The mist had been a trouble all day. H'tes had merely been trying to wander off towards the next town, but instead he accidentally found himself here in the mists. He could hardly see, and there was not a soul around to hear him. He generally liked being separated from others, but to be lost and alone for hours was not what he wanted. He kept going through the mist, hoping he would eventually get lucky and just find his way out.
But that was not the case. He seemed to remain wondering in the Endless mist until the night had come. He continued to go on, tired, hungry, and in solitude. "It be just perfect if on top of this I ran into a Vampire," he said, almost like he was trying to joke with himself, but it only succeeded in suddenly freaking him out as he walked on.
He stopped when the fog began to clear. Hope seemed to come to his face a little. Could this be a way out? Well, the answer was no. It was not a way out. All it was was an even darker, creepier swamp. Not that creepy freaked H'tes out. Truth be told, he liked creepy, dark atmospheres just fine, but it did take away his hopes of escaping for a while yet again. He tried to keep on through, but the swamp was even worse. It just kept going, and sometimes he would trip in it.
He eventually used the trees, trying to jump from tree to tree as a means to escape the waters. It was easy while the trees where mostly close enough to jump from branch to branch to, but eventually the branches got farther and farther from each other. Then, he tried to jump out to one of them and fell, landing into the swampy waters below.
With some pain taken from the fall, he got out of the water. This forest seemed endless in all the mist and shadow that surrounded him. He felt a sense of dread. How long would it take to get out of here? But, then a sense of fear. "And what if someone I don't want to meet finds me first?" he said out loud. Bandits, thieves.... vampires. He shivered at the last thought.
"Why is it I pick now to start freaking myself out?" he asked only to himself. Sitting back, he decided he'd need to take a rest before trying to continue in this hopeless swamp. This had been a long walk, and he was aching quite a bit. If anyone wanted to attack him now, they wouldn't get much resistance. He knew that himself, and dreaded it. He could only hope for the best, which also happened to be the worst: That nobody was around, either to help or to injure him.
After about thirteen minutes of sitting there, he realized he was not likely to get up again without some sleep, and began to hum to himself. He couldn't remember where he had picked up the tune of his hum from, but he usually hummed himself to sleep with this. The hum was oddly dark, like something you would expect to hear in a play for when the villain arrived as his plan is succeeding. But still, it did calm him down to listen to it, as he slowly began to close his eyes and fall into sleep.

OOC: Dagon, please request that your second post be removed. Thank you! I hope that you don't mind me coming, Enyar!

IC:

He had been here once before- long ago, when he had been delirious and affected by an aching hunger that went beyond the pale of the natural. A disease, supposedly. Geis had never known of such a disease- one that attacked the mind rather than the body but had nonetheless accepted it as the gospel truth, becoming a little wiser and a little sadder as he learned of such things. There were dangers in these southern lands, dangers that froze solid on the great journey betwixt the land of Calaring where the sun would never set and these lands where it forever would. Where water was not covered by solid ice and where white was a color of the abnormal and the odd. He had ignored these dark woods and marshy lands for the lupine still did not know what it was that attacked his mind- the food, the air, the creatures? But he was back now for he had no choice. He had scoured the land outside this place and the land had not answered.

So it went that Geis, loremaster and heir to a clan whose name he no longer wore but told others he did, returned to the swamp. Fetid, foul smells assaulted him and the heat clung like some voracious parasite whose appetite could never be sated no matter how much he panted and sweltered. He had brought his own food from the guild but it had quickly rotted and gone to nothing- the meat had gone bad, the bread had started growing mold and the water- well there were eggs in the water now. He had chucked the rotten bag and headed out on his own, horribly aware that flies of all stripes and sorts were trying to assault him- get past his thick (horribly thick!) layer of fur so that they might feast on his flesh. They buzzed around his eyes, around his head- around everywhere. And despite his solemn assurances not to hurt them if they did not hurt him he was forced more often than not to slay the pitiful creatures or run. He almost wished he could dive into the deep and inviting waters.

But, as if answering his thoughts, eyes stared back out of the water. Eyes whose mouths were lined with sharp, fanged teeth. The lupine squelched the urge, and instead tried to concentrate on the task that had brought him here to this foul place where no Calaring Lupine would ever find themselves had they been in their right mind. Which he wasn't altogether sure he -was- in. To search for an ice elemental in this sweltering locale seemed beyond ridiculous. But he would not- he dared not- search for the services a necromancer that might be able to bridge the gap that separated the living and the dead. For in his heart, Geis did not truly believe that his friend, protector and companion had died. For another, he loathed dark mages of all sorts. To fiddle with the will of the living was one thing but to raise the dead? The loremaster growled. Unforgivable!

It was then he heard some faraway humming. Intrigued and not a little hopeful he started to walk in the direction of the tune. It was about time that he found some thinking creatures- furheads or not!- that might be able to help him with his quest!

OOC: That's fine. And Dagon (who I know in real life) says he will when he can.... he was kind of tired when he did that... Also, ignore his post like it didn't happen for now.

