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35 Rude awakening
Warren awoke to a face full of dirt, pine needles, moss, and rotting leaves. He coughed and spat the vile taste from his mouth, and the stomach had a hand on the eject button. Warren fought to control the reflex. It took a few moments to clear the cobwebs from his mind.
The sounds of the forest filled his ears with its music, and the warm rays of the sun told Warren it was morning. “Herne? Are you there?” He did the mad scramble to his feet and looked around, “What the hell happened?”
The previous evening drifted back to him and the parts he couldn't remember were filled in by Archon. The eidolon appeared before him in its majestic griffon form and ruffled the great wings. “Yeah, I'm worried too...” He trailed off and remembered the spade hood reaching for the moon. Herne was nowher
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Scald Crow 36 Daring rescue
Warren found a place where he could practice with the shaper gauntlets. He tried several times to form a rifle and fell short. He needed to stay out of range of the shriek or find a way to neutralize it. Archon flashed a pair of earplugs and then a wand. "Enchanted earplugs?" Warren let the idea sink into his brain. "Can we form those with the shaper gauntlets?" Archon took a moment to reply with a big green checkmark. "Okay, can I form something else while I have the earplugs active?" A red x and the sound of a game show buzzer. "Okay, I can protect myself against the shriek, but how do I combat the creature itself. I want to keep it off balance or send it running to the hills," Warren found a seat on a stump and ate a couple of pieces of jerky, "How fast can we switch between objects?" A picture of a clock ticked for two seconds and then stopped, "That's an eternity in combat terms." With no better
Scald Crow 37 Educated Guesses
Warren helped Theria to the built-in cot built into the wall of the Scald Crow, "How are you doing?" He asked with a voice filled with concern. She almost seemed to slide from his arms onto the hard sleeping surface. "The spade hood drew my power from me and stored it in the stone. I could feel the sickness beneath the glassy surface. I don't think the spade hood wants to let the witch out. I think it wants to go home. However, the more energy it feeds the stone, the stronger the witch gets. I don't think it even realizes what it's doing," Theria smiled and kissed him, "I forgot to say thanks for the rescue." Her hand caressed his face, and he leaned into it. The sensation felt like home when he had one. "We'll get to the bottom of this. Get some rest, Archon, and I will do everything in our power to keep you safe," He pressed his face against hers and she tried to pull him on the cot with her. It groaned in protest. "Sorry, I d
Scald Crow 38 Waiting
A sniper's life is filled with endless patience and precision. Herne has animal patience, he can stay still for hours in perfect silence until that perfect moment to fire arrives. Warren has yet to develop the patience to follow suit. Herne chuckled to himself and lowered the rifle and hung it from a gnarled branch above them. He peered through his range finder, "Why would the spade hood leave it behind?" Warren shrugged, "I have no idea, maybe it decided to pursue another way to achieve its goals whatever they are." He took a moment and chewed on some beef jerky, "I never expected the Seelie to believe in Aliens." "The moon people are not aliens, Whelp, they are part of the universe. We have to assume they serve some purpose in the grand scheme of things," Herne said in a sage tone.
Scald Crow 39 Capture
The most rewarding part of patience is when it pays off. Warren discovered this while he waited for the spade hood to return to the agate-like witch stone. He and his newly found mentor, Herne, still hadn't divined why the moon Seelie needed the relic. It floated back and forth in front of stone hands clasped behind its back. Every so often it would stop and touch the amorphous shadow wandering the surface. "It has no idea the witch is trapped in there," Herne shook his head sadly. "The creature is on a one-way trip to an early grave." "Lets try to capture it. I'm sure the crew can come up with a way to protect us from the shriek," Warren suggested. Archon agreed with him in his mind, "The eidolon likes the idea too." "I don't have an issue with the idea, its how w
Scald Crow 40 Balloons and rocks
Hours passed as Warren and Theria tore through the pages of all the spellbooks. Well, Theria tore through them. Warren didn't know anything about the Seelie alphabet, and when translated it resembled Gaelic. He only knew this because he looked up a translated word on the internet. Warren found his hands tensed and ready to rip up freshly printed pages. He put back on the desk, "I've reached my limit. I don't know anything about this, and I can't tell you what's going on. The young Seelie began to flip through the pages like a mad evangelist. Warren watched her face slip from serious to grief. After being taken by the spade hood, and weakened to the point of death, it would be enough to rattle the most hardened veteran. Tears glistened in the corners of her eyes and came down in torrents. Gentle
Scald Crow 41 Spirtual Crisis
Jack, Herne, and Warren didn't move a muscle, when faced with the spectral image of the woman. Traditional buckskin adorned the slender body. She raised her hands above her head, "Well are you going to help? You are members of the Scald Crow aren't you?" Jack and Herne took a step back from the phantom, and pushed Warren forward, "You go, whelp." "I am in awe of your bravery," The spirit mocked, "What could a child..." The spirit took a step back in the face of the eidolon, the long wings flapped, and Archon stomped the ground and shrieked victoriously before he vanished. "A guardian spirit? I need your help." "How did you know who we were?" Warren asked, as he turned to his companions, "I don't think she wants to fight guys. Can you pretend to be professional for a minute." Herne and Jack tentatively stepped forward, and stood just
Scald Crow 42 One Down
It took some ingenuity and teamwork to get the spade hood to the witch stone. Their previous encounters did not engender trust between the crew and the moon child. Theria offered the first real idea, "We'll have to make a platform with the same protective circle. I don't think we can trust spade hood not to shriek," She hovered on the spot and glared at the red-eyed menace, "The platform will also require a levitation spell. The spade hood is a big girl?" Grace put her arm around Theria, "Feel free to get started, lass. I'll brief the men on the mission." Theria saluted and headed into the Scald Crow. She flew back out to kiss Warren, who tried to get another, but his lips tasted the cool morning air. She waved as she zipped into the armored transport. It killed him to know Theria hurt, and all he could do is wait for her to come to him. Grace sighed, "She'll be okay, Vandal, I promise. The spade hood did something
Scald Crow 43 Bokken Riders
The sacrifice of the spade hood worried Warren. The red-eyed horror became a tree to help power the Witch stone. It spoke to the imprisoned witch's power and raised the importance of finding the remaining five chosen. "Vandal, are you there?" Grace's voice came over the radio with urgency. "Go for Vandal," Warren retorted. "We have an emergency call from Elphame. Put the witch mission on the back burner. We will be going to Vancouver. I can't tell you why. Elphame insisted we all be here for the briefing." "Roger that, we are coming back to base," He whistled, "Okay guys, we are heading back to the Scald Crow. Grace has a priority one call from Elphame." Hopes spectral eyes twinkled, "Excellent, you can continue your search for the remaining chosen..." the apparition put her hands on her hips, "Well, you aren't going to find them out in the middle of the woods." "Forgive us, Elder Hope. We will pass on the importanc
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