To the Poynton!

shirley we should ask for news

clearly Kelepee's just like an energetic dog—she needs something exhausting to occupy her and leave her no energy to get into trouble. since she's really really really REALLY good at killin', maybe we can hire her out to fight bothersome wolves or bears or dragons or something idk

>>1021596
I don't think it's possible to fix Kelepee. Not even the fairie would do it.
I think we should head towards the orcs, just hand her over to one of the tribes. They will better tolerate her need to fight people on the regular, because as we saw they have a kind of ritual combat thing going. They might not LIKE her, but she won't ruin their lives like she's ruining ours.
As a side note we could potentially set up a trade agreement with them? They don't eat bread but we could deliver something else. (also maybe we should try selling something other than bread, in general...)

Ask the others for their opinion regardless.

>>1021612
>Not even the fairie would do it.
Looking back, the fey responded with this:
>"I can heal her body, but if you mean her mind or spirit are damaged, I have no way to know what form it took before, and besides, It would be cruel of me to return to her a cost she freely paid.

so it seems they refused because they couldn't restore her to her former state of mind/spirit, probably since they'd only just met, long after the price was paid.
Although it also puzzles me on that they also believed it 'cruel' to 'return to her a cost she freely paid'

Head west. The problems with Kelepee were due to shaman stuff, so orc shamans should give us some options on how to handle such broken individuals. Find a way to do something with her spirit, bind her to you, train her, or something, I dunno. But with her around, traveling should be safe at least. Orcs may not appreciate bread much, but anyone else living with or near them would. Oh yeah, should ask Kevwar to teach us how to give orcs good rubs. Kelepee didn't seem to mind them before.

Ah yes, the joys of creating one's own problems to fix. Perhaps should have focused on resolving this earlier, but hindsight is being turned into a donkey's rear by a faerie.

Money can fix many problems regardless of whether we fix Kelepee's, so selling the books might be the best start. If we don't want to just dump Kelepee - an otherwise somewhat loyal companion? - somewhere convenient or get her killed, the choice boils down to:

Sell books at Poynton -> Help Kelepee (leaves option open for orc/kingdom solution)

Sell book at human kingdom -> Help Kelepee (kingdom solution, since you're already there might as well commit)

Sell the books at either place -> Figure out a way to safely do trade while suffering Kelepee's condition as best able.

Of the three, the most sensible, least troublesome option on the face of it seems like Poynton. Maybe you'd get less money, but it'd at least set you up for an expedition in either direction and might make you a noble connection in your local trading area.

It all boils down to what you want to happen.

>Orc solution?
We already know what orcs do to control out-of-control people like Kelepee and that's to mainly let them work on killing themselves while staying out of the way - which, to be fair, has sort of ended up being our solution too, of late, no?

Of course, there's a chance there's some orc tribes that have a different approach - maybe reserved for more beloved and important members - and could offer some mystical fix or option that... somehow even a Faerie can't? Hm, though the faerie's solution seemed very all-or-nothing.

Honesly, going to the orc tribes seems mostly like the last resort, or looking for a tribe to offload Kelepee onto and maybe getting some more memoir-fodder out of it. You're quickly becoming the merchant with the most intimate orc-familiarity and connections out of any in the kingdom, so maybe that's... something to work with. Maybe you could even figure out a way to improve relations and do trade safely.

Safe-ish-ly. There's a whole lot of culture and past antagonism to get past. Including the fact orcs think of elf eggs as delicacies.

>Kingdom solution?
Someone in the kingdom just being up and able to help an orc in Kelepee's situation feels remote, since depending on what magical mental health options exists any 'solutions' might boil down to bindings, etc., a la the war wolf. Which is kind of the faerie's choice to fix Kelepee's mind 2.0 - to what degree do we want to mess with her mind - heck, even soul - if one even can?

