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Post by Angmor on Feb 28, 2009 17:56:18 GMT -5
Thark Storvek sat in his favorite overstuffed chair in his study, a lit pipe between his lips. At twenty-six years old, he was a distinctly average man in appearance, from his light green eyes to his medium length brown hair. His build was rather thin and wiry, but the condition of his muscles made it apparent that he could give a good account of himself in a fight. That however was as far as his typical traits went. Beneath this, Thark was… different. He was not quite sure when he discovered this; it might have been as a teenage youth, being told by his parents that they were going to make a run for Surda, and realized that he despised them for it. His father had been a wealthy merchant in Dras-Leona, a man of great standing and respect. His mother had been a very beautiful woman, a prominent figure in the city’s social circles. Thark might have even loved them, he could not remember. His father had spent all the time with his son that could have been asked, teaching him the competent use of the sword, as well as the more delicate art of outmaneuvering one’s enemies in business. Thark far preferred this to physical confrontation, for he possessed a cunning mind that took to the cutthroat nature of commerce right away. He was especially adept at manipulating events to go his way, from the petty struggles of a small boy to the winning of attractive girls from the other wealthy merchant’s sons.
But then his parents had come to him, saying that it was time to leave. Time to leave everything he knew, everything he had built up for himself, in order to relocate to Surda. The threat of the Varden had been growing exponentially, and Galbatorix was growing increasingly suspicious of the upper class of his kingdom. At least, that’s what they said. Thark could not believe what he was hearing. It was on that day that he discovered that he loved the Empire. He knew deep in his heart that Galbatorix would reign until he died, and would crush all resistance to his regime. But his parents would hear none of his arguments, no matter how eloquent, and the deal was done. They shipped out to Surda, simply disappearing from Dras-Leona without a word to anyone. Through contacts his father had made, they were able to use the wealth they had been able to bring with them to start over, and were rather well off by Surdan standards. After a time, his father managed to regain his standing in the shipping business, and things returned to much as they were before. Even despite this, Thark remained bitter in his heart. He did however keep his feelings hidden, knowing that nothing could be done to sway his parents. Instead he continued his education, to the point where his father turned over the business to him when he got to be too old to handle the strain. Thark was overjoyed, but he still kept quiet, biding his time. One day, both of his parents fell mysteriously ill. A few days later, they were dead. He had been suitably somber and grieving at the funeral, but he did find time to flash his second in command a warm smile. Now at last, he could begin.
It had not been difficult to find a group of men who felt the same way he did about the Varden and Surda, and as he found these men and women he surrounded himself with them as “associates”. Over the years that followed, he had built up a huge network that rivaled that of the Varden in gathering information, although it was small enough to avoid suspicion. As more flocked to him and more information poured in, a plan to regain his standing slowly began to form. Finally, when Surda closed its borders and declared itself officially at war with the Empire, he knew that the time to act was near. He quickly set the wheels in motion, waiting for the time to strike. And now, it had come.
Thark glanced up as his lieutenant entered the room. He was far older than his superior, standing a full head and shoulders above him. Socen was a seasoned, shaven-headed mercenary, a soldier of fortune who had managed to survive off his sword, and sporting the scars to prove it. He was a veteran of countless fights and engagements, but even he knew his place. He was drawn to his latest employer however not because of the money, but because he was good at following orders. And Thark Storvek was adept at giving them. “It is almost time my lord.” He said, addressing the high back of the chair with his eyes averted. A jet of aromatic smoke rose above the partition, followed by the head of its occupant. “Good. Are the assets in place?” Thark asked, neatly veiling his excitement behind a façade of indifference as he stepped around the chair. It was never good to show emotion in front of subordinates, it was a sign of weakness. “They are my lord. Everything is ready.” Thark allowed a smile then, the kind he reserved for business rivals, one that did not reach the eyes. “Good.” He repeated, his baritone voice scrubbed of all sentiment before being allowed to pass his lips. “At last all of our plans are coming to fruitation.” “Indeed my lord. It is a great day.” “I shall prepare. Make ready my carriage.” “At once.” The mercenary bowed and left the room, heading for the stables. Thark allowed a full smile then, finally letting all of his excitement reach his face. At last. It could begin, after all these years. All of the pieces were about to fall into place. He sighed, turning for his bedroom to don more formal attire. It wouldn’t do to keep king Orrin waiting.
. . .
Taraak awoke as he had a thousand times before, with a strangled gasp and a rush to his feet, knife in hand. As soon as his bare feet hit the cold stone of the floor, he remembered where he was. In his small room in the inn where he normally stayed between missions, near the center of Aberon. He sank back onto the cot, sheathing his knife in its customary place. It was kept there even as he slept, more as a comfort than protection. He cupped his face in his hands, trying to bring his breath and pulse back under control. It was just another nightmare, another memory, same as he had every night. The nights where he was able to go from dusk to dawn without waking at least once were scarce, so much that he could almost count them on one hand. The shades of his past that chose to revisit him were almost always terrible, robbing him of the rest he needed.
When he had returned from his last mission, it was one of those times when his superiors had decided enough was enough. He had twisted his ankle on that assignment, but that was not the only reason. Many nights without sleep had taken their toll on his body, if not his spirit. He always hated when he was forced into taking downtime, even more so because it was necessary. He did need rest, even if he despised it. The only time his mind got to relax was when he was on a mission, but at the cost of his body. Eventually the strain would catch up to him, and he would need to take some weeks to recover, where his nightmares would be overwhelming. But, at least he had his books. The castle Library was his favorite place to be in all the world, except for the library of Tronjheim. That is where he spent most of his downtime, unless he was sparring with the Surdan soldiers or exercising to keep up his strength. Books were the only other things that could occupy his mind enough for him to gain solace from his memories, and so he sought them at times like these.
When he was under control again he stood up, taking an experimental step. His ankle was still sore, but the limp was almost gone. But he still felt that every muscle was still strained and aching, like he had slept on a bed of rocks that night. No, he still wasn’t ready, not yet. He sighed and sat down on the cot again, donning his boots and shoulderbag. He wondered sometimes why most soldiers trained with anything less than full kit. After all, would anyone ever have time to secure his or her kit in a safe place before putting that training to use in a real environment? It didn’t make sense to him. He let his mind wander over such thoughts as his fingers worked out of habit and memory to don his cloak and at last his bow and quiver. When he left the inn and into the brisk morning air, he felt more like himself.
First would be a quick jog around the outer wall of the castle. He would often use that for his daily run, and he knew the names of all the sentries on every rotation of the watch, and they knew him. Of course, most of them knew him under different names, but such was his life. Even though they were in friendly territory, he could not trust any of them. It would strike many as a lonely way to live, but to Taraak it was simply business as usual. It was part of the reason why he had survived so long. After his run, he would go to the library and see what other books would take his fancy. He had already read half of the volumes the library contained, effectively recording them to memory. He was unsure what he would do when he got through all of them. He sighed again. Nothing ever happened on days like these… [/Blockquote]
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~X~Cali~*
Novice
Time for Some Epicness xD
Posts: 48
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Post by ~X~Cali~* on Feb 28, 2009 17:58:48 GMT -5
~Shale~ ~Rae~ (Roran) ~Other~
…Clear skies greeted the travelers that day as they strode towards the great city gates of Aberon, Shale looked around & he could see the happiness on Roran’s face, Shale knew well Roran was happy to be back in Aberon, the Big man had told them he wanted to meet up with Eragon when he was back in Surda. Shale slightly inclined his head at the man & as he did so he felt the soft touch of Rae’s hand on his shoulder, Shale glanced back at the Elf & could only smile as he looked into her enchanting green eyes hiding behind a few strands of raven black hair, In all the hardship they went through Shale would go through it all again if it had meant he would meet Rae. Through their trials Rae had saved him & he had saved her on so many occasions as well. As they walked through the gates Shale was amazed at the splendor of the Capital of Surda, it was his first time in a capital city & the size of it had the half elf in absolute Awe.
Shale glanced over & saw Roran going to some guards & asking them a some of questions, as the man returned he said “the Guards say Eragon has been seen around here, I think I’ll start my search for him now...” Shale could see in Roran’s eyes that he was sad to say goodbye & the half elf gave the man a slight bow & said “Roran you have been a Great friend on this journey, if ever we get the chance I personally would not mind at all to journey with you again, Take care Strong hammer…” Shale noted Roran’s sudden discomfort at the appraisal, he quickly said “Shale stay out of trouble, hey & do take good care of our friend Rae. Hopefully I’ll be seeing you two soon again, hopefully” with that the big man departed off into the city.
Shale looked over to Rae & said “I guess we should be off, Borromeo Castle awaits us.” Shale saw Rae move towards him & said “You mean the king awaits, I would pay to see you explain our news to the Castle” her voice full of gentle mock, smiling at the half elf. A broad grin broke out on Shale’s face & just shook his head saying “you Know Rae, one day I’ll be getting you for all of your sly little jokes” suddenly jumping at her & chasing her playfully for a short distance, as they stopped Rae retorted slyly “that’s if you actually catch me someday” Shale saw the her sly grin & he started to reply with some sort of sarcasm, but he stopped & just started laughing, after a few moments he said “I guess you speak true words, but I might get lucky, you just watch &see…” Shale smiled broadly at the Elf & she returned it fully. After a moment the duo continued towards the castle …
**
…Shale & Rae had quickly stopped at the market, quickly getting some minor supplies for their satchels. Happily walking through the busy road, Shale was glad to be in Aberon after all the months of travel; his thoughts were constantly on the much needed rest they would get after they had completed their task at the castle. As they walked a sudden crash sounded off next of the pair, in an instant both of the duo’s weapons were out & ready, glancing around Shale saw the source of the commotion being a merchant who had accidently dropped one of his baskets. Shale’s shoulders slumped & he started to chuckle, Rae glanced at him with surprise, but soon it was great laughter between the two.
Rae was the first to sheath her weapon & with effort got her laughing to a halt, started towards Shale tapping him on shoulder saying “If I left you alone in the market I’ll probably end up finding you in the dungeons for throttling an innocent merchant for scaring you, hey Shale?” Shale’s head came up & he quickly replied without missing a beat “Oh but Dear Lovinoraem, I’ll probably be thrown into the cell after you, I’m not nearly that quick to throttle a man for a fright as you.”
Rae was full of surprise of the statement & started off with a quip but paused, but Shale didn’t miss the gesture & chuckled “See you confirm it!”said the half elf with a great big smile, that only brought him a numb shoulder, Shale quickly walked after the smiling Elf rubbing his sore arm after Rae’s punch “Remind me that I remember that you have a far stronger punch to those arms of yours than it seems the next time” Shale saw joy glow out of Rae’s face & he didn’t miss her wicked grin, but before he could retort something Rae said "Oh Yes, We Finally Reached our Destination" he saw something that made his jaw drop open, Borromeo Castle…
****
...A Scout walked up to the merchant & quickly gave a count on what they have overheard, The Merchant Noble behind them looked at the pair & Smiled wickedly as he said "Looks like we have the first people for our plan"...
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Post by Angmor on Mar 1, 2009 9:49:50 GMT -5
Taraak stood in an alcove, waiting with unassailable patience. The rotation of the guard would be bringing his target around soon, if he was following protocal. A sheen of sweat still covered his forehead, the only visible remains of his sparring match a few minutes before. There were three new soldiers who had joined from the same village, and thought themselves crack hands at sword-play. They had chosen the wrong man to taunt about the ineffiecency of dagger combat. Once they regained consciousness, Taraak was sure they would be revising that opinion.
