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Curse of Darkness VIII - The Wild Hunt
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<blockquote data-quote="Greenfield" data-source="post: 5963153" data-attributes="member: 6669384"><p>The companions seized their weapons from the guards as the courtroom emptied. Some of the spectators went towards the Palace of Justice’ outer gates that lead to the plaza, while some of the more timid souls sought shelter deeper within.</p><p> </p><p> The plaza still held a throng of the curious, but now it held something more. At one end stood a being of obvious supernatural origin. His features were strongly fey, and he stood twice the height of a man. He wore a hunters garb, deerskin and dark green, with soft riding boots that came past his knees, and a great bow carved with intricate patterns. His other hand held a huge hunting horn, and he stood poised to blow it a second time.</p><p> </p><p> About the edges of the plaza were… things, black on black, shapes that could be seen when the moved in the shadows, but which the eye could not clearly discern. The crowd of onlookers cowered back from them, instinctively recognizing the danger they posed.</p><p> </p><p> As the people cascaded out of the Palace, the huntsman smiled.</p><p> </p><p> “Seburn of Dumphreys!”, he called. “I am here for you.”</p><p> </p><p> All eyes turned towards Seburn, who immediately fell over, dead. In his place, his spirit stood, surprised to be freed from the burden of flesh. He stepped away from his mortal remains, lifting his feet high as if emerging from a pool of water. And he was magnificent to behold, the epitome of the man, his flawless skin all but glowing in the night, his frame showing that perfect balance between the broad musculature of his Human half and the delicate dancer’s build of his Elven heritage.</p><p> </p><p> He looked up towards the towering huntsman, squared his shoulders and said but one word. “Challenge!”</p><p> </p><p> The huntsman smiled and nodded. “I was hoping you’d do that. I’ve come a long way for you, and a true hunt is called for. You know the terms, of course. You run as a mortal would, bound by the mortal limits. If you remain free at sunrise, you live once more. If you fall, you join the Sluagh, and never know the afterlife in Tor.”</p><p> </p><p> “Agreed!’, said Seburn sharply.</p><p> </p><p> “Halt this at once!”, came a new voice, the high priest of the temple. “This is sacrilege! You may not be here, and this pagan display may not continue. You have no power here, and I order you away, lest the gods themselves strike you down!”</p><p> </p><p> The huntsman looked at the priest as if noting him for the first time. “There is a law older than your temple, older than the very stones that form it. A law so old that neither the most high nor the most treacherous of the gods dare break it. When a man falls, wherever he falls, his soul belongs to his gods and no other. I am Hern Longwood, companion of Vandos and servant of Arwyn, god of the dead and Lord of Tor. Your gods will not interfere this night.”</p><p> </p><p> The priest’s face contorted in fury, and he looked to the Monks for support, but they stood apart, content to observe.</p><p> </p><p> Pen spoke up, though, to the surprise of many. “If I understand the laws of the hunt properly, he may take nothing of his mortal life with him. Can he make use of things he may find along the way?”</p><p> </p><p> The huntsman looked at the Bard, thought for a moment, and nodded.</p><p> </p><p> Pen beamed at the agreement, and immediately took off his own magic belt, with the accompanying pouch of magic components, and tossed them on the ground. </p><p> </p><p> “Seburn, do you think you can find that?”, he asked with impish delight. </p><p> </p><p> Hern’s face clouded over for a moment, then he laughed. “Well played. But know also the price for direct interference in the hunt. The Sluagh will take you as well if you do.”</p><p> </p><p> Pen nodded. “The important thing is to know when to break the rules.”, he replied, directing his comment both to Seburn and his hunter.</p><p> </p><p> Hern stepped aside, clearing a way down the broad avenue, and with a grand sweep of his hand he indicated the way for Seburn. “This is where the hunt begins. You will have one minute to flee before we pursue. Some of my hounds might blood you as you pass, but they will not bring you down. They’re simply eager for the taste.”</p><p> </p><p> At this point the Magistrate had had enough. “This madness must end. Arrest them all!”, he shouted, waving the guards forward.</p><p> </p><p> And from the shadows, one of the great hounds growled, a deep rumbling sensation that seemed to come up from the depths of the earth itself, and where it spread madness followed. Chaos erupted across the square, crowd in turmoil. Some of the onlookers were petrified with fear, while others fled in mindless panic. The guard stood their ground, but could do no more.</p><p> </p><p> Marcus managed to fight down the terror that roared through him. “Obscuro!” he called, and a cloud of mist came into being around Seburn, Penn and Imagina.