Carol
Arin Cragton
Northwind Road

He stumbled through the snow, holding his side. It wasn't a deep cut, but pain pulsed along the thin line. Blood had begun to seep through the thin jerkin he was wearing. He stumbled, before regaining his balance. He glanced around the forest, searching for Marsila. He noticed movement to his right, and he stepped forward, watching the figures around her. 

She fought well, piercing one of the men through the chest. He began to move quicker, ignoring the snapping twigs underneath his feet as he pushed towards her. He watched a man move behind her and raise his warhammer, before he began running, calling her name. It was too late as he watched the man slam the rounded head into her skull. He tripped, tumbling forward before catching himself, unstoppable as he rushed forward. 

He ducked a blade whistling for his neck; but was too slow to avoid being hit by one of the men. He groaned as a dull pain erupted from his side, and fell on his side. The last thing he saw was the dirty underside of a boot before darkness blasted its way into his vision. 

"I say we eat 'em now!" A young voice pierced the emptiness that held Arin's consciousness. He could only hear their voices, but he used that knowledge. He wasn't dead yet. 

"No. You saw what tha man did ta Herfort! We roastin' 'em good tonight." The other voice said before Arin slipped back into the darkness.
James
**Marsila Vema
Northwind, the rustlands
**
Nothing could compare against the agonising pain sprouting from the back of her head as she slowly regained consciousness. The shifter could feel a source of heat against her skin as she lay sprawled against the rustic brown soil, facing the pyre of wood that had been lit by their attackers. Marsila couldn't recall the moments that led her into this situation, having grown confused and drowsy while her brain began to heal. Her skull had already begun its process of resealing the cracks that had formed from when one of her attackers slammed a rock into the back of her head. 

She remained against the ground with her eyes closed as she heard voices. They spoke of whether or not it was in their best interest to cook the two immediately as a couple wanted have some fun with the man they had captured alive. Marsila could only assume what they meant by fun. Her body stiffened as she felt a finger trace over the dried blood enveloping her hairline, the sharp ragged nail digging beneath the skin to create a thin slice. 

"She's so pertty. 'an I skin her face for meh to wear 'fore we roast da bish?" The voice sounded similar to nails scraping against a metal sheet with a raspy high pitch tone. It contrasted against the male who responded, allowing the person Marsila assumed was a woman to do as she pleased. Using the finger coated in blood, the strange woman flicked out her tongue to lick the liquid from her digit before gagging in disgust and screeched. "IS RANCID!"

As her head no longer felt like a hammer pounding against the inside of her skull, Marsila no longer felt the need to feign unconsciousness and snapped her eyes open to take in her surroundings. With a quick observation, she caught sight of her traveling partner bound with rope against a boulder unconscious only a few feet behind her.

There were five other men who she recalled from their prior fight surrounding the pyre, along with a woman who was gradually growing pale until she collapsed with blood spewing from her mouth. 

"The fuck?! Yah was dead." The younger of the men cried out. Man wasn't the right word for him, she doubted he had yet to go through puberty as was yet to grow out his facial hair similar to his companions who had weaponised themselves the moment she rose to her feet. Grabbing the blade the deteriorating woman had owned, Marsila immediately threw it to the ground behind her by Arin, hoping he would eventually wake any moment.

Due to the amulet that no longer surrounded her neck, Marsia's eyes began to change from a brown shade with a dark hue, brightening into a piercing blue. The vibrations returned to her body as she planted her feet in the dirt, placing herself into a defensive stance as the men began encircling her while one ran to the woman who now lay as a corpse. As one of the men advanced towards her, Marsila was able to dodge the first attacker, kneeling as his ax swung over her head. She used the momentum of his attack and slammed her body into his side, throwing him into the pyre with the flames engulfing his body. 

A blood curdling scream could be heard, however it wasn't from the man whose flesh was melting from the fire. It felt as if someone had grabbed onto Marsila' spine and snapped it in half, causing her chest to shoot forward with an arched back before collapsing to her hands and knees. The men stopped in their tracks, transfixed on the woman who looked as if the bones beneath her skin were moving and caught sight of the raven black hair coating her entire body as she cried out from the unbearable pain. They had never witnessed something similar to this, yet one was able to recognise the signs immediately of what was to come.

