[SEASONAL EVENT] Diamond Dust

what. Ronin had a mind to say a number of things to his friend; to quip about just how threatening Sugar could be, or that it was a trouser snake and not a dragon, and that it couldn't have been something he said because he was a delight... But it all drifted to silence, swallowed by the dreamlike song that drifted through the woodlands and the glade. Without the light of the luxere the snow glowed harshly, and without realising it Ronin took an instinctive step closer to his friend. Something was... moving, in the trees on the other side of the clearing. Ronin frowned. "I would hope they would know it isn't effective. That song is making the hairs stand up on the back of my neck..." he murmured, swallowing hard and feeling strangely off about this whole situation.

It moved in a way that things ought not to move. Human but not, its movements somehow appeared jarring and forced, even as it swathed and drifted through the branches.

It wore little more than rags which caught and snagged on the trees, trees that scratched at arms so thin that the tendons and bones could be seen flexing, moving as it - she - ducked into the clearing.

Matted tendrils of hair stuck close to her skull, masking her face from view, and her emaciated frame swayed here and there as she moved. Her haunting song filled the glade, seeking something neither man nor luxere could understand.

Remi the Alchemist "these mountains that you are carrying, you were only supposed to climb" Remi felt a shiver run down his spine, nodding in agreement. "Well, they haven't stopped so perhaps they do not?" He said gently, though he felt very much like screaming or grinding his teeth together. Instead he just sort of shivered into himself and stood slightly closer to Ronin. And then... The creature was unlike anything he had ever seen before. Well, aside from the rags which reminded him immediately of Ludo. "Ronin, what—" Remi stammered before placing his mittens against his ears to drown out the sound. So much in this world was strange and horrifying, but he knew so little of it that now fear seemed to be his initial reaction to everything. Groaning as his entire insides felt like they'd be drowned in water, Remi took a staggering step backwards, keeping his eyes narrowly focused on the whispey woman.

what. Ronin was transfixed by the spidery creature that had just staggered into the glade, his jaw dropping, hand reaching out reflexively as if to keep himself between the creature and Remi. Even now military training kicked in when the going got tough, and whatever this thing was it certainly hit all the buttons for creeping him the fuck out. As he felt Remi stagger back next to him, Ronin glanced over his shoulder to ensure the other man was alright, nodding to him as if in encouragement at seeing him try to block out the sound. Taking a long, deep breath that misted the air when he let it out again, he turned to face the woman in rags. "Hello," he called. "Are you... are you lost? I'm sorry to disturb you, only... it's a little late, isn't it?"

Her singing continued, weaving a melody so perfectly haunting as to render the scenic woodlands something from their deepest and darkest fears.

Moving as though she was some stop-animation experiment gone horribly wrong, she approached. With fingers there were naught but bones improperly encased in paper-thin flesh, she held a hand towards Ronin. Uncurling her fingers, therein was a golden apple, glistening as if with crystalline dew. As she extended it towards the man, her hand passed through a shadow, and as it did the apple suddenly turned rotten to its core and swarmed by maggots. Passing into the sunlight again, it was golden once more.

Remi the Alchemist "these mountains that you are carrying, you were only supposed to climb" "Late?" Remi hissed over the captain's shoulder, incredulous that someone the time of day was at all relevant to...whatever this thing was or needed or wanted from them. "Are you... did Ludo send you?" Remi asked, but wanting to take another step backwards, but also feeling comforted by Ronin's bulky presence before him. As the creature—she—drew nearer, Remi swallowed hard, eyes immediately drawn to the apple she suddenly produced. "For the luxer—" He began, until her hands passed through the shadow and he saw the apple for what it was. Or...was the golden apple the real one, and its core the illusion? Then again if this was Ludo, likely none of it was real. That didn't make it any less dangerous though.

what. "Hey, I don't know, do I?" Ronin hissed back at Remi, though he was hardly in a position right now to hold two conversations at once. Not when the skeletal woman required a very astute amount of attention. Holding both hands up now, Ronin took a long, shaking breath in and seemed utterly bemused when she held out a glistening, perfect apple-- That promptly turned horrifying as it passed through the shadow of a tree. "I... Um. No - no thank you," he managed, taking a faltering step back and almost knocking into Remi.

She pressed on, the apple held aloft, until the cretin before her denied her.

Raising a head, through the matted scraggles of hair the two men would see an emaciated face, drawn and grey, and a mouth stretched impossibly open. From within that maw the haunting melody paused... then stopped.