Though... I suppose it's more possible that they'd end up doing some proper magic (SCIENCE magic!) and give us insight into her actual situation and further options on what CAN be done, if anything. And there may be someone there interested in this for the greater insight it might give into orc shamanic culture / magic. Though Kelepee is definitely not going to be a docile research subject.

For all we know there already IS some manner of serious magical solution that could restore self-control - wizards go mad, after all, so a magical hospital or sanatorium of sort may exist - but at a guess it'd probably be expensive and experimental. Which, again, reiterates we really need to get those rare books sold off if we're to have a hope of helping her without seriously depleting our resources.

>Whatever option is chosen
Whatever else we do, we should think trade opportunities along the way. We are a merchant, after all, so should mix business with more business and seize opportunities when able.

>Other opinions
What does our erstwhile new companion Caoiree think? And again, apologies to Genlaud for all the trouble you've brought her with your other companion. You're aware you're running out of grace, so moving this situation along seems like the best bet - for everyone's sake. Though you will miss conversing with her and hope to visit again.

Despite the animosity between her kind and Kelepee's, though, would she have any ideas on how to restore restraint to a magically broken mind/soul?

>One final thing...
There's also the reported invasion into orc lands by an unknown enemy within the year. Bohmadigh's vision and whether to believe in it or do anything about it, is up to you.

If it is true, it could have consequences for the entire region. Orcs could end up retreating - or being forced - into kingdom lands, to disastrous consequence. Or this invader could punch through the orcs' domain and threaten further. It's potentially something one could investigate while visiting the orcs in conjunction with Kelepee's situation. Having failed to get the faerie Heart and treating the invasion as something serious still, the Secret Waters tribe and their allied tribes might even appreciate a slight show of support by you bringing war material for trade (or, in part, as gifts that would pay for their forbearance in helping Kelepee). You could even see if there's a way for you to figure out if the invaders are a threat to the kingdom and report it to improve everyone's safety.

Your financial situation isn't quite dire enough that you need to sell the books urgently, I should hope. Our priority is finding a solution to the Kellepee problem without endangering ourselves too much, so we head West, towards the orkish borderlands.

We can ask our friends (and around in general) for insight into their local markets, though we should keep that prophesy in mind, too, when considering what additional product to bring. Perhaps camping supplies for refugees or weapons for a war effort?

We know how to make drowsiness potions. Have we considered having Kelepee take those before towns to keep her too drowsy to pick fights?

She's troublesome, but I'm attached to the little scamp now and don't think handing her off will do well for her.

We could also put her to more effective work, have her take on work as a hunter whenever we're in town so that killer instinct gets spent on the wild boars and wolves no doubt harassing the locals for a bit of coin.

Go west, young man! Find a well-spoken orc who knows some shamanic wisdom.

Merchant!!Z0Mwx3ZJZj 2022/02/02(Wed)15:07 No. 1022142 ID: 12b116
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You decide the best thing to do is head West. Whether you sell the books or not, you're also curious about the orcish prophecy. It might be worthwhile to keep abreast of such things.

After making the decision you reflect on Kelepee's situation.

In the past, you'd considered hiring out her services, but the problem is she has to be supervised, mostly by you. It's not really possible to utilize her talents without putting yourself in danger too.

She does realize you saved her life, but there have been far too many times when you were worried about your health when you tried to keep her out of trouble.

You also reflect on solutions to her problem. You have been reading the fairy manuscript and have come to understand that fairies, even 'helpful' ones, are powerful and exceedingly dangerous.

The manuscript itself is a collection of the signs and known names of fairies that have been encountered, along with accounts of people who had interacted with them. Very few of the accounts seem to have been collected from firsthand sources, although some effort to corroborate the stories seem to have been made.

