In the service of Ishtar [Karameida x Chamorus the Cat]

Chicomecoatl​

Chicomecoatl knelt down at the alter of her Goddess Ishtar, she had been summoned at an urgency and had hurried down. Her sister disciple Lotus knelt next to her as their Goddess informed them of their current mission, and from the seriousness in the way she spoke to them she understood this assignment was of great importance and she felt honored that she would choose herself for something this important. They were to search for ancient relics that from what she gathered were spread all over the world. she wondered where they were to even start...they were spread so far and wide it would take them many lifetimes to find them all.

She felt nervous and apprehensive and glanced over at Lotus's cool and calm face and wondered how she could remain so calm in such a massive search. Blinking she lowered her gaze back down to the stone floor, and listened as they were warned of the perils the journey would hold and the dangers should they fail. After a little bit one of the problems the she had been worried about was set to ease, Ishtar would bestow upon them a gift a sort of honing device that would aid them in their journey.

Her shoulders relaxed slightly and she released a sort of pent up breath. Their goddess told them that they should head to a town far to the east and there they would find where the first relic would be, she then blessed them and their journey before her essence dispersed and in front of them lay a dark smooth stone. Chicomecoatl let out a sigh and lifted her head, straightening up she stretched and loosened up her stiff muscles. She relished being trusted to carry out these difficult missions but, she didn't much care to sit in such an uncomfortable pose for hours. Shifting slightly she looked at Lotus "It seems we shall be leaving our home for much longer than ever before..." she said. Reaching down she picked up the stone, it felt cool in her hand but, it thrummed with a power "This will help greatly...shall we gather our supplies and leave then?" she asked looking at Lotus.

RE: In the service of Ishtar

Lotus

Lotus took a few moments, staring reverently at the image of the goddess she had served for so long. She cried silently, smiling up at the glowing vision of Ishtar. So many of their sisters, gathered in that small, stone room around the sacred well that the Essence of Ishtar was drawn from; the waters given to the poor, sold to the rich, and one of Ishvalah's prime commodities. Lotus nearly cried again when the goddess faded away, but she managed not to; it was no longer time for emotion. It was time to work.

"Yes," Lotus said with a firm nod. "Yes, it is time to go." She hurried to the reliquary, where the artifacts of Ishtar were held. She picked up a bag, saying a prayer as she held the canvas bag, admiring the lapis lazuli inlays.

"Mother Ishtar, may this bag hold all that we require; may the bread and meat feed us, the wine and water quench us..." After saying the prayer, she opened the bag, just to make sure it worked. Gold and rubies, just a handful, plenty of bread and fresh red meat and fish, and flagons full of water and day-wine. This, along with with the guidestone, would make the journey as much easier as it could. She had plenty of spells at her disposal to help bolster their food, to shelter them, to protect and heal them.

The warrior-priestess turned to her sister. "Coatl, we are ready, I think... I just need my cat'l," she said, reaching for the eight-feet of solid ash, tipped with a terrible blade, two feet long and flamberge-shaped, like the slithering asp the weapon was named after. Impractical and heavy, it was best used to channel her spells; that, and the weird martial arts that the... special... priestesses were given. Let's say that thrusting a heavy shaft was a well-practiced method.

It was time; leaving the small fortress-town of Ishvalah was difficult, considering it was built from whatever had struck the earth, inside of the crater that the very whatever had made. They crossed the stone bridge, the only way in or out of the city, into the harsh desert beyond.

RE: In the service of Ishtar

Chicomecoatl​

Chicomecoatl nodded to her and followed behind her as she grabbed their necessities and her weapons. She herself preferred a dagger and a spear and had several darts strapped to her leg, all of them had been blessed by the waters of Ishtar and she herself and put a poison spell on them. Chicomecoatl was more of a hunter type fighter and brutal in her ways. She sent a silent prayer to their goddess for guidance so that they would not fail. When Lotus finished her preparations and headed out the door she silently followed, she felt this an important occasion far to grave to ruin by small talk. She felt a small sadness in her heart when it fully hit her that this place her home, she would be leaving and might not ever return again. "Please protect our home.." she silently pleaded.

She felt a profound sense of importance as they crossed the bridge out of their home, they were doing something only some could dream about. They were doing something grand and important something that would greatly impact their world, she could never have dreamed that she would ever be apart of such a task. The sadness lifted from her heart and was replaced by a feeling of importance.

