Andrew D. Gable
First Post
Danged double post.
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[Conan] Saga of the Ages 1: A Cat in the Dark
- Thread starter Andrew D. Gable
- Start date
Andrew D. Gable
First Post
Jamila turns back to look at Balavous, grinning slyly. "I think I shall have no problems with that," she says. "Wait here a moment." She runs ahead and speaks with two guardsmen standing in front of the villa. After a moment, she walks back towards the group, nodding.
"Tiberio will see you," she says, leading them forward through the massive oak door of the home. She nods again at the guards as you pass into a long room. Plinths set back into niches along the walls are topped with potted plants, and a rich purple carpet, Zamboulan by the looks of it, lies on the floor. Jamila leads the party through the corridor, emerging in another room, evidently a dining room. In a divan at the room's end reclines a dark-haired man of middle age, attended by three female servants. Jamila clears her throat.
"Father, these men were hired by Gyrrho of Vasala, who himself was slain moments later. But they have slain the assassins in turn."
"Ahh! So that fool Gyrrho got what was coming to him? I suppose it shouldn't have been unexpected. He was a good man, but a man who made his living killing Ophireans showing up in the roughest section of Ianthe has it coming to him, I suppose. What are their names, then, Jamila?"
"Thorkin of Vanaheim, Santoro of Shadizar, and Balavous of Aquilonia, sire," Jamila says. "They wish to know of Drusus, that was what Gyrrho spoke to them about, killing Drusus."
"Ahh! I should not be surprised at that. Gyrrho had great hatred of Drusus, and rightly so. The massacre of the khallufti was a terrible thing, indeed." Then, looking at the party, "Forgive my apparent rudeness, sires. As you may have guessed, my name is Count Tiberio of Ronocco. Please sit, I will have my servants bring you some food or drink, should you wish such.
"Gyrrho has likely told you of the fate that befell his men, and why he carries such hatred of Drusus. Now I will tell you what he did not. After the massacre, Drusus was called to the Ianthium by King Cantallo, god rest his soul. There, he was reprimanded severely, and taken down into the king's cellars, where I do not know, and do not wish to know, what occurred. But the reprimand was not for the deaths of the khallufti, for what is the deaths of even a hundred foreign bandits to the king? No, Cantallo had received word that Drusus was wretchedly cruel to his own subjects, and those of neighboring counts and dukes, and had a hand in all manner of criminal activities, among them slavery." At this, a sad look passes over Jamila's face. Tiberio takes a glass of wine from a serving girl and drinks.
"Tiberio will see you," she says, leading them forward through the massive oak door of the home. She nods again at the guards as you pass into a long room. Plinths set back into niches along the walls are topped with potted plants, and a rich purple carpet, Zamboulan by the looks of it, lies on the floor. Jamila leads the party through the corridor, emerging in another room, evidently a dining room. In a divan at the room's end reclines a dark-haired man of middle age, attended by three female servants. Jamila clears her throat.
"Father, these men were hired by Gyrrho of Vasala, who himself was slain moments later. But they have slain the assassins in turn."
"Ahh! So that fool Gyrrho got what was coming to him? I suppose it shouldn't have been unexpected. He was a good man, but a man who made his living killing Ophireans showing up in the roughest section of Ianthe has it coming to him, I suppose. What are their names, then, Jamila?"
"Thorkin of Vanaheim, Santoro of Shadizar, and Balavous of Aquilonia, sire," Jamila says. "They wish to know of Drusus, that was what Gyrrho spoke to them about, killing Drusus."
"Ahh! I should not be surprised at that. Gyrrho had great hatred of Drusus, and rightly so. The massacre of the khallufti was a terrible thing, indeed." Then, looking at the party, "Forgive my apparent rudeness, sires. As you may have guessed, my name is Count Tiberio of Ronocco. Please sit, I will have my servants bring you some food or drink, should you wish such.
"Gyrrho has likely told you of the fate that befell his men, and why he carries such hatred of Drusus. Now I will tell you what he did not. After the massacre, Drusus was called to the Ianthium by King Cantallo, god rest his soul. There, he was reprimanded severely, and taken down into the king's cellars, where I do not know, and do not wish to know, what occurred. But the reprimand was not for the deaths of the khallufti, for what is the deaths of even a hundred foreign bandits to the king? No, Cantallo had received word that Drusus was wretchedly cruel to his own subjects, and those of neighboring counts and dukes, and had a hand in all manner of criminal activities, among them slavery." At this, a sad look passes over Jamila's face. Tiberio takes a glass of wine from a serving girl and drinks.
