For All the Memories...

[Taith]

OOC: Oh goodness. Seems Ive mssed a bit =P Anyone even remember Taith anymore?

The seasons since the siege had not been kindly to the river otter. Yes, her black fur was as shiny as ever, and the strange tatooes still flowed like rivers of mercury, twisting about her now more sinewy arms. More lithe and slender then ever, Taith Trueshaft now had a lean look about her, a look eager for a fight. Her black cloak was even more tattered around the edges, her ivory tail ring had aged, her gold earrings were a tad tarnished, and her light leather shoes replaced her heavy boots.

Even more graceful, even more deadly, for Taith had become a reknowned assasin duiring her tenure away from Mossflower and the Guardians. The blood of many more had drenched her fine, artists hands.

She gracefully tread the disused, over grown path leading up to the only place she had ever considered her home, the great walls of the stronghold of the Guardians of Mossflower. Her icy eyes scanned the parapets for activities, and her delicate ears could already hear a scuffle on the roof.

Feeling the same footholds she had felt that same night seasons ago, she scaled the sandstone walls, and swung onto the scene.

Heyyo, Laddies. Ya miss me? Her Highland brogue rolled of her tounge like water.

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She knew she had been presumed dead. Several had seen her take a lance to the side, and word head spread among the surviors, as had the other names of fallen comrades who stayed to buy time for the others.

Dragged to the pile of bodies to be burned, Taith managed to snap the head off unnoticed. Underhe cover of night, and with a little help from the raging celebrration the vermin held, Taith managed to climb onto the parapets and slide down the other side unnoticed.

The small town took her in, the strange otter who collaped in the center of the village. A healer, and a squirrel family were her saviours, and to them she was eternally grateful.

That was how her career as an assasin began.

[Rinafera Woxwitty III]

"Hm."

Rinafera finally voiced his annoyance. He rubbed his mustache and removed the monocle, taking on a more serious, warrior-like ambiance. The hare motioned with a paw for Daisyblade and his son to stay out of it and return to the room as he trudged down the rampart's stairs. Staring at Nadia and Raiden, he snapped his frustration.

"Alright, chaps; you know this is not the flippin' way for Guardians to act! Wot's gotten into you two? Now, riverdog, I really don't care who you are or why you're here, but anyone who's shooting arrows at other bally goodbeasts are no better than scum. And you, squirrel with the lily-liver, same goes for you! How dare you scum enter our fort and attack each other as if you flippin' live here, too?" When his rant was over, he removed the saber from his belt and stared at Raiden. He looked apologetically at his old friend and nodded a look that said 'nice to see you again.' Then, he faced his old War Commander, Finnerator. "Pleasure's all mine, old friend. My family has left for the jolly room to unpack, but I think we should catch up. After all this fighting goodbeast ordeal is over, how about a feast, eh?"

Rinafera turned to Nadia and raised an eyebrow. "You've changed," he said bluntly in a 'matter-of-fact' manner. The hare walked back into the Fort, scowling to himself. Who were these newcomers, anyway? And what did they want? Either way, he was sure it meant trouble.

OOC: Sorry, even with all of these posts, I don't have much to write. Hm.

[Fishrudder]

Fishrudder hung his head, he was ashamed that he was so jumpy. Not to mention his paw hurt like hellsteeth. What the veteran hare had just said made sense, all with the scum. He was right. He looked back up, he had decided what to say now. "I'm sorry, I'm pretty jumpy, that and the wolf" He glanced over at him "I've only ever seen one once, and as for the squirrel, he just surprised me." The otter look about abashedly. That had earned him a bit of unease in the minds of the warriors surronding him, he wanted to stay here and learn how to fight better.

