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| The forest; of doom! ...or not... | |
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| Topic Started: Oct 24 2006, 01:30 AM (203 Views) | |
| Syphon Knight | Oct 24 2006, 01:30 AM Post #1 |
 
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*KJ, Drako, and Ess Zee approved* This be the forest with all them trees, plants, and such. |
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| Syphon Knight | Oct 24 2006, 01:41 AM Post #2 |
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[size=7]Khalid[/size] (Continued from his recent [er...recent to him O_O] battle...oh and danger! Wall of text ahead...) The bleeding from his arrow wound had stopped and the blood began to clot over. Khalid had cleaned the wound most throughly and steeled himself against the effects of some latent poison. He felt fine, if however, fatigued. Convinced that no poison was present and the wound wouldn't re-open, he bandaged himself in a most ginger manner. The sharp pain seared his arm, but the pain was only passing; in a week or so, he would be in top shape again. Done, he grabbed his cloak and weapons and headed for the door. No time for sleep; his report of the ambush would have to be delivered immediately. Luckily, his employers home was not far. Actually, Khalid thought, it was more like his employers lair...to call it a home was a euphemism in every sense of the word. The lair was deeper into the forest, but it didn't seem that way. Khalid had hid in this very forest several times and never noticed the large stone structure. In fact, when his boss had given him details of it's location, he was sure it was a trap. But here it was. The entrance hall was above ground and the rest of the building dug into the earth around it. No markings or means of opening were seen on the heavy lead door leading to the entrance hall and a think fog always seemed to surrround the area. It looked more akin to a barrow rather than a stronghold. The assassin did not fear such things; death had brushed by him too many times to be afraid of ghosts. He approached the door; peering around catiously to make sure he wasn't be followed. Although the door appeared unmarked, there was a small rune near the very bottom. Khalid kneeled down and pressed his hand against it, the anicent door recognized his soul signature, and swung open. He closed the door tightly behind him and let his eyes adjust to the dim light. Torches lined the entrance hall, but they did little to dispel the seemlingly overwhelming blackness that hung over this place. Like the dying breath of a hundred corpses..., he thought after remembering a tome he once read. Khalid brushed aside his thoughts and strode downward into the silent hall. Even the light-footed steps of the quiet assassin sounded like cannon fire echoing off the black stone walls. Thin clouds of dust sprouted up here and there as he made his way to the boss's chambers. He passed several stone doors; each had a similar, but not the same marking as the entrance door. His employer had warned him not to attempt to open doors he wasn't allowed access to. Ancient magic had a way of dealing with trespassers and it was guaranteed not to be pleasant. He also passed a narrow staircase which he was told led to the dungeon and the crypt beyond it. If he could help it, he would not venture to either of the aforementioned locations. A damp, foul smelling stench eminated from this section and swam in the air like filthy clothing on a dry line. After what seemed to be nearly an hour, he arrived himself at the entrance of the antechamber. Here Khalid found the first signs of life. Well, not really. Intelligence perhaps, but not life. Two stone sentinels in the shape of minotuars stood guard outside the antechamber on either sides of the door. The red jeweled eyes of the minotuars watched Khalid with great care. Here he would have to leave all his weapons; his employer did not take chances especially when working with Khalid's kind. The minotuars, satisfied that he dropped all his weapons, seemed to relax and their eyes grew dim again. Khalid found the rune for the door and stepped inside the antechamber. The filthy room had a table and chair in the center with two burning candles atop it. A grotesque little dark mage by a name that Khalid couldn't pronounce correctly sat at table reading a tome. His eyes and face were always covered, but he emitted the fetid stench of rotting flesh and his hands were covered in boils; the sign of lepersy. He peered up at Khalid as he entered and stood up. "What is the color of the moon?", the mage asked in a voice that sounded like dry leaves being stepped on. "...The ivory of bones.", Khalid answered icily as was his custom. The mage nodded and turned to open the door to the master chamber. He wrote various runes in the air before the door and chanted something in elder magic. The door slide open and he vanished into the blackness beyond. Khalid waited only a few moments before the wizard reappeared. "Proceed.", he uttered in his raspy voice. Khalid stepped widely around the mage, while holding his breath, of course, and entered the master chamber. His employers chambers were very much unlike most of the rest of the old fortress. It was well-lit, extremely large, and full of artifacts. Dozens of tomes and scrolls adorned most of the room. One section of the chamber was devoted entirely to alchemical experiments. Large bottles bubbled and fizzed and a large calcinator stood prominently on the ground. Another area was dedicated to various magic materials and ingredients. Khalid did