Enjoy a light snack.

At least where you're resting, the Pecho Stream isn't all that deep. It may sound tiny by name, though it is still a river, and at the bridge it spans over a hundred and fifty feet wide. It's difficult to discern how much it drops around the center without closer inspection, though it may be possible to ford the river depending on the season. It's far from the roughest river around. Perhaps that's why it has stream in its name, and not something like rapids, or torrent. That being said, it was probably named so long ago that many things have changed since then.

Multiple nations have come and gone in the ancient history of even this small section of the world. Far to the west of here, you'd enter the grounds where once the Kingdom of Mirious, ruled for a time by the Wizard Kind Sigeberht, prospered. You don't exactly know the details of Tivera's early history, or Varat's, or the wars they fought, or if other kingdoms and empires rose and fell in the old days. It was likely a very different world, just like Earth, if you rewound the clock a century or three, let alone a millennium or more.

You and the others sit directly adjacent to the gentle river which glistens beneath the sun, with a flickering fire lit by Niki after gathering some branches. She even set up a spit to thoroughly roast Snow's catch over the flames while the others converse.

"I am incredibly happy to be blessed with the opportunity to share moments like these with all of you," says Amara, kneeling with her hands up to feel the gentle burn of the campfire on the tip of her fingers. "To feel the embrace of nature's gifts while in the company of those we love."

"You're sounding more like a druid than a cleric," Eva jests.

"Perhaps it is my elven roots. While you do still find elves living in the woods, many of my people have moved to living amongst the other races. But deep down, we will always have that connection. Though it may not my blood. This is a beautiful moment that I think anybody would agree is precious."

Snow watches the fish cook impatiently--mask down, leaning forwards. She licks her lips. "I do agree," she responds under her breath.

"I know what you mean, Amara," you say. "Castle Phoenix is so full of life now, so it isn't so much a connection to nature. I think it's the company we keep, and us experiencing new things together. Have any of you been to Tanver's Crossing before?"

Niki raises her hand. "Yeah. Never farther into this region though. I did like one quest around here awhile back. Nothing crazy. Then I went right back to Tivera. Honestly, it wasn't all that different. You still got buildings, people, food, and of course monsters in the outskirts to slay."

"The smell of the fish is making me feel hungrier than I thought I was," Xiaoqing speaks up. "Think they're almost done?"

"I think so!"

It isn't much, but it's enough to satisfy the group with something warm, seasoned with a few things brought by Amara for the trip--salt, thyme, basil... Nothing that would replicate a fully home-cooked meal in Castle Phoenix's kitchen, but the fish were plump and tasty.

You pat your stomach, satisfied.

"Well! Ready to grab the emus and get going again?" Niki asks. She stands tall, and stretches her arms far above her head. Along with her, the others begin lifting themselves from the rocks and packed dirt. They wander to the river again, washing the filth from their feet before anything else, while Niki, who did so earlier, wanders over to where your mounts and bags are waiting.

Though as they do, your perception for merely a second both fades and focuses, as if honing in on something which demands your attention. The hairs on the back of your neck stand straight, and you turn your head swiftly to a disturbance in the water just as a figure emerges.

There's no way the person could have sneaked up to the party. If Eva's rabbit ears, or even the keen senses of Amara or Snow, didn't pick up a sound, your Kitty Senses would have done so before now. You leap to your feet, draw Lauo from its scabbard, though stop the moment your bare feet enter the cold river waters, as the stranger shouts, "Summon Crossbow!" to now wield a weapon, but until you know more, you'd rather not start removing heads.

After a stream of water rushes down from the person's body, it's revealed to you that a woman now stands about twenty feet away--water up to her knees--though strangest of all is that she's completely and utterly nude.

This isn't lost on her. You can see in her eyes that she's embarrassed. In her hands is a pulsing weapon--a crossbow, though made entirely of blue, glowing energy--but the way she wields it is done so in a **** attempt to conceal her bare chest. She stands to the side, hoping to whichever god will listen that by the angle, you can't see between her legs, though such an attempt is futile. Water runs down her soaked, naked chest, stomach, hips, legs, ass--all of which she'd probably prefer not to be exposed, though you can still easily see her pink pussy, as well as matching, rosy tips still mostly squeezed and censored by the pressure of her arm.

Her hair looks black at first, though under the rays of the sun, you can see a sheen of blue. Her locks are messy and clinging to her skin, down to her neck, which is expected given from where she emerged. There's only one thing on her body, and unfortunately for her, it isn't clothing--a single ring around her right index finger. Perhaps it's the amber crystals, or the ornate pattern, or how absurd it is to be unclothed yet wear jewellery, but your instincts tell you it may be a magic item.

Ring of Invisibility maybe? No... That doesn't feel right. We didn't hear her.

"Nobody move!" she screams. Though her voice somewhat betrays her intimidation attempt, it doesn't do so nearly as much as her wardrobe. "I have this weapon trained directly on that rabbit's forehead."

You can tell Snow is a mere moment from drawing her bow, and there's a pretty high chance she could do so, nock an arrow, and put it between the assailant's eyes before she could fire, but you hold a hand up to halt her attack. "You're grossly outnumbered and outpowered. What do you want?" you ask.

"I'm not stupid. I know there's only one of me. But do you really want to risk losing a party member, just to kill me? I want gold. Treasures. Just hand over anything worth a damn, and I'll let you go on your way."

Your eyes slowly move up and down her captivating physique. Though it's hard to tell with how she's twisting her spine, there seems to be a tattoo in her right rear cheek.

She looks rather flustered as you continue taking her in. "Now!" she demands. "Or if you wanna keep looking, I'll charge you by the second."

"You're already robbing us. I think that's enough. But what I don't appreciate is you threatening Eva. I'd rather you apologize."

"You think I'm joking? You're messing with the Crookblade Bandits. I'm assuming you're new to these parts if you don't know the name. The hills are ours. The roads are ours. And your coin purse? That's ours too, so I'll give you to the count of ten--"