Just then he heard the clump of heavy boots approaching from down the corridor. When one had memory that was entirely incorruptable, it was not difficult to identify certain individuals by the tiny variances in the sounds of their walking patterns. From this, Taraak knew that the man about to pass his position was the one he was waiting for. With a smile he drew his knife. He held his breath and waited for the man to draw level with the torch alcove before leaping upon him in a flying tackle.
The armored soldier went down like a sack of stones, Taraak landing in a crouch on top of him, a knee on his upper back. He laid the flat of his knife against the man's neck, just so he could feel the coldness of the steel. The message was clear. If I meant business, you'd be dead. [/Color] The man beneath him made a spluttering noise. "I can't believe it!" Taraak smiled kindly, removing the blade and stepping off the man's back. "I'll stop if you want me to, you know." The man hauled himself to his feet and started brushing off his armor. "No, keep on. I'll get it eventually." The boy's name was Tyreem, a young soldier of the Varden. He and Taraak and first met when Taraak was doing what he called Dynamic Security Asessment, a lovely uphemism for sneaking in and seeing how far he could get without being caught. As it turned out, he only stopped when he reported himself to the commander and explained that he had started at the outer wall and penatrated straight into the inner chambers without any Surdan or Varden guards knowing a thing about it. Needless to say, security was "restructured" after that. Tyreem had been present when he had marched in to talk to the commander, and accompanied them on the subsecquent tour to show him how he had done it. That day the young soldier vowed that one day he would catch Taraak unawares. And in the spirit of good fun, Taraak made sure he had plenty of opportunities. The spy sheathed his knife. "It doesn't help that you have to be in a certain place at a certain time." He said, stating one of the greatest things that a spy avoided. Tyreem was unperterbed. "Does what you do sometimes force you to keep to a pattern?" "Well, yes." "Then I'll keep at it. One day, I hope to be as good as you." Taraak sighed inwardly. Poor fool.[/Color] He had trained since he was eight years old. Yes, he reflected, he was good at what he did as a result. But then, the face of Ferial Baric flashed behind his eyes, and he knew he would gladly switch lives with the boy. "maybe someday." He said, in an attempt at tact. It seemed to work. "Well, I must get back to my patrol. Goodbye my friend." With that, Tyreem marched off, smiling. Taraak remained for a moment. Friend?[/Color] He shook his head and turned around, starting toward the library. No. Just a niaeve kid that I humor for no reason.[/Color] It rather sobered him, realizing exactly how few real friends he had. And of that tiny bunch, Torska and Frunor had really been the only ones with which he had shared any sense of companionship. Frunor was dead, and Torska was still with the Empire, and the last time they met they had fought each other to a standstill. He mentally shook himself from such thoughts. He longed for the simple clarity of a mission with specific objectives and designs, away from all the messy emotions and the deluge of painful memories. He sighed, resuming his focus on getting to the source of a suitable distraction. At least there was books to immerse himself in, he thought to himself, or whatever was left of his sanity would have been gone long ago. . . . It was truly amazing the forms that genius could take. The true reason that Thark's information network was so successful was that he had sown inside it an even smaller network of trained magic users. Most of them could do little more than heal cuts or light candles, but he didn't need them to do anything physical. Instead, he put them at fixed points all around Surda, most of them in Aberon. When and agent or an informant and anything to report, all he or she had to do was get to the nearest magic-user, and get them to send a mental message to the one of Thark's personal bodyguards that was with him at all times, allowing information to be passed much more quickly. "Sir? One of our assets in the market just reported in. The two subjects have arrived, just as you planned." Socen said. Although his face was a granite monument to calm indifference, Thark could feel his elation growing. Just as he'd planned. It was the day, the very hour, when everything fell into place. All the years of watching and waiting was finally paying off. Today, he was the master of all events. Everything was happening, he could almost see the pieces moving on the board before him, from the pawns to the kings. His one regret was that most of the pieces would never even know the sheer skill with which he had manipulated them all. He stared out the window of his carriage out the inhabitants of Aberon, busy about their various concerns. They were such fools, thinking that their petty little lives actually meant something. The only significance in a life was what it made for itself, and Thark was going to make sure that his life had such meaning. He took a breath and held it, moving his mind from such lofty ideals to the affairs of the day. Of all those pieces dancing before him, there was one king in particular that he needed to deal with. How he had gained audience with Orrin was his claim that he had found a huge deposite of ore beneath one of his outlying estates, that could be used to forge many high quality weapons. He would be negotiating with the king of Surda on a price for this ore, although humbly and as a man willing to serve the cause against the Empire, but needed to make a living. It was all a sham of course, but the audience would accomplish many things, not the least of which was placing him in a favorable position to direct the cycle of his plan. As yet, everything had worked out better than he had hoped. But, as he had learned the hard way, even the best plans could go awry. But no matter, he had many contingency plans and backups, all ready to be put into motion with a snap of his fingers. All was ready, it was time for the game to begin.[/Size][/Blockquote]
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~X~Cali~*
Novice
Time for Some Epicness xD
Posts: 48
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Post by ~X~Cali~* on Mar 1, 2009 11:31:51 GMT -5
~King Orrin & Dewar~
…King Orrin Sat in the throne room waiting patiently for his weapons master to return from his tutoring of some Lieutenants, the thought almost made the King laugh out loud imagining veteran lieutenants getting beaten by this short little Dwarf. He could only start to imagine the absolute surprised expressions on all of their faces saying in disbelief how the sturdy little Dwarf can be so agile. But his mirth was short lived as his thoughts came back to the scheduled meetings with the noble men of some estates about a business proposition, Orrin not one to let pass an large opportunity for benefit had Agreed.
But what really irritated him this day was that he had discovered a new element in his labs by accident & Now he had to wait for this scheduled meetings instead of experimenting with that very interesting element of material that catches spontaneous fire when removed from water, it wasn’t long till the young King’s mind Drifted back to that very new element …maybe I should try different liquids with that element, Yes maybe quick silver would give a different reaction… Orrin looked at one of his guards & could openly see that the guard had become uncomfortable with Orrin’s scrutinizing stare the king having day dreamed while absently looking at the guard, Orrin sat up from surprise & quickly looked away & thought …oh please arrive quickly, this wait is almost torture… drooping again the king placed his chin into the palm of his hand & continued tapping his fingers.
After a short while of staring back & forth inside the throne room he looked down & saw a ring, His eyes lit up & he started experimenting with its momentum & speed when rolling, completely forgetting about everything, as time passed he became so engrossed with the ring he didn’t even realize Dewar had entered the throne room & called his name twice, “Sire!!!” came the shout from the King’s Weapons master, Orrin almost fell right of his throne at surprise, Glancing up he saw Dewar standing there tapping his foot. Orrin righted himself on the throne & started to ask Dewar what he wanted to say, but only a squeak came out, Orrin quickly shook his head & cleared his throat, as he looked back towards the Dwarf he could see the mirth growing on the Weapons master’s face, quickly becoming a soft chuckled. Orrin sat up & immediately started defending himself “you Surprised me alright, I was busy experimenting with my ring” But that made the Dwarf laugh all the harder, Orrin fumed & stood up, but the Dwarf quickly brought up his hands & said “Me apologies Sire, but having ye apologize to Me is quite absurd, I’m but yer Weapons master & ye, the king, is defending yerself over being surprised” Orrin visibly relaxed at that notion & could only smile as he sat back down, saying “Oh but master Dwarf you are my mentor, your wisdom have helped me countless of times, I have much respect for you Dewar, & thus I sometimes feel to apologize my mistakes to you” Orrin could clearly see the absolute pride on the Dwarf’s face as he finished his statement, Dewar then slapped his fist over his chest &bowed while saying “Sire honor me greatly” Orrin inclined his head at that & smiled.
After a moment the Dwarf turned more serious & said “Sire, During my tutoring an Elf & a half elf approached me & said they have news concerning the Empire’s Dragons, they come all the way from Teirm, should I show them in Sire?” Orrin sat back & thought …news of the Imperial movement, this may be of importance… looking at the Dwarf he said “Show them in Master Dwarf” Dewar started to walk away but quickly turned back to the King & said “Sire I almost be forgetting, one of the Associates of the Nobleman Merchant arrived a short while back & told me his master will be arriving in short order” Orrin’s face lit up & said “Oh good, Show the Associate into the Castle hall & let him wait outside the throne room, while we see the pair from Teirm” …. *** ~Shale & Rae~~other~
…the pair stood in the Borromeo castle courtyard after talking to the weapons Master. Shale looked Around, observing every bit of details of the castle, As he looked back he saw Rae staring at him with a confused look, he quickly chuckled & said “Sorry, I guess old habits die hard, back in Teirm observing your environment was surviving when something went wrong” Shale saw Rae relax a bit & smile as she said “A trait that I assume have saved your life many times over?” Shale nodded & replied “See, not everything about being a thief is all bad” winking at the Elf throwing her a sly grin, After a moment looking away & continuing his studies of the Exterior of Borromeo Castle.
Everything about the Castle intrigued the half elf, It was a magnificent structure, everything about it brought awe to Shale, having lived in Teirm most of his life, to him these buildings were gigantic in comparison of what he was used to. So much so he actually wanted to ask Rae if they could stay in this magnificent city once their assignment was finished, But as he turned towards her to ask her He saw the Dwarf they had spoken to earlier was walking towards a man looking like a merchant quickly haing a conversation with the merchant. After a moment the merchant went inside the castle & the Dwarf hurried towards the duo saying “Me apologies the castle is quite busy sometimes… The King has Agreed to see ye, so please follow me” They quickly followed the departing dwarf into the Huge doors of the Castle …
As they walked through the massive halls of the Castle Shale could barely hide the true astonishment on his face at the craftsmanship, Shale almost expected Rae to close his gaping mouth, for Shale seeing these marvels of creations was a gift, he truly enjoyed seeing every aspect of the castle. After a moment they came towards the doors of what seemed to be Massive beyond comprehension Library for the half elf. Just before they passed the Library a castle servant came up to the Dwarf & said something in his ear, the servant quickly left & the Dwarf turned around & said “Please be excusing me for a moment, I must go to speak with a merchant for a second, wait here & I’ll be back soon to take ye to the King” Shale nodded at the Dwarf & saw him leave through a doorway. Shale looked at Rae & said “I’m glad he stopped here, this place is magnificent don’t you think?” Shale saw Rae smile as she replied “I agree, everything about this castle bears witness to masters of their craft…Lets quickly go into the Library, I want to take a look please” Shale nodded in agreement & the pair walked through the doors of the great library.
As soon as they entered Rae had already grabbed a book & started paging through it, Shale chuckled at the Elf & continued deeper into the Library, the half elf looked through the shelves & after a moment he saw a book that drew his attention, he quickly took the book in hand & paged through the first few pages, totally intrigued the half elf walked out of the Aisle & called “Rae you have to see this book , it has detailed maps of Alagaesia & of the major cities, even giving some histor..y" he wanted to finish but as he had come out of the Isle he locked stares with a strange brown haired human in a dark cloak. Shale stared hard at the man & could swear there was something about him, something mysterious; But Shale couldn’t quite place it.