Terrapa glanced at the cat and put the arrow in his quiver, unusual for him he decided to obey the otter. He strode down the stairs, he nearly put his hand on his dirk, but decided not to, he didn't need to cause anymore problems. He glanced at the otter, the hare was rabbling on about something, Terrapa just ignored him, the otter that had thrown a pebble at him looked shamed. The albino didn't really care. He finally got to the bottom of the stairs, the short time he had walked down he had put his bow back in it's place. He stood before the otter and waited for her to say something.

OOC: Finished ;D

[Raiden and Zahi]

**Raiden returned Rina's nod with his own, before adding his own piece to what Fishrudder had just said.**

That "Wolf" just happens to be an old firend of mine... Not to mention an old comrade here. Kindly treat him as you would any other goodbeast.

[Sevaurinus Alterasaud]

Realising now that she must've been mistaken, Sev was, however, annoyed at the fact she had been ignored (as she likes to be center of attention) and stamped her footpaw down.

"I SAID Hello..."

[Raiden and Zahi]

**Raiden raised his eyebrow at the fox maid who was acting like she was about to have a tantrum.**

I heard you, I was just a bit too busy. Still am if you don't mind too.

[Taith]

Taith watched the unfolding scene, remaining silent. Were we all this immature? She thought, the bickering, and apolgizing spread about her. A small smirk played about the corners of her lips, o' course we were.

[Finnerator Rudderbow]

*There was a lot of chatter going on around Finnerator, some slightly useful, but most of it was just noise. Finnerator felt a headache starting from the tension between all the newcomers and all the yelling that people were doing. She did, however, manage not to show her increasing annoyance at the way things were unfolding. The former excitement had passed and now the weight of responsibilty was back on her shoulders. Not that she wasn't used to it or that she couldn't handle it. On the contrary, Finnerator had a good amount of experience and was perfectly capable. Still she didn't want to have to break up a squabble between two trespassers*

*The sea otter waited patiently for her orders to be carried out. Fortunately, either by her air of command or they're willingness to obey, the two offenders did as she asked and now both were standing before her waiting for her to speak. The squirrel looked uninterested with the whole ordeal, which made sense since the otter seemed to be the one who started it. Said otter was still babbling about something in response to Rinafera's lecture. She waited a moment until the otter trailed off, then she finally spoke*

Who are you and what are you doing in this fort?

*Simple and straight to the point. They were trespassers on Guardian property, goodbeasts or not, and before she learned anything more from the two, she wanted to know their purpose with the Guardians of Mossflower.*

[Sevaurinus Alterasaud]

Sev heard Raiden's comment and went into a huff, sitting on a rock until the arguement was over.

"Fine, I'll wait."

[stonewall]

Underneath the thick canopy of trees, darting from dark bushes to the shadows of tree trunks, was the Light Squadron of Captain Samson, sent deep into Mossflower to try and locate any signs of General Gargott coming down from the north. The woods that had so encumbered the masses of the army proved to be extremely beneficial to the ten pigs, using the natural landscape as cover from prying eyes. Staying in constant supporting distance of one another in order to avoid being picked off one by one, the Squad crept further through the wood with great speed, the heavy spears having been left behind at the camp in favor of light sabres.

Having spent the better part of the day dashing around the forest, Captain Samson took a five minute rest, leaning against the trunk of a tree, being sure to stay in the shaded portion. The pig had to admit to himself that he wasn't completely sure that they were still headed north (the complicated over head carpet of leaves and branches blotted out the sun, making it hard to keep their sense of direction), and at any rate, General Sprog had told Samson that it wasn't known exactly when the first Corps was supposed to arrive. It was their job to keep a look out, and to alert the General immediately when the reinforcements appeared. In fact, the Light Company was one of the few units let in on the fact that Gargott would be joining the Second Corps, in case the news some how slipped over to the insurgents.

Breathing heavily, Samson removed the spiked helmet and wiped some sweat off his brow. Secret or not, it didn't look like General Gargott had arrived yet (assuming, of course, the Squad was even near where Sprog had estimated he would arrive). The Captain hoped they wouldn't be on guard too long; they hadn't run into any trouble yet, but then again, it wasn't as if the woodlanders ever made it clear they were around before they attacked...