As soon as her bare feet hit the hot sands of the desert she frowned slightly, even with protection of their goddess they would be hard pressed to travel through the desert during the day. "It might be best to wait and travel this at night...we'll travel as far as we can during the day...and make more time at night." she said. The sun was so intense you could see heat waves coming of the sand. Unlike normal mortals they would not die from the heat due to spell protections they had but, it would still not be easy. They continued out through the endless dunes and un-obstructed land. The wind that blew was hot and dry and did nothing to ease the intensity of the heat. Reaching her hand into a little pouch she felt the stone that the goddess had gifted them and it felt uncommonly cool, her own skin felt heated.

The sun was at the highest point in the sky when the remains of a small dilapidated town came into view. It didn't seem to offer much but, some of the houses would offer protection from the high sun as some still had full roofing. She wondered what had happened to this place, it didn't look very old. The dry cracked earth beneath her feet began to hurt and sweat beaded down her breast and over her skin "Should we seek shelter here? Until nightfall at least?" she asked turning to lotus.

RE: In the service of Ishtar

Folk this close to Ishvalah were devout, knowing of Ishtar's might and mercy; it took but a few moments to find themselves shelter. Lotus was not happy, however, and voiced her opinion yet again.

"I'm not entirely sure that travel by night is a smart decision," the warrior-priestess chimed in. She had made the argument several times, but Coatl was to be the one that "protected" Lotus. The priestess resented that fact, too; to think that her spells and her skill with a cat'l weren't enough was grating on her pride. "It is harder to navigate," she said. It was a mantra now.

"It is the time where prowlers nip at the heels of foolish travelers," she huffed. She kicked off her other sandal, letting one of the local villagers wash her dainty feet. They looked more suited to this pampered life than to trekking through the desert. She wriggled her little digits, the rings on her toes glinting and wet; how many men (or women, for that matter) would gladly prostrate themselves just to suck on those toes? Clear-skinned and pretty, she was completely normal, except for those tall, pointed black jackal ears. They flicked now, showing her agitation.

"Ishtar's face is bright and her glory burns those not as great as she, but it is..." She trailed off, sighing. She wasn't going to win this argument. She had not won it since Coatl first brought up the idea of traveling at night.

RE: In the service of Ishtar

Chicomecoatl​

Chicomecoatl sighed heavily and shook her head as Lotus interjected her objections again. She was persistent and she knew that but, Chicomecoatl knew she'd win in the end because of her wall like stubbornness. "You know as well as I that Ishtar and spells will only protect us so much and the sun's might is cruel and relentless. We would be wandering aimlessly before long should we continue our journey through the day." she said with a calmness in her voice. She rolled her shoulders and let out a soft sigh "We will be fine at night we will not have the intensity of the sun and I'm sure that your amazing spell casting will deal with anything that tries to nip at our heals; ." she chided softly.

She watched as the few remaining villagers washed Lotus's dirty feet and smiled wryly. A few came up to her but, she raised her hand and shook her head, she preferred to purify and cleanse herself. Dipping her fingers into the water she dabbed her neck and breast with it, she left her feet alone since they wouldn't stay clean for long in the desert. However she did wash off the sweat that clung to her body. Splashing her face she let out a soft sigh as it cooled her skin and dripped down her body refreshingly cool and clean. She glanced over at Lotus and noticed the agitated twitching of her ears and shook her head laughing softly to herself. Sliding in closely to her sister priestess she nudged her softly "Oh don't be agitated Lotus." she purred softly. Reaching up she tugged on one of Lotus's jackal ears before letting it go trying to soften her up. "Lets just enjoy our journey ok?" she said standing up.

Raising her arms above her head she stretched and let out a soft groan of approval when she heard a few pops along her spine. Dropping her hands to her side she frowned slightly and looked around, the place was unnaturally loud. The town, as deserted and run down as it was should have been fairly quiet with only a few creaks and groans from the buildings but, it wasn't it was loud. There was noises coming from every direction, it wasn't something you took immediate notice of; not until you'd realized and come to terms completely with where you were that you noticed it. Turning her head slightly she glanced at lotus "Hey...why do you think there is so much noise? Even our village didn't make this much noise and we had more life..." she said looking around.