not recognize a majority of them, although the pig eyeballs did sort of stand out among the rest. A great oak desk and elegant high-back chair lie in front of the enormous fireplace in the very back of the room. The chair faced the fire, but Khalid could just barely make out the image of a tall figure sitting in it. He approached the desk and was greeted by his employers voice: "Do you know what the most destructive force on this planet is, Khalid?", said his boss. His voice was very deep and resonated in the room loudly. He spoke with an accent Khalid couldn't quite place. As for the question, the thief knew not so he kept his silence. The figure stood and turned to reveal himself. He was hooded all the time much like his minion just outside the door, but his face was not hidden; he appeared to be in his late 30's or early 40's. His hair was light brown and he lacked any facial hair. Huge bags lie under his dull eyes giving him a sunken sort of look. He seemed physically powerful, stood at an impressive height and demanded respect. His voice was confident and sure. He never gave his name and Khalid never asked. Probably better off not knowing anyway. "It's not elder magic as you may have guessed. It's not any conventional magic as matter of fact. It's sort of...a human magic, to put it bluntly.", he said. Khalid continued to stand in silence. "Not even a guess? Well, I suppose that's not your style. You simply like to be told what things are, yes? I'll tell you regardless: it's ignorance. The power to look around you and see nothing wrong...or everything. Why is it the most powerful? Elder magic can destroy a person, but ignorance can destroy a continent. Using it and deception to your advantage is the key to victory on any scale." "You probably wonder why I'm telling you this...My enemies know nothing of my intentions. What I plan to do and how I do it. All they know is that I'm on the move. It is essential to the weapon of ignorance that my oppponents remain in the dark.", he lectured. His voice became deeper and a tone of disappointment like when a child does something wrong surfaced. "You have compromised my plans. I know of your conflict in the town and I know you were arrow-shot in the right forearm. No doubt you checked yourself for poison, yet in your great haste to leave the skirmish, you forgot to check for witnesses. A rather foolish mistake." Khalid squinted in reply and shifted his weight slightly. "Not to worry, young man. I sent an operative in to clean up and dispose of a certain page that witnessed you mutilating a corpse. Nasty business, I say. I wonder what came over the normally cool as ice assassin?", his superior asked rhetorically. "Honestly, that mission was simply an exercise. I was quite aware that the source you found was bad and would lead to an ambush. I used you to draw them out and dispose of them." It was as if a red-hot piece of lead was placed on the back of Khalid's neck. Being used to achieve someone's goals in this particular manner did not sit well with Khalid as well as the lack of information he was getting. Killing a target was different. What came over me, he asks? The same rage I feel right now... "Calm yourself, friend.", the man said with a grin that revealed an unusually bright set of white teeth. "Their intention was to capture you alive and toture you to find me; they were not to kill you unless circumstances were dire. Now, you've demonstrated your combat skills and I find them satisfactory as well as your loyalty by not attempting to strike me just now. However, your strategy and logic is sadly poor. Luckily for you this was merely a test. Learn from it. Escape ignorance or it may cost you your life next time.", he said omniously. Turning back to the fire he said, "My enemies, no, our enemies are beginning to act now as well. By killing them you've chosen your side. You are a wanted man, my young assassin. Moreso than before. I suggest you tread more carefully from now on. Also, the name of the employer you found on the leader's body is a false one, but I know now exactly who she is. This assignment was not a complete failure...", he finished. Facing Khalid, he began once again: "Forget her for now, I have another assignment for you. This one is not a test, I assure you." He picked up a piece of parchment and a vial off the desk and handed it to him. It was a schematic of some sort of complex. It appeared to be a mansion or palace. "In Eturia, there a man named Coraelin...I believe you are familar with the Eturian noble district; I'll leave it to you to locate him. I want him removed from this world. Who he is and why I want him dead is none of your concern...at the moment. And I want him exterminated with this.", he said handing over the vial. "It's a venom extract of Nabatan desert red tarantula. I don't have to tell you how powerful it is; Coraelin will have no chance of surviving if he is stricken with this. Do not kill any of his family or his guards; only the target. You will be working with Lori (Khalid twitched slightly at this news) and you have until sunrise two weeks from now. Just one catch; I also need any personal belongings he has on him at the time of death; rings, amulets, money, anything. Now, I suggest you get started immediately.", he ended. Khalid liked the no questions, just kill the man routine, but he needed to know one important detail. "...what's the pay-out?", he asked. His employer's eyes went wide with surpise and he barked out a hearty laugh. "I was wondering when you would ask...since you are officially linked to me now, I can't have you backing out or working for