Location: Dirtmouth
Scout Team Beta marched forwarded, rifles barred. All three of them had blank expressions on their faces, though their helmets concealed it. The townsfolk just watched them wearily, not sure on what the giants were going to do. Seer and the 'vessels' were trailing not far behind them. They all saw what the death tubes could do, granted Seer being the only one to see the one that required two claws to properly wield.
Seer was mentally preparing herself for the possible bloody mess, which was the result of the massacre her friends carried out upon the attacking Hallownesters. She wasn't really sure what effect the death tubes would have on a nightmare god, she guessed she was going to find out, considering their previous behaviour wasn't exactly cordial.
The vessels on the other claw were getting ready to fight. They had unsheathed their nails, determination emanating from them, though only they were able to detect it. They were hoping their mere presence would frighten the nightmare troupe away, as they would clearly be children of the Shade Lord, if this bug knew anything of the Lord, that would likely cause a change in their decision making. If not, well, they were not helpless when it came to a fight.
Hollow and Lost held a professional looking stance as they marched behind their siblings, while Ghost had forgone that in favour of jogging, as at walking speed, their little legs were not able to keep up with their taller siblings walking. Hollow had received his nail training from the Pale King, blasted be his name. In turn, he had thought Lost and Ghost, as well as a few other siblings who were willing to learn.
Suddenly a puff of red smoke appeared in front of the group, and another tall figure appeared out of it.
"Welcome my human friends! I take it you have taken us up on out invita- oof!" Xym grunted as David punched him in the stomach, causing him to bend over a bit.
The vessels chuckled slightly at this, though… there was something strange about this figure, it looked oddly like their siblings, and it emanated something… familiar.
"Where is it!?" David demanded.
"Ugh" Xym said regaining his composure.
"Friends, there is no need for belligerence, please, I assure you" Xym said, in a tone that showed a wish for compromise.
"You steal shit from us, taunt us, and demand that we come to your shitty ass satanic carnival B.S, and are now just telling us that belligerence is uncalled for?!" Chris yelled at the glorified crimson clad circus hand.
"Rude, I would hardly call our masters performances excrement, though I am unsure what satanic is supposed to mean…" Xym stated.
"It sort of means that it is affiliated with a sort of evil god, but not exactly, it's kind of hard to explain if you don't know what the Aberhamic religions were-" Mathew began.
"Matthew, not now" David said flatly.
"Right, sorry"
"Master Grimm is not evil!" Xym said offendedly.
"Well he did just knowingly order one of his minions to steal an artifact he knew was of great importance and sentimental value to the Moth Tribe so he hasn't really been doing a good job to show us otherwise" Chris stated, with a strange mix of smugness and anger.
Meanwhile the townsfolk of Dirthmouth were just looking on, confused. It seems like one of the giants who was affiliated with the circus that had just recently come to town was having a rather heated disagreement with the three white clad giants that had moved through town a few days ago over some kind of property dispute. It was honestly kind of bizarre.
"I do say good sirs, that we just needed you three specifically to attend, how else were we going to get you to accept, hmm? You were not exactly open to our more formal, much kinder invite." Xym said, trying to justify his actions.
The Scouts just stared for a moment, was that the best this creepy smiling mask wearing circus hand could come up with? That they needed them to attend, so they stole a priceless artifact from the tribe that is under constant threat of destruction? Did it truly think so much of this 'Master Grimm' that the logic he just used made some twisted sense in his own head?
The vessels were still trying to figure out why the crimson clad figure felt so familiar. It looked so much like their broken siblings. They also felt an echo of familiarity emanating off of it, what was it? What could it be... Oh… oh no.
Hollow realized why this one felt so familiar. That familiar feeling was void, albeit suppressed by what seemed to be a nightmare flame. That explained why they looked like their broken siblings, he was a broken sibling. What has this nightmare god done to him!? He's even more broken than the ones he was traveling with!
This was bad, really bad, Ghost and Lost appeared to have come to the same realization. So this is why this damned troupe wanted their siblings. To corrupt and dilute them further! They had to leave, NOW!... But… they couldn't just abandon their whole fully diluted sibling.
Hollow felt a tugging on his cloak, and looked down to see Ghost trying to get his attention.
"What do? What do?" Ghost asked, worried.
Hollow had to think, they probably couldn't win against a nightmare god. He may be a skilled nail wielder, but the troupe master was a literal god. But… they also had a god they could call… the god of gods in fact. A plan hatched within Hollow's head, it was simple enough, they just hoped it would work.