From what you've read, fairies seem especially disinclined to help someone who has made bad decisions that lead to predictably bad results. You think Perferlain's statement about how it would be 'cruel to return a cost that was freely paid' may have been because Kelepee's condition is a result of a positive action she took, knowing something like that could happen to her. The stories you've read in the manuscript seem to have awful outcomes when somebody tries to use a fairy's power to climb out of a hole they'd dug for themselves. You suspect the 'cruelty' of the solution would likely have come from Perferlain herself.

You ask Caoiran and Genlaud for their opinions on the situation.

"Boss, I don't know the first thing about magic," Caoiran says. "I'm not gonna lie, I think the best solution is just feeding Kelepee something that'll make her go to sleep all peaceful and not wake up." She shrugs. She's borne the brunt of Kelepee's interparty aggression, having to threaten her at swordpoint multiple times, and often acting as a rearguard when you've had to leave somewhere quickly because Kelepee got into a fight with someone, or killed some animal she shouldn't have.

The most frustrating thing is that Kelepee clearly knows better, but when something sets her off, she has seemingly no ability to actually restrain herself or resist her violent impulses. Only a fear of immediate bodily harm seems to work, and you think that if you'd allowed Kelepee to carry a weapon around all the time, either you or Caoiran probably would have been seriously injured by now. On the plus side, you haven't had to worry about bandits or wild animals at all. At this point, her reputation alone is enough to keep unsavory elements well away from you.

"There are likely some magical solutions," Genlaud says. She seems to enjoy your visits whenever you're in the area, and likes asking about what you've been up to and offering her advice on the situation. "I think going west is a good proposal," she says. "Past Wick, you may run into Rwaileshalari from across the desert. Very different sorts of people live there with other sorts of knowledge and magic. I've heard they'll actually buy Alustrian bread for a good price."

You have considered keeping Kelepee sedated in towns. She doesn't know you poisoned her the first time, and you suspect it would be better if she didn't find out. You keep some of the drowsiness concoction on hand for emergencies, in any case, and have actually made some decent money using the apothecary manual a few times.

You have yet to attempt a second fairy communication.

As you approach Aldenhead, you ask around and find out that a caravan is heading west in a few days.

You could travel with them, although caravans are a bigger target and Kelepee is more likely to get into trouble, it could be a source of information and mutual protection.

Otherwise, it's just you, Caoiran and Kelepee. It might be a good idea to hire some guards. Apparently there has been trouble close to the pass through the western mountains.

Do you want to check for mercenaries to hire? You have some funds available and intend on buying some bread and other trade goods.

Do you want to check out the caravan, or just travel on your own? The caravan is slower but ostensibly safer, although with Kelepee around, it'll also be more trouble.

>Mercenaries
Sure, someone to give Caioran a hand managing Kelepee.
>Caravan
This reminds me of something... can't remember what though. Anyway, it's probably a good idea for security and networking.

>>1022142
Ok so the fairy solution is just not going to work for Kelepee. Though we could try to get Caoiran's hand back that way, that wasn't due to a bad decision or anything, and I imagine fairies have some established cost for restoring body parts. Probably a big one, but we can just find out what the ballpark is and save up for it.

Hire a couple'a guards. Make sure they know not to take Kelepee's shit.
The caravan seems like a bad idea because of Kelepee. You'd have to keep her restrained or sedated for the whole trip, because she absolutely 100% will freak out and get you kicked out and banned and you REALLY do not want to ruin your reputation any further.

How come the War Wolf shackles aren't enough to keep Kelepee restrained in town? Does she pull away from you and break out of them or is she just mobile enough to cause harm while in the shackles? Have you considered going like, full bondage mode with her and keeping her fully restrained while you're in town, so you don't have to monitor her? Not like anyone's gonna stab her while she's tied up in your cart or something.

>You have yet to attempt a second fairy communication.
And why would you? You have nothing you think of that you can give to do-not-think-of-her-name in exchange for help, other than paying some unidentified cost. At least you know you shouldn't contact her for this Kelepee situation, since they already suggest you don't and that seems very much an onus of your own choices thing.