Karl Green
First Post
Thorkin Bearkiller
Thorkin raises an eye brow over the lass calling her master "father", thinking what trick is this now, especially if their little king is also opposed to it? but he says nothing. Instead he nods his head to Jamila "Drink lass, aye." Turning back to the Count, he says "Thorkin, son of Ragnar, well meet Count Tiberio of Ronocco.". He then takes a chair, and stretches out his legs and gets comfortable...
Thorkin raises an eye brow over the lass calling her master "father", thinking what trick is this now, especially if their little king is also opposed to it? but he says nothing. Instead he nods his head to Jamila "Drink lass, aye." Turning back to the Count, he says "Thorkin, son of Ragnar, well meet Count Tiberio of Ronocco.". He then takes a chair, and stretches out his legs and gets comfortable...
Andrew D. Gable
First Post
Satisfied that his guests are comfortable, Tiberio sets down his wine. He peers at Santoro with a smirk on his face. "There is no hiding the truth from the likes of you, I see. Aye, Drusus killed the king, in a manner of speaking. Old Cantallo, now, he was as mad as they come. He was obsessed with the question of immortality, and was loath to consider that his kingdom might fall to his grasping and unfit son Amalrus. Many a time had he expressed despair at Amalrus' weakmindedness. It was not just overt cruelty for which Drusus was punished. One of the victims of his rages was a shaman of the hill tribes, one who supposedly knew a way to make life eternal and unending. So Cantallo made a deal with Drusus.
"'Now, Drusus, you shall aid me if you wish to live,' said he. 'I have recently procured a copy of the fabled Book of Skelos and in it is an invocation to bestow immortality upon the user. You shall help me do this ritual, Drusus, or, make no mistake, I order my guards to kill you now.' Needless to say, Drusus agreed readily. Foolishness though it was, he would help Cantallo in these black arts. So Cantallo led him into the South Peristyle, in which he had all the accoutrements of a mage assembled. After preparing as necessary, the king unfurled the scroll and began reading.
"Perhaps before I go on, I should explain to you why I know this. For you see, at the time I had not yet been granted my lands by the king, and I was a guard in the Ianthium. I saw the whole thing occur with mine own eyes, unbelievable as it may sound.
"After nearly a half an hour, during which Cantallo called upon the most fearful of the old gods - Set himself, Shuma-Gorath, Varnae, and others too foul to mention - a mighty wind stirred over Ianthe. Great gusts of wind tore through the peristyle, and then... then a brazier overturned. Then all became dark - horribly, terribly dark, the kind of darkness that is practically palpable - then I saw it! Two great yellow eyes, shining like those of a cat in the dark. As my eyes grew accustomed to the darkness, I saw that it was Drusus, but yet... he was changed somehow. His countenance was crueller, more feral.
"'Cantallo!' he yelled. 'You offered me life, and life I shall receive!' Then the horrid thing that was Drusus laid open the king's throat with one swipe of its talon. And we guards, hardened by years of battle, fled for our very lives.
"Finally morning came. Of the nearly score of guards who were in the Peristyle that eve, only myself and four others survived. That morning, the palace was a ghoulish slaughterhouse. And there, in a wine-cellar, we discovered the body of the Drusus-thing. The king's son, Amalrus, instructed us to take it away, and so we did.
"From old books in the city's libraries, we learned that creatures of the sort Drusus had become were incapable of crossing running water. So we knew what we had to do with the thing. We hauled the stone box in which the thing was encased and loaded it on a riverboat, and went to an isle in the Red River. When we got to the isle, twilight was falling. Till we got the sarcophagus off the boat, the first inklings of night were reaching over the horizon. And then the thing came out of its box..." Tiberio shudders, and takes yet another glass of wine.
"'Now, Drusus, you shall aid me if you wish to live,' said he. 'I have recently procured a copy of the fabled Book of Skelos and in it is an invocation to bestow immortality upon the user. You shall help me do this ritual, Drusus, or, make no mistake, I order my guards to kill you now.' Needless to say, Drusus agreed readily. Foolishness though it was, he would help Cantallo in these black arts. So Cantallo led him into the South Peristyle, in which he had all the accoutrements of a mage assembled. After preparing as necessary, the king unfurled the scroll and began reading.
