Ancient Domains Of Mystery, forum overview / Stories / Arcanium
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 56 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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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Josua watched as Dalinor fumbled about inside his pack, wondering what item he was going to pull out. Seeming to have found its target Dalinor's hand stopped moving about and he withdrew it from the pack, a folded blanket in tow. He rolled the log a little until it was a few meters away from the fire then, lifting the log slightly, he secured the blanket underneath. Once more he reached into his pack, pulling out a length of thin rope. He then took the free end of the blanket and with the aid of the rope attached it securely to some low hanging branches of a nearby tree. He stepped back and admired his handiwork. Now fully stretched the blanket was quite large, taller than Dalinor and half again as wide. Dalinor rubbed his chin. "Rudimentary, but it'll have to do. The log is heavy enough to hold it against the wind." Josua had no idea what was going on, all Dalinor seemed to have done was place a large wall on one side of the fire. He stepped closer to examine the blanket. The dark material was surprisingly thin for it’s size and had a leathery feel to it. Each side of the blanket contained a row of holes and it was the top row of these holes that Dalinor had threaded the rope through to attach it to the tree. "Dtarn skin; light, warm and durable,", explained Dalinor. "It's ah.. Interesting", said Josua, "but I still don't understand what you’ve done with it." Dalinor smiled to himself. "Well it provides a few benefits really. Firstly, it serves as a great windbreak. We shouldn't have too much trouble tonight, but sometimes the wind picks up enough cold air and speed off the plains that you can have trouble sleeping. We're not that far inside the forest here, and the trees won't cut off all the wind on particulary bad nights. Ill equipped as you lot are I thought it a safe precaution. But that's not the main thing. Dtarns have great eyesight, and this", he tapped the blanket, "serves as enough warning to keep them away. They are ferocious hunters, but they are also quite smart. The sight of so much stretched leather will keep them away in fear. And lastly, the Nerin..." He trailed off as he saw the girls return to the camp, arms full of firewood. Out of the corner of his mouth he whispered to Josua, "keep the information about the Dtarns to yourself, no need to make the others worry.” [Edited 3 times, last edit on 8/8/2003 at 23:12 (GMT -5) by Lamaros] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 37 minutes and 45 seconds ago. |
While Jennifer and Andrea were on the other side of the camp, Dalinor finished what he was saying to Josua. "The Nerin will rarely be found in numbers this far north, though even a few can be deadly, and if one finds us, more will follow. However, Nerin have a keen sense of smell, but the smell of Dtarns is far stonger than that of humans to their noses, and this will drown out our smell." Eventually Relthe returned to the fire and they camped for the night. Willard woke early in the morning and quickly ran around waking everyone up. Josua grumbled at being forced to get up early but quickly stopped when he learnt that Dalinor was ready to give him sword lessons, with a pair of sticks from the ground. "And now this is a simple, but ingenious movement." Dalinor raised his stick vertically as if to downward chop and then sung it around in a crescent that ended in a light tap on Josua's side. "There. Do you understand all that?" "Yes" said Josua, "I think so." "Good." said Dalinor. "That's all I can teach you for today. We have to be moving on, we can't afford to stay in one place for too long. I've spent an hour teaching you", he said, glancing at the the sun, "and we have to reach some kind of city." They set out moving, but after a few hours they saw mountains on the horizon. "What are those mountains?" asked Willard. "The Grozbard Ranges" replied Relthe. Dalinor nodded and added "A lair of goblins, orcs, and Nerin in the southern reaches, and a maze of cliffs and deadfalls in the northern ones. Fortunately we don't have to go through them, or even too near them." Andrea felt some kind of presence, not human though. She immediately sent a thought to Jennifer. Jennifer, there's a lot of creatures nearby. Can you see where?Jennifer looked around and sent a though back to Andrea. I can't see anything Then Andrea spoke out loud. "There's something in the hills down that way", she said, pointing south. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! [Edited 3 times, last edit on 8/13/2003 at 00:41 (GMT -5) by Andor Drakon] |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 22 minutes and 11 seconds ago. |
Willard stopped, a bit confused, then said, "I don't know exactly... but I'm positive there's something over that way." He pointed in the opposite direction from Andrea, looking confused but quite sure of what he'd sensed. A moment later, things explained themselves. From the north came a loud squealing sound, like teeth grinding. It reverberated through the forest, making the group shiver, and Josua, who had borrowed Dalinor's dtarn-skin in the damp early morning, pulled it around him, huddling down. Andrea stiffened, then fell, curled up with her arms desperately clasped over her head, not even removing them when all traces of that first horrible sound had completely dissipated. From the south came an answering sound--this, a rustling sound that grew steadily louder, and presently a pat-pat-pat sound... Rain? thought Willard to himself, but it didn't sound like rain; it was much heavier than rain... Dalinor's eyes went wide. "Dtarn!" he hissed, and grabbed the nearest arm, dragging Willard towards a thick, brushy spot nearby. The rest followed, tumbling into hiding. Josua had to help Jennifer carry-drag Andrea to cover, as the girl was still nearly senseless on the ground. As he grabbed Andrea, he did something he wouldn't have done if he'd had time to think (but there wasn't time to think): He dropped the Dtarn-skin and left it there, forgotten. No one was thinking of dtarn-skins when the real, live owners of such skins came pounding past them: a blur of black-and-yellow-striped pure speed. Jennifer watched them, face to the dust, eyes just barely open, catching a glimpse of something catlike about them. She thought there must have been hundreds of them (Dalinor could have told her there were actually no more than thirty). They ran on all fours, not a movement wasted, long muscular legs making a near-silent pat-pat-pat sound against the packed woodland floor. The air stirred around them as they passed, rustling last year's leaves. The Dtarn stopped in a clearing only a few hundred feet away, and through the trees Jennifer saw the creatures form two wide circles, one inside the other, and slowly stand up on their hind legs. Now that they were standing, their resemblance to gigantic felines wasn't so great as it had been. Their faces were barely intelligent; the terrible coldness of the predator forced out any larger glimpse of sentience Jennifer might have seen in them. The catlike Dtarn were strangely beautiful... but it was a dangerous, deadly beauty. In the empty middle of the circle, the air shimmered, as it would have on a hot summer day; then something barely defined and out-of-focus appeared in it. Jennifer blinked and squinted, trying to make it out; the shape slowly drifted into focus and became a black splotch... a barely defined humanoid... and finally, a man... was it a man? in a black robe. At the sight of this, the Dtarn fell to their faces in the dirt. Jennifer noticed that Dalinor had just barely restrained himself from jumping out into the open. The man gestured, and spoke in a language which sounded like a fight between two wild and evenly matched animals; a growling, hissing, discordant sound that reminded them of that first sound (the sound, thought Jennifer, that the man must have used to call the Dtarn). Four of the creatures rose to their four-legged running stance, padded towards the outside of the glade, and began pacing out sentry routes. Jennifer noticed three things at the same time: A Dtarn-skin had been left lying on the ground in the open; the nearest sentry was headed straight for it, though he hadn't seen it yet; ... and Andrea... Andrea was gone. The experience had been quite a different thing for Jennifer's twin sister. There had been the horrible pain of that sound, and the complete bewilderment that followed, since the girl had been almost completely deafened. Someone had dragged her somewhere, and pushed her down into some prickly branches; then there were long seconds Andrea spent just waiting. As she did, her mind finally quieted for the first time despite her fear (was she afraid? it didn't quite seem to matter), and Andrea began to truly listen to what was around her--not with her useless ears, but with that indefinable sense that had allowed her to sense water from miles away, and to hear her twin sister think, and to sense these cat-beings--now pounding past them--even though she couldn't possibly have seen them. There was a strange rhythm to this new place she had found herself in, and now Andrea was caught up into it, understanding everything around her in a way sight or hearing never could have given her. There were her companions, bright fires of life amidst the duller embers of trees and brush. There was the feel of the air around her, the sun above, and even the patient glow of the earth beneath. And there were the strange, wild flames of the cat-creatures... and, in their midst, a horrible hole in the existence of the forest; Andrea instinctively pulled back from it, afraid she might be sucked in. She could see Jennifer's mind as clearly as she could have seen with her eyes, if she had had their use; and now she saw the events she had missed through the memory-eyes of her sister. And Andrea saw what her sister had, at first, missed: That dangerous skin, still lying on the ground, ready to betray them. Andrea listened without ears to the world around her; as naturally as breathing, she knew what needed to be done, and how to accomplish it. Silently, she glided out of the brush, not disturbing the tiny bits of life-fire around her, paying special attention not to touch Jennifer's mind, which reached out for her as she passed. Carefully, Andrea navigated around the bits of life which grew on the forest floor, so as not to alert the forest to her presence; she pulled her own life-fire as closely around her as she could, so that the wild cat-creatures (and, more frighteningly, the void in their midst) could not sense her. Her hand came down on the skin, and she lifted it carefully, and made her way back to her companions, dodging between the bits of the forest, as quietly she had left. Jennifer blinked; she could have sworn Andrea had been gone just a moment ago... and then she saw the dtarn-skin in her sister's hands, and understood. Had she looked closely for her sister while Andrea had been gone, Jennifer might have had a chance of seeing her; but anyone else's eyes would simply have passed over her as though she were not there. The sentry passed the spot where the skin had been just moments ago.... Andrea's hearing was just starting to come back; and though she couldn't understand the words, she heard the menace in them. Relthe's face, however, showed he did understand at least part of what was said; and his expression said it wasn't pleasant. Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 1 time, last edit on 8/8/2003 at 21:51 (GMT -5) by Iridia] |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Relthe inched over towards Dalinor and whispered in his ear. " While doing a trick like that he wont be able to have any protection up. You have your bow, take him out now." The menace hidden in Relthe's voice was shocking, Dalinor had been surprised to see the man here, but Relthe's request was unexpected. "No," he said, "there might be some good reason for his presence here." Relthe looked fit to burst. "Good reason!? How, after hearing what he is saying, can you still favour him with kind thoughts?" Dalinor hissed back at Relthe, "I don't speak Dtarn." Relthe paused mid-sentance. "Oh." He reached down into his pocket and withdrew his ball. He placed one hand on the ball and one on Dalinor's shoulder and began to concentrate." Fragments of words began to enter Dalinor's mind. ".. camp? Why .. kill!?" The black figure pointing threateningly at one of the larger Dtarns. "..ave us ..kins. We th... hunt ...ome." The Dtarn was cowering. "No .. hunters. Gone ..ways. I tell ... before. Dtarn have no.. to ..ear." The black figure seemed to be shaking. Relthe whispered to Dalinor. "His trick is fading, take the shot now!" "No," Dalinor replied. “I havn't heard enough I understand and," he cut Relthe short, "even if I wished too I couldn't. Those Dtarns would find us if I did, and we'd be cut down. There's thirty two of them in that pack there, some of a size I've never seen before." The black figure was gone all of a sudden and Dalinor’s mind was filled with a cacophony of angry shouts. They faded as Relthe dropped the white ball back into his pocket. Dalinor turned to the group. “We wait for them to move on, then we continue to the south. They responded very quickly to the wizard’s call so this must be one of their areas. The quicker we leave it the better. He received the skin from Andrea and placed it in his pack, speaking as he turned to Josua. “Never drop possessions like that. You never know…” he trailed off as he took in Josua’s expression. Josua’s face with contorted. His lips were pulled tighter, his nose flared, and his eyebrows hanging heavily over his eyes. There was something different about his gaze and it took Dalinor a moment to realize; Josua’s eyes were a different colour. Jennifer spoke for everyone, “Josh, what’s wrong?” |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 37 minutes and 45 seconds ago. |
The next thing Dalinor noticed was that his sword was somehow in Josua's hands, despite the fact that Josua was barely able to lift it one-handed. Josua was looking wildly around, and when he realized the Dtarns were gone, the gold slowly faded from his eyes and he suddenly dropped the sword like a pile of bricks and gazed around unknowingly. "What happened?" "Your eyes went all gold and suddenly Dalinor's sword was in your hand." said Relthe "And then your eyes went back to normal and you dropped it." ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 22 minutes and 11 seconds ago. |
Josua slowly shook his head, trying to clear it. He had a strong feeling that someone was looking over his shoulder... except that when he looked, no one was there. "My... my eyes?" Josua said. "I... don't know what happened..." Silence. "Well, you'd better figure it out," Jennifer suddenly burst out. "We're stuck here, in the middle of who knows where, and we don't even remember what happened, and for all we know we could have about ten minutes left to live before we're all eaten by who knows what... and suddenly you're not even you anymore-- and all you can say is you don't know?!" Josua was about to open his mouth to yell right back at her when Andrea silently stepped between them and placed a hand on Jennifer's arm. They stared at her for a second. "Look," Andrea said. "We're all in this together. I don't know what's in the past or what's in the future, but I do know we're going to be a lot better off if we face it together." Andrea had said hardly anything at all; but now that she was saying something, Josua listened; Jennifer heard the words, and their sincerity, in her mind as well as her ears. "I really don't know what happened," said Josua. Jennifer sighed. "All right. I'm sorry. Let's get going," she said. Josua nodded in agreement. It was nearly noon, but no one thought of stopping to rest while they were still in dtarn territory. Now that they knew the danger, they were all quite a bit more on the alert than they had been before; when they talked, they did so quietly--or, in the twins' case, inaudibly. Jennifer noticed it first, but by midafternoon it was becoming apparent to everyone else: Andrea was tired, or hurt, or both. Getting the skin had been exhausting, she told Jennifer. Andrea was lagging behind the rest of them and slowing them down as Jennifer tried to support and pull her ahead. Andrea, for her part, tried to keep going; but it was soon obvious that it was a vain attempt. "We should be far enough from the dtarn now," said Dalinor, mentally adding, I hope, and began searching for a good campsite. About a half-hour later, they came to a small stream, clear water with a pebbly bottom; they stopped and set up camp, a small distance from the stream just in case some dangerous beast or other decided it wanted a drink. The tall grass was soft enough, and the sound of the brook was almost hypnotic; Andrea simply fell to the ground and went to sleep right then and there. Dalinor went to get some meat for supper (after Relthe repeatedly assured him that he was quite capable of taking care of himself and anyone else, thank you); Josua and Will went for wood; and Jennifer helped Relthe get their camp set up. Relthe began showing Josua and Will how to get a fire started, and Jennifer (who had started the previous night's fire), seeing that Andrea was quite safe for the moment, went to the stream to wash, and then sat with her back against a nearby tree, staring out at the meadows. This strange world... Jennifer thought. This strange, dangerous world, she amended. She would have to find some way to protect herself, and her sister... That first confusing day (or had it been the second? she didn't know--) she hadn't even been able to hit a slow, stupid animal with a rock. She tossed such a rock, taken from the streambed, from hand to hand now. It was hard, gray, worn round by the stream, and fit into her hand just so. It felt right, somehow... Jennifer got up and went back to the stream, picking up some more large, round rocks. So... she thought to herself. Maybe, next time, if I have to hit something with a rock-- She stood well back from the tree and dropped her pile of rocks to the ground. Picking one up, she drew back her arm and threw. The rock landed well to the right of the tree, startling some small animal out of a bush. Jennifer scowled and picked up another rock. This time she held the rock for a second to get the feel of it, and adjusted her feet... This way... she thought to herself. And another rock flew towards the tree, also completely missing; but it was closer this time. She picked up another rock, adjusting her method again; this time, the rock grazed the tree and ricocheted off at an angle. The fourth rock hit the tree dead center (Strike, thought Jennifer to herself, though she didn't quite know what that meant). The fifth and sixth did, too; the seventh missed. Jennifer kept throwing, becoming more accurate as she did. She ran out of rocks; went for more... backed up once, then again, both times adjusting to the distance. It was, she thought, as though her body remembered throwing rocks, even though her mind didn't... Thok. Thok. Thok. The rocks made a soothing rhythm as they hit the tree, one after the other; Jennifer's concentration was complete; and, though she didn't know it, a small smile had appeared on her lips. "Jennifer?" She whirled around, dropping her latest handful of rocks. There was Dalinor, bow in one hand and several limp, furry animals in the other. "I..." Jennifer began. "I had to figure out some way to protect myself," she said lamely. "You've a very good eye for the target," Dalinor smiled. "If you like, I'll show you how to use a bow. You'd want a bow better suited to a woman, but... I could teach you a little, if you want." Jennifer looked from Dalinor to the tree again. "I'd like that." "All right," said Dalinor. "But first--" he held up the bundles of fur "--let's see if these are any good." Jennifer didn't normally tend to associate limp, dead animals with food, but right now, the ones Dalinor held (Rabbits, she thought to herself) were looking pretty good. Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 2 times, last edit on 8/12/2003 at 23:20 (GMT -5) by Iridia] |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 41 minutes and 55 seconds ago. |