As he watched the man he suddenly heard Rae’s voice coming closer down another Aisle “What were you saying Shale?” he quickly glanced her way, but as he glanced back to where the brown haired man was a moment before, the man was gone. Shale quickly hastened forward, looking down a couple of Aisle’s but couldn’t see the man, a bit confused Shale quietly whispered …Odd, wonder who he was, ... something... something mysterious about him… but he was quickly pulled out of his contemplation as he felt Rae’s hand on his shoulder “What’s wrong Shale?” the half elf only shook his head & smiled saying “Nothing, I just thought I saw someone” Rae quickly asked “Who?” but again Shale shook his head &shrugged “Nobody, just a mysterious looking character” Before Shale could fully scold himself for being so off guard he suddenly remembered the book he was holding & changed the subject by handing Rae the book, after a moment of her studying the book he said “I wish I could have had this book back in my days in Teirm” Rae replied after she had paged a few more pages “this book is amazing, it gives such good perspective to Alagaesia, I Agree with you”
Before Shale could continue the conversation he saw the Dwarf come through the door saying “Oh there ye be, I just thought for a moment ye two had run off, follow me the King awaits” Shale & Rae followed the Dwarf out of the Library & they continued down the hall…
They quickly enough arrived at the doors to the throne room, sitting in a chair outside the throne room was that merchant they saw outside, As Shale entered through the doors he caught the man throwing him a very sly grin, but then they were inside the big throne room, Shale wondered about that merchant, something was out of place, but he quickly dropped the notion as they came to stand before King Orrin. They All bowed & the King said “Ah you have come far I have heard, with news of the Empire?” Shale looked up & said “My lord we come from Teirm, after I had by chance killed an imperial mage that was hunting me for vengeance, I had discovered many interesting documents in his possession, but one in particular caught my attention my Lord” Shale looked to Rae & back to the king & heard him say “Please continue”
Shale quickly replied without missing a beat “on this document there was information about Imperial Dragons moving northwest out to sea, I fear they are looking for something, this was meant to never reach the ears of the Varden my Lord, I was fortunate to have slain this particular Imperial Mage by surprise” Shale could see the surprise on the King’s face at the statement of the Dragons… a moment later the King said "this is disturbing news, i wonder what they are up to?...." The King turned to one of his advisors & whispered something to him & excused him from the room. Before the King could say anything in reply to the Duo a servant came into the throne room & as he bowed he said “My Lord the merchant associate outside wishes an Audience with your majesty, he said there are matters to discuss before his master arrives” Shale could see the king’s impatience at this, but the king gave a resigning sigh & said to the servant “Show him in then”
The King looked towards Shale & said “I pray you two stay, there are more to discuss about the news you brought, just stand of to the side, I just need to handle this matter” With that Shale & Rae walked to the side of the throne room & stood there as they watched the merchant walking towards the king & bowing greatly, ...too greatly Shale thought……
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Post by Angmor on Mar 1, 2009 18:02:32 GMT -5
Taraak closed his eyes and took a deep breath, savoring the scent of dust and ancient parchment. Already his burdens seemed less heavy, simply standing here in the room filled with knowledge. The library was deserted today, which suited Taraak just fine. No noise, no inordinate stares in his direction. Finally he opened his eyes and started toward one of the many aisles, subconsciously falling into a silent tread to avoid disturbing the warm silence that filled the immense room.
A first he simply wandered the shelves, searching for a title that interested him. That was the first great thing about books; the title was the only hint at what could possibly be in the pages. The only way one could truly find out was to read it. Many of the volumes he had seen before, instantly prompting the recall of their contents to flash before his eyes in a cascade of written word. He could always read them again simply by memory alone, but it did not compare to the feeling of physically taking the volume in his hands and poring over the pages in some quiet place. At random he plucked out a book from the third shelf that was bound with red leather, his fingers dragging a furrow in the dust that coated it. He opened it carefully, scanning the inked runes that named the volume The Hunter. He decided that it would be as good a one as any, he turned to the first page and started reading.
The dawn had reluctantly but finally given way to the night, and the land was at last cloaked in sable darkness... It began, jumping into the narrative without a pause. Taraak allowed the words to flood his mind, drowning out everything else except the vivid picture the author created.
...Just as suddenly as it fell, the black shroud of night was broken by the soft glow of hundreds of small lamps, the lights of a large village nestled on the eave of the forest. Looking upon it, the hunter knew that at long last he was home. His long journey was at last over.
Taraak allowed his feet to guide themselves to the door by habit even as he read. Although the library was quiet, he preferred a place where solitude was all but assured. In this case, his intention was a platform of stone created by an aesthetic sculpture of stone on the outside wall of the castle, an easy climb from a particular window. Of course it was high enough that a fall would most definitely be fatal, but what better place to be alone then somewhere that no one else could get to? So immersed was he with the book in his hands, he almost didn't notice the sound of quiet voices on the other side of the shelf. It filtered into his conscious just as he turned the corner, causing his gaze to leave the book just in time to find himself eye to eye with a young man.
It was so sudden he almost jumped. Somewhat slower than normal, his mind automatically began classifying what kind of threat the man might pose. What immediately jumped out was that he was very well-muscled and strong, but not excessively so. Powerful, but most likely not slow. He was not carrying any visible weapons, but Taraak could tell by the way he subconsciously tensed, as if for a great leap, that he was most likely a proficient fighter. There was something odd about his general appearance, but he couldn’t quite nail down what made him think this. The book that the man had chosen was one Taraak had read before, a definitive history of many of the cultures of Alagaesia as they developed and intertwined across the ages, and also one of his favorites.
His bare second of analysis was cut short as he heard the musical tones of a fair female voice approaching from the main aisle. Oh great. [/Color] If history was any indicator, there would be introductions, and questions as to his name and business that would require him digging up an alias and a backstory to go with it, and generally, delays for unnecessary chatter. Unless he could escape without a fuss. As the man's eyes left him to glance in his companion's direction, he saw it as an opportunity that he instantly decided to take. Shutting the book, Taraak pivoted back around the row of shelves in the direction he had come from. Knowing it wouldn't be enough for the inquisitiveness of the average person, he shoved The Hunter into his shoulderbag and leapt for the top of the bookshelves. His fingers latched onto the ledge, allowing him to haul himself onto the top just as the man's inevitably curious eyes peeked around the corner. Flat on his back on top of the shelf, Taraak silenced his breathing and waited. When there was no cries or exclamations, he decided it was safe to move. Without pausing to get a look at the man's lady friend, he rolled over onto his stomach and began crawling silently along the shelves, keeping as low as possible. In moments he reached the end of the row. As he had noted the first time he had ever entered the library, the room's second floor was an encircling balcony that could be reached by stairs in the corners of the room. And from the top of the bookshelves, it was a simple matter for one to jump to it. This Taraak did, grabbing the iron rail and swinging over it onto the balcony to land in a crouch. He straightened slowly, glancing back the way he had come. The man and his companion had gone. At last he relaxed, letting his tense shoulders sag. He pulled the book out of his bag and began walking round the balcony toward a passage at the back of the room, as casually is if he hadn't just performed an Escape and Evade for no better reason than to avoid light conversation. He thought nothing of it, deciding casually to take a short cut across the encircling balcony of the king's throne room. It probably wouldn't matter, he knew almost all of the guards, so it was only a matter of staying low so that no one in the court below would see him. He sighed. That was probably the most excitement I'll have all day.[/Color] . . . Gaerin was nervous. Although he had been told his part of the plan so often that he could recite it without thinking, the plan was such that he still had cause for apprehension. He stood in the outer court of the throne room, waiting his turn to see the king while he was checked over for weapons. Not very thoroughly though. The guard was in on it too. "Is everything ready?" Gaerin whispered plaintively to the man as he frisked him. "Right to plan." He answered without raising his head. Gaerin nodded fractionally, somewhat reassured. At last hee dared to hope that he and his family might perhaps get back on the winning side. At last the king’s aid came to fetch him, ushering him into the cheery and well-lit throne room. Taking a glance around, Gaerin took note of each guard, as well as the strange pair that lurked near the edge of the room. Right where they should be. After what seemed a long walk across the room, at last he faced the king. At first the man’s youth surprised him. He had known the king was young, but it had never truly sunk in until now. It almost threw him off. Almost. “My lord.” He said, bowing deeply. His instructions were specific. Deferent and courteous. He decided there was really no reason not to delay. “I am Gaerin Ferosal,” He began, straightening. “I am here representing my employer, Thark Storvek. As you might have been told, his men have found a sizable deposit of the purest quality iron beneath one of his estates. Although he could make use of such ore, my employer believes that it would be of more use to you. He wishes to negotiate terms to turn over the ore to the Kingdom.” He finished, hoping that he had stated all that was needed, and be able to answer the king’s questions. His master would be arriving any moment, and Gaerin was being counted on for all the groundwork to be laid by the time he arrived. . . . At last the carrige pulled through the open gate, pausing only to be checked over by the guards before proceeding into the main courtyard of the palace. Thark briefly went through the ritual of making sure his appearence was perfectly in accordance with the image he was trying to cast; an important but hard-working man, ready to do a service to the cause of freedom. As he did this, Socen got out on his side and circled around to open the door for him while the four others also got out and waited, alert for attack like any good bodyguard. Finally Thark stepped out, smiling at all the procedure. He hardly expected an attack here,in arguably the safest place him Surda. but it did pay to be cautious. A servant came to meet them at the double doors, bowing slightly and saying something about the king expecting them that Thark did not bother to fully listen to. Thark fell into step behimd the man as he turned and led them into the castle, followed by his bodyguards. After a short march they stood outside the throne room, where Thark instructed his men to wait outside. For what was about to happen, his assets were already in place. At last he the servant announced his presence, and he was ushered into the room. Gaerin, who had just finished explaining his purpose in detail, stood aside whilee his master bowed deeply. "I am honored that you chose to devote some of your precious time to me, my lord." He said courteously, straightening. "I trust Gaerin has sufficiently explained?"[/Size][/Blockquote]
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~X~Cali~*
Novice
Time for Some Epicness xD
Posts: 48
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Post by ~X~Cali~* on Mar 2, 2009 10:03:05 GMT -5
~King Orrin & Dewar~
….Orrin sat there listening intently to the Explanations of the whole trade, Everything sounded perfect, he was glad for it, this Trade was going to give his people the much needed extra ore. But as he nodded his gaze went from the merchant towards the two messengers from Teirm, he still didn’t understand why they would go through so much trouble to get that important info all the way to Aberon, Orrin strangely wondered if they were of the Varden or just Imperials that wished to throw him off of some plot… he shook his head, almost chuckling at the absurd notion as he thought …Orrin your mind is playing major tricks on you, why would they be Anything but Varden, they really had concern in their eyes, I guess I should trust them…
Orrin listened as the Merchant explained how they would set up the trade route & where the location of the ore would be brought for the king’s merchants to retrieve it from, Everything was explained throughout the time, Orrin even sometimes wondered how they had come to All these details so quickly, but it didn’t really matter to the King they had this air of fair trading about them. King Orrin tried to stay focused but he never liked listening to business, his mind kept flowing back to the labs & to the two messengers from Teirm …Why would Imperial Dragons go out to sea, what could they be looking for?....was often the thoughts on the young kings mind. Then when he Almost had enough of the merchants Endless talking he wanted to dismiss him for a moment so he could finish his talk with the two messengers, but as his hand came up a servant strode in followed by a Nobleman, the king sat up & looked at the man intently & saw him exchange small smiles with the merchant, knowing immediately that they are associates …Ah this must be Thark Storvek, finally we can settle this deal….was the first thought on the king’s mind & he smiled as he welcomed the nobleman “ Greetings Master Storvek, your presence pleases me, I am humbled by your generous offer of the Ore to my people, It would bolster our forces greatly” Again The King Smiled & sat up & replied to a question of Thark “Oh yes, your Associate has explained in full detail everything of your offer & I find the the details promising, I would wish to open the trade route to your estates” Orrin paused & looked for his weapons master
he motioned for Dewar to come to him &as the Dwarf came close the king whispered “Do you agree with my choice Master Dwarf?” Dewar almost choked & shook his head whispering back “Sire ye are the King, It be yer choice, & I be yer Weapons master not yer Royal choice maker” Orrin chuckled & said “'Advisor' is the word, I know Master Dwarf it’s just I trust your opinion so much more, please tell me your thoughts on this” Dewar looked at the King & said “Sire, this is good for yer stocks I have to be admitting, but something about this deal sounds too well thought of, especialy after the ore only being discovered a week before, ,Alas I be thinking it my own imagination, If Sire wishes to go through with it ,Go through with it!” Orrin chuckled at the Dwarf saying “Thank you master Dwarf, your advice is greatly appreciated” & Orrin chuckled at the thought of the tough Dwarf as an Advisor, what an interesting one he would make. Orrin sat back in his throne as Dewar walked off to the side, He quickly motioned for a servant to bring forth an Item & he said to the nobleman “& Please accept this gift as a seal for this deal Master Storvek we accept” the servant handed a great Ruby ring to Thark & the nobleman gladly accepted the precious gift. Orrin smiled & said “Please Master Storvek tell me of how you came across such a massive amount of good Ore, I would like to hear it from you, it greatly intrigues me” & with that the nobleman started explaining…. *** ~Shale & Rae~ ….Shale stood there silently observing the whole conversation, all of it was perfectly detailed & the whole thing was nothing short than intriguing at the very least, Shale looked to Rae & could almost guess that she was thinking of being outdoors In a forest somewhere, she had been longing for it for weeks now & Shale could only smile at seeing the Elf’s mind somewhere else.