"Perhaps before I go on, I should explain to you why I know this. For you see, at the time I had not yet been granted my lands by the king, and I was a guard in the Ianthium. I saw the whole thing occur with mine own eyes, unbelievable as it may sound.
"After nearly a half an hour, during which Cantallo called upon the most fearful of the old gods - Set himself, Shuma-Gorath, Varnae, and others too foul to mention - a mighty wind stirred over Ianthe. Great gusts of wind tore through the peristyle, and then... then a brazier overturned. Then all became dark - horribly, terribly dark, the kind of darkness that is practically palpable - then I saw it! Two great yellow eyes, shining like those of a cat in the dark. As my eyes grew accustomed to the darkness, I saw that it was Drusus, but yet... he was changed somehow. His countenance was crueller, more feral.
"'Cantallo!' he yelled. 'You offered me life, and life I shall receive!' Then the horrid thing that was Drusus laid open the king's throat with one swipe of its talon. And we guards, hardened by years of battle, fled for our very lives.
"Finally morning came. Of the nearly score of guards who were in the Peristyle that eve, only myself and four others survived. That morning, the palace was a ghoulish slaughterhouse. And there, in a wine-cellar, we discovered the body of the Drusus-thing. The king's son, Amalrus, instructed us to take it away, and so we did.
"From old books in the city's libraries, we learned that creatures of the sort Drusus had become were incapable of crossing running water. So we knew what we had to do with the thing. We hauled the stone box in which the thing was encased and loaded it on a riverboat, and went to an isle in the Red River. When we got to the isle, twilight was falling. Till we got the sarcophagus off the boat, the first inklings of night were reaching over the horizon. And then the thing came out of its box..." Tiberio shudders, and takes yet another glass of wine.
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Karl Green
First Post
Thorkin Bearkiller
Thorkin sits forward, finishes his drink and motions Jamila for another. He nods at times, his eyes grow suspicious at others, thinking magic, daemons, stupid nobles...
[OCC - ah interesting![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
)
Thorkin sits forward, finishes his drink and motions Jamila for another. He nods at times, his eyes grow suspicious at others, thinking magic, daemons, stupid nobles...
[OCC - ah interesting
)
Andrew D. Gable
First Post
Tiberio looks up at Balavous. "Aye, I believe so." He mumbles something that sounds like 'I hope so', and drains his glass of wine. You've lost count of how many he's had during the tale. "We guards had another fight on our hands when we hauled the coffin onto the island, but we managed to escape with our lives. Drusus' lich raged and roared, but we did not look back.
"Upon arrival back at the Ianthium, we found that King Amalrus had been crowned. He summoned we guards to his chambers, and presented us all with baronies and counties, and bade us never let the true cause of his father's death be known.
"Should you be the sorts who seek adventure, I propose that you seek out and destroy, or banish, the foul spirit. I am willing to reimburse you with coin, for I am not a poor man." Tiberio gestures around him. "The cost may be negotiable. If you do this thing, know that you make the remaining years of a number of men's lives more bearable and less aggravated."
"Upon arrival back at the Ianthium, we found that King Amalrus had been crowned. He summoned we guards to his chambers, and presented us all with baronies and counties, and bade us never let the true cause of his father's death be known.
"Should you be the sorts who seek adventure, I propose that you seek out and destroy, or banish, the foul spirit. I am willing to reimburse you with coin, for I am not a poor man." Tiberio gestures around him. "The cost may be negotiable. If you do this thing, know that you make the remaining years of a number of men's lives more bearable and less aggravated."
Karl Green
First Post
Thorkin Bearkiller
Thorkin drain this second cup, and thinks a moment. Finally shaking his head he say "Daemons and creations of magic... what madness that is... hmmm... I have no love of such things and would not hesitate to rid the world of such a... thing. Hmm, what say you lads?" as he looks at his companions "Coin is coin, and I be almost out of it, but I like not the thought of facing... such a cursed thing... but if ye agree then I say such a thing could not stand before true steel… but of course the amount of the coin can make even a trip into the belly of the wyrm worth while."
Thorkin drain this second cup, and thinks a moment. Finally shaking his head he say "Daemons and creations of magic... what madness that is... hmmm... I have no love of such things and would not hesitate to rid the world of such a... thing. Hmm, what say you lads?" as he looks at his companions "Coin is coin, and I be almost out of it, but I like not the thought of facing... such a cursed thing... but if ye agree then I say such a thing could not stand before true steel… but of course the amount of the coin can make even a trip into the belly of the wyrm worth while."
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