someone else; you're in too deep. Your pay-out is your life." Khalid simply stared in disbelief at the man. His threats had gone far enough. The audacity...I will choke the very life out of him! "Oh, yes, I forgot to mention something...the 'other catch'", the boss said with a sinister grin. "That arrow you were shot with did in fact contain a poison. It's called sleeping death. Interesting substance; colorless, odorless, and tasteless, but that's not important now. What's important is that if you don't complete your assignment within two weeks, you will fall into a permanent coma unless you get the antidote. You may even begin to feel the early symptoms of fatigue already. How am I so sure of this, you ask? Why, it was I that supplied the poisoned arrows to those snipers. Don't be so surprised...my reach extends much further than you could even guess. I can't very well blow my cover just for your sake, you understand. In the end, it's much better this way, I believe. I told you when you signed up for this job that the amount of risks and danger would be high. And don't bother searching for the antidote on your own. I control most the herbal and alchemical markets; I will know if you're trying to cheat me." Khalid couldn't believe he had been duped. This man had worked out every angle and yet... "One last thing.", his enigmatic employer said while returning to his chair, "Since your life is now in my hands, I would prefer if you addressed me as 'sir' or 'master'. It puts our roles into much clearer prospective and should remind you of who is in charge here. Do you understand?". A large pulsing pain echoed in the back of Khalid's head. The urge to rip this bastard's throat out was immense. His arrogance would not go punished...as soon as the antidote in his hands. "...yes, sir", he replied with a nasty emphasis on the sir. "Be on your way, then.", his master said with a dismissive hand wave. As Khalid exited the large chamber, he vowed not take these transgressions lying down. He was nobody's lap dog. He had been outsmarted, but not beaten. After this job, his 'master' would die as well. He had not judged his loyalty as well as he thought. That was his master's 'ignorance'. |
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| The MetalMew | Oct 25 2006, 12:03 PM Post #3 |
There Can Only Be One!
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OoC: Methinks you might have screwed up some of the italicization. And... DUN DUN DUUUUN! *GORE'd* |
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Arrive. Raise Hell. Leave. [leaves own mark on profile] :D
[QUOTE = MSN with Tee]Taco says: ó_? Taco says: ....fear the almighty questionmark!eye[/QUOTE] Gail, FEABL's first Swordmaster (Retired) Alex, firey Wyvern Rider (Lvl 14) Silvia, teh shiny Paladin (Retired) Yoshiro, the Heroic bishie (Lvl 20/3) Domino, the alluring Assassin (Lvl 20/3) Syndor, FEABL's first Halberdier (Lvl 20/1) Zoe, FEABL's first Centurion (Lvl 15/4) 
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| Syphon Knight | Oct 25 2006, 08:37 PM Post #4 |
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OOC: Indeed, I did. And if you actually read through all of that, I applaud you. ô_o |
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| Lewa | Nov 12 2006, 07:58 PM Post #5 |
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Avu enters the forest. He scans for the thing that attacked him, but does not observe it. I hope it's gone for good. That thing could have killed me. He walks on until he reaches a clearing with a large sunny rock. He climbs onto it with ease and starts to polish Tueur. He is at it for about ten minutes before he hears a crunch from the right. He scans that way and notices a man-sized lump leaning against a tree. Avu points Tueur at the figure. "Who are you and why are you watching me?" The figure makes a gurgling noise. It then speaks in a raspy, wheezing voice. "Do you not know me, Demonslayer? I am one you thought to have killed. Will this jog your memory?" The figure makes a creaking sound and something lands on the rock in front of Avu. Avu carefully picks it up and feels it. "An arrow? I am afraid you are mistaken. I have never learned the fine art of archery." The figure moves towards Avu, accompanied by various unpleasant noises. "I know that. This arrow came from a demon. A demon who had mastered said fine art. You killed him. And because of your action, his arrow planted itself in my skull. Yet here I am." But that would make this- Avu thinks, then addresses the figure by its chosen title. "Ahoy there, Captain. Would you like me to finish you off?" It gurgles again, and Avu realizes this may be the walking corpse's way of laughing. "No, no, that will not be necessary. I cannot be killed." Avu raises an eyebrow. "I thought your General had died. According to that traitor of yours, it was Raieg that kept all of you alive." The figure coughs. "Not exactly. Most of our lives were joined to his by a spell that I myself devised. By keeping him out of battle, we could all remain alive even if we were injured. It was almost perfect. I alone saw the flaw. I had known Raieg for a long time. I knew he was impulsive and likely to get himself killed even outside of battle. So I altered the spell a tad before binding my own life. I did not entrust all of it to Raieg, but divulged some to another... an acquaintance, you might say. Until that one is dead, I shall not die." Avu listens calmly to this tale. "And you have come to gloat?" The Captain's nearly dead body gurgles again. "No, I have come to kill two birds with one stone. I want revenge on you for