Before Shale knew it he found himself thinking about that strange character in the library again, to Shale the man carried him too well to be just an ordinary citizen, his movements, pose & stance reminded Shale of his own, it was very subtle signs but Shale clearly saw it. & The man disappearing so effortlessly from him impressed the half elf, It was something that was rare among the other thieves & spies he had seen from Teirm, to Shale this stranger was no rookie & the half elf found himself admiring that about the stranger, Shale knew there was great commitment in the Other man, He liked it, so few really show total commitment to their body & skills.
As the thought crossed Shale’s mind the throne room’s door swung open & a servant brought forth a nobleman. Shale focused his attention on the man & as the noble man flashed a smile to the Merchant, Shale got this feeling of something’s out of place, something didn’t seem right there, his mind whirled all about the throne room & both Royal guards close to the door wore a very suspicious grin on their faces& the half elf couldn’t help but thinking …Royal guards never smile, something’s going on… Shale turned towards Rae & he could see she had noted the sudden concern on his face & the half elf felt her hand touch his arm, He relaxed a bit-just a bit-at the comforting touch…
Shale looked at Rae & softly whispered, “there is something amiss” Shale saw the confused look on the Elf’s fair face & he said “the way the people are acting in the throne room became different as soon as this Thark guy entered, something’s amiss” Rae looked around & Shale saw some hint of agreement, but she whispered “Shale this is a protected throne room, don’t worry so much, we are safe, safer as we would have ever been in Teirm” Shale looked at her & flashed a minor smile, though he still felt an uneasiness in himself, something was so wrong, all his instincts screamed out for him to leave quietly. But as the half elf looked around his eyes went through the open throne room doors & he froze in place as he suddenly saw that Strange man from the library staring at him….
Im modifying/going to modify some parts of my posts, just so you know (I'll do that when we finished moving the rest of our posts XD)
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Post by Angmor on Mar 2, 2009 10:31:26 GMT -5
Taraak walked silently across the enormous entrance foyer to the throne room, book open in his hands as memory guided his steps. Already he knew the book would be a good one, and the quality of the writer's vision was excellent. He knew that technically he wasn't allowed in here, but the guards knew of him and his eccentricities, and found him not to be a threat. He reflected that he was now being shown a huge amount of trust for one of his past. No one but his superiors knew his full story, but Taraak did make sure that everyone in the Varden he had dealings with knew what he had once been, so that no one could accuse him of hiding it. And, surprisingly, not many chose to hold it against him. It was surprising how many members of the Varden had been agents of the king's intention at one time or another. In fact, if he were to glance up from his book, he could pick out two of the guards who were deserters from the Imperial army. The promise of redemption appealed to many tortured consciences.
He looked up to concentrate on where he was going. The stairs to the upper balcony of the throne room were nestled into alcoves in the back wall of the entrance foyer, and he would need to advance across the floor of the room to reach one of them. The doors to the throne room where open at the moment, and as he got closer he could make out the forms of several people inside. The guards flanking the doors nodded to him, but said nothing. Staying silent so that no one in the throne room would pay him any undue attention, he peeked inside out of curiosity. There was a small delegation of men discussing with the king about something and... At the edge of the room, his eyes fell on the same young man he had so recently escaped from in the library.
Again their eyes locked, and Taraak saw the same blossoming recognition he was sure his face was now showing. He held his gaze for a few seconds, trying to think of a way to break the odd, silent standoff. Finally he smiled and nodded toward the man in a well met gesture, hopefully alleviating any hostility. He let his eyes roam from him to his companion who stood along side, intently watching the proceedings. It was easy for one of his experience to see that she was an elf, from the more angular, feline nature of her features to the regal way of carrying herself. He supposed that she along with the rest of her race could be called beautiful, but he labored under no illusions of knowing what that meant. He had not yet found himself fawning over the aesthetic nature of a woman, elven or otherwise. He wondered why such a pair would be traveling together, and why what they would have to say would be important enough to trouble king Orrin. Quickly deciding that the answer to his questions would not help him perform future missions, he again started walking, leaving the searching eyes of the young man as he disappeared beyond the edge of the huge doors. At last he reached the foot of the stairs, beginning his ascension with swift vigorous strides even as his hands brought The Hunter before his eyes again.
. . .
Gerja Golethson stood less than ten feet away from the head of the stairs Taraak was now climbing, listening to sound of his master's narrative as attentively as a calligrapher, fingering the staff of his bow nervously. Gerja had been a hunter by trade, born and raised around Lithgow with his large family. As all children in Surda, he was educated on the ways of the Empire, and taught that Galbatorix was to be hated and feared, but that they should tolerate his Empire until such a time when they could openly oppose him. But for all that talk, Gerja had trouble accepting it. Surely, did not a man so powerful deserve to rule all that he had conquered? From what he could see, there was no way the king could be destroyed, especially now that he had Riders assisting him. But his thoughts went unheeded, and life went on. He learned to hunt for the food that kept his family fed, until at last all the children grew up and went their separate ways. After he was free from that obligation, he had decided he wanted to join the Surdan army. The life of a trapper and bowman was hard, and did not pay enough for the work done. After some months serving with the archers, he realized that there was little opportunities for him. He had a sharp eye and a good hand, but he knew he would probably stay a lowly archer for the rest of his life. But right before he resigned his post, he was approached by a man with an offer. "Cooperate with me and the one who sent me, and I swear to you, you will gain what you want." "And what is that?" He had responded. "Forgiveness, and eventually, power and standing from the Empire." It seemed to good to be true, but as he listened, the man's plan made sense to Gerja. At last, he agreed. After that, he began to advance quickly through the ranks on merit of his archery skill, becoming a guard of the castle ramparts and in time, one of the three archers assigned to guard the throne room of king Orrin in shifts. It was a tedious job, but simple. It was then at last that he knew who he was working for; Thark Storvek. Only weeks before had he been told this, and it was on that occasion that he was told the cunning plan for buying the favor of Galbatorix. It was a simple plan, and he had said so. Almost too simple. "Simple plans are always the best." Thark had said with a chuckle. And the more Gerja thought about it, the more he thought it would succeed. And today was the day. Now was when he finally would achieve everything he had dreamed off. He kept fingering his bow and listened, waiting for the signal that it was time.
. . .
Thark continued gamely with his totally fictitious story, relating how his servants had supposedly been digging a well on his land when the ore was discovered. He let his moth work by itself while his mind wandered the room, thinking over all the possibilities of what would happen within the next few moments. His men were in place. All the surdan guards were where they should be. His scapegoats were ready and waiting, one climbing the stairs to the balcony as a mental prod from the bodyguard that was his magician had told him, the others lurking at the edge of the room, thinking foolishly that they were unseen. From all he could tell, everything was ready. "And I bring with me an excellent sampling of my offering..." He said calmly, turning imperiously to snap his fingers to one of his bodyguards, who undid a bulky leather pack from his back...
. . .
"And I bring with me an excellent sampling..." Gerja tensed, his knuckles going white as he gripped his bow. That was the signal. His face flushed with excitement, and he wasted no time in taking a shaft from his quiver and fitting it to the string. It was not just any shaft however; it was one he had been especially given for this purpose. He had not been told why, so he could only assume the black-feathered arrow had some spell or enchantment on it that would speed its deadly intent. With the ease of a practiced archer, he stood up and drew back the string until the dark fletching tickled his cheek, sighting along the straight shaft to his target in the court below; the young monarch of Surda.
. . .
Taraak reached the top of the stairs and abruptly slowed his pace, walking casually to the far side of the balcony so that no one below would see him there. Just then, something prickled his senses, some sound that he did not fully register hearing. He glanced up from The Hunter trying to find the source of his sudden unease... fifteen feet before him, leaning over the balcony rail, was a man. His uniform identified him as the guard who was indeed stationed there, but there was something wrong with his actions. Namely, his bow was bent and the quarrel aimed at someone in the throne room below, with no cries or sounds of fighting or shouting to indicate that he should be doing so.
Without thought, without reason, Taraak went into action. He dropped the book and sped forward, breaking into a full sprint across the gray marble. He traversed the final five feet in a flying tackle, cannoning into the man just in time to send the arrow three feet wide of whatever he had been aiming at. He had no time to see as he and the would-be assassin collapsed into a tangled heap on the floor. Taraak grappled with the man's formidable strength, trying to free a hand to strike before the man was able to draw a knife or some either piece of painful hardware. Finally he liberated his left hand and used it to drive a blow across the man's face, followed by another blow under his chin, sending him out for the count. Still on the adrenaline, he jumped up, pulling his bow from his back. Something had told him that a plan like this probably had accomplices, or the man would never have made it this far. He had to protect the king from them. He pulled an arrow from his quiver and fit it to the string, scanning the court below for signs of the other assassins...
. . .
In the first few seconds after the arrow bounced off the floor at the king's feet, confusion reigned. Thark smiled inwardly. That pawn Gerja had performed well. With a shocked expression on his face, he looked to the place where the arrow had originated, waiting for... There he was, the first of his scapegoats, peering at them with another arrow fully visible. As per the plan, he pointed. "There he is! There's the assassin!" He shouted frantically. It was then that the two guards that were in the throne room, the two that were in his employ, drew there swords and ran forward, passing him and his bodyguards in their path toward the king, as per order. Now for his second set of scapegoats... [/Blockquote]
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~X~Cali~*
Novice
Time for Some Epicness xD
Posts: 48
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Post by ~X~Cali~* on Mar 2, 2009 15:08:46 GMT -5
~Shale & Rae~ ~other~
After Shale had locked stares with the mysterious man, he could for some reason not look away, but as he wanted to call for Rae the man softly smiled & turned away & disappeared into a stairway. Without knowing it shale kept staring at the now empty spot where the brown haired man had stood not hearing the soft voice of Rae calling for his attention next to him “Shale” but his mind was way back in Teirm on the roof tops in the dark nights ….could it be it was him I saw that night in the harbor when I was waiting on an old friend, I wonder….. his thoughts whirling about one of the many nights he had gone to the harbor to give orders to some of his fellow thieves who he called ‘friends’, thinking back on it Shale almost laughed at the absurdity of the notion of them Ever being his friends.
