Willem’s arms drop away from Tamrissa as Fei enters the amulet, feeling the cold melt away from her skin. He stands slowly, looking down at her with an almost saddened expression loosening his usual smug passiveness.

“Perhaps that and that alone will work in our favor,” he mumbles a reply to Fei in his mind.

His eyes dart up suddenly and his fingertips come up to push at his temples, the flare of his eyes brightening.

In the darkness ahead of them, a misty presence makes itself known with the pale smoky glow of the supernatural. Wispy ribbons of the ghosts blast past them, flickering by in frighteningly fast slashes that burn the air with shockingly freezing temperatures. Once the mass has passed, they turn again as if they would strike. Yet, their long ribbon-like forms separate into individuals, the hollow-eyed gaunt features wavering over bodies made of tapering limbs and torso. They circle around the small group in silence, bodies collapsing into trees and appearing whole on the other sides. When in a circular position, they freeze, wispy limbs moving in an unfelt breeze.

Mooor Lote…Agarrr Gurrrtha…, one howls pitfully, speaking as though it struggles with the sidhe language. Bragollach Firimar…Huiva….Dhaeraow!

“Valya!!” Willem scowls at the faint spirit. “Valya vanwa sen!!”

“What are they saying?!” Tam stands finally, hand resting over the amulet around her neck.

He ignores her and the spirits do not retreat from his commanding tone. In fact, they grow closer, faces never changing but the temperature of the air dropping fiercely. The crickets go deathly silent, not a branch or blade of grass stirs.

“Valya,” the tall sidhe tries again, taking one hand away from his temples to point a circle at the enclosing frights. “Valya van-“

With his words, a thunderous sound scrapes through the forest around them. It sounds as though a giant wooden door has closed. If one would look up it would seem as if the trees have bent over beneath a sudden weight, trapping them even more with their large trunks serving as bars. Through it all, the spirits remain steady, not fleeing or attacking.

Shhhhaaa-toom. Shhhhaaa-toom.

The leaves around them suddenly give a long rustle and then are silenced by a loud cracking boom. Again. Once more. And again.

“He warns us,” his voice says with distaste between the ear-shattering pounding, his hand going to the robe over his lithe figure. “It would be best if we ran, but it is very unlikely that we will make it to the tree camps without some attack. Tamrissa, stay behind me…and have the bounty hunters flank us. Unwelcome or not, they shall win my approval if they keep you and themselves in tact during this.”

The druidic sorceress sneaks a small glance at Damien and Matthias, knowing they have heard and wanting to see if their reaction will be indignant or passive. As for her, she knows she can defend herself well enough and does not press the plan to have them defend her.

Willem pulls the robe over his head, the heavily embroidered saffron of his wrapped tunic now visible along with the leather of his boots reaching to his mid-thigh with only a small patch of the brown trousers beneath showing. The robe is tossed carelessly aside and he pulls a dagger and a rapier from his belt. He gives a disapproving glance to Damien’s choice of weapon…either that or his own mind has found some of the hunter’s thoughts. But without speaking, he turns slowly to face an unmoving haunt. His voice becomes tour guide like again.

“If my knowledge of this forest does not fail me, the sound-“ the noise cuts him off perfectly. “The sound is that of Mahkah…the guardian of the cave portal. He is active now because of the danger present. The danger we have caught the attention of.”

The cracks begin to shakes the ground now, chips of bark and loose leaves drifting down from above.

“It is almost like a warning for all creatures to scatter before he arrives,” he gives his thats-the-way-it-is shrug and remarks. “He is a very fair being, if a tad moody.”

“This gets better and better,” Tamrissa mutters, her own sword in hand and ready.

“Oh yes, and I believe it will continue to do so,” their guide nods over his shoulder. “Valya.”

The spirits in front of him drift back as he presses forward, his invocation apparently working more effectively now. He jogs down the path quickly, eyes on the surrounding trees. His dagger hand waves them on.
He is not but ten feet in front of them before he stops dead in his tracks once again.

A shrieking animates the darkness beyond the path and five more of the same terrible sounds answer from all sides. They attack together, horribly disfigured diseased things with murky white eyes and rows of razor teeth. Running like wolves to an injured deer, with their extremely hunched spines extending and collapsing almost in half as they hit ground between loping leaps. What is frightening is that they look almost humanoid in form, but for the long claws that serve as feet and the wrinkled, mottled gray skin that covers their bony skeletons. Spider silk fine wisps of black hair hang over the disgustingly pale faces with shrunken noses and lips pulled back from gray-green gums and teeth. Each movement swings the hair back from their hideousness. When they get close enough they leap with a shrill cry, sunken chests guarded by heavy metal plates and skinny throats protected by gorgets. Sharp talons come down rapidly at their targets, and jaws open wide to begin ripping at flesh.
Ten have found them and by the sounds coming all around, more are on their way…


((OOC: Some notes on these creatures…the metal plate guarding their chests and the gorget on the neck must be penetrated or removed to get to their vital parts, which are the only two striking points to get an instant kill…otherwise they fight even when they are without limbs, sight, etc.
The metal used to make this armor is paper thin and pitch black, but it is stronger than steel. So, the best way to do this would be to find a way around the armor.
They are very agile and can easily dodge a messy strike, so be precise.
Fire melts skin, but does not deter them.
Magic is quite useless as they have anti-magic shields cast on them.
If you are scratched, the flesh around the wound turns gray almost immediately and festers. If you are bit, you run chance of ending up looking like one of them in but an hour if an antidote is not administered. Immortal or mortal, vampire or alive.

Again, sorry for the extremely long delay…..))