Crimson Flag Comic Forums
Other Realms => Role Play Theater => Topic started by: Jenia on September 22, 2010, 05:16:49 AM
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CHAPTER 1
-Obsidian City-
It is an early evening hour in the core of the Grari power, the one remaining empire in the known world of Memad, and home to the racial queen of the grarim race and her Obsidian Palace.
The market's bustle has died down, and pairs of various races walk the streets, some within it's walls, others in it's outskirts.
A lone figure can be seen from some of the towers, standing quietly in a hill overlooking the city.
With many colorful birds still chirping overhead, grasshoppers beginning to make their presence known, and wolves howling to the three moons from nearby woodland, a small anthro wearing imperial uniform rushes past the city gates, leaving behind an atmosphere of calm, as if he were never there.
-Obsidian Palace, Throne Room-
A single piece of china falling and breaking was enough to warrant only a moment of stunned silence in the grarim audience chamber, doubling today as a ball room, which really was more of a party room at the point.
With remains of aged wine and exotic foods littering the round oak tables, several maids trying their best to replace the quickly emptying plates of food, and one little greenscale, probably no older than ten, making a futile attempt at removing the caviar stain from the polished blue obsidian floor, this was one of the new queen's more successful parties.
For some reason many would fail to understand, this white-furred woman, which appeared to be some sort of hybrid between a lisk and a shilton, appeared to appreciate the sight of drunk, happy aristocrats making fools of themselves all around her.
Her green, catlike eyes slowly moved from side to side, like some metronome, as she admired the scene she had created, until one of the patron's would once again get her attention. Having no muzzle, her black anthro nose and lips looked like some sort of curious stain on her otherwise snow-white face, her pointy canine ears standing at attention as she listens patiently to that one count again as he complains about the scarcity of fish.
No one dared assume that the short, uniformed ruko running into the room would be of any significance. Some took offense when the queen rejected the drunk barons in favor of lending the little soldier her ear, and while many decided to ignore her when she left the room, few failed to notice her sweet, enticing aroma grow scarce.
The previously festive party fell to whispers.
-Obsidian Palace, War Room-
The queen shook her head, not sure what to say or do, leaving a worried-looking ruko to stare at her in anticipation.
The Obsidian Castle's War Room has seen no use whatsoever since the days of the previous-previous queen-empress, but has been kept in pristine shape by the slave-maids, leaving it completely lacking in the dust department, which, for some reason, irritated the queen, who frowned at her reflection on the polished glass table dominating most of the room's floor.
“So... Until my generals show up...” the queen sat down on one of the chairs facing both the table and the way out “...What exactly are we expecting?”
The ruko's ears perked up.
“Well, your highness, like I told you earlier, a large group has been spotted heading towards the capital as we speak. They will most likely arrive tonight, from the south. We estimate it to be roughly a hundred men, most of which are slaves armed with farming tools. I can't imagine them getting past the walls...”
The ruko tried very hard not to snicker. He wasn't looking at the queen, but rather at the large banner adorning the wall – deep blue, with silver vertical stripes at the sides, and a silver circle within a silver diamond in the middle.
His efforts weren't required, apparently, as the queen didn't seem to notice, instead drifting off into her own thoughts.
“I don't understand – why would anyone want to rebel anyway?” she asked herself, out loud “It's not like we're treating the slaves badly-”
“For freedom, your highness” the lowly ruko cut the queen off, leaving her blinking at him with an expression of shock has he smiled far too innocently for a soldier and wagged his tail.
“...Well, I-” the queen began saying something, but was interrupted by the doors swinging open.
All four of her generals stood at the doorway, clad in their armor, prepared as always. Or, at least, that seemed to be the case. Most of the stranagrari military has not seen actual combat, so their experience stemmed from drills developed and documented several generations earlier.
“...Ah, my warriors are here.” the queen settled in her chair and smacked her hands against the table “Please be seated, we have much to discuss!”
A loud bang sounded across the castle, the sudden tremor causing nearly everyone to jerk in surprise.
“...And little time.” the queen added, horror dawning on her.
-Hill overlooking Obsidian City, Southeast-
Kigar gazed at the obsidian city.
Ironic he thought, to be named after obsidian but have simple stone walls, his old, ancestral cape fluttering in the wind.
An old shilton bandit knelt behind him, his chipped axe laying aside, beyond which stood the combined forces of most of the east's bandit gangs.
“Please, allow me to apologize again.” the bandit muttered in a gruff, hoarse voice with a hint of a heavy smoker “I didn't realize you are of-”
“Forget it.” Kigar interrupted him “The dragon empire is long since vanished, the land it occupied is long since vanished, and with those, any meaning to the respect you offer me.”
The bandit stood up, adjusting the padded leather he wore.
“I grew up constantly remind by my father how great our people used to be...” the bandit spat aside, gazing at the bright orange light of the setting sun “To see us reduced to mere slaves of those damn...”
He was about to say furries. Kigar knew this. But this one old bandit was smart enough not to – he had lisks and rukos among the bandits who answered to him.
“...Well, either way.” the bandit continued, narrowing his bright green eyes “I feel it is us, and by extension, you and your kin – who should be the ones doing the ruling! I mean, the very thought makes me...!”
The old bandit pulled at his thick, graying blue beard in frustration, but Kigar only sighed in response.
“There is no need to be concerned.” Kigar finally turned to look at the old man who finally opted to pick up his axe “Though our past is no longer of any meaning, our future is still ahead of us. Look-”
He pointed towards a woodland west of the city. Numerous armed folk – appeared to be mostly composed of well equipped farmers – have began to emerge... Followed by rams and catapults.
“There is no way those slaves could've assembled this alone.” Kigar smiled “They've had some sort of benefactor. So, what say you, Raven?”
The old man, identified by Kigar as “Raven”, scratched his balding head, not sure what the djuni meant. So Kigar decided to spell it out for him.
“Shall we join the party?”
'Raven' narrowed his eyes, but grinned, showing several missing teeth.
A roar and a wave of his axe followed, and the outlaws charged.
Kigar stood by, leaning on a tree, chuckling.
“The Shadow...” he muttered “...The fire, and the storm, eh...?”
Old man 'Raven' had already left, leaving Kigar to stand alone as bandits charge by him. He thought the visage was beautiful.
With a deep breath, and few words of self-assurance, Kigar joined the charge.
-
-Road outside Obsidian City-
Sennel’s tail swished in time with the rumblings of the carriage. Two hours had already been spent over rocky ground so it was a welcome relief to feel the stability of even paths. He looked up idly from his book.
“How much further is there to go?”
The driver looked back, “Just a few more minutes, sir! City’s just over the hill!” the holim’s eyes lingered on Sennel’s muzzle longer than they should have, causing him to almost lose control of the horses.
Sennel chuckled as he bounced in his seat from the brief disruption. His appearance had that effect on people. Lupes weren’t very common this far west, but it was something he had long ago dealt with. He fumbled around in his breast pocket and pulled out a worn list. This was mostly out of habit—he had long since memorized the names tasked to him to find. Hopefully the Obsidian City would have some results.
A tremor suddenly shook the carriage as the horses let out a terrified whinny. Sennel was knocked over as the carriage flipped onto its side and crashed into the ground (“Oof!”). Coughing, he pulled himself up and kicked open the carriage door. Climbing out, he caught the retreating view of the horses fleeing.
“Well, I dare say that’s going to be an inconvenience.” He remarked reassuringly. “Don’t worry about the fare though, you can keep the full—what is it?”
The driver was still on the ground, his head slightly raised and staring at something in the distance. Sennel followed his gaze and raised a hand to block out the sun. It looked like some kind of crowd was gathering outside the city gates with what looked like... catapults!?
“Oh blast, it seems we’ve arrived in the middle of a battle. Does this happen often in these parts?”
A sudden cry made his head turn to the east. Tearing down a hill in the distance was a throng of farmen and anthros swinging a variety of blunt and sharp weaponry. If Sennel were to guess, they would be headed for the group outside the city gates—which put him right in the middle. Oh blast...
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-Pavestone-
Dusk begins to set over a small town straddling an unnamed road, far from the Obsidian City, and the strife unfolding there. Weary travelers stopped by here on their way to and from distant cities, refreshing themselves at the tavern. Rumors were just beginning to circulate of unrest to the north, and some even whisper of rebellion, but for the most part the small town remains untouched by war, for now. Some are making their way to the inns, to rest before continuing their journey, while some of the more ambitious travelers have set out to brave the night on the road. Pavestone was founded during the construction of the Great Road, named after the stones mined from its quarry. The quarry has long since shut down, and been allowed to fill with rainwater, creating a lake beside the town.
Simon arrives after a long day's travel, a well-worn musket slung over his shoulder. He shakes some dust from his fur before walking to the nearest inn. He walks up to the innkeeper and clears his throat,
"Excuse me, I'd like to get a room please."
The innkeeper, a rather tall Shilton, smiles and looks down at the somewhat short Lisk.
"Ye look like ye've come a long way, lad, where ye be heading at this time o' year?"
Simon brushes some more dust off of his right shirt sleeve and replies,
"Obsidian City, to apply for my guild membership."
The innkeeper arches his eyebrows at that, then says,
"Ye be careful lad, they say some foul things are afoot up north, rumors of war all about. The room'll cost ya five, by the way."
Simon pays the fee and accepts the room key, a look of worry on his face as he finds a table to sit down at.
-
-Roadside Southeast of Obsidian City-
Ril'Trag stirs from his sleep. The korg quickly looks around the burrow he hastily made on the side of the road, having traveled a great distance overnight and needing a rest, and noted that nothing was visually out of place. The korg, however, knew the world too well to be fooled by that, what was wrong was what he felt. The ground was shaking, however lightly is was, but it was growing, and whatever it was would be far to large to simply hide out in his burrow, and definitely much too large to confront directly.