Once again he thought back to his long journey towards Surda, Now he had true friends, but then the thought of the mysterious character came into his mind again & truly wondered why that man kept ringing a bell in his mind & who was he, why is he here? was one of the many questions that kept popping up, “Shale!” Rae called again & as soon as her hand touched his arm he almost jumped. Spinning around he said “Don’t scare me like that, you always do it” Shale frowned as a smile broke out on the Fair Elf’s face, but alas he could not hold the frown at the brightness in her smile & he shrugged slightly & said “Oh Lovinoraem you always know how to Disarm me” after saying that he smiled & asked “What did you want to ask?” as Rae started to ask what he thought about the King, Shale stopped her with slight show of the hand as his gaze had gone to the top balcony, seeing a guard nervously fumbling with a bow. Shale looked closely at the guard & said “Rae why do you think that guard is so nervous? Looks like he had seen a ghost not too long ago.”
As he glanced at Rae & back he suddenly saw the man aiming at the king with arrow knocked & as the man was ready to fire the strange man barreled into him letting the guard’s aim falter & the arrow glancing of the marble floor harmlessly away from the King. Everything went into chaos then, with thark screaming "There he is! There's the assassin!" pointing franticly at the brown haired man that had in fact just saved the king’s life. Totally Confused Shale stood there trying get a word in the confusion but his voice drowned by the shouts of guards around the court room. As everybody turned towards the balcony Shale could clearly see the Smile etched on Thark’s face, Sudden Anger coursed through Shale’s veins, but as he wanted to make his move Thark turned his head & nodded to a Guard of to his side, then the whole planned dawned on the half elf, with the confusion King Orrin & all the other people in the throne room had turned their back to the west side of the room & the true assassin was about to kill the King.
Shale sprung into action running towards the assassin, he saw the man at the brink of releasing the crossbow bolt , without thinking he jumped full out with every ounce of power in his legs hitting the assassin just as the bolt started to fire, Shale watched in horror as the bolt traveled towards the oblivious King…..
*** ~Kantorio de Jorees~
A peaceful morning greeted the shore at winters grove, the soft snow melting in the glow of the warm sun, flowers blooming in the soft ground in the small grove, the previous week’s blizzards had glanced pass the entrance marked by a split in between two very large mountains surrounding the grove, saving most of the still growing flower bed near the large trees that sheltered the small hut of Kantorio de Jorees, of the wintery blast. Stepping out into the warm sunlight the Mage smiled with joy as rays of warmth met his cheeks, taking a deep breath he muttered a few soft words in the ancient language & a small blue bird flew to his waiting arm, smiling more deeply he started speaking “let us take a walk my small friend….. Ah don’t you think it’s a wonderful morning” The mage slowly walked towards his flower bead & said ”….Oh joy my Flowers have survived the blizzards of the mountains, do you like them? They are my favorites” As if understanding him the bird chirped in a musical series of notes & the wise mage said in agreement “yes they are, I use to sing to them when they were small” Kantorio looked at the trees & saw some other blue birds chirping & he said “Go to them friend, I shall speak with you some more on a later time” with that the Bird flew off to the trees & the Mage smiled once more & stepped back into his hut & as he entered he walked towards a table made stone with clear water within the round of the table top with a glass slab covering it. Standing next to the table the mage thought …might as well check on the young King, while I’m still unoccupied….
After having been the Royal family’s magician for many decades he had retired when Orrin was Just a boy, Orrin’s father had asked Kantorio as a favor if he would keep a watchful eye over Orrin the day he takes his place as the King of Surda. Kantorio had gladly agreed to the task & after the Death of Orrin’s father he had been scrying on the young King ever since.
Saying the spell the Water under the thin glass quickly turned black& assumed the Image of Orrin’s throne room, Kantorio smiled as he saw the King sitting in his throne room, talking with what looked to be a nobleman, as the old mage surveyed the scene, he noted a pair standing of to the side of the King, quickly watching them he made out that one of them was an elf & the other he wasn’t totally sure. Kantorio looked deeper into the throne room & noted a familiar face to castle Borromeo, at the entrance of the door ,Taraak, the mage chuckled at seeing him yet again with a book in hand …wonder what he is reading this time… As the old mage continued his surveying he noted the Dwarf Weapons master on Orrin’s side, Kantorio then glanced over to the balcony watching a guard nervously fiddling with his bow …strange… was the first thought that came into his mind …normally the guards is much more passive, wonder what’s wrong with him… Before kantorio could ponder this question, he saw the guard knocking an arrow & as he tried to shoot at the king Taraak had tackled the man, after which he had draw his own bow in search of other assailants. Gaping the mage watch as the scene played out, seeing the Nobleman screaming assassin just after a very odd grin, & again before the shocked mage could find an answer to his questions he saw the Nobleman turning & ever so slightly nodding to a different guard as all chaos was breaking loose in the Room, Kantorio put his hand to his mouth in horror as the man aimed the crossbow at Orrin, But just as he fired the strange man of the pair flew into the assassin, Kantorio screamed out “NO!!!” as the bolt kept flying in the Direction of the King, but as it neared the King the Dwarf slammed the King out of the way, & the bolt only clipped the King’s mail on his arm glancing off with only a very minor scrape...
*** ~Dewar~Orrin~
…As the First arrow had missed the King, Dewar had shouted orders for the guards to go up to the balcony, but something in the stance of the man on the Balcony told him he was aiming at the King & the grounded guard? What had happened but before he could move he glanced back, just in time to see the crossbow fire from their backs, reflexes & Adrenaline kicked in & he roared as he slammed King Orrin out of the way of the lethal missile, saving the King from the shot as it clipped his shoulder mail with but a scratch. Dewar was off balance from the shove & tumbled to regain his footing but as he came back up, if he had looked at Thark he would have seen a scowl to the man’s face with the failure of the shot, but he missed it when he jerked King Orrin to the side towards the back of the throne where he would be safe from projectiles, as he turned & looked towards the tumbling guard & half elf, he wasn’t sure who had fired the crossbow, logic told him that if it was the half elf he would have remained way over at his partner & not have come over here, he wasn’t sure. But Nothing made sense to the Weapons master, what had happened? What is going on? Was some of the questions in his mind. Next to him King Orrin shouted orders to have Taraak &Shale captured or if not possible, killed! Glancing Around the King shouted again as more guards poured in“GET THE ASSASSINS !!!!” but Dewar had this distinct feeling that the two King Orrin wanted captured or dead wasn’t the assassins but the ones that had tried to stop the attempt, he turned to Orrin & said “Sire Listen to me I think your Wrong, I don’t….” He tried to finish but the words only washed over the furious King. No matter how hard he tried King Orrin wouldn’t listen to him…. *** ~Shale & Rae~
Tumbling around on the ground Shale punched at assassin, & the man tried to gash him with sharp iron sides of the crossbow, but Shale proved the stronger & punched the man hard through the jaw, pinning him to the ground the half elf punched again but missed as the man dodged his blow & connect the half elf with right hook. Shale quickly regained his hold & stopped the man from using the crossbows sharp edges once more, but just as Shale wormed the weapon loose from the man’s grip he shockingly took a crossbow bolt & killed himself in the half elf’s grasp. Horrified Shale dropped the crossbow & jumped up from the dead assassin that wore the outfit of a royal guard. Shale looked around, almost dazed at what had occurred just moments before, then he shook his head clear seeing the guards heading for him & the King shouting orders for the guards to get him & the other man who Shale swore also saved the King. As Rae grabbed his arm he turned & ran towards the stairs, totally shocked of what had just happened, all he thought of is getting away…. **** ~Kantorio~
In Absolute horror the old mage watched the suicide of the assassin with the crossbow bolt under the strange man, The mage wished with every bone in his body he could make Orrin see the truth of what had actually happened, but the he saw the King shout the orders, screaming at the scrying pool “NO!! Orrin !! NOOO They are Innocent, Can’t You See!!! No…” Gripping the edge the mage could do nothing, watching as the Elf & strange character ran for their lives off towards the stair case, his energy low the spell ended…….
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Post by Angmor on Mar 2, 2009 19:13:50 GMT -5
It was chaos in the room below. Taraak let his eyes scan without thought, looking for the ones that would be making some overt move against the king. The two guards were shouting, the men of the delegation were shouting, but one was shouting and... pointing. At him. He had little time to wonder at this when his eyes were drawn to a scuffle on the other side of the room. One of the surdan guards, the one who had been flanking the doors and who had had a crossbow, was tussling with the young man from the library. His first action was to train his bow on the two. His second was thinking that the strange man was the backup assassin, but instantly decided that it wouldn't make sense. How would he possibly plan to escape? And his companion was just standing there. In fact, how could anyone plan to escape? How could anyone think they could leave the walled-in castle holding hundreds of soldiers after trying to kill the king... He had no time to think further. There were so many things going on in the room below that his mind classified as important that he could not watch them all. He didn't even try to discern anything from the welter of shouting voices. The king was now shouting to the guards that were pouring into the rooom... His eyes came back the the scuffle with the strange man. Or at least the aftermath. The surdan guard had a short quarrel lodged in his gut, and the man was holding the crossbow. He seemed to become aware of himself as his elven companion screamed something to him, and the pair took off running toward the doors.
Taraak tracked them for a torso shot, but held the string. He didn't believe they were foolish enough to try what they were trying, but why run if they weren't guilty? It was then that he finally became aware of the noise behind him.
. . .
Amid the chaos, Thark took the time to admire his work. His first scapegoat had shown up at the exact right time, even with the men he had put in place to chivy him to that spot. And the other two, well, one had literally pounced on his trap. He glanced over to where they grappled on the floor. Finally the half-elf assassin managed to wrestle the crossbow from his agent's hand, but not quite enough. The agent he had chosen was an ideolgue, a dreamer with some misplaced sense of self-sacrifice. He had told him not to be taken alive, and the man had sworn he would not. The half-elf stood up, stunned. It was the time, Thark motioned his bodyguards. "You four, follow them!" He shouted above the din. As he said it, the pair was running for the doors, as if they thought they could escape the flood of men that was even now heading towards them. "You three, head for that one!" He shouted again, swiveling to point at the man in the balcony.
. . .
He snapped his head to the stairwell he had used to ascend, and saw a column of soldiers as well as three men from the merchant's delegation that he had marked as bodyguards. For the first time, he figured that it might be slightly awkward; a dark-clothed man pointing a bow into the throne room with a man in a Surdan soldier's livery unconscious at his feet. As they approached, his eased his bow and put the shaft back in his quiver to hold his hands nuetrally at shoulder level. "I can explain gentlemen, just give me a second." The first reached him and... didn't slow down. He had a long knife clutched in his fist, which he used to swing a slash toward Taraak's face.