Restoring Caoiran's arm does seem like it might be a possible ask, given how easily she restored Kelepee from dying... but right now you seem limited in letting the faerie decide your options for you. Mayhaps also your need for a fully restored fighter should be dire.

>At this point, her reputation alone is enough to keep unsavory elements well away from you.
Well, she is a certifiable badass! Shame that reputation couldn't have come about from less sociopathic acts, though not getting bothered by thieves and bandits is a considerable upside for a merchant. Handling wild animals, too, is good. I guess that's how you're supplementing her meat-preference diet.

>feeding Kelepee something that'll make her go to sleep all peaceful and not wake up
Eesh. Personally you're not feeling this, but relying on threats of bodily harm to keep her in line does risk your other partner if the only possible threat that will work is one of violence (and imminent death for SOMEBODY if there suddenly is no backing down). They're also quite fed up at this point if they're straight up suggesting poisoning. Granted, some of this might be grudge-fed: Caoiran's recent limb-loss was at the hands of Kelepee's clan and now she has to babysit and clean up the messes of one of her attackers.

As for actually achieving the poison plan, you half suspect the drowsy poison wouldn't work unless you made it really strong (and potentially obvious). Kelepee dragged herself out of bed to fight the faerie and was the last one standing (though that may have been fey whim) despite being strongly dosed up so she must have the constitution of a horse. Or maybe the compound just works more weakly on orcs?

>Next move
Travelling alone might be wisest, considering Kelepee's situation. We could end up kicked from the caravan anyway and if we Kelepee was a causalty or got seriously wounded in the process we'd really be up 'unsafe, unprotected merchant' creek.

Maybe hire a second mercenary who could pad your numbers and take on the burden of managing Kelepee for a bit, as well as pad your numbers for solo travel? You could try to poach someone from the caravan crew, since they might have gone west before and you could pump them for information.

Unsure how wise that is, though. If you do hire someone on, they need to be good at violence, yet also be bright enough to understand the point is to mitigate damage, not to get the orc or themselves murdered by unwise actions. They'd also have to have some mental tolerance towards Kelepee being Kelepee.

That said, not entirely opposed to travelling with the caravan, there are definite benefits there - just offset by you likely having to personally mind Kelepee a lot while trying to do other things.

Check out the mercenaries, even if we're not gonna hire any. The caravan would normally be a good choice, but not this time.

Merchant!!Z0Mwx3ZJZj 2022/02/06(Sun)06:42 No. 1022554 ID: 12b116
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You leave Caioran and Kelepee outside of town and go to get supplies.

You think heading out on your own is for the best. The only scenarios you can imagine are ones in which you get kicked out.

It wouldn't be like a visit to town. Keeping her shackled for a few hours is fine, but you can't very well keep her shackled for days. She still kicks and bites, or just snarls and threatens with them on. You imagine somebody would have died by now if you didn't have them.

You also think about the fairy manuscript a little more. You have no desire to contact Perferlain (you think you imagine the sound of a bell) again, but maybe there is another one that might be more inclined to help in the way you want. It's something you could look into. You'd still have to pay a price, though, and from what you've read, you have to be extremely careful in what kind of promise you make or deal you strike. The more you think about it, maybe selling this thing isn't the best idea after all ...

You also can't complain too much about Kelepee's hunting and tracking abilities. She was the lead scout, after all. You always get nervous when she's out on her own though, without supervision.

As far as keeping her sedated, just keeping her a little woozy and drowsy would probably be enough. The real issue would be either convincing her to do it on purpose, or her finding out you poisoned her at the orc camp, which could lead to very bad results.

You decide to check out the mercenaries who are offering their services.

First, a trio of goblins with arbalests. The arbalests are quite expensive, but otherwise they have gambesons and a few middling pieces of armor. They seem competent and have very good ranged capability, which is something you lack, but they would be almost no help at all with Kelepee.