A low, shushing noise brought Captain Samson back to the here and now, moving his hand to his saber hilt. The pig was greatly relieved when he saw that the perpetrator was one of his own troopers, hiding behind a fallen log, beckoning the Captain forward. Placing his helmet back on, the pig scuttled quickly towards the soldier, whispering conversation. "What is it? What do you got?"

The other pig shrugged, seemingly a little confused. "Well, it ain't old Gargott, that's for darn sure. The thing is, we've found ourselves a right old band of them fur types."

The Captain's eyes widened, suddenly concerned. "Oh heck, they didn't see you, did they?"

The pig shook his head. "No, sir, the rest of the squad is parked on the slope of a nearby hill. They couldn't see us unless we hollered at them."

Samson gave a sigh of relief. The woodlanders had proven to be tenacious bunch, and with only ten pigs in his Squad, the Captain was sure he'd run into trouble. "Alrighty then, show me what you've found."

Silent and swift, the duo passed underneath the trees, arriving at a small knoll where the other eight pigs laid flat against the slope, not daring to appear over the summit. Signaling caution by placing a finger to his mouth, the trooper accompanied Samson up the slope, stopping just on top of the crest, allowing the Captain to get a good view of the action occuring below.

The trooper had been right: there were an awful lot of fuzz balls assembled. How many? Samson couldn't tell; his view was obstructed by an ancient relic of a fort, obviously long neglected, and would probably be knocked over by a gust of wind. Still, it could serve as an effective meeting place for rebel leaders. Was this the heart of the insurgency? He couldn't recognize any of the creatures that he could make out in his limited vision range. Furthermore, they seemed to be engaged in heated debate... fracturing of resistance? Hold it, Samson, he reminded himself, don't get carried away. We don't even know who these critters are, or if they're even our problem. Still, what were they doing at a seemingly long deserted place like this ruined fortress?

Satisfied that his officer had taken in the situation, the trooper whispered the Captain's ear. "What do you reckon, sir?"

Samson bit his lip. "Well, I reckon there's more of them then there is of us, so it's probably not a good idea to stick around too long. Still... I can't help but wonder who that lot is and what they're up to." Mulling it over, the Captain reaffirmed the fact that they were outnumbered, and reminded himself that his orders were to watch out for the First Corps' arrival. Still, it seemed right that the General should at least know about this... "You know the way back to camp, right?"

"I reckon I do."

"Fine. You and another go back there and tell General Sprog of what we've seen here. I don't know what this is all about, but I figure the least we could do is relay information."

The pig nodded in agreement. "Right you are, sir" he confirmed, crawling back down the hill to carry out his orders, leaving the Captain watching the woodlanders. He would take the rest of the squad and continue northwards like he was told, and quickly, but he couldn't help but wonder if he hadn't stumbled upon something more valuable to the cause.

[Crystal M. V. Rosepaw]

xx. Crystal
I was KILLING before killing was C O O L,
You're so cool! You're so cool! So cool!

The Guardians were regaining a member to their ranks today.

The vixen bit at a grass stalk, placidly flicking it between her teeth as she lay back on the small 'raft' that was simply a tree that had fallen into the water as old age brought it down. Her legs were crossed and her eyes closed as the warm sun shone down on her, it's healthy gleam warming the fox's fur. Her small size wasn't hardly noticeabal currently- no, here nothing was her trouble. One paw skimmed along the water as the log lazily floated down the stream, and the other- her right- held a stout stick, which she was using to avoid running into anything. Supposidly, that is. She was nearly asleep as her ride bobbed down the watery pathway, one of her feet tapping out a beat on the rough surface of the old tree, the worn boot clicking easily against it. Opening a single eye to reveal a tiny green slit, she peered about for danger, then resumed her humming and tapping. She hadn't had a more peaceful and relaxing time in a long time. In fact, it was just going to put... her.. to slee-