The rabbits, as it turned out, were quite good. Dalinor skinned them and spitted them onto sticks, and handed each member of the party one. After some practice, they got the hang of roasting them, and after a while, they were ready. Supplimented by a few edible wild plants (found by Willard, but identified by Dalinor), they had a fair meal. In the case of Josua, Willard and the twins, the best in their short memory. After the meal, as dusk was settling in, they sat about their small campfire and chatted idly. Andrea, however, went back to sleep. Andrea, Willard and Relthe were having a somewhat animated discussion about the principles of working magic ("The most important thing of all," insisted Relthe, "is that you believe that what you're doing will work." "What happens if you don't?" asked Willard. "Nothing." was the reply.) while Josua continued his lessons with the sword ("You're making progress fast, Joshua. I've never seen someone learn so quickly." "I don't know, it just... feels like I've done this before. But if there's one thing I'm certain of, it's that I havn't.") and Jennifer watched. Several hours passed. The conversations meandered, the training stopped, and people began to tire. One by one, they started dropping off. Dalinor, being the least weary, set the first watch. It was an uneventful watch. He walked about and sat on a rock by turns. He judged it was about 6 hours later when he returned from a short walk to find Josua sitting up before the fire, wrapped in his blanket. "Oh, you're awake. That's good, I could use some company." "I couldn't sleep. Bad dreams." Josua stared into the fire, his eyes lost in the shadow of his blanket. "Hmm. Well, that's too bad; you'll need the rest tomorrow. There's a town not far from here, but it's a fair march." Josua started and glanced up at him, then back into the fire. "A town? Are you crazy? His soldiers are everywhere. No doubt they'll find us." He shuddered. "What?" Dalinor look hard at Josua. "Soldiers? Whose?" He shook his head. "What are you talking about?" Josua looked at him again, harder this time, it seemed. Something is not right, thought Dalinor. Josua snorted. "You know. Of course you know. You've known all along, havn't you. I trusted you, damnit! Where are they? How long have you been communicating with them?" Josua's voice was rising. He stood, dropping the blanket. "You would give up everything for a few coins, wouldn't you? Like you did your sister. You would sell us. We, who once called you friend. We, who saved your life in Marden!" He was nearly shouting now. The others were beginning to wake. "Damn you, Thavaes! I should spit you now, for what you've done!" He stepped more fully into the light of the fire and reached to his side for his sword. It was then that Dalinor notice his eyes -- golden, like they had been with the Dtarns. Dalinor simply stared. Josua gropped at his hip for a sword, but found none. "Oho, I see how it is," he growled. "Now you steal our swords, so we cannot even fight. What did they give you, Thaevas? What did they offer you?" His other hand gropped at his chest, rubbing at something. "I don't need a sword. I'll kill you with my hands!" He took another step foreward, his hands bunching into fists Suddenly a hand touched his leg, and a voice pleaded, "Josua, please--" He glanced down. "You stay out of this, Nar--" He stopped short when he saw her face, clearly illuminated by the fire now. The rest of the group were up now, and standing in the firelight. He looked hard at each of them in turn, his eyes cleared, the gold fading back to brown, the flecks of green returning. His face, contorted with rage, relaxed into confusion. His fists fell open. Finally, his eyes rested on Dalinor, who had come foreward into the firelight. Josua fell to his knees. "What--" he started, then groaned and grabbed his head. "Ohhh, my head..." he groaned. Jennifer touched his shoulder, but he shook her off "No! Get away from me! Get..." He groaned again, then fell to the ground and began to weep. ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Relthe was looking at the prone form of Josua with a worried expression on his face. He glanced at Dalinor, attempting to read his expression, before turning away from the fire and looking out into the depths of the forest. He sat this way for almost half an hour, demonstrating a patience Dalinor had not yet seen in him. As the rest of the group began to settle into sleep again Relthe moved over and sat by Dalinor, back against the fire. He began to talk softly. “I’ve heard of Marden, you know.” Dalinor nodded his head softly. Relthe kept talking. “When you decided not to kill me a few days back I thought the worst was over. What, I thought, could be worse than being hunted by the two most powerful groups in Illdean; chased by fanciful creatures and warriors renowned?” As chuckled softly Dalinor noticed just how worn Relthe really was. “You know, it hasn’t been at all easy. When I reached the dusty dunes I was overjoyed.” He glanced at Dalinor. “I told myself I wasn’t going to let you draw me back into danger, that I’d pass on my own way.” Relthe stood up and walked softly out into the trees, looking up at the darkened canopies. He sighed softly and walked back, taking his seat again. He glanced around at the sleeping group. “Danger hasn’t done with me yet, it seems. I see Feldor using the great arts to send Dtarns after us. Andrea can sense things even the greatest wizards can’t, and now this;” he waved one hand at Josua, “our companion thinks he's living in a past most people, including him, don't even know about.” He looked desperately to Dalinor. Dalinor was somber. “It was Feldor then? I wasn’t sure.” He glanced about softly. “I’m turning in, you have the next watch.” He settled down, a bit back from the fire. He caught Relthe’s eye and held it. “Our companions mean us no harm.” Dalinor turned to sleep. Relthe stayed awake, and the night passed by. [Edited 2 times, last edit on 8/13/2003 at 21:38 (GMT -5) by Lamaros] |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Dalinor woke at the break of dawn to find Relthe sitting in the same place. Together they roused the others. Dalinor took Jennifer off to find some breakfast while the others built a small fire. Josua sat on a stone, staring past them as they worked, as his mind tried to work out what had happened last night. Again, as with the first time, he failed. He couldn't remember anything until the point where he looked down and saw Jennifer. After that all he could remember was confusion, realization of what he had been about to do, and the fading feeling of someone reading over his shoulder. Dalinor and Jennifer soon returned with some rabbits and a few local plants. Relthe and Willard built the fire and cooked breakfast together, animatedly discussing the wizarding arts all the while. The conversation seemed to have restored Relthe to good spirits and he was smiling and chatting amenably. In the wait before the food was ready Dalinor decided to give Jennifer some instruction with the bow. He marked out a target on a nearby tree with the point of an arrow and motioned for Jennifer to join him. "You draw back the bow, look along the shaft of the arrow to aim, and fire," he said, demonstrating slowly. "Now you try." Jennifer drew the bow a small distance, about a quarter of the length of the arrow, and looked along the arrowshaft as Dalinor did. She missed, but it was only a narrow miss. With every new try she was getting better and by the time breakfast was ready she’d managed to hit the target quite a few times. Dalinor commended her on her efforts; “as I said, that’s a hard bow to learn with, and harder still for a woman.” They ate their breakfast carefully but quickly, everyone preparing themselves for what Dalinor said would be a hard day ahead. They hadn’t walked a full day yet, but Dalinor remembered the nearby area and said that if they pushed on to nightfall they might make it to a nearby town. The group had decided that a few tired bodies were worth the chance to find some beds for the night. They set out west onto the plains in good spirits and walked without pause for near on four hours. Taking a quick lunch on leftovers from breakfast they had a chance to go over their plans in more detail. [Edited 2 times, last edit on 8/14/2003 at 14:23 (GMT -5) by Duke Ravage] |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 41 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
"If I recall correctly," began Dalinor, "there is a town not far from here by the name of Dunn. I expect we will need five more hours of hiking to get there, so everybody, rest up as much as you can. "We'll be travelling east, at first. About 3 miles east of here should be a road; this road will take us to Dunn. Normally, I would avoid a town like Dunn, because of the local influence of the Church of the Four." Willard interrupted him. "The Church of the Four?" "Yes," answered Relthe. "The Church of the Four is a highly structured religion, centered around the four elements: Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water." This time it was Dalinor's turn to interrupt. "You'll hear more on the way. As I was saying, normally I would avoid Dunn, but with you five in tow I don't have much choice. If we're going to part company -- and I'm not saying we will, we'll discuss that when we get there --" he interrupted himself to still any arguments -- "a town is the best place to do it. And if you continue travelling, you'll need equptment. I can tell you four" he indicated Willard, Josua and the twins "don't have any money, so I'll loan you some, but it won't be enough. You'll have to find some work. Relthe may be able to help you as well, provided he's willing to share his own coin. "Well, we have a long march ahead of us. Whenever you're ready, lets move." The sun fortold about one in the afternoon when they began to walk again. The terrain prooved more difficult than expected; without a clear trail, it was slow going even for Dalinor. It took nearly an hour more than Dalinor had hoped to find the road, and when they did they were much further north that intended. Scrached and tired already, the six of them travelled south along the road. It was close to dusk when they finally caught sight of the town. Willard, Josua, and Jennifer were amazed. They had not, in their memory, seen such a work of humanity. Wooden walls surrounded many buildings, guards carrying bows and pikes marched the walls, and four guards with halberds guarded the gate. They looked as if they were prepareing to close it. Dalinor and Relthe saw a tiny backwater town with crude walls and far more guards than usual. One of the soldiers caught sight of the travellers, and gave a shout. The guards at the gate formed up and they blocked the path of teh travellers. A man stepped out of a small building just inside the walls and eyed the travellers cautiously as they approached. He wore a black-laquered breastplate, and a light leather jerkin over it. Over that was a blue-and-grey sash. He wore iron bracers on both arms, and there was a band of gold imbedded in the left bracer. He had the appearance and bearing of a captain of some kind. "Halt!" he shouted. "Who approaches the fair town of Dunn?" Dalinor halted about twice the length of the halbards from the nearest guard. "Five footsore and weary travelers, sir, and one Knight. May we enter?" The captain paused for a moment, then ordered his men to stand down, and bid the travellers to enter. As they passed, the captain stopped them again, however. "Sir Knight, may I have a word with you in private?" Dalinor hesitated only for a second before nodding. To his five companions he said "I'll be along shortly. Wait for me in the local tavern. I believe it is the Rising Sun?" He looked to the captain. He nodded. "Aye, it's just down the road." He pointed out a two-storied building with a sign depicting a sun rising over mountains, with a forest in the foreground. "Their beds are good, but their ale is foul." With that they split company for a time, Dalinor accompanying the captain into his quarters and the others to the Rising Sun. ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 57 seconds ago. |
