RP: 5th Fleet [Chapter Seven] We're Not In Yamatai Anymore...

Rin inspected the leather armor, tapping one of the bracers against the table with a thunking sound. Seeming satisfied with them she removed her bow, her quiver of arrows, and her cloak and set them on the table next to the armor. Choosing one of the light gambesons, she unfolded the garment and pulled it on over her head. She laced up the ties near the neck and then picked up the leather breastplate.

Rin pulled on the breastplate and then pulled the straps tight on the sides; she tugged at the armor to ensure it was snug and fit comfortably. Rin took a couple of steps and shifted her body around to gauge how much the armor would restrict her movement; the armor hardly hindered her at all.

"This fits well," remarked Rin while trying on one of the leather bracers.

Dimitri had a lot to take in as the kobold spoke of all sorts of things that he did not know. He could stand not knowing how to use his weapon properly, but armor was much more important to him he couldn't afford to mess that up. The damaged armor was quite a surprise to him as ell, it survived well enough to be in need of repair instead of being replaced, and the owner was the one that brought it in, maybe it was as good as the little lizard said.

He gave a nod put the armor down intending to purchase it, seeming satisfied with the proof given. He needed to think about his weapons now, he was pretty sure that his own crossbow wasn't that special since he bought it on the cheap and it was only intended for self defense. The explanation of the bodkins did sound promising though, he could keep offer some fine support with them. He decided to wander over to the crossbows present, looking at ones for hunting to see how they were priced. He was thinking of selling the one he already had.

Aya smiled self-consciously as the kobold explained the solution to her woes. She hoped that she wasn't coming off as suspicious; after all, what self-respecting warrior wouldn't know all of this stuff? It'd be awful if their mission ended before it really began just because she lacked a little local knowledge! The blue Neko pretended not to hear Kuroneko's aside, though that particular act fell apart as soon as Sif began yanking on the tiger-haired woman's ear. She reminded herself yet again not to make Sif displeased.

When the battle-scarred gambeson was unveiled, Aya followed Kuroneko's lead and leaned forward to take a good, long look at it. The mention of these 'bodkin' arrows troubled her - they sounded incredibly deadly. "Um, excuse me - about bodkin arrows and those 'Northmen Needles'... how likely are we to run into them? I'm not that familiar with the local area, since I'm just starting out."

If it weren't for the kobold's response to Sif's comment, she would have continued asking about arrows. But something about her word choice seized her attention. "Wait a second - what do you mean exactly by 'sold here' and 'owners'? I'm sorry if this is a touchy topic, but does that mean you're a... slave?" She quickly added, "But, um, if you don't wanna talk about it then never mind! I understand."

Rin was right; as the crimson Neko donned the hard boiled armor, it fit her well, and only a little too well at the chest. Kuroneko spotted this immediately and grabbed her from behind, both of her hands groping up onto her chest-plate. "Ara, it hides so much of you. How's it feel? Is it a little too tight?" she asked, pressing on the armor a little. At the same time, seeing both Dimitri and Rin pleased with what they were handling, the Kobold wagged its tail in anticipation as the young man put down his purchase-to-be to take a look around.

The selection wasn't the biggest around, but it was a reasonable enough range of things to get a good idea of what could be had out there. Perhaps the one that stood out most was the crossbow that had its prod, lathe or 'bow' section made out of wood. Perhaps the widest and largest out of all of them, it very much looked like it was made using a wooden war-bow perhaps a meter tall. It definitely wasn't going to be as powerful as a long bow that was as tall as himself, but it still required a person to put their foot through the 'stirrup' and bend over, pulling it with both hands. After that was a proper metal prodded crossbow; smaller, more compact and possibly more powerful, it also used the same cocking method. Finally the third crossbow on hand stood out the most.

Large, like a rifle, a piece of metal hooked forks at the end grabbed onto the string. A single hand crank would work on the teeth along this metal fork, pulling both it and the string it grasped back so it would cock. This was obviously a very powerful crossbow, and with the right bolts, would threaten even plate armor. Unfortunately for Dimitri, the Kobold didn't give him any commentary on what he was looking at; Aya had its attention.

And Kuroneko was eying him and whatever potential selection he was going to make from behind Rin.

