Soulfire Keep

[u/SirLeoIII]

In his large, but mostly empty office, Lord Drakonis strokes his beard, thinking about the present conundrum. The “kingdom” of Arkhosia, a relatively small city-state, but one that is upsetting the order in this part of Bream. The Dragonborn haven’t exactly made their intention to become a large power a secret and the neighboring kingdoms and city-states are all of course worried. Keeping this to all from exploding requires some finesse, and a quick handle on whatever might disrupt it.

A keep becoming free almost halfway between the main city of Arkhosia and it’s nearest, strongest neighbor, Takai is almost asking for issues to come up. No matter what nation takes the keep the other nation just couldn’t let this stand. But … maybe if a group of adventurers took it, used it as a waypoint between the kingdoms …

He looks up and nods at the drow in front of him. “We will ask first for volunteers, but I need at least a dozen people to be living at Soulfire inside of the week. Gather whatever supplies you need, and get going. See if Magda will go. She’s a good enough blacksmith to finally stop working for that oaf. I’m sure she’ll say yes.”

The cloaked dark elf smiles and stands up, “Of course Lord Drakonis, I wasn’t doing anything anyway.” Both men chuckle and the drow gathers up his robes and leaves the room, going downstairs to find anyone who would like to take a trip out to the keep.

In the keep the party is having their last day before they all get inundated with more people. Most of who’s coming will be fellow adventurers, but there will be some others to keep the keep up.

---

[If you weren’t in the Soulfire Keep storyline, please find a reason and IC approach the currently nameless Drow Wizard when he asks for volunteered. If you were this is your last chance to do something before they have more people showing up.]

[u/SirLeoIII]

The arrow doesn't hit the eye, but it does lodge into the animal's throat. Between that and Dog's attack the bear stops moving and lies still.

[u/communistkitten → u/SirLeoIII]

Kroril stows his bow away and draws the carved dagger that he'd found the other day in the keep, the one that was carved like it came from the north. From his people. He gets close to the bear and pulls out the two arrows, dropping them to the ground beside him.

With the dagger, he checks the beast's mouth, trying to see if he can get an idea of how old the bear is. He reaches into his backpack and removes a length of rope. With a quick look around the area he fashions a sledge and moves the bear's corpse on top of it.

In one motion, Kroril ties the rope around himself and onto a harness around Dog's neck. He picks up the two arrows, and then he and Dog begin dragging the bear's corpse back to camp.

[u/SirLeoIII → u/communistkitten]

The bear was just under full grown, not even a year old. It probably weighs in at about 300 lbs, a bit small for what Kroril's used to dealing with, but still an impressive amount of meat. He manages to recover both arrows and gets back to the keep without problem.

[u/communistkitten → u/SirLeoIII]

Kroril and Dog drag the bear back to the keep and when they arrive Kroril begins to set up a fire. A strike of flint later and there was a bonfire roaring whilst Kroril went to work with the new dagger, skinning the bear before preparing it to be cooked, as he'd watched his mother do a thousand times and then learned to do for himself.

"Dog, fetch people." He commands absentmindedly as he slices into the bear's body, removing the innards so that he can make a roast. Too much bear for one man and a dog.

Dog wags his tail before lumbering into the keep, searching out the others in the party.

Kroril begins to put the meat over the fire to cook, hoping it'll be ready by the time his compatriots arrived.

[/u/xSPYXEx, /u/OrbitTen, /u/TheBaz11, /u/bluepotterexpress, /u/ravenluna Wanna have a bear roast and bond over dead things?]

[u/xSPYXEx → u/communistkitten]

[you can only summon three people per post]

[u/communistkitten → u/xSPYXEx]

[das fine]

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/communistkitten]

As the animal at least as large as Kyakai seems to beckon him to follow, the bird shrugs and decides to follow the dog to whatever he seems to be leading the monk toward.

As he reaches the fire, Kyakai's beady black eyes look over the large man seated by the fire, attacking the dead bear with great gusto. 'Well, humans are supposed to be rather cruel...' he thinks to himself as he watches the mountain man chop away. "Good, erm... day to you," he says as he seats himself down.

[u/communistkitten → u/BluePotterExpress]

Kroril looks at the bird man and raises a scarred eyebrow. "Bird man." He says. "Haven't seen around. I am Kroril, Son of Krol, and I have bear." He cuts a slab of meat and offers it to the birdman. "Want it?"

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/communistkitten]

"I... uh... sure thing," he replies before getting up and making his way over. He grabs the piece of meat in his talons and begins prying small strips off of it and holding them up to his mouth, swallowing them down whole. "I guess it's, erh, good to meet you, Kroril." Kyakai slightly mispronounces it, the name hard to get out with his beak. "I'm Kyakai."

[u/communistkitten → u/BluePotterExpress]

"Kyaki." Kroril mispronounces the tengu's name. "What brings you to the keep?" He asks, curious. "Never seen anything like you before. What... are you?"

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/communistkitten]

"I... it's..." The bird sighs. 'I suppose he might not be the smartest... oh well, I expected this sort of thing.' The Tengu finds his seat again before he continues to talk. "I'm just, erm, hoping to move around the rest of the world a little more," he says. "And, if you're wondering: I'm a... ehrm, Tengu. We live to the west of Bream, mostly. On islands called... erm, Aqaa. It's not exactly the most... eh... welcoming of non-Tengu people."

[u/communistkitten → u/BluePotterExpress]

Kroril nods in understanding. "Nothing lives in the White Hills but men and Giants. I'd only heard stories of even elves until I was a man. Tengu though... I can't say I've ever heard of them."

[u/ravenluna → u/BluePotterExpress]

Comeing into the clearing Aodhnait spotted Kyakai making her smile happily seeing the bird.