</p><p> </p><p> “Run, you fool!”, Seburn cried from within the cloud, taking his own advice even as he spoke. “You interfered!”</p><p> </p><p> Seburn’s legs pumped like pistons as he sprinted across the panic filled plaza, passing the huntsman and his great hounds in a flash. In seconds he was out of the lit square and into the shadowed streets, the very image of grace and power in flight.</p><p> </p><p> One of the hounds did indeed lash out, scoring his side and leaving a bloody gash under his ribs, but he had no time to tend to it now. He felt the fear within, and the need to run!</p><p> </p><p> Marcus raised his hands in protest. “I wasn’t interfering. The guards…”</p><p> </p><p> “Are not within your cloud.”, Hern finished for him, a grim smile on his face. “Neither are you. You centered it on your friend, to hide him from us. Flee while you can.”</p><p> </p><p> From within the cloud, Penn could be heard singing a song of summoning, and Marcus recognized the tune. “Help me!,”, he cried, stepping into the cloud. He was nearly flattened by the huge wing of the Hippogriff the Bard had called from the heavenly realm.</p><p> </p><p> “He’s to take Seburn’s body away. No matter what happens to us, he’ll need it later.”, Penn explained.</p><p> </p><p> “Can he carry me too?”, Marcus asked in desperation.</p><p> </p><p> Penn looked indecisive. If he aided Marcus, he’d be hunted as well, and the beast couldn’t carry three. Then he relented and gave his friend a leg up. He wouldn’t abandon even an enemy to the Sluagh, much less a good friend. “Take them to the Edgewater, at the north end of the warf.”, he instructed, and with a huge sweep of wings the Celestial beast was away.</p><p> </p><p> Another song was sung, and another messenger of winged deliverance was called forth.</p><p> </p><p> “Take me too.”, Imagina cried, stepping into the fog bank. And the pair leapt into the saddle together and were away into the night, following the first off towards the river.</p><p> </p><p> Behind them they heard howls of rage as the Magistrate finally managed to get his guards to act, only to find the cause of all this gone like shadows.</p><p> </p><p> And then came the horn, and the cries of the hounds. The hunt was on.</p><p> </p><p> Hern called forth a magical steed, and together they mounted the sky in pursuit of their primary prey. Half the pack followed, while the others poured through the streets like a flood of smoke, headed towards the river.</p><p> *** </p><p> Seburn had taken the first corner as fast as he dared, and was cutting a fast path through the city. He leapt fences, dodged through narrow alleys and bullied his way through crowds of panicked pedestrians, seeking the path that would be most difficult for the hounds to follow. His side pained him, and he saw that the Sluagh’s teeth and torn a ragged wound across his ribs, one that continued to drip blood. He’d never lose them while leaving a trail like that, and he knew it.</p><p> </p><p> But he was more than a just prey, he was a man and saw a way to take advantage of his wound. Pausing for a moment he drew a bird’s feather from the pouch Penn had left for him to “find”, and after a few words he took flight. Now he fled with a different idea in mind. Keeping low to the ground and moving as swiftly as he could, he set a course that took him over walls and rooftops, through alleys clogged with litter and people, ways impassable to those on foot. He stuck mainly to the streets, to keep the Sluagh thinking they still pursued a man on foot, but his course would be a challenge for the greatest of athletes, and would be nigh impossible for his four footed pursuers to follow.</p><p> </p><p> He rose up above the roofs for a brief moment, to get his bearings, and was rewarded by the sound of an arrow passing close by. He looked behind and saw Hern, riding a horse of shadow and moonlight, drawing back his bow for another shot. Lightning crashed into the city behind him, and Seburn knew that no matter how well or poorly they had spread the word, this night would be burned into the minds and hearts of the entire land.</p><p> *** </p><p> “What are you doing?”, Penn hissed at Marcus as he hugged his mount’s back. There were no reins, and the beasts were beating their best time away, for their time in the mortal realm was limited and they had been given a task to do.</p><p> </p><p> “I’m spreading a bit of chaos in our wake.”, Marcus laughed. He had called upon the power of Jupiter, and the sky was raining thunderbolts randomly throughout the city.</p><p> </p><p> “Like father, like son, eh?”, Penn laughed. “Do you know where you’re striking?”</p><p> </p><p> “Nope, and I don’t care. I’m trying to fill the streets with people, to slow the hounds.”</p><p> </p><p> Pen painted a tight lipped smile on his face, for he’d added a bit of his own chaos as well. As soon as they’d broken sight of the plaza, he’d redirected their two mounts towards the north wall of the city. The huntsman had heard him say where they were going, and with any luck that was where the pack would show up. For as far as he’d ever heard, the best bloodhound in the world couldn’t track a bird across the sky.