The leader appears to be a female goblin named Moyana Padyss, who speaks with an accent you don't recognize. She says as long as you're heading west, they'll give you a good rate. More if you're going somewhere else, as that's the direction they'd prefer to travel, although coin is coin as far as they're concerned.

Next is a lone elf named Anvar of Bros. You've personally never heard of Bros, but whatever. He's equipped quite well, with some sort of strange polearm and a fancy brigandine, and speaks in a slightly condescending tone. He tells you he also has an elvish bow with which he is proficient. You suspect he'd be useful with Kelepee physically, although you aren't sure about his personality, and his rate is fairly high.

Last is Ireka Faul, a sanctified War Wizard, and Milkweed, her War Wolf. Her rate is between the other two and she seems relaxed and affable. You suspect a War Wolf would be useful in dealing with Kelepee, and her attitude may be a better fit for dealing with her as well, although she'd be totally lacking in ranged options.

You also have to decide how much you want to spend on trade goods and apothecary supplies. A unit of trade goods is roughly the same price as a unit of apothecary supplies, which would allow you to make several different potions should you need to. Other than a few sleeping droughts, you don't currently have any apothecary materials, as you've managed to exhaust most of the supplies in the kit at this point.

If you hire the goblins, you'd be able to purchase 4 units of either trade goods or apothecary supplies.

If you hire the elf, you'd be able to afford 2 units of either trade goods or apothecary supplies.

If you hire the War Wizard, you'd be able to afford 3 units of either trade goods or apothecary supplies.

What do you ask any of the mercenaries, if anything?

and

Which company do you hire, if any, and how much do you spend on apothecary supplies and/or trade goods?

You can still sell apothecary materials, or make money from your services, but you will get more from trade goods and they're much more readily sellable.

Definitely go with the goblin mercenaries. You are not bringing an elf into a territory where the locals are bitterly genocidal against elves, especially after what happened to Rhaina, and bringing multiple war-wolves would also implicate you as a professional slaver.

Since the orcs are gearing up for war, bring a combination of healing supplies, rations, and blackpowder.

Hire the War Wizard, 1 unit of apothecary supplies and 2 of trade goods.

>Selling a book of faerie secrets and names might have unintended consequences
>(sound of a bell)
... maybe it's a good thing we just decided to go west.

>Hire mercenary
I'm thinking balanced approach to defense and keeping Kelepee from doing great damage. Hire the War Wizard.

A lack of ranged options could hurt, but could you buy a spare crossbow off those goblins for personal training and use without eating into your trade goods potential? Or, heck, even if you do?

You already know you're not great in close range and just having a crossbow and showing it on the cart could serve as additional deterrent to anyone thinking of messing with your group and getting overconfident because of your apparent lack of ranged options (I dare say anyone in melee would NOT be happy to run face-first into a War Wolf and a highly strung orc). In short, while you should still train and familiarize yourself in a crossbow's use, you don't need to BE good with it, just LOOK good.

>What to ask of War Wizard
Ask if she knows Kilbeth Tere and Buttermilk. You had an encounter with them a bit back and considered hiring them. Also relate the death of the nameless (?) war wizard in the orc camp. Just the fact of it, if not the exact circumstances, since it's not something you've reported to anyone in the 'business' as it were. It's a long story and you might get into it if she seems interested, leaving a few obvious details out of the picture.

You'll have to see if you can trust her with more details regarding Kelepee's situation as you get to know her, though you can ask if she has any interest in - or understanding of - alternate methods of magics, such as the shamanic magics of the orcs. You're heading west partly to trade, partly to investigate a shamanic magic vision reported to you, partly to look for a way to help someone.

Speaking of which, ask if Milkweed is capable of restraining a 'pretty badass' unstable orc scout when they go wild until they calm down, in a more-or-less gentle 'no permanent injuries to any party' kind of way. Lay out the root of Kelepee's problem, if not the exact cause of it - an inability to control their own aggressive impulses. It's not like with Buttermilk where the bonds in town are mainly for show.