Ril'Trag dug his way back to the surface analyzed his surroundings. To the southeast, the rumbling, to the northwest, a broken down caravan. All rational though told him that the caravan's passengers would be fine and have already fled, but instinct demanded that, until it was beyond a shadow of a doubt that no further harm to allies and neutrals would come, he must provide all the assistance he can. Today he listened to the latter.
A quick scuttle later, the korg arrived at the caravan in time to catch the tail end of the lupes' question. "Are the two of you alright? Were there any other passengers?"
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-Forests Edge Southeast of Obsidian City-
Among a small thicket formed to hide him within sits Vandme, in meditiation. The greenscale slowly scans the area around him, looking for the souls of the forest, and "pinching" small pieces of it to collect for himself. It was a standard practice of Sages to collect energy.
His focus however, was disturbed as the a sudden roll of vibrations and raging souls fill his sight. Shaking it off, he opens his eyes, and slowly unnattaches himself from the thicket, allowing the plants to return to normal size.
Curious about the disturbance, he steps out of the woods to see whats going on, and comes upon the war machines. "How curious..." he says to himself as he looks over them, completly ignorant to any one that might be gaurding...
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-PaveStone-
Joshua scans the room and sees a table with 3 chairs, he motions to Simon that they should sit over there. They walk over to take a sit. The Djuni, Kicking up his feet on the table notices that his Lisk friend seems a bit uneasy.
"Hey Simon, Something on your mind?"
-
-Obsidian City, The Market Place-
"But that price is outrageous!" exclaimed Altais to the peddler. "I would not pay half that much for this beast!"
"So you have previously stated, good sir. The price remains what it is." replied the peddler in question. The two of them were standing next to a corral containing various beasts of burden and had been arguing over one of them for a good ten minutes now. By now a small crowd had gathered to watch the lisk and the greenscale argue over this admittedly overpriced donkey. It was a well known fact that this merchant had a tendency to up his prices for non-natives and 'slave folk' so a few of the locals were hoping for the foreign traveler to get a good price and give the gossip mill a bit of extra grain to grind.
Unfortunately this did not seem to be the case as the merchant was remaining steadfast with his price and not even bothering to bargain down as per the usual custom. Unfortunately for Al, this was really the only nearby place selling livestock and he needed to acquire a pack animal for the journey away. As they argued however, Altais' brother Eltanin had finished his own list of things to do and arrived on the scene.
"El! You're good at getting people to do stuff!" Al exclaimed. (He was in a rather exclaimy mood what with the being angry at the stubborn merchant thing.) "Get this man to lower his price, he's being unreasonable!"
"Al, you're just as good with bargaining as I am, maybe better. If you're not getting anywhere, I doubt I will either. Besides, we don't need a pack animal anymore. The city guards have sealed off the gates. They won't say why, but we won't be able to leave just yet. We should find an inn to stay the night.
The merchant sputtered, annoyed at losing this customer he had over a horse and dismayed that his business would have to be delayed. He grumbled a little and then offered the brothers a heavy discount if they bought the horse today as opposed to waiting to see what other merchants might show up.
Heading away now, El looked over his shoulder and laughed. "And pay overnight stabling fees? No thank you sir!"
-
- Obsidian City Outskirts -
One of the things that bothered Kigar the most was the amount of dust those brigands are kicking up in their charge. It was everywhere - and keeping it out of his armor was a pain.
I wonder what will become of this land, now that it will fall into chaos...?
His contemplation was interrupted when he noticed a small caravan by their charge path. With a telekinetically aided jump, he left the charge, and approached the caravan, spotting some kind of gray-furred anthro, a holiim, and some sort of giant bug, which, from the obviously artificial equipment it was carrying, was surely sentient.
Freaky he thought I feel like I'm looking at some sort of dangerous critter, despite logic dictating otherwise...
The charge passed just by the caravan, never actually hitting it directly, but creating a small cloud of dust obscuring view of the city. Kigar turned back to the strange trio, and realized they're still talking. The holiim nodded to him, probably in recognition of his lineage, so Kigar nodded back, but decided to just stand there, arms folded, until they notice him - he wasn't about to tell what was obviously a group of seasoned adventurers that it's not safe...
Meanwhile, the sound of rams ramming began to echo across the area...
-
-Obsidian Road-
Sennel jumped. “YIPE! The devil are you?” He asked. A moment passed before he shook his head. “Actually, that doesn’t matter right now. I was the only passenger and the horses bolted. The driver though—“
“Is fine.” Interrupted the holim as he pushed himself to his feet.
“Right. Well, guess we aren’t going anywhere either way.” Sennel said with a shrug. “Carriage is trashed and the city is definitely sealed off. Any idea what’s going on?” He glanced inquisitively down at the wasp-thing.
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-Obsidian Road-
"Not sure what's going on, but escape doesn't seem to be likely..." Ril'Trag looked at what was available to them at the moment and tried to botch together a plan to keep them out of harm's way. "...Tell me, quickly, do either of you know magic? I might have a plan."
-
Sennel nodded. "Yes, I can. What do you need?"
-
"Can you make this carriage have the appearance of a large bolder? I can dig us a hole to hide in under it, and the incoming army will simply go around it."
-
*whump* *whump*
Sennel turned his ears away from the battering rams being thrust into the city gates further down the road. "Yes, I can do that but--"
*crick*
A twig snapped nearby and Sennel turns round. He leaps to his feat and draws a small knife upon seeing the bandit poised nearby.
"--but I think you might find a ward more immediately useful!"
-
Ril'Trag pulled out his crossbow and made a pot-shot at the bandit, though missing the center mass he was aiming for, it managed to land on his right shoulder, which was enough to convince him to retreat. "Anything is useful at this point! Do what you can and I'll hold off anybody who comes near."
-
- Scene with the Caravan -
Kigar turned to look at the poor bandit who stopped alongside him, suddenly shot by the bug in the shoulder.
"...That was unnecessary." he finally spoke, his voice carried a tone of disappointment.
The one shot was retreated, and Kigar could only hope that one will be fine.
A battlefield is no place for meaningless deaths.
"...I suggest you hold your horses-"
He then realized the horses those people had already fled.
"...Or lay down your weapons. Unless you're the queen's assassination squad?"
The bug, which he found reminiscent of a hornet, was the main focus of his gaze, but he attempted to keep the gray anthro just as much in his sights.
-
"The Queen's...assassination squad? Wouldn't that mean we'd have to be inside the city?" Sennel tilted his head curiously. "Or is she out here? What's going on, anyway?"
-
Ril'Trag silently put away his crossbow, somewhat annoyed that he injured somebody who didn't intend to harm them, but also knowing that he didn't have much time to respond in the case that the bandit was attempting to harm them.
-
- Scene with the Caravan -
Kigar smirked, turning to the gray anthro.
"Well... In case you didn't notice, the rebels are attacking the city, trying to bring down the empress slash queen. I mean, who else would bring siege weapons to the city? Molemen?"
His eyes shifted back to the bug-man.
For some reason, that being unsettled him...
-
"Ooooh! That makes sense! I'll just wait until the fighting's over before asking around then." For some reason the news seems to have relaxed him. He puts his knife away and hops back, sitting down on the overturned carriage.
-
"Wait a moment, rebellion? Empress? What exactly is going on here?" The korg tried to make sense of what was going on, but he was never one for listening to his client's gossip, and he hadn't been here long enough to know from experience.
-
Vandme's curiosity was intruppeted as the seige engies began to roll across the field in the direction of the city. Somewhat bewildered, he watched as the catapaults began to roll into position. Watching from afar, he could see people moving around the structure, as they start to load it for firing upon the walls.
Intreging...although somewhat wasteful... Vandme thought as he looked upon them firing their shells. As he watched, he noticed the overturned carraige. Seeing them getting caught in the strange charge, and in need to help, he decides to slowly walk over the the carraige. Upon arriving, he says "Scuse me, you need any help getting that up?" he asks no one in preticular.
-
Simon sighs, takes a seat and rests his hands on the table. He shakes his head slightly and says,
"It's probably nothing, but I've started hearing things from the people around here as we get closer to the Obsidian city. Wars and rumors of wars. Just in the last town someone said the Blendscale empire had fallen to some sort of civil war, do you think the same thing could happen to us?"
((OOC: you sure get some fun stuff when news travels at the speed of horseback eh? It's like a Doppler effect, the news seems to happen more quickly when you're traveling toward the source. X3))
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*Joshua laughs * The Blendscale Empire fall to a civil war? HA! That seems rather ridiculous saying something like that out loud; nothing but pointless rumors, that is....
*Looks around* Say....you think we can get something to eat around here? I'm starving!
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- Scene with the Caravan -
"...Hmmm..." Kigar paused, thinking of how to respond.
These aren't the adventurers he was making them out to be...
"...Well, foreigner..." he decided to politely explain "We have a slavering empire here called Stranagrar, Empire of the Grarim. And the rebels are being... Rebellious, as you can see. Speaking of which... you lot might want to get out of the way if you're not helping."
He turned to leave, feeling his place was out there on the front lines.
-
Sennel lies back on the caravan and rests his paws behind his head. "Been a while since I've seen a good ol'fashioned dominance challenge. Think I'll watch the show."
He waves at the Greenscale newcomer. "We're all good here--pull up a seat, won't you? How long till they breach the walls, you think?"
-
"Hmm...seems to me like a strange place to just talk with all the wrathful souls moving around us. " Vandme says in response. "Wouldn't want to get run over or anything." he says before looking over the carraige. "You sure you don't need any help with getting that thing uprighted? I mean, seems like a simple lifting job, which I could do with a little grass weaving work."
Along the walls of the city, loud bells were being heard, as the rebels have begun raising ladders to the wall, and the defending militia attempt to stop them from getting up.
-
The korg 'sat', lowering his last two pairs of legs to simulate such and action, and looked upon the siege. "I am unfamiliar with your land's weapons of war. I can not fairly judge based on what they have, but an adolescent of my kind could break through that wall if given a few minutes, so I assume they'd take somewhere between a few minutes and a few hours."
