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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Arcturion" data-source="post: 3743888" data-attributes="member: 54632">1.2 Hommes OptareSeemingly unmoved by her words, Rentiki said nothing as he leveled the pistol’s sight, ready to fire.Wasting no time, Eltera crouched low while her bare heel kicked the sheathed sword scant inches over the table’s surface so that the silver wire-wrapped hilt slid past and hovered over the edge. She stepped lightly on the leather-bound wooden scabbard to brace it with her weight and with her right hand the dark aelf made a grab for Amurisil and pulled the eog-forged blade free from its home. The metal rang in her ears as it slid out, glinting in the pale moonlight that spilled forth from the cabin’s windows.As quick as she was on the draw, though, the Daoshan Captain was quicker. He adjusted his aim with the barrel trained unerringly upon Eltera despite her sudden movement and squeezed the ornately wrought trigger.An empty click as the hammer fell was all that greeted them both, echoing hollowly across the room. There was no flash from the muzzle, no thunderous boom, nor burst of acrid smoke, only a dull spark from the flint as it struck.The hilt of Amurisil gripped tightly in her hand, Eltera narrowed her eyes and merely stared at Rentiki when he withdrew the pistol’s barrel up to rest it upon his broad shoulder.“Black powder,” the large man said with a mischievous grin. “Have I told you it’s extremely difficult to come by outside of the Empire these days?” The Daoshan spun the pistol lazily in his hand, letting the barrel dangle downward as he balanced it with one finger still in the trigger guard. With practiced ease, he flipped the ornate weapon in the air and grabbed it by the barrel. Eltera watched as the Captain studied it for a moment before he gave a shrug and casually tossed the flintlock pistol toward her with an overhand palm.Catching it easily in her free hand, the dark aelf found the firearm heavy and somewhat unwieldy, the long barrel and grip gilded with golden filigree in the shape of graceful vines and roses.“It’s more of a display piece than a field weapon,” Rentiki observed genially. “A work of art, really. Took it off some highborn B’astyian officer some years back who thought to board my Argus on suspicion of smuggling, imagine that. I tell you, if the man’s aim was as good as his ship I wouldn’t be standing here today speaking with you. It only had enough black powder for three shots in all that time since then, anyway. Keep it. I’ve no use for it any longer.“Eltera,” the large man continued smoothly, as if testing the name on his tongue as he said it. “I rather preferred Cataya, to be perfectly honest. It brings to mind the sleek, powerful hunting cats of my homeland Daosha, stalking its prey like a black shadow. Still, Eltera is a good, strong name. But this being the first time I’ve ever met a dark aelf, I can’t really be sure of that, I suppose. I’ve precious little knowledge when it comes to the ways of your people, I must admit. But what I can be certain of is my pride in being a good judge of character. I like you, my dear Cat, liked you when I first laid eyes upon you back on the quays. Come, come. Please do step down from the table, if you will. Had I wanted to kill you or worse, I would have done it already while you slept, is that not so?“So, you may be wondering, why the deception? I had to be sure,” Rentiki replied with a knowing smile. “You did not hesitate, that is good. In this bleak world of ours, hesitation will only cost you your life, yes? Besides, if there’s one thing I’ve learned during my time as Captain is that appearances can be deceiving.”Tugging at the hem of his colorful vest with both hands, Rentiki stepped around toward the masks and furs displayed on the cabin’s wall, being somewhat careful about approaching too closely to Eltera. “Orpheus, here to me, you rascal,” he beckoned with one outstretched arm. The bone necklace that lay upon the floor rattled momentarily and then broke apart, its individual pieces swirling up into the air in a tiny macabre cyclone before assuming its skeletal serpentine shape. Like an obedient dog that was eager to please its master, the snake flew toward the Daoshan Captain and spun circles around him before settling upon its bony head upon one wide shoulder. The length of the creature’s vertebrae coiled around Rentiki’s arm, its ribs writhing like so many dozens of crawling legs while the Daoshan Captain scratched alongside its fleshless jaw rather affectionately.“Necromancer,” the large man repeated with a touch of amusement in his broad features. “Now that’s something new. I’ve been called many things, my dear Cat, but never before have I been accused of necromancy.” Rentiki allowed himself a rumbling chuckle. “Truth be told, Orpheus wasn’t always as he is now. I raised him from the time he hatched from his egg and we’ve been inseparable ever since. Boa constrictors, fascinating creatures they are. Why, not even death stood between us! I won’t bore you with the details, but I struck up a bargain with a Shakali priestess I had been, uh, wooing at the time. And so Orpheus returned to me from the dead, though not quite in the way I had been expecting, as you can see. Needless to say, my romance with the lady shaman proved rather short lived. When one is threatened with a curse that makes his manhood shrivel and fall off like an old withered prune, tis best to cut the lines and cast off while the casting’s good, I say!” At this, Rentiki let out a booming laugh that shook his ample belly.“But I assure you, dear Cat, a necromancer I am not,” Rentiki said confidently, flashing Eltera his white teeth. “Besides, my crew would never abide to follow a man who would dabble in the black arts so openly. Orpheus be a rare exception to the rule, of course, and is more of a good luck charm than anything else. All told, we sailors are a superstitious lot. Why, if my men knew that a dark aelf was aboard, they’d probably mutiny this very minute. Rest assured, the only other who knows your secret is my ship’s surgeon, and he can keep a secret as no other can, believe you me. You have Terwase to thank for saving your life, not I. In his time, the old medicine man’s delivered his fair share of babes kicking and screaming into this world, so he’s seen nothing he hasn’t already a hundred times before. Terwase cleaned and bandaged the wounds when I brought you aboard the Argus earlier in the day. If you must know, you’ve been asleep for many a candle-mark, muttering something about eyes always watching. We both feared you would never wake from your fevered dreams.”The large man held up a meaty hand and waved it in front of him. As he did so, a beautiful segmented folding screen woven from reeds upon a light wooden frame slid out seemingly all by itself from behind some fur hides where it had been concealed. Accompanied by another quick snap of his wrist, the bookcase behind Eltera slid to one side to reveal a small wardrobe behind it. To the left of the mariner’s garb were a few women’s dresses cut from rich fabrics and styled in exotic patterns, each obviously much too small for a man of Rentiki’s considerable size. A small oak trunk lay at the floor of the hidden closet.That was strange, Eltera thought. Her aelfin senses should have helped her detect any concealed doors or secret compartments within the room.“Please,” the Captain motioned. “Sheathe your sword. Its blade is much too bright for this seadog’s eyes. Truly, I mean you no harm, so does Rentiki swear upon the ancient gods of hallowed Daosha. You are free to change as well, dear Cat, though I hope you choose one of the many fine dresses I have stored therein. Mail ill suits you, to my thinking. Silk is a much better match for your sable skin. As the evening is still young, it is also my ardent wish that you dine with me tonight. It will give us a chance to talk more at length, yes?”Rentiki gave Eltera an amiable smile. At the mention of food, the dark aelf’s stomach growled. It had been too long since she last ate.</blockquote>

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