A rogue smith

[mrglass44]

A group of our soldiers returning on patrol have noticed a forge in Tyto forest, inhabited by a skilled smith. We want you to capture the Blacksmith, and escort him back to the Castle immediatly. Two soldiers should be left at the forge to make sure there are no others.

Involves Captain Brutus, Taurus, Gustavus and the rest of Company-B (not being played, use imagination xD)

apologies for editing post!

------------
[/center]
Gustavus fanned the coals of his fire gently with his wings getting them to glow a bright red. He had set up his forge a number of weeks ago in tyto forest. It had been a long trip down from the northern kingdoms and he had a feeling that he was completely lost. His original intent was to find the tree but it seemed that he was no closer than when he set out. After spotting this cave he had decided to set up shop for a while and rest and maybe gather information before setting out again. Satisfied with the color of the coals the young smith carefully set a rod of iron over the hottest coal.

Letting it sit there for a moment he turned his attention to a small book that contained sketches of things that he had either, made, thought about, or seen others make. Flipping through the pages he slowly formed an image in his mind, working out what that rod of iron would become. His claws ran over a page depicting ornate jewelry, most of which were only things he had designed not made. Gold and silver were hard to come by but so rewarding to shape. The owl let out a little sigh of disappointment knowing that most of the things he sketched would never come to be at the rate he was going.

Looking back at the fire the rod was nearly the right shade of orange to shape. Putting the book away he picked up his tongs and took the rod out of the fire. Placing it on a flat surface next to the fire he tapped it with the hammer at first testing it before giving it a firm hard strike. Slowly with each hammer strike the iron rod began to flatten out and loose it’s glow. Quickly the rod became too cool to shape and he returned it to the fire. It would take many hours to shape the rod into it’s final form but the night was early and there was little else to do.

[Fin]

Through the silence of the night, a group of owls stealthily skimmed the trees of their homeland - Tyto. All owls were clad heavily in battle regalia - helmets and battle claws, all very similar except for one large African Grass-owl, who had a fitted helmet thick enough to withstand the hardest of strikes and fiercely sharp claws. The moon behind the group cast shadows down on the earth, and any living creature would have fled from the sight. No sound was heard as they soared over the land, even the occasional flap of the wing inaudiable. It was what the collection of Barn owls, like their species, was so very proud of - silent flight.

The head of the group, the Grass-owl, was known as a cold-hearted Remnant of the Pure Ones, but to the owls he was with, he was called Captain Brutus. He demanded respect with such a large body, but one owl in particular knew he wasn't as vicious as they thought.

At the back of the pack a small Masked Owl with a helmet too big for his head and giant claws hurried, his speed too slow for the rest of the group. He was young, so his wings weren't as developed as the rest, but he never let it get him down. Unknown the the other owls, he was Brutus's adopted son. The Grass-owl once had a family of his own, but he lost them all in an attack, and when he was looking for them on the ground, he found a lone egg. When it hatched, he knew it wasn't his own, but by then they had already made a bond. He was called Taurus.

"Formation, lads. Forge ahead." A commaning hoot came over the shoulder of the Captain, though he said it quietly, no one dared to disobey and quickly spread apart. They had planned beforehand to all spread out and circle the forge, forcing the owl out and giving him no escape route.

A plume of smoke alerted the group of the forge and soon they were all getting excited, quietly talking to eachother, but Brutus was quick to silence them. As the group approached, the line of owls broke into a slow-formign circle as the outer birds flew faster and those in the middle slowed. A ring was made around the little clearing. They all nervously exchanged glances, all looking at Brutus.

"Attack!" The call sounded, and every owl dived, all hooting loudly and screaming, as their species did. Some stayed hovering over the forge whilst some lighted down and headed for the entrance. Brutus hung back, his eyes following the unsure Taurus as he flew around overhead, not hooting as loudly as the rest.

[Vivosaurus]

Among the ranks, Lutta flew - she was noticeable by her light coloring, and the rough edges from not-fully-developed flight feathers. Her helmet and battle claws seemed a little ridiculous, particularly to owls who had seen her not wearing them, for she always seemed so fragile and blank. It was odd to wear the heavy, sharp claws and eerie for her wide, black eyes to be shining out from the helmet. But she flew, going through the motions of what they had planned. She followed Captain Brutus because that's what she had been ordered to do. Lutta didn't seem to notice anything else.

She banked right to fall into the formation - they all had a specific spot, and she headed towards her own. Even though there were whispering, excited owls around her, Lutta didn't share in that. She simply stared down at the forge, not moving an inch. Lutta didn't seem excited or nervous or even bored - there was just nothing. Not even silent intensity. Nothing. She moved when she was ordered to, and when it came time to scree, she scree-ed as loud as any of the other owls. But there was nothing behind it - it wasn't particularly intimidating. Just loud.

Lutta flapped and landed in front of the entrance of the forge, gazing in with her blank eyes. She stared, waiting.

[mrglass44]

Gustavus lazily flipped through the pages of his book looking at nothing in particular. Just bored to all get out waiting for the iron to heat up again. Looking up from his book he turned his head to the door tilting his head this way and that. He could he sworn he heard something. Shrugging he went back to his book writing it off as the wind. His forge was sure to attract some owls from the area but as of yet no one had showed up. It was getting a bit lonely and hit had crossed his mind a number of times that having someone to talk to would be nice. Gustavus had always been a bit of a loner but in the north there was no shortage of customers to talk to, He was beginning to miss it. Though he probably would have rethought that idea had he known what was going to happen next.