IC: Just as H'tes was beginning to fall into blissful sleep, he heard something. It was feint, like a few steps in the night, but it was enough to make him sit back up. He looked around, into the shadows and mist that were all in this forest. Visibility was near impossible, since the mesh of the swamps natural darkness and the darkness of night created a blanket of pitch black.
Despite that, he squinted into the misty darkness around him. "H... Hello?" he said, hesitating for a moment. His imagination was creating far too many images of what it could be, not one of them a particularly happy image to think of. Everything from Vampires to part demon hating humans were what he feared was coming at him.
He stood up slowly, grabbing his staff and holding it at the ready. Although, once he thought about it, it would hardly be a good weapon if this was an attacker. At the most he'd get a lucky shot and a chance to run away. It also was not helping that he was freaking himself out with an imagination running wild with monsters about to rip him to shreds.
He had to breath for a moment, trying to calm himself down. Once he did, he tried to speak out again. "Who's there? Show yourself!" he said, with a bit more courage in him. He was starting to calm down and realize that it could actually be someone more helpful, such as someone who knows the way out of here. He relaxed his guard a little bit now, trying to look less hostile if it was someone helpful, but still was ready if an attack occurred. "As long as you show no hostilities to me, I won't harm you." He hoped his words sounded honest, because they were, but H'tes was never really good at sounding trustworthy.

It was an unfortunate set of circumstances that had lead Geis the snow-white lupine to becoming Geis the near-pitch black and definitely mud-splattered lupine. Most of it had involved a giant reptilian creature that he was vaguely aware was called a 'crocodile' (or perhaps an alligator) and fleeing from it. The powers that be had abstained from mentioning this particular, though pertinent detail, due to the fact that he had only recently become a mud-stained, pitch blank lupine that had trouble seeing or hearing anything. It was also why his toes went squish-squish-squish when he walked through the deceptively lush swamp. He made a lot of noise in such a fashion. It was rather irritating. There wasn't a chance in heck that'd he manage to re-discover that humming note or even surprise some surpassingly foolish, but edible, mammal.

Geis was actually quite surprised when he stumbled into a small, relatively dry clearing of sorts. And the hummer. For a moment he just stared, dripping mud everywhere, his nose blocked by the awful stench the mud exuded and his eyes at least partially clouded. He thought he could make out... no, was it? A furhead? He rubbed his eyes and then thought better of it when the mud reminded him- quite vigorously- that it was still present and that its presence would do more harm than good. Like most intelligent creatures receiving this novel experience he stopped rather quickly and persevered at something he was quite a bit better at: observing.

Pale blue eyes that seemed to be expecting something. Backtracking, the lupine loremaster (Ha! If ever there was a title that had been undeserved it was that one!) realized that he had probably been making enough noise to wake the dead and that the furhead had probably called him several times. Not that he could hear, what with his ears clogged. Digging one clawed finger irritably into one of the ears in question he tried to grapple with the mud- to greater or lesser success. Hoping that the furhead spoke common- not that it wasn't unlikely to discover someone around these parts unfamiliar with the dialect spoken by the majority of this continent's inhabitants- he tried to say something. Out croaked mud and hacking and coughing. When the fit subsided the lupine tried again.

"I apologize... can't..." more coughing, "hear anything. Right now."

As H'tes had been calling out for a while, something seemed to appear. It was hard to make out. It was taller then him, but that was not hard to be. As he adjusted to the dark back ground, he could make out it's basic shape. And then, he was afraid of that basic shape. It was a wolf-like creature, and appeared to be pitch black, from what H'tes could see, which was only just enough to tell out it's black image and red eyes. H'tes held his staff steady, trying to not show fear.
Then, he saw the creature look back at him. Those red eyes did not look as though they were out hunting. Hell, if it was hunting him, it wouldn't have shown itself like this. Then, H'tes heard the creature speak.
So, it couldn't hear him, but why? He relaxed a bit. The creature did not appear to be out to harm him, and appeared to be intelligent, and polite. He relaxed his guard a bit. "It's alright," he said. Then he looked down. "It can't hear you, it just said that," he said to himself, berating himself for not listening.
H'tes was not sure how to treat the creature. On one hand, this could be some trick to lower his guard. H'tes always thought about that one hand, because it always felt likely. Those who intend to hurt others are usually the ones to find those others first. But, on the other hand, this could indeed be someone who can help him out of this swamp. And that might be worth a momentary lapse in guard. He decided to hand out the benefit of a doubt on this one. He was ready to leave this swamp, as quickly as possible, and he wouldn't be able to do that without some help.

OOC: I apologize for the bad writing. >_<

IC:

His fingers still digging into his ears like brainworms of faraway, exotic lands (Geis had heard of them, though he had not yet the mischance of meeting their esteemed presence that was apparently good in certain stews, alcohols and medicines but rather bad for the head and thinking and thought and all that jazz) finally managed to dislodge a chunk of mud. Or what he hoped was a chunk of mud. In any case, it was through this rather unassuming method that he managed to start hearing things again. Rather softly, mind you, but it was a vast improvement over his previous state.

The fur-head seemed to be talking to him again and Geis narrowed his eyes in concentration. The loremaster wasn't quite learned enough to know how to read lips (especially the expressive and rather ugly looking lips of furheads!) but he found that it helped him concentrate on the words that the speakers were speaking when he did so. It felt like something he had picked up from a certain elven fighter/ranger/tracker person. He wondered, briefly, if she had found what she was looking for. His eyes narrowed further as he managed to make out the words in the jumble of other noises he seemed to sense.

"...can't hear-"

Geis looked at the furhead with deep concern and something vaguely approaching anguish. The anguish, of course, had nothing to do with Geis' current dilemma and everything to do with helping the poor furhead as was the duty of loremaster learning about a new affliction so that the Bones could tell his tale and bring news to the clan.

Right. That was probably it. It had nothing to do with the fact that Geis' quest to find Aquis was looking more and more forlorn.

Had the poor thing hurt his head somehow? He was vaguely aware of the fact that those who could not hear (in the lands of the North they would have been left to the ice) did not go around saying that unless it was a recent event and was thus obliged to believe that the fur-head in front of him was busy repeating what Geis had just said. Wasn't there a disease that forced certain persons to endlessly repeat what others said? Echo, or something of a like name? Geis couldn't be certain though, he might have merely misinterpreted. Yeah, that was probably it.