"Bodkins? They're not common. Right now, the last war was maybe this many ago!" it told Aya first, holding up both of its hands. It was perhaps a decade by the little clerk's count. "They make ssmaller holes, and have no barbs to stay stuck in, so are bad for hunting. Northmen don't come into Mitteland often either, unless they are raiding. Going A-Viking, I thinks," it added. "Goblins starting to be more common heres, but they just pests. Bigger, stronger Hobgoblins are scary, and like bodkins, though haven't heard of them around parts near." When the blue skinned Neko pressed it on the same topic as Sif, it looked between them. The Mini-Neko had taken a seat on the table top and pulled out a raisin to eat from under her cloak, but then handed out a second towards the Kobold. Taking the offered snack, it did best imitation of leaning in while it whispered.

"Yes. Clan chased other deep-dwellers out into woods, tried to hunt them down. Put them out like fire after is not needed. Failed, and then I gots caught," it told them both. "Dangerous times. Don't go out. Don't go looking for adventure. Find big city, lots of knights, and job inside big city. Stay inside," the Kobold warned them.

Dimitri's attention was drawn to the rifle like crossbow, looking at it's side and figuring how long it would take to load he felt that it might have been this worlds equivalent to a sniper rifle. He wasn't much of a sniper himself but he liked the idea of not having to put down the bow every time he needed pull the string back, if he were a Minkan or a Neko he wouldn't have to worry, but he was still Nepleslian.

He glanced at the price of the rifle like corssbow and then moved to examine the bolts they had to see if they had any armor piercing ones. All the while he listened to the stories to kobold was telling and taking it all in and spoke up after he paused. "What do you mean when you say 'Deep-dwellers'?"

Rin gently pushed Kuroneko's hands away while furrowing her brow.

"Do you mind? It is acceptably snug, which considering my measurements is to be expected," said Rin, trying her hardest not to blush.

She attempted to ignore Kuroneko by focusing her efforts on donning the rest of the armor.

"Just a little bit~" Kuroneko teased.

As Rin slipped on her vambraces, the older Neko grabbed the greaves, helping her put them on. Despite her words, the way she did so was not unlike a mother helping a child put on shoes. She'd find that the vambraces were basically a single piece of leather that wrapped around her forearms to protect them, with the greaves being much the same. Since they didn't have buckles however, they both relied on leather bands tied into knots; fortunately, they weren't the sort that was like something found on a corset. Though that would have fit better, a single cut would have had the whole thing come off. Instead, each had three of these bands to tie, and though a small hassle to put on and off, made sure they were sturdy when in use. "When you use your bow, make sure the string doesn't catch on your inner forearm; these vambraces aren't bracers where it'll just slide off after all," the black and orange haired woman advised her.

"It's a bit of a shame," Sif remarked to Aya as Rin dressed. "I would have liked to see her take on the same front-line role as you are Aya, since our people are as strong as human men that are bigger than us." Looking at the milky-blue young woman from head to toe, the table top dwelling Mini-Neko added, "You shouldn't worry about the arrows penetrating your body so much. Short of one to your heart, you'll be able to keep fighting so long as you don't pull them out and remember to block the pain." At the same time, Dimitri found himself what looked like a dozen bodkin bolts amongst all the different broadheads. These had short, stout points, but with a pyramid-like construction ending in a fine tip. They looked like they'd do some real damage to armor. While the Nepleslian was looking them over however, the Kobold was nervously fidgeting at his question.

"Koboldss like cavess. Like to dig. But never go deep! Never. If we do, may get eaten...or worsse," it's slightly raspy, slightly whistling voice trailed off. "You, uh, probably have to worry about Goblins and Hobgoblins most," the slave-clerk began to explain. "Goblins, hate goblins. Filthy, stupid, unclean, unorderly, rule breaking vermin. As tall as Kobolds at best, but often a little less, with big, wide mouths with teeth and always hungry. Kobolds' sworn enemy! Easy kill, but many-many." Tugging at the back of its tunic, it added, "Don't let them hop on, or it will drop something down, like snake, or giant spider or worse!" Clicking its claws together like a person nervously touching the tips of all their fingers, it told them one more thing. "Hobgoblins though, much more dangerous. Much more. Are - "

"Curses Yayap! I thought I told you to let me handle the customers!" a deep voice boomed. The back door swinging open, a tall, burly fellow with a thick brown beard stepped into view. "Go on, get! And take that torn up Padded Jack into the back - it needs to be fixed by tomorrow, but help the children with theirs first," he shooed the Kobold. Giving a single chirping squeak of shock and fear, Yayap scurried away with frightening speed, its claws scratching at the wooden floor. Sighing, the big man stepped into the store front. "I hope that one hasn't given any of you trouble. Kobolds are devious, nasty little things if you're too nice to them, but enough about that! Are you finding everything well here?" he honestly smiled at them all.

