Ancient Domains Of Mystery, forum overview / Stories / Arcanium
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 11 seconds ago. |
Josua woke up with a huge headache. He groaned angrily and looked around himself. He was surrounded by trees, and it was night time. He closed his eyes and tried to remember what had happened... and failed. All he remembered was that it had been bright, so it must have been day. He stood up, and immediately regretted it. His head felt like someone was pounding on it with a boulder. He staggared, then began to wander. He hadn't gone far before he heard more groaning. He thought it was himself, but upon closer inspection he concluded that it was someone else. It seemed to come from behind a nearby tree. Curious, he approached to investigate. ivan.sourceforge.net [Edited 1 time, last edit on 6/24/2003 at 00:22 (GMT -5) by Duke Ravage] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 1 second ago. |
The first thing Willard noticed was the pain. It was head-splitting, a thousand trumpets blaring at full pitch, a ball of fire in the cool, clouded tranquility of his mind. The second thing he noticed was the tree. It was very hard not to notic it, as it was a big spiky tree, a tree with lots of little sharp parts on the trunk sticking into him and making him very uncomfortable. He tried to pull himself forward but as soon as he tried the pain shot back with renewed vigour. He stopped, lying down on the night grass, seeing spots dancing in front of his eyes. Slowly they cleared and he observed the scene around him. A forest of dark trees and grass, obscured by the cloak of the night. His eyes wandered up to the night sky and the strange looking stars. He had no memory of other stars, but they still looked strange. He didn't have much memory of anything, come to think of it, only basic ideas, plus a vague concept of having been somewhere else. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! [Edited 1 time, last edit on 6/24/2003 at 00:22 (GMT -5) by Duke Ravage] |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 11 seconds ago. |
Thump. A form he was able to make out as vaguely humanoid fell, rather than sat, down next to him. It grunted something like a greeting. Willard grunted back. "'m Willard. Oo're you?" The form turned toward him. "Josh." it said. Willard looked at it. "'re you real?" There as a pause. "...think so." Willard grunted again, and closed his eyes. "'m goin' ta take a nap. I'll wake up ... later." With that he fell back into unconciousness. Josua looked at him. "Oh." he grunted, then followed suit. ivan.sourceforge.net [Edited 2 times, last edit on 6/24/2003 at 13:24 (GMT -5) by Duke Ravage] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 1 second ago. |
When Willard woke up, the sky was brightened by the first hint of dawn. It was still dark, but not as much as last night. His head no longer hurt, instead if felt filled with some kind of mist, obscuring thought. However, as he lay, the mist slowly cleared, and he shook his head to further clear it, and got up, or rather tried to. He was only half-awake, and his efforts only succeded in pulling him forward into a sitting position, where he noticed Josua was lying on the grassy loam beside him. He began to shake Josua in an attempt to wake him. Eventually, Josua, looking rather groggy, stood up. Willard, becoming more awake every second, set off towards the sun, and Josua stumbled after him. However, they had only walked for a few seconds when the trees began to part and they found themselves leaving what they had previously thought to be a forest but proved to be no more than a thicket. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! [Edited 1 time, last edit on 6/24/2003 at 13:25 (GMT -5) by Duke Ravage] |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 9 minutes and 27 seconds ago. |
They nearly tripped over the girl; she had been behind a bush and they hadn't seen her because she had been kneeling next to the prone form of another girl. As the first turned to look at them, Willard noticed that their faces were exactly alike--delicate, childish features framed by wispy blonde hair. Something in his mind--he didn't know what--put a word to it, and Willard said the word out loud: "Twins?" Jennifer was close to panic. She didn't know where she was and had no idea where she had come from, and she had almost forgotten the headache and dizziness with the discovery of the unconscious girl who looked exactly like her. Initially, Jennifer had had the insane idea that she was dead, and looking down at her body. She had rejected that idea only because the "body" was alive, and wearing different clothes. At a noise from the forest, Jennifer whipped her head around (and, amidst another wave of pain, immediately regretted it), and saw someone standing there, looking at her. "Twins?" the newcomer asked, sounding unsure. Jennifer's mind steadied a little; the word sounded familiar, and suddenly she knew, though she did not know how she knew, what it meant. "Yes..." she said. Her own voice sounded rough and awkward. "Yes. We are twins." Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 2 times, last edit on 6/24/2003 at 13:25 (GMT -5) by Duke Ravage] |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 11 seconds ago. |
Twins. The word meandered about Josua's head, looking for a meaning to attach, and started to get lost in the headache, which was, mercifully, beginning to lessen. He focused. The word sounded familiar, but he didn't know it... quite. He decided to attach a meaning to it, and after coming to the conclusion that the two girls in front of him were twins, he put a picture of them with the word. Then his brain called it a day and glazed over. Meanwhile, Willard peered at the two girls. "What's your name?" he asked. The girl taht was awake concentrated a moment, then looked up. "Jennifer." She paused. "What's yours?" "I'm Willard." said Willard. When Josh didn't respond, he looked at him, and noticed him gazing through a tree. "That's Josh. I think." He pointed at Josh. Then he paused. "Who's that?" He indicated the girl on the ground. ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 9 minutes and 27 seconds ago. |