It was as easy and natural as breathing. He dodged it. "Woah, take it easy!" He shouted, recovering with his guard up. "I'm not your man!" But the bodyguard did not listen, merely waiting until his two collegues were close enough to back him up before lunging towards his gut. Taraak knew that this man would not be dissuaded. He shifted his weight to the left, bending like a pennant in the wind to allow the blade to occupy the space his stomach had been. But only long enough for an arm-lock and a simple throw that sent him into the two other bodyguards, toppling all three. Taraak lowered his guard, holding his hands up again as he waited for the wiser heads of the soldiers to prevail.
But they didn't. Seeing him dispatch the private soldiers seemed only to embolden them. Taraak had just enough time for a moment of blind disbelief at what was happening before a short axe bisected the air where he had been standing before jumping aside. Instead of following through with a blow as he would have with any other opponent, he simply danced around him. "Wait!" He managed to tuck in his stomach just as the second man's falchion flashed toward him. Anticipating the next strike, he moved inside the man's guard and intercepted his arm. He gave him a shove, sending the soldier stumbling back. The third and last soldier in line made for a stab with his short sword, which he merely slipped past and brought up the bow that was still in his hand, the man's arm passing into the loop between the staff and the string. Taraak pulled, whirling the man around to smash against the wall. He would have turned around to surrender to the floored guards right then and there, but something caught his eye. The door at the other end of the balcony had been opened, and in the doorway was a Surdan soldier bringing a bow to bear. Without a thought Taraak sprinted for the stairs, diving down them just as the arrow flashed past. He hit the steps on his stomach, hissing through his teeth in pain. He could not recover in time, and simply rolled down the incline. He hit the floor of the entrance foyer with a groan, his momentum finally spent on the marble. He stood up carefully, bow in hand, surveying what was happening. What he saw was the strange man and the elf running for their lives on the other side of entrance foyer, and a mass of guards who had come running at the noise about to cut them off. Taraak could already see, they would be forced to defend themselves as he had just been. What in the king's name in going on? [/Color][/Size][/Blockquote]
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~X~Cali~*
Novice
Time for Some Epicness xD
Posts: 48
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Post by ~X~Cali~* on Mar 3, 2009 16:29:28 GMT -5
~Shale & Rae~
..Fast footsteps was falling on the marble floor, as Shale & Rae ran towards the throne room doors, Shale hoped there were not too many guards on the other side, Shale shot a glance up to where the man was that had actually saved the King’s life too, he saw the body guards of the ‘too suspicious’ nobleman nearing on the man, & as Shale saw him throw up his hands in explanation Shale knew those men had other orders, The half elf knew he & Rae would not be given time for explanations either, though they are innocent… even the true saviors of the King’s life. Shale only shook his head clear knowing that at this very moment their lives were in danger, they had no choice but to run, he silently vowed he would find a way to brought forth the true culprit behind the assassination attempt.
As the fleeing duo reached the throne rooms door Shale quickly realized that his hope were for naught & fighting was imminent, before the guards were close enough to attack Shale caught a glimpse of the other man ,that was being framed he knew, crashing down the stairs. He could only think on it a moment before the guards were upon them, the half elf quickly dropped to one of the armored caps covering his knees & slid underneath the wide arc of the soldiers sword, with quick footing he reversed his momentum & grabbed the guards arm around shoulder, jerking the sword back around blocking another attack from a second guard, Shale spun his foot in quick yet powerful circle taking the first guards balance with a kick to the feet.
Seeing the man fall heavily to his face Shale quickly spun back around & dodged the next attack his way by hair’s breath, as it swiped right in front of his chest, Shale kicked hard into the guard’s ribs. Shale quickly ran up to the guard that had taken the fall & was trying to get up with his heavy armor, But before the guard could succeed in the movement Shale was on him, taking him to the ground face down yet again. Seeing his quick strategy had worked out, he slapped the already loose sword from the guards grasp, but as Shale picked up the sword, he Heard Rae scream “Shale!! Watch out!!” But just as the half elf started to respond to the call, a foot kicked mightily against the side of his back, sending Shale skidding across the floor….
Shale groaned & breathed hard against the smooth surface that now rested against his face, as he started to rise he felt Rae’s gentle touch helping him to his feet. Shale still a bit dazed & confused of what had just happened after barely a moment he shook his head clear & quickly remembered their predicament, glancing about he saw the guards more cautiously approaching them. Shale looked down & groaned at seeing the sword he tried to get had slid off to the wall close to the stairs softly cursing himself for the moment he lost his focus, but he quickly showed the thought out of his head as his mind raced for a strategy against the fast approaching guards . Shale turned to Rae on his side & quickly whispered “Rae, see if you can distract a few of the guards to the Right, I’m going to retrieve the sword” Rae nodded & quickly replied “Please be careful”Shale smiled weakly & with that they parted & the battle was met again. Rae tactfully kicking & nimbly jumping as three guards moved off the side after her, Shale slightly smiled at seeing the guards frustrated by nimble elf, but quickly focused on the guards charging at him.
With a dive Shale rolled into a crouching position dodging several attacks, but as he wanted to make a dash to the sword he found that three guards had taken the position close to him, his heart sank knowing that four more were close behind him, he couldn’t possibly take on so many guards from different sides. Shale dove & dodged valiantly but was running out of places to dodge as the guards formed a tighter circle around him, he just barely dodged the next attack , but he felt a sudden sting of pain as a blade cut a small line over the side of his arm, the wound only minor was not the half elf’s worries at the moment, but just as he almost lost hope in the circle of guard, a figure slammed into two of the guards sending them sprawling on the ground, Shale didn’t think twice & instantly used the much needed opening as his escape from the circle that had him trapped.
Shale glanced at the man that had just saved him &silently thanked him; Shale quickly retrieved the sword & ran to help the man out as he was in the heat of an exchange between the two he had downed. With a sword in hand the guards quickly took a more defensive approach, Shale walked cautiously up to the brown haired man & whispered “Any Ideas of getting out of here? We seemed to be in wrong place at the very wrong time” Seeing no answer in the man’s eyes Shale paced around the guards with the man next to him. The moment of anticipation & slight reprieve quickly passed as two guards came at Shale, the half elf parried left & right keeping his footing balanced, As the next swing came low Shale quickly jumped back &parried low with his sword. Shale glanced to the side seeing Rae dodging a series of well coordinated attacks, but to Shale’s relief she proved the better.
Desperately trying to think of a way they could Escape Shale took a fleeting look around the throne room, not having much time to spare as another attack came forth from two angles &he spun to the side pressing with one hand on the side of a wall design to retrieve a bit of balance, to the half elf’s utter surprise the wall gave way to a slight crease that was shaped like a door, Shale knew exactly what it was then, he mouthed the words “The King’s Secret tunnel…” He saw that the brown haired man next to him had also seen the slight change in the wall, even though the change was almost invisible. Shale Nodded & Knew what they had to do, they had to try & distract the guards away from the tunnel & quickly make their way to it, Shale launched a vicious counter attack on one of the guards that had the soldier on the defensive back on his hills, Shale roared & pushed the attack on the two guards in front of him, & countered a mid waist attack of to the side & countered with a kick that sent the guards falling over each other, Shale raced away towards Rae & tackled two of the guards close on her pursuit, quickly recovering he Ran over to Rae & quickly said “Follow my Lead” Rae panting from the exertion next to him had a look of confusion at first & asked “ Where are you going?” Shale flashed a slight smile of assurance & said “Hopefully with some luck somewhere away from here” with that rung towards another pair of guards sword in hand hoping to lead them far enough away the secret entrance so they could make their escape cleanly from this whole chaotic mess…
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Post by Angmor on Mar 6, 2009 17:20:47 GMT -5
Taraak could see the inevitable play out before him even as he recognized it as such. The two falsely accused combatants were soon encircled in a tightening ring of steel, thickening as more and more men flooded into the hall. They seemed to be ignoring him for the time being, but he knew that would change as soon the soldiers from the balcony followed him down the stairs. It was madness. All he had to do was surrender and go quietly to be questioned, maybe a little memory probing, and he would be absolved of guilt in this matter. The same went for the strange pair, he was sure. But the soldiers weren't letting them. The Kill First and Ask Questions Later approach was all well and good, but not with this sort of situation, and the basic palace protocol agreed with him. But the guard seemed to forget this fact, swept away in the fervor of protecting the king. Surely if they would just stop and think for a second...
Taraak knew when someone was running out of places to go, and the man was. He dodged and weaved, while still showing restraint and not killing anyone, but it would end soon. Unless he got some help. Taraak didn't think, he just started running. He placed his bow in its place on his back even as he ran across the room, knowing that he would need both hands for what he was about to do.
He glimpsed the flash of steel and the man's grimace of pain, and knew he didn't have much time now. There was no time for finesse, so he simply launched himself against the first two guards, his weight knocking them to the floor beneath him. He slammed his elbow into one face, then used the same hand to pummel the other, who was desperately trying to wrench a dagger from his belt. The man unfortunately succeeded, and the spy had to leave off trying to beat him into unconsciousness to keep the blade from slashing his jugular. He was quickly assisted by the strange man, who kicked the weapon away and rendered the man out of the fight with a swift blow.
. . .
Thark had by now moved to the throne room doors like everyone else, watching the fight in the foyer beyond. Things had worked beautifully up until this point. The soldiers were not allowing the subjects to surrender, as he had planned, and the king was angry enough not to care. It was much like a conjuring trick, he thought to himself. Just keep everyone watching the other hand. As he looked, the three combatants were being forced against the wall of the foyer. That'd be about where the passage was, that led down to... Yes, he would take great pleasure in telling the story of how he had killed a Surdan king and gotten away with it...
. . .
Taraak twisted sideways to avoid a spear thrust, snatching the spear's haft on the rotation and slamming the head into the wall as hard as he could. The spearhead bent against the marble wall, rendering it useless. The haft still in hand, he used the sturdy wooden shaft to parry an overhand sword blow, even while the surprised guard possessed the other end. Taraak gave a kick that sent the sword-wielder sprawling, tripping up two of his companions. The next attack came at Taraak from behind, but was easily dealt with by a whirl and an arm-lock. Instinctively he brought he free fist down at terminal velocity toward the side of the guard's head. The trouble with fighting armored foes with one's bare hands was that armor tended to be harder than one's fists, enclosed in leather half-gloves or otherwise. In this case, Taraak's knuckles made a sinewy snapping noise accompanied by a jolt of pain when they connected with the soldier's helm. He staggered back, his teeth bared in a silent hiss of pain. He tried again with a kick, which finished the job the punch had started.
He glanced over at the other two to keep track of their progress. The elf was in no need of help. But the man spun unsteadily away from a blow, using the wall as a balance-point… And the wall moved. It was only the slightest of movements, but from Taraak’s angle it revealed the shape of a door, set into the marble wall by skilled hands. His agile mind immediately knew what he could do with such a thing, and, catching the man’s eye, he saw they were agreed. It was all the time me had.