"Aww... Eh." Crystal sighed as she unstuck her face from the bark, a few bits of it suck in the fur of her cheeks. Running a set of ebony claws through the small area of her thick, white pelt, the lithe vixen looked at her surroundings. They seemed familliar to her, like somthing out of a far off memory- however, it was better than most, whom was just assume it to be a stream in a forest. The log had caught on a rock as she dozed, and had wedged itself between the bank and the stone. Clutching at the strap of her bag- which had been on her stomach the whole ride to save it from the wet- the vixen stood herself up on the dead tree with some effort. With a small bound, she stood on the bank, windmilling her arms once to keep her from falling back in. Her few years of piracy hadn't been enough to teach her to swim. The vixen tipped her head back to survey the sky- a light blue, the fat, clmsy clouds skimming across the sky like a chubby dibbiun across a patch of ice. The fox looked at her relfection in the water, which was a still has glass, and resisted the temptation to spit into her own face. Biting on the inside of her lip ring, the vixen settled down on the bank to use this 'mirrior' to aid her in dying her hair once more. Pulling out the vial, she appilioed a bit to the lowwer half on her hair, not caring, as she looked into her own eyes at her relfection.

The canine's pointed ears stood pricked like radars, as always, constantly moving, and her hair below that was down, the long bangs in her face as normal. In her ears were two silver hoods each, the last hole empty where a set should be. Her nose and lips were, in the normal fox tradition, a deep ebony, and her deep green eyes blinked as she studied herself. Her deep blue dress laid in ruffles around her, the lavender belt around her wasit josted due to the fact that her sword, which could not bend, was still in it' seath and thrust at her side. Thankfully, her limp hadn't been troubling her lately, so she was free to wear the blade on her preffered side- the left. Her muscles were hidden beneath the baggy dress, and she resented the normal corsett dress that most girls at the time favored. The magoirty of her many scars were hidden, a few on her wrists showwing, as well with the ne of her neck and those on her muzzle.

Standing, the vixen turned and looked down the path. Might as well procede and find out why this place seemed to hold her.

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Crystal blinked up at the high walls of the fortress. No wonder it seemed to captivate her senses. se'd spent a good deal of her life here. And the memories... IIt seemed in bad shape, her dear fortress. She had left a long time ago to go roving with Rikian, and this was the first time she'd returned. She had to figure out what had happened to this dear old home. She had to recall how to get in. Well, there was that old tree she'd used to sneak over the walls when she needed some time alone. It took her no more than a few minutes to find it. She looked up warily, trying to remeber the last tiem she'd climbed a tree.

"Can't be too much worse than rigging," she mused, throwwing her bag around her shoulders and running at the tree as best as her body would allow. With a leap, she caught a brach a few feet up, and the climb begain, taking a long ammount of time. Five minutes, Ten, Twenty... It ended at, as far as she could guess, half an hour, the vixen exhaustedly taking a whippy branch to swing her across. With a gasp, she fell on the landing. "Very out of practice." Standing, the vixen looked around at the surroudning pamapert. In the distance, she saw a lage crowd that she hadn't seen before due to herself being at the oppisite end of the fort. Euphoria bubbled within her and gave her a burst of new energy, but she calmed herself to walk easily over to the group, looking aroudnt eh ground. Sadness beset her- some of her friends weren't here. And then rage- some of her enemies were.

"You all look well." She simply stated, probably only to be noticed now- they all seemed deep into a conversation about somthing.

You'll never take me ALIVE
Do what it takes to SURVIVE
And I'm still HERE .xx

[Raiden and Zahi]

**Raiden practically froze at the sound of a familiar voice.**

C... Crystal?

**In jis mind, Raiden was taken back several seasons to the tournamnet and the words he had said... Words he knew he could never take back.