"Ghost, run to the Abyss, use the stagway tunnel, get the Lord, he will be able to help us" Hollow mentally said briskly.
"Okay, I get Lord" Ghost said, and began running and dashing as fast as his powers and little legs could.
Lost was standing at a readied stance all the while, prepared for a possible confrontation. Having overheard what his siblings said, Lost just hoped the Lord got here soon before something bad happened.
Seer was… well, just watching really. She was somewhat amused and somewhat frightened. It was somewhat amusing to see a member of a nightmare troupe get punched in the abdomen, frightening that her friends likely just offended a nightmare god. She knew that this troupe had less than altruistic intentions, that was clear from the start, and their behaviour validated that suspicion. Now however, their intentions were becoming more clear, they wanted her friends for something, but she needed her friends to collect Radiance's shards.
"You get wine and circus! What more could you unwashed simpletons want!?" Xym yelled, snapping Seer out of her thoughts.
"The artifact" David said flatly.
"Isn't there anything else you want? A purpose? A stable future? One where you don't have to worry about a kingdom you travel to not offering employment? One where you can eat actual food? And not those tasteless 'nutrients bars' you somehow tricked yourself into calling 'food'" Xym said.
"How did you know about that? I don't recall any of us ever telling you that-" Matthew began.
"Oh come now you daft imbeciles, is it not obvious we have been keeping an eye on you?!" Xym shouted annoyed.
"How else would we know that you were after a crystal that day?"
"I assumed that you knew from our first encounter considering your comments on it, sent one of your guys there, and just waited for us to show up" David said.
"Hmm, suppose that is a reasonable assumption… but still, spying should have been in the list of possibilities" Xym said in a hrumpf.
"Look, Xym, you stole something rather important, return it, and there will be no further hostilities" David said professionally.
Xym gave a long sigh "How about I make a deal, you enter the tents, bare witness to our wondrous show, and we can then give you the Moth Tribe's crystal, deal?" Xym said, holding out his hand.
David looked to Matthew, and then to Chris, and finally down at Xym's outstretched hand. On one hand, they could try and sticking up the place, on the other, they didn't know the power of this… 'Master Grimm'.David just stared at it for a few moments, before finally deciding to give the hand a shake.
Xym gave a dark chuckle "Wonderful… wonderful! Come, and bear witness to our most grand show, your friends are invited as well if they wish" Xym said, turning to Seer and the vessels… minus one.
"Uhh, Hollow, where's Ghost?" David asked worriedly.
"He went to get something, do not worry, he knows this place very well, he will be fine" Hollow said, it was mostly true, barring the fact that the something was actually someone.
"Oh...kay" David said.
Seer couldn't really see a way around this, if she ever hoped to get that shard back, her friends would need to attend this ritual. She had to go with them, she would hopefully be able to steer them away from the… particularly bad parts of this Grimm Troupe.
The group, minus Ghost, walked with Xym towards the tent, to where they would see this… performance.
Location: Forests Around Whitenest
Anshey was angry, very angry. She had learned that her prized catch from a few days ago escaped. "It could break metal bars" they said, so what? You alert the nobility! We take care of it, we take care of the things those idiot bugs can't. She wouldn't be surprised if some worthless bug noble arranged for there to be an incompetant guard detail, she had always suspected those useless bugs were afraid of more superior human nobles to take their place.
It was only natural, they were mere seat warmers until a new human could be civilized. It was phasing out the inferior with the superior, those daft insects were probably plotting to slow the already excruciatingly slow process down. Eventually though, they would be replaced, relegated to the dustbin of history. I was clear, bugs except her most esteemed White Queen, and other higher beings were unfit to rule. Humans were the servants of the gods, they were just below them. Being just below such magnificent beings still put them leagues above even the greatest of bug nobles.
But the heretics put their own gain ahead of the kingdom, instead of being dutiful and helping to secure the kingdom's future, they tried and subvert her efforts, in an attempt to keep what power was borrowed to them.
No matter, she would bring those humans back, they would be civilized, the tall one will have his stabilized, and the little girl's will have her realigned.
Right now however, she was currently marching through the forestry that surrounded the cave systems that lead into Whitenest. It was quite beautiful she had to admit. But she preferred the beautiful architecture of the noble section of the City of Silver. It had all the comforts a human could ever want, a more then fitting reward for the work they do.
She, and a few other nobles were being sent out to find them, as it was clear the daft insects were too incompetant to do it.
"Oh well" She thought to herself, brandishing a shining white spear she had taken with her.
"Just more validation to her kind's superiority in service to the White Queen"