-
Sennel nods. "Sounds about right. Lupe dominance challenges are just one on one duels but other races tend to go all out. Makes for an interesting show."
-
- Obsidian City Gates -
WHAM. WHAM.
The rams were unrelenting. The bandits quickly got mixed in with the rebels, to the point it was not possible to differentiate the two parties. Kigar, free from his momentary distraction, arrived at the front at just the right moment - when the gate fell.
The rebels stormed into the city, killing on sight any man with arms in hand. But the resistance was only minimal - they knew their challenge it the empress and her fortress, as no catapult would damage that...
Soon after, the rebels had control of the city - only the barricaded palace remained...
-
Sennel hops off the carriage when he sees the rebels filing into the city. "Oooh, busted it open good! I'm gonna go find a better spot to watch, you guys wanna come?"
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"I guess I'll follow, I've got nothing better to do." Ril'Trag got onto all six of his legs and scuttled along side the lupin to watch the rest of the invasion.
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-Pavestone-
Simon orders some tea and a light meal of chicken and a baked potato. He sips the tea, then puts it down and says,
"Well I wouldn't be too surprised about the scalies collapsing, I've heard they didn't have it too nice up there. Oh sure, the Blendscales themselves had it great, with their palaces and servants and all, but everyone else? Awful. Rumor has it their most recent Emperor over there didn't have all his pieces on the board, if you know what I mean." He tapped his head as he said the last part, then picks up his fork and begins to eat his dinner. Outside, the lamps are lit as the sun disappears over the horizon.
-
Sennel pays little attention to the people around him as he wanders across the fallen city's streets. Such nice homes, he thinks. The market stalls are in shambles, many of them half-emptied either by looters or panicking merchants. He spots a familiar figure as he nears the palace.
"Oh, you!" he exclaims as he runs up to the bandit from the carriage. "I don't think I introduced myself last time. I'm Sennel. Do you know how long till they breach the castle?"
((Should I bother giving a direct explanation for Senny's reaction to the rebellion or should I just let it come up on its own?))
-
-In a nearby inn-
Al peered out the window while El talked to the innkeeper ordering a room for the night. As they headed up the stairs to leave their stuff in the room Al gave a general update. "It seems whoever was attacking managed to break through. The gates are open again and they don't seem hostile to anyone unarmed, but all the same I'd rather not try to leave just yet."
Eltanin nodded thoughtfully. "I'm going to go ask them what's up," he said as he put his bags on one of the two beds.
Altais, who had just let his wings out for a quick stretch, performed a quick double take and looked back at his brother, "Are you crazy? I thought *I* was supposed to be the senseless impulsive one!"
El smiled and replied, "That's right, and right now you're senselessly trying to hide in our room until this problem goes away. Clearly whatever just happened is major and will not be going away anytime soon. Besides, does it look like these people are axing random citizens? They didn't even break into this inn to check for enemies. Clearly they're heading straight for the castle to continue their attack. I don't look armed, but I can bring a whallop into a fight that anyone tries to start so it's not like I'd be in any danger anyway. You can come with me or stay behind, but I think I'll take a walk."
Then heading downstairs and out the door, El headed for the nearest person who looked like they knew what was going on while Al lagged behind grumbling while trying to make his wings go away again and put his jacket back on at the same time. Managing the feat after a short amount of time, he hurried after his brother, catching up just as El asked what all the ruckus was about.
OOC: Yeah, leaving just who he's talking to open ended. It could be some other character, one of Jenia's important peoples, or even just some random soldier that Jenia controls.
-
((Stormkit, NPCs are for everyone to control for a reason XD But in the interest of keeping this going, I'll pick up this glove))
- Obsidian City Square -
Feeling he had helped enough, Kigar broke off from the troops trying to breach the castle, and headed a little ways off the entrance, to the square.
The city square was, ironically, very round, with an even rounder fountain right smack in the center. The statue of some sort of dancing lisk adorned the center of the fountain, water spilling from her mouth into the otherwise clear pool.
At present, the square is mostly empty of people, most of them hiding or gawking closer to the palace.
As he admired the careful care that's being put into maintaining the city and keeping every stone polished, Kigar was approached by the anthro he spoke to earlier. Looked like he wanted to have a deeper conversation this time, it seemed, as he had actually bothered to introduce himself.
Curious Kigar thought, wondering what ulterior motives this wolf-man could possibly have...
Having decided to play along, he nodded.
"Well, Sennel..." he adjusted his left gauntlet while taking a good look at the anthro's face "I don't think the castle can be breached from the outside. They will either have to be starved out, or we'll get someone on the inside to open the door for us."
Kigar decided to sit down on the fountains edge. His armor wasn't very soft, and the stone didn't make sitting any comfier, but he would make do.
"My name is Kigar." he decided to introduce himself after all, seeing as it was common courtesy "I'm a traveling scholar, even if I do not look it. And I'm here, assisting the rebellion, because I feel I have to. And you, gray one? I've not seen your kind before. You're not some old lisk, are you? And, aren't you in favor of oppressing those that would subjugate you?"
- Obsidian City, Market District -
The mysterious bearded shilton was busy barking orders to various gruff looking individuals whilst those would bark "Yes, Raven!" or mutter "Whatever the Raven says..." back before heading off.
He cringed as the zohal approached him, obviously not expecting it.
"By the fated, reptile! Don't you scare-" he paused, apparently some realization dawning on his face.
"...You two aren't from around here, are you?" he grunted, looking at the two siblings "There are rebels storming tha dang city, and have already taken most of it. You're not slaves, are you? Do you even CARE if this empire falls today? Because it will! And I'll be damned if I see a non-grarim NOT celebrating when tha' happens, ya hear?"
'Raven' turned to spit aside, just as a little ruko with a headband pulled on his pants.
"Raven man!" the ruko exclaimed "They're asking if we've got eggs-plow-zeeves!"
'Raven' blinked at him, then muttered
"We've got tha powder, but ne' enough ta blow a hole in THIS! You tell 'em that!"
The ruko barked a YES RAVEN and ran off, allowing the old man to finally spit at the otherwise clean pavement, at which point he turned back to the siblings.
"If ye's looking for a chance at fortune or glory, now's the time! Anybody opening tha' danged castle'll be a hero to queenless folk everywhere, I tell ye'!"
-
-Pavestone-
*After munching on his ham and chugging down his glass of milk, Joshua notices the lights coming on *
Well. It looks like its almost time to hit the hey! We have a full day ahead of us. The capital is soooooo close from here! *looks at Simon* Say, wheres this room you ordered?
-
Sennel tilts his head. "I'm a Lupe, not a Lisk. We don't often stray from the eastern forests but I have my reasons. I'm looking for someone, you see, family of a friend of mine. I'm a bit of a scholar myself actually--spent the last few years with my muzzle burried in books. I'm not familiar with the political situation here but that doesn't seem to matter as it stands."
He regards the castle walls. "I've seen this kind of momentum before, though in much smaller instances. These rebels will win sooner or later. And as to your questions, I do not favour oppressing my enemies, merely defeating them."
"Hey," Sennel adds, looking around for the insect-person "You, mister...uhh...wasp-thing. You said one of your kind could burrow through these walls in minutes, right? How good are you at obsidian?"
-
Having seen most of the group left the Carraige, Vandme decides to follow twoards the town. While exploring was an issue with the current conflict, it still seemed like an interesting experience. Looking over the square with a calm and careful eye, he can see what Kigar had seen. He stops near the others as not to disturb the current conversation, and to admire the surroundings.
-
-Pavestone-
Simon pushes his now-empty plate to the side and yawns.
"We do have a long day's travel ahead of us tomorrow, but hay is for horses, I'm hitting the sack. Second floor, number seven."
Simon then stands up and turns to go, but stops as he hears a commotion outside... the lights outside the northern window are brighter than they should be, and moving around too much. As he considers what's going on, a great deal of shouting breaks out and the sounds of battle descend upon the sleepy town.
"What in blazes?!"
Just as he says that a citizen of the town stumbles into the inn, gravely wounded. Simon rushes to him and helps him into a chair. The Ruko, as he turns out to be, raises his head and coughs before saying,
"Bandits attacking the town *cough* say they're taking the whole empire... it's war..."
Simon then feels the innkeeper's large hand on his shoulder. As the Ruko in the chair closes his eyes and breathes his last breath, the innkeeper says,
"Ye said ye were going ta the capitol lad? I've got a pair o' fine horses in the stable, it's two days from here to the capitol, but if ye go at a gallop ye can make it by morn. I'll rally what folks I can to hold 'em off, but ye've got ta get outta here and warn the Queen, ya hear? The stable's out back, I'll fix ye and yer friend up with the horses and ye don't stop fer nuthin'!"
-
-Obsidian City, Market District-
The brothers shared a look, El thoughtful and Al gleeful. As they sought a more private area to argue it out, El started the conversation. "We shouldn't get involved. Empire means stability, stability means we know what to expect. Besides, the stage is pretty much set, nothing we do will make a difference here."
Al frowned (an expression that always felt weird with a flat face) and retorted, "But what KIND of stability? A stability where at any time we might be identified as non-slaves and end up with soldiers on our tail trying to capture us! And you know better that to say we won't be much help, either one of us is a formidable force... both of us together could definitely tip an otherwise even battle."
El seemed to mull things over a little more, clearly weighing the merits of the current way of things that he knew, and chaos that would follow the upsetting of this empire after the blendscale empire had just fallen. Eventually he gave a sigh, "You're right, as much as I hate to take down the sole order left in this land, it is not a very good order. I'm trusting you to get us through afterwards though. I know you'll be better at navigating the aftereffects better than I will."
In accord, the two brothers dropped the transformative magic holding them as blendscales and launched into the sky under illusion cloaks heading towards the newest battlefield.