Jennifer stared hard at the girl, familiar without any reasons for it, who lay on the ground next to her... so familiar, even without any memories... Jennifer felt herself descending into the muddled haze in which she had spent the last few hours. Confusedly, she muttered some variant of, "Don't know...", thinking to herself that sleep might not be such a bad idea... and her head hurt so terribly... and then she was floating, without thought or feeling or even identity, and nothing mattered anymore... Don't give up... The thought came to Jennifer's mind almost unbidden. Except it wasn't really a thought... more of a memory... Don't give up, came the thought that wasn't a thought. Except, it wasn't really a memory, either... there weren't any memories here... Don't give up! it said again, and this time it was so forceful that Jennifer, somehow, managed to peel open her eyes... ...and she was lying under a scrubby bush, and there was someone leaning over her with a worried expression on his face, and there were grass stems tickling her legs... "She's all right!" Willard was saying to Josua. Jennifer was about to make the effort to turn her head towards them when something made her turn her head the other direction. There was the girl who looked exactly like her, and she had turned her head, too, though her eyes were still closed... and suddenly, Jennifer knew the girl's name was Andrea. "Andrea?" she said questioningly. "I'm all right," came the answer--the soft, tired voice of someone who has just recovered from a long illness. "You've been out for quite a while," said Josh. "We thought you were going to... uh... not make it..." Jennifer braced herself on one elbow, then lifted her head. Sat up. Looked down at Andrea, who had just opened her eyes. Something's wrong with her, thought Jennifer to herself. The girl looked perfectly normal, but... "I can't see," said Andrea. "Why is it so dark?" Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 3 times, last edit on 8/7/2003 at 10:39 (GMT -5) by Iridia] |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 11 seconds ago. |
Josh returned to this plane of being just in time to hear the girls name. When the girl asked about the darkness, he looked around. "It's day," he said. A word came to him. "...blind?" Andrea turned her head in his direction. "Blind?" A moment's pause as she contemplated the meaning of the word, then panic. "Blind?!" "Shh, shh," soothed Jennifer. "It's OK." She touched Andrea's arm. "It'll be OK, don't worry." Willard turned to Josua. "What should we do with them?" he asked. Josh thought for a second, then turned to the two girls. "Want to come with us?" Jennifer looked up at him, then nodded. "Ok," said Josh. He turned around and took a couple steps. A strange sound from below him made him jump. It was a small, low growl that shook his stomach... or was it his stomach that was growling? He noticed a strange sensation for teh first time. A bit of thought revealed a word for it, and what to do about it. "I'm hungry. Anybody have food?" ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 1 second ago. |
Willard around at Josua's question and gazed at the rather flat area with a slightly puzzled expression on his face. "Food?" he said. "There dosen't seem to be anything nearby." Jennifer, who still seemed to be suffering from the memory lapse and the headache, along with a part of Andrea's blindness due to the bond that they shared as twins, seemed to ignore this and said in a rather sickly voice "Where are you going?" Willard looked around, realising he had no idea. "I don't really know. Anywhere, I suppose. Where should we go?" The forest was somewhere in the direction of the sun, and the plain stretched in all other directions. It all looked mostly the same, but in the opposite direction of the forest he could see hills in the distance. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 9 minutes and 27 seconds ago. |
"Water," said Jennifer suddenly. "We need water." Josh, who immediately felt immensely thirsty, wished she hadn't mentioned it. "I don't know where to find any," he said. "I don't even know where we are! How am I supposed to find water?" he demanded. "Hey..." said Jennifer. "Don't get all upset..." "I'm not," said Josh, taking a deep breath. He wasn't, really; only, how were you supposed to feel if you suddenly found yourself in the middle of the wilderness with absolutely no idea where you were or how you'd got there? "We should go to the hills," Willard said. "Maybe there'll be a stream or something." "But there's a lot more animals in the forest... or... or berries, or something," said Josh. "What if someone's looking for us? There could be someone just waiting to rescue us..." said Jennifer. Her voice trailed off then, mostly because she really had no idea of who might want to rescue them. Willard was just about to argue in reply when he heard Andrea saying something. Evidently she had been saying it for a while, and they had been too busy arguing to listen. "Quiet," said Andrea. She was the only one of the three not standing, and as she sat cross-legged against a young tree at the forest's edge, they saw she was intently listening to... something. "I hear water," Andrea said softly. "I know I do." The rest of them strained to hear the water, but they couldn't make anything out. "I can't hear a thing," said Josh. "You must be imagining things." "No. She's not," said Jennifer. "Do you hear it too?" Jennifer hesitated. "Well... no. I don't. But I know she hears it." "Huh?" said Josh, confused. "I don't know," said Willard. "Are you sure, Andrea? You're not imagining it, are you?" "I'm sure. Absolutely sure," said Andrea. "The water is that way." And she pointed off across the plains and to the right of the hills. "What do you think?" said Willard, looking at the rest. "We should go for it," said Jennifer. "We need water. And maybe there'll even be fish." Fish, thought Josh to himself. A fish would be nice... "Josh?" asked Willard. A short moment of hesitation, then, "Yeah. I'll go." "Well, anyway," said Willard, "it's as good as any other direction." They started walking. The high-noon sun burned down on them, and tiny shadows chased their feet. Jennifer and Andrea led the way, Andrea holding on to her twin's arm, growing increasingly used to depending on her sister to guide her. An hour passed, and no one heard water. An hour and a half after that, the girls were tired, and Josh was ready to suggest turning back; but suddenly Jennifer stopped and said, "Hey! I hear the water, too!" And it was true, though it took another few minutes of walking before Josh and Willard heard it, another few minutes before they saw it, and another minute after that before they were drinking and splashing their faces and laughing with sheer joy at the feel of the beautiful cool water on hot, dusty skin. Andrea, who had the grace not to say I-told-you-so, was positively beaming. Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 6 times, last edit on 8/7/2003 at 10:38 (GMT -5) by Iridia] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 2 seconds ago. |