attempting to kill me. I also need a new body, since this one will shortly cease to be useful. The perfect solution is to rip your soul from your body and possess it myself." At this Avu sighs. "I knew this would come to you wanting to kill me. Oh well, I suppose I'll have no choice but to go beg the gods for reincarnation, then." "Not going to happen. I'll destroy your soul, which means you can't go to the gods. No soul means you don't even exist. Any last words?" Note: The following occurs after what just happened in town with Cait and Tomba. "How about... No," Avu says, then leaps at the Captain, plunging Tueur into its chest. The Captain gurgles, then stops. "Wait, I'm bleeding again. What did you do to the dog?!?!?" It then collapses to the ground. "Dog? What dog?" Avu asks, but the Captain is gone. Well, that was odd. He signs his name in the blood and leaves the body. |
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Sir Ris (Lvl 20/7 Paladin) Cassidy (Lvl 20/3 Templar) XEQ (Lvl 20/3 Sniper) Jael (Lvl 15 Swanson Brot (Lvl 7 Squire) | |
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| ruroni kenshin121 | Dec 1 2006, 12:12 PM Post #6 |
maid of the month. July 07
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Nobusupa "Well Kelly, I guess I will be seeing you later." Nobusupa smiled, he hadn't really paid it much atteniton, but the young woman, was very beautiful. "Yeah, thanks for getting me a sword, mabey well see each other again." Kelly added. "Yeah me to." He said, I'll come back around on my way out of town, ok." "ok." She responded. |
 Unknown lvl 3 shaman. Mother, Father where are youGale cavalier with pride. I would really like some people to come to this website. It is my first message board, and I would like it if some of you would come support me with it.  Now you can just click on this to go to the website. We really need people to join. As of now, we have 6 registered members. A little bit of writing has been posted. Daku, The evil one Nobusupa, The oddly dressed samuria kelly the clueless womanLayla the sexy ninja chick. My rp with shade. Neela vs Nobusupa. (with out all the oocs. So please come cheack it out and tell me what you think of my getting owned.) This is my favorite site on the internet, and I want to share it with those who do not know of it. Bob and George the comic stirp | |
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| ruroni kenshin121 | Dec 1 2006, 11:05 PM Post #7 |
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maid of the month. July 07
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Daku "I smell him." Daku used his demonic sense of smell. "He is near." The hours went on, as the mercanary neared Nobusupa's camp in the forest. "I'll be there in a little while." Daku spoke, eager to fight the young samuria. |
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Unknown lvl 3 shaman. Mother, Father where are you Gale cavalier with pride. I would really like some people to come to this website. It is my first message board, and I would like it if some of you would come support me with it. Now you can just click on this to go to the website. We really need people to join. As of now, we have 6 registered members. A little bit of writing has been posted.Daku, The evil oneNobusupa, The oddly dressed samuriakelly the clueless womanLayla the sexy ninja chick. My rp with shade. Neela vs Nobusupa. (with out all the oocs. So please come cheack it out and tell me what you think of my getting owned.) This is my favorite site on the internet, and I want to share it with those who do not know of it. Bob and George the comic stirp | |
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| ruroni kenshin121 | Dec 1 2006, 11:53 PM Post #8 |
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maid of the month. July 07
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Wall of text coming. Daku, and Nobusupa “I have found you. The one who killed my brother.” Daku yelled, ready to fight the oddly dressed warrior.” Prepare to die. “Look Daku. I killed him, because he tried to kill me. It was me, who wanted it more, therefore I took his life, to finish my training.” Nobusupa yelled. “It was either, me or him.” “I don’t care. Time to fight.” Daku picked up the bralka, as Nobusupa unsheathed the black thunder. “Fine, you want to fight, well lets have at it. I need to see some blood sometime, or I might just go soft.” Nobusupa’s stare froze in Daku’s direction. The two legendary blade’s gleamed in the moon light. “You just better be glad that little girl isn’t here to witness your death. She might be broken for life, from the sight of you head being chopped off.” Daku laughed. “Enough of this talk. Let’s fight, before the food, I just ate is digested, and I get hungry again. “Fine.” Daku smiled, as he charged at Nobusupa at high speed. He slung the blade downward, but Nobusupa anticipated it, and moved out the way. Nobusupa then tried to attack with a horizontal swing, but the blades’ locked, and Daku sent a kick to the face of Nobusupa, knocking him off balance. “Not fast enough boy.” Daku laughed, just barley skinning Nobusupa’s left shoulder, with a follow up downward strike. “If this is who killed my brother, then I think it was pure luck.” Daku was angered by the weakness, of the young boy he fought. “Fine, I’ll show you what I can do. Hyrokuzin(falling flame).” Nobusupa leaped into the air, and his katana was surrounded by a aura of fire. It hurts with this shoulder , oww. I still won’t loose. He came down blade first, and locked blades, with Daku, again. “Wow this is the power that could