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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jon Potter" data-source="post: 3550275" data-attributes="member: 2323">[PLAIN][Realms #396a] The Eyes Have It[/PLAIN]OOC- A little shorter post for Hairy Minotaur.Enjoy.---------------------------------"Sparky has been killed," Huzair declared, jumping to his feet. His body went from a state of apparent torpor to full alert in an instant."What?" Ayremac hissed. Windblade was ready and in his hand before he'd even fully stood. He began scanning the perimeter of the campsite for some sign of the latest threat."Get ready for battle! Archers are approaching with something Sparky could not tell me," the wizard said, shrugging into his haversack as he moved. "Get cover and, for Kael's sake, do your buffing now before it is too late!" He favored Morier with a pointed look as he said that last.Shamalin wasted no time and began casting a Magic Circle Against Evil centered on herself. Morier and Karak readied weapons while Ixin, who still understood little that went on without Huzair's help to translate, got uncertainly to her feet and unsheathed her Matched Pair Scimitars."Remember, archers probably will avoid Karak, Ayremac and Shamalin because of their armor. Morier and Ixin will most likely be the targets until I become visible; then they will focus on me. Nothing wrong with playing dead, guys, if you are going down," the wizard continued to bark orders, his body shaking with rage and excitement as he searched for the optimum position from which to rain death on their enemies. "Those trees would provide good cover. Watch your backs. Elves are in their element here.""But why would elves be attacking us?" Shamalin wondered aloud and Morier flinched visibly, convinced that his presence was the likely cause of this assault."That's a good question, Shamalin," Ayremac said. "Huzair, get into a good position, but don't attack until they do... please... I have some skill at negotiating, maybe Shamalin and I can work together. Just give us a chance.""You are an idiot," Huzair snapped, pointing an accusatory finger at the holy warrior. "I am hiding. First sign, they are fried.""At least let me see if I can Detect any Evil out there," Ayremac demanded, his teeth clenched, jaw twitching with barely contained anger as he fixed a wrathful eye on the wizard."Killing Sparky was an evil act and someone will be paying for it," Huzair paused and for a moment the rage on his face twisted into a rictus of grief. "He was a humming bird, damn it, not a fire-breathing dragon. Hardly a threat worth killing." His expression of pain hardened into a snarl and his eyes smoldered red just before he disappeared. "They are going to pay." Ayremac grimaced, exasperated and activated his ability to Detect the presence of Evil. "Karak, try to get Ixin to stand behind you or Shamalin or me, until we can bring the battle to them.""Aye," Karak nodded and stepped in front of the drakeling, shielding the lower two-thirds of her body with his own. She glanced quizzically down at the top of the dwarf's helm, but held her position, surmising his intent.Ayremac concentrated on his Detection, his eyes glittering jewel-like as he searched the shadows. For a time all the world seemed to be holding its breath. The campfire crackled and popped, but that sound and Huzair's muttering as he layered himself with spells were the only ones to reach anyone's ears. Then the distinct sound of a branch snapping under someone's foot thundered amidst the silence."Who goes there?" Ayremac shouted into the trees. Even with his darkvision, there was nothing to see in the forest. There was no reply, but again he felt the flesh crawl on the back of his neck as something watched him from the shadows. Still he sensed no evil within the range of his power to detect it. "We are a simple party of clerics and bodyguards, trying to bring good health and healing to sick people of this region.""What you are is a liar," a voice said from the darkness. The words were in the common tongue, but they were strangely accented and underscored with a buzzing sound like a hive of wasps somehow given voice. It was strange... alien... "Strange, is it not, angel, that your first inclination is to lie.""Would you identify yourselves and your intentions?" Ayremac asked, still casting his eyes around for some sign of the speaker."Our intentions are mutually beneficial," the voice said again. This time it seemed to have moved closer. "We are representatives of the Dominion of the Final Forge, enemies of the Dominion of Flesh Reborn, whose ally our monitor tells us you drove off earlier today some distance to the west. But I am hesitant to present myself to you with your mage so ready to, as he put it, fry us at first sight."Ayremac glanced around for some sign of the wizard, but of course there was none. "Huzair, stand down," he commanded. "We have a chance to talk our way out of conflict here." There was no response from the mage."Perhaps it would help to convince him to know that I could destroy him with an eyeblink right now if I chose? No, I don't suppose that it would," the voice buzzed. "But perhaps knowing the fate of his little friend would predispose him to negotiation rather than suicide?"There came then the muttered sound from the trees of a few words that were too low to understand. A second voice repeated the words some distance farther on and then a third and so on until the words disappeared in the hush. After a heartbeat, Huzair felt the link with Sparky re-establish itself. Fear and panic flooded the connection."Boss! You won't believe it! There's a be-" Sparky cried out before the link winked out again.</blockquote>

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