The stream came trickling down from the hills into a pool, and meandered off to the south. They were actually almost in the hills, at the spot where one terrain met another. The group continued to drink until their thirst was sated, Josua and Willard needing quite a bit more than the younger twins. However, there was still a less dangerous, but nontheless impending problem. While water had been a pressing need, hunger was an encroaching problem. It plunged the whole group back into bad spirits when Wilalrd spoke. "We still need food. As far as I can tell, there are no fish. There are no edible plants either. In fact, I can't see any plants at all. Just these dusty brown hills and this little stream." Josua in particular seemed cross, and said "You just had to remind me didn't you! Well, where can we find food? Like you said, there's nothing anywhere near. What can we do? I told you we should have stayed at the forest." "It's not my fault! I can't magically produce food! If we had of stayed at the forest we would have never got any water." An argument was quickly developing, but Jennifer stepped in as a peacemaker. "Why don't you ask Andrea?" ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Josh turned on Jennifer. "Why don't you just --" He cut himself off, and stared at her. Not at her... *past* her. The others looked where he was looking. Accross the river was an animal. It looked frightened, but curious, as it watched them. Jennifer was the first one to realize why it was there. "It's thirsty too." Willard frowned. "If it came to get something to drink... then others will too." Josh grinned. "We're going to get to eat!" he whooped. The animal accross the water started and ran off. Andrea grinned as she heard the animal run. "Not if you make that much noise, we aren't." ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 2 seconds ago. |
Willard watched the fleeing animal. It had four long, bony toe-claws on its back feet, and three on each of its front feet. The considerably large, muscly legs ended in a yellow-white body, and the body then ended in a strangely triangular head with a guard extending back around its short neck. It ran with a peculiar leaping, almost climbing motion. "We could hunt it when it comes to drink, I suppose, but with what? There's nothing here we could use as a weapon, no fallen branches, no stones." Josua pulled a handful of pebbles from the shallower parts of the riverbed. "Except these, you mean?" Willard clapped his hand to his brow. "Why didn't think of that?" Andrea suddenly grabbed a handful of pebbles too. "I can hear something! It sounds like one of those animals you saw just a few minutes ago. I'm not sure, but I think, I think that it's on this side of the river. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Josh inspected his pebbles. "These aren't going to do anything," he complained. He dropped them and dug into the bank some more, and came up with three or four larger stones, about the width and bredth of his wrist. He sighed. "Well, it's an improvement." Willard tugged at his arm and shushed him, then pointed. All four crouched behind some bushes, and watched as the creature cautiously returned to the bank. It looked around, then, not seeing anyone, dipped it's head into the water to drink. Josh looked at the others and whispered, "I'll take the first throw." He handed one of his stones to Willard. "As soon as mine hits, you throw too, ok?" Willard nodded. Slowly, Josua stood. He cocked his arm, took aim, and threw. The rock sailed through the air... ... and struck the animal's side. Where an arrow sprouted an instant later. ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 2 seconds ago. |
As soon as the arrow hit, the animal roared in pain. Everyone looked around, even Andrea. Jennifer was the first to see a green-clad bowman standing on a hill. Willard saw a flash of green on the edge of his vision, and saw Jennifer point. His and Josua's heads swivelled around to see the unknown archer. The archer nocked an arrow to his bow again and pulled back the string. Josua looked around and saw the animal was still alive and heading towards them in its peculiar leaping run, and was only about twenty feet away. Another arrow appeared in the animal's leg, and it roared again. Josua threw a rock at its head, but the rock skittered of the guard around its neck and bounced harmlessly away. Willard was more lucky, catching it in the mouth and drawing a little blood. Jennifer missed completely. The animal kicked at Willard with it's large, flat-bottomed foot. It smashed him in the stomach and threw him four feet back. He landed on his back and his head hit the dirt, and saw stars. The bowman had drawn his bow back and sighted, and he fired, but the arrow glanced off, scoring a shallow cut. The animal looked toward Josua and started for him. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Josua saw a huge beast with claws charging him. Instinct took over and he ducked, and the claws passed harmlessly over. Adrenaline made everything seem to move slowly, and he felt relief as the beast passed over him. Then he rememberd it had four feet. This thought was reinforced as the hind feet slammed into the side of his head, knocking him to the ground, unconcious. ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 2 seconds ago. |