have been my brother’s. Daku smiled, as he slung Nobusupa away from him, with a mighty swing of his sword. Out of know where came a small steel sword, that flew right at Daku, and it pierced his shoulder. “Leave him alone!” The voice of Kelly rang loud in both the fighter’s ears. “What are you doing here?” Nobusupa yelled. “Fine Nobusupa, you won’t to play that way, I’ll be back, and next time I won’t be alone.” Daku laughed again, and started walking away. “Just keep your gertooth sharp, because It will be me and you, just your friend won’t interfere.” Daku just walked off, not even taking the sword from his shoulder. “Man there went my sword!” She complained “Why did you have to get involved in this?” Nobusupa complained as well. And how did he know the sword’s real name? I hope you enjoyed this big wall of text, tell me what you think. |
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Unknown lvl 3 shaman. Mother, Father where are you Gale cavalier with pride. I would really like some people to come to this website. It is my first message board, and I would like it if some of you would come support me with it. Now you can just click on this to go to the website. We really need people to join. As of now, we have 6 registered members. A little bit of writing has been posted.Daku, The evil oneNobusupa, The oddly dressed samuriakelly the clueless womanLayla the sexy ninja chick. My rp with shade. Neela vs Nobusupa. (with out all the oocs. So please come cheack it out and tell me what you think of my getting owned.) This is my favorite site on the internet, and I want to share it with those who do not know of it. Bob and George the comic stirp | |
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| Walliard | Sep 26 2007, 05:32 AM Post #9 |
I'm not _legally_ allowed to own a gun. Hope everybody's okay with that.
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(Ooh, a convenient forest. I should use this for my RP) [size=7]Pele[/size] The day was calm and the air was warm. A gentle breeze blew through the grove. Next to a large oak tree lay the prone figure of a young girl. She was modestly dressed and had short, bright orange hair. Though unconscious, she showed no visible signs of injury. She stirred. As she came to her senses, she slowly got up and looked around. Her eyes were filled with an unworldly determination and a sense of wisdom beyond her apparent age. This appears to be the right place. The nearby city should be my next destination. Satisfied with her location, she began to look over her own body. In surprisingly good shape. This ought to do well. She paused at the edge of the clearing before heading onwards to Emerald Moor. She closed her eyes and bowed her head slightly. Though taciturn so far, she finally saw fit to let two words slip out, even though no one was around to here them: "Thank you." |
Every time you hotlink images, Obi-Wan loses the high ground. So please, think of Obi-Wan; use Photobucket. Avery (Level 20/10 Centurion) - "I'll be honest; I really have no idea what I'm doing here." Karen (Level 15 Horse Archer) - "Excuse me while I go break something." Ianto (Level 9 Shaman) - "Let the plan begin..." Wanda (Level 5 Squire) - "I'm not Pele. I just happen to look like her, that's all." Adelaida (Level 3 Gypsy) - "..." Retired characters: François (Level 20/20 Paladin) To make a 'ç': Alt + 0231 Always open to reasonable challenges, PM or otherwise. Also, feel free to contact me for character approval and the like.
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| Spotted Zebra | Dec 9 2007, 09:59 PM Post #10 |
The Yellow Rose.
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(OOC: {hijacks topic} I'm gonna resume my RPing from The Outskirts in this topic, since it's closer to where things are actually going on.) [size=5]Somewhere in the northeast portion of Emerald Wood....[/size] [size=7]Mu Arae[/size] The search for information was fruitless. Two groups consisting of all but four of the mercenaries had gone to Emerald Moor in the hopes of gathering info from the locals regarding the whereabouts of Mu's dragons (as they were being called), but none of the villagers had any idea about the subject. For that matter, most of the villagers thought that the mercenaries were crazy, and weren't afraid to tell them so. It was a tired and frustrated group that went back to the camp late that night. Mu had heard the heavy footsteps several minutes before any of the searchers actually trudged into sight; Karon heard them eventually and looked up from a sheet of parchment that he was writing on. Heniel opened the door to the old building and walked in with a weariness that was unusual for her, followed by Thylora and the remaining mercenaries. The latter immediately began taking off the plates of armor she wore, as if she wanted to get it off as quickly as possible so she could sleep. Heniel and the others simply filed over to various places within the building and flopped down, on the floor when the few chairs were filled. Karon was both surprised and displeased by the fact that nobody knew anything about the dragons, but at such a late hour, there was nothing his troop could do but regroup and try again tomorrow. A restless sleep soon descended over them. ~~~ The next morning, it snowed. After breakfast, Mu sat at a window of the little abandoned house, wrapped in a blanket, watching as the white flakes fell serenely. She liked snow; it calmed her and put her mind at ease. The cold that came with it was disagreeable thanks to her uniform--as a pegasus knight, she wore the usual short sleeves and short skirt--but