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<blockquote data-quote="Jon Potter" data-source="post: 895258" data-attributes="member: 2323"><p><strong>[PLAIN][Realms #221] The Bat Cave[/PLAIN]</strong></p><p></p><p>"I can imagine the desperation you must feel to find your daughter," Ledare countered. "But logically, it is foolish for us to continue. We would serve Nilia better with a smarter course of action." Lant's face darkened at her words, and he quickly wiped his tears away with one rough fist, but before he could say anything Ixin spoke.</p><p></p><p>"I can't believe I'm saying this," the mage mused, laying a reassuring hand on Den Lant's shoulder, "but I think we should pursue immediately and try to catch them unprepared."</p><p></p><p>Finian stepped forward at that, making a flourish with his two blades. "I will continue with Den Lant. He is right about his daughter," the Archer said. "Ixin is right too, we have the upper hand and need to press it."</p><p></p><p>Ledare sighed and wiped her blade clean on the robed skaven's cloak. "What do you propose?" she asked.</p><p></p><p>"I volunteer to scout ahead, borrowing your ring if you will let me," Finian offered. "This way I can see if they are lying in wait. Someone needs to watch Ruze. Perhaps Ixin, Draelond, Den Lant and I can press on. They can count to twenty then follow the path and I will warn of anything coming. What do you say?"</p><p></p><p>"I say my dragon fear won't last forever," Ixin urged. "We should go if we're going to."</p><p></p><p>Draelond stepped forward, holding his bastard sword in a reverse grip so that the blade loomed up over his shoulder and the egg-shaped pommel pointed at the ground. "Is this plan okay with you, Ledare?" he asked. "I feel we have already done what is in our power to attempt to find Nilia. And I fear the worst for her. But if it is decided that we press on, then I am willing."</p><p></p><p>Ledare sheathed her sword and fished in her belt pouch before answering. "Go," she said, holding out the Ring of Invisibility to Finian. "I will stay behind with Ruze."</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>The ranger Spider Climbed down the wall of the 'staircase' and out into the large chamber that had twice almost become the site of his death. As he passed the spot where he had been paralyzed, the light filtering down from the cave above began to fail even his half-elven eyes. He fished out the sunrod that Den Lant had given him and struck it against the wall. It began to glow brightly, lending an incongruous yellow warmth to the foul-smelling cavern. With the added illumination, he could clearly see the remains of the two skaven that Draelond had killed earlier lying at the mouth to one of two narrow tunnels on the opposite side of the chamber. Listening he could hear nothing telling beyond a faint and distant sound of movement.</p><p></p><p>Paying careful attention to the holes in the floor, the Archer raced across the ceiling toward the far wall.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>"Okay," Ixin announced. "That's twenty."</p><p></p><p>Draelond nodded and Den Lant struck his other sunrod against the cave wall before stepping over the body of the fallen werebat and rushing down into the narrow fissure. Ledare watched them go and then looked over at the immobilized Battleguard.</p><p></p><p>"I owe you my thanks for your queen's healing many times over," she told him with a wan smile. "There's not much I can do for you now, but I'll make you as comfortable as I can while we wait for this to wear off."</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>The network of caves was larger than Finian had suspected it was, and he kept expecting to encounter opposition at every turn. He didn't, however, so he pressed on, mindful of the sound of the others' advance along the trail he had blazed for them. He ignored another set of natural stairs that curved back and down, perhaps leading to the area beneath the large chamber with holes in the floor, in favor of a set that went more or less straight back into the hillside. He could just make out very recent tracks where two humanoids had run through.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Ledare stared out into the rain and muttered a quick prayer to Shaharizod on Ruze's behalf. "He always puts the greater good first, often to his own detriment," Ledare spoke into the void. "If you hear this, watch over him and grant him speedy recovery." There was no swell of divine presence to indicate that the goddess had heard, and no change in the cleric's condition. The Janissary sighed, unsurprised that her own prayers didn't hold the same weight as a Battleguard's.