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Message: <blockquote data-quote="megamania" data-source="post: 7559017" data-attributes="member: 9255">UNDER A DARKSUN“THE STRANGE TALE OF BASIK“SEGMENT 165NOMAD DAY 8YEAR 23    RAL CONTEMPLATION KING’S    AGE 190IN THE BADLANDS OF THE BLACK SPINE MOUNTAINS“Hold the chisel this way.  Hold the chisel that way. Don’t you understand how to use a chisel?”  Grumbles the man as he walks through the rocky natural maze-like area known as a Bad land.  “No!   No I don’t!  I know how to stick the pointy end of my trident into a Gith.   I know how to feint to the left and strike with the weapon on the right!”   The man growls in utter frustration…. And loneliness.    The normally happy-go-lucky fighter is not having a good day.   But his story wouldn’t be complete if we don’t go back a month or so in Nibenay.   It started with a simple gathering of childhood friends in the private home of Temmnya Shom of House Shom.“Oh I remember how he danced for you!  He was a hopping and jumping about as you tossed those blades at his feet!” Hahahahahah  Laughs a woman dressed in silks, pearls and gold.  She has had at least one too many wines already…. And the night is young.  Her name is Temmnya Shom.Laughing with her is a woman dressed in fine clothes and a headpiece depicting a cobra with feathers.  A gift from a now-dead suitor from Draj.  She is spilling her own wine and has not noticed how drunken she has become.  Her name is Veslah.  She is a Templar-wife of Nibenay. “Now I would use my magics to make him dance!” She laughs as she stabs at the air with her fingers splayed wide.The servants are not impressed.   “Accidents” often occurred when these two childhood friends got together.   Many accidents that led to the death (s) of servants.“Did you know his brother later came to me?  He was on his knees pleading.”  She sets down her drink and gets off the large pillows to kneel on the floor before the Templar.  “Don’t hold my brother’s actions against us!  Please!  I’ll do anything!  Anything!”  a new burst of laughter escapes from both of them.“Hahahah!  I like it when you kneel before me!  You are very good!” calls out the drunken templar.“hahaha….. excuse me?”Uh-oh.   The servants, even the bards in the background, suddenly remember something urgent to do.“I am your best childhood friend BUT…. But  I am also your Templar.”   Still smiling Veslah takes another sip.   “Now, unless you have something in mind to do while there…. You may get up.”“What?”  Temmnya stumbles and over balances twice as she stands up right.    “Do you insult me Veslah?   Do you make me out to be a normal rabble person before you?!?  I am…. Shom!     Dropping to a knee she frowns at her spilt wine.  The frown gets deeper as she notes she must pour herself more wine as all of the slaves have left the room.“What do you suggest?” the templar snarls with increasing menace.Both stare at each other.“A contest!” Declares Veslah.“A contest then!”   clumsily Temmnya reseats herself.  “A contest of…. ““Champions!” and they laugh again.  The braver slaves begin to return warily.Two hours pass as the two drunken women hammer out the details (with no logic what-so-ever to it).  “The rules arsh simple then.  You, Temmnya Shom, high ranshking member of the awesomely great house Shom will present a champion.   I, The prettiest and most awesome of the king’s templars, will also presence a champion.”“So on.  It sounds greats sus far. “Like two very bad actors the merchant and templar begin their contest of respect.  “I, Temmnya Shom, prrsence to you my champpeen- Seus.  A Mul steps foreward.  He twists his neck making a cracking sound. He thumps his spear twice on the ground then steps back.“I thoughts is name was Zeus?”“It is.  Is Seus.”“Okay then.   It will be Zeus vs my champion-   I give you……” she sweeps her arm to the side to point at where her champion would be.  In doing so, the slave needs to dunk under her or be slapped.   Perhaps being slapped would have been better.   Veslah blinks trying to determine the truth at hand.  “Where is my champion?”Five minutes ago-“Hurry Basik.   The master is drunken and in a foul mood.   She is drinking at House Shom again.” Stutters the slave in grave concern for his well being.  “WE must be quick.   Tonight we will go through her courtyard- not the rear entrance.  Hurry.”The human fighter rolls his eyes.   He picks up his armor and follows.   Whenever the two childhood friends get together someone dies or requires healing.   He is slow to follow.  He has never been allowed in the house.   