it didn't bother her too much so long as she had a good blanket. The rest of the mercenaries were talking things over. "...so we have a vague idea of where we are, going off the map of Lycia," Anton, the thief, was saying, "but it's not really detailed enough to know how the area of Emerald Moor looks." "Sure, there's the village and this forest, and all that," Heniel added. "It ain't gonna be easy to find those dragons if we don't know what's around here, though. We don't know what all is this place beyond what we've seen with our own eyes. They could be anywhere." Karon's brow knit as he pondered all of this. "There's gotta be someone around here with a better map." "I thought of that when we were out yesterday," a myrmidon said. "There was a mapmaker in town, but he charged, like...five hundred gold for a map, or something." "I added everything up last night. We've got a grand total of three hundred seven'y-two gold." Karon snorted. "Blast." "My thoughts exactly, sir." "Of course, we could inquire at the white fortress Mu spoke of...." Thylora mused. "She heard the dragons being discussed there, did she not? Although, according to what she gathered, its denizens are powerful magicians...." The assassin's eyes widened. "I'M NOT GOING OVER THERE. YOU CAN'T MAKE ME." Thylora raised an eyebrow. "Calm down, sir. There is still a chance that we may not need to bother them. It would probably be wise not to bother them unless it becomes necessary, for that matter. We do not need to arouse the suspicions of those magicians." Heniel nodded. "Yeah, it'd be bad if we made 'em mad." Natasha, the myrmidon from before, was next. "Ask them, I think we should. Might actually do some good." "Would you knock it off with the rhyming?!" "Yes, sir," both Heniel and Natasha said, with a sigh. Thylora looked as if she didn't know what was going on. She shrugged. "...in any case," the mercenary said, "we can do nothing that would require us to leave camp, until the snow desists. So, on the subject of a better map, perhaps Eft could make one, with input from the rest of us? It would cost nothing." "That's a great idea, actually...." Karon looked over at a young soldier. "Eft, can you make a map?" "I-I believe so, sir," the boy replied. "Good. Thylora, Mu, and twins--you help him with it." Eft, Thylora, Natasha, and the resident priest immediately sat down and did as they were ordered. Mu, however, was still watching the snow and lost in her thoughts. I wonder if dragons like snow.... "...Mu? Hello?" Karon waved a hand in front of her face; that finally got her attention. "What, are you mute and deaf now?" Err...sorry, sir.... The petite girl got off her perch on the windowsill. What did you--- "I said to help Eft make a map. Do it." Oh, okay. "Excuse me?" I mean, yes, sir! "Good girl." (OOC: Continued later. {goes out in search of dinner}) |
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"You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who says it or does it." --- Malcolm X. "The AI is not very smart. It makes up for that by cheating." --- Naglfar, on Civilization II: Multiplayer Gold Edition. XD
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My characters:  Naia, level 20/11 Valkyrie |  Firenze, level 20/3 Mystic Lynore, level 15 Nomad |  Mu Arae, level 15 Pegasus Knight Mars, level 3 ProfessorFirenze is temporarily accepting reasonable challenges. Mars'll fight anyone. Spot prefers to stat in battles since she usually lacks sufficient time to run them through an RNG. The Mamkutes' profile Skye's profile Gloria's profile | |
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| Spotted Zebra | Nov 20 2008, 08:18 PM Post #11 |
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The Yellow Rose.
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Mu Arae And so, work on the map commenced, for lack of anything better to do. It turned out that cartography and general art were the only things Eft could do decently--that was probably the only reason anyone let the gawky little fellow stick around. With guidance from Mu and the others, a detailed map of Emerald Moor and the surrounding countryside soon emerged, complete with snow-capped mountains (which were only accurate because the snow hadn't melted off them yet; normally they were bare), cobblestone roads for the village, and birds flying hither and thither. After a while, though, there was little else anyone could offer to help Eft along, leading to acute boredom for everyone except him. Mu just sat around and watched everyone else work. Karon and Thylora went over their expenses again, discussing what they should do next and what they could sell to have a little more money on hand; Natasha and her twin Nathaniel set about to preparing a meal; Anton and one of the other mercenaries was sent off to get more firewood, since Karon had made it quite clear he had no intention of doing it himself--gathering fuel was a job for underlings; Heniel flitted about, pretending to be helpful; and the resident hulking knight clanked off into the woods to hunt something down for food, a task he was surprisingly good at. All in all, everyone was kept rather busy even though nothing substantial was getting done. Every now and again, Karon would walk over to Eft to check on the map's progress. It was coming along quickly, but it would have made progress much faster if the foot soldier hadn't kept getting distracted and started scribbling random stuff. After a couple of peeks, Karon bent over the boy again. "Quit doodling in the margins, Eft," he said. The startled Eft dropped his pen. "Y-yes, sir." Some time went