Guardians of Night

Though she still didn't trust him, she felt herself calm down at the sound of his voice while he spoke. He didn't seem so bad anyways... he wasn't even armed with any weapons. None that she could she anyways.

The good news in this was that she wouldn't need her staff. Though she was now focused on the male enough to let any quiet treading go unnoticed.

She knelt beside him when he took a seat, a small smile coming to her lips as she chuckled "I left my clan to search for a new life, as well as something called the Dark Gate."

She looks to the fire, her elven ears clearly visible in the light of the fire, "but I'd say you are quite foolish for going through these woods alone with no weapons. Especially in times like these. " While blunt in her opinion, she felt it was best to let him know this before he did get killed.

Still there was nothing to show the traveler whether or not the pair could be trusted.
But then something, a certain phrase reached his ears and the magician jolted up in surprise, barely able to suppress a surprised gasp.
What in the world was that woman planning to do with the gate?
Considering the amount of horrors this gate had brought onto the world she was either insane, suicidal, a cultist or all three. Now Argus definitely had to be careful. One wrong move and he could end up as some sort of twisted ritual sacrifice. But first he should stop himself from engaging in these surprised outbursts. He needed to get a hold of himself and that quickly. Maybe it was already too late.
Trying to remain as silent as possible the magician hoped that noone had noticed him...

Loki tilted her head in thought as she heard the mage mention the oh so dreaded Dark Gate that she has been hearing about so often. Another searcher for the gate eh? Another being on a fruitless quest. Loki had no true interest in the Dark Gate, not bothered by the claims or the possible danger it would bring. She honestly don't know why others are searching for it, if they just leave it alone it might not cause too much damage. It might not pose any danger to others if these people stopped trying to find it or control it, Though I could be wrong, she thought to herself, she only knew what she heard from small Pubs in some towns. I truly don't have much knowledge on the Gate, maybe they can broaden my perspective?

She hummed silently and leaned further onto the tree and turned slightly, it's large leaves cast a large shadow that completely swallowed her body, but she did nothing to hid her energy, not feeling the need to be completely hidden. She smirked lightly, her back to the conversation, she wasn't facing or watching anymore, just listening.

The Forma continued to stay put while still attempting to pick up on the conversation. Unfortunately for him, the best he could get from his current location was muffled voices; he couldn't even tell how many participants there were in the conversation. I'm not going to get anywhere this way, he thought to himself. I should probably keep moving. Maybe if I leave quietly and try to be subtle about it, I can sneak away without drawing attention to myself. Of course, I'm at least going to need some light if I mean to find my way around again... Gripping his staff tightly, the Forma once again focused on the tip of his staff in order to light it up again. As before, the same reaction occured, and the light that began to emit from the gem created a "bubble" of light that the Forma could use to navigate. ...Hopefully nobody saw that. Beginning to walk along the path again, the Forma shot a glance around him every few seconds in an attempt to find anyone who might be around the area.

The Dark Elf observed the two as they ensued in a polite conversation, glancing at her satchel. She put one hand on her Dagger at her side reassuringly and held the solution above her head to spread more light. As much as she should have been afraid of strangers, she had to get information about the Dark Gate, and this seemed like a good time to scout for some. She put her hand in front of her as she closed in on the duo, putting it into the air as to show she was no threat.

"Hello there." Milvaania spoke calmly, pulling the hood of her cowl down slowly as she took step by step almost at a snails pace "I'm of no threat. I heard one of you speak about the Dark Gate, correct?" She squinted against the light, holding it further out now, lighting up her proximity lightly.

The woman, an elf, chided him for being out this late, in the dark, alone. At this, the man could only smile. Sitting himself down at the fire, he looked over at the woman and said, "Well lady, Ah'm not sure if it makes any sense to you, but somethings are just too important to let something like a little darkness stop ya. Y'know what I mean?"

Then there was a sound behind him. He turned to find another woman. Another elf. He beamed. That town on the other side of the woods was looking less and less attractive.

"No. ..I don't know what you mean." She heard a woman's voice near her, looking up to see another visitor. Just what she wanted. From what she could see in the light of the fire though... this visitor was another elf. A dark elf though.

A frown creased her lips though the woman made a sign of peace, Diana in turn making the same sign to show her peace. She really wanted her gone though. When questioned about the dark gate, she nodded "I did mention it, yes. I've heard few rumors about it... and I wish to find it so as to learn about it. Why? Have you any information about it? Also... What name do you go by? "

Maybe this woman would prove useful.

Suddenly a third person walked out of the shadows towards the others.
This many people in the middle of the forest in the middle of the night talking about the Dark Gate.
This just had to be a cult meeting or some other occult service.
But what exactly were they trying to do? Open up a second gate?
Summon a demon?
Whatever it was, Argus definitely wanted to be as far away from all that as possible.
Unless he could prevent it of course. But since the mage was vastly outnumbered, his chances of defeating these characters in combat and thus preventing them from carrying out whatever they were planning to do were very slim. And running away would definitely alert these people to his presence.
Argus was between a rock and a hard place, that was for sure.
And all he could do was to wait...

Loki sighed, it seems that the conversation is going slow, nothing that interested her was said and no information given, they sure are tight lipped with each other. But she really had nothing better to do at the moment other then sleep, but only a fool would sleep with unknowns around them. She groaned lightly, wondering if she should just leave, but then she might get a job later that requires this information. Loki just shook her head, knowing that nobody can see her at the moment, though she did wonder when the will sense her, she did nothing to hid her presence to sensor types.

As the Forma continued to walk, the voices that he had heard earlier started to fade out. He wouldn't be able to pick up on what they were saying, but he had decided that being safe was his top priority at this point. Going at a rather brisk pace, the Forma continued to walk along the path until the voices were barely audible. Alright, I should be safe for now. I think I'll be able to hear them coming if they decide to start moving.

At this point, however, he was starting to feel the effects of fatigue taking their toll on his body. He had been walking for quite some time now, plus he had been active throughout the entire day preparing to start his journey. I can't afford to be tired, should I find myself in a state on conflict. I should probably rest for a few minutes to regain some of my energy. Pulling away from the path, the Forma sat down, leaning against one of the many trees inhabiting the forest.

((I've decided to skip my post here. I've got nothing to do here. Wondering why the rest of you are just sitting out in the woods, all by your lonesome.))

(While very, very late, monkey is being skipped)

She sighs as she stands, moving the cooking meat away from the fire so it wouldn't burn when she walked away. She was going to check for any nearby herbs to flavor the meat with, if she was lucky enough to find some.

"I'll return... take any of my items and I'll hunt you down" she spoke absent-mindedly, though the threat was still there.

She picked up her staff, walking to the edge of the forest as a flame circled the tip of her staff.

So many strange people.. She wished for a good walk to.

(Skipping. Nothing to do here.)

Loki snorted silently, watching the elf get up and threaten her unexpected guests, then as she walked towards the edge of the clearing. She probably didn't notice, but Loki was almost directly above the elf, though separated by over thirty feet, as Loki has had been discreetly climbing higher as she lost interest in listening in on the conversation.

The Forma looked down at the elf, deciding to watch her from the coverage of the thick trees. Might as well, nothing more interesting is happening and she was fighting off the urge to sleep, which would be bad in this situation, she'll watch until the elf was out of sight, then turn her attention to those still in the clearing.

(Umbreon is skippped. SO late)