#daggercape

Large inky hues looked down from atop a tree that towered over the small pirate cove of Daggercape. Thy belonged to a grotesque looking owl, snow white feathers with gnarled horns of jagged bone and massive claws of the same jagged bone. How long had it been sitting there, observing? Hours, really. Far below a human man scrabbled around some buildings, looking desperate, like he was running for his life. Locking to his person, the owl saw what it had been seeking all this time. A badge, white… With a black circle in the middle. Still, the owl sat silently, watching as the man made his escape from the town and to the bridge that led up and out. Once he was far outside of town, the owl lit out, circling high above before folding in wings to dive bomb down. Too relieved to be free of the town, the man foolishly paid no attention to his surroundings. At the last possible moment, the owl suddenly shifted to reveal the kaldorei form of Reveria, armored and cloaked up. Her feet slammed violently into his head, the momentum of her full weight sending his head to smack hard against the ground. He was was out cold in seconds, leaving the druidess to look around to ensure she hadn’t been seen. Once certain, she slung the man over her shoulder and wandered off into the darkness. ------------------------------------

It was cold atop the mountain, far colder than ground level. The man’s eyes eventually fluttered open, groggily looking around. Almost immediately he began to struggle, to feel fear, to yelp and panic. His limbs were tied to massive stones with twine, leaving him immobile aside from the ability to writhe about. From nearby shadows, Reveria emerged, mask lowered, breathing heavily like a predator about to spring upon their prey. As she got closer, his eyes got wider, his shrieks got louder until finally she was close enough to lash out with her clawed hands, leaving his cheeks in tattered ruins and his tongue flopping uselessly in his mouth. The shock of it rendered him silent a moment, before she straddled him. Burbling gurgled cries echoed out as his terrified eyes stared at her.

“Shhhhhh… Shhhhh… “ The druidess cooed out at him. “It’ll be over soon.” Her breathing grew heavier and heavier, muscles tensing, unbridled rage bubbling through to the surface of her being. In a blink, she was a massive bear, white fur, patches of missing flesh and fur, jagged spikes of bone jutting from her body, claws to match and an eerie black flame that rippled over her figure. The man writhed and tried to scream but was already drowning in his own blood. The maw of the bear with enormous fangs opened wide before clamping down to tear into his torso, sprays and jets of gore flying everywhere. Claws flew, teeth gnashed, and eventually the man’s screams were silenced once his body was left in ruin, shredded and flayed to the bone.

One last good rip of fangs through body sent entrails splattering around the bear as it let out a savage roar, a roar that continued even as Reveria returned to her kaldorei form. She sat atop the ruined corpse, roaring as loud and long as she could. Blood covered her from head to foot, and when she finally silenced herself, she was left huffing, fingers coming to her mouth as she licked them clean. Steam boiled off her and the rapidly cooling corpse, as she exulted in her kill. For a long while, long enough for the steam to slowly rise less and less, she sat, catching her breath. The carnage replayed in her mind, over and over, as she was able to do what she’d not been able to with Captain Darby earlier. Even now, she could feel gristle as it slid down her throat, something like a satisfyingly full sensation wandering out from her stomach. Indeed, if someone where to look, there was not nearly enough of the man left for what she’d done.

After gathering herself, she set about finishing what she’d started. Flesh was flayed from bones, bones and flesh were arranged as tribute and offering to the goddess Elune. Some was held back, namely the heart, for another. Reveria chanted for a long time, a prayer to her goddess, a prayer of her gift and offering, asking for her touch to linger in return. When she was finished, a beam of moonlight speared down and incinerated the flesh and blood, leaving only charred bone in its wake.

The heart was then taken and a circle of voodoo ritual was carved into the ground. A clawed finger drug along her palm, the blood splattering in the circle. Inky black smoke began to billow out before the limbs of a massive spider form from within it, clawing from the shadows before eventually revealing the grinning form of Mama Zarenyen.