"You have Echo?" He asked politely, hoping that the furhead understood what he was talking about.

Chris was watching the wolf as it appeared to be cleaning itself. So, it was just muddy from the swamp. That was simple and understandable, but also made him realize that if the creature was this dirty, he might not know the area as well as someone who could navigate back out.
The creature spoke to him again, asking if he had Echo. What would that mean? Perhaps it was able to make out H'tes saying something it had said. He began to open his mouth to answer, then closed it and simply shook his head to imply 'no'. Trying to communicate was foolish when the wolf could only partially hear him for now. Therefore, he would wait for the wolf to be able to hear him properly before trying to communicate.
While he waited, he was thinking. 'Well, if it doesn't live around hear, why is it out here? I mean, it can't be heading off to the next town or anything. Most human settlements would probably mistake him for a beast like me. Maybe he's on some kind of mission. But what kind of mission. Perhaps he is out here to find some gullible prey to bring back to the back. Or, perhaps I should stop thinking that badly about some possible help out of here. I'll just hope that his politeness is not some kind of act. And if I am really lucky, he'll help me out of this place, in a way that does not lead to some dinner for a pack of talking wolves.'
He leaned back onto a tree as he waited for the creature to clean out it's ears a little more so they could engage in an actual conversation rather then it trying to guess what he was saying.

He watched the fur-head shake its fur covered head to and fro and racked his brain for an explanation. He had seen this particular curiosity before but where... in his mind's eye he found a conversation, the selfsame shaking of the head and latched onto it. He had been asking information on Aquis and- ah. Ahhhh. For a moment, the weight of his travels, of his hopes and desires descended upon him and he felt the burden of being loremaster take its toll. The moment passed. So the fur-head did not have Echo. Or maybe it just didn't know what Echo was- Geis wasn't entirely sure if echo was a phenomena or a disease- his brain was rather muddled at the moment, it probably had something to do with the fact that he was a rather muddled lupine (at the moment, of course) but nevermind about that for now.

It was about then he sneezed.

The explosion nearly rocked the lupine off his feat and also managed (miraculously or physiologically) to knock all the mud out of his ears, nose and eyes. For a glorious moment the lupine was wonderfully aware how fresh the air (despite its sweltering heat was) and how his senses could delight in merely existing. It must be horrible having to go through life with senses dulled or dimwitted. True, his growth had been a thing of nightmares and had- when he had been much younger- a thing that had almost condemned him to the ice but he had persevered. Had survived. How much worse would it be if he could not taste the world, understand its complexities and seek to unravel them! How much poorer he would be!

...it was about then Geis realized that he had sneezed in a particular direction. That direction would be...

"My apologies," the lupine said humbly not knowing what one did in such a situation as this.

H'tes had been sneezed on by the wolf creature. Oh, that was quite a lovely thing to happen. H'tes, now covered a good bit of spit on him from the sneeze (and probably more he did not want to think about) blinked for a moment. He luckily did not get any of it in his eyes or mouth. He tried to wipe himself off, leaning down and splashing the water in his face and then wiping it with his shirt. He had to remember to try and get a new shirt in the next town.
"It's all right," he said, a little untruthfully. He was a little annoyed, but the creature had apologized, and H'tes was still hopeful that it might help him out of this damned accursed swamp. He just hoped it wouldn't sneeze on him again, anytime soon. But, knowing his luck, that was unlikely.
After he dried himself off, he stood back up and looked at the creature. Since it seemed to understand the human tongue just fine, he would try to communicate. The problem was what would he say. He wasn't even good at talking to humans, what would he say to a wolf creature? "My name is H'tes," he said. "And you would be...?" He hoped he'd get a name. It was odd thinking of it simply as 'it' and 'creature' when it was obviously intelligent enough to warrant being a bit more then that. He was tempted to also ask what he was, but it sounded a bit rude in his head, so he felt it best not to ask for now. He also noticed now that some of the mud had fallen off of the fur during the sneeze, showing that under all the dark mud there was white fur. One might actually consider it pretty, but it was still tainted with mud so it was had to keep an open mind to what all was underneath.

Half-expecting a tirade or possibly physical blows (true, it was unwise to attack a lupine no matter their state of armament but Geis was hardly a lupine of terrible physical prowess and stature and he was more than half-aware of the fact that other people were aware of the fact) Geis had reflexively tensed: his ears, despite their muddy burden had straightened themselves like elders becoming young again, his stringy muscles knotted in anticipation and anxiety while his red and almost bloodshot eyes (the water was dirty!) narrowed in concentration. His hand brushed close to his simple, string-crafted belt upon which he wore a dagger before deciding that claws and teeth might be more useful. His senses, great as they were already, seemed curiously more vivid. He could feel the quality of the air, taste the dryness of his mouth- hear the beating of his heart as it drummed like a tambourine.

In his mind’s eye, he saw the fur-head attack in a dozen different ways- with words and then fists, with fists and then words, with blade, with magic, with arrow or poison. With each successive possibility he grew a little tenser, like the string of a bow being progressively tightened and the strain shewed itself as bloodshot eyes became even bloodier and physical stillness started defying what was right and natural. He had gone through a dozen scenarios, imagined himself dying a hundred ways- and was thus caught completely off guard as the fur-head, disgust evident in its voice and features muttered a simple: “It’s all right.”

Oh. Well then. Relaxing, tension left the lupine and like a deflating balloon he seemed to shrink on himself as his ears and body relaxed.

"My name is H'tes," the fur-head continued. "And you would be...?"