-
Ril'Trag thought about the question given to him by Sennel. "Let's see, this rock isn't too hard, but if I'm going to make it big enough for people to travel through quickly... I'd say four hours, give or take. Why ever do you ask?" The korg readied his claws and started searching for a point near the wall that would allow for them not to be spotted, but still close enough to the wall that he'd be able to did quickly for one side to the other. "I suggest you make it appear as if the army is focusing their attention elsewhere, but start mobilizing them through alleys to avoid being spotted." The korg found and alley, somewhat neglected due to lack of use by either building next to it. "This should make for a good entrance." The korg set down his bag and crossbow and started digging downwards with all six of his limbs.
-
Sennel nods and his eyes unfix. For a moment it looks as if the Lupe is about to faint but then a wall of rubble appears at the entrance of the alleyway.
"Just an illusion." He explains. "Obviously won't work if someone touches it but it'll keep the hole hidden for the time being. A quick trick, really."
He blinks and grins widely. "Hehe, quicky tricky. A tricky quicky!"
-
-Airborne over Obsidian City-
From the sky it was a lot easier to see the progress of battle. Soldiers filled the streets, especially in the parts of town towards the castle where a siege was being set up. Flying overhead though, Al spotted a small group of people inside a closed off alleyway with no apparent way of having gotten there. Suspicious, he signaled El over and the two dropped their illusion cloaks and landed at the entrance of the alleyway just behind (or in front of depending on which side you're on) the rubble blocking it off. With a last flap to cancel any downward momentum, their wings 'reverted' to cloth in midair dropping the two the last foot or so onto the ground as their newly formed bifurcated cloaks settled behind them. Al's cloak was somewhat reminiscent of the wings they just were, appearing to have been designed with the arm along the outer edge, and what seemed to be claw tips on the bottom. El's cloak on the other hand looked like a regular cloak, green in color, with the exception of the rims of the cloak which were embroidered with gold colored lettering in the shapes of various symbols and archaic looking words that repeated themselves at regular intervals.
El stepped forward and introduced himself to Kigar, "Greetings, my brother and I are interested in helping your cause and you appear to be in charge, or at least giving a good impression of it. Is there anything two mages can do to help?"
OOC: To the people just meeting them, my characters would appear to be Greenscale Zohal, similar to Kenku's character. Their wings in this state look and act exactly like a very sturdy cloak would and as they are obviously magical in nature, it could easily be assumed they are enchanted cloaks for flight rather than enchanted wings for concealment. I have actually found a picture that is actually really good for what the twins would look like. If you turn this into blendscale Zohal, that is what my characters would look like in their regular concealed form. (http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j262/Taki980/AnimeMaleMage.jpg) Clearly that one would be Eltanin :p Anyway, picture that cloak split downside along the middle of the back and that's what their wings would look like in the post described above plus added details. I imagine doing this would be easier than concealing their wings altogether so from now on (can't believe I didn't think of this before) I will have them using that trick. Obviously they can't take off their 'cloaks' but they can go farther into not having wings at all where it seems like they're not wearing the 'cloak' with a bit more concentration and effort.
-
-Pavestone-
"Thanks old man. We'll have to repay you some day." Joshua said. "But surely instead of running away like cowards, We could help you out in some why; I'm armed and could probably cut down everyone of those idiots! *Draws his Falchion in his right hand and a pistol in the other. "There's noway I can stick idly by and know that this place is under attack and going up in smoke."
-
Vandme watches in slight wonder as the wall of rubble suddenly appears. Walking up to the wall, he places his hand agianst it, and watches it dissapear. Seeing this, he quickly reels back confused, and see his hand is find. Curious he walks through the "wall" to see whats happening on the other side.
-
((Ok, I'm a little confused as to positioning now. The twins, Korg, and Jenia's character are on the alley side of the illusion with Sennel and Kenku's char just walked through the illusion into the street?))
-
OOC: That is correct. I'm not sure how Kenku's character managed to miss my characters arriving, but he just walked through the illusion. Korg is at the back of the alleyway (presumably) digging a tunnel. Korig (Jenia's guy) is more in the middle with Sennel and it is him that my characters have just approached.
-
Sennel does not appear to have noticed his illusion was just discovered. He tilts his head curiously at the two newcoming blendscales and leans down close to their heads.
"Hi!" he says with a silly grin. "You two smell sparkly, what're your names? I'm Sennel! No, wait, Senny? Sunnel...Sooonel? Hehehe..."
((Don't worry, he'll snap out of it soon. Also, because Sennel's specialization is illusion magic and enchantments he WILL notice that the twins are hiding something. He isn't likely to care or mention anything unless he thinks it's relevant though. However, when he's in his post-magic state anything that goes out the window...))
-
- Alleyway of Obsidian Castle -
Kigar was a bit startled. Not only did the huge wasp thing demonstrate massive amounts of strength, making him wonder what the crossbow is for, but then the lupe - that's how he called himself - turned out to be a mage. Another zohal seemed to have followed them a little ways behind, and then two more appeared seemingly out of nowhere, claiming to be mages.
This... Is unusual. he thought, turning to the twins Age of chaos must be starting already...
They said he appears to be in charge. Then Sennel... Started speaking oddly. Must be some sort of mage high he thought Disturbing. I hope it doesn't last too long.
"...No, I'm... Not in charge, just... Involved." he motions to the wasp-man, who was busy digging.
"I'm Kigar. You two wanna break into the castle? Well, can you mages, maybe, fly?" Kigar paused. His irony sense was tingling.
He took a good, hard look at the twins, and felt something was off, but decided to continue.
"...I think it's in everyone's best interest if we cause as little damage as possible. That means getting the empire to surrender. Which would mean... Killing the queen. And until this guy digs us a way in, the only ways in are windows."
((OOC: Guys, OOC-only posts should be left for the sign-up thread!!))
-
Vandme listens in to the conversaition and decides to interject "excuse me, I apologize, but maybe I could help. If there are some viney plants nearby, I could grow a rope to the nearest opening. Although if I may ask, what has this queen done to warrant such a death?"
-
Sennel blinks and rubs his forehead before turning to the greenscale. "From my understanding this kingdom is highly dependant on slavery. Farmen and Zohal alike are forced to work for Grarim benefit. After so many generations of this system the slaves believe themselves to be responsible for more of the kingdom's welfare than the royalty and now seek to overthrow the system. Is this correct, Kigar?"
-
- Alleyway of Obsidian Castle -
Sennel's explanation left Kigar unsatisfied. He frowned, sighed, and nodded wearliy.
"Not just farmen and zohal - any non grarim are eligible slaves. This includes any other anthros, this... Insectoid gentleman... Even the monochromae and the bloodsuckers, if you've heard of those - you just don't see much around of species that are, well, hard to get."
Kigar paused, wondering how he should continue.
"...Either way, the queen's only real sin is allowing this empire of hers to go on existing. Then again, were she to dissolve it, the grarim would see that as a sin, too. They wouldn't kill her - they can't kill their queen - but they'd not make her a very happy queen."
-
-Pavestone-
The innkeeper shakes his head and says,
"Nah need ta throw yerself away like that lad, I know we cannae beat 'em, but we can hold 'em off long enough fer ye ta get away. Nae more time ta talk now, let's go!"
The innkeeper grabs Simon's arm and pulls him off to the stables, shouting at people along the way to drag some tables in front of the doors to buy the doomed defenders a little more time. When they reach the stables, two horses have already been saddled up.
"I rent these here out ta travelers sometimes, but I keep two ready for emergencies. Get on the road and ride until ye hit the city, these are good horses and will get ye there by dawn."
Just then Simon hears a banging on the door, the invading bandits trying to break in. The innkeeper swings the back door open and says in a half whisper,
"Hurry lads, we can't hold them off much longer!"
Simon nods and climbs onto one of the horses, then looks toward Joshua,
"It doesn't look like we have much choice in the matter, let's go."
-
Sennel nods. "Thank you for filling in my gaps, Kigar. I admit a somewhat erratic knowledge of these parts. So the queen is what makes or breaks this empire then? If she is removed then there is a spot for someone else to take control, yes? But she is not compelled to address challenges, thus the need for a siege?"
-
-Pavestone-
I don't like it.....but fine. *Joshua sheathes his weapons and hopes on the other horse* We better get a move on if we can make it to the capitol in time. *He pats the horse* So Simon, you ready to ride?
*The excitement of riding horse some how calmed him down a little bit*
-
- Alleyway of Obsidian Castle -
Kigar sighed.
"It's not that simple" he rolled his eyes "The grarim have a loyalty instinct of sorts, encouraging obedience to the queen through something in her smell."
He paused, and kicked aside a small rock that seemed to bother him for some reason. It bounced off the obsidian wall and down some pavement.
"Without her..." he turned back to Sennel "They'll lose the advantage of unity. It'll be a few years, at least, before another queen develops. Until then, they'll likely be torn apart by every little disagreement."
-
"Interesting" Vandme says as he makes a quickly look of the surroundings for what sort of plant life may be growing nearby. "So the death of the Queen will be seen as a way to help fracture the Grarim and better the rebellions chances, as it seems it would take an overthrow the of cities's government to create any change."
-
Sennel rubs his forehead and leans against the wall, sliding down into a sitting position. "I'll never understand these politics. I've been out of the woods for ten years and Lupe structure still makes more sense than all these empires and kingdoms and whatnot. Maybe I'll make a trip back after finishing up here, assuming I can find who I'm looking for..."
He drones off. The memories of Aldebrand make him fall silent. He was here to carry out his master's last wishes--his role in the rebellion was merely a side-event. Sennel looked at the wasp-man's hole and decided that he would rather not wait four hours. Pressing his nose to the ground, the Lupe began sniffing around until he came to a patch of dirt beneath cracked pavement. He took out his knife and used it to pry away the loose stones and carefully scraped away the soil until a green shoot emerged.
