Malachi felt the ripple of tension that ran through the room as Cora was properly welcomed aboard, along with Wardonis, and briefed on what lay before them. For the moment, he opted to allow Binadorm to take the lead, as the Trienis clearly knew the paths that stretched across the Killing Fields and the Crystal Plains. Other areas would undoubtedly be simply unexplored, and so they would have to rough it as far finding their way around those areas like the Wetlands, where few had managed to survive, and most simply avoided all contact.
And so, while noting that Law was missing- though Law seemed like the sort to know pretty much what he was doing- he stood back and allowed the talk to evolve on its own. Various ideas hit the table, and with each one, he felt something pulling at the corner of his mind, like a cat on a piece of string. The Killing Fields, he remembered, had not always been the barren wasteland that they were today. In his mind's eye, the Archai saw a lush field of green, running to the horizon, uninterrupted. As Binadorm addressed the dangers of the Crystal Plains, his vision blurred with images of massive glass golems, marching across the plain with nary a word. But then the vision twisted and warped, and in the reflections of the glass something leered with a fanged grin at him, flames engulfing it as light swept over it.
Malachi shook his head to dispel the images and found that talked had dwindled. He came to the conversation just as Binadorm was mentioning bandits on the Pilgrim's Road. "Oh, there are more than a few, I can assure you," he scoffed, "And they aren't the typical types either. We're talking crazed, magic-experimenting, half-zombified bandits that would sooner shoot you than look at you." He couldn't explain how he knew the next detail. "Either that or they'd drag you off somewhere as a sacrifice to their 'god' and turn you into a shell of your former self."
The comment drew disturbed glances, and feeling the discomfort in the room, he quickly chuckled and touched the holographic image of the map, creating a bright green dot at their current location. "They obviously never learned how to play nice in nursery school, so I think to avoid them altogether, we should consider other options. There is another route that we haven't considered here."
The indigo eyes sparked with the slightest hint of a smirk as he considered the map for a moment. Slowly, one long, elegant finger traced its way across the screen, creating a lighted trail that crossed the Killing Fields, and headed into the Crystal Plains. From there, it snaked its way through the Plains entirely, moving over the length from west to east, and between Lake Eldorn and the Namith Swamp- smack in between the two!- and into the Dairine.
"It's probably more dangerous as far as the natural stuff we'll encounter, but there's less chance of meeting up with any... humanoid hostiles. They control that entire region, from the eastern edge of the Killing Fields clear to the Lake." Malachi couldn't rightly say fully, but he knew that he wanted to avoid the bandits and other humans in the area at all costs. To explain in a manner that would cover everything, he added, "Easier to shoot an animal than a man, after all." After some debate, it was decided apparently, that they would take the suggested route, simply for the simplicity of not having to deal with other hunters. Each went to gather his or her things. They agreed to meet in front of the bar in 30 minutes- enough time to gather supplies and ready their means of conveyance. Not everyone had ridden in on vehicles, but those that had not were offered rides- they would take the vehicles as far as possible before ditching them in a city or town. Malachi offered the backseat of his motorcycle to any who cared to occupy it. That same, infuriating grin crossed his features as he leaned against it, waiting for the others to return, and for Law to show himself. It was an expression that they would come to know, hate and love over the course of the journey, for much like Malachi himself, it belied an enigma that had barely begun to crack.
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