“Geis.” The lupine said, his voice not quite cracking but going close. “Geis Coldfur. Member of B.A.D.I., wandering loremaster of the Coldfur clan.” He felt disturbed, suddenly, that he had given greater prominence to BADI instead of his actual clan but then brushed the concerns away. Surely it was but a coincidence.

“Geis. Geis Coldfur. Member of B.A.D.I., wandering loremaster of the Coldfur clan.” said the creature.
H'tes heard that and was slightly relieved. B.A.D.I., as he knew it, were essentially 'the good guys' of the land. He'd be helpful. Although, at the same time, he might not be as helpful if he could tell what H'tes was.
Being part demon was always trouble when those with a better sense of smell then a human was around. H'tes never understood how they spotted him, but usually, they did, and it always caused trouble, such as starting a fight, or more commonly, a chase. H'tes had only ever barely escaped on those few events. But, so far the wolf had not gone in a bloody rage and said something like 'Curse your Demon Blood!' and proceeded to try and tear H'tes' head off. That had to be a good sign.
But, as long as H'tes seemed to be more harmless then that, he would be in safe company. And, helpful company. He would probably help H'tes out of here.
"Well, Geis," he began, trying to make some conversation. "What brings you out to the these swamps that seemed to be made more out of shadows and mist then trees?" He expected to be asked the same next, and he already knew what he would say. Something around the lines of 'just got lost on the way to the next closest town.' Which was, indeed, the truth. He just hoped the wolf was not as suspicious about others as H'tes could be at times, or else he might need to make a longer and more detailed explanation, and long periods of talking were not exactly a good thing for H'tes, because one way or another, he let something slip out.

It was well named, on the maps he had forced some of the harried librarians in B.A.D.I. to read for him it had been called Leitang Deuce Teineibrez, some sort of corrupted, ancient common that apparently meant 'swamp of shadows'. He had not believed it possible to get any darker and either his sense of time was seriously askew or there was a magic to these swamps that had crept up ever so quietly, ever so erratically that he had not detected its presence. Perhaps it was something to be ashamed of. Perhaps not. He had just fought with a ferocious creature, splattered in grime and muck and still only partially sense competent.

It was probably why his nose was giving him truly odd signals. One of the fireborn? In this ridiculous rot? Inconceivable. He was of ice born and close as it was to water he could barely stand the place. It was the shadows- the darkness- it bred stagnation and worse things. Things that had gone so far down the path of complacency that they had become true monsters with borrowed natures. Did ghosts inhabit these beasts? Or did the true monsters sleep and sleep still as the legends said...?

His musings, as always, were cut off by his companion.

"Well, Geis," the fur-head said with surprising friendliness for one who had just been sneezed on. "What brings you out to the these swamps-" for a horrifying, agonizing moment Geis half expected him to reveal himself to be some agent of B.A.D.I. and terribly aware of the fact that Geis was using guild resources for personal benefit (and no matter how altruistic that personal benefit was it would be frowned upon nonetheless) but the moment passed as the human continued to speak, "that seemed to be made more out of shadows and mist then trees?"

"I am looking for someone," Geis said cautiously. Then again even if the person in front of him was some sort of guild representative he would wager it on the slim chance that this was the one with information. "An elemental- Aquis is her name, have you perhaps seen her?"

H'tes noticed for the moment the wolf was tense while he spoke. The tenseness seemed to lesten when he finished speaking. He thought it was odd, but he ignored it for now. More pressing matters were at hand, and he decided to get to those first.

He then thought of the question. He had not met many elementals, and he had never met anyone by the name of Aquis. "I've met no one by that name," he said. "No one I can think of, anyways. I'm not generally the social type, so I don't get acquainted with people."

He wondered for a moment. If the wolf-like creature was looking for someone, why do it in this swamp? Unless he was lost too. That would be just too perfect if the one person he found in this whole place to help him was also lost in here. It be just his luck, too. So, he decided on the next obvious question that came to mind. "You wouldn't happen to know how to get out of this swamp, would you?" he asked, hoping the answer would be 'yes', but thinking the answer was probably a 'no.'

If the answer was yes, then H'tes would finally get out of this damn swamp and be able to move on. If the answer was no... at least H'tes would have some kind of companion instead of wandering aimlessly trying to find a way out with no luck so far and likely no luck at all. There was always a benefit of a bit of company, and none-human company always felt more welcome to H'tes. Humans would generally question alot more then answer, so it was good so far Geis was answering rather then questioning. Because H'tes did not like giving answers.

He had climbed so many mountains of hope, slid into so many valleys of despair that this newest failure did not hurt as much as it might have. The meat of failure is what made success so much the sweeter, was that not a furhead saying? He had no idea if it were true but it was a nice little phrase to think upon and ponder while wandering from one aimless locale to the next with that horrible burden of hope- a cruel a monster as any. He thought he understood, if just a little bit, of why it was he had been sent down to these southlands. The inability to do anything meaningful was... terrible. The plague must not have robbed his clan's loremasters of their people but also their self-respect.

"...so I don't get acquainted with people." The furhead was saying.

Geis nodded. He wished he had something to say but he didn't- he was prepared for this result but that did not mean he liked it. He was afraid his disappointment would show all too clearly if he started growling so he kept silent, content to watch the furhead and try to guess its thoughts. They were such a strange and surprising breed- tougher than one might expect for such short (not that he was one to speak) and insensitive race. The next words surprised and (almost) elated him. "You wouldn't happen to know how to get out of this swamp, would you?"

So. This one here was not a resident of this squalor. There was hope yet! He could not scour the swamp for his erstwhile elemental but he could surely search- surely find himself a true resident of this place who might be able to help. But first, apparently, he would have to content himself with search and rescue. He had been a wee bit confused the first few times the words had come up but was now beginning to understand that fur-heads could not even follow their own scent- such a pitiable life.