Aya nodded attentively; it seemed that despite her worst fears the area wasn't that dangerous. But she couldn't let her guard down either, particularly if the group ran into "Hobgoblins". Her ears twitched as the kobold confirmed that she was indeed a slave. Aya wished that she could do something for the dimunitive lizard being, but she couldn't think of a solution - or more correctly, a solution that she could actually use.

"Thanks for the advice." Sif's words offered encouragement to the young Neko. Of course, all weapons were to be respected - each and every one was designed to kill, after all - but judging from Sif's advice arrows would not be instantly incapacitating unless she got very unlucky.

The thunderous voice startled Aya, who jolted at the unexpected intrusion. The newcomer was as imposing physically as his voice was loud - which was to say very. The azure Nekovalkyrja adopted a winsome smile of her own. "Everything's perfectly fine! The Kobold was really helpful."

Dimitri gathered up the twelve bodkin bolts as he listened to the Kobold continue explaining. He didn't get exactly what he wanted but he did get information on their possible enemies so he was satisfied with that. He then picked up the metal cranked crossbow as well and put these things with the gambeson. By time he got back though the Kobold had been replaced by a human merchant, who didn't seem as nice as the Kobold made him out to be.

"Yes...I was wondering how much this would cost, I have my own crossbow to sell too." He pointed to his crossbow which he'd have left near the door, since he planned on selling it from the start but didn't want to walk around holding it in the shop, that'd look threatening.

"Really?" the store owner asked Aya, his large, bushy eyebrows rising in genuine surprise.

"That's great news! We just got Yayap not too long ago, so we don't know 'em too well!" the big man's voice boomed. He quickly dropped it to a whisper however. "Between the lot of us here though, I don't know if it's a girl lizard or a boy lizard! Too embarrassed to ask you see, and I'm definitely not checking myself!" Crossing his arms more seriously though, the boisterous man's voice took on a more grave tone. "I am actually surprised Yayap has turned out so well, and even getting complements from customers! Besides being skilled, the children even like...uh...the Kobold," he began, failing to grasp its gender. "They've always have an ego larger than my belly, and hate every people taller than themselves. Lying and scheming, setting traps and tormenting people is what they're known for, but this one has me stumped. This one's not like the others at all," he brooded.

"Oh well!"

And just like that, he warmly nodded and smiled through his beard when Dimitri asked for the total cost. Walking over to where they all first saw the Kobold, the man reached under the counter and pulled out a wooden frame with several sliding beads on wooden rods. An abacus. "Just bring everything you're all gonna buy here! Is that going to be all?" he asked them, rapidly abacusing away with the abacus. As the store owner took account of the trade-in Dimitri had, as well as the various items they were all purchasing, a startled cry of surprise escaped Kuroneko's lips.

"I forgot! I need a weapon!" Glancing at the nearby weapon rack, she was stopped in her tracks. "There's so many to choose! I definitely want something biiiiig - something that I have to use both hands for - but what? A spear? Maybe an axe?"

"Just get both," Sif nonchalantly pointed out. There, on the weapon rack, was a weapon that seemed to fuse both weapons together; a halberd. Squeeing with delight, the dusky skinned woman gleefully grabbed the weapon and brought it over. The Mini-Neko herself however, leaped across the shelves to land at the check-out counter top just as the store owner finished up his calculations. Halberd in hand, Kuroneko leaned over to take a look for herself before he could announce it and quailed.

"Oh my! That's most of our gold!" Sighing, she slumped her shoulders and turned to the rest of the group. "Well, I suppose it's worth every coin. "Come on people, turn out your pockets - we're not going to be having a feast anytime soon to celebrate the beginning of our adventure," Kuroneko beckoned, hand out and waiting.

Satisfied with the leather armor, Rin headed over to where the longbows were hung on the wall. Stringing up one of the bows, she plucked at the string experimentally and gave the string a tug to test the draw weight. She strode over to the counter and placed her old bow before the shop owner in the hopes of trading in her hunting bow for a proper longbow. She then placed most of her remaining coin into Kuroneko's hand to pay for her share of the gear.

Donning her cloak, her quiver, and then slinging the new bow over her shoulder, Rin headed for the door to the shop. She glanced outside at the pouring rain, ready and waiting for the rest of the party to finish up.