"We need to get da fuck oudda 'ere!" Without another thought, the man turned on his heel and made a run for it whilst the others remained looking at the grotesque scene unfolding before their eyes, paralysed. What felt like hours agony to Marsila, was merely a couple of minutes as her body transformed into a large panther with onyx fur.
Carol
Arin Cragton
Northwind

A dull throb was the only sensation Arin felt. His mind was empty, not even a thought crossed the still void that encompassed his entire being. For a moment, the world stood silent. 

His smell was the first thing to return. The smell of blood and smoke filled his lungs. It was only a moment before a blinding light exploded into his vision, piercing through the darkness of his mind. He groaned, opening his eyes slowly as the bright sun stabbed its way into his mind, chasing away the dark void. 

He slowly blinked, his eyes adjusting to his surroundings. He felt the rough bindings holding him, struggling for a moment to sit up. His muscles ached, but he strained as hard as he could, before he heard the sickening crack of his thumb dislocating. He unbound his left hand, before untying what he could before releasing the rest of his bonds. The ground spun, and he coughed, falling to his knees as pain ran its course. He spit blood onto the dirt, before wiping his mouth and looking around. 

He saw the dead bodies first. Flies buzzed around the drying blood of two of the raiders that had kidnapped the pair. Blood soaked the earth around the pair, but Arin turned to look for his companion. 

"Marsila!?" He yelled, looking around for the young woman he was traveling with. His bloodshot eyes darted around him, but he saw no sign of the beautiful woman that he had been traveling with. 

"Fuck!" He exclaimed, kicking the dirt before dropping lower to the ground, noticing a strange print on the ground. He traced the print, before glancing around. He hadn't seen this type of animal, nor heard of it even existing in Northwind. 

"Gods damn it all." He said, glancing around.
James
**Marsila Vema
Northwind**

She had no sense of her human self as she sprinted through the sparse forest with nothing but red blinding her vision. The only thoughts that processed through her mind was the scent of her prey as they ran like their lives depended on it. There were only two other men remaining intact whom she was chasing by the time Arin had awoken, having torn into the others with sharpened fangs that could cut through flesh like a burning knife to butter. Her claws emerged as she lunged towards one of the remaining men and latched onto his shoulders before throwing her entire weight onto his body. The force of her movements caused the two to tumble as her canines buried themselves into his neck. When she released the body, his decapitated head fell to the ground with widened eyes staring blankly into nothingness and his mouth opened like a gaping fish. 

The deaths of the cannibalistic bandits were quick as she ripped them apart with ease, however the man who had given himself a head start managed to escape her clutches and unknown to her, had used his skills of the wilderness to cover his scent. Anger consumed Marsila as she raced back towards the makeshift campsite where she had initially shifted, finding the trail of bodies she had left in her wake to confirm their death by tearing further into their corpses. The mutilation had become so severe the bodies were unrecognizable as humans by the time she had finished. 

As she emerged into the clearing, the fire could be seen reflecting from her narrowed slits as she stalked towards the bodies by the pyre that remained lit. The corpse of the man she had thrown into the fire was now a disfigured corpse whose skin resembled charcoal. The smell of burning flesh was strong enough to distract her from the injured man who remained in the campsite. That was until his movements caught her attention and the shifter slowly began stalking towards her next target.

As she neared, a glimmer of sun hitting a particular piece of jewellery caught her eye, causing her head to snap towards the neck of the woman who had poisoned herself when tasting the shifter's blood. 