by. The base for the twins' stew was starting to smell really, really good, as Mu thought to herself. She curled up in her blanket some more. The other mercenaries would probably be back soon, then it would be time to eat. And Karon walked over to Eft again, looking over his shoulder. "Quit doodling in the margins, Eft...." "I'm trying, sir!" the nervous boy answered, though at least he didn't drop the pen this time. He went back to filling in the grid of the map. More time passed. Karon peered over Eft's shoulder for the third time. "Quit doodling in the margins, Eft!" "I CAN'T!" The poor soldier threw his arms in air helplessly, with such force that he hit his boss in the face. Karon stumbled backward quite a ways, tripping over a stack of tomes, a chair, and the cooking pot before he finally came to a halt against a wall, dust showering over him from the ceiling above. Eft was utterly horrified. "...What is wrong with you, man?" Karon said after a few moments as he got to his feet--slowly, for fear that he'd set the soldier off again. Eft didn't respond, he just sat there with a look on his face that had the effect of turning his face a pale shade of green. Natasha went to Eft's side, gripping his shoulders protectively. "Calm down, kid, we don't mind your scribblings," she said soothingly. "Just finish what you started, okay?" "O-o-okay." Eft picked the pen back up and started again. "Are you all right, sir?" "No," Karon muttered, and flopped into a vacant chair. "I'm surrounded by a bunch of morons...." It was about that time that the three vacant mercenaries returned, all at once. Anton and his archer companion dumped a large bundle of wood outside next to the little shack, with a nice, loud series of thudding noises that made it sound like a small battalion of battering rams had just arrived and started pummeling the building for fun. As Karon jumped out of his seat, he was nearly trampled by Richard the knight plodding in with an extremely large boar that he dropped directly atop the single table where Eft was attempting to finish his map. "...Dinner," he grunted, in one of his few instances of saying anything intelligible. "And a fine dinner it will make, I'm sure!" Natasha remarked brightly, as she cradled Eft's head in her arms; he was wailing horribly about the state of his map, now invisible under a quarter ton of pork. Meanwhile, Mu watched all of this from her perch on the windowsill, completely unfazed. For better or for worse, this sort of chaos was completely normal. And Karon flopped back in his chair despondently, burying his face in his hands. Thylora bent over the back of his chair. "Are you quite well, sir?" "I have the mother of all headaches," was his muffled reply. "Shall I procure some ale, sir?" "You could procure me some sanity, that's what you could do." "I'm afraid none of the local vendors offer such a product, sir." "..." |
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"You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who says it or does it." --- Malcolm X. "The AI is not very smart. It makes up for that by cheating." --- Naglfar, on Civilization II: Multiplayer Gold Edition. XD
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My characters: Naia, level 20/11 Valkyrie | Firenze, level 20/3 Mystic Lynore, level 15 Nomad | Mu Arae, level 15 Pegasus KnightMars, level 3 ProfessorFirenze is temporarily accepting reasonable challenges. Mars'll fight anyone. Spot prefers to stat in battles since she usually lacks sufficient time to run them through an RNG. The Mamkutes' profile Skye's profile Gloria's profile | |
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| Spotted Zebra | Sep 4 2009, 03:25 AM Post #12 |
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The Yellow Rose.
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(OOC: ...has it really been that long since I posted in here? I forgot what I was doing....) Firenze Though most of the vendors in Emerald Moor had closed their shops for the day, Firenze got to the right store just in time, and was able to buy the tome he needed. He could have waited until tomorrow, sure, but...what he hadn't told Naia, before he left, was that all day he'd had a feeling of apprehension that he couldn't explain away. If something happened at the Sanctuary, he wanted to be prepared. He couldn't easily use any of the more-powerful tomes that the Powerful Ones kept lying around for a rainy day, anyway; Shine was the next best thing. Speaking of rainy days, Naia was right when she'd said she thought a storm was approaching; as Firenze walked past the last building on the edge of town and turned toward the forest, he heard thunder in the distance. Had it been dark enough to see the lightning, he might have been able to figure out how far away the storm was...either way, there was nothing else he needed from the village. He was sure he could make it home in time. Mu Arae There he is! That's him! "Who? Where?" As Karon motioned for everyone to duck and avoid being seen, Mu pointed at the red-haired young man walking who had just strode into view. That's the one who had the dragons! He should know where they are! Four pairs of eyes stared out from within the trees--Mu, Karon, Thylora, and Anton. They had thought about paying the village another visit before the storm hit, in pursuit of Mu's dragons, and so were gathered just behind the last bit of underbrush in the woods, hidden by the low light level beneath the forest canopy. None of them had expected they would run into one of the two people Mu had spied on when she had first heard about the dragons. "...Mu, I can't