Then she screamed - a sound that would temporarily deafen and cause eardrums to rupture without protection, and lunged directly for Ronin.

Remi the Alchemist "these mountains that you are carrying, you were only supposed to climb" "I do not think she is offeri—" Remi tried to say, before the creature's face became visible through her haggled curtain of hair. Her scream was defeaning in a way that was so loud Remi felt as though his brain stopped working all together. He could see and breathe still, but it all felt like a jumbled mess. With a mental scream of his own, Remi felt his very spirit crying out for aid and assistance, even as Ronin stumbled back. From above in the trees, a large eagle suddenly descended. For a stupid moment Remi thought it might be Koel, and that itself was enough to further stun his over-stimulated mind. The eagle dove between the creature and the captain, its talons eagerly swiping towards the stringy hair and gruesome face. If their lives weren't on the line Remi might have joked that this was a good time for Sugar to demonstrate just how dragon-ish she could be. Instead, he grabbed at the captain's arm to try and drag him around. "Roninwegottago," He wheezed, making a futile grasping for the ground beneath the banshee to try and trip it, as he tried to encourage Ronin into a run.

Mercilessly the banshee shrieked her displeasure. Even as the bird tried to block her path, her screeching never ceased. In fact it intensified, creature such a pitch that the air itself became unstable and the eagle's flapping proved useless.

Grabbing at the eagle's wing with a hand possessing impossible strength, it tossed the bird aside as if it were made of the same rags that clothed her body.

With a shriek louder and more tangible, the woods gave a lurch and mounds of icy snow fell towards the retreating men from the tops and boughs of the trees they ran beneath.

what. Ronin's eyes were wide and wild, and the guildmaster felt a curious warmth from his right ear supplemented by a horrible ringing - later he would realise it was blood and that the creature, the... banshee, or something, had thoroughly - but hopefully only temporarily - ruined his hearing and balance. The eagle came and went in a flurry of claws and feathers and Remi (thank Safrin for Remi in that moment) grasped his arm and spurred him into motion. The world tilted sickeningly as Ronin tried to get his feet under him, and blood pounded in his ears as the screeching just didn't end. He glanced up in time to see a heavy chunk of ice and snow begin to plummet towards them, the ex-captain swearing under his breath and knowing with a lurch of fear that they wouldn't be fast enough to get out from under it. "Remi!" He called more to get the alchemist's attention, reaching out to grasp his coat and drag him back - a gesture that would, at first, seem foolish. Then Ronin turned and raised his gauntlet, as if it was attached to an invisible shield-- And a warm pulse of light radiated out and over them. The mounds of snow battered against it but did not break through, and would hopefully slow the banshee if nothing more.

She pursued, merciless and through a swathe of feathers (the eagle's cry was drowned in the haunting screech that ripped from her throat).

The snow slowed her but it did not stop her, and the two men behind the shield would not be safe for long.

Shrieking at them, skeletal hands outstretched, she rushed for the duo, seemingly tireless in her pursuit. They would need to outrun her or fight, and be certain of the decision at whatever cost.

Remi the Alchemist "these mountains that you are carrying, you were only supposed to climb" The increased tambre of her scream seemed impossible. Remi was already quite sure it was the loudest thing he'd ever heard, indeed the loudest thing in the world surely, until it got louder. With a muffled cry Remi dodged and ran, unaware of the falling ice and snow headed directly towards him. Even as Ronin cried out, the alchemist heard nothing. Too disoriented with the screams of the creature still howling in his ears and making every hair on his body stand on end and his teeth ache. Feeling the tug suddenly against him, Remi found himself against Ronin, eyes wide and confused. His mouth made an O of alarm as he saw icicles falling down like spears, only to see a warmly-coloured cover appear over them. Not a warrior as Ronin was, Remi's first inclination was to swiftly depart. Though he trusted his friend implicitly, and so with a shaky breath he asked, "What should we do?"

Time was not on their side and nor were the woods. Shards of ice and snow continued to fall and berate the two men. Ronin's shield might protect them for now, but it would not forever.

Opening her mouth a good deal wider than was possible, as if she was a snake unhinging her jaw, she wailed a loud and pure note. Both Ronin and Remi would feel blackness begin to invade the edges of their vision and feel as though her long and gruesome fingers were clinging to the backs of their necks, worming their way into their minds.