Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="megamania" data-source="post: 7612851" data-attributes="member: 9255">DARKSUN: THE ELEMENTS OF EVILSEGMENT 010“TO ALTURAK”05/17/19SEASON: FRIEND’S VENGEANCE  YEAR 24MONTH: THE SUNDAY: 20KA: 190Yaesha calls everyone available. Koe sets out from meditating.  Choro and Olan come out from the Kes’trekel’s Roost along with Drak.  They met up in front of the storage house where the House leader is tying down a tarp.   “The House has a special delivery to do.  A rich client wishes to have some of our dyed fabrics for his daughter and fourth wife.  He is willing to pay extra to receive it quickly.   Most of the other caravan people are near Urik at this point so I will ask if you would like to go.”“I can.” Answers the mul monk.“We all can go.” Follows Choro.“Good.   We leave within the hour.”“Standard…. Pay?” asks the thri-kreen.“Yes.” And the caravan leader stalks off and into the storage building.“Really?” asks Olan.“Need food.  Need sweet drink.  Need money.” Answers the Thri-kreen barbarian in his own defense.The group gathers their equipment and traveling gear and return to the wagon.   A lone wagon is being loaded with several crates, bundles and barrels. “Choro- I have something for you.” Yaesha calls out to the half-giant psion.With obvious curiosity, the psion looks to see what it is.  Within the animal pen is a large strong looking lizard called an Inix.  “A new mount for you.   I believe she will carry you far batter than the crodlu.“Thankyou.  You did not have to do that.”“Yes.  Yes I did.  You were slowing down the crodlu and thus the entire caravan.  The Inix can carry you and still keep up.”They leave the trade house compound and reach the gates of Draj within twenty minutes.  The templars here are extremely thorough and even with double the normal rate bribe, take a long time and touch nearly every crate, box or barrel within the lone cart.DAY 22 OF THE SUN-The small caravan arrives at the city-state of Raam.  The templars here dressed in white and golden yellow poke and prod but mainly ask the typical questions.  “Who, What and When” while holding out their hand for money.  They rush to make it within the trade house grounds before darkness settles in.Choro is tired and goes upstairs to the sleeping quarters and falls asleep quickly.  Drak wanders around outside within the walled area.  Olan and Koe talk for a short bit.  Koe asks a bit about if they stop at Silver Springs will he visit the elven defiler witch doctor.  With a short laugh, the Tiefling smiles and suggests he is not certain.  He is almost afraid to learn anything about his family- his father.   What kind of man is Lord Balor.  “Outsider…alien being.  Not man.” Koe stiffly answers.   Without any further words or actions, the monk walks silently up the stairs and goes to sleep near the snoring half-giant.Olan stares at the cart.   A special trip just for fabric?  He doubts it.   It will cost nearly 80 silver just for wages for them alone.  There to be more to it than that.  He climbs into the cart risking getting into trouble and finds where the fabric is.  He is tired and curls up over the softest section of the cart’s contents and soon finds himself asleep.Near midnight, the two guards in the watch tower are still watching outside the compound walls.  Raam is well known for its thieves.  Yaesha has long since gone to bed in the main building that is the most comfortable.  Its good to be the leader.Drak stops.  He thought he saw a shadow move in Ral’s light.   He slowly moves closer and now knows he has seen movement as the door slowly opens a small bit and a shadow moves by it.  “KLIK! KLIK!  Intruder!  KLIK! KLIK! Intruder!” and the thri-kreen happily leaps to the entrance to the storage building.A tall and slender humanoid dressed in black that covers their entire body except for their eyes and nose is in the doorway.  The guards can not see and call to the thri-kreen for details as another guard pulls on a rope.  The ropes crosses across a ten foot space to the top floor of the storage building where guards and caravan members sleep.  Koe awakens immediately.   Down stairs, the rogue dimly becomes aware he is not alone.  Silently he rolls over and sees Drak reaching in through a mostly closed door at a figure dressed in black.He throws a bone dagger at the intruder and misses.  It strikes the door and falls nearby.  The intruder looks briefly then tries to use the door as a shield.  Olan softly drops to the floor and spots movement under the cart- another intruder!   This one skips his dagger off the rogue’s boot.   He was trying to hamstring the rogue from a position of surprise.  If Drak did not interrupt the two they may have killed him in his sleep.He stabs straight down with his rapier and puts it through the sneaky intruder’s eye and head.  One down and one to- two to go! A dagger strikes Olan as he works his sword free from the skull.  