The archer had drawn back his bow again, and as the beast landed and jumped off again, fired. An arrow struck right in the head. The animal jerked in mid-leap and failed to land properly, collapsing into a tangled heap. It was clearly dead. "Yuk." said Jennifer, looking sick. The first thing Willard noticed was the pain. Not this again, he thought drearily. However, it seemed not. A man was bending over him with a green-tinted flask of liquid. A little concentration revealed him to be the archer. "He's coming round." said the archer. "The other one's still not up yet." Willard risked raising himself onto his elbows to see what the archer was referring to. Josua was spread-eagled on the ground two feet away. Jennifer was near with a worried look on her face and Andrea was standing next to her as always. The bowman was holding the same green flask and seemed to be measuring out a bit. He smeared a slightly green, cloudy liquid onto a gash Josua's head and the liquid seemed to melt in. Josua began to look better immediately, and the gash was healing extroadinarily fast. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! [Edited 2 times, last edit on 6/24/2003 at 06:06 (GMT -5) by Andor Drakon] |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 9 minutes and 28 seconds ago. |
Jennifer was about to rush to help Josua, when Andrea stopped her. "He'll be fine," her sister said. "That wound is almost healed already." It was true; all that remained of the cut now was a red, tender-looking scar. Jennifer felt confused. She didn't know how she knew it, but she felt sure Josua's wound shouldn't have healed so quickly. What was more, she had no idea how Andrea could have known it had healed at all. Certainly Andrea showed a surprising awareness of the world around her, especially for someone without sight, but-- Jennifer would have to question her sister later, though, because Willard (who was getting used to headaches by now) sat up, looked the archer up and down, and finally said, "Thanks." "You shouldn't have tried to kill it with rocks," the stranger said. "Poorly aimed rocks, too." "We were hungry," said Willard defensively. "We didn't have any other choice." Pause. "There is enough for all of us," the stranger said. "If you wish, you may share the meat with me." Die Gedanken sind Frei |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 2 seconds ago. |
Jennifer looked slightly dubious, but Josua quickly said "Sure!". The stranger began to go about the grisly process of cutting the creature up. Jennifer looked away and even Josua was starting to have second thoughts. However, it was eventually over, and the stranger began to kindle a fire. While the meat was cooking they talked. "What was that thing?" asked Willard. "Hill leaper. They roam these hills, looking for things to eat. Sometimes we hunt them, but only very rarely." "Oh. Why were you hunting it then?" "It's the only food I've got. I only have a day's trail rations. This is a long way from the nearest city." "Why are you out here?" said Josua. "Never mind. What about you? Where are you from? Sarvent? Illdean? Deriough?" Everyone looked rather confused. "Where are those places?" asked Andrea. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! [Edited 1 time, last edit on 7/12/2003 at 20:21 (GMT -5) by Andor Drakon] |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 9 minutes and 28 seconds ago. |
"You mean you don't know?" asked the stranger. "Uhmm... no," said Josua, "we're... uh, we're not from around here." "You must hail from far away indeed, if you have not heard of the Three Nations," said the stranger. "I'm sorry," said Willard, "we haven't." Andrea seemed to be thinking hard. "Three nations." She paused. "And... one ruler?" she said uncertainly. "So you do know of them," said the stranger, suddenly seeming quite suspicious. Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 1 time, last edit on 7/14/2003 at 23:15 (GMT -5) by Iridia] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 2 seconds ago. |
Andrea looked confused. "Um... I'm not sure. It just sort of... well, I just knew it." "Where are you from, in fact? If you seem not to know of the Three Nations, with the great capitol of Dail. Your features are those of Deriough or the eastern parts of Illdean, but you wear clothing that I have never seen, and I have travelled so far north that I have seen the black shape of the accursed Tower of Aiba far off in the mists, and so far south that I have stood at the foothills of the Great South Ranges, and I have seen all the lands between them from one coast to another. I have never seen such strangely fasioned clothes as yours. Tell me, where is your homeland, and how have you came to reside in these hills far from civilisation?" Nobody seemed to know. Josua searched through his fleeting memories but ran into a cool grey fog whenever he touched on the past. The only thing he remembered was some name, on the tip of his tongue, when it suddenly swirled away, leaving nothing but the ghost of a thought. Another place. Suprisingly, he said it out loud. Willard looked at him. He seemed to have a vague memory of another place, but he couldn't quite catch it. It probably didn't matter anyway, he was in a new place and that was the end of it. He went along with Josua's awnser because he didn't have a better one. "Yes. We are from another place. We don't know how or why, though. We just woke up in this forest last night. None of us can remember anything before that." The stranger looked dubious. "Perhaps I should explain some more about the world to you then, if you truly cannot recall anything. My name is Dalinor, a knight of Illdean and a swordsman of the sixth order. I am walking east. If you join me, I will explain on the way." ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! [Edited 2 times, last edit on 7/18/2003 at 19:59 (GMT -5) by Andor Drakon] |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 34 minutes and 13 seconds ago. |