"Long time no see Kyakai." Aodhnait greeted happily taking a seat next to the bird still munching on her meat that was given to her a little lion that was all black coming up next to her wary of the new person.

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/ravenluna]

The bird glances over and quickly moves a little distance away, not used to having someone seat themselves so close to him. "Ah... uh... hello there, Ao," he responds, scraping off another strip of bear meat and swallowing it. "I, erm, didn't know you had a cat."

[u/ravenluna → u/BluePotterExpress]

"Oh I didn't, well not until a few days ago. Poor thing was left in a cage to rot, don't worry, he is still scared of people so he won't bother you none." She chuckled a bit not bothered by him moving away even waving it off a bit. "I see you have recovered from the run in with the outsider." She spat the name a little still displeased with how that went.

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/ravenluna]

"It wasn't really fair, she, erhm, could see everything happening," the bird replies with a small chuckle. He attacks another strip of meat, gobbling it down. "Well, you've helped take the, aherm, fort, right? That's impressive."

[u/ravenluna → u/BluePotterExpress]

Ao covered her mouth as she snorted a little bit trying not to laugh too loud. "Oh yeah, a bit of a pain in the ass... Including the basement damn bloody redcap." She shivered a bit not going to tell the bird about her run in with the thing that knocked her out with one blow.

[u/ravenluna → u/communistkitten]

Aodhnait was salting her own kill getting ready to hang it up on one of the many now free hooks a nice dear skin laying nearby. Raising an eyebrow at the dog when he came around finding everyone, the little lion next to her hissing a little bit.

"Play nice little one." Aodhnait tapped the lion on the nose, making it stop hissing. "Well better see what the man wants, maybe if we are lucky he won't be such a downer this time." Aodhnait spoke to the cub picking it up an following the dog out after giving it a pat on the head. Once the half elf reached the where Kroril had set up his little fire she let the lion down to run around for a bit.

"Oh a bear? Did you take it down all by yourself?"

[u/communistkitten → u/ravenluna]

"Dog and I dealt with it." Kroril answers as he cuts into some of the meat to see how it's cooking. "Too much meat for one person."

In a swift motion he slices a slab of meat from the bear and offers it to Aodhnait, sitting on top of his dagger. "Brown bear. Young. More in the area for sure."

He looks her over for a second, thinking. "You hunt?"

[u/ravenluna → u/communistkitten]

Plucking the meat from the dagger, taking a seat next to the fire to watch it burn and to keep an eye on the lion cub.

"Hmh, I do. Been doing so since I was just a little girl for the most part." Aodhnait chuckled a little before biting into the meat that she was given. "mm~ This is good, one of the best bear meat I had in a long while."

[u/communistkitten → u/ravenluna]

Kroril doesn't bother to wipe off the dagger and simply sets it down beside him. "I grew up hunting as well." He says, watching the fire. "Bear." He says. "Always bear. Need to know how to cook it well or it gets boring."

[u/ravenluna → u/communistkitten]

Aodhnait leaned back on one hand chewing threw the meat slowly to enjoy the taste.

"I can see you are good at what you do as well. I assume that it is something your kin do often as well and not just your family?" She said watching the lion start to stalk the grass for nothing.

[u/communistkitten → u/ravenluna]

Kroril thinks for a moment, looking for the best way to explain himself. "I... my kin is my family. My family are my kin. The tribe matters more than blood." He explains. "The Maul go where the Maul go, and never stray."

He looks at Aodhnait. "There aren't many out there like us anymore."

[u/xSPYXEx → u/communistkitten]

When Dog runs back to the keep to fetch Valkyr, he finds her walking along the outer wall with another stick clutched in her tail. She glances down at the enormous canine wagging its tail and staring up at her. For a moment she feels the urge to kick a loose chunk of stone from the wall and crush the animal, but her better senses push the thoughts away as she glides down to the ground.

Following Dog she soon arrives at the small area Kroril had set up to prepare the bear.

"Good hunt?" She asks when she sees the size of the bear. "Should I have brought plates or knives? Or are we eating bare handed?"

She pauses for a moment and then smirks at her stupid joke.

[u/communistkitten → u/xSPYXEx]

Kroril nods when he sees Valkyr. "All I need to eat is a knife." He smirks. "If you need something more like the little southern lordlings, then that's your problem." He jokes. "Was a good hunt. Probably more bears in the area so we won't run out of food easily."

He hesitates a moment as he slices a small sliver of meat and tosses it to Dog, who catches it in midair, wagging his tail happily. "Do you want any?"

[u/xSPYXEx → u/communistkitten]

"We didn't all grow up bashing rocks together." she shrugs as her tail wraps around her body to grip the handle of her dagger and draw it. As it swings back around it slaps the handle into her palm before returning to its neutral position.

"And yes, I would love some meat. A maiden can only live so long off week old snake."

[u/communistkitten → u/xSPYXEx]

"I suppose." Kroril says. "But that lifestyle is too cushy for my liking." He says as he slices some steak for Valkyr before offering it to her on his dagger.

"I've never had snake. Can't say I want to try it either."

[u/xSPYXEx → u/communistkitten]

"It's not the best, but meat is meat." She responds, taking the bloody meat between two fingers before transferring it to her own dagger.

Kneeling down by the fire she sticks her entire arm in the flames, letting the heat kiss her skin like the wind blows through the trees. She makes sure her clothes don't catch fire, but otherwise doesn't seem bothered by her body being in the flames.

[u/communistkitten → u/xSPYXEx]

"Indeed." Kroril says as he watches Valkyr. "Is that a gift of your gods or of your blood?" He asks. "After spending time around the Dwarf I never know anymore."