Another blackened tall gaunt figure was hiding within the crates and has thrown a dagger.  Olan hopes it is not poisoned.Koe hurries down the stairs which go behind this just exposed intruder.  With two swift kicks from above the intruder is taken out.  Koe hoped to take this intruder alive but is not clear as there is a sharp crack sound and the figure crumples to the floor instantly.The third intruder, the first one spotted attempts to get past Drak.  Drak kills it quickly.  One shouldn’t play with its food.  It might get foolish thoughts.Yaesha hurries over calling to the thri-kreen.  “Keep at least one alive!  I want answers!”The thri-kreen looks down at the dead person in its hands…. “Keep one- klik- alive.  This one…. dead… food.”Choro has finally awoken and wandered down the stairs.  Seeing everything is done, he yawns deeply and begins to return to bed.  “Wait a moment Choro.  I may need you.” Calls out the caravan captain as he looks for a survivor to question.Olan is attempting to tie up an elf.  Koe shakes his head.  “You do it all wrong.  Let me show you how it is done in Nibenay.”The elf is tied up securely and begins to come around.  Yaesha moves a heavy table and several chairs to expose a trap door.  “Down here.  No sense allowing anyone to know what we have and we are about to do.”Koe have carries and half drags the thrashing elf down the hidden stairs into the basement.  Yaesha winks at the half-giant- “Mind Bender-  I have need for you.” He says much louder than required.Olan lights a handful of torches and sits back to see what happens.“What were you looking to find?” demands Yaesha.Silence.In Elven now- “What were you hoping to find?” repeats the caravan leader.  He waves for Choro to step up after the elf answers with a dirty look mainly aimed at the thri-kreen.Koe positions the elf so that he can see the half-giant better.  Choro is pulling out his Gloves of object reading.  “With these I can separate your body from your soul.  At first will tingle… even tickle a bit.  Then my power will reach into your mind.   I will peel it like a crying root (onion)…. You can scream then if you wish.”  He gives an exaggerated tug on the glove cuffs to make them snug.“Can I eat him?” asks Drak.“Later.” Answers Yaesha… not sure where the intimidation and the anticipation separates.“Elf.”“Obviously.”“Male.”His bluff begins to dwindle as the elf recognizes the glove’s powers and how harmless they are.   “Rogue….. killer”He is safe from the half-giant but knows he can not avoid revealing secrets for long.  The elf attempts to get someone- anyone to kill him ( 1 hp remains).  In elven he declares the mul and the thri-kreen should have sexual relations with each other.  Then, remembering who reacted to elven and who reacted to common the elf tries new tactics.  In common-  “The mul stinks of elder berries”.“Raam.” Says Choro as he continues to read the history of the Shadow Elf.“I want to kilik-klik-kik- eat him.    Please Clutch Master!  Just a little piece.”“Elf-Male-Rogue/assassin- from Raam- here to steal stuff” continues the half-giant.“Enough Choro.  He is not scared by you any more.” Growls Yaesha.  Perhaps a new tactic is required.” And he nods to Koe.In elven the desperate elf starts after Olan.  “You are ugly even for a new race.  You are a discarded child of a mutation.”“Whatever.” Olan replies in elven.   Only the elf, Olan and Choro understand the elven language.“Who sent you?” Demands the leader.In elven and aimed at Olan-  “Your father.  He has a message for you.”“Huh?!?” the tiefling, seeking to understand his family, is stunned.Koe slides a dagger behind the elf’s ear.  “We don’t understand that language.  Tell us in common.” And he flicks the blade and an ear flies through the air and the thri-kreen reaches out and catches it.  He first shows the elf the ear then begins to nibble on it.The elf begins to scream and scream.“Very well.  We are not going to get anywhere without a telepath.  And even then, elves are resilient to a psion’s power.”“Finish him?” asks Koe.Choro looks away suddenly as Yaesha drives a dagger through the elf’s neck.No one speaks after this.  The horror of their actions bothers all of to some degree (well….maybe not Drak).   Olan is paranoid the elf may have speaking the truth.  Is his father seeking his and his friend’s deaths?  Choro has too gentle of a heart for this.  He truly wishes the elf spoke so that he didn’t need to be killed.  Or would have Yaesha killed him anyway?Everyone goes back to their beds or activities.   Few sleep well and those that do sleep are bothered by bad dreams.  Drak spots Yaesha coming out of the main house about one hour before daybreak.  He doesn’t follow.   The caravan leader goes into the basement and does what ever he sought to in solitude.Son, everyone awakens and grabs some food.  No one speaks as they gather their animals and cart and leave.  They have just only begun their trip to Alturak.</blockquote>

Verification