"Sure!" Josua enthused, "I don't feel like walking about the middle of nowhere by myself. Without your help we'd still be starving." Jennifer glared at him and began to open her mouth to say something. But then reason caught up with indignation and and she stayed silent, realising it was probably true. "Certainly", Dalinor said, a friendly smile forming on his face. He wasn't sure what to think about this group of strangers but they didn't seem dangerous. What Josua said was true, given their display with the hill leaper. He knew if he left them here by themselves they'd probably starve quite quickly, and he couldn't let that happen, despite the strange situation. Besides, a little vioce was echoing in his head, perhaps this strange bunch had something to do with the reason you're out here to begin with. The meat was cooked. As Dalinor handed the food around Willard smiled openly for the first time that day. He might not know where he was or who his companions really were, but the strength and confidence of their new aquantiance made him feel like he just might live out the day. That was, until he noticed the small tattoo on Dalinor's arm. Memory overcame him and he fainted, falling forward towards the fire.. [Edited 2 times, last edit on 8/9/2003 at 02:12 (GMT -5) by Lamaros] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 2 seconds ago. |
For the 3rd time that day Willard woke with a huge headache. This one started to fade almost immediately and memory returned, and he wished the headache would come back. It was too much! It was impossible... help! Josua, Andrea, Jennifer, and Dalinor stood above him watching him babble madly. "It was dark, I went to home when there was this old man, he threw dust, the darkness! It was black, and that sign, the crown-mark, burnt! I fell spiralling, spiralling, down forever, like the little spirals!" Suddenly he shuddered and felt the memory fade. "I don't know what happened, I just saw that tatoo on your arm and I remembered something... but it's gone now. It was horrible, though, it sent me into madness almost!" Dalinor looked at the mark himself and said "This? It's not a tatoo, this is a brand. It is one of the marks of a Knight of Illdean. It shows that I reached such skill with a blade that I was considered a swordsman of the Sixth Order and was magically given the mark of the crown. There is no greater talent with a sword save the honor of a Blademaster." Willard stood up again and looked around, and then rubbed his head and shook off the last affects of the dark memory. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 34 minutes and 13 seconds ago. |
A voice intruded into the thoughtful silence, carrying over from the other side of the river. "'No greater talent with a sword', aren't you special then!" The group turned and looked out across the water. Standing on the opposite bank was a man holding what looked to be a small white glass ball. The man stood tall at about 9 chains past a measure and was slim and effeminate looking. As they watched he carefully wrapped the ball in waterproof leathers, pocketed it, and dived into the river. He swum quickly across and climbed out to join the party. Dalinor looked furious. He quickly stood and faced the man, weapon at the ready. The man glanced at his stance quickly and dismissive, and as Dalinor began to speak he cut him off. "Oh calm down. I've had enough of your righteous rubbish already, let someone else speak for a time." He turned towards Willard. "Your memory deserves a better response than the boasting of bygone traditions." Once again Dalinor began to speak, "How dare you!" The man turned towards Dalinor slowly and deliberately, reaching down to his hip and loosening one of his daggers. He drew it carefully and pointed it at Dalinor. "Open your mouth again when I'm speaking and I'll put your boast to the test. The only reason you don't have a hole in your back right now is because you don't take fully to that stupid brand on your arm, but test me too far and you can join your departed friends." Dalinor glared, "They're not my friends anymore.." "Good," the man interrupted, "Now be quiet." Andrea's keen hearing heard Dalinor continue to mutter softly under his breath, "Threaten me? I've never met a modest Eastern, but this one is taking it too fa..." He trailed off as the man started to speak again. “The current situation in the Three Nations is not one that serves easy explanation, and I’m not one to ramble on just to hear myself speak...” Dalinor snorted. The man continued, “..so why don’t we try a little experiment. Willard here obviously has some memories of these lands, let lets begin with him.” He dug his hands into his pocket and drew out the ball they had seen him with earlier. “Wait a minute there,” Josua said “how do you know all this stuff about us, we can’t have been talking so loudly as to carry over the river.” To his surprise it was Andrea who answered. “He’s been scrying on us.” Josua turned towards her, “How do you know?” When Jennifer began to answer this time he cut her off, “I know I know. You don’t know, you just know.” He frowned severely. Willard gave him a pat on the back. The man was looking at Josua and laughing so hard that it fell to Dalinor to answer. He nodded at Andrea, “A good guess. Those of the lesser city..” “East Illdean” The visitor interrupted. Dalinor continued, “Those of the lesser city, East Illdean, are known for mixing in arts beyond mans natural grasp. It is the reason the lands are in such turmoil now.” As Dalinor finished talking he glared fiercely at the newcomer, who, mirth forgotten, replied in kind. “You won’t get me disagreeing with you. If I had any fondness left for East Illdean in me I’d not be talking to you right here. So cast your gaze elsewhere for the source of your problems. If you try to pin them on me you’ll find yourself short a hand.” “Anyway,” he turned back to Andrea, “you’re mostly right. The exception being that I’m just a simple Illdean who’s always found more safety in my blade than any supernatural powers. I’ve only ever been able to pick up sound with my little magic ball.” He gestured vaguely at Dalinor. “I’ve been listening in on you since you ran into this pillar of the realm here.” Seemingly satisfied with this explanation Willard spoke up. “You said something about an experiment? Can you help us regain our memory” The man grinned. “Only one way to find out...” [Edited 4 times, last edit on 8/15/2003 at 02:23 (GMT -5) by Lamaros] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 25 minutes and 2 seconds ago. |