The noise had been something that had grown in volume gradually, most people wouldn't even notice and would have become accustomed to the noise but, it seemed off to her. She didn't know why she had such a feeling and felt in some small part of her that she might just be over reacting, but in her training she had learned to trust and act on her instincts. She decided that it would in the end be better safe than sorry and tightened her grip on her spear "We...should be wary Lotus..." she said hesitating slightly. She did not want Lotus to think that she was nervous or scared of being in a foreign place.

Past all the noise she could just make out a hissing noise, a hissing noise isn't to uncommon in the desert but, to be able to make it out over the noise of the place; she had an uneasy feeling that it wasn't your everyday snake or reptile. She slipped into her warrior self with ease and felt her muscles tense and coil, her body became rigid and she raised her spear ever so slightly. She didn't know how to tell Lotus that she was going into attack mode over hearing a Hiss..it sounded a little ridiculous. She noticed the people slowly retreating back to their little homes and the unease spread throughout her body.

The hiss continued and slowly increased and out of the corner of her eye noticed a movement, turning around her eyes widened slightly as a giant reptile stared back at her it's tongue flicking out. The reptile let out another low hiss and she knew it was readying to lunge after them and with the look of the teeth and claws she didn't think it would take that much effort to gut them. "This is a basilisk...." she said as her memory recalled some texts she had read when she was an acolyte. Their skin was covered in thick scales and they had a very potent poison they injected into you should they manage to bite you. "Aim for the underbelly...it's the weakest part...that or it's eyes.." she said.

Raising her spear she pointed it in front of her and aimed it at the basilisk waiting for it to move.

RE: In the service of Ishtar

"What a splendid idea. Attack its belly," she grumbled, placing her c'tal on its butt. The shaft stood on its own, a gleaming pillar. "Do try and keep it occupied," she said.

Lotus mumbled, standing in one of the odd prayer-stances that the warrior-priestesses used. This one, Dancing Cat, was named after Ishtar's favorite pet, who would go on to become Lady Bast. The armlets she wore bore tiny red rubies that now shown like small suns, a streak of bright light following her intricate, dance-like movements. The strange words came out in a crescendo and the first streak of fire burst into being from the tip of the spear, spinning through the air in a wide arc towards the beast. Each flash of movement sent another streak of light flaring out, each bouncing off of the thing's hide, annoying it. She was just waiting for Ishtar's music to guide each step, to land the perfect strike upon that scaly devil!

RE: In the service of Ishtar

Chicomecoatl​

Chicomecoatl sighed and shook her head a little. "I didn't create the rules on how to kill these things." she said with another little shake of her head."....the quickest way to kill it would be to get it through it's underbelly...but, I doubt it'll just roll over for us..." she thought with a small frown. Pursing her lips she ran through different ideas and scenarios before coming to the conclusion....they were gonna have to wing the hell out if this fight. She heard Lotus begin to chat and recognized the words she was using, in a flash arcs of fire were exploding against it's skin while she danced around chanting.

The Basilisk was starting to get angry which contrary to popular belief was actually a good thing. It wasn't focusing right and would start just lashing out. More arcs exploded on the creature, deciding she should do something before Lotus noticed she was standing there; she began to slowly slip behind the creature. It's tail was lashing out wildly and she didn't fancy getting hit or impaled by that things spikes. Timing her moment she leaped onto the beasts back and wobbled before gaining her balance. The Basilisk reared it's head trying to bite her, taking the opportunity she used her spear and shoved it under it's chin to keep it from moving. While holding the spear she withdrew a dagger and stabbed deep into the throat, it began to thrash around more wildly but, she held on.

Tightening her grip on the long serrated blade she tore it through it's throat up until she hit the hard scales of the beast. The Basilisk managed to throw her off and she slammed against a wall, stumbling to remain upright she looked at the thrashing beast as it slowly lost it's energy and bled out dying. She knew that a some of Lotus's fire attacks and landed a blow on the soft flesh of it's neck which had made it easier for her knife to penetrate. She leaned heavily against the wall and looked over at lotus "That wasn't so bad" she said with a smile. She knew a few of her muscles were gonna be a little bruised after all she was still made of flesh and bone.

"So I really do think it's better to travel by night." she said going back to what she had been saying before the attack on them. "As you can see day or night...these creatures dont care." she said with a sly grin.