"Of course," he barked, a lupine laugh. "I'm afraid that I entered through the Misty Forest so it is to there we will depart..."

=============

OOC: I'm pretty sure I said my character was lost but I can't find it in my previous posts. XD

H'tes was prepared for disappoint. His luck would only allow this conversation to lead to disappointment. But, instead, H'tes found himself surprised. He was almost unsure if he heard things right or not. But as he went over it in his mind, it did indeed seem to be what he had hoped for, and had thought would be out of his reach. Suddenly, the hope of getting out of this swamp was alive and thriving again with the wolf's words.

"Of course," he barked, a lupine laugh. "I'm afraid that I entered through the Misty Forest so it is to there we will depart..."

H'tes smiled. Finally something had gone right today. Someone who could find a way out of this place. It seemed as though his luck had changed. He'd be able to leave this accursed swamp and get back out onto the more known grounds. That was an intense relief he could not properly express. If he wasn't still slightly afraid of Geis' appearance, he would have hugged him.

He stood back up quickly. He wanted to get a head start as quickly as possible. "That's wonderful," he said, showing his new found enthusiasm. "Which way do we go then?" he asked, showing a slight impatience to leave this place. He did not want to spend anymore time in this place then he had to. He had places to go, things to do, and if he didn't leave he might grow slightly crazy in this miserable swamp land. And so, he was ready to move whenever Geis showed the way. He hoped the wolfish creature would be quick about it, but did not say that out loud. He didn't want to be too rude to his new savior.

The lupine stared at the furhead a bit oddly. That smell there was back- unmistakably sulfurous and certainly not a home to this swamp. He half-suspected- but no, that was so unlikely as to boggle the mind. What would a breed of fire be doing in Leitang Deuce Teineibrez- this swamp of shadows? Well, mind you, the shadow part was perfectly plausible but this stench and this dampness- grah. He hoped to high heaven that Aquis was not here but still, it was possible. Pigs and furheads (he had heard, at least) rolled in mud, elementals might do the same except with different sorts of 'mud'.

But that still led back to the question of why the furhead was here in the first place. He was tempted to follow the fellow- what did he say his name was? Hates? Heichts? For a moment Geis was tempted to follow the furhead's scent but as much as Geis respected their society he had absolutely no desire to follow a meandering and no doubt circular trail that may or may not have already gone cold. Whatever else might be said about furheads their capacity to survive despite all odds was forever consistent. Perhaps they had been blessed by some minor deity of luck or happenstance. What else could explain their dominance over so many different parts of the world where physically superior races existed?

Besides their ability to breed like winter mice? An amused voice said in the back of the loremaster's head. Watch them- you may be surprised little pup. Carefully and considerately, Geis shoved his teacher's voice back in the box he had last left it in. It hurt, to remember those fonder times. He would not have lost Aquis- he would not have lost anyone.

"We go this way." The loremaster said simply, heading forth, his nose guiding him. "How, if I may ask, did you stumble into this marshland?"

H'tes followed Geis, as they began their journey, but also heard the question he knew had been coming. "I was on my way to Ondoland," he said. "But I got lost within the Misty Forst and eventually found myself in this swamp." All were perfectly true. But his reasons why he went to Ondoland was left unstated. He'd rather keep his business to himself.

He walked on with the wolf, thinking of how he was going to answer to the next question that was likely coming. He could simply say 'I have to deliver something,' or just 'For a job.' He would rather not say more then that. He was not sure what was in the letter he delivered, but he was sure that his employer, Thanatos, would probably avoid having others know of it aside from the intended recipient.

If the wolf did try to make H'tes explain further, H'tes would likely try to shift the conversation towards something else. What would he change it to? Hehad no idea, but his key points to stay away from were 'Demons', 'letters' and 'why are you going there?' And staying off of those would be tricky considering there was very little to talk about.

What all was there to talk about in Arda? He was not sure. But he remembered that Geis had said he was something specific. "You said you were a Loremaster, correct?" he asked. "What does that mean, exactly?" There was a good shift in conversation. Hopefully it would be an interesting enough conversation to shift away from his key points to stay away from. And besides, he knew little of the lores of the land. He hardly listened to anything like that. He just struggled to survive in this world, and did not bother much in meshing with it.

Ondoland- a market town. The lupine thought, almost proud of having remembered that detail. He had never been there, of course, but he knew enough to know that it was a bit like a... a... stationary caravan of sorts. Instead of bringing goods to the people that might buy them- the people that needed the goods went over there. It was a supremely odd scenario but Geis dared not judge before he had actually seen the town. But still, he assumed that most furheads did not get lost on their way to the market- that'd make it a terribly risky adventure and from what he knew of merchants and shop owners risk was not a high priority in their lives. This furhead was either slightly touched in the head or perhaps thought that Geis was ignorant because he was not furhead himself. A tired smile found its way to Geis' lips. That would have been almost amusing... once. But Geis was not interested in what this furhead had to conceal- he had to find Aquis! And the sooner this mortal was on his merry way the easier it'd be for Geis to do so.

"I see." The loremaster said noncommittally. "It is a rather... confusing place."

The furhead seemed to not appreciate this particular tangent and began questioning Geis which only irritated him further- these furheads had no tact! Always questions, always seeking knowledge without first trying to determine if it was knowledge hidden for a reason- and they always asked for the wrong reasons too. Geis did not appreciate having his sacred duties lumped into a distraction so that the furhead would not need to pretend that he had gotten 'lost' and continue believing that the charade was working. Geis seethed. The lupine was- well, 'ignorant' was the right word, ignorant of furhead customs but even he could tell that much of this furhead's intentions. He began to wonder if the smell was not just part of his imagination.

