Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is coming! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Talismans of Aerdrim
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="havenstone" data-source="post: 5387037" data-attributes="member: 61094"><p><strong>The Young Laksharis</strong></p><p></p><p><strong><span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">SUPRISINGLY SOON, ASH </span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">and Meeshak are allowed to return to their errand slave duties with Chosdzed. Meeshak guesses that sending Northern slaves across the city with the stripes of their punishment still visible on their backs is meant to emphasize publicly that despite the notorious escape, the Empire (and its Minister of State) is still in firm control. </span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">Minister Tang is beginning a negotiation on the terms of the Imperial spice trade with Lakshadar, and dispatches his slaves back across the river to the estate of Raj Narayan Shah. On their first visit, the Lakshari swordsman <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/5298503-post120.html" target="_blank">Njitra</a> once again leaves off gambling with the guards and approaches them for conversation. At first Chosdzed regards the earnest young man suspiciously, but Njitra doesn’t ask again how the Northerners feel about slavery; nor does he make even an oblique reference to the scandalous slave escape from the Imperial Palace. Instead, he plies Ash and Meeshak for mundane details of life in the North. On subsequent visits, Njitra keeps chatting with them about their lives pre-slavery, and Chosdzed’s own curiosity draws him into the conversation.</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“And you, Master – Njitra – are you a retainer of Lord Raj Narayan’s household?” Ash asks eventually.</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">The other guards chuckle. “Njitra Raho Dirtborn? His blade’s too long for us, and his blood’s too weak for the masters.”</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“My friends mean that I am of their social level, not the Chetriya warrior caste.” Far from being insulted, Njitra sounds amused. “Many of the ruling Ranas of Lakshadar would question my right to bear a sword at all. They have embraced the odd idea that the lower orders should confine themselves to short blades, spears, or clubs. Trying to be more Xaimani than the Xaimani, I think.”</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">Chosdzed furrows his brow, as if trying to decide whether this is an implicit insult to the Xaimani Imperial Order. “So what do you do?” Ash persists.</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“Sell my sword,” Njitra smiles. “There are plenty of lords and merchants between Tziwan and Lakshadar who don’t care about caste matters.”</span></p><p> </p><p> <strong><span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">ON THEIR FOURTH </span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">visit, a second young Lakshari is sitting with the guards. “My friend Chandur was also curious about life in the North,” Njitra explains. “I finally told him that if he wanted to hear your stories, he should join me here instead of just asking me afterward.”</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">Ash and Meeshak try to hide their surprise. Njitra’s friend looks identical to the captured slave <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/4790959-post86.html" target="_blank">Chandur</a> they met briefly on the road south – but there is no trace of a slave brand on this youth’s smooth brown shoulder. The roguish gleam in his eye, however, is unmistakable. “Pale Folk, is it true that your womenfolk are legendarily beautiful?”</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“It’s been said so,” says Meeshak cautiously. “You Southerners might find them less appealing when they’ve been in the sun too long.”</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“No, no – pink is a lovely color,” Chandur beams. Ash grins back, unsure why this curious Lakshari has reappeared, but feeling a strange, fierce hope.</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“There’s no time for you slaves to swap gossip with these guards now,” Chosdzed grumbles. “Masters, we bear a message to the House Narayan Shah. Please let us through.”</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“Another time, then,” Chandur says regretfully.</span></p><p> </p><p> <strong><span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">AS THEY HURRY</span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Verdana'"> back to the river, Ash more than once glimpses Njitra following them at a discreet distance. Their Kardei guardian is oblivious. As usual, Chosdzed has some small purchases to make before they cross the river, and tells the two Northerners to wait where he can see them. He enters a shop on a woodcrafters’ square. Instantly, Njitra and Chandur emerge from a side lane and stride up to the Northern slaves.</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">Njitra speaks quickly and quietly. “Do you wish to escape as your friends did?” </span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">Ash and Meeshak glance at each other, confirming wordlessly that they trust these strangers. “Yes,” Meeshak replies.</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“In two nights’ time, at the third hour after midnight we will be waiting with boats on the river to the southeast of the Tang Estate.” Njitra’s voice is matter-of-fact.