</p><p> </p><p> The great beasts suddenly stooped for the ground, for their time in this world was nearly at an end and they wouldn’t leave their charges to fall to their deaths. They just cleared the north wall before they landed, vanishing away like a dream the moment their claws struck the ground.</p><p> </p><p> “Well, now what?”, Imagina said as she picked herself up.</p><p> </p><p> “We keep moving.”, Penn said simply.”</p><p> ***</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Greenfield, post: 5963153, member: 6669384"] The companions seized their weapons from the guards as the courtroom emptied. Some of the spectators went towards the Palace of Justice’ outer gates that lead to the plaza, while some of the more timid souls sought shelter deeper within. The plaza still held a throng of the curious, but now it held something more. At one end stood a being of obvious supernatural origin. His features were strongly fey, and he stood twice the height of a man. He wore a hunters garb, deerskin and dark green, with soft riding boots that came past his knees, and a great bow carved with intricate patterns. His other hand held a huge hunting horn, and he stood poised to blow it a second time. About the edges of the plaza were… things, black on black, shapes that could be seen when the moved in the shadows, but which the eye could not clearly discern. The crowd of onlookers cowered back from them, instinctively recognizing the danger they posed. As the people cascaded out of the Palace, the huntsman smiled. “Seburn of Dumphreys!”, he called. “I am here for you.” All eyes turned towards Seburn, who immediately fell over, dead. In his place, his spirit stood, surprised to be freed from the burden of flesh. He stepped away from his mortal remains, lifting his feet high as if emerging from a pool of water. And he was magnificent to behold, the epitome of the man, his flawless skin all but glowing in the night, his frame showing that perfect balance between the broad musculature of his Human half and the delicate dancer’s build of his Elven heritage. He looked up towards the towering huntsman, squared his shoulders and said but one word. “Challenge!” The huntsman smiled and nodded. “I was hoping you’d do that. I’ve come a long way for you, and a true hunt is called for. You know the terms, of course. You run as a mortal would, bound by the mortal limits. If you remain free at sunrise, you live once more. If you fall, you join the Sluagh, and never know the afterlife in Tor.” “Agreed!’, said Seburn sharply. “Halt this at once!”, came a new voice, the high priest of the temple. “This is sacrilege! You may not be here, and this pagan display may not continue. You have no power here, and I order you away, lest the gods themselves strike you down!” The huntsman looked at the priest as if noting him for the first time. “There is a law older than your temple, older than the very stones that form it. A law so old that neither the most high nor the most treacherous of the gods dare break it. When a man falls, wherever he falls, his soul belongs to his gods and no other. I am Hern Longwood, companion of Vandos and servant of Arwyn, god of the dead and Lord of Tor. Your gods will not interfere this night.” The priest’s face contorted in fury, and he looked to the Monks for support, but they stood apart, content to observe. Pen spoke up, though, to the surprise of many. “If I understand the laws of the hunt properly, he may take nothing of his mortal life with him. Can he make use of things he may find along the way?” The huntsman looked at the Bard, thought for a moment, and nodded. Pen beamed at the agreement, and immediately took off his own magic belt, with the accompanying pouch of magic components, and tossed them on the ground. “Seburn, do you think you can find that?”, he asked with impish delight. Hern’s face clouded over for a moment, then he laughed. “Well played. But know also the price for direct interference in the hunt. The Sluagh will take you as well if you do.” Pen nodded. “The important thing is to know when to break the rules.”, he replied, directing his comment both to Seburn and his hunter. Hern stepped aside, clearing a way down the broad avenue, and with a grand sweep of his hand he indicated the way for Seburn. “This is where the hunt begins. You will have one minute to flee before we pursue. Some of my hounds might blood you as you pass, but they will not bring you down. They’re simply eager for the taste.” At this point the Magistrate had had enough. “This madness must end. Arrest them all!”, he shouted, waving the guards forward. And from the shadows, one of the great hounds growled, a deep rumbling sensation that seemed to come up from the depths of the earth itself, and where it spread madness followed. Chaos erupted across the square, crowd in turmoil. Some of the onlookers were petrified with fear, while others fled in mindless panic. The guard stood their ground, but could do no more. Marcus managed to fight down the terror that roared through him. “Obscuro!” he called, and a cloud of mist came into being around Seburn, Penn and Imagina. “Run, you fool!”, Seburn cried from within the cloud, taking his own advice even as he spoke. “You