The angered daze that had taken control of her mental state began to retreat as she was allowed to regain control of her own thoughts. The narrowed slits widened until they filled her eyes with circular pupils as she began taking backwards steps while taking in the scenario surrounding her. She began shaking her head as if she was mentally battling with her inner thoughts while continuing backwards, forcing herself to remember what it felt like to be in her human body and its image. Similar to how she initially shifted, her body endured the suffering of her bones breaking beneath her skin and reforming to restructure itself into a human skeleton. By the end of her shift, Marsila laid bare against the floor in a fetal position with tears streaming down her cheeks, blanketed in blood from the men she killed. Due to Marsila rarely shifting and not having the tolerance for the pain it brought, her body still felt the aftermath shocks that caused her to shake uncontrollably.
Carol
Arin Cragton
Northwind

Arin poured some of the liquid out from a canteen he had found nearby, and the clear liquid dripped into the ground. His mouth watered as he brought it up to his nose, and he quickly took a sip of the surprisingly cool water inside. He downed it quickly, before rummaging around the campsite, looking for signs of Marsila. 

He heard the beast before he saw it. The low growl arising out of its chest incited a primal fear from Arin, and he quickly drew the bow he had found nearby. Its weight was unfamiliar, but he drew it back, his heart pounding in his ears as he saw the jet black beast. He counted out loud, aiming carefully as it stared him down. 

*3...* He counted slowly, fear forcing a shake in his arm as he drew the arrow back. 

*2...* He calmed his nerves, trying to convince himself this was just an ordinary beast, a stray animal wandering its way into his path. The blood dripping from its maw destroyed his pretend confidence, and the arrow dipped. 

The beast turned, and Arin dropped to his knees, terror buckling his knees. He clenched his jaw, tightening the muscles around his face as he planted his palms into the dirt and he looked forward again, standing up slowly.

He watched as the beast stumbled, a strangely human cry forcing its way out of its open mouth. He stumbled backwards, attempting to distance himself from the panther. For a moment, it seemed the animal had tears in its eyes, before its back arched. Arin watched as the beast contorted, its fur retracting slowly back into its body and its form twisting and breaking itself into a human form. He was mortified, frozen in place by shock before realizing that the woman now in front of him looked familiar. His eyes grew wide, before running towards her. 

He looked at her for a brief moment, before snapping back to attention. Her skin was bare, but blood and grime covered her. He couldn't even admire her beauty, but he forced himself to ignore his own thoughts. 

"Marsila?" He said, before tearing off the outer layer of the shirt he was wearing. He tentatively touched her, before wiping the hair out of her face, covering her body with the shirt he had taken off. He only wore a loose wool undershirt that separated his body from the jerkin. His face burned as he glanced down at her, and he quickly looked back at her face, lifting her and holding her for a moment. 

"I'm sorry. I should have.. I will not fail again." He said, before realizing he was hugging her close to him, and slowly let her back down. His face burned again.
James
**Marsila Vema
Northwind**

Her body felt as if it was being scorched from within as she endured the remaining bones popping into place. Her body trembled as he brought her closer towards him, the shocks passing through similar to electricity running through flesh. She remained in her own world with her eyes tightened shut, waiting for the pain to subside while ignoring the environment around her. She remembered little from her time as a beast and wanted to avoid looking at the destruction she had caused. Even though the people who captured them were planning on using them as a source of food, she felt guilty for the lives she had taken as they were still human. 

Feeling herself being lowered to the ground, Marsila's instinctively clenched her fingers around the material of his loose shirt before he had the chance to rest her against the ground. Although the pain began to subside, she could now feel the blood that coated her body, crusting as it dried onto her pale skin along with the iron taste in her mouth from the flesh she devoured. 

As reality began to settle in, Marsila released Arin and threw herself towards the ground, holding herself up with weakened arms. Feeling her insides turn, the young woman began heaving and choking as a bloodied mixture filled with chunks of flesh began hurling from her stomach and towards the ground through her mouth. She hated what she was and she hated the way she lost control. She was fine when it came to killing someone out of self defence, but the mutilation and devouring of the bodies when it had been completely unnecessary traumatised her as the images flashed through her mind. When her stomach no longer held any contents to throw up, Marsila took heavy breaths while keeping her eyes on the bloody bile covered ground. 

"Did I hurt you?" She questioned weakly with a raspy voice before wiping her lips with the back of her hand, ignoring the fact it had been covered with dried blood.

Noticing the missing weight around her neck, Marsila reached towards her sternum while keeping her other arm against the ground to stabilise her. Her fingers pressed lightly against the skin of her chest to find it bare causing an intense sense of dread to overwhelm her. It wasn't the lack of clothes that brought immediate worry for it was the missing amulet that protected her from shifting.