"A loremaster is a collector of secrets." He answered cryptically. "And our burden is knowledge. We tell... stories." He was struck with an idea. "Perhaps you have a story to share? As fee for passage onto your journey?"

As the response came, H'tes was forced back into thought. That did not work out as well as he would have liked. Stories to tell? Not many. Most of the stories he had he did not particularly want to tell. And so, he answered it the way he would rather answerit: Without answering.

"Nothing of interest," he said. Well, that was a lie, for sure. He could talk about how his family died, or any number of experiences he had in Lomedor. But, he did not want to share such things. "I'm a rather boring person." That was also a lie. He had plenty of exciting things happen to him, whether he wanted it to happen or not.

He could explain his lack of good luck, from when he got run over by a crippled beggar in a wheel chair, to getting beaten up by a bunch of drunks, later on getting kissed by a drunk, meeting a very odd vampire he got in a fight for his life with, and assortment of more tails to be said. But, he would not. The more he talked, the more likely his demonic lineage would slip out of his mouth, and then this had the potential to go from a rescue to a fight to the death. That was something he wanted to avoid.

He tried to keep silent now. Better to go into silence then to try to keep conversation at this point. He would not keep up conversation if he could help it, but he would still talk if the wolf continued to talk. But it struck H'tes that the wolf was not particularly interested in him. That was fine, the less interested the less likely they would keep talking and lead to H'tes exposing his inner demon.

Hnnn, well that was odd. Furhead's usually had the most curious notions of honor and fairness. To most, a story was something to be shared and all too small a token of appreciation- and for that very reason it was bandied about quite readily. A keeper of secrets too...? The lupine mused. It was always possible. Still, he privately wondered if the furhead wasn't just a bit touched in the head- perhaps he really had gotten lost. Any normal lupine would have already bitten the fool in two for his lack of tact and his utter disregard for the normal protocols- help for help, aid for aid. One did not refuse such simple bargains on such a weak pretext as not knowing stories. It was ridiculous! What would the furhead say to the snow owls that guarded the realm of the dead- 'Sorry, I didn't live this life?' The lupine shook his head.

"If you say so." He said trying to sound regretful. A true loremaster would- he knew that. But his mind had been eaten to tatters just thinking about Aquis and his plans of retrieving her, protecting her until she was well enough to once again protect his clan. Or something along those lines- his dreams of what he would do had been blurry and he hadn't bothered looking to the future- just towards the present and solving his dilemma. He hoped the furhead was strong enough to keep up- if he wasn't going to share a story, Geis was hardly going to lag behind and wait for the bloody thing to not get lost. Or fall into the sinking mud, or be eaten by a creature larger than most dragons. He had survived up to this point- he could no doubt survive...

He heard the sound- a dull roar of something so large and so sleepy that it's yawn was enough to shake his bones. He held up a trembling hand and hoped that the furhead would understand its import.

The wolf sounded regretful, but they merely continued on. H'tes found it hard to keep up with the creature, but he was able to manage. That was, untilhe stopped him. H'tes could hear the sound, but could not tell what it was. He hoped his guide might have an answer, but did not speak up in case whatever it was was close enough to hear it. He raised his staff in a defensive position, so that he at least had a weapon around for him to use if some kind of surprise attack were to sping up at him.

He listened for much more movement. There was a loud crack, and the sound of a tree falling. Whatever this thing was, it was large, and strong. He could not make out too much, but the sounds of a moving creature could be heard over the sounds of the swamp. A growl was heard. The creature made sniffing sounds, and then growled again.

H'tes made sure to position himself at a tree. He ducked down and waited. He did not was to be seen visually, and tried to hide beind the tree, but also keeping a look at where the sound was coming from. Another tree snapped, and it seemed to be coming towards them. H'tes still did not know what it was, but he was pretty sure he was not going to like it at all. But then, it was silent for a while. H'tes could not tell were it was, and even if it was big it's odd silence made it feel like it was suddenly gone, or just sitting and watching them. H'tes tried to freak himself out with thoughts that the creature could teleport, and was about to appear behind him. Rediculousness was not something he needed his mind to be infected with at the moment.

Each crunch of the undergrowth as the stupid, stupid stupid! furhead moved its feet came dangerously close to fraying the lupine's nerves and making the said lupine to do something equally stupid like snap or growl at the (idiotic!) furhead but he forced himself to be still and silent. It took an effort, but while Geis had journeyed with the knowledge that he would never see his homeland again he was far from being one with 'those that talked with death' and dived into the ice-ladden seas of Calaring. He had not the hunter's steps- the quiet, shallow walk of one who was about to feast upon the entrails of the unwary, but he could stay still and stay quiet-

A resounding crash that was a falling tree nearly broke his resolution. His mouth went dry. He had not heard of anything so ridiculously large having made itself a home in the swamp of shadows. From the little of what he could tell it was easily as big as Old Frost, one of the largest dragons of her kind and perhaps equally if not more deadly. The groaning of the trees, the groaning of the land- and the pervasive darkness, it seemed more than natural. Geis was not familiar with the swamp but of the world that he did know this was not... not right! Things should not be able to grow so large and worst of all there was no smell. No scent. Nothing to identify its intentions, its needs or even its location. Just that awful, grinding sound like an avatar of destruction about to wake and feast upon the entrails of a dying world. The lupine shuddered.

He had heard rumors of a place- deep within the misty forest that was the wellspring of Life- the great weave of the Dream that all that lived must accede to. He imagined- no he knew that it must also contain nightmares. It was the first rule, the golden rule- there was a balance in all things. And so from the dreams there were nightmares too. And it had stumbled out into the world of the living.