Relthe led the group down towards the inn. Now that the group had entered the town they began to notice what had be immediatly obvious to Relthe and Dalinor; the small town was overrun with guards. Willard began to pose a question but Relthe cut him off; "I have no idea what's going on, maybe Dalinor will be able to tell us when he's done talking with that guard." He shrugged and entered the tavern. The place was a strange mix. Half of the room looked about 20 years old and was falling to pieces, the other half looked like it had been built just a few months ago and was ready to take on a storm. Not that it made any difference to the citizenship, the place was packed. "Ugh," Relthe exclaimed, "too many guards, we're not going to get a bed tonight." The group look crestfallen. Relthe had been looking slowly about the room as he spoke and now his gaze had fixed itself on a group of men just across the room. "Then again," he said, "you never know your luck. You guys take a seat, I'm going to check something out." With that he walked over to the men he'd been looking at. Jennifer glared at his back while Josua and Willard looked about for some spare chairs. They noticed some nearby and went to sit down. "Not those chairs," Jennifer muttered, "lets sit over there." She indicated a spare table over on the other side of the room. Willard was about to ask why when he noticed that they were right near the group of men Relthe was now talking to. With a sideways glance at Jennifer he moved across the room. As they got closer they began to pick up on Relthe's conversation. He was talking to one of the guards, "what's the price of a room here, a night?" "'bout 10 coppers for a bunk, two dagger an 5 for a room. Won't get you anywhere tonight though, no rooms left." Relthe raised an eyebrow, "oh c'mon, I've stayed a week at a brothel for less than that." The guard chuckled and lowered his voice slightly, "I think the owner jacked the prices when she saw our company come in. Only board in the town, you see. But," he shrugged and took another gulp of his drink, "I ain't paying it. We're on duty, you see." His last comment brough a round of chuckles from the nearby guards. Willard noticed a calculating look flash across Relthe's face before he responded. "Ah well then, nothing for it. I'll play you for your room." He nodded at the bunch of five guards. "Pick your best and we'll go three rounds." The guard Relthe had been talking to considered silently for a moment before nodding quickly. "Two daggers an 10 coppers if you lose, win and the room is yours." He smiled. Relthe ignored the increase in price and smiled back, "I'd better not lose then, eh?" With that the small group moved back to take their seats and the object of their bet was unveiled. Hanging on the side of the tavern wall was a dart board. Relthe knew the room wasn't going at the price he'd bet but he didn't care, he didn't want another night on the ground. Besides, he was pretty sure he could win; the guards looked half in their cups already. He hoped they were anyway, he didn't have any money and wasn't counting on Dalinor digging him out if he lost. He took a closer look at the dart board. It was a pretty simple affair, nothing like the ones he was used to in Illdean, with three concentric circles and a red bullseye. The darts themselves were little more than a bit of wood with a needle at one end and a feather at the other. Relthe heard Will talking to one of the guards about the rules. "Simple," the man replied, "the bullseye is worth 10, first ring 5, second ring 3, outer ring 1. Three shots, highest total wins. First to two wins takes the bet.." Relthe lost the sound of his voice as he began to concentrate on the game, he was up first. He took the dart in his hand and held it carefull for a moment, testing it's weight. Once he'd gotten a feel for it he squinted at the board, aimed, and let fly. The dart thudded into the second ring. Three. "Three." The guard near Will was keeping score. He looked across at Will questioningly, "Jayck will have him easily if that's any indication." Will just shrugged. Jayck, it turned out, was the guard Relthe had been talking to all along. A big, crude looking, bloke he stopped Relthe as he was just about to take his second shot. "We find alternatin' turns keeps things exciting. My shot." He took a dart from Relthe and moved him out of the way. His shot landed in the first ring, just outside the bullseye. He glared at the board a moment before turning to Relthe, "5-2, your go." Relthe stepped up again, this time putting it just inside the first ring. He then watched at Jayck let loose a fierce throw, impaling the dart half a link into into the bullseye. He moved back to his drink and took a long drink, hardly paying attentino to Relthe's last shot. The score was at 15-7 and Relthe knew he needed a bullseye to stay in it. He hefted his last dart carefully in his hand before letting it go in a lightning motion. It caught the outside edge of the bullseye and hung there, almost flat to the board. Jayck glanced first at the board and then at Relthe before muttering, "thought it was gonna drop." He took his last shot quickly, flicking it like a dagger. It bounced uselessly off the board and fell to the floor, handing Relthe the first game. Josua cheered. Jayck glanced at Josua for a moment before turning back to Relthe. He was grinning, "Oops, you win." Relthe ignored him and turned back to the board. "Game two, my lead again?" When Jayck grunted he took his shot, flinging it into the first circle, just off the bullseye. He turned to Jayck, "five." Jayck rolled his eyes as he took his shot, also landing a five. The shots went quickly from there; Relthe landed another five and Jayck a Bullseye, before Relthe followed it up with one of his own. Jayck's last shot was another bullseye, and gave him the game, 25-20. Those nearby were watching the game carefully as Relthe stepped up to open the deciding round; He planted a bullseye. Jayck followed with a five, only to be echoed with Relthe's next shot. Jayck's next effort landed just outside the centre, drawing cries from those watching. Relthe was leading at 15-10 and stepped up to decide the game. His shot went straight into the centre of the first ring. Jayck took his last shot slowly and deliberatly, but it didn't help as it went wide. This time when Josua cheered Willard joined in with him. Relthe took a seat at the table with Jayck talking in his ear. "Ya know," Jayck was saying, "it's proper to go again, ta give a man a chance to win it back." Relthe made a show of considering a moment before he turned to Jayck and replied. "At the risk of being impolite," he smiled thinly, "I think I'll enjoy my nice, soft, bed tonight." This didn't do anything to improve the mood in the room and Jayck was on the verge of of shouting at Relthe when Jennifer cut in, "I'll do it." Relthe stared at her but she glared at him before he had a chance to say anything. "I'll do it," she said firmly. [Edited 7 times, last edit on 8/18/2003 at 03:42 (GMT -5) by Lamaros] |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 22 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Jennifer stood, walked to the dart board, and retrieved the darts. More than one of the guards were chuckling at the thought of a barely-grown girl beating Jayck, but Jennifer had studied Relthe's method and thought that, if she did things right, she had a good chance of winning. And then, of course, there was an added benefit: While Jayck might decide not to pay Relthe even if he won, they'd be much less likely to double-cross Jennifer. Being a half-grown girl did have its uses. "One round," said Jayck. "Whoever wins that, wins the bet. Agreed?" Jennifer did. Jayck let her have the first turn, ostensibly because she was a "lady", but more likely so he could determine exactly how tough an opponent she might be. If that was so, Jennifer had to give him credit for refusing to underestimate her. She took a dart and studied it for a moment. It was much lighter than a rock, but much shorter than an arrow; hopefully, the feather on the end would steady its flight enough to make up for Jennifer's inexperience. The dart felt unfamiliar, and her first throw was awkward; still, she managed to hit the second ring, for three points. Jayck grinned confidently and picked up a dart, tossed it from left hand to right, and threw it casually, without really bothering to aim. Now he has underestimated me, thought Jennifer to herself as she watched the dart hit the first ring. He's playing with me! "5-3," said Jayck in a patronizing tone. "You're sure you don't want to let your friend take over?" "I'm sure," said Jennifer. The second dart seemed easier to throw; Jennifer watched with satisfaction as it hit the bullseye. Jayck gave her an odd look. He took much greater care with his next shot, and it thunked into the target next to Jennifer's dart. "13-15," said Jennifer. Jennifer was quite comfortable with the darts now; her last throw landed in the exact center of the board. Her friends burst out cheering. A few of the guards were grumbling to each other now; several of them had planned to sleep in the room in question, and they didn't relish the thought of spending the night outside. Jayck would need a bullseye to win, and he had long ago stopped underestimating Jennifer. He cradled the dart for a long moment before he threw. The dart flew in a long arc; Jennifer saw, with a sinking feeling, that it seemed to be headed for the bullseye. The dart hit the board at the upper edge of the bullseye, and one of the guards went up to look at it more closely before he grudgingly said, "Five." Jennifer had won. The guards who had been grumbling quietly were now grumbling loudly that Jennifer had somehow made that last dart go off-course. But then an old man, who had been sitting in a corner with his hands wrapped around a large mug, pointed to Jayck and said something Jennifer didn't hear over the grumbling guards, though she did hear a burst of laughter from those who had heard. A moment later, Jayck held up his hands and said, "Give the girl our room. She won fair and square." As the grumbling died down a little, Relthe sighed with relief, and Jennifer, who saw the odd little smile on her sister's face, sat down again and took her hand. Andrea. ...yes? What did you do to those darts? Nothing. Sure, I believe that. No, I mean it. You did it yourself. Really? Yeah. Okay. After a bit of a pause, Andrea said, Relthe didn't have any money. We'd have been in severe trouble if he'd lost. Jennifer laughed, getting odd looks from some of the patrons. I'm gonna have to give Relthe a piece of my mind. Andrea smiled. Oh, don't worry. Relthe's probably used to bluffing. What did that old guy tell Jayck? Oh, Andrea laughed, he just said we were just innocent young girls, and hadn't we won fair and square? Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 9 times, last edit on 8/21/2003 at 20:59 (GMT -5) by Iridia] |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 41 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Dalinor walked into the small room the captain occupied. It was small, and not at all lavish; a small bed occupied one side of the room, and rough wooden table with two chairs sat under a window opposite it. The remains of a half finished meal, little more than a peice of meat and some potatoe, sat cooling on the table. The captain offered Dalinor a seat and some food; Dalinor accepted the seat, and the food, gratefully. The captain sat opposite him, and leaned toward him over the table. An eager glint was in his eyes. "So, a Knight, ay? We havn't had a Knight here in many a long year. Truthfully, we havn't had any outsiders from the North in neigh on four years." Dalinor looked up from his food. "Oh? Why not?" The man shrugged, and the action made him realize he still wore his breastplate. He moved to take it off as he continued talking to Dalinor. "We're not sure. Could be the troubles, could also be the numbers of Dtarns prowling the plains. All that is known is that poor old Palla is not liking it. Her tavern is barely able to keep it's doors open. Only thing keeping her afloat these days are the soldiers that buy her food. Church makes her give them the rooms fer free." "Troubles?" promted Dalinor. "Aye. Some bloke from Tamber up north made this claim, said he was Obaerno returned." The man had stopped removing his breastplate, and now made a sign, touching his palms together, then touching his cheeks and then his chest. "He managed to get the whole town behind him, made a big rucus. Even tried to attack my town. My boys and I barely managed to hold 'em off. Church sent all these troops up here, and even a 4th Band Crusader. Together they all burned Tamber and killed the imposter's followers. Now their hanging around, supposedly watching to make sure nothing else happens. But I know what's happened. The imposter slipped through their finghers, and they're looking for him." At this he chuckled. "Not likely they'll find him. Not a one of them has left Dunn in a month." Dalinor had finished the meal. He thanked the captain for it, and stood as though to leave. The captain stopped him. "Oh, no you don't. I told you everything about here, now you gotta tell me what's happening up north. I've heard some strange roumers from my frind who went to visit the Prophet in Jamid; he said some wierd stuff was happening up there, something about the king." Dalinor looked at the man carefully. "I'm sorry, what's your name again?" he asked. "My name? It's Tiner. And yours?" "Dalinor. Well, Tiner, I can't tell you much. All I know is what I was told, and that was that Perzgad the False had returned. We were told to find and kill him. This we did, not far from here. But if you will excuse me, I really must be going." He turned and left. He had not even reached the tavern when he was stopped yet again. A young boy ran up to him. "Sir! Sir Knight! Hold, please!" He stopped, and waited for the boy to reach him. "Sir," he panted, "your audiance is requested by the Laurist Sarman. He wants to see you immedately." Dalinor paused, looking at the tavern. Then he nodded, and turned to the boy. "Show me the way." ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 57 seconds ago. |
Relthe knew he was enjoying himself too much, but he couldn't help smiling as he looked over at Jayck. "Not just the room, I believe we were playing double or nothing. What's that you owe us then, two and five I think it was?" Jayck was grimacing and talking quickly, "no no, I think you're mistaken there. One and five, one and five it was." Relthe rasied an eyebrow and looked directly into Jayck's eyes. He shook his head, "No. Two daggers and five coppers, I remember. Enough for a week in a brothel, or," he paused and raised his voice slightly, "a room here for a night?" "Ha!" The woman at the bar, a short woman with a no nonsense look about her who Relthe presumed to be the owner, was entering the conversation. "I rent these rooms at a silver dagger, no more; and I'm happy when I get that. Currently I'm letting all rooms to the Order as a free service." She glancing at Jayck, "You'd been planning to pay me, are you?" Relthe dropped his pretense at humour and he glared at Jayck's head like it was about to take the dart board's place. "Well, you settle with the innkeep at your leisure, but if your hand isn't pulling something from your pocket in the next miniute, mine certainly will be." He moved his left down to rest lightly in his pocket. At the same time he casually slipped his arm around Jennifer's back, who was still holding Andrea's hand. As his right hand found Jennifer's shoulder his left found his Wizarding ball. I've pushed him hard enough and he's looking a fool. But with a temper like his he can't back down, not to me. If you offer up a compromise now he might jump at it. Otherwise we have a fight on our hands. Unless, if he hasn't got the money, then it'll be a fight either way. To Relthe's surprise Andrea nearly fell over. Clutching tightly to her sisters hand she regained her balance and steadied herself. Her face looked pale when she next spoke, directing her voice at voice at the whole group. "Please, there's no need to shout and fight. Let's work this out sensibly." Relthe made a show of controling his anger. "I don't like it, I don't like it at all." He glared once more at Jayck, looking him up and down. "You're nothing but a trumped up thug, and if the Church is of any mind you'll soon be deposited back were you belong. You've bet near on five daggers, money that wasn't yours, and you're not willing to pay the half of it." He spat on the ground. "For the sake of these ladies I'll show you a kind turn; a dagger and 15 coppers will have an end to it." He turned his head away in disgust. Relthe felt Josua getting up at the table and come to stand behind him. Josua spoke, his voice rolling over Relthe's shoulder to hit Jayck full in the face, "You would give up everything for a few coins, wouldn't you?" A startled expression flickered across Relthe's face as he looked towards Josua, fearing what he might see there. But as far as Relthe could tell Josua was normal, despite the judgemental look he was goving Jayck. A glance back to Jayck and Relthe saw that the man had finally given in. As he watched Jayck reached into his pocket and drew out a small bag of coins, throwing it down at Relthe's feet. "There's your money", he scowled. With that he gathered his small group of friends and left, nearly breaking the door on his way out. As his last acomplice left the inn he turned and spoke to one of the nearby guards, "Tell Sarman we quit." He then turned to Relthe, who was looking at him carefully, "I'll be seeing you again, you can be sure of that." Relthe, who'd picked up the small bag and was counting it, only smiled when he replied, "I should hope so, you're still a fair bit short." Chuckling he retook his seat. Slowly the inn returned to it's normal pace, while the conversation whipped about. [Edited 6 times, last edit on 8/22/2003 at 23:05 (GMT -5) by Lamaros] |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 22 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Relthe bought them all supper with some of the money he'd won; it came in the form of a mushy stew with stringy meat and overcooked vegetables that was nearly tasteless. After their days on the road, though, none of the four said a word of complaint; Dalinor's hunting, good as roast rabbit tasted, hadn't been nearly enough to feed six people, and they'd found themselves constantly hungry. The stew, no matter what it tasted like, filled their stomachs nicely, and they were glad to get it. The little group (especially Jennifer) got a few odd looks at first, but eventually the guards returned to their drinking and left them alone. Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 2 times, last edit on 8/24/2003 at 22:05 (GMT -5) by Iridia] |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 41 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Dalinor halted beside the boy. They had taken several turns, and he was quite turned around. However, standing before him was the best house in the town. Two stories tall, with large double wooden doors and a balcony on the second floor, it was as luxurious as any this far from Tauran. The bottom floor was built of faded, cracking brick, and the top from old wood. A few windows penetrated the bottom story, but the top had only a single window, a large stained-glass window depicting a fully armored man seated on a horse, lance leveled as if preparing to charge, beside the door leading onto the balcony. It was the mayor's home, or at least had been last time Dalinor had been to Dunn, which was many years past. "Here you are, Sir." The boy look up at him hopefully. "A copper for my help?" Dalinor sifted through his purse for a moment, but was unable to come up with any local currency. He tossed the boy an Illdean copper penny anyway, and approached the building. The first thing he noticed upon opening the door was the change in decorations in the entry hall. Rather than the former occupant's paintings and statuettes, red-and-gold banners hung from the walls and the ruby-encrusted gold hilt of a sword lay on the long table along one wall. As he passed, Dalinor looked closely at it and noticed small flashes in the air around it every now and then. In addition, an man stood at the end of the hall beside the door, dressed in red-laquered plate armor with a sword belted to his hip and a single gold band on his right bracer. The man watched Dalinor approach, his jaw held tightly and his body set as though expecting a fight. He let Dalinor pass, however, with no more than a mistrusful glare and short comment: "Turn left and go up the stairs. Leave your sword at the bottom if you don't want to be hurt." ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 22 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Jennifer had been chatting amiably with her companions when she noticed that Andrea, her head in her hands, didn't seem to have much to contribute to the conversation. She took her sister's elbow. You okay? Jennifer asked. Yeah, said Andrea tiredly. Headache. Now that her attention was on it, Jennifer could feel a slight pain in her own temples; she knew Andrea had to be feeling the same thing, only much worse. I'll be okay, Andrea told her. Relthe didn't mean to hurt me. It'll go away soon. Jennifer wasn't so sure about that; Andrea's headache, from her point of view, didn't seem to be going away. As for Relthe, she trusted him no more than anyone; but from what she'd seen of his motivations, she didn't see reason to trust him less than anyone, either. An accident... hopefully. The headache was starting to bother Jennifer now; she looked over at her sister just in time to see Andrea's head sink to the table next to her half-finished bowl of stew. Her face was pale, and Jennifer could tell she was in pain. Die Gedanken sind Frei [Edited 2 times, last edit on 9/16/2003 at 18:07 (GMT -5) by Iridia] |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 57 seconds ago. |