"It's gone." She panicked as her gaze lifted from the ground and began searching the area with desperation until her sight landed on the woman who wore the piece of jewellery, having taken it when they brought the two to the campsite. 'She took my amulet. I need it."
Carol
Malachi Freyjia
Northwind Council

"War is inevitable. It will come for our wives, our children, our crops, and our lands. It will devour everything in its path. However, if we strike first, we can finish this before it destroys everything we have built." Malachi stood up as he spoke, staring Rhoderick down. 

"This is preposterous! Cyprien should be our only goal. We are wasting time bickering like children. Damn the rest! The Koern's are just another obstacle we could be avoiding." An older man stood up, looking at Malachi. 

"Why are we letting this outsider give us ideas? For all we know he could be siding with Cyprien!" The man said, before the men began bickering again. Malachi sighed, before sitting forward, staring at the men around him. 

"Are you lot finished?" Malachi yawned, before standing up and facing the group. He walked around the room slowly, staring each man down. His armor gave him a fearsome silhouette in the flickering torchlight. 

"None of you stood against Tharn. None of you were on that battlefield. I would have known your face. All of you are weak, cowardly men who would rather sit behind your stone walls and your army than stand and fight for your country. And yet, you want to make bold claims and call me a traitor? Anyone who truly believes that can stand now and fight. Prove that I am the traitor you say I am. If you best me, you can say whatever you want about me!" Malachi said, standing in the hall watching the men. They all held their tongue, watching the man speak. Malachi laughed loudly, before looking at the men.

"Of course! Not a single one of you!" He exclaimed, before walking over to Rhoderick, taking his outstretched hand. 

"I will work with you, Lord Rhoderick. We will let the army gather, make repairs and gather resources while we travel to the Koern's. When we return, We march on Cyprien." Malachi said, before returning to his seat.

Arin Cragton
Northwind

Arin held the woman for a moment as she held his shirt, a rush of emotions flooding his body before she threw herself onto the ground. He watched as she went to empty her stomach, and he quickly pulled her hair back, looking up at the sky as his stomach churned. He let go once she finished, and looked at her as she looked up at him. 

"No. You didn't. You saved me." He said, kneeling beside her. He pulled out the leather waterskin he had picked up and offered it to Marsila, before looking over at the woman she was referring to. 

"Stay still. I'll get it." He said, leaving her with the skin and walking over to the body. He carefully extracted the amulet from the still warm corpse, holding it for a moment before walking back to Marsila. 

"Here." He said, kneeling back to be eye level with her. He handed her the amulet before looking around the camp. 

"We need to find you some clothes. And hopefully I can find something to clean my side with. Alcohol... Something. These people have to have something we can use." He said, before looking back at her.

"Can you walk?" He asked softly.
James
**Marsila Vema
Northwind**

Marsila felt a sense of relief when he confirmed no harm was caused towards him by her actions and insisted it had prevented his death. 

She accepted the waterskin from Arin and instantly began chugging its contents, the water rinsing away the bitter copper taste that coated her mouth and throat while remaining in her place. Though her muscles ached, Marsila noticed her body had almost completed its process of healing when she no longer felt movement within her and the pain had now diminished completely. Even her shoulder lacked signs it had been shot through previously with an arrow. 

Marsila could feel the energy that emitted from the amulet as it was brought towards her and immediately began tying it around the back of her neck. Already, she began to feel a wave of calmness flow through her body while she took deep even breaths. "Thankyou." 

Using her hands to balance herself as she rose to her feet, the woman nodded in response whether she was able to walk. Her fingers clutched at the edges of the shirt Arin haf covered her with and self consciously wrapped it over her stomach and chest, thankful the length was enough to cover her lower region. 

"I'll wear hers. The others were torn to shreds." She responded while nodding her chin in the direction of the woman Arin had taken the necklace from and with small steps, made her way towards the corpse. She felt physically drained which was evident when she dropped to her knees by the corpse's side so she could begin the process of removing its clothing. She avoided looking towards Arin out of shame as she did so.