Into the Demeter Woods

Another man was taken in the night from the city of Demeter, and there's only one possible reason for that. The Midara of the surrounding forest are whisking men and women away to satisfy their lust. The woods are completely forbidden for the citizens of Demeter and knights authorities attempting to brave the forest never turn up again. The only hope was to send out job requests to the surrounding cities in order to bring in adventurers and mercenaries looking for work.

"And so, that's how it is, Ferro. Are you sure you'll be okay in there, taking on this job?" The voice of a youthful woman sounded from a small pendant in the shape of a feather. The wearer, a young man with white hair, approaching the edge of a deep forest. He'd taken on the job, though not without quite a bit of this kind of talk.

"I've told you a million times, mom, I'll be fine in there. Besides, that guy who posted the job gives me a bad vibe, so I don't want to knock that there might be more to this." He had a red and gold painted iron staff in one hand and was returning a map to his bag, not bothering to fold or neaten it.

"Alright, then good luck Ferro, I believe you can do this. I love you, sweetheart."

"Love you too, mom." He tapped the pendant and the voice died out as he stopped just at the first tree, knowing he could very well be walking into a lot of trouble.

Up in a nearby tree, just outside of the entrance to the imposing woods, a figure with green twintails sat upon one of the branches, playing with a small mechanical object in her fingers, moving it from side to side in her hand. Anyone looking on would find it to appear sulking.

This was her first big break, a real mission! Something she could finally give back to IDOL after doing so much for her. She jumped at the chance, even if more than a few people were worried. But she wasn't gonna let that stop her, and after a bit of convincing that all of this would be a good stress test, they finally relented and let her out here...with a few conditions.

She couldn't let people know that she was from IDOL, and she really, really shouldn't go in there on her own. She was sure she could just beat the snot out of some midara on her own, but I guess that's just them being cautious. She didn't know if anyone was going to come by anytime soon, but she could wait. She set the object back in her ear, and sat there, looking out into the bright skyline.

However, a voice caught her ear, and it was getting closer, too. She was high enough that he wouldn't notice her, up in the treetops, and it was the first person she had seen since she had gotten here. Now was a good a time as any, she thought.

She wrapped the ends of her legs around the branch she was sitting on, and without warning, suddenly tilted her body forward, causing her to rotate on the branch and hang upside down from it, right in the figure's path, causing her two tufts of hair to hang downward.

"Well, hello there! First person I've seen out here today." She waved, although her hand grazed against the ground underneath her.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Booming footsteps could be heard as a large figure approached, wreathed in crimson metal. It's helmet frozen in what could only be described as rightous fury, two green slits making up the eyeholes. It's gaze began to sweep. Left, and right.

To a Space Marine, nothing was more important than their mission, their crusade to protect the Imperium of Man. It is why Barchiel, member of the Blood Angels, had come to this planet. Rumors had begun to spread of creatures known as Midara. Entities that only Slaanesh theirself could have come up with, who lured Mankind away from the Emperor's light, supping from their life force via carnal means. Initially, he had come to confirm this, and to destroy them if they proved to be a threat. However, certain...meetings, had caused him to reconsider. While some were a threat, others simply wished to live in some semblance of harmony with humanity. And for that, he would not judge.

However now, he had heard of Midara approaching the human settlement of "Demeter", dragging men and women away for vile means. And by the God-Emperor, he would not allow this. He would purge them, if need be. But as he stood here... He noticed more people. Allies, perhaps? Approaching, a crackling came from his helmet. A reminder that he needed to get this damned modulator fixed, that his voice would not come out as..loud and aggressive as it did.

"I assume you are here to pursue the 'Midara' as well?" As if to emphasize this comment, he lifted up his weapon. A gun of sorts, the magazine ending in a curved hook. He had prayed to the Machine Spirit for a good fight. Hopefully, it would not betray him.

"If that is the case, then I welcome you, Battle-Brother and Battle-Sister."

IDOL was hired by the Director to investigate an incident that was near Juria's territory within the Demeter Wood.  There were several reports of people that have gone missing and the incident was too close for comfort that they decided to nip the problem at the bud so to speak.

It was also at the same day that Ryofu health was getting progressively better, if her performance from therapy is any indications.  Unfortunate, the green-haired fighter was all too eager to be out on the field to repay the organization for helping her.  Hestia only agreed to Ryofu on conditions to make sure she isn't over her head before she is well enough.  

In the command center, Luna lets out a silent sigh as she keeps her sights on the screen with the continent map displayed with a conspicuous blinking green dot at a specific location at the edge of the Demeter woods.  It looks like she has arrived at the location.  It isn't long before she hears her speaking to someone.  Has she made contact within someone there already?  Are they friend or foe?

"Ryofu, if everything OK over there?  What's the status report?" The soft spoken rabbit inquires in Ryofu's earpiece.