Josua immmediately put his hand to his head. "You are going to do something to our minds?" "No, it's a type of minor magical power I happen to be gifted with the ability to use. It stimulates the mind to recover those parts which it has lost. With that, if I may continue?" Josua looked uneasy but allowed the man to draw a strange symbol in the air while muttering strange syllables. It hung there, glowing eerily, and then faded away, and a stange nimbus appeared around the man's fingertips. He touched Willard's head, and Willard suddenly reverted to babbling again. Dalinor leapt to the man, shouting "What did you do that for?", when suddenly Willard shouted out in a strange voice and then fell silent. He shuddered and returned to normal. "What happened?" The man looked rather annoyed. "That should have restored your memory. If you, as I suspect, hail from another plane of existence, it should restore the memories destroyed by the sea of violent chaos that exists between the planes. "What?" asked Josua and William at the same time, sounding incredibly thick. However Dalinor was looking at the man suspiciously. "Who are you? How do you know this?" The man realised that he had made some kind of oversight and said, after a few seconds of thinking frantically, "Oh, that's what I was told by the man who sold me the spell." "But you said it was a gift!" replied Dalinor. The man, after looking around foolishly for s few seconds, laughed good-spiritedly and said "Well, you've got me now. I'll have to reveal the truth to this pillar of community." With that he made a small gesture and his face changed. "You!" cried Dalinor, drawing his sword and raising it towards the man's throat. "Give me a reason not to kill you where you stand!" The man looked slightly flustered but said "All is not as it seems! Not all the rules of the game are know to you and you have obviously been deluded as to the goal. Allow me to explain. I am not the one I was branded as. I am not Perdzagh the False returned, and I never was. I was simply a minor wizard who grew too interested in the affairs of Jaegron, the Governor of East Illdean. So Jaegron had to do away with me. He sent magical creatures to slay me, and when that failed he claimed I was trying to return the spirit of Perdzagh. I managed to escape and fled east to here, in the Dusty Dunes. Then he influenced the King to sent knights like you against me. He would set the whole of Illdean in war! You must believe me!" Dalinor was slowly convinced and sheathed his sword. "I believe you, for I myself have noticed something wrong with Illdean. Men of Sarvent are found lurking in every corner, the government grows more and more corrupted every day. We must find help in some other realm. We could go south to Deriough, where it is known that the court is just and the king is wise, and the staunch men of Deriough have long been allies of Illdean. However this way is dangerous and we must pass through large amounts of untamed land, wild and dangerous. There will certainly be goblins and wolves, maybe Dtarns if they feel like hunting us, or perhaps even Nerin. But these are the normal dangers of travelling in these times." ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 34 minutes and 13 seconds ago. |
"Haven’t you been listening to me?" cried the man. "I am not the powerful wizard I was made out to be, nor a powerful wizard at all. My lack of natural talent always made me more interested in gossip than anything else. Since Jaegron set against me I've only survived because I've been able to keep my feet moving faster than those tracking me." He took a breath and looked at Dalinor with serious eyes. "Your honor as a knight might tie you to the duties of the realms, but I've had enough. I have no idea what I stumbled on that caused Jaegron's wrath, and right now I really don't care. A few days back I managed to fake a convincing death when fleeing from some of your brethren, and as far as I'm concerned that news can be true. Normal dangers be damned! We’re not all knights like you, and there's no better way to get one's head on a stick that turn up in Deriough uninvited." The man paced back and forth before the group before turning to Dalinor again. "Before I joined the wizarding guild my name was Relthe." He made another small sign and his face changed back to it's original form. "This is my natural look, and is how I shall present myself from this day forth. I discarded my wizarding looks when I faked my death. There would be only three men in all the realms who would recognize me now, and I hope to keep it that way." He turned to Willard and Josua. "I don't want to go south into more intrigue with this man." He indicated Dalinor. "I am caught up in events beyond my understanding and control, and though I know little of you it sounds like you are in a similar situation. Dalinor has his duty and obligation to the realm, but I don't and neither do you. Perhaps we can join together and try to understand what is happening slowly," he emphasised the last word, "without throwing ourselves into more danger." Willard rubbed his chin and looked around at the rest of the group. “I don’t know, I think this is something we need to discuss a bit more.” Relthe nodded. “Of course. This is what I suggest though. We could join with Dalinor here for the first part of his journey.” He turned to Dalinor. “I assume you will go south regardless? I don’t know the implications of what I have told you, but it sounds like you might?” Dalinor looked grave. “If what you have told me is true.” As Relthe began to object Dalinor raised his hand and continued. “And it sounds like it could be, this does indeed bode ill news. I will have to tread lightly for I fear the knights have already been corrupted to the highest levels. The best course I can see it to travel to Deriough, where I will find friends and support.” Relthe nodded and continued. “But I am not sure that I would be safest going all the way to Deriough with you. Though," he sighed, "I am out of options and lost in lands I have never seen before except on maps. I guess I shall come south with you for now.” He turned to the rest of the group. “What shall you four do?” [Edited 2 times, last edit on 8/9/2003 at 02:25 (GMT -5) by Lamaros] |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
No one said anything for a moment, while the courses were considered. Finally Josua looked around. "Well," he said, "considering what I know of the area -- or rather, what I don't know -- and of current events, and especially about surviving on my own, I don't think I should be off without a guide. I for one will go with you two, at least until we come to a town of some sort." ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 9 minutes and 28 seconds ago. |
