bad tidings - open to tanglers; counter strike planning

[wormwood.]

NOTHING BESIDE REMAINS — Taken over and pushed around, once again. It seemed as though the world had no end to the amount of cruelties that it could end up piling onto Tanglewood without mercy. Really, it was enough to drive a man mad, and Aurum was painfully aware of that. Despite this, he couldn't help feeling guilty. If only he had been fully healed up and awake a bit earlier... perhaps he could've prevented this, somehow. He ultimately knew that the "hibernation" he had taken was beneficial to him, and without it, he probably wouldn't have healed so quickly. Unfortunately, he also knew that it had kept him away from everyone for far too long. Thankfully, it seemed as though staying away would no longer be an option, considering they were mostly just held inside the bunker. Escaping from the structure was significantly harder for Aurum than it was for one like Elsweyr, thanks to the noticeable size difference between the two of them. Thankfully, the lion also had shape-shifting and teleportation on his side, so he managed to sneak out – at least for the moment. He knew that, if too many of them were gone, members of the Cockalition, or whatever they were called, would start to take notice. That wasn't something any of them wanted, since there was no doubt in his mind that they would crack down even harder on their "security" if they noticed such a thing going on underneath their noses.

The angel's mind was plagued with heavy contemplation as he eventually reached where Elsweyr was, standing between the clumped together trees of the swamp. It took a moment for him to realize that she was speaking, mainly because of just how far off in his head he actually been. Once she was finished, however, he spoke up, slowly shaking his head from side to side, "I don't believe we've properly met. I'm Aurum, and I used to be the deputy around here. I was recovering from injuries when they raided... I wish we could've met under better circumstances." He scrubbed momentarily at his face, his expression grim as he glared down at the wet ground beneath them. Elsweyr was right in that they had a distinct advantage, but that still wouldn't make any future fight an easy one. He eventually continued, his voice a rumble, "...I can deal with the dragon. I have a form. A wyrm form... it's massive. Big and strong enough to take on the dragon, if necessary. But it's incredibly taxing for me to use, so if we were to do something... we need to make sure we're entirely prepared and sure beforehand." He didn't like pulling out his MAMA form under any circumstances, really, but this was a special case. Without it, Tanglewood would have one pretty massive threat that they had no real way to deal with.

( prior to any fighting with ninazu ) — OF THE MAN WHO WAS BORN AND DIED A KING.