</span></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana'">“Look for a pink lamp.” Chandur winks, and the two Laksharis melt back into the crowd before Chosdzed has a chance to notice them.</span></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="havenstone, post: 5387037, member: 61094"] [b]The Young Laksharis[/b] [B][FONT=Verdana]SUPRISINGLY SOON, ASH [/FONT][/B][FONT=Verdana]and Meeshak are allowed to return to their errand slave duties with Chosdzed. Meeshak guesses that sending Northern slaves across the city with the stripes of their punishment still visible on their backs is meant to emphasize publicly that despite the notorious escape, the Empire (and its Minister of State) is still in firm control. [/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]Minister Tang is beginning a negotiation on the terms of the Imperial spice trade with Lakshadar, and dispatches his slaves back across the river to the estate of Raj Narayan Shah. On their first visit, the Lakshari swordsman [URL="http://www.enworld.org/forum/5298503-post120.html"]Njitra[/URL] once again leaves off gambling with the guards and approaches them for conversation. At first Chosdzed regards the earnest young man suspiciously, but Njitra doesn’t ask again how the Northerners feel about slavery; nor does he make even an oblique reference to the scandalous slave escape from the Imperial Palace. Instead, he plies Ash and Meeshak for mundane details of life in the North. On subsequent visits, Njitra keeps chatting with them about their lives pre-slavery, and Chosdzed’s own curiosity draws him into the conversation.[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“And you, Master – Njitra – are you a retainer of Lord Raj Narayan’s household?” Ash asks eventually.[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]The other guards chuckle. “Njitra Raho Dirtborn? His blade’s too long for us, and his blood’s too weak for the masters.”[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“My friends mean that I am of their social level, not the Chetriya warrior caste.” Far from being insulted, Njitra sounds amused. “Many of the ruling Ranas of Lakshadar would question my right to bear a sword at all. They have embraced the odd idea that the lower orders should confine themselves to short blades, spears, or clubs. Trying to be more Xaimani than the Xaimani, I think.”[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]Chosdzed furrows his brow, as if trying to decide whether this is an implicit insult to the Xaimani Imperial Order. “So what do you do?” Ash persists.[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“Sell my sword,” Njitra smiles. “There are plenty of lords and merchants between Tziwan and Lakshadar who don’t care about caste matters.”[/FONT] [B][FONT=Verdana]ON THEIR FOURTH [/FONT][/B][FONT=Verdana]visit, a second young Lakshari is sitting with the guards. “My friend Chandur was also curious about life in the North,” Njitra explains. “I finally told him that if he wanted to hear your stories, he should join me here instead of just asking me afterward.”[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]Ash and Meeshak try to hide their surprise. Njitra’s friend looks identical to the captured slave [URL="http://www.enworld.org/forum/4790959-post86.html"]Chandur[/URL] they met briefly on the road south – but there is no trace of a slave brand on this youth’s smooth brown shoulder. The roguish gleam in his eye, however, is unmistakable. “Pale Folk, is it true that your womenfolk are legendarily beautiful?”[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“It’s been said so,” says Meeshak cautiously. “You Southerners might find them less appealing when they’ve been in the sun too long.”[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“No, no – pink is a lovely color,” Chandur beams. Ash grins back, unsure why this curious Lakshari has reappeared, but feeling a strange, fierce hope.[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“There’s no time for you slaves to swap gossip with these guards now,” Chosdzed grumbles. “Masters, we bear a message to the House Narayan Shah. Please let us through.”[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“Another time, then,” Chandur says regretfully.[/FONT] [B][FONT=Verdana]AS THEY HURRY[/FONT][/B][FONT=Verdana] back to the river, Ash more than once glimpses Njitra following them at a discreet distance. Their Kardei guardian is oblivious. As usual, Chosdzed has some small purchases to make before they cross the river, and tells the two Northerners to wait where he can see them. He enters a shop on a woodcrafters’ square. Instantly, Njitra and Chandur emerge from a side lane and stride up to the Northern slaves.[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]Njitra speaks quickly and quietly. “Do you wish to escape as your friends did?” [/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]Ash and Meeshak glance at each other, confirming wordlessly that they trust these strangers. “Yes,” Meeshak replies.[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“In two nights’ time, at the third hour after midnight we will be waiting with boats on the river to the southeast of the Tang Estate.” Njitra’s voice is matter-of-fact.[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana]“Look for a pink lamp.” Chandur winks, and the two Laksharis melt back into the crowd before Chosdzed has a chance to notice them.[/FONT] [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Talismans of Aerdrim
Top