Dalinor unbuckled his sheath and left it resting against the wall as he strode up the stairs. At the top was a short hall with three doors. The two side doors seemed of minor importance so Dalinor walked immediately to the door at the end of the hall. It was decorated in the same manner as the rest of the house, a red and gold banner hanging on it. His knock received a swift reply and a muffled voice bid him to enter. The office was a riot of red and gold, banners covered every wall. It was only a small office, about four meters long and a little less in width, and the mass of colour was a shock to Dalinor’s senses. Overcoming it quickly Dalinor finally had time to notice the man sitting before him. Seated on a chair draped in gold cloth and residing behind a wooden desk of a deep red was Sarman. Sarman waved Dalinor to a seat and indicated that he should pay attention. “Time for a lesson in the power of the Church. You might be aware of the affinity we Crusadors have with fire, but it’s a connection that most do not understand. Observe.” He held up the tip of his finger. "The fire will not burn," he whispered, "unless you believe." With a start, flame leapt up from his finger. It held for a moment, clinging to his finger like a child to it's mother, then rose, steady, until it floated a foot from his face. "If you believe in your power, in His power, you can do anything." His hand was lowered, and his eyes fixed on the flame. It wavered, tehn jumped, the flickering light illuminating the shadows of the twilit room. It stabbed into the darkness like a fencer, and suddenly it was a fencer, a tiny figure with a sword, burning, danceing, and then it was a dancer, spinning and leaping through the air, and then-- His eyes snapped away, and the flame vanished. "If you ignore it, disbelieve it, you will accomplish nothing." The flame still burned, but now it was in his eyes, the fire of conviction. “Now, I believe we have some business to discuss.” |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 41 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Dalinor sat impassive through the display, internally both impressed and amused. Finally, the show over, he leaned foreward in his chair. "Yes, and I believe I know why you called me here, too. You want me to leave." Sarman grinned. "You catch on fast. Your type are not welcome in the Church's land. This territory has had enough of you using it as a highway, taking what you need. I don't know why you came here, and I don't care either. Leave." Dalinor studied Sarman for a moment. "I can't do that." He looked out the small window, searching for the inn, but not finding it. "I need to get to Deriough, and... I seem to have accumulated some followers. I won't just leave them here... although, neither can I take them with me. Either way, I must pass through your land." Sarman smiled again, and sat back in his chair. "I rather expected that of you. You Knights are a stubborn lot. Well, if you must pass through our land, you can at the least do me a favor, in exchange for me not throwing you out minus a sword and an ear." He shuffled through some papers on his desk, and found a rumpled sheet, with markings that looked like a map on it. "I've been getting reports that a small group of rebels are hiding out here." He pointed to a black X, about five miles south of the circle titled "Dunn" and the line representing the road. Dalinor grunted. "And I suppose you want me to go kill them all for you, because you can't spare the men to do it yourself?" Sarman grinned again. "No. I could spare teh men, but I don't know that there is anyone there anyhow. I want you to go find out. I'll send one of my runners with you, so you can report back. I would also suggest you bring someone else along, just in case something should happen..." His eyes bored into Dalinor, although his mouth twisted in a smile. Dalinor held the staring contest for a moment, then dropped his gaze and sighed. "Very well. Your runner will return by tomorrow morning." He stood. "May I leave now?" Sarman stood also. "Yes, you may. You may also wish to take this map." He handed Dalinor the map. Dalinor took it automatically, and smiled. "Farewell, Sarman." He turned and strode to the door. As he left, he heard Sarman saying "Good luck to you, sir Knight." As soon as the door closed, however, Dalinor's smile fell away, replaced by a dark scowl. He stormed as quietly as he could down the stairs, grabbed his belt, fumbled at the clasp, and calmly walked past the guard and the broken sword, his face once again impassive. ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 22 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
"Andrea?" Jennifer said. Her sister mumbled something unintelligible into the stained table-top. "Andrea? Are you okay?" Head hurts... Andrea thought to her sister. "I've got to get her to bed." Jennifer stood up. Pulling aside a girl holding a tray filled with empty mugs and dirty dishes, she said, "Where can I find the room those men rented from you tonight?" The girl gave her a harassed look, snorted "Rented?" incredulously, then obliged, "Up the stairs, turn right, second door on your left" with a look that told Jennifer the girl thought she knew exactly why Jennifer needed directions to the room. The girl hurried off almost before Jennifer had a chance to thank her. She slid a stack of dirty dishes from a nearby table, balanced them on her already overfull tray, and walked towards the kitchen. Jennifer turned to her sister. "Come on, let's get you into bed." She helped Andrea to stand, slipping an arm around her sister to help support her. Andrea, shoulders sagging and head hanging, docilely allowed Jennifer to take her across the room and up the stairs. The room, when they reached it, wasn't much of a room: Wooden floor, a chair, a rickety table with a wash-bowl resting on it, and a chamber-pot under a mid-sized bed. Thankfully, though the room wasn't much, the bedsheets had evidently been washed, and the mattress--stuffed with straw, by the feel of it--didn't seem to harbor any unpleasant creatures. Andrea sank gratefully down on the bed and collapsed sideways, putting her head on the pillow. Jennifer took her sister's legs and lifted them onto the bed, then pulled off her shoes. Are you going to be okay? Jennifer said. Yeah... answered Andrea. I'm all right. Just some time to lie down... Jennifer smiled slightly. All right. Just have to... stay away... Relthe's tricks... Andrea's thoughts dimmed, and were soon wandering aimlessly along the ever-changing thought-tendrils of near-sleep. Jennifer sat next to Andrea, thinking to sit with her until she was sure her sister would really be all right. Jennifer sat gazing around the room-- Moonlight filtering through the cloudy glass of the room's only small window... Andrea's hair, spread on the pillow like a halo... the rough wooden walls of the room... The stabbing pain in Jennifer's temples eased off a bit, but soon she was feeling a little drowsy. It wasn't long before she found herself on the bed beside her sister. Just for a moment, she thought fuzzily to herself. Just a little rest, and then I'll sit up again... A few moments later, Jennifer had joined her sister's dreams; a world both strange and oddly familiar, the world of Before. Jennifer stood next to her sister. Music began to play... she sang, and her sister matched the notes to her own harmony, voices blending effortlessly... ...A hard, round sphere in her hand, then flying through the air, then smacking into the leather of a catcher's mitt... ...swinging high into the air, pumping her legs, wind rushing through her hair... ...two identical girls and a small boy, building something with wooden blocks... ...someone singing... cradled in loving arms... a lullaby... Dreams merged into a velvet darkness, and slowly the twins' minds quieted. Deep sleep stole over them both; when they woke, neither of them would remember the dreams. Die Gedanken sind Frei |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 37 minutes and 46 seconds ago. |
Dalinor seethed as he walked back to the inn, his face dark. An empty water-bucket was slightly too close to his path to walk past, so he kicked the offending object over and stormed past. When he reached the inn, Relthe, Josua, and Willard were discussing whether to go out looking for him. Dalinor kicked the door open and stepped in. "I need to run an errand for some puffed-up Elementalist who's too lazy to do it himself." he announced to the world in general and Relthe, Josua, and Willard in specific. "I don't want to, but I don't think I can refuse without offending Sarman and getting us all thrown out by the ear." He sighed. "I'll be back in a few hours. I hate travelling at night, but I said that Sarman's runner would be back before tomorrow morning." With that, he turned and left the tavern to find Sarman's runner, leaving behind a sense of puzzlement and Relthe's knowledge that Dalinor was in a very bad mood. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 41 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Josua suddenly stood. "Uhm," he said, awkwardly, "uh, I'll be right back... I think." He hurried out the door, after Dalinor. Relthe glanced at Willard, uncertainly. Once out on the road, Josua quickly spotted Dalinor. He hadn't gone far, and still looked angry. "Dalinor!" he called. "Hey, wait for me!" Josua ran to catch up with Dalinor. "What do you want, kid?" Dalinor didn't even slow down. "Uhm..." Josua stuttered. "I-I want to come. With you." Dalinor did stop, at that. He turned his gaze on Josua. "Do you now, Josua? Do you know what is likely to happen out there? Do you even know where I'm going?" Josua stood his ground. "No, but it doesn't matter. If I'm ever going to learn anything, it's going to be from you. And what faster way to learn than in the field?" Josua paused, wondering how he knew that. Dalinor smirked, then looked at the night sky. "Alright. But listen, don't get in my way. Just follow me and do what I tell you to. You'll need a sword, probably." He looked around, spied the guard captain's hut. "Here, follow me." He walked over to the small building, and rapped on the door. "Tiner? You in there?" A muffled "Yeah," came throught he door, and a few moments later they heard the door unlatch, and then the captain was standing in the doorway. "Oh, Dalinor, it's you! What can I do for you?" Dalinor indicated Josua. "I was wondering if you had any spare swords. He needs one; we're not likely to be gone long anyway, but I might get a chance to show him how to use it. Don't worry, I'll make sure you get the sword back." Tiner glanced Josua up and down, then shruged. "Sure, I geuss," he grunted. "You can borrow mine. I don't use it much anyway, and even if I don't get it back, I can just get another one forged... Just a second." He vanished inside again, and returned a few moments later with a broadsword, as well as a scabbard for it. "Here you are. It's nothing fancy, but it doesn't need to be. Be careful with it though. Our smith isn't the greatest, and his swords tend to be a bit on the brittle side..." Dalinor nodded and took the sword and scabbard. "I thank you, Tiner. Now, I'm afraid we must be off..." Tiner grinned. "Of course. Good luck, Dalinor!" He shook Dalinor's hand, and then closed the door as they walked out the gate's side door. ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 22 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Dalinor hadn't quite stepped out the door when he nearly stumbled over a tall, scrawny boy who couldn't have been older than twelve. The boy had a look of absolute amazement on his face, as though he had never seen a knight before. Then again, he probably hadn't; his ragged appearance and coarse peasant's clothing didn't look as though his family had the money to do much traveling. Before Dalinor had a second to do anything, the boy sank clumsily to his knees. "Y- you're a knight!" the boy burst out, seemingly without thinking. "Yess...." Dalinor said, puzzled. "I'm so honored to... I mean, the Laurist sent me to..." "You're our runner?" Dalinor said doubtfully. "Yes... well, you see, I usually work in the kitchens, but he hadn't anyone to spare, they all--" the boy broke off. "I'm sorry. Sir. I shouldn't say..." The boy fumbled and stuttered for a few seconds, then clamped his mouth shut, obviously determined not to stick his foot into it any further than he had already done. Dalinor, who was getting annoyed again, and who wasn't particularly interested in the goings-on in Sarman's kitchens, just said, "Get up. Let's go," and started away, not watching to see if Josua or the boy followed. Josua waited until the boy had managed to stand up (there were now two large splotches of mud on the knees of his trousers) and then followed Dalinor. "What's your name?" Josua asked. "They call me Tom, sir," said the boy. "You shouldn't call me sir," said Josua. "I'm not anyone important." "Oh," said Tom, and was about to add something else when Dalinor called back to Josua. "Yes?" said Josua. "Here, take this," said Dalinor, handing Josua the sword and scabbard. Josua buckled the belt around his waist. As they walked, Dalinor gave Josua as many pointers as he could think to give a beginner. Hopefully, Josua wouldn't need to use any of the informaiton Dalinor gave him, but Dalinor knew, from long experience, that it was much better to be prepared. Josua seemed to be learning more quickly than any student Dalinor had ever taught. Dalinor noted Josua seemed to be wearing the sword as though he were used to it; it wasn't bouncing against his legs and getting in the way, as it usually was with most beginners. Tom trotted along behind them, eyes still big as saucers, staring at Dalinor. He didn't seem to realize he was being ignored. They walked along the road--a dirt trail, actually--until they came to the crest of a hill. In the valley below, several squarish building-shaped shadows could be made out in the moonlight. "You think there's anyone there?" said Josua. "Not sure. We'll have to get closer to see." Die Gedanken sind Frei |
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Lamaros Registered user The sieve Last page view: 7379 days, 11 hours, 46 minutes and 57 seconds ago. |
Relthe sat at the bar thinking. Willard was sitting to his left, his voice a constant flow that swirled up and around Relthe, encasing him his own armor of words the kept him removed from the rest of the inn. Every now and then he would reach out into this flow and grab hold of a word or two. It was just enough to form a response, a word or two to keep the flow of conversation going, and while Willard chattered on, spinning his garrulous web, Relthe found himself more and more isolated. He was staring into the remenants of his food; the soggy bread swelling slowly as it gobbled up the last moisture of the stew, the bruised carrots wincing under the firely glow of the room, and the limp beans hanging lazily over the edge of the bowl, when he first began to notice the silence. He looked over towards Willard to see if he'd suddenly fallen silent but was confronted by the same animated expression he'd been seeing for the last half hour. Mystified by the silence sprouting from Willard's busy mouth Relthe let his attention examine the rest of the inn. Nothing seemed out of order as he scanned the room. The soldiers were at their darts and drinks, the locals chattering away at the tables and along the bar and the staff were walking back and forth about their duties. Relthe returned his attention to his food, now uneasy in the situation. There was no sound to be heard at all now, even his own voice remained firmly rooted in his mouth. He began to panic for a moment but that soon passes as his training kicked in. He knew from his time as a wizard, drummed into him every day, that only those who can hold their head and think sensibly and carefully in any situation have the ability to master great skills. It was a lesson he had picked up unconciously in his childhood, one that had been welded into him all the more securely during his training. He began to scan the room in detail, looking for anything, even the most insignificant anomoly. He quickly found the sword lying next to the door but passed over it quickly, senseing nothing threatening in it. But after a thorough search of the room he was unable to find anything else out of place in the tavern. Having found something to focus his attention on he moved quickly, slipping his hand down along his head into his pocket and using his ball to perform a quick trick. Nothing and nothing more. He knew he had learnt all he could from his current position and moved to take back the initiative, convinced now that either the inn or his mind was under magical attack. With feline speed he moved down and away from his chair, his dagger sliding into his left hand. As his foot touched the floor the room began to sing again, slapping him about with its shouts and song. Disoriented, he fell briefly to one knee. He moved forward from the floor one stride bringing him back to his feet while at the same time he turned towards Willard, "Follow me, and do.." The words hung in his throat as he noticed Willard's amazed expression. Relthe wasted only a short time now; frowning with deep concentration he moved again. As his left hand slipped his dagger back into its sheath the right pulled forth his Wizarding ball. Throwing it quickly into his other hand, now unencumbered, and rushed from the inn, kicking the sword near the door up into his right hand as he flew past. The inn sat still; shocked to silence and inactivity. |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 41 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
Quietly, Josua, Dalinor and their messanger crept down the hill toward the buildings. All three were acutely aware of the danger they faced; if this was a camp of rebels and they made too much noise, they would be discovered, and likely killed with few questions asked. They quietly snuck up behind one of the shadows. It was indeed a building, a crude stone structure that looked like it was barely held together with mud and sticks. There were no windows. Dalinor signaled for the other two to wait, as he slipped around the building. The two of them stayed where they were for about ten minutes. The night was cool, but not cold, yet they found themselves shivering anyway. Finally Josua stood. "I'm going to find him," he whispered. "Stay here." He quietly drew his borrowed sword and crept around the building after Dalinor. The middle of the complex was a simple mud road. About seven of the stone "buildings" were set unevenly along the sides of the path; no fires could be seen. Dalinor was nowhere in sight either. Josua moved along the wall of the nearest building toward it's doorway, and looked in. In the dim gloom he could make out a number of bundled shapes, which he geussed were sleeping men. He slipped in, crouched, and carefully moved toward the nearest sleeping form. Cautiously he felt around the body, coming away with a crude halfhelm. He smiled at his find, and turned to go. At the doorway stood the messenger. But he wasn't alone. A dagger was held to his throat, and behind his frightened face was the leering face of a sentry. Grinning evily, the guard jerked his head behind him, and slowly backed out. Josua followed him into the road. There he found Dalinor lying facedown in the mud. In the dimness Josua couldn't make out what was wrong with him, but at the moment that wasn't his main problem. The sentry grinned at him over the boy's head. "You're in quite a predicament here, aren't you? Lost? I'll tell you what. Drop your sword and any money you're carrying, and scram, and maybe I won't kill you." "What about them?" Josua indicated the messenger and Dalinor, his golden eyes fixed on the sentry. "Sorry," the guard growled. "A knight and a messenger? I can't let them go." Suddenly Josua's sword was in his hand and he was rushing toward the guard very quickly. Surprised, the soldier drew the dagger accross the boy's neck, dropped him, and began yelling. "Alarm! Intruders! Al--" Josua's sword plunged through his stomach before he could even get his own sword out. "What are you thinking, boy?!" yelled Dalinor, now on his feet with his own sword out. "I nearly had him! Come on, run!" Josua stared at the blood pouring out around his sword and from the dying man's mouth. Shouts were now coming from within the buildings as people were roused by the call, but Josua was transfixed, gripped by horror. Only when Dalinor grabbed his arm and pulled did he return to reality. Revulsion hit him again as he looked back at the sword, and he yanked it free and backed up. By now men were starting to pour from the buildings. Realizing his plight, Josua began to run, both blade and halfhelm gripped tightly in unfeeling hands. Dalinor was just behind him as they fled the makeshift town. ivan.sourceforge.net [Edited 2 times, last edit on 8/19/2004 at 20:00 (GMT -5) by Duke Ravage] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 37 minutes and 46 seconds ago. |