Dimitri emptied his pockets, putting his coins with the stack. As a carriage driver, even though the pay was decent, most of it went to maintaining his horses so there wasn't much, but he had a good condition crossbow to sell, since he never had to use it, bringing it over and placing it on the other side of the counter so the owner could examine it. "Not a feast, but Kuro, you had plenty of fun last night anyway didn't you?"

Aya realised that she didn't know Yayap's gender either. Kobolds were completely androgynous, and Yayap's voice certainly hadn't clued her in any. The Neko quickly decided she didn't want to find out either as the shop's proprietor rambled about the relative virtues and vices of employing a Kobold (even if - at least if Yayap was any indication - many of the latter were imagined). And then came the part she had been dreading: actually paying for all of their equipment. Removing the armour she was wearing and putting both it and a light gambeson on the countertop, she added her own money to the pile. Although her earlier statements about her finances might have been a bit exaggerated, the purchase of those items would definitely take a big chunk out of her wallet.

She was very tempted to take the armour back and find something a little less expensive, but she tried to console herself by remembering that she needed all the protection she could get. Dimitri's comments earned a double take and a perplexed expression. I hope he's not implying what I think he's implying!

As they all paid up and gathered their gear, Kuroneko laughed. "Oh, I did, I did!" she replied to Dimitri. "Though, just not as much as I usually do," the woman added with a sly smile. In no time at all however, they were out the door as the owner's voice boomed behind them.

"Thank you and come again! Godspeed on your adventure!"

*****

To go on an adventure, a lot more than just good armor and weapons was needed. Food, water, various traveling and survival supplies were also a must, and it seemed that Kuroneko and Sif had both been thinking about this long and hard. Kuroneko having done so out of necessity and making do by having fun with it, and Sif...having done so because she honestly seemed to enjoy it. Though, the only indication she gave of such was how often she spoke up to 'educate' them on the matters at hand. For someone so small, the intensity was always surprising and something to be feared.

Right now though, there was none of that.

"You know, I thought adventuring would be more...adventurous," Kuroneko admitted, the halberd in the wooden seat with her and leaning against her shoulder. Sitting at the right side of the carriage's rear bench, she lazily stretched, yawning onto the sunny sky. It wasn't a fancy, enclosed carriage, but a more simple one made out of carved wood and two long benches, with a bustle at the back for luggage. Dimitri, the driver, sat at the front at the center of the bench. "What kind of people do you think we'll meet here Rin? Aya? I'm wondering if minotaurs are a social lot~"

"Be glad there's nothing adventurous happening right now," Sif swiftly replied. She didn't seem to be in a very good mood. Then again, she had been sitting on the back of the front seat to Dimitri's left for quite some time now. Nekovalkyrja or not, her back was likely stiff and her little rear sore. "Yayap mentioned something about goblins and hobgoblins, while the store owner was talking about kobolds and their danger. I wonder if something is happening in the background, but we're all ignorant of it," the seven inch tall women carefully thought. The carriage then hit a rock, jostling it enough they could see her bounce an inch off her seat. Sif only grumbled.

Here on this dirt road, just wide enough for a pair of carriages or wagons to pass by, the forest seemed to be thick and impenetrable, yet full of life just waiting off the beaten path.

Dimitri kept the carriage straight as they headed down the path, even though it was new to him the horses pulling were the ones he has spend quite some time with and knew well. He felt a little sorry for Sif, seeing her sit on the lip of the seat like that and have to suffer through all the bouncing. "Sif, I can put some cloth down for you to sit on, it should make it a bit more bearable at least." After that though he glanced to the back before putting his eyes back on the road. "I want to see a dragon, and if I'm really lucky maybe I can ride it...or a pegasus...0h or a griffon yeah, any of those would be great." Was he covering over Sif's seriousness with light heartedness on purpose?

"Baka."

The word, sharp like a straight razor, was spoken with a flat annoyance that only Sif could muster. "If we meet a dragon, it's more likely to either eat us or turn us into a roast, not let us ride it," she pointed out. Now that it was no longer raining as it was last night, or cold as mornings tended to be, the Mini-Neko had discarded her cloak. Underneath, she wore a pair of loose, light brown trousers stuffed into thigh-high black work-boots and a cream colored tunic. It was somewhat loose as well given how tunics were, but she also wore it with a brown leather back brace which tightly wrapped around her midriff. This all gave her a tomboyish look, which was only bolstered by her attitude. "Kuroneko, you talk some sense into him while he gets me something to sit on," she commanded.

It was safe to say her answer was 'Yes' to Dimitri's question.