"Flee." He told the furhead, not bothering to check if he was wrong or being paranoid. A nightmare that could survive the transition between the world of dreams and the world of living must have been old beyond knowing- perhaps one of the Firstborn- a dream or wisp of thought from a higher power.

And then he was running, fleeing, stumbling as fast as he could away- away away. Always away. Faster and farther.

H'tes' stood silent, waiting. Geis might be agitated that he had moved at all, but H'tes knew getting some cover would be better then standing in the open. He waited to hear what the creature would do. He would tell Geis to get cover, but with this situation, Geis had missed the point where he could still move. As long as he didn't move, they might find themselves in a stand still. But then, Geis did something H'tes did not want him to do. He ran, telling H'tes to flee.

H'tes tried to signal Geis that running was the wrong move, but it was too late. H'tes knew how a predator worked. They sprung either when the animal was not paying attention, or when it started to run. This one sprang into action as soon as Geis took off. H'tes decided to do the smart thing and stay back at the tree. He could only see the shadow of thecreature for a moment, but it was big, alright.

It was odd how the creature looked to H'tes. It seemed to be made of shadow, and had the smooth movements of a snake, but also seemed to be mildly clumsy after cracking another large tree in it's wake. What was it? It couldn't be a dragon, could it? No, dragons would have flown over this terrain. It had to be something else. But what?

But, it was unlikely H'tes would find himself at the same conclusion as Geis. He had not known of that dream place in the Misty Forest, and thus could not know of the possiblities of Nightmares escaping from that place. But, at least H'tes was not facing that nightmare yet, and instead would stay hidden in the shadows and mist that the land naturally provided for him.

He ran. Ran to the point of exhaustion, ignoring the fact that the furhead had not heeded his words nor budged. There were... there were -things- that a nightmare could do to him. Things that it could summon, half-remembered memories and half-felt feelings that had once been whole that would tear his soul to flaky shreds. The plague, his son, the crippling pain of disease, the stench of death- there was so much it could do to hurt and so much it could do to destroy that Geis' fear fueled him far beyond that which was normal and sustained him as if he were a fullblooded lupine and not just a lupine in name but half in stature. He ran and ran and ran some more.

But the noise... the noise of doom was close. Closer than it had ever been. As fast as he ran he knew it would not be enough. It would not be nearly enough. He had to distract it, destroy it. He had to-

Silly pup. Geis felt the cold claws of his Teacher's voice by his shoulder. A nightmare does not 'escape' the realm of dreams. His sibilant, almost hissing voice was mesmerizing... and was growing fainter- Geis could hardly hear his words. He had only just managed to realize that he himself was slowing down, that his limbs were heavy. His eyelids felt like there were weights attached. He tried to muster the energy to fight. The energy to attack and snarl, rant and rage- anything except for the slow, creeping doom that labored on. No, it did not labor, it had already caught him and was now just prepared to strike. He was cornered. He was prey.

You have entered the Nightmare, pup.

And then Geis knew no more.

H'tes felt alone as Geis fell. The creature seemed to stop when he fell. Then, it turned to H'tes. H'tes felt stricken and paralysed with fear as he stared it in the eyes. It seemed to change as it came toward him. From a shadowy creature into a humanoid figure. But the figure was oddly pale, and it's glaring red eyes were hungry and filled with the intent of a predator staring at it's prey.

No, it could not possibly be what he thought it was now. A vampire? No, he could not be that damn unlucky. There was no possible way he had run into his greatest fear again, could it? Well, regardly,he had. And as the creature neared him, he regained his ability to back away. But, he backed into a tree. Fear and panic seemed to make him forget he had the ability to walk around the tree. And thus, he was trapped between the tree and the vampiric being in front of him.

The creature was feminine, beautiful, but her presense only created fear in H'tes. Those hungry red eyes were what he paid attention to, and those eyes were glaring back at him. He seemed to fall under a kind of hypnosis, entranced at her gaze even as he was afraid. Her dress seemed like it was made out of the shadows of the swamp, as was her hair that seemed to sway in a nonexistant wind.

She crept toward him, closer and closer, and when she was rightat his face, she seemed to embrace him. He felt confused from her embrace. And then, she bit him on the neck, the classic vampiric death move. Everything became dark after that. The shadows of the swamp seemed to overtake him.

The lupine was surrounded by darkness. He watched it, motionlessly as it chattered away. The effort it took to merely rise up was far too great. He stayed their, enveloped- cocooned by that which was- his thoughts sluggish but serene. He was likely to die in this state. He knew that. Knew that food would not come and jump into his greedy mouth and that water might fall from the sky from other places but not here. But he did not care. Those were the concerns of lessers. From here, from his beautiful vantage point in the darkness he could think and think and think...

What is your name?

The lupine frowned. His name- of course he had a name. An important name, one that identified him for who he was. He had carried it for every day of his life and it was not like he could actually forget his name, now could he? It was something trivial, no doubt. Something so trivial that he need not think about it- need not even consider it. It would return to him in time as all things would- he just didn't need it right now. Didn't need it because he was thinking of stories and of things to tell his clan. The clan that had given him his name.

What is your name?

Foolish voice! Did it not believe him? He was a lupine! He knew his name as intimately as he knew anything! He was a- the word hovered at the tip of his tongue but vanished as he reached for it. He was a lupine. Yes... he was a lupine. A sob escaped from the creature's throat and through the haze of self-satisfaction it roared to the heavens.

"Who... am... I?"

Demon?