"Hey," He said, getting to his feet. "Is this enough plant life?"
-
Vandme looks at Sennel. "Ah, that while helpful, is rather young. Really what I see is something like this" he says as he places a hand agianst some trumptet vine that are climbing the alley wall. "If you wish to attempt my suggestion, simple plants like this are all I will need to build a viney rope that should get you to the window. It is up to you all although, as I would rather not stress the plants if I could."
-
After a bit of debate with Al during which the other nearby party members seemed to have come up with another plan, El stepped forward. "My brother and I can indeed fly and while we could indeed get other people into a window, I believe the plan of creating a rope may be better. The vines would not have to hold us and we could meet you at the window"
El did not mention that while Al could easily get them through the window, it would probably be through the means of a launched section of street pavement and involve pain for anyone involved. And if it were the two of them casting the spells to get them into the castle, it was guaranteed that Al would cast first before El had the chance to get his own more orderly spell in place. It was a very subtle move on El's part and probably only noticed by Al himself who glared somewhat sulkily at him. Al always enjoyed the chance for spells that technically worked, but weren't at all what the person being cast for had in mind.
-
Nods. "Sounds like a plan"
He sticks his head into the hole. "Hey, mister wasp-man! We've got a rope! You can come out now! Also, who are you anyway!"
-
"I know, I could hear you from in here." The korg emerged from the hole, roughly five feet deep and wide enough for somebody to easily jump down. "My name is Ril'Trag, I come from Dirt Island where my hive resides. I'd prefer not to explain why I'm not with them anymore."
-
-Pavestone-
The door splinters as the bandits break through. There's a twang of a bow and an arrow zips overhead, lodging itself in the wall with a thunk. Simon flattens his ears and yells,
"I don't think it really matters, yah!"
His horse takes off through the back door, galloping toward the road. As he leaves, the innkeeper pulls a pitchfork out of a nearby stack of hay and walks toward the door.
"Now why did ye have ta go an' do that. Yer gonna pay fer that door ya bastards..."
-
--Road slightly northeast of Obsidian City. Approx. two hours before arrival.--
As Rudriger continues traveling to his next stop, The Obsidian City, he glances at his surrounding. To his left he spots a fairly calm lake not too far off in the distance. As he continues on he sees to his right, a large Ash tree which seems to be home to a gathering of crows. As he takes a minute to marvel at this, just about all the crows residing in the tree almost simultaneously fly off ahead of him. When he looks ahead to their direction, he can see his next stop off on the horizon. He then continues onward.
-
-In a tree outside of Obsidian City-
Legiah muttered with a scowl at what she had just created. She crumpled the paper and tossed it down, for she wouldn't do anything with the story in it if she dared. It affected her all too well, and was too influencing in her mind. She'd be thinking of it day and night, what might had become of it.
Instead, she gave it a fate she knew, and one she wasn't ashamed of.
With a sigh, Legiah made her way down. Why am I in a tree anyway? Legiah asked herself. She tried to think of more pressing matters to do, but instead her mind went blank. With a roll of her eyes, Legiah continued on toward Obsidian City, assuming that whatever she was thinking of earlier would return at some point in time.
-
Sennel nodded and waited patiently while Vandme created the vine rope. Now that they were on the cusp of attacking the castle, Sennel became very aware of what he was actually fighting for. He was about to assist in the toppling of an empire just so he could ask a few questions. Not the most impressive of motivations. The Lupe shifted awkwardly on the spot as Vandme finished the rope, suddenly feeling more out of place than his size or fur could muster.
-
-Leaving Pavestone-
Looks like it's time to go! Giddie-up!
*Joshua kicks the horses side, the horse whines and takes off. Catching up with Simon who is a few feet away*
Well this is sure gonna be fun as hell! Escaping from crazy brigands on horse back; not something I would recommend but the idea just tickles me! *Joshua laughs*
-
Touching the tumpet vine, Vandme slowly forms a coil of vine growing from the top of the plant, until he has enough to form 3 stands 5 feet long. Once he does, he snaps off the end of the vine, and then with a shut of the eye and a slow hum, sets the vine back in its place, as if it had never been touched.
The Vine retruned to its place, he starts to quickly weave the three strands into a single strong strand of rope. "Well even if you don't need it, we shall have it for later. I only hope that these actions will not just cause the cycle to continue."
-
El stepped forward, volunteering. "I'll anchor it to something either at the top or the other side." He looked up at the wall and frowned. "On second thought... Al can you get one of those windows open? I'll do something about the guards."
The two closed their eyes and started weaving their spells. Al finished first, focusing his intent on what appeared to be a glowing ball to those who could see magic. Hurling it at a nearby window, he waiting while El continued poking his spell matrix. He was modifying a spell that he frequently used to divert attention from himself into something that would divert attention coming from a certain direction in regards to anything related to the attempt to break in.
As El finished his matrix, the spell components (again visible as glowing symbols and modifiers in orbit around the core spell he was modifying to those with eyes to see it) started to spin around each other as he raised it into the air and it lifted to cover an arc above them. Just then the window Al had spelled opened up and a maid's voice could be heard drifting down, "...don't care if there are a THOUSAND people out there, it smells bad enough in here that we'd die faster if we didn't open this window! Besides... who'd want to come in through something smelling like..." The voice trailed off as the maid wandered out of the room with whoever she had been speaking to.
El took the rope and launched into the air, wings flapping to reach the window sill where he hung on for a moment, grimacing about the smell and stepped inside. A moment later a handkerchief shot out the window and fluttered down. Al grinned and said, "That's the signal! See you at the top and hope your sense of smell isn't too good!" before flying up to join his brother to wait for the others to climb.
-
Sennel tugs at the vine cautiously to make sure it can hold his weight. The plant appears surprisingly durable and he quickly clambers up and slips in through the window.
"Gack!" He gags. "Oh...oh lord *cough* what IS that? *cough* did one of the rebels catapult a stink bomb?"
The Lupe stumbles and slumps against a wall. With one hand-paw covering his nose, the other marks a mark in the air. Sennel's eyes unfix as the air around his muzzle begins to shimmer.
"Aaaah...." he breathes happily. "MUCH better! Less nasty more sparkly." He blinks and looks around curiously. "Such a nice place! How big do you think it is, Elby?"
-
Vandme waited for the others to climb the rope, prefering to be one of the lasts to climb. As he waited, he drew a small amount of soft earth from his pouch and layed it around the youngling that Sennel had unearthed.
-
Without waiting for a response, Sennel pokes his head out of the door and looks around. The hallways is empty and he decides to investigate. Sennel hums as he wanders along the long passage, stopping on occasion to sniff at one of the many portraits of grahim that line the wall. If one were to draw a conclusion from the portraits, ornate lamps, and the voices of maids and servants in the distance, one could assume to be inside the part of the castle reserved for residential rooms and liesure. The Lupe makes no such conclusions, however. He is too distracted enjoying the nice feel of carpet through his paws.
-
- Alleyway of Obsidian Castle -
Kigar nodded in approval. These people were strangers to the struggle, but were showing some merit.
"I won't fit through there with my armor." he told the druid "I'm going to the front gate - will wait for one of you to get it open. I will storm with the rest of the rebels."
With that, he turned around, and proceeded to walk off towards the main gate, muttering a silent prayer to the fated.
-
Vandme looked to Ril'Trag. "Planning to take the ground way, or are you to join the others" he asked, awaiting an answer before planning to climb himself.
-
-The Great Road-
Pavestone is nothing more than a distant, orange glow on the horizon as Simon gallops alongside the Great Road, once the stone artery carrying the lifeblood of a thriving empire, now the conduit for the forces of its destruction. All three moons are in the sky tonight in a rare alignment, illuminating the scene in a bright, but pale luminescence. He is not the only rider on the road this night; messengers dart past each other carrying news of conquest and news of retreat, of victory and defeat, of gain and loss as the conflict spreads like wildfire, every side struggling to improve its lot against the others. They ignore each other, their own duties to important to worry about what agenda the passing silhouettes of the others may have. Simon rides through this chaos unchallenged, one desperate rider among many.
Small bands of fighters can be heard assailing each other along the way; the Road is too valuable a target to concede control to the other side, neither side will give it up, and for now neither side will have it. They too avoid shooting the messengers, as the pale light, while bright by nighttime standards, still denies a reliable distinction between friend and foe. It's a narrow window of opportunity, and one which Simon was fortunate to stumble upon. He may never fully comprehend just how much blind circumstance has protected him this day.
Or Fate...
-
Ril'Trag looked at the vine rope thoroughly, and nodded his head from side to side. "I'll stay down here and continue the tunnel. It'll be done withing two hours, so make sure you tell the others to get any sneaking they need done by then, or you'll have a full alert guard on your rears."
-
Vandme nods before quickly climbing the rope himself. Once up, he rolls up the rope and slings it over the shoulder. Turning around he just about reels from the scent. "My...it seems the castle has already been dealing with death, even as the true threat has not reached inside yet." He then looks to the others after quickly looking around. "So any ideas to completing the plan among you. I would suggest, but cold stone does not garner much vegitation."
-
In the corner of the room, Eltanin was sitting crosslegged working on a matrix that he would periodically add or remove spells from. Meanwhile Altair was wandering around bored and looking in adjacent rooms, at paintings, and other general things of interest. When Vandme began his suggestion, he listened politely until the end before musing...
"Well if that's your problem, I think I can fix that.." Al trailed off a bit. He then went into the next room over and returned about half a minute later holding a rather large potted plant that sported orange flowers and a trunk which matched the carpet surprisingly well. "Do you think this is good enough for you? They have a few of these around the place... guess they think it's a pretty good decoration."
OOC: I'll leave it to you to decide whether or not it's plastic.
-
(OOC: Thinking about the tech age of the area, probably not)
Vandme begins inspecting the plant before turning back to Altair. "This is helpful, especially with the well tended soil, but what I need will not be here. Besides this is you alls great mission, I am more a wanderer and viewer as I see. I will help where is needed, but it is your plan to make and complete" he says.