He is curious and looks around as they move.  The servant is a room ahead of him now.Something catches his eye in the dim light in a corner.    If he must die tonight, he will enjoy whatever he can the positive minded fighter thinks.  It is a dagger under glass.   Curious.   Trophy?   The slave calls for him from two rooms away.  “Hurry or we will both be killed!”They move outside of the city walls where a guard motions for them to go.   Basik sees his master and another woman leaning against each other.   A muscular mul surrounded by guards stands behind them.  “Bashik….I should have you ‘ipped for making me and Tem wait.”Basik is given a trident and a bone dagger.  The mul has a stone spear and a stone dagger.  “Thas rules are simple.  We count to three and youse runs into the desert.  You are to hunt and kills a gith.  The first back with a head wins.  Understoood?”The mul and Basik look at their weapons, to each other, to their drunken masters then back to the city gates.   They look to each other again and smile.In a strangled sing-song, the two drunken women begin.   “Ones…..  a Twos…… THREE!”The two warriors sprint away into the desert…. Into the dark.Ten minutes later-“Well?” asks Basik.“The moons smile on us both.   We are not being followed.”   The two warriors do a fist bump and a farewell and flee.THE NEXT MORNINGThe two women awaken in pain.   Veslah curses to herself.  Her hangover is so severe she can not recall the proper words to use to remove the toxins from her body magically.   Temmnya doesn’t have templar magic to help her, but she does have grapes infused with the same spell that she eats one by one with most of the juices leaking out of her mouth.   Neither clearly remembers why they have dirt and sand in their shoes.   A naked slave is on the floor between them.  His feet have been destroyed by magic and stabbing marks.   Neither knows if he is alive or care either way.Veslah mumbles something along the lines of “great time.  Do it again soon.” And leaves.  The fresh air and time it takes to do her “walk of shame” brings some memories back.   She remembers the disappointment of possibly losing their contest.   She will be sure to lash him when she feels better- this afternoon or tomorrow.She reaches her home and stumbles to the room where she keeps her paintings and sculptures.   She begins to remember now.   Basik….. Basik the bastard- never returned.  Zeus killed him.  That is cheating.  Shom will need to make amends for that.    Oh.   Zeus didn’t…… errrrrr……Drunken they let the slaves have freedom to gain honor.   For this they fled.   Traitors!   Then she stops all thinking and sneers in  anger and further frustration.    In the corner, where she kept her most favored possession, a dagger that Nibenay himself gave her, sits an empty case.  She has been robbed.  NOMAD DAY 11Hot.    So hot.   Basik has escaped Nibenay just to die of thirst in the silt.He has walked for days.  He found water here and there but with no water skin he was at the mercy of cactus and salty & gritty water in shallow oasis that often where watched over by slave tribes or worse elves.Believing he is about to die….. he rules over (when did he fall down?) and blows silt from his mouth.  He traveled what he thought was north.   That would have lead him to the Black Spine Mountains where he hoped to find shelter.  Instead he found…..silt.    He went in the wrong direction or doesn’t understand the layout here.  The blowing silt makes it hard to see anything- even mountains in the distance.   He closes his eyes to die.He awakens with a dry throat but a sense of moisture on him.  And blessed shade.  Or is it darkness.He hears someone move away in a hurry.  He sits upright in the nest of torn cloth and ….drapes?    Someone is coming back towards him.    He can not see well enough to find a weapon…. Where is his trophy?   “Hello?”“Hello and well met.  I am Ten Pug.  Who are you?”Basik has found a slave tribe run by a handicapped mul named Ten-Pug.   They have a shelter near the Silt way that was once a temple or something of incredible size.  To belong and remain here Basik had to shown some skills with sculpture.    He has none.Having many guards and military types already for protection, Basik was given some supplies and was asked to leave the clan.  He was given directs to locate the Black Spine Mountains and warned of the gith that live there and sent on his way.   WINDS     DAY 23Basik finds there are too many Gith here.   Whomever told him one could escape to here and be safe was incredibly insane.</blockquote>

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