Perendi had been relieved to see that, to some extent, Féria had seemed to be at least curious about and amused by the dynamics of the too-small group; even though Tvastri had asked what had probably been far too many questions, Hein had been more interested in making dirty jokes at the expense of everyone gathered, Dinae wahted to regale the poor woman with mostly-fabricated tales of ridiculous adventure and Seloua had remained mostly -though not entirely- quiet. They were an interesting little group to say the least; while they weren't anything like Perendi's former company, the Hounds, had been, they were definitely livelier- and it was fairly evident that they worked decently together. Perendi herself had encouraged Féria to try and get to know the other four; though it had been a subtle suggestion, even she didn't know the full extent of whatever hell Féria had been put through during her time with Nechyon and didn't want to push her too much on the others. She'd only needed to intervene a couple of times: Tvastri and Hein had engaged in a "debate" that had become far too loud and obnoxious for anyone gathered, Dinae had argued very loudly that she could drink both Seloua and Hein under the table when they were finished -which had become a laughing clash of egos.
Though she led them quite sternly and put them in their places when it became necessary to do so, Perendi's leadership style was stern, but hands-on: she guided and gave advice, listened to the others' concerns and gave reasons about why or why not those concerns were valid- and doled out the rare punishment or reprimand when it became necessary to do so; yet wasn't above bantering and teasing with the others.
"There's somethin' wrong wit' this shit," Dinae had remarked once or twice, when she and Hein had returned to the group after scouting ahead. There had been something completely wrong with how still and quiet the mountain passes had been; the Terrin Mountains were known for orcs and dragons-- but both had been eerily quiet. Neither the assassin nor fighter had noticed much in the way of wildlife, either: birds, rabbits, deer and other fauna had been quite scarce, which had left them a bit apprehensive.
"Not even a bandit and those bastards are everywhere," Hein had commented uneasily, the normally unflappable Eladrin beginning to spook and jump at shadows like a nervous colt, reaching for his chain-scythes every time the grass rustled or a twig snapped under someone's foot.
"Old," Was Tvastri's strangely soft-spoken comment, "Everything is old here- more ancient than the dragons; yet younger than our cities. You can't expect to find bandits in a place like this."
Selousa had ignored their worried remarks and strange speculations, dropping back to walk beside Féria and attempt to converse with her on occasion.
Though she'd been to the Terrin mountains more than once, there was something undeniably different about the foothills they were ascending through. The hair on the back of Perendi's neck began to rise when she noticed how damnably familiar these foothills and the passes they traveled through seemed to be. The lush greenery gave way to numerous shades of grey; great stone spires soon flanking their path-- those mountains were only a few shades lighter in hue than Nechyon's catacombs had been; some of the crags and cracks could have almost been mistaken for carvings: dragons and gryphons, eyes, flames and citadels, if one looked at them for too long. The wind's howling, screaming voice only served to enhance the uneasiness that seemed an oppressive blanket as they continued onward.
Soon, even the air itself seemed to be heavy and still; sound slowly dying into nothingness as the sun seemed to avert its gaze, shadows unwilling to stretch their fingers toward that large crack. "Sounds like an excellent plan," Perendi stated; more for the benefit of everyone gathered rather than an unwillingness to let that slimy, greasy silence reign over everything, "Tvastri, Dinae, follow us. Selousa, Hein, follow them." It was an order to follow a very basic formation, intended to keep Féria and Tvastri covered in case anything decided to charge the group as they began to file through that ancient entrance and into the sickly, green light beyond.