>Goods acquisition
Again, let's balance with a lean towards profit.

Trade goods 2
Apothecary 1

>>1022563
Agreed with this. Obviously, be careful to leave the more personally incriminating details out of it - this includes knowledge about how the war wizard died that you shouldn't know from Kelepee's perspective. (Did we get a crossbow in the last thread? Do we still have it, if so?)

>>1022554
war wizard, she seems pretty nice. The lack of ranged option isn't really as much of a problem since they're able to just run at people tanking shots, right?

Merchant!!Z0Mwx3ZJZj 2022/02/06(Sun)15:42 No. 1022612 ID: 12b116
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You decide to hire the War Wizard and get two units of trade goods and one of apothecary supplies. Some nice breads is perfect. Soldiers and civilians alike need food, and if Genlaud was right, bread will sell even better if you go further west.

You had found a crossbow previously and have practiced with it a bit, but aren't very good. Unfortunately, Caoiran can't use a bow at all, and can use a crossbow very poorly with only one hand.

"So, this a bodyguard job?" Ireka asks, slinging her pack up on her back. Milkweed shuffles behind you, chains clinking, as you walk toward the edge of town.

You explain that you're a merchant, and you intend on travelling through Gliff's Pass and on to Wick to trade supplies.

Ireka nods.

You ask if she's ever heard of Kilbeth Tere. You say she was a War Wizard you'd thought of hiring a while back.

"Can't say that I recognize the name, but it's not like we all know each other."

You decide the sooner to explain the Kelepee situation, the better, so you breifly go over the very basics of your time in the orc camp, including the captured War Wizard.

Ireka gives you a sideways look. "So you're that merchant?" she asks, then smiles. "I can see why you'd hire me, then. You're the one that travells with the lunatic orc that you pretend is a War Wolf, right? I've heard about you."

You grimace, but she doesn't seem overly concerned. She actually seems a little too calm if you're being perfectly honest.

Well, the cat's clearly out of the bag, so you ask if you think Milkweed will be able to restrain Kelepee.

Ireka snorts and smiles. "Milkweed doesn't feel pain, is stronger than even her giant body looks to be, and heals basically instantly. Oh yeah, she can restrain an orc no problem. I'm the weakest link here." She taps herself on the chest.

She stops once you get close to the caravan but before you're back to your wagon and starts undoing the buckles and chains that restrain Milkweed. You can see the War Wolf has a short, dented metal breastplate, Ireka takes off the thick belts around her abdomen and waist. She unbuckles the strap around her mouth, and you can see the helmet is open underneath. Milkweed immediately yawns, and leaves her long tongue hanging out.

Ireka leaves the heavy cuffs on her arms and legs and bundles up all the chains and restraints, including the leash she was leading Milkweed with, and shoves them into her pack. Milkweed picks it up, carrying it effortlessly in one hand.

You explain that you think Kelepee's lunacy has to do with damage to her soul from some concoction she drank, and asks Ireka if she'd know anything about something like that.

"Well, yeah. We learn quite a bit about souls. You have to know what you're doing to make a War Wolf. You have to deal with your own soul, and with other souls do the ritual right." She pats Milkweed on the head, and the monster leans into her hand. Even without the War Wolf towering over her, you note that Ireka is quite short.

"Oh, and this is just part of my standard ... War Wolf disclaimer or whatever, but if I get killed or hurt so bad I'm not going to make it, cut my heart out and feed it to the wolf. You'll have about half an hour." She shoots you a wink, and you're somewhat disturbed by how blaise she says that. "She'll probably be going berserk, so just toss it at her where she can see."

You do your best to keep your face neutral, but you feel like you don't succeed particularly well.

You also aren't sure you'd be able to manage that even if you wanted to, but keep that to yourself.