-
OOC: Perhaps, but the idea being that the plants may be fake somehow. In these kinds of structures, the ruling class tend to have all sorts of insanely expensive/advanced stuff to keep in fashion.
"Suit yourself then." Altair replied while placing the potted plant in a corner. Just then there was a flash of light from Eltanin over in the corner that swept over everything in the room.
"Oops, sorry about that. Messed up the end of my spell... the main part of it worked though, none of us will emit any odors for a little bit. Neither for that matter will anything else in this entire room..." El frowned at the remenants of the spell matrix but decided it wasn't really so bad in retrospect. Even that obnoxious smell from earlier was gone so it actually did a bit of extra good even if now the effect wouldn't actually last as long. He'd have to look later to see if he could figure out what caused it to lose focus.
Al grinned, "Great, we're all here, we're practically invisible to the grarim, and we have a gate to open! What say we start out? Should we keep as a group or split up?"
-
Sennel's wanderings have taken him to the top of a large spiral staircase. At the bottom is a large entry hall with ornate doors marking the entrance.
I bet those lead to the courtyard! He thinks. If I can open those I can help the nice scary soldier!
The only question was how to get down...
"WHEEE!!!" Sennel yelled as he slid down the winding banister. His fur rippled and his tail swayed in the rushing air as he went around and around and around until finally reaching the bottom.
"YIPE!"
*CRASH*
He flew off the end of the banister and straight into what had until a few moments ago been an extremely fancy piece of pottery.
-
OOC: So much for subtlety... Was he even in the room when my character casted his spell?
El stood up, with preliminary preparations taken care of it was time to find and open the main gate. Which just led to one problem... "Does anyone know where the courtyard is? I didn't find out before coming here and I've only been in town for about a day..."
--------------------------------scene skip------------------------------------
At the inner entrance to the gatehouse of the courtyard were posted two grarim. If one were to observe them without being noticed one might notice how bored they were. In theory protecting the gatehouse was an important job. It would be tragic if someone were to sneak in unnoticed and just open the main gate letting in the whole army outside to pillage and slaughter all inside.
In reality however it was a fairly boring job. On the best of days there was no army camped outside and it was phenomenally dull and uninteresting. There had been many of these days in the past and for the grarim this builds up a distinct smell and sense of safety and dull situation that just resists cleaning. So much so in fact that even on a particularly bad day such as this one with a rebel horde camped outside, the guards were not particularly alert because nothing ever happened here. After all, all the rebels were outside... not inside where they could do any harm.
Furthermore as is generally known, bored guards will generally find a way to pass the time. In fact if our unseen observer could understand the unique language of smells they would be witness to a conversation roughly translated to the following.
"So how long do you think it'll be until we drive these rebels away? Before or after the end of our shift?" said the one which looked like a fox. He, like his partner was wearing standard armor and the two were fairly indistinguishable, but he smelled a bit like oranges for some reason so that is what we shall call him.
"After. *sense of certainty* I overheard our captain giving out orders and he smelled worried. It is of course unthinkable to believe they could destroy our mighty empire with such a futile attack, but it may take a while to make them go away. *sense of annoyance* These rebels are nothing if not persistent." replied the other guard, also a fox wearing standard armor. He didn't have any particular smell, but he was a bit shorter than the other guard and his armor didn't fit quite right so we shall call him runty.
Orange snorted. "Oh Jonathan, you're young yet and still new to this. I bet we set the rebels running by the dinnertime ball. *sense of ease*"
"But... what about the captain? Doesn't he have more experience than you?" Runty asked, looking around a nearby corner. (Remember, we're calling him Runty, not that other thing that is apparently his actual name.)
Orange shook his head, "Technically, but he's also somewhat paranoid. It's his job to be worried all the time. Don't worry, we're going to come out of this just *sense of pain and surprise* just... *DANGERDANGERDEATH*"
Runty started. "*sense of confusion* what?" He turned around to see Orange staring vacantly with a sword through his front. "Daniel? *sense of fear*" A moment later the sword disappeared and Orange crumpled to the floor to reveal what looked to be a white zohan with horns and wings flared behind him. He turned around and started to run and give the alarm, "*DANGERDANGERDAN-DEATH*"
---------------------------perspective change-------------------------------------
"Thanks El, that one almost got away. I still haven't figured out how to throw swords right," said Altais, holding the sword he had borrowed from a suit of armor a little earlier away from him as it dripped blood on the carpet. No longer needed, he placed it against the wall.
A little down the hall Eltanin stood near the other guard who had an icicle run through him. "Well you shouldn't have gone for the dramatic death thing. All it did was scare him unnecessarily and cruelly. I know you didn't mean it that was, but try to think about this sort of thing before you go for dramatic poses. Now put your disguise back on, or at least change back to green while I open the gate."
Al grumbled a bit as his skin filtered back to green and his horns faded away while his wings returned to their cloth-like state. A bit later El came back out of the guardhouse as the main gates began to open.
-
- Outside the Obsidian Palace Gate -
The 'Raven' was arguing with a certain lisk who has claimed to be leading the rebels when Kigar showed up, causing him to slowly place a finger on the lisk's nose. The lisk's eyes crossed, focusing on the finger.
Seemingly this anthro didn't expect that kind of gesture.
'Raven' turned to Kigar and smiled.
"You look like you've got a plan, boy."
"Oh yes..." Kigar's grin was too big to hide "I got men inside the castle. The gates will open shortly."
Stunned silence followed, and the lisk was the first to break it.
"...I... Didn't think it was possible!" he muttered, rubbing his snout.
"Oh, but by the fated, it is happening," Kigar added, his eyes all but glowing with delight "and soon, the castle will belong to us, free men."
The Raven shook his head, scratching his beard.
"This is your doing, djuni, is it not? If this is not a sign, I don't know what is."
Kigar's grin died down.
Sign? What does he mean? Somehow, that seems off to me...
"What are you suggesting then!?" he finally blurted out.
The Raven remained silent.
"Hey!" the Lisk's ears perked up "Why don't your men become the free men's new elite guard!? We'll pay you from the castle's very coffers!"
As Raven turned to respond, a low creaking sounded.
Kigar:"...Ah, it is time. The gates are opening."
Almost as if lead by an invisible impulse, Kigar stepped forward, withdrew one of his swords, and pointed to the sky.
"MEN!" he roared "IT IS TIME TO WIN OUR FREEDOM BACK!"
Dramatically, he pointed forward, the gate opened just enough to begin the charge...
"CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGE~!"
With a loud cheer, the intermingled bandits and rebels stormed the castle, like a river of people flowing into a newly opened drain...
-
"Urg..." Sennel groaned as his eyes flickered open. The last thing he remembered was sliding down a banister...not the smartest move while trying to stealthily infiltrate a castle but it was hardly the weirdest thing that 'Senny' had ever done.
"He's awake."
The Lupe registered someone to his left. A sword was thrust directly below his throat.
"Yipe!"
"Start talking." the voice said bluntly. "Why are you here and how did you get in?"
A second voice chimed in. "Isn't it obvious why he's here? The rebels must have snuck someone in to either open the gate or to kill me. Perhaps both. Is this not correct?" The new voice had a regal air but was very firm. Sennel looked up to see a white-furred, muzzleless cat-person sitting on a throne.
"Wait, hold on." Sennel said, his curiosity overpowered the thought of a sword at his neck. "You know I'm with the rebels and you had your guards bring me HERE? Right to the person the rebels want dead?"
A snort from his left. "And what'll you do about it? Move and you lose your neck. If you've come with anyone then they can't help you, either. The throne room is in the centre of the castle and has only one entrance which we've barricaded. Now, how did you get in?"
-
-The Great Road-
Joshua stops his horse to gaze at what is ahead of him. The site of war and destruction, it's breathtaking. The alignment of the Moons were already to ominous as it was. He had seen common squabbles between bands of thieves and vagabonds; but not this, this was war. Taken aback from the site and starting to panic a little, he looks at Simon and says.
"W-what should we do?"
-
-The Great Road-
Simon halts his horse and wheels it about so that he can look at Joshua. The chaos of war continues around them in the dim light.
"I'm not sure, we can only continue and hope we find someone who can tell us the cause of this madness."
-
Sennel was in a dilema. He could use magic to get away from the guard holding him, but his post-casting self would be incapable of finishing the escape. If he told them how he got in, then the Lupe would be endagering his allies--he had no idea how far from the entrance point they had gotten. Self-preservation was a skill Sennel had had drilled into him from a young age, but so was loyalty. As tennuous as the connection was, Sennel had aligned himself with the rebels and he couldn't go against that.
His tongue lolled out of Sennel's muzzle as he looked up at the questioner with a tilted head and unfixed eyes. "I got in here because you and the big man brought me here, silly! Or maybe the dark brought me here? It was dark after I went down the slide so that might've done it too!"
The two guards exchanged looks between themselves and the queen. Even through armor and the tension of a warzone their scents said enough:
This mutt is daft.
What are these peasants playing at, sending someone like this?
Double-check the perimeter--he might be a distraction!
Mentally, Senne smiled. All he had to do was keep the act up until an escape opportunity appeared.
-
-The Great Road-
"Hurry up you dumb lizard. Why are you so tired all of the sudden?" Said a rather heavyset lisk merchant. "I need to get this shipment to the Obsidian Palace."
The merchant was tugging a rope tied to an ox, with several bags of various military-grade items strapped on to it. Accompanied with the merchant was a very large zohal, who was hired as a bodyguard.
The two of them met the previous day at a nearby village, the merchant was scheduled to do a run to the Obsidian Palace. The merchant hired the zohal as a body-guard for his trip to the great road, as muggings were rather common. In fact just a few moments back they were attacked by a band of rukos who tried to rob them, yet they were fended off by the mighty zohal.