The loud footsteps were enough to cause the leaves on the tree above her to rustle, and cause her to jump, losing her footing and tumbling out of the branch, lightly landing on the ground underneath her with a small thud. Luckily, she was already fairly close to the ground, and it wasn't too jarring for her, as she pulled herself up and shook her head.

"Ugh...what a rush, and not the good kind." She took a moment to catch her bearings, shaking off the dizziness. "Yeah, I'm good. Some people showed up. I haven't entered yet, so don't worry about that. I'll keep the line open." She spoke the words in a rather low voice, enough that it could be taken that she was just talking to herself, almost, and pulled herself off the ground, dusting off her skirt.

"So..." She took a long look at the man, before turning her attention to the giant hulky mechanical creature that had come by. "You two going in there, huh?" She thrust a thumb behind her into the dark forest, turning to face it. "I would've done it myself, but uh...well..." She put on a feigned look of nervousness, playing up the part. "Mayyybe I got a little nervous, doing that on my own. Maybe."

The forest was thicker than the girl first thought and not only that but it seemed like more people had arrive, probably seeking the reward from taking down the mischievous midara. "This should probably make things easier. They look pretty strong." She muttered to herself before jumping down from the treetop that she was using as observation point.

"Yo! I assume you are here for the same reason, right?" She asked after greeting them. She then took a good look at all of them: an elf, a woman and... A big, metal man? It was a pretty strange group but meeting a bunch of strong looking people such as them was exciting to her.

Ferro looked to the green-haired woman, waving to her himself, though a bit less energetically. He should've expected more people would be here to take the job. The greenette didn't look too bad though, so maybe this would go more smoothly than-- And then he felt slight shaking of the ground and looked up at the hulking armored man. Crap, he'd heard rumors about guys like these, and that was the most worrisome thing. Finally there was the last arrival, another woman strolling towards the entrance to the forest, also very clearly after the impish troublemaker they took the job for.

"Hello all, my name is Ferro, it's nice to meet you all." His voice was gentle and not unfitting for a young man with his looks. A pretty face to be certain, but as he heard the green-haired girls words about nerves before stepping in, his features sharpened somewhat, and his voice became a tad more firm. "Well, if you'd like company on this job, I'm not averse to it myself. I wouldn't mind working with any of you, in fact."

His thought process was simple: If he could convince these people to join up, the job would be that much safer and easier, but the trade-off was firstly convincing them in the first place, and secondly setting down a very non-negotiable ground rule, else he'd be better off going alone. "If any of you are here for the reward, you can have it, I'm just here to settle this conflict. If you're willing to have me yourself, we could group up, sound good? Oh, but I only have one condition: No killing anyone, and that includes the Midara."

Nerves? Her? Maybe the others bought that but Dixi didn't. She could feel the green haired woman's power, she was probably a Ki user like her and this woman's aura wasn't the kind you would feel from someone who was 'nervous'.

"Name's Dixi and I don't really have any problem with teaming up. As for the reward, I'm not interested either. As long as we stop the midara I don't really care what you guys do with her... Of course I would rather not kill her either." It was true, her mission was to ensure the people's safety and stop the midara from causing trouble by any means necessary and nothing more but she would rather not break her number one rule.

Introductions. A typical part of any meeting. If they knew each other's capabilities, strategies could be made. However, the whole 'No killing' would be difficult, given his arsenal and mindset.

"Barchiel. Adeptus Astartes, Blood Angels Chapter." Short and sweet. He had no time to waste on introductions, there were people to protect. With that, he began making his way deeper into the forest. Would that the Emperor had given them better social skills.

"Alright." The moon rabbit acknowledge as she continues to listens into the conversations and events from afar. She will trust Ryofu in her decisions and advise her if she asks for any help.

The green haired girl spun on her heel, putting on a truly ecstatic face. "Perfect! I wasn't gonna go in there alone, anyway." She put a hand on her chest, drawing some attention to it. "My name is Ryofu, and don't you worry; I'll do my part!" She pumped her fists a little, showing off a younger, more energetic side (that may or may not be true). She didn't even really need to manipulate them like this, but since she couldn't really tell them why she was here or why she was waiting, this was the next best thing for her.

The familiar sound of thundering footsteps turned her attention to the lumbering giant, that had already started making his way into the forest. Clearly not the social butterfly. They'd have to be quick.

Her attention hadn't fallen on the new woman yet, but at seeing her, her gaze went up and down her figure. "Mm, aren't you just a stunner?" She could tell just from the girl's piercing gaze that little tricks weren't going to work on her. She knew that look pretty well. "Nice to meet you, too." She flashed the girl a sly grin, before turning her attention back to the forest opening.

"Heard some pretty nasty stuff about this place, and the one in there. With four people, though, we should be fine, right?"