As you approach the wagon, you see Caoiran sitting in the driver's seat and Kelepee fidgeting nearby. When you approach, Caoiran rolls her eyes and sighs. You tell her she should bring the wagon into town to pick up the supplies, and you'll get Kelepee and Ireka Faul, the War Wizard you hired, acquainted with one another.

Caoiran turns your horse toward town, and then Ireka turns to Kelepee and says "So, you must be the crazy orc I've been hearing about."

Kelepee jumps to her feet, darting toward you and Ireka, but Milkweed takes one long-legged step forward, putting herself directly in Kelepee's way.

"I'll show you a crazy orc," Kelepee says, snarling.

"Damn, you're naughty aren't you," Ireka says, her eyes half-closed. "Am I gonna have to give you a spanking?"

Kelepee growls, her eyes fixed on Ireka, only glancing up at Milkweed every second or two. She slowly circles, clearly intent on attacking the War Wizard instead of the wolf, but Milkweed easily matches her, and Ireka backs away, putting more distance between herself and the orc.

You could:

Try to diffuse the situation. You'd have to think of what to tell who.

Just let 'em go at each other. This is what you hired Ireka for, isn't it?

Even then, you might want to take some other action or say something to somebody. Caoiran is still in earshot as well, You could yell for her to come back.

>>1022554
>war wolf totally lacking in ranged options
That's not strictly true. The war wolf can throw things. Like large rocks. It's not super effective but should be good enough to drive off anything you'd wish you had ranged options for- like flying monsters.
I say go with the war wizard. Maybe get a crossbow for yourself to help out. Does Caoiran know how to use a ranged weapon? You could get one for them instead.

Get 2 trade goods, 1 apothecary supplies.

Let them fight.

Also Encourage this "spanking" Ireka promised. maybe offer to fetch her a decent paddle

>>1022612
>Caoiran can't use a bow nor a crossbow
What about a sling? Or a type of throwing weapon like javelins? Well maybe not a sling, that'd be really annoying to reload with one hand.

>fight!
Let em fight. This is, indeed, why you got the war wizard.
>say something?
Suggest they put a wager on the outcome of the fight.

...Let them go at each other. She knows what she's doing. Right?

Ask Ireka if you should be doing something.

To Ireka: "I take it there's a reason you're antagonizing her? I'm not looking for that kind of solution, for the record."

Merchant!!Z0Mwx3ZJZj 2022/02/07(Mon)15:22 No. 1022717 ID: 12b116
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"Is there a reason you're antagonizing her?" you ask. "I'm not looking for that kind of solution, but I am willing to entertain a friendly wager."

"Don' distract me," Ireka says, slurring slightly. "Don' wanna to hurt her."

Kelepee sees her glancing toward you and mumbling, and makes her move.

She dashes forward, keeping low, and the War Wolf catches air as it grabs for her.

Kelepee dives past its legs and rolls, on her feet in an instant behind the War Wolf and bearing down on Ireka.

The War Wizard's eyes become clear as she darts behind you, and in the same instant the War Wolf snarls, spinning on one foot and leaping forward, faster than you would have thought possible. It barrels into Kelepee, snapping at her throat and drooling as they roll across the ground in a tangle of limbs.

Ireka staggers slightly, her eyes almost completely closed as you watch the War Wolf's savagery become cool, purposeful movements, repositioning itself to kneel on Kelepee's back, easily overpowering her and pinning her in place as she writhes and spits, clawing futilely at its arms.

Milkweed wraps a long arm around Kelepee's neck and leans back, and Kelepee's eyes bulge and she snarls and spits, choking and gasping for air.

The War Wolf eases up and Kelepee pants, her chest heaving. She seems to have calmed down at least. "Don't fuckin' call me crazy," she croaks, still catching her breath.

Ireka's eyes regain their focus as she steps around you, toward Kelepee.

Encourage Ireka to humiliate Kelepee now that she's got her pinned.
She did say she was going to give her a spanking, after all.