Jennifer didn't know what to think of the newcomers, and she could sense the same uncertainty coming from Andrea. Willard's buried memories of Dalinor's mark worried her... but then, Josua was right, too; the four of them probably couldn't surive on their own, and she and Andrea alone had even less of a chance. Jennifer was just about to demand that the two men give her a reason to trust them when Andrea grabbed her arm. Don't say anything. Don't let on you suspect them, her twin demanded. The fact that Andrea hadn't spoken out loud--or even really used words at all--didn't register with Jennifer right away; though when she did realize it, she wasn't altogether surprised. Out loud, Andrea said, "Sure. I'll come," and Jennifer echoed her. Will thought to himself that he'd best not try his luck alone, and besides, he was more than a little intrigued by Relthe's talk of magic. He quickly agreed to follow the rest of them. The fire had burnt down to small tongues of flame licking blackened, fire-brittle wood; it was quickly doused, and Relthe, still mindful of the possibility of pursuit, quickly set about covering any evidence that they had ever been there. Within ten minutes, the place looked as though no one had ever passed through. "If we don't linger, we can still cover quite a bit of ground before dark," Dalinor commented, and set a pace which the twins found back-breaking and Willard didn't like much better; only Josua seemed to be able to keep up with any sort of ease. A quarter of an hour passed before Dalinor finally noticed their discomfort and slowed down a little. Andrea had been walking, holding Jennifer's arm as usual (though she seemed quite capable, blind or not, of finding her own way across the flat plains); Jennifer had been thinking about the way Andrea had manged to communicate to her quite clearly without saying a word. They had, after all, been able to sense each other's feelings ever since Jennifer could remember (which wasn't very long, but still... actual words were a whole different matter). All right, thought Jennifer. I'll try an experiment. Can you hear me? Jennifer directed the thought at her sister as "loudly" as she could. Andrea jumped and nearly stumbled over her own feet. Ow! she protested. You don't have to shout! Andrea rubbed her temple with her free hand. Sorry, replied Jennifer. Pause. You can really hear me? "Of course," said Andrea, out loud. Jennifer expected to be totally taken aback, but somehow, talking to her sister mentally seemed perfectly natural. At Jennifer's insistence (Andrea tended towards taking it for granted), they spent some time testing the limits of their mental communication. It worked much better when they were actually touching, though they could still communicate, with effort, if they weren't; and they always, always felt each other's emotions. After an hour's practice, they grew adept at it, and ideas flew back and forth at the speed of thought--too fast even to translate thoughts into words and back again. That was all right; they didn't really even need words. So what do you think of Dalinor and Relthe? Jennifer finally asked. I'm worried, said Andrea. How do we know they're friends? We don't. Pause. That mark, Jennifer said. The one that Willard reacted to so strongly. He's seen it before. Andrea pulled Jennifer to the left; her sister barely avoided stepping into some small animal's burrow, which somehow she hadn't seen but Andrea had. Neither girl noticed. Exactly, said Jennifer. He's seen it before. That last thought-sentence conveyed Jennifer's entire idea: Someone must have brought them here, wherever "here" was. And that someone was quite likely someone Willard had seen wearing that mark. We're in the middle of something big, said Andrea, making another of her intuitive leaps. This one, though, Jennifer could understand. The important question was this: Why go through the trouble of pulling four people--people still young enough to be called children, if you used the term loosely--from their own world, into another? Whoever had tried that must have some use for them. It was not a very comforting thought. I think, said Andrea, that someone tried to kidnap us. Tried? Something must've gone wrong. Otherwise we'd be prisoners right now. I guess so, said Jennifer. Andrea had a quiet way of grasping things which Jennifer didn't quite understand; she hadn't really even thought about it that way before. Or, said Jennifer suddenly, they thought erasing our memories would be protection enough, and once we got here they'd simply try to gain our trust. That was another very uncomfortable thought; Jennifer gave Dalinor and Realthe a suspicious glance. And the whole thing has something to do with that mark, Andrea added. And our lost memories, Jennifer said. Yeah. That could be important. But Willard, he... I don't think it's just confusion. Something... Is keeping him from remembering? suggested Jennifer. Something like that. Pause. A frustrated sigh from Andrea. I'll keep trying to bring back my own memory. Maybe I'll be able to get past that block somehow... Jennifer certainly hoped someone would remember; otherwise, they could all end up in deep trouble. Not that they weren't in trouble already, of course. Jennifer fell silent and kept walking. Die Gedanken sind Frei |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 29 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Josua jogged a bit to catch up with Dalinor. "Hey," he said. Dalinor glanced at him. "May I help you?" "Yeah." Josua thought for a moment about the best way to ask what he wanted. "So uh... you're a knight, huh? And you're really good with your sword?" "Yes." "Do you uhh... do you think you can show me some stuff?" When Dalinor looked at him, he lost his confidance. "I mean," he stammered, "I'd really like to learn... how to... you know..." Dalinor continued to watch him for a few moments, then laughed. "Sure, maybe. Remind me when we camp tonight." He laughed again, then fell silent. Josua grinned. He was going to learn how to fight! He fell back a few paces, and looked at his companions without really seeing them. Thoughts were jumbling through his head. He