Dixi raised a brow at the girl's act but one thing was for sure. This girl was hiding something, wheter she could trust her or not was yet to be seen. For now she decided to play along but keeping her guard up. "Nice to meet you, Ryofu."

As she heard the loud footsteps, Dixi turned around and noticed the big, metal man heading right into the forest. "I'd be careful if I were you, rumors say that the forest is filled to the brim with traps."

After warning him, Dixi's attention shifted towards the elf once more. "You better keep an eye on the big guy, doesn't strike as the 'peaceful resolution' kind of guy to me and-" Ryofu's comment made her look at the girl once more. "Flattering but no time for that." She noticed the sly grin on her face, she knew that kind of grin, it was the kind of grin one of her sisters had on her face when she was planning something or was about to start teasing people. "We should head in before the big guy gets into trouble, don't you think?"

"Don't worry, I already figured him the type to have a hard time holding back," he told the new girl. He agreed they should probably follow after the big guy, lest he cause more trouble than was worth. Ferro followed after Barchiel, concerned about this particular ally. Hopefully things could go smoothly, or at least about as smooth as walking into Midara territoy typically goes.

His guess was that it wouldn't take long for them to encounter a few obstacles along the way, but with four people, he was hopeful that they'd make it through this okay.

(I'll start rolling encounter dice once everyone's stepped into the forest)

Ferro: 20
Barchiel: 20
Dixi: 20
Ryofu: 20

Ryofu chuckled to herself at the girl's response. Oh, she'd be a tough one to crack, there was no doubt in her mind. But, she was definitely going to get some enjoyment out of this. Aside from an opportunity to stretch her limbs, at least.

"Probably. I don't want to have to fish him out of something awful if I can help it." She stretched her arms upward, before galloping off to join up with Ferro and Barchiel, trying not to go too far out of the group.

She reached up to tap the giant armored man on the shoulder, scooting around to his side. "So, what's your deal? You seem pretty gung ho about all this." She was observing bits of his armor, and how he carried himself. "And what's the 'blood angels' or whatever? Sounds neat, at least."

Dixi shrudded before going after them, her gaze never leaving the green haired woman and the metal man.

The Space Marine continued to walk, taking in his surroundings. Strategies began formulating in his head as he lead the charge. At the green haired woman's tapping of his shoulder, he turned his head, slowly looking her up and down.

"I am a servant of the God-Emperor of Mankind. I exist to destroy all enemies of Man. The alien, the mutant, the heretic. Any who stand between us and the goal of claiming the stars for Mankind. Such is my duty as a Space Marine. As for what the Blood Angels are, we are one of the Chapters of Space Marines, borne of our Primarch Sanginius. May he rest in peace."

Stopping, Barchiel lifted his hands, removing his helmet with a hiss. He looked..rather unassuming. Short, black military style hair. Piercing brown eyes that took in their surroundings. A few scars, dotting his face...And a single metallic stub, sticking from the right side of his forehead.

"We fight, to allow Humanity to continue living. A mission like this is a normal day for me."

Ferro kind of just blocked them out for now, not really up to listen to the long monologues of a space marine. He wandered at an equal pace to the others, keeping an eye over the forest, wondering when they might encounter any Midara. Well, he certainly got his wish, because not too long into the trek, they encountered Midara with pleasant green skin from naked head to toe, hair not unlike autumn leaves, shapely assets, and the most notable aspect of the Midara, a large pitcher attached to her body. "Oh, hello everyone, I wasn't expecting so many guests at once. Care to take a relaxing dip?"

"Well, that was fast," Ferro sighed, preparing his staff for combat.

Encounter - 66 (4, Pitcher Alraune)

Ferro: 20
Dixi: 20
Barchiel: 20
Ryofu: 20
P.Alraune: 15 (Decided to up their stamina a bit since we have a full party)

Ryofu raised an eyebrow at his description. She had to admit, a lot of that went clear over her head, at least to some extent. She seemed to pick up on the general gist of it, though. The look of surprise on her face was very apparent when he took off his helmet, however.

"Oh! For a while, I wasn't really sure what you were. Didn't wanna assume, and all that..." She could note a few details just from the one piece of open skin she could see on the man. Stern, definitely seen his fair share of battles...and some strange thing embedded in his head? Definitely raised more questions than answers, even if it answered at least one.

"So, you guys do this for a living? Or, more a duty, I guess..." Her thoughts were cut off at the voice of their new guest, a midara of some kind. Plant based, no doubt. A sweet smell hung in the air, just by being in proximity to her. She seemed at least somewhat amicable, although it could just be a way to let someone's guard down. To call her "shapely" would be an understatement, as well, although she wasn't too focused on that.

"Pass. You're not quite the cat we're looking for. Look, how about you just, uh...point us in the right direction, and we can just be on our way without having to get anyone all messed up. Sound good to you?" She was going to at least attempt to not have to instantly break into a fight. She didn't really think it was likely, but it was worth a shot, all things considered. She'd met a few midara that were decent people. Maybe there was some in this forest, too?