He twisted the dagger aside, his free hand wrapping behind the man’s neck and forcing his head down to meet the knee that was heading up, followed by a painful crack. Taraak knew it would hurt him too, but he never seemed to notice until after the fight. The next soldier had a sword, which Taraak met on the inside while throwing vicious blows to the head and chest. All of which were foiled by the man’s armor. Frustrated, Taraak decided he needed a weapon. Almost at the same time, his hand found a buckler on the man’s belt, which he neat extracted just in time to use it in defense against the sword. The blade skidded off the small round shield, allowing Taraak to land a solid kick. He hurriedly slipped his left hand into the buckler’s grips, reflecting absently that it was made for a bigger hand. But it served him well as he slowly let the men drive him back towards the wall, using the buckler both as a shield and an offensive weapon. He saw that the two others were doing the same, dodging and weaving every attack that was put their way. After training for as long as he had, he knew that there was something unnaturally smooth about the man’s way of moving, and most definitely how he could walk through a storm of metal unscathed. The glance cost him, as he found himself sent reeling by a vicious punch, the soldier using the hilt of his sword like a knuckle-duster. His vision blurred in front of him. But the animal part of his instincts told him that if he didn’t move, he was dead. Without the consent of his conscious will, that instinct propelled his body backwards, just barely out of striking distance. His back found something hard, but he could not even begin to think about what it was. His vision cleared at that moment, only to be greeted by the flash of a descending sword. With nothing else to use and nowhere else to go, he instinctively brought the shield up. The impact set his teeth on edge, the force of the blow sending him hard against the wall… through the wall. He found himself stumbling back along a cool stone hall, a surprised soldier staring at him. Without hesitation, Taraak removed the buckler and tossed it like a disc, the heavy wooden edge catching the soldier’s chin and sending him to the ground. I guess I found the passage… [/Color] [/Size][/Blockquote]
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~X~Cali~*
Novice
Time for Some Epicness xD
Posts: 48
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Post by ~X~Cali~* on Mar 6, 2009 17:41:47 GMT -5
Dewar & Orrin
Dewar glanced every which way trying to discern any other possible threats to the King, he didn’t want King Orrin staying but the furious King couldn’t be moved from his anger. Everything in him screamed that something was amiss in the battle, & he again found that evil smirk on the nobleman’s face. Shaking his head clear he turned to Orrin & grabbed his arm & Shouted “SIRE!!! Ye have to be listening to me now there could be other Assassins, It’s me Duty to keep ye safe& it makes it close to impossible if yer majesty is standing amidst the durn battle. Let’s be going out the secret entrance behind the throne & leave the battle to the Captain of the guard, he is a very able man I’d be a beardless goat if he couldn’t fend them assassins off after his training with me” Orrin glared at the weapons master but after a moment his features softened with a sigh & he said “Okay Master Dwarf I trust your judgment lead the way…” Dewar made a small bow off his head & Said over the ring of swords “Thank you sire… This way” *** Shale & RaeShale quickly made his way towards the center of the throne room dodging a couple attacks, as he reached the center he pivoted & saw that the guards were close behind. Shale glanced at Rae & said “Run” He saw Rae draw a deep breath& nodded & he started with all the speed he had in his legs towards what he knew was the secret entrance. Shale rammed into first guard’s side holding to his balance as if he was high on the roofs, every step took them closer to freedom from this totally confusing day –he hoped- as his thoughts went to what lies beyond that door …please be a safe passage out of he-…. His thoughts interrupted by another attack from a guard, dropping to his knee he slid under the blade spinning& with some momentum he sent a boot into the guards gut dropping the man to the ground. Shale quickly jumped back towards his goal, as he looked he saw that the wall that had hid the entrance was standing open, the half elf gasped with surprise …NO!! They can’t have known our plan for escape… Shale quickly glanced over his shoulder & saw Rae nod that she had seen it too, She quickly said as if reading his mind on the matter “We will have to be cautious inside” Shale quickly added “agreed” & continued his run towards the entrance. After a few moments Shale crash against a guard & swung himself around the man into the small entrance in the wall. Shale saw the reason for the wall to be open, it was that brown haired man retrieving some sort of buckler from an unconscious guard. Shale could guess what had happened but before he could think on it Rae came tumbling through the entrance. Shale quickly shoved the wall closed behind the elf & grabbed the unconscious guard wedging him against the wall. As Shale turned around the brown haired man disappeared around a corner, Shale jumped up & screamed “Wait!!”……. **** Dewar & OrrinDewar had opened the passage behind the throne & was letting one of his guards go first followed by the still angry King, knowing the King will have a lot of words for the guards &the Captain of the Guard for the letting the assassins through for the attack & for the multiple attempts as well, sighing the weapons master started to follow, but as he started through the entrance he glanced over shoulder & saw the ‘assassins’ exit through another secret passage. The Dwarf sighed again & thought about the three that was titled, or more likely assumed, was the assassins, had not have the malice in their eyes … He was confused, the scene didn’t fit the picture of those characters, he had seen the one before & he always seemed calm enough & the two new comers he had heard them laugh when inside the library “there was no malice…” the dwarf muttered under his breath, then he heard Orrin’s voice booming through the passage way “MASTER Dwarf. Hurry Up!” The Dwarf jumped in surprise & quickly replied “Yes Mi’lord...”the words came out with some effort but he started after the King Down the passage way that lead towards a room close to his royal chambers, As they hurried through it Dewar thought …I’d best look into those three- they might need help if their innocent…. Dewar knew the king won’t believe them even if they are but he had to try if it was the case…… **** Shale & RaeShale hurried after the man shouting “WAIT FOR US!! WE HAVE SOME QUESTIONS , PLEASE” but the man didn’t slow down, Shale quickly called back to Rae “Rae let’s try & find him, quickly, we have to hurry....” but as he glanced where he had thought Rae was there was nothing & he suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder ,Jumping with start he spun on Rae & glared but the elf gave a disarming smile& said “Coming? He did say 'follow me' while you were overly busy blocking door” Shale’s jaw dropped but he quickly composed himself & just shook his head & Said “yes, okay okay I get it, I'm coming” as they sped off after the brown haired man, he was thinking …one day I have to ask her how she’s always able to sneak past me… Shale could only smile as they run into some kind of catacombs underneath the castle 888
After what seemed close to a half& hour Shale Came around a corner, & Suddenly the brown haired man jumped out from around the corner, Shale screamed & fell to his back eyeing the brown haired man standing before him, Shale narrowed his eyes & after a moment glanced back at Rae, who gave him a sheepish smile, sighing profoundly Shale muttered under his breath "Why has everybody always have to scare the wits out of me...ugh...its so unfair!" As Shale looked back at the man the Half elf was surprised to see his out stretched hand, with just another small curse under his breath Shale took the help on got back on his feet....
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Post by Angmor on Mar 6, 2009 18:25:41 GMT -5
Just as he had retrieved his buckler, both of Taraak's unwilling accomplices dived through the opening just ahead of a few confused but doggedly relentless soldiers. Before he could take a step forward to help, the man had made sure the elf was safely inside and slammed the heavy stone door closed, leaving the tunnel thoroughly silent. Taraak realized his hands were shaking slightly on the after effects of the adrenaline. That had been entirely too close. But he did not allow himself to relax. Now that he could see the simple locking mechanism on the back of the door, he could see that it would not hold long against a determined assault. He and his newfound allies would have to keep moving. "We can't stay here." He said as the man went about wedging the door as best he could. "Follow me."
. . .
Thark watched carefully as the door of the passage closed from the inside, forming a solid wall again. Suddenly, and almost comically, the soldiers had no idea what to do. Their target had evaporated so quickly that they all seemed to blink in unison, as if awakening from a mass stupor. The captain in charge quickly came to himself, and started to regain order with quick shouted commands. Thark ambled closer, in order to hear what was said. "You lot! Get a battering ram up here! We'll have this door down. Where's the king?" "The dwarf has him at a safe location sir." Thark glanced back into the throne room, and sure enough, Orrin and his pet dwarf had gone. No matter. The goal of today's excercise was attainable with or without their presence. "What's behind here?" The commander's curt question was met by silence from all his men. The passage had been a secret to all of them, apparently. "Fine, no matter." The captain continued. "We'll just find out when we get down there." Time to speak up. "Captain!" Thark called out, illiciting raised eyebrows among the Surdan guards. "Captain, I would like to pledge my men to the search. One in particular is a fairly skilled user of magic, and would be a great help in rooting out the assassins." He made sure to spit the last word like it had a foul taste. The captain seemed rather taken aback, but quickly regained his composure. "That is very generous sir. I thank you. Thark smiled. "My pleasure."
. . .
The tunnel was much longer than he thought it might be. It snaked and curved, and doubled back on itself several times, always heading down. Looking back on how man steps he had taken and the distance traveled, he estimated that he was at least a mile away from the throne room, and perhaps five miles down the tunnel. Judging by the height of the walls, and the angle of the incline... About three hundred yards underground. That would explain the irregular curves near the entrance earlier on, it was probably weaving around the foundation of the castle. Just then, it occurred to him that he could see.
That wouldn't be so unusual in itself, except that this far down and with this many turns, there should have been no light at all. But instead, there was a muted blue glow illuminating the way ahead, and Taraak could not even begin to identify the source. At that moment he looked back, and realized that he had lost the other two. He swore quietly to himself and stopped, straining his ears in the silence. After a moment, he thought he heard running footsteps. It could have been two people, it could have been several, there was no way to tell with the sound echoing so. He retreated around another blind corner where the tunnel doubled back again, drawing his knife silently.
The sound reached his position quicker than he expected. He pivoted around the corner, coming face to face with the strange man for the second time that day. The man cried out, falling backwards in his surprise. The elven woman cracked a smile as warm as the dawn, and Taraak could not stop himself huffing in amusement. For a being so agile a graceful, those traits didn't seem to manifest themselves outside of combat. But he could think about that later. For now, they needed to get far enough away from pursuit so they could compare recollections and try and construct whatever had happened topside. And that place wasn't here. "Let's keep on." He said, turning and sheathing his knife. "Do try to keep up." They started moving again, more slowly and cautiously this time. After several more turns Taraak realized that the light was growing, and the walls of the tunnel were slowly widening. He had just finished thinking this when the walls and ceiling fell away altogether, leaving them in empty space.
It was a massive natural cavern. At least, it certainly wasn't big compared to Farthen Dur or any of the other pieces of dwarven architecture that Taraak had seen, but he was still surprised by its natural beauty. Formations of crystals glittered from niches in the rough-hewn walls, scattering the light from the series of blue dwarven lanterns that were staked into the ground on silver poles. Their boots made a slight swishing noise on the sandy floor, that curved gently down to the small lake in the center of the cavern. The clear water made the light dance and undulate across the ceiling, combining with the crystals to form a captivating display. It was just the sort of place for one to sit and think in the silence afforded by tons of rock above. And, he reflected with a twinge of sadness, it would have been the perfect place to read his book. But, of course, his days never seemed to go that way. That book was now lying forgotten at the head of the stairs, ignored by the guards as they swarmed around looking for him.
His eyes were drawn to the darkened openings dotting the side of the cave, hoping that they were different ways to the surface than the way they had come. He walked forward a few paces and took the nearest lantern off its pole and began to investigate the nearest opening with its light. "Here, help me search these." He called back to the other two. "My name's Taraak, by the way." [/blockquote]
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~X~Cali~*
Novice
Time for Some Epicness xD
Posts: 48
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Post by ~X~Cali~* on Mar 6, 2009 18:28:29 GMT -5
Dewar, Orrin &Other
The Dwarf quickly walked through the tunnel followed by King Orrin & one of his personal guards. Dewar stopped around one curve in the tunnel & stooped down to press a hidden stone on the side of the passage, knowing the passage makes a dead end after a half & hour’s walk, throwing of any would be assassins that might follow in the dark tunnel. After a Moment a door size piece of stone moved & with some pressure the dwarf wedged the hidden door open & led the King out into a small room, which was used for storing bedding for the Royal rooms. Dewar quickly sealed of the passageway back to its original form & led the party out into the hallway, as they reached the Royal King’s bed room Dewar quickly entered first wanting to make sure Nobody was hiding in the room.