</p><p></p><p>Glancing down, she couldn't help but notice the corpse of the woman Finian had stabbed through the throat. She lay on her back, staring blindly up at the clouds. The rain had washed her body clean and now the diluted blood puddled in the mud around her.</p><p></p><p>With a shudder, the Janissary thought about the carrion crawlers the constable had said were native to this region. Hastily, Ledare reached out, grabbed the corpse by the ankle and dragged her inside where she wouldn't present so tempting a target.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Ixin hesitated and closed her eyes. She could clearly sense the hectic energy of the power nexus coming up from below. She glanced down the dark natural staircase that curved back in the direction they had already come. The ley line nexus was beneath them, probably in the lair of the tentacled monster that had assaulted them on their first foray in-</p><p></p><p>"Come on," Draelond urged, grabbing her firmly by the elbow. "Finian went this way." He nodded toward the other, narrow set of stairs that led off the tunnel in which they stood at a right angle. She could see Den Lant already moving along the stairs as quickly as he could given the close quarters and the quarterstaff he carried. Casting one more curious glance down the other passage, she followed after the man with Draelond close behind her.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Ledare looked down at the two dark bodies. Side-by-side, their similarities were even more striking, and the Janissary found it difficult to believe that they were not brother and sister. They both possessed dusky skin such as was common in the southernmost of the Near Realms - Awad and Byr - with strong, hooked noses and heavy brows. Her hair was a lustrous black and Ledare supposed that his must have been as well, although his head was clean shaven. Each had a single long scar running down the inside of their left forearm as though someone had cut them with a knife and then left the wound to fester rather than heal it. But the most eye-catching bit of body modification on each was the tattooing.</p><p></p><p>The man's torso and thighs were covered with heavy, intricate tattoos that twined about one another in a confusing web of jagged black spikes and flowing lines. Here and there - on his right breast, on his shoulder, each bicep - the network parted like a clearing amidst brambles and a different type of tattoo dominated. Each was a small colorful bit of art with a strong nautical theme - the sort of thing that was popular in coastal cities.</p><p></p><p>The woman's arms and shoulders were decorated much like the man's with webs of black lines. A similar design but in a radial pattern encircled her belly button. Ledare rolled her over with her foot and gasped involuntarily. On the woman's right shoulder cavorted a colorful redcap fairy captured in bright ink amidst a nest of tangled black lines. The fairy looked at Ledare and winked.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Finian removed the Invisibility ring and waited for the others to catch up. He held his hand up to his lips as they approached and they moved close to him in the corridor as quietly as they could (which wasn't very in Draelond's case). The archer glanced toward the dark opening of a chamber ahead before whispering, "They're just ahead. I heard them moving around a few moments ago and two voices."</p><p></p><p>"Two?" Draelond hissed. "Only two? Where are the others."</p><p></p><p>The ranger shrugged. "Maybe there aren't any others," he offered and Den Lant shook his quarterstaff at that.</p><p></p><p>"Then what are we waiting for?" he growled and charged into the chamber beyond bellowing, "What have you done to my daughter!? She did you no wrong! Give her back NOW!!!"</p><p></p><p>"Well, a plan would have been nice," Finian grimaced, slipped on Ledare's ring and disappeared.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>For a moment, Ledare doubted her own eyes. The fairy just leered up at her, a smirk frozen on its inked face. Then as she watched it turned its head playfully to the side and winked before settling back into its static grin. After a few beats, it repeated the motion and after a few beats more repeated it again, over and over in a continuous loop. Ledare had seen an animated tattoo only once before and not so long ago. During her last visit to Byr in the Moonsdance of Coldeven, there had been a festival honoring Neodig and there amidst the chilled bodies and hot drink had been a travelling wizard who offered up just such decoration to those who could afford it. His name was Tormar Helmfre and he'd lasciviously offered to tattoo a rearing unicorn on Ledare's right buttock. At least he had until her father put a stop to such talk.