Gustavus jumped at the sound of the scree it was completely unexpected and nearly made him jump out of his feathers. The blackened tyto scrambled to find something to defend himself knowing in his gizzard that this could be trouble but his battle claws were tucked away I his bag. So he snatched up his hammer and went for the door. The last thing he wanted was to be trapped in his forge.

Popping out he came face to face with a young tyto dressed in full battle gear although it didn’t seem to be a good fit for her. The thought flashed they his mind that that might be why she’s here but that was quickly dispelled the moment he realized that she wasn’t alone. Rather surprised he blurted out “What is your business here?” pointing his hammer at the owl nearest him. He stepped back a little after his outburst realizing that he was in a very bad situation should these owls decided they didn’t like him. Maybe he just dropped into the middle of a war. It’s not like he knew anything about these lands so it’s possible.

[Fin]

^{Thanks for joining, Vivo! I'll sort of play the rest of the company for RP sakes)}

As the owls surrounded the forge, Brutus hung back, having landed on a thick branch. The large African Grass Owl perched on the tree, his eyes fixed on the situation below. All the while, he watched the soldiers, looking out for potential talent for the Remnants. He could feel something stirring within the ranks - everyone knew that something bad was coming, but when? The High Tyto gave away no clues and not even Brutus could figure it out even having spent such a long time there. Either way, he had to prepare them to fight.

Perking his head, he realised that they had brought the blacksmith out without entering the forge. Lucky, he thought. The first time he had been on such a mission like this, he had been a soldier, and he himself had to go into the burning furnace and pull the blacksmith out by his wing. He remembered the shame deep in his gizzard when they returned home - the High Tyto at the time did not approve of the blacksmith as he was non-tyto and killed him. He had not let the other soldiers see his sadness, but it was truly there. Young Brutus had looked up to the stars that night, wishing that he would join the ranks of Glaumora, but it was very unlikely.

With a wide flap of his wings, he glided down from the branch and landed squarely on the ground below, silently walking up to where the blacksmith was standing near Lutta. His tired eyes flashed to the hammer in his talon and he dived forwards, his armoured claws gripping the weapon and flinging it away. It would do no harm to these young ones. He felt guilty calling them 'young ones' but it was what they were - too young to see the world for what it really is.

Though it was a Grass-owl, similar to his own species, Brutus still towered over the owl with a fiery look in his usually emotionless eyes. It was all show, just to let the soldiers know who was boss, but if it came to it Brutus could be very intimidating.

"Using weapons against the Remnant is a crime. I suggest you don't try that again - unless you don't mind having no wings." Brutus hooted with a booming sense of authority in his voice, warning the smith. Moving his head back, he straightened his wings, "From this day on, you are now belong to the Remnants as a blacksmith. You will make armour for us, you will make weapons for us, you will spy for us - your life is now ours." The words rolled out of his beak naturally - he had said them many times before.

"Everything in your forge now belongs to us." Two soldiers perked up at the back of the formation and Brutus nodded to them. They headed into the forge and came back out with few things. One of them hooted out saying that there weren't any valuable claws or helmets, much to the disappointment of the Captain. "The High Tyto will not be pleased - a empty-handed raid, to think of it." He hooted shaking his head, before returning his attention to the blacksmith. "We will take you to our headquarters. That is where your fate will be decided."

Looking to the closest two owls - one of which was Lutta - he clicked his beak at them to call them over, instructing them to be beside the smith the whole flight. It was their job if he made a break for it, but if he was smart he wouldn't. Most owls were too scared, but some where desperate to return to their families, just like Brutus was so many years ago. Shaking his head, he walked in front of the group and turned his head around to face them, hooting loud.

"Formation, ready! Prepare for take off!"

[Vivosaurus]

The appearance of the hammer produced no reaction from Lutta. Not a stir. It wasn't a stony vigil from courage - there was no heroic gleam in her eyes or determined stance in her feet. And she wasn't frozen from fear. There was simply nothing. Her eyes seemed to gaze almost lazily down at the hammer, but it was as if there was nothing there. She just continued to staring, boring right through the blacksmith, and then past him - she didn't seem to even see him. "What is your business here?" A blink at the question, and the nothing until Captain Brutus swooped down.

The hammer was soon gone, and there was a riffle through Lutta's feathers and a few rapid blinks in her eyes. However, the movements didn't appear to be towards Brutus's actions in taking away the hammer, but rather its sudden disappearance. And then she stayed silent and still, registering nothing as Brutus went on with his speech. Her eyes continued to gaze right where the rogue smith stood, and yet, besides his reflection in her glossy pupils, there seemed to be recognition whatsoever that she was looking at anything.

Lutta's trance was never broken, but when she was called over, she hopped up towards Brutus, though one had to wonder if that was pure coincidence. When she was given her orders, her beak clacked in understanding, or maybe it was just a fidget and never meant anything at all. It was hard to tell, but, nevertheless, she sidled up beside the blacksmith and poised for take-off. The other soldier looked over at her, to share a moment of silent planning and agreement, but Lutta merely stared. He didn't seem surprised by this.

Even if she wouldn't admit it, there was a flash of sympathy for this smith. But it was confused with pity that he had to be a lower Tyto - a Grass Owl. Grass Owls could rise in ranks, of course they could - Captain Brutus was an example - but they could never be as pure. Not as pure as Lutta, or any other Tyto alba, and especially not as pure as the High Tyto. Did she really believe that? It was hard to tell. Her mind did, but her gizzard resisted. Though, she never listened to her gizzard.

[ooc: Lutta... she doesn't do much. xD]