Try to get them to make nice with each other. You're pretty sure Ireka didn't expect Kelepee to react quite so violently.

Something else.

Encourage them to come to a mutual understanding. Speak softly and carry a big wolf.

>>1022717
So we learned something. It requires a lot of concentration for a War Wizard to use nonlethal force, at least when the War Wizard is being threatened. Like, assuming direct control rather than letting the war wolf run on instinct.

I say don't suggest anything. Ireka has some kind of plan, let her carry it out.
I am kindof wondering if Kelepee is denying her mental problems, or if she just can't stand that word.

Step ahead of Ireka, gesture for her to hold back and kneel down by Kelepee (and optionally begin to rub and massage her, since this has generally seemed to soothe her in the past). She's had her outburst, so it should be safe for a bit (and there's the war wolf). Apologize to the scout for, well, pulling in Ireka to essentially do this when needed, but you considered your options and this seemed the best one for the long journey west.

In a somewhat resigned tone, tell Ireka that she really didn't have to antagonize Kelepee to figure out she has a hair trigger, particularly regarding her condition. Even if she actively tries hard not to do anything, something would have set her off eventually - if that didn't happen with some regularity, you wouldn't have needed her aid.

She should understand that Kelepee is... scarred from an event of her past. The best you can do for her is largely to give her space, avoid topics that trigger her, and generally try not to make her condition harder on her than it has to be. You hope to look into possible mystical solutions when you arrive in the west. In the meantime, when she lashes out, Ireka has your blessing to intervene.

If Kelepee herself feels like working out her aggression on the war wolf might help, you could encourage some sparring under supervision in the mornings or evenings. It'd certainly help if her aggression didn't hyperfocus her towards Ireka, but towards Milkweed instead, so to that end you suggest the former be as friendly as can be expected, to the extent it helps. It does actually, in your experience. Not that you take Kelepee's hard-won moments of restraint for granted.

That said, it IS good to know now that Milkweed can restrain Kelepee if necessary. You don't expect Kelepee to thank her for this service, nor you, but you do want her to understand that the War Wizard is just here as a precaution and as an additional guard as you make your way westwards. Her presence is not intended to offend, leash or hurt Kelepee, beyond the increasingly apparent necessity of a solution to her moods other than continuous use of restraints and threats. You don't blame her for those - you just need some way of handling them safely for the nonce, and being a merchant you do have options like 'hire a wizard'.

At any rate, no more calling Kelepee insane to her face, agreed? You never called her that. You know some of her story, and you'd appreciate if Ireka let expectations formed by wild rumours fall by the wayside for this trip. Honestly, the truth's wild enough as it is and you might share more of it during the journey. Assuming Kelepee consents.

Encourage spanks
Kelepee needs to learn it's not okay to attack friends

Act like an overprotective boyfriend and jump in, hugging Kelepee to try to separate them and shouting to let Kelepee go. After the War Wolf retreats, tell Ireka not to call Kelepee crazy again, ok? while winking at her.

Doing it like that serves several purposes. It would show Kelepee that you're still the leader here and have command over the War Wizard, it would show Kelepee that you still care a lot about her and, well, give her some attention which is probably also one of the reasons she's so agitated. Hmm, maybe this was a part of Ireka's plan.

Anyway, once Kelepee is calm again, do ask her not to fight with the War Wizard because you need them both of them to protect the group.

"Please don't hurt her." Do nothing else, though; I feel like stepping in directly and breaking the wizard's concentration will only make things way worse than they would have been.

Encourage spanking
Maybe we can shift her away from mindless violence and toward mindless sexual fetish play

Encourage Spanking.
She was standing her ground as this is a Castle Doctrine spanking.

If Kelepee were able to restrain herself she'd already be doing so, and humiliating her won't change that so I don't really see much point in it.

I assume you've already explained your plans to head west to Kelepee but you should do so if not