"Ara, a dragon!" the orange-black haired Neko exclaimed. Like Sif, she had discarded her warm cloak for the time being as well, but unlike her, wore something completely different. A black and white housemaid's outfit. Though it was both simplistic and modest overall, with the skirt being long and the apron covering plenty along with the rest, there was just something very suggestive about it. As well as the way she leaned up on the back of the bench so that she was in between Rin and Dimitri, only to lightly hug them both. "There's a lot of things I'd love to ride Dimitri-kun, but a dragon is just to big. You need to be reasonable with how large the things are. Isn't that right Aya?" she asked, looking back.

Aya for one, could only blush, her milky blue cheeks taking on a slightly purple hue.

All around them, the sounds of nature - from deer running through the woods, birds happily singing and squirrels chattering away - vanished, leaving only the sound of the wagon and their uneasy horses.

Rin was mostly quiet as they began travelling. She kept a watchful eye on their surroundings should any danger suddenly become apparent.

When the sounds of nature seemed to suddenly be swallowed up by the trees around them, Rin found herself slightly on edge; she barely registered what Kuroneko was saying.
Instead, Rin's eyes were focused on the edges of the road where the trees encroached the path and her ears strained to pick up anything out of the ordinary.

Hearing Sif's indirect reply he took a moment to reach into his bag and pull out a thicker shirt for colder days and fold it, glancing back to the road and making sure the horses stayed on track, correcting them if they needed it. "What if dragons aren't actually bad though? Maybe they're good, and unicorns are the ones that go around slaughtering villages?" He then picked Sif up gently and placed the folded shirt below her and let her sit back down on it. He had mad sure to fold it so all the fasteners were on the inner most layers so she wouldn't sit on them. He had been multitasking so much though he did not notice the change of ambiance however, but his attention soon returned fully to driving.

"If you really want to find out the hard way, I want your loot first," Sif snipped at Dimitri. "Remember we're here to gather information, and considering how thinly spread the fleet is over this planet, it would be prudent we do so for our own sakes as well," she pointed out. Soon however, the Mini-Neko raised her arms up as the young man made to grab her and place her down on the makeshift mat. It seemed she was used to this, and it did make it little easier for both of them when she did so, but her expression wasn't a happy one. Though her expression was as placid as it ever was, anyone looking would wonder if her eyebrows were furrowed. "You do know I'm not a doll to be lifted about without asking, yes?" she asked, a faint but hard edge in her voice.

"Dôshiyô, Dôshiyô!~" Kuroneko retreated back into her seat, holding her cheeks with both hands as she wiggled about. "My advances have been rejected yet again! Oh, how cold!" the older Nekovalkyrja playfully moaned. It seemed entirely inappropriate - completely and utterly so - but, with the timing, there was one upside. She cut right into the tension. Her playful laments didn't last long though, as she was soon peering at them with sly, knowing eyes. "Whatever they are, they're coming."

"Hai," Sif nodded, crossing her arms. "Show me what you all have," she demanded of them.

In that instant, a cacophony of raspy, high pitched chatter and yells could be heard as a group of small, short creatures dashed out of the brush to the side of the road ahead. Scarcely a meter tall, the eight greenish-grey things brandished crude swords and mean looking little halberds like malicious mockeries of toddlers. Large, ungainly head sat on top of a scrawny body, giving them a twisted, baby-like proportion. Red eyes, widely set on their wrinkled, inhuman faces, glinted with glee as they smiled with broad, toothy maws.

"Chew and bite!"

"Cut and figh - HORSE!"

"HOOVES, IRON SHOD! RUN!"

In an instant, the rhyming, prattling war-cries turned into complete and utter panic in front of the squad as they sat there on the uncovered carriage. Turning around and fleeing, the creatures ran down down the road. And didn't get away, considering the fact that it was also where the soldiers-turned-adventurers needed to go and were going. This wasn't lost on the horses either; if they blinked, they would miss it, but the two turned their heads ever so slightly to look at each other and snort. Right before they both started to pick up the pace and loudly neigh.

"They not getting smaller! Not getting smaller!"

"Run fasters, run fasters!"

While Kuroneko looked like she was struggling not to explode into laughter as she clung on to her halberd, Sif looked disappointed, if not outright sad as her ears drooped.

Rin had her bow out in an instant with an arrow nocked once the first of the small creatures came out onto the road. But then the small creatures simply ran in fear of the horses. As the carriage picked up speed, Rin lowered her bow and held onto the side of her seat to keep from falling off.