interfered!” Seburn’s legs pumped like pistons as he sprinted across the panic filled plaza, passing the huntsman and his great hounds in a flash. In seconds he was out of the lit square and into the shadowed streets, the very image of grace and power in flight. One of the hounds did indeed lash out, scoring his side and leaving a bloody gash under his ribs, but he had no time to tend to it now. He felt the fear within, and the need to run! Marcus raised his hands in protest. “I wasn’t interfering. The guards…” “Are not within your cloud.”, Hern finished for him, a grim smile on his face. “Neither are you. You centered it on your friend, to hide him from us. Flee while you can.” From within the cloud, Penn could be heard singing a song of summoning, and Marcus recognized the tune. “Help me!,”, he cried, stepping into the cloud. He was nearly flattened by the huge wing of the Hippogriff the Bard had called from the heavenly realm. “He’s to take Seburn’s body away. No matter what happens to us, he’ll need it later.”, Penn explained. “Can he carry me too?”, Marcus asked in desperation. Penn looked indecisive. If he aided Marcus, he’d be hunted as well, and the beast couldn’t carry three. Then he relented and gave his friend a leg up. He wouldn’t abandon even an enemy to the Sluagh, much less a good friend. “Take them to the Edgewater, at the north end of the warf.”, he instructed, and with a huge sweep of wings the Celestial beast was away. Another song was sung, and another messenger of winged deliverance was called forth. “Take me too.”, Imagina cried, stepping into the fog bank. And the pair leapt into the saddle together and were away into the night, following the first off towards the river. Behind them they heard howls of rage as the Magistrate finally managed to get his guards to act, only to find the cause of all this gone like shadows. And then came the horn, and the cries of the hounds. The hunt was on. Hern called forth a magical steed, and together they mounted the sky in pursuit of their primary prey. Half the pack followed, while the others poured through the streets like a flood of smoke, headed towards the river. *** Seburn had taken the first corner as fast as he dared, and was cutting a fast path through the city. He leapt fences, dodged through narrow alleys and bullied his way through crowds of panicked pedestrians, seeking the path that would be most difficult for the hounds to follow. His side pained him, and he saw that the Sluagh’s teeth and torn a ragged wound across his ribs, one that continued to drip blood. He’d never lose them while leaving a trail like that, and he knew it. But he was more than a just prey, he was a man and saw a way to take advantage of his wound. Pausing for a moment he drew a bird’s feather from the pouch Penn had left for him to “find”, and after a few words he took flight. Now he fled with a different idea in mind. Keeping low to the ground and moving as swiftly as he could, he set a course that took him over walls and rooftops, through alleys clogged with litter and people, ways impassable to those on foot. He stuck mainly to the streets, to keep the Sluagh thinking they still pursued a man on foot, but his course would be a challenge for the greatest of athletes, and would be nigh impossible for his four footed pursuers to follow. He rose up above the roofs for a brief moment, to get his bearings, and was rewarded by the sound of an arrow passing close by. He looked behind and saw Hern, riding a horse of shadow and moonlight, drawing back his bow for another shot. Lightning crashed into the city behind him, and Seburn knew that no matter how well or poorly they had spread the word, this night would be burned into the minds and hearts of the entire land. *** “What are you doing?”, Penn hissed at Marcus as he hugged his mount’s back. There were no reins, and the beasts were beating their best time away, for their time in the mortal realm was limited and they had been given a task to do. “I’m spreading a bit of chaos in our wake.”, Marcus laughed. He had called upon the power of Jupiter, and the sky was raining thunderbolts randomly throughout the city. “Like father, like son, eh?”, Penn laughed. “Do you know where you’re striking?” “Nope, and I don’t care. I’m trying to fill the streets with people, to slow the hounds.” Pen painted a tight lipped smile on his face, for he’d added a bit of his own chaos as well. As soon as they’d broken sight of the plaza, he’d redirected their two mounts towards the north wall of the city. The huntsman had heard him say where they were going, and with any luck that was where the pack would show up. For as far as he’d ever heard, the best bloodhound in the world couldn’t track a bird across the sky. The great beasts suddenly stooped for the ground, for their time in this world was nearly at an end and they wouldn’t leave their charges to fall to their deaths. They just cleared the north wall before they landed, vanishing away like a dream the moment their claws struck the ground. “Well, now what?”, Imagina said as she picked herself up. “We keep moving.”, Penn said simply.” *** [/QUOTE]
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