No, that was not quite right. He was not truly a demon. He lacked the cruelty, the malice, and the power of a demon. So it was not Demons who he could call his kin, was it?

Human?

No, that was not it either. He may look human, but his blood was not completely of them. He lacked their gathering nature, that thing which makes them unite together under one banner at times. They would not see him as part of them, therefore he was not part of them.

Then what are you, boy?

To that, he did not have an answer. He was not completely human, and not completely demon. He just was both and niether all at once.

Filthy hybrid...

Yes, that was what they called him. That was his kind as far as anyone was concerned. Demon and human, not one or the other, just both and niether. That was his existence. Humans would curse him for his demonic nature, and demons would curse him for his Human weakness. He would never belong or be a part of any of them, and thus he tried to hide himself from all of them. But it would only be a matter of time before they found out of his nature. Before they would curse him out of every town, village and city as the evil demon. Before every priest and holy knight in Arda was trying to exorcise or kill him in the name of holy gods.

He ran from it, hid from it, but in the end, he had nightmares for when it would happen. He experienced them now. Weak, helpless, pathetic. Cowering in fear as they chased him, cornered him, beat him. Torturous would be his life before they finally ended him. And he dreamed of it, in the nightmare that had him now. He continued in it for some time, just on and on as thetorture from Humans came again and again.

He had lost his identity. His identity. The lupine put his snout in his palms, knots of fear coiling in his belly like snakes, making him shake and tremble as he considered the impossible. His eyes blinked out tears of fury and frustration and fear. He had to think! He had to concentrate! With tentative, cautious steps he reached for his Memories. He had once been a Someone. That certainty rang out like a painful sore, itching to be ripped into and torn anew. Then It rang out again... the query, the hate, the love, the truth and his concentration broke leaving him, again, in the abyss of despair:

What is your name?

And the lupine was filled with Dread. For he knew, beyond a shade of a doubt, that whatever that it was that was asking him this question knew the answer. And more than that- it had Eaten it. It was not a taunt, not torment- but a mindless cruelty that sought to instill fear and Fed from it. And it was succeeding. Already the tremble had become a mad jerk as what little sanity remained tried to run straight out of his body and into the great unknowns. He clamped down on the feeling for as long as he could. He might have lasted minutes, or seconds, or days... but then he broke. He had to break. This madness- this fertile, febrile plain of nothingness and emptiness demanded it and he had to give in. Whatever he had been in life, whatever he had been while a Someone- this state was an anathema to him.

The lupine ran.

What is your name?

He ran so far and for so long that he slowly felt himself become less and less of what he had been until all that was left was the wolf. And in the distance the wolf spied something- a figure hurtling through madness just as it had once done.

It went to go meet it.

It came to H'tes slowly as the torture continued. "Why are they not killing me?" he said to himself. "Why do I not die?" He seemed to gain a revelation to himself. Why didn't he die? Why did he feel pain, seem to be bleeding, and yet not die. He found it. The answer to why. What can threaten yet never harm? What comes out of the fears of the night, yet does not truly affect. Nightmares.

As the realisation of it hit him, he resisted. His voice became demonic as he spoke. "This is nothing but a nightmare! Made of my mind. I rule it." he said, standing up. In an instant, his demonic form came. It did not come with pain as it usually did, it simply came. The humans jeered, but he simply raised a hand and flames shot out and engulfed them. He laughed at it. Once you realised it could be controlled by your own mind, it worked out fine.

As the human screams filled the air, and his nightmare seemed to become a dream, it ended. H'tes woke. The creature seemed to be made of shadow, and was curled up on the ground, close to Geis. It turned back into the feminine vampire form, and hissed at H'tes, who laughed. It had no attack other then it's nightmares, and once one conquered the nightmare, it was useless. But Geis had not seemed to realise it, as he was still unconcious. H'tes tried to make it get away, but as he punched the creature, his fist faded through it. Apparently, you could only beat it with your head. He hoped Geis had lesser nightmares then H'tes did, for all H'tes could do was wait, and so he did.

OOC: Jumped the gun a wee bit. I've changed the script to keep it entertaining.

IC:

"Why do I not die?"

The lupine heard the voice reverberate through his consciousness (no, what a ridiculous notion! Clearly it must be through the fetid, foaming, nightmarish landscape that surrounded him) and wept tears of blood as it the Voice forced itself upon his battered psyche, kicking down the doors and weaving its sorry carcass through the maze of his mind. He was thusly not around for the subsequent transformation, the understanding of Self and the transition from nightmare to reality. He was more than aware of the fact that the horrible presence had completely vanished as if it never was when it chose to depart, though. Relief, not His relief but rather the relief of a predator having swallowed something down the wrong pipe and expelled coursed through him and he was aware, ever so subtly, that these were not his thoughts.

But by then, he was not himself.

The lupine that rose from its prone position was not the same lupine that had fallen there. Its mud-splattered fur seemed to suit it more and its bloodshot eyes appropriate for the drooling, whining maw. Claws normally sheathed had seemingly lost their moorings and had come out- each breath out was a furious puff of air that condensed in the relative warmth of the swamp. Despite its short stature the lupine screamed, from every dangling limb and every inch of flesh the notion of Monster and Predator.

"What a horrible weakness..." came the rasping voice, so unlike that of the unrefined but still cultured voice of a loremaster. "Such a fear." It licked its lips. "Delicious. Oh the fun we will have...!" It stayed like that for a while, as if exilerating in some unknown ecstasy. Eyes narrowed. "But first! Someone who did not listen. A kin to one such as Ourselves..." its nose, now swift and silent caught the scent. It rifled through memories that were not its.

"Ahhhhhhhhh... let us pay the good little boy a visit."