</p><p></p><p>The Janissary could only imagine that this woman had gotten her redcap faerie from the same artist. She had never heard of another wizard offering such a thing.</p><p></p><p>"Kitten," Ruze said as the paralyzation finally wore off. He stretched his back and pointed across the cave with the scimitar in his right hand. "You do realize that that skaven over by the carrion crawler is still breathing, don't you?"</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Jon Potter, post: 895258, member: 2323"] [b][PLAIN][Realms #221] The Bat Cave[/PLAIN][/b] "I can imagine the desperation you must feel to find your daughter," Ledare countered. "But logically, it is foolish for us to continue. We would serve Nilia better with a smarter course of action." Lant's face darkened at her words, and he quickly wiped his tears away with one rough fist, but before he could say anything Ixin spoke. "I can't believe I'm saying this," the mage mused, laying a reassuring hand on Den Lant's shoulder, "but I think we should pursue immediately and try to catch them unprepared." Finian stepped forward at that, making a flourish with his two blades. "I will continue with Den Lant. He is right about his daughter," the Archer said. "Ixin is right too, we have the upper hand and need to press it." Ledare sighed and wiped her blade clean on the robed skaven's cloak. "What do you propose?" she asked. "I volunteer to scout ahead, borrowing your ring if you will let me," Finian offered. "This way I can see if they are lying in wait. Someone needs to watch Ruze. Perhaps Ixin, Draelond, Den Lant and I can press on. They can count to twenty then follow the path and I will warn of anything coming. What do you say?" "I say my dragon fear won't last forever," Ixin urged. "We should go if we're going to." Draelond stepped forward, holding his bastard sword in a reverse grip so that the blade loomed up over his shoulder and the egg-shaped pommel pointed at the ground. "Is this plan okay with you, Ledare?" he asked. "I feel we have already done what is in our power to attempt to find Nilia. And I fear the worst for her. But if it is decided that we press on, then I am willing." Ledare sheathed her sword and fished in her belt pouch before answering. "Go," she said, holding out the Ring of Invisibility to Finian. "I will stay behind with Ruze." The ranger Spider Climbed down the wall of the 'staircase' and out into the large chamber that had twice almost become the site of his death. As he passed the spot where he had been paralyzed, the light filtering down from the cave above began to fail even his half-elven eyes. He fished out the sunrod that Den Lant had given him and struck it against the wall. It began to glow brightly, lending an incongruous yellow warmth to the foul-smelling cavern. With the added illumination, he could clearly see the remains of the two skaven that Draelond had killed earlier lying at the mouth to one of two narrow tunnels on the opposite side of the chamber. Listening he could hear nothing telling beyond a faint and distant sound of movement. Paying careful attention to the holes in the floor, the Archer raced across the ceiling toward the far wall. "Okay," Ixin announced. "That's twenty." Draelond nodded and Den Lant struck his other sunrod against the cave wall before stepping over the body of the fallen werebat and rushing down into the narrow fissure. Ledare watched them go and then looked over at the immobilized Battleguard. "I owe you my thanks for your queen's healing many times over," she told him with a wan smile. "There's not much I can do for you now, but I'll make you as comfortable as I can while we wait for this to wear off." The network of caves was larger than Finian had suspected it was, and he kept expecting to encounter opposition at every turn. He didn't, however, so he pressed on, mindful of the sound of the others' advance along the trail he had blazed for them. He ignored another set of natural stairs that curved back and down, perhaps leading to the area beneath the large chamber with holes in the floor, in favor of a set that went more or less straight back into the hillside. He could just make out very recent tracks where two humanoids had run through. Ledare stared out into the rain and muttered a quick prayer to Shaharizod on Ruze's behalf. "He always puts the greater good first, often to his own detriment," Ledare spoke into the void. "If you hear this, watch over him and grant him speedy recovery." There was no swell of divine presence to indicate that the goddess had heard, and no change in the cleric's condition. The Janissary sighed, unsurprised that her own prayers didn't hold the same weight as a Battleguard's. Glancing down, she couldn't help but notice the corpse of the woman Finian had stabbed through the throat. She lay on her back, staring blindly up at the