Largart, the zohal bodyguard was a little exhausted from all the fighting he had to do earlier and need to stop and catch his breath, he was noticeably irritated by merchant's nagging and was almost considering leaving him, as he had never had such a frustrating client before. Yet the sum of money he was offering to him would be enough for him to pay off his debts, so he swallowed his sorrows and hurried up.
Neither of them knew about the conflict going on at the Palace.
"Alright we're almost there..." The merchant sighed with relief. "Hopefully we can make it the rest of the way."
-
-The Great Road-
Simon struggles to stay awake as his horse barrels down the road, having ridden through most of the night. He turns his head back to check on Joshua, who is still behind him, when his horse comes to an abrupt stop and he is thrown forward. He rolls and bounces across the ground, coming to a stop in front of a large ox, his gun landing several feet away. He rolls out of the ox's path and struggles to get up, the shock from his fall keeping him wide awake now. Looking over to his horse he sees it laying on the ground, having tripped over something. The poor beast was probably more tired than he was. It was getting up, so it should be fine, would be cruelty to have it carry again in its condition though.
The sky was slowly beginning to brighten, the first hints of light filtering through the air before the dawn. He had to be close to the Palace, but would he make it soon enough? His horse was in no condition to gallop again, and while a pair of hurried riders could be ignored, petty thieves preyed on the slow and the weak. Alongside the ox he sees a towering lizard and heavyset Lisk. Perhaps Fate had already provided for the last leg of this journey. Struggling to his feet he calls out,
"Fortune, sirs, where are you heading to?"
-
-The Great Road-
The merchant turned around and noticed Simon approaching him. He seemed shocked at first but noticed he didn't seem to mean any harm at first, but he motioned towards Lagart for him to be ready to defend him.
"The Obsidian Palace." The merchant replied. "I was assigned to do some trading over there. This is my bodyguard, Lagart." He pointed towards the giant zohal next to him.
Lagart simply nodded towards Simon.
"Mess with me, and you mess with him." The merchant warned. "Otherwise we can get along just fine. So where are you heading?"
-
-The Great Road, not far from the Obsidian Palace-
Simon dusts himself off and smiles, replying,
"I don't think we will have any trouble, unless some brigands wish to try their luck with your friend there. I and my friend," he gestures toward Joshua, "are trying to reach the Obsidian palace as soon as we can, but as you can see our horses are exhausted, and mine can carry me no further."
His smile quickly fades and he lowers his ears as well as his voice, though he can still be heard clearly,
"Unfortunately, we bear nothing but grim news and a call to war. The town of Pavestone a few days from here has been attacked by an organized rebellion, we are the only ones who escaped. We may already be too late, but I ask that you allow us to travel with you the rest of the way. It won't help us get there any faster, but at least traveling together we will gain greater safety from bandits."
-
-The Great Road, not far from the Obsidian Palace-
"Alright, you can travel along side of me." The merchant replied. "But I ain't sharing Lagart here. I hired him to protect ME, you're gonna have to look out for yourselves if we get attacked."
Lagart rolled his eyes. He was rather annoyed with this merchant. He really couldn't wait to just finish this job so he could get rid of him.
"Alright, let's get moving. I ain't got all day." The merchant tugged on his ox and they continued to move.
-
-The Great Road, on the way to the Obsidian Palace-
"You have my thanks, and until we reach the city, my weapon."
Simon picks up his gun and slings it across his shoulder, then grabs his horse's reins and guides it in front of the ox. Looking out to the east he sees the red band on the horizon, heralding the arrival of dawn. In the course of a single night, the world will never be the same...
-
--The Throne Room--
The sounds of battle could be heard from outside the throne room as the rebels fought through the castle.
"How long until reinforcements arrive?" the queen asked the guard to Sennel's left.
"Not long, hopefully. The barricade should hold until they do."
The guard to the right grunted. "It's still too risky. Only one entrance means only one exit. We should move somewhere with a better escape route while we still can."
The first guard opened his mouth but stopped as he glanced at Sennel. Their exchange continued through scent.
We are not cowards! As long as the queen lives we cannot lose!
I understand, sir, but I'd prefer a plan that gives the queen the best chance of living.
And what chance could be better than routing these rebels from the queen's own seat?
Sennel wagged his tail aimlessly as he chanced a glance at the queen. While outwardly composed behind a regal veneer, the rigidity of her posture told the Lupe that she was more afraid than she would admit.
-
-The Great Road, on the way to the Obsidian Palace-
The group continued to move on, luckily they managed to avoid any unwanted encounters. Finally the Obsidian Palace came into view.
Lagart sniffed the air. "Smoke..."
"Hmm, something's not right." The merchant stated. "Lets keep going though."
-
(ooc: Sorry for kinda disspaearing.)
--Throne Room--
The gaurds stop their scent-banter as the sudden sound of cracking is heard. They look over in confusion as they see a strange thorny plant breaking through the barricade. They draw their swords to try to stop it, but are too late as the barricade is forced back and on top of them. Kicking up debris and dust. Within the dust, Sennel can see the silouette of a Zohal who becons him to come on.
-
-Outside the Obsidian Palace-
The palace walls rise up on the horizon, intact and gleaming in the harsh red dawn. The small ray of hope inspired by the seemingly unscarred palace is swiftly dashed, as all about it a vast army is encamped, weapons of war at the ready. Thousands of torches burn low from a long night's vigil, and campfires have been prepared to cook food for those not currently engaged in fighting. Near the gate there is much commotion as troops from the camps move up to replace their wearied comrades. The gates are down, lowered not smashed. The castle was conquered not by bombardment from without, but treason from within.
"I hope your boss doesn't care too much about who gets your merchandise. We're too late..."
Simon lowers his head and sighs, then kicks the dirt and looks up again.
"I don't know about you, but I'm going down there to get some answers. I only hope that we have not merely received a tyrant for toppling our emperor."
-
Sennel gets up off the ground and pads over to Vandme.
"Thank you, your timing is excellent."
A glance back to the throne room, however, raises further concerns. The queen still sat on her throne, trying her best not to display the stress her scent was broadcasting. It was a harsh copper mixed with the strange flowery aroma of the royal pheremones. Sennel wrinkled his nose. The only question was what to do now. In Lupe challenges, the contest was over once one side had no means of resisting. The queen was trapped and guardless, which certainly met the criteria. But, as Sennel reminded himself, these were not Lupes he stood alongside. Even though he had no true place in these affairs, he still felt obliged to be involved until their end.
"Someone get Kigar." Sennel announced suddenly to the room at large. "Tell him we're here--tell him we have the queen. He'll know what to do."
-
Vandme raises a brow as he hears Sennel's annoucement before saying "Are you sure that is wise? Most of the others that were with us seem to have dissapeared or gotten lost in the chaos."
-
"This isn't our fight. Kigar is the only one we were with who had an actual stake in this rebellion. He should be able to decide the outcome, yes?"
-
"This is true my friend, but how do you know the gaurds will stay down? I believe its best for us to make our exit and wait until the dust settles, unless that is your plan" Vandme says as he looks out to the hallway, and the fighting that is going on.
-
"Oooh... right... lead on then."
Sennel's tail curled a bit in embarrassment at missing such a fact. He followed Vandme through the halls.
-
-Outside the Obsidian Palace-
"My god..." The merchant gasped. "Well...I guess if I get the money then uh, he won't mind." He looked at Lagart. "Let's go with him. Maybe they'll want to buy these supplies."
Lagart shrugged. "Follow Simon." He said, and the merchant tugged his ox and went with them.
Lagart was a little worried about what was going on, he never paid too much attention to politics and never cared too much for Obsidian empire, but he didn't necessarily hate them either. He figured he'd stick with Simon and see if he could get some answers himself.
-
Vandme nods and tries to slowly push his way back to the window. It is not an easy thing as trying to walk through the choas when both sides aren't really friendly. They are able to make it slowly along, dodgeing flying combatants and errant swings along the way. As they reach the window, Vandme sees a problem. He grimaces a little, and looks to Sennel. "You wouldn't have a way to break a fall would you?" he asks.
Meanwhile, down below a message reaches Kigar, and tells him of what Sennel had announced upstairs, plus the disabled gaurds.
-
-Halls of the Obsidian Castle-
The fighting was furious. Swords and arrows in close quarters clanked against one another, sending sparks flying.
Kigar was surrounded by the screams of men fighting for what they believe in - some of them even dying for it - and it did not make a good impression on him.
To him, this was worse than the infernal pits, where fighting was for survival.
Few things are worse than giving your life for a dream you will never see come true...
His mind drifted, the clangs and the thudding continued around him in harmonious unison, as if an unholy symphony of death was being composed before him. It was interrupted, however, when he received the message about the queen being unguarded.
"She's surely going to flee!" he roared "THE QUEEN IS RUNNING! SURROUND THE THRONE ROOM!"
The rebel's morale increased beyond astronomical, and they pushed forward - little did they know that the queen had already fled beyond the confines of the throne room using an escape route for just such an occasion...
-
Sennel looked down out the window. "Yes, I can do something to break a fall but I'd rather not let 'Senny' appear until I'm in a safer--oh BLAST" he suddenly interjected as his ears spiked in alarm. "No one's watching the queen!"
He grabbed Vandme's arm and ran to the throne room. It was empty save for a few battered guards. There were no other doors and the outer hall was filled with rebels. Sennel immediately dropped to the floor and scampered over to the vacant throne. Caught up in the moment and adrenaline of the siege, his hunting training burst to the forefront of his mind.
Find the scent, pup. Find that one scent that speaks loudest out of all the others. Find it, and don't let go.
It was hard. The queen's pheremones filled the room and Sennel struggled to keep it from interfering as he sorted through the scents. Two belonged to the fallen guards, one was his own, another was Vandme's, and then there was the blasted pheremones again. No--wait! That wasn't the pheremones! Well, it was, but it was harder, firmer, more intense and tinged in coppery fear. Panic, flight, it was the queen!