Turning to face the vixen, Raiden's wheather-beaten face changed form a slightly amused expression, to one of sadness.**

What brings you here my former friend?

[Crystal M. V. Rosepaw]

ooc; Since there's gonna be lots of drama for poor Crystal and Raiden, I decided I'd suck it up and post now. I'm not gonna always post so soon- so beware. =P Also, I hope the last bit isn't an auto-hit/power play. Dx

xx. Crystal
I was KILLING before killing was C O O L,
You're so cool! You're so cool! So cool!

Gently, the vixen looked around for any sign of recognition. It took a second before she found anyone that had imedeatly responded. And, to her dismay, the person that did take notice made her want to jump from the highest point of a mountian into the jagged barred teeth of the rocks below. However, since no moutian or afore mentioned rocks were there, Crystal seethed quietly, the venom of her words staying well back in her mouth, jaw locked to keep her from tearing his head off.

"C... Crystal?" Obviously, she thought, inwardly sighing at his lack of belief. "Raiden." Instead, she simply countered by saying his own name, venom and malice dripping from her single word as it stood in the silent and depressing air. The surrounding area furthered with its akward silence as the vixen recalled the day, long, long ago that Raiden and her own friendship fell out, died out. And his words from long ago came back too her.

Crys, do you hate me? No... Don't Answear it. I shouldn't have asked it.

"What are you doing here, my former friend?"

"Standing." She stated the obvious choice, wondering what to say too him. Just go with it, she decided. The first thing to come to mind would be acted upon. And the first thing was...

Crystal walked easily too him, only taller by a few mere inches. Blinking her emerald optics down at him, she met his gaze. Reaching up a paw, she put her knuckles on the bottom of his chin and tilted his head back so they their eyes met perfectly. "Let me answear your question from long ago that you still want answeared Raiden. I don't know if I hate you." Releasing her paw from the underside of his jaw, the vixen stepped quickly away, paw instantly at her side again, eyes transfixed over his head.

You'll never take me ALIVE
Do what it takes to SURVIVE
And I'm STILL HERE .xx

[Raiden and Zahi]

No... You do know, you just don't want to admit it... I can see it in your eyes Crystal... Those words from the tavern so long ago... I... It... It was a bad time for me that day... I never meant to offend or anger you... I was only trying to warn you. Tired as I was, the blood-curse would have over-whelmed me... I only just kept it down in my fight with Cuiasodo Sharpedge... That was hard enough to do... For five seasons, I have wondered what I'd say to you if I had the chance... No ammount of preperation could really have prepared me for the day... What I'm trying to say is this; I'm sorry Crystal. I'd never lie to you, and that's a fact... I swore an oath to tell the truth, and keep it totally honest with my friends... Former and Current...

**Drawing the older of his swords from his belt, he offered it hilt first to Crystal... It was one of the few traditions he kept from his clan... To offer your weapon to another was like saying "Here, take this and you can kill me with it if you want to... I wont stop you, because I don't care anymore."**

Here is my blade. Do with it as you will... Strike me down and I won't defend myself from the blows... I made my peace with my dæmons long ago.

[Rinafera Woxwitty III]

Rinafera watched with annoyance at Crystal and Raiden. He knew this was going to happen eventually. Besides, Crystal and Rinafera didn't have a great history either; he had made a fatal blow to her in a spar, and the vixen took it that 'he wanted to kill her.' However, something had to be done, or someone would be hurt. "Okay, okay... I don't know exactly wot is going on, but I have an idea that something happened at the flippin' Tournament." Hm, he thought, and I almost joined the Tournament.

"Look, the point is, before anybeast goes and kills each other, just take a jolly time to think. Raiden, keep your bally sword; there won't be any slaying or slashing with swords." Huffing, the hare shrugged indignantly and walked back into the Fort, leaving their responses behind.

OOC: Once again, not much to say, but I felt I should post for some reason...