"Duty, yes...From the moment we are chosen, to the moment we die, our lives are in service to the God-Emperor of Mank-"

A hostile. With a grunt, he placed his helmet back on, adjusting it slightly as he reached for his Bolter. Midara were resilient, he had learned that from personal experience. But perhaps one good shot to the head would....Wait, what was this woman doing? She was..speaking to the Midara?

A frown was on his face, but he restrained himself...for now, at the very least. But the moment said creature made a move...they'd be purged.

Dixi didn't really understand what the metal man was saying: God-Emperor? Blood Angels? The guy sure had a few things worth investigating... Or just too much imagination.

As the alraune stood in their way Dixi stopped and looked at her. "No one needs to be hurt, just point us on the right way please." She also noticed Ryofu was trying to settle this peacefully as well, maybe she wasn't so bad in the end.

"Oh, I'd love to let such pretty faces go on through, but I'm afraid you can't. I haven't gotten my share of love for the day. Now who will go first...? Eenie, meenie, minie... you~ <3!" She points to Dixi moves in surprisingly fast for a plant Midara, vines and ivy carrying her across the distance. "Let's have you first~!"

With an even more surprising amount of strength, the alraune pushed out her large tits as her hands reached out to the sides of Dixi's face, pulling her into her cleavage with a tug. Pollen flew out of her valley into the woman's face, forcing her to breath it in before the plant girl let her go. However, despite being freed, Dixi felt almost sad that it ended so quickly.

Pollen Puff - 44 (Fascination, 6)

Ferro: 20
Dixi: 19 + Fascination
Barchiel: 20
Ryofu: 20
P.Alraune: 15

"!"

Negotiations had failed. The flower Midara had charged in, grasping the one known as Dixi and...And....A silent groan escaped the Space Marine. He almost forgot that this is how Midara battled...Unfortunately, she didn't attest for one thing.

Barchiel...was packing heat.

Lifting up the gun, and having half a mind to turn it sideways for some odd reason, the trigger was pulled in bursts, bolter rounds flying towards the Alraune.

(Bolter.)

The look of effort on Ryofu's face was quick to disappear as she watched the person she walked in get mentally (and physically) smothered by the plant woman, being replaced with a look of disbelief. She had been really trying to avoid a fight! It looked as though that had been firmly rejected, however. She couldn't help but be more than a little peeved at that. More then that, angry. Quite angry.

"You wanna play that way?!? Fine! But don't say I didn't give you the chance!" Her Ki flared to life as her hands were enveloped in a green, pulsating lines of lightning. She entered a fighting stance, her arms moving in front of her, before moving so fast towards the target that it seemed like she was stopping and starting, almost teleporting with raw speed and leaving little electrical crackles with each step.

Even though she was pissed beyond belief, she was still going to play it smart. She couldn't afford to let it completely overtake her, even if it fueled her right now. She had grabbed Dixi with her arms, so that was the first step. Movement by movement, she approached her from all sides, zoning in to one of her arms in an attempt to hit a few pressure points. That ought to throw her off.

(Shock Therapy - Arms)

She should have expected that, its never that easy after. Once free from the alraune's chest, and feeling a bit dazed, Dixi slapped both her cheek, completely snapping out of it and ready to fight again. "Sorry but don't say we didn't warn you."

Something else got her attention, it seemed like the green haired girl wasn't playing around anymore and finally showed her real strength. The big metal guy wasn't fooling around either, firing a strange machine. "Remember, don't kill them, just incapacitate them."
(Wake Up)

Dixi was able to smack her self back to level-headedness, while Barchiel took aim and shot a round at the Alraune, missing completely. Ryofu, meanwhile, moved in close, using the distraction caused by Barchiel's gunfire to electrocute the plant Midara for a quick burst. Unfortunately for the green-haired martial artist, it failed to incapacitate the opponent's arms. Speaking of unfortunate, Ferro attempted to jab his staff at the girl twice over, but missed the mark both times.

"You don't have to be so mean, I just want to make you all feel good!" She reached out and grabbed Ferro's staff before he could retract it in time, giving it a mighty tug and pulling the elf in close, holding his face between her hands. "And I think I'll let you go next, cutie. Now, have yourself a nice loooong drink~!" She lowered his face down to her large tits and slipped a nipple in-between his lips just in time for a nice thick nectar began to roll out onto his tongue.

Wake up - 72
Bolter - 69
Shock Therapy - 2 (Disable - 47)
Double Thrust - 29, 55

Forbidden Fruit - 37, 40 (Advantage due to Ferro's Weakness)

Ferro: 18 + Charm
Dixi: 19
Barchiel: 20
Ryofu: 20

P.Alraune: 13