thought about what he knew of swords. He imagined himself protecting his friends from foul monsters. He saw himself standing on a heap of foes, sword in hand, triumphant. He saw his sword plunging into an old man -- A sudden cold fell on him. The light seemed to dim, sounds muted, time slowed. The image ran through his mind again: his mailed hand, holding a longsword, thrusting it through the chest of a dark cloaked man... He fell. He felt his body fall foreward, but it seemed secondary as he fell mentally. The image replayed itself. The sword was etched with something, and the old man was holding a rod. Then he didn't see anything. After what seemed like an eternity, a flare of pain lit the darkness, and he woke as his head struck the dirt. The image was gone. He couldn't recall it. He groaned and pushed himself off the ground, and felt the world rush back to him: time resumed it's normal pace, sounds became audible again, the sun returned, and with it warmth. By now he couldn't even remember that he'd seen something, only a vague sense of something out of place... He became aware of someone standing over him. "Hey! Josua, can you hear me?" It was Willard. "Yeah... I think so." he managed. He pushed himself to his feet. By now, Jennifer and Andrea had caught up and were wondering what had happened. He didn't know. "I geuss I tripped... Sorry." Dalinor had come back as well. He took a look at him and judged him uninjured, and helped him shake it off. Soon they were on their way again. For the next few hours, he tried to recall what had happened, but failed. Eventually, he just gave up and kept walking. ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 34 minutes and 13 seconds ago. |
The group had seen the forest growing before them for a while now. As they reached the fringes Dalinor turned and talked to them. "We're going to enter the forest here for a bit of cover. We won't be going too far in. Walk where I walk, don't stray too far." The group moved on. Despite the slackening pace Will still found he was struggling to keep up. He was tired from the day’s events and his reoccurring headaches had sapped much of his strength. On top of that he was still confused about Dalinor and Relthe's conversation, and in particular his flashes of memory. He noticed he was getting lost behind everyone and called out. "I can't go on.. much.. longer." He stopped and rested against a tree. Dalinor looked about at the fading light and Willard's haggard appearance and made a quick decision. "Right", he said, "we'll stop at the next available place. It shouldn't be too long." Willard nodded his thanks and put his concerted efforts into keeping up, while Josua dropped back to lend him a shoulder to lean on. They soon came to a small clearing and Dalinor stopped the group and set about making camp. “We should be safe here tonight.” He pointed out the stones of an old fire circle. “This place looks well used, I’d judge it a common travellers camp. Goblins know well enough to stay away from group of humans, and if we set camp here we’ll be afforded that safety.” He gazed once more about the area. “We’re not into wolf country yet so I doubt we’ll see any in these parts, if we do they’ll only be in very small groups. With the fire and steady watch during the night we’ll should see off any dangers. My only worry would be other people nearby who know of this camp, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take. As I judge it no one has been in this camp for weeks, and apart from you five I haven’t seen another human being for near on 17 days.” Relthe chipped in. “The last people I saw was those chasing me, and I’d already led them far from home. I’d wager they wont come any further this way, they’ll take my death as real and return to the places they know.” Andrea spoke softly to the group. “I can’t feel anyone nearby”, she stopped and thought for a second, “but I don’t know what range that covers.” Josua glanced at Andrea and raised an eyebrow but Willard just shrugged. “Good enough for me” he commented, as he slumped exhaustedly to the ground. He muttered softly to himself once or twice, then promptly fell asleep. “I’m worried about Willard.” Jennifer turned on Relthe, “What damage did you do to him with your little trick?” “None, I swear! That trick I tried on him is quite a simple one, really just a mental prod to get his memory churning. I know I didn’t do it wrong.” Relthe looked thoughtful. “Willard’s the only one having these memories, and all these headaches, right?” Josua looked unsure “I don’t know. I.. something happened before when I tripped. But I can't remember it, and I feel fine now.” Jennifer frowned. “Me and Andrea both feel like we have hidden memories, but they’re all hidden still. We don’t remember anything yet.” Relthe’s face began to look animated and he talked quickly and quietly. “I think Willard might have some magical powers. Whatever it is you have been through, he seems to be recovering the fastest; He seems to be remembering so much that it’s sending him into shock and draining his energy.” He paused. “Maybe because of his powers he has resisted better. But something has been tampering with your minds, there’s no other reason my trick didn’t work.” “I thought you said you weren’t a very good wizard. Maybe you just did it wrong.” Dalinor was busy trying to move a large log over near the fire. “There’s time enough for chatting later, lets get this camp in order.” He nodded at Josua. “You look reasonably strong, give me a hand with this log here. You others see if you can find some wood for a fire.” As Jennifer and Andrea moved out he called again. “Don’t go too far from here. While the wolves may be scarce you might accidentally startle another hill leaper.” Relthe was glaring at Dalinor. “I didn’t do the spell wrong, and you know it.” He stormed off to look for firewood, mumbling to himself. Dalinor stared briefly at Relthe's receding back, lost in thought. He shrugged it off and turned back to Josua, who was looking at the huge log. He looked skeptical. “That’s way to big for a fire, what are we going to do with it?” Dalinor was reaching into his pack for something when he replied. “Watch.” [Edited 6 times, last edit on 8/8/2003 at 23:01 (GMT -5) by Lamaros] |
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