clouds. The rain had washed her body clean and now the diluted blood puddled in the mud around her. With a shudder, the Janissary thought about the carrion crawlers the constable had said were native to this region. Hastily, Ledare reached out, grabbed the corpse by the ankle and dragged her inside where she wouldn't present so tempting a target. Ixin hesitated and closed her eyes. She could clearly sense the hectic energy of the power nexus coming up from below. She glanced down the dark natural staircase that curved back in the direction they had already come. The ley line nexus was beneath them, probably in the lair of the tentacled monster that had assaulted them on their first foray in- "Come on," Draelond urged, grabbing her firmly by the elbow. "Finian went this way." He nodded toward the other, narrow set of stairs that led off the tunnel in which they stood at a right angle. She could see Den Lant already moving along the stairs as quickly as he could given the close quarters and the quarterstaff he carried. Casting one more curious glance down the other passage, she followed after the man with Draelond close behind her. Ledare looked down at the two dark bodies. Side-by-side, their similarities were even more striking, and the Janissary found it difficult to believe that they were not brother and sister. They both possessed dusky skin such as was common in the southernmost of the Near Realms - Awad and Byr - with strong, hooked noses and heavy brows. Her hair was a lustrous black and Ledare supposed that his must have been as well, although his head was clean shaven. Each had a single long scar running down the inside of their left forearm as though someone had cut them with a knife and then left the wound to fester rather than heal it. But the most eye-catching bit of body modification on each was the tattooing. The man's torso and thighs were covered with heavy, intricate tattoos that twined about one another in a confusing web of jagged black spikes and flowing lines. Here and there - on his right breast, on his shoulder, each bicep - the network parted like a clearing amidst brambles and a different type of tattoo dominated. Each was a small colorful bit of art with a strong nautical theme - the sort of thing that was popular in coastal cities. The woman's arms and shoulders were decorated much like the man's with webs of black lines. A similar design but in a radial pattern encircled her belly button. Ledare rolled her over with her foot and gasped involuntarily. On the woman's right shoulder cavorted a colorful redcap fairy captured in bright ink amidst a nest of tangled black lines. The fairy looked at Ledare and winked. Finian removed the Invisibility ring and waited for the others to catch up. He held his hand up to his lips as they approached and they moved close to him in the corridor as quietly as they could (which wasn't very in Draelond's case). The archer glanced toward the dark opening of a chamber ahead before whispering, "They're just ahead. I heard them moving around a few moments ago and two voices." "Two?" Draelond hissed. "Only two? Where are the others." The ranger shrugged. "Maybe there aren't any others," he offered and Den Lant shook his quarterstaff at that. "Then what are we waiting for?" he growled and charged into the chamber beyond bellowing, "What have you done to my daughter!? She did you no wrong! Give her back NOW!!!" "Well, a plan would have been nice," Finian grimaced, slipped on Ledare's ring and disappeared. For a moment, Ledare doubted her own eyes. The fairy just leered up at her, a smirk frozen on its inked face. Then as she watched it turned its head playfully to the side and winked before settling back into its static grin. After a few beats, it repeated the motion and after a few beats more repeated it again, over and over in a continuous loop. Ledare had seen an animated tattoo only once before and not so long ago. During her last visit to Byr in the Moonsdance of Coldeven, there had been a festival honoring Neodig and there amidst the chilled bodies and hot drink had been a travelling wizard who offered up just such decoration to those who could afford it. His name was Tormar Helmfre and he'd lasciviously offered to tattoo a rearing unicorn on Ledare's right buttock. At least he had until her father put a stop to such talk. The Janissary could only imagine that this woman had gotten her redcap faerie from the same artist. She had never heard of another wizard offering such a thing. "Kitten," Ruze said as the paralyzation finally wore off. He stretched his back and pointed across the cave with the scimitar in his right hand. "You do realize that that skaven over by the carrion crawler is still breathing, don't you?" [/QUOTE]
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