Sennel tailwagged as he circled the throne, trying to find where the queen's scent led. It was frustrating, the queen had obviously moved from her throne but the blasted pheremones didn't lead anywhere! They just stayed clustered on top of the throne, or at least...beneath it?
"Ahah!" The Lupe exclaimed as he jumped up and grabbed hold of the throne's backside. In one of the rare moments where Sennel's size was an advantage rather than a hindrance, Sennel pushed against the throne until it began to slide--forced along normally mechanical guides--until it exposed a staircase leading downwards through the castle.
-
Vandme gives Sennel a confused look as he pulled back into the throne room, and waited to see what Sennel was so crazy about. Seeing the passageway he sighed. "Such a coward she is, I guess we better follow her." he says as shouting his heard down the hall. It seems Sennel's message was enough to turn the tide in the stalemate, as Kigar's forces began to rout what was left of the Castle's defences.
-
-Outside the Obsidian Palace-
Simon walks toward one of the encampments, looking up as he does so and seeing that the Imperial banner no longer flies over the citadel, but a new banner has not yet been raised in its place. Looking around, he sees a tent where some of the wounded were being taken for treatment, and nearby a campfire where some people were enjoying their morning meal. He approaches them and says,
"Excuse me, what's happening here? I have been traveling for a long time, and was not aware of such turmoil! In what name do these armies gather, and who now holds the castle?"
One of the people, a Lisk like himself, looks up and replies,
"It's revolution, boy. A new order around here. I don't know too much for sure, I just joined up for the pay, and because I could tell which way the wind was blowing you know? But there's been a name going around, Kigar, a lot of orders have come down with his name on them. Say, just how far are you from anyway?"
"I'm from Southforge, but if you could--" Simon stops suddenly and looks up, as a shadow seems to fall over the encampment.
From all around, but mostly from the south due to the castle's location, a massive flock of birds flies in low, converging on the castle and spiraling in, before scattering, their landing site disturbed, and settling all around. The other people are looking at the birds too, many wondering why they were there. One Ruko picks one up and says,
"I used to send these out when I worked at the post office, these are mail birds!"
Looking around, Simon asks, "Why are there so many of them?"
The Ruko puts the bird back down and replies, "Well this is the capitol, and they're only sent once a month unless it's an emergency so there tends to be quite a backlog. Hey, you said you were from Southforge? What's your name?"
"Uh, Simon, nice to meet you mister..." Simon holds out his hand.
The Ruko shakes his hand and replies, "Luke, and this one's for you." He hands Simon a small canister, designed to hold a roll of paper and be attached to a bird's leg.
Simon takes the canister, unrolls a long, thin strip of paper and reads,
Dear Simon,
I don't know when you will get this, or if it will reach you at all, but I had to at least try to tell you that war has broken out here. Our town is holding out against the raiders for now, but the forces of the Empire are nowhere to be seen. Everywhere we've seen warlords setting up their own little kingdoms and struggling for dominance. A few of the towns around here have pulled together and established a provisional Council, to restore order until we can get word from the Empire again. I have been elected to a position on this council, so if you make it back I should be able to put in a good word for you. Look for the Compass and Sun.
With love,
Your father, Matthew Renault
-
"Hmph....Needless Violence."
Joshua propped himself up against a wall. He was watching the sky the whole time, seeing all the messenger birds blacken the sky made his skin crawl.
"It seems to look more like a dark omen of sorts....as if the Gods are getting fed up with this madness." He continued to stare and scowl at the sky.
-
Well behind the front lines, Altais leaned against a wall as soldiers ran this way and that and his brother Eltanin was fiddling around with a magic looking construct of some sort. With the gate open and rebels all over the castle, it didn't seem like they really needed any help and it was more the rebels' fight than theirs anyway. Maybe if another emergency came along they couldn't handle they'd pitch in again...
OOC: Going on family vacation and will have unreliable internet for next week. Don't count on these guys to actually do anything in the meanwhile ;>.>
-
The secret passage was, naturally, dark and long as it wound constantly around the castle's floors and foundations. After only a few feet in, the light from the throne room had faded and Sennel and Vandme were plunged into blackness. The good news was that the queen's scent was easier to track since the passage was less traveled than the throne room. The bad news was that being able to follow the fleeing Grahim didn't preclude Sennel from walking into walls in the darkness.
"Ooogh..." Sennel rubbed his muzzle after the third such incident. "This is getting old very fast."
As much as he disliked admittin it, now was as good a time for magic as any. One spell later, the Lupe's fur glowed bright in the din and offered enough illumination to see the way ahead.
"Onwards!" He yapped happily, bouncing from footpaw to footpaw as he bounded through the passage.
-
Vandme stumbled for the moment and covered his eyes as the illumination forced them to adjust. "Ack...please warn me next time" he says before looking further down the tunnel. As the Journeyed on, they started to hear voices up ahead.
"So what are we to do my Queen?"
"I...don't know...surely there is a brethern city who we could escape to and setup a reprisal."
"You are probably right my lady"
"We must be close" Vandme whispered. "Any plans outside of following them?"
-
-Outside the Obsidian Palace-
"Well, hey" The merchant said. "One faction is as good as the other, both have money and both need to spend it."
Lagart looked towards the merchant and held out his hand.
"What? Oh yeah, your pay. Well, uh about that."
Lagart growled. "Fair work, fair pay."
"Oh yeah, well, uh. I don't necessarily have the exact money on me right now, but believe me. I'll make enough here to pay you, and even to guide me back."
"No." Lagart stated angrily.
"Uhh...no?"
"I not take you back. You're jerk, treat me like dumb thug. I more than that."
"Pah, you keep telling yourself that." The merchant laughed. "Now if you excuse me I have customers to attend to. Come back in a little while to get your pay, zohal."
Lagart snarled at him and then stormed off. He was sick of getting treated like this, but it was the only way he knew how to make a living. He began to contemplate just sucking it up and agree to take the merchant back, but was it all really worth it to him?
-
Sennel bounded forward and waved to the Queen and her guard. "Hullo! I know we didn't get a chance to talk much back in the throne room but if you come with me and my friend I'm sure we can have a fun chat! Or some lunch! I'm hungry--are you? We could get sandwiches!"
There was an awkward pause. Then the Queen turned and sprinted further down the passage.
"Hey! Come back here! I went through all this to meet you!" Sennel barked as he chased after. He pushed the guard out of the way and dashed after the fleeing Grahim. Turning a corner, the glowing Lupe saw the Queen's foot vanish through the ceiling. Approaching the spot illuminated a ladder. Sennel's tail wagged happily as he climbed up after the Queen and into whatever lay beyond.
((NOTE: This is intended to bring the people outside the castle into more of the action. If your character(s) are not inside the castle siege atm then feel free to have the Queen pop out nearby!))
-
Simon folds the letter up and puts it away, looking up just in time to see the zohal storming off. He had overheard just enough of the conversation to gather that the merchant had stiffed him, and walks after him.
"Hey, uh, I didn't catch your name, but you don't look like you're from around here. What are you doing all the way out here with that weasel anyway?"
-
Lagart glances at Simon. He was so used to getting tormenting all the time that he almost thought he was making fun of him for a second, trying to get his hopes up. But he could tell he was being sincere with his concern.
"Lagart. My name, Lagart." He replied. "I'm a bodyguard. People hire me to protect them on dangerous trips. I am large and scary so not many people like to mess with me, so I can make a decent living. But I get pushed around a lot by people, cause I'm not so smart."
Lagart grunts and crosses his arm.
"The merchant not giving me his fair pay. I like to rip his arms off, but that not look good. People see a zohal attack somebody and they assume I the bad guy."
Lagart sighs "It not fair. Because I'm good at what I do. Not a single client get hurt when I'm around. One time I on a job and a bunch of bandits attack. They assume I not so quick because I big. Well, I'm not really fast, but I'm fast enough to slash one of them and take him down, one swipe. Rest of his friends go running."
Lagart shakes his head. "Sorry for rambling. Not many people come talk to me."
-
Joshua, who had been gazing at the sky just a few feet away from Simon and the Zohal. He smirks at their conversation and walks over.
"Hey big guy, um... Lagart yes?" He walked over in between the two and looks up at the Zohal. "How about I do something that could help all of us out." The Djuni smirked. "How about Lagart works for us and we'll pay him douple...no TRIPLE the price that no good merchant didn't pay him!"
The Scarlet Haired man wrapped an arm around Simon's shoulder and said "Doesn't that sound like a fantastic idea?!"
-
Simon looks at Joshua incredulously, then shakes his head and says,
"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I can't offer anything like that. If you two want to work out a deal between yourselves that's fine, but I'm not about to make a promise I cannot keep. It looks like Southforge managed to hold out and strike an alliance with some nearby towns. They're hardy people, I'm sure they can take care of themselves, for now I'm going to try to find out more about this... Kigar..."
Looking past Lagart, towards the edge of the woods around the palace, Simon sees some unusual movement well off the path. Several figures seem to emerge from inside a boulder, pursued by one or two others. They are too far off and too obscured for Simon to determine who they are, but the nature of their arrival certainly strikes him as curious. Deciding to investigate he half-mutters, "I'll... be right back." and walks past Lagart, glancing around to see if anyone else is watching him and trying not to move so fast as to attract attention.
-
Lagart watched Simon take off, he thought he'd follow him. But the way he moved so cautiously made him think he'd want to go alone. He then turned back to Joshua.
"It not just about money." He explained. "It about being treated fairly. Which I don't most the time. So I work for you, as long as you don't treat me like some dumb thug. Because I'm more than just that."
"You two seem like okay people to me though. So no need to pay so much, no doubling or tripling his price. Just enough for food and supplies." He then looks himself over and then sniffs, grimacing almost immediately afterwards "And maybe clean clothes too." He then chuckles out a raspy laugh.