The Dwarf hurried through the room checking the windows , Under the large king’s size bed decorated with golden dragons & rubies on the supporting beams for the overhanging silk like canopy, Dewar paused a moment thinking …No matter how many times I see this room, it always takes me breath away… shaking his head clear he muttered under his breath “..got to hurry, I have to go find those three…” The Dwarf quickly checked the last possible places for someone, satisfied the Dwarf sighed & for the guard to bring the King. As King Orrin Entered Dewar bowed slightly & asked “ Yer ,majesty if I have yer permission I would like to go summon a company of Royal guards to come protect ye & have my leave to go Join the Captain of the guard in the Throne room” Dewar glanced up at the King & saw that his face was an unreadable mask, waiting patiently for the King’s reply he looked back down.
After a few moments the King said “I rather have you here by my side but I guess you’d be more help in the search” Dewar did well to hid his smile, he knew he was going to find the truth behind this & quickly said “Thank ye Sire, I will do my best to find Who was behind this” he looked up at the King & saw his approving nod as he said “Now fetch me a company of some trusted men master Dwarf& then report to the Captain of the Guard” Dewar got up replying within a heartbeat “Yes Sire” with that he trotted out of the Royal bed room. As he reached the end of the hallway he smiled broadly, luck was with him as a company of guards that he had trained himself walked towards him, He quickly shouted “Captain Nased,”as the words left his mouth the captain stopped at attention &said “Yes Weapons Master, how can we assist” Dewar smiled at the discipline & replied “Ye & yer Men have orders to go to the king’s Bedroom & guard Him, there has been an attempt on his life, his majesty is safe in his room now, but don’t ye be letting down yer guard for a moment Captain ye Defend his majesty with yer life” with that the whole company saluted & said “Yes sir!” Dewar quickly dismissed the group & sighed with relief knowing every one of those men to be trustworthy men of honor.
The Dwarf quickly ran off in the direction of the throne room, as he reached it he saw that the men was ramming the secret passage with a battering ram, Dewar glanced down to his left & saw the one guard that had died after the second attempt on the King’s life, Dewar went down to one knee as he inspected the scene, The Dwarf briefly looked up & saw that the nobleman was conversing with the Captain of the guard. Dewar took the opportunity to look for a clue while the nobleman was unaware of his presence, as he looked at the dead guard he could see the man had died by a wound to the neck, & as he looked down ,to his utter surprise, he could see a crossbow bolt gripped in his cold hand. The Dwarf couldn’t believe what he was seeing & his suspicions were proved just a moment later as the same crossbow bolts was neatly placed within fittings in the guard's belt around the his waist, Dewar gasped for breath& quickly tried the bolt to the crossbow laying to the side, it fitted perfectly & there was something about all the bolts... he couldn't quite put his finger to it, but then he quickly realized all of them were poisoned…
As Dewar stood up he saw the nobleman’s eyes locked on him, The Dwarf just stood there & then walked towards the Captain of the Guard all the while keeping his eyes trained on the nobleman. As Dewar reached the Captain a selected group of men had gone into the secret passage, Dewar immediately noticed some of the men was from the company that had arrived with the nobleman. The Dwarf waited a moment &then asked “Captain Tori how are yer progress?” The Captain quickly replied “I have sent a company of men to the castle grounds just in case& a two companies into the secret passageway, accompanied by a magic user& a couple of veteran soldiers graciously supplied by Nobleman Thark….” Dewar nodded but he didn’t quite trust the additions to the hunting parties, but he couldn’t make any conclusions, there’d be No reason for the Nobleman to have been behind the assignation attempt, & the man didn’t seem the slightest bit disappointed by the failure of the assassination, Dewar could only sigh, He still wanted some answers, but that have to wait he had to reach the running trio first, he might help point them in the right direction. Dewar quickly excused himself & walked out of the throne room, as he was out of sight from the throne room he hurried towards the library & walked into one of the corners that was behind a bookshelf, he quickly pressed several spots on the wooden corner & after a moment it opened to another passage, he quickly entered & closed the passage behind him. He had to reach them quickly….
Shale, Rae &Other
Shale walked into the great cavern stopping in Awe, he hadn’t seen dwarven architecture of this scale before, He was captivated by the beauty, he couldn’t draw himself away from the sight, but a moment later he felt a hard nudge in his side, he glanced to his side, seeing Rae staring coldly at him, as she said “Now is not the time to be daydreaming , we have to keep moving” Shale startled by the cold stare stammered out an apology, but a moment later he saw Rae’s face turning warm again.
Shale was confused, as usual when it came to his female companion; the only word that came to his mind was …elves… As the elf trotted away Shale muttered under his breath, “…why must elves always be so complicated…it makes my head spin” Rae glanced back at him & asked “Did you ask something?” Shale just shook his head & said “Nothing, let’s move on” He could see a flash understanding in the elf’s eyes, but she didn’t say anything
After a few moments he saw the brown haired man pick up a dwarven lantern & turn back towards them & said "Here, help me search these….. My name's Taraak, by the way." Shale stared at the man & before he could even think of saying something Rae pushed him aside & said “Good to meet you Taraak, My Name is Lovinoraem, or you can call me Rae, &this here is my companion Shale Carez, we both had come from Teirm with a secret message for the king….but well yeah things didn’t go as well,” Rae quickly took a Lantern herself & handed another to Shale & quickly told him “You search those three cave openings to the right over there”
As Shale moved off Rae went off to her own direction but as she moved off she asked over her shoulder at Taraak“Whats your story, do you live in the castle & How did you end up in this whole mess?” Rae reached a cave opening & just as Taraak seemed to start speaking she said “Just a second, Hold that thought I’ll be right back” & quickly entered.
The Elf quickly searched down the narrow tunnel, after a couple of moments she reached a dead end, sighing she went back the way she came, before she left the cave she saw a opening hidden behind a large rock, quickly checking where it goes she crawled into the opening, after a couple of meters she came into a little larger area that could house a couple of people, but to her disappointment it was also a dead end. Rae quickly exited & walked back to where Taraak came out another cave opening &asked “Anything?” ……
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Post by Angmor on Mar 6, 2009 18:33:57 GMT -5
"Just a second, Hold that thought. I'll be right back." Taraak watched the elf dash off, blinking owlishly in her wake at the sudden change of attention. He had seen and conversed with elves before, and had even undertaken a joint mission in Teirm with one. He looked back on that few weeks as one of the more... complicated times of his life. This one though seemed very different than his experiences. Kyra had always made an effort to be reserved and distant, and had cultivated a prickly exterior that had defied all his efforts to understand her. This Rae however made no effort to keep her emotions off her face, and also seemed to switch between thoughts with the speed of a skilled card dealer. He glanced over the lake at the man for some sign that he had done something wrong, but he only gave him a knowing look and disappeared into one of the dark openings, making it glow blue.
Shaking his head, he set these thoughts aside and concentrated on his task. He turned on his heel- and nearly cried out in pain. He toppled forward as his leg suddenly decided not to hold him, catching himself with his arms before hitting the sand. After a moment of catching his breath, he rolled carefully onto his back to examine his injury, glad that neither of his companions had seen his sudden weakness. He had often been at this stage, Baric had often called it the After-Action Jitters. It was the time when the adrenaline finally wore off completely, and your body finally registered how hurt it was. In Taraak's case, the injury to his ankle from the last assignment had been aggravated by all the recent sprinting, sending warm flashes of pain up his leg whenever he put too much weight on it. Deciding he didn't have time for an injury, he stood up gingerly and limped to the next cave opening.
Unlike the last two, this was one was easily wide enough to accommodate him fully standing. Playing the blue light of his lantern about, he found that was also quite deep, curving up and beyond reach of the light. Even though he had no indicators here, he knew that the tunnel went roughly north. All he had to do was search his memory for the last time he knew his direction, and simply recall what turns he had made since then. Walking in a bit further, he imagined a slight breeze ruffled his hair, but that couldn't be... No, he found that his cloak was billowing slightly. "Anything?" He jumped, whirling around. The elf was standing beside him again, and he had not heard her coming. The expression on her face made him think that it happened a lot. “This one looks promising.” He picked up as smoothly as he could. “There’s a breath of air coming from it, so it has to lead to the surface eventually…” Just then a sharp metallic tone tore through the comparative quiet of the cavern, invoking images in Taraak’s imagination of a sword dropped on rock. Without conscious thought, he flattened himself against the side of the opening, his knife finding his hand. Glancing carefully into the cavern, he found that it was not filled with soldiers as he was expecting. As the final echoes of the sudden sound faded away, he realized that it had come from the tunnel from which they had come. He turned to the elf, sheathing his knife carefully. “I’d suggest you get your friend over here. If we’re not out of time already, we soon will be.”
. . .
Gerja finished spitting the blood out of his mouth and onto the floor, probing the side of his head gingerly. Whoever that dark-clothed man was, he knew exactly where to hit him. He remembered grappling with the man after he had come from nowhere and then waking up here, lying on a table. He recognized it as one of the mess halls for the garrison, a small, roughhewn affair where he had eaten every day since his transfer to the castle. At the moment it stood empty, apart from himself and all the others that had been present in the throne room before the first shot had been fired. Gerja knew that all would be questioned, and questioned again, until the king was at last satisfied that he knew what happened. Gerja realized that probably meant he would die for his treason, but strangely he did not feel afraid. He had failed at his task, yes. But at least he had had the courage to try. If they killed him for it, so be it. It wasn’t like he had much to live for.
“How are you feeling?” Gerja glanced up, finding a man standing in front of him. With a start, he recognized it as Thark Storvek, his former employer. He almost stood to his feet, but he remembered just in time that he wasn’t supposed to know this man. “I… feel fine, sir.” He managed to stammer. “I just wanted to congratulate you on your performance today. You truly had them all fooled.” Gerja blinked. What was he talking about? And, why was he talking about it here? He glanced nervously at the guard stationed in front of the door. It was his job to make sure the detainees didn’t talk to each other before they were questioned, and he had to be deaf to not be hearing every word of this. Storvek looked up as if seeing the guard for the first time. “Oh, don’t worry about him. He’s one of mine.” Gerja did his very best to make sense of it, but failed. “Sir…?” “We can talk freely here.” Storvek said, his tone sounding like his patience was wearing thin. “Then…” Wait, why was he being congratulated? The plan had failed, and the king still lived. And he said so. “Yes…” Thark answered. “I’m afraid I wasn’t completely honest with you. That wasn’t the plan. This is.” Gerja felt his head spin. “So, I was supposed to miss?” “Yes, exactly. You see, had you killed the king, you would almost instantly have been caught. There would be no way you would get out alive. This way though, I go about getting the king’s trust.” Gerja tried to picture it. “So, where do I come in now?” Thark smiled, which he found unpleasant for some reason that he couldn’t pinpoint. “It’s quite simple really. They will be questioning you very closely. You will give them the exact story I tell you. Do you understand?” Gerja couldn’t think of anything to say. He just nodded dumbly. “Good… If you did not, I would not hesitate to kill you now.” Thark said, he voice suddenly losing its silken tone. He sat on the bench opposite Gerja’s, lacing his fingers together. “Now,” He said, his voice syrup once again. “Let’s begin…” [/blockquote]
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