As Relthe grasped the sword, feeling the icily cold metal touch his hand, he suddenly realised that he had made a mistake. Concealed within the steel was a hidden, malevolent magic, cunningly sheilded into the sword itself, not pulsing outward but drawing inward. He felt as though the sword was melding with his hand and then- Blink He was still in the inn, but it was different. Gone was the cheery atmosphere, the busily talking patrons, the tankards of beverages on the tables. It was as if all signs of human life, all the people but Willard and himself had been spirited away. And with good reason. A chill wing, laced with particles of ice, suddenly made a gust through the room. The tiny white grains bit into him, scoring deep cuts in his flesh. There was no blood and no sound except an everpresent almost-deafeaning rush of air, and he could not scream, not cry out, not make the tiniest noise. Abruptly the wind died out for a few seconds, and he looked at Willard, seeing the same expression of panic and confusion, the same inability to do anything. And in those seconds, another great gust of icy wind blew through the world. There was magic in the wind, a dark flash of deadly, driving magic of unestimable power. He moved his arms around his head, trying to stop the impossible, relentless tide of painful stabs, and Willard tried to move behind the bulk of a table, but seemed to still wince as he was struck by the grains of pure ice. For the second time the wind died down, and as it did Willard mouthed the words "What the hell is happening?" to Relthe. Relthe was about to reply, or try to reply, when the wind sprang up again, and he instinctively moved the sword and- Blink He was still in the inn, but it was different. It was night, and only a faint glow illuminated the room. He could see Willard, and he could vaguely see the tables, chairs, and walls of the room, but that was all. Anything else was a shapeless grey mass, as if it couldn't make up it's mind as to whether it was a dropped mug or a small rat. And the room crawled with... something. They were tiny little blips on the general enveloping half-darkness, moving about, and they seemed to have some kind of power. As he watched, one seemed to crawl onto Willard, moving up his leg. Willard looked down and cried out, jumping and frantically brushing at it. Relthe looked down and saw that three of them were slowly climbing up him, but that he could make them out. They were spiders, brown-grey and looked poisonous. He swung the sword at them, knocking one off. Willard was looking down at himself with a paranoid expression, wondering when the next one would crawl onto him. Relthe knocked another of the arachnid assasins off. They seemed to be drawn to him and Willard. Hundreds of them were clustering towards him, and a couple were jumping down from the celing onto his head, his neck, his shoulders. Willard was frantic, ednlessly brushing down himself, panic-stricken. A couple had gotten bites in, and instead of a deadly poison, it was like the ice on the wind: no blood, no sound, just a quiet painful stab and a deep cut. Relthe was becoming almost as fantic as Willard. He was waving about his sword and jumping about while trying to dislodge the crowds of spiders climbing his clothing and skin. He was a mass of tiny wounds, and he was thinking of trying magic, not knowing what affect it would have in this half world, when he tightened his grip on the sword and- Blink ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! [Edited 1 time, last edit on 12/5/2003 at 03:58 (GMT -5) by Andor Drakon] |
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Andor Drakon Registered user uummm... ElDeR cHaOs GoD? Last page view: 7511 days, 5 hours, 37 minutes and 46 seconds ago. |
vHe was still in the inn, but it was different. It looked the same as it had before he touched the sword, complete with patrons and tables and innkeper, but they were silent, and their eyes were cold, uncaring. They had no emotion, no expressions, no thought. And then they slowly walked towards Relthe and Willard. Willard looked into the dead eyes of one of them and saw a puppet, a thing without mind which would slay him and walk on without even noticing. Those eyes scared him more than anything he'd ever seen. Relth simply knew this in a glance, and he sensed the cold malevolence in the silent figures. He drew back his arm and stabbed one of them with his sword. It struck as if it was striking a dummy, flatly and causing no real wound, as though he had stabbed a corpse. It did not even flinch but continued its walk towards him, forcing the sword down and out of his hand and- Blink As if it had never happened, the hellish half-realities dissapeared, leaving Relthe and Willard, bleeding and shocked, in an compltetely unchanged in. A few of the less drunk and more alert people gaped. Willard either had the sense not to draw more attention or was too shocked to say anything as Relthe quickly made his way to the door to the rooms, pulling Willard by the hand. In the corridor, Willard stopped and asked the inevitable question. "What happened?" Relthe looked down at the floor. "I don't know. Something magical. It might be clearer in the morning." and stepped into the room. ChAoS iS cOmInG! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! |
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Duke Ravage Moderator on this forum Gravebane Zombie Last page view: 5873 days, 12 hours, 41 minutes and 56 seconds ago. |
"Hey!" called Dalinor from behind Josua. "Hey! Wait!" Josua slowed, and Dalinor caught up with him. Both were panting hard but Dalinor appeared more wearied by the long run. They had been running for almost an hour, and Dalinor couldn't keep up the pace. They slowed to a walk, then stopped, panting hard. "Think... we lost... them?" asked Josua. Dalinor straightened. "Perhaps, but not for long. They'll be desparate now. They can't let us get away; if we do, they expect us to tell the Elementalists all about their little hideout, and that will be the end of the rebels. They're going to look long and hard for us." Josua began to walk again. "Lets go then. I don't really want to meet those fellas again." They walked for another hour or so before Dalinor stopped them again. "We can't keep walking all night," he said. "We need to sleep sometime." He led Josua to a small dip in the ground, and produced some bread. "Here. Eat." They sat down in the tall grass and began to eat their bread. It was then that Dalinor noticed the halfhelm Josua still held. He pointed with the crust of his bread. "Where did you get that?" Josua looked at it as if seeing it for the first time. Curiously, he examined the object, then finally dropped it beside him and shrugged. "I don't know." He looked up at Dalinor, who was looking at him oddly. "Honest, I don't. I didn't even know I had it until just now." Dalinor slowly shook his head. "You, my friend, are quite a strange one... This journey is turning out to be far more... unusual than I would like." He sighed. "Well, try it on at least. If it fits, you can keep it; it looks light enough to travel with, and some protection is better than none if we get into a fight. Otherwise, you can sell it." Hesitantly, Josua picked the helmet up, and uncertainly placed it on his head. Dalinor chuckled and reached over, lifting it and placeing it back in the proper position. He banged the side of it, then leaned back again. "Fits. Good. Now," he brushed the crumbs of the bread off his hands, "sleep. I'll keep first watch." He lay back and watched the stars. Josua did the same, but fell asleep almost immediately. ...storms... ...towering, dark walls on both sides, a narrow path along one side with a steep, dark drop on the left, and the cliff on the right... ...lightning, the glare from the flash lights the path, and the travellers that warily walk it... ...fear in everyones eyes, fear in myself, push it down... ...lighting, I see it glinting off Thaveas' helm beside me, my own sword before me... ...there... "Thats him!" I cry. An arrow hisses through the air, blazing with fire, arcing through the rain ahead of me. A flash of a hulking creature as the arrow soars past, then it is silhouetted by the arrow as it lands behind it. It roars and waves a huge axe above it, and charges. Three arrows fly into it, but bounce off it's thick hide. Then it is on us. Swords flash. Spears thrust. The axe makes a horrible din as it swings, as though the air itself cried out in pain as it were cleaved. It narrowly misses flesh, and it's bearer feels the sting of Thavaes' pike. Someone screams. I look as Trilus falls over the edge of Marden's abyss. I turn back to the beast and give it a hard slash in vengance... ...we battle... ...endless, time passes... ...I block the horrible, shreiking axe with my shield... my arm goes numb from pain as the sheild cracks... ...Thavaes is pinned! Help him... ...I'm falling... my chest is cut... I'm burning, I'm burning... ...burning... ivan.sourceforge.net |
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Iridia Registered user YASD Last page view: 3966 days, 9 hours, 22 minutes and 12 seconds ago. |
Relthe opened the door of the room, peeked inside, then placed a hand on Willard's chest, stopping him. "Shh," he said, tiptoeing inside. On the bed they could see the two girls, both fast asleep. Willard noticed that, as he entered the room, the world seemed to stabilize, the memory of the disconcerting images they had seen fading away like last night's dreams. Willard threw himself down into the single chair, sighing in relief. "What, exactly, just happened to us?" he demanded, his voice dropping to near-whisper in mid-sentence as he remembered the sleeping twins. Relthe would normally have tried to look as though he had everything under control; in a world where appearances were everything, that was what you did. But, still shaken by what they had seen, Relthe couldn't fall back on his usual way of doing things. "I don't know," he admitted. "I have no idea what it was." Willard was running one hand over the unbitten skin of his other arm. "It wasn't real," he said. "But..." "It felt real. I know." Relthe considered it for a second, then said, "There's one possibility." "Someone's trying to use magic to attack us?" Relthe raised an eyebrow; Willard had exactly anticipated what he was going to say. "Yes... but I don't know of any sort of attack that could do-- that." "And why they aren't coming after us, or trying something else, now that it's over," Willard said. "Exactly." "So what do we do?" Relthe sighed, mulling it over. "We sleep," he said finally. "We can't leave Andrea here, and if we did run, she'd most likely slow us down and prevent our getting away. And there's still your friend and the knight..." Relthe was already spreading his cloak on the floor. "Shouldn't we keep watch?" Willard said. "Oh. Yes, probably," Relthe said. "Wake me in a few hours, then." With that, he turned over, pillowed his head on his boots, and went to sleep. Die Gedanken sind Frei |
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