just walk up to him and go, 'Hey, I heard you know some dragons, where can I find them?'" Karon whispered. "They're obviously not common knowledge around here." Anton explained the situation to Thylora, who could not hear Mu's thoughts. The mercenary was pragmatic, as always, but matters were becoming dire. Sorinar was impatient, and if the mercenaries could not find the dragons, catch them, and take them back to their employer, they would not be paid, and...well, no one wanted to think about that. "He's pretty well-armed," Anton observed of their quarry, peeking over a flowery shrub. "He's a magician," said Karon. He's dreamy.... Mu's thoughts wafted over the two that could hear her. Karon and Anton both stared at the girl in disgust. Thylora had no idea what was going on, but judging by the men's reactions, she decided she did not care to know anyway. "He is walking this way," she said. "If we are to approach him, we must do it now before he sees us. He will be suspicious otherwise." "I got it." Karon stood up and walked out from beneath the trees, pushing back a few branches. The startled magician reached into the sack he was carrying, presumably for a spellbook, but when Karon held up his hands, he relaxed somewhat. "Whoa, sorry, Mister," the assassin said convincingly, "didn't mean to scare you. Can't say I blame you for gettin' defensive in these parts, though--doesn't seem like a safe place to me." "I suppose it isn't," the monk said. "...And I apologize for being jumpy." "Like I say, it's no big deal. It's weird around here. Heck, I could almost swear I saw a dragon fly overhead a while ago!" Karon was obviously lying--or, at least, exaggerating, to someone who did not know better--but the way the young man stiffened signaled that he was indeed on the right track. "It must've been a wyvern," the magician said, a little too quickly. "There are several riders around the village." "I dunno, it was pretty big," Karon replied casually. "But I guess it could've been a wyvern. Where would a beast the size of a dragon hide around here, anyway?" The monk calmed down a little, but even Mu could see the distrust in his eyes from where she was. "I'm sure I don't know. Anyway, if you'll excuse me, I really need to get going." "Hold on, now," Karon interjected, and stepped in the monk's way. "I mean no harm, really---" That was too much, and all four mercenaries knew it, but there was nothing to be done now. "Look," the monk hissed, "I don't know who you are or what you're after, and frankly I don't care. Just leave me alone." "I'm not after anything, I just need another moment of your time, if you would---" The magician unsheathed the sword hanging from his belt. Mu cringed; Anton started to dart out from his hiding place in Karon's defense, but Thylora gripped his arm, quietly pointing out that moving too soon would only make matters worse. And the red-haired magician glowered at Karon. "I'm not going to stand here any longer and get struck by lightning," he said firmly. "Leave me alone." The assassin said nothing for a moment, then his expression turned to one of surprise. He pointed behind the irritated monk, and shouted, "Look out, it's going to hit you!" Instinctively, the monk ducked, looking back over his shoulder. Nothing was there...of course. In an instant, Karon bent down, picked up a large stick, and whacked the monk over the head with it; he collapsed without a sound. Except for the crack of the stick breaking, anyway. Mu gasped--that was not what she had wanted to happen at all. She, Thylora, and Anton finally crept out of the woods. Did you have to hit him so hard? Mu thought to Karon crossly, as she knelt over the unconscious monk. Karon snorted. "Not if you didn't want him to get away," he said, "never mind that I wasn't too interested in being turned to mincemeat, either." "If I may, sir, you might have been more subtle in your questioning," Thylora advised. The assassin glared at her. "I don't do subtlety." "So," Anton cut in, "what are we supposed to do now that our only real chance at any information is drifting with the clouds?" Karon picked up the monk's sword, contemplating it for a moment; it was a slender, single-edged thing that one normally did not see in rural Lycia. "Let's get him back to the camp," he said. "Maybe he'll cooperate then. Thylora--no, he's waaaay too heavy for you even with help, just carry his stuff. Anton, you help me carry the boy. Augh, you'd think the kid was carrying bricks under that robe of his...at least nobody else is out here, thanks to the rain, otherwise we'd be completely sunk...." The four mercenaries trudged back to the old shack they had taken over, the monk in tow, and Karon's complaints were quieted eventually, just as rain began to fall over the temporarily sleepy village and those who were crazy enough to live there. |
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"You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who says it or does it." --- Malcolm X. "The AI is not very smart. It makes up for that by cheating." --- Naglfar, on Civilization II: Multiplayer Gold Edition. XD
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My characters: Naia, level 20/11 Valkyrie | Firenze, level 20/3 Mystic Lynore, level 15 Nomad | Mu Arae, level 15 Pegasus KnightMars, level 3 ProfessorFirenze is temporarily accepting reasonable challenges. Mars'll fight anyone. Spot prefers to stat in battles since she usually lacks sufficient time to run them through an RNG. The Mamkutes' profile Skye's profile Gloria's profile | |
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7:51 AM Nov 25
