concentration of spellcasters. No, mages typically didn't flock to such sects, but it was the Mother who concerned him the most. If anyone were to possess a magical aptitude, it would be her.

The hut also wasn't the most ideal place to launch an assault, while the villagers were highly concentrated and confined that meant he would be trapped with him. In case things did go south, that was not something Leo wanted to have to account for. Granted, it would be easy to collapse the roof upon the entire populace, but by the looks of it that wouldn't do a terribly large amount of damage, and thus the consequences outweighed the benefits. If only he could figure out when exactly Veruka was going to be sacrificed, undoubtedly that would be when the cult was most distracted, not to mention condensed. Unfortunately, she had been swept back up into the revel of the event, and as Leo had predicted it was entirely unacceptable for him to approach. What a pain in the ass.

There was at least one unforeseen benefit to waiting, though, and that much became evident as several men carried in drums and, eventually, kegs of alcohol. Having lost sight of Veruka through the crowd and, more importantly, distracted by the prospect of ale, he meandered over toward a cask that was unoccupied by any of the townsfolk at the moment. Picking it up in one arm he began to drink straight from it, only stealing a few glances at the cultists around him to find that most of them were already reaching the stage of drunken stupor. Leo was slightly jealous of their ability to get intoxicated so quickly, but then again that would only simplify his task further, he supposed. Really, the only people out of the cult who appeared to be capable of putting up a fight were a few of the more burly servants and the Mother herself, the rest seemed to be useless baggage in the grand scheme of things, perhaps drawn to the town by the promise of power without even bothering to work for it.

Satisfied with his intake of substance for the moment, Leo wiped the corners of his mouth and decided to set out once more to try to get a better lay of the village itself. Obviously, the gathering space he was currently in would be one that would be first to go, but as far as he was concerned the ships could be scavenged by others in the future, technology was not as easily tainted by dark magic. At least, that was what a part of him rationalized, the other insisted that no shortcuts be taken, every hint of civilization be brought to ruin. It was only after stepping outside the tent that he registered the darkened sky, a surefire sign that whatever ritual was going to take place was swiftly approaching. The shadows did not hinder his sight in the slightest however, and as he looked out into the square Leo could not help but sigh, shaking his head in disapproval. There was Veruka, walking unguarded back toward the direction of the carnival nonetheless. She hadn't heeded a single word of his, then, how disappointing.

It would not take a terribly long period of time to confront her again, however, and thus, not for the first time that night, he headed in her direction. This time, however, if she attempted to dodge his attempt at conversation he would not be so kind as to just let her waltz away. "You're unguarded, why haven't you fled by now?" Leo asked, although it was more so a scolding than a question.